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The Vedanta Society of Arkansas(VSA) holds monthly puja, weekly classes on sunday for
kids and the Diwali function every year.
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 Monthly Puja
The members of VSA gather on the second saturday of each month for puja,
bhajans and potluck dinner at the VSA Cultural Center located in Mabelvale, AR
which is conveniently located in close proximity of Little Rock, AR. The
members dress in traditional indian clothes. The priest starts the puja by
offering worship to the three principle Hindu dieties: Brahma, Vishnu and
Mahesh(Shiva) . It is followed by bhajans and shlokas led by people of all ages
and recited by the members. Once the puja is over, prasadam is distributed to
everybody. This is followed by the potluck dinner.
Weekly Sunday Classes
Weekly classes are held every Sunday from 10:00 AM to 11:10 AM for children of
all ages. These classes are open to the members as well as the non-members for
free. These classes are divided based on different age groups. The class
schedule consists of three different sections:
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Religious Studies & Shloka Recital — The class begins with study of Hindu
Mythology and Epics. These are narrated to the kids in the form of a story.
Next, new shlokas are taught to the kids and the old ones also repeated.
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Facts about India — The kids are taught about our nation, "India." This class
covers the geography, culture, language, religions, states and union
territories of India.
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Bhajans — The class ends with the bhajans being taught to the kids.
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Hindi - we started Hindi classes in the early part of this year to teach
the kids to read, write and speak in hindi.
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Cooking - for those inclined towards honing their culinary skills, we have
cooking classes. We are still looking for volunteer tasters though ....
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Yoga - To stay in shape (physically as well as mentally) the kids are getting
their first introduction to yoga.
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Suggestions - We would love to have your suggestions. Feel free to email us
or come talk to us at any of the functions.
Annual Diwali Celebration
Each year, the festival of lights, "Diwali" is celebrated on a grand scale by
the VSA. This event is open for members and non-members of all races, castes
and religions. The celebration is initiated by offering worship to LORD GANESHA
and GODDESS LAKSHMI. The puja is accompanied by bhajans and shlokas. This is
followed by catered dinner serving delicious Indian cuisine. The main
attraction of the evening is the lovely cultural programme performed by the
kids and adults, who put in a lot of effort and hard work to make this evening
a great success.
Upcoming Events for 2008.
VSA will be organizing the follwing events in the year 2008.
- March 22nd, 2008 - Holi Celebrations at Maumelle Park from 11:00 a.m. till 2:00 p.m.
- April 20th, 2008 - Samuhika Satyanarayana Pooja (more details coming soon...)
- June, 2008 - Picnic (more details coming soon...)
- August 16th, 2008 - Tentative date for another Samuhika Pooja
- October 4th, 2008 - Garba/Dandia at Grace Presbytarian Church, WLR (more details to come...)
- November 1st, 2008 - Deepawali Cultural Program.
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