Sacramento Guru Vandana Event

A teacher is someone that is revered throughout all cultures for the vital role they play in building the future generations. In Hinduism, the extent to which a “guru” or a teacher is revered is encapsulated in the following prayer:

गुरुर्ब्रह्मा गुरुर्विष्णु: गुरुर्देवो महेश्वरः ।
गुरुः साक्षात् परं ब्रह्म तस्मै श्री गुरवे नमः ॥
GururBrahmā GururViṣṇur Gururdevo Maheśvaraḥ |
Guruḥ sākṣāt paraṁ Brahma tasmai śrī gurave namaḥ ||

A guru is a paradigm of the concepts of Hinduism surrounding knowledge, wisdom, and selflessness. They embody the deity Brahma (the Creator), the deity Vishnu (the Preserver) and the deity Shiva (the Destroyer or Transformer). The above prayer salutes to the Guru close to us and the Guru beyond us, and bows down to the force of these three deities.

Every year, HSS (Hindu Swayamsevak Sangh) puts on the Guru Vandana event following Teachers Appreciation Week in May, to celebrate the amazing teachers in our community. The Sacramento chapters of HSS celebrated the event on May 21st at Orangevale Community center and boasted over 50 attendees.

In addition to honoring the teachers by doing an aarti and giving them a gift, the event also featured the Darshana exhibition, a yoga demonstration and various cultural performances. Eight posters from the Darshana exhibit were featured after the event, each of which explained the importance of different concepts of Hinduism such as “Namaste” and “Hindu Astrology”.

Raju Garu and Mahipal Lakkidi from the Sacramento chapters of HSS led a yoga demonstration on stage. They stressed the importance of spinal cord exercises and incorporating yoga into our lives through poses like Vajrasana. Vajrasana, also commonly known as the Thunderbolt or Diamond pose, is a breathing exercise in which a person sits on their knees. It is meant to center a person and also aid their digestive system. Raju Garu expressed, “The Event was the first time for me… I got a good response from my school's teachers also, they enjoyed it very much.”

Cultural performances also featured 11 year old Hitishree Padala singing Jay Ganesha Jay Ganesha, as part of the inauguration of the event.

Following the event, the teachers were also offered a cultural meal consisting of chapati (a traditional flatbread), Channa curry, Biryani, and traditional sweets. All the food was, “made by the ladies of Natomas shakha (branch). We all made it at our homes and brought it to the event” said Nirmala Padala.

The event was met with positive feedback from the attendees. Padala commented “I had teachers tell me that they really liked the food. Some of them had tears in their eyes and were thankful for being welcomed into the community in this way.” Mey Saetern, a teacher at Natomas Park Elementary School called this event, “a remarkable experience that I will always remember.” The students and parents alike were overjoyed to be able to celebrate their teachers and showcase their culture in this unique way. The annual Guru Vandana event is definitely something that HSS volunteers look forward to putting on. Every year seeing the smiles on the teachers and student’s face’s as they connect in a deeper way leaves a lasting positive impact that is felt throughout the community.