August 1st

Day 9: Poornima Day

My name is Anvitha Voruganti, and I was a participant in the 2023 Giggling Geckos Summer Camp. I am 16 years old and I am from Los Angeles, California.

Introduction

Birthdays are special occasions that we all look forward to, filled with joy, surprises, and celebrations. With Baba and Gurugaru’s blessings, I was able to celebrate my birthday in a unique and meaningful way, which was an unforgettable experience. In anticipation of my birthday, I couldn't help but feel a sense of excitement. All the Geckos surrounded me as the clock struck midnight, giving me hugs and kisses. I felt so fortunate for the bond we have with each other. I could not have had a happier start to this day.

Abhishekam

We woke up around 5:10 am and as we stepped out of Babuji Hall and looked out into the street, we saw so many people doing giripradakshina. There were people everywhere. Sai namam had already started at the mandir and we could see Baba's side profile from the stairs leading down from Babuji Hall. It was beautiful to see Baba through the window and the butterflies that were decorated around him. We all quickly took a bath and went to the mandir. I had brought almonds from home that I gave to Manmohan uncle to give as prasadam. I was so fortunate to have the opportunity to give abhishekam with Anshu Akka (elder sister) on the day of my sixteenth birthday, and this on full moon (poornima)!

Since it was poornima and there were crowds of people, there were railings set up inside the mandir, and we were not able to touch Baba's feet and do namaskaram to the pictures behind baba. However, since we were giving abhishekam, we were able to touch Baba's statue and do namaskaram. It was such a surreal experience giving bath to baba. The experience of being able to feel so close to baba and think about everything that he has done for me while bathing him is something that I am never going to forget. There was a book stand at the mandir and Sweety Akka and Jahu Akka have been wanting to buy the Saipatham 2023 diary to journal in and were able to get it on Poornima day. 

Painting at GTR

After our time at the mandir, we all gathered at GTR (a building in Haritachala with rooms for gurubandhus to stay in) to drink some blue tea and continue to work on the paintings on the wall. Anshu Akka and I were able to serve breakfast every morning. Today, when we went to the kitchen, Ammamma was there, and I was so blessed to be able to spend time with her. Talking to Ammamma while helping with breakfast was such a delightful experience. Ammamma told me I had a nice smile, and I couldn't stop smiling for the rest of the day. The aunties in the kitchen made us such a tasty breakfast which was thotakura vadalu. We all loved the delicious food made by Ammamma and aunties.

After breakfast, we finished up the paintings. Sruti Akka greeted me with a warm hug and gave me her phone to call Amma and Nana for a little while. We all went to the kitchen for lunch and had the most delicious food. We ate sambar rice, boondie, badusha and chekkalu. Sruti Akka was so generous and made sure that there was badusha and pappu chekkalu for my birthday since they were my favourites. We all ate food and spent some time in the kitchen. Uday Anna took pictures of us all gathered and having fun. The girls were giving me hugs and kisses and making me feel so special. The aunties and uncles made me feel so at home even if my parents were not with me on my birthday. They kept feeding me, checking up on me and making sure that my birthday was going well. Even though there were a lot of errands and things to do on poornima, Sruti Akka and Ammamma made sure that I had everything and was enjoying my birthday. I am forever grateful to all the aunties, uncles, geckos, Sruti akka and Ammamma for making sure that I had the best birthday.

Meeting Gurubandhus

Later, we could talk to the gurubandhus (the full moon volunteers) who would come to Haritachala on every poornima. The gurubandhus told us their stories and how they came to satsang. They are so devoted to Baba and Guruji, coming to Haritachala from far away. Each one of the gurubandhus had such unique experiences. Some of the gurubandhus helped with some of the constructions at Hartichala. They were able to be so transparent with their experiences and we learned so much about how Baba and Guruji can really help all of us become a better version of ourselves. We all then were able to share our own experiences at camp with the gurubandhus.

Playing Games

After a day filled with spiritual and communal experiences, we all played a game of Kho Kho with the camp's aunties and uncles. Playing with everyone is always so much fun because it reminds us of our childhood when we just played games all the time. Playing Kho Kho is also such a delightful way to unwind and bond with everyone.

Night of Poornima 

After we all freshened up, we had dinner, which was delicious biryani, while talking about our giripradakshina plans for later in the day. After going to the mandir for arati, we spent some time with Manmohan uncle where he shared some really interesting things. He showed us the Haritachala nursery, which is open all night on full moons, and how lively the mandir is. He shared how he uses giripradakshina as a way of self-reflection. He explained that he thought about how he could be a better person and the awareness about Baba and Guruji watching our thoughts.

Following this conversation, we all gathered in the kitchen, where Sruti Akka shared an audio clip of Guruji’s satsang about giripradakshina.

We learned how important it is to the people here and how the energy is different during full moon, so it is a good time to do giripradakshina. Akka explained to us how eclipses and full moons affects people in general. However, it affects people more intensely who are mentally unstable. We then had our Gratitude Circle, where I was able to express my gratitude to everyone at the camp for making sure I had the best birthday.

Giripradakshina

Around 10:30 pm, we were off to do giripradakshina. This was a surreal experience. As we were doing pradakshina, we were always aware that we were not going for a walk, we just kept our mind on Arunachala. It was nice to understand that we were moving in a crowd of people who were also filled with love for Arunachala. Usually, we would all be so drained and tired to walk 14 km. However, the energy and flow of the devotees walking with us kept us energized and inspired us to focus on self-reflection. We were able to keep our minds on Baba and Guruji for so long. The uncles bought us multiple coffees, so we were energized enough to keep walking.

Holding on to the girls’ hands while quietly doing namam with each other was such a surreal feeling. The crowd was large, so we held up water bottles to signal our location to others. The moon's light towards the mountain was such a beautiful sight that I was so grateful to experience it. Celebrating my birthday at camp was a remarkable experience. It was a day filled with spiritual growth and community. It was a birthday I will treasure forever, and I am so grateful that I had this experience in Haritachala.