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A Warm and Loving Sairam Dear Members,
Hope all of you are having a blessed week!
Last Sunday we had blissful Hanuman Chalisa and Mantra Pushpam learning along with parental satsang “Harmonious Homes” led by sister Maha Karthik, Mom's & Dad's panel members. Added flavor was participation by center parents (Moms and Dads) in the satsang who gave a lot of inputs to all scenario discussions and energy was so intense and really reflected. A hearty thanks to Swami for giving us all this wonderful opportunity and thanks to everyone who came and participated.
This Sunday March 26th, we will be celebrating New Years Day (Ugadhi, Nav Roj, Baha'i etc). Although every day is just like any other, some days have special significance. And days, weeks, months and years are nothing but just flow of time, Swami has mentioned on several occasions the importance of time. See for couple of quotes of Swami in Devotional Session below.
Requesting all parents, members to Join in learning Mantra Pushpam.
Please find this week's Centre Newsletter, updates from all wings (Devotion, SSSE, Seva & YA) along with Centre Calendar for March 2023 and Zonal/Regional updates.
Sai Ram
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Please check the attached March 2023 Calendar above.
Quick Highlights in MARCH, 2023:
SSSE Bhajan Workshop – Online, Saturday March 25th via Zoom CANCELLED.
Hindu(Ugadi/Yugadi/GudiPadwa), Persian and Baha'i New Year – Center will celebrate on Sunday March 26th followed by Bhajans.
Sri Ram Navami Celebrations – We will celebrate on Saturday April 1st.
Please mark your calendars so that you can attend the Center with family and friends, and enjoy the bliss of these special programs.
Subscription:
Don’t forget to subscribe to SSSCL YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@loudounsaicenter
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Regular Devotional activities on Sunday, Mar 26th 2023.
Swami's quotes from divine discourse about Ugadi
“Ugadi or New Year day is a festival that teaches lessons in selfless service. It is not intended for feasting. It is a sacred day when wholesome wisdom should dawn and enlightenment should blossom in the hearts of people…. Time is God. God is called Kala-svaruupa (the very embodiment of Time). Hence, we must respect Time and spend it in useful pursuits. Wasting of time is ungodly.”
“….Without Time, there is no world. Without the world there is no creation, without creation there is nothing. Every created thing is born of Time. This New Year's Day proclaims the truth that God is the Master of Time. Unfortunately, man fails to understand the power of God. He wastes three quarters of his time in unworthy earthly pursuits. Spiritual pursuit is the right way of making use of time.”
09:00-09:40 AM – Setup (Please Join If Available)
09:45 AM : Opening Prayers, Swami Darshan Video, Practice Hanuman Chalisa Chanting & Learn Mantra Pushpam
10:50 AM : Ugadi Divine Message followed by Bhajans
11:35 AM : Closing Prayers & Center Announcements
Sri Rama Navami Celebrations on Saturday April 1st:
With Swami's divine grace, Sri Sathya Sai Center of Loudoun will be celebrating Sri Rama Navami Celebrations @ Sister Madhuri Chandra residence on April 1st Saturday from 6pm to 8:30pm.
Address: 24612 Lavender Grove Drive, Aldie 20105.
Agenda:
5:30 PM : Meditative Music
6:00 PM : 21 OMs, Swami's Darshan Video and Chanting Hanuman Chalisa
6:20 PM : Bhajans (Based on the signups received)
8:20 PM : Closing Prayers
Sai Ram
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Sri Sathya Sai Educare (SSSE) Updates
Regular SSSE Classes on Sunday, Mar 26th, 2023.
Important SSSE Reminders:
1. Easwaramma Day Celebrations – SAVE THE DATE for May 6th 2023 (Saturday). Kids have begun practice activities for various cultural demonstrations of what they have been learning on Swami's Educare values. Please make sure to participate in the practice sessions, assist wherever you can and encourage your kids as much as possible.
2. Yearbook Inputs – As an annual tradition, we publish the yearbook that is compiled by the yearbook team throughout the year. We are seeking SSSE kids inputs to the yearbook. If they have great articles on SSSE core values, poems, their understanding of Swami's quotes, or stories/messages that they want to convey, please encourage them to write them, and submit it to our yearbook team. Please remember to include the kid's full name, SSSE group number, and a title for their submission. All submissions can be sent to sse@loudounsai.org or submitted to their gurus. For very young kids such as story group and group 1, if they have a piece of artwork, you can send a picture or submit the hardcopy at our center to the gurus. All submissions(extended) are due by April 10th !
If you are comfortable submitting it directly to google drive, here is the link, but please make sure the details are very clear.
https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/14nhcudNZYegvdZY4cCJv7v8pA4g5xVBH
3. Regional Retreat participation by SSSE Kids May 26th – May 29th – One day trip being planned for those who cannot drive by arranging Bus, else carpool will be available. Please reach out to the SSSE coordinator for more details.
4. Parthi Pilgrimage July 4th – 6th – Letters Written To Swami from parents, gurus and kids can be taken by Raghavendra/Prasanthi. Please encourage kids if they want to send letters to Swami. Reach out to SSSE Coordinator for more details.
Sai Ram
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SEVA UPDATES
Month of March 2023 service activities
*Narayana Seva (dinner at Manassas shelter): March 25th**
Desc: Prepare and serve dinner at Manassas Shelter located at:10056 Dean Dr, Manassas, VA 20144 on Saturday, March 25th, 2023.
Signup link: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10c0d4dafa929a0f8cf8-march5#/
Sai Ram
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Young Adults Updates
1. YA Re-registration Form: Please look for information from YA reps to re-confirm as active YA of the center by registering using the link below.
YA Re-Registration Form
If you have any questions and (or) looking for more YA updates, please reach out to our Female YA Rep Varsha Rao or Male YA Rep Arjun Sundaram.
Sai Ram
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SSSGC's Regional, National and Zonal Updates
SSSGC (USA) – Region 2 Updates:
1. Our Memorial Day Retreat is going to be from 6 PM Friday 26th May 2023 to 12 PM Monday 29th May 2023. The location of the retreat is: Camp Green Lane, 249 Camp Green Lane Road, Green Lane, PA.
The theme of the retreat is “Love Lives by Giving and Forgiving”.
Please register for the retreat by going to this website. https://region2.sssgc-usa.org/retreat/
The campsite accommodation (specially lower bunks beds) is limited and will be assigned on the first come first serve basis. We, thus, request interested devotees to register as soon as possible. Please also make a note that the registration rate goes up by $10 after April 30th. The last date of registration is 15th May 2023.
The Retreat 2023 Main Schedule is up on our retreat website. https://region2.sssgc-usa.org/retreat/.
Please have a look at the screenshot below in the email. You can click on the Main Schedule button to see the details.
Please note that there are limited on site retreat accommodations. We request you all to register early.
2. Region 2 Parthi Pilgrimage: July 4th to 6th 2023.
Camp If you are interested, please register for this pilgrimage by using the link below.
https://forms.gle/Xu6dGfodufVWjrvu7
SSSGC-USA National Announcements
1.SSSGC-USA Region 1 Medical Director.
It's with immense pleasure, we would like to share with you all that Dr. Krishna Rao will be serving Swami as Medical director for our Region1. Dr.Krishna Rao brings a lot of experience, energy, and most importantly an unwavering commitment to Swami's teachings and a sacred bond of love with the Prasanthi Nilayam. Please join us in congratulating Dr.Krishna Rao (drkrishnarao@gmail.com).
2. USA Parthi Pilgrimage 2023 Registration (Gentle reminder)
We are extremely fortunate to have received blessings that enable us to embark on a pilgrimage to our source, Prasanthi Nilayam, from July 4th- 6th, 2023.
“Every living being is on a pilgrimage – whether it is aware of it or not. … The destiny of all beings is to return to their origin.” Sathya Sai Speaks (14.45)
Registration link:
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSeq7l9If1xgjHCh7E769oQIJ2cORtjavIzHdFPueG4P88_U8g/viewform
This pilgrimage is coordinated by our Mid-Atlantic Region (Region2)
SSSGC-Zone1 Updates:
Below are the zonal announcements for all members for this week : Click Here
Zone 1 Announcements March 23, 2023
- Registration Open for Allied Medical Professionals and Non-medical Volunteers–June 29 to July 3, 2023SSSGC Medical Camp at Prasanthi Nilayam, from
- Ramayana Quiz for all agesSeeing Rama through Sai Rama: an offering from Zonal Media Team-
- Registration Open–April 15th-16th, 2023 Zone 1 Virtual Ladies Wing Retreat
- SSSGC His Legacy Continues, Special Interview with Dr. Axay Kalathia
- Message from Dr. Nawaf Alshibli, National President, Syria Zone 8
- Prasanthi Welcomes Center Leaders
- CLC Message from South Africa
Link to website announcement page:
https://www.sssgc-zone1.org/all-announcements/
Sai Ram
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Video of the Week
Ugadi 2023 Special Song | Sai Namame Talachina Chalu Navayugadi |
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