Hari Om Parents & Kids,
We started our class by chanting OM 3 times followed by the following shlokas "Om Saha Navavatu" , "Vakratunda Mahakaya", "Sarawathi namasthubhyam" & "Guru Brahma"
Given that tomorrow is the start of Navaratri we started directly with the topic of the Day namely Symbolism of Navaratri which has the worship of 3 days for Goddess Durga, followed by 3 days of Lakshmi and followed by 3 days for Saraswati ending the same with VijayDashmi.. We will cover some of these topics in detail in next lecture too but providing the details here so that this Navaratri is more insightful.
Mother Durga : To gain noble virtues, all evil tendencies in the mind must be destroyed. This destruction is represented by Goddess Durga. Durga is Durgati Harini—one who removes our evil tendencies. We invoke the "fearsome" Mother, to help us annihilate all negative forces within. We have many enemies within; they are selfishness, jealousy, meanness, prejudices, and many more.
She is pictured riding on a tiger, having an unsheathed sword and a spinning discus. Once the gods felt powerless against the demon Mahisasura. In answer to their prayers, they were asked to part with a portion of their divine powers; Goddess Mahisasura Mardini took a physical form as a combined might of 33 crores of gods to kill Mahisasura. Mahisa means buffalo. The buffalo stands for tamoguna, the quality of laziness, darkness, ignorance, and inertia. For example, we love to sleep. Although we may have a lot of energy and potential within us, we prefer to do nothing—just like a buffalo that loves only to lie in pools of water. The killing of Mahisasura symbolizes the destruction of tamoguna within. We invoke that divine Power within us to destroy our animalistic tendencies. Mother Durga rides on a tiger, the ego! Ego makes us do wrong actions. Taming the ego gives us true power as shown by the powerful Mother Durga riding on the tiger.
Mother Lakshmi symbolizes the real wealth of spiritual values practicing which our minds become purified and we reach the goal of life. Mother Lakshmi is described as seated on a lotus. She also holds a lotus in Her hand symbolizing the realization of the Self, the Supreme Goal to be gained by man.
Mother Saraswati: The Goddess of learning is represented in Hinduism as a feminine deity and she is called Sarasvati. "Sara," means the essence, of "sva," one's own. Thus, Sarasvati is "the one who gives the knowledge of one's own Self." Mother Sarasvati is the consort of Brahma, the Creator which is very appropriate indeed, because the Creator would be helpless if he did not have the Knowledge of what he had to create.
Symbolism of Navaratri : Ratri means "night" and Nava means "nine." Thus, during Navaratri (a festival of nine nights), first Goddess Durga is invoked to remove impurities from the mind. Then Goddess Lakshmi is invoked to cultivate the noble values and qualities. Finally, Goddess Sarasvati is invoked for gaining the highest knowledge of the Self. This is the significance of the three sets of three nights, and when all these three are gained subjectively, then there will be Vijayadashmi, the day of true victory!
Symbolism of Vijaydashmi Celebrating Goddess Durga who as Mahishasura Mardini, slayed the buffalo demon Mahishasura, symbolizing the victory of good over evil
Why is the Navaratri festival celebrated at night rather than in the daytime? Night time is generally the time when we go to sleep, so the spiritual message of night time worship is: "You have lived long enough in the sleepy ignorance of tamoguna. It is time to get up now. Please, wake up!"
In South India, Navaratri is celebrated in homes with the setting up of a Navaratri "Kolu"—a beautiful array of dolls, ranging from figurines of all the Hindu gods to scenes from villages, artistic creations etc. The symbolism behind the "kolu" is to remind us that God is present in all forms of life and when we offer prayers to the dolls, we remind ourselves to respect everything in this world. On one of these final three days of Navaratri, a special puja called " Ayudha Puja" is done; in this, the whole house is specially cleaned, all the objects and even cars, bicycles are worshiped!
Garbo: Traditionally, a garabo is a mud pot with small holes on the sides. At the beginning of the Navaratri festival, many families, especially in Gujarat, bring this pot home. They place it in the puja room; decorate it with rangoli, flower garland, and kumkum (red powder); and place an oil lamp in the pot and a mud lid on top. At night, all the neighborhood girls gather, sing glories of Mother Durga, and dance around this pot called garabo. The mud pot represents our body which is made up of five elements—earth, air, fire, water, and space. The lit lamp is the life principle in all of us. The holes are our sense organs: eyes, ears, nose, mouth, and skin. Dancing around the garabo represents the fact that only when the life principle is within the pot, the body, we become active, alive. Through these holes the Supreme power beams forth. Through our pure hearts and minds, the Lord alone shines forth.
We then had a discussion on how the concept of symbolism and its knowledge relates to us and our day to day activities
We did a recap of the everyday symbolism that we went through in last lecture and an an anecdote that demonstrates how knowledge is power..
In 1962, President John F. Kennedy visited NASA for the first time. During his tour of the facility, he met a janitor who was carrying a broom down the hallway. The President then casually asked the janitor what he did for NASA, and the janitor replied, "I'm helping put a man on the moon." Take a moment, and reflect on this idea. The janitor knew something that most of us struggle with, the purpose of his work. He kept the building clean so that the scientists, engineers, and astronauts could focus on their mission of putting "man on the moon". They did not have to worry about spending their time on trashcans, bathrooms, or hallways. He did that for them. He saw where his contribution fit in the organization. He connected his purpose with theirs.
Similarly we ended the class with 2 questions that the kids took away as an assignment to ponder on ..
Q1 How is the knowledge of the symbolism in Hinduism relevant to my daily life ?
Q2 Why do I pray ?
We could not participate in this week's BG chanting as we were in middle of the discussion topic
Please watch and change along with the Gītā Chanting Yajna telecast today for Bhagavad Gītā - Chapter 15 -Puruṣottama Yogaḥ -Yoga of The Supreme Spirit. Link: Link: https://bit.ly/BGCH15verses3-4. It should take 5 minutes for the kids to review the same.
We then celebrated the House Inaugural Activities. The kids participated enthusiastically in their respective House activities. The theme for this year was the saints/bhaktas and followed by few games. It was a close competition between the houses. Our class then led with the Pledge.
Assignment for the parents: (So that you all can get involved in this process of discovery with your kids..
Please spend time with your kids and explain to them how you celebrated Ganesh Chaturthi, Navaratri, Dusshera during your childhood
Explain any customs specific to your region and what do those customs mean
Bonus Assignment : If possible take them to visit a Kolu celebration or Garbha celebration or Durga Puja celebration or Ravan Dahan on Dusshera (celebrated yearly at Edison) and have a festive time.
Fun assignment : Go through Amar Chitra Katha and learn stories of Ganapati and Durga
Please note there is no class next week (28th Sept). Please have a safe and joyous Navaratri celebration and we shall meet the following week for our regular class
Regards,
Vyjayanti & Shiv
P.S: Please bookmark this link posted here for your practice and perusal: BG Chapter-15 – Friendly URL: https://bit.ly/BGCh15Playlist.
