Kauai Aadheenam

Above ChatGPT imagines Gurudeva under a Bodhi Tree as we all chant his 108 names, as we did for decades during his life and continue to do every Chitra puja, which happens to be today! With Satguru Bodhinatha Veylanswami’s oversight, a new, corrected, improved edition of his formal Ashtottra Namavali has been created. This will be our official name list going forward. Thank you, Gurudeva!

108 Names of Gurudeva, 2026

1. Aum Śri Śivāya Subramuniyāya Namaḥ– Hail to Sivaya Subramuniya

2. Guru Paramparā Dhariṇe – Praise to him who upholds the Guru Paramparā.

3. Sādhujana Vardhanāya – Hail to him who strengthens the monastic order.

4. Sarvajana Priyāya – Hail to him who loves all people.

5. Yogaswāmī Śiṣyāya –Praise to the disciple of Yogaswami.

6. Sarva Parityāgine – Hail to the one who renounced everything.

7. Paścimā Gurave – Prostrations to the guru from the West.

8. Nātha Sampradāyine – Prostrations to the embodiment of the Nātha Sampradāya.

9. Mahātmane – Hail to the great soul.

10. Hawai Nivāsine – Hail to him who resides in Hawai‘i.

11. Śiva Gotrāya – Praise to him of the Śiva Gotra.

12. Himācala Vaṁśodbhavāya – Prostrations to him of Himalayan lineage.

13. Advaita Prakaṭanāya – Hail to him who proclaims the oneness of all.

14. Yoga Darśanāya – Praise to the revealer of yoga.

15. Kailāsa Paramparāya – Praise to him of the Kailāsa Paramparā.

16. Jagadācāryāya – Hail to the world teacher.

17. Maharṣi Gotrāya – Praise to him who perpetuates the Maharishi Gotra.

18. Mahimā Dāyakāya – Prostrations to the bestower of greatness.

19. Avyakta Rūpiṇe – Hail to him whose form is unmanifest.

20. Gāyatrī Pārāyaṇāya – Praise to him devoted to the Gāyatrī Mantra.

21. Acyuta Śaktaye – Hail to him of imperishable power.

22. Gaṇadeva Priyāya – Hail to him who loves Lord Gaṇeśa.

23. Śubhra Nāmne – Prostrations to him whose name is radiant.

24. Śiva Kaṭākṣāya – To the one blessed by Śiva’s glance.

25. Sarva Loka Vāgmine – Prostrations to the eloquent one of all worlds.

26. Ekatva Mata Pravartakāya – Praise to the champion of the doctrine of oneness.

27. Bhaktavatsala Priyāya – Hail to him who tenderly loves his devotees.

28. Puṇyasthala Yātrikāya – Praise to him who pilgrimages to holy places.

29. Kauai Nadītīra Vāsine – Prostrations to him who dwells on Kauai’s riverbank.

30. Śaiva Sabhā Nāyakāya – Prostrations to the leader of the Śaivite fellowship.

31. Yogadīkṣā Dāyakāya – Hail to him who gives yoga initiation.

32. Nāmadīkṣā Dāyakāya – Prostrations to him who gives nāma dīkṣā.

33. Taho Vāpītīra Vāsine – Hail to him who grew up on the shore of Lake Tahoe.

34. Sanmārga Darśine – Hail to him who envisioned San Mārga.

35. Sanmārga Sthāpakāya – Hail to him who founded San Mārga.

36. Paścime Loka Sthitāya  – Prostrations to him who is established in the West.

37. Nātha Sampradāya Dīpāya – Hail to the light of the Nātha Sampradāya.

38. Satguru Paramparā Rakṣakāya – Hail to him who safeguards the Satguru lineage.

39. Siṁha Garjanā Pātrāya – Prostrations to the vessel of the lion’s roar.

40. Sanmārga Vaṁśāya – Praise to him of the San Mārga lineage.

41. Śānti Liṅga Pratiṣṭhā-pakāya – To the establisher of the Liṅga of peace (in Kopay).

42. Āśrama Pīṭhādhipataye – Prostrations to the abbot of the Kailāsa Pīṭha.

43. Divya Pāda Dhāriṇe  – Hail to him who wears the divine pādukā.

44. Karadaṇḍa Dhāriṇe – Praise to him who holds the daṇḍa.

45. Śum Bhāṣā Udbhāvitāya – Prostrations to the creator of the Shum language.

46. Antarjyoti Prabhāya – Hail to him of radiant inner light.

47. Dhavala Jyoti Dhāriṇe – Praise to him who holds the clear white light.

48. Śaṅkara-rūpāya – Obeisance to him who is the very form of Śaṅkara.

49. Parivrājine – Prostrations to the world-wandering sage.

50. Alaveṭṭi Āśrama Sthāpakāya – Praise to the founder of Alaveddy Ashram.

51. Kopai Koṭṭam Pataye –Prostrations to the protector of Kopay Koṭṭam.

52. Nānā Dāyaka Gurave – Praise to the guru of manifold giving.

53. Parārtha Jīvitāya – Praise to him who lives for others.

54. Sarvaloka Priyāya – Prostrations to the lover of all worlds.

55. Pāda Paṅkajāya – Hail to the one with lotus feet.

56. Saumya Rūpāya – Praise to him of pleasing form.

57. Sajjana Vanditāya – Prostrations to him who is honored by the wise.

58. Bhāvana Munaye – Hail to the meditative sage.

59. Śānta Mūrtaye – Prostrations to him whose form is peace.

60. Sphaṭika Liṅga Prakāśakāya – To him who revealed the crystal Liṅga.

61. Bhakti Pradāya – Praise to him who bestows devotion.

62. Bhakti Mārga Darśakāya – Praise to the guide on the path of devotion.

63. Jñāna Svarūpāya – Prostrations to the embodiment of divine wisdom.

64. Mūlar Muni Dhāriṇe– Hail to him who upholds the teachings of Ṛishi Tirumular.

65. Parāṁjyoti Upāsine – Hail to the worshiper of the Supreme Light.

66. Valluvar Muni Bodhakāya – Praise to the revealer of Tiruvalluvar’s teachings.

67. Drāviḍa Śiśu Priyāya – Hail to him who is dear to the Dravidian child Sambandar.

68. Vāgīśa Jñāna Bodhakāya – Praise to the teacher of the wisdom of the Lord of Speech (Saint Appar).

69. Sundarar Mata Anurūpāya – To him whose teachings reflect those of Saint Sundaramurti.

70. Maṇikkavācakar Priyāya –To him who is pleasing to Maṇikkavacakar.

71. Pādarakṣā Pradāyine – Praise to him who grants the protection of his lotus feet.

72. Wailua Gaṅgā Lolāya – Praise to him who sways with the sacred Wailua Gaṅgā.

73. Himācala Kalāpīṭha Dāyakāya – Hail to the founder of Himalayan Academy.

74. Kauai-pati Gurukulāya – Praise to the Lord of Kauai’s gurukula.

75. Dīkṣā Netrāya – Hail to the eye of initiation.

76. Kāṣāya Dhāriṇe – Hail to him who wears the ochre robes.

77. Kamaṇḍalu Dharāya – Praise to him who carries the water pot.

78. Pārivrāja Paramparod-bhavāya – Praise to him who was born from the lineage of renunciates.

79. Guhā Mandire Yogaswāmī Darśakāya – Hail to him who beheld Yogaswamī in the Nallur Temple sanctum.

80. Gaṇapati Cakra Darśine – Praise to him who had the vision of Gaṇeśa’s chakra.

81. Tapas Siñcita Nayanāya – Prostrations to him whose eyes are filled with tapas.

82. Sakala Tattvajñāya – Hail to the knower of the tattvas.

83. Caryā Rūpāya – Praise to him who embodies caryā.

84. Kriyā Lolāya – Praise to him who moves in kriyā.

85. Yoga Pradīpakāya – Hail to him who illumines the yoga path.

86. Jñāna Svarūpiṇe – Praise to him who embodies jñāna.

87. Saṁprati Jīvine – Hail to him who lives in the eternal present.

88. Antaryāmine – Hail to him who guides from within.

89. Śubhra Siddha Saṅkalpāya – Praise to him whose resolve is a radiant spiritual power.

90. Dhavala Raśmi Pradāya – To him who bestows the ray of white light.

91. Gūḍha Mantra Vikāśine – Hail to the revealer of the secret mantra.

92. Saccidānanda Darśakāya – Praise to him who reveals Truth-Consciousness-Bliss.

93. Tattvamasi Darśakāya – Prostrations to him who reveals “Tat Tvam Asi.”

94. Antarātma Darśakāya – Hail to him who reveals the inner Self.

95. Śāntānanda Darśakāya – To him who reveals peace and bliss.

96. Śāśvatānanda Darśakāya – To him who reveals perpetual bliss.

97. Nityānanda Darśakāya – To him who reveals eternal bliss.

98. Hṛdayālaya Darśakāya – Praise to him who reveals the temple of the heart.

99. Hṛdaya Jyoti Darśakāya – Praise to him who reveals the light within the heart.

100. Kamśumaliṅga Darśakāya – Prostrations to him who reveals the chakras.

101. Naṭye Ukanaśum Darśakāya – To the revealer of seekers’ sādhanas.

102. Rehna Śakti Darśakāya – To him who unveils the temple’s power.

103. Karmakārya Darśakāya – Hail to him who teaches karma yoga.

104. Satyarūpa Darśakāya – Praise to him who reveals the form of Truth.

105. Gurudeva Brahmaṇe – Prostrations to Gurudeva, who is Brahman.

106. Tasya Śiṣya Parivārāya – Praise to his family of disciples.

107. Sarva Śaiva Janāya Priyāya – Hail to him who is beloved by all Śaivites.

108. Sarva Maṅgala Dāyakāya – Praise to the bestower of all auspiciousness.

gurudevāya pādarakṣāya, śāntiliṅgāya bhadram,
lokāḥ samastāḥ sukhino bhavantu ||

For about two years we have been fighting an invasive and destructive beetle called the Coconut Rhinoceros Beetle (CRB), or Oryctes rhinoceros. As the name implies, they are fond of coconut trees, but they also attack and can kill other palms. We have hundreds of mature palms in our gardens, and many of them are suffering from beetle attacks. A dozen have died and more are threatened.

Yesterday two experts surveyed our large palm collection, which includes hundreds of species, with the goal of developing a plan to reduce the beetle’s rapidly increasing population in the monastery. Their company uses steam to heat mulch piles that serve as breeding grounds for the larvae. The heat kills them before adults emerge and fly off to feed on palm trees. We have also been hiring a drone operator from Maui who has come twice to apply protective treatments to the rarest and most important trees. The Kauaʻi Invasive Species Committee (KISC) has helped us set up traps around the palms to capture the voracious insects. That is helping, but not enough.

Great damage has been done over the last two decades in Guam, where about 70% of palms were killed, as well as in Indonesia, Malaysia, Papua New Guinea and now Hawaiʻi. Biologists are working intensively to deploy a virus widely considered the only long-term solution, but it has so far eluded them.

Two days back Rajkumar Manickam, after working with the monks, sent us an amazing Adobe Express creation giving the entire life of Saint Tayumanavar in illustrated form. It is a fun way to learn who this articulate and highly mystical Sivabhaktar was, how he endured great loss, rose to become finance minister to the king, left the palace to wander from temple to temple and write his 1,452 songs. Click on the second image below (with the giant Sivalingam), and the story will load in a few moments. Then use the mouse to scroll down, revealing image after captioned image. Aum Namasivaya!

The two masterful bonsai trees gracing the Kadavul Temple pool are a delight to all pilgrims. But their beauty comes with great discipline and care. The roots are so shallow, even 3 days of no rain/water can stress them and so Tandu Sivanathan has to be constantly aware of their needs.

Two days back he and his friend and bonsai sensei, Abe, gave the two a haircut. Why? Without continual pruning, the carefully developed miniature proportions and artistic structure gradually disappear. We share the happening in our slideshow today.

Bonsai, the sacred art of shaping living trees in miniature form, carries a history of more than a thousand years, passing through generations as both a refined craft and a contemplative discipline. It quietly reflects profound spiritual truths long cherished in Hindu thought. The gardener does not force the tree but guides it with patience, restraint and loving attention, working in harmony with nature rather than against it. In this gentle partnership we see the path of sadhana itself—steady effort joined with divine grace.

A bonsai reminds us that spiritual maturity is not measured by outward size or display but by balance, rootedness and inner beauty. As branches are trimmed and growth directed, the practitioner is inwardly taught the same lesson: refine the mind, steady the heart and allow life to unfold according to dharma. Thus the tending of a bonsai becomes a quiet meditation, a daily reminder that with patience, humility and devotion the soul too can be shaped into a work of living harmony.

Some CyberCadets enjoyed the old photos we shared a few days back, so we thought to dig up a few more. We seldom reflect on the far past, choosing instead to follow Gurudeva’s teachings of staying in the now, or an extended now he defined as four days in the past and four days in the future. Below is his full statement from Merging with Siva about living there.

---

GURUDEVA: When we forget who we are, who we really are, we live in a consciousness of time and space, and we relate to the future, to the external us, to the past, and to our subconscious internal us. This can be rather confusing. Most people are therefore confused and seek to distract themselves in an effort to find peace. A conscious awareness of now only comes when we remember who we really are. This doesn’t mean we cannot plan for the future or benefit ourselves by reviewing experiences of the past. It simply means that we always remember that we are the essence of all energy, the source.

Return to the source. Merge with Śiva. At the source there is always peace. The key to this entire practice is to become consciously aware of energy. In this constant remembering we have the feeling of being the center of the universe, with the whole world functioning around us. To be fully anchored in the knowledge of the source of our being, the eternal now can and must be a constant experience. It’s easy to live in the now if you work with yourself a little every day and concentrate on what you are doing each moment. To begin to work toward establishing yourself in the eternal now, first limit time and space by not thinking about or discussing events that happened more than four days past or will happen more than four days in the future. This keeps awareness reined in, focused. Be aware. Ask yourself, “Am I fully aware of myself and what I’m doing right now?”

Once you have gained a little control of awareness in this way, try to sit quietly each day and just be. Don’t think. Don’t plan. Don’t remember. Just sit and be in the now. That’s not as simple as it sounds, for we are accustomed to novelty and constant activity in the mind and not to the simplicity of being. Just sit and be the energy in your spine and head. Feel the simplicity of this energy in every atom of yourself. Think energy. Don’t think body. Don’t think about yesterday or tomorrow. They don’t exist, except in your ability to reconstruct the yesterdays and to create the tomorrows. Now is the only time. This simple exercise of sitting and being is a wonderful way to wash away the past, but it requires a little discipline. You have to discipline every fiber of your nerve system, work with yourself to keep the power of awareness expanded. Regular practice of meditation will bring you intensely into the eternity of the moment. Practice supersedes philosophy, advice, psychology and all pacifiers of the intellect.

We have to practice to keep awareness here and now. If you find yourself disturbed, sit down and consciously quiet the forces in yourself. Don’t get up until you have completely quieted your mind and emotions through regulating the breath, through looking out at a peaceful landscape, through seeking and finding understanding of the situation. This is the real work of meditation that is not written much about in books. If you can live in the eternity of now, your life will be one of peace and fulfillment. Aum

Today we look back in time to early days on Kauai with Gurudeva. It comes as part of our reflections of his life, focused by the fact that in 11 months we will celebrate his 100th birthday in a simple way.

It is a reminder that when Gurudeva moved to Kauai and founded the monastery, it was a rough parcel of land, covered by wild guava and hau bush. There was little hint in those early years of the beauty that the monks would lure forth with decades of creative effort. Instead there was weed tree removal, path building, clay and mud everywhere. But that was then and now is different. So join us in a handful of photos that tell of those early days in the 70s and 80s.