Recently multiple families made pre-arranged visits to enjoy the grounds and have darshan with Satguru Bodhinatha.

Today we celebrate Gurudeva's Siva Vision Day, calculated by Revathi nakshatra in the month of Kumbha. It is today that we worship Siva at the svayambhu lingam, to which Gurudeva's vision lead him. Just before sunrise, monks and devotees walked through the darkened gardens, to the lingam square to enjoy a short puja and meditation.

Here is the story of Gurudeva's vision, as told in these excerpts from The Guru Chronicles:

In the early hours of February 15, 1975, lying on a tatami mat in his Ryokan room, Gurudeva was having one of those profound sleeps that is neither awake nor full of dreams. In that clear space above physical consciousness, the 48-year-old satguru experienced a threefold vision that would be the spiritual birth of the great Siva citadel called Iraivan Temple and its surrounding San Marga Sanctuary.

I saw Lord Siva walking in the meadow near the Wailua River. His face was looking into mine. Then He was seated upon a great stone. I was seated on His left side. This was the vision. It became more vivid as the years passed. Upon reentering Earthly consciousness, I felt certain that the great stone was somewhere on our monastery land and set about to find it.
Guided from within by my satguru, I hired a bulldozer and instructed the driver to follow me as I walked to the north edge of the property that was then a tangle of buffalo grass and wild guava. I hacked my way through the jungle southward as the bulldozer cut a path behind me. After almost half a mile, I sat down to rest near a small tree. Though there was no wind, suddenly the tree's leaves shimmered as if in the excitement of communication. I said to the tree, "What is your message?" In reply, my attention was directed to a spot just to the right of where I was sitting.
When I pulled back the tall grass, there was a large rock--the self-created Lingam on which Lord Siva had sat. A stunningly potent vibration was felt. The bulldozer's trail now led exactly to the sacred stone, surrounded by five smaller boulders. San Marga, the "straight or pure path" to God, had been created. An inner voice proclaimed, "This is the place where the world will come to pray." San Marga symbolizes each soul's journey to liberation through union with God.

That vision must have wrought profound changes in Gurudeva's interior world, for it certainly was the seed of profound changes on the outside. Immediately he embarked on a long journey that would bring Saivism deeply into the lives of his followers and build not only a temple to honor his life-changing vision, but a traditional aadheenam like the great ones he had visited in South India just three years before.
Gurudeva had observed there was no such temple/monastery complex in all of the West for Hindus and threw himself into its creation. With no authorities to guide, he searched within for the systems of spiritual and material management and crafted an astonishing set of procedures and flows to guide every aspect of his several institutions, and to inform the monks' lives and relationships.
By the spring of 1987 Gurudeva's vision for Iraivan Temple was evolving from a mystical revelation to a real-world plan. Working with sacred architects in South India, he was defining its physical form, establishing the principles of its creation and considering the style of the massive stone edifices built during South India's Chola Dynasty a millennium ago. The big question was still pending: What form of Siva would inhabit the inner sanctum? It was a meditation that continued for months, for he knew the relevance of this decision. It would define the temple more than any external style. It would be its life and essence, the most holy and powerful force around which all else would circle.
One day, in an early-morning vision in his private quarters, Gurudeva saw the future, as he would later say. In fact, he often said, if you want to know what you should do, do this: In your mind, travel into the future, and from there look back and witness what happened. The present-day decision will be obvious.
In this vision of the yet-to-be, Gurudeva saw a massive crystal Sivalingam shining brightly in the sanctum of Iraivan Temple, radiating out to the world. It was a titan among crystals. In fact, it seemed in this first seeing impossibly large, fantastical and beyond reality.
The Agamas say one can worship this Great God Siva in the form of a Lingam made of mud or sand, of cow dung or wood, of bronze or black granite stone. But the purest and most sought-after form is the quartz crystal, a natural stone not carved by man but made by nature, gathered molecule by molecule over hundreds, thousands or millions of years, grown as a living body grows, but infinitely more slowly. Such a creation of nature is itself a miracle worthy of worship.

During Sivaratri night, a poem was composed that we share today.

If you look carefully, the lines of the first quatrain and each of the subsequent parallel lines relate (mostly).  

Sivaratri Night
Kadavul Temple
February 27, 2014

Siva is not a friend of fathomers,
Of those who seek a God within their ken,
Or those who dwell in twin-mind's separateness,
Or those who think of Him but now and then.

Unfathomable He, mystery untold,
Unseekable, our God, beyond all mind,
Undivided, separateness' nemesis,
Unthinkably beyond what souls may find.

How then to fathom such raw Omnitude?
How to draw near That without breadth or length?
Perhaps just trust. Perhaps just be, and see
That He is there as life, as love's mute strength.

Better yet to know what can't be known,
Defiant Truth that flees the grasp of man,
To say, "I searched but was the searched I sought,
With not a separate thing to understand."

Aum Namasivaya!

This year, the monastery enjoyed another beautiful celebration of Mahasivaratri. The night began at 7 o'clock, as devotees walked the torch-lit path up to Kadavul temple. There they sang bhajans together until 7:30 when the special Siva homa began. From that very first arati to Ganesha, it was obvious that this would be a powerful night. With everyone gathered around the crackling flames, the monks chanted Sri Rudram with an intense and indomitable cadence. Siva's unlimited and all-pervasive energy and love, swelled through the minds of all present, drawing them inward toward the Self of themselves.

There the eye goes not, nor words, nor mind. We know not. We cannot understand how He can be explained. He is above the known, and He is above the unknown. Thus have we heard from the ancient sages who explained this truth to us. Sama Veda, Kena Upanishad 1.3

As the Homa reached its crescendo, and the final arati had passed, the Siva kumbha was placed upon Satguru Bodhinatha's head, and was paraded around Nandi and the Kodimaram, then brought to Siva's inner sanctum for the night's abhishekam.

Like the household fire, devotees seek the glory of the Lord even from afar and enshrine it in their inner chamber for enlightenment. The glory of our Lord is full of splendor, all-illuminative and worthy to be honored in every heart. Rig Veda 7.1.2

Soon after, everyone sat and listened to a talk given by Gurudeva on that same night 24 years earlier. Following the talk, a short and serene, silent meditation on the Absolute. After a quick break, Bodhinatha gave an absolutely incredible talk, which we hope to have online soon. He discussed the nine stages of merging with Siva with his usual simplicity and grace.

Namah Sivaya has such power, the mere intonation of these syllables reaps its own reward in salvaging the soul from bondages of the treacherous instinctive mind and the steel bands of a perfected externalized intellect. Gurudeva

The small and sometimes unnoticed crystal lingam, which sits Nataraja's feet in Kadavul, parallels the often unnoticed and silent power reverberating through it. The abhishekam soon began, and the monks took turns bathing the lingam. In pairs, they poured milk, yogurt, citrus, vibuthi and others, over the perfectly clear crystal Lingam. Offering their prana to Siva's formless unevolutionary perfection.

With love and tireless devotion to our great God, the source of all things and the core of our being, Aum Namah Sivaya!

Be unknown. God is unknown. Siva Yogaswami

Aum Namah Sivaya

This evening is Mahasivaratri. The monastery is full of activity as preparations are made for Siva's great and blissful night. We observe tonight both as a discipline and a festivity, keeping a strict fast and all-night vigil, meditating, intoning Siva's 1,008 names, singing His praise, chanting Sri Rudram and bathing the Sivalinga.

You don't want to see God. You must feel God. God is you. Just be that. Satguru Siva Yogaswami

As long as there is searching, Parasiva has not been found, for searching is two, while It is one. Gurudeva

All this universe is in the glory of God, of Siva, the God of love. The heads and faces of men are His own, and He is in the hearts of all. Krishna Yajur Veda, Svetasvatara Upanishad 3.11

Following Trinidad, Satguru Bodhinatha Veylanswami and Sannyasin Senthilnathaswami flew back to Texas, this time to Midland, far out west. Arriving in the evening, the first stop was a dinner at the home of Drs. Nalin and Kamal Tolia, some of the monastery's strongest supporters in West Texas.

The next morning, Drs. Mrunal and Padmaja Patel invited Bodhinatha to their home for pada puja satsang. Mrunal performed an excellent puja, Bodhinatha gave a marvelous upadesha and all present were blessed with vibhuti.

One of the days we were in Midland happened to be chitra nakshatra, so the Patel family invited Senthilnathaswami to perform pada puja to Gurudeva's tiruvadi in their shrine room. He did so in the same style it is performed at Kauai Aadheenam. In fact, at the very same time the puja was being performed at Gurudeva's shrine in Kadavul Temple on Kauai. The energy was very high.

A message from Jiva in Sri Lanka:

All the members are gathered right now at the Sri Subramuniya Kottam to attend the following program:

The members will perform a homa and one member will do an abhishekam to our Gurudeva's tiruvadi. Then we will all carry a pal koodam to the Shanti Lingam temple. The Lingam there was a gift given by Gurudeva. The homa will continue as will the abhishekam. The temple priests will also perform a puja at the temple. Our morning program will be completed at noon.
In the evening we are visiting Makandayar swami's samadhi and will then head to Sri Sivathondan Nilayam for a Siva puja. Finally we will travel to Keerimala Siva Temple beside the sea and we will spend the whole night there.

-Jiva

Today Kanda Alahan arrived at the Aadheenam. He plans to attend Mahasivaratri and spend the remainder of his week here, working with the Ganapati Kulam on the Media Studio. Kanda lives in Concord and skillfully builds custom cabinets. Laid out before him are the shrines he has built for the Media Studio's entryway. They will be on either wall as one enters the building, and will house the Ganesha and the Gurudeva carvings which have been completed. These shrines were built out of African Mahogany.

Today, while working in the Woodshop, one of the monks found this little guy relaxing on his shoulder. Unlike some lizards around here, he was very laid-back and content. These reptiles can change their color in a matter of seconds, but usually remain either green or brown most of the time. It is well known that the sound of a lizard or gecko chirping is auspicious, and often times a monk will make a good point in conversation, only to have it confirmed by the sound one of these little creatures.

Yesterday the Monastery began its new phase. Sadasivanathaswami filled in for Bodhinatha at the homa, to burn the prayers and give a short talk afterwards. This phase is a shorter one, of just four days, but it's no less exciting. Sun 1 began with the usual homa, and was a day of many activities, such as the SK's garden care or the GK's work in the woodshop, creating their soon-to-be desks. Sun two, Satguru Bodhinatha and Senthilnathaswami return from their 3 week trip to Texas and Trinidad. It is also Guruthondu day, a day when all the monks get together on a single project, and push it forward with a massive force. Sun 4 will be Mahasivaratri, "Siva's Great Night." Aum Namah Sivaya