Hari Om! Parents,
Wishing all Grade 6 families a blessed Ganesh Chaturthi festival!
Reminder: You can sign up to bring Prasad to Bala Vihar using the link that was shared on the Parents WA Group.
Week 1 Class
Children did this Likhita Japa at the start of class - " Sri Ganeshaya Namaha '' and "Jai Ganesha". Please encourage your child to do likhita japa every day.
Shlokas
We started with Om chanting and then chanted Sahana vavatu, Vakratunda mahakaya, Saraswati namastubhyam, Guru Brahma, Sarva Mangala mangalye (ref. My Prayers book pg 39) On the occasion of Ganesha Chaturthi we also chanted the Ganesha Pancharatnam (ref. My Prayers book pg 30)
Mahabharata*
The Adi Parva of the Mahabharata continues with the story of Kunti's boon, the birth of Radheya/Karna, and the wedding of Dritarashtra and Gandhari. King Pandu weds Kunti and Madri, but due to accidentally killing a pair of deer, he is cursed. Leaving behind his kingdom to Dritarashtra, Pandu and the queens go to the forest. Next, we discussed the birth of the Pandavas and the 100 Kauravas. We spoke about the story of Dronacharya and his enmity with king Drupada. Arjuna avenges his guru Drona and Drupada's yagna to get children leading to the birth of Dhrishtadyumna and Draupadi.
Meanwhile, Radheya grows up as the son of a charioteer, as a result all the acharya's refuse to teach him. He lies about being a brahmana and he is accepted by Parashurama, who teaches him all the skills of a warrior. After catching Radheya's lie, Parashurama curses that Radheya will forget all that he has learned in his time of need. At the tournament, Radheya is treated unfairly, but Duryodhana supports him and makes him the king of Anga. They become friends and Radheya stays loyal to Duryodhana till the end.
King Pandu dies and queen Madri enters the funeral fire. Queen Kunti along with the Pandavas returns to Hastinapura, but their cousins the Kauravas treat them badly and try to kill them. Duryodana's plot to burn them in a house of lac fails and the Pandavas along with Kunti escape to Ekachakra. Next we discussed the swayamvar of Draupadi and her wedding to the Pandava brothers. The Pandavas are found out when Bhimasena kills Bakasura.
When they return to Hastinapura the king gives them Khandavaprastha. With the help of Lord Krishna and Maya, the architect, the Pandavas transformed it into the kingdom of Indraprastha. A beautiful palace with a grand hall is built and Yudhistira plans to perform the Rajasuya yagna. We discussed the story of Jarasanda and how Bhima kills him with the help of Lord Krishna. Next was the story of Shishupala being killed by Lord Krishna during the Rajasuya yagna. This brings us to the end of the Adi Parva review.
We will continue to recap the first part of the Mahabharata story with the children over the next few weeks. We will be doing activities from the Mahabharata Junior Workbook by Chinmaya Publications throughout the year. Please send this book with your child to class.
India, the Sacred Land
Topics: The Sacred Land - meaning of "Bharata", Attitude of Gratitude - why do we do 'namaskara' and be thankful to the sages and mahatmas that came before us, The Roots - Hinduism and our scriptures, The Clarion Call - What did some famous people from around the world say about India? They praised India's culture and contributions. Be proud of your Indian heritage and connect with your Indian roots!
Activity: What India is to you? Guess the secret from the clues given to you!
Geeta Chanting
We are going to learn Chapter 4 of the Bhagavad Gita from our Swamiji this year. Grade 6 is group Partha, and is assigned verses 1-28 to memorise. Today the class watched the introductory video by Swamiji and learned Sanskrit pronunciation.
We concluded the session with Aarti and Pledge recitation in the Prayer Hall.
- Rashmi Kuroodi and Sangeetha Srikanth
Supplies needed for every class:- Bala Vihar Handbook, My Prayers book, the Junior Class Workbook Part 1 & 2, a notebook and pencils for likhita japa; everything in their Bala Vihar bag
*Reference books - Mahabharata by Rajagopalachari / Mahabharata by Kamala Subramaniam
