Out near Hanuman and the rudraksha grove lies a huge pile of dirt brought in by the state project due to widening the main road. We are hoping their team can push the dirt south into the pasture so we have room to work on the parking lot preparations. There is a berm behind this pile with 200 feet of hibiscus planted, so we spent two mornings to transplant nearly 70 plants to another location near the monastery main buildings. Now the space is cleared for the dirt pile to be moved over.

Nepal is the major supplier of Rudraksha beads to the world, and we did a feature story about that in Hinduism Today last fall. The story was told by journalist and photographer Nikki Tapar, who flew to the valley where most of the trees are grown to discover the amazing details for the feature article. For instance, did you know that the sale of the beads represents fully 6% of the nation's Gross National Product? Or that a single bead sold at auction for $84,000?

Since we have the West's only Rudraksha Forest here at the monastery, we have a special interest in the trees and their fruits. Nikki sent us some Nepalese beads, and we discovered they are different than ours, lighter in color and somewhat more detailed in texture.

So, we commissioned Nikki to acquire seedlings. She flew back to the valley and bought 16 saplings, about 3 feet tall, carrying them back to her home in Kathmandu. She and Sadasivanathaswami went through some months of permitting, planning, and preparing the trees for the flight to Kauai.

They arrived at the monastery yesterday, and the box was unpacked. The tall saplings had been pruned short for the shipping, but we are assured they will recover soon and in about 4 years, we will have our first harvest of these special botanical gems. And make them available in the MiniMela.

At the end of the slideshow, there is a QR Code leading to the full magazine article.
Thank you, Nikki, for your amazing help (and tenacity) with this international exchange of DNA.

When Gurudeva was on his fasting bed 22 years and 2 months ago, the team at Kauai Hospice guided the monks through his end of life journey. Every day for over a month they were on the phone, making Gurudeva's last days comfortable and understandable to those of us who had never been through the process. So selfless and knowledgeable, so compassionate they were.

A few days ago they visited, 28 of them, almost the entire staff. Many had never visited the monastery, so seeing Iraivan Temple completed, visiting the sacred gardens, it was a new and surprising experience.

They had many questions about the Hindu view of Death & Dying. Fortunately, we had prepared a somewhat complete dossier for their visit, taken from past Insights printed in Hinduism Today.

We also personalized it a bit, and had DALL-E paint some images. Our graphic experiments with artificial intelligence continue, and as you will see do not disappoint.

Here is a link to the illustrated 20-page PDF document. If you know anyone going through end-of-life experiences, you can share this PDF with them, as it is rich in knowledge of the process with a focus on Hindu practices and understandings. It also has stories of how ten Great Souls left their bodies, and ten reasons we should never fear death.

https://kauaishindumonastery.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/Death-Dying-for-Hospice2.pdf

On the San Marga path, one side of Muruga Hill had been paved with rock, and now the other will get the same treatment. With the weather getting drier, Dennis Wong is now laying down the first bed of larger rock, on which he will place gravel and compact it. He is halfway around the hill with the first layer.

As the annual Gurudeva Puja events have winded down and we head into Skanda Shashthi, sishya Rajkumar Manickam shares additional photos, taken with his fancy camera, of scenery and the San Marga murthi moves on day three. The final afternoon will be a separate post.

Two events in one post:
1) A couple weeks ago Island School made their annual student field trip over here as part of studying world religions. They also visited other religions' places of worship on the island.
Isani Alahan gave a tour which included attending part of the Siva puja in Iraivan Temple. Most of these photos were taken by 8th grade teacher Pat Gegen. He reported afterwards, "Thank You again for the wonderful tours you provide for us and our students and the wisdom and insights into better understanding Hinduism as practiced here on Kauai. I continue to learn more every year and it is always a highlight for the students."

2) The other day we affixed a kalasam to the top of the small Ganesha shrine on San Marga path. A Ganesha murti will be officially installed inside in the coming weeks.

Each day in Siva's Sacred Gardens something magical is there to surprise and inspire. Nature's beauty and complexity are truly miraculous, if we but keep a wonder-filled heart and eye, alert to and aware of Siva's presence in it all, working from deep inside.

Here we share a couple of blooms from today, coupled with some interesting quotes about reincarnation....

Now that the new metal building is finished on the outside, including gutters and drain pipes to move rainwater away from the building, the Siddhidata Kulam is adjusting the surroundings. The ground is now sloped away on three sides, with a slightly lower pathway cut to channel water further away. Narrow concrete pipes already in our possession were laid next to each other to form a wide culvert for diverting a large amount of water out into the nearby orchard. The road over this culvert is the main route for coming to and from the new building. A round catchment tank is being installed as another source of rainwater storage for emergency use, and we also just purchased a used, large, stainless steel tanker as another source of backup water. A mound of dirt and mulch is established around the south side of the building to grow plants for a visual barrier.

With some helpful dry weather in the last week, our big equipment operator and engineer Dennis Wong was able to complete the process of laying down rocks and gravel for the farthest section of the Iraivan Temple pilgrims' path. This portion is the most challenging because of longer distance for transporting the material, and susceptibility to muddiness in wet weather. He will move on to the flatter sections in the weeks ahead. The rocks and gravel were laid a bit further than the temple entrance hill steps, over to a picturesque stream. Next, Dennis is working backwards, currently around the svayambhulingam area.

In a walk near the Path of the Saiva Satgurus this morning we were greeted with this remarkable orchid in bloom. Wow! It is Grammatophyllum wallisii, a rare native of the Philippines. It is among the largest orchids in the world and has many nicknames in the botanical world: Giant Orchid, Tiger Orchid, Sugar Cane Orchid. The flowers are a full 3.5 inches in diameter and the 8-foot-long spikes each have dozens. In the days ahead the spikes will extend and the drama will only increase. The plant as it grows older will form a basket of aerial roots, which is designed to catch falling leaves which will decompose and release nutrients and thus sustain the plant. Above is a Before & After slider of Iraivan from high above.