Today at Kauai Aadheenam

Interfaith Harmony

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  • The Sri Lankan monks enter our meditation temple
  • A happy exchange between Hindus and the majority Buddhists of the country.
  • All sit for a quiet inner moment.
  • Earlier they visited Yogaswami’s hut
  • The monks’ colors, saffron and burgundy, denote their different sects.

    • We have been sharing Saint Tayumanavar’s wonderful teaching of samarasam—the unitive amity between religions. The idea of such shared respect is no less relevant to our 21st century experience than to his time, some 300 years ago.

    A real-life example took place a few days back at the Sri Subramuniya Temple in Sri Lanka. Here is the report from Rishi Thondunathan (who this morning is hunkered down in Colombo due to a massive cyclone passing over the island).

    “Greetings! On Friday, a group of 120 Buddhist monks and devotees from Kandy visited the Yogaswami Samadhi Temple and our Sri Subramuniya Temple in Alaveddy. They shared that they had read about Yogaswami’s life and teachings in various books, and were deeply moved by his simplicity and the profound wisdom reflected in his words and way of life. This inspiration led them to visit the sacred places where the sage lived. They had already downloaded the English Natchintanai from the Himalayan Academy publication website, and they have translated the song “Engal Gurunathan” into Sinhala. They attended the pūja and then eagerly listened to the story of Yogaswami’s life.”

    In Peace,

    Rishi Thondunathan 

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    Kadavul Guestbook, and Sadhu Paksha begins

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    Morning sunrise at Shanmuga Banyan

    The first two weeks of April, August and December are called Sadhu Paksha here in the Aadheenam, during which the monks have a individualized early morning routine. We can do personal sadhanas on various parts of the grounds, and catch up on extra rest if needed.

    For many years we had a handwritten guestbook in Kadavul Temple for visitors to leave their contact information if they wished. We consider the email address as the most useful information, as we can conveniently send a followup note sharing our services some time after they visit. While handwriting is consider quaint these days, we often find the letters written to be questionable at best, and illegible at worst. Too much time was spent trying to decipher email addresses, not to mention typing them into a computer list in the first place. Also, many people did not leave a email address at all. We finally decided to switch to a digital guestbook, which not only encourages correct spelling and is fully legible, but allows us to simply copy all the email addresses for a given period and paste into a followup note.

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    New Mower For Himalayan Acres

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    • The primary task across the river on our Himalayan Acres agricultural land is to keep the vigorous guinea and elephant grasses mowed down next to and between the rows of noni and hardwood trees. However, the tractor must stay a distance from the tree to avoid bumping and breaking its lateral branches. To accomplish this and still mow grass right next to the trunk, we mount mowers that stick several feet out to the right side, beyond the tires. Our old Ford tractor has just been fitted with a new rotary mower on the back which is stronger than the previous mower. It needs to be strong enough for when the grass sometimes gets extra tall and thick. Some extra reinforcement was added to handle the weight of the mower.

    At the front of the tractor is mounted a small rotary mower that sticks out even further. It is able to safely cut right next to the trunk because the blade is underneath a slightly wider circular disk which turns freely and can roll against the trunk.

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    Light and Leaves in the Monastery Gardens

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  • Our morning light never ceases to be stunning
  • Iraivan glistens through the brush
  • Lord Muruga shines in His own way
  • One of the many scenes found in our Chola Gardens
  • A place not oft seen. Winding stream waters make their way below papayas, bananas and breadfruit trees
  • Palms as far as the eye can see
  • Look close and you might find interesting things. This is an egg-casing from a praying mantis.
  • Happy Kavi cat, reminds us to keep it simple
  • At night we roll past our galactic center
  • A baby bullfrog floats on his raft
  • “That is the goal of life, to know Siva, to love Siva and to find union in Him, to dance with Siva, live with Siva and merge with Siva.” – Gurudeva

    • Aum Namah Sivaya


    This week brought a few quiet moments to step outside and enjoy the land. The gardens and surrounding jungles offered small scenes of beauty. Soft light on new leaves, the play of shadows along the paths, and the stillness that gathers between passing showers. We captured a handful of simple photos to share, reflections of the peaceful rhythm that moves through the Aadheenam each day.

    “This inner light is so beautiful. All day long my head has been filled with light. It feels that if I were to reach up and put both hands around the top of my head, there wouldn’t be a head there.” – Sivaya Subramuniyaswami

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    Sivacharyar at Kauai’s Hindu Monastery

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  • Swaminatha Sivacharyar (second from left) and Viswanatha Sivacharyar (third from left)

    • Jai Ganesha!

    Few days ago, Viswanatha Sivacharyar and Swaminatha Sivacharyar visited our monastery. Swaminatha Sivacharyar is the founder of Sivapuram Patasala in Mayiladuthurai, Tamil Nadu. Meanwhile, Viswanatha Sivacharyar recently had kumbhabhishekam for his new Ganesha Temple at San Ramon, California. And Satguru and Yoginathaswami went for the kumbhabhishekam. They had a wonderful time visiting the monastery and had meetings with Satguru and monks.

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    Fire Mountain, Rain Mountain: Waialeale

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    Mount Waialeale is one of Kauai’s greatest natural marvels, rising from the island’s emerald heart (more technically the island rises from its heart) and cloaked in near-constant mist. Its name means “rippling waters” or “overflowing water,” a reference to the countless waterfalls and ancient bogs that spill from its summit. Known as one of the wettest spots on Earth, Waialeale is revered in Hawaiian culture as a sacred wao akua, a realm of the gods, where clouds gather, nourish the land, and sustain life downstream. Its blue-green cliffs and perpetual rain have long inspired respect, marking the mountain as a living temple of water, fertility and spiritual presence at the center of the island.

    • We live with it daily and watch it change from hour to hour as the clouds come and go, as the setting sun sets it on fire. Gurudeva envisioned a futuristic coffee table book which would show all of its moods, and we share a few of those in today’s TAKA, taken by various monks over the years.

    In December of 1968 Gurudeva brought 32 Innersearchers to Kauai and on the second day we hired Larry rivera, the island’s legendary singer/composer, to regale us all with his song about Waialeale. Larry warned us, as we gathered around what is now the temple pool, that the song makes it rain more often than not. We nodded politely, and asked him to continue. It rained before he ended!

    Want to hear him sing it right now? Go here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0voBezB05cw

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