Meenakshi temple Mahotsavam at Pearland

We went to Pearland y/day in the morning to attend "Meenakshi-Sundaresha Thirukalyana Utsavam". This  was the concluding event of the 10-day long Chittirai Mahotsavam festival about which I am giving some photo links below, courtesy thru the organizers of the event.  The Thirukalyana Utsavam was really colorful.

Only when I saw the crowd there, I could realize that there are so many Hindus and especially tamil brahmin community settled down here in Houston, TX, and its neighborhood. The most interesting thing was that the crowd consisted more of young people (in age group of 30-40) who were having multifarious talents in the fields of music and art. Apart from the particular professional field in which they excel themselves, these young ones are extremely good at chanting Rudram/Chamakam/Purushasooktham/Sreesuktham and whatnot. They chant it in the right tune and rhythm as per the pronunciation rules laid down in the scriptures. They chant each and every word of the Maha Mantras flawlessly and without fumbling.

I felt really ashamed that even after attaining old age and being brahmins and residents of the very place where Vedas were found (India), most of us do not even know one percent of what these young ones in this foreign land know about all these Mantras! 

The Veda Gosham that was reverberating all over there in the temple was so loud and impressive that I had, for a while, forgotten where I was.

What we see in India today is a slow disappearance of our values and traditions and these values, on the contrary, are now being possessed by these young people over here.  I find that the youth here have the right taste and they know how precious is our vedic tradition to reach higher levels of enlightenment in life.  They really do not like it to be lost.

Meenakshi Kalyanam was performed exactly the way in which it is performed in Madurai. For example, there was oonjal, raksha bandan, mangalya dharanam, etc. etc. , everything as it is in a Kalyanam. Pandits, both tamil, and iyer category including one Namboodri, gave leadership and did their part commendably well.

The temple is so well kept and everything has got a system in place here. The Rathams carrying the deities were moved by pulling the vatam (rope)  by several people (as is being done in Kalpathy, and elsewhere in our country) and it was taken round the temple with the chanting of Mahanarayanam, Purusha suktham and Rudram. Flowers were aplenty and the deities were decorated beautifully.

After the procession with the Utsava moorthies was over around 1 pm, all the devotees were treated to a great lunch; it was, in fact, as per tradition. I mean, it was a sit-down lunch in banana leaves and the items were as we make it there. Aviyal, Sambar, Rasam, Kootu, Kari, Pappadam, Pachadi, Parippu, Payasam, Vadai, Laddu, and what to mention, everything was there. I was amazed and I was really feeling that that I was somewhere in a village in Kerala or TN sans, of course, the negative aspects (associated with such feasts) that may be noticed there particularly in the backward areas.

There was a heavy downpour the previous day that made the open parking ground there uncomfortably soft, unmotorable, and unfit for parking, but it did not deter the spirit of people attending this function.  It appeared as though the words of Shakespeare: 'what cannot be eschewed must be embraced', were the most suited ones to explain the state of mind of these people while braving to park their precious Volkswagens and Hondas, not to mention others, in the very slushy field, wet and infirm with rain water collection all over.  Yes, I saw wheels of some of the cars getting stuck deep into the mud!

There was no desperate attempt to squeeze in and seize a seat, gate-crashing, etc. -  everything was orderly.  Everyone had patience and everybody followed procedure and system. They stood in line without anyone asking to do so. They did not jump the Qs or they did not desire to get in, ignoring the old or disabled ones. Things were done very smoothly irrespective the size and strength of the crowd. Volunteers took part in serving without anybody asking them to do so. The items were announced over the mike while these were served and if anybody wanted something, he needed only raise his hands. There was no room for discontentment whatsoever. All the devotees looked fully content. All who came there took food and everyone remained happy.

This is the great advantage of being in a place like this. One could see people from all walks of life; all are good.  All of them respect the system that prevails above all.

A nice and notable experience indeed.

Photo set 1

Photo set 2

Photo set 3

A visit to Kalachandji's and the Dallas Rath Yatra

 

Radha Kalachandji Mandir is an ISKCON temple established some 4 decades ago in the city of Dallas, Texas. History of the deity worshiped in this temple is very interesting indeed. Five hundred years ago in India, this idol of Kalachandji, literally translated as "the beautiful moon-faced one," was worshiped by thousands of devotees. Impeccable craftsmen constructed an elaborate temple; famous artisans decorated it. Everyone, from the King to the street sweeper, visited Kalachandji, paying respects and obeisances. 

However, when the Moguls invaded India, devotees hid this idol from the plunderers, and centuries later, the great devotee of Krishna and founder of ISKCON, Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, arranged to have Kalachandji brought to America where he had a large temple building in Dallas. And so it was that "the beautiful moon-faced one" found a home in a new land.

Since several years, the annual Chariot Festival  is conducted in this place in the month of April/May in a mini scale, but in similar lines as it is conducted in Puri Jagannath temple.  The Chariot carrying idols of Lord Krishna, Subadhra and Balram, will be taken all along the streets sorrounding the temple.

This year, the Rath Yatra was on April 13 (Saturday) and we had the good luck of attending the celebrations though we had to commute a good distance of 250 miles to reach Dallas....in other words a solid 500 miles up and down.  We left early in the morning and reached the venue around 10 AM - the time the Rath Yatra started.  Around 1 PM the street-journey concluded reaching back the temple premises after covering a distance of not less than 3 miles on foot.

The weather was excellent and we had a nice pulling of the Rath.  It was a marvelous experience.

Hats off to Americans!  They not only tolerate any religion but also support anything that is worthy of support.  And they catch up with anything that is really good, no matter whether it is technological advancement or spiritual upliftment.

To my astonishment, I found that 90% of the devotees that followed the Chariot of Krishna consisted of Whites alone and they are too serious about their new-found faith in Krishna Consciousness through ISKCON.  What I mean to say is, when they adopt to bhakthi marga, they are real devotees.  I am told that in LA and other parts of the US wherever ISKCON has its presence, 98 out of every 100 devotees are Whites only.  It is really amazing!

Some of you may be not knowing anything much about ISKCON.  I too was not very knowledgable about it except that I had gone and seen the ISKCON temple in Bangalore which appeared to be a beautiful one with lots of visitors around all the year round.  I now have gained more insight into their activities and for the benefit of those who want to know more about ISKCON, I am giving below some excerpts from their history and background.
  

Founded in 1966 in New York City by a great devotee of Krishna viz., Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, The *International Society for Krishna Consciousness is known colloquially as Hare Krishna movement or Hare Krishnas.                                       

"*ISKCON's core beliefs are based on traditional Indian scriptures, such as Bhagavatam and the Bhagavad-Gita, both of which, date back more than 5,000 years. The ISKCON movement and its culture come from the Gaudiya Vaishnava tradition, which has had adherents in India since the late 15th century.  It gained followers in America since the early 1900s, and in England in the 1930s.                      

                                                                              

"Krishna is described as the source of all the Avatars. So, ISKCON devotees do worship Krishna as the highest form of God.





"To devotees, Radha represents Krishna's divine consort, the original spiritual potency, and the embodiment of divine love. 




The individual soul is an eternal personal identity which does not ultimately merge into any formless light or void as suggested by the Advaitha schools of Hinduism."

For few among us, the followers of Sri Adi Shankaracharya, perhaps it may be, at the first sight, a little difficult to take in this view point as it is.  But, I find, there are strong points to ponder deeply in what this ISKCON 'school of thinking' talks about.  We need to do lot of retrospection and carry out an in-depth analysis to understand questions related to dualism or Dvaitha bhava as against Advaitha Siddantha propogated by the Sage Adi Shankara.  As the proverb says, "if we must get gold, we must dig deeply"; it is not found on the surface.  Similarly, if we must get any knowledge about things divine, we must toil hard; it is not got by a 'glancing through' of any spiritual book. 

I am quoting below some of the answers given by eminent ISKCONites on certain interesting questions raised by devotees:

Do secular settings lead us to the spiritual dimension of life?  In what ways does the secular lead you to a deeper spiritual understanding? 

"Both matter and spirit are God’s energies. If our relationship with matter is seen in the light of spirit, meaning that if we are conscious of matter’s connection to God, then yes, that will lead us to a higher spiritual understanding......

"What is that consciousness? If one looks at matter, or a secular event, in the mode of personal or extended personal enjoyment, then that is materialistic. Such consciousness further binds the soul......"For example a materialist may look at a forest as a place to rob resources, and the servant of God may see it as a place to meditate on the Lord. It is simply a difference in vision.....

"Being situated in his original Kṛṣṇa conscious position, a pure devotee does not identify with the body. Such a devotee should not be seen from a materialistic point of view. Indeed, one should overlook a devotee's having a body born in a low family, a body with a bad complexion, a deformed body, or a diseased or infirm body. According to ordinary vision, such imperfections may seem prominent in the body of a pure devotee, but despite such seeming defects, the body of a pure devotee cannot be polluted. It is exactly like the waters of the Ganges, which sometimes during the rainy season are full of bubbles, foam and mud. The Ganges waters do not become polluted. Those who are advanced in spiritual understanding will bathe in the Ganges without considering the condition of the water (as seen on the surface)...."

What does it mean that as individuals we may believe differently about different kinds of truths? How, for example, do beliefs in history or science differ from religious beliefs? Do we believe differently about different kinds of truths?

"The Vedic literature’s Ṛk Veda’s Sayaṇa Bhāṣya accounts for the speed of light as 2,202 yojanas per 0.5 nimeṣa = 21,144.705 miles per .0114286 seconds = 185,016.169 miles per second. Which is 0.0067% different from modern calculations. Ṛk Veda accounts for the elliptical path of all celestial bodies. Surya Siddhanta accounts for the modern circumference of the Earth. Planetary gravity is discussed in the Siddhānta Śiromaṇi. Śrīmad Bhāgavatam accounts for modern measurements of the distances between planets in our solar system. The Bhāgavatam also delineates measurements of time that go from 1687.5 part of a second to 311 trillion years (the span our particular universe). Pythagoras theorem was (already) around 1000 years in India, before it was discovered in the West, as well as the value of Pi.  Similarly photosynthesis is discussed in the ancient Mahābhārata....

"While these facts are certainly interesting, they are not the cause of faith. Faith become verified through experience...."For example when DART (Dallas Area Rapid Transit) tells me that bus number 60 takes me to Kalachandji's, I may have faith in that claim. But when I ride that bus and do end up at Kalachandji’s, that faith becomes realized. Because of that experience, it is reasonable for me to accept the other bus routes shown by DART go to their desired destinations...

"Similarly the Bhagavad Gītā explains how the soul is different from the body. Not only is this conclusion given with logic but also with practical experiments by which one can experience the conclusion directly. Faith verified...

"No one should accept or reject anything blindly...."

It can't be more succinct!  

Perhaps, Shankaracharya did not mean by Advaitham that God and Soul are same.  His own Works like Baja Govindam, etc. are indicative of the fact that Supreme God and Living Souls are different.  One wonders if God and soul were one, why all these sufferings and why all these disparities and why all these what we see in the world.  One has to think more deeply.

I have given some points to ponder!  There is enough food for thought in the spiritual path.

********

When we reached home it was half past ten.  Tired as we were after the long journey, and next day (Sunday) being Vishu, we hit the bed straight and slept away.

Sunday early morning after Vishu Kani at home, Harish took us to Sri Guruvayoorappan temple near Clearwood, Sugarland, 11 miles from Yorktown. 

  
We were also lucky to be able to see the വിഷുക്കണി kept in the temple; it was really magnificent one!!

And Bajan...."തെ ച്ചി, മ ന്താ രം, തു ല സി, പി ച് ച ക മാ ല ക ൾ, ചാ ർത്തി, ഗു രു വാ യൂ ര പ്പാ നി ന്നെ കണി  കാ ണേ ണം... "   was going on when we entered there.  We could enjoy the Namasankeerthanam at this Western Guruvayoorappan sannidhi and all the devotees like us who went there on that day were treated with a wonderful feast, വിഷു സദ്യ with കാളൻ , അവിയൽ , പപ്പടം , etc.  etc. --more elaborate than elsewhere.  We were also given വിഷുകൈനീട്ടം in dollars! We enjoyed the day.  Precisely.

Nana

San Antonio!

"IF we succeed, the country is ours, it is immense in extent and fertile in its soil and will amply reward all our toils.  If we fail, death, in the cause of liberty and humanity, is not cause for shuddering. Our rifles are by our sides and choice guns they are; we know what awaits us and are prepared to meet it".

This most well-known and oft-quoted section of the letter written on December 26, 1835, and addressed to his “beloved brother,”  by Daniel William Cloud,  a twenty-two year old lawyer turned warrior from Kentucky,  en route to Alamo, the battle fort in San Antonio,  perhaps explains the spirit behind the Texas Revolution for independence.   Liberty or Death!

Cloud concludes his letter telling his brother, "If I were with you, I could talk enough to tire you. I hope we shall meet."

Along with Bailey, Cloud joined the Tennessee Mounted Volunteers and was killed when Santa Anna’s troops attacked the Alamo on the morning of March 6, 1836.

What a heart-rending tale!  Isn't it? 

The city of San Antonio is some 220 and odd miles (around 350 Kms precisely) from the place where we are in Houston and we went there for picnicking during last week-end. 

San Antonio is a beautiful city and it houses a well known Theme Park called Sea World.  In Sea world, we took a ride in a huge and tall roller coaster, called Steel Eel.  It is a driver less vehicle in which you are securely seated.  It goes upto a height of 150 ft. and then drops down straight from that level, then again it climbs up and drops down, all in a few seconds. The total ride is only 2 and odd minutes, but it is a ride you will remember for all the time to come.  During drop downs, you will feel u r going to die!   (It will be the last if there is any mechanical malfunctioning, no doubt, but they do unquestionable maintenance; you can rest assure, nothing will go wrong). 

We also enjoyed rides in water roller coasters, and saw something called a ‘Dolphin Cove’, another attraction in Sea World.  This is a spacious lagoon where we could see a pod of playful Atlantic bottlenosed dolphins.  It was amazing to watch their jumping skills.

We had a bitter experience too.  We boarded a circuclar  raft knowing not that it would spray cool water on you and make you drenched literally  as it bobbed and bounced through the unexpected twists, turns and drop-offs!  However, it was all part of the fun over there that we were able to enjoy.

We visited Alamo (they call it the Shrine of Texas Liberty) twice.  Once, on our way to SeaWorld and then again in the evening for a ‘river walk’.  While we spent an hour or so in the morning, en route to the Sea World, in the so-called Alamo Fort (where a battle was fought and lost by Texian and Tejano volunteers against the Mexican troops, symbolizing Alamo as a heroic struggle – a place where men made the ultimate sacrifice for freedom), in the evening we had a beautiful boat ride in River Walk.  The 45 minute ride was really enchanting as it was refreshing too.  The Captain of the Boat, a Mexican by name Mike, narrated, during the ride, the history of each and every building that stood by the river.

River Walk is a network of walkways along the banks of the San Antonio River, one story beneath the streets, shops and restaurants, the River Walk is an important part of the city's urban fabric and a tourist attraction in its own right. It winds and loops under bridges as two parallel sidewalks lined with restaurants and shops, connecting the major tourist draws from the Alamo.  It was so beautiful to see in the evening with special effects of electrical illumination.  We enjoyed every bit of the scene there.

Thus the last week-end was very memorable indeed in our stay here in US.