Happy New Year from Sri Ram Ashram.
Monthly Archive for December, 2007
Congratulations to Sangita, Rama, Babita, Sunita and Vijai Raj on passing their class 10 exams!
Congratulations to Jyoti on being chosen for the Uttarakhand state junior hockey team. Jyoti will represent our state at the national hockey tournament (ages 14-16) in Faridabad on January 4th.
We are so proud of you!
Diwali is our greatest, most extravagant holiday. It celebrates Ram’s return to Ayodhya after fourteen years of exile. It always occurs 20 days after Ram, a reincarnation of Lord Vishnu, slays the demon king Ravana. Diwali is a time of great joy and brightness throughout
Not to be outdone, Sri Ram Ashram celebrates Diwali with vigour and enthusiasm. Three days before Diwali we pile into the school buses for our annual shopping trip in Haridwar. Each child receives a gift envelope of money before setting off into the market for supervised shopping. Some children go for quantity, others quality, some purchase all food items while others concentrate on religious items. It’s all up for grabs in our annual shop till you drop trip.
The next day we make mud huts that are decorated throughout the day until they are beautiful temples of light. At night arati and a puja is performed as Ram is welcomed into each home. It is sweet beyond sweet. After dinner we celebrate choti Diwali, literally “little Diwali�, a warm up for the next evening’s firecrackers. A small amount of crackers are passed out for the kids to play with, while a few bombs are set off just to let the neighbourhood know we are serious Diwali players.
The next day, Diwali proper, is a flurry of decorating activities. By the end of the day the ashram is transformed. Flags fly high, painted diyas are showcased, the mandir is stunning and powdered paintings adorn the walkways. After arati about 1000 diyas and candles are lit throughout the ashram, a moment of spectacular beauty.
Our cooks outdid themselves with a wonderful meal and we moved on to the main event of the evening, the lighting of a zillion firecrackers. The courtyard blazed with sparklers, whistling rockets soared overhead while bombs punctuated the air upholding our reputation in the neighbourhood. The kids ran around in organized chaos while a core of dedicated staff and visitors helped keep things under control. Everything went off without a hitch. At 9:30 we breathed a sigh of relief as we wrapped up another successful Diwali.
For those of you who enjoy glitter, glamour and big bangs, I highly recommend joining us next year for Diwali 2008.
Click here for more Diwali photos.
In late October Dayanand Diffenbaugh and Jaya Maxon led a group of 12 visitors throughout
