Every year, Dr. Mahadevan from the SRI SARADA Ayurveda Hospital in Derisanamcope, Nagercoil, Tamil Nadu, gifts clothes and other items for the daily use of the ashram children. Below are a few pictures of the distribution on the 5th of Jan 2021. 

Due to the Coronavirus period and its strict social restrictions, we cannot launch the 9-day-long festival at the Aum Pranava Ashram. We are trying our best to keep the Ramanama going by chanting in shifts from morning until the concluding evening pūja and encouraging the Rama-devotee-villagers to keep doing the same in their own villages. The initial chant is inspired by one of the recordings of Sri Ma Anandamayi's Ramanama singing. We wish you and your loved ones to remain healthy, calm and safe throughout this period! 

On the occasion of Tmt Jayalalitha, the late Chief Minister's Death Anniversary, the Children's Homes, Schools and other Educational Institutions in Tamil Nadu conducted awareness programs for the safety and education of girls in Tamil Nadu. We took an oath to protect girls and women from harm and harassment, from child labor and exploitation, and drugs and prostitution. We pledged to give them access to education and to foster their value in society as the future mothers of Tamil Nadu, India, and the whole world. The oath was taken solemnly in this short awareness program. 

Every year, we conduct Varushabhishekam for the Ganesha Temples. While poojas will be performed for Ganesha in the two Ganesha temples daily, this elaborate ritual takes place once in a year to renew the spiritual energy of the temples. 

We are blessed to be able to make this trip with all the children annually for the last 17 years. The bus journey started after the Christmas Celebrations on the Eve of the 24th of December. It ended on the night of the next day when we arrived safely in Prashanthi Nilayam. We had a wonderful time in the ashram, and the children felt homely and happy throughout our stay at the Prashanthi Nilayam Ashram in Puttaparthi. On the evening of the 30th of December, we left Puttaparthi. We arrived back safely at home on the 31st of December late at night. This journey with the children is like a spiritual renewal for us. We are deeply grateful for being able to undertake this journey and thank the sponsors for this blessed gift!

Accompaniment

On Mridangam: Sriram

Vocals: Shreya and Shobika

The Aum Pranava Ashram is surrounded by paddy fields and situated at the feet of the breathtakingly beautiful Western Ghats (Podhigai Hills). The area where we live is called Courtallam which boosts itself with a number of scenic waterfalls. Our ashram is located at the edge of a village called Ilanji, which lies in between Tenkasi and Sengottai in the Tirunelveli District of Tamil Nadu. 

The Gopuram (Entrance Tower) of the Śiva Temple in Tenkasi (Vishwanath Kovil)