One day the time will come ...

[Guest guest]

the Sahasranam with an easy gusto full of punch and energy. The air

was charged with the shared energy and the love for these mantras.

And then came the time to offer our egos ... Swamiji took a

gourd/squash (looked like a cucumber, but wasnt one , so not exactly

sure what it was ... some kind of a bottle gourd) and placed it on a

cutting board and set it up on the steps of the havan. Then he told

us to place our egos into the gourd. He raised a cleaver with his

right hand and stared hard at the gourd for several moments. ( I was

closing my eyes fervently praying and alternately gazing fascinated

at the tableau in front of me ) and then when I least expected it

came a "Chak". A single neat cut through the gourd and Kali had cut

down our egos... To ensure that the ego got fully burned, Swamiji

chopped up the gourd into smaller pieces and passed it around to the

devotees, and had us each

offer a piece to the fire. We watched our egos burn ... but there was

one small piece of the cut gourd that Swamiji kept aside and was not

burned... I was really curious all night and this morning ,until I

finally had to ask him . Swamiji said that piece of gourd was used to

cook the next day ... that it was prasad... and that by eating that

piece, we were doing what Shiva was doing - ie digesting our egos..

Anyway, to come back to the Kali puja last night ... Once the offering

was made, we all got up to do arati for Kali Maa. Then Maa and Swamiji

gave their blessings and prasad. Maa gave the ashes as tilak blessings

to all... and when She asked "Did everybody get prasad".. I went up to

her the second time and requested the blessings for the members of the

, and of course Maa promptly and lovingly obliged... So

dear friends, we ALL got blessed last night by Maa !!! After the

blessings, we had another treat ... Maa leading us in some of her

favorite Kali songs ... "Jai Kali Bhavani Maa" , "Kali Maheshwari "

.... When she sang "Kali Bhavani Kali Bhavani", we all got up and

danced circles around the room and got giddy headed. Almost as a

contrast to all that high energy that was generated, the next song

was a peaceful and stirring "Emon Din Ke" (which is on the Ramprasad

CD) . This is one of the those songs that could melt even a heart of

stone ... so full of devotion and love. After Maa sang the Bengali, we

all followed suit with the translation ... which goes like this "One

day the time will come , when I call Tara Tara Tara, and tears will

fall from my eyes" When the song finished, Maa asked us to sit

quietly for a while . A wonderful fitting finale for a wonderful

night! Thank you to all our friends that participated in the

sankalpa from wherever you are and whatever time you were up

(3 AM for Henny) . Your love and participation made last night all the

more special and May Kali Maa's blessings be with you. JAI KALI

MAANanda

What are the most popular cars? Find out at Autos

[Guest guest]

Dear Nanda,

 

thank you very much for your lively description of a very special

night (the part about the cutting of the gourdlike thingy gave me the

shivers)and for asking Shree Maa for Her blessing for the group!

Almost (but not quite) as good as being there,

 

JAI KALI MAA!

 

Henny

 

 

 

-- In , Nanda <chandimaakijai> wrote:

>

> Dear All,

>

> Here is the scoop from your reporter on location at the Devi

Mandir on the occassion of the Ratanti Kalika Puja.

>

> The Kali Puja started promptly on time at 6 PM PST, with Maa and

Swamiji starting with the opening lines of the Kali Puja book. The

devotees followed along with them reading out the verses aloud. This

went on for about an hour, and once we completed the Kali Kavacham,

Swamiji asked us to stand and give pushpanjali (offering of flowers)

to Kali. So we offered the flowers to Kali ,once for each of the three

mantras that he chanted. With all of us by now vitalized by the puja

and the pushpanjali, we made our way to the havan kund to start the

Kali Sahasranam.

>

> We chanted the Sahasranam two verses to the breath ... Was it that

the night was special ? Was it because of Maa and Swamiji ? Was it

because of Kali ? Was it because of a combination of all the above and

more .... we all chanted the Sahasranam with an easy gusto full of

punch and energy. The air was charged with the shared energy and the

love for these mantras.

>

> And then came the time to offer our egos ...

>

> Swamiji took a gourd/squash (looked like a cucumber, but wasnt one

, so not exactly sure what it was ... some kind of a bottle gourd) and

placed it on a cutting board and set it up on the steps of the havan.

Then he told us to place our egos into the gourd. He raised a cleaver

with his right hand and stared hard at the gourd for several moments.

( I was closing my eyes fervently praying and alternately gazing

fascinated at the tableau in front of me ) and then when I least

expected it came a "Chak". A single neat cut through the gourd and

Kali had cut down our egos...

>

> To ensure that the ego got fully burned, Swamiji chopped up the

gourd into smaller pieces and passed it around to the devotees, and

had us each offer a piece to the fire. We watched our egos burn ...

but there was one small piece of the cut gourd that Swamiji kept aside

and was not burned... I was really curious all night and this morning

,until I finally had to ask him . Swamiji said that piece of gourd was

used to cook the next day ... that it was prasad... and that by eating

that piece, we were doing what Shiva was doing - ie digesting our

egos..

>

> Anyway, to come back to the Kali puja last night ... Once the

offering was made, we all got up to do arati for Kali Maa. Then Maa

and Swamiji gave their blessings and prasad. Maa gave the ashes as

tilak blessings to all... and when She asked "Did everybody get

prasad".. I went up to her the second time and requested the blessings

for the members of the , and of course Maa promptly and

lovingly obliged... So dear friends, we ALL got blessed last night by

Maa !!!

>

> After the blessings, we had another treat ... Maa leading us in

some of her favorite Kali songs ... "Jai Kali Bhavani Maa" , "Kali

Maheshwari " ... When she sang "Kali Bhavani Kali Bhavani", we all got

up and danced circles around the room and got giddy headed. Almost as

a contrast to all that high energy that was generated, the next song

was a peaceful and stirring "Emon Din Ke" (which is on the Ramprasad

CD) . This is one of the those songs that could melt even a heart of

stone ... so full of devotion and love. After Maa sang the Bengali, we

all followed suit with the translation ... which goes like this "One

day the time will come , when I call Tara Tara Tara, and tears will

fall from my eyes"

>

> When the song finished, Maa asked us to sit quietly for a while .

A wonderful fitting finale for a wonderful night!

>

> Thank you to all our friends that participated in the sankalpa

from wherever you are and whatever time you were up (3 AM for Henny) .

Your love and participation made last night all the more special and

May Kali Maa's blessings be with you.

>

> JAI KALI MAA

> Nanda

>

>

>

>

> What are the most popular cars? Find out at Autos

>

[Guest guest]

, Nanda <chandimaakijai>

wrote:

>

> Dear All,

> Anyway, to come back to the Kali puja last night ... Once the

offering was made, we all got up to do arati for Kali Maa. Then Maa

and Swamiji gave their blessings and prasad. Maa gave the ashes as

tilak blessings to all... and when She asked "Did everybody get

prasad".. I went up to her the second time and requested the

blessings for the members of the , and of course Maa

promptly and lovingly obliged... So dear friends, we ALL got blessed

last night by Maa !!!

>

> JAI KALI MAA

> Nanda

>

 

Dear Nanda,

Thanks for the incredible report of the puja. Also, thanks ten times

over for thinking of the rest of us who could not participate in the

puja but yet symbolically got the prasad!

 

Whether it's "free lunch" or not, I really liked it, so thanks once

again!

 

Jai Ma!

[Guest guest]

Kali Sahasranam. We chanted the Sahasranam two verses to the breath

.... Was it that the night was special ? Was it because of Maa and

Swamiji ? Was it because of Kali ? Was it because of a combination of

all the above and more .... we all chanted the Sahasranam with an easy

gusto full of punch and energy. The air was charged with the shared

energy and the love for these mantras. And then came the time to

offer our egos ... Swamiji took a gourd/squash (looked like a

cucumber, but wasnt one , so not exactly sure what it was ... some

kind of a bottle gourd) and placed it on a cutting board and set it

up on the steps of the havan. Then he told us to place our egos into

the gourd. He raised a cleaver with his right hand and stared hard at

the gourd for several moments. ( I was closing my eyes fervently

praying and alternately gazing fascinated at the tableau in front of

me ) and then when I least

expected it came a "Chak". A single neat cut through the gourd and

Kali had cut down our egos... To ensure that the ego got fully

burned, Swamiji chopped up the gourd into smaller pieces and passed

it around to the devotees, and had us each offer a piece to the fire.

We watched our egos burn ... but there was one small piece of the cut

gourd that Swamiji kept aside and was not burned... I was really

curious all night and this morning ,until I finally had to ask him .

Swamiji said that piece of gourd was used to cook the next day ...

that it was prasad... and that by eating that piece, we were doing

what Shiva was doing - ie digesting our egos.. Anyway, to come back

to the Kali puja last night ... Once the offering was made, we all got

up to do arati for Kali Maa. Then Maa and Swamiji gave their blessings

and prasad. Maa gave the ashes as tilak blessings to all... and when

She asked "Did everybody get prasad".. I went up

to her the second time and requested the blessings for the members of

the , and of course Maa promptly and lovingly obliged...

So dear friends, we ALL got blessed last night by Maa !!! After

the blessings, we had another treat ... Maa leading us in some of her

favorite Kali songs ... "Jai Kali Bhavani Maa" , "Kali Maheshwari "

.... When she sang "Kali Bhavani Kali Bhavani", we all got up and

danced circles around the room and got giddy headed. Almost as a

contrast to all that high energy that was generated, the next song

was a peaceful and stirring "Emon Din Ke" (which is on the Ramprasad

CD) . This is one of the those songs that could melt even a heart of

stone ... so full of devotion and love. After Maa sang the Bengali, we

all followed suit with the translation ... which goes like this "One

day the time will come , when I call Tara Tara Tara, and tears will

fall from my eyes" When the song finished, Maa asked us to sit

quietly for a while . A wonderful fitting finale for a wonderful

night! Thank you to all our friends that participated in the

sankalpa from wherever you are and whatever time you were up (3 AM

for Henny) . Your love and participation made last night all the more

special and May Kali Maa's blessings be with you. JAI KALI MAANanda

What are the most popular cars? Find out at Autos

 

doce lar. Faça do sua homepage.

[Guest guest]

Dear Nanda,

Thanks for the beautiful description of the Kali puja. I can feel

how charged and beautiful the atmosphere was Maa and Swamiji must

have been so very happy.

Nanda, most of all, thank you so very much for remembering the group

at such an opportune time as offering of blessing.

May all our egos be digested for at least another 5,000 years.

 

Jai Kali

Jai Shree Maa

Jai Swamiji

Jai Nanda

 

 

, Nanda <chandimaakijai> wrote:

>

> Dear All,

>

> Here is the scoop from your reporter on location at the Devi

Mandir on the occassion of the Ratanti Kalika Puja.

>

[Guest guest]

Dear Beloved Community,

 

What a wonderful night it was chanting the Kali Sahasranama. Thank you, Nanda,

so much

for your vibrant description of the puja at Devi Mandir. It is so helpful to

have an idea of

what was happening there while i was enjoying a really lovely puja by myself in

front of my

little altar.

 

My worship felt so energized by the group connection. I had some really lovely

experiences during it and I credit all of you with having created the space for

that.

Thank you so much to Shree Maa and Swamiji and the Devi Mandir community for

such

inspiritation, energy and guidance.

 

It is so nice, out here in my quiet little desert valley, to feel the

connection, even though I

don't "know" any of you!

 

Much love and many Blessings,

~leela

[Guest guest]

Jai Maa!

 

Dear Nanda - Thank you and the group for all your postings which make

Devi Mandir seem less far away...

 

Jai Maa!

 

Phife

 

p.s. I'm on my way to India, so just checking: Are you able to tell

me if Shree Maa and Swamiji are likely to be in India during the

period Feb. thru the beginning of March this year and, if so, would

they be contactable there? Thank you, Nanda. All love. Phif

 

 

 

, Nanda <chandimaakijai wrote:

>

> Dear All,

>

> Here is the scoop from your reporter on location at the Devi

Mandir on the occassion of the Ratanti Kalika Puja.

>

> The Kali Puja started promptly on time at 6 PM PST, with Maa and

Swamiji starting with the opening lines of the Kali Puja book. The

devotees followed along with them reading out the verses aloud. This

went on for about an hour, and once we completed the Kali Kavacham,

Swamiji asked us to stand and give pushpanjali (offering of flowers)

to Kali. So we offered the flowers to Kali ,once for each of the

three mantras that he chanted. With all of us by now vitalized by the

puja and the pushpanjali, we made our way to the havan kund to start

the Kali Sahasranam.

>

> We chanted the Sahasranam two verses to the breath ... Was it

that the night was special ? Was it because of Maa and Swamiji ? Was

it because of Kali ? Was it because of a combination of all the above

and more .... we all chanted the Sahasranam with an easy gusto full

of punch and energy. The air was charged with the shared energy and

the love for these mantras.

>

> And then came the time to offer our egos ...

>

> Swamiji took a gourd/squash (looked like a cucumber, but wasnt

one , so not exactly sure what it was ... some kind of a bottle

gourd) and placed it on a cutting board and set it up on the steps of

the havan. Then he told us to place our egos into the gourd. He

raised a cleaver with his right hand and stared hard at the gourd for

several moments. ( I was closing my eyes fervently praying and

alternately gazing fascinated at the tableau in front of me ) and

then when I least expected it came a "Chak". A single neat cut

through the gourd and Kali had cut down our egos...

>

> To ensure that the ego got fully burned, Swamiji chopped up the

gourd into smaller pieces and passed it around to the devotees, and

had us each offer a piece to the fire. We watched our egos burn ...

but there was one small piece of the cut gourd that Swamiji kept

aside and was not burned... I was really curious all night and this

morning ,until I finally had to ask him . Swamiji said that piece of

gourd was used to cook the next day ... that it was prasad... and

that by eating that piece, we were doing what Shiva was doing - ie

digesting our egos..

>

> Anyway, to come back to the Kali puja last night ... Once the

offering was made, we all got up to do arati for Kali Maa. Then Maa

and Swamiji gave their blessings and prasad. Maa gave the ashes as

tilak blessings to all... and when She asked "Did everybody get

prasad".. I went up to her the second time and requested the

blessings for the members of the , and of course Maa

promptly and lovingly obliged... So dear friends, we ALL got blessed

last night by Maa !!!

>

> After the blessings, we had another treat ... Maa leading us in

some of her favorite Kali songs ... "Jai Kali Bhavani Maa" , "Kali

Maheshwari " ... When she sang "Kali Bhavani Kali Bhavani", we all

got up and danced circles around the room and got giddy headed.

Almost as a contrast to all that high energy that was generated, the

next song was a peaceful and stirring "Emon Din Ke" (which is on the

Ramprasad CD) . This is one of the those songs that could melt even

a heart of stone ... so full of devotion and love. After Maa sang the

Bengali, we all followed suit with the translation ... which goes

like this "One day the time will come , when I call Tara Tara Tara,

and tears will fall from my eyes"

>

> When the song finished, Maa asked us to sit quietly for a while .

A wonderful fitting finale for a wonderful night!

>

> Thank you to all our friends that participated in the sankalpa

from wherever you are and whatever time you were up (3 AM for

Henny) . Your love and participation made last night all the more

special and May Kali Maa's blessings be with you.

>

> JAI KALI MAA

> Nanda

>

>

>

>

> What are the most popular cars? Find out at Autos

>