Sri RanganAtha temple

[Guest guest]

Dear Sri Rangantha Premis :

 

I am delighted to receive the most welcome

suggestions from Srimathi Viji Raghunathan .

These are excellent ones and I welcome additional

suggestions from residents of other parts of

this country and abroad to devise appropriate ways

to interestand involve your community in collecting

bricks for the Sri Rangantha Temple on a National scale .

 

Those who can help out in the spirit of

Srimathi Viji Raghunathan are requested to

come forward to help realize this dream

of erecting the first temple for Sri Ranganathan

on these shores .Please let us devise ways

that will enhance the outreach .The home page

for Sri RanganathA will certainly help and I

thank Sriman Dileepan for his srama dhAnam

on that project . I thank Sri Sampath Rengarajan ,

who is organizing a concert of Sri Madurai Sunder

for fund raising and all the other innovative

ways in which he is contributing to the project .

I thank Sri MadhavakkaNNan for his support from

Singapore . The much appreciated support of

Srimathi Nagu Satyan thru a personal appeal

to her world of friends and relatives is again

a most welcome support .We need every one of you to serve

our divine parents from your respective geographical

bases .

 

Instead of taking additional space and time on

the Bhakthi list , I will now get back to

the task ofcompleting the remaining 14 postings

on the glory of Sri Ranganayaki Sametha

Sri Ranganatha and leave it upto Him to bless us all

to go forth into our communities and complete

successfully the task that he has assigned to us .

 

AdiyEn , V.Sadgopan

 

>vraghuna

>Wed, 8 Apr 1998 12:16:46 -0800

>sgopan

>Cc: bhakti

>Sri RanganAtha temple

>

>

>Respected Sri. Sadagopan,

>

>I had a few ideas for fund-raising for our Ranganatha Temple, and wanted to

>share them with you for what (little) they may be worth. It's possible some

>of these are already being acted on. I'm copying the list on this message as

>this may trigger new (and possibly much better) ideas for a stellar

>fund-raising effort for our Lord's home in Pomona. (Of course I don't know

>if there is a reason not to go out and give publicity on a large scale and

>

>1. Could the temple make available receipt-books to those of us who would

>like to take to cultural activites and collect for the temple? With that the

>devotees could take something tangible to family/friends/bhakta-samoohams

>and help people take action right then instead of spreading the word

>alone... We can then give the people receipts and forward the checks and

>finally send the stubs with the contributor names/addresses...

>

>2. Are there ads that can be placed in all "indo-american" papers? (The

>Rajasthani community in particular may also be interested in this temple,

>(as I'm sure you know) there has long been a connection with the Srirangam

>temple and Marwaris especially visit regularly in India. Some may be on the

>bhakti-list or we can reach information to Rajasthani Associations in our

>cities.

>

>3. Are there flyers that can be faxed/emailed that we can then print on

>colored paper and take to our local temples/cultural centers etc?

>

>4. I can ask a local Bharatanatyam dance school director if she will put up

>a fund-raising performance, and help to organise it. Others on our Bhakti

>list or people they know might have access to any number of local/more

>universally famous talents that may be willing to contribute in this

>fashion. Is it possible to arrange a more organised tour across the country

>by pooling all our efforts and getting, say, Sri. Seshagopalan concerts in

>major cities...? (I presume, even if such efforts take time, that funds will

>still be required for continued management, and this may help.) Towards

>this, are there organizations (such as South Indian Fine Arts society in CA)

>that people have connections with so we can gain from joining hands...?

>

>5. You have kindly donated your music tapes. When possible, and when the

>temple has the means to make copies, if the list/order forms can be made

>available to us, we can collect orders and funds.

>

>

[Guest guest]

Dear Bhagavatas

 

This is a mail posted by me in the malolan net. Since Sriman Kalale had

posted Sri Dileepan's note, I am posting here by way of clarification. Hope

this clarifies.

 

Let us put the matter behind us because there is no reference to Sri

Ranganatha Temple in U.S.A but it concerned solely with the numerous appeals

being received from India for financial support to various temples in India.

Dasoham

Anbil Ramaswamy

Mailing-List: contact -owner

Ramanbil

Tue, 21 Sep 1999 15:12:16 EDT

dileepan, (Malolan Net)

Re: Sri Ranganatha temple

In a message dated 9/21/1999 12:15:42 PM Eastern Daylight Time, you wrote-

 

<< Another question that we have to deal with is the price tag. Why spend

millions of dollars on temples here in the U.S. while many of the divya

desams in India are in disrepair. For a fraction of the cost of building

one temple here we can maintain many temples in India. >>

 

Support to the Ranganatha Temple under the able leadership of Paramaikanti

sArvabhouman Dr. Venkat is unquestionable. There can be no two opinions about

this and I do not think anyone suggested what you are mentioning above. In

fact, it is public knowledge that the very people who were not in favor of

Ranganatha temple at one stage started supporting AFTER Azhagiyasinghar

conferred the honorofic on Dr. Venkat!. Nor is it a question of Ranganatha

Temple here vs temples in India.

 

You have mentioned-

" In any case, renovations are happening and we may support these activities

as much as wecan. But let us not make this out into a competition between

building Sri Ranganatha temple and renovation of temples in India."

 

It is heartening to note that renovations are happening. As stated above, the

question of making out a competition was not suggested by anyone, so far as

my knowledge goes.

 

You wrote-

"One problem about sending money to temple in India is who are you going to

send it to. Even if we have responsible people in cities to send it to how

many times are they going to visit these temples to oversee the proper

utilization of the funds"

 

This is precisely what was projected in my note.

 

You wrote-

"Anyway, Sri Ranganatha temple is the one and only Sri Vaishnava temple in

the U.S. where you can worship without any mental reservations. It is our

duty now to see to it that it gets built."

 

I cannot agree more with you on this.

 

You wrote-

"Therefore, opposition to SriRanaganatha temple which stands for the most

basic principle for SriVaishnavas, is not something that must surprise us.

But perumaaL has brought together a lot of devotees under the leadership of

Sri Venkat Swami.

Let us not feel discouraged by the criticisms. If we work together with full

faith in our AchAryAs we shall succeed".

 

Nobody seems to have opposed the Sri Ranganatha temple project. Let us not

see a red rag where there is none.

 

Dasoham

Anbil Ramaswamy

 

 

 

------

Srimate Sri Laksminrisimha Divya Paduka Sevaka

Srivan Satakopa Sri Narayana Yatindra Mahadesikaya Nama

[Guest guest]

Sri Dileepan did not ask me to post this; However I thought it would be

relevant for the list members here to read this article. Hence, with Sri

Dileepan's permission, I am posting this article to this list.

 

adiyen Krishna Kalale

 

 

Parthasarati Dileepan [sMTP:dileepan]

Tuesday, September 21, 1999 9:16 AM

Malolan Net

Sri Ranganatha temple

 

Sri:

Sri Lakshmi nrisimha parabrahmaNE nama:

Srimate Ramanujaya nama:

Srimate Sri Nigamantha mahadesikaaya nama:

Sri Lakshmi nrisimha divya paduka sevaka

srivan satakopa sri narayana yatindra mahadesikaya nama:

 

 

Dear bhagavathas:

 

On this auspicious day adiyEn would like to add a few words about Sri

Ranganatha temple with the feet of the AchArya bhakthAs of this divine net

firmly planted upon my head. The purpose of this note is to once again

urge

the devotees to consider supporting the temple with money. Money is the

most urgent need of the temple right now.

 

Sri Ranganatha temple is indeed the one and only Sri Vaishnava temple in

all

of U.S. This does not mean we denigrate the other temples such as the ones

in Pittsburgh, Chicago, Los Angeles or San Jose. These other temples cater

to the needs of a wide range of public, Sri Vaishnavas also being one among

the many. For instance at Chicago genuine and devout Sri Vaishnavas face

the dilemma of having to either walk out or sit in a bhajan gOshti where

anya devetha songs are sung. At one time since the main hall was occupied

by another group the Sri Vaishnava gOshti had to sit in piLLaiyaar sannithi

and recite Sri Vishnu Sahasranaamam. Please understand, adiyEn is not

criticizing anyone in Chicago, such things cannot be avoided in temples

that

include anya devathaas. Sri Vaishnavas will never face such predicaments

at

Sri Ranganatha temple. This is why Sri Ranganatha temple is unique and

needs your support from all across the U.S.

 

Another question that we have to deal with is the price tag. Why spend

millions of dollars on temples here in the U.S. while many of the divya

desams in India are in disrepair. For a fraction of the cost of building

one temple here we can maintain many temples in India. On the surface

these

seem to be legitimate questions.

 

Well, how many of our children will ever go back and live in India? For

that matter, how many of us are going to go back to India for good? The

answers are obvious. So, we have no choice but to build temples here in

the

U.S., and building anything here in the U.S. costs a lot more money than in

India.

 

It is not just for us but for the future generations of Sri Vaishnavas as

well. At present there is a steady exodus of Sri Vaishnavas away from

villages to cities in India and from cities in India to other countries,

particularly the U.S. This phenomenon has two implications, (i) the

village

temples slowly and steadily lose patronage and (ii) new temples get built

in

the cities and other foreign countries. This trend is not going to be

reversed how ever hard we may wish. Only perumaaL has to come with ways of

protecting the old temples, and perumaaL has. Five years ago when adiyEn

was in nava thiruppati most of the temples were in pathetic condition. Two

years ago there was a lot of renovation activity. This summer when adiyEn

was there all the temples were completely renovated with even new living

quarters for archakaas. PerumaaL got all this done through Venu Srinivasan

of TVS. Similarly, five/six years ago ViLakkoLi perumaaL at Thooppul was

full of thorny bushes. We could not even get into the temple without

getting pricked. This time, the whole place is cleaned up with nithya

araadhanai being performed without interruption. Even ThirumaNdangudi, the

birth place of Thondaradippodi Azhvaar, which was in pathetic shape six

years ago is now in pristine condition with new paint and mostly paved

praakaaram. But, not many sEvaarthIs in any of these temples. Even in

nava

thiruppati only a few temples have regular devotees. In any case,

renovations are happening and we may support these activities as much as we

can. But let us not make this out into a competition between building Sri

Ranganatha temple and renovation of temples in India.

 

One problem about sending money to temple in India is who are you going to

send it to. Even if we have responsible people in cities to send it to how

many times are they going to visit these temples to oversee the proper

utilization of the funds. Venu Srinivasan has appointed a manager from TVS

to oversee the nine temples of nava thiruppathi. His only job is to

maintain these temples. At least for the near future these nine temples

will be maintained properly. What about the other temples such as

Thirumandangudi? Unless there is constant maintenance, sooner or later all

the new paint is going to peel off with no one to care. The only solution

is for the locals to lead in these efforts. If there is a committee of

local devotees who will take up the job of renovation and maintenance of

their temple, then we can send money to them and hope that it is spent

well.

Otherwise, it is just like pouring money into a blackhole.

 

Further, there is also the question of daily visitors. Of the 11 temples

of

Thirunaangoor 8 of them have no regular visitors, only occasional visitors

such as the tour operators taking Sri Vasihnavas to Chola Naattu divya

desams. Practically, there is not a single devotee visiting these temples

regularly. Even the utsava moorthees have been moved to one location where

aradhanai can be conveniently done because there is no one visiting the

other temples. Unless the locals take more interest this problem will

continue.

 

Now, about cost, of course things are expensive here. For the cost of a

cup

of coffee we can feed a family for a whole day. For the cost of eating out

one evening we can feed travelling sEvArthIs for a whole month in any one

of

the dhivya desams like thirukkaNNamangai where adiyEn had the bhagyam of

having prasaadham. Forgive me for being so direct, but why don't we stop

drinking coffee or stop going out to eat? Well, even if we did, it is not

proper to compare costs between India and the U.S.

 

Anyway, Sri Ranganatha temple is the one and only Sri Vaishnava temple in

the U.S. where you can worship without any mental reservations. It is our

duty now to see to it that it gets built.

 

It is not an exaggeration to say that without Swami Sri Desikan Sri

Ramanuja

darsanam would be extinct today. Even the opposition has conceded this,

viz. Appaya Dheekshitar. Yet even during his own time there were people

who

opposed him bitterly driven by dvEsham. Therefore, opposition to Sri

Ranaganatha temple which stands for the most basic principle for Sri

Vaishnavas, is not something that must surprise us. But perumaaL has

brought together a lot of devotees under the leadership of Sri Venkat

Swami.

Let us not feel discouraged by the criticisms. If we work together with

full faith in our AchAryAs we shall succeed.

 

Please give as much as you can, give a dollar if that is what you can

afford. But show your support for Sri Ranganatha.

 

srimad azhagiya singar thiruvadigaLE saraNam

 

-- adiyEn ramanuja dasan

 

 

------

Srimate Sri Laksminrisimha Divya Paduka Sevaka

Srivan Satakopa Sri Narayana Yatindra Mahadesikaya Nama