Today we celebrate the final day of Gurudeva's Mahasamadhi Celebration!

This afternoon we will enjoy an elaborate homa and a padapuja to Gurudeva's paduka in Kadavul Temple. Jai Gurudeva! Don't worry, next phase we will cover the days we skipped on TAKA.

Click to Play a short talk by Gurudeva

This morning sunrise over the aadheenam is a beautiful way to start our 2017 Gurudeva Mahasamadhi celebrations! Jai Gurudeva!

After attaining his mahasamadhi in 2001, Satguru Sivaya Subramuniyaswami has been worshiped at this time each year. Pilgrims from around the world have arrived and today was the first day of their morning worship and classes with the monks. We'll post photos soon, once they're all processed. Until then, enjoy these beautiful shots of our islands charm, and join us in thanking Gurudeva for the magical, perfect presence that he has caused to flood into our lives every single day. Aum Namah Sivaya. Sivaya Namah Aum.

"To live positively in the conscious mind each day, exercise at least a half hour. Keep the vital energies of the body high and healthy. Eat simply and follow a vegetarian diet, feeding the stomach rather than the mouth. Be considerate of others always and live inconspicuously, almost transparently, by not ruffling your surroundings, by keeping the home neat and clean, by passing through a room or place and leaving it in a nicer condition than before you arrived. Seek fresh air and learn to breathe deeply. Get out in the sun. Move the physical body, walk briskly, dance, keep the energies vibrant and buoyant. Be close to nature. Grow food. Develop an art or craft so the hands are active, creative. Of course, being neat and attractive in personal appearance keeps the thoughts of others toward you positive. This is the way to live in the conscious mind. Try to live life as though you are walking in the rain without getting wet, or carefully writing on water. No ripples, no disturbance, no reactionary residue that has to be faced at some future date." Gurudeva

Last evening marked the beginning of this month's Chitra nakshatra (a lunar mansion along the ecliptic). This is the time when we celebrate Gurudeva with a padapuja to his granite paduka in Kadavul Temple. This morning Satguru, his monks and island members gathered together in Kadavul Temple to connect with Gurudeva's familiar darshan. Natyam Jayanatha and Natyam Mayuranatha performed the short abhishekam, pouring pranic substances over the tiruvadi, such as milk, honey and citrus. The temples filled with these sweet aromas and the scent of incense as Sri Rudram was chanted and Gurudeva's loving presence was felt by those attending. Aum Namah Sivaya.

Jai Ganesha!
Jai Gurudeva!

Happy Ganesha Chaturthi!

This morning the aadheenam began this most auspicious day with a padapuja to Satguru Sivaya Subramuniyaswami's paduka in Kadavul Temple. Nirvani Tejadevanatha and Natyam Rajanatha performed the abhishekam. The Temple was filled with Gurudeva's grace, and its power amplified by Lord Ganesha's presence. This afternoon we celebrate Ganesha Chaturthi with an Abhishekam to Lord Vinayaka. If you're looking to develop a deeper connection with Gurudeva or Lord Ganesha, today's a good day to work on it! Aum Gam Ganapataye Namah.

Today, being Chitra Nakshatra, Satguru, the monastics and local members gathered in Kadavul Temple in the early morning. There they observed a padapuja to Gurudeva's granite tiruvadi.

"Henceforth being pure, clean, void, tranquil, breathless, selfless, endless, undecaying, steadfast, eternal, unborn, independent, he abides in his own greatness." - Vedas

Today marked the moon's passage into the lunar mansion (nakshatra) known as Ardra. Ardra nakshatra is associated with Lord Siva, specifically with the eponymously named star within it. The star known as Ardra is known as Betelgeuse in astronomy, and is 1.5 billion times larger than our sun. Think about that. Keep in mind that our sun is a million times larger than the size of our earth to begin with. This affords us the opportunity to meditate on the microcosm/macrocosm concept. Lord Nataraja's image conveys the constant activity of our natural universe in His dance. It occurs every millisecond within every subatomic particle. This is Parasakti.

Today's photo captions are the entirety of Gurudeva's third lesson of Dancing with Siva, "What Is Meant by 'Dancing with Siva?'."

Please also enjoy also this quotation from Saint Thirumular on Siva's Dance.

"The thirty-six elements dance. Sadasiva dances. Consciousness dances. Siva-Sakti dances. The animate and inanimate dance. All these and the Vedas dance when the Supreme dances His dance of bliss. The seven worlds as His golden abode, the five chakras as His pedestal, the central kundalini sakti as His divine stage, thus in rapture He dances, He who is Transcendent Light. He dances with the celestials. He dances in the golden hall. He dances with the three Gods. He dances with the assembly of silent sages. He dances in song. He dances in ultimate energy. He dances in souls--He who is the Lord of Dances. Tat Astu."
-- Saint Thirumoolar

We present a complete slideshow of the Siddhidata Kulam's creation of Satguru Bodhinatha Veylanswami's new procession chariot which was first used on this past Satguru Purnima. The ensuing weeks before the big day involved *a lot* of work on the part of the Siddhidata Kulam to ensure it would be completed in time. For them, we are thankful.

On July 17th, the California Gold Gate Mission members of Saiva Siddhanta Church held Guru Purnima in the downstairs hall of the Concord, Shiva Murugan temple. The event was presided over by resident priests, Ananth Sivachariar, and Sathish Gurukkal who are now serving at the temple.

Devotees performed the pada puja, chanted Gurudeva's names, bhajans and Natchintanai. The priest guided the puja with their powerful chants.

The two priests are disciples of Sr. Dr. K. Pitchai Sivachariar from Pilliyar Patti. Ananth Sivachariar knew Gurudeva well and attributes his service now in this temple to Gurudeva's vision and support for the Sivachariar priests.

As most watching TAKA know, this temple was migrated from Gurudeva's original Palaniswami Sivan temple in San Francisco. It was later managed as Himalayan Academy, California branch, by our monks and devotees and then given over to the Hindu community when Gurudeva consolidated all his teaching activities at Kauai Aadheenam.

Ananth Sivachariar gave a short talk at the event recognizing the work of all the devotees who were the "original founders of this temple" and urged everyone to come and participate more. It was inspiring to see the spirit of the Kailasa Paramapara honored here on this day.

You can read about the priests here at this temple web page

We present photos from Satguru's recently completed visit to the United Kingdom from start to finish. Our full story today was written by Arulsishya Ramai Santhirapala of London.

Ramai's summary:


Between 28th June and 5th July, London had the immense boon of welcoming Satguru Bodhinatha Veylanswami. This was His first official visit since 2005 and one that was much anticipated. London has been gently walking towards Satguru's Holy Feet over the past decade, and inner doors opened as Hinduism Today reported on London's Saivite temples last year. A somewhat unanticipated and delightful sequelae of reporting this article were the many stories which emerged from those who had met Paramaguru Siva Yogaswami , Satguru Sivaya Subramuniyaswami and Satguru Bodhinatha Himself. In short invites were aplenty requesting earnestly for the presence of Satguru in London bringing joy to the hearts of the Saivite community and beyond.

The visit was a gracious opportunity to visit a selection of London's Saivite Temples whilst spending time with the growing Europe satsang group of Himalayan Academy students and sishyas. Cordially Kulapati and Kulamata Veeragethiyar, London's only kulapati, held a satsang at their home to commence this blessed visit. The pada puja was vibrant and Satguru's talk on our Saiva Samayam was enjoyed by all. That evening heralded the start of the temple tour across London, first being London Sri Murugan. Satguru and Shanmuganathaswami received a warm vanakkam with a powerful Guru mantra chant with good friend Pitchai Kurukkral in attendance. Sri Murugan Temple and the close by Saiva Munetta Sangam have previously received Satguru Bodhinatha and Sivaya Subramuniyaswami in the past and this was a beautiful moment to build on this acquaintance. Satguru Bodhinatha's talk on ‘Saivism is Not Well Understood' was received with immense thanks from devotees, especially as it was read out in English and Tamil.

The next morning the Europe satsang group organized a visit to Kew Royal Botanical Gardens which provided an opportunity to stroll through the tree-lined vistas, find a little Kauai in London in the Palm House and visit the newest feature entitled ‘The Hive', the latter being an educational and audio-visual delight mirroring a real beehive at Kew. That evening Satguru and Shanmuganathaswami visited Enfield Nagapoosani Amman Temple where currently in construction is London's first all granite temple to which Satguru has been invited to its Mahakumbhabhishekam next year.

Continuing on this journey the following morning was a visit to ‘Shanti Nilayam'; a small building dedicated to Siva Yogaswami established by long term devotees. The owners sought Yogaswami's tiruvadi and most humbled as Satguru blessed them with a wonderful puja. Natchinthinai were sang and we heard a beautiful poem from an elder, now in his 80s, who spoke of the wonders of our Guru parampara. Lunch was served at the Jananayagam home, most well known for their multiple generation association with Siva Yogaswami. Yogaswami seemed the common thread as that evening, Highgate Hill Murugan celebrated its monthly katthigai puja in Satguru's presence ending with an auspicious inauguration of a picture of Paramaguru Siva Yogaswami. The Ganesha murti at this temple was gifted by Gurudeva and it was interesting to hear of devotees connection with Gurudeva, Satguru Bodhinatha and Kauai Aadheenam.

The unique and boon of a workshop on Saivism was held at Shree Ghanapathy Temple on the third day of the visit. This was immensely well received as Satguru Bodhinatha gave a talk he has written on ‘What is Saivism?', Participants found it very useful to flow from the mystical aspects of Lord Siva and Saivism through to pragmatic wisdom on implementing this to everyday life in a city. We flowed onto visit the home of London's Thiruchendur Murugan, the first Hindu murti in London, at Sri Rajarajeswari Amman Temple that evening where we witnessed a wonderful abhishekam, violin and mridangam recital.

The musical theme continued as the next morning Satguru was invited to London Sivan Kovil. London's othuvar, Samy Thandapani, amazed us with his precise recitals of Tamil thevarans and songs dedicated to Lord Siva and the Nayanmars. Interspersed were recitals by London's Pan Asai group alongside a flute recital. All the while Lord Siva received a wonderful abhishekam. This was a suitable close to the temple visits, all of which received a beautifully worded upadesha on Saivism by Satguru Bodhinatha and gifted with gems from the writings of our our beloved Gurudeva. To close five days of dynamic travel across London filled with activities, a satsang was held at the Santhirapala home where vratas were taken under Satguru's brilliant radiance. Prior to departing London, Satguru and Shamuganathaswami blessed the satsang group with an Aloha Dinner which took place in the riverside and greener side of London, Richmond-Upon-Thames.

Overall a blessed and vibrant time as all felt immensely grateful and blissful in the light of Satguru's grace. His words of wisdom and joy in His smile captured the hearts of many who look ahead to the next visit whilst also planning a visit to Siva's little island of Kauai. It is with the humblest of nandris to the love and dharsan from Kauai Aadheenam that this visit manifested and we very much felt the love from the international family; Siva's Sambandham. All is indeed His Dance.

Aum Namah Sivaya

Chapter One: The Great Story of Awareness

For those who saw this post several weeks ago, and were surprised to see them disappear suddently, we have improved the speed and audio quality and added proper MP3 tags and are now release these as good to go.

Gurudeva's 1970 Audio Master Course transformed the hearts, minds and lives of 1000's of spiritual aspirants. Several generations of seekers have passed through these last 4 decades and many have never heard of this treasure. Gurudeva lays out the core metaphysics of spiritual evolution in very simple terms.

We want to give a special thanks Iain Morland in the UK who has professionally restored the digitized versions of these very old audio tapes and brought them forward to good quality MP3 files. Now Gurudeva's powerful presence feels like he is right with you today!

In 1970's the sadhana/practice/course was to listen to each one of these 12 tapes 3 times in one week. Then move to the next chapter. The course also had transcripts to read as you listened and took three months to complete. Some young Hindus recently heard some of these talks and were "blown away... awesome!" so the message is ever fresh and ever powerful, 40 years later. Click here to listen or download to your computer or mobile device NOTE: Small request for help: In our archives, we are missing a copy of the printed booklet of Chapter One of the course. In the front of each chapter transcript is a message that we have included in the web version, but we need to get that message from the Chapter One transcript book. If you have a complete set of this old course, please open to the first page that describes the meditation, visualization and practice that should accompany Chapter One, type this up and send it in an email to studyhall@hindu.org Thank you!