Hari Om Parents,
We started our class by writing Likhitha jaapa (writing the name of any Ishta devata god's name), then followed by daily prayers (Page 11 of My Prayers book). We made children lead prayers and Ganesha Panchratnam for class this week. We request parents to help children to learn the Daily Prayers and also chanted shlokas 1-15 Gita Chapter 5. We started Nirvana Shatakam. Children were given handouts on the same. We learnt shloka 1 and 2. Please help children memorize.
As promised to kids we divided the class into two groups for a game of Jeopardy.
Team Radha and Team Krishna. Team Radha were only 4 girls and team Krishna were 6 boys. To be fair enough we asked Team Radha to refer to notes in case they wanted to.
Guess who won the Jeopardy... Team Radha :)
We continued India the Sacred land and showed the kids the presentation of temples, the structures and the importance of the number of stories or floors, the dome style of temples built in Northern part of Bharat is called Nagar style vs Southern Part of Bharat is called Dravidian Style.
Nagara Style:-
· Developed in the fifth century.
· Beehive-shaped tower (Shikara)
· Narrow throat and dome on top (Kalasha)
Dravidian or Southern Style:-
· Developed around the Seventh century.
· Pyramid -shaped tower (Vimana) consisting of progressively smaller pavilions.
· Narrow throat and dome (Gopuram).
Ancient temples contained 5 distinct portions
1. Garbhagriha (sanctum sanctorum) -containing the image/idol of God.
2. The Vimana (tower) over the sanctum.
3. Ardhamandap in front of sanctum.
4. Prakara (circumambulatory) around the sanctum.
5. The Gopuram (dome), the main gateway of the temple.
Gopuram consists of an odd number of stories - 3,5,7,9.
3 represents waking, dream, and deep sleep states
5 indicates five senses
7 signifies the mind and intellect in addition to the five senses
9 represents the above seven, the ego and the heart.
We also spoke about the Maha Kumbh Mela going on now in Prayagraj.
What is kumbh Mela where it happens and when it happens? Kumbh Mela occurs once in three years Maha Kumbh occurs in 12 yrs. Kumbh Mela occurs in Prayagraj, Haridwar, Ujjain and Nashik. It is rooted back to samudhara mantham and is believed that amrit fell on earth in these three places. The specific location and timing of the Kumbh Mela is determined by the position of Jupiter relative to the sun and moon. Based on the planetary positions of them it occurs. MahaKumbh Mela is now happening in Prayag Raj is the place where there isTriveni Sangam of the three rivers, Ganga, Yamuna and Saraswathi).
It was time for our Gita Chanting by Swami Ji, we learnt shlokas 19,20,21 from chapter 5. It was about time for Aarthi and Pledge so we went to the Prayer Hall.
Few Links for learning to chant.
1. Ganesha Panchratnam (Page 30 in My Prayers).
1.1. Link to rendition with lyrics in English https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B4lZCKxeJFE or
1.2 Link: https://youtu.be/Oyo0FWP9fB8?si=ZaYVDepNkX0YWShI (play at lower speeds for kids to follow lyrics and hear clearly
2. Nirvana Shatakam (Printouts were shared)
2.1 https://youtu.be/rKx7K13OvQ4?si=lM6g_ZtX0kdF5Sfo - Uninterrupted Line Guided Chant - YouTube
3. Bhagavad Gita Chapter 5 (1-29 shlokas) is available in the 2024-25 year handbook. The link to Gita by our swamiji is as below.
https://youtu.be/1RnjJPiI9y0?si=_IeXKqpWjrPoqNbO
Please make sure to send the below to every Balavihar class.
1. An empty notebook to write Likhitha jaapa and notes.
2. Two sharpened pencils.
3. Daily Prayers book.
4. Balavihar Handbook
Please join the class WhatsApp group by using the link below
https://chat.whatsapp.com/E0cfUe3NUDYCBwYVKD7tyg
The WhatsApp group will be our primary medium of communication. Please feel free to reach us on our phones/ via WhatsApp or you can reply to this email as well.
With Regards,
Shivram & Anuradha
