हरी ॐ
Dear Parents,
We apologize for the delayed update.
We have had a two week break, and hope that the kids have not tuned out the stories we have done so far. If possible, please have them go through the 'Class Update' emails to refresh their memory.
Update:
** Opening Prayers: Śānthi mantra, Vakrathunda mahākāya, Sarasvati namastubhyam, Guru Brahmā, Buddhir Balam. We also started to do Meditation for 2 minutes to calm down and get ready for the class.
** Ganesha Pancharatnam: Verse 1, 2, 3, and 4 were practiced. Verse 5 was taught.
** Geeta Chanting - This week, we practiced verses 41 - 48, repeating every verse twice. Verse 49 and 50 were taught. We request all the kids to listen and practice everyday
** Mahabharata - With Radheya's entry as a close ally of the Kauravas, the enemity between the Pandavas and Kauravas was getting stronger - Duryodhana, with the help of his uncle Śakuni and his friend Kanika, plots to send the Pandavas away to Varnavata, where a great danger awaited the Pandavas - the weak Dhritarashtra accedes - Vidura's warns the Pandavas of a fatal plot - the Palace of Lac is built for the Pandavas, with the intention of torching it down when the inmates least expected it - Vidura sends his miner to dig a tunnel for the escape - when the tunnel is finished, the Pandavas set fire to the Palace and escape in the tunnel with their mother - the Kingdom of Hastinapura is in mourning, but Vidura manages to inform Bhishma of the Pandavas' safety.
A few questions arose from the story:
1. Was the Pandavas' Varnavata trip a two-fold advantage for Duryodhana? Plotting their demise and simultaneously winning over the affections of their own citizens in Hastinapura, in the absence of the Pandavas?
2. Was Dhritarashtra really a weak King, or was it just an act so he wouldn't be blamed for the blatant bias on his part?
3. How was Bhishma tolerating of the situation? Did he turn a blind eye towards the injustice?
This coming Friday, we will have a Junior Yuva Kendra (Grade 10-12) student in our class for 45 minutes. He will take a portion of our text and also answer questions on his BV experiences.
As you are aware, we will be having our grade performance in January. We will be asking the children for ideas on what they would like to do...
See you all on Friday, Dec 7th!
Pranāms,
Vandana and Nivedita
