Satsang Sandesh. Vol. 55 No. 1 Phone: (855) MYMANDIR ( ) MARCH 2015

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1 Satsang Sandesh India Temple Association, Inc. Hindu Temple, 25 E. Taunton Ave, Berlin, NJ SOUTH JERSEY DELAWARE PENNSYLVANIA (Non-Profit Tax Exempt Organization, Tax ID # ) Vol. 55 No. 1 Phone: (855) MYMANDIR ( ) MARCH 2015 Religious Calendar March 5 Thursday Holikadahan/Purnima March 6 Friday Dhuleti/Holi March 17 Tuesday Papmochani Ekadashi March 21 Saturday Chaitri New Year/ Gudi Padavo/Yugadi March 28 Saturday Ram Navmi March 30 Monday Kamada Ekadashi Monthly Activities Kshama Raghuveer (707) March 5, Thursday Shri Satyanarayan Pooja 6pm March 6, Friday Vishnu Sahasranama 8 pm March 21, Saturday Sunderkand Path 10am Monthly Bhajans March 20, Friday 8-9pm Satya Sai Baba of Medford P.K. Prabhakar (856) Sesha Vemuri (856) Pranams. From Me to You Here is an interesting episode from the life of Max Mueller, a German-born philologist and Orientalist, who lived and studied in Britain for most of his life. He was asked to utter something in the just invented phonograph (by Thomas Edison) in front of an audience of eminent men of science and letters. These were the sounds that emanated from Max Mueller: Agnimeele purohitam yajnasya devam ritvijam\hotaaram ratnadhaatamam (the first verse of Rig Veda, the oldest among the four Vedas) (from "Life and letters of Max Mueller" edited by his wife, Page 50) My reason in mentioning this is not to gloat over an eminent foreigner appreciating our spiritual treasure; rather it is to point out our genetic makeup in seeking validation from westerners where none is needed. Unless and until we are confident and repose complete faith and trust in our ancient Hindu wisdom, we will forever be looking for ways and means in garnering such external testimonials. And this is a futile exercise. The only way to get around this situation is to be knowledgeable in our religion the scriptures, the Vedas, the Upanishads, and the like. With knowledge come confidence and the ability to see things as they are. Knowledge brings about conviction and conviction alleviates the need for any external authentication and certification. The aim of our Mandir is to provide such an environment to both young and old through our Bal Vihar, Youth, Gita Study, Yoga, and other such programs. We earnestly encourage our community to make full use of the facilities offered by ITA and be the confident and knowledgeable Hindus that should be your birth right. tathastu Ramesh Viswanathan Special Prayers ITA has a program whereby you can have prayers performed on your behalf every year on a special day in your life by pledging $301. Also, at your request, Shri. Bhupendra Shuklaji will perform a special puja on your behalf, or the regular temple puja performed on the designated day will be dedicated in your name. Below are the donors for this month. Raj and Anita Chopra Mar. 01 Rima Gandhi Mar. 15 Jashwantlal Mehta Mar. 01 Troy Hudson Mar. 17 Lakshmi Pillalamani Mar. 01 Jaysukh Sheth Mar. 19 Anisha Desai Mar. 08 Dinesh Desai Mar. 20 Shashi Gupta Mar. 08 Vinnu Shah Mar. 23 Sharad Pimplaskar Mar. 09 Aarav Shah Mar. 28 Chandubhai Patel Mar. 11 Harshad Patel Mar. 12 Nishtha and James Hudson Mar. 14 Ketan Shah Mar. 14

2 Condolences One of our life member, Upendrabhai Shah, age 66, passed away on January 30. He is survived by his wife Rekha and two children - Nisarg, and Mosmi & son in law Dhaval Shah. ITA and its board extend their sincere condolences to their family. Hindu Senior Citizens of South Jersey March 2015 Meeting Announcement Venue ICC Please visit our website for more information Thursday, March 26 6:30 pm Tea/coffee with snacks, aartii 7:00 pm Meeting starts 7:30 to 8:30 Health Maintenance and Preventive Care - presentation 8:30 pm Meeting ends Our speaker Dr. Nishith M. Gami is an award-winning physician of internal medicine with many years of practice in various hospitals in New Jersey, New York, and Texas. Trained in Ahmedabad and the United States, he understands the needs of senior citizens of our community. He is currently affiliated with the VIRTUA Hospital in Voorhees. Health Maintenance and Preventive Care Doctors look forward to curing diseases but the common men don t want to get sick in the first place either by prevention or by early diagnosis of a disease. This service is taken care of by a Primary Care Physician. What Dr. Gami, a Board Certified Internist and a Primary Care Physician, will discuss is the importance of regular check ups, prevention of diseases by screening, vaccination, healthy lifestyle and medication to help early detection of certain diseases for living a quality life for a long time. S. Gambhir President HSCSJ Senior Social Group Senior Social Group(SSG) will meet every Tuesday at 1pm in the Social Hall at Berlin Temple. Please contact Mr. Bhulabhai Bhaktaji at for details. Monthly Pujas at Mandir It is a pleasure to perform Satyanarayan puja on Thursday March 5 at 6pm and read Sunderkand Path on Saturday March 21, at 10 am at our Temple with family and friends. We invite you to join us and perform Satyanarayan puja every Purnima day with family and friends and receive the blessings of Almighty God. Donations are welcome. Suggested donation is $ 31. It is followed by Mahaprasad generously sponsored by Indian Villa. Please join us for Sunderkand Path held on third Saturday of every month. Mahaprasad generously sponsored by Gagan Palace. Jai Krishna, Kshama

3 Sri Rama Navami Sri Raghavam Dasharadhatmajam aprameyam Sitapathim Raghukulanvaya Ratna Deepam; Aajanubahum Aravinda Dalayathaksham Ramam Nishachara Vinashakaram Namami Date : Saturday, March 28 starting at 11am *************************************************** Akhand Ramayan Patth: Ram Navmi Celebration Temple observances will begin on Saturday, March 28 at 11 am. After Ram Navmi Pooja, the reading of Ramayan will begin at pm. The Mahaprasad will be provided after the Poorna Ahuti on Sunday. Anyone interested in helping, please call: Meena Bhatnagar( ), Rano Vasishta( ), or Ritu Pandya( ). It will be helpful if you bring your Ramayan. ************************************************************************** HOLI MANGAL MILAN VENUE: ICC TIME: MARCH 14TH, 12 TO 3 PM (RAIN DATE MARCH 15TH) RANG BARSE HOLI HAI!!! Join us for the spectacular festival of colors. Color your life with colors of friendships, colors of love and happiness. Outdoor color play, awesome music and mouthwatering food and drinks. Ticket prices- Adults $10, Kids (under 12) $6 Coordinated by Juggy Talwar and Subash Rashatwar ************************************************************************** Balvihar by Sriram Kiron Our Balvihar session of January 25th, 2015 was about Sankranti festival. We started the session with prayers, and after that Malathi aunty talked to us about Makar Sankranti which is a harvest festival celebrated in many parts of India. On this day, we honor the Sun God (Surya Dev) for sustaining us on this earth by giving us light. The Sun transitions into the Makara rashi (Capricorn ) on this day. Hence, the name Makar Sankranti. The Cows are worshipped during this festival because they give so much to mankind, by taking very little in return. This sets a great example of how we humans should live life, taking very little and giving back more. After this, a few teachers spoke about how Sankranti is celebrated in various states of India. For instance, in Gujarat, people fly kites during this festival. The kite festival there is world famous. In Tamil Nadu, people prepare Pongal ( rice boiled in milk and jaggery ) and offer to Sun God; in Karnataka, people distribute a mixture of White sesame seeds, jaggery and peanuts to their friends and relatives along with sugar cane. It is a festival full of joy. We then headed to our respective classes and finished the session with Aarti, which was performed by 6th graders today. Of course, our Balvihar session is incomplete without us having something to eat. We ended the day by having Pizza! An apology to our general community Our Mandir resembled Mount Kailash, the abode of Lord Shiva on Maha Shivratri day February 17, The frigid temperatures caused havoc with the heating system in our Mandir, along with the frozen pipes. Some of our trustees and volunteers put their heart and soul into resolving this matter as expeditiously as possible by spending innumerable number of hours interacting with the personnel responsible to get these fixed on time. Rest assured, the best efforts were put in but God wanted to test our faith and devotion. And you did not fail. We offer our sincere apologies for the inconvenience caused and hope the cold days are behind us at least until next year! Ramesh Viswanathan, ITA President Youth Group by Rashmi Devadiga On February 8th, the youth had their session at Cherokee High School. We began the session with shlokas and yoga as usual. We then talked about spam and how to be safe from it especially since everyone uses technology today. After that, we chanted the Hanuman Chalisa. We discussed inner enemies like ego, greed, but we focused mainly on anger. We agreed that because we are human, we can't stop ourselves from becoming angry, but we must learn to deal with anger and stay calm. At the end, we also came to the conclusion that sometimes it is okay to be angry about things like terrorist attacks. After this, we recited the Chalisa again and then headed out for Aarthi with the Bal-Vihar kids. We ended the session with lunch along with everyone else. Thanks to Praveen Uncle for an amazing session and thanks again to Bal-Vihar for having us!

4 Mata ki Chowki Saturday April 11th pm Mata Ki Chowki or Mata Ka Jagran or Mata Ka Jagrata or bhagwati jagran is a yagya done by devotees (bhakts) for their elevation. Mata ki chowki is a small part of "Mata ka Jagran". The difference is only this can be done at any time and the katha "Tara Rani ki Katha" may or may not be recited. The Mata ki Chowki can be done on any occasion like engagement, birthday, anniversary, wedding (marriage), barsi, mundan, kua poojan, or can be done for rescuing from pain and misery or removing any kind obstacles in their life etc. Most of the people host Mata ki Chowki during Navratri, Durga pooja, Kartik Mass, Ganesh mahotsav, and all other festivals. "Mata Ki Chowki" starts with Ganesh Poojan followed by "Jyoti Prachanda" enlightenment of Jyoti. The bhakts sing devotional songs (mata ki bhente), prayers, bhajans, mantras etc in glory of Goddess Durga. Devotees offer maiya ka shingar chunari to mata ji. At last the whole event is sampurna by offering bhent, aarti and sampurna ardas. What is it? Mata Ki Chowki is a grand celebration of Mata (Mother) Durga Devi, the Divine Cosmic Mother s energy. When is it? Mata Ki Chowki is celebrated on the second Saturday April 11th 3:00 PM at the Hindu Mandir, 25 E. Taunton Ave., Berlin NJ What Blessings do devotees receive? By singing devotional bhajans (songs) towards the Divine Mother we receive and imbibe the motherly nature, creativity, the Energy and radiance she showers on the cosmos. Music elevates the soul and helps us focus our senses towards the Divine, in unison. What are the events during the Puja? Durga Puja Bhajans Offering of Chunni Sacred Cloth to Durga Devi Bhog Offering of Food to Durga Devi Offering to girls a unique offering to girls under 10, giving them gifts and sweets with the understanding that the Divine Mother would be present in the form of a child. What do I bring? Devotees bring fruits and flowers, and their undying devotion to the Mother. If you are interested in sponsoring this event, please contact Nidhi Agrawal at or via Nidhinaresh@yahoo.com or Nitin Khanna at Nitin.Khanna.jiit@gmail.com Dr. Ram Kamaldasji s sermons Dr. Ram Kamaldasji, Pujya Maharaj-ji a resident of Varanasi, India, is an expert speaker. He has captured the hearts of devotees all over India and in many, many parts of the world, including but not limited to devotees in UK, Germany, Fiji, New Zealand and USA. He has written and published several books, such as Bhakti Path, Vedanta Pravah and Manas Vandana. Having a Ph.D. in Upanishads and MA in Hindi, he is an internationally known "Kathakar". He was invited in the year 2000 for and by the United Nations Religious Conference and it is our great fortune that he has blessed our temple, congregation and community every year since then. This year's sermons will be on "NAUDHA BHAKTI". Examples from Ramayana and other scriptures will be provided at the following time and dates at our temple. Sunday, April 26,through Friday, May 1st From 7pm to 830 pm;saturday, May 2nd From 1030 am to 130 pm. For Further inquiry pl call Drs. Amrit & Anju Nayar at , Or Devendra & Rachita Singh at Or Rakesh &Nila Kohli at

5 Vallabh Jayanti Celebration on April 19, 2015 Shri Mahaprabhuji is the founder of religious sect called Pushtimarg. He was born in the year 1478 A.D. at a Champaranya village near Raipur in Madhya Pradesh. He is one of the foremost Indian philosophers taking the rank amongst the first class Acharyas who has expounded the school of Shuddha-advaita. Vallabhacharya heralded a new era of Bhakti- Marga, which teaches unswerving love toward God admitting everyone in the fold, irrespective of sex, cast or nationality. Pushti Marga, the path of grace as founded by Shri Vallabhacharya is very easy to follow as a way of life by common people. Once you commit yourself to God by ritual of Brahma-Sambanth, God takes care of you unconditionally. He takes you to Pushti Marga by his teaching of Shrodas- Grantha. In Pushti Margs, Bhakti is not a means, but an end. It is also called Premlakshana Bhakti. Shri Vallabhcharya s other works include Anu-Bhashya (Commentary on Brahma Sutra), tattva Dipa Nibandha and Subodhini (Commentary on Bhagavata). Vallabha regards Shrimad Bhagvata as the most authentic work on knowledge of God. Temple will celebrate Vallabh Jayanti on Sunday, April 19, :00 PM to 6:00 PM. We will do Pusti marg s Yamunasthaka and other PĀTHA followed by melodious Kirtans. Mahaprasad will be served after the 6:00 PM. Wednesday Gita Satsang Group and friends will sponsor the event of the Temple. Anyone interested in taking part in the event or giving Seva, please call Minu Desai ( ), Kirti Doshi ( ) or Amita Desai ( ). ** ITA Scholarship Guidelines India Temple Association (ITA) will award five scholarships to high school seniors whose parent(s)/guardian(s) are current ITA members of good standing. Applications will not be considered for students whose parents are not ITA members. At its discretion, the committee may change the number of available scholarships and the value of each scholarship based on the number of quali-fied applicants. All ITA Board/Scholarship Committee decisions will be final and not subject to any questions or litigation. All submissions must be postmarked by March 31, Please mail the following information and supporting documents to: Scholarship Committee, 25 East Taunton Ave., Berlin, NJ Alternatively, you can also submit online by going to or the documents to Dr. Surendra Gambhir at sg@gambhir.net Completed application form. Grade Point Average (GPA) 15% weight points. In-school extracurricular activity summary i.e. music, dance, leadership, student council, sports, cultural groups, etc. 15% weight points. Participation in activities related to Indian culture, i.e. participation in ITA-sponsored activities such as the youth program, painting etc. A consistent attendance record will be given preferential treatment among equally qualified candidates) 15% weight points. Community services i.e. volunteering at nursing homes, hospitals, walkathon, etc. 15% weight points. Please choose one topic and submit three duplicate copies (typed and double spaced), not exceeding two pages - 40% weight points. Topics 1. Western Scholarship on Bhagvadgita 2. My Critique of the Concept of Non-Violence in Hinduism 3. Concept of God in Hinduism Rubric Essays must be written by students in their own words using correct grammar and syntax. They should be thoughtful, articulate, well developed and persuasive. Students should provide relevant details in support of their viewpoint. Plagiarism will result in immediate disqualification.

6 Ekal Vidyalaya of South Jersey presents a mesmerizing event of Bollywood Songs by Rana Chaterjee and Sangeeta Melekar Group. Mark your calendar for Saturday, May 16, 2015 Venue: Indian Community Center (ICC), Marlton, NJ. Further details to follow. If any question, please call Harshad Mehta at ************************************************************************ Camden District 2015 Sites Schedule Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Feb 2-Apr 13 Feb 3-Apr 14 Feb 4-Apr 15 Feb 5-Apr 9 Feb 6-Apr 10 *Barrington 10-1 Bellmawr 11-2 Pennsauken 1-4 Pennsauken 1-4 Blackwood 10-1 *Haddon Heights 12-3 Cherry Hill 10-2 Winslow 10-1 Runnemede 11-2 Collingswood 12-4 *Winslow 10-1 Voorhees 11-2 Voorhees 11-2 *Cherry Hill 10-2 *closed Feb 16 Westmont 12-4 *closed Apr Site Locations Barrington Municipal Building Trenton Ave Council Chambers Bellmawr Public Library 35 E. Browning Road Blackwood Public Library 15 S, Black Horse Pike Cherry Hill Municipal Building 820 Mercer Street Room Collingswood Public Library 771 Haddon Ave Haddon Heights Public Library 608 Station Ave Pennsauken Public Library 5605 Crescent Blvd Runnemede Senior Center 2 Broadway & Black Horse Pike Voorhees Public Library 203 Laurel Road Westmont Public Library 15 MacArthur Blvd Winslow Public Library 35 Coopers Folly Road CALL KIRAN / FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION. WE CAN AR- RANGE SPECIAL ASSISTANCE FOR HANDICAP AND/OR INDIAN LANGUAGES. AARP TAX-AIDE IS A FREE SERVICE PROVIDED BY VOLUNTEERS WHO HAVE BEEN TRAINED AND ARE CERTI- FIED BY THE IRS AND THE STATE OF NEW JERSEY TO PREPARE INDIVIDUAL INCOME TAX RETURNS, INCLUDING HOMESTEAD REBATE AND PROPERTY TAX REIMBURSEMENT (PTR) APPLICATIONS. TAXPAYERS FILING PTR SHOULD HAVE THEIR FORM CERTIFIED BY THE APPROPRIATE TAX ASSESSORS OFFICE PRIOR TO COMING TO THE AARP SITE. AARP TAX-AIDE IS AVAILABLE TO ALL TAXPAYERS WITH MIDDLE OR LOW INCOME, WITH SPECIAL ATTENTION TO TAXPAYERS AGE 60 AND OLDER. COMPLEXITY OF A RETURN WILL DETERMINE OUR ABILITY TO PROVIDE ASSISTANCE. TAXPAYERS MUST BRING SOCIAL SECURITY CARDS AND PHOTO ID FOR THEMSELVES AND ALL DEPENDENTS, ALONG WITH A COPY OF THEIR PRIOR YEAR RETURN AND ALL RELATED AND SUPPORTING DOCUMENTS FOR BOTH INCOME AND EXPENSES. RETURNS ARE PREPARED AND FILED ELECTRONICALLY.

7 Programs for Your Spiritual Growth YOGA ABHYAS FOR HEALTH, HAPPINESS & GOD REALIZATION: A program for adults on Yogasana, Pranayam & Meditation. First Sunday: 9:30-11:30 am at our Mandir Contact: Surendra Sheth@ (856) GITA STUDY GROUP: Every Tuesday & Wednesday, 8-9 pm at our Mandir Contact: Sharad (856) BHAJANS & STUTI: Every Friday, 7:30-9 pm Contact: Shree Shuklaji or Shri Sudhirji (856) Regular Programs for Children and Youth BAL VIHAR: For children (ages 4-13), to promote a positive Hindu identity within the diverse U.S. culture. 2nd & 4th 10 am - 1 pm Contact: Malathi Shankar (856) , Bhavesh Patel my-mandir ext 3, Rina Patel (856) for registration and location YOUTH PROGRAM: A program for young adults (ages 13-18) and parents. 2nd & 4th Sunday, 9:45 am - 1 pm at our Mandir. Contact: Praveen Garg at (856) or Sangeeta Rashatwar at (856) CREATIVE ART WORKSHOP 1st, 3rd & 5th 9:30 am at our Mandir Contact: Narendra Amin (856) PUJA SERVICE CHARGES, TEMPLE FACILITIES USAGE FEE AND OTHER CHARGES: The following provides list of applicable charges and fees. Shri Shuklaji /Shri Sudhirji will be available for religious services on request. Please note that 50% of the listed cost of Puja performed outside the temple goes to Pujari in addition to his regular salary. Please check temple availability at Click on CALENDAR tab and, from drop-down menu, Click on EVENT/RENTAL CALENDAR. Please contact Shri. Harish Shelat at MY-MANDIR Ext 1 for the booking of the Temple Facilities and/or scheduling of Puja Services by Shuklaji or Sudhirji. INSIDE OUTSIDE Following listed fees and charges are in addition to the PUJA SERVICE TEMPLE TEMPLE charges listed for Puja Services - Archana (Panchopachar) $11 N/A Vahan (Vehicle) Puja $21 N/A Namakaran/Annaprashan $51 $101 Birthday $51 $101 TEMPLE FACILITIES USAGE FEE Shraddha $51 $101 Prayer Hall: $200 Anniversary Celebration $101 $151 Social Hall: $300 Seemant $101 $151 Kesh Mundan Puja $101 $151 Sodashopchar, Kalash Puja, Punyah-Vachan or Blessings $101 $151 OTHER CHARGES Satyanarayan Puja $121 $151 Engagement Ceremony $101 $201 MILEAGE AND TRAVEL TIME TIER Havan/Grah Shanti $201 $251 Vastu Puja - outside service only N/A $251 $0 for 1-25 mile radius Sunderkand Path $151 Wedding Grah Shanti $201 $301 $51 for mile radius Wedding Ceremony per day $301 $351 $101 for mile radius Upanayan/Yagnopavita $251 $301 Antim Rites (Funeral Service) Voluntary Donation $151 for mile radius Uttar Kriya per day - outside service only N/A $101 NON-MEMBER Yagna/Laghu Rudra - outside service only N/A $351 Navchandi Yagna - outside service only N/A $651 $51 for non-member surcharge NOTE: Charges and availability of other Puja Services not listed above may be discussed with Smt. Charu Sheth at MY-MANDIR Ext 1 DIRECTION TO BERLIN TEMPLE A. From Tacony Bridge: Take NJ route 73S; drive for about miles and follow signs for East Taunton Avenue. Temple is on your right B. From Ben Franklin Bridge: Take route 30E to NJ route 70E to NJ route 73S, drive for about 7 miles and follow signs for East Taunton Avenue. Temple is on your right C. From Walt Whitman Bridge or Delaware Memorial Bridge: Take I-295N to Exit 29-A for route 30E to Berlin Twp. Turn left on East Taunton Avenue D. From Central and North Jersey: Take NJ Turnpike South. Exit 4 for route 73S. Drive for about miles and follow signs for East Taunton Avenue on your right

8 India Temple Association, Inc. 25 E. Taunton, Berlin, NJ EDITOR: Brinda Raghuveer 15 Hollybrook Way Voorhees, NJ st Class Presort US Postage PAID Permit #800 Bellmawr NJ President Ramesh Viswanathan my-mandir x 710 president@indiatemple.org Vice President Lalit Patel my-mandir x 711 vp@indiatemple.org General Secretary Bhavesh Patel / Govind Modi my-mandir x 712 gs@indiatemple.org Treasurer Shobna Daga my-mandir x 713 treasurer@indiatemple.org Religious Services Facility Rental Temple Manager Charu Sheth Anoo Joshi my-mandir x 1 manager@indiatemple.org Darshan Schedule Morning 7:30 am - 12:30 pm Evening 3 pm. - 9 pm Aarti 12 pm & 8 pm Times may change during special occasions Please use the front door and ring the bell if locked PLEASE REVIEW YOUR ADDRESS LABEL AND RENEW YOUR MEMBERSHIP BASED ON EXPIRATION DATE OR SUPPORT ITA WITH YOUR ENROLLMENT IF YOU ARE NOT IDENTIFIED AS A MEMBER Please check appropriate items from the following, and mail it to Hindu Temple, 25 East Taunton Ave., Berlin, NJ Attn: Mr. M. Kanzaria [ ] I/We would like to join India Temple Association and I/We are remitting the membership dues (please select one) Individual or Family one year ($51) Individual or Family five year ($151) Life ($1,001) [ ] I/ We are seniors, age 65 and above and would like to join India Temple Association. I am/we are remitting the membership dues (please select one) Individual or Family Five year ($25) Life ($101) [ ] I am adding additional donations: Scholarship Fund Lifetime Seva ($301) Temple Renovations Seva Samiti Fund Bal Vihar Fund Youth Fund [ ] I am relocating to the following address Last Name: First Name: Address: Telephone: