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October 2011
Calender Events of
September 2011
Content
Page No.
01 Thursday - Vinayaka Chaturthi (After Evening Arati)
Calender Events and Contents
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08 Thursday - Ekadasi
Vijaya Dasami (Durga Puja)
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22 Thursday - Swami Abhedananda Jayanti
Celebration’s of Durga Puja
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Lakshmi Puja
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Kali Puja
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Human Excellence Courses Schedule
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Spoken English & Other Languages Admission Details
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Chronos of Ramakrishna Math, Hyd.
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23 Friday - Ekadasi 27 Tuesday - Mahalaya & Swami Akhandananda Jayanti
Calender Events of
October 2011 02 Sunday - Durga Puja-Maha Shashti 03 Monday - Maha Saptami (Lalitha Sahasranama Archana) 04 Tuesday - Maha Ashtami 05 Wednesday - Maha Navami 06 Thursday - Vijaya Dasami - Shanti Jal (After Evening Arati) 07 Friday - Ekadasi 11 Tuesday - Lakshmi Puja (after evening puja) 23 Sunday - Ekadasi 26 Wednesday - Deepavali - Kali Puja (After Evening Arati)
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DURGA PUJA On Thursday 6th October
Durga Puja is the biggest festival in Bengal. This is also known as Dussehra and Navaratri in other parts of India. Durga is the Goddess of divine power against all evils. The story goes that Mahihsasur, the Buffalo Demon, through years of praying, received blessing from Lord Brahma, that no power can kill him which means he is invincible. But once gaining this power he started ravaging the whole world and killing people. And finally he wanted to uproot the Gods too. The Gods, in dismay, combined their powers to create a beautiful maiden, and each placed his or her most potent weapon in one of her ten hands riding a lion. Her return in each year in the Bengali month of Aswin (September-October) commemorates Rama’s invocation of the goddess Durga before he went into battle with Ravana. The traditional image of the Bengali Durga follows the iconographic injunctions of the Shastras. It is similar to the Durga of Aihole and of Mahabalipuram (seventh century). The tableau of Durga with her four children - Kartik, Ganesh, Saraswati and Lakshmi, representing respectively the Protector, the Initiator of the puja, Knowledge and the Provider - signifies the complete manifestation of the goddess. Another legend has it that Lord Rama went to rescue his abducted wife Sita from the grip of Ravana, the king of the demons in Lanka. Before starting for his battle with Ravana, Rama wanted the blessings of Devi Durga. Pleased with Rama’s devotion, Durga appeared before him and blessed him. The battle started on the saptami and Ravana was finally killed on the sandhikshan i.e. the crossover period between ashtami and navami and was cremated on dashami. Since the period of this worship was different from the conventional festival time of spring or basant, this puja is also known as akalbodhan or worship (bodhan) in an unconventional time (a-kaal). The festival starts with Mahalaya, the first phase of the waxing moon in Aswin. Thousands offer prayers to their ancestors at the river banks (ghats), a ritual called Tarpan. A special pre-dawn program of readings from the Chandi and Aagamani songs welcoming the goddess are sung. The festive mood builds up especially in Calcutta, The construction of images start months ahead. Kumartuli, a place in north Calcutta, is famous as a place for expert artisans who use clay modeling to build the images of Durga, Mahisasur, Kartick, Ganesh, Saraswati and Lakshmi. Another group of people start building a beautiful pandal (a covered huge stage ) with paper, wood, bamboos, clothes and other materials. The inauguration starts on Mahashasthi. The main puja is for three days Mahasaptami, Mahaastami, Mahanavami. After the three days of Puja, Dashami, is the last day, a tearful farewell is offered to the Goddess. Vijaya Dashami is an event celebrated all over the country. Bengalis all over the world try to celebrate this great event of their culture. Images made out of ‘shola’ (light material) are flown to countries abroad and the NRI Bengalis and Indians arrange puja in foreign lands. In most of the overseas pujas, the event becomes a meeting place for local Bengalis and Indians. Usually people perform in some cultural activities. Durga Puja is the most important festival of Bengal. It is held in other parts of the country such as Delhi, Varanasi, Kanpur, Patna, Allahabad and many other cities and towns, where there are domiciled Bangalees living for years. Durga Puja held outside Bengal is celebrated with equal fervor and zeal. One may not come across excessive extravanganza there but the devotion and community feeling reigns high.
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CELEBRATION’S OF DURGA PUJA
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LAKSHMI PUJA On Tuesday 11th October
After Durga Puja, Lakshmi Puja is the most important festival of Bengalis. Lakshmi is the Goddess of light, beauty, good fortune and wealth. She was the daughter of the sage Bhrigu and took refuge in the ocean of milk when the gods were sent into exile. In the month of October, five days after Mahadashami, on full moon, is the festival of the Goddess of prosperity Laxmi. Public Pujas are performed in the same premises as for Durga Puja. Idols of Lakshmi are installed in the same pandals and devotees offer fruits and sweets to the goddess. The night, being a bright full moon with pleasant climate, is usually spent in the open singing and dancing, generally getting together. Lakshmi Puja in other parts of the country The day of Lakshmi Puja falls on the dark night of Amabasya. Lakshmi Puja is celebrated in the evening when tiny diyas of clay are lighted to drive away the shadows of evil spirits. Devotional songs in praise of Goddess Lakshmi are sung and traditional sweets offered to the Goddess. The strains of the joyous sounds of bells and drums float from the temples as man is invoking Goddess Laxmi in a wondrous holy “pouring-in” of his heart. All of a sudden that impenetrable darkness is pierced by innumerable rays of light for just a moment and the next moment a blaze of light descends down to earth from heaven as golden-footed Deep-Lakshmi alights on earth in all her celestial glory amidst chantings of Vedic hymns. It is believed that on this day Lakshmi walks through the green fields and loiters through the bye-lanes and showers her blessings on man for plenty and prosperity. Story of Lakshmi Puja The story of Lakshmi Pooja goes like this. It is believed that when the demons and deities were churning the ocean together to find out the ‘drink of immortality’, it was on this day that Goddess Lakshmi manifested herself and thus Lakshmi Puja is celebrated to commemorate the birth of the Goddess of Wealth. According to another legend, on the night prior to the celebration of Diwali (as known in other parts of the country), Lord Krishna has killed the demon Narakasura freeing the earth from his terrors and liberating the 16000 princesses that were abducted by him. Thus, on the next day (Diwali), the people illuminated their houses and celebrated to express their joy and relief. Mahabharata mentions the return of Pandavas to their kingdom from their 13-year long exile on this very day. Vikramidtya, the great benevolent king and warrior was believed to be enthroned on Diwali. Whatever the reasons may be, Diwali, has always been associated with the worshipping of Lakshmi. One other legend connecting Lakshmi to Diwali is mentioned in Sanatkumar Samhita, which says that it was on this day that Lord Vishnu liberated his consort from the captivity of Bali, the mighty demonking, after a long period.
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KALI PUJA On Wednesday 26th October
“My child, you need not know much in order to please Me. Only Love Me dearly. Speak to me, as you would talk to your mother, if she had taken you in her arms.” Maa Kali is the fearful and ferocious form of the mother goddess Durga. She assumed the form of a powerful goddess and became popular with the composition of the Devi Mahatmya, a text of the 5th - 6th century AD. Here she is depicted as having born from the brow of Goddess Durga during one of her battles with the evil forces. As the legend goes, in the battle, Kali was so much involved in the killing spree that she got carried away and began destroying everything in sight. To stop her, Lord Shiva threw himself under her feet. Shocked at this sight, Kali stuck out her tongue in astonishment, and put an end to her homicidal rampage. Hence the common image of Kali shows her in her mêlée mood, standing with one foot on Shiva’s chest, with her enormous tongue stuck out. It is believed that the present form of Kali is due to a dream by a distinguished scholar of Indian charms and black magic or ‘Tantra’ and the author of Tantric Saar, Krishnananda Agambagish, a contemporary of Lord Chaitanya. In his dream he was ordered to make her image after the first figure he saw in the morning. At dawn, Krishnanand saw a dark complexioned maid with left hand protruding and making cow dung cakes with her right hand. Her body was glowing with white dots. The vermillion spread over her forehead while she was wiping the sweat from her forehead. The hair was untidy. When she came face to face with an elderly Krishnananda, she bit her tongue in shame. This posture of the housemaid was later utilized to envisage the idol of Goddess Kali. Thus was formed the image of Kali. The popular forms of Kali are Shyama, Adya Maa, Tara Maa and Dakshina Kalika, Chamundi. There are other forms as well. They are known as Bhadrakali who is gentle and Shyamashana Kali who stays at the cremation ground. Kali has four arms and is represented with perhaps the fiercest creatures among all the deities in the world. She has a sword in one hand and a demon’s head on the other. Her other two hands bless her devotees. Her eyes are red and her body is smeared with blood. Her black complexion represents the transcendental nature. Kali is free from all artificial covering beyond all maya or false consciousness. She has infinite knowledge which is represented by the garland of fifty skulls depicting 50 letters in the Sanskrit alphabet. Her inner purity is represented by her white teeth while her omnivorous nature is depicted in her protruding tongue. Three modes of time, the past, present and future are represented by her three eyes.
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Kali Puja is done to diminish the ego and all negative tendencies that hinder spiritual progress and material prosperity. Performed on the night of Kartik Amavasya, which falls in October/November, Kali Puja is an intense invocation to the fearsome goddess. The main purpose of the puja is to seek the help of the goddess in destroying evil - both in the outside world and within us. The legend goes that long ago the demons, Shambhu and Nishambhu, disturbed the peace of Indra, the king of gods, and his empire (heaven). After extensive and endless battles, the gods lost all hope and the demons became stronger. The gods took refuge in the Himalayas, the holy mountains, the home of Lord Shiva and Parvati. The shaken gods sought protection from Mahamaya Durga, the goddess of Shakti. Kali was born from Durga’s forehead as Kal Bhoi Nashini, created to save heaven and earth from the growing cruelty of the demons. Along with Dakini and Jogini, her two escorts, she set on her way to end the war and kill the devils. There was chaos all around. After slaughtering the demons, Kali made a garland of their heads and wore it around her neck. In the bloodbath, she lost control and started killing anyone who came her way. The gods started running for their lives. The only source of protection seemed Lord Shiva, Durga’s consort. Seeing the endless slaughter, Shiva devised a plan to save the world. He lay down in the path of the rampaging Kali. When the goddess unknowingly stepped on him, she regained her senses. The well-known picture of Ma Kali, with her tongue hanging out, actually depicts the moment when she steps on the Lord and repents. That momentous day is celebrated ever since. Kali, also called Shyama Kali, is the first of the 10 avatars (incarnations) of Durga. Kali Puja is performed essentially to seek protection against drought and war, for general happiness, health, wealth, and peace. It is a tantrik puja and performed only at midnight on Amavasya (new moon night) in November.
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Vivekananda Institute of Languages New Admissions - Spoken English & Other Languages
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Chronos
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Universal Temple of Sri Ramakrishna : (open to all, except for children below seven years) 5.00 a.m to 12 noon & 4 p.m to 8.15 p.m; 5 a.m - Mangal Arati 9.30 a.m - Puja , 6.45 p.m Arati and bhajans (After evening Arati, there will be Ramanamam Sankirtana on Ekadasi days, and Special Bhajans Programme on Saturday, Sunday and other festival days.)
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Basement Hall of the temple
: Telugu weekly discourse & Meditation Saturday (5.45 p.m to 6.45 p.m)
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Vivekananda Auditorium
: English weekly discourse Sunday (5.45 p.m to 6.45 p.m)
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Office
: 8.30 to 12.00PM - 4.00 to 8.00PM
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Book Stall
: 9.00 a.m to 1.00 p.m & 4.00 p.m to 8.00p.m (Book Stall adjacent to Gita Darshan Building is open on all days from 9.00 a.m to 8.00p.m)