Dear Sadharmik brothers and sisters,
Jai Jinendra!

The Jain Center of Minnesota has sponsored a virtual ‘Interfaith Peace Symposium’ on Saturday, September 19, 2020, during the Virtual 10 Days Conference by Twin Cities Nonviolent (from Sep 18-27). Speakers from various religions will talk on topics like non-violence, peace, etc. JAINA Interfaith Committee Chair, Dr. Mukesh Doshi, will deliver his speech as a Jainism representative. The entire 10-day event is free for everyone, with registration. Please register for the event at the link given below.

Regarding the JAINA Sadharmik Bhakti Committee to help the needy and the poor Jain families in India as explained in our previous newsletter please note that the donations we receive will be sent through the following reputable NGO's with proper FCRA documentation.

• Samkit Charitable Trust.
• Samast Mahajan Aadi Jin Yuva Mandal
• Vardhman Parivar and Vardhman Sanskar Dham

Many Sadharmik brothers in India need help. Please click on Sadharmik Bhakti Fund Button below to donate.

Parmagam Honours is accepting the admission for the Practical Jainism course 2021 batch. The 5-year program offers basic to scholar level concepts in English, Hindi, Gujarati, Marathi, and Tamil. Registration and other details are mentioned below.

On September 5, 2020, the Jain Society of Metropolitan Washington achieved the major milestone by signing the Construction Contract for the new Jain Center building.

JSMW also organized the Biggest Weight Loser Challenge during the pandemic, that helped the Jain and non-Jain community to get healthy and have a better lifestyle. 21 participants registered for a 6-week program. Read more about their Jain center building construction project and weight loss challenge below.

Jain Society of Alberta had kept 16 Swapanas and Palna open for darshan during Das Lakshana with safety precautions. They will recognize Paryushan 2020 Tapasvis on September 19. Read more about it below.

Read part 2 of King Bharat & King Bahubali’s story where we will learn about the reason behind a gigantic statue of Bahubali in Shravanbelgola, India.

Attend special Shanka Samadhan Webinar for NRIs by Muni Shri Pramansagar Ji Maharaj on Thursday, September 24, 2020. In this program, unique problems faced by sadharmis, NRIs will be addressed by Muni Shri. More details are mentioned below.

Join the once-a-year Sadhana of Mahaprabhavak Uvasaggahar Stotra with Shree Namramuni Maharaj Saheb from September 25th to 27th. Details given below.

Sincerely,

Mahesh Wadher
JAINA President

Twin Cities Nonviolent (TCNV) brings Virtual 10 Days free from Violence 2020 from September 18-27, 2020.

The Jain Center of Minnesota has sponsored a virtual ‘Interfaith Peace Symposium’ on, Saturday, September 19, 2020, from 7 PM to 8.30 PM. Details are here.

Topics: Nonviolence, Forgiveness, and Compassion in all faiths of the world.

Listen to the speakers from various religions such as Baha'i, Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism, Islam, Jainism, Judaism, Native Americans, Sikhism, and Zoroastrian.

Dr. Mukesh Doshi, Chair of the JAINA Interfaith Committee will represent Jainism. More details on the speakers.

The event is free for everyone, but registration is required. Once registered, you can use the same link to attend all the programs for 10 Days (September 18-27). Please register at www.twincitiesnonviolent.org.

Please contact Ram Gada at 612-961-1647 for any questions.

For more details on the Virtual 10 Days Conference, visit here.

We hope all of you had uplifting Aradhana during the Paryushan and Das Lakshana and are in good shata. As all of you are aware, COVID-19 has caused devastating effects all over the world. With this message, we are reaching out to you for desperately needed help for certain Sadharmik families in India, who are experiencing unfortunate financial conditions made worse by COVID-19. Many mid and low-income Jain families are going through severe hardships, but many are too proud to ask for help. Such circumstances have caused extenuating situations such as a 75-year-old shravika taking care of her 52-year-old mentally-disabled son while accepting cooking jobs at three different homes; Pathshala teachers going 5 months without salaries; a 68-year-old shravak working as a night watchman to support his household with two grandchildren and a daughter-in-law because his 30-year-old son passed away; a prestigious shop owner, who once was a Sanghpathi and viewed as well off, not being able to afford a bag of groceries. There have even been reported cases of suicide. Hearing these heart-wrenching stories underscore the hardships these families are going through.

We would like to raise $250,000 for this cause that will allow us to deliver Rs 5,000 to one thousand needy families for 4 months.

JAINA is regularly receiving appeals for help and has formed a Sadharmik Bhakti Committee under the leadership of Dr. Jayesh Shah, President of Jain Center of Southern California. The need for funds is urgent. Initially, JAINA will work with Samkit Jain Charitable Trust in Mumbai and Samast Mahajan Trust, which are providing financial support to families every month. The Sadharmik Bhakti Committee is hoping to raise as many funds as it can this year to support many underprivileged families in India and is looking forward to your generous donation. Our goal is to raise $250,000 for this cause that will allow us to deliver Rs 5,000 to one thousand needy families for 4 months.

The message of Paryushan and Das Lakshana serves as a reminder of our five basic Kartavyas (duties). Sadharmik Bhakti is one of them. It is not just our duty but is our responsibility to help our Sadharmic Jain families during this unprecedented and difficult time. We urge every one of you to donate generously for this noble cause.

If you wish to volunteer for the Sadharmik Bhakti Committee, please write to Dr. Jayesh Shah at jayeshshahmd@gmail.com.

Must Listen
Message from Respected Acharya Uday Vallabh Suri Maharaj Saheb.

Listen: Message from Acharya Uday Vallabhji (mp3)

Jain Society of Metropolitan Washington

Jain Society of Metropolitan Washington (JSMW) has achieved the major milestone of signing the Construction Contract for the new Jain Center building with DD&B Company, it was signed on September 5th, 2020 at our current temple by President, Sharad Doshi, BOT Chair Designee, Dr. Gita Shah and Temple Committee Chair, Arvind Shah with the blessings/Manglik from Param Pujya Acharya Shri Chandrajitsuri Vijayji Maharaj Saheb and Param Pujya Panyas Shri Indrajit Vijayji Maharaj Saheb.

Also, for the first time, “Today's Girl Today's Woman” hosted JSMW's Biggest Weight Loser Challenge. It was a 6-week challenge starting from July 12 to August 29. A total of 21 participants registered for the program, which included the weekly sessions on Saturday with experts in health such as Dietician, Physician. The challenges had different sessions such as Bollywood Zumba, weights & resistance, Yoga, Bhangra Zumba to introduce different exercise options for our challengers. At the end of the challenge, there were four winners, two females and two males for the biggest loss of pounds and the biggest loser of inches. The program was successful as the participants enjoyed the challenges and wanted us to start another challenge program soon.

Total LBS lost in 6 weeks: 130.9
Total inches lost in 6 weeks: 123.5

Jain Society of Alberta

Jain Society of Alberta had kept 16 Swapanas and Palna open for darshan during Das Lakshana at 16 Garden Crescent Sherwood park with pre-appointment, following social distance and safety precautions

JSOA is recognizing all Tapasvis who did various Tap during the Paryushan 2020 on September 19. The center had 1 Maskhaman, 9 Atthai, 5 Upavas, and 3 people with 50 Ekasnas each.

However, Bahubali had not lost all of his pride and ego. He realized that if he went to his father and stated his intention of renouncing the world, he would be required to bow down and be subservient to his 98 younger brothers who were senior to him in monkhood. This was unacceptable to him. Instead, Bahubali decided to seek enlightenment on his own and started meditating on the very same spot upon which he stood. He became so immersed in his meditation that he lost track of time and could not remember how long he had stood there. He was motionless for so long that creepers began to grow around his feet.

With immense pleasure, we would like to bring to your kind attention that a ‘Special Shanka Samadhan Webinar’ by Muni Shri Pramansagar Ji Maharaj has been organized for NRIs.

Program Schedule

Date: Thursday, September 24, 2020
Time: 08:30 PM to 09:30 PM (EST) | 05:30 PM to 06:30 PM (PST)

In this program, unique problems faced by sadharmis, NRIs will be addressed. The types of questions being answered in this show are as follows

• Any question for understanding the necessity and role of dharma in life.
• Seeking guidance for moving on the path of dharma or seeking clarifications about Jain literature.
• Any Problem that is causing mental stress or agony due to job/business/personal insecurity or otherwise.
• Behavioral issues: family, friends, peer relationships, and ways to improve bonds amongst family members can also be put up.

For Registration:

Kindly register below in advance for this webinar here. After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing webinar information.

For sending queries:

Please send your info and questions/Shanka to Shefali Ajmera at +1 (516)-857-7528 or shefali@gunayatan.org by Wednesday, 23-09-2020, 6:00 pm (EST).

Muni Shri dealt with such issues in a simple and logical way that is based on the Jain philosophies. Click here to know more about Muni Shri.

It is better to win over the self than to win over a million enemies.