Past Events

CMDFW Balavihar Graduation 2007

This year 20 high school seniors graduated from Balavihar. Graduation day marked the culmination of several years of learning and growing for these children who are now ready to embark on the next stage of their life. It was truly a great joy and honor for all of us to share this momentous occasion with them. The entire event was meticulously planned and executed by the junior class with guidance from their teachers.

Each one of the graduates was introduced along with their parents. We got a brief glimpse of their lives and accomplishments. The highlight of the ceremony was the speech by each graduate. Whether they had been attending Balavihar for just a little over a year, or consistently for the past 13 years, each graduate spoke eloquently about the impact that BV has had in shaping their personalities. Parents got to hear what they wanted their children to hear, “Remember, your parents are always watching out for your best interest;” and kids got to hear what they like the best, “Have fun and enjoy your time at Balavihar!”

Each child reiterated how Chinmaya Mission fosters the spirit of an extended family where you feel the warmth of a loving home. The graduates truly appreciated how fortunate they had been to have the benefit of this wonderful learning opportunity, which is made possible by the dedicated service of so many sevaks and sevikas. They recapped how teachers provided them a platform for exploring their spiritual and cultural heritage while encouraging them to question and taking the time to respond to those questions!

Balavihar also gave them numerous other opportunities to have fun, whether it was the much awaited Labor Day camp; Walkathon to raise funds to give back to the community; preparing for assembly presentations; singing melodious bhajans and chanting slokas. The message of the Chinmaya Mission pledge to “give” more than you “receive” came through loud and clear to them as they pondered its application in the “real” world. Few of them couldn’t even imagine what Sundays would be like without Balavihar because they had never experienced it so far!

In his address to the students, Swamiji reminded the graduates to apply the values and principles learned at Balavihar. They were strongly encouraged to stay involved with the CHYK organization so they could continue their spiritual growth. Each one of the graduates was given a special plaque and some booklets by Pujya Gurudev to inspire and guide them: Right Thinking, The Art of Contemplation and The Highest Truth

Samashti Upanayanam Samskara

Upanayanam is one of 16 major samskaras prescribed for a Hindu in the scriptures. The ancient Apasthamba Sutra describes upanayana as a samskara or a purificatory rite that is performed to impart the sacred Gayatri mantra before the student is taken to the teacher for learning the knowledge of the Vedas.

On Sunday, April 22 nd 2007, Chinmaya Mission DFW organized a samashti upanayanam samskara that was open to all Balavihar students and CHYKs. Twenty seven vatus with their families and friends participated in the ceremony which was performed by Br. Bhasa Chaitanya of CM Houston and Br. Uddhav Chaitanya, Resident Acharya of CMDFW. The 27 children who were initiated included both boys and girls ranging in age from about 5 to 25.

The ceremony was held at a local park on the baseball diamond. A tent over our heads and a tarp below our feet provided some protection from the elements. Seven havan kundas along with all the required puja samagri were set-up for the vatus. The ceremony started with the ritual lighting of the lamp, followed by Ganapati puja, punyahavachanam, rakshabandhan and upavita puja and dharanam. The vatus invoked the blessings of Lord Agni and performed a homa.

The vatus then approached the acharyas one by one for the Brahmopadesam, which is the introduction of the young aspirants to brahmajijnāsa (desire to know Brahman). The vatu now becomes brahma-chāri/chārini, one who follows the prescribed rules in the pursuit of Brahman. After the ceremony was over, all the children went around for bhikshātana, begging for food or any other materials to offer to the āchārya under whose tutelage they would be learning the scriptures. Of course, all the festivities would not be complete without food! A sumptuous lunch was enjoyed by all.

The ceremony was followed by a four day training class conducted by Br. Bhasaji who taught all the children the proper procedure and mantras for performing sandhyavandanam.

Shankara Digvijayam

After the outstanding success of Alayam Karunalaya last year, the the Chinmaya School of Music presented Shankara Digvijayam on Saturday, May 7th 2007. This inspiring musical program brought to life the trek undertaken by Adi Sankara through the Chaar Dhaams situated in the beautiful state of Uttaranchal in northern India. The 45 children who participated in this musical presentation, mesmerized the audience and had them spell bound for an hour and a half !

The program paid a humble tribute to the philosopher giant, Jagadguru Sri Adi Shankaracharya. Sri Shankaracharya is considered to be an incarnation of Lord Shiva. He was born almost twelve centuries ago, and was instrumental in single-handedly revitalizing Sanatana Dharma. He traveled far and wide throughout Bharatvarsha, undefeatable, unstoppable in his mission of propogating the phiolosophy of Advaita Vedanta. He is the author of several commentaries as well as original compositions whose impact is felt to this day. The four mathas established by him serve as centers of learning for all seekers of truth.

Chaar Dhaam or the four seats of pilgrimage a Hindu must visit, owe their sanctity and popularity to him. Yamunotri, Gangotri, Kedarnath and Badrinath are found in the state of Uttaranchal, with the lofty Himalayas as their backdrop. A pilgrimage to the four dhaams is considered to be a culminating point in the seeker’s journey to unity with the divine. May his divine grace empower us in our quest for self-realization…

Credits

Story Inspiration: Br. Uddhav Chaitanya

Story Script: Viji Sridhar

Narration: Viji Sridhar & Ramesh Hegde

Music Teachers: Natana Valiveti, Kalpana Raman, Prem Shah

Harmonium: Prem Shah

Violin: Saipriya Krishnan

Tabla: Shiv Naimpally

Mridangam: Hari Ramsubramaniam

Audio: Biju Verghese of Scorpio Sound

Video: Krishna Puttaparti of Raj Video

The Young Musicians

Abhinav Devalla	Avanika Khanna	Kashyap Valiveti
Abirami Subramanian	Devika Iyer	Krishna Satyanarayan
Akhil Manda	Divya Walia	Meghana Bellary
Akshitha Padiegla	Gopal Raman	Mira Mehta
Anishka Bhatia	Jay Appaji	Navneeth Murthy
Anoohya Moravaneni	Jayashree Rajagopalan	Pranav Chandran
Avani Bellary	Kaavya Valiveti	Pranav Devalla
Priyanka Melgiri	Ritika Bhatia	Shivani Bhatia
Raaga Vemula	Ritvik Sridhar	Shivani Madhav
Radha Satyanaryan	Rohan Asundi	Shruti Hegde
Radhika Natarajan	Rohitha Kaimal	Tanvee Asundi
Rakshak Sridhar	Samhitha Murthy	Varsha Appaji
Rashmi Kamath	Sarvani Bharatam	Vasanthi Bharatam
Remya Menon	Saumya Gopal	Vyshnavi Maringanti
Rithivik Ramesh	Shachi Hegde

CMDFW Gita Chanting Competition 2007

Chinmaya Mission Dallas/Fort Worth held its annual Gita Chanting Competition this year at Chinmaya Saaket on Saturday, April 14. The competition is open to all children pre-K through twelfth grade. The participants in this competition have been growing exponentially since the competition was first started at CMDFW. This year we had 72 registered participants, 50% increase from 2006. We even had a team of enthusiastic participants from the San Antonio/Austin area!

The children who took part recited from memory selected slokas (1 through 20) of Chapter III, Karma Yoga, of Srimad Bhagavad Gita. They showcased their ability to chant with little or no accent, the prescribed slokas in Sanskrit, a feat that is difficult for many parents! They were judged by a panel of independent judges based on three criteria – memory and fluency, pronunciation, and presentation.

Every child who participated deserves accolades! Here are the children who were the winners in the different groups:

Group	Grade	Affiliation	Prize
Group 1, Pre K - KG
Laya Kumar	Pre-K	San Antonio/Austin	I
Radhika Rajalal	KG	San Antonio/Austin	II
Sindhu Nemana	KG	CM/DFW	III
Group 2 - grade 1 - 2
Varsha Appaji	2nd	CM/DFW	I
Sidarth Subramanian	2nd	CM/DFW	II
Kavya Raghavendra	2nd	DFW Hindu Temple	II
Archana Murthy	1st	DFW Hindu Temple	III
Group 3 - grade 3
Utkarsh Kaniyar	3rd	DFW Hindu Temple	I
Aditya Murthy	3rd	DFW Hindu Temple	II
Shweta Menon	3rd	DFW Hindu Temple	II
Sangeeta Kurada	3rd	CM/DFW	II
Kriti Narayanan	3rd	CM/DFW	III
Shachi Hegde	3rd	CM/DFW	III
Group 4 - grade 4
Remya Menon	4th	CM/DFW	I
Aekta Mouli	4th	CM/DFW	I
Sneha Kurada	4th	CM/DFW	II
Jay Appaji	4th	CM/DFW	II
Hrishikesh Iyer	4th	CM/DFW	III
Krishna Vempati	4th	CM/DFW	III
Group 5 - grade 5
Shruthi Kumar	5th	San Antonio/Austin	I
Visakh Unnikrishnan	5th	San Antonio/Austin	II
Brinda Iyer	5th	CM/DFW	II
Sudarshan Sridhar	5th	CM/DFW	III
Navya Kartha	5th	San Antonio/Austin	III
Group 6 - grade 6 - 8
Kaavya Valiveti	7th	CM/DFW	I
Nimay Kulkarni	6th	CM/DFW	II
Rohitha Kaimal	6th	CM/DFW	III
Raaga Vemula	8th	CM/DFW	III
Group 7 - grade 9 -12
Meghana Bellary	9th	CM/DFW	I
Rashmi Kammath	12th	CM/DFW	I
Bharathy Sunkara	10th	CM/DFW	II
Neethu Krishna Unnikrishnan	11th	San Antonio/Austin	III

VRINDAVAN IN TEXAS
THE DAY WE PAINTED THE TOWN RED!

On March 4, 2007 we had the largest gathering of Chinmaya Mission DFW members and guests at the Myers Park and Event Center in McKinney, Texas for our Annual Picnic. Along with the picnic, this year we also celebrated Holi, the festival that is a harbinger of spring, in true desi style. Everyone that came and stayed for Holi, left covered from head to toe in gulaal. We literally painted the town red!

We started the event off at 10 AM with opening prayers and the Walkathon. This was a fund-raiser organized by our senior Balavihar class, with help from other high school students, under the able guidance of teachers like Sunil Maini, Pankaj Asundi, Jayant Kulkarni, Sujata Kulkarni and Anjali Desai. The Walkathon trail wound around the rustic setting of the woods, pond and gazebo at Myers Park.

Shortly after the Walkathon started, guests started arriving at the Show Barn arena which was the setting for the indoor-outdoor picnic. The Barn was spacious enough to accommodate the 1100+ attendees while providing protection from the often whimsical Texas weather. As it turned out, we were blessed with a pleasantly cool, sunny spring day!

Guests were warmly welcomed and checked in by the Registration team. There was a whole array of morning snacks such as chutney sandwiches, cookies, brownies and chips that allowed guests to start ‘grazing’, as soon as they arrived.

The Barn was soon buzzing with a variety of activities ranging from the industrious Food Team boxing pulao and bagging hot baturas in preparation for lunch to the mela style booths set up by the Games Team. The mela included desi games with a modern twist like Shravana’s balance, nimboda-spoon race, candy catch, and the most popular one – placing a tilak on the poster of our own Acharya’s smiling face. By this time, our enthusiastic DJ, Gauthami Vemula had the Barn reverberating with the tune of many old and new popular desi numbers. You could not help but get caught in the festive spirit. Then it was time for the hula hoop contest, electric slide mixed in with some bhangra to the tune of dhol baaje.

Just as the food and fun was getting into high gear inside the Barn, the Corn Team fired up the grills to start roasting corn. The plan was to roast corn in batches and line it up with other snacks inside the Barn. That plan was quickly abandoned as the corn was picked up right off the grills by the eager crowd milling around. It was a sight to watch as kids and adults liberally sprinkled lime juice, chili powder and salt before biting into this simple yet delectable delight. The continuous stream of takers kept the Corn Team busy at the grills well into the afternoon.

For those kids who preferred a quieter pace, there was an Art & Crafts corner set up by Srividya Raghu and Madhavi Menta. There were many new artistic renderings created not only on paper but also on hands and faces using mehendi and paint!

Meanwhile, the super efficient Food Team spear-headed by Anjali Desai & Poonam Mehta had lunch set up “to-go”. Guests could conveniently pick-up a box and settle down anywhere to munch while still taking in the fun all-around. Our Security Team led by Sanjeev Khanna kept a keen eye to make sure that everyone was safe. At least one potential mishap was averted by alert volunteers. We also had a well-stocked Medical Team on hand to attend to minor scrapes and bruises.

Shortly after lunch, it was time for some Holi masti. Everyone got their ration of gulaal, the toughs were filled with water and in no time at all there was the air was as if filled with color! Everyone dived in, no one was allowed to be a by-stander. We were inspired by our own fearless Acharya who was “sharing” gulaal and water as freely as he does words of wisdom during his yajnas!

he water-weary Holi players left the arena to pick up welcome cups of steaming masala chai, dhokla and choose from a wide array of delicious mithais. All good things must come to an end. The Clean-up Team led by Madhavi Sankara restored order. Some guests chose to change out of the holi-drenched clothes before they left, but many more chose to leave in full Holi splendor, car seats not withstanding! For a short time, we got a glimpse of how the gopas and gopikas must have felt after they played Holi with the Lord himself in Vrindavan, without a care in the world!

High School Lock-in

This year the high school lock-in was held at Saaket on Friday, March 2nd. The evening began wit hot pav-bhaji followed by Arati in the temple. The main activity for the evening was an interactive workshop conducted by Swamiji and our 12th grade teacher Pankaj Asundi, assisted by several CHYK volunteers.

This interactive workshop was based on the teachings from Kathopanishad. The theme of the workshop was “Arise, Awake, and stop not till the goal is reached”.

The workshop was set-up to analyze and discuss through interactive games and activities:

The purpose of life
Vision of life
Clarity in the choices we make
Accepting the present
Rate of adaptability
Assets and liabilities we have in life

Each concept was very beautifully introduced through fun activities which had a much deeper message behind them. After each activity there was a debriefing session to bring highlight the key points and bring the message home. It was amazing to see the kids coming up with the most brilliant ideas and analogies.

One of the activities was designed to demonstrate the ability to find equilibrium within ones self and others. This exercise required focus, ability to listen internally and externally. All the kids stood in a circle facing outward and chairs were placed behind them. Each participant was asked to close their eyes and at the count of 3, each of them was asked to sit up and down for about a minute. The first time they did the exercise all of them were sitting and getting up in their own rhythm. Rarely did we see any two of them sitting and standing together. We performed this exercise 3 or 4 times and each time we instructed them to focus more and listen and feel their neighbors and at the same time maintain their own rhythm. By the 4th time all of them were sitting and standing together in perfect rhythm! All of them had their eyes closed and were breathing calmly. Debrief included: breathing, listening, quietness, and thought concentration. Swamiji’s message to the kids was to learn to be in tune at the macrocosmic level.

It was very rewarding to see kids who worked in sub-groups learn several valuable lessons on deep subjects.

Middle School Lock-in

This year the middle school lock-in with Swamiji was held on India’s Republic Day, Friday January 26th, 2007. The event went was very successful with about 30 enthusiastic middle schoolers in attendance. Instead of the usual pizza dinner the kids and volunteers had a sumptuous meal of hot catered pav bhaji before assembling in the temple for the arati. After arati we re-convened in the main hall with Swamiji.

The main activity of the evening was a screening of the Hindi movie Iqbal. This was quite a treat for young and old, most of who had not seen the movie before. The movie is about a young deaf youth from rural India who has a passion for cricket. He is supported in spirit by his cricket fanatic mom and a loving sister who understands Iqbal’s dream to become a great cricket player one day and represent this country.

The movie is all about how determination and perseverance can overcome all obstacles. Iqbal’s father does not support him and he has no resources to get any formal training. Despite all the odds against him, with help from his sister and training from an alcoholic ex-cricket player whom he manages to reform, Iqbal realizes his dream of being selected for the national team. He even uses the buffalos he takes for grazing every day as targets for practice! It was amazing to watch how both the guru and shishya work despite all the inconveniences, communication barriers, and lack of resources

During the movie we faced some technical difficulties right at the crucial moment when Iqbal was close to realizing his dream. The kids were on the edge of their seats and could not wait for the movie to resume!!

After the movie, Swamiji debriefed the children highlighting the positive aspects of the movie. Iqbal’s enthusiasm, his perseverance, his attitude, determination and passion to realize his dream were the big takeaways.

Any of you guys who have not yet seen the movie should see it!!

CMDFW Annual Banquet 2006

CMDFW hosted its Annual Banquet on Sunday, December 3rd, 2006 at the Omni Mandalay Hotel in Las Colinas. This banquet is held every year to showcase the activities of Chinmaya Mission in the Dallas/ Fort Worth metroplex, and to raise money for the continued growth and expansion of the facilities and activities. Our main purpose this year is the planned expansion of the facilities at Saaket.

The evening started on an auspicious note with our Resident Acharya , Brahmachari Uddhav Chaitanya lighting the traditional lamp accompanied by the melodious chanting of Tapovan Shatkam by some of our Slokathon children. This was followed by a short cultural program performed by our Balavihar children. The Gita chanting this year was enhanced by the addition of some adults chanting Gita dhyanam.

One of the highlights of the evening was the presentation of Slokathon trophies by Uddhavji to 3 children who have successfully completed the marathon task of memorizing and reciting several selected slokas from the scriptures.

In his keynote address, Uddhavji spoke about the grandeur of Pujya Gurudev’s vision which is manifest in the multifarious activities of the mission all over the world. Inspired by Mother Ganga as She flows from the Himalayas to the plains, Gurudev dedicated his life to disseminating the knowledge of our ancient scriptures to one and all. His vision was to make this knowledge available to everyone, in every walk of life regardless of their background.

This set the stage for the live auction of several handcrafted paintings and sculptures specially imported from India for the occasion. The auction was conducted by Venu Menon and Satish Gupta in their usual inimitable style! Besides the live auction, there was a silent auction also with over 70 items up for grabs! Some of the items generated a tremendous interest and passion in the bidders. All in the Chinmaya family spirit, of course!

As you can see, it was a memorable event. If you were unable to attend this year, we hope you can join us next year with your family and friends and help support Saaket.

CMDFW’s Annual Elementary School Lock-in 2006

This year CMDFW’s Annual Elementary School Lock-in for second through fifth graders was held on Friday, December 8th. The event was a grand success with over one hundred children attending! It was very encouraging to see parents and children actually arrive early! The evening started with hot pizza served in the Saaket kitchen downstairs, followed by some fun and games upstairs. Balavihar sevaks and sevikas had several stations with games setup in the main hall for the kids.

At 7:15 PM sharp Swamiji shepherded the kids to the temple to perform the arati. After the arati everyone re-assembled in the main hall for the screening of Akeelah and the Bee. This movie about a precocious 11 year old girl from south Los Angeles who sets out to win the National Spelling Bee had Swamiji, the kids and the adult volunteers spellbound for the next 112 minutes! All those who have not yet had a chance to watch it should definitely put it high on their priority list.

The movie talked about the root, origin, and meanings of words. Take a quick test to see how many of the words mentioned below you know:

prestidigitation, ambidextrous, pterodactyl, pulchritude, pastiche, xanthosis, cabalistic, soliterraneous, grandiloquent, catastasis, endentulous, quinquevir, bioluminescent, objugatory, kookaburra, effervescible, quiddity, pyrophanous, mountebank, numismatics, arboriculture, argillaceous, serpiginous, and logorrhea.

Trivia

Laurence Fishburne's character, Mr Larabee, is based on director Doug Atchison's teacher, Mr. Larabell.

This is the first movie to be produced by Starbucks Entertainment.
The filming of the movie lasted 31 days with a budget of six million dollars.
The quote that Dr. Larabee has Akeelah read from a plaque on his wall is an excerpt from "A Return To Love: Reflections on the Principles of a Course in Miracles" by Marianne Williamson:

Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. We ask ourselves, “Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous?” Actually, who are you not to be? We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same.

Swamiji discussed this quote from the movie, and advised the kids to keep these words of wisdom in their hearts forever.

Discourses by Swami Chidatmanandaji, Acharya, CM Hyderabad,
Regional Head CM Andhra Pradesh

CMDFW was privileged to host Swami Chidatmananda at Chinmaya Saaket during the Thanksgiving break. Inspired by Pujya Gurudev, Swamiji joined Sandeepany Sadhanalaya in Mumbai in 1989 and was given sannyasa diksha by Pujya Guruji in 1999. Swamiji speaks with ease on a wide variety of topics from the Bhagavad Gita to Upanishads, Ramayana, Mahabharata and Vemana Vedanta (based on Telugu poems by Yogi Vemana).

The topic of Swamiji’s morning talks was Beyond Suffering . According to Swamiji, s uffering is due to change of the state of internal organ (intellect, mind, memory and ego). The Self just witnesses the change, so it is free from suffering. Identification of the self with body, senses and internal organs is the cause of suffering.

In the evening Swamiji spoke about Learning Through Relationships . It is through relationships, we learn to express and receive love, learn to forgive, help, serve and evolve.

Both the morning and evening discourses were well-attended and well-received by all the attendees.

CMDFW Labor Day Camp 2006

Mama Mia! Glory To Mother!

CMDFW’s eagerly awaited Labor Day Camp had a new twist this year. Adults, CHYKs and elementary school children were also invited to join in the fun at Lake Texoma for this annual event from Friday, September 1^st to Monday, September 4^th. Mama mia! What a glorious time was had by one and all as they were immersed in the multi-faceted glory of the Mother! There were five distinct, concurrent sessions for elementary grade children, middle school children, high school students, CHYKs and adults.

We were fortunate to have a team of six very experienced and able acharyas to conduct these sessions – Swami Shantanandaji from the tri-state area, Swami Sharananandji from Chicago, Swamini Sivapriyanandaji from Toronto, Brahmacharini Arpitaji from St. Augustine, Florida, Brahmachari Bhasa Chaitanya from Houston, and our very own acharya, Brahmachari Uddhav Chaitanya to conduct the camp. In addition to the acharyas, there was a team of sevaks and sevikas to take care of food, supplies and other sundry details.

The camp was officially inaugurated on Friday evening after a quick pizza dinner. On Saturday the camp started bright and early at 6 AM for all the attendees. While the adults and CHYKs attended guided meditation conducted by Uddhavji, the children learnt the intricacies of different yogasanas under the able guidance of Sharanji.

The younger kids enjoyed music, dance, arts and crafts, as well as nature outings with Arpitaji. Her expertise with the guitar enticed the kids to light up the class with their enthusiastic participation. The nature walk to collect seeds and leaves alongside the lake as well as the trip to the nature center where they got to view several reptiles and touch turtles have surely left some fond memories of the camp in the minds of the children.

The glory of the various forms of the Mother - Durga, Lakshmi and Saraswati was revealed to the middle school children by Sharanji. He engaged the kids in lively discussions about the symbolism of these forms and how it relates to our daily life and encouraged them to present their ideas and thoughts.

Swamini Shivapriyananda wowed (not an easy task!) the teenagers in high school with her achievements in both the secular and spiritual spheres of life. The kids could relate to her precise, scientific analysis during discussions. Her workshops were eye-opening and ego-deflating. Swaminiji placed the lessons on values in the context of the gunas or qualities each person is endowed with from birth. The kids got a sense of their place and role in the world and a measure of how little they contribute towards some of their greatest achievements and how much more are the contributions of the supporting family and social structures.

Uddhavji, ably assisted by Bhasaji, took up the challenge of discussing Adi Sankara’s hard-hitting text Bhaja Govindam with the CHYKs. In the mornings, he chose the traditional gurukula style of imparting this knowledge, seated on a circular park bench overlooking the lake surrounded by the students. The serenity of the atmosphere with the rising sun and the clean air was conducive to clear and focused thinking. Uddhavji’s inimitable style of mixing humor with contemporary examples drove home the lessons of the text.

The adults attended discourses by Swami Shantanandaji on the seventh canto of Srimad Bhagavatam, specifically the story of Prahlada. Swamiji’s discourses were a rare combination of spiritual knowledge and pithy humor. The Q&A sessions were strong reminders to all the adult attendees to re-assess their life and thinking patterns.

There were a few opportunities for the various groups to mix together and engage in joint recreational activities. The children enjoyed playing volleyball, cricket and ping pong with each other and with the acharyas. Swami Sharananda’s cricketing vasana was rekindled much to the delight of the children! All the kids and some of the adults too, made colorful and creative tie and dye shirts that they took home as camp keepsakes.
Some of the other highlights of the camp – the Cool OM competition (so coool!), the afternoon boat ride on the lake (being drenched by Uddhavji!), DJ Uddhavji playing music for the dandia raas, learning to chant the “world’s first ever rap song,” Ai Giri Nandini, Uddhavji applying mehandi, listening to the acharyas narrate events from their life that profoundly influenced them in their spiritual journey, Uddhavji reciting “Twinkle, twinkle little star….” The list could go on and on!

The ever-popular talent show provided an opportunity for the kids to display their talents and poke some wholesome fun at the acharyas and adults. The camp concluded with Saraswati Puja conducted by Bhasaji with Swami Sharanandaji performing the puja as the yajman.

What did this camp mean to each attendee? The answers naturally vary, but all who attended, whether they were seasoned veterans or first-timers, had a good time and learnt something valuable. Some highlights of the camp…..

Alayam Karunalayam

On Saturday, May 13 th, 2006, Chinmaya Mission DFW's School of Dance and Music presented a dance and music program aptly called alayam karunalayam (the supreme abode of compassion). This memorable tribute to the majestic temple of Sri Ranganathaswami located in Srirangam, India was made possible by the karuna and blessings of Pujya Gurudev, Pujya Guruji and the guidance and support of our acharya, Br. Uddhavji.

Six dance (Vidya Krishnan and Gowri Sankaran) and music (Natana Valiveti , Shubha Ramanan, Kalpana Raman and Prem Shah) teachers coordinated their efforts to synchronize over 50 children of different ages varying from 5 to 16 to create this musical dance program, a veritable feast for the eyes and ears. The script was researched and written by Viji Sridhar and the instrumental music was provided by visiting artists.

The program had 10 scenes, tracing the story of an ardent devotee - Sri Tirupan Alwar.

Considered a great poet and devotee in the Vaishnavaite tradition, Sri Tirupan, as in the past, touched the hearts of many in the audience that day. The soulful narration, the devoted dancers and the enthusiastic musicians transported the audience to Srirangam itself.

The uniqueness of this event was its style. Songs were rendered for the dancers by the children. The show lasted a little over 2 hours and started with the dancers depicting the life of Sri Tirupan Alwar and ended with his merging with the Lord of Srirangam. The musicians rendered soul stirring music in perfect ragam and talam for the dancers. The narration highlighted the history of the Srirangam temple, describing the majesty and significance of its 7 unique prakarams (enclosures) with 21 towers.

The program also highlighted the purpose of visiting a temple and offered suggestions on how to tune the body, mind, and intellect towards the supreme Divinity. All visits to a temple are to be taken seriously and treated as an opportunity to contemplate on the powerful messages each structure had to offer. The compassion of the Lord of Srirangam and his divine Consort are beyond human comprehension. True devotion and absolute surrender are the only means to attain salvation.

The program concluded with shanti path. The conclusion of the program left the spell bound audience elevated to the higher realms of divine bhakti. A few of the spectators who were natives of Srirangam said that they were filled with an intense longing to visit their Lord Ranganatha.

This program also exhibited the superb teamwork in a true yajna spirit of everyone involved: the tireless efforts of the teachers, the many hours spent by the parent volunteers, and last, but not least, the dedicated practice of the children In the words of Pujya Gurudev, "What you have is His gift to you; what you do with what you have is your gift to Him.” This effort of the Chinmaya School of Dance and Music was indeed an offering to the Almighty, showcasing the many talents given by Him in abundance to the participants.

Please visit our photo gallery for some glimpses of this event.

How do you spell FUN? L-O-C-K-I-N at Saaket

So how did ‘this’ word come to mean ‘that’? Back in 2003, our Acharya Uddhavji, suggested a satsang with high school Balavihar students at Saaket to discuss spirituality represented in the movie Matrix. The kids came somewhat skeptically, but they had fun as they learnt to look for spirituality in uncommon places! Thus started a new Saaket tradition - lock-ins! The rest as they say is history. The Matrix has come and gone, but the lock-ins continue. The format has been expanded to accommodate younger students after news spread through the Balavihar grapevine.

In keeping with this tradition, we had three lock-ins this academic year for elementary, middle and high school grades. All the lock-ins were held on a Friday evening. The elementary and middle school events ended by 10 PM, but the high school students were given the special privilege of a sleepover (sleepover may a misnomer since no one got much sleep!) at Saaket. These lock-ins are a wonderful way for the kids to spend quality time with Swamiji and enjoy the camaraderie of their peers.

The elementary school lock-in was held on December 9 th 2005. There were about 120 kids at Saaket that night, ready to have fun and bond with each other and Swamiji. The children performed arati in the temple, had dinner and then watched the acclaimed new animated movie, Hanuman with Swamiji. This was followed by a quiz based on the movie and all the participants were awarded ribbons.

The middle school students got together on January 15 th 2006. After arati, dinner and satsang with Swamiji, they proceeded in a caravan of volunteer cars to Adventure Landing where they are got to ride race cars, play putt-putt golf and laser tag. The cold weather was no deterrent to the enjoyment of the 37 kids who were lucky enough to attend. This was our smallest group since only 3 grade levels are represented.

Then on February 10 th 2006, it was the turn of the trail-blazing high school students to replicate previous years of fun. Forty six of them took a break from their busy schedules to eat pizza, pray, bowl and play laser tag along with Swamiji at Main Event in Plano. This was followed by a sleepover at Saaket. Most were successful in their determination to stay awake all night so as not to miss a single moment of the adventure. Swamiji retired to his routine at 4:30 AM in the morning and the kids returned home by 7 AM Saturday – no doubt to catch up on some sleep!

All in all, the consensus among “lock-in”-ers is that Saaket is no longer just a place your parents drag you to on Sundays – it is the headquarters of FUN – the sattvik kind of course - just as intended by the ever-innovative, master-mind, Acharya Uddhavji! Thanks to ALL the sevaks & sevikas who WORKED tirelessly behind the scenes to ensure that the adventures proceeded smoothly and safely!

Time to go OM!

More about the First National CHYK West Camp....

Chinmaya Saaket Annual Banquet 2005

Debt-free in 2005!

Chinmaya Mission D/FW held its annual banquet at the Omni Mandalay Hotel on Sunday, December 4 th, 2005. The banquet was attended by approximately 270 members and well-wishers. The goal of the banquet was to raise enough funds to be “Debt-Free in 2005.”

The program started with the chanting of Guru Paduka Stotram by the Slokathon children as our Resident Acharya, Br. Uddhav Chaitanya lit the lamp to inaugurate the evening’s festivities. This was followed by a Bharatanatyam dance recital by the Chinmaya Dance Group, Nada Murali Gana Vilola , vividly depicting the endearing attributes of Krishna from his childhood to youth. Next was a video of activities and events at Saaket, produced and directed by our very own 10 th grade Balavihar students. The winners of last year’s Gita Chanting Competition recited selected slokas from the second chapter of the Bhagavad Gita. Two of our students, Abhirami Subramanian and Arun Venkatraman successfully completed the Slokathon program and were given trophies by Swamiji. Our Balavihar children were at their best!

Br. Uddhav Chaitanya delivered the keynote address. He described the history of the Chinmaya movement, our mission’s activities and the essence of Vedanta and its relevance to modern living. It was a rousing talk!

The auction and pledge drive were conducted by Satish Gupta and Venu Menon. We are pleased to announce that the proceeds from the auctions, donations and pledges met the fund-raising goal for the evening and will allow Chinmaya Saaket to pay off the mortgage debt on the building.

Our sincere thanks to the donors, participants and volunteers for making this year’s banquet a success.

2005 Chinmaya Family Picnic

The 2005 Chinmaya Family Picnic was held on Sunday, November 6, 2005 at Hoblitzelle Park in Plano, TX. We had record-breaking turnout exceeding 600 attendees, good food and good fun! We were very fortunate to have beautiful almost spring-like weather. Besides activities such as bike riding, races, raffle, tug-of-war, dance-off and dandiya, this year we recreated a mini-scale Indian mela with games featuring many mythological characters. One of the main attractions of the day was our panditji, Moti Aggarwal who wowed the crowd with the accuracy of his palm-reading.

We had hot puris along with other delicious potluck items to munch on. When the Indian food was gone, we brought in pizza to cover the larger than expected crowd. The turnout kept volunteers on their feet the whole time. Many of our high-school students volunteered to keep the games going smoothly and ensure that the park perimeter was secure. The grand finale of the day was Ravana dahan featuring the burning of an impressive effigy of Ravana created by our in-house ‘artist-par-excellence’, Acharya Uddhavji, of course!

It was great to see our growing Chinmaya family in the metroplex have a great time together in the true spirit of a satsang. We hope to have an even larger crowd next year. We also hope that EVERYONE who plans to attend will register ahead of time so we can plan even better! Enjoy (photo gallery) reliving the memories of this fun event!

Chinmaya Mission Acharya Attends White House Divali Celebrations

Acharya Gaurang Nanavaty, Resident Acharya of Chinmaya Mission Houston, was invited by the White House to attend, and participate in, the third annual Dipavali celebrations at the White House. Gaurangji was requested to lead the invocation and give a ten minute talk.

Balavihar Idol 2005

Saaket, October 8, 2005: BV Idol (a.k.a. Talent Show) was a very successful fund-raising program organized by our enterprising 12 th grade children. This was their attempt to reach out to the unfortunate people who have been affected by Hurricane Katrina. Within a matter of 3 weeks, they put a plan together and got the word out to the BV community. It couldn't be just a coincidence that we saw Shakti manifest Herself through these children during the Navaratri festival. Icha Shakti manifested as their desire to help. Jnana Shakti ensured that they figured out the steps necessary to execute the event, and Kriya Shakti helped them execute their plan.

The stage was set just right for the event. Swamiji opened the program with a short invocation. There were over 55 children who participated in the show. Kids as young as 5 years displayed the wealth of talent we have. Following our Hindu tradition, the children began the program with Ganesha Pancharatnam. The diversity of the performances ranged from a puppet show to classical singing and dance remixes with English and Hindi music. There were 8 dances (classical, remixes, and blended) and an equal number of musical renditions. The 4 comedy shows brought down the house. Entertainment was truly " tax free"!

The event displayed the compassion and willingness of the Balavihar community to help their fellow citizens in times of need. The entire event was executed with precision under minimal adult supervision. We are very proud of these children and the great job they did! Visit our photo gallery for pictures…

Second Balavihar Teachers' Training 2005

Saaket, July 24, 2005: Saaket has approximately 60 Balavihar teachers who are eagerly waiting to start the new session on Sunday, August 7, 2005. The second training session for the upcoming academic year was held at Saaket from 9:30 AM - 4 PM under the guidance of our Acharya, Br. Uddhav Chaitanya. After brief introductions of all the sevaks and sevikas, Swamiji outlined the goals of Balavihar and presented excellent pointers for the teachers that would help them to accomplish the goals. Swamiji also briefly went over each grade level's curriculum. Teachers were encouraged to ask questions for additional clarification and the session concluded with the distribution of text books.

First Arangetram for Chinmaya School of Dance

Kudos and congratulations to Shruti Hegde for being the first student of the Chinmaya School of Dance to perform her Bharatanatyam Ranga Pravesham or Arangetram at the Garland Plaza Theater on Sunday, June 26, 2005. Shruti is the daughter of Ramesh and Sumana Hegde and a disciple of Mrs. Vidya Krishnan. Shruti’s performance was an outstanding combination of rhythm, intricate footwork and expression enhanced by her graceful movements and smiling face. The guest of honor at the program was Brahmachari Uddhav Chaitanya, Resident Acharya of CM D/FW. More…

Balavihar Teachers' Training 2005

Saaket, June 25, 2005: About forty Balavihar teachers successfully completed their first training session for the upcoming academic year at Saaket from 9:00AM - 12:00 Noon on Saturday, June 25, 2005 under the guidance of our Acharya, Br. Uddhav Chaitanya. The main item on the agenda was planning the activities and calendar for 2005 – 2006. The second training session is currently planned for Sunday, July 24, 2005. Stay tuned for more details……

Welcome Back!

Saaket, June 22, 2005: Our Acharya, Br. Uddhav Chaitanya is back from his India tour today. He is currently trying to fight jet lag! During his visit to India, he successfully led a group of about 40 devotees on "Char Dham Yatra" to Kedarnath, Badrinath, Gangotri & Yamunotri along with Br. Prasad Chaitanya and Br. Vinayak Chaitanya. He also took care of several projects while he was there.

Annual General Body Meeting 2005

Saaket, May 22, 2005: CM DF/W held its Annual General Body Meeting at Chinmaya Saaket on Sunday, May 22, 2005 ....more pdficon

Char Dham Yatra

Our Uddhav-ji will be leading about 40 members from Saaket on a Char Dham Yatra whence they will be going to Kedarnath, Badrinath, Gangotri & Yamunotri. They will be starting on June 1st from New Delhi.

Congratulations Graduating Class of 2005!

Saaket, May 15, 2005: We had an inspiring and heart-warming graduation ceremony for fourteen of our Balavihar students at Saaket. The 11th graders had prepared a short and sweet presentation for each of the graduating seniors. Each one of the students was then invited to come up to the stage with their parents and receive a plaque from Swamiji and say a few words. The common thread in all their speeches was the message, “Stay in Balavihar” and how their time in Balavihar has helped them to realize the “value of values”. In his comments, Swamiji encouraged them to take the lead in forming CHYK groups in the universities they will be attending. Pictures ....

Chinmaya Mission Dallas/Fort Worth