GEETHA PATIL
CHICAGO: It was a twin celebration of Sita / Janaki Janma Utsav and the Mothers’ Day at the Hindu Mandir of Lake County, Grayslake, a Chicago suburb May 12, 2019 in the presence hundreds of devotees from not only from this suburb but also from neighboring areas.
Besides celebrating all Hindu festivals according to Vedic scriptures, the Mandir management also makes sure to involve the second generation Indian Americans in the festivities in an attempt to imbibe them with Indian culture, traditions, religious beliefs and philosophy.
The Sita Janmostrav had the usual rituals but Mothers’ Day was celebrated in the traditional way of respecting and honoring mothers and grandmothers by second generation youth and children.
Temple priests Ganesh and Yogesh Pandey performed Sankalpam and chanting of Vedic Mantra along with participating in the Abhishekam of Sita Ma, the daughter of Janaka, the king of Mithila. Their chanting of Vedic Mantras created a divine atmosphere in the temple. The entry of female babies in the form of Sita Ma into the shrine was welcomed by the temple priests led by Anil Joshi.
Joshi gave a thought-provoking discourse on the significance of Sita Navami saying that even the universe as well as the Trinity of Gods – Brahma (the creator), Vishnu (the preserver), and Shiva (the destroyer) – are incomplete and cannot work without the female power of their consorts, namely Saraswati (the goddess of wisdom), Lakshmi (the goddess of good fortune), and Parvati (the goddess of strength).
Joshi also observed that every man’s life is also incomplete without mother, sister, wife, and daughter and one cannot succeed in life without their best support and blessings. Before Sringar Darshan and Arati were performed, melodious bhajans were sung by Rita Patel, Atul Soni, and Kamlesh Desai.
This was followed by the Mothers’ Day celebrations in a typical Hindu way with all the Vedic rituals. In the first round, the grandmothers present were honored in unique fashion that involved washing and wiping of their feet. They were also offered flowers, tilaks, blessed chunni, gifts, and Pranam salutations at their feet by the young children. In the second round, all the mothers were also venerated in the same way by the children.
At the end, Joshi Ji thanked and blessed all the children, grandparents and parents and all other devotees for their active participation, successful life and making the event a grand success. He also thanked all the sponsors and volunteers for their support and time and admired their efforts. All the devotees were served Maha Prasadam prepared by Neelkanth Anand and his team.
