Eager Students Start a New School Year

The 2026-2027 school year of of Bala Vihar kicked off with an Opening Day ceremony on August 23 at Rameshwaram. Returning students who came in early could be seen exploring the familiar halls and corridors, examining new photographs, statues and plaques put up during the summer break, greeting their friends and catching up on news. New students, with a mixture of anticipation and trepidation, accompanied by their parents, were taken on tours of the facility by knowledgeable volunteers. Parents and students then assembled in the main hall for the starting ceremony.

The proceedings began traditionally. A 16-step Ganesh puja was performed at the beautifully decorated Ganesha idol set up on stage. The puja was a prayer to Lord Ganesha to remove obstacles and give wisdom to the attendees to face the coming year. Then the entire congregation chanted 10 names of Ganesha, followed by a recitation of Ganesha stotram. Next, the congregation recited the Chinmaya Pledge. Students from the shruti group then led everyone in singing a beloved and popular Ganesha Aarti. Finally, teachers performed Chinmaya Aarti and then escorted the students to their classrooms.

Swami Ishwarananda then addressed the parents, welcoming them to the new Bala Vihar year. He revealed that for his regular Bala Vihar lectures, he would cover Tulsidas Ramayan during Session 1 and excerpts from the Bhagavad Gita during Session 2. Mahadevanji would conduct a series of lectures on the basics of Vedanta for new parents. He encouraged all parents to attend the lectures, to set an example to the students and for the entire family to grow in spiritual knowledge.

Mahadevanji then welcomed the parents. He explained that he would be expounding on the beautiful text, Sadhana Panchakam by Adi Shankaracharya, for the new parents. He gave some examples of simple stories used to introduce Vedantic concepts as a teaser.

The event concluded with prasad distribution in the dining hall.