Speech of HH Sri Ganapathy Sachchidananda Swamiji – Maha Kumbhabhisheka – April 3, 2026 – SGS DYC, Burlington, NJ, USA
Today is a very precious and powerful day. Yesterday, today, and tomorrow too we will continue the festival of Lord Hanuman. The day before yesterday, we chanted Hanuman Chalisa and today we are doing prathishtha of Maha Ganapathi, Subramanya, Dattatreya, Shankara, Mother Goddess and of course, the main one, Hanuman, the granter of success in all endeavors. Why Hanuman for karya siddhi? There are so many forms, so many energies—Dattatreya has them all, and Hanuman too.
Yesterday—or was it last year?—I shared that beautiful story of Hanuman and Rama. What is Rama? What is Hanuman? Why did he take the form of Hanuman? Why did Rama choose him as his bhakta, his devotee, his protector? Out of all the deities, why only Hanuman? That’s a big story from the Ramayana.
The Ramayana isn’t just some ancient tale—it’s our daily story, playing out in our families every day. We see so many examples from it right in our own lives.
Our Datta devotees are a special breed—calm, silent, deeply disciplined. We show respect in our own country, and here in this land too—this is our home now. We’re doing a very quiet puja, no disturbances, no fuss, no show business. I guarantee it. These aren’t just devotees; they’re family—My family. Third and fourth generation devtoees are here.
They follow the Sadguru, embracing the guru principle, the essence of the guru. They listen to what Swamiji says and apply it to their daily lives, private lives, spiritual lives—everything. Most of them, about 80 percent, revere the Bhagavad Gita. They’ve memorized it, along with the Hanuman Chalisa. They honor Mother Goddess and Shankar Bhagwan.
They live silently, happily, content with their families. Sure, some worry about money or other problems, but they’re still joyful. Dattatreya gives them that good energy, that guidance. They follow Swamiji closely.
Today, we’re installing the five elements, the five deities—the Panchabhuta. Each God represents one: Ganapati for sound and akasha, Subramanya for water and fire, Shiva for water and fire too. And the Mother Goddess—we all believe in Her, the Nava Shakti. She’s the first deity, the primal creation of this world.
Of course, it all comes from the formless God. God has no form, but when we pray to the deities, She appears like a mother. That’s why we hold Her so dear—Lord Vishnu and the Divine Mother.
We hold these beliefs dear, and now let me speak about Dattatreya—what is His principal essence? Dattatreya embodies the Trinity: Brahma, Vishnu, Maheshwara—the Creator, the Protector, and the Destroyer of our sins and confusions. That’s Shiva. One face as Shiva, one as Brahma, one as Vishnu. All knowledge resides in Him, always giving through these deities.
So many people ask, “Why vigraha? Why idols?” Yes, we need them because we’re in human form. That’s why we perform these karmas. Otherwise, how would we know what God looks like? How does He give us energy? We wouldn’t know. That’s why we have temples—so we can come, sit and pray. Our deity is our good friend.
Choose whichever you like: Vishnu, Shiva, Rama, Hanumanta. Our Indian system embraces it all: “Shiveti shauriti gajananeti, skandeti deviti, raviti”—we believe in the Mother as the fifth deity in our tradition. We believe in Sun God—that’s why we pray to the Sun three times a day. The Sun God is the direct, ever visible, always watching divinity
Each God offers advice and energy to people. Call it bhakti, call it karma—no problem. Different words for the same truth. But gathering together is vital in our society. Look at us here today—we don’t know each other’s caste, male or female, nothing. Pure friendship, like sitting in a boat. The temple is that boat. We come to pray, perform our karmas. We need these small temples.
We’ve come to this country, so we must respect it. Don’t create problems roadside. Lately, some young people are being a little nasty, and our senior citizens—our own people—are unhappy about those boys. This isn’t India; it’s a different country. We respect this country—that’s our duty.
That’s why Swamiji had us sing the national anthem yesterday—to honor this place that gives us shelter and food. Our Datta devotees—99 percent—are disciplined. I guarantee it, I speak the truth. They know how they came here, struggled, settled, raised their children with no jobs sometimes, but took small jobs and stayed happy. They even give to spirituality, to the Sadguru. I’m so happy for this gathering.
Today is Good Friday—happy Good Friday to all! Happy Good Friday. I call upon all deities, all Avadhutas. Our system…
has all Avadhutas—all three thousand three hundred sixty-five crores deities, all Avadhutas—ultimately point to one God. He has no form. God is formless. If He takes a form, it disappears one day. Rama took form and disappeared. Krishna took form and disappeared. You understand? Forms disappear.
Only Hanuman and Dattatreya never disappear, they are always within us. So I’m very happy for this kumbhabhishekam today. Mayor Greene came—I’m very happy. Chinmaya Mission’s spiritual leader Sri Shantidananda came—I am very happy. And participate in the upcoming Chinmaya Mission program that’s happening in April or May.
Chinmayananda—My good friend, My good guru, My good guide. I miss him. But anyway, I’m not missing him in My heart—he’s always there. Wonderful man, wonderful soul. He gave direction in so many ways, including for the Mysore ashram. I’m so happy today that we’re consecrating this. temple You’ve all come. Many of you came right on time, after watching Swamiji’s video. I like that you all rushed here watching the video. Swamiji said, “We have to go to Kumbhabhishekam,” and you did. So much joy!
This center is ours . Why did we make this center? Last time, four years back, 400 people came from this center for Bhagavad Gita Day. I took an oath: I want to give a center here. 400 people came from here for Bhagavad Gita parayana—such joy! That day I resolved: small or big, doesn’t matter, we must have a center here.
Why here? New York is where I first came to the US in 1976. I wanted to make an ashrama in New York, but that’s a little chaotic. I even tried, but the place was too tiny. I said, My family is very large, we need a bigger ashrama. I have many children, grandchildren, great grandchildren. Sometimes, I don’t even talk to them, but they come to see Me.
That is why I made this temple and gave them SGS Center. SGS stands for Simple Good Sayings. It is only a coincidence that it matches My name. Everyone must become Shashwata Seva members at this temple. There are many Founding Members at this temple. This temple came about due to them. We got a Guru Nilayam nearby, that is a big miracle.
The old Guru Nilayam was 30 minutes away, I did not like it being so far. I have to either be in the temple or nearby. I told the team here to find a place nearby. The team went directly to the nearby house and asked him to sell the house. The man said he would call the cops. I asked them to ask him again and the man sold the house for Guru Nilayam.
I have many sevakas here – some 11 devotees – who will do whatever I ask them. Hanuman entered them. You will feel it if you see them. They are like Hanuman Seva Dal. Swamiji is talking about the devotees who worked very hard for the miracle of this temple. This temple should’ve normally taken 2 years, but got done within 6 months. Getting this place, getting the Guru Nilayam, getting all the permissions- the Mayor was very helpful – was all very swift. You know it is very hard to get permissions. It is very hard to get permits here. To install a stone needs a permit. The mayor helped us a lot. May God bless the mayor; I like him very much.
The poornahuti is about to take place.
Karya Siddhi Hanuman, Datta, Vishweshvara Shiva, Raja Rajeshwari, Chinthamani Ganapathi and Subramanya Swamy will be installed here along with Karya Siddhi Hanuman and Ram Parivar. Datta protects all devotees. Subramanya Swami removes all ailments, so I am naming him Dhanvanti Subramanya – all skin issues and other ailments for newborns as well as grownups – the Lord will help. You can all participate in Shashwata Seva. You can provide your date of birth, nakshatra, and contact information.