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A long journey towards divinity
Time for meditation
SEPTEMBER THIS year was a memorable one for volunteers of the Shivanjali Trust, who celebrated the birthday of Swami Shivananda, by staging a seven-act play with children playing the key roles.
At first, it was something of a challenge to think of a fitting enough tribute to the seer, who had taught people that time spent willingly serving the needy, was time spent offering worship to the Divine Being. One idea was to get a few children to recite Swami Shivananda's English poems, but the theme began to expand itself until the organizers put together a seven-act play about the life of the guru, with the poems incorporated into it at appropriate points during the narration.
Volunteers of all ages got busy after drawing up the plans, and to their great surprise, it turned out to be a very enjoyable experience. In fact, everyone was now eagerly waiting to get involved in a similar production, to mark special occasions.
Perhaps, the novelty of the play lay in the fact that although it was all about the life of Swami Shivananda, the great guru did not appear in any one of the many scenes!
His life was narrated as experienced by others, and by the way in which his teaching continued to have relevance, despite the passage of time, even in cultures other than the one in which he lived. It was a simple enough storyline.
An enthusiastic cast of young actors
A group of children in Shivanjali Nagar were happy that the summer holidays would give them a welcome break from uniforms, lessons, classrooms and examinations.
After a few days of relaxation and games, ennui began to creep upon them, and they started wondering what to do to keep their selves occupied during the coming weeks. They learnt with some surprise that one of their neighbours, Rajam Patti, had known Swami Shivananda during her childhood days in Malaysia.
She told them about him, and about how she met him again at Rishikesh, several years later. Rajam recited a poem illustrating the beauty of the Ganges and the serenity prevailing at Ananda Kutir, Shivananda's abode of bliss. Fascinated, the children could not contain their excitement, and persuaded Rajam Patti to take them on a trip to Rishikesh and re-enact the journey.
During their travel by train to the Ganges, to Ananda Kutir and the Ashram, they learnt and experienced much from the life of the guru. There were sublime moments that touched the heart, as the children recited poems written by the Swamiji. In course of time, the children realized that many of the ideals and teachings of Swami Shantanand Saraswathi, the founder of the Shivanjali Trust, were derived from the truths he had learnt from Swami Shivananda, who had been his guru for many long years.
Having experienced the sublime spirit, the children were filled with the realization that it was for them to make the world a better place by showing love and understanding towards others. They rededicated themselves to becoming better people by "loving more, giving more, and serving more". In the final act of the play, the entire cast performed the `Aarathi' to `Deva Deva Shivananda'.
Narration and dialogues were recorded, and the background music, colourful backdrops, and multi-coloured light effects, enhanced the impact of the drama. Swami Shantanand was there too, to witness the play.
By Michael Raj A. A.
in Coimbatore
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Life
Bangalore
Chennai
Coimbatore
Delhi
Hyderabad
Kochi
Madurai
Thiruvananthapuram
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