December 2011

News from Puducherry

Upcoming Events

Maha-Samadhi of Sri Aurobindo - 5 December 2011

Sri Aurobindo

Sri Aurobindo left his body on 5 December 1950. The Body was laid to rest in the Samadhi after four days, on 9 December 1950. The body did not show any sign of decay or decomposition during this period. A few saw a golden spiritual light around the body.

Our gratitude to the physical body of Sri Aurobindo was expressed by the Mother and has been inscribed on the Samadhi:

To Thee who hast been the material envelope of our Master, to Thee our infinite gratitude. Before Thee who hast done so much for us, who hast worked, struggled, suffered, hoped, endured so much, before Thee who hast willed all, attempted all, prepared, achieved all for us, before Thee we bow down and implore that we may never forget, even for a moment, all we owe to Thee.

On 5th December 2011, there was meditation around the Samadhi at the Ashram in the morning, followed by a visit to Sri Aurobindo's Room. Collective meditation was held at the Playground in the evening. We give below a quote of the Mother on the significance of Sri Aurobindo's work and how we can participate in the birth of the New Creation:

Sri Aurobindo came upon earth to announce the manifestation of the supramental world and not merely did he announce this manifestation but embodied also in part the supramental force and showed by example what one must do to prepare oneself for manifesting it. The best thing we can do is to study all that he has told us and endeavour to follow his example and prepare ourselves for the new manifestation.

This gives life its real sense and will help us to overcome all obstacles.

Let us live for the new creation and we shall grow stronger and stronger by remaining young and progressive.

25th December 2011 - Christmas

Christmas Eve

The Christmas day has been celebrated in the Ashram for many decades. Once the Mother was asked by a devotee about the special meaning of the Christmas day as celebrated in the Ashram, and here is the Mother's response:

Long before the Christian religion made December 25th the day of Christ's birth, this day was the festival of the return of the sun, the Day of Light. It is this very ancient symbol of the rebirth of the Light that we wish to celebrate here.

Here is a Christmas Message from the Mother:

May the New Light illumine your thoughts and your lives, govern your hearts and guide your action.
Blessings.

22nd - 28th February 2012 : Savitri Study Sessions

Study Sessions on Sri Aurobindo's epic Savitri will be held at the Society House (formerly known as beach office), Puducherry, from 22nd to 28th February 2012. These will be conducted by Dr. Alok Pandey. There will be two sessions daily, from 5.15 to 6.00 p.m. and 6.15 to 7.00 p.m. All are welcome.

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Recent Events

Shri Pradeep Narang's visit to Jodhpur (Rajasthan), Ranchi (Jharkhand), Gaya & Dehri-On-Sone (Bihar)

Shri Pradeep Narang visited the Jodhpur Branch on 9th and 10th October 2011, and addressed the students of the school. Shri Amod Kumar, Chairman of the Rajasthan State Committee, and Shri P.K. Vijay, Secretary were also present.

He visited Ranchi and Dehri-On-Sone Branches and the Gaya Centre on 3rd and 4th November 2011. He was joined by Shri Amod Kumar, Coordinator of the Bihar State Committee. The interaction with devotees at both the Branches in Ranchi i.e. Hesal and Doranda, on organisational and sadhana issues was inspiring.
At Gaya Shri Pradeep Narang, along with Shri Amod Kumar, met the devotees and talked about increasing the activities at the Centre.

27 October 2011: A visit by a group of Yogasana practitioners from UK

A group of eight Yogasana practitioners from UK came to Puducherry for a day's visit. Shivakumar interacted with them, explaining about the vision and activities of Sri Aurobindo Society. Later, Senthil made a presentation on the village development work undertaken by the Society. In the afternoon, they were taken around to see the Ashram departments.

Youth Camps for Self Development

For more than 25 years Sri Aurobindo Society has been conducting regular youth camps called All India Youth Camp in Puducherry. From last year this youth camp is being carried out at state levels as well by its branches and centres. The main objectives of the Camps are to:
- inspire the youth to discover their aim in life and help them in realising it;
- awaken the youth to their great future and prepare them to play their true role in all aspects of life;
- make the youth conscious of the rich cultural and spiritual heritage of India and work for a united and awakened India.

Last year's camps both in Puducherry as well as at the state level were sponsored by the Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC), New Delhi. A complete report of the youth camp in Puducherry and the youth camps held at the different centres and branches around the country are available here.

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News from Branches and Centres

Bengaluru (Karnataka)
Mirambika School For New Age, JP Nagar

1st November 2011: Kannada Rajyotsava and Annual Sports day
Shri Pradeep Narang, Chairman, Sri Aurobindo Society and Sri Aurobindo Complex Trust was the Chief Guest on the occasion. The programme was inaugurated by lighting the lamp. Students of different sections of the school exhibited dances depicting the tradition, art and culture of Karnataka which was appreciated by one and all. Students also spoke about the importance of Kannada Language. Shri Ajit Sabnis, Chairman of the School presided over the function. Programme concluded with Vande Mataram.

16th November 2011: Children's day
Teaching staff performed various programmes before the children and it was well received and enjoyed by the children. Thereafter, the 'Sanskrit day' was celebrated.

Sri Aurobindo Complex Trust, JP Nagar

17th November 2011: Collective meditation and talk
"The Mother's withdrawal day" was observed with collective meditation from 7.00 a.m. and 7.30 a.m. followed by distribution of message cards. In the evening, talk on: "Mother - A Revolution in Evolution" was arranged and about 40 devotees took part in the programme.

24th November 2011: A talk on "Significance of Siddhi Day" and meditation

"Sri Aurobindo's Siddhi Day" was observed. Collective meditation was held from 4.30 p.m. to 5.00 p.m. followed by distribution of prasad and message cards. A talk on "Significance of Siddhi Day" was arranged. About 50 devotees took part in the programme.

Bhilai (Chhattisgarh)
19th November 2011: Seminar on "Sri Aurobindo and Integral Study" at Mansa College of Education

The syllabus of B.Ed. and M.Ed. programmes includes the above topic and the Society conducted the seminar addressing the issue.

There were more than 100 students of B.Ed. and M.Ed. along with faculties. The resource person for the talk was Mrs. Indrani Ghosh (working as State Coordinator for Science Olympiad Foundation with 280 Schools and research aspirant on the said topic, Ex Faculty on Humanities at BIT, Bhilai).

The Event started with Saraswati Vandana and after lighting the lamp the talk was delivered. At the end a meditation was conducted.

Bhopal (Madhya Pradesh)
11th November 2011: Special Meditation held at Auromandir Bhopal

A special session of meditation held at Auromandir Bhopal (The Relics centre of Sri Aurobindo Society Branch) to mark the special date 11.11.11. In the beginning Manoj Sharma read out a prayer of the Mother and words from "Agnishikha".
Before the meditation which began at 11.00 am, DR D.N. Joshi referred the Mother about the speciality and significance of numbers. Smt. Usha Mouya sung a bhajan in the end.

Noida (Uttar Pradesh)
5th - 6th November 2011: Youth Camp for Self Development

Shri Arun Naik taking
a session of the Youth Camp

The youth camp was organized at Sri Aurobindo Bhavan, Noida. Shri Arun Naik, Executive Committee Member, Sri Aurobindo Society, Noida Branch conducted the Youth Camp which included sessions like:

•Why this Youth Camp?
•Introduction to Self Awareness and some important questions
•Group discussion on 'Awareness of the Purpose of Life
•Interactive session on 'Mind Awareness and its Powers
•Interactive Discussion on 'Creating a Personal Mission in Life
•A Presentation on 'Sri Aurobindo & the Mother'.

A view of the participants of the Youth Camp

25 students participated in the proceedings.

20th November 2011: Workshop on 'Purpose of our Lives and Existence'
A Workshop on 'The purpose of our Lives and Existence' by Shri Arun Naik, Executive Committee Member, Sri Aurobindo Society, Noida Branch was held on 20th November, 2011 from 9.30 a.m. to 6 p.m. Ten participants benefited from the workshop.

A session of the Workshop in progress

Collective mediation was conducted on 17th and 24th November 2011 to mark Mother's Mahasamadhi Day and Siddhi Day respectively. An audio visual 'Sri Aurobindo - Divya Jeevan' was played and message cards were distributed.

Rewa (Madhya Pradesh)
29th - 30th October 2011: Youth camp

Sri Aurobindo Society Rewa (Madhya Pradesh) organised the youth camp and Dr. Suman Kocher (Indore) and Dr. Suresh Chandra Sharma (Gwalior) conducted the camp. Around 50 youths from different places attended the camp. The subjects covered were: "Life Beautiful", "Personality Development", "India and Nationalism in the Light of Sri Aurobindo" and "Political thought of Sri Aurobindo". The participants also did some 'Art and Craft Work'. An interesting questionnaire was also given to them.

Sultanpur (Uttar Pradesh)
2nd November 2011: Talk organised by BHEL on "Spirituality in Profession"

The talk was organised by BHEL at Jagdishpur (CSM Nagar). The main speaker was Dr. J.P. Singh. The function was presided over by Mr. K. Das, Managing Director, BHEL Ltd. It was attended by approximately 150 persons. It was followed by a question & answer session.
In Sultanpur, a lecture was organised in Sri Aurobindo Study Centre, GSPG College, Sultanpur. The topic was "Shri Krishna's Leela and Sri Aurobindo's Sadhna." The main speaker was Dr. A.B. Kapadia. About 150 persons including ladies and students participated in the programme.