Bodhinatha stands to worship before Siva’s sanctum and for darshan before going with his editing team to work on publications this afternoon. Monks always seek the darshan and blessings of the Gods as each task is approached.

It’s Sun Two at the monastery (sort of our Tuesday) and Saravananathaswami gave us an update of his work in the Ekadanta Kulam during the lunch-time sharing. He has completed the distribution of Satguru Purnima annual rededication forms to all the sishya around the world. Another interesting project has been his work to send special meditation study materials for those who have had the initiation of Vishesha Diksha.

Bodhinatha would like to help these senior initiates to further their spiritual life by following along with the same monthly meditations that the monks perform at the Aadheenam. So they will be meditating on the exact same inner subject and on the same day (someties at the same moment) as the monks who are meditating together each day in the Guru Peedam at Kauai’s Hindu Monastery.

Early this morning after our 90-minute pre-dawn puja and meditation a team of monks gathered to install the second refurbished door of Kadavul Temple, on the right. They really look fabulous! The Kauai members spent many long and joyous hours on the doors, putting gold and copper leaf on them, and sealing them from our tropical weather. It was an amazing push, which Gurudeva would be proud of. Gold leaf work is going on in other areas, such as the 108 Tandava statues inside of Kadavul. Amazingly, to confirm the energy behind this Sivathondu thrust, the family team cooperated to gold-leaf 12 of the Siva tandavas. how manyis that? Well, it too a small team 3 months to do 11, so 12 in one day counts as a worthy accomplishment. More to be done in the days and weeks ahead, til all 108 are completed.

In one of the messages Gurudeva received from Lord Ganesha many years ago, Ganesha said: “Glint, Glitter and Gleam your temples… clean them well…..”

And so it is being fulfilled today…

A zoom shot from the main Aadheenam over to Iraivan….

Over the years our fish population has diminished and today we restocked the main stream ponds with a new delivery of Japanese carp engineered by Paramacharya Palaniswami.. . These famous fish are known as Koi, the prized Japanese carp. Their bright colors are fascinating ,and they make a great visual picture for pilgrims enjoying the 25 or so ponds and pools on the property. These are all very little fishes, only a few inches long. When mature, they can be 2-3 feet long!

We tried for a close up but all the little ones swam under the lilies….

One day they will grow big and fat like this big Amma Koi.

The monster flower is starting to show…

This is about a foot tall now… stay tuned… we have more to tell in the weeks ahead.

Each of our Church missions has some very unique forms of karma yoga. Here on Kauai our Wailua Mission members have the opportunity to plant trees… This past weekend they took Honduras Mahogany tree seedlings started by Sadhaka Adinatha and planted them on Himalayan Acres, just across the river from the temple.

Trees are turning out to be very easy to do. Today they put in 250 trees.

These will provide an endowment for the future monastic Order when they are harvested. The lumber can also be used to build beautiful shrines and structures at the Aadheenam. Of course we will leave many trees and these perhaps will help make up for the trees being cut down in Brazil.

All this land was cleared for sugar cane over the past century and we are turning it back into a beautiful wooded landscape.

Today we are experimenting with planting trees when they are still quite young. They are more vulnerable, but they will also take better root if they are put into the ground early

Sitara Alahan with a big smile…

The plastic mulch layer suppresses weed and helps with moisture retention.

Each one gets a bit of fertilizer, some hydro gel and a personal watering…

Firming the soil is very important so that not too many air pockets are left around the roots, which will then fill up with water, and also to make sure the little seedling doesn’t fall over.

The team….Deva and Tara Katir, Durvasa, Isani and Sitara Alahan, Aran Sendan and someone behind the camera….

A small blessing and good wishes. We always pray after the plantings for some rain. If you plant and then get scorching sun for a week, you may lose some trees. But the devas blessed the little mahogany’s with several days of rain afterwards so we are sure they will make a good start.