Today at Kauai Aadheenam

Satguru Bodhinatha Veylanswami gives his weekly upadesha in Kadavul Temple at Kauai’s Hindu Monastery in Hawaii. It is part of a series of talks elaborating on the inspired teachings of Satguru Śivaya Subramuniyaswami as found in his book Merging With Śiva.

“Who is the spiritual leader of the house? The man or the woman? Dancing with Śiva states: “The husband is, first, an equal participant in the procreation and upbringing of the future generation. Second, he is the generator of economic resources necessary for society and the immediate family. The husband must be caring, understanding, masculine, loving, affectionate, and an unselfish provider, to the best of his ability and through honest means. He is well equipped physically and mentally for the stress and demands placed upon him. When he performs his dharma well, the family is materially and emotionally secure. Still, he is not restricted from participation in household chores, remembering that the home is the wife’s domain and she is its mistress.“

Repainting the container

Vel collecting coconut for Maha Ardra

Jai Ganesha!

Several months ago, Vel Mahalingam arrived here as part of a task force to support everyone in the monastery. Here’s an update on his contributions and well-being during his time here. Vel has been actively involved with the Siddhidata Kulam, assisting the monks with various projects. Recently, he was helping the team repaint the Lambodara Kulam container, where all our puja items are stored. This container underwent significant renovation, and Vel’s efforts in repainting it have greatly enhanced its appearance. Additionally, he contributed to the construction of the new Siddhidata Kulam office, showcasing his dedication to improving our facilities. Beyond these tasks, Vel has also been busy harvesting coconuts in preparation for Maha Ardra. Aum.

A new Ganesha image and trim next to stairs leading up to the new office area

Over the last few weeks, the upstairs of Hale Hana building saw more stages of construction completed. A worker came to tile the shower room floor. Another painted all the walls a pale blue. The Siddhidata Kulam members installed wood window sills and trim in all the rooms. And over the last week, sishya Easvan Param was here to oversee the installation of fans, switches, power outlets and a Lutron control system for all the lighting.

Blessing the trackhoe for a long and useful life

It has a few small dings here and there, but overall is in excellent condition

Swami starts it up!

It is more powerful than our previous one and has much smoother controls

Jai!

Jai Ganesha!

On Ardra Darshanam, our new (to us) Kubota trackhoe arrived, ending its long journey across the ocean from California, where it had been a well-maintained piece of rental equipment. The trackhoe replaces our previous machine, which was recently sold. These little machines are invaluable for our many projects throughout the aadheenam, and with such a small size, they can fit into areas of the gardens that larger machines can’t reach. The day after its arrival, we held a little blessing at the Ganesha shrine in front of the Siddhidatta Kulam’s new shop. Satguru and several monks attended while Sannyasin Tillainathaswami conducted a small puja and blessing for the vehicle, followed by its initial operation and the digging of a small gravel pile to celebrate. Aum.

Satguru holding the Purnahuti

Yoginathaswami showing the final arati to Nataraja

Panaromic shot of the big rainbow we spotted

Aum Namah Sivaya!

On January 12th, we celebrated Maha Ardra in Kadavul Temple. We began the day at 5.30am by performing a homa, which empowered a Siva Kumbha to later be poured over Nataraja during the finale of the abhishekam. Yoginathaswami was the main pujari for the day and conducted the homa with Satguru and our monks and devotees present. Following the completion of the homa, we then began the abhishekam at 9am. During the abhishekam Yoginathaswami, Siddhanathaswami, Saravanathaswami and Mayilnathswami were helping in the main shrine. Outside the sanctum, Satguru along with Tillainathaswami, Arumuganathaswami and Muruganathaswami were chanting Sri Rudram. Other mathavasi were passing abhishekam items like curd and honey into the shrine. When the coconut abhishekam was about to commence, all the mathavasi stood in a chain to pass the coconuts into the sanctum and out again. It was very well orchestrated. Once done with the abhishekam, the alankaram took around 30 minutes for the complete decoration of Nataraja, and the was followed by the final portions of the puja. Overall it was a very uplifting and vibrant event. All the monks and devotees present on that day could easily feel Siva’s darshan. Since we weren’t able to take photo or do live streams of Lord Nataraja, we at least got some pictures of the homa for you to enjoy. Aum!