Guest guest Posted September 7, 2004 Report Share Posted September 7, 2004 PAYING HOMAGE TO THE HOME PLANET IN YOGNAT STYLE Yoganjali Natyalayam presented a scintillating prayer to the five magnificent elements of nature (Pancha Maha Bhutas) during the 98th Jayanthi Celebrations for Yogamaharishi Dr Swami Gitananda Giri Guru Maharaj on the 4th September 2004 at Pondicherry, South India. The two-and-a-half hour dance drama “PANCHA MAHA BHUTAS” featuring Bharatanatyam, Folk dances, and Yogasanas as well as Natya Karanas was witnessed by a packed house of nearly a 1000 spell bound audience most of whom stayed in their seats from the start to conclusion of this epic presentation. A team of more than 80 dancers, yoga demonstrators, musicians and artisans as well as stage managers worked tirelessly under the divine direction of Amma, Kalaimamani Yogacharini Meenakshi Devi Bhavanani to bring about the resounding success of this creation. Yogacharya Dr Ananda Balayogi Bhavanani and Yogacharini Devasena Bhavanani assisted Amma in the direction and choreography. Kalaimamani Pulavar I Pattabiraman penned lyrics for the dance drama while Dr Ananda Balayogi Bhavanani and Nada Yoga Shironmani SV Jagadeesan composed the music. Dr P Devaraja IFS, Director, Department of Science, Technology and Environment, Govt of Pondicherry, a chief guest of the evening was greatly impressed by the presentation and appreciated Yognat for presenting a topic that is the ‘need of the hour’ in such an entertaining and informative manner. He stressed the importance of conservation of resources and appreciated Amma for taking exemplary steps to help the youth of Pondicherry understand these vital concepts through the Indian cultural arts of dance, music and yoga. The Director of Art and Culture, Govt of Pondicherry Ms N Sumathi another chief guest of the evening said that she was speechless as no words could explain the feeing of divinity that had been brought out in every one of the audience through the presentation. She complimented all the participants on their 100% involvement and recalled the role of the founding father of Yognat, Dr Swami Gitananda Giri with deep reverence and appreciation. “This magnificent presentation will stay in our minds for a long time” said she. Prof Dr Vikram Reddy, Head, Ecology and Environment Science at Pondicherry University and Dr AS Abbasi, Senior Professor, Centre for pollution control and energy technology appreciated the perfect planning that went behind the perfect presentation. Dr Abbasi compared the similarities between environmental concepts extolled in both the Bhagavad Gita and the Holy Koran Dr Nalini Devi of the Gitananda Yogalayam, Spain as well as Pulavar I Pattabiraman and Sangeetha Bhushanam SV Jagadeesan offered tributes on the occasion. Sri Jagadeesan complimented Dr Ananda on using the intricate Sangeerana Chappu Tala in the presentation as no one dared to experiment with this complicated rhythm in modern presentations. Amma, Meenakshi Devi Bhavanani explained the necessity of developing reverential feelings towards the elements that are divine entities that also need to feel loved and revered. “When we have reverence for them, we will not misuse them,” she said eloquently. The audience greatly appreciated the introduction of each of the elements through the respective rhythm and melody and the depiction of the elements arising from the Divine Tandava or interplay between Shiva and Shakti the great energies of the universe that was artistically depicted by D Lakshmi as Lord Shiva and Padma M Prashanthini as Shakti. SS Lothika, Sri Sahana, L Kanmani, Nivedha Kannan and S Ghayathri depicted Akash (Space), Vayu (air), Agni (fire), Apas (water) and Pritvi (earth) respectively. The vibrant depiction of an earthquake by Renuka Devi was also very well appreciated. Senior dancers of Yognat performed in tandem the Swara notes and Jathis for the respective elements synchronously in an intricate and spell binding fashion. Youngsters of Yognat also performed a beautiful Deepam dance (dance with earthen lamps) depicting the Deepam festival at Thiruvannamalai as well as an enlivening Kolattam (South Indian stick dance) praising the benefits of pure air. The elephant dance by Tamilarasan was a novelty as also the performance of Kanimozhi as Kannappa Nayanmar. Padmasri Adyar Shri K Lakshmanan, the eminent world famous dance master of both Amma and Dr Ananda sent a special blessing on the eve of the performance that was deeply appreciated by all members of the Yognat. The noted music and dance critic Tanjore Shri BM Sundaram wrote, “I am very happy to have witnessed one of the best productions of your Natyalayam, based on a very high and intricate theme of Indian Metaphysics and Science. Had I been out of town, I would have missed such a nice programme, well choreographed and very well presented. All the dancers, right from the tiny tots did very well, with utmost perfection and bereft of any strain. Please accept my very hearty congratulations and pass on my good wishes to one and all, who took part. All the five Gatis have been very neatly employed for all the five elements”. Shri Narasimmamurthy and Smt Chitra Narasimmamurthy, parents of Yognat stars such as Ramya and Divya and long time supporters of Yognat wrote, “All the dance dramas of Yognat are like flowers in a beautiful garland and it is quite difficult to choose any one as the outstanding. Pancha Maha Bhutas was especially a veritable feast for connoisseurs of dance, yoga and spiritualists as well as appealing to the common man. The dance drama was replete with the master touch of Amma’s choreography from the beginning and was sustained till the end. The efforts taken to depict the Chakras, Bija Mantras, temples, related episodes and the number of petals of each element were of a very high order. We were further instructed of the related melody and tala of each element. When the boys performed in unison and Dr Sir chanted the mantra, one could feel positively attuned to the spirit it evoked. Though some of the information was known in piecemeal manner such as the temples representing each element, now one could understand the entire information since it was presented in a visual manner. The performance was all the more praiseworthy since young children performed it to perfection. That Yognat could do it for 11 years continuously is an exceptional undertaking. The songs penned by Pulavar Kalaimamani I Pattabiraman were apt for the choice of language. Music by Sangeetha Bhushanam Sri SV Jagadeesan and Yogacharya Dr Anandha Balayogi Bhavanani touched the heart. Yognat is synonymous with standard and the children lived up to the expectations. All performers were seen observing discipline of formation belying their age and experience. Dr Sir was seen helping replace the candles that went out. This also signifies the efforts of Yognat in keeping alive the mythology and cultural heritage of Tamilnadu among young children. It is not exaggeration to say that Amma’s efforts were very evident in the performances of the children and we could well imagine Amma coaxing the best out of her wards by her untiring and persistent efforts. A good number of senior performers gave a worthy performance indicative of depth of talent pool nurtured by Yognat. Many of the children have really come of age after joining Yognat. A word of praise for Kanimozhi and Ghayathri .The world we are leaving behind for the next generation is starved of the many resources that we have seen disappearing before our own eyes. Hopefully the drama will awaken the right spirit of preservation in the next generation especially in a country such as ours. We express our thanks for the invitation to the banquet of spiritual arts presented in the unique Yoganjali Natyalayam way. The topic chosen for this years production also was well appreciated by many and Sri Bala the founder of Vibrational Breath Therapy, Australia wrote, “My salutations to Amma and you for this grand concept and epic presentation. It is a fitting tribute to revered Swamiji. You are also satisfying the need of the hour. What better method of portraying our interdependence on Mother Nature, that we are a microcosm of that great macrocosm , than through the rich cultural heritage medium of Indian dance, music, mantras etc. It is a novel method and I congratulate you both for it. I sincerely wish it all the success it richly deserves. I sincerely hope that it will bring a new awareness to the public of the need to preserve Nature for the greater good of humanity, and you will get an opportunity to present it in other parts of India as well, and hopefully the world. Yogacharya Eric Doorkekamp of the Lotus Yoga Centre, New Zealand wrote, “What a wonderful show! A timely spiritual reminder of our interdependence on Nature”. This year’s production was the tenth major dance drama (three hour duration) by Yognat in the past 10 years and its twenty-fifth dance drama in all as the Yognat troupe has also presented fifteen mini dance dramas of 45-60 minute duration in the past 18 years since the formation of the Yognat dance troupe. Yogacharya Dr.Ananda Balayogi Bhavanani Chairman : Yoganjali Natyalayam and ICYER 25,2nd Cross,Iyyanar Nagar, Pondicherry-605 013 Tel: 0413 - 2622902 / 0413 -2241561 Website: www.icyer.com www.geocities.com/yognat2001/i_am_here Win 1 of 4,000 free domain names from Enter now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted September 7, 2004 Report Share Posted September 7, 2004 Dear Ananda, My sincere and heartiest congratulations to Amma, you, and the galaxy of collaborators and participants on this epic venture, so successfully depicted and so deeply appreciated! It touched my heart. This is only a shape of things to come from Amma's, your and the excellent associates' creativity and choreography skills. I'm happy for revered Swamiji too. God is truly great! love Sri Bala Founder, Vibratioinal Breath Therapy Australia. - Dr.Ananda Bhavanani ; bgv_alumni ; bgv91 ; bgv_friends ; iyfyoga ; worldyoganetwork Wednesday, September 08, 2004 3:46 AM PAYING HOMAGE TO THE HOME PLANET IN YOGNAT STYLE PAYING HOMAGE TO THE HOME PLANET IN YOGNAT STYLE Yoganjali Natyalayam presented a scintillating prayer to the five magnificent elements of nature (Pancha Maha Bhutas) during the 98th Jayanthi Celebrations for Yogamaharishi Dr Swami Gitananda Giri Guru Maharaj on the 4th September 2004 at Pondicherry, South India. The two-and-a-half hour dance drama “PANCHA MAHA BHUTAS” featuring Bharatanatyam, Folk dances, and Yogasanas as well as Natya Karanas was witnessed by a packed house of nearly a 1000 spell bound audience most of whom stayed in their seats from the start to conclusion of this epic presentation. A team of more than 80 dancers, yoga demonstrators, musicians and artisans as well as stage managers worked tirelessly under the divine direction of Amma, Kalaimamani Yogacharini Meenakshi Devi Bhavanani to bring about the resounding success of this creation. Yogacharya Dr Ananda Balayogi Bhavanani and Yogacharini Devasena Bhavanani assisted Amma in the direction and choreography. Kalaimamani Pulavar I Pattabiraman penned lyrics for the dance drama while Dr Ananda Balayogi Bhavanani and Nada Yoga Shironmani SV Jagadeesan composed the music. Dr P Devaraja IFS, Director, Department of Science, Technology and Environment, Govt of Pondicherry, a chief guest of the evening was greatly impressed by the presentation and appreciated Yognat for presenting a topic that is the ‘need of the hour’ in such an entertaining and informative manner. He stressed the importance of conservation of resources and appreciated Amma for taking exemplary steps to help the youth of Pondicherry understand these vital concepts through the Indian cultural arts of dance, music and yoga. The Director of Art and Culture, Govt of Pondicherry Ms N Sumathi another chief guest of the evening said that she was speechless as no words could explain the feeing of divinity that had been brought out in every one of the audience through the presentation. She complimented all the participants on their 100% involvement and recalled the role of the founding father of Yognat, Dr Swami Gitananda Giri with deep reverence and appreciation. “This magnificent presentation will stay in our minds for a long time” said she. Prof Dr Vikram Reddy, Head, Ecology and Environment Science at Pondicherry University and Dr AS Abbasi, Senior Professor, Centre for pollution control and energy technology appreciated the perfect planning that went behind the perfect presentation. Dr Abbasi compared the similarities between environmental concepts extolled in both the Bhagavad Gita and the Holy Koran Dr Nalini Devi of the Gitananda Yogalayam, Spain as well as Pulavar I Pattabiraman and Sangeetha Bhushanam SV Jagadeesan offered tributes on the occasion. Sri Jagadeesan complimented Dr Ananda on using the intricate Sangeerana Chappu Tala in the presentation as no one dared to experiment with this complicated rhythm in modern presentations. Amma, Meenakshi Devi Bhavanani explained the necessity of developing reverential feelings towards the elements that are divine entities that also need to feel loved and revered. “When we have reverence for them, we will not misuse them,” she said eloquently. The audience greatly appreciated the introduction of each of the elements through the respective rhythm and melody and the depiction of the elements arising from the Divine Tandava or interplay between Shiva and Shakti the great energies of the universe that was artistically depicted by D Lakshmi as Lord Shiva and Padma M Prashanthini as Shakti. SS Lothika, Sri Sahana, L Kanmani, Nivedha Kannan and S Ghayathri depicted Akash (Space), Vayu (air), Agni (fire), Apas (water) and Pritvi (earth) respectively. The vibrant depiction of an earthquake by Renuka Devi was also very well appreciated. Senior dancers of Yognat performed in tandem the Swara notes and Jathis for the respective elements synchronously in an intricate and spell binding fashion. Youngsters of Yognat also performed a beautiful Deepam dance (dance with earthen lamps) depicting the Deepam festival at Thiruvannamalai as well as an enlivening Kolattam (South Indian stick dance) praising the benefits of pure air. The elephant dance by Tamilarasan was a novelty as also the performance of Kanimozhi as Kannappa Nayanmar. Padmasri Adyar Shri K Lakshmanan, the eminent world famous dance master of both Amma and Dr Ananda sent a special blessing on the eve of the performance that was deeply appreciated by all members of the Yognat. The noted music and dance critic Tanjore Shri BM Sundaram wrote, “I am very happy to have witnessed one of the best productions of your Natyalayam, based on a very high and intricate theme of Indian Metaphysics and Science. Had I been out of town, I would have missed such a nice programme, well choreographed and very well presented. All the dancers, right from the tiny tots did very well, with utmost perfection and bereft of any strain. Please accept my very hearty congratulations and pass on my good wishes to one and all, who took part. All the five Gatis have been very neatly employed for all the five elements”. Shri Narasimmamurthy and Smt Chitra Narasimmamurthy, parents of Yognat stars such as Ramya and Divya and long time supporters of Yognat wrote, “All the dance dramas of Yognat are like flowers in a beautiful garland and it is quite difficult to choose any one as the outstanding. Pancha Maha Bhutas was especially a veritable feast for connoisseurs of dance, yoga and spiritualists as well as appealing to the common man. The dance drama was replete with the master touch of Amma’s choreography from the beginning and was sustained till the end. The efforts taken to depict the Chakras, Bija Mantras, temples, related episodes and the number of petals of each element were of a very high order. We were further instructed of the related melody and tala of each element. When the boys performed in unison and Dr Sir chanted the mantra, one could feel positively attuned to the spirit it evoked. Though some of the information was known in piecemeal manner such as the temples representing each element, now one could understand the entire information since it was presented in a visual manner. The performance was all the more praiseworthy since young children performed it to perfection. That Yognat could do it for 11 years continuously is an exceptional undertaking. The songs penned by Pulavar Kalaimamani I Pattabiraman were apt for the choice of language. Music by Sangeetha Bhushanam Sri SV Jagadeesan and Yogacharya Dr Anandha Balayogi Bhavanani touched the heart. Yognat is synonymous with standard and the children lived up to the expectations. All performers were seen observing discipline of formation belying their age and experience. Dr Sir was seen helping replace the candles that went out. This also signifies the efforts of Yognat in keeping alive the mythology and cultural heritage of Tamilnadu among young children. It is not exaggeration to say that Amma’s efforts were very evident in the performances of the children and we could well imagine Amma coaxing the best out of her wards by her untiring and persistent efforts. A good number of senior performers gave a worthy performance indicative of depth of talent pool nurtured by Yognat. Many of the children have really come of age after joining Yognat. A word of praise for Kanimozhi and Ghayathri .The world we are leaving behind for the next generation is starved of the many resources that we have seen disappearing before our own eyes. Hopefully the drama will awaken the right spirit of preservation in the next generation especially in a country such as ours. We express our thanks for the invitation to the banquet of spiritual arts presented in the unique Yoganjali Natyalayam way. The topic chosen for this years production also was well appreciated by many and Sri Bala the founder of Vibrational Breath Therapy, Australia wrote, “My salutations to Amma and you for this grand concept and epic presentation. It is a fitting tribute to revered Swamiji. You are also satisfying the need of the hour. What better method of portraying our interdependence on Mother Nature, that we are a microcosm of that great macrocosm , than through the rich cultural heritage medium of Indian dance, music, mantras etc. It is a novel method and I congratulate you both for it. I sincerely wish it all the success it richly deserves. I sincerely hope that it will bring a new awareness to the public of the need to preserve Nature for the greater good of humanity, and you will get an opportunity to present it in other parts of India as well, and hopefully the world. Yogacharya Eric Doorkekamp of the Lotus Yoga Centre, New Zealand wrote, “What a wonderful show! A timely spiritual reminder of our interdependence on Nature”. This year’s production was the tenth major dance drama (three hour duration) by Yognat in the past 10 years and its twenty-fifth dance drama in all as the Yognat troupe has also presented fifteen mini dance dramas of 45-60 minute duration in the past 18 years since the formation of the Yognat dance troupe. Yogacharya Dr.Ananda Balayogi Bhavanani Chairman : Yoganjali Natyalayam and ICYER 25,2nd Cross,Iyyanar Nagar, Pondicherry-605 013 Tel: 0413 - 2622902 / 0413 -2241561 Website: www.icyer.com www.geocities.com/yognat2001/i_am_here Win 1 of 4,000 free domain names from Enter now. "Health and Happiness are your birthright, claim them through Rishiculture Ashtanga Yoga" -Yogamaharishi Dr Swami Gitananda Giri Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You are posting as a guest. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.