Issue 5 11

Newsletter from

The Tristate

Hindu Temple

& Cultural

Center

February 2017

Bhagavad Gita

mayy eva mana ādhatsva mayi buddhiṁ niveśhaya

nivasiṣhyasi mayy eva ata ūrdhvaṁ na

mayi-upon me; eva-certainly; manaḥ-mind; ādhatsva-fix; mayi-upon me; buddhim-intellect; niveśhaya-apply; nivasiṣhyasi-you will live; mayi-in me; eva-certainly; ataḥ ūrdhvam-thereafter; na-never; sanśhayaḥ-doubt

Just fix your mind upon Me, the supreme personality of Godhead, and engage all your intelligence in Me. Thus you will always live in Me, without a doubt.

Message from Panditji, Shri Surendra Mishra:

Mahashiva Ratri: Shiva Ratri falls on the Falgun month and Chaturdashi in the Indian calendar. Shiva Ratri

means the night of Siva, which is the most auspicious night for worshiping Shiva. Shiva belongs to trinity of Gods:

Brahma (the Creator), Vishnu (the Sustainer) and Shiva (the Destroyer).

Shiva means the one who promotes everyone's welfare or wellbeing .Destruction is not meant in the wrong

sense. Destruction is the sense of renewing or rejuvenation. Within destruction are the seeds of creation. Shiva is

worshiped at night because night symbolizes destruction. The moon is a symbol of mind, and during Krishna

Paksha (dark fortnight), we worship Shankar bhagvan to strengthen our mind to fight tamasic forces.

In the Indian Calendar, there are 12 months, every month has a Chaturdashi in dark fortnight and we call it Shiva

Ratri. However, Mahashiva Ratri is even more auspicious. This is because around the time of Holi all the leaves

have fallen, which signifies the destruction that take place before creation, which is an essential part of the life

cycle.

TRISTATE HINDU TEMPLE AND CULTURAL CENTER/ Issue # 5 2

Makar Sankranti, Pongal, Lohri celebrations:

Vedic Heritage Sunday school and Yoga sessions:

The Vedic Heritage School is held at the temple on Sundays from 3.30-5 pm. The schedule includes yoga,

crafts/art/coloring session, shloka and bhajan lessons, basics of the Hindi language, and stories/snack session.

Children (6-10 years old) have learned several shlokas and now will start learning Shivashtakam this week (for

Shivratri). The school plans to start with Chinmayananda’s Ramayana for the kids in this group as well. The

older children will be learning Shivashtakam, Hanuman Chalisa and Bhagavatham stories.

The school plans to do a series of plays based on stories from the Puranas and Upanishads throughout the year.

Students are getting ready to practice the play, Prahlad.

Please bring your children for the classes and introduce them to our cultural and religious heritage.

Yoga sessions with Mrs. Sridevi Ravipati are in progress, for the adults, on Saturdays – a series of 5 sessions.

Please watch your temple email for updates on the next session.

TRISTATE HINDU TEMPLE AND CULTURAL CENTER/ Issue # 5 3

Saraswathi Pooja

Temple Membership:

We kindly request all families in the TriState Hindu community to become members of the Temple. Your

membership dues help with the day to day expenses of the temple, organize events and activities, and plan

for temple expansion. The annual membership comes to 1 dollar a day (365 dollars per year) and the

Premium Membership is 1000 dollars. The membership forms are available at the Temple and can be

obtained from the Temple Website. You can make membership payments on our website too.

TRISTATE HINDU TEMPLE AND CULTURAL CENTER/ Issue # 5 4

Blanket donation by Jain Pathshala children

Congratulations and Thank You!! The Jain Pathshala children and adults made the TriState Indian community

proud by donating blankets for needy children of the area, just in time for winter. The team got together on

December 4th and made 31 blankets that were donated to the children at Pitino shelter in Owensboro,

Henderson shelter and Ozanam family shelter in Evansville. Thank you Neha, Siddhi, Keya, Ayushi, Ritik,

Isha, Tejasvini, Parth, Jaini, Prisha, Vihan, Viransh and others for this noble effort.

TRISTATE HINDU TEMPLE AND CULTURAL CENTER/ Issue # 5 5

Updates on the Temple Expansion Plan:

Anticipated start of construction : Summer 2017

TARGET: 2.5 MILLION DOLLARS

We had a successful fund raising telephone campaign on January 22nd. Thank you very much for taking the time to

talk to us and discussing the Temple Expansion Plan. Our Fund Raising Committee is working tirelessly to be in touch with all of you and request your donations for this exciting cause.

COLLECTED CASH AND PLEDGES CURRENTLY ARE CLOSE TO

60% OF OUR TARGET

PLEASE DONATE GENEROUSLY TO TEMPLE EXPANSION FUND

You can leave a check in the temple, get a pledge form from the temple website, talk to any member of the temple committees or even donate appreciated securities. No donation is too small. All donations are tax deductible

MARK YOUR CALENDER …..

FUND RAISING EVENT PLANNED FOR APRIL 15, 2017 Recognizing all donors to the Temple Construction Fund

More information to follow

This newsletter is a humble attempt to keep the community updated on the events and activities at the Tristate Hindu Temple and Cultural Center. We would like to hear your suggestions and comments. Please feel free to write to us at tristate.temple@gmail.com