NAMADWAAR AUSTRALIA GURUJI SRI MURALIDHARA SWAMIGAL MISSION AUSTRALIA 9, Ridgemont Close Cherrybrook NSW email: sydneysatsang@yahoo.com web: http://www.ozmadhuramurali.org 1 HARE RAMA HARE RAMA RAMA RAMA HARE HARE HARE KRISHNA HARE KRISHNA KRISHNA KRISHNA HARE HARE V O L U M E 1 I S S U E 8 A U G / S E P 2 0 0 7 TRUST COMPLETELY IN GOD What are you to do when you are placed in the world? Give up everything to Him, resign yourself to Him, and there will be no more trouble for you. Then you will come to know that everything is done by His will. Sri Ramakrishna Paramahamsa 'The Glory of the Divine Name' by Kanchi Mahaswami Like dhyana, japa, puja, yajna and pilgrimage, the practice of getting together to sing the Divine Name of the Lord is a long standing practice in our country. Singing the Divine Name of the Lord is being practiced in our country since ancient times, as a great means for the jivatma [the ordinary soul] to commune with the ParamAtma [the Lord]. The existence of rich tradition of Bhajan [Nama Sankirtan] in our country can be deduced from the fact that almost in every Village and Town a Bhajan mutt/hall has been established. Every Saturday and on every Ekadasi people would get together in this Bhajan mutt/hall and do Bhajan [Nama Sankirtan], i.e. sing the Divine Names of the Lord. In temples, we watch the performance of puja; we meditate on the Deity; whereas, in Bhajan we fix our mind on the Lord by singing His Divine Names, His gunas [dispositions] and His Lilas [Divine Plays]. Bhajan has the unique feature of doing Bhakti involving the whole community. Even though the Hindu Religion is predominantly structured on individual basis [i.e. every individual should attain the Self and thus bring about the welfare of humanity] there is also congregational worship as in Temples, Utsavs and Bhajans. INSIDE THIS ISSUE Upcoming Events 3 Melodious Bhajan with musical accompaniments easily draws all minds and hearts to the Lord. The thought of the Lord is easily brought up by melodiously singing simple words like Raghupati Raghava Raja Ram!, Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare! and so on. Srimad Bhagavatam 4 Satsang News 5 Nama Bhiksha Kendra Centers To Subscribe or Unsubscribe to the newsletter, pl click here sydneysatsang@yahoo.com 6 Apart from performing Bhajan in a Bhajan hall there has also been the practice of Nagara Sankirtan. On auspicious days like Ekadasi people go on the streets singing the Divine Name of the Lord. This is called Nagara Sankirtan. The Divine Name is spread in this manner especially in the Tamizh month of MArgazhi [mid-december to mid-january]. During this month, every day, people wake up very early and go on the streets singing the Divine Names. This good habit [of singing the Divine Names of the Lord] should revive and spread. The Bhajan mutts in Villages should not be allowed to go empty of the Divine Names of the Lord. It makes me happy to find rejuvenation of Bhajan tradition in recent times. Even in this day whence our Vedas, Aagamas, scriptural injunctions [ AchAra ], etc. have almost disappeared, the only phase of our Religion that has not died out but is growing day by day is Rama Bhajan. Today, the only Satsang for our Religion in every village or town is the Nama Sankirtan groups. One feels happy about this. Continued in the next page
2 As Bhakti for the Lord spreads, performance of Bhagavan Nama Kirtan and singing the Lord s gunas [qualities] have occupied the prime position. Sri BhagavanNama Bodendra Swamigal says, The ever-blissful Supreme Lord, out of sheer compassion, and towards the welfare of the world, took up forms such as Sri Vishnu, Sri Siva, etc. Feeling that these Forms alone will not suffice for redemption of the world He also became the Divine Names such as Hari! Siva! and is ever alive in these Names. That is, the Divine Names are not mere names. Like the Deities they are also verily the Lord. Nama possesses all the powers of the Lord. By singing the Kirtans that have been born out of the lips of those holy souls who have attained God- Realization through Nama Sankirtan, sins [ papa ] are eradicated and merits [ punya ] earned. The kirtans of Jayadev, Narayana Thirtha, Ramadasa, Purandara dasa, Sri Thiagaraja, Sadasiva Brahmendra, Tamizh kirtans, Hindi and Maratti Bhakti kirtans are sung in the Sampradaya Bhajan [traditional way of performing Bhajan] set by Sri Marudaanallur Sadguru Swamigal. Bhajans are conducted as big festivals with Dolotsav, Kottanotsav, Vasanta keli, etc. These are not difficult but easy sadhanas to fix the thoughts of the Lord in the mind, by dancing and singing blissfully. ShAstras like Srimad Bhagavatam themselves say that Nama Sankirtan is the only way to Liberation [ Moksha upaya ] in this Age of Kali whence there is not the requisite strength and favourable circumstances for practicing difficult Sadhanas kalau sankirtya Kesavam. Apart from people coming together to do Bhajan, every family should get together at home, every evening, and do Nama Sankirtan for at least ten minutes. This entails no obstacle of any kind. All the members of the family should gather in the puja room and, in a home which has no separate puja room light an oil lamp and sitting in front of the lamp, sing kirtans. They must sing the Divine Names [ Namaavalis ]. In addition to the prescribed daily routine prayers, one should also perform Bhajan. One need not feel selfconscious or shy about singing the Divine Names of the Lord. Does embarrassment have any place in uttering the Name of the Lord who is the very form of compassion? The only criterion for the performance of Nama Sankirtan is the feeling of devotion [ Bhakti bhavana ] and not deep knowledge of music, raga bhava and melodious voice. Does not a child who is busy playing some sports and games, on suddenly remembering the mother, rush to her crying out, oh, Amma, Amma? There is neither embarrassment nor musical splendor in it. Likewise, even amidst our worldly businesses, we should think of the Universal Mother, God, for at least a few minutes and cry out Rama! Krishna! Siva! Amba! This is a very healthy habit. It is a treasure that is capable of swelling our day-to-day life s comforts and joy. Courtesy: 'Deivathin Kural'
3 Sep 2007 Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat 30 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 UPCOMING EVENTS IN SEPTEMBER 2007 Nama Sankirtan at Ram Mandir Date: Sunday 2 nd September 2007 Time: 7-7:30pm Address: No. 80 Minto Rd, Minto Nama Kirtan is an absolutely easy, simple path suited to the Age of Kali. The chanting of Divine Names is a free path. It has no binding of rules and regulations. Namasankirtan can be done by anybody, anytime and anywhere. It involves no cost. It is a path that requires no paraphernalia but leads one to the very Lotus Feet of the Lord. Sri Krishna Janmashtami Celebrations at Smt Jyotsna and Sri Guruva Reddy s residence Date: Friday 7 th September 2007 Time: 4-6pm Address: 26, Salisbury Ave, Glenfield. Phone: 9618 6691 Program: 4-5pm Bhajans / Story Telling / Sloka Chanting by kids 5 6pm Nama Sankirtan 6pm Mangala Aarathi followed by Prasdham. While mental repetition of the Divine Names leads to the good of the individual, chanting the Divine Names loudly purifies the singer, the listener and the very place where the Nama Sankirtan at Smt Vasanthi and Sri Satish s residence Date: Saturday 15 th September 2007 Time: 5-6pm Address: 4 Martindale Court, Wattlegrove Phone : 9825 2070 chanting is done.
4 Srimad Bhagavatam 1.1.1 ज म य य यथ ऽ वय तरत च थ व भ वर त न द य आ धकवय म त य स रय : त ज व रम द यथ व नमय य सग ऽम ष व न सद नर तक हक स य परम ध म ह JanmAdhyasya yatonvayaditarataschartheshvabhignasvarat tene brahma hrudaya AdikavayE muhyanti yatsuraya: tejovarimrudam yata vinimayo yatra trisargo mrusha dhamna svena sada nirastakuhakam satyam param dhimahi Srimad Bhagavatam begins with a call to all seekers of truth to meditate upon the supreme. Sri Swamiji says It is to be noted that the very first verse of the Bhagavatam describes the supreme as beyond all names and forms and hence declares its universality. Then Bhagavatam is for all real seekers of God beyond the limitations of caste, creed and country. Sage Vyasa who wrote Bhagavatam has also compiled the essence of all Upanishads in the form of aphorisms in the work called Brahma Sutra. This work begins thus ज म य य यत:. The first word of Srimad Bhagavatam, also being the same indicates that it contains all the lofty ideals of Vedanta. Any creation must indeed have a creator. Sri Swamiji says The perfection with which the entire universe is created is really amazing. Just look at the sky in the night. There are innumerable stars and heavenly bodies which do not collide with each other. Who is holding them in their places? Look at the ocean! Who has drawn its boundaries which it never crosses? All the five basic elements, namely, Ether, Air, Fire, Water and Earth which are mutually opposed to each other work in perfect co-ordination to provide us all the bounties of nature which we enjoy! Whose work is this? If these elements were not to be controlled by a Super Intellect, then just imagine the situation a Tsunami, an earth quake, a cyclone etc., for eg.. Similarly, this verse of Bhagavatam says that this supreme Intelligence which creates, sustains and destroys the entire Universe is to be meditated upon. This Intelligence or the highest truth is present in all created entities like Akasha or rather all the created entities owe their existence to this Truth. And this Truth is absent in all non-existent entities like sky-lotus, hare s horn. A lotus in the sky or a hare s horn are unheard of as there is no underlying truth in the form of Brahman in these entities. The supreme Intelligence creates this universe after every Mahapralaya only as prescribed by the Vedas. What are these Vedas The Vedas are declared to be the very breath of the Lord and are thus eternal and infinite. Even great realized souls are unable to comprehend the import of the Vedas which is verily the infinite Brahman or the Supreme Truth. The knowledge of these Vedas were imparted by the Lord through his mind (without oral communication) to Aadikavi or Brahma (who undertakes the work of creation). The entire creation is a product of the combination of the three qualities namely Tamas, Rajas and Sattva, of Maya or Ignorance. With the Supreme Truth as the substratum, the entire illusory creation of the universe appears to be real in it, just as Water appears on Earth (land) in the presence of element of Fire (heat), in a mirage. This supreme Truth is referred to in this verse as Swarat which means one who is the master of his own self. Bhagavatam hence beckons us all to contemplate upon the Supreme Lord who by his mere self-effulgence has cast off all falsity, in the past, present and future.
5 Satsang News During the months of July and August, Satsangs have been held in the homes of numerous Indian-Australian families across five cities; Melbourne, Adelaide, Canberra, Newcastle, and of course, Sydney. In the five week stay they had 61 programs. The response to this program by the Indian community in Australia was overwhelming, easily eclipsing last year in magnitude. In Sydney, Satsangs were conducted in a wider spread of suburbs and communities. Satsang was also conducted at M/S Annette Williams residence where number of Australians participated. Poornimaji and Ramuji never declined any request to conduct a Satsang and tirelessly worked to spread Guruji s message. The programs in Melbourne and Canberra both consolidated and progressed on from humble beginnings in 2006. The cities of Adelaide and Newcastle gained their first exposure to Guruji s message and the Maha Mantram. Also for the first time, Poornimaji conducted a Satsang at the Auburn Sri Mandir and Minto Ram Mandir in Hindi which attracted a number of Hindi speaking devotees (from India and Fiji) Despite the large distances involved, people still travelled 40-80 km to take part in the Satsangs. Even on weeknights, normally reserved for a quiet dinner, some family time and an early bedtime in preparation for the next day at work, the turnouts at all the events were tremendous. This is indeed a tribute to the oratory capabilities of the two speakers, Sri Ramanujam and Kumari Poornima, and their articulation of deep, profound spiritual truths with simple metaphors and day-to-day examples. They gave talks on Thirumaalai, Narayaneeyam, Value from Ramayana, Krishna Leela, Talks in Uni, Vibhishana Sharanagathi, Gajendra Moksham, Sri Krishna Jananam, Sundarakaandam, Nava Vidha Bhakthi, Bhagavatha Dharma, Rama Bhaktha Hanuman, talks in Hindi on Tulasidas Charithra and Bharath Ki Bhakthi at Ram Mandir and Sri Mandir, and other general Spiritual topics. Talks and Q&A Sessions were also conducted at the University of Sydney and UNSW where a number of uni students eagerly participated. On top of the lecture and satsang program, this year saw the introduction of three special events; live Webcast with Guruji, Mass Prayer for world peace and Sangeetha Upanyasam. The Webcast, held in Sydney, gave devotees an opportunity to interact directly with Guruji. The Mass Prayer, a unique event which brought together scores of people singing the Maha Mantram praying for peace, won the admiration of all involved and attracted praise from leaders of the Australian community, including the Attorney-General Mr. Phillip Ruddock. Sangeetha Upanyasam, as the name suggests, was a series of lectures infused with divine music, mostly compositions of Guruji himself. Ramuji and Poornimaji also gave talks on community radio channels (Marathi, Hindi and Tamil), some live and some recorded. The seemingly impossible task of organizing, co-ordinating and attending such an ambitious program was made possible only through the immense blessings of Sri Swamiji..
6 CHAITANYA MAHAPRABHU NAMA BHIKSHA KENDRA CENTERS AUSTRALIA The chanting of the Maha Mantra "HARE RAMA HARE RAMA RAMA RAMA HARE HARE HARE KRISHNA HARE KRISHNA KRISHNA KRISHNA HARE HARE" is done during fixed hours at the below listed locations. SYDNEY Name Address Contact No. Nama Sankirtan Timings Sri Bhaskaran No.79 Meurants lane, Glenwood 0411 581 489 Mon 7:30-8:00pm Sri Guruva Reddy No. 26 Salisbury Ave Gelnfield 0421 890 310 Wed 7:15-8:15pm S New Sri Karthikeyan No. 35/196 Harrow Rd, Glenfield 02 9618 1394 Mon 6:30-7:30pm Sri Narayanan No. 37 Windamere Av, Woodcroft 0404 866 146 Thur 8-9:00pm Sri Rajagopalan No. 4 Broadoak Pl, Castle Hill 0418 569 841 Sun 8-9:00am Sri Rajaram No. 5 Northcott Wy, Cherrybrook 0404 992 403 Fri 8-9:00pm Sri Ramanan No. 113 Adderton Rd, Telopea 0430 487 780 Sat 8-9:00am New Sri Soma Sekhar No. 7 Ruth St, Merrylands 02 9885 0256 Fri 6:15-6:30pm New Sri Sudheendra Rao No. 44 Foss St, Blacktown 02 9621 5501 Sat 6:15-6:30pm Click to view the World Wide Nama Kendras: http://www.namadwaar.org/worldwidecenters.html