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Volume 16 No. 3 1 December 2012 Mandir Vani Page 1 Ganesh Chaturthi Celebration at Hindu Temple Please Donate Generously Mandir Vani Hindu Temple and Cultural Center of the Rockies 8375 S. Wadsworth Blvd., Littleton, CO 80128 (Tax ID: 84-1301209) www.hindutempleofcolorado.org 303-948-9693 email:[email protected] The mission of the Hindu Temple and Cultural Center of the Rockies (HTCC) is to provide a forum for religious worship and celebrations, and for cultural, religious, and spiritual develop- ment activities based on Hindu / Vedic / Sanatan - Dharma traditions. Editorial Board K. C. Upadhyay (Priest) Prabhakara Rao (Editor) Reva Nayar (President)

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Page 1: Mandir Vani - Hindu Temple and Cultural Center of the Rockies · Volume 16 No. 3 1 December 2012 Mandir Vani Page 1 Ganesh Chaturthi Celebration at Hindu Temple Please ... Aadi Shankaracharya

Volume 16 No. 3 1 December 2012 Mandir Vani Page 1

Ganesh Chaturthi Celebration at Hindu Temple

Please Donate Generously

Mandir Vani Hindu Temple and Cultural Center of the Rockies

8375 S. Wadsworth Blvd., Littleton, CO 80128

(Tax ID: 84-1301209) www.hindutempleofcolorado.org 303-948-9693 email:[email protected]

The mission of the Hindu Temple and Cultural Center of the Rockies (HTCC) is to provide a forum for religious worship and celebrations, and for cultural, religious, and spiritual develop-ment activities based on Hindu / Vedic / Sanatan - Dharma traditions.

Editorial Board K. C. Upadhyay (Priest) Prabhakara Rao (Editor) Reva Nayar (President)

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President’s Page Dear Fellow Devotees,

Hope you and your families, with the grace of Almighty, are enjoying good health and happi-ness. Acharaya ji, Pandit ji and the Board of Trustees of HTCC send you their best wishes for your growth and prosperity. Hope you have a Great year ahead. As always, we are thankful to all our devotees, donors, volunteers and supporters for helping in the smooth operations of the

temple.

Hindu Temple was established in the year 1997 to serve the devotional cultural and spiritual needs of the Hindu community in accordance with distinctly Vedic traditions. Our Temple holds these values as its guiding star. Our Temple is a place of Tranquility and peace. Our tem-

ple is the essence that sustains our day to day existence.

EVENTS:

On July 12th (auspicious day) we had a Shilanayas (a symbolic breaking of the Ground at our New Hindu Temple site). About 30 devotees attended to perform the Ceremony. On August 9, 2012 we celebrated Janam Ashtmi. Over 200 devotees attended this celebration. Ganesh Chathurti was celebrated on September 19, 2012. Dr. Prabhakara Rao was the main organizer of this event and over 300 devotees attended. On October 21, 2012 we had Maha Chandi Havan celebration. The priests with five Grand Sponsors started the Havan at 9AM. This lasted until 12pm, followed by Dances, Bhajans, spiritual and motivational speeches by our long term sup-porters Nawal Sharma, Jagdish Khatter and Deepak Malhotra. About 300 devotees attended. The collections in cash and pledges were about $15,000. In addition Vishnu and Eileen Saran committed to donate tiles for the Temple, estimated at $ 70,000. Diwali was celebrated at the Temple on Nov 13th. More than 300 people attended the function. Total donation collected was

about $4,000.

NEW HINDU TEMPLE UPDATE:

We have made major strides towards the Fund Raising and the Project itself.

Project Goal:

$2,500,000 - completion in 15 months.

Financial:

Total Donations $1,060,000.00

Pledges $400,000.00

Need to reach our goals $1,040,000

DESIGN AND CONSTRUCTION PROJECT:

Started in July 12 2012.

1. Appointment of selection committee completed

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2. Develop temple criteria completed

3. Develop conceptual design completed

4. Develop RFP/RFQ for architectural design company completed

(request for proposal and qualification)

5. Advertize for RFP/RFQ completed

6. Interviews and screening of applicants completed

7. Selection of architectural design firm completed

8. Negotiate contract completed

9. Attorney review completed

10 awarding and signing of contract completed

11. Notice to proceed (NTP) completed on October 1, 2012

UPCOMING MILESTONES:

1. Completion of design and construction drawings 2. Start of construction

3. Completion of new Hindu temple

Estimated completion of the New Temple project OCT. 2013

We commend the members of selections committee for many hours of laborious work. The Se-lection Committee is continuing to explore different options for cost effective and quality solu-tions for the various aspects of this process. God bless them for their dedication and devotion.

TO OUR YOUTH:

One of the main focuses of the temple is to foster Hindu values among the children and youths living in this country and create awareness among them of India’s eternal and priceless spiritual heritage and richness of our cultural traditions. To achieve this, the Temple programs are spe-cially designed with Children Participation foremost in mind. We are pleased that Priyanka and Ajay Gupta have volunteered to organize the Youth Group for the New Hindu Temple. Our

heartfelt appreciation for their dedication and support.

The primary focus of our temple is to guide our children in bridging the spiritual and cultural gap and in perpetuating Vedic Dharma. we are working with our youngsters to join and help us in our Fund Raising Goals. Some of them are already committed in both cash and kind. We are seeking their assistance in organizing and contributing their resources in whatever way they deem fit. They are all ambitious and talented and have done very well in their fields. I request you all to share your talents and your wealth with the Almighty. Trust me you will be paid manifold. God will bless you with a lot more. Please contact me or any of the trustees and offer your services.

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AN APPEAL

I have made this appeal before and I am going to do it again and yet again. Please find it in your hearts and donate generously: Dear Devotees, Our Goals and Drives for Fund Raising and eventual building a New Hindu Temple rests on your shoulders. Without your support and cooperation, we would not have been where we are and will go no further. We are appealing to you, your family and friends to join in this historical mission so that we can leave a legacy for our children and grandchildren. A sacrifice today on our parts will enhance a cultural and religious heritage for generations to come. Please donate generously. Experience the joy of sharing and giving. He, who has pro-vided us with all we have, is looking for a New House. Let’s build Him one. He/She is looking for our support. Should we not come forward and give all we can? Please join in and make our Dream of New Hindu Temple come true. Please accept our gratitude for all you do and have done for the Temple. . On behalf of Acharya ji, Pandit ji and Board of Trustees All in the service of God Sincerely

Reva Nayar

Celebrations at The Temple - Madhu Mahajan

All major festivals are celebrated at the Temple; we hope to see more people participate in festi-vals and celebrations.

Ganesha Chaturthi Mahostav (23 September 2012)

The Ganesha Chaturthi Mahostav was celebrated in the Hindu Temple on Sunday 23 September 2012; once again the event was sponsored by the Colorado Kannada Koota. The highlights of the event were Kalash Puja, Ganesh Abhishek, Archana along with Chanting of Mantras, sev-eral Ganesha songs/bhajans and three Bharata Natyam items performed by children. Reva Nayar, President of Hindu Temple, gave the status of Hindu Temple project of 2.5 million. The event was very successful with about 400 devotees attended the function. The program ended with Maha Mangal Arathi to Lord Ganesha and all other deities of the Temple. Sincere thanks to all artists, sponsors of the event, Acharya ji, Pandit ji, and Rajesh Kaul who helped the priests in conducting the pujas, all volunteers, and all ladies and a few gentlemen who prepared the food. Colorado Kannada Koota has been organizing this event for many years.

Maha Chandi Havan (21 October 2012)

The Maha Chandi Havan was held on Oct 21st at the New Hindu Temple site, 7200 S. Potomac St, Centennial, CO. Three priests chanted Durga Stuti and Nava Durga Mantras for 3 hours. It was a mesmerizing witness of ancient rituals in modern times. Our heartfelt gratitude goes to each individual who participated in the event. The priests, the sponsors, the donors, the artists, and all the volunteers worked very hard and made this event a grand success. It was a great team work.

*******************************

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HINDU TEMPLE AND CULTURAL CENTER OF THE ROCKIES

8375 S. WADSWORTH BLVD. LITTLETON, CO 80128

TEL: (303) 948 - 9693

2013 Festivals Celebration Calendar (Jan to December) Festival Date Day Time January New Year (Ganesh Pooja) 01 Tuesday 11:00 am

Navagrah Pooja 06 Sunday 11:00 am

Lohadi 13 Sunday

Makar Sankranti/Pongal 14 Monday

Poornima/Satyanarayana Pooja 26 Saturday 6:45 pm

February Vasant Panchami/Saraswati Puja 15 Friday 6:45 pm

Poornima/Satyanarayana Pooja 25 Monday 6:45 pm

March Maha Shivaratri 09 Saturday 8:00 pm

Holashtak Begins 20 Wednesday

Holashtak Ends/Holika Dahan 26 Tuesday

Holi 27 Wednesday

Poornima/Satyanarayana Pooja 27 Wednesday 6:45 pm

April Hindu New Year (Ugadi)”Prabhav” 11 Thursday

Vikram Samvat 2070 Begins 11 Thursday

Vasant Navaratra Begins 11 Thursday

Durga Ashtami 18 Thursday 7:00 pm

Shri Ram Navami 19 Friday

Akhand Ram Charit Manasa Paath begins Saturday 20 April at 10:30 am & ends Sunday 21 April at 11 am

Poornima/Satyanarayana Pooja 25 Thursday 6:45 pm Shri Hanuman Jayanthi 25 Thursday

May Akshaya Triteeya 12 Sunday Aadi Shankaracharya Jayanthi 16 Thursday Nrisimha Jayanthi 23 Thursday Poornima/Satyanarayana Pooja 24 Friday 6:45 pm

June Graduation Pooja 09 Sunday 11 am Ganga Dashami 18 Tuesday Nirjala Ekadashi 20 Thursday Poornima/Satyanarayana Katha 23 Sunday 6:45 pm

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HINDU TEMPLE AND CULTURAL CENTER OF THE ROCKIES

8375 S. WADSWORTH BLVD. LITTLETON, CO 80128

TEL: (303) 948 - 9693

2013 Festivals Celebration Calendar (Jan to December)

Festival Date Day Time

July Devashayini Ekadashi 30 Saturday Poornima/Satyanarayana Katha 22 Monday 6:45 pm Shravan Month begins 23 Tuesday Naaga Panchami 27 Saturday

August Pradosh Puja in Shravan Month 04 Sunday Vara-Lakshmi Vrat 16 Friday 2nd Pradosh Puja in Shravan Month 18 Sunday Upaa-karma/Rakshaa Bandhan 20 Tuesday Poornima/Satyanarayana Katha 20 Tuesday 6:45 pm Shri Krishna Janmashtami 27 Tuesday Starting at 6:00 pm

September Hari Taalika Teej Vrat 08 Sunday Ganesh Chaturthi Celebration 09 Monday 7:00 pm Shri Vaman Jayanthi 15 Sunday Poornima/(Satyanarayana Katha) 19 Thursday 6:45 pm Pitri Paksh (Shraddha) Begins 20 Friday

October Pitri Paksh (Shraddha) Ends 04 Friday Sharada Navaratri Begins 05 Saturday Durga Ashtami 12 Saturday 7:00 pm Dashahara/Vijay Dashami 14 Monday Sharad Poornima/ Satyanarayana Katha 18 Friday 6:45 pm Karavaa Chauth TBD 4:00 pm – 6:00 pm

November Deepavali/Lakshami Pooja 02 Saturday 6:00 pm Govardhana (Annakoot) Pooja 03 Sunday Bhaiya Dooj (Yama Dwiteeya) 04 Monday

Tulasi Vivaha/Prabodhini Ekadashi 13 Wednesday Poornima / Satyanarayana Katha 17 Sunday 6:45 pm

Guru Nanaka Jayanti 17 Sunday

December Gita Jayanthi/Mokshada Jayanthi 13 Friday Poornima /Satyanarayana Katha 17 Tuesday 6:45 pm

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Hinduism –102 Mita Mukherjee

This article is kind of a follow-up on my previous article, Hinduism-101. I had touched on basic ideas on Hinduism, and here I would like to expand on those ideas, if I may; Again, I invite knowledgeable ones to correct me, if I am wrong. Quest for spirituality arises in some people as a dissatisfaction with life and life situations; the person may be financially well off, have a wonderful family, but they feel that something im-portant is missing. More material wealth cannot quench this thirst. Thoughts arise, “who am I? What am I doing here? What is the purpose of my life here on earth? Is there really a God?” The ancient Hindu texts, like the Vedas, Vedanta, and the Gita explains, that each individual is on their own path, on a great spiritual journey. The theory of reincarnation states that humans go through a cycle of birth and death, according to their “karma” in previous life, and this is a process whereby the soul or “atma” gets purified; The soul encompassed by a human body undergoes various experiences, some good, and some bad, where by opportunities present themselves as lessons to be learnt by the individual, so they can go forward. Here is an example: say a person has a propensity for gambling; in previous lives he had lost his fortune, family and friends due to this failing; now in this life he is still drawn towards gambling but if he makes himself aware of this inclination in himself and is suc-cessful in curbing it, he will actually, have learnt a lesson in this life and ended the cycle of gambling. On the other hand, if he gives in to his love for gambling, he will be suffering the consequences till he learns his lesson. Thus we need to take a very critical look at our own selves, and assess our strengths and weak-nesses; Awareness is the most important aspect. Once we are aware of our faults and failings, we can start to rectify our behavior towards others. We have to view our mental makeup as if we are looking into a mirror deep within ourselves. We have to focus on being honest and truth-ful in our dealings and try not to let the “ego” get in the way. Now to the question, “is there a “GOD” ? According to the Vedanta, there cannot be an “effect” without a “cause”. For example there cannot be waves without the ocean, there cannot be mud pots without the mud, and necklaces and bangles cannot exist without the gold in them. Similarly living things cannot exist without the divine consciousness that is pervading the universe—all beings are endowed with this spark of divine energy, which we call “God” or divine consciousness or self or truth, everyone has their own definition; This was a very difficult concept for me to grasp, so I had asked Swamiji if he could explain it to me and this is what he said, “ Imagine a number of bowls filled with water sitting out in the

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moonlight; the moonlight is being reflected by the water in the bowls. Similarly each one of us is reflecting this divine consciousness, now if you empty the bowl, and the water is gone, the power necessary for reflecting the moonlight is gone also—in the same way when the divine spark leaves the body, the body becomes lifeless or dead; The soul or atma however carries the essence of the individual, and leaves the body to go to a higher realm where it prepares itself for the next reincarnation—a very strange concept for most people in this scientific age; we want proofs of every phenomena. So at first, it was very hard for me to conceptualize. The paths to the purification process are numerous and it depends on the individual and his preferences. A person who is very devoted to God can choose the path of “bhakti yoga” or path of devotion; whereas a person who feels good serving others can choose, “karma yoga” and someone who is an intellectual can choose “jnana yoga” or the path of knowledge. In conclusion I feel that we are put on this earth for a certain purpose in life, as long as we are mindful of our thoughts and actions, and we lead a life of honesty and integrity we will be a step ahead in the scheme of life. So we are all on this path seeking a state of “Sat-chit-ananda” which means a state of unadulter-ated happiness or “bliss”; “Existence-knowledge-bliss”.

At some point in our lives—we will reach this destination and that is my conviction!

***********************************

Treasurer’s Report (Jan to Oct 2012) - Satish Kumar, Treasurer

Month Income Expense Major Celebrations

Jan 15,965.28 17,366.87 New Year Ganesha Puja Feb 12,598.75 12,815.69 Mar 11,756.23 14,440.04 Maha Shivaratri Apr 16,146.23 14,953.49 Sri Rama Navami May 14,578.24 13,844.71 Jun 16,173.76 15,448.57 Graduation Puja Jul 15,739.23 16,809.39 Aug 22,908.25 16,217.65 Krishna Janmastami Sep 15,802.36 26,175.95 Ganesh Chauturthi Oct 16,115.22 12,919.19 Maha Chandi Havan & Diwali

Total $157,783.55 $160,991.55 Current Temple Fund $ 38,529.15 New Temple Fund $1,015,787.49

Total $1,054,316.64

***********

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Hindu Temple Management Team

Board of Trustees

1. Reva Nayar President, Fund Raising 303-690-4347

2. C. P. Mishra Vice President, Operations 303-973-7765

3. Satish Kumar Agarwal Treasurer 303-973-4635

4. Mita Mukherjee Secretary 303-499-5208

5. Prabhakara Rao Communication (Mandir Vani, Procedures) 303-979-4193

6. Madhu Mahajan Communication (Web Site, E-mails) 303-278-9860

7. Arun Budhiraja 303-755-4805

8. Mahesh Jha 303-526-0260

9. Pawan Bhat 303-972-3845

10. Rajesh Agarwal 303-271-0509

11. Sridhar Talanki 303-627-9755

12. Sudhir Verma 303-400-3737

13. Ved Nanda 303-377-6438

Priests

1. Acharya ji Kailash Chandra Upadhyay 720-344-1448 (H) 720-984-5108 (C)

2. Pundit ji Raghavendra Iyyer 303-954-9274 (H) 720-308-8804 (C)

Office Manager

1. Christina Coffman [email protected] 303-990-1981

**********************************

Please Help Us to Build a Great Temple

In Colorado with Your Generous Donations!!!

• For 2012 donations, please send your contributions to Hindu Temple, 8375 S. Wadsworth Blvd, Littleton, CO 80128 by Dec 25, 2012 to receive year end tax deduction receipts.

• If you like to sponsor a Sunday Puja, please contact our Temple Manager, C. P. Mishra at

303-973-7765 or Acharya ji at 303-948-9693 • If you have changed your residence, telephone number or e-mail address, please send an e-

mail to our Office Manager, Christina Coffman at [email protected]

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Hindu Temple and Cultural

Center of the Rockies

8375 S. Wadsworth Blvd.

Littleton, CO 80128

303-948-9693 Address Service Requested Donation Appeal Please continue to show your support by making generous donations at the Temple or by mail (cut and enclose the coupon printed below) to : 8375 S. Wadsworth Blvd., Littleton, CO 80128. The contributions are tax deductible. The Tax ID Number for the Hindu Temple and Cultural Center is 84 -1301209 ————————————————————————————————————— Enclosed is a check for $ _______, my/our contribution for the New Hindu Temple and Cultural Center of the Rockies. Name: _________________________, Spouse Name: _______________________ Address: ____________________________________________________________ City, State, Zip: ______________________________________________________ Phone: ________________________, E-mail: ______________________________

Non Profit Organization US Postage Paid Permit No 237 Littleton, CO