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What Happened Today at the Monastery?
From our scriptures:
Beyond birth and death,
Reached by renunciate tapas
Is He, my Lord of resplendent glory!
Sing His praise! Pray incessantly!
The Heaven’s Lord shall
Show you Dharma’s Land.
Tirumantiram–Verse 1614
END OF PHASE
Today is the last day of our phase
This edition of TAKA will remain posted
Over our coming two-day retreat,
Until Dasami Tithi, Sun One, Friday, October 22nd
Sevugan and Meena Chetty visited us this morning on the recommendation of friends who had already visited. They live in New York near Albany. Sevugan’s original home in India is only ten miles from Karaikkudi, the area where are Iraivan Temple silpi stone craftsmen come from. He also knows Sri Sri Tiruchy Swamigal of Bangalore who gives blessings to our temple carving site there.
Today was the last day of our phase and tour day…
With our big Bhadra pillars up in front of the main sanctum visitors are very impressed. We bring out our donation box and visitors fill out an envelope and place it in this temporary hundi.
Many of these people would not normally think of going to India and would never otherwise experience such magnificent stone work.
Thursday is the annual Ayudhya Puja (ninth day of Navaratri) and the silpis are getting ready for their normal celebration.
These two potagai will soon be going up on top of…
…these bhadra pillars…
and speaking of amazing installations… we usually don’t report on “off shore” news other than from our missions, but this feels very close to home…
Lord Nataraja takes His place in CERN. CERN is the European Organization for Nuclear Research, the world’s largest particle physics center and the birthplace of the World Wide Web…
It seems only fitting that Lord Shiva should preside over CERN.
Check out these following (very big!) photos
Give generously to help the Iraivan Temple project… sponsor one of these pillars today! E-mail iraivan@hindu.org for more information
Bodhinatha’s California Mission, More Pictures
Professor N. Narayana Rao flew from Illinois to join Bodhinatha in California and he was kind enough to share more photos and captions from those days…. It is always interesting to see things through a different eye…
Vijaya Sankara washing Bodhinatha’s feet before he enters their home.
Bodhinatha being given the welcoming arati as he entered the home.
Devotees waiting to do namaskaram to Bodhinatha’s feet
Sadhaka Dandapani with Bodhinatha
Sarojini Rao bowing to Bodhinatha
Sarojini Rao delivers envelope from a friend, Rajeswari, to Bodhinatha.
Bodhinatha with a garland of bills totaling $1,008 around his
neck. The garland, organized by Easan and Sundari Katir, was presented to Bodhinatha as a birthday gift. What began as an idea for a garland of $108 became $1,008!
Birthday cake being brought to Bodhinatha,
Moving on to the next day… the public reception in Sausalito….
Part of the audience at the Spinnaker Restaurant
Bodhinatha delivering his discourse
Birthday cake placed in front of Bodhinatha
Just before Bodhinatha blows the candles
Right after Bodhinatha blows the candles; and the smoke rises…
Birthday cake outside on the table with refreshments
Sarojini Rao with Savitri Palani
Hotranatha Ajaya and Deva Rajan. Narayana and Sarojini Rao found out that Hotranatha and his wife lived in Urbana. Small world!
Sadhaka Dandapani and Sarojini Rao, with the Satyas from San Jose. The Rao’s found out that they and the Satyas have a common friend in San Jose. Small world again!
Proud father Easan Katir with son Kartikeya, both of whom mastered the value of Pi to 14 decimal places with the aid of a mnemonic on Narayana Rao’s home page.
Deva and Gayatri Rajan with Sarojini Rao
Sarojini and Narayana Rao with Bodhinatha.
From Our Gurus' Teachings
Archives are now available through 2001. Light colored days have no posts. 1998-2001 coming later.
