Alayam Karunalayam

On Saturday, May 13 th, 2006, Chinmaya Mission DFW’s School of  Dance and Music presented a dance and music program aptly called alayam karunalayam (the supreme abode of compassion). This memorable tribute to the majestic temple of Sri Ranganathaswami located in Srirangam, India was made possible by the karuna and blessings of Pujya Gurudev, Pujya Guruji and the guidance and support of our acharya, Br. Uddhavji.

Six dance (Vidya Krishnan and Gowri Sankaran) and music (Natana Valiveti , Shubha Ramanan, Kalpana Raman and Prem Shah) teachers coordinated their efforts to synchronize over 50 children of different ages varying from 5 to 16 to create this musical dance program, a veritable feast for the eyes and ears. The script was researched and written by Viji Sridhar and the instrumental music was provided by visiting artists.

The program had 10 scenes, tracing the story of an ardent devotee – Sri Tirupan Alwar.

Considered a great poet and devotee in the Vaishnavaite tradition, Sri Tirupan, as in the past, touched the hearts of many in the audience that day. The soulful narration, the devoted dancers and the enthusiastic musicians transported the audience to Srirangam itself.

The uniqueness of this event was its style. Songs were rendered for the dancers by the children. The show lasted a little over 2 hours and started with the dancers depicting the life of Sri Tirupan Alwar and ended with his merging with the Lord of Srirangam. The musicians rendered soul stirring music in perfect ragam and talam for the dancers. The narration highlighted the history of the Srirangam temple, describing the majesty and significance of its 7 unique prakarams (enclosures) with 21 towers.

The program also highlighted the purpose of visiting a temple and offered suggestions on how to tune the body, mind, and intellect towards the supreme Divinity. All visits to a temple are to be taken seriously and treated as an opportunity to contemplate on the powerful messages each structure had to offer. The compassion of the Lord of Srirangam and his divine Consort are beyond human comprehension. True devotion and absolute surrender are the only means to attain salvation.

The program concluded with shanti path. The conclusion of the program left the spell bound audience elevated to the higher realms of divine bhakti. A few of the spectators who were natives of Srirangam said that they were filled with an intense longing to visit their Lord Ranganatha.

This program also exhibited the superb teamwork in a true yajna spirit of everyone involved: the tireless efforts of the teachers, the many hours spent by the parent volunteers, and last, but not least, the dedicated practice of the children In the words of Pujya Gurudev, “What you have is His gift to you; what you do with what you have is your gift to Him.” This effort of the Chinmaya School of Dance and Music was indeed an offering to the Almighty, showcasing the many talents given by Him in abundance to the participants.

Please visit our photo gallery for some glimpses of this event.

Categories: Past events