Newsletter November 02, 2011

The New Chapel construction work is progressing well as per plans. Heating and Ventilation duct work, the electrical connections, plumbing is in different stages of completion. The sprinkler system installation is completed. Acoustic and Video system wiring is also in progress. The elevator installation has begun and it is continuing. The front porch construction is progressing as well. A few windows have already been placed. Click here to see New Construction - Updates and Photos.

Past Events

Swami's travelogue – Fri., Oct. 28 to Tue., Nov. 01

Swami was in Cedar Rapids, IA from Friday (October 28) evening thru Saturday (October 29) to conduct Kali Puja and deliver three Vedanta talks to about 30 devotees. On Sunday (October 30), about 11 devotees of the Sioux Falls, SD Vedanta group attended Swami’s lecture. Swami returned on Tuesday afternoon to conduct the Gospel of Ramakrishna class in Providence.

Weekly Classes

Bhagavad Gita class – Oct. 28, Friday

A VIDEO lecture on Chapter 6 of Bhagavad Gita (source: youtube.com), delivered by Swami Sridharananda, head of Vedanta Center of Sydney, was shown to eleven attendees.

Sivoham Sivoham by Swami Tyagananda – Oct. 30, Sunday

Reflection on the hymn Nirvana Shatkam (six verses on nirvana), by Sankaracharya, gives much insight into essential Vedantic teachings. It is important to first understand the meaning of "Nirvana" in this context as being the state in which all false personality is eliminated and only that which is True remains. In this hymn, each verse ends with "Sivo'ham, Sivo'ham," which refers to the Good, the Auspicious, the Divine. Each of the six verses follows the process of "neti neti" ("not this, not this"), through which we affirm all of the things (identities, mind, body, intellect, thought, etc.) that we are not, such that only what is essential remains. This self-analysis is key to answering the Vedantic question: Who am I? As we explore this question, we can see, for example, that our personal identities change over time. The one identity that does not change and is not bound by time is the Atman (the Self). When we know who we truly are, then all our problems are solved; this requires waking up to know that we are the Atman. But how does one wake up? We must shed all the false notions of ourselves that we have cultivated, as expressed in the hymn. Just as we are not the body, and not the various roles we identify with, we are also not the attitudes of mind (such as greed, attachment, and jealousy), nor are we even our virtues, which too, must ultimately be transcended. Is it possible to be free from the sense of individuality while still being conscious in this life? Yes, such freedom is possible if we experience ourselves as a child of God and truly see all other people as children of God as well. In our current state of identification with the body, mind, thoughts, etc., we cannot see God because we are seeing everything else but God; once we see God, we will no longer experience such distraction.

The Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna class – Nov. 01, Tuesday

The idea of free will was being discussed. Sri Ramakrishna said “as long as the upaadhi exists there is ignorance.” ‘Upaadhi’ can be translated as ‘limited adjunct’; it means that which is ‘added on’ and not an essential quality/aspect of a thing or person. Like clothing or beard of a man. It can be removed. As long as one identifies oneself with such ‘added on’ qualities s/he is ignorant. The body, the mind, the intellect are not our essential identities; they are different from our true self. The attitude – “I am the machine and You are the operator” will bring knowledge. In the state of knowledge fire of desire is burnt up completely and there are no more agitations. The small I is merged into the Divine. This attitude will help a spiritual aspirant in surrendering the ego and feeling more and more presence of God. After this heavy philosophical discussion Master asked Narendra to sing. When Narendra refused to sing Mater scolded him in a humorous way. Then turning towards Balaram, He made a little fun of Balram’s miserliness. The whole gathering was having fun in the blissful company of Sri Ramakrishna as Narendra begins to sing.