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Newsletter July 27, 2016
Notices
1) Summer break from June 20 - Sept. 09, 2016
Click here for the Summer Programs in and around Vedanta Society.
2) Next Newsletter will be posted - August 31.
3) The LIBRARY and book-store will be open only on Tuesday evenings (July 12 – August 23) through the summer.
4) Daily and Weekly programs resume from Sunday, September 11, 2016.
Upcoming Events
Music Concert : Sun. Aug. 21, 8:30 - 10:30AM
Come to listen to Morning Melodies (Raagas) by Dattatreya Velankar, the most famous disciple of Hindustani classical music maestro Pt. Vinayak Torvi since 1993.
Accompanying him - Meghashyam Keshav (Tabla) and Ravi Torvi (Harmonium).
Admission Free: Donations Welcome.
Informal meeting with Swami Chandrashekharananda, head of the Vedanta Society of Portland, Oregon on Sun. Aug. 21, 7:30 - 8:30PM. Supper follows. All are welcome. No fee.
SUFI Retreat at Vedanta Society – Sat. Sept 10
‘Inayati Order of RI' and 'Vedanta Society of Providence' are sponsoring a Sufi retreat on Saturday, September 10 at Vedanta Society from 9:30am –4:00pm on: ‘Life on the Path of the Heart: Sufi Musings’ with Himayat Inayati, MS; ThD, who will be speaking on teachings of Master Hazrat Inayat Khan and from his many years as international head of the Sufi Order.
Registration is $20/per person—
Please mail your RETREAT PAYMENT TO:
INAYATI ORDER OF RI; 33 WOODBINE ST Cranston RI 02910
(DO NOT mail this retreat payment to Vedanta Society)
Click here to see the flyer.
For more information, contact: NAB518-AT-cox.net
Swami Travels – Sat. July 30 - Sun. July 31
Swami Yogatmananda and some devotees will travel to NJ ( Livingston, Edison, Voorhees) where Swami will deliver talks. They will return late Sunday evening, July 31.
Vedanta Blog and Facebook:
Check out Vedanta upcoming and past activities on Vedanta Facebook and participate in writing your comments, thoughts, poetry, and musings in Vedanta "BLOG."
Some Dates for Summer Programs:
1) Children DAY Camp – Tue. August 09 – Sat. August 13
2) Morning Melodies Concert by Dattatreya Velankar – Sun. August 21, 9:00AM – 10:30AM
3) Krishna Festival – Sat. August 27, 11:00 AM – 4:00PM
Other Summer Programs Include:
Vedanta Study Class – Each Tuesday July 12 thru August 23, 7:00PM – 8:30PM
Prayer, Meditation, Study and Discussion on: 'Cloud of Unknowing: Part 2' … All Welcome.
Canton, CT Vedanta Society – ***DATE CHANGED*** Sun. August 14, 10:00AM – 4:00PM
Daylong Retreat on: 'Imitation of Christ' at 100, Cherry Brook Rd, Canton, CT
Vedanta Retreat, Rochester, NY – Wed. August 03, 6:00PM to Sun. August 07, 1:00PM
Five-Day retreat on MANDUKYA UPANISAD at Hindu Heritage Summer Camp, Rochester, NY.
For registration Visit www.omhhsc.org
Past Events
Swami to Pittsburgh, PA - Thu. June 23 thru Sun. June 26
Swami Yogatmananda traveled to Vedanta Society Pittsburgh, PA, early Friday morning, with some devotees from Providence, where swami conducted a retreat and delivered Vedanta talks. While returning Swami stopped to attend the cremation service of Swami Tathagatananda, who breathed his last on Sat, June 25.
'Independence Day' Program – Mon. July 04, 11:00AM - 2:00PM
About thirty-five to forty devotees participated in the annual Independence Day- program from 11am –2pm, with devotional singing and singing of Star Spangled Banner, readings, reflections, a talk from Charles Feldman on : Dependence, Inter-dependence, Intra-dependence and Independence and a talk from Swami Yogatmananda. Luncheon followed.
Adult Silent Meditation Retreat – Fri. July 08, 6:00PM -- Sun. July 10, 1:00PM
Eleven devotees and Swami participated in this ‘Meditate-a-thon’ from Fri Jul 08 at 6 pm thru Sun July 10 at 2 pm. No cell phones, computer devices or internet were allowed in the building. Complete silence was maintained.
Guest Swami Lectures – Sun. July 10
About thirty-five devotees attended the lecture on ‘Who am I?’ delivered by Swami Baneshananda, Vedanta Center, Germany, from 5:00pm – 6:20 pm.
To Honor ‘M’ Gathering – Sat. July 16, 11:00AM – 2:00PM
About twenty-five devotees honored ‘M’ (chronicler of the Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna) at the home of T.K. Roy in West Wareham MA, from 11-2pm, with readings, short talks, singing and reflections. Roy family prepared a sumptuous luncheon, snacks and refreshments.
Guru Purnima– Sun. July 17, 11:00AM – 1:00PM
About seventy-five devotees participated in the Guru-Purnima observation from 11am – 1pm on Sun July 17, which included worship and food/flower offering by swami, singing, various readings, a short talk by Swami Yogatmananda and prasad luncheon
This was followed by a concert from 2pm -4:30pm, by Suchita Rao and her students. Over one- hundred attended.
Young Adult Retreat – Fri. July 22, 6:00PM - Sun. July 24, 1:00PM
Eleven youths from ages fifteen to twenty-eight, participated in the weekend retreat.
The theme was Religion: Science of Values. The program included morning meditation & readings from 6:15 am -7am; yoga session, four lectures and a video on Saturday, karma yoga, ‘time-in-the-park’, meals etc. On Sunday, the participants delivered presentations on their experience, with a Q/A session at the end.
Click here to see photos of above events.
Peace Gathering – Mon. July 18
Swami attended an Interfaith Peace Gathering at the Baptist Church in East Greenwich, RI at 6pm for reflections on the recent killings that have happened in several USA cities in past few weeks.
Synopses of Past Classes
'Who Am I?' - Sun. Jul 10 - Lecture by Swami Baneshananda
Homo sapiens have such things as eating, sleeping, fear and procreation in common with other animals. Differences include the ability to learn language, transfer culture, and practice general altruism. Before the Big Bang and after the Big Crunch, time doesn’t exist. Similarly, the value of creation is zero, and it is not real. We say seeing is believing, yet we are no better than those who lived before Galileo and Copernicus. We experience the world in the waking state, the dreaming state, and in deep sleep. The three experiencers can be called the Waker, the Dreamer, and the Sleeper. Who is observing these different people? We know that for each action, there is an equal and opposite reaction. Yet, the mother does not kick the child back, and the person does not bite the dog back. This happens at the spiritual level. Sri Krishna put forth the five conditions to decide our dharma. They are going from the standard of the Atman, from the unreal creation, from dharma, from gain, and from loss. Spiritual people still suffer, but they don’t break down under the pressure. The world becomes a playground. Despite what a management professor says, true altruism is possible at the spiritual level. A man who exposed a corrupt official was willing to die rather than not tell the truth, because he had read Swami Vivekananda.
Summer Study Class on ‘Cloud of Unknowing’ (Part 9-10-11 from last summer)
Tues. July 12 – 19 - 26 : Classes given by Swami Yogatmananda
Cloud of Unknowing is a book of contemplation that leads us to be ‘Oned in God’. What is God? The One, who has made you. That is sufficient for practicing the discipline to become ONE with him. Actually, just the naked, pure intent to realize God is sufficient. The one syllable representing God is to be repeated all the time to feel the Divine. It is a ‘Mantra’.
One has to beware of even good things, for attachment to them is NOT GOOD. Life is of two types – Active and Contemplative; the higher part of the active overlaps with the lower part of contemplative. Lower: Earnest observation of human wretchedness and bondage; meditations on God’s kindness, His grace….Higher: In the ‘cloud of unknowing’, holding with love only God in His naked being.
When a simple-looking pleasant /unpleasant thought presses against you from the past, in itself it does not cause in harm. When one holds onto it, that thought enters fleshy heart and if you let it be there, then it gets into spiritual heart. Downward slide then begins in life.