July 19 -- Rishikesh :
On
June 6 (at a program which was originally
scheduled for June 4), we opened a new school in downtown
Rishikesh (see June update). At opening, there
were 300 children attending the morning
school, and approximately 300 girls/ladies
attending the afternoon Vocational Training
Classes.
By
July 15, the number of girls/ladies had
skyrocketed to 1500. At 3:00 pm, as the
children's school comes to a close, the entire
land becomes filled with dance classes,
singing classes, music classes, handicraft
classes, vocational training classes and the
jubilant cries of happiness and hope. We
will have the official
"inauguration" of the school in the
Autumn, in October or November.
Initially,
they had prepared a special program for Pujya
Swamiji for Guru Purnima, and to celebrate the
passing of the 1500 mark. However, due to the
eclipse, Pujya Swamiji could not travel out of
the ashram and therefore, the program was
postponed until the 19th.
 |
Only
two short months before all the rooms of
the school looked like this
--dilapidated and forgotten. However,
through the great dedication and seva of
the entire team, the school was quickly
restored, renovated and re-done, to
accommodate the ever-increasing number
of students. |
July 22-25 -- London
:
During
the course of three days, Pujya Swamiji gave
inspiring pravachan, His divine darshan, and
spiritual guidance to many. Additionally, He
had an important meeting with Shri S.P.
Hinduja regarding the upcoming United Nations
World Peace Summit.
July 26 -- Los
Angeles :
Pujya
Swamiji delivered an inspiring, uplifting and
transformative lecture to a large audience of
westerners living in Hollywood. This glorious
program was organized by Divine Soul Gurmukh
of the Golden Bridge
Yoga and Kundalini Yoga Association. The
overflowing crowd, most of whom had never even
seen a saint, who did not speak a word of
Hindi, who had never visited India, who were
living the epitome of the "Successful
Hollywood Life", were mesmerized and
enchanted by Pujya Swamiji's chanting and
divine words. He led them in divine
meditation, taught them about real wealth,
real peace and real bliss. The twenty minutes
at the end which had been reserved for
question/answer, quickly became almost an
hour, and even at that point, He had to leave
with a roomful of people yearning to ask more
questions. The beautiful success of this
program was a true tribute to the universality
of His message -- no Hindi, Sanskrit, Indian
blood or knowledge of the vedas was required
in order to be touched and transformed.
July 28 -- Santa
Cruz, California:
Pujya
Swamiji traveled to the beautiful, remote
Redwood forest to have a meeting and take
prasad with one of the foremost leaders in the
promotion of Vegetarianism and Environmental
Protection, Mr. John Robbins. The author of
the world famous, Diet for a New America, John
Robbins is the son of the multi-million dollar
Baskin-Robbins ice cream fortune. However, as
a remarkably self-aware, infinitely
compassionate and environmentally conscious
youth, he decided he did not want to inherit
the money associated with practices harmful to
the animals and to the environment. Thus began
his successful and peerlessly dedicated
life-long crusade to bring justice to our
animals, our brothers and sisters starving
throughout the world, and our
environment.
John
Robbins' son, Ocean, is a dedicated pioneer in
the field of youth activism, and the founder
and president of Youth for Environmental
Sanity, an organization dedicated to inspiring
youth toward creating peaceful, harmonious and
conscious futures for themselves and for their
planet.
The
meeting was beautiful...a true re-union of
souls.
July 28-30 -- San
Jose:
Pujya
Sant Shri Rameshbhai Oza (Bhaishri) was
delivering divine Shri Ram Katha in San Jose,
and Pujya Swamiji graced the audience with His
presence for the last 3 days. He gave a
compelling, uplifting pravachan on the final
day of the katha, rousing the audience of 2000
to thunderous applause. In forty-five minutes
He gave the keys to a happy, healthy, pious
family life and to raising children who are
"Western when it comes to professional
and academic excellence, but Indian in their
hearts and their homes." In the heart of
the Silicon Valley, He told the audience,
"Don't only give your children a high
speed, 24-hour a day connection to the web.
Give them a 24-hour a day, high speed
connection to you, to God, to their Indian
culture!"
August
6 -- Detroit:
Pujya
Swamiji spoke at the Hindu temple in Canton to a
huge gathering. Although there were also
hundreds of adults present, He directed much
of His pravachan to the youth. He told them
how to find real ecstasy, not the kind that
comes in a pill, not the kind that wreaks
havoc on your life, but the kind that comes
from the divine connection and brings only joy
and peace to your life.
August
7 -- Winnipeg,
Canada:
Although
Pujya Swamiji was only in Winnipeg for one
day, He graced three separate audiences with
His divine presence and words. In the morning,
He was the Chief Guest at the Bhoomi Puja and
Land Purifying Yagna of the new Hindu Temple.
In the afternoon, He spoke at the ________
temple and then at Pandit Arjun Misir's divine
_____ temple. Everywhere He went, tears of
ecstasy streamed down cheeks, hearts were
opened, lives were transformed, and souls were
connected directly to the Divine. The
community begged Him to stay longer, and took
His promise to return again next year.
August
9-12 -- Toronto,
Canada:
Over
the course of three days, Pujya Swamiji gave
several inspiring, uplifting lectures in
Kitchener, Waterloo and Toronto. On August 12,
He addressed the annual Youth
Conference, 2000, chaired by Shri Kumar
Agarwal and organized by Dr. Bhupendra Doobay
of Toronto. The group of over 200 Indian
Youth were all deeply moved by His pravachan
on "Hinduism and Youth." He touched
their hearts, stirred their souls, and made
them proud of their culture, while at the same
time inculcating them with important values of
restraint and discipline. "Here in the
West you are granted a great deal of freedom.
However, freedom," He cautioned, "is
not a license to indulge. It is not a license
to be reckless. It is not a license to be
selfish and to forget your dharma."
Upcoming
Events:
August
17-21:
Trinidad,
World Hindu Federation Conference
Pujya
Swamiji is one of the keynote speakers at this
international conference.
August
28-31:
United
Nations, New York:
Millennium
World Peace Summit of Religious and Spiritual
Leaders
Pujya
Swamiji is one of the leaders of the Indian
Delegation to this historical Summit.
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