Morning Prayers Recited:
• Om Saha naavatu (My Prayers, page 6)
• Karagre Vaasate (My Prayers, page 43)
• Sarasvati Namastubhyam (My Prayers, page 44)
• Guru Brahma (My Prayers, page 9, third shloka)
Vedic Chanting:
• Praarthanaa (Chinmaya Book of Vedic Chants, page 3)
• Medha Sukhtam (Chinmaya Book of Vedic Chants, page 35)
• Gayatri Mantra (Chinmaya Book of Vedic Chants, page 5)
• Mantra Pushpam (Chinmaya Book of Vedic Chants, page 170)
Bhajans:
Storytime with Swamiji: We watched an episode of the Vishnu Puran -- where Narada curses Lord Vishnu for having turned him into a monkey, after he asked to be turned into a most handsome man so that he could win the marriage of Vishwamohini, the daughter of King Shilanidhi. This is the beginning of Lord Rama.
Art Projects: We started pasting our pooja thalis. If all dries well, we will begin our painting and decorating in two days.
Shaanti Circle Discussion: We tried really hard to accomplish 5 minutes of absolute stillness and an accurate pebble count this morning. But we were a little too restless -- perhaps because of the weather. Regardless, we didn't quite make it. We are going to go back to 4 minutes tomorrow and and if remain disciplined and focused then we will be able to tie with last week's 5 minutes! Wish us luck ...
We began a watching a really good documentary which was originally aired on the BBC. It is called "What the Ancients Did For us." This documentary is all about the fantastic inventions and discoveries that Ancient India is responsible for. In the first three segments, which we saw today, we learned about the very cool Water Clock, the very sophisticated sewage system that was created by the Harrapan people in Dholavira, and about the discovery and importance of the number "0." We will continue watching the next three segments either tomorrow or Friday. You may click below to view the segments:
Part 1/6 (click to view)
Part 2/6 (click to view)
Part 3/6 (click to view)
End of Class Prayers: Poornamadah, Chinmaya Pledge
Photo Gallery: July 29 (click here to view)
Comments: Today Nirmala Auntie taught us the next two paragraphs of the Mantra Pushpam. So, at this pace, we will learn the entire vedic chant by Friday! She is extremely thorough with us and is patiently working with our intonation and pronounciation. Thank you, Auntie.
We were happy to have Sheila Auntie back with us this afternoon. It's always a good feeling to see her get out of the car with her guitar in hand ... we are learning really fun and beautiful bhajans from her. (Some of the children have been heard singing these bhajans while they play during EDP time ... and they don't even realize they're singing -- and we're listening :-) We look forward to seeing Sheila Auntie again next Wednesday.
Most of the children have completed papier macheing their thalis. Now all we have to do is wait for everything to dry -- which may take a little extra time with such high humidity these past few days. If the thalis are still damp tomorrow, and the children complete all their morning disciplines with tremendous gusto and enthusiasm, we promised them an afternoon movie theatre showing of Wall-E. The Aunties will be popping lots of popcorn tonight in preparation for this treat ;-) For the children who would rather do their beadwork, reading, board games or spinning, we will have another space set up for them to work in -- complete with air-conditioning and snacks.
Rest well, kids. We've got lots of work ahead of us in the morning ...
