Dear Parents,
Hari Om!
Happy Navarathri, Vijayadashami, Dasara, Dusshera
The following material was taught to your children on Sunday, October 7th.
Required Reading : Chapters 1 through 10 of the Mahabharatha by C. Rajagopalachari:
Beginning of Class: Chanting Om three times and beginning Prayers.
Children updated their "My Vaacha" sheet. Please remind the children to keep track of their Vaacha. This
is one of the projects the 8th graders are working on to keep track of their speech.
We first taught the first four verses of Geeta Dhyanam and verses 41 through 46 of Bhagavd Geeta
chapter 18.
Then we brainstormed with the students the importance of mothers in their lives.
They listed all the things that their mothers do for them unconditionally, and inferred that the synonym for mother is love, so she is to be revered!
We then said, as lovingly as our mothers run the show, the divine mothers Durga, Lakshmi, and Sarasvati devis runs the show in the whole universe, loving all her children.
Navarathri & Vijayadashami:
We express our gratitude to the three divine mothers by spending time in worship, devotion, and study of scriptures. during the festival Navarathri (Nava means nine, and rathri means nights).
According to the Skandha Puranaaa, the demon Mahishasura was killed on this day by Kali or Durga, after the fight of nine days and nine nights.
The first three days, Durga devi, is invoked, next three days Lakshmi devi is worshipped, and the last three days are dedicated to Sarasvati devi.
Vijayadashami also symbolically signifies, man's victory over the ten -The five senses of perception (eyes, ears, tongue, nose, and skin) and the five organs of action(speech, hands, legs, and the genitals)
Symbolism of three devis:
We discussed the symbolism of the three Goddesses Durga, Lakshmi and Saraswati.
A.Symbolism of Durga Devi: Also known as Ambaa, Mahishasuramardini, Kali etc. She is pictured
riding a tiger, spinning a discus and unsheathed sword. She is shown killing Mahishasuara. The term
Mahisha refers to "buffalo" which represents "tamoguna" or laziness.Praying to Durga Devi, will help us
to annihilate our tamasic qualities, get rid of our ego (represented by the tiger). The weapons represent
"killing" our negative tendencies.
B. Sybmolism of Lakshmi Devi: After getting rid of our tamasic qualities, the mind needs to work on
developing ethical and cultural values. Goddess Lakshmi is referred to as "Suvarnahasta" (one whose
hands shower gold). Here the reference is not to material wealth but the six wealth of virtues.
They are:
Sama: calmness of mind
Dama: self control
Uparati: self withdrawal
Titiksha: Forbearance
Sraddha: faith in scriptures and our Guru
Samaadhana: single pointedness in seeking our goal
Goddess Lakshmi is shown seated on a lotus: we should learn to be unaffected by external events and pursue the goal of self realization.
C.Symbolism of Goddess Saraswati: Goddess Saraswati is shown seated on a rock. Only through right living and knowledge can a person be steady as a rock. She is shown with four hands holding:
A Japa Mala: meditation/concentration
A Book: a calm mind is capable of learning
The Veena: She is the deity of arts, crafts, technology
She is shown wearing a white saree which represents purity and the Swan or Peacock represents the beauty within which shines when one has gained knowledge about the Self.
Today @ 10:20 AM, grades 6 -12 assembled in the auditorium as our high schoolers, Midushi Malavya and Ananya Joshi presented their experiences and inspirations of their CORD service trips.
CORD Walkathon is coming up on Sunday, October 28th, 2018 at Mercer county Park, East Picnic area
Please encourage your children to register and raise money to empower women in Rural India.
Please register your entire family & friends to meet the goal!
CORD Walkathon: Oct 28th, Sunday 10:00 AM at Mercer County Park. East Picnic area. Please register at http://www.chinmayavrindavan.org/cord-walkathon/. Please spread the word, bring all your friends and family members and walk with us. $25/walker. CORDUSA, Tax-ID:27-0540459, qualifies for most of the corporate Matching Gifts program. Help us maximize the funds by checking with your employer. Raffle prizes for the most number of pledges collected. Note that walkathon is followed by Field Day activities.
There will be a baking contest at the CORD walkathon, thus calling all the bakers from 5th -12th grades. All the sales will go towards the needy CORD.
Please watch the below video.
Upcoming events @ balavihar:
Dandiya night, October 13, 7PM -11PM @ Chinmaya Vrindavan
Sarasvati puja by balavihar students on October 21 @ the Vrindavan temple
Pranaams,
Vyjayanti & Mekhala
