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The U.S. celebrates the first week of May as “teachers appreciation week” and Tuesday of the same week as “National Teachers Day.” Hindu philosophy and culture consider the Guru the “Supreme Being” who invokes and sustains the light of knowledge while eliminating the darkness of ignorance. Our lives are touched and inspired by countless teachers in schools, colleges, and many other activities in which we excel. To acknowledge and appreciate these Gurus who silently shape our lives, during May and June 2023, Hindu Swayamsevak Sangh, USA (HSS) organized Guru Vandana events across the nation to honor teachers and their contribution to society. More than 1000 academicians, including teachers, principals, and superintendents from over 60 school districts, were appreciated during these events, attended by more than 6000 attendees comprising students, parents, and other invitees.

In a typical event, the children presented a cultural program where Sanskrit shlokas were recited, honoring the Guru. The shlokas focused on the significance of the Guru, comparing the Guru to God and pointing out the Guru’s role in achieving supreme knowledge. A local chief guest shared their thoughts with the audience, followed by a teacher appreciation ceremony.

This event included a cultural program at several places where children participated and presented their talent in classical dances, songs, and musical instruments. Darshana, a popular exhibition on Hindu Civilization developed by HSS volunteers, was held at several places. Young student members of HSS led the presentation at each Darshana poster and explained various facets of Hindu Dharma, Philosophy, Yoga, and other civilizational aspects. Some children developed innovative skits reflecting great personalities from India and the U.S. Some presented their training in Indian martial arts, Yoga, and other team activities. Some locations had game stalls and information stalls on various cultural and philosophical aspects. All these events were organized by local HSS centers and planned and coordinated by teenage children and their families. In some places, HSS collaborated with the local townships to involve the school district.

Teachers and attendees were impressed by students’ level of involvement in all age groups and how they respected their teachers. Some teachers especially enjoyed the Hindu way of performing aarti with kumkum on the forehead, offering flowers, and offering sweets, followed by bowing down in front of the teacher. School teachers especially appreciated this event. They acknowledged their passion and hard work and how this event introduced them to Hindu culture and its all-inclusive philosophy.

During their presentations or acting as event emcees, students liberally showered praise on their teachers by sharing how they learned math, English, dance, or something else and how teachers made them confident and independent thinkers.

Parents enjoyed the event and appreciated it, as it helped their children to participate, made them think about the importance of the Guru in their lives, and became an opportunity to interact with teachers and school representatives.

Following are some of the comments received by the attendees:

“I feel humbled by the love and respect shown by the Hindu community towards us. It’s heartwarming to see such appreciation and recognition for our work. I got to learn so much about Hindu Culture today,” – A school teacher from Wilton, CT.

“People are very involved in honoring our teachers, which I think is a fantastic endeavor,” – New Buffalo Grove Village, IL, President Eric Smith.

“It is important for the students to connect the modern subjects with the knowledge from their own culture. It leads to personalized learning for the students. I have taken pictures to reference back to them later.” – A social sciences teacher from the 6th grade from a Boston, MA, area school.

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Hindu Swayamsevak Sangh (HSS) concluded the 16th annual Health for Humanity Yogathon, also known as Surya Namaskar Yajna (SNY), on January 29th. Surya Namaskar integrates simple Yoga postures in 10 steps that, along with easy breathing techniques, can provide immense health benefits to the body and the mind. It was first launched in 2007 to create awareness about Yoga and its advantages in fostering a healthy body, mind, and spirit for any practitioner regardless of age, faith, gender, or ethnicity. The event is free to the public from all walks of life.

In this year’s Yogathon, 13,392 enthusiasts from 39 states, actively performed Surya Namaskar sets throughout the two-week duration of the program. This includes over 4,475 students and teachers from various schools who learned the steps and participated. Many participants acknowledged its benefits in attaining physical and emotional balance and committed to continuing this activity regularly. A highlight from the program was that the African American community performed Surya Namaskars at the Martin Luther King Day celebrations in the Dallas, TX, area.

Several elected officials, including US senators, Governors, State representatives, and Mayors, issued proclamations to recognize the Yogathon and encouraged their constituents to participate in this valuable health awareness program.

Appreciating the Yogathon in the Sully School District in Virginia, Fairfax County Supervisor Kathy Smith said, “This was a great community event, and I appreciated being a part of it. The presenters provided valuable information for the families, and I loved the focus on children being physically and mentally healthy.”

“It was a pleasure attending the Surya Namaskar Yajna. Most importantly, I personally benefited by performing Surya Namaskar, as it relieved my longstanding lower back pain. It was heartwarming to see the enthusiasm of youngsters and their parents alike. The overall positive energy in the room was palpable. There was an active exchange of information and ideas with local county government officials and staff from the Fire Station”, said Dr. Krishna Madiraju, President of Century Pediatrics Inc., VA.

Reflecting on the Yogathon, national project coordinator, Dr. Amit Chimanpure, said, “During the pandemic times, we as a community realized the need of mental, physical well-being, and caring for people around us. Through SNY, countless volunteers were able to reach families, community groups, and schools across the country, promoting a healthy lifestyle.”

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ROCKAWAY, NJ, USA, January 17, 2023 /– On January 16th, 2023, ‘Hindu Swayamsevak Sangh, USA, (HSS) Youths’ received the ‘2023 Service Above Self MLK Youth Leadership Award’ from Aurora (IL) Mayor Richard Irvin. This award was given to youth groups and youth leaders for their Community Service and efforts in promoting ‘Diversity-Equity-Inclusion’ (DEI). HSS Youth received this award for their food drives, highway cleanup, cultural education and, honoring of school teachers & first responders, and other service activities in 2022.

Since its inception in 1989, HSS has focused on inculcating its members to practice universal values of Hinduism, such as humanity, equality, inclusivity, and serving the needy in the society they belong to. Over the years, HSS, through its local chapters and members, has worked for society by conducting food drives, cleanup projects, health awareness events, tutoring, and helping people during the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic and subsequently with government authorities to conduct successful vaccination drives.

HSS youths that received the award observed that the award was only an acknowledgment of being part of the society and that, just like MLK said, “We may have all come on different ships, but we’re in the same boat now,” and that serving society was more fulfilling than the award itself.

HSS volunteers at Roseville & Rocklin, California, celebrated MLK day with the local community and community leaders. They also helped the event organizers in the setup and cleanup. The youth chanted Hindu prayers for “peace for all and unity”, which were appreciated by the participants.

The Lewisville community in North Texas celebrated the 30th annual Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day. This year the theme was “Living the Dream: It Takes a Team.” Hindu Education Foundation (HEF), a project of HSS, continued the partnership with the MLK committee of North Texas to co-sponsor and co-host the event this year in collaboration with the local school district. The event was attended by elected officials from 3 neighboring towns and the school district superintendent. This civic event is planned as a non-political inter-Faith event to celebrate the ideals of Dr. King, such as eliminating all forms of prejudice, equality of races, equality of gender, sustainable development, and international peace.

HSS Dallas team partnered with African American museum in a Realizing the Dream – Healthy Expo. The HSS volunteers conducted a few sessions of Yoga and SNY, explaining the simple breathing techniques, their benefits, and how they can be practiced. Many people attended and gave very positive feedback.

HSS member and volunteer Mr. J. R. Sandadi was invited by the Indiana Christian Leadership Conference (ICLC) to represent the Hindu community for the 54th MLK Day celebration service at St. John’s Missionary Baptist Church, Indianapolis, Indiana. Mr. Sandadi, expressing his gratitude for Martin Luther King Jr., spoke on this occasion and offered a Hindu prayer of peace and unity for all. Sharing his experience, Mr. Sandadi quoted MLK, “Faith is taking the first step even when you don’t see the whole staircase.” He further said, “MLK’s inspiration is not limited to a day, but is experienced all the time while serving the society.”

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