Jai Ganesha!
We took a simple walk to the woodshop and spotted Sadhaka Shankaranatha working on a project there. Lately, Sadhaka has been working on upgrading the new fish tank recently installed in the Siddhidata Kulam office. This particular project focused on covering the visible gaps and adding a refined edge to the upper portion of the existing casing, giving the entire setup a cleaner and more polished appearance. Aum.
New update on Fish Tank Read More »
The contractor team is close to two thirds done with building the eight-food-wide road around Iraivan Temple. They started at the front entrance with the apron connecting hillside steps to the granite staircase, and have since been working their way around both sides of the temple at once. Three concrete trucks came a couple days ago, four yesterday, two more tomorrow, and some more will come several days after that.
Road Around Iraivan Temple Progressing Well Read More »
Aum Namah Sivaya
Recently Kauai has been having bright sunny days with a few clouds and perfect temperatures. It’s our spring time and the flowers have started blooming everywhere, while the birds and insects are happily enjoying the clear air. During the full moon our monks observed a three day retreat—a good time to appreciate the ocean side, and to take longer walks throughout the monastery gardens. This is the season is when we have Nēnē (our special endemic Hawaiian geese) visiting the property. A specific group (see slideshow) has chosen to make the Aadheenam a consistent stop in their migration cycle. Aum.
“I am the waves. I am the ocean. We are all waves-there is no higher wave or lower wave. The waves and the ocean are one. You have to plunge yourself in the ocean.” – Siva Yogaswami
Jai Ganesha!
We are now working diligently to finalize the Hinduism Today July/August/September 2026 issue. Saravanathaswami will soon begin uploading all the articles to Quad, where they will be professionally formatted into the final magazine layout. At this stage, all the monks will carefully review the final copy of each article to ensure there are no errors and that everything reads clearly, accurately and in its best possible form.
Hinduism Today Final Stage Read More »
As the Garden Path surrounding Iraivan Temple takes shape (the first concrete trucks arrive tomorrow), we reflect on how far it has come in recent years. Building such an architectural gem on a remote island presents special challenges, and those challenges have been overcome one by one with Gurudeva’s inner guidance and blessings and Bodhinatha’s practical genius.
The Garden Path has several purposes. First, it will provide safe, mud-free walking access to Iraivan. Second, it will make maintenance in and around the temple (such as landscaping and stone cleaning) more efficient for our electric vehicles. Third, it will provide an elegant circumambulation path for pilgrims and for the annual chariot parade which carries Satguru around the temple on Guru Purnima. Fourth, it is the last unfinished major component of the temple, tying together the mature and beautiful landscaping that took decades to create and the completed-three-years-ago granite Siva temple.
Below is a shot of the foundation pour in 1999 and almost the same angle photo of the completed temple. Slide back and forth to see the changes.
Satguru Bodhinatha Veylanswami gives his weekly upadesha in Kadavul Temple at Kauai’s Hindu Monastery in Hawaii. It is part of a series of talks elaborating on the inspired teachings of Satguru Śivaya Subramuniyaswami as found in his book Merging With Śiva.
“We must live in the now to follow the path to enlightenment. In the lower realms of the mind, where time and space seem very real, we are worried about the past or concerned about the future. These two intermingle and limit conscious awareness. Living in the past or the future obstructs us in this way: the past, by reliving old experiences—mainly the negative ones, for they are vividly remembered—clouds our vision of the future. Living in the future overactivates the intellect, the emotion and the desires. The future is little more than another form of mental fantasy. Past and future are equally unreal and a hindrance to spiritual unfoldment. A person functioning in the now is in control of his own mind. He is naturally happier, more successful. He is performing every task with his fullest attention, and the rewards are to be seen equally in the quality of his work and the radiance of his face. He cannot be bored with anything he does, however simple or mundane. Everything is interesting, challenging, fulfilling. A person living fully in the now is a content person.“
How to Realize God, Part Three Read More »
