Bharatheeyam : ( 08/11/2012. )

"I have a message for the world, which I will deliver without fear and care for the future. To the reformers I will point out that I am a greater reformer than any one of them. They want to reform only little bits. I want root-and-branch reform." - Swami Vivekananda 2.THE UNDERLYING IDEA OF THE CASTE SYSTEM : The older I grow, the better I seem to think of caste and such other time-honored institutions of India. There was a time when I used to think that many of them were useless and worthless, but the older I grow, the more I seem to feel a difference in cursing any one of them, for each one of them is the embodiment of the experience of centuries.  A child of but yesterday, destined to die the day after tomorrow, comes to me and asks me to change all my plans and if I hear the advice of that baby and change all my surroundings according to his ideas I myself should be a fool, and no one else. Much of the advice that is coming to us from different countries ...

"I have a message for the world, which I will deliver without fear and care for the future. To the reformers I will point out that I am a greater reformer than any one of them. They want to reform only little bits. I want root-and-branch reform." - Swami Vivekananda 1.CASTE IN SOCIETY AND NOT IN RELIGION Though our castes and our institutions are apparently linked with our religion, they are not so. These institutions have been necessary to protect us as a nation, and when this necessity for self-preservation will no more exist, they will die a natural death. In religion there is no caste. A man from the highest caste and a man from the lowest may become a monk in India and the two castes become equal. The caste system is opposed to the religion of Vedanta. Caste is a social custom, and all our great preachers have tried to break it down. From Buddhism downwards, every sect has preached against caste, and every time it has only riveted the chains. Beginning fr...

YOGA CORE OF VIVEKANANDA KENDRA The Vedanta claims that there has not been one religious inspiration, one manifestation of the divine man, however great, but it has been the expression of that infinite oneness in human nature; and all that we call ethics and morality and doing good to others is also but the manifestation of this oneness. - Swami Vivekananda The mission of India has been to guide the humanity in the path spirituality, help humanity in spiritual evolution. India alone can do that as She has the vision of Oneness — Akhandamandalakaram, Ekatma Manava Darshan- expanding (evolving) man is a family, expanding family a community, expanding family a society, nation and expanding nation is a whole universe thus we are all interconnected and therefore interdependent. Man is not a sinner but potentially divine and goal of life — to manifest divinity. She developed the Dharma (The duty of man to maintain the harmony around of the enlarging samshti) based soci...

In August 1856 when a child was born in a humble cottage in the pretty hamlet of Chempazhanthi near Trivandrum, no one knew it marked the dawn of the most remarkable epoch in the social evolution of Kerala. This child was to blossom forth as the great sage Sree Narayana, the most revolutionary social reformer Kerala has produced.  To have proper appreciation of the magnitude of Sree Narayana’s achievements, it is necessary to understand the background of the social conditions in which he was born and brought up. Kerala, reputed for its natural beauty and richness of life, was alas, the accursed land of caste tyranny at that time; to such an extent that it was really a “lunatic asylum” as Swami Vivekananda branded it. The non-caste Hindus, the “Avarnas” were groaning under the terrible weight of social, economic, religious and political oppression imposed upon them by caste Hindus or “Savarnas”. Not only temples of God but temples of learning were also shut against them b...

Dayananda Ashram Rishikesh is situated on the banks of the Holy Ganga, away from the major tourist attractions. It is a unique centre for the study of Vedanta and Sanskrit; unique in the sense that the classes are conducted in English yet the adherence and reverence to the ancient tradition of teaching (Sampradaya) is total. There is a temple dedicated to Lord Siva as Gangadharesvara facing the Ganga. The main lecture hall also faces the Ganga. There is a library with more than 5000 titles on various subjects, i.e. Vedanta, Sanskrit Grammar, Indian and western philosphies, Religion and Yoga. There is also a Yoga studio where regular Iyengar Yoga camps are conducted.  The ashram was established during the 1960s by Swami Dayananda Saraswati, who is an internationally recognised teacher of Vedanta and foremost scholar of Sanskrit. Swamiji and his disciples conduct regular residential courses at the ashram with the focus on Bhagavad Gita and the ten principal Upanishads as...

SWAMI VISHNUDEVANANDA Founder of the International Sivananda Yoga Vedanta Centres, Swami Vishnudevananda, was a world authority on Hatha and Raja Yoga. Swamiji was also known as the "Flying Swami" for the different peace missions he accomplished around the world. BEFORE DISCOVERING YOGA : Swami VishnudevanandaSwamiji was born in Kerala, South India, in 1927. As a young child one of his main character traits was a strong will and determination. His mother, now known as Mataji who later took Sannyas (vows of renunciation) from Swami Sivananda, said that whenever her son wanted something, nothing or no one could stop him. An interesting anecdote tells how as a 5 year old youngster he had the strong desire to go to school and learn. When told that it was not possible since the nearest school was located more than 5 miles away, the child took upon himself to pack and go early the next morning for the long 5 mile walk through the jungle. He walked back that evening and would ...

Bhagavatham Village Trust is a registered charitable institution having its own office functioning in Cochin city near Ernakulam South Railway Station. The trust is headed by Swami Udith Chaithanya. Bhagavatham Village is situated at Munipara, Chalakudy, near Kalady, the birth place of Jagathguru Adi Sankara. This place is in a serene atmosphere away from the hustle and bustle of the city on the banks of chalakudy river. According to ancient scriptures the name Chalakudy is derived from chala (shala) kudy (hut). It is said that there used to be yagnas conducted in this place in ancient times. Bhagavatham Village is easily accessible by railway, road, and air. The Kochi International Airport is just a few kilometers away. Concept  and  Vision : Bhagavatham Village is envisaged by Swamiji for practising the "Pancha Yajna" for the benefit of society and setting up an example for the whole world. Swami Udit Chaithanyaji, the Acharya of Bhagavatham Village, aft...