Sita's Appearance Day
Today is the Appearance Day of Sita Devi. Srimati Sita Devi, a manifestation of the goddess of fortune, Lakshmi Devi, is the eternal consort of Lord Ramachandra. When Lord Ramachandra was banished to the Dandakaranya forest, Sita Devi left the comforts of the royal palace to join Him. While in the forest she was kidnapped by the demonic king Ravana, yet despite his endeavors to enjoy her beauty, she remained always dedicated to Lord Ramachandra.While there are many books recounting the tales from the Ramayana, the Sita's Fire Trilogy, is a beautifully illustrated novel whose words and stunning artwork immediately pull the reader into the unfolding drama.“The intrigue and mystery starts with the opening line: never have I been pulled so quickly into a book through a few simple yet tantalizing words. The art and magic unfold page after page through story and image alike. Perhaps it’s a story you know; perhaps not. But Vrinda’s words and her mother’s exquisite art create another world we can enter and revel in the enchantment and adventure that lies within. From injustice to savagery, heroism to beautiful princesses, battles for honor and death before the converse, dishonor, the unique style of Vrinda Seth’s writing captivates the heart and mind, drawing one deeper into the burning intricacies of Sita’s Fire…” —Braja Sorensen, author of Lost & Found in India, Mad & Divine, and India & Beyond
Thomas Merton's Appreciation of Bhagavad Gita
VIEWPOINT: Fight or Flight: Thomas Merton and the Bhagavad Gītā
Steven J. Rosen (Satyaraja Dasa) Editor, Journal of Vaishnava Studies
TWO commemorative events of landmark stature inspired the essay you are about to read: First, the year 2018 marks the 50th anniversary of Thomas Merton’s abrupt departure from our material vision. Second, 2018 is also the semicentennial celebration of a consequential publication: It was in 1968 that His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedānta Swami Prabhupāda released his unprecedentedly influential Bhagavad-gītā As It Is. As we shall see, the trailblazing Western visionary, Merton, and this particular edition of the Gītā engaged in productive conversation with each other.I joined that prodigious conversation, too, if from a distance and a few years later, not only as a disciple of Śrīla Prabhupāda and as an avid reader of his Bhagavad-gītā, but as a fan of Thomas Merton (1915-1968). For the uninitiated, Merton was a well-known Trappist monk, social activist, and author of well over 70 books. His profound insights on nonviolence and nonsectarian spirituality were particularly alluring. But it was reading Merton’s bestselling autobiography, The Seven Storey Mountain (1948), that transformed me from an admirer to an aficionado. From that time I knew that I would follow Merton’s writings as a fan for life.The famed Christian writer articulated something I intuitively knew: that there were untapped truths in the East, that there was something “out there” that could inform something “in here.” That is to say, we both felt that although we were children of the Occident, our fate lay in the Orient, and that our dialogue with sages of the East was indispensable to understanding ultimate reality. In the words of author Alan Altany: “The dialogue was not a luxury, but a necessity. For Merton, if the West were to continue to ignore ‘the spiritual heritage of the East,’ it would ‘hasten the tragedy that threatens man and his civilizations.’”Continue reading...
Capital Kirtan
Dear Friends,Here in DC over the past weekend, our Potomac temple hosted Capital Kirtan, a two-day kirtan festival. It was organized by the youth, and the kirtans were led by youth (starting at around age nine).The intention was to have more chanting and less talk. Still, Ananda, our community president, asked me to speak for about fifteen minutes. I guess, if it can't be said in fifteen minutes, then it can't be said. I spoke on Kirtan Revolution. Here is a link to the talk.We're all so happy to be welcoming Jahnavi Harrison back to the US after a long six years. Here is a poem she wrote called:Ode to the Holy NameWhisper it beneath the summer oakswhile swallows dive aboveShout it in your morning shower,share it with the ones you love.Sing it loud, groups of ten,three or seventy-five,brand it on your beating chest andkeep your heart alive.In the garden, on the bus,before exams and interviews,at joyous birth and bitter death,sing this name, loud and true.Call it when your days are long,breath it in and out with heavy head,cry it over your morning tea,and into your pillow before bed.Wash this name through every fiber,rinse and repeat, rinse and repeatsing with everything you have,soft, sweet, subtle, deep.All the best,Rukmini Walker
Happy New Year
Dear Friends,Happy New Year to you all! I wish you many blessings in the coming year.For the past week, my husband and I have been in the south of India in one of the most holy temple cities called Tirupati. We came here for the third annual Vaisnava (the Bhakti Yoga tradition) Christian Dialogue.Right at midnight on New Year's Eve, he was standing out on the veranda of the temple where we're staying, watching and listening to revelers shooting off firecrackers. Right at the moment of ushering in the New Year, he saw a mother cow running down the street with her baby calf running after her, apparently out of fright from the explosions of light and sound. So, of course, fright isn't good, but to see a cow and her calf right at that moment is considered a very auspicious sign for the coming year. I don't know about you, but 2017 was a challenging year for us. Personally, I'll take it as a good sign and look forward to some signs of grace in the coming year.Being at Tirupati has been a bit overwhelming. In the West, we find organized religion to sometimes be a bit suspect. Sometimes it has a way of killing the spirit of the individual. As one goes deeper, most essential is the personal cultivation of the one's relationship of love and service with Divinity, in whatever way Divinity is perceived by the individual. Internal change of heart must be spontaneous, individual and voluntary.But we see here a way of inspiring and engaging masses of people. The temple stands at the top of seven sacred hills, each one representing a different great devotee, such as Hanuman, or Garuda, or Laxmidevi. The Deity called Balaji, is a form of Krsna, and pilgrims repeatedly call out His name, "Govinda! Govinda!", as they stand in line, sometimes for hours waiting for His holy darshan.There are so many stories, I don't know which one to tell you... But the word is that He came here to marry Vedavati, the ascetic devi who stood in for Sita when she appeared to be kidnapped by the evil Ravana. As Rama, He had taken the vow to accept only one wife (a good thing!). Sita and Ram were so grateful to Vedanta, that He comes back as Balaji to show His gratitude to Vedavati, who appears as His consort, Padmavati.Just to give you a sense of how overwhelming it all is: the beauty, the power, and grandeur of it all... It's one of the richest temples in India. And how do they spend the money? Of course, flowers, lights, music, elephants, grand festivals... But there is also a four-story building there where they continually feed the pilgrims, every day from 7 AM to 11 PM at night. And it's a really top-notch breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Each floor of the building sits a thousand people. And they feed them every day, continuously, all year long. As soon as one group is fed, another group sits down to eat. I am overwhelmed...The mood here is so different from the rural mood of Vrndavan, where Krsna appears as a simple cowherd boy. Yet They are one and the same Supreme Person, appearing in different moods to accept the moods of love of His devotees.This blog has grown a bit long, and it's late here now. If you're interested to read the paper presented by Kenneth Valpey, the Bhakti scholar at our dialogue, let me know, and I can forward it to you.I write to you today from Mahabalipuram in Tamil Nadu.All the best to you in the coming year,Rukmini Walker