Arsha Vidya Gurukulam, Anaikatti, abode of Vedanta learning. Rural, rustic, no frills, traditional, in-depth and heaven on earth! Sri gurubhyo namaha! Pujya Swami Dayananda Saraswati ji taught here, my alma mater. Celebrated Kumbhabhishekam, Guru Poornima, attended Vedanta camp 
medhaa dakshiNaamoorty and gnyaaneshwari...eyes never tire of having their darshan
there is also narmadeshwara and gnyaana gaNapati.....with subrahmaNya on a hill-top
the poojaas here to be seen to be believed....while watching one such, felt a sudden rush of sincere pity for all those who cannot avail of this beauty, this grandeur, the fragrance of worship, inner devotion expressed via flowers, fruits, fire, chants and incense...WHAT a LOSS!
everyday is exciting...what will S/HE wear today, the aabharaNaas, the alankaaraas....archakaas are adept at beautifying ...it is SUCH a glorious experience....to access pooja, homa, vaidika sampradaaya rituals and vedanta ALL in one place...along with delicious bhOjanam!
a place where the white of the brahmachaaris gently follows the resplendent grihasthaas towards ochre clas sanyaasis....with the yellow of the young purohitaas and veda paaThashaala shishyaas
where daily agnihotra and homaas are a norm....
had missed the Kumbhaabhishekam but made it for the 40+ day later Mandala Pooja
108 shankha pooja! WHATAYSIGHT!
the whole 'team' from Raja Bhattar's gurukulam in Thiruparankundram
lead by Swami Omkarananda ji, it was such a privilege to participate in these festivities
can't celebrate without them can you?
🙏 he was in a trance, closed his eyes esp when his guru did namaskaarams to him/ kalasha
note the muggu/ kOLams - something very interesting to share about them....
aachaarya of the gurukulam Swami Sadatmanandaji
we do it with flowers!
all the teertha, flowers etc from the shankhaas will be offered to medha dakshiNaamoorty during abhishekam
resident archaka Ram Bhattji and Smt, yajamaanis, offering praNaams to Raja Bhattarji and offering dakshiNa
Smt Anuradha Sriram offering sangeetam at the altar
felicitations for a successfully completed 40+ days of purificatory rituals, for the temples at AVG.
the lines yonder are for the annadaanam that followed the poojaas....nityaannadaanam is done, contributions are welcome arshavidya.in
food is not to be sold, not to be wasted, to be shared with everyone (devaas, pitris, rishis, maanavaas, pancha bhootaas...) and NOT to be criticized...
so much of vaidikaness rests on how we treat food. how we cook it, serve it, share it...
kitchen maama did an excellent job, plus there was soooo much prasaadam too!
no amount of dakshiNa is adequate for this 'job', done with so much shraddha and bhakti
getting ready for Guru Poornima...
hope you are noting the exquisite muggus!
getting there....the garlands have arrived...
Pujya Swami Dayananda ji took sanyaasa deeksha from Gurudev Swami Chinmayanandaji, learnt Brahmasutras from Swami Tarananda ji of Rishikesh Kailash Ashram and the vision of Vedas as pramaaNa from Swami Pranavananda ji of Gudivada, AP. Without prior knowledge of Hindi or Telugu
pookkOLam has begun!
tOraNam prep
not bad haan?
Swamini amma who taught so many of us proper chanting...waiting for the aachaaryaas to arrive
na tatra sooryO bhaati na chandra taarakam ....
sadaashiva samaarambhaam shankaraachaarya madhyamaam asmadaachaarya paryantaam, vande guru paramparaam!
🙏
breakfast everyday has either raagi or oatmeal, with some sunDal and the main course of idli/ dosa/ upma/ poha....with great filter coffee
on some days prasaadam exceeds the main course at lunch!
was glad to be back in the same room as i was in before...taught me that we don't need much to be happy! taught me that we are of the nature of happiness!!
Guru Tirtha - Pujya Swamiji's residence Ganga, now a place of dhyaana and respite
Sri gurubhyo namaha!
so all these muggus were being put by an Indonesian student who studied here for three years and learnt it, better than most maamis no?
Krishna Bhatt who is the younger archaka usually graces me with a bit of her garland if i land up early before the 'dress change'
dinners are simple - tayir saadam....uttapam or chappati or such....
lunch is usually vivaaha bhOjanambu level, especially during festivals
another day another muggu....she was constantly on the run - doing one seva after another....serving at lunch, cleaning lecture hall, putting kOlams EVERYDAY in front of every temple, guru tirtha, lecture hall, aachaaryaa's residences.....humbled me totally....SO much to learn
so basically our days are filled with pooja, vidya, aahaara, nidra and more of the same day after day...most enlightening!
favourite spot in the whole gurukulam, the best there is in Vedanta teaching - Arsha Vidya's!
the gurukulam is in the western ghats, near the nilgiri biosphere, with birds and animals for company (peacocks, boars, snakes and elephants are sighted often), an ideal place for contemplation
now to subrahmaNya kovil!
veTrivel murugannukku! harOhara!
🙏
vel vel murugaa! veTrivel murugaa!
Pujya Swamiji's study
shayanakaksha
Pujya Swamiji would have lunch with a student from the course everyday along with innumerable unexpected guests who kept arriving in a continuous stream to seek his blessings...no one went away without first partaking of a meal...had the privilege of getting a seat at that table
more muggu!
there she is!
and another...
who is sponsoring bhiksha today?
what poojas are on today?
everywhere one looks, steps, everything one sees, talks to, all that is IS bhagawaan, nothing but God!
and this is how i like my hair to be adorned...with a zillion malles
more of HIM less of me
guru poorNima day alankaaram
manDala pooja alankaaram!
all the aachaaryaas
and the aachaarya of aachaaryaas! the BEST!
🙏
outside the room i was in, a Whiskered Bulbul lay eggs on the Hibiscus tree that I had planted 5 years ago....felt a fabulous sense of inter-connectedness at the sight of this....
and with that I bid adieu ....until next visit!
