Thanksgiving Celebration

Many members of the extended Ananda family gathered on Thursday morning for joyful and tasty Thanksgiving celebrations. Group meditation time was followed by a short service, launched off of a Bhagavad Gita reading reminding us to share our enjoyment of food with God, which was good, because we were about to enjoy our food very much.

(My favorite line, though, was Nirmoha quoting his aunt, who moved from Minnesota to California: "I believe that God gives us signs telling us where we should live. Those signs are called 'palm trees,' and if you see them around, then you know it's a good place to be." And now that I've heard that, I'll never look at a palm tree the same way again, which is a good way to practice the presence of God!)

Robert and Gloria did an amazing job coordinating the food for the lunchtime banquet. We had carrot-ginger-coconut-orange soup (my personal favorite -- wow!), classic Ananda nutloaf, mashed potatoes, fantastic cranberry relish, apple crisp, cinnamon ice cream, pumpkin pie, and more.

The entertainment included two barbershop songs, and a couple other unusual treats. The first of these was a reading of George Washington's original proclamation, creating Thanksgiving as a holiday in 1789. You can hear Dambara reading it in this video, accompanied by Yogananda's favorite patriotic melody:


Thanksgiving Day Proclamation 2010 from Ananda Palo Alto on Vimeo.

And this led, via a not-too-convoluted segue, into Nirmoha's surprising revelation that yogic teachings have actually had a significant influence on country music. With thanks and apologies to Johnny Cash, you can hear the proof of it here:


Thanksgiving Banquet Entertainment 2010 from Ananda Palo Alto on Vimeo.

It was a delightful day all around, and I hope it helped us all realize how much we have to be thankful for. This is an incredible community we have here, with such generous, talented, joyful people. Thank you all for making Ananda what it is!

Ananda in The Times of India

A friend of David P. shared with him this short article about Ananda that appeared in The Times of India, entitled “Lost? Take Ananda Sangha’s road to self discovery.” It begins:

“For Daya and Keshav Taylor, American citizens by birth, and ambassadors of community and sustainable living by choice, moving to Gurgaon to spread the message of Ananda Sangha was not merely about an exotic Indian experience, but something rooted in reality.....” Read the full article

Ananda's Future and You

Dear Ananda Members,

Last Sunday after service & Swami's video, about a hundred of us enjoyed a meeting led by Asha, David and Shanti.  We looked at all we've accomplished in the last few years to develop the Church property.  Then we discussed what we can do from now on to ensure that all this is available to truthseekers well beyond our lifetimes; and answered questions from those present.

Please click here to listen to an audio recording of the meeting, 1 hour 8 minutes.  If you'd prefer this on CD instead, just let us know and we'll get you one.

Click here to view the 3 handouts that everyone received, that speakers refer to in the talks.

We discussed 4 major areas we'll be focusing on in the near future:

1. Free and Clear:  Helping to see Ananda free of all debt
2. I Go Forth in Perfect Faith:  Tithing and Pledging;  giving back to the source of our inspiration
3. My Spirit, My Truth, My Family:  Helping to grow our membership
4. Thank You and Goodbye:  Building a legacy for Ananda Palo Alto (title is intentionally lighthearted)

We passed around clipboards and folks were encouraged to sign up for one or more of these areas--brainstorming, praying, contributing energy in any way. 

Even if you weren't there, we encourage you to join the fun and "sign up" for one or more of these areas by contacting the sangha staff.

Thank you!

Many blessings in Master,
Dambara, for the Ananda staff

P.S. Photos of the event, courtesy of Chris T., are here.

Pumpkin Carving Party

It's almost Halloween, and that means it's Jack-o-lantern time! Sunday afternoon was family pumpkin carving time in the community kitchen, and Daniela has kindly shared with us some photos of the results. Thanks to everyone who joined in and made this a creatively fun time!

Playground Seva

The kid's playground at the Ananda Community has been getting some much needed TLC recently. Last Saturday, a number of volunteers (of all ages) turned out to help with the renovations. We washed the playhouse and moved it to a new foundation, we sanded down the larger play structure to make it ready for painting, and we raked and weeded all around.

Washing the playhouse.

There's still more to do, though! More sanding and painting, and we'll be filling in a new sandbox as well. If you want to come help out, D'Arcy will be leading another Playground Satsang / Workday this Saturday, October 16, starting at 9:30 AM. Come by whenever you're able, for as long as you like. Snacks provided!

Sanding the play structure.

Sunday Service Schedule Changes

If you were at service this morning then you heard the announcement, but here are the details about what's going on. Please help us get the word out, and make sure all your friends know about it!

Here's what our Sunday mornings will be like, beginning on October 17th:

• [Note that there is no fire ceremony or purification ceremony.]
• 9:00 - 9:15, unguided meditation in the temple.
• 9:15 - 9:30, chanting.
• 9:30 - 10:45, service.
• Service is a bit shorter now, without the affirmation, and with an abridged version of the Festival of Light.
• 10:45 - 11:00, refreshments in the courtyard.
• 11:00 - 12:15 (approx.), Swami Kriyananda's LA satsangs, broadcast live on a large screen in the temple.

Obviously, the main motivation here is to make it easy for everyone to both attend service and tune in to Swamiji's talks, so this schedule is only in effect for as long as he is doing these satsangs in LA. That will probably be until sometime in March 2011. We'll go back to normal after that, and of course, if we make any further adjustments, we'll do our best to make sure everyone finds out about it in a timely manner. In the meantime, it'll be fun to get an extra weekly dose of Swamiji's vibrations!

Sadhana and Multiple Sclerosis

In 2008, Dr. Bryan Coleman-Salgado conducted a study examining the effects of Ananda Yoga, meditation, and the Energization Exercises on people with multiple sclerosis. The latest issue of Clarity Magazine has a great interview with him, describing the fantastic results he observed:

For persons with a chronic neurological illness, perhaps the most significant overall result is that participants not only did not get worse, but they all improved. In medical science, developing a therapy that slows the progress of a chronic disease is considered a huge breakthrough. If, as this study suggests, a regular practice of Ananda Yoga can not only stop a “progressive worsening” of a chronic disease, but can also bring about improvements, then Ananda Yoga offers potentially positive benefits for everyone.

Read the full article here!