kOyil@Home – sath sangam

SrI:  SrImathE SatakOpAya nama:  SrImathE rAmAnujAya nama:  SrImath varavaramunayE nama:

archAvathAra emperumAn (in temples, mutts, homes, etc) is emperumAn’s top-most manifestation of saulabhyam (simplicity). though being lord of entire existence, he makes himself available in deity form and places himself under the control of his devotees , though the devotees may not be fully qualified to worship him. More on glories of emperumAn’s archA form can be seen at http://ponnadi.blogspot.in/p/archavathara-anubhavam.html . emperumAnAr (SrI rAmAnuja) highlights from SAsthram that kESava bhakthi and sAdhu sangam are the two pillars of a SrIvaishNava’s life.

For some (especially outside India, also outside dhivyadhESams), it may be difficult to attend temple programs and have sAdhu sangam regularly. That too, exclusive perumAL temples with AzhwArs, AchAryas may be rare to find. This is why engaging oneself at home in devotional activities with like minded people is very important to nurture our knowledge and devotion.

Here is a proposal to spend together with fellow-bhAgavathas for about 2 to 3 hours per day during the weekends and holiday seasons. This program may be started for once a week (Sunday), and can be quickly extended to 2 days (Saturday/Sunday) depending on interest/participation. Special sessions may be held during AzhwAr/AchArya thirunakshathram days. Full list of month-wise thirunakshathrams can be found at http://acharyas.koyil.org/index.php/full-list/ .

The Program

  • Meet at one person’s home around 8am in the morning (timing can be adjusted according to situation). Everyone in the group can take turns to be the host.
  • Bring the perumAL from pUjA room to Hall or Living room – arrange a small altar with nice flowers, fragrance,  etc. small garlands can be prepared before hand (ourselves).
  • thiruvArAdhanam startup – Host person can do small thiruvArAdhanam (initial part). Full thiruvArAdhanam procedure detailed at http://srivaishnavagranthamstamil.wordpress.com/2013/12/13/srivaishnava-thiruvaaraadhanam/  (thamizh) and
    http://ponnadi.blogspot.in/2012/07/srivaishnava-thiruvaaraadhanam.html (English) with  link at the respective pages for full list of SlOkams, pAsurams to be recited. This may take about 15 to 20 minutes.
  • dhivyaprabandham recital – Together all can recite common thaniyans, thiruppallANdu, thiruppaLLiyezhuchchi, thiruppAvai, kaNNinuN chiRuth thAmbu, amalanAdhipirAn and rAmAnusa nURRanthAdhi. Further, specific prabandhams related to AzhwArs/AchAryas may also be added depending upon the time. We can also include SrI vishNu sahasranAmam, SrI bhagavath gIthA and pUrvAchArya sthOthrams in this. This may take about 30 minutes to 60 minutes depending on what is being recited. 
  • Presentation/Group discussion – Important topics should be discussed to develop deeper knowledge. To start with “Simple Guide to SrIvaishNavam” (http://ponnadi.blogspot.in/p/simple-guide-to-srivaishnavam.html) and guru paramparai (https://guruparamparai.wordpress.com/2012/08/17/introduction-contd/) can be discussed. There are many such series of articles in our koyil.org portal in multiple languages (guruparamparai, dhivya prabandham, granthams, gIthA). 2 or 3 members can prepare simple notes by going through the various series of articles in sequence and present to others. This way within a few months, everyone will become familiar with important concepts that should be known. Any doubts/questions that come up during discussions and could not be clarified can be noted down and sent to us (koyil.org@gmail.com) for clarification. An hour may be allocated for this.
  • Offering to perumAL – After the discussion session, thaLigai (bhOgam/food) can be submitted to perumAL. This may take about 10 minutes.
  • sARRumuRai – After that sARRumuRai can be performed. This may take about 15 minutes.
  • bhajans and nAma sankIrthanam may also be conducted for about 10 minutes. Songs should be purely focussed on emperumAn, Azhwars and AchAryas.
  • prasAdham distribution and closure – After that, everyone can eat prasAdham after that and leave to their respective homes. This may take about 30 minutes.

Note: There are certain times/places where thiruvArAdhanam may not be possible (like evening sessions, or programs at temple/mutt premises). In such cases, we may just focus on the pAsuram recitals and presentation/group discussion.

The Goal

The ultimate goal of this program is to bring about kainkaryaparas (people with service attitude) who can engage in various kainkaryams without monetary or other expectations.

Important points

  • We should try to focus on devotional activities exclusively. it will be difficult to avoid mundane discussions initially due to habit – but we should have that as a rule – during the stipulated time, everyone should engage in devotional topics only.
  • Humility and cooperation are the key for the success of the program. Those who are organising/conducting the programs should take guidance from elders and lead the program with humility, with the help of others who are interested.
  • Reading of sampradhAyam books, listening to kAlakshEpams/upanyAsams should be encouraged. http://koyil.org/index.php/printed-books has a range of books available in multiple languages in print. Plenty of e-books (PDF) are available in multiple languages at http://koyil.org/index.php/e-books/ .
  • Learning dhivya prabandham pAsurams, sthOthrams, rahasya granthams is a must for all of us. Please see http://pillai.koyil.org/index.php/2017/06/dhivya-prabandham-santhai-recordings/ for a range of available recordings (santhai classes, simple explanatory lectures etc).

Engaging children

  • Children should also be positively engaged in this to develop their attachment towards perumAL. http://pillai.koyil.org has lots of resources which can be useful to engage children. One elder person (everyone can take turns) should supervise the children and make sure that they also don’t get bored.
  • Quiz programs can be conducted periodically and prizes which enrich the knowledge/devotion of children can be given to them.
  • Children can be engaged in group games such as
    • anthAkshari – dhivya dhESams, personalities etc – Example, one person would say mAdhavan, next person would say nambi and another person would say imaiyavarappan and so on.
    • memory games such as remembering a sequence of names. Example – first person would say krishNa, next person would say krishNa, gOvindha, and the next person would say krishNa, gOvindha, vishNu and so on.
    • Some interesting/enriching games are available at http://srimaaninfotech.org/ .

Followup/discussion session

  • 15 to 30 minutes can be allocated to followup on topics discussed from previous week.
  • This can be arranged at the end of the presentation. It is key to answer all questions and clarify the doubts of the participants to develop firm knowledge.

Leveraging Technology

  • Technology can be used in a positive way as much as possible. We can leverage Skype and other tools to bring people from different locations to our home virtually.

Audience

  • While we may start this concept within our own family, we should also invite other interested guests/friends (SrIvaishNavas who have had panchasamskAram already or those who are aspiring to be in this path of SrIvaishNavam).

Resources

Contact Us

If you are interested to organize/participate in such SrIvaishNava sath sangam programs, please contact us at koyil.org@gmail.com or +91-8220151966.

adiyen sarathy ramanuja dasan

pramEyam (goal) – http://koyil.org
pramANam (scriptures) – http://granthams.koyil.org
pramAthA (preceptors) – http://acharyas.koyil.org
SrIvaishNava education/kids portal – http://pillai.koyil.org