TEMPLE TIMES - emeenakshi.org · 4th Quarter 2018 Oct. Nov. Dec. TEMPLE TIMES A Quarterly...
Transcript of TEMPLE TIMES - emeenakshi.org · 4th Quarter 2018 Oct. Nov. Dec. TEMPLE TIMES A Quarterly...
4th Quarter 2018 Oct. Nov. Dec.
TEMPLE TIMES
AQuarterlyPublica/onof
SriMeenakshiTempleSociety17130McLeanRoad,Pearland,TX77584
VIVAAH.....AnEventtoRemember!VijayNathan
OnSaturday,September8th,2018,theMeenakshiTempleKalyanaMandapamwastransformedintoagrandvenuerichlydecoratedinred&gold.AfabulousstagewithextendedrunwaycenteredtheroomandguestswereabletotakepictureswithanelaboraFve,decoraFvebackdrop.Toemphasizethethemeof"wedding,"anornateseervarisaigraced theentrywayand includedauthenFcbakshanams like large sizemurukku, athirasam, paruppu thengai, fruits, nutsmuchmore. ThecompletedecortogiveanambienceofagrandweddinghallwascreaFvelydesignedbyNaliniKannan.
Alongwith thiswas a long line of numerous donated silent aucFon items ofsaris, framed art, silver Kalasam, jewelry, and a full set of kolu dolls. GuestsdressedingrandfesFvewearwerereceivedwithtradiFonalkumkum,chandan,and jasmineflowerswithanopportunity todecoratetheirhandswitharFsFcmehendi,whilebeingtreatedtouniquesnacks.
ThemainfocusofthenightwastointroduceanewiniFaFvebytheMTSBoardtowelcome youth donorswith a handmade Kalpakavriksham [Wishing] Tree.Donorswereable tohang their nameson thegold treeandwill behonoredwith their names onMTS Youth Wall upon the compleFon of the KalyanaMandapamRenovaFon.
Guests of Honor Congressman Pete Olson presented a CongressionalproclamaFon and spoke on the importance of insFlling family values andcommunityinouryouth.MayorTomReidpresentedacerFficateincelebraFonof the event and endorsed the need to renovate the KalyanaMandapam toconFnue to be a center of family, community, and religious gatherings inPearland. Consul Mr. Amit Khanna represented the Indian Consulate onHoustonandspokeoftheauthenFcityandwarmfeelingofvisiFngMeenakshiTemple.
Duringtheevening,guestswereentertainedtoSangeeth,amelodiousvocal&instrumental ensemble by youth co-ordinated by Mahalakshmi Krishnan ofSreekrithi School of Music. A light hearted comedy skit enFtled "Love isForever" by local talent scriptedbyDrVaduganathanwas enjoyedby all andtook us back in Fme. The grand finale was "Mangalayam Thadhunanena," ashowcaseoftradiFonalweddingou^itsfromeachregionofIndia,co-ordinated&narratedbyVidvathaSridhar.
TheeveningculminatedinamulF-course,wedding-stylegrandfeastcateredbyMadrasPavilionservedonbananaleavesbytemplestaff&smilingvolunteers.Guests le` the event with favor bagsfor ladies & beeda pan handmade byvolunteers.
Vivaahwasaneventtoremember,honoringthehistoriclegacyofourTemplebyrecognizingitshistoricpast,invigoraFngouracFveyouthinthepresent,andlookingaheadtothefuturewewillbuildtogether.
DATE DAY TIME EVENT
4-Oct Thu 7:00PM GuruPeyarchi,NavagrahaAbhishekam
6-Oct Sat 10:00AM GuruPeyarchiCelebra/ons,108KalasaAbhishekamforDakshinamurthy
10-Oct Wed 7:00PM NavarathiriBegins1stDay12-Oct Fri 6:00PM NavarathiriSuvasiniPuja17-Oct Wed 7:00PM Navarathiri8thDayDurgashtami18-Oct Thu 7:00PM Navarathiri9thDaySaraswathiPuja
18-Oct Thu 7:00PM MadhavacharyaJayanthi19-Oct Fri 7:00PM Vijayadasami24-Oct Wed 7:00PM SanthabhishekamforSriMeenakshi
24-Oct Wed 7:00PM AnnabhishekamforSiva
October2018
November2018DATE DAY TIME EVENT3-Nov Sat AllDay DeepavaliBazaar6-Nov Tue 7:00PM DeepavaliKatchi8-Nov Thu 7:00PM SkandaShas/1stday13-Nov Tue 7:00PM SkandaShas/Homam17-Nov Sat 7:00PM AyyappaMandalaPujaBegins20-Nov Tue 7:00PM KaisikaDwadasi23-Nov Fri 7:00PM KarthigaiDeepam
DATE DAY TIME EVENT1-Dec Sat 10:00AM MahaSathyanarayanaPuja
10-Dec Mon 7:00PM 4thKarthigaiSomavaram108SankaAbhishekam
18-Dec Tue 10:30AM SriVaikuntaEkadasi
22-Dec Sat 10:30AM AyyappaMandalaGheeAbhishekam
23-Dec Sun 10:30AM ArudraDarshanamNatarajarAbhishekam
26-Dec Wed 7:00PM AyyappaKalabhaAbhishekam
27-Dec Thu 7:00PM AyyappaMandalaPushpaAbhishekam
1-Jan Tue 8:00AM NewYearPujas
December2018
MainEventsCalendarfor4thquarterbyMonth
SriMeenakshiTempleSociety17130McLeanRoad,Pearland,TX-77584
ThanthraSãsthraasRitualPrac/ceinHinduDharmaAspecialtradi/onprac/cedinHinduRituals
BalaN.AiyerThanthra Sãsthra, an ancient and powerful science with its unique
ritualsandbeliefs,fellvicFmtotheravagesofFmeandfadedoutfrommost
parts of India. It was o`en looked upon as an extension of black magic.
Thanthra worships Shakthi (emphasizes female power) and emphasizes the
idenFty of the absolute and the phenomenal world, which can be realized
throughasetofpracFces.
ThanthrahasauniquetradiFonofguru-shishya(teacherandstudent)relaFonship. Here, a strong bond and good understanding between the
teacher and the taught is imperaFve for ahaining knowledge. IniFaFon into
mantra is itsprincipletool,whichispracFcedbytheacolyteunderhisguru'sstrict surveillance. The guru iniFates the student and gives somemantras.Thesemantras evoke immensepower through repeatedchanFng, sensiFzing
thebody.
ThanthraisolderthantheVédas,accordingtosomeschools,asfaras
the wrihen texts are concerned. Here, everything has to be pracFced and
performedtocatertotheneedsofindividualandthesocietyinordertolead
themtosalvaFon.ThisistheulFmateaimofThanthraSãsthra.Thanthraisnotrestricted to the priestly class of scholars. The Thanthra School welcomes
anybodywho is interested in the science, irrespecFve of class, creed or sex.
Womencanalso learnThanthra, thoughvery fewhavecomeforwardto join
theschool.Infact,womenaregivenprominenceinThanthra.
Thanthra worship is seen commonly in Temples in Kerala State ofIndia and temples built following those tradiFons. Many people who were
tranined in Thanthraalsouse them inHomePrayers and rituals. Thanthra isalso pracFced in some temples of North India such as Kamakhya temple in
Assam, Jagannath temple in Puri and Vishwanath temple in Varanasi. ButpeoplearescaredtolearnThanthraduetovariousmisconcepFons.Thanthrais o`en mistaken as a black magic cult in many parts of India. It is also
explainedasasexualritualandferFlitycultinmanyWesternliteratures.Both
these aspects are not true to realThanthra pracFce, except in some limited
sense.
Thanthra does not believe in the hierarchy of gods; i.e., one god issupremeandalltheothersareinferiortohim/her.AccordingtoThanthra,God[ParamaPurusha] isbeyond formandname.Whenwe invokeor install it, it
becomes a Deity [Vishnu, Şiva, Durga, Ayyappa etc] showing some of the
aspectsofdivinepowers.ThiswilldependuponthenatureofthemantrasandhandgesturesofThanthrausedattheserviceandthe‘sankalpas’thepersonswhoperformedthemhadattheFmeofconsecraFon.
PrinciplesofThanthraworshipandThanthraYoga
Historians divide Thanthra Sãsthra into four secFons; 1. KashmeeriThanthra.2.TibetanTanthra,3.VangaThanthra.4.KeralaThanthra. Thefirstthree deals with individual salvaFon. The last one, Kerala Thanthra, isconcerned more about the salvaFon of the enFre society. Hence the
concentraFonofKeralaThanthra isontempleworshipandtheritualsrelated
toit.
Thefundamentalprincipleoftempleworshipisintheritualsystemof
prayerstotheSupremeGodwhoisworshippedindifferentformsandnames
asmanifestaFons andAvathãras.Thanthra declares in crystal-clear languagethat differentDeiFes are different vibratory fields of the same god. Through
the complex rituals ofPraIshta (InstallaFon ceremony) and silent prayers, a
powerfulandaparFcularfieldofGod’svibraFonsarecreated.
ThanthraconsidersthetempleasthemanifestaFonofDivinityinthe
graphicform.Likeallritualsystems,Thanthraisalsocombinedinitallthefour
yogas (Karma yoga, BhakI yoga, Rãja yoga and Jñãna yoga). Thanthraborrows its principles and pracFces chiefly from Hatha yoga parts of Rãjayoga.HindutradiFons, inRãjaYoga,dividehumanbodyhorizontally intofive
sheaths. 1: Annamaya kosa (Physical sheath), 2: Pranamaya kosa (Psychicsheath),3:Manomayakosa(Mentalsheath),4:VijñãnamayaKosa(Intellectualsheath),5:Anandamayakosa(Causalsheath).
In the temples of Kerala, we can find the “Pancha-prãkarams” torepresentthesefivesheathsofhumanbody. InRãjaYogathehumanbodyis
divided verFcally into six charkas or power centers. They are1:Mooladharachakra, 2: Swãdhishana chakra, 3:Manipoora chakra, 4: Anahata chakra, 5:Vishaddha chakra, 6: Agnja (Aum) chakra. Above these shad-chakras (sixpowercenters),istheSahasraraPadmamwhichistheseventhchakraknown
as:(7)SudharsanaorSahasraChakraatthetop.
AttheFmeofPraIshta(installaFonceremony),usingmantrasandritualsparFculartothatDeity,theThanthriinvokesGodinthatparFcularform.They
willbeusingdifferentsetsofThanthraritualsandsilentprayerManthrasforthevariousDeiFesthatincludehandgesturesand“Mudhras”likeinIndianclassicaldances.Thanthramethodofhandgesturesareusedinallformsof
Védicrituals.SomeaspectsofThanthraarepracFcedinourdailyhomerituals
likeSandhyavandhanamandSuryanamaskãrams.Thisisalsousedinmany
homepoojasasalsoinallTempleritualsandHomam[Havan]likefirerituals.
EVENTS FOR 4th QUARTER DATE DAY TIME EVENT
2-Oct Tue 7:00PM AshtamiBairavarAbhishekam
4-Oct Thu 7:00PM GuruPeyarchi,NavagrahaAbhishekam3-Oct Wed 7:00PM PunarvasuSriRamaAbhishekam
5-Oct Fri 7:00PM EkadasiSriVenkateswaraAbhishekam
6-Oct Sat 10:00AMGuruPeyarchiCelebra/ons,108KalasaAbhishekamforSriDakshinamurthy
6-Oct Sat 10:30AM VenkateswaraAbhishekam
6-Oct Sat 7:00PMPradoshamNandi&SivaAbhishekam&
Procession
7-Oct Sun 10:30AM VenkateswaraAbhishekam
10-Oct Wed 7:00PM NavarathiriBegins1stDay12-Oct Fri 6:00PM NavarathiriSuvasiniPuja12-Oct Fri 7:00PM MahaGanapathyAbhishekam
13-Oct Sat 10:30AM VenkateswaraAbhishekam
14-Oct Sun 10:30AMSuklaSashFSriSubramanya
Abhishekam
14-Oct Sun 10:30AM MulamSriAnjaneyarAbhishekam
17-Oct Wed 7:00PM Navarathiri8thDayDurgashtami
18-Oct Thu 7:00PM Navarathiri9thDaySaraswathiPuja18-Oct Thu 7:00PM MadhavacharyaJayanthi18-Oct Thu 7:00PM SravanamSriVenkateswaraAbhishekam
19-Oct Fri 7:00PM Vijayadasami
20-Oct Sat 10:30AM EkadasiSriVenkateswaraAbhishekam
22-Oct Mon 7:00PMPradoshamNandi&SivaAbhishekam&
Procession
24-Oct Wed 7:00PM SanthabhishekamforSriMeenakshi24-Oct Wed 7:00PM AnnabhishekamforSiva
24-Oct Wed 7:00PM SathyanarayanaPuja
26-Oct Fri 7:00PM KrithikaiSriSubramanyaAbhishekam
27-Oct Sat 7:00PMSankataharaChathurthiGanapathi
Homam&Abhisheham
31-Oct Wed 7:00PM AshtamiBairavarAbhishekam
3-Nov Sat AllDay DeepavaliBazaar3-Nov Sat 10:30AM EkadasiSriVenkateswaraAbhishekam
4-Nov Sun 10:30AM SriVenkateswaraAbhishekam
5-Nov Mon 7:00PMPradoshamNandi&SivaAbhishekam&
Procession
DATE DAY TIME EVENT
6-Nov Tue 7:00PM DeepavaliKatchi
8-Nov Thu 7:00PM SkandaShas/1stday
11-Nov Sun 10:30AM MahaGanapathyAbhishekam
11-Nov Sun 10:30AM MulamSriAnjaneyarAbhishekam
11-Nov Sun 11:00AM MeenakshiAbhishekam
13-Nov Tue 7:00PM SkandaShas/Homam
14-Nov Wed 7:00PMSravanamSriVenkateswara
Abhishekam
17-Nov Sat 7:00PM AyyappaMandalaPujaBegins
18-Nov Sun 10:30AM EkadasiSriVenkateswaraAbhishekam
19-Nov Mon 7:00PM Krithigai1stSomavaraPuja
20-Nov Tue 7:00PMPradoshamNandi&SivaAbhishekam
&Procession
20-Nov Tue 7:00PM KaisikaDwadasi
22-Nov Thu 7:00PM SathyanarayanaPuja
23-Nov Fri 7:00PM KrithikaiSriSubramanyaAbhishekam
23-Nov Fri 7:00PM KarthigaiDeepam
26-Nov Mon 7:00PM Karthikai2ndSomavaraPuja
26-Nov Mon 7:00PM PunarvasuSriRamaAbhishekam
26-Nov Mon 7:00PMSankataharaChathurthiGanapathi
Homam&Abhisheham
30-Nov Fri 7:00PM AshtamiBairavarAbhishekam
1-Dec Sat 10:00AM MahaSathyanarayanaPuja
2-Dec Sun 10:30AM EkadasiSriVenkateswaraAbhishekam
3-Dec Mon 7:00PM 3rdKarthigaiSomavaram
4-Dec Tue 7:00PMPradoshamNandi&SivaAbhishekam
&Procession
8-Dec Sat 10:30AM MulamSriAnjaneyarAbhishekam
9-Dec Sun 11:00AM MeenakshiAbhishekam
10-Dec Mon 7:00PM4thKarthigaiSomavaram108SankaAbhishekam
11-Dec Tue 7:00PM MahaGanapathyAbhishekam
11-Dec Tue 7:00PMSravanamSriVenkateswara
Abhishekam
13-Dec Thu 7:00PMSuklaSashFSriSubramanya
Abhishekam
18-Dec Tue 10:30AM SriVaikuntaEkadasi
REGULARLYSCHEDULEDWEEKLYABHISHEKAMSriGaneshaHomam&Abhishekam……………………………….……….Alldays7:00AM
SriSiva(Sundareswara)&SriMeenakshiAbhishekam……………Alldays9:00AM
SriSiva(Sundareswara)Abhishekam……………………….………Mondays7:00PM**
SriDurgaAbhishekam……………………………..……………………….…Tuesdays7:00PM
SriPadmavathyAbhishekam……………………………….…………………Fridays6:30PM
SriMeenakshiAbhishekam&LalithaSahasranamavali…….……Fridays7:00PM
LastFridayofthemonth–LalithaSahasranamavali&ShodasaUpacharam
SriNavagrahaAbhishekam……….……………….…………….….……Saturdays11:00AM
SriAyyappaAbhishekam………………………………………….……Saturdays10:00AM*
SriKanyakaParameswariAbhishekam…….LastSundayoftheMonth10:00AM
SriMeenakshiAbhishekam……….…SecondSundayoftheMonth11:00AM**
SriVenkateswaraAbhishekam.………….….FirstSundayoftheMonth10:30AM
*PleaseNote:FromNov.17toDec.27th…….AyyappaMandalaPujadaily
at9:00:AMAyyappa..Abhishekamand7:00PM:Specialalankaramand
sahasranamaarchana
**PleaseNote:FromDec.16thtoJan.14th…SriMeenakshiAbhishekam
andSriSivaAbhishekam6:00AMfollowedbyThituppavai,Thiruvembavai
DATE DAY TIME EVENT
18-Dec Tue 7:00PM EkadasiSriVenkateswaraAbhishekam
20-Dec Thu 7:00PMPradoshamNandi&SivaAbhishekam
&Procession
20-Dec Thu 7:00PM KrithikaiSriSubramanyaAbhishekam
22-Dec Sat 10:30AM AyyappaMandalaGheeAbhishekam
22-Dec Sat 7:00PM SathyanarayanaPuja
23-Dec Sun 10:30AMArudraDarshanamNatarajarAbhishekam
24-Dec Mon 7:00PM PunarvasuSriRamaAbhishekam
25-Dec Tue 7:00PMSankataharaChathurthiGanapathi
Homam&Abhisheham
26-Dec Wed 7:00PM AyyappaKalabhaAbhishekam
27-Dec Thu 7:00PMAyyappaMandalaPushpaAbhishekam
29-Dec Sat 11:00AM AshtamiBairavarAbhishekam
31-Dec Mon 11:55PMNewYearspecialPujawithMidnight
Aarathi
1-Jan Tue 8:00AM NewYearPujas
SignificanceofMainEventsinfourthQuarterof2018
ByM.K.Sriram
Deepavali
Deepavali, the fesFval of Lights, (deep means "light" and avali "a row" tobecome"arowoflights.") isconsideredasoneofthemostimportantfesFvals
inourSanathanaDharma.ItsymbolizescelebraFonofthevictoryofgoodover
evil. ItisbelievedthatthedemonkingNarakasurawhocausedmanyhardship
topeople,especiallywomenwaskilledbyLordSriKrishnathisday.Itisadayof
fesFviFesthatreallytranscendsthebordersofreligion. InsouthIndia, people
take an oil bath earlymorning onDeepavali day andwear new clothes. It is
believedthatallthewatersturnintotheholywatersofGangaduringtheearly
morning Brahma muhurtham. Meenakshi temple is the shining jewel of
worship, so what beher place to enjoy this day other than Sri Meenakshi
Temple. Thehighlightof thereligiousevent isanelaborateLakshmiPujawith
sahasranama(1008names)archanaisperformedintheevening. SriLakshmiis
thentakenonaprocessionaroundthetemplewithgreatfanfareandpompina
mostbeauFfullydecoratedandshiningsilverRatham(chariot). Hundredsand
hundreds of devotees take part in pulling the chariot rope to the resounding
drumbeatofchendamelam(tradiFonaldrumsofKerala). Thehighlightofthe
fesFvalisthespectacularfireworksshow-Diwaliandfireworksaresynonymous
tomany.
Navarathri
Navarathriisanine-dayfesFvalthatoccurstwiceayear,onceinspringandthe
otherinfallcalledtheSaradaNavarathri. Thelaherismorewidelycelebrated,
which this year is fromOctober 10th Fll October 19th.Worshipping theDivine
Mother in Her three magnificent forms, Mahalakshmi, Mahakali and
Mahasaraswathi is themain significanceofSaradaNavarathri. It isamaherof
greatpridethatourreligiongivessomuchimportancetothemotheraspectof
God because we believe that mother is the creaFve aspect of the absolute.
During these nine days, different aspects of the supreme Goddess are
celebrated.ThefirstthreedaysaredevotedtoSriDurga,whodestroysevil.For
thenextthreedays,SriLakshmiwhograntswealthandprosperityisworshipped
andduringthelastthreedays,SriSaraswathi,theGoddessofwisdomisrevered.
One of the tradiFons followed in Southern India is the display of dolls called
Golu. These include gods, goddesses, animals, birds and rural life all in a
miniature design. People set up their own creaFve themes in their homes.
Meenakshi Temple has also followed this tradiFon and the volunteers with
shilpissetupspectacularGolus.
ThetempleismostbeauFfullydecoratedandspecialmorningandeveningpujas
areperformedtoGoddessMeenakshi.Sheisadornedwithexquisitevasthrams
andabharanams.LalithaSahasranamastotrasarerecitedeverydaybymany
devoteeswhichsetsuchadivinevibraFonthroughoutthetemple.Everyday,the
priestsdecoratetheutsavamurthysamazinglyandverycreaFvelyindifferent
mythologicalforms.TheAmbaldeiFes’alankaramsincludeSriRajarajeswari,Sri
Annapoorni,SriVisalakshi,OonjalSevai,etc.whileLordVenkateswara’sutsava
murthiwasdecoratedasVakuntaNathan,LakshmiNarayanan,Navaneetha
Krishnan,KalingaMarthanametc.
SkandaShas/
ThisisasixdayfesFvalcommemoratesthedestrucFonofevilbytheSupreme
CommanderLordSubramanya,orKarFkeya,thesonofLordShiva.
ThestoryofSkandaShasFisthestoryofthebirthofSkandaorKumaraandthe
fulfillmentof thepurposeofHisdivine incarnaFon. Tormentedby theasura
Tarakasura,thedevaswiththeirleaderIndrawenttoBrahmaforhelp.Brahma
in turn said thatonly the sparkof LordShiva canproduce theherowhowill
defeatthepowersofevil. DuetothepenanceofParvathiandthesacrificeof
Kama, Lord Shiva aroused from his deepmeditaFon threw a spark thatwas
nobodycouldbear.ItfinallycametoGangawhointurnthrewitintotheSara
Vana(forestofarrow likegrass), ThusSaravanabhavawasborn. Hedivided
himselfintosixbabiesandraisedbythesixmothersofthedivineconstellaFon
of Krithikai.When Parvathi came and gathered the babies, He becameOne,
calledShanmukha,theonewithsixfacesandonebody. Heisalsoknownas
Murugaandmade theSupremeCommander (DevaSenapathi). He received
from his mother Parasakthi, an all powerful Vel (spear), hence also called
SakthiVelan. He engaged the armies of Simhamukha, Surapadman and
Tarakasuraonasix-daybahleandvanquishedallofthemonthesixthday.The
asuraswere annihilated and thedevaswere liberated. The sixth dayof the
waxingmoon(Shukla)intheTamilmonthofAippasi(Oct/Nov)iscelebratedas
SkandaShasF.
The Tiruppugal, a popular religious book in Tamil, contains the inspiring
devoFonal songs of Arunagirinathar in praise of Lord Subramanya. Hymns
from Kavadichindu and the Skanda SashF Kavacham are also sung on this
occasion.
VaikuntaEkadasi
This isavery importantandauspicious fesFvaldedicatedtoSriMahaVishnu
and occurs on the eleventh day of thewaxingmoon (Shukla pakshe) in the
Tamilmonth ofMarghazhi (December/January). According to the Padma
Purana,LordVishnutooktheformoffemaleenergyEkadasitokillthedemon
Muran. The Lord then proclaimed thatwhoever observes the vratham and
worshipshimonthisdaywillahainhisheavenlyabodeVaikunta.Manydevout
bhaktasfastonthisdayandobservevigilallnight,meditaFngandperforming
pujafortheLord. Riceiscompletelyavoidedthisday,sinceitisbelievedthat
thedemonMuranfindsahidingplaceeveninagrainofrice.Itisbelievedthat
thegates toheaven (SwargaVaasal)opens thatday, so thedevoteesallover
theworldvisitMahaVishnutemplesandpassthroughthisgate. Hundredsof
devoteesthrongtheMeenakshiTempletoworshiptheLordandpartakeinthe
fesFvaleveryyear.
MTSScholarships2018byBhargaviGolla
OneoftheprimaryobjecFvesoftheSriMeenakshiTempleistobeinvolvedin
religious, cultural, educaFonal, social and charitable acFviFes of the
community. In keeping with those objecFves, the Temple awarded 14
scholarshipstoHighSchoolgraduatesthisyear.Twoscholarshipsweregivento
PearlandHighSchools,oneatPearlandHighSchoolandoneatRobertTurner
High School. Twelve Scholarships were given at the the Annual Banquet on
September 8th, 2018 with one of those as special award in memory of Sri
Rajarathna Bhahar. On behalf of Sri MTS I wish them congratulaFons and
conFnuedsuccessintheyearsahead.
17130 McLean Road, Pearland, TX 77584 Invites you to celebrate
Ayyappa Mandala Puja (November 17th to December 27, 2018)
November 16, 2018 10:00 AM- Sapthasudhi Abishekam
Sponsorship $31 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- November 17th, 2018 to December 27th,2018
9:00AM-Abhishekam & Malar Nyvediyam; 9:45AM- Usha pooja; 11:00AM - Uccha pooja
6:00 PM- Deeparadhana; 7:00 PM- Sahasranama Archana;
8:30 PM-Harivarasanam. Sponsorship $51
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- December 16th 2018 – 8:30 AM to 8:30 PM
Akandanama Japam ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
December 22nd 2018 – 9:00 AM Ghee Abhishekam
Laksharchana followed by Procession. Sponsorship $31
December 26th 2018 – 10:00 AM Kalabha Abhishekam
Sponsorship $31 ------------------------------------------------ December 27th 2018 7:00 PM
Pushpabhishekam followed by Harivarasanam .
Mandala Puja Completion --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- For further information, please call temple office at
281-489-0358 Extn 100 or 110. Or you may contact Sheila at [email protected], or
Dhani Kannan at [email protected]
LORDAYYAPPA&SACRED18STEPS
(SasidharanPillai)
TATVAMASI:Meansyouthat,thatwhatyoucameseekingisnoneotherthan
you.
Severalmythspersist regardingthesignificanceof thePathituthrippadikalor
the18holysteps,butalmostallofthemstresstheimportanceofthenumber
18.Accordingtoapopularbelief,thefirst5stepssignifythefiveindriyasorthe
senses (eyes,ears,nose,tongue and skin).the following 8 the Ragas -
(Tatwa,kama,krodha,moha, lobha,madha,matsraya and ahamakra),the next 3
the gunas (satwa,rajas and thamas) followed by vidya and avidya. Climbing
thesewouldtakethedevoteeclosertoself-realizaFon.Theactofcrossingthe
18 steps is so sacred that nobody canmount themwithout undertaking the
rigorous41day fast and carrying the Irumudi, It is alsowidelyassumed that
the pathinehu padikal symbolize the 18 Puranas: others believe that they
cannotethe18weaponswithwhichLordAyyappanobliteratedevil.
An Ayyappa devotee crosses the Pathinehampadi only twice during his
sojournonSabarimal-forenteringthetempleaogodownhill.Beforeascending
ordecendingthesteps,pilgrimsbreakcocnutasanofferingtothesteps.One
needstohavethesacredIrumudionheadwhilegoingupordownthe18steps
andwhiledescendingthestepsthedevoteesclimbdownbackwardsfacingthe
sanctumsanctorum.
1.Ears: (sound) Listen only to good talks related to God (satsangs) avoidlisteningtogossipingthatstrengthenourEgooffindingfaultwithothersand
feelussuperior.
2.Eyes: (sight) See things that are good and create inner inspiraFon. Avoidsensual sights that trigger unwanted desires in us, like sexual content or
material possessions. But those things thatmeet our basic needs of life and
notthatfulfillsourwants(greed).
3.Skin:(Touch)SFmulaFngtouch(sex)istobeavoided.Enjoysenseoftouch
ofJapa-mala(rosarybeads)thathelpsinchanFngGod’sname.Feelthefeather
so`offlowersandfeelthatweshouldshowthatso`compassiontoothers.
4.Nose: (smell)AssociatesmellsofflowersandscentsrelatedtoLord’spuja.
PayahenFontoaddicFvesmelloffood.
5.Tongue:(taste)EatverysatwicfoodthatdoesnotcreateaddicFonandover-indulgence like sweets and spicy hot foods. Eat food that are healthy and
natural.Onecaneatnaturalsweetslikedates,rasinsandhoney.
6.Kama:(DesireorPossession)
7.Krodha:(angerwhendesiresdonotgetfulfilledorwhendesiredpossessionislost)
8.Lobha: (greedtofulfill thedesireornotallowinganyonepartake inones’spossession)
9.Moha:(InfatuaFonoftheobtainedresultorhavingthepossession)
10.Mada:(prideofgewngthedesirefulfilledorhavingapossession)
11.Matsarya:(Jealouslythatothersshouldnotgetwhatwehavefulfilledourdesireorwhenothershaveapossessionthatwehave)
12.Tamas:(TheInerFa(nottodoacFon)orlazyorsluggishawtudeisTamasic.
This is overcomebydoing gewngupearly inmorninghaving cold-water –
bathsdoingpujaorworship.Wedon’twanttodothesebe3causewearelazy
indoingthis.OnlybydoingtheseweovercomeTamasicnature.
13.Rajas:AcFonorientedwith the feelingof “I”.Byconstantmantra japaof
SaranamAyyappa,thisIdoingtheacFonfeelinggetdiminished.
14.SaivaGoodness:ThefeelingofIamgood,isalsoaegofeeling.Thatalso
shouldbetranscendedasKrishsaysinGita.Feeleveryonewhoaredoingbad
aredoingdueto ignorance.Weshouldnot ignorethem,bycompassionhelp
themtogrowoutofit.
15.Raga:Thestronglikesorahachmentsthatweuseinmakingdecisions.This
ispossibleonlybydevelopingBhakthitoAyyappa.Thismeanstosurrenderall
likestoLordAyyappaforthecommongood.
16.Dvesha:Sameway the strongdislikes also shouldbe givenup inmaking
decisions. Also through surrender awtude (Bhakthi) we can transcend this
awtude.
17. Avidya: The knowledge about physical material things alone is Avidya.
VidyaistheknowledgeofTruth.ByahendingsatsangsofGurualonewillhelp
togainthehighestknowledge.
18.Ahamkara:(IdenFty)Alltheahachmentsissummarizedasthisonefactor;
theidenFtyfeelingof“I”.This isthefinalstepsorblock inreachingAyyappa.
Wearing black clothes and addressing ourselves and others as “Swami
Ayyappa”dissolvesthisidenFtylikeasaltdollpluningintoasalyocean.
All theseexercisesare included in theAyyappa41daysVratham.Onlydoing
thesepracFcesonemakestheIrumudi-KehuandgoestoAyyappa.Thisiswhy
the18stepsareallowedtosteponlythosewhohavetheIrumudi-Kehu,which
meanstheyhaveHavepracFcedthe18stepstorealizetheLord.Alltheabove
18aspectsofEgoshrinkstoidenFtytoameremortalbodysubjectedtobirth
and death. But doing the 18 exercises one transcends these 18 blocks and
ahainsSelf-realizaFon.
SWAMIYESARANAMAYYAPPA
AhamBrahmasmi-TatTvamAsi
SANATHANADHARMA–THEPRACTICALWAY(Part3)
MEANINGFULTEMPLEWORSHIP
ByM.K.Sriram
HariOm!OmGurubhyoNamaha.HaraHaraShankara,JayaJayaShankara.
One of our prime duFes as human beings is to avail ourselves of every
opportunity todogood toothers.Doingunselfishservice tohelpothersand
for the common good of theworld, either by one’s own physical effort and
withone’sownhandsormonetarilywithinone’smeans,isconsideredtobean
unparalleledservicetoGod.
WeworshiptheSupremeGodorBrahmaninmanyforms,ofwhicheachform
magnifiesadivineaspect.GodrealizaFonisaprocesswhereinwemosto`en
realizeoverFme,thatweareallpartoftheWholeandthatWholeresidesin
eachoneofus.ThisistheessenceofAdvaita,whichliterallymeans“NoTwo”,
and is clearly an unambiguous way of saying “One”. Each of us is thus a
Temple.TheextensionoftheTempleinourselvesisthePujaorprayerroomin
ourhome.AfurtherextensionisatemplelikeourownSriMeenakshiTemple.
Thisisaveryfundamentalconceptthatweneedtoreflectonandabsorb.
Wewant our temple to be clean and immaculate, beauFfully decorated and
haveanambienceofutmostpurityanddivinity.Weshouldtreatandkeepour
ownbodyandmindthesamewaywedoourtemple,sothattheelementof
God inusstayswithusalways. WewillneverwanttherouFneNithyapujas
(daily pujas) at the temple to be interrupted or missed, the same way we
shouldstrivetodoourdailyprescribedpujasathomewithoutfail. Banishall
impure and negaFve thoughts from your mind. PracFce Ahimsa or non-
violence. Rememberthatit includesacFonsaswellasthoughts. Neverhurt
another being even by thought. Build a strong foundaFon of Guru bhakF
whichwill helpbuildourdedicaFonanddevoFon toDeivaBhakF. Theone
cure for all human ills is thepower to endure themwith faith inGuru’s and
God’sgrace.BhakIalonecangivethatpowerofendurance.Templesarethe
agenciesfortheculFvaFonofbhakI.
Wewillbeguiltyofgross ingraFtudeifwedonotofferfirsttoGod,whatwe
eatorwear.OnlythebestandthechoicestshouldbeofferedtoGod.Itisnot
everyone that can dopooja at home andmake these offerings to God. It is
here that temples come into the picture. Offerings aremade to God in the
templesonbehalfoftheenFrecommunity.Whatisthesignificanceofmaking
offerings to the idols installed in temples? This is done as an expression of
graFtudetothePowerthatcreatedall things.Man,byhimselfcannotcreate
evenabladeofgrass.
Wewillbeguiltyofgross ingraFtudeifwedonotofferfirsttoGod,whatwe
eatorwear.OnlythebestandthechoicestshouldbeofferedtoGod.Itisnot
everyonethatcandopujaathomeandmaketheseofferingstoGod.Itishere
thattemplescomeintothepicture.OfferingsaremadetoGodinthetemples
onbehalfoftheenFrecommunity.
Whenwestandbeforeapictureor idolofadeity in theprayer room inour
home and worship, we are really invoking the power of the deity into
ourselves, with single mindedness, into our body and mind, into our own
temple,andprayingtothedivinity. Now,whenwevisitthetemple,wearein
the company of other devotees, someFmes in the hundreds, worshipping
together. The deiFes in the temple have been installed and consecrated by
learnedpriestsaccordingtothe Agamasastras,whichgivethemthesancFty
anddivinitythatwecannotachieveatourhome. So,justimaginethepower
andholinessthereisatthetemplewhenhundredsofdevoteessimultaneously
invokeforinstanceSriMeenakshiintotheirhearts,andcollecFvelysayprayers
andworshipHer. Mostofusmayknowafewslokaswhichwerecitesincerely
to Her, but then at the temple, we have the priests offering various Vedic
mantras, slokas, hymns and composiFons by saints. We now have the
extraordinaryprivilegeoftheseprayersbeingofferedtoSriMeenakshiinvoked
inourownbodyandmind. Weourselvesprobablymaynoteverrise tothe
levelofscholarshipofthetrainedpriests,norhavethecapacityorresourcesto
perform on our own, big yagnas like the Chandi Homam, Maha Sudarsana
HomamorMahaRudram,but itdoesnot reallymaher somuch. Whenwe
sponsortheeventandmakethesankalpamandparFcipate,thenalltherituals
performed andmantrams chantedwill certainly reach the deity in ourselves
andwewillgetthefullbenefitbyjuststayingfocusedduringthepuja,chanFng
inourmindOmNamoNarayanaorOmNamaShivaya.Whenthepriestsoffer
flowersduringanarchana,itislikeeachflowerisplacedatthelotusfeetofSri
Ambal inourhearts. When theydoabhishekam to LordVenkateswara, it is
actuallyanabhishekamtotheVenkateswarawhoisinvokedinyourheart.You
cannowfeeltheLordinsideyou,andenjoytheexperienceinaverypersonal
way.IfyouremembertoapplythisthoughteachFmeyouvisitandworshipat
the temple, without a quesFon, your level of personal engagement will
significantlyrise,andyourexperiencewillbeextremelyfulfillingandsublime.
Wakeuptomorrowtobeabeherpersonthantoday.
YathirajaVaibhavamVIDr.K.P.Sarathy
IISrimatheRamanujayanama:IISriBhashyam Thiswork took shape in thewrihen form (palm leaves) a`er Ramanuja
taught his students in mulFple sessions in Srirangam. This starts with a
mangalaslokam:
AkhilabhuvanajanmasthemabhangaadhileelevinathavividhabhoothavraatharakshaikadheeksheISruthisirasividheeptheBrahmaniSrinivasebhavathumamaparasminsemusheebhakthirupaaII
Lord creates, sustains and destroys the universe. Lord Srinivasa shown by
Vedanthas is determined to protect those following the path established by
Him.TomeditateonsuchaBrahmaninbhakthirupamIprayLordSrinivasan.
Srivaishnavas have the tradiFon of starFng any work with mangala slokam,
prayingtotheLordtosuccessfullycompletetheworkandalso invokingtheir
achaaryars’ blessings to provide the knowledge to achieve the goal without
anyblemish.
Sribhashyam has four parts. In the first part Ramanuja establishes using the
Brahma Sutras that Sriman Narayanan is the cause for the creaFon of the
universe.InthesecondpartheremovestheobjecFonsofotherphilosophers
tothis.Inthethirdpartheshowstheupaayam(themeans)toreachHimand
in thefinal part hediscusses thebenefits of following theupaayam,namely
reaching SriVaikuntam to be in service of the Lord forever. The term
VisishtaadvaithamwasintroducedbylaterAchaaryarsprobablybyNadaadoor
Ammal, the grandson of Nadaadoor Azhwaan – a student of Ramanuja. The
concept of NirViseshaadvaitham (God with no ahributes) is denied and the
SaVisheshaadvaitham, Sriman Narayanan with infinite kalyaana gunaas was
established in this work. Our scriptures have Abeda SruFs (those verses
showingtheonenessofBrahmanandallcreaFons)andalsohaveBedaSruFs
(showingthedifferences).Differentphilosophershavepreferredoneoverthe
otherwhileRamanujaconsideredallversestobeequallyimportantandusing
Ghataka sruFs, a third category in scriptures, proved that SriVaishnava
siddaanthamwastheintenFonofourscriptures. Thoughthisworkwasdone
in Srirangam Ramanuja prays to Srinivasan, Thirupathi Venkateswara. In the
earlierwork inThirupathiheaddressed the Lordas Seshasaayee referring to
Srirangam Ranganathan It looks like wherever he was he was missing the
other place. It is customary to learnVedaartha Saarambefore ahempFng to
learnSriBhaasyam.
VedaanthaDeepamandVedaanthaSaaramVedanthadeepamenlightenswhatiscontainedinBrahmasutras.Vedaantha
Saaram is a short condensed form of SriBhashyam. These two works are
recommended for those who find SriBhashyam to be too elaborate. Later
AchaaryarshadcommentedontheseworkswhicharelearntwithSriBhasyam.
GitaBhaashyam RamanujabasedhiscommentaryonBhaghavathGitaontheearlierwork,
GithaArthaSangraham, by Swamy Alavandaar who was the head of
SriVaishnavaasbeforeRamanuja.SwamyAlavandaarcondensedtheessenceof
Gita in 32 slokas bringing out the fundamentals of SriVaishnava philosophy
(now known as Visishtaadvaitham). TradiFonally the 18 chapters of Gita is
categorizedunder3groupsof6chapterseach,called3shadgams.Inthefirst
shadgamSriKrishnadoesupadesamtoArjunaabouttheimportanceofgaining
theknowledgeaboutAthma(individualsoul)–Athmaswarupam.Togainthis
thejeevan(theindividual)hastopracFceKarmaYogamwhichleadstoGyaana
yogam which results in the realizaFon of Athma. As per SriVaishnava
siddaanthamwithoutengaginginkarmasprescribedinourscripturesthisgoal
cannot be reached. In the middle shadgam SriKrishna teaches about the
knowledge of Paramaathma swarupam, which can be realized by Bhakthi
yogam. In the final shadgam the results of observing Karma, Gyaana and
Bhakthiyogamsare explained.Suchayogi reachesthepermanentabodeof
Bhagavaan, SriVaikuntam engaging in the service of Lord, Sriman Narayana,
with no scope for rebirth. Ramanuja clearly establishes that Karma and
GyaanayogasareprerequisiteforBhakthiYogaandtheyarenotindependent
meanstoachieveMokshamwhichisthestatewheretheindividualenjoysthe
companyofthelordinSriVaikuntamwithnochanceforrebirthduetokarmas.
Ramanujahasanalyzedeach leher ineachwordofGitaasper saasthraas to
showusthatBhagavaanSriKrishnaisendowedwithlimitlesskalyaanagunaas
andoutofcompassionforustakesvariousavathaaraastobereachablebyus.
ThenatureoftheindividualsoulsandofGod,therelaFonshipbetweenthem
and the means and the meaning of liberaFon are explained in his Gita
Bhashyam.Inchapter2,slokam12
Nathvevaahamjaatunaasamnathvamnemejanaadhipaa:INachaevanabhavishyaama:sarvevayamatha:paramII
SriKrishnasays that therewasnoFmewhenyoudidnotexist, therewasno
FmeIorallthesemahersceased
toexist.AllofuswillconFnuetoexistforever.Thevisishtaadviathaprinciples
areclearlyestablishedhere.Thescripturesstatementsthatthereisnosecond
to God should be understood as God with all creaFons as His body has no
second.Inchapter2,slokam21SriKrishnaadvisesthatthesoulbeunderstood
ashavingnobeginningorendandindestrucFble:
VedaavinaasinamnithyamyaenamajamavyayamIKathamsapurusha:PaarthakamghaathayathihanthikamIIInthesamechapterslokam47establishesthatkarmayogamshouldnotbe
abandoned.
KarmanyevaadhikaarasthemaaphaleshukadaachanaIMaaphalahethurbhuurmaathesangosthavakarmaniII
KrishnasaysthatyouhavetherighttoengageinacFons(karmaasallowedby
the scriptures) but not for the results of such acFons. Do not act for selfish
reasonsnorbeinacFve.
BhokthaaramyagnyathapasaamsarvalokaMaheswaramISuhrudamsarvabhoothaanaamgnyaathvaamaamsaanthimrucchathi II Ch5slokam29
KrishnasaysintheaboveslokamthatHeistheLordofalltheworldsandHeis
theobjectofallausteriFesandfiresacrificesobservedbywisemen.Heisdear
toallandwhoeverrealizesthesewillliveinpeace.
InGita chapter7, slokam7SriKrishna says that there isnoonegreater than
HimindicaFngHisparathathvam.
MaththaparatharamnaanyakinchidasthiDhananjayaIMayisarvamidamprothamsoothremaniganaaivaII7.7In chapter 9 slokam 17 Krishna declares that He is the father, mother,
grandfather,thesustainerofall livesandthegoaltobereachedbythevedic
knowledge. In the very next slokam He says that He is the nourisher and
creatorofall,supremewell-wisherandrefugeforall.Inchapter9,slokams20
and 21 the results of performing sacrificial acFons as shown in the karma
kaanda of vedaas are explained. Thesewill lead to temperory enjoyment as
desired by individuals but finallywill push themback to samsaaram (wordly
life).
Kaamyaanaamkarmanaamnyaasamsanyaasamkavayovidu:ISarvakarmaphalathyaagampraahusthyaagamvichakshanaa:II18.2Thyaajyamdoshavadithyekekarmapraahurmaneeshin:IYagnyadaanathapa:karmanathyaajyamithichaapareII18.3YethaanyapithukarmaanisangamthyakthvaaphalaanichaIKarthavyaaneethimePaarthanischithammathamuththamamII18.6Some define sanyaasam as the state where the acFons yielding results are
abandoned. Some experts advocate that all acFons should be given up like
renouncing greed. Yet others insist that the acFons like thapas, daanamand
yaagam should never be given up. Sri Krishna says, Arjunaa, these holy acts
shouldalwaysbeobservedsincetheyaremycommands.Thesekarmasshould
beperformedwithoutanyahachmenttotheresultsofsuchacFons.Sinceitis
relaFvely easier to follow Bhaghavath gita compared to Vedaantham
Ramanuja’s work on Gita is elaborated here. From these sample slokas Sri
Vaishnava siddaantam that SriKrishna is the absolute Lord, we are different
fromHimandourgoalistoreachHim,isfirmlyestablished.
The individual without any break observing all karmas prescribed for him
obtainstheknowledgeaboutthenatureofthesoulwhichtakeshimtobhakthi
maargam to surrender (saranaagathi) to SriKrishna. This bhakthimaargam is
differentfromthetermhistoriansusetoimplyloveforGodandisverydifficult
to pracFce.We probably cannot think of anyone engaged in Bhakthi yogam
today. SriKrishna gives an easy soluFon to this in the concluding part of the
Gita.
SarvadarmaanparityajyaMaamekamsaranamvrajaIAhamthvaasarvapaapebhyomoksha-yishyaamimaasucha:IICh18slokam66
If youareunable toengage in theseyogaasand if you surrender to
me andme alone as a sole refuge I will remove all your sins and give you
Mokshamwithoutanydoubt.……….tobecon/nued
Some criteria, MTS membership Rules and Guidelines: 1. Membership of MTS shall be open to anyone who follows the Hindu religious faith and Culture and believe in the objectives of MTS and meets the MTS By-laws requirements.(Article II: Section 1) 2. Applicant of 20 years of age or older shall become a Primary member after the Membership committee’s review and approval by the Board of Directors. Such Primary members will be in “Provisional” status for one year until they have satisfactorily demonstrated their support for MTS goals and objectives as in the By-laws. At that time, the member’s status will be converted to “Active” subject to review by the Membership committee and approval by the Board. (Article II: Section 3 & 4)
o Provisional members, shall not have privileges to vote or to hold elected offices on the Board. They may attend General Body meetings as nonvoting members.
3. Both husband and wife must apply individually for their respective membership (Article II: Section 8) 4. Primary members who file their membership forms annually and pay the annual dues, if any, shall be “Active” in status. Such members shall constitute the General Body of MTS. (Article II: Section 9) 5. Youth members are children of Active Primary and Senior members between ages 13 and 19. Membership and renewal forms for Youth members shall be signed by their parents or guardians. (Article II: Section 11) 6. Persons employed as Staff members or gainfully employed on contract by MTS, shall not be accepted as Primary members. (Article II: Section 14) 7. An active member shall become a “life” member upon payment of the necessary dues during the calendar year and applying for the same within 90 days following the end of the calendar year. (Article VII: Section 8)
8. All members must renew their membership every year, by January 1, by completing and filing the annual membership renewal form and paying the annual dues. (Article V: Section 1) 9. Extended renewal time or grace period is 1st January to 31st March. (Article V: Section 1) 10. Any member who has not filed the renewal form and/or paid the annual dues past 31st March, shall automatically become “Inactive” in status and shall lose his/her Membership rights and privileges. (Article IV: Section 4)
o An Inactive member shall be made Active again when the renewal forms are filed and necessary dues, if any, for the current year are paid.
11. The following do not pay annual fees for MTS membership: i) Life Members, ii) Inactive members and iii) Honorary or youth members or Temple devotees.
12. Email, Telephone and address corrections of members must be made through this form and by sending it to the membership committee coordinator. Such changes made to at the MTS devotee database (www.meenakshi.org) are not automatically used to update the membership information.
13. In December of every year, the membership committee will send out a membership renewal notice and all changes to membership can also be made through the letter.
14. To vote in the elections and to sponsor candidates, a member must be in Active status as of July 1, of an election year. (Article XXI: Section 1).
Sri Meenakshi Temple Society 17130McLeanRoad,Pearland,TX77584(281)-489-0358
Webaddress:hhp://www.meenakshi.org
NEW MEMBER REGISTRATION FORM
Year MembershipNo.
Assignedbythecommihee(PleasePrint)
Note:Incompleteand/orincorrectformwilldelaytheprocessingofthemembershipapplica/on.FullyfilledformwithpaymentcanbedroppedintheofficeormailedtoMTS,ahenFonofMembership
Commihee Coord inator. P lease send an emai l to the membersh ip coord inator
([email protected]) a`er submiwng the applicaFon form.We expect to process it within
threemonths.Pleasecontactusbyemailifyouhavenotheardfromus.
FOROFFICEUSEONLY:
FormRcvd.on:_________by:______CheckRcvd.on:_______by:_______
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SponsorsinAcFveStatus,Notmorethanfoursponsorshipsinayear,paymentmade.
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Comments:________________________________________________________
IfollowtheHinduReligiousfaithandCultureandbelieveintheobjecFvesofMTS.Iamresiding
intheUnitedStatesofAmericaandamwillingtovolunteerinthetemplerelatedacFviFes.Iam
atleast20yearsofage.
____________________________________________________________
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Asasponsorofthenewmemberlistedabove,I,tothebestofmyknowledge,statethatIam,asofthedate
signed,anacFvememberofMTSandhavenotsponsoredmorethanfournewmembersthisyear.
REGISTRATIONDUES*permemberREGULAR
below65years$50/year
65yrs&above$25/year
full-Fmestudents$25/year
LIFE $1,000
check#__________Date:_______
Paymentsshouldbe made only by check
Amount:$__________(CheckpayabletoMTS)
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1._________________2.___________________
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Formoreinforma/onpleasecontacttheTempleOfficeat281-489-0358ext.100,110
Ifyouhaveanyques/ons,commentsorneedmoreinforma/onpleasedonothesitatetocontact
[email protected]@yahoo.com
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Abhishekam_______x306=____
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Archana______x120=_____
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TotalAmount:$____________PaymentMethod:CASHCHECK#____________
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CheckthePujasThatYouWishtoSponsor
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SriGaneshaChathurthiSankataharaShukla
SriVenkateswaraEKADASIShuklaKrishnaSriVenkateswaraFirstSundaysSravanam
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Sri Meenakshi Temple Society 17130 McLean Road, Pearland, TX 77584
Phone: 281-489-0358 Ext. 100 (or) 110
ANNUAL PUJA SPONSORSHIP FORM
Kalyana Mandapam (KM), Youth Center (YC),
and Visitors Center (VC) at MTS • BothKMandYCarespaciousfaciliFesforeventslike
Engagements,Weddings,RecepFons,etc.
• Eachfacilitycanaccommodatemorethan400people
• VCcanaccommodateupto125peopleforsmallevents
• Haveover1200chairs,50roundtables,andmorethan30
rectangular(6’x2’)tables
• UsetheMTSfaciliFes(KM,YCandtheVisitorsCenter)for
allofyourneedsthroughouttheyear
• Recommendtoyourfriendsandcolleaguesaboutthe
faciliFesandsupportourTemple
ForReserva/onsContact:Mr.Venkatachalamat
Alterna/vely:[email protected][email protected](MuruganSelvan)and
wewillgetbacktoyouwithin24hours
MTSFacilityRentalQuery:hips:///nyurl.com/y9xlbcao
Kalyana Mandapam Youth Center Banquet Hall
TempleHoursMondaythroughThursday:
8:30AMto12Noonand5:00PMto8:30PMFriday:
8:30AMto12Noonand5:00PMto9:00PMWeekendsandNa<onalHolidays:
8:30AMto8:30PMListentoMTSRadio
ListentoMTSRadioeverySunday1110AMSTATIONinHouston
BroadcastEverySundayat1:00PMTuneontolinkhJp://sanatanhinducenter.org/radio/
www.emeenakshi.org
TempleTimesPublishedbyMTSPublicRela/onsandPublicity
RAHUKALAM DAY YAMAGANDAM4:30PM–6:00PM Sunday 12NOON–1:30PM
7:30AM–9:00AM Monday 10:30AM–12NOON
3:00PM–4:30PM Tuesday 9:00AM–10:30AM
12NOON–1:30PM Wednesday 7:30AM–9:00AM
1:30PM–3:00PM Thursday 6:00AM–7:30AM
10:30AM–12NOON Friday 3:00PM–4:30PM
9:00AM–10:30AM Saturday 1:30PM–3:00PM
SriMeenakshiTempleTelephoneNumbersMainTemple…………………………281-489-0358(Best<metocall:9AMto12Noonand5PMto8PM)MainTemple………………………………………………………………100,110GaneshTempleFacilityCenter………………………………………..…115Library(DuringLibraryhours)……………………………………………125KalyanaMandapam……………………………………………………….…112TempleKitchen…………………………………………………………….……227MTSFax……………………………………………………………281-489-3540STAFFSriVatsaKumar(Administrator)………………..…….832-689-6448SriK.Venkatachalam(Administrator)……………..832-725-1805SriManickasundaramBhaear(Priest)……………..281-489-8633SriKalyanaSundaram(Priest)………………………….281-692-9815SriR.K.E.Parameswaran(Priest)……………………..281-489-0575SriSreedharanRaghavan(Priest)…………….………713-518-1810SriPawankumarSriBhashyam(Priest)………….…281-819-7842SriSrimannarayanaCharyuluRompicherla(Priest)..281-965-9780SriBalajiSethuraman(Priest)…………………..……..832-486-7083SriSivakarthickKannan(Priest)……………..………..206-458-9454SriSathishDevanathan(Priest)………..………..…..614-330-6228