Om Namo Bhagavade Sivanandaya
Sivananda DLS
Divine Life Society of South Africa
Established in 1949 by Sri Swami Sivananda
Divine Life Society of South Africa observed the auspicious Varalakshmi Vratam on Friday, 16 August 2024 at Sivanandashram, Reservoir Hills. Ganga Arati commenced at 5.30pm, followed by Satsang. The programme comprised Kirtans and Bhajans, an audio recording of the Lakshmi Arati and a reading from Hindu Fasts and Festivals by Sri Swami Sivananda.
The Divine Master, Sri Swami Sivananda says that the Vedas describe Mother Lakshmi as the Goddess of riches, and that God now manifests in the form of wealth. Mother Lakshmi provides us with both material and spiritual wealth. On the spiritual path, we pray to Mother Lakshmi for the divine spiritual wealth of God. The Master adds that Mother Lakshmi also gives joy, makes life on earth bearable, and that without Her, life on earth would be a journey of pain and suffering. This is evident in the reading from Hindu Fasts and Festivals, when the Master says, “Mother Lakshmi not only bestows wealth and all sorts of material prosperity, but also imparts divine wisdom to all Her devotees. She is Vidya Shakti. She introduces Her devotees to Her Lord. She recommends them to Her Lord for their salvation.
“She is the power of Lord Narayana, who is also known as Lord Vishnu or Lord Hari. Narayana is the Lord’s aspect of preservation. He is the embodiment of Shuddha Sattwa. Lakshmi is His causal body. She is Maya, the illusory power of Nature. She protects the whole world with Her protecting power, and deludes everyone with Her veiling power. She Herself as Vidya Lakshmi enlightens the spiritual aspirant. Beauty, Grace, a picturesque scenery or a charming landscape, modesty, love, prosperity, music, the five elements and their combinations, the internal organs, mind, Prana, intellect – all these are Her manifestations.
“Without the Grace and blessings of Lakshmi even Sannyasins cannot engage in the work of propaganda or preaching or run their institutions. They are in fact more in need of Her Grace than the householders, because they have to do intense, dynamic work for the humanweal. Sri Shankara worshipped Devi, Lakshmi and Saraswati for the attainment of success in his work. All the great prophets and divine messengers who have done great spiritual work in the past, were devotees of Mother Lakshmi, Devi and Saraswati”.
Both our Divine Master, Sri Swami Sivananda and Pujya Swami Sahajananda impressed upon devotees to aspire for higher qualities, beyond material pursuits. The Master has given us relevant instructions through his cardinal teachings of “Serve, love, give, purify, meditate and realise”. Sri Swami Sivananda explains that the higher nature of the Mother is really spiritual wealth – a pure heart, sweetness of manners, behaviour, speech and service to the Guru. We should therefore pray to Mother Lakshmi to grant us all divine spiritual wealth instead of material gifts and wealth.
In the article, “Worship of the Divine Mother”, Sri Swami Sivananda says, “Lakshmi does not mean more material wealth like gold, cattle, etc. All kinds of prosperity, glory, magnificence, joy, exaltation, greatness, come under the Grace of Goddess Lakshmi. Sri Appayya Dikshitar calls even final liberation as ‘Moksha-Samrajya Lakshmi’. Hence worship of Lakshmi means the worship of Divinity, the power that dissolves multiplicity in unity. The worship of Devi is therefore the explanation of the entire process of spiritual Sadhana in all its aspects”.
May Mother Lakshmii bless us all with spiritual illumination, material and spiritual wealth.
Divine Life Society of South Africa celebrated Sri Swami Sivananda’s 137th Birth Anniversary, together with the culmination of the 41-Day recital of the Sri Hanuman Chalisa, at Sivananda International Cultural Centre (SICC), La Mercy, on Sunday, 8 September 2024.
The Society launched the 41-Day recital of the Sri Hanuman Chalisa, 11 times daily, on Tuesday, 30 July 2024. The final recital was at 6am on 8 September 2024, followed by a Havan. Approximately 750 devotees, well-wishers, donors and members of the public attended the final recital. 3 Busloads of devotees and visitors from Stanger and Pietermaritzburg also attended this session. The soulful recital was followed by Havan. The reverberant, vibrant chanting of Mantras, filled the prayer hall and the entire SICC precincts with peace, calmness and divinity, setting the scene for a spiritual day ahead.
Ganga Arati commenced at 8am in Bhagirathi. The cascading water feature, with the mellifluous sound of Mother Ganga gurgling happily down Bhagirathi, was indeed a unique sight, as hundreds took Darshan of Mother Ganga. Notably, this was the first exposure to Ganga Arati for many who visited the Ashram for the first time.
By 9am, further busloads of devotees and visitors arrived from Howick and Tongaat. There were scores of mini-buses, more than 1 200 cars, and over 2 000 persons in attendance on this day. The ambience and scene on the stadium were glorious sights to experience and behold. The march-past, a lap-of-honour for Sri Swami Sivananda and Pujya Swami Sahajananda, for their bountiful spiritual, ethical, moral and material gifts to us all, was resplendent with joy, beauty and spiritual splendour. Leading the march, in a beautiful float, were about 40 Spiritual Darlings (children) dressed as Deities. The march of the faithful is a testament to spiritual renewal, and to the power of Guru Bhakti, faith and devotion. When the crowd, comprising branches and sister organisations marched onto the stadium in the name of Sri Swami Sivananda and Pujya Swami Sahajananda, to the singing of our Marching Kirtans, the divine ambience was literally electrifying. It was evident that the devotees’ footsteps were the heart beats of the faithful, marching together in common purpose, finding strength in numbers and solace in the embrace of our Divine Master and Pujya Swamiji. The march of children, elderly, mothers with babies, senior citizens, religious and faithful, was a journey of each soul. When faithful and pious devotees march with devotion, the heavens and the Gods rejoice. Indeed, Gurudev, Sri Swami Sivananda and Pujya Swami Sahajananda rejoiced!
Satsang commenced at 9.45am. The programme comprised Kirtans and Bhajans, Pujya Swami Sahajananda’s audio message, a message from the Society, a reading of Sri Swami Sivananda’s reminisces, the release of our Service Activities’ Brochure and a Yoga Asanas’ DVD, the launch of the 2025 calendar, an address by the guest- speaker and our unique Sivananda Gymnastic Drill Displays.
Pujya Swami Sahajananda’s audio message focused on Gurudev’s all-encompassing, compassionate and benevolent nature. He said, “Gurudev was none other than God himself, because God Himself comes down to the level of man and serves man, and Gurudev was like that”. In his assurance to Pujya Swamiji, Gurudev said, “I am ever at thy back. I am ever ready to serve thee”. This is the assurance from God Himself. All that we have to do is to surrender unconditionally and turn to Gurudev. We have to offer our problems to the Guru and have faith in order to progress spiritually. A potent statement by Pujya Swamiji is, “Before we ask, we must deserve”. He further indicated that we will also be severely tested on the spiritual path. “If you have difficulty in your spiritual life, it’s an indication that God feels that you have possibilities for a higher life”. We should therefore welcome difficulties and transcend them. Indeed, very profound advice from Pujya Swamiji to ardent seekers and us all.
The message from the Society paid tribute to Sri Swami Sivananda and Pujya Swami Sahajananda, and exhorted us to re-dedicate ourselves to the Divine Mission and the high ideals that Sri Gurudev and Pujya Swamiji set, so as to grow spiritually. The following quote captures the essence of the message, “We are proud of the high standards set by the devotees in attendance at Satsangs and Yoga Camps, in their personal Sadhana and Karma Yoga, etc, and in upholding the values and ethos of harmony, loyalty, dedication and Guru Bhakti as laid down by Pujya Swamiji. We are reminded of what Sri Gurudev expected of us, when he said, ‘Avataras will come at special times of stress and strife. Perhaps the birth of an Avatara is imminent. But now we should take on the duties of an Avatara. In fact, all the saints of today are Amsa-Avatars, and we are all their helpers. We should ourselves feel that the divine spark is in us and work hard. Each of you should do what an Avatara would do. Then the divine spark in you will burst forth into a conflagration’”.
The guest speaker, Smt Tashmica Sharma, an academic at the University of KwaZulu-Natal, delivered her keynote address in her capacity as Vice-president of the Shree Sanathan Dharma Sabha of South Africa. (She is also an executive member of the South African Hindu Maha Sabha). She paid high tribute to the teachings of Sri Swami Sivananda, and the life and legacy of Pujya Swami Sahajananda. This is evident in, “The Society’s dedicated approach to both spiritual and secular education has ignited a sacred pathway out of darkness, towards the Light (Tamaso Maa Jyotir-Gamaya) through the four Ashramas of our life-times: Brahmacharya (student), Grihastha (householder), Vanaprastha (hermit), and Sannyasa (renunciation) – where we are guided from darkness to light by the spiritual knowledge of Swamiji’s teachings disseminated by the Divine Life Society of South Africa”.