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The Source of the Cosmos Sri Chakra Sri Chakra Sri Chakra Sri Chakra Sri Chakra

The Journal of the Sri Rajarajeswari Peetam, Rush, NY

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Namastasyai Namo Namaha

Past Months Events

May Festival (Prathista),May 18-20

Since the last issue...

The beginning of Mayunofficially marked the start ofwedding season for Aiya, as heperformed a registrationceremony on the 11th at thetemple. Just a few days later, Aiyahad to fly to Cleveland, Ohio for aprivate event but was back againin time for the annual pratishtafestival over the weekend of the18th to the 20th. After a few moredays, the crowds were back thefollowing week for the wedding oftwo of Aiya’s long-time students,Mickell and Pravin. At the end ofMay, Gratus and Kumaran weresent to Pfozheim, Germany tohelp train the devotees there onhow to run their own temple

Aiya was back at the temple forGurupoornima, which wasorganized this year by theSyracuse devotees. Afterwards, hewent back to Germany to see howthe temple there was running. Thefollowing week he presided overthe fourth installment of theVibhuthi Saivite Immersion campfor kids, which wrapped up inmid-August.

Aiya then went to Boston tomeet with devotees there and togive a speech at a local temple. Hewas back at the temple by the24th, which was the annualVaralakshmi vrathamcelebrations and in the last daysof August, Aiya and Amma tookoff to Australia for a full two-week program there.

The fanfare kicked off with thetraditional welcoming ceremonyof Sri Vaishno Durga from St.Catharine’s, Ontario on Friday the

by Kamya Ramaswamy

18th. The digdevata kalasas hadalready been installed at 7 a.m.and the kalasa sthapana wasunderway. After Devi arrived, theday progressed as usual and laterfeatured a grand Vancha-kalpaGanapathi homam that sawdevotees offer 1,008 modagamsinto the fire! The evening programdid not begin until about 7 p.m.but it was well worth the wait asthe audience was treated to a fluterecital by Shashank and hisensemble. Utsa Ganapathi wentaround the temple at close to 10p.m. and was back inside around

midnight.Some volunteers didn’t even

sleep as the Chandi homam beganat 5 a.m. Saturday. It wrapped upat about 9:30 that morning andkalasa sthapana then began. Thatafternoon featured the offering ofanna-pavadai (a skirt of rice) toDevi, which devotees later ate asmahaprasadam. The musicalguest after lunch was the carnaticmusic vocalist Smt. GayathriSatya accompanied byinstrumentalist Shri.Sashidhar onthe violin and Shri.Raja on themridhangam. During theperformance, volunteershurriedly prepared to send outDevi’s chapparam, which heldUtsa Ganapathi, UtsaRajarajeswari and Sri VaishnoDurga. The chariot was up andmoving in record time and gotback in the temple shortly beforemidnight.

The day wasn’t yet done forsome volunteers, who stayed upall night long to arrange 1,008valampuri shankams (right-handedconch shells) for abhishekam thenext day. The puja that began inthe morning was a little skewedto accommodate the shankams—milk abhishekam started duringthe Dattatreya homam, whichsaw the offering of 10,000 mulamantras into the fire. LalitaSahasranamam was also chantedearly, but the intense puja spilledover into the afternoon withdevotees only eating lunch atabout 4 p.m.

The children’s job beganat that time, and Aiya called theirDattatreya utsavam “thehighlight of the festival.” Theyperformed a poised puja toDattatreya inside the temple andcarried him outside in procession.Afterwards, all were presented

SeptemberSeptemberSeptemberSeptemberSeptemberSeptemberSeptemberSeptemberSeptemberSeptemberUttsava Rajarajeswari ready to mountthe chapparam

Alankara dipams ready to be shown toUttsava Ganapathy on the first day.

NewsletNewsletNewsletNewsletNewsletterterterterterNewsletNewsletNewsletNewsletNewsletterterterterter

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with gifts from Aiya and Amma.Devotees were treated to a concertby the festival’s vidvaans duringdinner, Sri Subhan Kasim and SriSubhan Babu (grandsons of Dr.Sheik Chinna Moulana) onnadaswaram and Sri S. SenthilKumar on thavil. The festivalconcluded with the final bali andremoval of the digdevatakalasams.

With the theme, “Unity inDiversity” in mind, long-timeSyracuse devotees organized atruly uniqueGurupoornima.

The day began at 3:30p.m. with Aiya andAmma’s arrival andprocession. Once Aiyaand Amma performed asmall puja to their owngurus, they took theirseat in the yajna shala ina colorfully decoratedmandapam, under aceiling strung withdelicate red and whitecloth flower garlands. The themebeing red and white for Shiva andShakti, many devotees cameadorned appropriately.

The program consisted of theGuru Stotram broken into 16upacharas, each upachara offeredby a pair of children. During thepushpa archana of the puja,Aiya’s ashtottram was chantedand bhajans commenced. Beforefinishing the final upacharas,Aiya and Amma spoke a fewwords.

Following the puja, Aiya,Amma, and the audience weretreated to a play organized by thedevotees called, “Encounters withthe Divine.” The play re-enactedseveral scenes from both Aiya andAmma’s lives in which they bothexperienced the divine. Inbetween the scenes, more than 15ladies danced to familiar tunes,the words changed to suit theplay.

The evening ended at 6 p.m.with dinner and a musicalperformance by young devoteesfrom Canada.

by Abhi SomaskandaGurupoornima, July 29

Aadi Puram, August 14by Abhi Somaskanda

This year’s Aadi Pooram beganwith a Chandi Homam at 8 a.m.The homam’s sponsors offeredthe elaborate ahuthis, whichincluded 13 cottonsaris, one for each chapter of theChandi Path (Durga Saptasasthi),along with coconuts,homadravyam and a thirumangalyamamong other offerings. VishnuDurga sat in front of the homakunda throughout the morning,presiding over the event. During

homam, abhishekam to Hercommenced.Once the homam’s Bhairava

bali was given, everyonereturned to the yajnashala tooffer at least 7 differentpalaharam and foods toVishnuDurga.

Traditionally, Aadi Pooram iscelebrated as the day Deviattained womanhood. Many alsocelebrate this day as the dayMahalakshmi was born in theform of Aandal.

Children between the ages of 9and 18 continued their studies ofarts, religion, tradition songs,yoga, puja, cooking and a host of

Vibhuthi Saivite Immersion,Aug. 4-11 by Kamya Ramaswamy

Gurupoornima pictures clockwisefrom top left: Aiya and Amma led inprocession; A group of ladieschoreographed a dance as part of theplay; Aiya and Amma performed pujato their gurus before the festivitiesbegan; Children offered theupacharas during the puja to Aiya andAmma.

Sumangalis were invited topartake in the puja and festivitiesof Varalakshmi vratham—anauspicious day originating fromthe Karnataka and Tamil Naduregions of India—on whichwomen pray for the well-being oftheir husbands or futurehusbands. More than 40 women

other activities. This year, the kidscemented their practice andunderstanding of Shivapuranam,but also focused on the life andtimes (as well as the songs) ofSundaramurthi nayanar.

Varalakshmi Vratham, Aug. 24by Kamya Ramaswamy

sat in front of lamps with a pujatray and a silver face to representLakshmi. In the center of the yajnashala, a large lamp was decoratedwith a sari, jewelry, and garlandsto represent Lakshmi.

Aiya led the women through theVaralakshmi Vratha puja and thenight ended with the tying of theturmeric smeared thread aroundeach sponsor’s wrist, and mahaprasadam.

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The Sri Rajarajeswari Peetam ~ 6980 East River Road ~ Rush, NY 14543 ~ Phone: (585) 533 - 1970

Upcoming Events

by Kamya RamaswamySharada Navarathri, Oct. 11-20

This event is the temple’sbrahmotsavam, with the flaggoing up eight days before firstday of the festival. In keeping withthe tradition, each day will see akalasa sthapanam (for whichindividuals may register tosponsor a kalasam) and the Deviwill be carried outside inprocession every third day.Several of the days will featuremusical performances, and therewill also be a Chandi homamtoward the end of the festival, onVijayadasami. The final(unofficial) day is kulurthi, whereDevi is showered with severalitems to cool Her down after thecharged festival.

by Kamya RamaswamyKedara Gowri Vratham, Oct. 20

The last day of Navarathri isalso the first day of Kedaragowrivratham, for which women mayobserve a 21-day vow or fast topray for the health and well-beingof their husbands. This period isalways the time betweenVijayadasami and Deepavali. DeviParvati first observed it to hastenHer merger with Lord Shiva.Ladies—whether married ornot—may register for thevratham by calling the temple

Ganapathi Chathurthi, Sept. 15by Kamya Ramaswamy

The program for this day is sureto be grand as Chaturthi falls on aSaturday this year. In past years,the puja has included GanapathiTarpanam, and an extendedVancha-kalpa Ganapathi homamin which devotees were given thechance to offer prasadam into thefire with their own hands. Ifweather permits, the morning’sfestivities will take place outsideat the Ganapathi deck. In theevening, there is always sure to bea procession of the UttsavaGanapathi around the temple. The next issue of the

Sri Chakra MagazineDevi willing, the next issue of

the Sri Chakra Magazine will be upon the temple’s website(www.srividya.org) at thebeginning of December 2007.

The next issue will come alongjust after Skanda Shastifestivities, so the Sri Chakra will begreatly in need of volunteers towrite or contribute anything atall. We urge those who have notyet participated to show yoursupport for this magazine bywriting for this next issue.Articles, poems, stories, and thelike about any spiritual topic arewelcomed and will be accepted.

Please e-mail us [email protected] byNovember 8, with yoursubmissions, as well as yourcomments on this issue.

The editorial will return.Meanwhile, the Sri Chakra wouldlike to thank the volunteers whoselflessly stepped up to make thisissue what it is—Aiya, KathyAllen, Gratus Devanesan, Smt.Uma S. Kumar, Sriganesh “Sri-G”Madhvanath, Dr. A. Somaskanda,and the individual who hasshared his/her experiences inTemple Lore.

Sri Gurubhyo Namaha!

In Three Months

Skanda Shashti begins on aSaturday this year, a day after theend of Gowri Vratham. The festivalwill last six days, each dayrepresenting one of Murugan’s sixfaces. Each day a pair of devoteeswill perform puja to the day’scorresponding face. The final daywill see Murugan taken around thetemple in procession and then sentto war with the evil Suran.Following this will be Murugan’smarriage to both Valli andDevasena.

Skanda Shashti, Nov. 10-15by Abhi Somaskanda

Please visitwww.srividya.org for morefestival pictures!

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Shashank

Sri Rajarajeswari peetam kickedoff its spring musical season witha sizzling prize performance bythe reigning flute maestro ofCarnatic music, Shri ShashankSubramanian, on the 18th of May2007. This fleet-fingered cherubwho has absolute mastery overthis divine musical instrument, isgifted with a phenomenal grasp ofthe complexities and maddeningintricacies of Indian classicalmusic. With talents sui generis, orperhaps inherited from anotherlifetime, this nonage prodigy thatblossomed into an amazingvirtuoso, has been blazing adazzling trail, taking the musicworld by storm, ever since hedebuted on stage in his maidenconcert in Adelaide, Australia atthe tender age of 11 years. Hismeteoric rise in the classicalmusical scene has few parallels.

Although elevated to an exaltedposition in the hierarchy of Indianmusical instruments by virtue ofits mystical link to Lord Krishna,reverence for the bamboo flutehad never translated into itsacceptance by the musicalorthodoxy or the public as a soloconcert instrument in its ownright, until the advent of the flutegenius, T.R.Mahalingam (Mali),arguably the most innovativeflautist of all time. It is he whoelevated, nay, restored this mostmagical of musical instruments toits rightfully regal position,almost single-handedly. Thismaverick musician also pioneeredthe unique style of cross fingeringin flute playing, a technique headopted from nagaswaramplayers. The 8-hole flute sopopular in Carnatic music is also

his innovation. The intermediaryintervals so indispensable forplaying Carnatic music, such asthe chromatic variants(svarasthanas) of the five variablenotes (vikrta swara)ri,ga,ma,dha,ni and the smallermicrotonal variants or quartertones (sruti) are produced byclosing some finger holespartially. Further innovation influte playing had to wait for thegenius of Shri Shashank whoconceived of the multiple flutetransposed fingering technique ofmerging flutes of differentfrequencies/lengths to the sametonic note (from the seductivebass flute of North India to thetrilling piccolo). By an ingeniouscombinatorial strategy of halfnote to full note fingering, he wasable to extend the range of flutefrom the standard two-and-a-

third octaves to more than fouroctaves. This bespeaks of a razorsharp mind and unparalleledvirtuosity. His technical prowessis further exemplified by hiseffortless playing of two octavessimultaneously after switchingbetween them in rapid succession,a veritable swara fugato indeed.

The Concert

He started his concert, as manyCarnatic musicians are wont todo, with a varnam ‘vriboni’ inBhairavi which he played in fourspeeds including tisram. This wasa masterful display of hissignature instrumental techniquemeant to impress the cognoscentiof classical music but largely loston the uninitiated.

He followed this with theimmensely popular Dikshithar’s

music reviewmusic reviewmusic reviewmusic reviewmusic review

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Shashank and the instrumentalists

kriti on Lord Ganesha, ‘VathapiGanapathim’ in ragaHamsadhvani. This audava raga,a favorite raga of South Indiancomposers, is a Carnatic ragaavidly adopted by manyHindustani composers as well. Infact almost all the composers havecompositions in this raga. Mostelegant when sung or played inmadhyamakala, this raga, likeMohanam, has limitless scope foralapana and swarasancharas.Giving short shrift to alapana, hedelved into the kriti with gustowith ornate swara sallies ineloquent vignettes which weredelightful larks of virtuosity thatflaunted his prowess and tauntedthe rasikas.

His next kriti was ‘Annapoorne’in raga Kalyanavasantham, abhakti rasa pradhana raga.Playing with restraint, he gavefull scope to the melodicdimension of this deeply movingkriti. The rendition, directed to thepresiding deity, was smooth like amountain stream, with delectabletwists and turns setting ourhearts aflutter with ineffableheaves of joy.

The piece-de-resistance of theconcert was undoubtedly hisrendition of saint Thiyagaraja’skriti in Abheri raga, ‘Nagumomo’.An audava-sampoorna raga, itschaya swara (most characteristicand distinguishing) is Ni whilethe nyasa swara is Ri (where ragaphrases usually end). Againskimping on the Alapana, hecommenced the melody with aslow start, revealing its delicateand dynamic colors and smoothlygliding on its lush and voluptuouscontours, the pleading violintrailing him faithfully.

Initially weaving a shimmeringarabesque of swara phrases inmadlhya laya, he methodicallybuilt up the tempo, preparing forhis final ecstatic flights ofimprovisation. As his flute soaredto ethereal heights, raining atorrent of swaras in everyconceivable permutation andcombination, this sorcerer’sblurry fingers darted across theflute with stupefying celerity and

finesse that beggars description.The audience was leftdumbfounded by this rivetinglegerdemain, possible only by themost accomplished illusionist.The audience leapt to its feet witha deafening ovation at theconclusion of this awe-inspiringpiece.

Veteran violinist Ganesh Prasadwas outstanding in his skillfulsupport, vowing the audiencewith his own raga sancharas. Themridangist Parupalli S. Phalgun isa stalwart percussionist whosedeft and unobtrusive support andmasterful Thani Avarthanam inthis concert were hallmarks of hisvirtuosity. This indeed was amusical bonanza that will besavored by rasikas for a long time.

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Kungiliya Kalaya

by Gratuz Devanesan

NaNaNaNaNayyyyyanmarsanmarsanmarsanmarsanmarsNaNaNaNaNayyyyyanmarsanmarsanmarsanmarsanmars63636363636363636363

september 2007

Nayanar

In the land fed by the river Kaveri, there once liveda devotee of Shiva who was overjoyed at burningincense (kungiliyam) in praise of the lord. Thisnayanmar, having heard the Lord described as oneof pleasant odor, decided that it would be his duty toburn incense at the temple so that sweet odor maypermeate the area. He himself would then sit andinhale the essence of the Lord, satisfied that as theincense was burning, not only he, but all whopassed would also experience the Lord.

Fascinated with worshipping the lord in thismanner, he spent every dime in his pocket to buykungiliyam, and every moment he had on burning itand sitting in meditation while the sweet fragrancewould rise and spread throughout the temple.

Soon his family would run out of money for food,as every time he had money he would spend it all onkungiliyam. Eventually, he no longer had any moneyto buy anything, and was sitting a littledisappointed at home. Neither he nor anyone in hisfamily had eaten for some time and the childrenbegan to cry. Nayanar of course was not aware of allthat; although hungry, his mind was focused on thefact that he could not purchase any kungiliyam forthe Lord. His wife, however, seeing the cryingchildren, took off her mangalyam, and told him tosell if for rice, so that they may eat and live. Sheexplained to him several times, that he should gostraight to the grocer and buy rice, and return.Nayanar nodded his head in agreement and wentoff.

On the way to the grocer Nayanar spotted atraveling kungiliyam salesman. Unable to imaginehow lucky he must be, he bought all the kungiliyam

he could afford and carried a whole bag to thetemple, joyous at the amount of kungiliyam he couldburn in praise of the Lord. He had long forgotten hisstarving wife and children and ran to the Lord,overjoyed like a little child would run to his mother.

At home his wife sat and waited, while thechildren cried. Shiva decided that this won’t do, andcalled Kubera and explained to him that he shouldgo to this nayanmar’s house and give him all thewealth that would fit into that house, as well asfood. Shiva then also went to the wife and let herunderstand that it was through nayanmar’sdedicated devotion that he was moved to give her allthis wealth. It was then that nayanmar’s wifeunderstood the strength of her husband’s devotionand that it was not just some crazed fancy.Afterwards, the Lord told nayanar to get up and gohome to eat. Nayanar, heeding the Lord’s word,ended his meditations, and went home, where hewas surprised to see all the wealth and the freshlycooked food.

Kungiliya kalaya nayanar later was sent by theLord to Thiruppanandhal; there the king was tryingto straighten the Shivalingam that was uneven. Allsorts of attempts at raising him back failed.Kungiliya decided to participate in this event tohonour Lord Shiva who sent him there. He made agarland of flowers and lovingly tugged at theShivalingam. To his and everyone else’s surprise thelingam straightened and the king himself fell atKungiliya kalaya’s feet. Kungiliya kalaya, happy forhaving done a service Lord Shiva, went back homeand eventually gained moksha at the lotus feet of hisLord.

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TempleTemple

The stories of the devotees atthe Sri RajarajeswariPeetam create the veryessence of the temple’s soul. Aiya has verified all thesetales for their authenticity,and he urges devotees toshare their experiences forthe benefit of futuregenerations. All identities willbe kept in the strictestconfidentiality unlessotherwise informed.

LoreLore

Last year, the Sri Chakra was able tointerview an upasaka who hadrecently received diksha and was ona trip to Rochester. He told themagazine about his spiritualexperiences and some of the lessonshe has learned from Aiya and Devi.This month, the Sri Chakra featuresthe last of four parts of thatinterview.

SC: How has your medicaltraining influenced your spiritualpath?

Devotee: For me, naturallybecause I was a sannyasipreviously, I’ve been slightlydetached ever since I was a kidwith my family and people. Icould look objectively atsomething; when a familymember died I could reason outthat okay, they’ve gone to a betterplace or that they’re with Hernow. And I could objectively letgo and I wouldn’t feel anything…and I would feel guilt mostlybecause of that.

Otherwise, I’ve been naturallydetached. Going into medicine,She wanted me to do that. Attimes I have been tested in thepast year or so; some of the stuff Isee is quite bad. So what Aiya hassaid is that for a normal person,being detached is not a goodthing, especially when you have

to put emotion into conveyingwhat you want to say.

I’ve had to reach a certain levelin my japam of being detachedbecause as Aiya would say whenyour Ajna chakra is fully openedthat is, as he would say, the deathof your ego. That is when youbecome completely detached. Icannot become completelydetached, otherwise I wouldn’tfeel like studying, I wouldn’t feellike doing anything at all. So Ihave had to reach a certain levelin my sadhana right now in orderto perform some of the duties thatI’ll have to perform now.

Medically-wise, like Aiya wouldsay, I over-analyse at times.Where people make a massiveleap of faith, I can actually reasonout where my kundalini has goneand figure out where theconstrictions are. All of thesesorts of little awarenesses distractyou from the real path of actuallyfocusing on the japam; focusing onnothing, really. So when youmake these little observances, it’snot good. It’s something that I’vehad to cope with.

SC: What about the battlebetween science and religion?

Devotee: There’s no such thingas a battle; they’re both the same.The only difference is that whatwe could consider science now isthat we cannot prove to a certainextent some of the things weknow religiously. What yogis andmaharishis had is that they couldsee how the organs were working,they could see how the energywould move. Only recently we’vebeen using imaging like MRIimaging, CAT scans, to be able tosee a living body and how itmoves. While in the past,everything was throughdissections. We couldn’t image itwhile a yogi would be able to dothat.

Science now, I predict within thenext 50 years or so, we should beable to illustrate everything.There are things we can shownow like activity in the brain,how the electromagnetic field

shifts. We can, to a certain extent,show that now.

SC: How long do you meditate aday?

Devotee: I don’t really put atime limit on it or anything, buttoday I spent the morning atAiya’s house meditating in hisshrine room. To get this sort ofeffect, it doesn’t take much in theway of meditation. I could getinto this by just saying GuruPaduka at the start. I’ve beensaying japam now since Aiyastarted the Saturday puja (at least2 hours); I’m still saying japamright now at a low rate. Itdepends… like Aiya would say,everything is cyclical. Right now,in the protective environment ofthe temple and the fact that I don’thave to do any of my duties perse, I don’t have to have that muchof an awareness of the thingsaround me.

Afterwards when I startuniversity, She’s going to bring itdown, as Aiya would say. Aiyasays Varahi is the one whocontrols these sorts of things so hesaid She’ll keep it at the level thatI’ll be detached enough to copewith everything, but not sodetached that I’ll leave my examsor not qualify.

The main difficult thing for a lotof people like me is that in yourmind, you can think of things,right? Being able to tell thedifference between what you’rethinking and what She’s tellingyou—that’s the difficult part. I’vestopped using the word“intuition” because that’s usuallywhen She’s talking to you. But thekey thing is trying to make sureyour thoughts remain separateand trying to recognize them. It’sa very fine line to walk. I think it’simportant to make thatdistinction. In order to movefurther you have to lose allquestioning of whether or not Shehas asked you something.

SC: Is there anything else thatyou would like to add that Ihaven’t asked you about?

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Devotee: At this point, I’veanswered every question withoutthinking about it simply becausethat’s the weakness you get aftersaying japam. You feel just toohappy or too giddy to say no toanyone. But that’s pretty muchhow things have happened forme. Aiya says that for me, it’sbecause of my previous birth…the reason I had to get diksha overhere at the temple is because ofmy strong connection with ourcurrent guru lineage. The factthat I have received Bala and havegone through the whole sadhanaof Bala, Aiya said that I was atime bomb at that point in time.

She controls everything and thelevel at which you progress isperfectly controlled by Her, so youdon’t have to worry.

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Bangalore or Bengalooru is thefastest growing city in India,thanks to its new-found status asthe “Silicon Valley of India.” Itsonce laid-back retirement lifestylehas been replaced with the buzzof hi-tech, attracting thousands ofyoung professionals from all overIndia and increasingly, fromaround the world. Thanks to itscooler climate, Bangalore is alsohome to Vrindavan, BhagavanSathya Sai Baba’s ashram andsummer residence, and theRajarajeswari temple where youcan see the twin sister of the Deviat Rush—she was created by thesame stapathi and from the samestone!

Guruji has become a regularvisitor to Bangalore over the pastfew years, mainly due to thepresence of a core group ofdisciples, headed by Prof. P. A.Seshan, former executive directorof BHEL, retired professor ofmanagement, and Yoga and Zenmaster, who has taken Sri Vidyadiksha from Guruji and has thediksha name ofAmritapadananda. In addition,there are disciples such as SriBalasubramanium and SriAdisheshan known to Aiya andGuruji from their Zambia days,and those with a Rochesterconnection such as Dr. JagdishRohira, the Madhvanaths andyours truly!

In 2005, Guruji spent a fewweeks in Bangalore primarily toget his heart condition looked at.It was during this visit that hisvision of creating a newMahameru, modeled after the oneone he had originally excavated atDevipuram, took shape. In the 18

months since that visit, the Meruhas gone from an idea, to a CADdesign, to a prototype, and finallyto production in two differentsizes and many differentfinishes—all right here inBangalore. However, that’sanother story for another time.

Guruji’s visit in March 2007 wasspecial, since we had planned apublic event for the first time. Theprimary objective was to createawareness about Devipuram as acenter for Mother worship, andspread the word about theavailability of the newDevipuram Mahameru. As mostof you must know, it has beenGuruji’s one-pointed endeavor todemystify Sri Vidya and makethis sacred Vidya accessible to allchildren of the Mother. It is in thisspirit that he has conceived of theDevipuram Mahameru as aYantra suitable for keeping inhomes and offices, and to beworshiped by all. In fact, the Meruserves a dual purpose—inaddition to bringing peace andprosperity to people’s homes, theproceeds from the Merus supportthe various spiritual and socialprograms of Guruji’s Sri VidyaTrust in Devipuram.

The event was advertised in thenewspapers as a “Satsang withGuruji Amritananda andAnnapurnamba of Devipuram,”with the main event being thelaunch of the new SrichakraMahameru. The program wasopen to the public, and wasorganized at a medium sized hallwith a seating capacity of 150.

On March 13th, Guruji andAmma arrived at the venue alittle after 5 p.m. A sizeable

audience had already gatheredand most of the seats were taken.Guruji and Amma were receivedwith flowers and chanting, andthen they lit the ceremonial lampto begin the evening’sproceedings. Guruji and Ammawere introduced to the audienceas embodying the living traditionof Sri Vidya, the worship of theDivine Mother Lalita, known alsoas Tripurasundari andRajarajeshwari.

It is interesting that Gurujireceived Sri Vidya diksha in theDivya tradition ofDakshinamurthi, directly from SriBalatripurasundari Herself—atthe Balaji Temple in Hyderabad.He also received diksha in theSiddha tradition of Dattatreya,from Swaprakashananda Nathaof Anakapalle. He thus embodiesboth the Dattatreya andDakshinamurthi traditions of SriVidya!

BangBangBangBangBangalalalalalore Laore Laore Laore Laore LaunchunchunchunchunchMarch 13, 2007March 13, 2007March 13, 2007March 13, 2007March 13, 2007BangBangBangBangBangalalalalalore Laore Laore Laore Laore LaunchunchunchunchunchMarch 13, 2007March 13, 2007March 13, 2007March 13, 2007March 13, 2007

The DevipThe DevipThe DevipThe DevipThe Devipuram Mahameru:uram Mahameru:uram Mahameru:uram Mahameru:uram Mahameru:The DevipThe DevipThe DevipThe DevipThe Devipuram Mahameru:uram Mahameru:uram Mahameru:uram Mahameru:uram Mahameru:

Sriganesh “Sri-G” [email protected]

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The event commenced with therecitation of Sri Rudram by agroup of ritviks. A meditativemood was soon set by therecitation of verses of theSoundaryalahari and of theKhadgamala Stotram, and by thesinging of devotionalcompositions on the Devi byShaankari Bhajana Sabha, a groupof lady disciples. This wasfollowed by a short videopresentation on Devipuram,highlighting its beautiful locationamidst the mountains nearVishakapatnam in AndhraPradesh, and its evolution underGuruji’s guidance into a globally-recognized center for Sri Vidyaworship.

Guruji then addressed thegathering, and explained thesignificance of the DevipuramMahameru. At an opportunemoment, and with great fanfare,the Mahamerus from Devipuramwere brought on stage. Gurujihad already decided that hewanted to give the audiencesomething of lasting value, andaccordingly proceeded to initiatethe whole audience into theGanapathi mantra, and explainthe real symbolism of Ganapathiand his mooshika vahanam.

The highlight of the eveningwas the initiation of the audienceby Guruji into GanapathiTarparnam. We had given everyonein the audience small printedcards so they could follow alongwith Guruji, as he recited theGanapathi tarpanam (at his usualbreakneck pace) and three ritviksoffered tarpanam to the Merus onstage. Guruji promised that ifdone continuously for a period of40 days, the Ganapathi tarpanamwill remove any obstacles adevotee may face.

The Ganapati Tarpanam wasfollowed by a recitation of the

Nirvana Shatakam of AdiShankara, and short addresses byShri Amritapadananda (Prof.Seshan), Swami VinayaChaitanya, author of severalbooks on Soundaryalahari, andfinally by Shri Sudarshan(Chaitanyananda), a seniordisciple of ShriAmritapadananda. Sri Sudarshanspoke in Kannada—the locallanguage—and demonstratedhow simple it is to worship theMahameru with a shortpanchopachara puja.

For more informationabout Sri Vidya Trust,Devipuram, Guruji, and theMahameru, please visitwww.devipuram.com. Inaddition to generalinformation and FAQs, thesite contains a compilationof Guruji’s writings, andlinks to Devipuram’selectronic magazineKadambari, and books andmultimedia CDs authoredby Guruji on variousaspects of Sri Vidya.Mahamerus may be orderedfrom the website, or bysending an e-mail inquiryto [email protected].

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After this, it was time tofelicitate the people involved inmaking the Meru a reality. P.V.Sudhakaran is the senior mastercraftsman who has over the pastseveral months, poured his heart,soul and talents into creating theperfect Mahameru as conceivedby Guruji. Hailing from anillustrious Kerala family famousfor making maaran mulaa kannaadi(mirrors from metals), his is aunique combination ofengineering education andtraditional craftsmanship.

Other people felicitated on theoccasion were Prof. Seshan whohas worked tirelessly behind thescenes and rallied his disciples toarrange for the funds to keep theproject going, and Sri ShrikantWelling, formerly executivedirector at HMT (HindustanMachine Tools) Ltd, who has beenresponsible from the verybeginning for all aspects of design,prototyping, production,packaging and logistics. It doesn’ttake a lot of imagination to see

how Devi has handpicked thesepeople for this project, because oftheir unique expertise andmindset.

The event concluded around 8p.m. with Mahaprasadam. Wehad well over 300 attendees, mostof them standing in the aislessince all the seats were taken. Wehad a table set up at the entrancewhere people could register theirinterest in the Meru, and we foundthe next day that we had morethan 200 entries, and all the Meruswe had available were spoken for.The event was a great success, andwas only possible because of thenumerous devotees andvolunteers who worked behindthe scenes, just as in the templefestivals at Rush!

As Guruji sees it, the time is ripefor the common man to benefitfrom Srividya and the Mahameru,and it is our hope that with moresuch public events, theDevipuram Mahameru will soonbe in every household!

Sri Villa is a modern residencehall being constructed atDevipuram, equipped withfunction and dining halls, dorms,suites and rooms for families. It ismeant to address a long-recognized need to improve thequality of accommodationsavailable to visitors atDevipuram. The rooms areavailable as timeshares todevotees interested in spendingtime at Devipuram andsurrounding areas.

A Sri Villa time-share for justUS $2500 entitles you to 5 weeksstay per year in Devipuram for25 years (one week during thefestival season Oct-Feb, ideal forparticipating in rituals; and fourweeks during the rest of the year,ideal for learning and deepeningyour spiritual practice). You caneven invest in a timeshare jointlywith others, and split the expenseand time with them.

The rooms will be clean andcomfortable with double bedsand attached baths. In addition,Sri Villa will include a cafeteria,marriage/conference/concert hall,special air-conditioned suites,low cost dormitories for groupworkshops, air-conditioned halls,gift shops, and gardens andparking lots, and a travel desk.

The field work of Sri Villa wasstarted on March 21st 2007 andthe construction is estimated tobe completed by October-December 2008, subject to theavailability of funds. We requestyou to contribute to this essentialproject envisioned by Guruji andhelp Devipuram grow. Yourcontribution will not only benefityou spiritually, but would alsobe a wise long term investment.

For more informationregarding Sri Villa, please visitwww.devipuram.com or e-mailus at [email protected] .

Sri VSri VSri VSri VSri Villa ailla ailla ailla ailla atttttDevipuramDevipuramDevipuramDevipuramDevipuram

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Ms.Uma S. Kumar visited the templeon May 26 of this year, bearing thelargest and most beautiful of gifts—afull-sized portrait of Balatripurasundarithat she created in an inspired state overonly two days. This gifted artist hastracked her spiritual journey through arton her website, spiritualvisionart.com,from which the following (edited)excerpt was written. Here, Ms. Umatells of the path that led her both toBala and to the Rajarajeswari peetam,in chapters 17 and 18 of her writings onher website. It began when she cameupon the temple’s website from herdaughter’s home in Boston duringNavarathri 2005…

I had come across this websitepreviously during my research onSri Vidya worship. It wasmaintained by a man calledHaran or “Aiya” and I read hisshort biography. He hails from along line of Gurus all of whom arein the path of Sri Vidya andShakti worship. Apparently, hestarted this temple at Rochestermany decades ago and it attractshundreds of devotees each year,especially during the time ofNavarathri.

I was lucky that at the moment Ituned in, there was a live webcastof the abhishekams that weregoing on to the main deity. For along time that day I sat andwatched the proceedings atthis temple. After the morningpujas were over that day, therewas a short talk by Aiya to thecongregation. What he spokeabout quite simply took mybreath away. The whole speechwas about the glory of Sri Bala,the little child-like deity whosetemple was a small house in thevillage of Nemili.

I remember feeling an electricshock coursing through my spine.Bala was saying to me veryclearly, “I gave you the ability topaint ever since you placed the

first picture at my feet. Now youseem to have forgotten me?” I sat,for what must have been a longtime, in the same position, notbeing able to think, and with no

The powerful and vibrant painting has been hung inside the temple to the leftof Sri Mathioli Saraswathi’s (Akka’s) picture, in the northwest corner. Candy,chocolate, and other sweets are offered to the painting as naivedyam for everypuja.

by Ms. Uma S. Kumar

::::::::::

How Bala Came to RushHow Bala Came to Rush

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other thoughts in my mind exceptthis child

deity. Much later, I remember mydaughter entering the room andasking, “Mum, what’s the matter?You have been sitting rooted to thatspot for ages. Is something wrong?”

There was no doubt in my mindabout the message I had justreceived. It was the complaint of asmall child seeking attention!

Within the next few weeks Ireturned to London. The first thingI did was to hunt in my cassettecollection for some of the tapes Ihad purchased while I visitedNemili many years ago. I finallyfound one. I went into my room,and sitting cross-legged on theground and with all my attentionfocused on this great goddess, Ilistened to the tape. Soon, I wastotally transported to the shining,luminous world of Sri Bala. It wasas though she was giving me adarshan, seated on a golden swingwith a mischievous smile on herlips!

That was a Friday evening. Iremember this very clearly becausethis child appeared in my dreamthat very same night. This visionwas unlike many I had experiencedbefore. My sleep was disturbedthat night by the sound of someoneentering my bedroom. I opened myeyes but could not see anyone.

However, I was able to sensesomeone was there. I could hearthe shuffle of feet as this personcame over to the far side of thebed and got into bed with me. Icould hear the soft creaking ofthe mattress and feel a presencebeside me.

The next thing I felt was acolumn of air sneaking up myspine. It was as though someoneor something was sending awaft of powerful energy throughmy entire back. I felt I wasfloating somewhere andthen, spiraling down into a greatbottomless void. As I did this Icould see a light at the very end.There was a man doing puja anda girl’s voice said “You will go tosee Haran Aiya.” That was whenI realized that the person next tome was indeed Rajarajeswari,Herself.

My voice choking withemotion, I called out “Amma,Akhila Kodi BrahmaandaNayakiye Neeya Idhu?” (Is itYou? The great Goddess of theuniverse?). I knew then I was notdreaming. However, a strangefear seemed to grip me. Wherewas I? What was happening tome? It was as though myunspoken thoughts wereunderstood. The presence wasno longer beside me on the bed.

Instead, there was a shaft of lightin the doorway of my bedroomand there, in that soft light I sawmy second daughter Paavana! Shewas saying “Hey mum, I justfinished my homework. Can Icome and lie down beside you?”

I remember heaving a sigh ofrelief and going back to sleep. Iawoke the next day and only thenremembered. My daughterPaavana was not even here inLondon. She was thousands ofmiles away studying at PrincetonUniversity in New Jersey, U.S.A.So, the person in my dream hadreally been the mischievous Balawho had made her presencefelt both as Rajarajeswari and asa young girl in the form of mydaughter so as to not make mefrightened of my “dream within adream.”

A few days later I received somebad news. My daughter Paavanahad been admitted to a hospital inNew Jersey with bacterialmeningitis. I was frantic withworry. I had just finished six daysof prayers to Lord Muruga forSkanda Shashti and beseechedHim to help my daughter. Whileshe had been diagnosed just in thenick of time, the doctors told us towait for a couple of days sincefurther tests needed to be doneand their results analysed.

The next morning, whileawaiting the results of the brainscan, I made a long distance call tothe house at Nemili. The phonenumber I had was an old one andI was not too sure if anyonewould even pick up the phone atthe other end. To my surprise thephone was answered almostimmediately by the elderly priestShri Nemili Ezhilmani. I told himhe would not know me but that Iwas calling from London and hadvisited Nemili 3 years ago. Ireminded him about the black-and-white drawing I had givenhim. At this, the priestimmediately remembered me. Hesaid he had kept that picture inthe puja room very carefully!

I quickly informed him aboutmy dream and the gentle

A close up of Ms. Uma S. Kumar’s inspiried,bejeweled piece.

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“reminder” Bala had given meduring Navarathri. The man’sresponse was surprising. “Oh youmust understand that our Balalikes to play tricks on people. Sheloves to shock them and thenappear in dreams as a young girl.

“Don’t worry,” he said. “I shallsurely pray for you and yourchild. Nothing will happen to herhealth. Just take confidence fromme.” He also added, “Do write apersonal letter to the Goddess,and tell her your problems. Shewill sort it out for you. Mail it tomy address and I shall place theletter at her feet and send you theprasadams.”

I sat down at my computerimmediately and poured out myheart in a letter to Bala. I sealed itin an envelope and rushed to thepost office to mail it. When Ireturned, the phone was ringing. Ihurried to pick it up. It was mydaughter calling from thehospital.

“Mummy, I just got the results ofthe CAT scan. The doctors fearedthere might have been an abscessin the brain. But everything isclear. There will be no long lastingafter-effects from the meningitis.”From the very depths of my heartI thanked Shri Bala!

I was leaving London againwithin the next few days to visitmy daughter. I landed in Bostonand was staying with my elderdaughter. My health suddenlytook a turn for the worse and

instead of leaving immediately tovisit my younger daughter inNew Jersey, I had to wait a fewdays until I got better. I spent a lotof time each day in prayer andstarted reading the AbhiramiAndhadi. There are 100 verses inthis great work where the endingword of each verse forms thestarting point for the next. I spentsome time every day reveling inthe glory of the Goddess as wellas appreciating the unshakeablefaith and devotion exhibited bythe poet Abhirami Bhattar.

My husband flew in fromLondon a few days later as wehad planned to drive down toNew Jersey to visit my youngerdaughter over the Thanksgivingbreak. He arrived one evening justas I was finishing the last verse ofthe Abhirami Andhadi. I openedhis suitcase in order to unpack it.There, right on top of all hisclothes was a yellow cloth bagwith the smiling photograph ofBala embossed on it. Hardlybelieving my luck, I opened thebag. Along with the prasadamswere a few sloka books and asmall medallion with Bala’simage.

Once again, that little child-goddess has set in motion a trainof events that achieved thedesired results! I was overjoyedand made my daughter wear theprecious medallion almostimmediately, when we did seeher!

It was following theThanksgiving break and after wehad returned to Boston that Iresumed my spiritual diary onceagain. As mentioned earlier, therewas a strong urge for me to finishrecounting all the events over thepast year. As I finish this portionof my narrative, I do realize thatone more question deep withinmy heart has still not beenanswered.

In my letter to Bala I had askedher, “Dear Bala, please tell mewhat I should do with all mypaintings. You have given me thetalent. Now I desire to be ofservice to You. Please tell me howit’s going to be possible for me tohelp humanity during my lifetime.”

I realize that my Guruji hasgiven me clear instructions tohold an exhibition of all thepaintings. SwamiParamarthananda has advisedme to set up a web site with mywritings. I plan to place all mywritings and photographs of allmy paintings at the feet of thistiny, but most powerful goddessand seek her help. I am aware thatI am destined to meet Aiya ofRochester at some point in my life.Until then the purpose of thesewritings and my paintings willelude me.

For more paintings by Ms. Uma S.Kumar, visit spiritualvisionart.com.

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Sri Gurubhyo NamahSri Gurubhyo NamahSri Gurubhyo NamahSri Gurubhyo NamahSri Gurubhyo Namah

*****WWWWWe would like to dedicate te would like to dedicate te would like to dedicate te would like to dedicate te would like to dedicate this issue of this issue of this issue of this issue of this issue of the Srihe Srihe Srihe Srihe SriChakra to tChakra to tChakra to tChakra to tChakra to the late Khe late Khe late Khe late Khe late Kamakoti Shastri ofamakoti Shastri ofamakoti Shastri ofamakoti Shastri ofamakoti Shastri ofKKKKKanchipuram.anchipuram.anchipuram.anchipuram.anchipuram.

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