Class started with a prayer to bring peace to the victims of the Connecticut tragedy, chanting eleven times the “Maha Mrityunjaya mantra” - Triyambakam Yajamahe…. , followed by the meaning of the mantra.
This was followed by guided meditation during which we silently chanted Om Namah Shivayah.
Regular prayer was followed by learning another verse of Geeta Dhyanam.
To prepare for the 2013 Geeta Chanting Competition (in April ’13) we taught verse 4 of chapter 13 of the Holy Geeta, followed by translation of the first four verses.
The class continued the study of Lord Vishnu.
The children were presented a book on Sri Vishnu Sahasranamam (Thousand Names of Vishnu). Each one placed a dab of turmeric paste on the inside title page of their copy. It was explained that turmeric is considered auspicious in Hindu culture. We shared our expectation that students would use and cherish the book forever.
The book contains the sloka verses in Samskrut (Devnagri) and English script, along with transliteration (pronunciation guide), translation and detailed meaning.
Some students shared their homework results – to bring pictures of Bhagwan Vishnu. There were questions on the different depictions of Vishnuji and Lakshmiji in different versions of the picture.
We completed our study of Sri Vishnu Dhyana sloka (Shantakaram Bhujagashayanam….) from the Vishnu Sahasranamam (The Thousand Names of Sri Vishnu). Children shoudl have teh meaning written down in their notebooks.
Next class we shall start learning the first 100 names from the Sri Vishnu Sahasranamam
Children were informed of the upcoming class play during the annual day in June 2013. It shall be a 10-15 minute play, in a game show format based on Vishnu Sahasranamam. Students were given a few pointers and asked to come up with some ideas for the play.
We concluded the class with closing prayers.
Blessings,
Kasturi Uncle and Sangita Aunty
