News
from Abroad
Nairobi
Nairobi Centre of Sri Aurobindo Society presented forty sets
of booklets in twelve different titles to Securex Ltd., on
11 January 2008 at Sri Aurobindo Bhavan, Riverside Drive.
The marketing manager of Securex Ltd. received the booklets
on behalf of the company.
Noida
(U.P.) - March 2008 Programmes
Discourses
29 February 2008: On the occasion of Golden Day - Descent of
the Supermind, Special Collective Meditation was held from 7
to 7:30 pm. About 35 devotees and their families took part in
the above.
Shri P.M. Saxena, Managing Trustee, Sri Aurobindo
Yog Mandir Nyas, Lucknow speaking
on the topic "Human Mind", organised by Noida Branch
on Saturday, 8th March, 2008
at Sri Aurobindo Bhavan. Also on the dais are Shri O.P. Dani,
Chairman, Noida Branch and Shri V.P. Goyal.
A view of the audience
8 March 2008: A talk on 'Human Mind' by Shri P. M. Saxena,
Managing Trustee, Sri Aurobindo Yog Mandir Nyas, Lucknow (also,
former Dy. Commissioner - Trade Tax), in the context of Sri
Aurobindo and the Mother was organized at Sri Aurobindo Bhavan
on Saturday the 8th March 2008 from 6 to 7:00 pm. About 30 devotees
and their families participated in the programme.
Daily Reading of Savitri at Sri Aurobindo Bhavan: 'Savitri'
is being read daily at Sri Aurobindo Bhavan from 5.00 to 5:30
pm.
Education at Sri Aurobindo Shiksha Niketan
21 March 2008: Children of Sri Aurobindo Shiksha Niketan
enthusiastically celebrated Holi Festival. Children were told
about Sri Aurobindo and the Mother and all of them paid tributes
at the Holy Shrine.
6, 13 and 27 March 2008: As in previous months, in March
2008 (6, 13, & 27) Shri Vishwa Mohan Tiwari, Air Vice Marshal
(Retd.), Col. M.K. Nigam and Dr. Keshav Rattan came to Sri Aurobindo
Bhavan and interacted for two hours with the children of Sri
Aurobindo Shiksha Niketan. Poems, stories, some good manners
and the need for discipline were explained to the children.
Health
Third Accupressure Therapy Training Camp & Treatment
by Acupressure Therapy: From 10 - 14 March '08, third Acupressure
Therapy Training Programme was organized at Sri Aurobindo Bhavan,
Noida. The Acupressure Training was imparted by Mrs. Sudha Kesharwani,
Acupressure Therapist, in association with 'Acupressure Shodh,
Prashikshan Evam Upachar Sansthan, Allahabad'. Fifteen participants
benefited by the Programme.
Besides above, Acupressure Treatment for two hours daily from
Monday to Friday by Mrs. Sudha Kesharwani at Sri Aurobindo Bhavan
is going on well. While giving treatment, she is also using
the relevant quotations of Sri Aurobindo and the Mother and
the persons coming for acupressure treatment are evincing keen
interest in them.
Free Eye Check-up/Consultation on every Sunday at Sri Aurobindo
Bhavan: Free Eye Check-up/ Consultation is being organized,
on every Sunday, for two hours from 11:00 am to 1:00 pm by Dr.
P.S. Chauhan, Eye Specialist and Project Director, National
Blindness Control Programme, Govt. of India, at Sri Aurobindo
Bhavan, Noida. In the month of March '08, seventeen individuals
got benefited by the above.
Development of Women:
Agarbatties, Candle, Chalk and Toys Making Classes: Agarbatties,
Candle, Chalk and Toys Making Classes at Sri Aurobindo Bhavan
are going on well and about 20 girls are learning these activities.
Sewing & Tailoring Classes: Sewing & Tailoring
Classes are being conducted daily from Monday to Friday at Sri
Aurobindo Bhavan by Smt Jaya Nigam and about twenty ladies/girls
are learning the same. As regards awarding Recognized Certificates
to the Trainees of Sewing & Embroidery Classes and the requirements
to be fulfilled towards that for recognition, the Department
of Adult Education, Ministry of HRD, is being contacted.
Other Activities:
Cleaning our Branch twice in a year: As per the practice
followed at Singapore Centre of Sri Aurobindo Society, Noida
Branch has decided cleaning of branch twice in a year. First
such exercise was done by the Managing Committee Members on
Sunday the 10th of March 2008 from 10:00 to 11:00 am.
Regular Activities: Besides above, regular activities
of Meditation with the Mother's music daily in the morning and
evening, Library, Playing of Spiritual Audio/Video CDs etc.
are held regularly.
"Exploration" Workshops by SAFIER Unit, Mumbai
- Feb. 2008
Children hugging the mother earth in Dhara
Alinganam Kriya
Namaskaar asan the first pose of Surya Namaskar
SAFIER unit of Sri Aurobindo Society, Mumbai, conducted a workshop
on the theme of 'Exploration' with a group of adolescents in
the age-group of 13-20 years, belonging to a Mumbai based group
called Magic Touch (affiliated to the Srimad Rajchandra Institute),
at their premises. About 10 to 16 adolescents participated in
four sessions of 2 hours each, spread over four Saturdays in
the month of February 2008 in the evenings from 5 to 7 pm. The
sessions included:
• An
exploration of the different parts of our being, particularly
those that are less explored,
and parts that are veiled by the thinking mind. These were plumbed
through techniques of
breath
awareness, yogasanas and group discussions.
• Tuning
into the goodwill (Maitri) that is inherent in us, based on
the oneness we share in
our
secret Selves, with all life forms.
• An
understanding of the pancha-mahaa-bhutas, the five elements:
Sky, Air, Fire, Water
and
Earth as essences in our consciousness that can be called upon.
• Sense
awareness exercises to train our senses into refined instruments
of perception.
• Aura
sealing techniques that help us to transcend the environmental
influence.
Some of the interesting feed backs received was as follows.
• "I
really felt like a better person every time I finished the 2
hour of yoga it made me feel
so
great." Dhriti Zhaveri, 8th std.
•
"What I liked was that this workshop taught me about MYSELF.
I have been to many
workshops that taught about other things but not about myself."
Eshita Mehta, 11th std.
•
"My concentration levels have increased a little &
many times I did not have self
confidence
which increased drastically." Ruhil Doshi, 10th std.
Lucknow
(U.P.)
Lucknow Centre organised a Seminar on 9 December 2007 on "Sri
Aurobindo and the Mother on Education". Dr. Meeta Bisen
conducted the Seminar. Prof. Ram Janam Singh, Ex. Vice Chancellor,
Kashi Vidya Peeth, Varanasi, was the Chief Guest. In his speech
he made a comparative analysis on Education between the thoughts
of Sri Aurobindo and Swami Vivekananda. The other speakers were
Dr. Nepal Bahadur Singh, Senior Scientist from C.D.R.I., Lucknow;
Dr. Deviki Tewari, Ex Dean, Faculty of Education, University
of Lucknow; Dr. Subodh Kumar, Professor, Faculty of Education,
University of Lucknow; and Shri P.M. Saxena. The function was
well attended.
On the occasion of The Mother's birth anniversary, the Bar
Association of the Lucknow Bench of the High Court in collaboration
with Sri Aurobindo Society, Lucknow branch, organized a meeting
on 21 February 2008 in which five High Court Judges and a large
number of advocates participated. The main speaker was Shri
J.P. Tiwari who spoke on the life of The Mother and the Integral
Yoga of Sri Aurobindo. Hon'ble Justice D.P. Singh advised the
audience to visit Sri Aurobindo Ashram, Puducherry, to feel
the divine presence that pervades there.
On 1 January 2008 the members visited the old age homes in
their area to wish Happy New Year to the residents. Gift packets
containing New Year calendars, biscuits, fruits, sweets and
booklets brought out by Sri Aurobindo Society, Puducherry, were
distributed to the residents.
Paigmberpur
(U.P.)
The Paigmberpur Centre organized a three-day workshop for the
farmers of Paigmberpur at Haridwar from 24 to 26 February 2008.
13 farmers attended the workshop. Shri Pawan from Patiala branch
of the Society, Ms. Anjana Sarkar from Sri Aurobindo Ashram
and Shri Sunil Kumar from Maple Org. Tech. were the facilitators.
The main programmes of the workshop were Yoga and Pranayama
in the early morning, two sessions of talks and a visit to Yoga
Mandir, Sri Aurobindo Centre and Manasa Devi temple. The contents
of the workshop were 'Introduction to the Life and Yoga of Sri
Aurobindo and the Mother', Hatha Yoga sessions, 'Integration
of village life with spiritual life', 'Role of ego - Helper
and Bar' and a short session on the benefits of organic farming.
Delhi
Branch - Golden Day Anniversary Celebrations
On the occasion of the Golden Day - Anniversary of the Supramental
Manifestation upon Earth - 29 February 2008, Delhi branch of
Sri Aurobindo Society held a collective meditation in the evening
along with music specially composed for this day. This was followed
by "Divine Harmony" (Indian Classical dance - an offering)
by students of Sri Aurobindo Institute of Mass Communication.
It was well attended by students, parents and sadhaks.
Shri Ranjit Puri, Chairman of the Centre, briefed the audience
about the importance of the Golden Day. Ms. Daljeet Wadhwa,
along with faculty members Mr. Menon and Mr. Shankhajeet, made
the concluding remarks and thanked the parents and members for
encouraging the budding artists. Diyas were lit at the Shrine.
Jabalpur
Centre (M.P.) - International Women's Day celebrations
Sri Aurobindo Society Centre, Jabalpur, celebrated International
Women's Day by organising a Seminar on "Women Force: Woman
in the New Age" on 8 March 2008.
Shri K. Pawan from Patiala Branch was the chief guest. Dr.
Suman Kochar from Indore Centre presided over the function and
spoke on the capacities of women as described in Savitri.
Dr. Archana Modi, Chairperson, Mahoba Centre, called upon the
women to discover their soul-strength and psychic-strength.
Shri Manoj Sharma, Vice Chairman, Sri Aurobindo Society, Bhopal,
gave an introductory speech. Welcome address was given by Smt.
Kalpana Arjaria, and Thanks Giving by Smt. Bhavana Gautam. The
programme was compered by Kumari Anahita.
Sultanpur
Branch (U.P.) - Seminar on Indian Culture
The Sultanpur branch of the Society organized a seminar on
the Society's premises on 21 Feb. 2008. The subject of the Seminar
was "Indian Culture". The Chief Guest was Swami Chaitanyananda,
Acharya of Chinmaya Mission, Allahabad, U.P. More than 100 people
attended the function.
Bhopal
(Madhya Pradesh)
On the occasion of The Mother's birth anniversary the Bhopal
branch organised an Eye Camp on 21 February 2008 in collaboration
with the Sri Aurobindo Homeo Centre, Bhopal. Dr. Ravindra Prasad,
a renowned eye specialist and his team did the eye testing.
Medicines were distributed free of cost. Dr. D.N. Joshi, Secretary
of the Bhopal branch, explained the different exercises suggested
by the School for Perfect Eye Sight, Sri Aurobindo Ashram, Puducherry.
Dr. Prasad gave the general information about eye care. In the
morning meditation, prayers and message reading were held at
the Relics Centre.
The branch also organised talks on "Nayi Chetna (New Conciousness)"
on the occasion of the anniversary of the Supramental day on
29 Feb. 2008. The Programme began with rendering of Vandematram.
English translation done by Sri Aurobindo was read out by Smt
Nalini Patel, Principal of Sri Aurobindo School, Bhopal. Shri
K.D. Mishra, member Sahkari Commission and Shri D.P. Sharma
Ex-V.C. of Tirupathi University spoke on the occasion. Shri
Satish Chitwar read a few poems of Sri Aurobindo. Dr D.N. Joshi
explained the different aspects of "Poorna Yoga".
Shri Manoj Sharma spoke about "Atimansik Chetna".
Sri
Aurobindo Complex Trust (SACT), Bangalore
21 Feb. 2008: The observation of Mother's birth anniversary
began with morning meditation and concluded with a talk on "The
Mother " by Shri Chandramani. The day also saw the release
of two small booklets in Kannada, briefly touching upon the
teachings of Sri Aurobindo and the Mother. These booklets are
mainly meant to be distributed in the rural areas and are priced
at Rupees Two per copy.
28 Feb. 2008: This day was observed as "Auroville Foundation
Day" and all Auroville related photographs and information
were displayed in the Cultural hall as exhibits. A documentary
film on Auroville was also screened twice so as to benefit teachers,
students, devotees and visitors.
29 Feb. 2008: "The Golden Day" was observed with
morning meditation and it concluded with a talk on "The
Supramental Manifestation" by Sri K.S. Anantha Ramayya.
Two compilations, one in Kannada and one in English, on the
significance of "The Supramental Manifestation" were
also released by the Chief Guest.
Gulbarga
(Karnataka)
Meerambika School for New Age, Gulbarga, celebrated the annual
day at Sri Aurobindo Society Dhyan Mandir, Om Nagar, Gulbarga.
On this day the students of various classes performed drama,
fancy dress and questions & answers.
From 3 February 2008 onwards, nearly 60 persons participated
in Yogasana session by Shri G.K. Joshi for ten days.
On 21 February 2008 the Gulbarga branch celebrated the Mother's
birth anniversary at Om Nagar. Shri Ghantoji delivered a talk
on the Mother, followed by others. On the same day, there was
a programme at Ghantoji Nivas where the Centre was originally
started in 1956 with the blessings of the Mother.
Ballia
(U.P.)
The Ballia Centre celebrated the birth anniversary of the Mother
on 21 February 2008 with devotion, in the newly constructed
meditation hall. Besides collective meditation, devotees spoke
on the Yoga of Sri Aurobindo and the Mother and how it is different
from the traditional Yogas. The proceedings of the celebrations
were conducted by the Chairman of the Centre, Shri Sriram Tiwari.
The Ballia Centre also celebrated the Supramental Manifestation
Day (The Golden Day) on 29 February 2008. The celebrations started
with meditation on the Mother's music and chanting of 'Om'.
The significance of the day was explained by Shri Satya Prakash
Srivastava.
Annanagar
Centre, Chennai (Tamil Nadu)
The Society's Annanagar Centre in Chennai conducted the following
programmes during the month of February 2008:
03.02.2008 Shri
V. Purushothaman spoke on 'Ishaa Vaasya Upanishad' in the light
of
Sri Aurobindo
10.02.2008 Shri
K.R. Neelakandan spoke on 'Bhagavad Gita' in the light of Sri
Aurobindo
17.02.2008 Devotional
songs on Sri Aurobindo and the Mother by Mrs. Santa N.V. Balu
21.02.2008 The
Mother's birth anniversary was celebrated with collective meditation
and
prayer at 06:30 am and at 06:30 pm. An audio show "Shri
Mathru Nama
Sahasram" was conducted. Over 600 devotees visited the
Centre on this day.
24.02.2008 Dr.
B. Muralidharan gave a talk and demonstration on "Pranayama"
29.02.2008 The
Golden Day was celebrated with collective meditation and prayer
at
06:30
am and at 06:30 pm. An audio show "The Mother speaks"
was held.
The Annanagar Centre gifted a complete
set of Sri Aurobindo's works to the
Cuddalore
Centre of the Society on 19.02.2008.
Chennai
Branch (Tamil Nadu)
The Chennai branch arranged the following talks during the
month of February 2008:
Date
Speaker
Topic
01.02.2008 Shri
M.K. Ramaswamy "Five
Phases of Love"
03.02.2008 Shri
Venkat
"Annaiyin
Arema" (Champaklaljee)
10.02.2008 Smt.
Andal
"Sri
Aurobindo on the Gita"
17.02.2008 Dr.
Tirupur Krishnan
"The
Mother on Life Miracle"
24.02.2008 Shri
M.K. Ramaswamy "Prayer
dated 15.02.1914"
The Mother's birth anniversary was celebrated on 21 February
with collective meditation and Pushpanjali. Over a 1000 devotees
visited the branch during the day.
Hesal,
Ranchi (Jharkhand)
The Mother's birthday was celebrated by the Hesal branch on
21st February 2008. Besides talks on the Mother's life and Her
Yoga, a musical programme by small children was also arranged.
Shri Amitav Choudhury was the special invitee.
Pratapgarh
(U.P.) - Seminar on "Indian Culture in the Light of Sri
Aurobindo"
The Pratapgarh Centre arranged a seminar on 2 March 2008. The
subject was "Indian Culture in the Light of Sri Aurobindo".
The Chief Guest was Dr. J.P. Mishra. The main speaker was Dr.
J.P. Singh, Chairman of the Sultanpur branch of the Society.
Some literature in Hindi was distributed to all the participants.
Cuddalore
(Tamil Nadu)
Shri M.S. Sundararajan of Sri Aurobindo Society, Puducherry,
delivers a talk every month at the Cuddalore Centre. The subject
of his talks at present is "The Gita in Sri Aurobindo's
Light". The talks are always well attended.
