Jai Vasavi Matha

Devotees of Vasavi Matha are one of the organized communities in India. Most of the places in Karnataka, Andhra, Telangana and Tamil Nadu have at least one Vasavi temple. The lives of people in many ways revolves around the temple activities. Temples provide for all the spiritual needs of Vasavites, organize all festivals, anna satrams (providing food for visitors), and have mechanisms to provide basic financial support through small loans to the business community etc., Vasavi Devotees are traditionally a community of business people who are charitable, spiritual and respectful, following the principles taught by our beloved Vasavi Matha, Dharmam (righteousness), Seelam (right character) and Ahimsa (nonviolence).

When the first-generation Vasavi Matha devotees came to the United States, they felt a disconnect between the lives they were building and the values that they had grown up with. The temples back in India had created a feeling of community that needed to be built in this new country. Our elder first generation of migrants did get together and build an organisation bringing together all Vasavi Devotees from Chicagoland along with devotees from the neighbouring states of Indiana and Wisconsin. In 1991, they took the opportunity of installing (prathishtapana) Vasavi Deity in the Balaji Temple of Aurora, Illinois. Since that time, the Vasavi Community comes together every 3rd Sunday of the month to the temple to offer their prayers with devotion. The 3rd Sunday abhishekam and Pooja, provides a great way of establishing a stronger connection between the community.

As the president of the Chicagoland Vasavi Association in 2024, I aim to continue the traditional activities and further strengthen the community. This year we shall also have satsangs and retreats with guidance from the knowledgeable gurus, to build wisdom and strengthen our people with a special emphasis on youth. We shall also continue to have business/entrepreneurship sessions as well as events to provide learning opportunities for the community that were started by the previous year’s president Ramesh Nayakantigaru.

I thank the Chicago Vasavi community for having given me this opportunity to serve.