Guest guest Posted April 18, 2004 Report Share Posted April 18, 2004 what a 'scintillating' performance of 'Bharat Sambhavam' at the Kennedy center , washington dc , last evening! THE choreographer , smt. Mrinalini Sadananda , is a famous kuchipudi dancer , well known in the washingon dc area. Mrinalini is not an ordinary dancer. She is a dancer who uses the dance medium to spread the rich cultural and spiritual traditions of Bharat. (india) . The most important thing is she donates all the proceeds of her dance performance to further a noble cause- CHINMAYA MISSION and its social projects. (advaitins please note - chinmaya mission is spreading the message of Adwaita in the washinngton dc area and our beloved members Sadanandanji, Shri RAMACHANDRAN and Benji are some of the active members) ! SInce this is a group dedicated to spread the message of 'adwaita' , i will not dwell too much on the 'artistic' and 'aesthetic' merits of the performance. The music was simply wonderful, the dancers were flawless in executing the dance numbers , the costumes were beautiful and the choreography was outstanding! in the last scene, when Gandhiji came on the stage with his followers and sat on the dance floor spinning the 'charkha' , tears started rolling down my cheeks and i thought " yes, this is the Land of DHARMA' ! thanks, mrinalini , for spreading the message of 'dharma, karma, artha, moksha' - the four purusharthas of life through this wonderful portrayal of 'Bharat Sambhavam' It was an evening of pure joy and ecstasy! It is always a pleasure to see a pure Vaishnav! (a devotee of sriman narayana) in the presence of a pure Vaishnav, one always remembers Vishnu! after seeing Mrinalini's bharata Sambhavam , i am reminded of the following verse from srimad bhagvatam... "My dear King, the inhabitants of Satya-yuga and other ages eagerly desire to take birth in this age of Kali, since in this age there will be many devotees of the Supreme Lord, Narayana, . These devotees will appear in various places but will be especially numerous in South India. O master of men, in the age of Kali those persons who drink the waters of the holy rivers of Dravidadesa , , such as the Tamaraparni,Krtamala, Payasvini, the extremely pious Kaveri,; and the Pratici Mahanadi , will almost all be purehearted devotees of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Vasudeva." SRIMAD BHAGVATAM OM NAMO NARAYANA! (yes, dear-hearts, our beloved mrinalini hails from andhra pradesh , south india and she is a pure devotee of lord narayana) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted April 18, 2004 Report Share Posted April 18, 2004 Dear Adiji, > THE choreographer , smt. Mrinalini Sadananda , is a famous kuchipudi > dancer , well known in the washingon dc area. Mrinalini is not an > ordinary dancer. She is a dancer who uses the dance medium to spread > the rich cultural and spiritual traditions of Bharat. (india) . The ----------------- > (yes, dear-hearts, our beloved mrinalini hails from andhra pradesh , > south india and she is a pure devotee of lord narayana) Actually, I believe this Mrinalini Sadananda is the very wife of our highly respected member of the list, my dear friend Sri Kuntimaddi Sadananda! I am very happy to read here about her performance. Warmest regards Stig Lundgren Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted April 18, 2004 Report Share Posted April 18, 2004 advaitin, "Stig Lundgren" <slu@b...> wrote: > Dear Adiji, > > > THE choreographer , smt. Mrinalini Sadananda , is a famous > kuchipudi > > dancer , well known in the washingon dc area. Mrinalini is not > an > > ordinary dancer. She is a dancer who uses the dance medium to > spread > > the rich cultural and spiritual traditions of Bharat. (india) . > The > ----------------- > > (yes, dear-hearts, our beloved mrinalini hails from andhra > pradesh , > > south india and she is a pure devotee of lord narayana) > > > Actually, I believe this Mrinalini Sadananda is the very wife of > our highly respected member of the list, my dear friend Sri > Kuntimaddi Sadananda! I am very happy to read here about her > performance. > > Warmest regards > Stig Lundgren Namaste, Adi-ji and Stig-ji Yes, Sada-ji told me about it some time back. I have missed to coordinate my brief trip to the East Coast last month so as to be present at this scintillating performance. Long live the Sada-couple! PraNAms to all advaitins profvk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted April 18, 2004 Report Share Posted April 18, 2004 professorji! You should have come and then we could have arranged a reception in your honor at the shiva-vishnu temple and you could have delighted the local devotees by talking about the paramacharya's 'saundarya lahari' in your own inimitable fashion! Professorji writes .. Long Live the Sada-couple! Yes! indeed! our blessings go to the entire family. THE whole family is so gifted and talented. Mrinalini's daughter KEERTANA , besides being a qualified doctor, is also following in her mother's footsteps ! She excelled in her role as 'shakuntala ' - reminded me of a 'deer' when she danced her way through the entire stage! but the young boy who stole the show was "kamalakiran vinjamuri" ,( i believe mrinalini's nephew ! ) the audience went into 'raptures' when this young boy hugged the 'tiger' (make believe) on the stage- after all, Bharat (india ) is known for its brave warriors. and the music director , subhash vinjamuri - that was simply enchanting! dance is half busic, half rhythm and in between these two halves is the 'costume' - in all these areas, 'bharat sambhavam' was a winner! not to mentoon divya vinjamuri as Lakshmi ! she looked the part , full of beauty and aishweryam ! to bring together a group of 61 dancers on stage all drwan from local talent is no mean achievement! all the dancers should be given credit for their hard work, discipline and team work! Yatha guru, tatha sisya ( like teacher, like students) WE WANT TO THANK CULTURAL AMBASSADORS like mrinalini who are spreading the message of india's greatness via the medium of dance . we also want to thank Swami dheerananaji of chinmaya mission for spreading the message of adwaitha in this capital city! love > > Namaste, Adi-ji and Stig-ji > > Yes, Sada-ji told me about it some time back. I have missed to > coordinate my brief trip to the East Coast last month so as to be > present at this scintillating performance. Long live the Sada- couple! > > PraNAms to all advaitins > profvk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted April 18, 2004 Report Share Posted April 18, 2004 Namaste, Yes, I was there, and spectacular is the word. The big wide eyes, outlined in black like fishes, sometimes darting to the side, the dazzling smiles, the graceful fluid movements of feet, wrists and hands, the vivid, iridescent, rainbow colors of the costumes, with gold cuffs, collars and sashes, the elaborate hairstyles, the jewels like stars, the flower wreaths, the fingers dipped in red ... all this was a samsaric extravagance! I helped to paint the backdrops. It was interesting to see how what looked like mere splotches of paint up close became a convincing Mt. Kailash or ocean from the distance. We have the talented and industrious Shareen to thank for that. (By the way, her husband was wearing a neat and trim yet comfortable looking black Indian formal costume of some kind which I would much prefer to an uncomfortable coat and tie, if I ever get the courage.) Almost all the dancers were young women and children, so the charm level hit the roof. The play was based on the story of Shakuntala, so naturally there were plenty of Gods, Goddesses and Apsaras (celestial nymphs). The littlest girls were dressed up as birds, which was especially cute. When the occasional kid came out a bit too early on the stage, this just delighted the audience. As Adiji says, this dance group called Kalamandapam is the work of Mrinalini Sadananda, and the efforts to produce this seem Herculean to me. Here is their website http://www.bharatsambhavam.com/about.html Basically, the story is of sage Vishvamitra, whose penance was so great it threatened the Gods, so they sent Meenaka the most beautiful Apsara to seduce him. A beautiful daughter, Shakuntala resulted, who grew up in an ashram in the forest and in turn charmed King Dushyanta when he was hunting. The king took her for wife, but then forgot about her due to a spell. Only when Shakuntala's ring was recovered from the belly of a fish did the king remember her and take her for Queen, from which resulted Bharat, who played with tigers in the forest as a child and then became the greatest king of India and ancestor of a long line of great kings, upon which the Mahabharata is based. All in all, a great way to get a taste of classic Indian culture. And being Indian, there was naturally a spiritual message, namely, that even the greatest sage could be seduced by a sufficiently beautiful woman. At least, that was the message I took from it. My only regret was that I was hoping to meet Adiji and did not. I looked hard for her. Were you hiding under a chair when I came by? :-) Hari Om! Benjamin Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted April 18, 2004 Report Share Posted April 18, 2004 Namaste Adiji: First, let me thank you for providing a fitting tribute the 'scintillating display of the Glory of Bharath's cultural and spiritual heritage.' Sri Sadaji, Srimathi Mrinalini are our family friends and a truly dedicated couple for the universal happiness. I feel it as a great privilege to know and have acquanitance with this noble couple. For their good deeds this noble couple are blessed with a pretty and intelligent daughter Kirthana (who acted as Sakuntala in BhArataSamBhavam) and a son-in-law Aniket (the master of cceremony). Sadaji (as always) was working hard behind the screen and it is not surprising that you couldn't recognize he is the husband of the well- known Kuchipidi dancer and coreographer of Washington Metropolitan! The program at Kennedy Center was over at about 10:30 PM and Sadaji and family could reach home only around 4 AM. However, at 9:50 AM, Sadaji arrived to conduct the Gita Satsangh and provided a scintilalating discourse on Chapter 6, verses 31 to 39. Interestingly, the conversation between Arjuna and Lord Krishna were centered on the important question on the importance of doing 'good deeds in life." It is no wonder, Sadaji with real experience was able to provide the most relevant explanation! Warmest regards, Ram Chandran advaitin, "adi_shakthi16" <adi_shakthi16> wrote: > what a 'scintillating' performance of 'Bharat Sambhavam' at the > Kennedy center , washington dc , last evening! > > THE choreographer , smt. Mrinalini Sadananda , is a famous kuchipudi > dancer , well known in the washingon dc area. Mrinalini is not an > ordinary dancer. She is a dancer who uses the dance medium to spread > the rich cultural and spiritual traditions of Bharat. (india) . The > most important thing is she donates all the proceeds of her dance > performance to further a noble cause- CHINMAYA MISSION and its > social projects. (advaitins please note - chinmaya mission is > spreading the message of Adwaita in the washinngton dc area and our > beloved members Sadanandanji, Shri RAMACHANDRAN and Benji are some of > the active members) ! > > SInce this is a group dedicated to spread the message of 'adwaita' , > i will not dwell too much on the 'artistic' and 'aesthetic' merits of > the performance. The music was simply wonderful, the dancers were > flawless in executing the dance numbers , the costumes were beautiful > and the choreography was outstanding! in the last scene, when > Gandhiji came on the stage with his followers and sat on the dance > floor spinning the 'charkha' , tears started rolling down my cheeks > and i thought " yes, this is the Land of DHARMA' ! thanks, > mrinalini , for spreading the message of 'dharma, karma, artha, > moksha' - the four purusharthas of life through this wonderful > portrayal of 'Bharat Sambhavam' > > It was an evening of pure joy and ecstasy! > > It is always a pleasure to see a pure Vaishnav! (a devotee of sriman > narayana) in the presence of a pure Vaishnav, one always remembers > Vishnu! > > after seeing Mrinalini's bharata Sambhavam , i am reminded of the > following verse from srimad bhagvatam... > > "My dear King, the inhabitants of Satya-yuga and other ages eagerly > desire to take birth in this age of Kali, since in this age there > will be many devotees of the Supreme Lord, Narayana, . These devotees > will appear in various places but will be especially numerous in > South India. O master of men, in the age of Kali those persons who > drink the waters of the holy rivers of Dravidadesa , , such as the > Tamaraparni,Krtamala, Payasvini, the extremely pious Kaveri,; and the > Pratici Mahanadi , will almost all be purehearted devotees of the > Supreme Personality of Godhead, Vasudeva." > > SRIMAD BHAGVATAM > > OM NAMO NARAYANA! > > (yes, dear-hearts, our beloved mrinalini hails from andhra pradesh , > south india and she is a pure devotee of lord narayana) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted April 18, 2004 Report Share Posted April 18, 2004 shri ramachandranji, THANK YOU! my pleasure! i know sadananji and i am also familiar with the fact that he gives weekly discourses at the chinmaya mission! only thing is , i know spiritual people like him may not react well to 'praise' and adulation , so i refrained from praising him to the skies! behind every succesful man, there is a woman and we washingtonians know that behind beautiful Mrinalini,the danseuse, there is a man ! without his support and encouragement, how can an indian woman bloosom so much in a field such as 'dancing' which involves lot of commitment and dedication ! to adjust family life with the demanding life of a performing artist - Mrinalini seems to do with remarkable ease! also, she just retired as a chemistry teacxher from a local school!! you see, we hindu women are capable of doing multiple things!! ( smiles!!!! we are shakti personified) !! ********************************************************************** hey benji, i did miss you! i came 15 minutes late for the performance and then rushed to the balcony to take my seat ! during intermission, i did come to the lobby to have some coffee and look for you!!! but the description you gave was not good enough! there were many caucasians who wore specks ; none of them looked like u? but you could have recognized me in an instant!!! lol!!! oh! benji , you could be an dance and art critic! you have a way with words ! so poetic!!! i wrote my piece in a hurry between doing household chores! also, i was not sure how moderators would react to my post! so i squeezed a lit bit of 'srimasd bhagvatam' into it to make irt looke more advaithic and less of a dance critique!!! so you prepared the backdrop! which one wasit!! yes, we all admired the authentic looking hermitages, the palace, the vaikunta and celestial abode of the gods ! but what attracted me most was the dancer who came on stage as Gandhiji - he looked every inch the part right unto the skinny legs! but he forgot to put on the gandhiji'stoop'... you know i am a bharatanatyam dancer myself - dance is my first passion and spirituality is my compulsive-obsession! smiles!! take care ! love Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted April 19, 2004 Report Share Posted April 19, 2004 I want to thank you all for all the kind comments about the bArata Sambavam performance at the Kennedy Center about my wife and her husband. I realize that significant efforts made in writing the comments about the show into advaitins list to make believe that it belong there. That shows only the enthusiasm, and sincere appreciation of the writers involved. Thank again. Hari OM! Sadananda ===== What you have is His gift to you and what you do with what you have is your gift to Him - Swami Chinmayananda. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted April 19, 2004 Report Share Posted April 19, 2004 respected sadanandaji , mrinalini had spent countless hours, days, months etc training those 62 dancers to perform this great dance drama and i am sure you are the moving' spirit behind your wife's remarkable feat ! The least we could do was to show our appreciation as any lover of art would do! i wish i could have dome more justice in describing 'bhatata sambhavam (as benji did ) but i am not so eloquent ! All classical dance forms salute the Divine ; this is so true of dance mediums like Bharatanatyam and kuchipudi! When i saw the Ksheera sagara scene where Lakshmi devi was seated at the feet of SRI Ranganayakar in 'bharata sambhavam' , i felt like i was in 'sri ranganathar' kovil itself! it was simply awesome! MOOKAM KAROTI VACHALAM PANGOOM LANGHAYATE GIRIM || YATKRIPA TAMAHAM VANDE PARMANAND MADHAVAM || Salutations to the ultimate bliss Madhava, by whose grace, a dumb man becomes the most eloquent and a physically disabled man crosses the highest mountains onm namo narayana ! advaitin, kuntimaddi sadananda <kuntimaddisada> wrote: > > I want to thank you all for all the kind comments about the bArata > Sambavam performance at the Kennedy Center about my wife and her > husband. I realize that significant efforts made in writing the comments > about the show into advaitins list to make believe that it belong there. > That shows only the enthusiasm, and sincere appreciation of the writers > involved. Thank again. > > > Hari OM! > Sadananda > > ===== > What you have is His gift to you and what you do with what you have is your gift to Him - Swami Chinmayananda. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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