Learning Sri Rudram in Rudra's Presence!

[Guest guest]

The Lord of Thousand Moons

 

 

 

 

 

Programme Schedule

 

 

Reports and Images

 

 

Sahasra Poornachandra Darshanam - an overview

 

 

Learning Sri Rudram in Rudra's Presence!

 

 

23rd Nov... Why is it so special?

 

 

Everyday is My Birthday

 

 

Happy Birthday - Divine Discourse, Nov 23, 1978.

 

 

Sai tale from Arkansas

 

 

Videos

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Learning Sri Rudram in Rudra's Presence !

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

One

thing is certain that everything is uncertain, said someone in a most

optimistic tone referring to the happenings in Prasanthi Nilayam. What

we have been experiencing in this hamlet turned Spiritual Township that

attracts millions and billions to the aura of Divinity is indeed

stupendously astounding. Much akin to His most famous ‘visiting card’,

materializing things out of nothing, He often springs with surprise

packages out nothing. And one such fabulous surprise was the

introduction of Rudram learning, purely a Divine initiative that came

out of the blue. How did it happen? Read an account from N.Sudhindran

who was the fortunate one to receive the Divine whisper commencing this

epochal vedam initiative.

 

Sri N.Sudhindran was born in Chennai and did most part of his schooling

there and joined Sri Sathya Sai University in Brindavan, Bangalore for

B.Com (Hons.) in 1997. He went on to do his MBA from the Prasanthi

Nilayam Campus of Bhagawan's University and graduated in 2002. Ever

since, he has been serving the Sri Sathya Sai Central Trust, Prasanthi

Nilayam.

The Vedas form the bedrock of

spirituality and Bharatiya culture and serve as guideposts to man so

that he can lead a wholesome life, both in spiritual and material

terms. No wonder, Bhagawan Sri Sathya Sai Baba, the Avatar of the

Kaliyuga, declared ‘Vedaposhana’ (fostering the Vedas) as one of His

primary tasks in His Divine Mission. In keeping with this, Bhagawan has

actively encouraged the study and chanting of the Vedas, and conducted

and participated in many Vedic rituals. All students of His educational

institutions, right from tiny tots of the First class to Research

Scholars and teachers, chant the Vedic hymns everyday when He grants

Darshan. Almost all festivals and programmes conducted in the Divine

Presence begin with invocatory prayers from the Vedas. Bhagawan’s

devotees, irrespective of age, gender, economic status, caste, race,

religion and nationality have taken to the study and practise of the

Vedic teachings in their daily lives, thus demonstrating the universal

relevance and appeal of the Vedas. Indeed, the Vedas cannot be limited

to any particular denomination of humanity; it is a divine gift and

legacy to which every human being is a rightful heir.

The

Sahasra Poorna Chandra Darshanam is a grand and auspicious occasion

when the Avatar completes 82 glorious years on the earth. When many

pundits and Vedic scholars were vying with one another to participate

in the holy event, Bhagawan decided to give as His Birthday gift to His

students, the golden opportunity to welcome Him and lead Him in a

procession as He rides in to the venue on a golden chariot. And for

this occasion, He instructed that each and every student should learn

and chant the ‘Sri Rudram’, an important hymn from the Vedas, in praise

of Lord Shiva. Bhagawan asked three of His students to teach Sri Rudram

in Sai Kulwant Hall from 9th to 27th September, every evening at 4 pm.

As these three students chanted every line slowly on the microphone

from the dais, the rest of the students and even the devotees assembled

there repeated after them twice. Often times, Bhagawan would be seated

on the dais watching the class in progress. What a great spectacle it

was, learning Sri Rudram in the very presence of Lord Rudra!

 

In order to motivate the students, Bhagawan would occasionally ask the

count of students who could chant perfectly and would pick a few and

make them chant. Bhagawan also promised them that He would Himself give

an ‘award’ to the best of the lot. This was enough to drive the

students to learn Sri Rudram, and each vied with the other to get the

‘award’ from the Divine Hands. As the days progressed, there was a

perceptible increase in the volume till the entire Sai Kulwant Hall

reverberated with the chorus of a thousand throats hailing the Lord.

One of the days, Bhagawan called two American boys and an Iranian boy

from among His students and made them chant on the mike. And they

chanted effortlessly and flawlessly, with perfect pronunciation and

intonation, which even a Vedic pundit would have been proud of!

Bhagawan’s Love works miracles and this was one such instance for all

to see!!

 

As promised, the ‘award’ did come! From among a thousand of His

students, the best were chosen who could chant Sri Rudram perfectly and

without seeing the script. On the morning of 6th November in Sai

Kulwant Hall, Bhagawan distributed red silk dhotis and angavastrams to

each of the 150 students as they came up to Him, touched His Divine

Feet and received the gift from His Divine Hands. Their beaming faces

said it all. They had more than one reason to be happy… after all, they

were the chosen few who would lead the Lord in the procession on the

glorious day!

…and

how earnestly the world emulated the Divine Initiative…we have an

account from Ms. Ramya Kumar, a Young Adult from the United States of

America.

Rudram for Sai 83

“The

Lord comes as an Avatar when He is anxiously awaited by saints and

sages. The pious prayed - and I have come…My tasks are…Veda Rakshana and Bhaktha Rakshana - fostering of the Vedas and fostering of devotees.†- discourse in the year 1963 at Prasanthi Nilayam

“It is Swami’s wish that the Vedas shall be spread to every country, so that every human being irrespective of religion, caste, nationality, etc., learns Vedas and chants them.†– Ati Rudra Maha Yajna at Chennai 19th Jan 2007

Time

and time again our Beloved Bhagawan has declared the importance of Veda

chanting and preservation of the sacred texts. We read His discourses,

marvel at its depth, enjoy the accompanying photos and then put it

aside for future reference. The Lord patiently repeats His messages

year after year. We listen to His teachings year after year. But how

often do we really take it to heart and jump right it? After the World

Youth Conference in 2007, youth resolved that this time around things

would be different. The opportunity of a lifetime – to make our lives

His message - will not slip out of our fingers that easily. So it was

only natural that when Swami’s directive to chant the Sri Rudram came,

the opportunity was embraced with full force.

On

September 8th 2008, Bhagawan gave the divine directive that everyone

should learn and chant the Sri Rudram mantra before His Birthday

festivities this year. The unified chant is for the welfare of the

entire world.

No sooner had He given

this directive, word spread to far corners of the world and fervent

preparations began to follow through. Youth in the United States of

America took the directive to heart and cherished the opportunity to

learn and dedicate our fruits to the Divine Mother – our Sai Maa. From

daily conference calls that span the nation’s four time zones, to

weekly in-person sessions, youth groups all over the country have found

innovative ways to bridge the distance and come together in unity to

learn the Rudram. Swami has often talked about the rise in technology

and the destructive use it has been put to. Youth in the United States

of America have found ways to harness this advancement and put it to

good use. Alumni of the Sri Sathya Sai University – beacons of Sai

Love, have gladly come forward to help achieve this goal of chanting

Rudram on the auspicious occasion of our Beloved Lord’s 83rd Birthday.

Youth who are unable to attend the group sessions have taken upon

themselves, the task of listening to the audio tutorials provided by

our Sai fraternity in Prasanthi Nilayam. Even something as simple as

the audio and text resources have been seen as Divine Prasadam and an

opportunity to receive from the Lord Himself.

While

the list of initiatives being undertaken is expansive, a small glimpse

reveals that youth leaders across the country have created several

opportunities to chant Rudram in unity and harmony, spreading positive

vibrations and doing our part in cleansing the world of the condition

it is in today. In one part of the country, youth have been

participating in 83 days of daily morning prayers starting at 5 a.m.

which include Omkar, Suprabhatam, and chanting of the Rudram.

Participants come together via a conference call bridge to chant in

unison. An Ati Rudra Parayanam is also underway with eleven days of

chanting that is being webcast live for increased participation around

the globe. In other parts of the country Rudram was chanted during the

recent Akhanda Bhajan celebrations as a precursor to Swami’s birthday.

Regardless

of the scale of undertaking, youth are coming together to fulfil

Swami’s mission of fostering the Vedas and spreading it’s wealth to

countries far and beyond. As our most loving Lord has often said, “The

future of the country depends on the skill and the sincerity of the

youth.†The coming together of youth from all walks of life, with one

goal in mind – Rudram for Sai 83 – is but one step in our journey as

Ideal Sai Youth; making our lives His message.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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