Namaste Friends, What
a month was May! Followed by a
scintillating first week of June! Satguru Rama Mata blessed us at the Gayatri Temple in Beaverton with her presence and Gayatri Fire initiations. We were so pleased that so many of you were able to come from so many of the states and Canada to be there
May the great blessings she gave to us also flow to you for your spiritual growth.
Prem,
Namadeva Acharya
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INDIA JOURNAL
The India
Pilgrimage tour started with a visit to a Shiva-Parvati temple in Chennai the day we arrived where we magically
connected with our temple tour guide from December 2008. The place is huge, so
connecting with him was a miracle. There are shrines to Subramanya, Ganesha,
the nine planets, Nandi and other small shrines. We spent several blessed hours
there and then went SHOPPING.
Always a popular pastime.
The
next day we went to Kanchi to spend time with the two presiding Jagadgurus:
Shankarachanryas Sri Sri Jayendra and Sri Sri Vijayendra Saraswati. We have seen each of them
several times now, and they are so welcoming, friendly and powerful. When we
arrived we were immediately escorted into the receiving room for the senior
Jagadguru, Shankarachanrya Sri Sri Jayendra: all 35 of us. There both Jagadgurus
greeted us with joy-filled smiles. After a few minutes of courtesies, the younger
Shankaracharya, Sri Sri Vijayendra, exited to prepare for his daily puja.
The
last time we took a large group to Kanchi in 2007, Shankaracharya Sri Sri Jayendra allowed us
to perform puja to him as an incarnation of Shiva. He loved it and even sang the Arati with us. Satyabhama
received a healing from him on the spot. This time Satyabhama was,
unfortunately, ill and stayed at the hotel in Chennai. She felt as though she got all the
blessings, even though she was not in attendance.
After
we had sat for a minute or two, Shankaracharya Sri Sri Jayendra turned to me and said,"
Bhajan." He remembered what we had done before, and was cueing me! We launched
into a rousing rendition of "Rama Krishna Hari," written by Sadguru Sant
Keshavadas, our guru. I recalled that in 1978 when I had first met
Shankaracharya Sri Sri Jayendra, he had requested Guruji to sing that song. Now 29 years
later, here all we were singing it for him. And yes, for those you who are
keeping score, Shankaracharya Sri Sri Jayendra is the same Laser Swami I wrote about in
True Stories of Spiritual Power.
When we finished the song, he smiled beatifically at me and said, "Astotara."
He was now cueing me to begin the short Shiva Puja. We went through the
Astotara and other short mantras to conclude the puja. Then everyone went
before him, and he threw each of us a piece of fruit. By now he must have thrown
thousands of mangos and other fruits to devotees. Everyone exited, and I left
last. As I was leaving, I could "feel" him in my back, so I spoke silently to
him. I said that I was going to
where I would offer a donation for the Mutt. He asked how much, and I told
him. He liked it. I thought nothing of any of it until we went over the hall
where the puja by Shankaracharya Sri Sri Vijayendra would be offing puja to a crystal
Shiva lingham and Sri Yantra that have had puja performed over them continuously
for over 2500 years.
When
we reached the hall, one of Shankaracharya Jayendra's assistants came walking
quickly to the hall and spotted me. He beckoned me over and said, "His Holiness
wanted me to let you know that your health will be fine." Then he smilingly
turned around and went back to his station. I think the problem I had had with
my esophagus was now officially over. Maybe other stuff as well.
Sri Sri Vijayendra was ready to begin the puja. Nine of us were there in December 2008, so we knew that
a cow and calf would be fed during the puja, as well as the elephant that is
housed at the headquarters. At the December puja, Shankaracharya Sri Sri Vijayendra
performed the puja while several of his students chanted the mantras during the
Abhisheka. At that time I noticed that the he was still doing the
Abhisheka after the students stopped chanting. I was a bit horrified, so I
glided up to the steps leading up to the puja platform and began to chant the
Purusha Suktam that some of you know. The puja concluded a few moments later.
This
time the students were absent. It think it was a Monday, so maybe they all had
a day off. A weird band played for about five minutes then stopped. Soon one of
the attendant priests came over to me and requested that we chant some shlokas
while the Jagadguru did the Abhisheka. I was astonished. I grabbed Bill Barry
and Maheshwara ,who were sitting close by, and said something like, "We're on!"
Then I began to chant the Purusha Suktam. They know the chant and joined me
immediately. I opened Volume I of the Ancient Power Series and turned to the
Lakshmi section. We chanted some shlokas to her after the Purusha Suktam was
finished. Miraculously, was had been asked to join in the daily puja that has
been continuously done here for 2500 years. At the invitation of Shankaracharya
Sri Sri Vijayendra we were now part of that tradition. I was and am overwhelmed.
There
is a powerful Kamakshi (Lalita) temple in Chennai that only Indian-born
Hindus are allowed to enter. I went over to the main office and chatted with
the temple manager and told him we has been to Kanchi Mutt and about our
activities there. I asked if we could enter the temple. and he said that the only
way we could was if there was a note from the Jagadguru himself requesting our
admission. We returned to Kanchi after lunch, and I obtained the note. Later that
day we entered this holy and powerful shrine.
There
are many small shrines and a long winding path to the altar of the
main murthi. She is powerful. Then there is an inclined path up to a
position where
you can the murthi from a slightly elevated position, not having to
crane over
people's heads to get a glance. As I was gazing at the murthi, I heard
a voice
inside say, "Put something in the hundi (donation box)." I was shocked but
quickly recovered and replied, "That must be a priest talking because
Lalita is
not concerned with such things." There was a long pause, and then a
bolt of
wonderful shakti came from the murthi and entered me. For the next few
days when riding on the bus, she would appear before me and give me
another
zap. It was wondrous and wonderful. Of course, I put something in the
hundi,
but I would have anyway.
Ganesha Temples
Just as we did in 2007, we visited the eight Ganesha temples
scattered around Pune/Poona. Each has a
story about a different incarnation of Ganesha and his devotees. Each also has
its own unique energy. To invoke the
energy of these temples into us, we chanted the Stava Raja prayer and a mala of
the 32-syllable mantra of Ganesha at every temple. We were a group of chanting veterans, and we "whomped
up" the energy at every temple.
Sometimes we had lines of curious Indians waiting to enter who first
looked curiously then smilingly at this group of chant-rockers from "over
there."
The priests were cordial.
The energy was wonderful, and the heat melting at 105-115F. One of the
last temples we visited, which was Buddhist for a time, is carved into the top
of a butte. As it is 400+ stairs up the
mountain, two of our group decided to rent sedan-style carriers to cart them
up. This was good because otherwise they
could not have gotten up there. Once we
had offered some prayers and had darshan of the murthis in the main shrine
area, we went to a cave room next door and beheld a large globe, some seven or
eight feet in diameter elevated on a stone pedestal some seven feet above the
cave floor. There we began our chant to
Ganesha. Immediately, I could feel our
energy going out to the whole world. I "heard"
that many unfulfilled desires of our group's members would finally come to
fruition. We could feel the energy of
Peace and Fulfillment spreading outward everywhere as we chanted. It was so inspiring! We offered prayers for ALL OF YOU at every
location, every holy place we went, including the Ganesha Temples and the
Panduranga-Rukmini temple in Pandarpur. You were all on our minds as we
traveled, chanted, sang, prayed, and laughed with one another. We felt and still feel like a great big
family. This feeling continued in Oregon
for Satguru Rama Mata's visit just ten days after our return.
Next newsletter we will tell you about the awesome time we
had in the Himalayas.
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OM KSHIPRA PRASADAYA NAMAHA
This Ganesha mantra is superb for obtaining his help IMMEDIATELY. It can be used for any issue for which you need help.
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Certified Priests and Pujari
Maheshwara and Sri Savitri Devi, Sanatana Dharma
Satsang Certified Priests, are available for pujas and fire
ceremonies in absentia. Please click here for further details: Pujas in absentia.
Mahavir has been certified by Sanatana Dharma Satsang as a Pujari for 7 years. He is available to do puja at your location in New York City on a donation basis. He can be reached at marcalexanderbennett@gmail.com
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The works of Thomas Ashley-Farrand (Namadeva Acharya) give unprecedented, detailed instruction in how to empower yourself using the techniques of the ancient sages and rishis. He and Satyabhama have been given the mission by their Gurus Sadguru Sant Keshavadas and Guru Rama Mata to bring these teachings to everyone.
To that end, he has written and recorded a number of works, and he travels to North America and the UK to teach workshops. Bi-annually, we lead a Pilgrimage Tour of India's Holy Places, visiting with the Shankaracharayas at Kanchi Math, Guru Mata at Vishwa Shanti Ashram, and doing fire ceremonies in the Himalayas, among the highlights of the trip.
We have founded a religious organization, Sanatana Dharma Satsang, which has opened a Gayatri Temple in Beaverton, Oregon. Plans are in the works to found temples with residential communities in Oregon, New Mexico, and other locations. The link to it is in the right column.
These works are offered in a spirit of service. We sincerely hope that they will further you on your path.
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Prem & Shanti,
Satyabhama (Margalo Ashley-Farrand)
Saraswati Publications, LLC |
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Video Quick Links
Visit with Guru Mata at Vishwa Shanti Ashram and Pujas
India Video
India Video HD
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Visit Sanskritmantra.com
NEW CD IN JUNE: Piercing the Knots-Granthis CD - A Mantra & Visualization Meditation Mantra Therapy for Prosperity CD - Help with blocks to prosperity and mantras to bring it in Ancient Power of Sanskrit Mantra and Ceremony, Volume I & II CDs now recorded and available Mantra, Path to Spiritual & Material Attainment - a 15-hour workshop on 14 CDs
COMING SOON:
Rama & Sita Workshop, Co-Starring Hanuman - approx. 15 CDs. |
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2009 Schedule of Workshops
We will be doing workshops in the following places:
June - Guru Mata-Gayatri Temple, Portland, OR; Pensacola, FL; Atlanta, GA, and Charleston, SC
July- Boston, MA; St. Louis, MO.
August - Ashland, OR; Far Horizons, Sequoia Nat'l Monument, CA; Maple Ridge, BC.
Sept - Lansing, MI; Chicago, IL; Keene, NH, MA: Boston & Kripalu
October - CANADA: BC - 3 workshops, Alberta - 2 workshops
November - CANADA, Alberta
December - Austin, TX
2009 information: http://sanskritmantra.com/schedule.shtml
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CHANTING GROUPS
Cochrane, Alberta, Canada Contact k.labonte@shaw.ca
Las Vegas, NV
Los Angeles, CAJyoti Atma Chanting Group, Contact Jagadamba, who is a Certified Mantra Instructor, at jawrestler1@aol.com
Chicago, ILContact Mary Huddleston, who is a Certified Mantra Instructor at
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The Ancient Power of Sanskrit Mantra and Ceremony Recordings 
The Ancient Power of Sanskrit Mantra and Ceremony, 2nd. Ed., is now being revised to simplify pronunciation.
As promised some time ago, material to be chanted is being recorded by Namadeva
to be sold in CD sets of 7 or more CDs.
Volume I and Volume II 7-CD sets are now for sale at our online store for $65 each.
Volume III, which will be more than 7 CDs, will be ready in late 2009. | |
