Hindu Dharma Vidya Peedam
The Kanyakumari District Continues To Remain Vulnerable To Religious Conversion. Due To This Despicable Situation, The Number Of Hindus Was Dwindling Rapidly. Swami Madhuranandaji Found That The Cause Was Mostly Due To The Ignorance Of Hindus Regarding Their Own Great Religion And Country More Than Any External Influence. He Thought That Enlightening The Hindus About Their Rich Spiritual Wealth And Glorious Heritage And Thus Connecting Them To The Life-Giving Roots Of Their Eternal Religion, They Would Find A Solid Anchor. So As Early As 1951, He Started Sunday Classes For Hindus, Especially For Children.
Emblem
In 1981, The Swami Consolidated These Classes Along With Other Similar Activities And Brought Them Under A Separate Trust In The Name Of Hindu Dharma Vidya Peetam. He Conceived And Designed An Emblem For The Peedam:
The Swami Explained The Emblem Thus:
The Sanskrit Mantra At The Top Reads Vidyayaa Amritam Asnute, (Isavasya Upanishad, 11) Which Means, Immortality Is Attained Through Wisdom. The Sanskrit Letter Aim In The Centre Is The Mantra Of Saraswati, The Goddess Of Learning. The Sun Rays Represent Spiritual Wisdom.
The Book Is Symbolic Of Secular Knowledge And The Rudraksha Mala Of The Sacred. Both These When Pursued As A Spiritual Discipline, As A Worship Of Mother Saraswati, Bestow Spiritual Wisdom Which Lead One To Immortality.
On The One Hand, The Swami Disseminated Sacred Knowledge Through The Religious Classes And On The Other, He Encouraged The Regular Studies Of The Students By Announcing Various Awards For Them.
1.Threefold Scheme
In Order To Spread The Sacred Knowledge Effectively The Swami Designed A Threefold Scheme Which Would Have A Profound Influence On Youngsters, Women, And Elders. The Scheme Is:
Religious Class In Every Village, Town, And City.
2.Deepa Puja In Every Temple.
3.Satsangh,
I.Daily In Every Home.
Ii.Periodically In Temples And Other Religious Places.
1.Religious Classes
Religious Classes Enlighten Hindus, Especially The Youngsters And Children, Increasing Their Awareness Of The Glory Of Their Religion And Country. The Students Are Taught Moral Stories From The Puranas, The Gita, Upanishads, And The Other Scriptures. They Are Also Taught To Chant And Sing Hymns On Gods And Goddesses.
The Classes Are Classified Into Five Grades With Prescribed Textbooks. Annual Exams Are Conducted And Those That Are Eligible Are Promoted To The Next Grade. Grades 4 & 5 Have To Take Two Exams In Order To Pass. Those Who Pass The Exams Are Issued Certificates And Awarded.
Annually A Grand Convocation Ceremony Is Organized And Those Who Pass The Last Grade Are Conferred With The Title Vidyajyoti. They Are Presented A Shield As Also A Citation. As A Consummation Of This Convocation Ceremony, Bhagavad Gita Homa Is Performed And The Vidyajyoti Title Holders Take An Oath In The Presence Of The Holy Fire That They Will Remain Loyal Hindus And Serve Hinduism In All Possible Ways.
In 1998, In Response To The Enthusiasm Of Students, A Further Advanced Course Was Introduced For Deep Study On Specialized Subjects And Those Who Pass This Course Were Conferred With A Title Vidyabhushan.
The Following Tables Show The Enthusiastic Response To The Religious Classes:
1.Classes In Kanyakumari District
| Year | Number OfClasses | Number OfStudents | Number OfTeachers |
| 1981 | 93 | 5,000 | 250 |
| 1990 | 150 | 8,000 | 400 |
| 2000 | 450 | 30,000 | 1,300 |
| 2010 | 867 | 50,000 | 2,000 |
| 2020 | 1150 | 55,000 | 3,300 |
| 2021 | 1200 | 57,000 | 3,400 |
| 2022 | 1210 | 57,500 | 3,500 |
| 2023 | 1225 | 58,000 | 3,600 |
| 2024 | 1235 | 60,000 | 3,650 |
| 2025 | 1356 | 82,000 | 3,750 |
| 2026 | come | come | come |
2.Classes In Other Places
| District | Number OfSunday Class-Centres | Number OfStudents | Number OfTeachers |
| Chennai | 93 | 1300 | 75 |
| Coimbatore | 14 | 350 | 12 |
| Erode | 18 | 700 | 20 |
| Thirunelveli | 25 | 450 | 63 |
| Kerala | 45 | 1250 | 75 |
Teachers’ Training Camps
Camps Are Conducted For The Teachers Of These Sunday Religious Classes In Order To Analyse Situations And Also For Necessary Guidance. Generally These Will Be One-Day Camps. The Swamis Of The Ashrama Guide The Proceedings:
A.Kanyakumari District Has Nine Unions And One Municipality. The Teachers Of These Places Have A Camp Every Month In The Locality Itself.
B. All Of The Teachers Together Have A Camp In The Ashrama Thrice A Year—On January 1, May 1, And August 15.
Students’ Camps
The Religious Class Students From The Kanyakumari District Have An Annual Five-Day Camp In Their Locality.
2.Deepa Puja:
Deepa Puja Brings Divine Light In The Hearts Of The Performing Women And Bestows Peace, Contentment And Blessedness In Their Dwellings. In Deepa Puja, Mahalakshmi Is Worshipped By Invoking Her In Light.
This Puja Is A Sight For The Gods. Apart From Its Religious Value, It Achieves A Twofold Purpose; One, It Unites Hindu Women And, Two, It Offers A Unique Dignity To Them As They Are Able To Perform Worship Directly, Which Is Generally Denied To Them.
In The Kanyakumari District This Puja Is Organized At 700 Places Every Month And About 35,000 Women Take Part In Different Places. In Other Districts Also This Puja Is Spreading Fast. The Fact That The Book Deepa Puja, Published In Tamil And Malayalam For The Purpose, Is Selling In Lakhs Is A Standing Testimony To The Growing Popularity Of The Puja.
3.Satsangh
The Third Division Of The Threefold Scheme Is Satsangh. It Can Be Conducted Daily At Home And Occasionally In Temples And Other Places.
At Home: Hindus Generally Go To Temples For Worship. Though Most Homes Have A Separate Shrine Room, Family Members Rarely Gather There To Sing And Chant Together. We Should Make It A Part Of Our Family Life To Read The Scriptures And Sing And Chant Together In The Shrine At Least Once A Day In The Morning, Evening, Or Any Other Convenient Time. In The Absence Of A Separate Shrine Room, Keep A Lamp, Sit In Front Of It And Pray. This Cultivates Unity Among Members Of The Household.
At Other Places: Satsanghs Are Occasionally Arranged In Temples, Ashramas, And Other Venues. This Can Be A Daylong Or Half-A-Day Program. Monks Or Other Noble People May Be Invited For Guiding The Gathering. These Congregations Enlighten The Elders, Instilling Pride In Them For Their Religion And Nation. Above All, Satsanghs Encourage Hindus To Feel For One Another By Taking Part In Each Other’s Weal And Woe.
II. Prarthana Sessions And Puja
Various Prarthana Sessions And Pujas Are Organized By The Peetam:
1.Prarthana Sessions
Prarthanas Or Prayers Are Selected From The Vedas, Upanishads, And Other Scriptures With Separate Books Designed For The Purpose In Tamil And Malayalam. Generally, One Prayer Session Lasts For A Maximum Of One Hour.
I.Mangala Prarthana: This Session Is Conducted During Home Functions Such As A Birthday, Marriage, Or House Warming. These Prayers Are For Bestowing Fortune, Prosperity, Peace And Harmony Among The Members Of The Family.
About 200 Sessions Are Conducted Annually.
Ii.Subha Prarthana: This Is A General Session Conducted In Homes For The Welfare Of Its Members.
About 1,440 Sessions Are Conducted Annually.
Iii. Atmasanti Prarthana: This Is Conducted As A Funeral Rite. These Prayers Bestow Peace And Blessedness Upon The Departed.
2.Raahukaala Durga Puja
This Is A Puja Similar To Deepa Puja Organized And Performed By Women In Temples. Raahukaala Is A Ninety-Minute Inauspicious Period That Varies From Day To Day. Worshipping Durga Devi During That Period Is Considered Meritorious, Which Can Avert The Ill Effects Of Raahu, The Shadow Planet. Puja Books Are Published In Tamil And Malayalam.
In More Than 300 Temples All Over The Kanyakumari District This Puja Is Performed By More Than 10,000 Women.
3.Sumangali Puja
This Is A Worship Performed By Married Women In Temples. Mahalakshmi Is Worshipped In Mangala-Ghata, A Decorated Pot Filled With Water. This Is Performed For The Longevity Of One’s Husband And For A Harmonious Family Life.
III. Training Camps
1.For Worship: Annually, Training For The Performance Of A Simple Formal Worship In Temples Is Offered In A Two-Day Camp At The Ashrama.
This Training Has Become So Popular That The Government Of Sri Lanka Invited Swami Chaitanyanandaji Thrice To Conduct A Twelve-Day Camp Among The Priests Of The Village Temples There.
2.For Deepa Puja: Training For Performing Deepa Puja Is Offered Five Times A Year In A One-Day Camp At The Ashrama.
IV.Organizing Celebrations
The Peetam Organizes Grand Celebrations On The Popular Hindu Holidays With The Additional Motive Of Strengthening The Unity And Integrity Among Hindus.
1.Students’ Day: Vinayaka Chaturthi Is Observed As Students’ Day. On This Day, Children From Each Religious Class Are Led In Procession To The Nearby Vinayaka Temple While Singing Bhajans And There They Offer Their Worship To Him.
2.Deepa Puja Day: Durgashtami Is Observed As Deepa Puja Day. On This Day Deepa Puja Will Be Performed Simultaneously In A Maximum Number Of Temples.
Women’s Conferences Are Also Organized On This Day. Various Competitions Are Held Such As Drawing Rangoli And The Writing Of A Maximum Number Of A Suggested Mantra. Prizes Are Also Distributed.
3.Vidya Day: Vijayadasami Is Observed As Vidya Day (Wisdom-Day). During The Navaratri Days, Saraswati Devi Is Worshipped With Traditional Fervour. On The Tenth Day, Vidya Day Is Observed.
On This Day, Vidyarambha Or Formal Initiation Of Children Into Their Education Is Arranged In The Traditional Way In The Local Temples As Also In The Ashrama.
4.Suryanamaskar Day: Suryanamaskar Is A Time-Tested Hindu Discipline Meant For Developing Sound Physical And Mental Health. It Is A Set Of Twelve Physical Exercises Accompanied By Twelve Mantras Saluting Surya, The Sun God. This Exercise Assures Better Health And Good Vision On One Hand, As Well As Clarity In Thinking On The Other Hand.
In Order To Encourage The Daily Practice Of Suryanamaskar Among Youngsters, October 2 Is Celebrated As Suryanamaskar Day. Competitions Are Held On Performances Of Suryanamaskar And Prizes Distributed.
V. Publications
1.The Publication Section Of Hindu Dharma Vidya Peetam Is Growing Steadily. So Far Sixty Titles Have Been Published In Tamil And Malayalam. These Publications Are A Modest Attempt To Provide Basic And Pragmatic Knowledge About Hinduism.
2.Veda Murasu: Since 1986 Veda Murasu, The Tamil Monthly, Is Published By The Peetam.
History Demonstrates That Hinduism Is A Religion Of Toleration. However, Sincere Devotion To One’s Own Religion Is Within The Scope Of This Magnanimous Ideal. This Is What Veda Murasu Emphasizes. It Tries In A Simple Way To Encourage An Ordnary Hindu To Be A Real, Patriotic Hindu. The Growing Number Of Subscribers Indicates That This Monthly Is Welcome In Hindu Homes.
