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Sivananda Balak Ashram - the Jewel of Bhuj
Swami Mudraroopa Saraswati
Great events, infused with divine blessings and bathed
in guru's grace, happen on rare occasions. It was my good luck to be blessed
with the opportunity to witness and be a part of one such event. This
was the Guru Poornima celebration which marked the inauguration of Sivananda
Balak Ashram in Bhuj, Gujarat. Sivananda Balak Ashram represents the materialization
of the sankalpa of Swami Sivananda to establish an ashram that will be
fully devoted to children, a place in which children will have an opportunity
to grow, develop and learn in the spiritual atmosphere of a traditional
ashram environment.
 Why
Bhuj? In January 2001, Bhuj, the capital of Kacch District, Gujarat, was
hit by a devastating earthquake that claimed 21,000 lives. In a few devastating
minutes, many more were left injured, without homes and dearest ones.
Thousands of children were among them. Their lives were suddenly and brutally
changed, shattered into pieces. They needed protection, care and guidance,
and above all love, which governments alone could not provide. Sivananda
Math, drawing inspiration and guidance from Swami Satyananda, came forward
to help the needy. It undertook the task of establishing a balak ashram,
a children's ashram, there - a ray of new hope, of new life for the distressed
children of Bhuj.
With divine blessings, and through the hard work of Gujarati masons and
everyone else involved, the Sivananda Balak Ashram was constructed in
just eight months. On the outskirts of the city, it is situated in a serene,
peaceful and natural environment, with only the lights of Bhuj twinkling
far away in the night. When I first entered the balak ashram, I experienced
an atmosphere of peace and joy. A constant breeze from the surrounding
hills takes care of the heat of the day, and the mosquitoes at night.
The nights are quiet and tranquil, as in Rikhia.
 There
are two ochre-coloured dormitory buildings which can house 100 children,
accompanied by a practical kitchen block with spacious dining rooms. A
big sadhana hall can accommodate 500 students in a yoga class. Closer
to the ashram gate is a tile-roofed reception-cum-office building, and
next to it is a smaller building for grown-up residents: caretakers, yoga
teachers, guests etc. A little apart, in a separate enclosure, is the
sparkling white Paramahamsa Jyoti, Paramahamsaji's and Swami Niranjan's
kutir, of intricate architecture, their home when they come to the balak
ashram. Over 2000 coconut, date, badam, mango, neem and other trees have
been planted all over the ashram compound.
Inaugurated during the Guru Poornima celebrations, Sivananda Balak Ashram
has 21 young residents, all boys, and others will soon follow. The youngest
child is in class 2, the eldest in class 10 and the majority are in classes
5-7. Some are parentless, some have been left with one parent only, and
some have parents who were disabled in the earthquake and therefore are
not able to look after them.
All the children's needs - from board, lodging and clothing, to educational
expenses and medical care - are provided by Sivananda Math. The boys are
being lovingly looked after by Jignasus Gyanshakti and Premananda. The
face of Gyanshakti is a mixture of joy, and sometimes stress, of a mother
with 21 children - and all of them boys! Sannyasi Arpanmurti has been
appointed as the resident yoga teacher.
 The
boys' dress code is red kurta (shirt) and white pants, so it was easy
to spot them during the Guru Poornima program - tiny red dots running
around in play, or getting together in a cluster only to move a little
later in a line towards the kitchen, or towards the sadhana hall to attend
the program.
Their day begins at 5 a.m. (the only time in the day when it is quiet
in their dormitory), some of them savouring the last minutes of night
rest in shashankasana before heading to the shower block. After bathing
and tidying their rooms, they attend a yoga class at 6 a.m., followed
by breakfast. Then they are provided with transportation to school. They
return hungry, so lunch is first, followed by study time, play and karma
yoga. After dinner at 6 p.m., they attend an evening program of kirtan,
bhajan and chanting.
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