December 4th Class review

    We started another class on time and with almost full attendance. The children know the routine well now. We started with our 3 oms followed by Om Sahana vavathu.
     All these prayers and slokams are in the my prayers book available in the book store. Please make sure the children have access to either the book or printouts of the prayers.
     We went over three guru stotrams after laying out the altar with Guru Chinmaya ji and Goddess Saraswathi's picture. The following stotrams are in page 9 of my prayers book.

Akhand-Mandalakaram vyaptam yena characharam.
Tatpadam darshitam yena tasmai Shri Gurave Namah.

 Agyan timir-andhasya Gyananjan Shalakaya.
Chakshur-oonmeelitam yena tasmai Shri Gurave Namah.

Gurur-Brahma Gurur-Vishnu Gurur-Devo Maheshwarah.
Guru-sakshat Para-Brahma tasmai Shri Gurave Namah.

      We then reviewed benefits of meditation and considered the various ways to meditate. After one minute of meditation, the children were ready for geeta chanting. We reviewed the three verses we had learnt in previous weeks and started on 2 additional ones. The children received handouts of all the verses in English. Please help the children memorise these verses at home. We also have cds and will be handing these out in the next class.  We all then got to our feet, stretched and did execises to get our blood flowing.
      Now we got to the most anticipated story time. Rama,Seeta and Lakshmana are in Chitrakoot. Sumatra the minister who drove them has returned to Ayodhya without the princess. The people of Ayodhya are disappointed and angry. King Dasaratha remembers an incident from his past. He recounts it to Queen Kausalya. He was a prince hunting in the forest. He mistakenly shoots a young boy who is fetching water for his blind parents. The young boys is Sravana. He repents for his mistake but the blind parents curse him that he too would one day lose his child and feel the pain that they are feeling. We talked about how our every action has consequences. Kaikeyi is responsible for her action, not Manatara.

       We ended the class with arthi and chinmaya pledge.

September 18th 2011 class

Pranaam,

             We started on the Bala Ramayanam today. 

                                            Ayodhya means where there is no fights  

             The children imagined Ayodhya of long long ago and came up the settings for the story. All the children actively participated and got engaged with the past. Ayodhya was place of harmony and happiness except for the King. King Dasaratha was unhappy as he had no children. 

             This lead us to discuss advice and help when we are lost or sad. All the children agreed that parents or teacher are a good source to seek when we are unhappy or need help. 

             Following his guru Vashista muni 's advice King Dasaratha performed a Putrakamesti yaga or fire ritual. The yajna purusa emerged with heavenly payasam which the King offered to the queens. In due course Queen Kausalya had Rama, Queen Kaikeyi had Bharatha and Queen Sumitra had Lakshmana and Shahtrugana. We went around the class chanting Rama, Rama to celebrate the birth of Rama.

            We learnt the first gurustrotram. Please refer to My Prayers page 9 verse 1.

                                       akhanda-mandalakaram

                                       vyaptam yena caracaram

                                       tatpadam darsitam yena

                                       tasmai sri-gurave namah

             The children started coloring their Ramayanam books. Please send a folder so we can send these books home. Please contact us if you have any questions

                                

                     Grade 1 sevikas