Guru Poornima

Dear Devotees,
Wow! It's been a while since I last wrote, but it has been a little busy here at the Ohio Vedic Temple. One reason is that we are preparing for Guru Poornima. Ok, most of you probably have no idea what I am talking about. Once a year, in the Vedic tradition, we celebrate a holiday called Guru Poornima. On this day in July on the full moon (Poornima means full moon) we honor our gurus. A guru is a guide, a friend, a teacher, a parent, someone who takes you from the darkness to the light. More then anything, a guru is a guiding energy who ultimately helps you understand "Tat Tvam Asi", you are that, you are consciousness itself. Guru Poornima has been celebrated for thousands of years in India.
Now devotees have the opportunity to celebrate the holiday right in the USA by coming to the Ohio Nithyananda Vedic Temple. Of course, you can always honor your own Guru at home, but by celebrating at the Ohio Temple, you can really be part of the true Vedic tradition. Some activities that you can participate in are: a gratitude meditation; Guru Pooja (offering to the Guru); Maha arthi (a fire ritual) on the banks of the beautiful energized river behind the temple; and Chandra Namaskar, a yoga sequence honoring the full moon. Wonderful prasad (blessed food) will be offered and of course amazing energy!
We are celebrating on July 25, so if you can, come, come. If you can't, give a prayer of thanks to your personal Guru on that Auspicious day. Thanks for reading. Check back in! I will write an entry complete with a picture once that sacred day is over, so thank you again!

This is a Sanskrit prayer that honors all the gurus.

Sadha shiva samaarambhaam / shankaraachaarya madhyamaam /
asmadaachaarya paryantam / vande guru paramparaam //

The meaning is

Sadha shiva samaarambhaam: Starting with Sadha Shiva. or Shiva, the first Guru, the Adi Guru.

Shankaraacharya madhyamaam: To Sri Adi Shankara, one of the great Masters in the middle of the lineage.

asmadaachaarya paryantam: And to all the other Gurus in the lineage.

vande guru paramparaam: I bow to the entire lineage of Gurus who have spent their lives for the sake of mankind.

Satsang

Dear Devotees,
How are you all? Here at the temple we are doing great. In fact on Sunday we had our second satsang this year! It went well. We watched a discourse from Swamiji's Patanjali Yoga Sutras, had a discussion, and did the Anja (a chakra between the eyebrows) Meditation. Not very many people came to this one, but I am sure we are just building up for next week. The picture above is from our first Satsang, in it you can see the devotees siting on the bank of the Scenic river having a discussion.
Today we are having abishakum for Subramanian. A deity who is placed to the right of Anandaswara and Anandaswari. This deity who also happens to be Anandaswara's son, in the divine way of things, stands with his two wives. In my next post I will explain in detail about Subramanian, but in the mean time I wish you all well and to be blissful! Check back in soon to hear all about Anandaswara's son, Lord Subramanian.

The Temple

Dear Devotees,
Thank you so much for deciding to read this blog. If you aren't really sure what you are reading, well, just keep reading and I will tell you. This is a blog about the Nithyananda Vedic Temple of Ohio, and in my opinion, the best temple in North America. The temple, which was consecrated on April 14, 2007, is located on a beautiful property in Delaware, Ohio. Behind the temple runs the Olentangy Scenic River, and on another side of the temple is a little creek laughing is way down to the larger water flow. All that is very gorgeous, but the most beautiful thing about the temple is the actual temple part.
There are many deities inside, all are Hindu gods and goddesses. As this blog continues you will hear about all the different deities and get an idea of what precisely we do, and who these deities are. For this section I will simply write about just one, well two really. Seven and a half feet tall, solid black granite, about six tons, the handsome Anandaswara sits. More formally known as Lord Shiva. Upon the lord's knee, Anandaswari is seated looking perfect in every way. Our temple is mostly dedicated to them, they equal the biggest Shiva moorthi (statue) in North America! Over the course of the blog you will hear about the events that happen around this idol, their home, and of course the people who serve them. Thank you for reading the Nithyananda Vedic Temple blog, check in soon for more!