2024 Ganesha Chaturthi
Join us at 7am (Kauai time) on September 6th, for Kauai Aadheenam’s live stream of our Chaturthi abhishekam.
2024 Ganesha Chaturthi Read More »
Art for the Year-End Mailing
Each year at this time we create a special flyer which serves as an appeal for support for our most urgent needs. This year Satguru Bodhinatha Veylanswami chose The Garden Path as our focus. It is a special 8-foot-wide path surrounding Iraivan Temple that serves as a mud-free walking entry for pilgrims and also as a maintenance road for our electric vehicles, allowing the team to bring supplies to the pujari, maintain the landscape, and such. It’s a big project, and costly, more than $500,000 due to the special engineering required for water control (so important on our high rainfall island) and the quality installation which will give the impression of a cobblestone path.
We commissioned Baani Sekhon, our artist in Chandigarh, North India. She just submitted the finished art, and we thought it would be interesting to take you behind the scenes to see the process, which takes weeks to complete. Follow the steps in the slideshow.
Art for the Year-End Mailing Read More »
The Sweet Sugar Palm
A walk through the garden today brings us to the Rishi from the Himalayas murti where two stunning Arenga pinnatas are blossoming again. This is the first time we have captured the early protective sheath that covers the inflorescense, and also its removal to reveal the flower buds.
When you visit Siva’s Sacred Garden, you must stand in front of this Sugar Palm, a true gem of Southeast Asia, especially revered in Indonesia and the Philippines. Towering up to 20 meters, this majestic palm boasts large, feather-like leaves that dance in Kauai’s tropical breeze. More than just a scenic marvel, every element of the sugar palm is utilized by local communities. The sap is tapped and transformed into sweet sugar and aromatic alcohol (called arrack). Its fibers are woven into durable ropes and rustic brooms, while the broad fronds find a second life as robust roofing materials. This versatile palm is a cornerstone of sustainability and a testament to the ingenuity of traditional practices in harmonizing with nature.
The Sweet Sugar Palm Read More »
Our New Monk-Made Aquarium
Jai Ganesha!
This week, the monks of the Ganapati Kulam finished up a long term project to rebuild their office aquarium. With the help of Mayuresh, who was visiting for a few months, the monks built this custom aquarium stand out of rough koa wood, some tarnished copper panels and a giant bronze mandala (donated by Holly Young). It’s a copy of the the same bronze chakra that resides on the back of Hanuman’s neck at the rudraksha forest. The tank is made of five tempered glass panels, and the interior is filled with a papaya root-ball and plants from the previous aquarium.
Our New Monk-Made Aquarium Read More »
Welcoming the 2024 Jivana Ritau
Today is the first full day of our new season, the Jivana Ritau. Early this morning, monastics and members gathered in Kadavul Temple for a homa. Following the final arati they proceeded out the the Aadheenam’s flagpole to fly the dvaja for the new season.
Excerpts from Saiva Dharma Shastras about the this time of year:
“Beginning with Hindu New Year in mid-April, three seasons of the year divide our activities into three great needs of humankind the learning of scripture in the first season, Nartana Ritau; the living of culture in the second season, Jivana Ritau; and the meditating on Siva in the third season, Moksha Ritau. Thus we are constantly reminded that our life is Siva’s life and our path to Him is through study, sadhana and realization. In ritau one, we teach the philosophy; in ritau two, we teach the culture; and in ritau three, we teach meditation.
During Jivana Ritau, the rainy season, from mid-August to mid-December,Living with Siva: Hinduism’s Contemporary Cultureis the primary text. The key word of this season is work. The colors are rust, copper-maroon and all shades of red rust for earthy preservation, copper-maroon for fulfillment and red for physical energy. The Aadheenam’s flag pole flies the rust-colored dhvaja, symbolizing environmental care. Copper-maroon and all shades of red adorn our smaller flags. This is the season of honoring and showing appreciation for those in the vanaprastha ashrama, life’s elder advisor stage. The focus is on preserving what has been created, manifesting goals and fulfilling plans made in the past. Inwardly the emphasis is on direct cognition and caring for the practical details of the external world. Practicality is a word much used this season.”
Welcoming the 2024 Jivana Ritau Read More »
New Signs for the Satgurus
The 1,400-foot-long circular Path of the Saiva Satgurus has eight black granite murtis, each with a sign that speaks of the life, sayings and biography of that Satguru. The existing signs were printed some nine years back and have deteriorated some in the tropical climate and UV intensity of the tropics.
But technology has evolved, and we now have a high-tech printer in Honolulu who can print directly on aluminum sheets. The inks used are cured using UV light, which has the effect of baking the inks. They can also shape the signs with a CNC router. These signs will last for decades. We added a QR Code to each one that takes you directly to the page in The Guru Chronicles telling the full story of his life.
We put the eight signs out in the Media Studio today so the team could enjoy them all together before they go out into the gardens to be installed. Aum Namasivaya!
New Signs for the Satgurus Read More »