Ashram Bulletin
Samvatsara Abhishekam
Following Mahakumbhabishekam of Sri Ramaneswara
and Matrubhuteswara Temples in November last
year, special abishekam was performed for 48
days with Mandalabhishekam on the last day.
This year, to mark the completion of one year
since Kumbhabhishekam, special puja and homam
were performed on Punarvasu Day, October 24th,
2005. Anujnai, Sri Vigneswara Puja, Kalasasthapanam,
Maha Ganapati Homam, Aavahanthi Homam, Medha
Dakshinamurthy Homam and Sri Ramana Moola Mantra
Homam were all performed with great fervour.
A enthusiastic Mahabhishekam was undertaken
in the evening accompanied by a number of guest
Vedacharyas from Coimbatore chanting Sri Rudram
in ghanam mode.
Deepavali
All over India Deepavali,
the ‘festival of the lights’, is
celebrated with presents and fireworks. Also
known as Naraka Chaturdasi Snaanam, the festival
commemorates the destruction of the demon Naraka
by Sri Krishna on the fourteenth day of the
dark fortnight of the month of Aswija. It is
said that anyone who thinks of Krishna on this
day will receive His grace. Likewise undertakings
on this day are sure to succeed. When asked
to explain Deepavali’s significance, Bhagavan
offered the following verse:
He who seeks whence is Naraka,
Who this hell-like world is ruling,
Mistaking the filthy body
For the Self, and after kills him
By the means of Wisdom’s Wheel,
Is Narayana. And that day
When he does it, is auspicious,
Called Naraka-Chaturdasi.
Know Deepavali is shining
As the real Self, having sought for
Naraka, the mighty sinner,
That one who deteriorated
Taking for the Self the mansion
Of this hell-like, guileful body,
Having sought him and then slain him.¹
Navaratri Music
On three of the nine days of this year’s
Navaratri celebration, Karnatic music concerts
were held in the dining hall each evening. After
special pujas for Yogambika each night, devotees
were blessed to attend these performances, which,
for many, was an experience of joy and bliss.
The third night was especially memorable and
featured Master Sri Thayumanavar whose ensemble
performed with unmatched devotion and earnestness.
The highpoint was by many accounts a musical
epiphany, where “the mind seemed to stop
and spontaneity took over. Because the performers
so enjoyed themselves, their joy infected the
audience. Indeed it was only when the audience
became one with all this that it became a heavenly
experience.” Devotees thank the sponsor
of these concerts, Mr. Kandasamy from Tiruchi.
Karthigai Deepam
The significance of Deepam is well known. It
finds its origin in Lord Siva’s manifestation
as a column of light (jyothi) to reveal the
folly of Brahma and Vishnu (representing the
intellect and ego) who disputed one another
as to who was the greater. The sacred fire symbolises
the victory of light over the darkness of delusion.
The meaning of sighting the beacon atop the
hill was described by Sri Bhagavan this way:
“Getting rid of the ‘I
am the body’ idea and merging the mind
into the Heart to realize the Self as non-dual
being and the light of all is the real significance
of darshan of the beacon of light on Annamalai,
the centre of the universe.” ²
In commemoration of Siva quelling
the pride of Brahma and Vishnu, a huge cauldron
of ghee and camphor is lit on the summit of
Arunachala on Kartikai Day (December 13th) when
the sun sets. (The month is Kartikai and the
star of the day too is Kartikai). It burns for
some 7 days (or more), being daily replenished
with ghee and camphor offered by devotees. Visible
even at a distance of 20 to 25 miles, devotees
take great delight in having the darshan of
this Deepam flame.
At the Ashram, Kartikai Deepam
is always celebrated by lighting a small cauldron
of ghee simultaneously with the one on the hill.
Priests chant Na Karmana, perform arati to Sri
Bhagavan’s photograph, while devotees
sing Aksharamanamalai.
Sri Bhagavan’s 126th Jayanti
The 126th Birthday of Sri Bhagavan is being
celebrated at the Ashram this year on December
18th. Since Jayanti falls in the month of Marghazhi
(December-January), the function begins with
special dhanurmasa puja in the early morning.
Devotees then sing hymns on and by Sri Bhagavan.
Soon after, there is the morning milk offering
and after breakfast, Mahanyasa puja. Special
abhisheka with milk, curd and vibhuti is performed
and Ramaneswara Mahalingam is specially decorated
with garlands and kavacham. Unmistakably, the
Ashram atmosphere is surcharged with Bhagavan’s
presence on Jayanti Day and this year should
prove to be no exception.
Other Functions This Season
Muruganar’s Aradhana celebration
at Ramanathapuram (his birthplace) and Chennai
took place on Sept 3-4. In Chennai, there was
chanting of Sri Ramana Sannidhi Murai and at
Sri Ramanasramam, usual puja and chanting sponsored
by Smt. Kanakammal.
Bhagavan Sri Ramana Maharshi Sanmarga
Jnana Ratham sponsored by UNIRAAM Trust got
under way on Sept. 9th and visited 1008 villages
in South Tamil Nadu until Nov. 23, 2005.
A New Vedapatasala at the Janaki Matha Ashram,
Tanjore, was inaugurated on Aug. 22-24.
Obituaries
Sonti Anasuyamma
Sonti Anasuyamma (age 78) died
on Tuesday, September 27th, Punarvasu Day. From
Vijayanagaram, Anasuyamma grew up with a love
of Sanskrit. Her delight was reading literature
rich in human insight and poetic splendour.
It was natural to this gifted woman that she
should revel in the poetic fragrance of Rabindranath
Tagore and also the teachings of saints, Vivekananda
foremost among them.
Her inherent literary grace in
Telugu, harmony with idiomatic English, and
her subjective feel of spiritual concepts made
her translations a thing of beauty, while remaining
faithful to the original text. Just the day
before her passing, her latest translation arrived
from the printer. It was the biography of Ganapati
Muni called Mahatapasvi: Life Story of Kavya
Kanta Ganapati Muni which she translated into
English from her native Telugu. She also translated
Maha Yoga and Brunton’s famous book ‘A
Search in Secret India’.
Sri J. Krishnamurthy: An Ideal Devotee
Sri J. Krishnamurthy, the role model of an
ideal devotee, has now reached the holy feet
of Bhagavan. Closely associated with Sri Ramana
Kendram, Hyderabad, and Dr. K. Subramaniam,
his devotion to Bhagavan was truly immense.
At the very mention of Bhagavan’s name,
tears used to well up in his eyes. His very
breath had Bhagavan in it. Anybody who visited
his house found entire walls pasted with photos
of Bhagavan. He never discarded even an invitation
letter if it had Bhagavan’s picture on
it but would preserve it for dear life. Although
he served prestigious organizations like UNDP
and UNESCO, he was ever humble and used to take
all as a gift from Bhagavan. Let us pray to
Bhagavan that we are all blessed with the same
deep devotion that J. Krishnamurthy so glowingly
exemplified.
Punita the Cow
We are sorry to report the
passing of a popular, prominent cow in the Ashram
gosala. ‘Punita’ was gifted to us
as a heifer by Sri Aurobindo Ashram from their
‘Gloria Farm’. Belonging to the
pure Gir breed with a rich brown coat, broad
forehead downward-curving horns, long pendulum
ears and a stately build, Punita was distinctive
in appearance. Endowed with a gentle, endearing
nature, she was well-liked by all and especially
by children. In fact, parents could persuade
reluctant children to drink their milk by telling
them, “It is Punita’s milk!”
Punita whose numerous offspring now populate
and enrich the Ashram gosala, passed away peacefully
having lived a long, full life.
_____________________________
1. ‘On Deepavali’
from The Poems of Sri Ramana Maharshi, Sadhu
Arunachala (Major A. W. Chadwick), 2nd Edition,
Sri Ramanasramam, 1967.
2. ‘Significance of the Beacon’,
The Collected Works of Sri Ramana Maharshi,
2004, p. 79.
