Iraivan Temple
A Temple Built to Last 1000 Years
Iraivan is our Sivalingam temple, currently under construction. It began with Satguru Sivaya Subramuniyaswami's vision of God Siva in 1975; carving began in India in 1990; and assembly at Kauai's Hindu Monastery began in 2001.
Gurudeva's Sacred Vision
Located in the heart of a traditional Hindu monastery complex reminiscent of ancient mathas and aadheenams of India, Iraivan is more than a temple; it is a pilgrimage destination, a place of sadhana and spiritual rejuvenation. Iraivan Temple is a living edifice that brings ancient tradition into the 21st century, a stable anchor sustaining and strengthening Hindu Dharma for our children, their children and generations to come.
Our Fund-Raising Goal for September 2012 to August 2013
The total amount needed next year to keep this sacred project funded in both India and Hawaiiis $60,000 per month, or $720,000
Times remain uncertain for many, and it is just during such times that projects wane. Iraivan Temple needs your support now more than ever. Be generous and send your special year-end contribution today. Download the full 2012 annual report (PDF) here.
We want to share with you what has been accomplished and what next year promises. The carving on the Nandi Mandapam in Bengaluru, expected to be completed next fall, is progressing well. It is a wonder to behold, and we all look forward to seeing it assembled on Kauai in the years ahead. Selvanathan Sthapati's wife, Ponni, during a recent visit to the worksite, put it like this: "I have only seen such carvings in the old Chola temples around Tanjore." Isn't that inspiring? It means one of Gurudeva's key aims--to preserve this temple-building craft into modern times--has been accomplished. A 21st century temple is emulating those built in the 10th century.
If all goes as planned, the stones for the second prakaram wall will be quarried and transported to the worksite over the next year, and carving will move forward, though at an extremely slow speed due to a dwindling number of available shilpis. The illustration above shows eight of the 45 panels that constitute this important wall.
On Kauai, planning for the extensive grading work around Iraivan Temple, which includes piping for irrigation and drainage, is almost complete and will be costed in this coming year.
Our family of San Marga devotees continues to grow, mainly by word of mouth. Iraivan itself is inspiring support from those who can see its form and intuit its power. Pilgrims find their experience spiritually fulfilling and eagerly encourage their friends to discover Kauai's Hindu Monastery for themselves.
We just missed--by $18,447.85--last year's fund-raising goal of $720,000. Especially in these continued difficult financial times, we continue to count on your contributions to meet our goals in the twelve months ahead. We are grateful to our global family of temple builders for your continued and generous support.
With blessings for a bountiful family life and spiritual progress,
Satguru Bodhinatha Veylanswami
Harvesting granite slabs: At the quarry owned by brothers Manjunatha and Sreenivas, a huge block of stone, one of 45 that will be needed, has been broken loose by driving wedges into drilled holes, then pulled off the shelf by two cranes. Inset photo (lower right) is a prototype of a perimeter wall section. Watch the video of this stone being quarried at Watch the exciting extraction of stone at the quarry on YouTube.
Plans for 2012-2013
The main focus for the year ahead will be in Bengaluru. The work on the Nandi Mandapam is underway, and the stones should be shipped to Kauai next year. The entire shilpi team will then shift to the major work before us: the massive perimeter wall. For the first time, our craftsmen will be employing saws and hand-held grinders, which will greatly accelerate the progress. Stones from the quarry will be sliced to near-finished size with the worksite's giant stone saw. Still it will take 400 man days for each 12-foot-long wall section. We are working on the shipping of three or more containers in the near future. They will hold the avudaiyar, the five bronze Siva murtis, the entrance steps with yallis, and the 15-foot-tall Hanuman, who will be placed on the small rise on the west side of Iraivan. Once we have the stones for the balance of the Nandi Mandapam and entrance steps on Kauai, we will finalize our plans for when to bring the next batch of silpis to Kauai. A tentative date is the beginning of 2015. We remain eager to have the silpis back, but patient, as there is no gain in pulling them away from the work in Bengaluru until there are sufficient stones on Kauai to keep them busy for at least a year.
Above: Silpi Manikandan marks designs on the Nandi Mandapam beams. Behind, silpis carve the pothigai (pieces that tie the pillars to the beams).
Gurudeva's Vision
It was in 1959 that my path led me to the Hawaiian Islands for the first time. In 1968 I returned to the islands on a vision quest, seeking and finding a place to move our international headquarters, there to live a contemplative life in harmony with the ultimate attainment of the Self within man.
"One early morning, before dawn, a three-fold vision of Lord Siva came to me. First I beheld Lord Siva walking in a valley, then I saw His face peering into mine, then He was seated on a large stone, His reddish golden hair flowing down His back. That was February 15, 1975.This was the fulfillment of the quest for a vision of what the future might hold, which led me and my followers to the lovely Garden Island of Kauai, held the most sacred of all by the Hawaiian peoples long, long ago. It is alongside the sacred Wailua River, leading to the top of Mt. Waialeale, that this place of pilgrimage is being built, a temple of kaivalya, granting freedom from the past and a vision for the future. The temple's 700-pound 50-million-years-in-the-making crystal icon is a kalpaka (spiritual wish-fulfilling) ever-giving Sivalingam. So many blessings await each pilgrim. None are ever neglected."