Upcoming Events

Sarod-Tabla Concert: Sun, June 16, 6:15 to 7:45pm by Indrayuddh Majumder and Nitin Mitta

Spiritual Retreat by SWAMI KRIPAMAYANANDA, Vedanta Society, Toronto, Canada: Sat, June 15, 9:30 am to 7:00 pm on Harmonizing our Faculties.  Prior Reg Required. Reg Fee: $30. ($20 if registered and paid by June 05)
Click here for online registration.

SCHEDULE FOR THE SUMMER PROGRAMS (Jun 28- Sept 02)

  • Fri-Sun -June 28-30 – Retreat at Vedanta Pittsburg
  • Thu, Jul 4, 11a to 1p – Independence Day Celebration
  • Fri-Sun Jul 5-7 Silent Meditation Retreat
  • Sat Jul 13, 10:30a-noon- ‘M’s Birthday Celebration at Tridib Roy’s Home. 216, Blackmore Pond Rd, W. Wareham, MA 02576, RSVP 508-748-9797
  • Sun Jul 14, 11 am to 4pm Guru Poornima
  • Fri-Sun Jul 19-21 Swami goes to Ottawa & Toronto Canada
  • Fri-Sun Jul 26-28 Young Adult Retreat
  • Thu-Sun Aug 1-4 Rochester Retreat
  • Tue-Sat Aug 6-10 Children Summer Camp (Details TBA soon)
  • Sun Aug 11 10:00 am to 5:00 pm– Retreat at Tushar-Mukta’s Place NJ
  • Sat Aug 17, 10:00 am to 4:30 pm – Vedanta Connecticut Retreat. Topic: Spiritualizing Life.
  • Sat Aug 24, 11 am to 4pm – Krishna Festival
  • Sun Aug 25 – Special Service commemorating Vivekanananda’s Lecture at Annisquam Village Church. Annisquam, MA 10 :00 am to Noon More details will be announced later
  • SPECIAL TUESDAY CLASSES: TUE JUL 09 TO AUG 20. TOPIC: Meister Eckhart – The Christian Vedantin
  • Sat-Sun Aug 31-Sept 1 Labor Day Retreat at Ridgely on ‘Hafiz’s Poems of Divine Love’.

Weekly Schedule (in addition to Daily Schedule given below)

Fri. June 14 7:00 PM: Aarati (devotional music) & meditation.  
7:30 – 8:30 PM: Study class on ‘Svetasvatara Upanishad’, conducted by Swami Yogatmananda
Sat. June 15 8:30 – 10:30am: Karma Yoga (Cleaning & Work-service)
11:00am – 12:00 noon: Guided Meditation & prayers
7:00pm – 8:00pm: Aarati (devotional singing, a short reading and meditation
Sun. June 16 5:00-6:00 pm: Swami Kripamayananda, Toronto will Be Speaking on Purification Through Work. Sarod -Tabla concert will follow.
Tue. June 18 5:30-6:30 pm: HATHA YOGA class: Contact Vedanta Society by email or
contact Roshni Darnal at 401-226-5421
7:00 PM: Aarati (devotional music) & meditation
7:30 – 8:30 PM: Study Class on Sri Ramakrishna and His Divine Play

Daily Schedule

Morning 5:45 – 6:45 AM: Meditation
6:45 – 7:00 AM: Chanting followed by a short reading from The Complete Works of Swami Vivekananda
7:00 – 7:25 AM: A short ritual worship/Puja. Open to all, but one must enter before 7 am
Evening (Except on Sundays)
7:00 – 7:15 PM: Aarti (devotional music), with a short reading from ‘BOOK OF DAILY THOUGHTS AND PRAYERS’ by Swami Paramananda
7:15 – 8:00 PM: Meditation. Open to all.

Past Events

Sun, June 09: 10am to Noon: Vedanta Society of Connecticut Monthly Program at 110 Cherry Brook Rd, Canton CT. Swami Yogatmananda did the short worship, and gave a talk on ‘Surrender in Bhagavad Gita. Music and Prasad-food. 30 devotees attended.

Click here to view photos.

Synopses of Past Classes
(All classes given by Swami Yogatmananda, unless otherwise stated)

Friday, June 07  – Study Class on Svetasvatara Upanisad
Class 34 Verses  Ch 4, # 11-13:
By means of meditation, we can shake off our false identification with the body-mind complex. Although, in fact, we are bliss itself, we must be convinced of this truth. Once the truth is understood on an intellectual level, we must cultivate the conviction that we can achieve the goal of life, namely to manifest the divine bliss inherent within us. When the conviction is established, we will begin making sincere efforts to realize our true nature. In these efforts, prayer possesses a great advantage: prayer dampens our ego (the “I” that is tied to matter) by cultivating a spirit of surrender. As symbolized by the higher and lower birds in the Upanishad, each of us contains two aspects, one changing and one unchanging. The lower bird is buffeted by the blows of the world. The higher bird is the summation of all consciousness, which transcends the fleeting images of the lower branches. To be like the higher bird, we must identify what is causing us bondage, and give it up. It is a process of surrender in which we merge the little “I” into the great “I”. Through this process, we attain ultimate peace; we see that the “I” that resides in our hearts is the divine “I” that pervades the whole of the universe. The power of discernment is the greatest power we can pray for as spiritual aspirants. By properly exercising discernment, we can distinguish right from wrong, permanent from passing, real from unreal and subdue the desires that attempt to thwart us on our journey to the truth.

Sunday. Jun 09 – Symbolism of Action
In his book Karma Yoga, Swami Vivekananda says that in religion, symbols are useful for practical spiritual life. We can think of our work as meditation, worship, or feeling God. He says that every religion has three parts: philosophy, mythology, and ritual. Mythology illustrates philosophy through stories with a moral. Rituals help us to internalize the philosophical ideas. ‘Rituals are concretized religion’, he says. Religious symbols are spontaneous, and not arbitrary. They are followed universally. When we kneel or bow down, there is an inner spontaneous connection with God, that comes from doing, and not from thinking. If we do not know that Sri Ramakrishna is in the image, it is our problem. Swami Vivekananda says that the universe is a symbol and God is the essence behind it. When we see the universe, we can feel a connection with God. A mantra may or may not have a formal meaning, but the sound is a symbol of inner awareness. In ‘The Practice of the Presence of God’, Brother Lawrence talks about doing his work for God, with no philosophical connection. Rituals let Gopaler Ma see the presence of God everywhere. If there seems to be no progress in our meditation, we can think of it as a car wheel turning around and around on a long journey. And if we do not do spiritual practice, will we progress more? The Bhagavad Gita says to let every action become a symbol of worship of God. This happens not by thinking about it, but by doing it.

Tuesday, June 11 – Study Class on Sri Ramakrishna and His Divine Play
Sri Ramakrishna As Guru Page No. 456-7
Incarnations of God are fully aware that they are enacting the role of human being but intrinsically they are divine. They are not limited by the body and mind. They pass on the same message to all of us. Our awareness is tied to the body and hence it is difficult for us to realize the intrinsic divinity. His teachership is derived from his Bhavamukha State -the state between world of name-form and the one beyond them.  Sri Ramakrishna received the order from the Divine Mother to remain in Bhavamukha.
The Guru principle isn’t limited to one individual. It manifests through various entities. If the student is earnest then, he/she will get the teacher. Student can learn from that teacher. This is demonstrated in the story of Eklavya in Mahabharata. The teacher can give the wisdom as well as take it away from the student (story of Karna). Human Guru is required as long as the student has the bodily awareness. We can connect with the Divine through the human Guru. But one must take efforts to absorb the knowledge imparted by Guru. The student must give up his ego, undergo the spiritual practices ardently; only then he/she can imbibe the knowledge.