Here is this week's update.
Week 12 :
7th January 2024 / 9:15 AM
Opening prayers and Shlokas
Slokas: Class began with 3 OMs followed by
Om shrI Ganeśaya Namaha, shrI Saraswatyai Namaha, shrI Sat Gurubhyo Namaha.
"Vakratunda Mahakaya" (page 27 in My Prayers book)
"Gurur Brahma" (page 60 in My Prayers book)
"Krishnaya Vasudevaya" (page 105 in My Prayers book)
Karaa-ravindena padaa-ravindam
Mukhhaa-ravinde vinivesha yantam
Vatasya patrasya pute shayaanam
Baalam mukundam manasaa smaraami
Govinda and Damodara are the other names of Lord Krishna. This sthotram is in praise of Govinda, the protector of cows, and Damodara, one who was tied up with a rope around his stomach(by Maa Yashoda).
Meaning: I meditate on the little baby Krishna, sleeping on the leaf of a banyan tree, with his lotus like feet, lotus like hands and lotus like face. He is holding his toe with his hand and putting it in his mouth.
I am huge, scary and I slither
People still like to keep me as a pet
I may not have table manners, but I am famous for my unique eating habits as well as style.
Who Am I?
Today's teacher was "Python".
Again, the kids were very quick to answer!. The first guess was "Snake", and the second was, "Python". Yes, today's second teacher was "Python"T
A python is content with any food that comes it's way
It does not fuss over the food, whether it is big, or small.
A python never goes out of its way to get food for itself.
It never makes a special attempt to satisfy its hunger.
Python eats occasionally !
The python does not grieve if it does not get food everyday.
It waits patiently even if it has to starve for several days.
And what do we learn from this?
To be satisfied with what we get and not to go in pursuit of worldly things.
It's good to be ambitious, but not greedy. We have to learn to be satisfied with what we get due to our prarabdha, or destiny.
We have to be thankful for the food we have and not fuss over it. We should try to remember that there are many many people in the world who do not have anything to eat. We have to thank God for what he has given us and be happy.
Just as the four wheels of a car have to go in the same direction, in order to take the driver to his/her destination, we have to also direct our five senses, in order to achieve our goals. For example, if there is a test coming up on Monday, and there is a new Disney movie on Sunday, just because our eyes want to watch the movie, we should not yield to it. We should be in control of our senses and do the right thing, which is to study for the test.
Story : Once upon a time there was a rabbit that did not like rain or dry hot weather. He was not happy even in the cool pleasant breeze. And he always complained.
One day he saw a Yogi, who was continuously chanting the Lord's name. The rabbit asked him what's the use of chanting when God does not give anything. The Yogi asked the rabbit what he wanted. The rabbit thought for a while and told him that he would be happier living on the clouds. With God's help, the Yogi placed the rabbit on the clouds. In the beginning, the rabbit was too busy making himself comfortable.
Then when he looked down he saw the beautiful earth.
He looked at the clouds and thought "they are so misty and soft… I can't even run"
He was missing the carrots he used to eat. Soon, he started hating the place. The rabbit shouted for Yogiji's help. He did not appear.
He started meditating "Hari Bola, Hari Bola"
The Kind Lord sent the Yogi to help the rabbit get back to the earth.
The rabbit learnt his lesson - God knows the best- Be content with what he gives you....like the python.
We then discussed two more concepts :
Who is poor ?
John D Rockafeller was one of the richest men in America, who also gave a lot of money to charity. He always said "Earn plenty honestly, and use it for people" When someone asked him who is poor..he answered " A poor person is one who has nothing, but money"
Who is wealthy ?
One day a rich man takes his young son to a village to show how people live there and worked on farms. After they returned, he asked his son what he felt. The son replied -
We have one dog, they have four
We have a pool that reaches half of our garden, they have a creek which has no end
We have lanterns in our garden, they have stars
We have a wall around our home to guard us, they have their friends
We have servants who do our work, they serve others.
Dad, now I know how poor we are!
One who is content is the wealthiest.
We concluded our lesson today saying that we have to learn to be content, like a python.
Krishna, The Hero - our lesson
The Fruit Seller in Gokula
We began with a short story about how little Krishna was attracted to a lady trying to sell fresh and yummy fruits. The cute and adorable little Krishna waddled out and asked for fruits and was confused when the lady asked for money. He had no clue.
The lady wanted to spend more time with this charming and mesmerizing little boy, so she told Him that she would trade some grains for fruit. Little Krishna, immediately went inside and scooped some grains into His tiny hands and ran back to the fruit lady. As he ran, grains slowly fell out of his cupped hands and when He reached the lady, only a few pieces of grain were left. The lady happily accepted the trade, just to see the smile and expression on Krishna's face!
As the fruit seller lady was getting closer to her own home, her basket got heavier and heavier. The lady was confused, as she had sold almost everything in her basket! To the lady's surprise, it was filled with jewels, gold and precious stones!
• The Lord of the Universe begged a poor
fruit seller for a handful of fruits !
• He did this so that He could bless His
devotee for her simple love and generosity.
Vrindavana
One day, the elders of Gokula gathered at Nanda's house. Upananda, the wisest and eldest of them said, "Lately Gokula has been visited by many misfortunes. By some stroke of luck, our Krishna has saved us time and again from various calamities. Only by the grace of Lord Vishnu, he has been saved each time. Gokula has now become unsafe for us and it would be foolish to stay on. Let us all migrate to Vrindavana.It is cool and undisturbed and the grass is always green. It is the best place for our cows and our people. We will enjoy the lovely surroundings and also the holy Yamuna flows nearby."
Everyone agreed and the same day, people started packing up their belongings. Women, children and old people first sat on the carts and left Gokula for good. The procession moved to beating drums and trumpeting conches. The gopis sang merrily, and the children were very excited. At last, they reached Vrindavana. Krishna and Balarama were overjoyed to see the green pastures, the sacred Govardhan mountain in the distance and River Yamuna. When the brothers were a little older, they took the calves to graze on the pastures. All day, Krishna, Balarama and their gopa friends would tend to the calves and
play in the forest. Those were some of the most memorable days of their lives!
Gita Chanting - We chanted the first fourteen shlokas and then followed Swamiji's videos to learn shlokas 15 and 16 of Chapter 4. Please see the link below
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_muXxD4WhoA
