Spreading spirituality

In the pursuit of spiritual enlightenment, Hindu devotees had the opportunity to study under Swami Vishwachakradharananda over the past weekend.

Swami Vishwachakradharananda is a member of Bhakti Marga, a Hindu organisation dedicated to the upliftment of spirituality.

He was initiated into the organisation as a swami in 2011 in Stanger and has since then travelled across the world, spreading Hindu teachings of love and compassion.

“Irrespective of your religion or beliefs, God is one and His love shines on us all. We are all equal in God’s sight,” Swami Vishwachakradharananda said. By moving towards God, one could truly achieve inner peace, he thought.

During his two day stay, he hoped to bring Om Chanting, a group healing technique, to Newcastle.

“Om Chanting purifies the environment and brings balance to one’s life, as it creates unity between mankind and nature.”

He also focused on Gau Puja, which brought about prosperity in both the spiritual and material realms.

“Gua Puja brings about blessings and wards off evil.”

Gua Puja further signified the importance of cows in the Hindu belief system, as all of the products supplied by cows could be used in every day life. “Even the urine and faeces can be used for medicinal purposes,” the swami said.

As cows gave so unselfishly, the Gua Puja represented how people should live.

People’s prayers were said to be answered during Gua Puja as cows were closely linked to the deities worshipped in the Hindu culture.

The two-day event started Saturday evening, February 20, at Paradise Hindu Temple and revolved specifically on Om Chanting.

The religious workshop ended on Sunday morning at the Shankara Gaushala where devotees participated in a Ganga Aarthi, Gau Puja and Om Chanting.

Swami Vishwachakradharananda emphasised the event was important to highlight spirituality.

“People often feel spirituality is only for older people. Another misconception is that if you choose to be more spiritual, you have to get rid of all your material objects, but this is not the case as God blesses you with these objects if you worship him accordingly.”

Leaving devotees feeling more at ease with their faith and feeling closer to God, Swami Vishwachakradharananda encouraged them to not feel dejected if they did not understand everything.

“There are so many mystical things in the world, and not all of them can be grasped by the human mind,” he concluded.