Sandesha · Sri Mahalakshmi Puja on the 19th, was performed by Swami Vishnumayanandaji accompanied...
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Arise ! Awake ! Stop not, till the goal is reached. January, February, March, 2018 Om Namo Narayanaya Badarikashrama Diary Following the celebration of Navaratri at the end of September, one of the key functions in October was Deepavali Celebrations. Sri Mahalakshmi Puja on the 19th, was performed by Swami Vishnumayanandaji accompanied by Srimat Swami Omka- ranandaji who had just returned from our ashrama in Karnataka. On the 22nd, the afternoon observance featured Mahalakshmi Homa followed by Odissi Dance recital by students from the Na- taraj School of Dance, Director Sima Chakraborthy. Suman and Sargam Shah performed bhajans with a focus on Mahalakshmi. Raadha Vijaya Kumar also offered a number of bhajans. For the closing of Deepavali celebrations, children came forward to light deepas that were placed on the altar. Many devotees came to meet Swamiji who talked about the meaning of Deepavali. Mahatma Gandhi Peace Prayer Day featured talks on Gandhi by a number of devotees and readings from some of his writings. The month also included the observances of Sri Satyanarayana Swami Puja, Sri Bhagavad Gita talk and kirtan as well as Sri Ra- manama Sankirtana and Meditation. As a member of the Eden Area Interfaith Council (EAIC) we joined in the 2nd Annual Meet- ing. Nataraj School of Dance was part of the entertainment for the event which was hosted by the Holy Cross Episcopal Church in Castro Valley. Mangalaji gave the closing prayers. She was also elected as the VP of Programming for the following year. Mata Ki Chowki was also organized featuring Satnam and group. November included our usual line-up of worship services. Members of our ashrama marched in the Castro Valley “City of Light” Parade on the 11th, with a Deepavali theme display and prominent show of our Ashrama banner, in conjunction with members of the Eden Area Interfaith Council. Hundreds of peo- ple greeted the marchers. “Truth, purity and unselfishness” - Wherever these are present, there is no power below or above the sun to crush the possessor thereof. Equipped with these, one individual is able to face the whole universe in opposition.” “Never quarrel about religion. All quarrels and disputations concerning religion simply show that spirituality is not present. Religious quarrels are always over the husks. When purity and spirituality go leaving the soul dry, quarrels begin and not be- fore.” “Do not care for doctrines. Do not care for dog- mas, or sects, or churches or temples; they count for little compared with the essence of existence in each man (person) which is spirituality, and the more this is developed in a man (person), the more power- ful is he/she for good. Earn that first, acquire that and criticize no one. Show by your lives that religion does not mean words, or names, or sects, but that it means spiritual realization.” “I remember that grand word of the Katha Upani- shad, ‘Shraddha’, or marvelous faith. To preach the doctrine of Shraddha or genuine faith is the mission of my life. Let me repeat to you that this faith is one of the potent factors of humanity, and of all religions. First, have faith in yourselves. Do not look up to the rich and great men who have money. The poor did all the great and gigantic works of the world. Be steady, and above all be pure and sincere to the backbone. Have faith in your destiny.” Swami Vivekananda (“Thus Spoke Vivekananda” Sri Ramakrishna Math, Chennai, pp. 19,23,25.) Na Me Bhakta Pranashyati My Devotee Never Perishes Sandesha Mahalakshmi Homa, conducted by Swamiji
Transcript of Sandesha · Sri Mahalakshmi Puja on the 19th, was performed by Swami Vishnumayanandaji accompanied...
Arise ! Awake ! Stop not, till the goal is reached.
January, February, March, 2018
Om Namo Narayanaya
Badarikashrama Diary
Following the celebration of Navaratri at the end of September, one of the key functions in October was Deepavali Celebrations. Sri Mahalakshmi Puja on the 19th, was performed by Swami Vishnumayanandaji accompanied by Srimat Swami Omka-ranandaji who had just returned from our ashrama in Karnataka. On the 22nd, the afternoon observance featured Mahalakshmi Homa followed by Odissi Dance recital by students from the Na-taraj School of Dance, Director Sima Chakraborthy. Suman and Sargam Shah performed bhajans with a focus on Mahalakshmi. Raadha Vijaya Kumar also offered a number of bhajans. For the closing of Deepavali celebrations, children came forward to light deepas that were placed on the altar. Many devotees came to meet Swamiji who talked about the meaning of Deepavali. Mahatma Gandhi Peace Prayer Day featured talks on Gandhi by a number of devotees and readings from some of his writings. The month also included the observances of Sri Satyanarayana Swami Puja, Sri Bhagavad Gita talk and kirtan as well as Sri Ra-manama Sankirtana and Meditation. As a member of the Eden Area Interfaith Council (EAIC) we joined in the 2nd Annual Meet-ing. Nataraj School of Dance was part of the entertainment for the event which was hosted by the Holy Cross Episcopal Church in Castro Valley. Mangalaji gave the closing prayers. She was also elected as the VP of Programming for the following year. Mata Ki Chowki was also organized featuring Satnam and group.
November included our usual line-up of worship services. Members of our ashrama marched in the Castro Valley “City of Light” Parade on the 11th, with a Deepavali theme display and prominent show of our Ashrama banner, in conjunction with members of the Eden Area Interfaith Council. Hundreds of peo-ple greeted the marchers.
“Truth, purity and unselfishness” - Wherever these are present, there is no power below or above the sun to crush the possessor thereof. Equipped with these, one individual is able to face the whole universe in opposition.”
“Never quarrel about religion. All quarrels and disputations concerning religion simply show that spirituality is not present. Religious quarrels are always over the husks. When purity and spirituality go leaving the soul dry, quarrels begin and not be-fore.”
“Do not care for doctrines. Do not care for dog-mas, or sects, or churches or temples; they count for little compared with the essence of existence in each man (person) which is spirituality, and the more this is developed in a man (person), the more power-ful is he/she for good. Earn that first, acquire that and criticize no one. Show by your lives that religion does not mean words, or names, or sects, but that it means spiritual realization.”
“I remember that grand word of the Katha Upani-shad, ‘Shraddha’, or marvelous faith. To preach the doctrine of Shraddha or genuine faith is the mission of my life. Let me repeat to you that this faith is one of the potent factors of humanity, and of all religions. First, have faith in yourselves. Do not look up to the rich and great men who have money. The poor did all the great and gigantic works of the world. Be steady, and above all be pure and sincere to the backbone. Have faith in your destiny.”
Swami Vivekananda (“Thus Spoke Vivekananda” Sri Ramakrishna Math, Chennai, pp. 19,23,25.)
Na Me Bhakta Pranashyati My Devotee Never Perishes
Sandesha
Mahalakshmi Homa, conducted by Swamiji
other religious organizations who are members of the EAIC. The posters will be on display in the rotunda until after Janu-ary 1st, 2018. On Saturday the 9th we presented “Meet Your Hindu Neighbors” at the San Lorenzo Library in conjunction with EAIC. Panel members included Swami Omkarananda, Suman Shah, Sargam, Shah, Mangalananda and Venkat Shenoy . Pankaj Kumar assisted with the power point presen-tation on Hinduism.
The following Sunday was the annual Sri Sarada Devi Jayanti Celebration. The event began with bhajans by Sri Ra-makrishna Bhajan Mandali led by Natana Valiveti. The over 40 member group rendered bhajans on Sarada Devi, Rama-krishna and Vivekananda for almost to an hour and a half with sincerity, dedication, and reverence, highlighting their talent and practice. Pr. Vedaprana gave a well-received talk on Sri Sarada Devi. The senior nun from the Vedanta Society, San Francisco, was accompanied by Pr. Virajaprana. The Christmas Concert and Dinner was more exceptional than usual with hundreds of people coming to enjoy the stu-pendous concert by Shubhangi Sakalkar accompanied by Vivek Datar on harmonium and Shripad Torvi on tabla. The three enthralled the audience with a kayal, a vachana, sev-eral Marathi abhangas, ending with Deva Vittala. Shubangi was in rare form and brought joy and peace to all hearing her. Afterwards everyone partook of a many-itemed Christmas Dinner prepared by many families. Two days after Christmas Swamiji left for our center in Karnataka to continue his work on the development of the Vidyashala (school). He always encourages everyone to visit our center in Madihalli. Decem-ber concluded with Sri Satyanarayana Swami Puja & Katha.
For Thanksgiving a stupendous concert was presented by Srikanth Chary on veena along with his son, Hrishikesh Chary, also on veena. Ramesh Srinivasan and his daugh-ter Satya accompanied on mridangam. Their rousing per-formance showed the benefits derived from families focus-ing on the classical arts and its impact on their offspring. The multicultural audience enjoying their delicate render-ings of instrumental Carnatic compositions and applauded the artists. After the concert all partook in a feast of North and South Indian cuisine as well as dishes from other countries. The event was free and attracted over 250 peo-ple this year. The following Sunday, Swamiji gave a talk on the Sri Bhagavad Gita as part of the Jayanti Celebrations. Young people from Starr King Unitarian Universal Church in Hayward also visited the Sunday service. Throughout the month many devotees visited Swamiji and invited him to their homes for puja and satsang. We were visited by Sheshadari and his wife, Jayalakshmi, from India and Katy (Kalyani) Clapp from Missouri.
The December month was laden with festivals. Begin-ning with Sri Sundarakhanda Ramayana of Goswami Tu-lasidas, which happens on the first Saturday of every month. On Sunday, December 3rd, the biannual Samuhi-ka 108 Sri Satyanarayana Swami Puja and Katha were conducted. It began with bhajans by Rita Sahai and her students which always sets the devotional tone of the wor-ship of Lord Satyanarayana. Swami Omkaranandaji led the numerous devotees in his ever present focus on group worship with faith and devotion. Our mahaprasad was sponsored by Pramila and Raghu Gupta and friends.
The Saturday before the Samuhika Puja the ashrama participated in the “Light Up the Season” festival at the Hayward City Hall Rotunda. The ashrama provided details for the Divali Poster displayed along with the posters of the
Ramesh Srinivasan, Srikanth Chary, Hrishikesh Chary
Venkat Shenoy, Suman Shah, Sargam Shah, SwamiJi
& Mangalananda
Mangala, Pr. Vedaprana and Pr. Virajaprana
Christmas Concert: Shripad Torvi, Shubhangi Sakhalkar, Vivek Datar
On October 2nd
Badarikashrama celebrated Gandhi Jayanthi in the Vidyashala. Students honoured Mahatma Gandhi with music and speeches, sang “Raghupathi Raghava Raja Ram” and spoke about the life and teachings of Gandhiji. It was uplifting and inspiring to one and all. On October 5
th Valmiki Jayanti was celebrated. Valmiki is
known as the first Sanskrit poet and author of the Ramaya-na epic. Speeches & songs were presented by the students and teachers alike. On October 9
th the ashrama celebrated
Srimat Swami Omkaranandaji Maharaj’s 79th birthday on
Founders Day. Students, devotees and friends gathered in the Lakshminarayana Mandir to honour their beloved Swa-miji, with speeches, music and gifts. Swamiji was adorned with beautiful garlands and showered with flower petals.
He shared his knowledge and valuable thoughts and gave his holy blessings to the gathering. From October 3
rd
through the 10th Vidyashala students took first semester
writing exams. The exam results were resoundingly posi-tive. On October 11
th students were presented a classical
Carnatic Music Outreach Program led by Kumari Apoorva Krishna on violin, Anoor Vinod Shyam on mridangam and Sunaad Anoor on Khanjira. They performed outstanding instrumental pieces such as Vathapi Ganapathi & Bha-gyada Lakshmi Baramma, along with original compositions. In their joyful interaction with the students they explained about Sapta Swaras (seven notes) and Ragas and engaged with them interactively in fun exercises.
There were special guests from Silicon City School, Ban-galore: Chairman Dr. Sameera Simha, Principal Ms. Sumalini and Secretary Mr. Ravi. Srimathi Shakuntala Murthy and family were also present. Smt. Shakuntala is a renowned vocalist and teacher and is the grandmother of Apoorva Krishna. Her parents Smt. Aarati and Muralikrishna were in attendance. On October 18
th Swamiji left for our American ash-
rama. Teachers and devotees gave him a warm send-off. Swamiji is on tour in America and will return to India on December 29
th.
On November 1st the Vidyashala celebrated Kannada
Rajyotsava. This was the day in 1956 when all the Kannada language speaking regions of South In-dia were merged to form the state of Karnataka. Enthu-siasm, excitement, and eager participation were ex-pressed through the children as they honoured their
State with excellent speeches in English, Hindi and Kan-nada, as well as with patriotic songs, dances and dra-mas. Children’s Day was celebrated on 14
th of Novem-
ber, the birth anniversary of Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru, because he loved children dearly. The aim of Children’s Day is to increase the awareness of people towards the rights, care and education of children. The Vidyashala students gave a brief history of Jawaharlal Nehru and his contribution to India. On Dec. 7
th and 8
th the Vidyashala
held its Annual Sports Day. Vigorous competitions were held in kabbadi, volley ball, Kho Kho and running. The atmosphere was ringing with cheers as the students en-couraged each other on.
News from Badarikashrama, Madihalli
Gandhi Jayanthi at the Vidyashala
Carnatic Music Outreach program, Swamiji and guests
Kannada Rajyotsava
Founder’s Day (Swamiji’s birthday) at the Vidyashala
BALASAMSKARA KENDRA
Classes for children are held every Sunday at 10:30 am. Bay Area parents who want to actively partici-pate in the cultural and spiritual education of their children conceived of the school. The curriculum includes Hindi classes, Sanskrit Mantras, and expla-nations of puja, rituals, symbolism of Gods and Goddesses and Indian festivals. Story telling famil-iarizes our children with our ancient culture and epics. Children find it a lot of fun and look forward to every session. We encourage all of you to bring your children from the ages of 5-15 to our school. Please call the Ashram staff for more information or Anita Bajaj at 510-553-1123. All welcome. Free.
Our India center is located in Madihalli about 75 miles west of Bengaluru. It is set among rolling hills, surrounded by fruit orchards and a variety of tropical vegetation. It is now a Tapobhumi, provid-ing service to humanity in the fields of education and health. Swamiji is currently living in India and invites all interested to join in short or long term work for humanitarian service. We sincerely hope you will take the opportunity to visit our Ashrama during your next visit to India.
Badarikashrama
Madihalli P.O.
Turuvekere Tq., Tumakuru Dt., Karnataka 572227 Office : 08139298911 08139298910
Mobile : 9741246418-Swami Omkarananda www.badarikashrama.org
Email: [email protected]
USA Center [email protected]
510-278-2444
Daily Schedule at San Leandro
Temple is open between the hours of 7am to 12 noon
and 5pm to 8pm Puja is conducted thrice daily at 7am, 12 noon and
6.30pm Every Monday 6:30 pm: Sri Siva Puja & Aarti
BADARIKASHRAMA
15602 Maubert Avenue
San Leandro, CA 94578
Non Profit Org.
U.S. Postage Paid
San Leandro, CA
Permit # 61
DATED MATERIAL RETURN SERVICE REQUESTED
Jan. 2018 Happy New year
Mon. 1st 10:00 am Sri Ganesh Homa and Music by Rita Sahai
Sat. 6th to Sun. 7th
10:00 am 1:00 pm
Sri Akhanda Ramayana “Tulsidas Ramacharita Manasa” ***Aarati & Mahaprasad
Sun. 14th 11:00 am Makara Sankranti, Si Rudrabhisheka (Siva Puja)
Sat. 20th 10:30 am Sri Saraswathi Puja
Sun. 21st 10:30 am Swami Vivekananda Jayanti, music, talk by Srimat Swa-mi Vedanandaji, Vedanta Society, S.F.
Sun. 28th 11:00 am Sri Satyanarayana Swami Puja & Kirtan
Feb. 2018
Sat. 3rd 2:30 pm Sri Sundarakhanda Ramayana of Goswami Tulsidas
Sun. 4th 11:00 am Sri Bhagavad Gita talk & kirtan, Suman & Sargam Shah
Sun. 11th 10:00 am Sri Hari Dasa Day Celebration
Tue. 13th 6:00 pm 12:00 am
Mahasivaratri Puja & Celebration Bhajans: Ilora Jha, Suman & Sargam Shah
Sun. 18th 10:30 am Sri MahaMritunjaya (Sri Rudra) Homa
Sun. 25th 11:00 am Sri Satyanarayana Swami Puja & Kirtan
Mar. 2018
Sun. 4th 11:00 am Sri Satyanarayana Puja & Holi Celebration
Sun. 11th 2:00 pm Sri Ramakrishna Jayanti Celebration, talk by Srimat Swami Tattwamayanandaji Maharaj, Vedanta Society
Sun. 18th 10:30 am 6:00 pm
Sri Durga Homa & Music (Chaitra Navaratri) Mata Ki Chowki, Sri Ma Durga Bhajan Mandali
Sat. 24th 9:00 am Sri Ramanavami Music Festival
Sun. 25th 5:00 pm Performance by Bay Area Carnatic Music Schools
Fri. 30th to Sat. 31st
10:00 am Hanuman Jayanti Celebration - 24 hours chanting of Hanuman Chalisa
April 2018
Sun. 1st Sat. 7th
11:00 am 2:30 pm
Sri Ramanama San Kirtan & Meditation Sri Sundarakanda Ramayana of Goswami Tulsidas
