Visiting Swami Speaks At Global Mall
Swami Dayananda founder of Arsha Vidya Gurukulam addressed a well-attended gathering at the Impact conference center of Global Mall on March 30th. The event, organized by the Atlanta chapter of Viswa Hindu Parishad (VHP), was attended by local Indians, mainstream Americans and people from neighboring states. Ms.Sneha Mehta, President of VHP-Atlanta, welcomed the gathering and introduced Swami Dayananda. Dr. P.V. Rao, a professor at Emory University and an active educator in the subjects of Hindu art, philosophy and religion, explained the salient features of Swamiji's teachings.
Swami Dayananda addressed the eager audience on the meaning of Dharma. He presented the subject matter of Dharma in simple and clear terms while quoting Sanskrit shlokas and related them to day to day life. His wit and tidbits had the audience burst into frequent bouts of laughter. In his address, he said the word dharma meant that which holds everything together.
Swamiji advised the audience to get away from desires, and pressure by invoking the Lord to give us strength so that we can conform to Iswara (God) who is manifested in the form of dharma. "You are not obliging God", he said. "Please understand you are obliging your self. Your growth lies only in your capacity to conform to dharma. You become a complete person only by conforming to dharma and not by wearing a Raymond suit", he continued. In this context Swamiji drew the attention of the audience to a commercial in India and the hall burst into laughter.
Swami Dayananda also interacted with Hindu community activists besides meeting a cross section of the society. He visited the Hindu temple at Riverdale, and opened the SEVYA store in Decatur as part of his two day tour of Atlanta. He started the All India Movement (AIM), with the purpose of uniting the Indian society. Indians caring for fellow Indians, is the mission of the movement. In 2005 Swamiji convened a conference of all Hindu spiritual and religious institutions in North America to develop a plan of action to nourish Hindu Dharma and to address issues that required collective commitment. Swamiji was also a keynote speaker at the World Youth Conference that was held in Nairobi.
Swami Dayanandaji's visit to Atlanta coincided with the dawn of Ugadi on the 30th, which is the New Year for Telugus, Maharastrians, Canadians and Parsees. Swamiji released a commemorative volume, Hindu almanac of 2006-2007 based on Atlanta timings published on the occasion of his visit.
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