THE BHARATIYA TEMPLE QUARTERLY

FALL 2009 • © Copyright 2009 The Bharatiya Temple of Metropolitan Detroit. All Rights Reserved.

INSIDE: Creation and Evolution: Part 2 • Remembering Our Ancestors • Temples of South India

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WHAT YOU NEED TO DO?

Talk to your physician and/or social worker to call our number (below) and make a referral.

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Nursing, Physical Therapists, Occupational Therapists, Speech Therapists, Social Workers,

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WE COVER THE METRO-DETROIT (TRI-COUNTRY AREA) Ph: (800) 698-5410 – Fax (248) 569-5412

Owned and Operated by the Walvekar Family

20245 W. 12 Mile Road, Ste. 100, Southfield, MI 48076.

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LAKES AREA MONTESSORI 8605 Richardson Rd.

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BLOOMFIELD MAPLES

MONTESSORI 6201 W. Maple Rd. (W. of Farmington)

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Best Wishes From Suresh and Usha Mangrulkar MONTESSORI SCHOOLS

Education for Life – Preparing Students for a Global Economy www.MImontessori.com

Call Usha @ (248) 737-9516

PROGRAMS: Toddler Preschool & KG Elementary Program (Grades 1-5) AGES: For 18 months - 11 years

HOURS: 9 AM-3 PM/7 AM-6 PM available

Year Round Programs - Plus - Summer Camp

A Strong Academic Montessori Curriculum with Flexible Schedules & Nurturing Daycare

Chetana

FALL 2009

© Copyright 2009 The Bharatiya Temple of Metropolitan Detroit. All Rights Reserved.

19.

4 | News Briefs SEVA members interviewed on TV • Youth Camp celebrates Freedom Fighters • Library upgrade

6 | Where Children ‘Love Learning’ Parents praise the Temple’s Gurukul Montessori

7 | The First Thought Creation and evolution reconciled

11 | The Temples of South India

14 | Signs of Progress Construction of the new temple resumes

15 | Grandpa’s Wishes Memories of ‘shradh’ day

17 | The Pursuit of Happiness The Gita guide to bliss

19 | Our Temple in the Year 2039 A hard look at the membership numbers

Thank you to our advertisersComerica Bank, BNA Construction, Amber Apartments, Central Home Health Care, Dr. R. Rajaraman, Lotus Bank, Flash Printing, Bloomfield Maples Montessori/Lakes Area Montessori

CHETANA • Fall 2009The Bharatiya Temple | 6850 N. Adams, Troy, MI 48098Publications Committee Chair | Anand VaradarajanEditor | Krishnan M. AnantharamanPrinting | Flash Printing, Royal Oak, Mich.

Cover: Temple priest Sri Ramakrishna Bhatji during Diwali weekend. Above, devotees view the Annakoot offerings.

Photos by Krishnan Anantharaman

newsSEVA Committee MembersInterviewed on TV

Two of the temple’s SEVA Committee members, Dr. Bindu Suresh and Mr. Lalit Sethi, were interviewed by WXYZ-TV, Channel 7, about the committee’s Basic Health Care Service program. The program is intended to provide free or reduced care to patients who are uninsured and struggling during the current economic downturn.

You can watch the coverage at http://bit.ly/WXYZSeva.

After the coverage on WXYZ-TV on Sept. 2, SEVA received dozens of calls from patients, and it has been working hard to manage the overwhelming requests for basic medical care help.

Please contact your physician and dentist friends who have independent practices and clinics to join in the noble cause in helping the needy. The model for help is simple: two patients per clinic per month.

Please contact the SEVA hotline at (248) 341-3727 for more details. \

—Madan Kaura

Youth Camp CelebratesIndian Freedom Fighters

Another summer, another successful Balbharati Youth Camp!

The Balbharati Youth Camp is an overnight camp that is held in the beginning of August at the temple for children ages 6 to 13. This year’s camp theme was influential Indian freedom fighters. Each camper researched his or her team’s designated freedom fighter. Each group used all the information that was collected to make group posters to present what they’ve learned with everyone.

In addition to poster-making, campers participated in many other Youth Camp traditions. Such activities included: making s’mores on the campfire, sculpting

clay idols, singing the unforgettable camp song, and creating picture frames for group pictures. The biggest event was the talent show. This year’s camp teams were quite creative in their talent show ideas, which ranged from enthusiastic dances to joke-telling bits to even some game show skits.

Finally, some new activities were available for campers. Each camper was given the option to make beaded jewelry, a light-up “om” and “Ganesha” poster, and design pooja thalis. We also played a new game— Sher Bakri—which was a hit with all the kids.

We really enjoyed meeting and having fun with all the energetic campers. We hope to see all the campers (and new faces too) next year! \

—Snigdha Paruchuri

Library UpgradeThe Library Committee thanks patrons for their

patience during the upgrade of the catalog system and the transition to a new computer that works with the system. \

Upcoming eventsThu Nov 26 Maha Satyanarayan PujaSat Nov 28 Gita JayantiSun Nov 29 Gita Havan

Wed Dec 2 Satyanarayan PujaSun Dec 20 Lakshmi Sahsranama HavanThu Dec 31 Satyanaryan Puja

Fri Jan 1, 2010 New Year’s Day CelebrationTue Jan 12 Vivekananda JayantiThu Jan 14 Makara SankrantiSat Jan 16 Vivekananda Jayanti CelebrationsSun Jan 17 Shanti HavanTue Jan 26 Bhishma EkadasiSat Jan 30 Satyanarayan Puja

Page 4 • Fall 2009

“Where Tomorrow’s Leaders are Nurtured”

At Gurukul Montessori Academy, we adhere to the basic principles of Montessori: integrity, respect, and peace. We nurture every child’s natural love of learning and inspire each one to achieve academic excellence. Lead-ership, independence, and confidence are inculcated within the parameters of Hindu culture. Religious awareness is integrated into the fabric of daily activities at Gurukul.

Full and half day Montessori programs for children 2 1/2 years to 6 years of age with before and after care Experienced and dedicated staff to nurture and accommodate every child’s learning style and ability Individualized attention to encourage a positive learning experience for all children Emphasis on “The Whole Child” Afterschool enrichment programs available for Yoga/P.E., Indian dancing, and Indian music.

Gurukul Montessori Academy at The Bharatiya Temple

6850 N. Adams Rd. Troy, MI 48098 gurukul.bt@gmail.com

Ph: (248)-879-1921 Fax: (248)-879-2094 WWW.GURUKULTROY.ORG

PRACTICAL LIFE: Care of self (washing hands, using the bathroom, dressing self, etc.), and care of environment

PHYSICAL: (Large Motor and Fine Motor Control) Non-locomotion, locomotion, control of body, walking in a line, wheel toys, ball control, swinging, puzzles

SENSORIAL: Enhance and fine-tune all five senses in preparation for cognitive learning

SOCIAL: Recalling events, sense of history, distinguishing/identifying symbols of home, school, and community, sense of self in family and community, and grace and courtesy

MATH: Numerical recognition and quantity association ,Rote counting to 100, math operations of addition, multi-plication, division and subtraction, introduction to fractions, time and money

SCIENCE: Living and non-living, plant/animal classification, care of plants and animals, climate and weather, recy-cling, simple science experiments

GEOGRAPHY: Representation of elements, understanding maps, land forms, directionality, and concept of time

LANGUAGE: Verbal communication, phonetic sequences for all letters of the alphabet, develop reading and com-prehension skills and handwriting (print)

ART: Exploring with markers, crayons, colored pencils, paint, etc., using scissors, paste and glue, hole punchers, and staplers, weaving, and sculpting, and vocal and instrumental music

Gurukul Montessori Academy is now in its third academic year, and has established itself as an inte-gral part of the Bharatiya Temple. Every weekday, the temple’s lower floor is now alive with the power of learning and the laughter of children.

As with any new venture, Gurukul has required considerable investment, adjustments and sacrifices on the part of the community. But to listen to the par-ents of the students is to know that the return on that investment has been invaluable.

Here is what they are saying:

My son is in his second year of preschool at Guru-kul Montessori. School is very academically focused and disciplined. The school has a very good staff, and we have open interaction with our son’s teachers and the principal. I have seen a large improvement in my son’s growth academically, as he started reading books, doing math and also learning geography. I am happy with his progress that he made and I highly recommend the School.

—Venkatesh Shetty

“Gurukul” has truly been a blessing to the Indian community of Metro Detroit. This is my son’s second year here, and I think he has learnt a lot academi-cally and religiously. I would like to give credit to the patience and nurturing environment of this “Temple of education.” Thanks to everyone who is involved with this novel venture.

—Bhavna Kumar

We are very pleased to choose Gurukul Montes-sori for our daughter Lalitha.

I find your quality of education excellent. I sent my son to Acadia Montessori, and the standards are on par with each other.

Moreover, Gurukul offers something new that I have not known during the kindergarten years of my

son. The mix of rich Indian culture with Montessori education is awesome and unique.

The knowledge and friendliness of the staff are quite admirable.

The tuition fee is reasonable, making your school an affordable choice for parents looking for Montes-sori education.

Thank you for making it a great place of educa-tion for our children to learn and grow.

—Padmaja Akella

I have heard great praises about the Montessori method, but in fact I knew nothing about it. As a former public school elementary teacher, I was only familiar with traditional, play-based preschools.

My husband and I were looking for a pre-K pro-gram that was not only academically sound but that could provide my daughter a place to reinforce her cultural roots and support her spiritual and emo-tional development.

Thank goodness we found our answer at Gurukul Montessori Academy.

What I admire about Gurukul is that children learn through all five senses and not through rote memorization; the children work with indepen-dence, confidence and are creative and love learning. My daughter loves using the Montessori materials because she is able to use concrete tools to learn highly abstract concepts. At Kindergarten level, she has made tremendous growth in reading and math.

I believe the Montessori approach is highly effec-tive in teaching math and reading because it is based on hands-on activities leading to deeper understand-ing compared with other traditional pre-schools or Kindergarten curriculum which usually means filling out boring workbooks and tedious memorization. We highly recommend Gurukul and its staff—thank you for enriching our daughter’s life.

—Kimberly Baxi

Where Children‘Love Learning’Parents praise the Temple’s Gurukul Montessori

Page 6 • Fall 2009

The First Thought

By Balarama murty Vempaty

There was a nice article published recently in The Wall Street Journal entitled “Man vs. God.” In it, Richard Dawkins says, “Evolution has indeed

dealt a blow to the idea of a benign creator, literally conceived. It tells us that there is no intelligence controlling the universe and that the life

itself is the result of a blind process of natural selection.”

Countering this argument, Karen Armstrong writes: “Despite our scientific and technological brilliance, our understanding of God is

often remarkably undeveloped—even primitive.”

The debate goes on.

Sanatana Dharma, on the other hand, has a clear understanding of creation by God and evolution thereafter under the influence of nature.

In Part 1 of this piece, published in the Summer 2009 issue of Chetana, we looked at creation by quoting several Suktas from Rig Veda, starting from Nasadiya Suktam. In this second part, we

try to understand the origin of the material world, starting from the first thought of becoming many, as narrated in Taittireya Upanishad. Continued on the next page

Creation and evolution reconciled

Fall 2009 • Page 7Phot

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Translated and summarized, it says: “He desired may I be many, may I be born. He performed austerities. Having performed austerities, He created all this—whatever there is. Having created all this, He entered into it. Having entered into it, He became both the manifested and the unmanifested, both the defined and undefined, both the supported and unsupported, both the intelligent and the nonintelligent, both the real and the unreal.”

The ancient Rishis who proclaimed some of these truths were able to do so by meditating on the “Absolute Reality” with perfectly clear intellect. These are called the revelations. We know from practical experience that for anything to be made we need three things: the desire, the intelligence, and the material and tools. In Sanskrit, these are known as as Iccha Shakti, Jnana Shakti and Kriya Shakti. Before a beautiful painting is made by painter, first he experiences the desire to create. Then comes the conceptualization and the picture of the object in the mind in a subtle form, which can be called the intelligent cause. When the artist sits down with proper help from other materials in front of the canvas, he is able to draw the picture as it was in his mind, subject to the limitations of the materials and tools at hand.

This last step is called by many names: “taking shape,” “evolving,” or “materializing.” From this simple example, it becomes clear that everything first arises of a thought (desire) and then takes shape in the mind as a subtle object; the last step is materialization or manifestation.

If we now combine the statement from the Upanishad above and the simple example of the painter, it becomes very clear that there is a God (the originator of the thought “Let me be many”); Hiranyagarbha, the sum total of all intelligence; and the last step, embodiment of the physical entity, also known as material cause with the help of Nature. This is the essence of the message from many of the

Upanishads, told differently to appeal to different people. Because of this clear demarcation between creation and evolution, Santana Dharma has no difficulty in explaining why good and bad exist if they are all created by the benevolent God, by the understanding that God is the creator of only the fundamental principles necessary for creation, sustenance and dissolution. Under these laws, nature evolves in time and space. What evolves has flaws depending the quality of the materials, tools and the maker. These evolved things do not affect the God and his principles, which are eternal and free of any blemish.

Most of the debate over creation and evolution takes place based on the Abrahamic religions (Christianity, Judaism and Islam) whose faith

revolves around the fact the God created Man in his image, which leads to several contradictions in explaining the good and bad.

The God in Sanatana Dharma has nothing to do with attributes of good and bad and is known as Brahman. Brahman in the Upanishads has been defined as Satyam Jnanam Anantam Brahma or Sat Chit Ananda, who has no attributes and cannot be comprehended in words. Also when He takes the role of a creator, Hiranyagarbha, He is the sum total of all intelligence there is. This is in total contradiction to the scientific-evolution theory that rejects the any intelligent cause behind creation.

Let us dig in a little deeper into the process of creation. As mentioned above, the first step in this process is the subtle picture in the mind. If we assume there is a cosmic mind, this whole universe with all the principles necessary to create physical objects then exists in that cosmic mind and is known by the name Hiranyagarbha. Let us see the sequence in which this creation is accomplished by going back

Page 8 • Fall 2009

continued from the previous page

CreatION

Santana Dharma has no difficulty in explaining why good and bad exist if they are all created by the benevolent God, by the understanding that God is the creator of only the fundamental principles necessary for creation, sustenance and dissolution.

to Taittireya Upanishad:

The top two lines define the Brhaman as Satyam Jnanam Anantam. The last two lines deal with the creation process also known as Srishti Krama. “From the Brahman was born akasa; from akasa, air; from air, fire; from fire, water; from water, earth.” Later on, it is mentioned that “from earth, herbs; from herbs, food; from food, man.” Let us not lose our focus that these are all still in the mind of Hiranyagarbha, meaning in subtle form and only as principles. Making use of these principles Prakriti (Nature) materializes or participates in the evolution of the gross physical objects (moving and nonmoving, animal kingdom and human kingdom etc.).

We can now apply our scientific thinking and understand this statement further. The materialists believe that everything came from a natural selection process starting from the atom. If you take the atom, they say it has a nucleus and some electrons going around in orbits at the velocity of light. We know for a fact that to move anything we need space. Hence the principle of creating space is the first one. In fact this concept of space is a unique revelation found in no other religions except in Sanatana Dharma. There is a Temple in Chidambaram,Tamil Nadu where Space is the Deity. It is known as Chidambara Rahasyam (Secret of Chidambaram). This Principle of Space has the attribute of creating sound. As such, the belief is that sound is the first principle of creation, that is, Om. Space facilitates the movement and hence the creation of air. In air, particles can vibrate or move. Once the principle of vibration in space is established, that gives rise to the next subtle element, light (Agni). Now one can see how logical it is that first we have Space and then Air that gives rise to Light, then water and earth to follow.

Space has the quality of sound; air has the quality of touch; light has the quality of Vision; water has the quality of taste and the Earth has the quality of smell. Let us not forget that the starting point for all this is the thought “Let Me be Many,” of that attributeless Brahman who is pure Consciousness (So kamayata. Bahusyam prajayeyeti).

In short, science and evolution theory start from the gross objects and try to understand the origin and the laws governing their creation, sustenance and dissolution, whereas Sanatana Dharma starts

from the fundamental principle of knowledge and consciousness and proclaims how creation takes place in the presence of that Cosmic Mind, and evolution follows to materialize the objects of creation with the help of Prakriti (Nature). Prakriti brings three forces, Iccha Sakti (will power), Jnana Sakti (knowledge power) and Kriya Sakti (work power) to the table to achieve the evolution based on the creation principles in the presence of the Consciousness.

These are also sometimes referred to as Gunas: Sattva, Rajas and Tamas. There is a whole a chapter devoted to the description of these three gunas in Bhagavad Gita under the title “Guna triya vibhaga yoga.” Refer to this chapter for elaboration given by God himself to Arjuna.

For a human being to materialize, three things are essential: 1. Causal Body or Karana Sareera, which is the bundle of all Vasanas from the previous birth; 2. a subtle body shown below that has all the principles for birth, and 3. the parents, who are the physical bodies to materialize a child. The third requisite is all too well known, the process of evolution, which is subjected to blemishes depending on the Vasanas of previous birth, imperfect materials and limitations of the tools.

In summary the fundamental principles of creation and evolution according to Sanatana Dharma are:

Fundamental matter is beginningless—Material Cause

Fundamental Consciousnesss is beginningless—Intellegent Cause

Creation is nothing but Eternal Laws from the Creator (Brahman)

Karana Sareera and Karana Srishti are Anadi and undergo Unmanifest and Manifest Cycles. (Also known as Samsara or cycles of birth and death)

Evolution is nothing but Prakriti undergoing modifications and through various stages to become Manifest Universe under the Eternal Laws created by Brahman

In and through all these processes, Brahman remains as witness, but without His presence, Prakriti can do nothing. The Sun is a typical example of this, without whose presence there is no material activity on Earth. But the Sun is not responsible for what evolves in his presence: good, bad, ugly or beautiful.

Some of the relevant slokas from Vedanta Pachadasi, translated in English (Courtesy of Google), are given below to understand the definition of different terms used in this article.

Fall 2009 • Page 9

continued on the next page

Shloka 15. Prakriti (i.e. primordial substance) is that in which there is the reflection of Brahman, that is pure consciousness and bliss and is composed of sattva, rajas and tamas (in a state of homogeneity). It is of two kinds.

16. When the element of sattva is pure, Prakriti is known as Maya; when impure (being mixed up with rajas and tamas) it is called Avidya. Brahman, reflected in Maya, is known as the omniscient Isvara, who controls Maya.

17. But the other (i.e. the Jiva, which is Brahman reflected in Avidya) is subjected to Avidya (impure sattva). The Jiva is of different grades due to (degrees of) admixture (of rajas and tamas with sattva). The Avidya (nescience) is the causal body. When the Jiva identifies himself with this causal body he is called Prajna.

18. At the command of Isvara (and) for the experience of Prajna the five subtle elements, ether, air, fire, water and earth, arose from the part of Prakriti in which tamas predominates.

19. From the sattva part of the five subtle elements of Prakriti arose in turn the five subtle sensory organs of hearing, touch, sight, taste and smell.

20. From a combination of them all (i.e. sattva portions of the five subtle elements) arose the organ of inner conception called antahkarana. Due to difference of function it is divided into two. Manas (mind) is that aspect whose function is doubting and buddhi (intellect) is that whose functions are discrimination and determination.

21. From the rajas portion of the five elements arose in turn the organs of actions known as the organ of speech, the hands, the feet, and the organs of excretion and generation.

22. From a combination of them all (i.e. the rajas portions of the five subtle elements) arose the vital air (Prana). Again, due to difference of function it is divided into five. They are Prana, Apana, Samana, Udana and Vyana.

23. The five sensory organs, the five organs of action, the five vital airs, mind and intellect, all the seventeen together from the subtle body, which is called the Suksma or linga sarira.

24. By identifying himself with the subtle body (and thinking it to be his own), Prajna becomes known as Taijasa, and Isvara as Hiranyagarbha. Their difference is the one between the individual and the collective (i.e. one is identified with a single subtle

body and the other with the totality of subtle bodies).25. Isvara (as Hiranyagarbha) is called totality

because of his sense of identification with all the subtle bodies (of the universe). The other (the Taijasa) is called ‘individual” because it lacks this knowledge (and is conscious only of his self, being identified with his own subtle body).

26. To provide the Jivas with objects of enjoyment and make the bodies fit for such enjoyment, the all-powerful Isvara has made each of the (subtle) elements partake of the nature of all others.

27. Dividing each element into two equal halves and one half of each again into four (equal parts) the Lord mixed the subtle elements so that each gross element thus formed should contain one half of its own peculiar nature and one eighth of that of each of the other four.

28. From these composite elements the cosmic egg arose, and from it evolved all the worlds as well as all the objects of experience and the bodies in which the experience take place. When Hiranyagarbha identifies himself with the totality of gross bodies he is known as Vaisvanara; when Taijasas do so with individual gross bodies (e.g.) of the devas, men or lower animals, they are known as Visvas.

33. The five sheaths of the Self are those of the food, the vital air, the mind, the intellect and bliss. Enveloped in them, it forgets its real nature and becomes subject to transmigration.

34. The gross body which is the product of the quintuplicated elements is known as the food sheath. That portion of the subtle body which is composed of the five vital airs and the five organs of action, and which is the effect of the rajas aspect of Prakriti is called the vital sheath.

35. The doubting mind and the five sensory organs, which are the effect of Sattva, make up the mind sheath. The determining intellect and the sensory organs make up the intellect sheath.

36. The impure Sattva which is in the causal body, along with joy and other Vrittis (mental modifications), is called the bliss sheath. Due to identification with the different sheaths, the Self assumes their respective natures. \

This article was adapted from a Sunday lecture delivered by Balarama Murty Vempaty at the Bharatiya Temple in March 2009.

continued from the previous page

CreatION

Page 10 • Fall 2009

The TemplesOf South India

TempleS, abOdeS Of The GOdS are ubiquitous throughout India, with dis-tinctive styles and pat-terns influenced by

the region’s culture, climate and calamities.

Foreign invasion had a devastating influence on the fate of temples in North India, while the South was somewhat s h e l t e r e d . Over the e o n s , t h e

by R.RajaRaman

continued on the next page

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temples have evolved from the abode of the Lord and a place of worship into places of social interaction with extreme cultural and economic overtones.

This article mainly deals with the Temples of the Tamil country, without any bias against other artisti-cally, culturally and religiously rich places of worship elsewhere in India or abroad.

The unique features of the South Indian temple are the antiquity, the large corpus of rich religious litera-ture associated with them and the spellbinding art as-sociated with them.

They are centers of wealth, power and focal points of communal interaction.

We learn about these ancient temples mainly through Tamil literature and the stone and copper en-graving of that time.

evolution of South Indian temple. Even though the Dravidian building style and techniques have been found in the Mohanjadaro and Harappan structures, leading the researchers to surmise the movement of Dravidians southward, the temple as we know it today did not exist then.

Even though the earlier buildings were built with clay, wood and bricks, which were destroyed by the ravages of time and climate, it was from the ninth cen-tury that we started to see the stone structures which rapidly by the end of the century became prolific and sophisticated. The Pallava kings at this time started building temples carved out of solid granite rocks and stone temples without mortar like those seen in Kancheepuram Kailasanathar temple.

The Mahabalipuram temple complex stands testi-mony to the rock carving skill of the artisans of the Pallava period. Similar efforts were undertaken by the Pandya kings in the southern region also. The Chola dynasty produced innumerable gems of south Indian temple architecture like the Tanjore Brahadeeswarar temple, which is a monumental masterpiece of temple building art.

The patronage of religious architecture came to an abrupt stop with invasion by the Delhi Sultans, but soon the Vijayanagara dynasty took over and the temple building activity was redoubled with their systematic efforts of temple repair and rebuilding. The deities were reinstalled and massive gopurams were constructed. The Nayakas who were appointed as governors by the Vijayanagara kings later become independent rulers and contributed immensely to the

temple building and art of Tamil Nadu. The later ar-rival of the Maratha and Mogul invaders reduced the royal patronage. Lesser rulers from Ramanathapuram, Pudukottai and Thirunelveli continued their efforts in a smaller scale, and by the 18th century, with advent of the British rule, it came to a screeching halt. The sponsorship of the kings and emperors vanished.

In modern times, most of the temples are under the support of the Hindu religious endowment minis-try of the state government. Some of the masterpieces of art are under the care of the Archeological Society of India.

A few others are run by religious mutts and by the communities like the Nagaratthaars.

The Town, Temple and Trade. The South Indian temples were established in areas of interest to the livelihood of the people, like the riverbanks, mountain tops and locations of legendary and mythical impor-

tance. The town grew around the temple precinct in a concentric pattern, as seen in Madurai and Srirangam. The religious activity and the festivals and proces-sions characteristic of the South Indian temple culture nurtured many trades to flourish in the region. Most temple towns have established a reputation as com-mercial hubs and centers.

God is the same; different are the ways of wor-ship. Over the centuries, the methods of temple wor-ship have evolved in to a pattern that has been system-atized into a fairly rigid code by the development of the Saivite and Vaishnavite agamas of rituals. This has developed a character of its own for the South Indian temple, which is fairly rigidly followed in most places.

Here are some of the characters that mark the South Indian temple:

The main and other deities are made of black granite and kept inside a smaller enclosure called the

continued from the previous page

TempleS

The unique features of the South Indian temple are the antiquity, the large corpus of rich religious literature associated with them and the spellbinding art associated with them. They are centers of wealth, power and focal points of communal interaction.

Page 12 • Fall 2009

Garbagraha. Only the designated priests with proper training and purity are allowed inside this sactum to touch or perform the rites. Public are not allowed to touch or offer puja to the main deity themselves.

A distinct bathing ceremony called Abhishekam is conducted to the main deity using different pure and auspicious materials like milk, honey, ghee etc. before decorating the Lord or Goddess.

To facilitate the visibility to the public only oil lamps are lit and camphor is burnt to show the deco-rated deity.

Auspicious items like the Vibhuthi (Bhasmam) and Kumkum offered to the deity are distributed to the public for wearing them on the forehead.

Inner and outer prakarams are part of the archi-tecture to enable people to walk around the sanctum and around the temple in a clockwise fashion known as pradhakshinam.

Annadhaanam, though highly recommended, is rarely practiced in Tamil Nadu temples. The temples in Karnataka have been found to excel in this charity.

Sthala Vriksha, or the Temple tree, is worshipped as equal to the main deity.

The water tank (Thirtha) outside or inside the temple precincts provides the water used for religious ablutions and remains a key water management tool for the town.

The elaborately decorated bronze idols of the Gods and Goddesses were taken in a festive procession with vedic chanting and religious music around the streets surrounding the temple to enable old and disables to view and pray to the lord. These processions take place on days of religious importance in the Hindu cal-endar and to the temple.

Festivals and fairs are conducted inside and outside the temple walls lasting for several days. They are of religious, cultural, social and commercial importance to the entire area and bring people from far and wide and promoted tourism too.

Kumbabhishekam, conducted every 12 years, is a process of cleaning and renovation for the temple which has preserved the rich heritage and art over the generations.

literature. Temples of Tamil Nadu and the rich Tamil literature have mutually benefited by enriching each other over the eons. The saint-bards of yester-year of Saivite and Vaishnavite persuasions have sung a large corpus of very rich Tamil poetry in praise of the Lords of these temples throughout the Tamil coun-try and beyond. This corpus of Tamil classical poetry is the quintessence of bhakti and the sourcebook of what is known as Carnatic Music today.

architecture. A satisfactory discussion of the art and architecture of the South Indian temple is certain-ly beyond the scope of this article. Ravages of time, war, natural forces and above all, human nature has changed it in constructive and very destructive ways also.

The enormous potential of the human will is evi-dent in all these temples in their massive size and very intricate and artistic carvings, clearly evidenced in Hoysala architecture and many temples like the one in Madurai.

Support. A multifaceted enterprise like the temple cannot survive without the support of the people. In ancient times they were supported directly by the kings and landlords. They donated property and land-masses for the building, maintenance and daily rituals of these temples. This is evidenced by the maintenance of unbroken daily rituals and rites for thousands of years in some these temples. History will stand testi-mony to the extraordinary efforts taken by some of the forgotten heros who even gave their lives to protect the main deity and perform daily worships even in the face of war and invasion by elements unfriendly to our way of life.

Hence it is our duty to protect, preserve and pass on the tradition to our next generation. \

COnTRIbuTInG TO CheTanaChetana welcomes your articles, news items,

essays, short stories, photographs, letters and poems. To maximize the chances of publication, please follow these guidelines:

• All submissions to Chetana must be the original work of the contributor. Adaptations of previously published works must be identified as such, with appropriate credit given to the original source.

• Choose themes that relate to Indian or Hindu culture, philosophy, traditions and values, or involve the local Indian-American community.

• Choose topics and a writing style that are sharply focused and likely to appeal to a broad range of Chetana readers.

• Be mindful of the reader’s attention span and time constraints. Limit articles to 1,500 words.

• Consider consulting with the editor for guidance before submitting an article.

• Please submit articles in electronic form—on disk or by e-mail—not on paper. Disks may be left in the Communications Committee mailbox in the temple office. E-mail submissions to chetanamail@yahoo.com. No handwritten manuscripts, please. \

Fall 2009 • Page 13

Signs of progress

After a long, but ultimately productive pause, construction on the new temple resumed this summer with the start of Phase 2.

During the break, the Long-Range Planning Committee was hard at work on value-engineering and modifying the original construction drawings to contain costs while remaining true to the original vision of an authentic Hindu temple.

Phase 2 reflects a more modest, and practical design than originally envisioned. The new building is expected to be open in September 2010, less than a year from now. The lead contractor is Frank Rewold & Sons of Rochester Hills. \

Page 14 • Fall 2009

October 2009

November 2009

BY shuBha kolachalam

Once everY Year, all of my father’s brothers, their single sister and their respective families got together to remember my grandfather, who had passed a long time ago. It was my

grandfather’s dear wish to honor his passing by getting all his children and grandchildren together in one place.

So it became a custom to celebrate his wish, the only quirk being that my grandmother, the holy, Brahmin lady that she was (bless her heart), insisted that it be celebrated on his official shradh day every year. So it was established that on a particular day every year, according to the Hindu lunar calendar, that this pious but often cumbersome ceremony take place.

It would be normal to think that this kind of ceremony, with all its orthodox Brahmin ritual, is difficult to perform in Detroit, being as it is in a foreign land. But performing this ceremony in Delhi did not make it any less challenging, given the absolute rules that this ritual demanded.

In a lot of ways it was good, because it took the effort of every adult member of the family to put the ritual together, like looking for the priests and all the special ingredients necessary for the main ceremony.

Looking for the priest was the single most difficult task, as only very few priests performed this ceremony even in Andhra. In Delhi, these priests were almost nonexistent and so very difficult to find. We were lucky to find the same priest two years in a row, as they were all “booked up” by the time we found the day that was supposed to be the most appropriate one according to the panchangam or the particular calendar.

Ingredients necessary to perform this kind of ceremony were also quite rare. So finding them was another one of those treasure hunts. Needless to say, it caused a lot of stress for my mother and her sisters-in-law.

Every year, by turn, my dad and his brothers held

the ceremony in their respective homes, as they all lived in various parts of Delhi. I remember when it was my Dad’s turn. My mom got nervous weeks in advance, not only by the sheer number of people who had to be fed the supremely “madi” food that was mandatory per my grandma’s rules, but also because there always seemed to be some item in all the items that the priest wanted that went missing.

Of course getting a cow to come and eat was another issue.

So the whole household went into a frenzy.

Grandpa’s WishMemories of ‘shradh’ day, when women cooked, children giggled, and families came together to honor an ancestor

Fall 2009 • Page 15

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A Week Before the actual ceremonY, all the big cooking vessels had to be brought down from the cellar and washed. Typically, the maid

complained about the huge size of those dishes, so my mom washed them herself.

Then there was a mile-long list of items that needed to be brought from the store and some of them were not always available in stores where we lived. So my mom made a trip to Carol Bagh, where the only South Indian stores were. There she bought all the items needed and countless big banana leaves, since everyone was supposed to eat only in those.

Grandma did not allow any cooks into the kitchen, as she was not sure if they were as pure a Brahmin as us. So the four daughters-in-law had to wear the religious “madi” saris and start cooking at four in the morning on two gas ranges and kerosene stoves. One aunt was in charge of chopping veggies, while another was for in charge of providing the all important “madi” water for cooking, which was supposed to be touched only by these four ladies.

Oh it was a sight! If any of them had to use the bathroom, they’d have to take a bath all over again and wear another fresh “madi” sari. There were numerous varities of food to be cooked, but no onion, garlic or asafetida were allowed. Payasam, perugu vadas, and so many different kinds of foods that I am surprised they were all ready by 1 p.m. when the priest and his assistant had to be fed.

It was fun for us kids. We all basically were on our own as uncles and dad were in the puja and aunts and mom were in the kitchen. We got to take care of the younger cousins and tell jokes and talk about movies with our same-age cousins. It was hilarious when, due to hunger, we would try to send one of the younger cousins to go grab something to eat from the kitchen. But no one ever got a chance, as none of the people who did not observe the “madi” were allowed anywhere near the kitchen. Just crying babies got milk that was left on the outside ledge, and we picked it up to feed the babies.

Oh! It was another world and another time. “Madi,” or “Madugu,” as my mother in law said it, was basically designed I think in ancient Hindu, mostly Brahmin families for hygiene and to basically keep the person cooking the meals from touching anything and anyone else from touching the person cooking the meal. It was what my grandma believed in firmly and in fact whenever she lived with us.

For a few months, we were not allowed to keep

anything in the refrigerator that had any onions in it. Not supposed to touch rice and touch any other object until we washed our hand. Ghee could only be handled by my grandma. So basically we just had to keep milk/yogurt and veggies in the fridge. Forget eggs: Even some veggies were not considered appropriate.

Anyways, coming back to the ceremony, so after finally completing the ceremony the priest would be fed with a lot of zeal, the sentiment being that Grandfather would be appeased if a priest was fed to his heart’s content on his special day. So we waited and waited with hungry stomachs for the priests to finish and for the adults to find a cow to feed also.

Once the priests ate, it was usually the kids’ turn to eat. Usually, this is where we got in trouble with an elderly aunt Durga, who was my dad’s cousin and who

insisted on serving the kids.We were quite afraid of her temper, so we

would all eat quietly every morsel of the food she put on our banana leaf. All of us cousins, about 18 of us, sat in neat rows of two facing each other on the floor with banana leaves and glasses of water in front of us. None of us was ever allowed to say, “I don’t like this,” or “Don’t give me that” or “I like that, give me more.” Such was her control over us all.

But every once in a while, something she said would send a ripple of giggles among us cousins and we would be trying to hide it, especially when she would say, “Eat every single grain of rice and all, or else I will smear the leftovers on your head… .” I remember having a strange visual image of sticky rice in my hair, and strangely that comment made us all squeal with giggles and it would go downhill from there as we would get more and more giggly, and she would get more and more frustrated at losing control over us.

In all fairness, we were a very well-behaved bunch of kids, who were occasionally given to fits of laughter. One time, while we were all trying to stop from laughing over something Durga atta had said, one of

Page 16 • Fall 2009

shraDhcontinued from the previous page

It was hilarious when, due to hunger, we would try to send one of the younger cousins to go grab something to eat from the kitchen. But no one ever got a chance.

continued on Page 21

By PradeeP SrivaStava

EveryBody iS intereSted in “happi-ness”. Even the forefathers of our adopted nation have talked about the right to “life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.”

I have always been curious to find out what God, the final authority, has to say about hap-piness. Therefore, I looked into our beloved scripture, the Bhagavad Gita.Of course, when God talks about happiness, He talks about permanent, stable and lasting happi-ness, i.e., bliss, not tem-porary, transitory and evanescent happiness emanating from our sense organs.

A careful and thorough study of Bhagavad Gita has led me to arrive at the following conclusions, as far as “happiness” is concerned:

1. The wise do not grieve for or get de-luded about the living or the dead, because they un-derstand that just as man’s body changes from the day he is born to the day he dies because of diseases and the normal aging process, he acquires a new body after death, also (2.11, 2.13).

2. The wise identify with the soul, which is man’s true “Self,” instead of the body or the mind, and there-fore, they do not grieve when a person dies (2.25, 2.30).

3. Even if you identify with the body and the mind and believe that the embodied soul is subject to birth and death, you should not grieve, for what gets born always dies and what dies is always reborn (2.26, 2.27).

4. Happiness stems from peace, which, in turn, stems from a meditative, steady, tranquil, controlled, virtuous, self-satisfied, and pure mind that identi-

fies with the soul which in its unconditioned state is nothing but Brahman (2.66,

6.15, 6.20, 6.21, 6.22, 6.23, 6.27, 9.31).

5. The desirable state of mind, as described

in item 4, stems from a man who has faith

in God, is virtuous, contented, dili-gent, and reso-lute, has control over his desires and his organs, remains equi-poised in the pairs of oppo-

sites, such as cold and heat, happi-

ness and sorrow, and honor and dis-

honor, and performs selfless actions without

being attached to the results of his actions, offering them

devotedly to God (2.70, 2.71, 4.39, 4.40, 5.12, 5.29, 6.7, 6.22, 6.23, 12.12).

6. The wise do not delight in enjoyment resulting from contact with sense objects because this kind of enjoyment is transitory, impermanent and sorrowful (5.22, 8.15).

the Pursuit of HappinessThe Gita guide to bliss

Fall 2009 • Page 17

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THe SHlokaS of BHagavad gita referred to in the article, are as follows:

2.11 The Blessed Lord said—You have grieved for those that should not be grieved for; yet, you speak words of wisdom. The wise grieve neither for the living nor for the dead.

2.13 Just as in this body the embodied soul passes into child-hood, youth and old age, so also does he pass into another body; the firm man does not grieve at it.

2.25 This Self is said to be Unmanifest, Unthinkable and Un-changeable. Therefore, knowing This to be such, you should not grieve.

2.26 But even if you think of Him as being constantly born and constantly dying, even then, O mighty-armed, you should not grieve.

2.27 Indeed, certain is death for the born, and certain is birth for the dead; therefore, over the inevitable, you should not grieve.

2.30 This, the Indweller in the body of everyone is ever inde-structible, O Bharata; and therefore, you should not grieve for any creature.

2.66 There is no knowledge (of the Self) to the unsteady; and to the unsteady no meditation; and to the unmeditative no peace; to the peaceless, how can there be happiness?

2.70 He attains peace into whom all desires enter as waters en-ter the ocean, which, filled from all sides, remains unmoved; but not the “desirer of desires”.

2.71 That man attains peace who, abandoning all desires, moves about without longing, without the sense of “I-ness” and “My-ness”.

4.39 The man who is full of faith, who is de-voted to It, and who has subdued the senses, ob-tains this “knowledge”; and having obtained “Knowledge,” ere long he goes to the Supreme Peace.

4.40 The ignorant, the faithless, the doubt-ing-self goes to destruc-tion; there is neither this world, nor the other, nor happiness for the doubter.

5.12 The united one (the well-poised or the harmonized), having abandoned the fruit of action, attains Eternal Peace; the non-united (the unsteady or the un-balanced), impelled by desire and attached to the fruit, is bound.

5.22 The enjoyments that are born of contacts are only generators of pain, for they have a be-ginning and an end. O son of Kunti, the wise do not rejoice in them.

5.29 Knowing Me as Enjoyer of sacrifices and

austerities, the Great Lord of all worlds, the friend of all beings, he attains Peace.

6.7 The Supreme Self of him who is self-controlled and peace-ful, is balanced in cold and heat, pleasure and pain, as also in honor and dishonor.

6.15 Thus, always keeping the mind balanced, the Yogi, with his mind controlled, attains to the Peace abiding in Me, which culmi-nates in total liberation (Nirvana or Moksha).

6.20 When the mind, restrained by the practice of Yoga, attains quietude and when seeing the Self by the self, he is satisfied in his own Self;

6.21 When he (the Yogi) feels that Infinite Bliss, which can be grasped by the pure intellect and which transcends the senses; wherein established, he never moves from the Reality;

6.22 Which having obtained, he thinks there is no other gain superior to it; wherein established, he is not moved by even heavy sorrow.

6.23 Let it be known: the severance from the union-with-pain is Yoga. This Yoga should be practiced with determination and with a mind steady and undespairing.

6.27 Supreme Bliss verily comes to this Yogi, whose mind is quite peaceful, whose passion is quietened, who is free from sin, and who has become Brahman.

8.15 Having obtained Me, these Mahatmas (great souls) do not again take birth, which is the house of pain and is non-eternal, they having reached the Highest Perfection, Moksha.

9.31 Soon he becomes righteous and attains Eternal Peace, O Kaunteya, know for certain that My devotee is never destroyed.

12.12 “Knowledge” is, indeed, better than “practice”; “medi-tation” is better than “knowledge”; “renunciation of the fruits-of-actions” is better than “meditation”; peace immediately follows renunciation. \

Page 18 • Fall 2009

continued from the previous page

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Scene 1: Saturday, Sept 12 2009, Fund-raising dinner, Table #34.

It was an exciting evening: the master of ceremonies cheering up the distinguished gathering, guests making their pledges,

fund-raising organizers smiling and reading the names, pictures of the new Temple beaming on the big screens and, at table #34, the conversation had the feeling of meeting long lost friends.

In the midst of this cheer, I was riveted by a seem-ingly small detail on page 17 of the fundraising bro-chure. The membership revenue of the Bharatiya Temple has been steadily dropping! Per the printed data, year-to-date revenue for the eight months of 2009 was reported $60K, 22% less than 2008 and 47.4% less than 2006. The membership revenue is 47% less today than just three years ago!

Scene 2: Basement, intense search for past fund-raising brochures

I browsed the past brochures and looked up the membership revenues of the last ten years.

A graphic chart of the revenues revealed a pattern. The membership revenue peaked in 2006. There is a growth pattern from 1999 to 2006, and a loss pattern from 2006 to 2009. The table below shows that the loss is increasing year over year. I think the quick rise in 2002 and the subsequent fall in 2003 was a reac-tion to dues changing from $75 to $100 in 2002.

Year to Year % Change in Revenue2006 to 2007 -16.70%2007 to 2008 -18.90%2008 to Sept 2009 -22.08%2006 to Sept 09 -47.40%

If this is a trend, then what are the projections

for the future? Does this pose a challenge to the long term financial and operational health of the Temple?

Scene 3: a conversation: What is driving the

change? What comes next?Let’s talk about some factors that may be at play.Is there a spike in life memberships that is reduc-

ing the yearly membership revenue?In case there is a sharp increase in life member-

ships, that is a very good thing. But to get it right, the loss of yearly membership revenue has to be made

up from new memberships, so the revenue stream does not dry up. Equally important is having a good mix of newer (fewer years) and older (more years) members. Being heavy on older memberships is not desirable, because at some point in the future, the older members will exit, leaving behind a member-ship crisis.

The situation to be alert for is one in which life memberships are increasing but new memberships

Our TempleIn the year 2039A hard look at the membership numbersgives us something to think about

Fall 2009 • Page 19

continued on the next page

are not increasing (this brings less yearly revenue), and membership is super heavy with older members (clock ticking to membership crisis).

Is there a demographic shift in the Indo-amer-ican population that brings fewer new people to the Temple?

There was a time when Troy was the center for the Metro Detroit Indian-American population. But with globalization in the 1990s, global auto parts suppli-ers and IT companies set up businesses in Farmington Hills and Novi. The center of gravity of the growing Indian-American population has now shifted to the west of Telegraph Road, away from Adams Road.

Consider this: Asian-Americans make up 9% of Canton’s population of 84,000, according to the 2006 Census, a result of the influx of new Indian-Americans to the Metro Detroit area. Canton even elected an Indian-American to its City Council last year. Though comparable to Troy in size, Canton’s contribution to Temple membership is miniscule.

Is the membership affected by the choice the devotees have today for worshiping?

It is not a coincidence that growth in new popu-lation west of Telegraph Road has been followed by growth in new temples there also. And unlike the all-encompassing nature of the Bharatiya Temple, many new temples are being dedicated to specific deities worshiped by specific groups creating segmentation in devotees.

In the 1980s, a call to the community from 6850 N. Adams Road may have reverberated throughout Metro Detroit. Today a call to the community by any temple reverberates only within the temple’s circle of influ-ence which is increasingly characterized by its loca-tion, and the culture and associations of its devotees.

has the economic downturn affected the devo-tees?

The change in the fortunes of GM (Warren) and Chrysler (Auburn Hills) has adversely affected popu-lations in Troy and the surrounding area, and will continue to in the near future. Troy and the surround-ing cities are the key areas today in Temple’s circle of influence.

There may be more factors at play, but as the say-ing goes, let’s not miss the forest for the trees.

The environment is unlike anything in the past; the

external factors of demographics, economic downturn and the increase in the number of temples are totally outside of the Temple’s control; and none of them are in Temple’s favor.

So should it be a concern if the membership revenue is down in this environment? after all, it affects only a few thousand dollars!

But what if this is really the early sign of things to come: volunteer shortage, significant loss of operating income over years, lack of member donations? Thirty years after the founding of the Temple, members are driving the growth and members are financing the new projects. Thirty years from now, who will do that if the membership pipeline runs dry?

What will The Bharatiya Temple look like in the year 2039?

This conversation is really about looking out for the Temple’s future for the long term, and member-ship revenue is a good conversation starter. We know there is a “Long Range Planning Committee” tasked with the short-term goal of building the New Temple by next year. Then it is very likely that the LRPC will move on to the next short-term goal of completing the Banquet Hall, followed by the next short-term goal of completing the Community Center. That is to be expected because the LRPS is really a “Construction Committee.” That brings up an important question.

When short-term, million-dollar projects create long-term financial obligations, the short term cannot be separated from the long term. And the long-term financial obligations will have to be managed in the unfavorable external environment that will be with the Temple for some time.

So if the Long Range Planning Committee is not tasked with long-range planning, then how does the long-range planning happen? What does the long-term canvas look like, one that shows how everything, short-term and long-term, fits together in ensuring the long-term viability of the Temple in an increas-ingly unfavorable environment? \

continued from the previous page

2039

Page 20 • Fall 2009

our cousins, Padma, dropped a single lemon seed on the floor accidently. Our hawkeye aunt did not miss much. She immediately gave us all a lecture on how a good Brahmin girl is supposed to eat without dropping anything and told my cousin to pick up that seed.

We were all watching her, and there she was chasing a single seed of lemon with her wet index finger and thumb trying to pick the silly thing up from the floor, but it would keep slipping. As she chased her little seed, our aunt was getting more and more frustrated, and the seed was not in her hand still and it had reached the next person’s banana leaf. We just could not hold our giggles in anymore and started laughing! Our aunt told us all to get up and leave immediately. Fortunately, we were all done eating and were relieved to get out of there.

There were many more incidents, like when our four year old brother decided to get into the car and put it in gear and the car started rolling downhill,

while all the adults were busy and us kids were having our own fun. Fortunately, the driver, seeing the car moving with no one in it, ran after it and rescued my brother and the car.

Anyways, after that sumptuous meal, no adult had the energy to even walk, so everyone found a place to rest and went to sleep. Meanwhile, my mother still would be cleaning and trying to see where everything would go.

I realize that it was a huge fuss and stressful for one family every year but I love the fact that our grandfather communicated his desire for his children to get together with their families after he was gone in his memory, considering the fact that he did not leave any written will.

Our childhood was full of such events, and celebrations. Even now my dad will celebrate his father’s shradh and have priests come over for a meal, even though two of my dad’s brothers have moved away and two have passed. I think these kinds of traditions were designed by our ancient ancestors to keep a sense of continuity and respect for ancestors who were long gone. May God bless their souls. \

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