Dear *|FNAME|*,
Happy belated Holi/Phagwah to all who celebrated! The last few weeks have been quite eventful for Sadhana:
- On Friday, March 26th, Sadhana co-founder Aminta Kilawan Narine was honored as a Woman of Distinction by New York State Assembly Member Alicia Hyndman! Congrats Aminta, we're so proud of you!
- On March 27th, we hosted a community dialogue with Rutgers University Professor Audrey Truschke and Sadhana board member Gautham Reddy about teaching Hinduism and Hindu students in American university settings. If you missed it, check out the recording:
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- On March 31st, Sadhana co-founder Aminta Kilawan-Narine, Sadhana's Pandita-in-Residence Pratima Doobay, and former Sadhana NYC Co-Chair Anusuya Singh spoke at a virtual Phagwah celebration hosted by our friends at the Caribbean Equality Project! Watch a recording here.
- On April 4th, we had our first meeting of our Hindu Liberation Theology Reading Group, facilitated by Sadhana board members Gautham Reddy and Nikhil Mandalaparthy. We read Miguel De La Torre's introduction to The Hope of Liberation in World Religions, alongside an abhang by Chokhamela, a vachana by Akka Mahadevi, and a quote from the Brihadaranyaka Upanishad.
- On April 5th, Sadhana board member Hari Venkatachalam was a speaker at the Poor People's Campaign's Moral Monday gathering. Watch a recording here.
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We are also excited to introduce Sadhana's newest board member: Esha Khurana!
Esha Khurana, MD MPH, is a first generation Indian-American and physician in mental and physical health who is deeply interested in bringing together Eastern and Western perspectives to reimagine healing and public health. She is especially interested in issues of global health, intergenerational trauma and post-traumatic resilience as it affects refugee, immigrant and other underserved communities. She views narrative arts, social justice, spirituality and community-building as essential to that process. In her spare time, she enjoys reading, writing poetry, watching movies and spending time with friends, family and cats that seem to find her wherever she may go.
Lastly, thank you to everyone who has been contributing to our Decade of Sadhana giving campaign! We need your support -- any amount helps!
Pranams,
Sadhana Board: Davanie, Esha, Gautham, Hari, Helen, Nikhil, Samir, Sunita, and Tahil
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Sadhana Salon: Hunger Strikes, Fasting, and Social Justice
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Dear Members and Friends of Sadhana NYC: Please join us at 8pm EDT on Thursday, April 8th for conversation and connection via Zoom. This week, Purbita Saha, a volunteer with the Abolish ICE NY-NJ coalition, will tell us about her work and interest in hunger strikes as a means to bring about social justice.
Hunger strikes have been a powerful and essential tool of non-violent protest over the past century. From Gandhi's dozen-and-a-half fasts during the Indian freedom struggle, to Indo-Caribbean workers' modern fight for economic justice, this physically grueling act has been wielded in many ways for a range of causes. But how does that resistance compare to deprivation for holy events such as Shiva Ratri and Ekadasi?
At this month's salon, we will converse about the different motivations for fasting and why it continues to resonate with religious observers and freedom fighters around the world. Please bring stories, questions, and an open mind in preparation. You can also read the demands of past and current hunger strikers to get an idea of what their movements have entailed.
Bring a drink or snack and join in our discussion and meet fellow Sadhana members and friends.
You can join the Zoom Meeting using this link.
Meeting ID: 883 5721 0398
Passcode: 985959
- Purbita, Vibhusha, and Helen
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Sadhana board member Hari Venkatachalam will be speaking on this panel taking place Thursday, April 8th, from 7:00 PM – 8:30 PM EDT.
Organized by the Interreligious Eco-Justice Network, the Hartford Seminary, and CT Interfaith Power & Light, this panel will examine the response of faith communities to the climate crisis from the Muslim, Hindu, Jewish, and Christian perspectives. Speakers include:
- Reverend Jim Antal, Special Advisor on Climate Justice to the General Minister and President of the United Church of Christ
- Sofia Gilani, Climate Change Advocate, Green Muslims
- Rabbi Warren Stone, Founding Chair, Central Conference of American Rabbis' Committee on the Environment
- Hari Venkatachalam, Board Member, Sadhana: Coalition of Progressive Hindus
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Thank you to all the families who have joined our newest Sadhana initiative: Sadhana Samudaya, our online progressive Hindu children's classes for children aged 6 to 12! We've had several classes so far in 2021, on Saturday mornings every other week.
So far, we've planted seeds to honor Bhumi Devi, celebrated Vasant Panchami by sharing about our favorite books, learned about Holi with Columbia University's Hindu Students Organization, and more!
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If you're interested in signing your kids up for our Sadhana Samudaya classes, please write to us at info@sadhana.org.
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We share this powerful reflection from Dr. Anantanand Rambachan, Sadhana Advisory Board Member and Professor of Religion at St. Olaf College, MN.
Dr. Rambachan shares, "It saddens and disturbs me deeply whenever I see some of the responses of Hindu organizations and individuals to Dalits who voice criticism of the tradition and its practitioners. One immediate response is to accuse Dalits of Hindu-hate and of failure to understand that caste oppression is not intrinsic to Hinduism."
He goes on to say, "Hindus need to humbly receive the criticisms of those who experience the tradition as denying their humanity and to hear and to acknowledge the deep pain from which such criticism emerges. We must cease underplaying or explaining away the witness of those who describe their experiences of powerlessness and lack of freedom."
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Looking for Social Media + Communications Volunteers!
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We're looking for tech-savvy, creative, and motivated volunteers to help maintain Sadhana's social media channels (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram), our email newsletter, and our website! Are you interested in communications, and passionate about Sadhana's work? Can you commit 1-2 hours a week? If so, write to us at info@sadhana.org!
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Since 2011, Sadhana has been building a progressive Hindu movement centered in social justice through community transformation, advocacy, and seva (selfless service).
We have been recognized by the White House for our environmental justice work; featured in outlets like the New York Times for helping to establish the nation’s first sanctuary temple; and are often still the only Hindu voices in progressive interfaith movements like the Poor People’s Campaign.
In 2020, we stepped up this work in light of the Covid-19 pandemic. We mobilized Hindu leaders and temples in New York City to increase participation in the 2020 Census. We are the only Hindu organization represented on NYC Mayor DeBlasio’s Faith Sector Covid-19 Task Force. We have joined coalitions to provide hot meals, free groceries, and more to community members in Queens, NYC. And we’ve been reaching broad audiences nationwide through our virtual Satsanghs, covering issues from mental health to anti-Blackness.
As we enter our tenth year, we hope to transition from being a fully volunteer-led organization to hiring our first Executive Director, who will help us take this work to the next level.
However, we can’t do this work without your help. With your support, we hope to raise $51,000 by our ten-year anniversary in October 2021.
We hope that 2021 will be a year of tremendous growth and energy for our progressive Hindu movement. If our mission, vision, and values are meaningful to you, please consider making a donation of any amount to Sadhana today.
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You can also donate a portion of your online shopping purchases to Sadhana through Amazon Smile.
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