Hari Om! Parents,
Reminder: Registration for the Chinmaya Vrindavan Memorial Day Camp is now open and the details are posted in the Parents WA Group.
Week 23 Class
We began with Likhita Japa, followed by opening prayers. The class chanted Mahalakshmi Ashtakam and Mahishasura Mardini Stotram.
Mahabharata
We concluded the 18th and final chapter is the Svargarohana Parva. Yudhistira is taken to the grand sabha by Indra and sees several great souls there. He does not see his brothers or Draupadi in Indraloka, but sees Duryodhana instead. Yudhistira insists that Yama Dharmaraja take him to his wife and brothers. He is led to hell and sees that they are all suffering there. He refuses to leave and tells Yama Dharmaraja to leave him there with his brothers. This was another test, and Yudhistira passed it again. Indradeva takes all the Pandavas and Draupadi back to Amaravati. Yudhistira wants to know the reason for why a sinner like Duryodhana was in Amaravati, while his brothers were not. We discussed how the rules of heaven are different from those on earth. With more "punyam" and less "paapam", the Pandavas endured hell first and then spent eternity in heaven. Duryodana enjoyed a short time in heaven for the small amount of "punyam" he had collected. Then he had to endure hell for the immense number of sinful acts he had committed. In the conclusion of the Mahabharata, all the Pandavas and Draupadi get the divine darshan of Lord Krishna as Lord Narayana in Vaikunta. This concludes our Mahabharata story. Sri Krishnarpanam Astu!
Debate
The children formed 2 groups and the topic was - Was Lord Krishna's help to the Pandavas justified in the Mahabharata story? They were given 10 minutes to prepare, 2 minutes to present, and 1 minute to respond to questions. One side argued that the Pandavas deserved the Lord's Grace, while the other side argued that the Kauravas were treated unfairly. In conclusion, the children agreed that all the characters in the Mahabharata had flaws, even Yudhistira. However, it is important to note that the Pandavas strived for the greater good and Dharma, versus the selfishness and Adharmic behaviour of the Kauravas, leading to their downfall.
India: The Sacred Land
Topic: Pilgrimages of India
Activity: Please encourage your child to do this activity.
The children can pick 1 temple they have visited or would like to visit. They will create a presentation and share it in the next classes. The sign-up sheet is posted in the Parents WA Group.
Gita Chanting
The event results details are at: https://www.chinmayavrindavan.org/activities/geeta-chanting
The session ended early for the Gr 5 stage performance and we did pledge recitation in the prayer hall.
- Rashmi Kuroodi and Sangeetha Srikanth
Supplies needed for every class:- Bala Vihar Handbook, My Prayers book, the Junior Class Workbook Part 1 & 2, a notebook and pencils for likhita japa; everything in their Bala Vihar bag.
*Reference books - Mahabharata by Rajagopalachari / Mahabharata by Kamala Subramaniam
