Here’s a video of Muni Natarajan, one of the teachers, leading the youth in a few Shiva bhajans/kirtans at the Hindu Youth Camp in West Virginia that took place last week.
Aug 062011
Aug 012011
We continue with our coverage of the Hindu Youth Camp at West Virginia University in Morgantown. On the last afternoon of the camp our new African friends invited us to participate in a drum circle that they had planned. Earlier in the day they had attended a yoga and meditation class.
Our youth group turned up at 3pm at one of the larger halls on campus to find our friends there along with about 30 djembes. Djembe is an African skin-covered drum meant to be played with bare hands that has its origins in West Africa. Individuals from both groups teamed up and before long the hall was filled with drum beats. Our friends were patient as they taught us basic beats on the djembe. It wasn’t long before the young Hindu campers felt confident to beat along with the Africans.
The two and a half hours that followed was the highlight of the camp for many. Besides learning how to play the djembe we also learned some African dance steps. It was an afternoon filled with music and dance, an unplanned unity of two cultures, strangers the day before and friends today. It was an experience that will live long in the hearts and minds of all those that attended.
Our young campers learning how to play the djembe from our new friends
It was certainly one of the highlights of this year's camp
12 year old Nidhi is all about playing the djembe
Both groups truly enjoyed getting to know one another
Both groups gather to capture this wonderful coming together of two cultures
Teachers and Coordinators. From left: Mr. Krishnasamy, Olu, Muni Natarajan, Mrs. Fuller, Mwatabu Okantah, Dandapani and Nana (Nana is a term of endearment that refers to a chief in the Akan traditions)
Teachers present one another gifts that are sacred to their culture.
Jul 302011
Here are extracts from a few of the notes of appreciation and gratitude that I received from various campers. As part of their exercise in expressing appreciation and gratitude to their parents, counselors and a person of their choice, a few of them chose to write me some very thoughtful notes which I felt inspired to share with you.
Dear Dandapaniji or Dear DPG…
“…you came into my life when I needed help the most…I do feel blessed to have someone like you in my life that listens and helps me find solutions and is a friend to me. You’re a REAL rockstar…”
“…You are the first person that has truly made me feel like a good Hindu through my every day actions and decisions. …As a teenager I know I make things over dramatic…but you take me seriously and make me feel as though my opinions/actions/decisions/thoughts truly matter. You helped me through a very difficult time last year, and the way you affected my thought process has really changed the way I look at everything. Thank you for inspiring me.”
“…You put the entire religion into a perspective that fits my lifestyle completely…”
“DPG, thank you for teaching so many different things this week and for being insanely awesome.”
“…I appreciate how you are always patient with us.”
“…I gathered more from this week than my past 9 years at camp combined…I’m indebted to you for your advice on all matters. I felt like your lessons called out to me personally and will affect my future greatly. I really can’t wait to see you next year.”
“In terms of teaching and learning things in camp this was the best year by far. I learned how to apply Hindu traditions in a way that would enhance my life…Overall, camp would not be the same without you because of the way you help every individual person in camp with their own problems. I hope you come back to SV Temple camp for many years so that the campers will actually benefit from the classes.”
“Thank you for teaching us how Hinduism can be used in everyday life. You have made what used to be a 2 hour class of boring lectures to a fun and interesting class that seems to go by in 10/20 minutes…It is nice because you have gone through a similar lifestyle and can/have pointed out main points of Hinduism that can help us deal with our parents, friends and people who we don’t necessary get along with…”
“…I would also really appreciate it if you would be willing to come back to camp next year and help us continue our spiritual as well as our life journeys….thanks again.”
“You’re the BEST! Thanks so so much for all of your teachings. They are honestly so applicable to life and I really appreciate that. You are awesome and hilarious but also teach amazing lessons that have stayed with me for the past 3 years and will remain with me in my mind throughout my life. Thanks also for looking out for me and asking if I was alright after that serious discussion. It’s great to know that there’s someone to talk to…”
Jul 292011
Our week long youth camp is coming to a conclusion and this is the final day of classes. Today we ventured into the world of gratitude and appreciation. As part of today’s class exercise each student was asked to write a note of gratitude to their parents. In doing so they had to be specific about what they were grateful for. They were also asked to write a note to their counselor and one other person at their week long camp.
In addition to this, in the older group’s class a skit was enacted about how first generation American born Hindu parents can use the guidelines and spiritual tools of Hinduism to guide their children with everyday challenges that they face in the world. Well prepared and excellently executed, our campers proved to be wonderful actors!
Children writing notes of gratitude and appreciation
In expressing gratitude they have to be specific.
And when they present their note of appreciation to the individual they have to look the person in the face and say 'Here's my note of appreciation that I wrote for you'.
Members of the older group perform a skit on Hindu parenting.
The skit was very entertaining and educational
A young camper gives his counselor a big hug of appreciation!
A message from one of the younger campers!
Jul 292011
Yesterday we invited our African brothers and sisters to join us in our morning Hatha Yoga and meditation practice. This was something new to most of them. I began the class by leading them through a few rounds of Surya Namaskaram (sun salutations) to get them warmed up and stretched.
Then we dived into some Hatha Yoga asanas (poses) followed by some basic pranayama (breath control) which involved regulating the duration of the in breath and the out breath. After pranayama we began the guided meditation. We used the analogy that the mind is like a vast land with a variety of landscapes from mountains to rivers and oceans, to deserts to cities to jungles and more. And the same way we travel from one area of a land to another we can similarly travel through the mind as well.
Our guided meditation then took us first to the land called happiness. We visualized being happy and also filled our entire body with the feeling of happiness. We emphasized the importance of visualization and feeling in the practice of meditation. From the land of happiness we moved to the land of contentment and finally the land of love while practicing visualization and feeling for each of those areas. To conclude the meditation we returned our awareness to the room we were in and slowly opened our eyes to adjust ourselves to our surroundings.
We were very happy to have our African siblings join us for our morning spiritual practices and we are looking forward to their drum circle this afternoon which they have invited us to participate in.
One God, one world!
Starting our series of Hatha Yoga poses
After practicing various Hatha Yoga poses we did some pranayama (breath control) exercises followed by a guided meditation.
Today was filled with classes and a visit to two temples in Pittsburgh. We’ll share the day with you in the photos below.
In today's class we covered the topic titled "Are you reacting to everything all the time?"
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We also continued exploring the topic of "Hindu Parenting" and laying the foundation of good parenting skills for 1st generation American born Hindus.
After lunch all the campers dressed up in their finest Indian clothing and we headed up to Pittsburgh to visit two temples.
Singing bhajans at the Hindu Jain temple in Pittsburgh
The two teachers at camp - Muni Natarajan and Dandapani, standing in front of the Hindu Jain temple
With former camp director, Ravi Balu.
All the campers in front of the Sri Venkateswara temple in Pittsburgh.
Our 2nd day of camp and the youth are enjoying themselves. Our morning started with Hatha Yoga. It was Dandapani’s turn to teach the girls and Muni’s turn to teach the boys. Immediately after Hatha Yoga we did 20 minutes of guided meditation.
The meditation that I (Dandapani) conducted was structured in a way that it would keep the interest of children while still teaching them how to visualize and feel plus move their awareness through various areas of their mind. More than half the girls class were able to stay concentrated through the whole meditation and get to know the inner realms of their mind. It was an inwardly rewarding morning!
In my class today we continued our study from the book “Gurudeva’s Toolbox for a Spiritual Life”. The topic today was about marriage – exploring the areas of arranged or assisted marriage, inter-racial marriages, same and mixed religion marriages.
We also continued the exploration of the topic of “Hindu Parenting”. This has been by far the most liveliest topic of the camp. Advice on good Hindu parenting by children….now I’ve heard some amazing insights and solutions to good parenting today. Perspectives from 1st generation American born Hindus. These children have shared insights and solutions that are fair, just, wise and loving. We are compiling these thoughts and will share them with you soon. But I’ll leave you with one piece of advice from a young camper.
Dandapani: “Can anyone give advice on good Hindu parenting methods?”
Camper: “Parents should not get angry with their children.”
Dandapani: “Ok. If parents should not get angry with their children, do you have an alternate solution?”
Camper: “Thoughtful reasoning!”
Dandapani leading the group in chanting "Om" at the begining of our Hatha Yoga class.
Morning Hatha Yoga class
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Dandapani teaching the under 14 years old group
The topic of Hindu parenting sparked great participation from the youth
We covered many important topics such as how parents should speak to their children
Manasa (right) is one of the two head counselors of the camp. Rupa on the left was our photographer today and is responsible for taking all the beautiful photos of camp events featured on today's blog.
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Muni teaching one of the classes.
Jul 242011
Good evening from Morgantown, West Virginia where 55 Hindu youth have gathered with Dandapani and Muni Natarajan (and camp coordinators) for a week long camp. The focus is the study of Hinduism and to have a joyous time with fellow Hindu youth.
A typical day sees campers in an hour long hatha yoga and meditation class starting at 7am. Then it’s breakfast followed by classes from 9am to noon. Then lunch and an afternoon full of activities. After an early dinner, we get together for bhajans/kirtan (devotional singing) followed by half an hour of question and answers that usually takes place outdoors. Among the topics covered in class today were ‘Looking for a guru to guide your life?’, ‘Seeking to understand the mind?’ and ‘Don’t know what to do next in your life?’.
Dandapani is also discussing with the youth in each of the classes about ‘Hindu Parenting’. “What is your advice for being a good Hindu parent and why?” is the question that he has been posing to the campers. And we’ve already gotten some wonderful answers which we will share with you shortly.
The classes this year are based on lessons from the book “Gurudeva’s Toolbox for a Spiritual Life” by Satguru Sivaya Subramuniyaswami which is published by Kauai’s Hindu Monastery in Hawaii. The practical timeless wisdom contained within this book focuses on sharing practical insights and spiritual tools for challenges that most people face in daily life.
Question of the day from a young camper: “What is Michael Jackson’s karma like?”
Muni taught the girls hatha yoga and meditation in the morning while Dandapani taught the boys.
Muni teaching a class.
One of the afternoon activities today was to create tie dye t-shirts. The result some creatively colorful t-shirts and hands!
Bhajans in the evening.
Campers enjoying the evening bhajans.
Dandapani leads a question and answer session with the campers in the evening.
We are happy to announce our next spiritual adventure, this time to the beautiful state of Kerala in South India in April/May of 2011. Kerala is a mellow and gentle introduction to India for all first time visitors.
Bright, colorful and saturated in sounds and smells to tantalize your every sense, with exotic foods to take you on a culinary voyage all its own, friendly locals with warm smiles, Kerala will charm and mystify you in every way. It is no wonder the locals call their state God’s Own Country. Click here to learn more or to sign up for this spiritual adventure.
Update: The last few days we’ve spent traveling from Nepal to India and in Darjeeling in the Himalayan mountains. Internet connection has been poor and thus we have not updated our blog. But we will be doing so now so please check back to see the latest updates. This post (23rd Oct) is new!
23rd October: We leave the lake side town of Pokhara this morning and make the drive to Chitwan National Park on the southern part of Nepal. The drive took a little over 4 hours as we headed away from the mountains to the north and made our way to the sub-tropical plains. Our bus pulled off the highway about 7 kms away from our lodge. Almost all of the accommodations around this area are outside the park except for 3 or 4. We were able to secure ourselves accommodation within the park itself.
We transfered all our luggage and ourselves onto 2 jeeps then drove towards the jungle passing by acres of paddy fields that were being harvested. As small villages disappeared from sight our surroundings turned to forest then jungle. About 25 minutes later we arrived at a river where a few men and canoes were awaiting our arrival. We boarded the canoes in small groups and crossed the river with the help of the boatmen. The river was fast flowing and added to the adventure of crossing it. Then loaded our bags onto 2 other jeeps that whisked us away to our lodge.
We were now truly in the jungle. With no fences around the lodge we were exposed to all the animals that lived in this region, from tigers to sloth bears to rhinoceros and more. The lodge is eco friendly and a lovely place. The cabins have no electricity and kerosene lamps are handed out at night. One truly gets the feel of living in the wild. Our first activity after lunch was to go on an elephant safari. Our 2-hour ride took us through various landscapes from forest to fields to dense jungles, river crossings and more. It was certainly the highlight for today and most of us got to see animals!
Campers share some of what they learned at the SV Temple Hindu youth camp that took place in Slippery Rock, Pennsylvania.
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Campers and teachers gather for a group photo in front of the Sri Venkateswara temple in Pittsburgh.
Friends, friends, friends!
Raghava and his little sister, Nidhi
Farewells on the last day.
Question and answer session outdoors with the campers.
Classes every morning from 9am to noon. We covered the basic beliefs of Hinduism and looked at its practical applicability in every day life.
We love iPhones!
Having fun on camp fire evening.
