Aum Namah Sivaya! Something fun for the last day of our 5-day lunar phase. And as they say, another day, another step forward in AI, and while for most of the world this technology is evolving too fast to keep track of (us not excluded), the monks at Kauai Aadheenam are still trying to keep up with the new developments—knowing that machine learning will play a common role in all of our futures. First chat bots, then photo generation (like the one of this robot composing music) and then video and music. All digital arenas seem to be an area that ai can reach into. Our monks recently found this ..read more

A devotee took a number of portrait-mode clips during the two days of first anniversary festival events, and we have compiled them here. The monthly morning Krittika Homa happened to fall on the first day of the anniversary pujas, so clips of that are shown first. The first evening of the Samvatsara Puja is when Kauai faced torrential rains and floods, so that is captured in some of the clips ..read more

Several teams of workers are busy at the monastery, laying water lines, tiling the temple pool, trimming giant palm trees, tending the gardens, moving mountains of soil, and more. So today we offer a buffet of images to give you an idea of what's happening ..read more

Satguru Bodhinatha Veylanswami gives his weekly upadesha in Kadavul Temple at Kauai’s Hindu Monastery in Hawaii. It is part of a series of talks elaborating on the inspired teachings of Satguru Śivaya Subramuniyaswami as found in his book Merging With Śiva. “The next time the same experiential pattern appears, we approach it from a mountaintop consciousness, because we have conquered those instinctive elements. Our intellect has been trained by family and friends, schoolteachers and business acquaintances. We have to build a new intellect, an intellect from the soul out into the intellectual ..read more

On the day of sankalpam preparations for the April 12 Samvatsara Abhishekam (one year anniversary of the opening of Iraivan Temple) Siva showed His tangible presence by offering the island His own abishekam in the form of a massive rainstorm, a tropical downpour that brought 14 inches of rain to the monastery in 12 hours! We have rain guage records back decades, and even back to 2017 and 2010 we only once in 40 years of record keeping went beyond 10 inches in a day. So this was memorable. Then, showing the soft side of His grace, Siva flooded the island with sunshine on the following day, all ..read more

The first annual anniversary of Iraivan Temple’s consecration has arrived. Events take place on April 11th afternoon and April 12th morning. Besides footage that will be posted after the fact, we’ve set up a temporary album where footage will be posted live, as it happens. Feel free to regularly check the link below over these two days if you’d like a semi-live experience. (Footage from this month’s Krittika Homa on April 11th morning is also posted in this album.) Iraivan Temple Samvatsara Puja 2024 ..read more

Today we took a walk along the six-pointed start path that defines the Shadkonam (six points) Desert Garden at the monastery. It was built in the Northwest corner of Iraivan Temple, following vastu science (See slide #2). It is a rare creature on Kauai, where there is so much rain that most desert plants don't tolerate. But over the years we have found which ones will endure 100 inches or more of rain, and we know that of 10 we plant one will survive. But if you plant 300, then you have 30 survivors. So these are the brave ones. The resiliant ones. And many happen to be beautiful as well, as ..read more

Preparations have been in full swing for Iraivan Temple's first anniversary pujas on April 11-12. From husking coconuts for kumbhas, to securing tents, to installing sitting platforms, a temporary homa kunda and hanging tombai decorations, these photos show a small portion of the details involved to get ready ..read more

Jai Ganesha! Today Kodishwara arrived on Kauai after many hours travel from Malaysia. He had spend a full 6 months here on our taskforce program in 2016, so he knows the monastery well. Despite the long flight, he was full of energy once at the Aadheenam again. Kodishwara is already under the formal pledge of an aspirant and is here to pursue monastic life. “In enjoyment, there is the fear of disease; in social position, the fear of losing face; in wealth, the fear of government; in honor, the fear of humiliation; in power, the fear of enemies; in beauty, the fear of old age; in scriptural er ..read more

It is said the greatest offering to God Siva is our love and gratitude, both of which are embedded in the traditional Bharatanatyam dance, offered for thousands of years in Hindu temples (with about 90 years hiatus when the British colonials banned it). Kadavul Temple and devotees were blessed to have such an offering, performed by Fenulla Jiwani during the alankara. She shopped at the Kapaa Farmers' Market the following day and prepared an Italian pasta dish and fresh salad for the monks. One of the unique features of her dance is this: the last time she performed it in public was 23 years ..read more