Arise ! Awake ! Stop not, till the goal is reached.

October - November - December, 2015

Om Namo Narayanaya

Badarikashrama Diary

On the 4th of July, with the magnificent fireworks to come, Bada-rikashrama held a Sri Durga Homa. Goddess Durga represents the power of the Supreme Being that preserves moral order and right-eousness in creation. After the invocation of Divine Mother, devo-tees gathered in the Mandir to listen to a musical journey of the Sitar by Dr. Susmita Banerjee who was accompanied by the very talented Abdull Sulltan on the tabla. The following day, Ram Saxena led a group chanting of Sri Ram Jaya Ram Jaya Jaya Ram mantra for 4 hours to beautiful and soothing melodies. Devotees were immersed in the sweet nectar of Sri Rama’s name. The following Saturday, Gangateerth Ramayana Mandali, a young vibrant musical group performed bhajans of Durga Mata on Mataki Chowki, honoring Adhika Masa. The next day, Suman and Sargam Shah sang heart-touching bhajans. Afterwards, Suman gave a dis-course on the Bhagavad Gita. He shared great stories to illustrate the subtle teachings of the Gita. It was wonderful to see so many people participating during these busy weekend programs. Sri Ramanama Sankirtana was held on the 19th with many devo-tees enjoying the chants of Sri Rama, participating in this joyous san-kirtana. Our last Sunday service of the month was a Sri Satyanarayana Swami Puja, with bhajans by our friends Suman and Sargam Shah. This intertwining of Vedic mantras and bhajans during the puja ele-vated all into the realm of peace and devotion. On the 31st of July, Sri Guru Purnima was celebrated with pujas to Sri Ramakrishna, Swa-mi Vivekananda and Sri Sarada Devi, along with bhajans by Krish-napriya Kashyap accompanied by Balaji on tabla. Krishnapriya gave a wonderful performance, explaining the meaning and significance of the bhajans. August began with inspiring Sunday service of Ramanama Sankirta-na. On the morning of the 8th, devotees began chanting Sri Akhanda Ramayana of Goswami Tulsidas and concluded on the 9th, continu-ously chanting for nearly 30 hours. At times a few devotees chanted in late hours of the night, while nearly 150 devotees chanted togeth-er as the Akhanda Ramayana came to a close. The enthusiasm, dedi-cation and devotion of so many devotees made for a memorable ex-perience. Anjana Gupta kindly sponsored the program which was enjoyed by all.

Teachings of Mahatma Gandhi “I do not believe...that an individual may gain spiritu-ally while those who surround him suffer. I believe in advaita. I believe in the essential unity of man and for that matter, of all that lives. Therefore, I believe that if one man gains spiritually, the whole world gains with him and if one man falls, the whole world falls to that extent.” “It is no nonviolence if we merely love those that love us. It is nonviolence only when we love those that hate us. I know how difficult it is to follow this grand law of love. But are not all great and good things difficult to do? Love of the hater is the most difficult of all. But by the grace of God, even this most difficult thing becomes easy to accomplish if we want to do it.” “Ahimsa is not the crude thing it has been made to appear. Not to hurt any living thing is no doubt a part of ahimsa. But it is its least expression. The principle of ahimsa is hurt by every evil thought, by undue haste, by lying, by hatred, by wishing ill to anybody. It is also violated by our holding on to what the world needs.”

From “The Words of Gandhi”, selected by Richard Attenbor-ough, Newmark Press, 1982, New York. pps. 23,44,46.

Na Me Bhakta Pranashyati My Devotee Never Perishes

Sandesha

Krishnapriya Kashyap - Guru Purnima Celebration

Krishna Janmashtami, one of the largest Hindu celebrations, was held on Sept 5th. The program began with a small Balakrishna puja followed by a performance by Rita Sahai and students accom-panied by the very talented Nikhil Pandye on tabla. Students from ages 5 to 12, with their sweet innocence and melodious voices offered heart-touching Krishna Bhajans. Her senior students, Rajnish Kamat and Vivek Ananda thrilled the audience with their vocal talents. Rita then finished the program with a heart melting solo performance of Ragas. Ilora Jha followed with a truly excep-tional performance. The audiences was gripped from beginning to end by her beautiful voice and excellent playing of the harmoni-um . Her young student also offered a few melodious bhajans. After sharing in the delicious Prasad, many devotees stayed late into the night to listen to a performance by Suman and Sargam Shah. The energy of the room was very pure as they sang songs of Lord Krishna. Suman and Sargam’s devotion and melodies brought all to a place of peace. By 12 midnight, we began the final Janmashtami puja. After Arati the more than 30 devotees all rocked Balakrishna on his swing. It was a sight to see, and memo-rable at that.

The following day, we held a Yoga and Ayurveda retreat led by Narayana Sadhaka and Dr. Geeta Arora. The Mandir was full as Narayana taught a 45-minute “all-levels” yoga class, covering asa-na’s (postures), pranayama (breathing) and Savasana (deep relaxa-tion). With everyone settled into their bodies and minds, students gathered to listen to Dr. Arora, a certified Ayurvedic doctor. She shared with us the fundamentals of Ayurveda, focusing on topics such as the Doshas, Prakriti and Purusha, the three Guna's, proper diet and much more. Many expressed their enthusiasm and en-couraged us to have another such workshop. The next Saturday, devotees gathered to chant the Sri Sundarakhanda Ramayana of Goswami Tulsidas. On the following day, Sunday, Nagaraj Hegde founder and teacher of Gokula Bansu-ri school of music in Bengaluru, India, offered a concert. With exceptional skill, grace and humility, he thrilled the audience with a memorable Bansuri concert of Ragas such as Brindavani Sa-rang and bhajans such as 'Payoji Mena Rama Ratana Dhan Payo'. On the 17th of September, Ganesh and Gauri puja’s were con-ducted to observe Ganesh Chaturti. On the 20th we completed the celebration with a Sri Ganesha Festival that included a Sri Ganesha Homa, a Balasamskara Kendra performance, and a won-derful concert by Smt. Divya Ramesh and students. The month ended with a full moon Sri Satyanarayana puja and kirtan.

Mid-August ushered the mid-point of Shravan Maas, a time when Lord Shiva is worshiped for his compassion, love and sac-rifice of swallowing the poison churned from the oceans. To honor him, the Ashrama held a Sri Mrityunjaya Homa (Rudri Homa). On Sunday the 23rd, Smt. Shubha Dhananjay, a master of Indian Classical dance offered a workshop in the Mandir. She is the founder and director of Karana Dance Company in Benga-luru, India. Dancers from all over the Bay Area attended the workshop and appreciated the quality of her teaching. During the workshop, Shubha and her student offered excellent perfor-mances in Bharatanatyam and Kathak dance. On Saturday, the 29th, we celebrated Raksha Bhandan with a “full moon” Sri Satyanarayana Swami Puja and Katha followed by a concert by Sejal Mehta. Many devotees sponsored the puja and sat with Kalasha. Swami Vishnumayananda led the puja, encouraging all to participate through offerings and chanting. With the room vibrating with God’s name, Sejal with her family and friends offered a heart-melting performance with Mira Bhai, Krishna, Devi and Rabindranath Tagore bhajans. The next day, devotees sat for 4 hours continuously chanting the Gayatri Mantra: “Om Bhur Bhuvah Swah, Tat Savitur Varenyam| Bhargo Devasya Dhi-mahi, Dhiyo Yo Nah Prachodayat||”. This was the first ‘Sadhana Day’ at the Ashrama. Ram Saxena led the chanting with beauti-ful melodies. Following the chanting was a Gayatri Homa. Hold-ing to tradition, many of the women devotees were dressed in yellow while the men dressed in white. It was beautiful sight to see!

Sadhana Day

Ilora Jha Krishna Janmashtami

Ayurvedic Dr. Geeta Arora ; Divya Ramesh & Students Ganesh Festival

The living quarters in the San Leandro center are undergoing re-pairs to the foundation. Work began early September, and will con-tinue through early October. Due to soil layer composition, the foun-dation was beginning to show signs of sag. A reputed engineering and construction company conducted an assessment of the problem and recommended that the foundation be reinforced and the build-ing/structure be re-levelled. Based on this advise, repair work is now underway, and expected to complete before the start of Navaratri celebrations on October 13th. Those interested in contributing / do-nating towards these repair costs are welcome to stop by at the man-dir office at our San Leandro center to make your contributions. Con-tribution of any value are accepted with grateful thanks! In addition, we wish to express sincere gratitude to all those who have already contributed towards this cause!

Events at Madihalli, Karnataka, India

July, August and September months at our Madihalli ashrama were active and full of events both in the school and in the ashrama. On July 31st, a grand Samuhika 108 Sri Satyanarayana Swami Puja and Katha was conducted with Srimat Swami Omkaranandaji per-forming the worship. Over 250 families sponsored the puja the ma-jority of whom where parents from our Vidyashala. Over 1,000 devo-tees were given prasad including students, teachers and village devo-tees.

On August 15th, India’s Independence Day was observed. Cele-brating 68 years independence, the ashrama held a well-attended function. The day began with a march by the children with our band and all guests who came to the dais. After hoisting of the national flag, the national and state anthems were sung. The enthusiastic students performed dances, dramas, and sang patriotic songs. Senior teacher, Lata Mani gave the welcome address.

Assistant head master Srinivasa gave an overview of the de-velopment of the school and stressed the opening of our com-puter section. He also noted that a number of students had performed very well in the National General Knowledge Compe-tition securing a number of prizes. Chief guest, Dr. Venu Gopal, professor of biology from Government College in Bangaluru, spoke about his own struggles growing up, the importance of education in his life, and offered well-intended advice to the students of our Vidyashala. He was joined by Sri. M.C. Prabhu, advocate from Bangalore, who spoke on the freedom struggle and the contribution of important leaders leading to independ-ence. Senior teacher, Sri Chetan, also gave a talk which was followed by speeches in Hindi, Kannada and English by students from 1st standard to 7th standard. Sri Borelingiah, retired

teacher from Turuvekere, Sri Dayananda Sagar, Bangaluru, Sri Ranga Swami, Bangaluru, were also in attendance. On August 28th, Sri Krishna Janmashtami was conducted with puja and fancy dress competition with students dressing as Sri Krishna, Radha, and gopis. Many of the young boys were com-pletely painted blue with a head dress and flute in hand. The young girls were dressed in sparkling vibrant colors as Radha and the Gopis. It was an incredible sight to see. National Teacher's Day was held on September the 5th, which honors the life and teachings of the late Dr. Radhakrish-nan. Swamiji was Chief Guest at the annual Taluk function hon-oring the teachers of the taluk. The Vidyashala was closed for the Gauri and Ganesha Cele-brations. The rest of the month students prepared for exams. A compound wall for the school grounds was nearing completion and will serve to give security for the large number of students. The wall encloses all of the school property to the main road which is nearly a quarter mile long.

San Leandro Center - Building Foundation Undergoing Repairs

Badarikasrhama Students: Taluk level Prathiba Competition Winners

Krishna Janmashtami In Lakshmi Narayana Mandir, Madihalli

Independence Day - Dr. Venu Gopal and Sri M.C Prabhu with Swamiji

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 God-desses and Indian festivals. Story telling familiarizes our children with our ancient culture and epics. Chil-dren find it a lot of fun and look forward to every session. We encourage all of you to bring your chil-dren from the ages of 5-15 to our school. Please call the Ashram staff for more information or Anita Bajaj at 510-553-1123. The school is free and everyone is welcome.

Letter to Devotees & Readers

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 tropical vegetation. Over the last 31 years the Ashram has flourished and now covers a lush 60 acres with abun-dant facilities for the comfort of residents and guests. The Ashram serves the surrounding commu-nity with a school as well as health and humanitarian needs. We are spending time expanding the activi-ties such as seminars, personality development for the teacher and students. The school project has been completed. We have purchased an additional school bus. We are now working on setting up a science lab computer lab, adding sports equipment's and improving the playground. For further needs of the activities please join with us and work with us. Swamiji is currently in India working tirelessly on the Vidyashala project and the ashrama. We sincerely hope you will take the opportunity to visit our Ash-ram during your next visit to India.

Badarikashrama Madihalli P.O.

Turuvekere Tq., Tumkur Dt., Karnataka 572227 Madihalli office : 08139287571

Mobile : 9741246418-Swami Omkarananda Mobile: 9481204844– Swami Mangalananda

www.badarikashrama.org

Daily Schedule at San Leandro

Temple is open between the hours of 7am to 1pm 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

Every Tuesday 6:30 pm: Sri Durga Puja & Aarti

Every Full Moon Day Sri Satyanarayana Puja & Katha , 7:30 pm

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

Oct, 2015

Sat. 3rd 2:30 pm Sri Sundarkanda Ramayana of Goswami Tulsidas

Sun. 4th 2:00 pm Gandhi Peace Prayer Day: Concert by Hema Sista and Students. Guest Speakers: Swami Tattwamayananda, Michael Nagler;

Sun. 11th 11:00 am Sri Bhagavad Gita Talk & Kirtan by Suman & Sargam Shah

Tue 13th

to Thu. 22nd

Daily 5:00 am

11:00 am 6:30 pm

Navaratri Celebration (Sri Durga Puja) Sri Durga Saptasati Paatha and Puja Sri Durga Homa Sri Lalitha Sahasaranama Recitation & Puja

Sat. 17th 6:30 pm Mata Ki Chowki by Sejal Mehta & Ashram Devotees

Sun. 18th 6:30 pm Bhajans by Suman & Sargam Shah

Wed. 21st 6:30 pm Sri Durgashtami Puja and Raas Garba

Thu. 22nd 5:30 pm Vijaya Dasami Celebration – Sri Durga Homa Sri Mahisasura Mardini by Ilora Jha with Pradosh Sarkar on Tabla. This is followed by Raas Garba.

Sun. 25th 11:00 am Sri Satyanarayana Puja and Kirtan

Tue. 27th 7:30 pm Sharad Poornima Puja & Kirtan by Suman & Sargam Shah

Nov, 2015

Sun. 1st 10:30 am Sri Hanuman Puja & Hanuman Chalisa led by Ram Saxena

Sat. 7th 2:30 pm Sri Sundarkanda Ramayana of Goswami Tulsidas

Sun. 8th 11:00 am Sri Bhagavad Gita Talk & Kirtan by Suman & Sargam Shah

Wed. 11th 7:00 pm Mahalakshmi Puja [Deepavali]

Sat. 14th 3:00 pm Deepavali Celebration: Homa, Children's Performance and Concert by Arabhi Sundararajan and Revathi Na-rayanan, senior students of Shubhangi Sakhalkar

Sun. 15th - [No Sunday Service.]

Sun. 22nd 11:00 am Sri Satyanarayana Puja and Kirtan

Thu. 26th 3:00 pm Thanksgiving Concert by Laxmi Ganesh Tewari with Ravi Gutala on Tabla and Vivek Datar on Harmonium

Sun. 29th 11:00 am Sri Ramanama Sankirtana & Meditation

Dec, 2015

Sat. 5th 2:30 pm Sri Sundarkanda Ramayana of Goswami Tulsidas

Sun. 6th 10:30 am Samuhika 108 Sri Satyanarayana Swami Puja Kirtan by Rita Sahai and Students

Sun. 13th 11:00 am Sri Bhagavad Gita Jayanti Celebration

Sun. 20th 10:30 am Sri Sarada Devi Jayanti Celebration: Concert by Sumita Chakraborty followed by Guest Speaker

Fri. 25th 3:00 pm Christmas Dinner and concert by Srikanth Chary

Sun. 27th 11:00 am Sri Ramanama Sankirtana & Meditation

Jan, 2016

Fri. 1st 10:30 pm Sri Ganesha Homa and Concert

Sat. 2nd to

Sun. 3rd

9:30 am to

1:00 pm

Sri Akhand Ramayana