A quiet day at home… the focus is on Iraivan and the work of Selvanathan Sthapati who departs tomorrow.

Selvanatha Sthapati fine tuning various parts of Iraivan.

He’s very precise….

The island of Kauai has many differing environments. Each year our monks take a few days break and go to stay at the west side and up to Kokee for a few nights. Watching sunset from the Kokee look out is always a highlight of these trips.

While there is still light, Sadhaka Nilakantha catches the bottom of this incredible nearly 360 degree rainbow… as the colors plunge into the famed Kalalau Valley

When the sun hits the horizon, it seems to the minds eye to speed up…

Slipping quickly below the horizon, the next few minutes are precious moments when God Siva’s daily Sunset Light Show is something awesome behold.

There are some hi-tech installations up here in the mountains…this is a NASA tracking station.

The last rays before darkness sets in.

Janaka Param sends us these photos from California from Ganesha Visarajana. We are running them at full size. they tell their own story. He writes:

” It was such a beautiful day. The Siddhi Vinayaka temple of Sacramento, California celebrated Ganesha Visarjana on Sunday, September 23, 2007. The Golden Gate Mission joined them.”

The Visarjana took place at Folsom Lake, northeast of Sacramento.

The Visvanathan and Kumarasamy families visiting from India and New Jersey. They have known about us and read Hinduism Today articles for a while before visiting here for the first time today. During the darshan with Bodhinatha, Mrs. Kumarasamy specifically recalled Bodhinatha’s Publishers Desk article on the issue of Ayodhya temple rebuilding, where he advised readers to think about building their “inner temple” through worship and meditation.

After darshan with Bodhinatha they enjoyed walking around Iraivan Temple, speaking with the silpis and Selvanathan Sthapati in Tamil.

Mrs. Visvanathan’s cousin is the head of the board governing Tamil Nadu’s Palani Hills Murugan Temple.

Then they enjoyed performing abhishekam at the Narmada Sivalingam

A few stills from yesterday’s stone lift…

The Ripla and Gaurav Malhotra family left for home yesterday.
While on pilgrimage here they spent their afternoons doing karma yoga.

Here they are at Durvasa and Isani Alahans home making rudraksha malas, bracelets and key chains that will be sold in our Mini Mela.

Thank you for your help and wonderful spirit of service and pilgrimage that you brought with you.

Rajen Manick continues with the report on the major event of the year at our Saiva Siddhanta Church center in Mauritius.

Today is Ganesha Chaturthi day and Lord Pancha Mukha Ganapati Looks splendidly colorful for the occasion. The atmosphere inside the mandapam is highly spiritually charged…

A special Homa pit has been built for the day.

The hired priest from India starts the ceremony chanting powerful mantras to invoke Lord Ganesha’s presence. …

The ceremony starts as scheduled…

In the meantime hundreds of devotees are moving into the Park ever five minutes. Other than the Ganesha Mandapam, all other areas of activities are kept busy. Visitors buying books at the HA booth.

Devotees who came early in the morning have a seat inside the Mandapam…

Some of our lady sishyas….

The ceremony is going on…

At another area near the entrance, a group is packing sponsored sweets in small plastic bags to serve to all visitors who are leaving.

Visitors coming and going down the main path…

Kulamata Kavita and Selvi at the Mini Mela.

One of the donations both under the responsibility of Kulamata Periatumbee…

Another donations booth taken care of by Logadassen Peruman.

MC students helping with offerings brought at the small Ganesha Shrine…..

Devotees lined up at the small Ganesha Shrine where most of the offerings are made. Thousands of coconuts have been broken by selfless sivathondars.

Devotees worshiping at the Sivadakshina murthi.

Back to the Small Pancha Mukha Ganapati shine. Offerings placed at the Feet of the deity.

Prayers inside the Mandapam pervade the whole place through loud speakers. More photos coming tomorrow… stay tuned for our next series…

We begin a new phase. Bodhinatha gives his morning upadesha as usual. He spoke on Gurudeva’s Shum-Tyaef language and how Nirvakalpa Samadhi is explained in it.

Meanwhile out at the temple site two potagai’s were put up today on top of the Yalli pillars at Iraivan’s entry way. Watch a short time-lapse of the event which took several hours.

Yogi Jivananda performs the puja today.

Monks all sit on the right side of the temple in front of Lord Muruga, listening to Bodhinatha. Sadhaka Satyanatha has the recording duties.

Dr. Sabharathnam Sivachariya, Chennai, India, is here at the Aadheenam for one month. He has been inspired by Gurudeva’s writings for many years and we have commissioned him for translations of various works and to assist in our acqusition of Agamic texts.

He is translating several texts while here, especially the Saiva Sannyasa Paddhati, which is a 4th century manual of Saivite monasticism. It is a rare and wonderful work based on the Agamas and completely in line with Gurudeva’s view of sannyas.

Gaurav and Ripla Malhotra from Chicago. This is their 2nd visit. The family first heard about us three years ago as they were flying to Kauai and saw an article in the in-flight magazine.

Visit to Iraivan…

Anna Purna gardens…

They had wonderful darshan with Bodhinatha, asking various philosophical and practical questions.

They had a lot of books to be signed!

And a very practical gift for the monks: blankets for use during the cool weather…

It was tour day today. Our new reservation system seems to be working and both the 9 am and 11 am tours had a “reasonable” group of about 50 guests in each group.

The vision of His Holinesss Gurudeva Sivaya Subramuniyaswami for Saiva Siddhanta Church of Mauritius is manifesting wonderfully day after day at the Spiritual Park. What used to be a barely known place has today become a center of spiritual inspiration for many all over the island. Ganesha Chaturthi is the biggest crowd-pulling ceremony of the island and loving worshippers of this Lord of Obstacles would not miss this event at the Park …

Several weeks before, preparations are underway to make this ceremony a success. All shishyas, MC students and volunteers have pulled together to help in the many areas of activities. A large crew under the supervision of Lord Pancha Mukha Ganapati Himself is selflessly dedicated to serve for this ceremony.

On the eve a team is giving the final touches to the preparations. Kulapati Manon is washing the lava rock paths leading to the Mandapam.

Inside the Mini Mela, Selna Rungapen is getting a stock of books ready for sale in the outside Himalayan Academy booth…

Meanwhile, her sister Selvi is keeping tract of every detail. Both are dedicated selfless Master Course (MC) students about to complete their Level One Master Course with Satguru Bodhinatha.

Here is MC Kevin in his karma yoga uniform, ever attending to duties assigned to him…

Mrs. Maghadevi Canagasaby and the energetic Rungapen sisters are taking good care of the Mini Mela in the absence of Vani.

In another part of our Dharmasala lobby, converted into a teaching hall, our youth are having their usual Saivite Hindu Religion class. They are learning from Bodhinatha the concept of the soul body, which is eternal and never dies.

The youth taking down notes on the screen projector….

Had a very nice discussion and keynote presentation on the subject. They were also shown a power point presention on the side effects of smoking. Important lessons to learn early in life.

The third session was on the making of small Ganesha out of clay…

The youth are taught how to mix the clay and water into a sticky paste.

They really enjoyed this …. real fun. Each youth was given a bag of clay to bring home. They will be making their own small Ganesha with all their family involved in this activity…

Selna helping in this class….

A group of Mster Course students making toranums out of coconut leaves for decorations.

Kumaren Moorooven is taking care of the PA system. He is adjusting his equipment. Powerful speakers have been installed in strategic spots.

Vivek helping to decorate the Ganesha Mandapam.

Kulamata Premila Manick and Anandi, sorting out the pairs of tombais …..

This brass Ganesha murthi is being dressed for the parade by one volunteer from the Chebel Temple…

More photos of the Chaturthi event coming soon from Gurudeva’s devotees in Mauritius, for all to enjoy on TAKA …. Kindly stay tuned.

In case you missed it. Bodhinatha’s latest talk is online. See the right side bar.

We had our monthly Iraivan Day (when the whole monastery works as a team on the temple’s many needs). Seven of the monks will be going on the annual camping trip to Kokee Park, high in the mountains of our little island (well, 4,000 feet high anyway) during this long three-day retreat. Everyone was busy all morning on different projects, all moving the temple forward one more important step.

Iraivan has a new “fund raising” committee that meets monthly and they are doing a great job making plans for new initiatives to keep us all going in the right direction on Iraivan Days.

The big job these past two days was the preparation for mailing of a 5,000-plus Year-End Progress report for the temple. Donors will get this in the mail soon. Meanwhile, don’t miss this fact-filled summary of the last twelve months by visiting the progress report online.

~~~~~~~~~~~
END OF PHASE
Today is the last day of our phase.
This edition of TAKA will remain posted
over our coming three-day retreat,
until Ekadasi Tithi, Sun One, Friday, September 21st.

While it was a quiet day at the aadheenam, work continues as usual, steadily, quietly and dynamically at the temple site. Here are a few iPhone photographs from the worksite today. This first one a glimpse from the entrance through the forest of giant pillars.

As we draw nearer to the sanctum, we come upon the silpis working in the area of the future steps.

They have placed the five steps aside, while they work on cutting back stones which will support the steps. Here three of them are leaning against the sanctum wall.

Nearby, one of the two handrails, which go on either side of the steps, is being fitted.

The team is gathered in the sun, strategizing their next steps (ok, that’s not punny!)

The handraise are gracefully curved. Here the bottom is being carved back to fit. In general, stones come from India larger than necessary, which gives the assembly sculptors on Kauai more options to work with.

Turning around, we find dozens of small stone pieces, and more wrapped in coconut coir behind.

These are all part of the handrailing that goes completely around the temple.

The energy at the site is intense, and the work extremely focused. The maser builder, Selvanathan Sthapati, is here for a few weeks, and the carvers are making the most of his presence, seeking his guidance and learning which tasks he wants them to do in the months ahead.

Sthapati talks with them about a detail at the entrance of the inner most holy chamber. He wants them to make an adjustment in the way four stones have been placed.

Another view of the five steps kept in the protected and roofed area, in case of rain.

Our photographer turns to go, passing the elaborate scaffolding that has been placed recently.

And on the way out stops to capture six “potugai” stones that will be lifted into place next week. These go on top of the pillars to the left, and will be the support for the roofing beams. Aloha for three days. We will be back on the 21st.

We have had a number of request for Bodhinatha’s picture. None are printed in poster size but we have put up on the web four images as hi-resolution tiff files which you can use, ask your printer to download, to print out and place in your home and shrine room. Today most print shops have an internet connection and you just need to send them to this page. and ask them to download of those images and print it for you. Any Kinkos (in the US) or similar shop will do this and a reasonable fee.

Today the Club Musubi, which is a part of Kauai’s Family and Community Education group, came for a tour.

Yoginathaswami was their guide. Here he introduces them to the monastery in the Banyan Mandapam.

Then off down the path.

They have lots of questions for swami today.

Hotranatha Ajaya is working on a beautiful plaster image of Ganesha in preparation for this year’s Ganesha Visarjana in California… We have photos of the annual “let’s make Ganeshas” satsang of the Golden Gate Mission sishya

Even if too young to paint, not too young to observe

Young and old alike expressing Ganesha bhakti, painting Ganesha murthis

Four more Golden Gate Mission bhaktars painting for those who sponsored murthis.

This is a rare “White Bat’s Ears” flower. OK, you’r right, it’s really Tacca integrifolia.

With wild bat’s whiskers and all!

We end with Kondrai, Cassia fistula, sacred to Lord Siva and in full bloom this month.

We are having a steady stream of Hindu pilgrims these days and it is rare for Bodhinatha to go for a day without meeting someone.

And, for Satguruspeaks fans, this weeks upadesha is now up… see the new side bar link.

As promised we bring you today the photos of yesterday’s Ganesha Visarjana. They were such good shots we put them up big in this LlNK Kauai Aadheenam Ganesha Visarjana, 2007 slideshow.

Selvanathan Sthapati meets this morning with Yoginathaswami and Palaniswami to work on detailed plans for further Iraivan Temple work.

Mr. and Mrs. Watamull, long time supporters of Iraivan Temple came for a visit today.

This is a beautiful drawing of the face of Lord Nataraja of Chidambaram Temple. A larger version is here for your to download.

Kartikeya Katir continues the Golden Gate Mission tradition begun by Sri Satya Palani, making Ganesha murthis for Chathurti. Here are a few “gestating” inside their molds.

Newly born Ganesha ganas.

Cleaned up, ready for devotees to paint, decorate, worship and immerse on Visarjana.

Gunalan Ponniah and family in Chennai with our two swamis just before their return home two weeks ago.

Sheela Venkatakrishnan and Jiva Rajasankara on the right.

Our silpi team just before departure back to Hawaii.

Today is the fourth day of the waxing moon in the month of Simha, Lord Ganesha Birthday here in Hawaii.

But so much more happened today…. Here Bodhinatha is observing the raising up of another jalakam at Iraivan. Sadhaka Tejadevanatha shares with him some of the technical details.

It was also Chitra Nakshatra this morning and we observed the monthly pada puja for Gurudeva.

Our whole silpi crew poses with Palaniswami after the puja, appropriately with Iraivan Temple in the background, visible just behind swami’s left shoulder.

Then off to work. The jalakam has small “knobs” or protrusions that will need to go into small holes which Karuppiah is making on the top of this narrow railing where the jalakam will sit.

And yet another auspicious event. Today is Selvanathan Sthapati’s birthday! A fine soul and a great asset to the Iraivan project. He sends all his love back to his family in India. He was amazed that he was here last year on this important personal day.

First, we extract the jalakam from its crate.

Yoginathaswami guides everything along very carefully making sure the project goes without a hitch.

We have to first put up the top of the pillar next to the jalakam.

The jalakam is next. A huge stone weiging 6,000 pounds, a magestic stone window through which you can see the surrounding landscaping.

The team is naturally anxious as this giant stone window is set down on one end on top of the narrow railing with no other support than gravity!

But everything is precisely plump, precisely level and the huge panel of granite sits there as if it had been there all its life.

Minute final adjustments.

The fitting is taking time… we have to take the panel up again and make some more adjustments.

After over 2 hours of careful work the jalakam takes its final resting place…

Mortar is prepared. it is just a thin layer to fill the spaces underneath the stone and does not really bind the temple together as such.

Our Siddhidata Kulam team watches with delight. It is always great day when another major element of Iraivan is installed.

Looking good!

Then at 3 pm we had our annual Ganesha Abhishekam for Ganesha Chaturthi. Normally our devotees never see this because Ganesha’s daily abhishekam is at 3 am in the morning when only monks are on the property.

We bring you excerpts from Gurudeva’s writing on the beloved Elephant-Faced Lord…

“Lord Ganesha is the first God a Hindu comes to know. As the Lord of Categories, His first objective is to bring order into the devotee’s life, to settle him into the correct and proper flow of his dharma–the pattern of duties, responsibilities and expectations suited to the maturity of his soul. As the Lord of Obstacles, He deftly wields His noose and mace, dislodging impediments and holding avenues open until the individual is set in a good pattern, one that will fulfill his spiritual needs rather than frustrate them.”

It is always a special and amazing site to watch the abhishekam of the giant and beautifully carved Maha Ganapati in Kadavul temple.

“Always remember that Ganesha does not move swiftly. He is the elephant God, and His gait is slow and graceful. As the God of the instinctive-intellectual mind, His darshans are carried on the slower currents of mind, and so His response to our prayers is usually not overnight or sudden and electric, but more deliberate and gradual. Yet, our patience is rewarded, for His work is thorough and powerful, of matchless force persisting until our lives and minds adjust and our prayer has become reality.”

Milk….

“Lord Ganesha is also known as the Gatekeeper. Access to all the other Gods comes through Him. It is not that He would want to keep anyone from another God, but He prepares you to meet them and makes the meeting an auspicious one. This preparation can mean lifetimes. There is no hurry. It is not a race. Ganesha will faithfully bar access to those who do not merit a divine audience and an ensuing relationship with the other Deities whose darshans are faster. Should a devotee gain unearned access and invoke the powers of other Deities before all preparations were concluded, karma would accelerate beyond the individual’s control. Worship of Lord Ganesha, however, may begin at any time.”

“Ganesha is the ubiquitous God. There are more shrines, altars and temples for Lord Ganesha than for any other God. Ganesha bhakti is the most spontaneous worship and the simplest to perform. It requires little ritual. Just the ringing of a small bell at the outset of a project before His picture or the burning of camphor or the offering of a flower is enough to invoke His presence and protection. Throughout India and Sri Lanka, there are small, unadorned shrines to Ganapati under shaded trees, along country roads, at bus terminals, along footpaths and in the city streets. His blessings are indeed everywhere. Helping Ganesha, whose powers of mind outreach the most advanced computers we can conceive, are His ganas, or devonic helpers. These ministering spirits collect the prayers of those in need, ferret out and procure the necessary information and bring it before Lord Ganesha’s wisdom.”

Yogurt….

“If you want to get acquainted with the Gods, first get to know Lord Ganesha. Take a picture and look at it. Put a picture of Lord Ganesha in your car or in your kitchen. Get acquainted through sight. Then come to know Him through sound by chanting His names and hymns. This is how you get acquainted with your personal Deity. You will get to know Him just as you know your best friend, but in a more intimate way, for Ganesha is within you and there ahead of you to guide your soul’s evolution. As you get acquainted with Him, Ganesha then knows that you’re coming up on the spinal climb of the kundalini. He will work with you and work out your karma. Your whole life will begin to smooth out.”

“On occasion we observe devotees pilgrimaging to a temple, prostrating so devotedly. But after leaving the temple, they slap one of their children. We know that upon entering the house they argue with their spouse and complain about their in-laws. Where is the true bhakti here? This is what bhakti is not. Unfortunately, the children who observe this hypocrisy remember it for a long, long time. A child might think, “You love Lord Ganesha, Mom, but you can’t love me.” When you love a baby, you will not hit it when it cries, even if the crying disturbs you.”

Young coconut water…

“We can see that coming up through the lower chakras is quite an ordeal. But once the individual goes through the fear chakra, he comes to Lord Ganesha’s feet and enters the realms of memory and reason, clarity and understanding. It is at this point in the unfoldment through the chakras, which is a journey of consciousness, that he would begin thinking of others and seek to benefit them more than himself. From here on, the path of spiritual unfoldment is not as ominous as it was before. There are no threatening areas, except that it is possible to fall back into lower consciousness.”

Sandalwood powder…

“The Gods are the controllers of these force centers within man. They live in the innermost areas of form. To enter the muladhara chakra, the aspirant must go through Lord Ganesha. And when the aspirant progresses to the manipura chakra, Ganesha will introduce him to Lord Muruga. Once this is accomplished, the devotee will worship Lord Muruga as the Be-All and End-of-All, just as Ganesha was worshiped when consciousness was in His chakras. Lord Muruga is the controller of the manipura chakra, the chakra of willpower, and the two chakras above it, direct cognition and universal love. Now we can begin to see that the aspirant has to proceed in consciousness through the three chakras that Lord Muruga controls and meet all the tests before this God will introduce him to Lord Siva. Lord Siva’s realm is chakras number six, seven and beyond. The aspirant still must go completely through the chakras of Lord Siva’s realm to become Sivaness–to experience His all-pervasiveness, and on into the essence of all essences, Parasiva.”

“When the devotee has proven himself, the Gods begin to take notice. We meet a God as we go up through the chakras above the muladhara. We meet an asura as we go down through the chakras below the muladhara. A God appears as each higher chakra breaks open. As the muladhara opens and awareness comes through it, we encounter Ganesha. When we experience fear and anger, we meet and are influenced by the asuras of fear and anger. In the chakra that governs confused and selfish thinking, we meet and are influenced by the asura who rules this realm. Descending to the still lower chakras of petty theft, fraud and stealing, grand larceny, murder and violence, we would meet professionals in these areas.”

After the puja….

“For the non-Hindu who has not made a commitment, the universal mantra Aum is the most significant and precious of all mantras. This can be chanted by those of all religions, without restriction. The sounds of a city make “Aum.” A child at birth says “Aum.” A mother giving birth says “Aum.” The last breath of a dying person is “Aum.” Even the cows say “Aum.” Aum is the mantra of Lord Ganesha. All are striving for His holy feet. Those who are struggling with the lower nature, those who have not made a commitment to the Sanatana Dharma, a commitment which for the newcomers to the fold could be verified by their Hindu name on their passport, should all chant Aum.”

Small plaster Ganesha’s are waiting to go to the Visarjana which followed.

It is always a bright day for little ones.

We will bring you more picture of the Visarjana tomorrow.

For Wikipedia fans:

The first page of Wikipedia today points to this article as one of today’s important world events:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ganesh_Chaturthi

Bodhinatha is working daily on his course material for the next Innersearch which is departing next January. Today at lunch Sadhaka Dandapani shared details of what will be a fantastic voyage to Cambodia, Malaysia and India.

Meanwhile at home it was tour day. Our new system is in place which requires advance registration by phoning ahead to booking a spot on the tour. It is free, but a cap is set on the number of vehicles that can come.

Still, we had about 50 people at the 9 am tour and 80 at the 11 am tour…

A day of showers. In fact, our tour was completely drenched in a down pour today. This is quite rare as usually the rain comes before and after the tour.

It just so happened that two late visitors came and were lighting up cigarettes and moments later the shower came down! No Smoking Allowed

Selvanathan Sthapati is visiting here from India.

Tomorrow a Jalakam will be installed. He checks on the position of the base.

As he did on his last visit, he marks some plain areas of some temple section with beautiful designs.

This will become….

This… to be carved by our silpis….

The steps that lead into the main sanctum

Bodhinatha gives his Sun One discourse….

Prayers consumed by fire…

He gave bhasya on the lesson of the day on “anava marga,” a term Gurudeva coined to describe the thinking of people who have yet to get on the spiritual path. He explained how such people only start on the spiritual path when they realize the Deity is so much greater than they are, and become humble. Before then, the ego is ruling.

Bodhinatha told the story of a man who had gone to see Yogaswami and how Yogaswami had fallen into a deep meditation, which he then tried to explain the visitor. Yogaswami explained that silence is meditation, and how one must get rid of intellectual ideas of God before he can experience God.

Vijai Singhal, Secretary, Hindu Council of Australia is here on a pilgrimage and met with Bodhinatha this morning.

He also had a long chat with Sannyasin Arumugaswami. They talked about the teaching of Hinduism in the public schools in Australia, and Vijay is taking sample copies of Hinduism Today’s history lesson back to Australia with him.

Our carpentry shop is in high gear on the retreats. Kumarswami keeps his Mac at hand. Training videos and web sites provide a lot of useful guidance from master craftsmen around the world.

He is also documenting processes by photographing work in progress.

These are window frames for new screens in the second floor of Bodhinatha’s living quarters. We are learning the fine art of complex “joinery” where boards are assembled with precisely cut slots and fittings.

This plane is nearly 100 years old and works like a charm.

Sivakatirswami’s “100% Rudraksha Wood Bookshelf” is nearly done… It is 8 feet tall.

Assembly is complete and it is time for Danish oil. The color and grain of this wood is out of this world!

It was designed in two pieces. One will sit on top of the other. This is an old technique for large, complex cabinets. It is much easier to deal with two smaller units and move them around. Once they are put together in a room, no one knows that they are two pieces.

Hinduism Today… “Wall of Covers”

Nature’s gifts…

With the coming of Ganesha Chaturthi, everyone’s mind is on the Spiritual Park where Lord Pancha Ganapati has become a center of divine worship for all Hindus all over the island. The September homa drew a large crowd as usual.

Devotees arriving early crossing the Ganesha Bridge to reach the Ganesha Mandapam….

At the Small Pancha Mukha Ganapati Shrine, the exterior floor has just been covered with new bricks.

Devotees inside the Mandapam…

Four kulapaties sit around the Homa and help in burning the prayers brought by devotees into the sacred fire.

Kulapati Moorghen making an announcement regarding food sponsorship from devotees for Ganesha Chaturthi.

One devotee giving a testimony about how Lord Ganesha answered his prayers to help his two children obtain scholarships to study in American Colleges.

Kevina shares with everyone one event at her job where Lord Ganesha helped her obtain a transfer she was eagerly looking for, that would help her be closer to her sick mother.

Kulapati Manon reading on karma from our recent book ” What is Hinduism?”.

On every Sunday Homa, a team of sishyas consisting mainly of MC students help with the sales of the Church publications in an outside booth near the main entrance.

Many copies of “What is Hinduism” were sold on that day…

The Homa over, time to prepare for the grand festival, Ganesha Chaturthi coming on September 16th….Tents are being erected all over the place.

Kulapati Valaytan giving some important instructions to Siven regarding preparations…

Kulapati Moorghen and Paramasiven making plans to coordinate with food sponsors.

Here is Gowtam painting a rack where devotees place oil lamps they bring with their offerings.

Ananda and a friend painting the railings at the small Pancha Ganapati shrine…

Gold paint is serving a decorative purpose…

A quiet karma yoga day… Everyone is happily helping in his own way to make the Ganesha Chaturthi celebration a success…

It’s Sun Five today. There is not much to report. Peace abounds.

Selvanathan Sthapati arrived from India today. The Ganapati Kulam spent more time with John Malcolm Smith consulting on digital media production work flows.

There’s a lot of work underway at the Aadheenam to get our wireless network up to strength with new boosters and repeaters being set up at strategic locations through our buildings, here and there on different tall poles and roofs. Telephone wiring and all the headaches that come with it will soon be a thing of the past.

~~~~~~~~~~~
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 Dvitiya Tithi, Sun One, Wednesday, September 12th.

This small Ganesha lives in the nursery of the Siddhidata Kulam at our Anna Purna Gardens.

Sannyasin Yoginathaswami has been taking a lead on making giant marigold garlands for the Deities and especially for Nataraja in Kadavul.

We don’t have many photos, so we bring you a repeat of some precious, rare shots from Kadavul from last Sivaratri. We have yet to release the video of that night…

We will be back again on Wednesday.