murugan temple january february march 2014 newsletter
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Murugan Temple Newsletter - January February March 2014TRANSCRIPT
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6300 Princess Garden Parkway, Lanham, MD
20706. 3015524889, www.muruganTemple.org
NRITYATRA
(from 1978.A journey through
dance)
On Saturday, October 19th 2013, Vatsala Srinivas, Artistic Director of Natya Kala Mandir,
(Continued on page 2)
Happy new year 2014
Please join us on New Years day for
concerts by Ms. Sahana Narayanan
(vocal) accompanied by Pavani
Srikanth on violin and Vijay Ganesh
on Mirudangam from 11AM to
12:30PM; and violin duet by Srikanth
Mallajoysula and Pavani Srikanth
accompanied by Vijay Ganesh on
Mirudangam.
FUNDRAISING FOR THE RAJAGOPURAM AND TEMPLE
EXPANSION PROJECT
Article by Dr. Sridharan Iyengar, Trustee and Executive Co-Chair of MTNA Fundraising Committee.
On November 23rd, 2013 there was a successful fund-raising event at MTNA with the participation of nearly 120 Murugan devotees in the Temple auditorium. The event started around 6:15pm with an invocation song by Mrs. Latha Kannan. The main entertainment was Tamil Osai a light music concert by Murugan devotees including Selvaratnam Sridharma, Chanthiran, Kulathungam, Latha Kannan, Sathya Chandran and Radhika Murali. There were two
special singers who added great fun to the event: Karthika Shaji and Sabarinath. Karthika traveled from Solomons Island, MD and Sabarinath was from New Jersey area. Audio system was superbly set up by Saji
(Continued on page 2)
A MESSAGE FROM THE CHAIRMAN,
MTNA
Dear fellow Devotees of Lord
Murugan,
The Rajagopuram Project phase II is
in good progress. Thiru Muthiah
Sthapathy, the Temple architect from
India, was here recently and
Indianisation of the Rajagopuram and
interior decorations are on the way
now. The permit from the Prince
George county government is likely to
come shortly and we are working hard
on that issue to be cleared, and then
the work will go on in full swing. Our
target to the end of calendar year 2013
is $ 400,000, which we have not yet
achieved. Your contribution at this
critical juncture is very important.
Please contribute generously and all
your donations are fully tax-
deductible. With Lord Murugans
blessings and all your continuous
financial support, we will achieve our
dream.
Please send in all your donations as
early as possible.
Thanking you very much,
Dr. Gopal Guruswamy, Chairman, Board of Trustees, MTNA.
MTNA 2014 calendar now available
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celebrated her 35 years of teaching Bharatha Natyam in USA. It was a joyous day and a memorable one to see all her dance students performing impeccably the pure Tanjore style of Bharatha Natyam. Vatsala Srinivas, an accomplished Bharatha Natyam dancer and choreographer, has had intensive training under renowned Guru Mahalingam Pillai of the Sri Rajajaeshwari Bahratha Natya Kala Mandir. Kurunji was the main production, where we got to witness the wedding of Valli with Lord Murugan. The dancers were outstanding and the dances were both powerful and moving.
A special note of thanks to Vatsala.
Vatsala,
Thank you for accepting to do the fund-raiser for the
Murugan Temple and you came out with "Flying Colors
with Murugan Arul". I am impressed with your
dedication, perfection and attention to detail. Your
school's performance has been exemplary. Thank you for
giving me the opportunity to work with you. I will always
want to do various fund-raiser
events for the needy, for now I
know whom to reach.
On behalf of the Murugan
Temple, I thank you and Wish
you everything you dream for
yourself and to your family. We
would also like to congratulate
you for dedicating 35 years of
your career to the Lotus Feet of
Murugan. You have reached the
"Hall of Fame" and paved the
way for other professionals in the
field.
This journey with professionals like you has allowed me
to learn Who I Am and What I can do to the society. My
wishes and prayers extend to all the Participants, Parents,
Sponsors and Volunteers who helped the Fund-Raiser
event to be a major success!
Thank You,
Sivakumar Kareesan
Trustee and Cultural Committee Chair.
(Continued from page 1: Nrityatra)
who traveled from Rochester, NY.
Tasty appetizers and sumptuous dinner were served; most food items were donated by nearby restaurants including Nirala, Woodlands, Madras Palace and a few items were prepared by Murugan devotees, including a freelance caterer. A number of volunteers including almost all Trustees of MTNA were present to help with the event.
Devotees donated enthusiastically and generously to raise about
$73,000 during fundraising.
Earlier in the month of November, Dr. K. Ramaswamy, Co-Chair of the Board of Trustees of MTNA and his wife had organized a fund-raising
event in Harrisburg (PA) area. Dr. Guruswamy, the Chair of the Board of Trustees, Dr. Sridharan Iyengar, Trustee and Executive Co-Chair of the MTNA Fundraising Committee and Dr. Lakshmi Iyengar traveled to Harrisburg to participate and help with the event. They shared information about the current status of Rajagopuram construction, including the budget estimate and the timeline for completion of the project. There were about 50 people at that event, but the level of enthusiasm was impressively high. With their support we raised about $30,000. Interestingly, some devotees expressed their intention to visit MTNA to
volunteer their service on special occasions.
The total collection of about $103,000 in the two fundraising events does not include the pledges made by devotees. This
money goes in the MTNA Rajagopuram account. The Indian artisans (silpis) under the supervision of Mr. M. Srinivasan, the son of Padmasri Sri Muthaiah Sthapathy, are hard at work adding architectural segments to the outer structure. When the weather gets more wintry, they will begin Indianization of the Temple interior. In the meantime, we are awaiting the building permit to start Phase II work which will involve the construction of a kitchen, a dining hall and expansion of other facilities.
Your continued financial support is critical at this stage to meet the estimated budget of nearly $3.5 million. Please donate generously to Lord Murugan Rajagopuram and Temple Expansion Project. May Lord Murugan shower His bountiful blessings on you, your family and friends.
(Continued from page 1: Fundraising for Rajagopuram and Temple Expansion)
Have an opinion on the newsletter? Please give your invaluable feedback to the Temple manager. Just drop
or word or write a note. We want to hear from you.
We kindly request the devotees for donations of used
jeep or minivan for Temple use.
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Tax information
Dear devotees,
your year-end contributions letter can be obtained from
Temple website www.murugantemple.us. This is a
secure website. Please Register if not already done so.
Retain this newsletter for help during registration. Click
'Register' and Click 'Help' adjacent to the DevoteeID field
to obtain DevoteeID.
ARUPADAIVEEDU THIRUVIZHA
Celebrate Palani Peruvizha and Thaippoosam on Saturday,
January 18, 2014. Please consult the MTNA 2014
Calendar or call the manager for more details.
Sponsors welcome !
OUR GRATITUDE
The MTNA management wishes to extend its
warmest and most sincere gratitude to all devotees and
contributors. We would like to thank all the dance
teachers and students for the various programs (see
articles by Dr. Sridharan Iyengar and Sivakumar Kareesan
in this issue) and Santhanalakshmi of Business India
Pages for help with design and printing of flyers for
various Temple events. We would also like to thank
Cycus technologies for its continued support of our
temple MTNA database. Thank you !
THAI POOSAM (JAN 16TH) AND
PAZHANI PERIVIZHA (JAN 18TH)
Please join us for the grand Thai Poosam and Palani Peruvizha celebrations on Jan 16th and Jan 18th. Please see the Temple calendar for more details.
MAHA SIVARATHRIFEB 27TH
Maha Sivarathri is the
most auspicious occasion for
Lord Siva. Fasting all day and
keeping vigil all night while
meditating on Lord Siva can rid us of all the sins. The
Murugan Temple will celebrate Maha Sivarathri on Feb
27th28th with 4 Jama Pujas starting with Ganapathi and
Kalasa Puja at 07:30PM and first Jama Puja at 08:00PM.
Each Jama Puja will include special Abhishekams,
Alankarams and singing of various hymns to Lord Siva.
Please join us for the grand celebrations.
PANGUNI UTTIRAM AND THIRUPPARANKUNDRAM
MANAVIZHA - MARCH 16TH
The Temple will celebrate Panguni Uttiram on a grand
scale with special Abhishekams and Alankarams to Lord
Murugan. Please see the MTNA calendar for more
details.
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TEMPLE SERVICES: Please call the Temple Manager
at 301 552-4889 to make prior arrangements for
ceremonies at the Temple or in your home.
Also, ask for information about local hotels.
TEMPLE HOURS: Monday Friday 9 am 12 noon
& 5 pm - 9 pm; Saturday, Sunday, & Holidays 9 am 9
pm.
AUDITORIUM: The Temples auditorium capable of
seating about 200 people in the basement is available for
rent by Devotees. The Temple has also ample parking
space. Call the Temple Manager at 301 552-4889 for
reservations.
DIRECTIONS TO MURUGAN TEMPLE: From I-95
(also 495, Capital Beltway), take exit 20-A, Lanham (Rte
450 East), then follow the signs to Princess Garden
Parkway. Turn right on Princess Garden Parkway.
Murugan Temple is on your left within half a mile (6300
Princess Garden Parkway).
From Baltimore-Washington Parkway take Exit to Rt. 193
East Greenbelt Road. Turn left on Greenbelt Road. Turn
right on Hanover Parkway, which becomes Princess
Garden Parkway. Drive about 2.5 miles. The temple will be
on your right.
The Murugan Temple of North America is a traditional Hindu
Temple. It has a floor area of 7000 sq. ft with main sannidhi for
Murugan (Karthikeya) and 5 sannidhis for Vinayaka (Ganesha),
Durgai Amman, Siva, Meenakshi Amman and Palani Andavar.
We also have an auditorium that is available for community use.
Non Profit Org.
U.S. Postage
PAID
So. MD
Permit No. 3958
Murugan Temple of North America
6300 Princess Garden Parkway
Lanham, MD 20706, USA
CHANGE SERVICE REQUESTED