OUR PATASHALA
SRI BHARATI TIRTHA VEDA PATASHALA
Our Patashala is honored to be blessed by the Shankaracharyas of Sringeri: Jagadguru Pujya Sri Mahasannidhanam and Jagadguru Pujya Sri Sannidhanam who also gave us the name for the patashala. Housed in the serene town of Sengottai, attached to the Sringeri Sharadamba temple complex, our patashala teaches Krishna and Shukla yajur veda in the traditional gurukulam style. Vidyartis are offered free shelter, food and education for the entire tenure of their stay. To support the vidyartis’ education visit the support us page.
1) Our vidyaartis hail from the north and south of India. We have a total of 14 energetic, enthusiastic and wonderful vidyaartis, 6 from Bihar and 8 from Tamil Nadu.
2) We plan to have only few vidyaartis (less than 25) so that we can give them the individual attention they deserve
3) Our Krishna Yajur Veda ganapaatigal, Sri Raghavan, is a well accomplished scholar who has passed the kal vaitha varam exams 5 times. He also has teaching experience. His profile can be found in the people’s page.
4) Our Shukla Yajur Veda ganapaatigal, Sri. Rohit Kulkarni, was a student at aathur vedashrama, near chennai. He also has a B.A in Samskritam from Madras Samskrit College. His profile can be found in the people’s page.
1) Our krishna yajur veda and shukla yajur veda acharyas provide excellent vedic training for the young learners.
2)In addition, our students will also learn subjects like mathematics, science, social science, samskritam, tamil, hindi and indian culture during the afternoon and on anadhyayana days (non- vedic learning days – about 8 days per month)
3) They will be provided training to attend 10th/12th standard exams under open syllabus (NIOS).
4) We also give emphasis for sports and physical training. Students do daily yoga, play outdoor sports and indoor games on a regular basis.
1) We have very committed staff members, most have whom have moved to Sengottai with their families to support the success of the patashala. Full list of members can be found in people page.
2)In addition we have a full-time cook and other kitchen staff who ensure that the students receive full nutritious meals at the appropriate times.
3) We have the full support of the local people of Sengottai, who volunteer during special events in the patashala.
1) We have been generously allowed to function in the building belonging to the the Sringeri Math. It spans 12000 sq.ft and has ample space for vidyaartis’ accommodation, classrooms, private kitchen, dining area as well as an office space.
2)Our patashala complex encloses Sharadamba temple, Sringeri Math, where the students do Vishnu sahasranama or Lalitha sahasranama parayanam every evening.
3) Patashala is located in the main agraharam (in amman kovil street) in Sengottai.
4)The serene town of Sengottai has good weather throughout the year and is a mere 5kms from the Kuttralam waterfalls.
In addition to vedic lessons, the students will also be taught the following subjects:
(1) Samskritam: Students have started taking spoken samskritam classes through samskrita bharati. We will shortly prepare them for exams (sarala pareeksha) through samskrita bharati. They will also eventually prepare for chittoor exams and prak siromani/B.A exams through Madras Sanskrit College
(2) English: With the help of Sri. Ganesh Ramachandran (former national training manager, VETA), we are putting together a unique english curriculum for the vedic scholars. Sri. Shrinivasan will commence classes based on this syllabus
(3) Indian culture education: Dr. Ram Narayanan from USA teaches culture course and Dr. Radha Ramachandran teaches Bhagavad Gita chanting through Skype every weekend evening.
(4) Tamil: Our caretakers Mr. Muthuswamy and Mrs. Rajalakshmi teach students spoken tamil and thirukkural.
(5) Mathematics & Science: Local teachers from sengottai have volunteered to teach students mathematics and science on a regular basis.
(6) Hindi: We will also prepare students for hindi prachar sabha exams after they complete samskritam sarala pariksha.
(7) Computer application: We will create computer lab for the use of students in the next few years.
(8) Indian History: We will work on creating a curriculum highlighting the history of india.
Students will participate in certificate programs through other recognized institutions and receive degrees and diploma. Some examples are:
(i) Certificate and cash prize for Gita chanting from Sringeri Matha
(ii) Bala bharati and other exams through samskrita bharati
(iii) Prak siromani and B.A exams through Madras Samskrit College
(iv) Chittoor samskritam exams
(v) Thirukkural chanting through Tamil Nadu Govt.
(vi) Hindi Prachar Sabha exams
(vii) Ujjaini vedic exams
(i) To engage with the wider audience we plan to introduce a 2-year residential immersion course in vedas for eligible boys, which will teach them vedic chanting and help internalize nithya karmanushtana.
(ii) We plan to build a library and computer lab for the use of the patashala students
(iii) We also have plans to establish a Goshala in or near the patashala premises.
(iv) We will be bringing out quarterly newsletter to highlight the talents and achievements of our vidyartis.
(v) Our future goals are to expand our patashala to include all veda shakhas and establish shastra and vedanta patashala