We had a big guest day today… Lots of wonderful people… but our server is being “renovated” this afternoon so, no photos today… We will keep it short…

All here are gearing up for a busy three-day retreat full of preparations for Open House and Guru Purnima week. When we come back we will have lots of news/

~~~~~~~
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 Dasami Tithi, Sun One, Saturday, July 16th.

Sun Five news from the Ganapati Kulam: everyone has been putting in time on various printing projects for the open house, signs, banners, tags etc. The next issue of Hinduism Today is due to go to press at the end of this month, so the team is also focusing on their articles.

Another container was delivered this morning….

and…

… the empty one….

… went away….

goodbye…..

We now have lots and lots of stones on site…

Our team recently used a gas testing device and we were relieved to find no fumigant left in the air.

But there is still a lot of dust and we are using respirators as an extra safety measure.

The sanctum has a set of wooden stairs now, prepared for the coming special ceremonies.

The top of another Chinna Gopuram which will be gold leafed during Guru Purnima by the devotees.

Lots of roof beams…

Meanwhile one of the silpis is working on ornamentation…

This work is normally done in India, but it seems we are missing an important piece.

So Sthapati did the drawing himself and the silpis go to work on the lines he has made.

It a marvel to watch…

Only 6 days left to Satguru Purnima festival and Open House…

Today the Siddhidata Kulam shared news. Yoginathaswami has been focused on unloading the container and stacking stones out on the ground, leaving the foundation clear for the big ceremonies to come…

The rest of his team are working on open house and Guru Purnima decorations.. as you will see here…

The chariot is ready for Bodhinatha’s procession on the morning of Guru Purnima Day.

It is beautifully decorated.

Another smaller palanquin has been prepared for Kovilur Swami who is joining us this year from India.

This year we are prepared well in advance..

and ready to roll…

Planting flags along the paths bring a gaiety and festive spirit to the property as they flap in the wind… Gurudeva loved these flags….

The Ganapati Kulam has been working on lots of signs and banners. Natarajnathaswami puts his artistic design talents to work for this welcome banner that will hang at the entrance…

Possibly as many as 600-800 people may pass along this path that day… Of course these aren’t big numbers compared to festival activities in Mauritius and Malaysia, for our small Kauai community, it is a very big deal!

It’s quiet at the Aadheenam… It feels like the lull before the big rain… the many guests about to arrive for Guru Purnima…

Two more pilgrims have arrived: Kaika and Nilufer Clubwala are here on their pilgrimage/vacation and are part of the pilgrims that are starting to come for Guru Purnima. They arrived on Kauai last night after a long flight from New York and this morning they came to the aadheenam to attend the 9am Siva puja.

Kaika is an excellent photographer. So, this morning Sadhaka Dandapani handed him the monastery’s camera for the rare opportunity to be the TAKA photographer.

These photos are through the eyes of Kaika Clubwala.

The palms lining the roadway to Iraivan are some of the tallest and fastest growing in the world.

Kailash Dhaksinamurthi and the Clubwallas have been on several Innersearch travel/study programs with us…

As we approach the blessed day of Guru Purnima next week… we have just received photos of the Guru Purnima held in Jaffna last year… Rishi Thondunatha says:

Jai Gurudeva! Without fail the Sri Subramuniya Kottam celebrates Guru Purnima and Gurudeva’s Birthday every year. The celebrations this year were especially joyous as the Kottam has seen much development since the cease fire in Sri Lanka in 2002. This year with the first phase of the Kottam’s temple, the Sri Shanti Lingam Temple completed there is much to celebrate. The children have been busy, enthusiastically preparing for the festival.

Here are some photos from the last year’s Guru Purnima at Sri Subramuniya Kottam

Sri La Sri Somasundara Paramachariya Swamigal Gurumaha Sannidanam of Nallai Adheenam arriving at the Sri Subramuniya Kottam for Guru Purnima.

Swami Chitrupananda of Sri Ramakrishna Sarada Mission arriving at the Sri Subramuniya Kottam for Guru Purnima.

Pada Puja at the Gurudeva’s Thiruvadi Temple.

Nallai Adheenam Karthar putting shawl and honoring the Kottam Othuvar Vannithamby Nadarajah.

Nallai Adheenam Karthar putting Vibuthi and honoring the Kottam Teacher Iyampillai Velautham

Kottam student putting Garland and honoring Sri Saimathaji.

Thavil , Nadaswaram players

We close today’s TAKA with visuals of Iraivan and the color gifts of of the flora that is in full bloom at this time of year.

Bodhinatha attended the monthly meeting of the now officially titled “Interfaith Round Table of Kauai,” which is a fledgling interfaith group here on Kauai. Today they had special guests from The Interfaith Alliance (TIA) from Washington, D.C and Honolulu. These TIA representatives shared with the new group on Kauai their work in the field of fighting for America’s religious freedom. It was clear from everything they said that they are doing a very important job in our nation’s capitol. TIA has 150,000 members across the United States. See more about their work at their web site.

We had two mini-milestones today. Our Wailua Mission members came to finish the gold leafing of the Tandavas of Kadavul… Tandu Sivanathan with his wife Uma.

Also joining the team: Isani Alahan, Brahmacharinis Shama Kumaran and Lila Shakti Devi, Leonora Orr, Kulapati Deva Seyon…

There were only six left to do today out of the 108

The statues were painted with “sizing” earlier (a kind of special adhesive)…

Then, when they are just dry to the touch.. the gilding begins

If you gild too soon, with the sizing still wet.. the gold moves around under your brush and you won’t get a smooth finish….

It should be dry, but still tacky enough to attract the gold leaf…

Our sevaks have become masters at this work…

Once you get started…no time to waste…if the sizing dries out… you have to paint more and wait another two hours….

Tandu has a perfect finish, smooth, bright and shiny!

Tandu Sivanathan has been taking a lead in this Sivathondu and has the pleasure of returning the gilded statues to the temple.

Up onto the shelf…

The team captured Paramacharya Palaniswami to place the 108th one.

The temple looks radiant with these 108 golden dancers flashing in the mirrors….

There is a famous name for the temple of Lord Nataraja at Chidambaram–the “Chit Sabha” — Hall of Consciousness… With these golden dancing forms of Lord Siva… Kadavul too has certainly become another “Chit Sabha.”

Our pilgrims are beginning to arrive. Kailash Dhaksinamurthi is here. He has been working very hard in his tour agency business and also doing great Sivathondu for Himalayan Academy Publications by staffing our literature display booths and tables at many temples and festivals.

Another mini-milestone… containers are arriving filled with more stone…

This is the first of four that have arrived from India this week…

More surprises from the Holy Land!

We will close our captions here today… but give you more visual vignettes of Iraivan and the Aadheenam…

We had a quiet Sun One Homa today… no photos for you.. but all is well. News tidbits:

The Garden Island Daily newspaper ran a front-page story on the McDonald’s settlement for Hinduism Today.

We are all praying for the next team of silpis who are in
Chennai, facing the US Embassy visa procedures. The visa officials are very strict, and it is not an easy matter. We have filled out papers several times and there is a lot of investigation going on, but things look good. We have a perfect track record with our silpi crews to date, all of who have returned to India upon completion of their contract.

All eyes and hands at the monastery are focused on the coming Guru Purnima, Garbhanyasa temple consecration ceremonies and open house… but… something big happened!

(A news Release Issued today to the media:)

McDonald’s Supersizes Hindu Endowment

$10 million settlement-includes $255,000 for Hinduism Today, an international magazine published by Kauai’s Hindu Monastery

They deceived the public about beef flavorings in their “vegetarian fries.” They got caught. They were sued. They settled in court. This week the food giant McDonald’s mailed a check for $254,773.19 to Hinduism Today magazine’s endowment fund (Hindu Heritage Endowment), one of a handful of elite vegetarian-friendly institutions in America chosen as recipients of the court-ordered $10 million settlement.

It was all started by a Seattle lawyer, Harish Bharti, a vegetarian Hindu who makes a habit out of identifying the ingredients in purportedly vegetarian foods. He examined McDonald’s french fries. Back in 1990, news reports appeared that stated, for example, “McDonald’s, Wendy’s and Burger King are switching to all-vegetable oil to cook their fries.” The reason was to reduce the saturated fat content (bad for the heart), which, in McDonald’s case, went from 42 grams to 23 grams for a two-ounce serving of fries. Previously, the fries were cooked with beef tallow. Our on-line dictionary appetizingly defines tallow as, “Hard fat obtained from parts of the bodies of cattle, sheep or horses, and used in foodstuffs or to make candles, leather dressing, soap and lubricants.” Yum.

The problem for McDonald’s was that the veggie-oil cooked fries didn’t taste like their popular tallow-cooked fries, which they solved by including a beef flavoring at the time of preprocessing for distribution (not while being cooked in the restaurant). Under the US government’s food guidelines, they were allowed to label this beef flavoring as “natural flavor,” which it is. But because of the hype over the switch to vegetable oil for frying, vegetarians assumed–and McDonald’s did not try to dissuade–that the fries were now vegetarian.

Bharti sued McDonald’s in 2001, and that grew into a law suit involving a number of lawyers and organizations. Ultimately, Hindus, Sikhs, Jews, Muslims, vegetarians and vegans joined the fray–the Jews because the beef flavoring was not kosher and the Muslims because it wasn’t halal.

In March, 2002, the lawsuit was close to being settled. McDonald’s agreed to issue a formal apology, better disclosure of ingredients, creation of an advisory board and payment of us$10,000,000 to organizations which promote vegetarianism and issues related to the fries.

The apology reads, in part, “McDonald’s sincerely apologizes to Hindus, vegetarians and others for failing to provide the kind of information they needed to make informed dietary decisions at our U.S. restaurants. We acknowledge that, upon our switch to vegetable oil in the early 1990s for the purpose of reducing cholesterol, mistakes were made in communicating to the public and customers about the ingredients in our french fries and hash browns. Those mistakes included instances in which french fries and hash browns sold at U.S. restaurants were improperly identified as “vegetarian.'” It is part of the settlement that the full apology be printed in Veggie Life, India Tribune and Hinduism Today.
Bharti wrote at the time, “I am proud of obtaining the apology (with admission of wrongdoing), the enhanced disclosure from McDonald’s and the advisory board. This means a lot to my clients and me, because this is very valuable for the consumer interest in the long run. In the last 100 years this is the first giant corporation to apologize, admit wrongdoing and also pay millions of dollars.”
McDonald’s is indeed giant, and serves as a kind of magnet for all criticism of big business (see http://www.mcspotlight.org). For the year 2002, McDonald’s worldwide income was $15.4 billion, which yielded a net profit of $893 million. More than 30,000 local McDonald’s restaurants serve 46 million customers each day in more than 100 countries.

Organizations were invited to submit specific proposals to Bharti and the other lawyers for a share in the settlement. The money was to go, according to McDonald’s, “to Hindu, vegetarian and other groups whose charitable and educational activities are closely linked to the concerns of these consumers [having dietary restrictions].” The Hindu Heritage Endowment, founded by Hinduism Today’s creator, Satguru Sivaya Subramuniyaswami, was invited to submit a request. HHE proposed to put any settlement share in its Hinduism Today Distribution Fund to increase the magazine’s free distribution in the US, on the basis that the magazine has consistently promoted vegetarianism among Hindus.
In May, 2003, the Illinois court where the suit was litigated, announced the 24 organizations awarded money under the settlement, one of which was the Hinduism Today endowment. The groups and the amount of settlement is:

Hindu: International/American Gita Society, $50,000; Hinduism Today Endowment, $250,000; Supporting Excellence in Education, $900,000; Council of Hindu Temples of North America $200,000; SSV Temple, $50,000; Hindu Students Council, $500,000

Muslim: Muslim Consumer Group for Food Products, $100,000; Islamic Food and Nutrition Council of America, $450,000

Jewish: Jewish Community Centers Association, $200,000; Orthodox Union, $150,000; Star-K/Torah.Org, $300,000; CLAL, $50,000; The Foundation for Jewish Campus Life (Hillel), $300,000.

Sikh: Guru Harkrishan Institute of Sikh Studies, $50,000

Vegetarian: Vegetarian Resource Group, $1,400,000; ADAF Vegetarian Nutrition Dietetic Practice Group, $600,000; Preventive Medicine Research Institute, $550,000; North American Vegetarian Society, $1,000,000; Vegetarian Vision, Inc., $250,000; American Vegan Society, $500,000; Loma Linda University, $300,000

Academic/Other: Tufts University, $850,000; Produce for Better Health Foundation, $500,000; Division of Nutrition and Physical Activity at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (“CDC”), $500,000.

An appeal was dismissed just last month, and the final disbursement made during the first week of July, 2005.

So, what will Kauai’s Hindu Monastery do with these funds? The monks plan to place the entire amount, just over $250,000, in the magazine’s permanent endowment at Hindu Heritage Endowment. The principle is protected, so this will be a perpetual source for funding outright 1,000 or more subscriptions a year forever, or to subsidize a larger number. In short, their supersized endowment will educate Americans, especially youth, about the merits of a veggie lifestyle, which has been a Hindu ideal for 6,000 years or more. A spokesmonk from the monastery noted they were “humbled” to be counted among some of America’s most respected educational institutions.

Hindu vegetarians around the world may wish to take note of the little-publicized fact that McDonald’s made no changes in their fries, which are still beef-flavoring saturated. Sure, the oil is vegetable. But make no mistake about it. There is meat in those luscious Golden Arches french fries.

Despite the early morning showers, we had a big end of phase tour group with us today.

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 Dvitya Tithi, Sun One, Thursday, July 7th.

Today Piyush Gupta, Seetha Lakshmi and their son Anshul visited again after eight years. The first time they visited, they didn’t even know we were here until they happened to meet one of the monks in town, who invited them to come up.

They were happy to see so much progress with Iraivan Temple, and also this time having the chance to see the blue fruit on the rudraksha seeds, which they did not see last time.

Karthik Komarasamy also visited us from Honolulu. He has been living there for five years, working in the food science area. He was very happy to chat with Shanmugam Sthapati in Tamil for a while, because he has no opportunities in Honolulu.

Close of phase visual vignettes from Iraivan… we will let them speak for themselves…

Sun Four today… our Siddhidata Kulam described their seva over the past phase. Lots of routine grounds work and equipment maintenance as usual. At the temple site they have been helping the silpis uncrate stones from the last shipment and organizing these to help create more space. New containers have arrived in Honolulu and will be here shortly.

The path of San Marga….

Tirumular wrote:

“9 SANMARGA (PATH OF KNOWLEDGE)

1477: San Marga
They glimpsed the Light of Holy Scriptures,
The revealed word of the Self-Existent Sivam.
They lost the sense of ego,
Became Siddhas of SivaYoga,
And over Death triumphed;
Only they that had thus evolved
Knew meaning inner of Sanmarga.

1478: Nandi Showed Sanmarga Path
The peerless Master Nandi
Of Saivam honoured high,
He showed us a holy path
For Souls’ redemption true
It is Siva’s divine path, Sanmarga’s path
For all world to tread
And for ever be free.

Iraivan blessed with a brief shower…

“1479: Guru Adoration is Sanmarga
To see him, to adore him, to meditate on him
To touch him, to sing of him,
To bear his holy feet on humbled head,
They that render devotion to Guru
In diverse ways thus,
They indeed walk the Sanmarga path
That to liberation leads.

1480: Sanmarga Gives the Vision True
They that have true Vision none,
Shall never Siva know;
Nor shall even Jivas be;
Nor indeed Siva become;
Never, never their birth’s bondage broken be.

1481: Sanmarga Leads to Supreme Grace-Bliss
When you scorch Impurities five
And listen to the Voice of Silence
You become a pure Mukta;
And I and You in one merge;
And by the unsullied Grace Jnana grants
You shall joy of the Bliss Divine;
Verily, then by Sanmarga Path
You become He indeed .

1482: Greatness of Sanmargis
The visage of Sanmargi is Pedestal of Sakti
Where Sanmargi is there God is,
To see assemblage of Sanmargis is to vision Lord,
This I proclaim,
To whatsoever path you do incline.

1483: Sanmarga Path Purest
Alone of all paths
Sanmarga grants God-head through knowledge;
The rest of paths are for un-illumined;
Renouncing the ways of impurities
And transcending limits of Turiya
It merges I in You;
Verily, Sanmarga is Path Purest.

1484: Other Three Paths Open of Themselves
Unto that rare seeker in Sanmarga path
The rest of three paths, of themselves open;
That alone is True Path union with Siva seeks;
Seek that Path
As Guiding Word scriptures proclaim.

1485: Sanmargi’s Vision
The bondage that keeps Jiva an alien to God,
The Karmas that flow from it,
The avastas that the Self experiences,
The Primordial Stuff that is Matter’s nucleus,
The Consciousness that entwines it,
The million, million mutations that pervade the universe,
They who see them all and their own Selves
Verily are they the Sanmargis true.

1486: Sanmarga Leads to Svarupa State
Rending the Soul’s bonds asunder
Conjoining him to the Lord
Melting the heart that knew no melting
Merging into the Primal Manifestness (Svarupa)
That is Truth Eternal
Sanmarga verily gives Jiva
The rest that knows no commotion ever.

1487: Sanmarga is Only Path to Finite Goal
That alone is Path Divine
The Sanmargis for Goal ordain;
Other Path there is none,
Than this path to the One;
They that straight reach it not,
Through Yoga’s Path may yet climb.

Sun Three today. Quiet, dynamic work goes on as usual. The Pillaiyar Kulam shared news today. Shanmuganathaswami told us the last edition of the hard cover of Dancing with Siva was sold out, so we are getting a reprint. Sadhaka Jothinatha detailed the on-going event promotions that he has been coordinated with the help of many dedicated sevaks in various parts of the country. He found a new work flow to supply the different booths with displays: instead of printing these here and shipping them, which is very expensive, now he just orders the banners and laminated posters from the nearest Kinkos and sends them a PDF… it saves a lot of time and money.

Two days ago on TAKA you saw a young couple attending our homa seeking blessings from the Gods for their upcoming marriage. Today, most of the family and friends who are on the island for the wedding returned to attend the 9am Siva puja and to tour the grounds.

Here are Hema and Suresh, parents of the bride, hugging one of our many rudraksha trees.

Tri and his wife, parents of the groom, from San Diego, originally from Vietnam.

Sun Two of our phase… a bright beautiful clear day….

The Ekadanta Kulam reported on their activities… which are primarily preparing for the up-and-coming Guru Purnima and Open House. RSVP responses to invitations are over 200 now. And if that is any indication, it will be mean possibly as many as 700 people for the Open House. A lot to do!

The Balasubrahmanya and Mala Masti family came by at the end of the morning, on vacation from San Diego. They heard about us through word of mouth and were very eager to visit.

It was Subrahmanya’s birthday yesterday and he felt extra blessed to be here. They were accompanied by Mala’s parents who are visiting from Mumbai, and also uncle.

The family is originally from Coimbatore and also Tiruchendur area. Their family Deity is Murugan.

They also were delighted to see Rudraksha trees and their blue fruited seeds for the first time.

One of their relatives is himself a silpi, so they had a great time connecting with Shanmugam Sthapati and his team. As we drove away from Iraivan Temple, Balasubrahmanya remarked, “I do not feel like I am in North America right now.”

Swami Tejomayananda receives the Hindu Renaissance Award from Hinduism Today. Presented by Hinduism Today correspondent, Archana Dongre at the recent opening of the new Chinmaya Mission center in Los Angeles.

He is garlanded by one of the swamis of the center there.

The plaque reads:

“2005 Hindu Renaissance Award Presented by Hinduism Today to Hindu of the Year, 2005, Sri Sri Swami Tejomayananda, spiritual leader of Chinmaya Mission Worldwide, for fulfilling the vision of his guru, Swami Chinmayananda, guiding the Chinmaya Mission’s exemplary teaching programs, inspiring the dynamic expansion of the monastic order (including new swamis from the diaspora) and teaching hundreds of thousands to be better Hindus.”

At home in the morning monks discuss the serious issue of mangos falling on the ground. The ancient, giant mango tree in front of the publications buildings is dropping them by the dozens daily. Sadly they are so high up it is dangerous to pick them. So we make do with finding those few that fall without being damaged.

Guests are often surprised to see these all over the ground… and ideas start flowing: ranging from putting a giant tarp underneath the tree and having them all roll down to one spot… hiring a helicopter to blow directly over the tree while all 20 of us stand underneath with baskets… hiring a specially trained team of monkeys etc…

Another Aadheenam Paal (milk) product: this time Bleu Cheese….