Hari Om! Parents,
Week 26 Balavihar class began with deep breathing, Rama Nama japa, followed by Om chanting and "Sahana vavatu". The children took turns to chant "Sri Ganesha Stavah", "Sri Ganesha Pancharatnam" (pg 28, 30 My Prayers book) and also the verses 1-30 from chapter 2 Bhagavad Gita (pg 18, Balavihar Handbook).
Saints of India
Krishiv did a saint presentation on Chaitanya Mahaprabhu. He shared the life and teachings of this great devotee of Lord Krishna. The children learnt about his 'kirtans' praising Lord Krishna. Next we discussed one of his famous quotes, "Be more tolerant than a tree, be more humble than a blade of grass". Please remind your child to keep the introspection journal. They can continue to write down how they used the values learned through the saints.
Mahabharata
After a recap of the battle between Arjuna and the Kaurava army, we continued with the Virata Parva of our Mahabharata story. King Virata returns to the palace after defeating the Trigartas, only to find about the Kauravas' attack on the south border. He immediately decides to go with his army to help prince Uttarakumara. Yudhistira calms him down and tells him that Brihannala would make sure that no harm would come to the prince. He asks the king to wait a bit longer, and soon the cowherds bring news of the prince's victory. The king is overcome with joy and orders the palace to make preparations for the prince's return. As they wait for the prince, king Virata suggests a game of dice. Yudhistira tries to convince him not to play, but the king is adamant. When they sit down to play, the king begins to boast about his son's achievement and bravery. Not able to stay quiet, Yudhistira says that Brihannala was also equally brave and had an equal hand in the victory of the prince. This angered the king, who threw the dice at Yudhistira. The wound on the forehead was deep and blood started to flow from it. Yudhistira cupped his hand and caught it, and Draupadi rushed to stop the blood with her garment. She explained to the king that if even one drop of Yudhistira's blood fell on the ground the entire kingdom would face drought and famine for a year. We spoke about how Yudhistira was such a righteous and principled person, that hurting him would bring death and destruction to his enemies. Soon the prince Uttarakumara arrives and narrates all that had happened. He tells his father that a divine being had come to his aid and had defeated the enemy. He does not reveal Arjuna's name to the king. Later Arjuna and Bhimasena see the wound on Yudhistira's forehead and are furious. They want to punish king Virata, but Yudhistira asks them not to be rash. The next day at an auspicious time, the Pandavas come out of their Ajnatavasa. They have a sacred bath, dress in silk clothes and jewellery. Then Yudhistira sits on king Virata's throne. The king is confused by this behaviour and Yudhistira reveals their true identities. When the king realises the significance, he immediately apologises to the Pandavas. He swears his allegiance, promises the support of his army and Yudhistira forgives him. King Virata gives his daughter Uttara in marriage to Arjuna's son, Abhimanyu. Duryodhana sends a messenger telling the Pandavas that Arjuna's identity was revealed before the end of the thirteenth year. He asks the Pandavas to return to twelve more years of exile. Yudhistira ignores this and sends a message to their grandfather Bhishma to pass the verdict on the matter, saying he will only accept that decision. The Pandavas move to Upaplavya and begin preparations for Abhimanyu's wedding to princess Uttara. All of the kings who support the Pandavas gather for the celebration. Drupada, Drishtadyumna, Shikandin, Balarama and Lord Krishna also attend the grand wedding. Abhimanyu and Uttara are a match made in heaven. After going through those difficult years, the Pandavas finally get to celebrate a happy occasion. Lord Krishna promises Draupadi that better days are to come. Several kings have brought their armies with them in preparation for the inevitable war with the Kauravas. This is the end of Virata Parva and also the Grade 5 portion. The rest of Mahabharata story will be covered next year.
We ended class early to join the assembly and watched the Grade 2 program. No Balavihar class next week for Memorial Day, enjoy a safe long weekend!
Pranaam,
-Rashmi and Shanthi
Class materials needed: Journal/ notebook, pencil, Balavihar Handbook, My Prayers book.
Resources : If interested, your child can read Kamala Subramaniam's "Mahabharata", available on Amazon and Kindle. On the Youtube, "Epified- The Mahabharata" channel, has bite-sized videos of the stories we are covering in class. The individual episodes are available, in case your child misses class. This is the playlist: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL5AjK1x6A8j5KPRft76yRbu3A5T_uxY7s
