Hari Om! Parents,
Week 5 Class
Children did this Likhita Japa 11 times at the start of class - " Sri Krishna Sharanam Mama ''.
Shlokas
We started with Om chanting, and then chanted Sahana vavatu, Vakratunda mahakaya, Saraswati namastubhyam, Sarva mangala mangalye (ref. My Prayers book pg 39) and the "Mahalakshmi Ashtakam" (ref. My Prayers book pg. 39)
Going forward one child will be designated to lead the class in shloka chanting. Hopefully this will be an incentive for your child to learn the shlokas.
Mahabharata*
After a quick recap of Vana Parva by the children taking turns, we moved on to the review of Virata Parva.
The Pandavas and Draupadi decide to spend their Ajnaatavaasa in the kingdom of Matsya and they soon reach the outskirts of Virata. They tie up all their weapons into the shape of a corpse and hang them on a Sami tree near a burial ground. Yudhistira is the first to enter the city disguised as a scholar. He goes to King Virata's court and introduces himself as Kanka. He tells the king that he could become an advisor and also teach him the game of dice. The king welcomes Kanka to his court. Next Bhimasena enters disguised as Valala, a cook. He tells the king that he is a skilled wrestler, so he can train the other wrestlers, and the king grants him the job. Arjuna uses Urvashi's curse, disguises as the eunuch Brihannala and enters the court. He is given the job of teaching princess Uttara dance and music. Nakula, disguised as Damagranthi, gets the job of taking care of the king's horses. Sahadeva, disguised as Tantripala, gets a job taking care of the king's cows. Draupadi enters the city last and goes to meet the queen, Sudeshna. Draupadi introduces herself as Sairandhri and asks the queen to help her. She tells the queen that her five husbands are gandharvas, who have been cursed for one year and cannot take care of her. Taking pity on her, the queen agrees to give Sairandhri the job of styling the queen's hair and making garlands.
Meanwhile, Indra visits Radheya, disguised as a brahmin. He asks for Radheya's kavacha and kundalas. Radheya had taken an oath to give anything that a person asked of him. Keeping his promise, Radheya cuts off his life preserving kundaals and kavacha and gives it to Indra. Pleased with this sacrifice, Indra names him "Karna" and says that he will be famous as "Karna, the giver". Indra also gives Karna his Sakti weapon.
The Pandavas and Draupadi spend three months living in disguise. One day there is a wrestling tournament held by the king. A visiting wrestler defeats all the king's wrestlers, but Valala defeats and kills the wrestler. A few months later, the queen's brother, Keechaka, returns from war. He sees Draupadi and falls in love. Draupadi rejects his advances and the angry Keechaka humiliates her. Draupadi complains to the king, but he says he cannot do anything about an incident he did not witness. Seeking revenge, Draupadi convinces Bhimasena to kill Keechaka. News of both these incidents reached Hastinapura, and Duryodhana deduces that Bhimasena is responsible for them.
The Kauravas attack the kingdom of Matsya on two fronts to expose the hidden Pandavas. The Pandavas, except Arjuna, join king Virata and defeat the Kaurava army on one front. Meanwhile the Kauravas attack on another side and take away the king's cows. The young prince Uttara Kumara accompanied by Brihannala goes to battle them. The prince is so intimidated by looking at the Kaurava warriors, that he runs away from the battlefield. Brihannala catches the prince and takes him to the Sami tree that had the Pandava's weapons. Brihannala reveals his true identity to prince Uttara Kumara and asks him to be his charioteer. After collecting his bow and arrow, Arjuna goes back to battle the Kauravas. Arjuna uses the Samohana astra and puts the Kaurava army under a trance. He takes away their upper garments in revenge for the humiliation the Pandavas suffered during the dice game. Prince Uttara Kumara and Brihannala return back to the palace victorious.
The thirteen years of exile come to an end and the Pandavas reclaim all their weapons from the Sami tree. Then they reveal themselves to king Virata. He immediately surrenders his throne and kingdom to Yudhistira and pledges his support. He gives princess Uttara's hand in marriage to Arjuna's son, Abhimanyu. A grand wedding takes place and the Pandavas finally celebrate. Several kings gather to support the Pandavas, including Lord Krishna and Balarama. A council of kings begins to discuss the strategy for the upcoming war with the Kauravas.
This concludes the review of the Virata Parva of our Mahabharata story.
India, the Sacred Land
Due to a shortened session, we could not have a discussion on this topic today.
Geeta Chanting
We did a review of Verses 1 and 2 today (ref. Bala Vihar Handbook pg 17). Swamiji's Geeta chanting video link is posted in the Parents WhatsApp group, for your child to practice with the correct pronunciation. Geeta Chanting Yagna will be held in April. Grade 6 is group Partha, and is assigned verses 1-30 this year.
We assembled in the Prayer Hall for the Houses Inaugural activity, and our Durga's Daredevils placed first. Several House contests were also announced. We concluded the session with Pledge recitation.
- Rashmi Kuroodi and Venu Sadda
Supplies needed for every class:- Bala Vihar Handbook, My Prayers book, their special red notebook and pencils for likhita japa; everything in their Bala Vihar bag
*Reference books - Mahabharata by Rajagopalachari / Mahabharata by Kamala Subramaniam
