Nav Din Parayan and Sri Rama Navami celebrations

Sri Rama Navami is a Hindu festival that celebrates the birth of Lord Rama, the seventh avatar of Vishnu, on the ninth day of Chaitra Navratri. Chaitra Navratri is a festival of nine days dedicated to nine forms of Goddess Shakti. The festival has a special significance at Chinmaya Rameshwaram since Lord Rama is a presiding deity in the temple. 

During the nine days leading up to the Rama Navami day (from March 17 to March 25), Swami Ishwarananda led devotees in the chanting of the Tulasidas Ramayan, from 9:30 am to 12:30 pm every day. The brisk, precise and melodious chanting of this extensive text was well attended even on weekdays. Before the chanting started each day, a student or alumni of Bala Vihar presented an offering of bhajans for 15 minutes. Each session ended with distribution of prasad, all contributed by attendees.

Rama Navami day itself was celebrated on March 26. The celebrations begain at 6:30 pm with a detailed Rama puja, performed by a ritvik from the CMLA puja group, at the feet of the beautifully decorated statues of Rama parivar. The puja culminated with the chanting of Vishnu Sahasranama (1000 Names of Lord Vishnu) by CMLA members. Swami Ishwarananda then thanked the volunteers who organized the Parayan over the past 9 days, and encouraged even more participation from the attendees in the future.

Next, a cultural program was presented - a Carnatic music concert, performed by current Bala Vihar students and alumni. On this occasion, a student of Smt. Padma Kutty, a renowned local music teacher, presented a one hour concert. The soulful rendering of Rama-themed classical songs, with violin and mridangam accompaniment, captivated the audience. At the end of the performance, Swami Ishwarananda thanked Smt. Padma Kutty for her long service to the local community. He recalled that Pujya Gurudev Swami Chinmayananda had once said, in reply to a question about his legacy as a Vedanta Master, that he would leave several master-pieces behind. In the same way, Padma Kutty was training master-pieces every year!

The ceremonies concluded with boxed prasad served at the dining hall.