Hindu Temples of New York
The Vishwa Dharma Mandalam Hindu Temples in New YorkFounder Acharya H.H Avadhuta Sri Ramakrishnananda Babaji Maharaja
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Shankara Jayanti
Posted on April 23rd, 2012Adi Shankara Jayanti is the celebration of the Appearance
On this day we celebrate the great sage Adi Sankaracarya who lived about 2,500 years ago. Shankara is best known for consolidating the Vedantic system of thought known as Advaita Vedanta, or non-duality, which sees all beings as manifestations of the same one, non-dual reality of which God and the self are no different. Shankaras many writings were based on ideas found in the sacred Upanishads.
Shankara was born to Shivaguru and Aryamba, a previously childless couple that was very pious and prayed to Lord Shiva in a 48-day ceremony, requesting a son. Pleased with their devotion, Lord Shiva appeared to them and gave the option of having either many dull sons or only one who will be highly intelligent but live for just a short time. The couple said the decision was His, and pleased with this reply, Lord Shiva was then born to them by the name of Shankara. He learned to read and write by the age of three and by the time he was five years old, was initiated into brahmachari. Shankara was a remarkable scholar who mastered the Vedas by the time he was a mere eight years old.
While still young, he persuaded his mother to allow him to take sannyas, to live a life of renunciation. With her permission, he left his home in Kerala and traveled towards northern India where he met his guru Govindapada, a disciple of Guadapada. Following the instruction of his guru, Shankara, who attracted many with his intelligence and kindness, traveled with his own disciples and propagated the Advaita philosophy. Shankara supported this philosophy in many significant commentaries on sacred texts including the Brahma Sutra, Principal Upanishads and the Bhagavad Gita. Before leaving his body at the young age of 32, he attained moksha.
You are cordially invited to join us in celebrating the auspicious day of Adi Shankara Jayanti
In our program:
- Puja for Lord Shiva
- Kirtan (devotional chanting)
Sponsor Lord Shiva Puja
We have many opportunities for you to become part of our Vedic celebrations. Join us by helping to sponsor this holiday at the cost that is most fitting for you:
- Sponsor – $108 Entire puja offered in your name
- Supporter – $51 Ashtotram offered in your name
- Participation – $11
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Maha Shivaratri 2012
Posted on January 29th, 2012oṁ trayaṁbakaṁ yajamahe sugandhiṁ pusṭi-vardhanam
urvarukamiva bandhanan mrtyor muksīya ma mrtat
Oṁ. I worship the three-eyed-one (Lord Shiva) who is fragrant and who perfectly nourishes all beings; may He liberate me from death so that I may know immortality, even as a cucumber is released from its bondage (to the creeper).
Join us for a night of chanting, meditation, and worship as we celebrate the Maha Shivaratri Festival, also known as the “The Great Night of Lord Shiva.” Shiva is the God of yoga and meditation, the deity of dance, the destroyer and transformer, and one of the Divine beings in the Hindu Trinity.
Our program includes:
● Shiva Puja, abhishekam: Worship ceremony and bathing of the Shiva Lingam deity
● Shiva katha- A talk about the life and qualities of Lord Shiva
● Pranayama and guided meditation
● Instruction of Japa practice (A mantra meditation with prayer beads)
● Rudraksha Alankar – Offering of Rudraksha malas (Prayer beads) to Lord Shiva
● All night devotional chanting and kirtan, along with Japa practice of the “Om Namah Shivaya” mantra, one round every hour
View the Event Page in our Astoria Hindu Temple
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Diwali 2011 – Celebrate in the new Astoria temple – Queens New York
Posted on September 28th, 2011
Diwali, the festival of lights, perhaps the most known and celebrated of all Hindu Holidays.
Like every year, we celebrate Diwali with a festive puja followed by offering of Ghee lamps. Join us on this auspicious day.
For more information, visit the Ramakrishnananda Yoga Vedanta Center in Astoria – home to the new temple.
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Celebrating Ganesh Chaturti in a New Temple!
Posted on September 1st, 2011We are happy to announce the opening of our new branch in Queens, New York. The new branch is now the new home for Sri Sri Radha Krishna!
We will have evening Arati every evening, and special pujas and holidays. Ganesh Chaturti will be the first auspicious event happening at our new center.
You are welcomed to visit this new temple at:
Ramakrishnananda Yoga Vedanta Center – Queens:
20-29 38th street
Queens, Astoria NY 11105Toll Free: 1-888-474-1218
Email: info@ramakrishnananda.com
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The Hindu temple is relocating
Posted on August 4th, 2011To our friends, devotees and visitors, the Hindu temple founded by swami ramakrishnananda is moving to a new location. The temple at 96 avenue B is already closed, and we are currently finalizing on a new location.
Please bare with us as we search, and check our websites regularly for updates.
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Happy Guru Purnima
Posted on July 14th, 2011The full moon day in the Hindu month of Ashad (July-August) is observed as Guru Purnima, an auspicious day to celebrate the guru.
We celebrate guru Purnima in honor of our Guru – Swami Ramakrishnananda.
Sri Vyasa
Guru Purnima is a day sacred to the memory of the great sage Vyasa, the guru of gurus and ‘father of our scriptures’. All Hindus are indebted to this ancient saint who edited the four Vedas, wrote the 18 Puranas, the Mahabharata and the Srimad Bhagavata.
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New Music Videos on Ramakrishnananda.com
Posted on May 14th, 2011
Kirtan Videos given at celebrations for Gurudev’s Avadhuta Babaji initiation at March 27
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Adi Shankara Jayanti
Posted on May 1st, 2011
Adi Shankara Jayanti is the celebration of the Appearance Day of the Hindu philosopher and great sage Adi Sankaracarya who lived about 2,500 years ago. Shankara is best known for consolidating the Vedantic system of thought known as Advaita Vedanta, or non-duality, which sees all beings as manifestations of the same one, non dual reality of which God and the self are no different . Shankara’s many writings were based on ideas found in the sacred Upanishads.Shankara was born to Kerala and Aryambal, a previously childless couple that was very pious and prayed to Lord Shiva in a 48-day ceremony, requesting a son. Pleased with their devotion, Lord Shiva appeared to them and gave the option of having either many dull sons or only one who will be highly intelligent but live for just a short time. The couple said the decision was His, and pleased with this reply, Lord Shiva was then born to them by the name of Shankara.
He learned to read and write by the age of three and by the time he was five year old, was initiated into brahmachari,. Shankara was a remarkable scholar, who mastered the Vedas by the time he was a mere eight years old.
While still young, he persuaded his mother to allow him to take sannyas, to live a life of renunciation. With her permission, he left his home in Kerala and traveled towards northern India where he met his guru Govinda Bhagavatpada, a disciple of Guadapada. Following the instruction of his guru, Shankara, who attracted many with his intelligence and kindness, traveled with his own disciples and propagated the Advaita philosophy.
Shankara supported the Advaita philosophy in the many significant commentaries that he wrote on sacred Vedic texts, including the Brahma Sutra, Principal Upanishads and the Bhagavad Gita. Before leaving his body at the young age of 32, he attained moksha.
For event details, visit the adi Shankara Jayanti page
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New Lecture website about Hinduism and Yoga
Posted on March 20th, 2011New lectures are now available in the Ramakrishnananda Institute for Vedic StudiesVedic Deity Worship SeminarPart 1 – Introduction to Hindu Deity Worship First part of the Vedic Worship at Home Workshop, covering the essentials of Deity Worship.
Part 2 – How to build an Altar and Perform a Puja Second part of the Vedic Worship at Home Workshop, explaining how to build a simple altar and make the puja offering.
Raja Yoga CourseLecture 1 – Introduction to the Vedic Scriptures A brief outline of the Raja Yoga course. Introduction to the Scriptures of the Vedic Religion. The 4 Vedas – Rig, Yajur, Sama, Atharva. These are considered Shruti – “the heard” section of the scriptures. Then the explanation of the Smriti scriptures is described, the Dharma Shastras, the Itihasas, the Agamas or Tantras, the Puranas, and eventually the Darshanas. The overview helps to understand that position of the Darshana Yoga within the entire Vedic scriptures world.
Lecture 2 – Introduction – What is Raja Yoga? What is Raja Yoga? Beginning with the definition of Yoga according to the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali – Yoga is a cessation of the mind activity. Then an explanation of the meaning of the word “raja” and “yoga”, followed by a detailed comparison between Raja Yoga and western Psychology. Following the explanations of Swami Ramakrishnananda about the topic, the lectures concentrates on understanding what is the mind, its function to externalize reality, and the ego – the element of fragmentation in all the spheres of existence.
Lecture 3 – Sankhya Philosophy – The Division Between Purusha and Prakriti Explaining the basic ideas of Sankhya Philosophy, an important Darshana that is intricately related to Yoga. Here the important subject of Purusha – Pure Consciousness, and Prakriti – Material nature are explained according to the Vedic Scriptures, and then the emanations of the different elements – Buddhi, Ahankara, Manas, and then the senses and the tanmatras – subtle elements.
Lecture 4 – The Five Types of Vrittis Starting with the first sutras of the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali, the lecture goes into the various types of Vrittis – or modifications of the mind. The Vrittis can be painful or not-painful (Klishta or aklishta). The five types are: correct knowledge (Pramana), wrong interpretation (Viparyaya), Verbal Illusion (Vikalpa), Sleep (Nidra), Memory (Smriti). The topic of Yogic Epistemology – the means of knowledge is also covered.
Lecture 5 – Samskaras – The Patterns That Controls Our Behavior Samskaras, one of the most basic and important principles of Raja Yoga. Samskaras are the patterns we create in our mind by repeating a vritti over and over again. These become imprinted in our mind, and transform into habits and behavioral patterns. The Samskaras are what become our personality, habits, talents and traits.
Lecture 6 – From Animal To The Divine Concentrating on Swami Ramakrishnananda’s writings, we go into the topic of what a human being is. The idea that a human being is a process, a path from the animal to the Divine. Explaining the three levels of the mind in Raja Yoga – the instinctive, intellectual and intuitive, and exploring how these are expressed in Gurudev’s writings.
Lecture 7 – Karma Karma is a very basic idea in the Vedic Religion. Karma has three types, Sanchita, Prarabdha, and Kriyamana Karma. Having a clear understanding of the Law of Karma, and how the different types of Karma are created and take affect, is essential to understand any kind of Yoga.
Lecture 8 – The Cause of Suffering – Avidya The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali takes a fascinating take on the issue of Suffering. What kind of suffering can be avoided? Why suffering appears? What is the way to eradicate suffering? In Raja Yoga, suffering can be avoided by the development of Viveka – discrimination, which will eliminate Avidya – ignorance, that is the root cause of all suffering.
Lecture 9 – Kleshas or Afflictions – avidya, asmita, raga, dvesha, and abhinivesha This lectures concentrates of the subject of Kleshas, the roots of human suffering. There are five types of Kelshas, which are: ignorance (avidyā), egoism (asmitā), attraction (rāga), aversion (dveṣa) and fear of death (abhiniveśāḥ). Reading from the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali, sadhana pada, sutras 2.3 – 2.9. As all kelshas are based on avidya, ignorance, the connection between kleshas as the root of karma, and therefore suffering, is explained.
Lecture 10 – Practice and Non-Attachment – Abhyasa and Vairagya This lectures focuses on the subject of spiritual practice (sadhana) as it is explained in the Yoga Sutras, Samadhi Pada, Sutra 1.12. Here Patanjali Maharishi writes that cessation of the mental activity comes by practice (abhyasa) and non-attachment (vairagya).
Reading from Gurudev writings about spiritual practice, it is understood that practice does not bring enlightenment as a result, as that will mean that the practice is more powerful than the Divine. -
Holi Celebration 2011
Posted on March 14th, 2011The festival of “Holi” marks the beginning of spring. It was originally known as “Holika” as it commemorates the victory of Lord Vishnu over the demon King Hiranyakashipu and his sister Holika. Hiranyakashipu’s own son Prahlada was a great devotee of Lord Vishnu. Prahlada’s demon father attempted to burn Prahlada to death on a pyre by ordering him to sit in the fire on the lap of his aunt, Holika, who was to be protected by a magic shawl. Praying to Lord Vishnu, Prahlada was unharmed in the fire but his aunt perished. The destruction of Holika by the Lord is symbolized on Holi with the burning of the demoness in huge bonfires. Holi is also called the Festival of Colors and people celebrate this spring festival with folk songs, dancing and lighthearted pranks.Holi has a special significance for devotees of Lord Krishna, who celebrate the divine love of Radha for Krishna in joyful festivities that last for several weeks in Vrindavan and Mathura, the towns where Lord Krishna grew up, and where He first celebrated the festival by playing pranks on the gopis.There are many stories associated with the holiday. Holi is also the celebration of the death of the ogress Pootana, who tried to kill Krishna when He was an infant by feeding Him poisonous milk. In southern India, one popular story associated with Holi is about Lord Shiva and Kaamadeva. People there celebrate the sacrifice of the Lord of Passion, Kaamadeva, who risked his life to revoke Lord Shiva from meditation and save the world. Another popular story revolves around the ogress Dhundhi, who used to disturb children in the Raghu kingdom. The children played pranks on her on Holi and chased her away.In honor of this, you are most welcome to celebrate this auspicious day with us.In the program:
- Sri Radha Krishna Puja Abhishekam (bathing ceremony) - abhishekam is Sanksrit for ‘sprinkling’ or ‘wetting around’, and is used to indicate a bathing ceremony with sacred water, such as the one we will do in our Sri Radha Krishna puja. This will be one part of the puja, a service of worship, during which deities are also called, seated, greeted, dressed, fed and praised.
- Bharatanatyam performance – a Vedic dance of devotion. On this evening, the specific dance will be the ‘Krishna Tilana’.
- Lecture about Holi Festival
- Vedic music performance – Sitar
- Serving of Prasadam (blessed food)
Sponsor Holi:We have many opportunities for you to become part of our Vedic celebrations.
Join us by helping to sponsor this holiday at the cost that is most fitting for you:
Supporter-$108 (Ashtotram offered in your name)
Benefactor-$251 (Nevidyam offered in your name)
Sponsor-$501 (Mantra Pushpam offered in your name)
Patron-$1,108 (Entire puja offered in your name)Live Streaming of the EventFor all our friends around the world – we are glad to announce a new service that will allow you to participate in events that take place in our New York temple. On special events and occasions, we will be streaming a live video feed of the event. These streams will be only available in real-time, as we are not saving the stream for later viewing.
Q: How does it work?
Very simple… whenever there is a live event that is streamed, just open the home page of ramakrishnananda.com, and you will notice a clear box with the link to this page: the live streaming page. Just click on the link and you will be taken to the live stream page. If this is your first time you will be asked to register in order to be able to view it.Viewing is free of charge at the present, but you have to register in order to access the live stream.