Thaipusam 2010

THAIPUSAM is an annual Hindu festival which draws a large gathering in Singapore, and celebrated at Little India. Several hundred devotees spear their cheeks with long, shiny steel rods and pierce their chests and backs with small, hook-like needles in penance. Others, including young children, might join the procession carrying only milk pots. The crowd gathers at the Sri Srinivasa Perumal Temple in Serangoon Road before marching barefoot to the Sri Thendayuthapani Temple in Tank Road via a 4km stretch. The devotees consist mainly of Indians and a mix of other races. As part of Hinduism Society (HS) goal to contribute to the community, a huge number of volunteers from the HS of the National University of Singapore are assigned various tasks, mainly in route marshalling. The crowd builds up even before the midnight of Thaipusam, and most of the volunteers provide assistance by controlling the size of the devotees into the temple in order to avoid congestion and to maintain a sustainable flow. Meanwhile, other volunteers scout around the temple and attend to those who are not feeling well and also to provide information to tourists. As for this year, with the aid of policemen, volunteers were able to keep up with the size and pace of 9500 devotees throughout the day-long event!

The 27th Executive Committee

NUS HS held its recruitment drive in mid october.After rigorous interviewing and careful scrutization of all applications, we found this dynamic team who made it to the executive committee.So, presenting to you all, we welcome the

NUS HS 27th Executive Committee.

Lights & Lanterns

For the first time ever, Lantern Festival & Deepavali were celebrated together in . The event was held at the newly built YIH Plaza and was put together by NUS Office of Student Affairs, NUS Hindu Society, Graduate Society, Sikh Society and the Indian Cultural Society. This event's main co-ordinator was Tharsan from NUS HS and it was an honour to have been the first to organize an event in the newly built YIH Plaza. The event was the last official event for the 26th EXCO and we were glad we ended it with a BLASTing Success!

Our Success from our first-time-ever: Shravanam
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Shravanam, our Hinduism Appreciation/Awareness month marked another success, in our calendar of events. It is notable that it was our first time organizing Shravanam, packing it with activities every week..
It was well-received not only by Hindus but by non-Hindus as well.. I guess I should say we gave a new face/perspective to what is "believed to be Hinduism"..
These were the series of activities that were conducted, under the 'Shravanam' banner:
-(YOU Name It) YNI Workshop

-Exhibition@Library
-Face Upliftment of the HS Forum
-Temple tour for Exchange Students
-Yoga Workshop, Going back to Tradition

The Welcome Tea Session for all NUS Students

The Welcome Tea session of NUS Hindu Society for AY2009/10 was held on the 20th of August 2009.It was a fund filled evening and most of us enjoyed the evening .It was towards attracting the freshmen towards joining NUS HS.We had a very good response and many had turned up to learn more about us and our activities

Our Recent, Major SUCCESS Story..

Youth '4' Youth Camp III (2009)
The much-awaited Ultimate-Third Sequel of the Youth Camp held this June (22nd-24th), was a BLASTING Success!

It was NOT Your usual school camp and had many interesting, unique creative activities with many twists & spills, to keep the participants continuously engaged..

Some of the Programme Highlights
- Instant Documentary Creation
- The Ultimate Crime Game
- Amazing Race
- Pyramid Game
- Customized Board game
- Nightwalk + Night Trekking
- DragonBoating + Kayaking
- Many Surprises, such as Ice-Creams, Pizzas etc
- Cool Freebies, such as T-shirts, Prizes etc

All this & more were provided for participants at absolutely NO Cost to them!
Leadership, Life Optimizing Skills, Confidence-Building and many more were achieved out of the camp's agenda, which was designed(with Youths-in-mind) to empower Youths to achieve their Goals..

We were featured on Mediacorp Vasantham's Tamil News as well!

FUN & Learning had a Totally NEW Dimension..

-

   - HS Workplan Seminar
   - SMT Charity Foodstall
   - Theemithi Documentary Project
   - Deepavali's Mystery
   - IT workshops (Adobe Photoshop)
   - Chariot Procession, Temple + Heritage Tour
   - Infusion Bazaar
   - Thaipusam Volunteering, Festival Tour & Co-ordinator of Exhibition by HEB
   - Lit & Lead, a 2-Day Leadership Workshop
   - Bazaar Stall
   - Thaipusam SOP creation
   - HS Outing to Labrador Park
   - Panguni Uthiram Volunteering
   - Thirumurai Camp Facilitating
   - Organizer of Youth '4' Youth III Joint Camp
   - HS Forum Re-vamp
   - Welcome Tea
   - Shravanam
    (Exhibition at the Library, You-Name-It Workshop, Yoga Workshop, Release of Annual Publication Pranav)
   - Festival of Lights & Lantern
 

    Past Events  (by the 25th Executive Committee)
   (2007/2008):

   - Yatra- A Charity Production
    (30th of August 2008, University Cultural Centre)

     Held at the University Cultural Centre's hall, National University Of Singapore on the 30th August
     2008, Yatra was a Huge Success! It had attracted a crowd of more then 1500 people! This stage
     co-ordinated by HS & students of NUS, was a effort put together by students from the other
     Universities such as NTU, SMU, SIM, MDIS and polytechnics such as Ngee Ann Polytechnic,
     Singapore Polytechnic and JCs- Anderson Junior College, St.Andrew's Junior College & Millenia
     Institute.

     Yatra also marked the first time where a stage production of this scale was worked not by just
     one school but with students from the other tertiary institutions.

     We would like to THANK YOU for making this a Success !

   - Youth '4' Youth Camp II
    (7th - 9th June, Boy's Brigade Campus)

     A sequel to the highly successful camp organized last year! Back again, Upgraded & Upsized by
     the same team. An event jointly organized by Hindu Endowment Board, Hindu Centre, Sri
     Muneeswaran Temple & Sri Dharma Muneeswarar Temples' youth committees & NUS Hindu
     Society. An event which was all fun, Fun, FUN with leadership as the theme, was a HUGE
     Success!

   - Silver Jubilee Celebrations
    (30th of March, Bayview Hotel)

     
    This year marked HS's 25th Birthday and the birthday was celebrated in a grand manner with her
     founders, alumni, Temple Officials, supporters, youth committees & our sister committees (ICS &
     TLS). An evening of Thanksgiving, appreciation and bonds, also marked HS's stepinto the future with
     launches of new initiatives. A new Logo was launched by our Guest-of-Honour, Prof.AN Rao(one of
     our founding fathers) and the "Friends of HS" membership scheme launched by Dr.Brian Shegar,
     another of our founding fathers. The event was a tremenduos success, adding on to HS's rich
     history..

   - Self-Motivation Talk
    (5^th of February 2008)

     Mr Sivakumar, from the Gita Reading Society, a lawyer by profession, was with us at NUS to deliver
     his insights on how teachings in the Gita can be applied in practical ways to our lives. This talk
     attracted a, larger then expected crowd and was very well-received by the attendees.

   - In-Fusion 2008 Bazaar
   (28-29^th of January 2008)

     An International bazaar was set up in school to bring the different cultures and religions of the
     world together, under one roof. We had set up a booth at the bazaar. Not only were we able to
     showcase our culture and Hinduism to the locals and the international students, we also had an
     excellent opportunity to put our entrepreneurial side to the test. Not only was our booth a huge
     success we also managed to earned ourselves some neat profit.

   - Thaipusam 2008(22^nd of January 2008)
   
     Just like in yesteryears, NUS Hindu Society and its crew of volunteers were down this year to help
     out at this annual festival. It was also a time where we were intereacting with thousands of devotees
     and it indeed was a great opportunity for people to get to know about us and our society better.
     This year, on-top of assisting the organizers in crowd control and route marshalling, we were also
     involved in

     -      distribution of flyers, we had prepared, which explained the rituals and proceedings involved in
            Thaipusam to Hindus as well as non-Hindus.
     -      brought non-Hindu SMU(Singapore Management University) students on a mini-tour around Sri
            Srinivasa Perumal Temple, explaining to them the various rituals being undertaken as part of
            the Thaipusam festival.
     -      helped out at the picture exhibition, organized by the Hindu Endowments Board, in-front of
            Mustafa Centre.

   
     To create a better awareness of Hinduism and to expose non-Hindus to the arts, beautiful
     philosophies and the sciences involved in Temple architecture and to also clear general
     misconceptions surrounding it, we had organized a Temple Tour. A whopping 61 students signed up
     for the tour, a number way beyond our expectation and we managed to drive our objectives to each
     and every student.

   - Sri Lion Sithi Vinayagar Temple’s Maha
   Kumbhabhishegam (16^th of Dec 2007)

   
     NUS Hindu Society was blessed with the opportunity to help out at the Kumbhabhishgam of Sri Lion
     Sithi Vinayagar Temple, a once in a 12 years ceremony. We were assisting the Temple officials with
     the smooth-running of this auspicious ceremony within the Temple premises, at the main sanctum
     itself. Not only did the ceremony create an excellent opportunity for us to interact with the public,
     it also gave us and the volunteers we had recruited an exhilarating and satisfying experience.

   - Youth ‘4’ Youth Camp (7^th- 10^th of Dec 2007) 

   - Photoshop Workshop (2^nd and 3^rd November 2007)

   
     In an effort to equip students from our Indian community with IT skills, HS had organized a
     short 2-day course on Photoshop, a popular picture/graphics editing software. This was
     organized together with another student society, the IEEE(Institute of Electrical and Electronics
     Engineers) and was very well-received by participants who now have better knowledge about
     Photoshop, a picture/graphics editing software, which is very useful in enhancing
     presentations and projects, giving them an edge.

   - Theemithi Thiruvizha (Firewalking Festival) 2007
    (29^th of October 2007)
   
    An annual volunteer activity in the calendar our calendar, last year, we had assisted the Temple
     officials of Sri Mariamman Temple in the smooth-running of the festival. It was one of those events
     where we worked closely with the public.

   - Teambuilding Workshop(13^th of October 2007)

    This was the first project by the 25^th Executive Committee, right after the Annual General Meeting.
    This workshop was organized to create better cohesion within the committee so as to facilitate
    better communication and a positive working culture in the committee.

   Past Events  (2007):

   - Annual General Meeting 2007
   Its time for a change. Its time for a fresh Executive Committee to take charge. The Welcome Tea's
     over (5th of Sep 07) and now it is time for the AGM, on which the 25th Executive Committee would
     be chosen on the 4th of October to lead HS into the future. Expect a new team, a different
     organizational structure, more fresh and innovative ideas, a greater use of IT in  administration, an
     extended reach, beyond the shores of Singapore and MORE in the new Comm..
     Want to be engaged in meaningful and enlightening activities/projects? Want to enhance your
     leadership capabilities? Want to make a difference? Looking for Fun? Want to build up a great social
     network? Come down for our AGM to join the dynamic new comm and make that difference..
    
     Date: 4th October 2007, 6.30pm
     Venue: LT 29

     See you there..
 
   - Theemithi 07
     For more information, please read under Theemithi 06. Theemithi, the annual fire walking festival
     would be held on the 29th of October 2007 at Sri Mariamman Temple (Southbridge Road). We are
     currently looking for volunteers to help out during the night of the festival. Interested volunteers
     can register online by clicking here.

      More events to be added soon..
      List of upcoming events would be updated after the 25th Executive Committee takes over during
      the AGM..

   - Misconceptions in Hinduism
    - HS organized an interactive session on "Misconceptions of Hinduism", on the evening
    of 12th of September, 2007 with experts from the Hindu Centre. It was a dynamic and
    engaging session, in which our guest speaker Mr Kathiresan, professionally answered
    the questions throwed at him & supported his points with logic, science and evidences
    from the scriptures. It was a session which undoubtedly cleared many misconceptions
    we had on Hinduism and increased our knowledge on it.

   - Hindu Society's Welcome Tea
    - HS held its welcome tea on the 5th of September 2007.It was held at the Function
    Room 2 of YIH, the traditional venue for the welcome tea. We were overwhelmed by a
    huge response and enthusiastic guests for the event. It was an evening of fun and a
    time to earn new friendships. We look forward to you on the 4th of October for our
    AGM !

   - Sri Krishnan Temple Chariot Procession
   Sri Krishnan Temple Silver Chariot Procession at Ayer Rajah, was successfully held on the 14th of Sep
     2007. It was a fulfilling and unique experience for us as we were assisting the organizers with the
     smooth running of the event.

   - Samarpanam 2007- Karma Raegai
     Samarpanam 2007, "KarmaRaegai" a Mega-scale Extravagant production by NUS HS, in aid of
     Alzheimer's Disease Association, was held on the 14th of July at Singapore Polytechnic's Convention
     Centre.

      Mr. S. Iswaran, Minister of State, Ministry of Trade and Industry, graced the event as the Guest-of-
     Honour.

     The production, which had Magic, action, dances and drama was the first of its kind featuring Kyle
     Ravin (from Maya, Vasantham Central), popular dance groups such as Nickeash Productionz &
     Killabeez along with our very own talents, talents from various institutions/ groups including
     Ravindran Drama Grp, Millennia Institute, Singapore Polytechnic, Balestiar ITE played a major role in
     the production.

      Pranav 2007, HS's annual magazine, was also launched on the day.
 

   - Yoga Workshop 07
     Our Yoga workshop was held during Semester 2 of the academic year 2006/2007. It was a workshop
     conducted by an highly qualified instructor from and the workshop was opened to the public. It was
     an excellent opportunity, for those who attended, to get an insight into our ancient art form! This
     workshop was organized with the aim of teaching our participants something different and also
     something valuable in helping them to relax their minds and to achieve all-rounded health benefits.

     - Hinduism Talk on "Karma"
     -We should say that we were privileged to have Mr Kathiresan from The Hindu Centre, to give us an
     interesting and interactive talk on the concept of "Karma" during the month of April. Mr Kathiresan,
     a well-known individual and also a dynamic youth, who is rich in knowledge on Hinduism was with us
     to clear our doubts and to teach us the concept of "karma" as illustrated in the vedas. Needless to say
     it was an enlightening session..

   - Bazaar
     Entrepreneur skills are becoming important assets, in our increasingly globalized world.  As such,
     we at Hindu Society, tried diversifying ourselves with a mini-entrepreneurial venture. We had a go
     at our attempts in developing our business skills during the bazaar held in NUS during the month of
     March. It was indeed an unforgettable experience!

   - Maha Shivarathiri 07
     This year, HS was involved in assisting Sri Sivan Temple with the annual Maha Shivarathiri Festival. It
     was an exhilarating and spiritually uplifting experience as we were assisting Temple officials with 
     the smooth running of one of the most sacred festivals in the world.

   - "Poorna"- Priceless Bonds (Thanksgiving and Website Launch) 
     'Poorna'- Priceless Bonds, our Thanksgiving Dinner & Official Website Launch was successfully held on
     the 23rd of February 2007 at Anandha Bhavan Restaurant. Dr.N.Varaprasad, Chief Executive of
     National Library Board graced this event as our honourable Guest Of Honour. It was also an event
     which brought together our founders, temple officials, our alumni and friends. The event
     undoubtedly marked a milestone in the history of NUS Hindu Society.

   - Thaipusam 07
     Thaipusam is one of the grandest and colourful festivals celebrated in Singapore. It is 
     observed on the 10th Hindu month of Thai, which is a very important month in the Tamil 
     calendar. This year the festival was on the 11th of February. Thaipusam marks a day of 
     prayers and thanksgiving to Lord Murugan. Devotees carrying milk pots and Kavadis 
     participate in the festival to fulfill their vows to the Gods for a favour granted, or to atone 
     for sins committed. These devotees walk a four-kilometre route from Sri Perumal Temple 
     along Serangoon road to Sri Thendayuthapani Temple at Tank road.

     Being actively involved in Thaipusam for the past few years, the NUS Hindu Society 
     teamed up with the management committee of Sri Thendayuthapani Temple once again 
     this year to help out during the festival.

     On the day of Thaipusam, the volunteers helped out in crowd control, route marshalling 
     and the distribution of bags to devotees. Duties commenced on the night of the eve of 
     Thaipusam and continued till Thaipusam night. The volunteers worked in shifts and 
     needles to say that we all found it to be a truly enriching and satisfying experience.

   - Shravanam 2006
   This was the pilot project of the 24th Executive Committee. It was the first of its kind organized by
     HS and was organized together with Sri Mariamman Temple Youth Committee at the premises of the
     Temple. It saw 3 experienced and dynamic speakers giving a talk on interesting topics on Hinduism.
     It was indeed an enlightening and enjoyable experience with the speakers engaging and
     entertaining the participants with their own unique-styles of delivery of contents.

    Past Events  (2006):

   - Samarpanam 06
     Samarpanam, the brainchild of the 22nd committee started off as a small scale event 
     involving dances and songs, in 2005 and evolved into a mega-scale production in 2006. 
     With a organizing committee of 16, a cast of 30, and a host of celebrities, it was held at the 
     Singapore Polytechnic Auditorium on the 25th of March 2006. Proceeds obtained from the 
     show were donated to Autism Association.

   - Theemithi 06
     Commonly addressed as the "fire walking festival", Theemithi, draws not only thousands 
     of devotees but also tourists who are fascinated by the unique nature of the festival. It is 
     annually held at Sri Mariamman Temple, South Bridge Road.

     In Singapore, the Theemithi festival consists of several rituals that last over a period of 
     about two and a half months. They include, not only the reading and re-enactment of 
     certain episodes in the Tamil version of the Mahabaratha, but also the chariot procession 
     on the eve of Theemithi and, of course, the fire walking itself.

     It was with great honour and pleasure that the members of the Hindu Society 
     volunteered to be route marshals for the Theemithi festival event. Its an enriching 
     experiences for both hindus and non-hindus.
 
   - Swarna 06
     Swarna 2006 was held on 29th of July 2006. It is a talent showcase for both students from 
     secondary and tertiary levels. Moreover, several new competition categories, were 
     introduced this year, for instance, the photography competition, song-for-song 
     competition for secondary school students and the fashion design competition for 
     tertiary students to take to the runways. We were able to reach out to a larger pool of 
     students with the introduction of these competitions. The response for year 2006 was 
     overwhelming and the preliminary rounds were great fun, not only to those who 
     participated but also for the rest  of us. SWARNA, provides a great platform for gifted 
     youths to express themselves and their talents.