It is a bright, sunny, fun-filled day of spiritual learning at the SRV San Francisco Ashram. In attendance today are children of varied ages. Today is September 27th, and once again Annapurna Sarada has given her time and dedication in conducting this class. We are so fortunate to have her offer these essential teachings to the children during her trips from Oregon and sometimes Hawaii. This shows her true dedication to the Holy Mother.
Water and oil do not mix,
but they seem to when shaken together.
Like this, the Atman appears one with Maya
when seen through the restless mind.
By meditation, the wise control the mind
and behold the ever-pure & blissful Atman,
distinct from everything else - matter, energy & thought.
Our second weekend retreat with the older kids was a most precious event and a rare opportunity to participate in a full day's ashram activities. They all arrived on Saturday night in time to help prepare for and attend SRV Oregon's weekly worship. Following dinner, and before bedtime, the girls returned to the shrine for a short meditation and blessing. Annapurna then held out a jar with "Vedantic fortune cookies" [minus the cookie] consisting of ideas to ponder. Each girl pulled out two and were told to think about them as they went to sleep. We would discuss them the next day. Here are a few of those ideas:
At the SRV Summer retreat on the American River this year, we were once again blessed with a group of intelligent, perceptive kids, mostly 12 years of age. All of the classes with the children were drawn from the stories of Sri Ramakrishna, which are an endless source of inspiration, with so many ways to unwrap them for the benefit of giving our youth a sound foundation in dharma -- in cosmology, philosophy, and spirituality.Besides some very fun projects involving clay, and making a mosaic pedestal for a sundial, the kids had an opportunity to learn more about Holy Mother, Sri Ramakrishna, and Swami Vivekananda. As the children enter their young adult years, these great beings -- the example of their lives and experiences -- hold increasing interest and relevance for them.
On this Easter Saturday, and following a simple worship in the shrine room in honor of Lord Jesus, our young children in Oregon got a new teaching to add to the Easter Egg theme. Like above, the focus was on the Divine Mother who is the Mother of the Universe, by whose power everything is projected, sustained, and dissolved, just like waves in the ocean. She alone, like the water of the ocean, is the real part of each of us, just as the water is the essential part of a wave. The scriptures refer to this Source and Substance of the universe as the Golden Egg, Hiranyagarbha. It has its corollary in Om, the primal vibration. Additionally, the children were told the analogy Sri Ramakrishna used describing the old woman who saved various things, like seeds, and "sea foam" and other items in a hotch potch jar for later usage. Like that, the Divine Mother saves things for the next creation (projection). What might those be? Well, there are lots of possibilities and you can see Babaji's commentary in his book, Sri Ramakrishna's Stories, page 39.
SRV EMAIL LIST
Receive news about SRV
Classes, Retreats, New Publications,
Nectar Magazine, and more.