Friday, March 23, 2012

New Year and Navratri






Happy New Year!!!



Friday the 23rd March marked the start of the new calendar year according to the Indian Calendar. So welcome to Vikram Samvat 2069!!!

It is a day which also signifies the start of Vasant Navratri, a nine day festival devoted to the goddesses Laxmi, Saraswati and Durga.

Our students started to celebrate the day early by going around their villages before school with their teachers and greeting passers by, wishing them a happy new year, giving them a tilak (red mark on the forehead as a sign of respect and auspiciousness) and also giving them a small piece of sweet so that the year ahead may also be the same. It is a practice which slowly fades away and there were several comments from village elders about how happy they were seeing our students maintain this beautiful tradition.

Students were also urged yesterday to make sure when they wake up this morning that they pay special attention to how they start the day. Teachers insisted that especially today the students should wake early, bathe and make their morning worship with full concentration. Then, still in the early morning they made sure to do ½ and hours study, making the atmosphere and direction for the year ahead.


After coming to school the students, teachers, doctors and staff from the hospital and members of the ashram from throughout the world joined together at the Shiv Mandir in Jadan Ashram for puja and prayers for the Navratri festival and to wish everyone a happy new year.


From all of us here in Jadan have a great year ahead and enjoy!!!!
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