Ring in the new year with meditation at Barsana Dham, founded by Swami Prakashanand Saraswati
Ring in the new year with meditation at Barsana Dham, founded by Swami Prakashanand Saraswati
Retrieved from: www.Statesman.com/
(Pictures added by me)
Date: December 30, 2006
Want to decompress from the frazzle-dazzle holidays? Longing for a little peace this weekend? Barsana Dham, the stunning Hindu temple founded by Swami Prakashanand Saraswati, just off FM 1826, southwest of Austin, might have the cure for that post-holiday funk: a 24-hour New Year’s meditation focused on drawing closer to God.
The meditation, which is open to people of all faiths, begins at noon Sunday. For those who haven’t arranged to spend the night at the temple, the prayer hall will be open from noon to midnight and from 6 a.m. to noon on Monday.
I recently visited the temple and spent the afternoon with Prabhakari Devi, a monk and the vice president of Barsana Dham. Prabhakari Devi is a youthful woman (monks generally do not reveal their age) with sandy blond hair and a quiet demeanor. She began practicing Hinduism when she was 9 and studied Sanskrit in India as an adult. She dresses all in soft orange hues, the color worn by those in the monastic order. When she leaves the temple, she slips on a pair of Skechers running shoes.
I followed her around the temple grounds, a 250-acre spread populated by live oaks and peacocks and surrounded by rugged hills. Prabhakari Devi says the place bears a strong resemblance to its namesake, Barsana, a holy spot in northern India. And though the landscape is thoroughly Texas Hill Country, you can’t help but feel you’re in a faraway, almost paradisaical, land.
Devotees sitting with Swami Prakashanand Saraswati at Barsana Dham
This is something you can – and should – experience anytime. Barsana Dham invites visitors to explore the temple and grounds throughout the year during designated hours. It also hosts retreats, classes and family camps.
But this is the first year the temple has publicized its annual New Year’s meditation. And it could be a good chance to see the awe-inspiring structure and reap the benefits of meditation.
Bear in mind, this won’t be a beginner’s class. There’ll be no talking or instruction. But Prabhakari Devi says newcomers are welcome to join and should be able to follow along as people chant the three names of God: Hare, Ram and Krishna.
Not sure about chanting the three Sanskrit names of God? Worried that it’s inappropriate to participate if you’re not a Hindu? Prabhakari Devi offers this advice to folks considering the meditation: “They should come if they want to spend any part of the new year in a deep, personal connection with their God.”
Just hearing people singing God’s name over and over has an “enlivening effect,” Prabhakari Devi says.
The ethereal prayer hall features life-sized statues of Radha, a feminine representation of God, and inspiring Hindu scriptures about divine love. The light blue ceiling is painted with fluffy clouds.
I should disclose here that I’m not exactly a meditation master. I tried it once several years ago – in a yoga class at a YMCA in Cambridge, Mass. – and found it incredibly painful. The instructor, a severe, turban-topped woman, told us to sit on our knees, place our tongues on the roof of our mouths, raise our arms and direct our eyes to the bridge of our noses. I silently screamed for mercy until the class ended. And I have no idea what the purpose was.
Prabhakari Devi assured me that the New Year’s meditation requires only that people sit in a respectful position.
Shree Swamiji, founder of JKP Barsana Dham
In general, she says, people should be clear what they want to gain from meditation and then choose the appropriate meditation. This is not some feel-good exercise where you sit cross-legged in a cloud of incense and suddenly get all transcendental.
“There’s a science of the mind,” Prabhakari Devi says.
Even if you don’t understand the science part, this particular meditation may help you feel divine love – if that’s what you’re seeking. Prabhakari Devi says one of the basic tenets of Hinduism is the idea that “You can’t know God, but he can grace you.”
For more information, call 288-7180 or go to www.barsanadham.org.
