Teacher's Guide

To

Vaisnava Saints

(Madana Mohan Class)

Hare Krishna Sunday SchoolInternational Society for Krishna Consciousness

Founder-acarya His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada

IntroductionVaisnava Saints

This session teaches about just some of the many pure

devotees in our Vaisnava history. It should be emphasized to the

students that we should never imitate such great personalities, but

we can glorify them, offer our respects, learn by their example, and

humbly follow in their footsteps.

Within the student workbook are plays of varying lengths

which can be performed in your own classroom as a teaching tool or

as a means to preach to the other Sunday school classes, if

applicable. A larger production can be performed at the Sunday

feast for family and guests. Sets and costumes can be designed and

made by the students.

Also included within the student workbook are many songs

written by the great Vaisnava devotees discussed in this session.

They can be practiced in class and then performed at the Sunday

feast. Encourage students (who are able) to play the mrdanga,

harmonium, and karatals while singing these bhajans. Perhaps they

can sing them on a festival day or plan an outing to a park, college

campus, or other local gathering spot. Before going out, have the

students make a poster-sized sign with the maha-mantra written on

it and each letter covered with glue and gold glitter. At the park, set

up a "stage" displaying the sign and have the students perform

Harinama. While some are chanting these and other bhajans, the

other students can distribute literature and prasadam. This may help

them to "catch" the preaching spirit and they may ask to do this

regularly.

Lesson One

The Story ojNarottama Dasa Thakur

1. Before class, write the session verse (Sanskrit and Translation) ona poster board and display in a prominent position on the wall.Begin each class by chanting the Sanskrit verse, word by word, withthe students repeating after you. Then read each line with thestudents repeating. Then read the translation. Have the studentsrepeat the translation. Encourage volunteers to lead the verse in thesame way.

2. Ask for a volunteer to read the dedication page and introductionin the student workbook.

3. Begin reading Lesson One, pausing often to ask questions andreinforce the material. This text is quite long, so you may want tohave the students take turns reading a page or two (to hold theirinterest). Be sure they understand the difference between diksha andsiksha guru. This is a good opportunity to discuss ISKCON'spresent initiating guru system.

4. Complete the Check for Understanding page.

5. Divide the class into teams and time them to see which team isfirst to unscramble the sentence on page 13. ANSWER: LokanathaGoswami instructed N arottama to establish Deity worship inI<heturi.

_ '} 6. Allow time to read and discuss the songs by~"r~~ Narottama Dasa Thakur. Provide karatals, drum, and~\\ ;- harmonium (if possible) and teach the students to,f!}J";{]A chant these wonderful bhajans.

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Lesson TwoHaridasa Thakur

1. Chant the session verse. Ask for volunteers to lead the verse. Thisage group responds to rewards as well as the younger children.Provide maha-sweets or another reward for those who lead the verseor have memorized it during the week. Encourage the others topractice at home during the next week.

2. Ask if anyone has heard of the great Vaisnava, Haridasa Thakur.Encourage them to tell what they know. Begin reading the text onpage 24. Provide scrap paper and pencils for them to figure out themath answer on page 25. Continue reading the text or ask forvolunteers.

3. Complete the Check for Understanding page on page 34. Allowtime for them to write a short paragraph about the qualities ofHaridasa Thakur. Encourage them to read aloud what they havewritten. This assignment can lead to a thought-provoking discussionabout how they view their own qualities and also what they feel theyneed to work on in order to be better devotees. You can refer to thequalities of a devotee in the Nectar ofDevotion.

4. Allow time for them to unscramble the words on page 35. Theanswers are provided in this section of the Teacher's Guide. Youmay choose to have them work on this individually or in smallgroups.

5. Have the students unscramble the Qualities of Haridasa Thakuron the next page. Divide them into teams and do this one as a"race." Provide small prizes, such as transcendentalstickers, to the winning team.

6. If time allows, perform one of the skits provided in the studentworkbook. Depending on your circumstances, plan a production inthe temple room for guests at the Sunday feast or plan a "parent'sday" and have the students perform the skits on a smaller scale forfamily members. These skits can also be used for a session project bytransforming them into puppet shows. A stage and puppets can bemade by the students (a little at a time each week) and thenperformed at the end of the session. This age group can be verycreative if given the materials to work with.

Haridas Thakur

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The Qualities of Haridas Thakur

BUEMLH humbleDEVDETO devotedETERDNDIME determinedGRNFOIVIG forgivingIKON kindMLFRUICE mercifulOVGLNI lovingUOEISRS seriousURPE pure

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Lesson ThreeThe Story ojMadhavendra Purl

1. Chant the session verse.

2. Begin reading the text in Lesson Three. Ask for volunteers to taketurns reading the text aloud.

3. This age group also likes artwork. Provide fine-tip markers orcolored pencils and allow time for them to color the picture on page51. While they are doing this, ask questions about what was justread to reinforce understanding.

4. Complete the Check for Understanding page.

5. Allow time for the students to complete page 62. They can formsmall groups of 2-3 students and fill in the qualities of MadhavendraPuri. (Last week's discussion of the qualities of a devotee will helpwith this assignment.)

6. If time allows, have them find the hidden words on page 63. Theanswers are provided in this section of the Teacher's Guide.

7. Memory Game: Have the students sit in a circle. Begin the gameby starting the story with, "Madhavendra Puri went to Vrindavanaand sat under a tree to chant. A small cowherd boy brought him apot of milk..." The next player continues telling the story withsomething like, "Madhavendra Puri had a dream that the samecowherd boy took him to a grove near Govardhana Hill. ..." Eachstudent gets a turn to complete the story by adding one or two

sentences. This continues until the story is complete. (This is a greatgame to reveal how much they listened and comprehended the story.A great reinforcer!) Have fun with this one!

Madhavendra PuriA

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Amrita keliCamphorDeityFeverGopal Krishna

GopinathaNathadwaraNathajiRemunaSaint

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Lesson FourSrila Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakur

1. Chant the session verse.

2. Begin the class by reviewing the previous lessons. Ask questionsabout the Vaisnavas discussed in previous classes. Encourage adiscussion about their pastimes and qualities.

3. Read aloud the text in Lesson Four.

4. This lesson teaches the song, Sri Sri Gurvastaka, which is sungevery morning at mangala arotika. If possible, have a simple altar setup in your classroom (if you do not already have one) with a picture

of Srila Prabhupada and a picture of Lord Caitanya.Have arotika paraphernalia (or just incense, flowerand fan). After teaching this bhajan, have avolunteer offer arotika while the class sings theseprayers. Provide karatals, drum, and harmonium, ifpossible.

5. Have the students take turns reading thetranslation to this song. Discuss the causeless mercy

of the spiritual master.

6. Complete the Check for Understanding page.

7. Before class, copy the pictures of Srila Prabhupada and LordCaitanya that follow in the Teacher's Guide. Have a copies for eachstudent. Encourage them to frame them and set up their own altarat home (or place on their already existing altar) and to sing thisbhajan every morning.

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Lesson FiveGreat Women in Vaisnava History

I. Chant the session verse.

2. Begin this lesson by explaining that there were many greatVaisnavis in history and only some of them will be discussed inLesson Five. Encourage the students to read, The Teachings ofQueenKunti, on their own to learn about another great woman devotee. Ifpossible, provide a copy for them to review in the classroom.

3. Read aloud the text in Lesson Five or ask for volunteers to taketurns reading. Pause often to ask questions in order to reinforceunderstanding.

4. Complete the Check for Understanding page.

5. Lesson Project #1: Ask the students to perform impromptu skitsreinacting the pastimes just read. Lesson Project #2: This agegroup enjoys art projects as well as the younger classes. Provideplenty of materials, such as poster board, cardboard, colored paper,markers, paints, glitter, sequins, scraps of material, clay, felt pieces,yarn, string, cotton balls, scissors, tape, glue, etc. Encourage thestudents to use their imagination to create a "three-dimensional" artproject telling the stories learned in this lesson. Provide 3' x 5' cardsso they can write a summary about the great Vaisnavi depicted intheir art project. Set up a "museum" in the classroom or somewhereelse in the temple so guests can view the student's creative work andalso learn about these wonderful pure devotees written about in ourVaisnava history. .

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Lesson SixSri Bilvamangala Thakur

1. Chant the session verse. At this point, the students should be ableto recite the verse without looking at the poster.

2. Read aloud the text in Lesson Six.

3. Complete the Check for Understanding page.

4. Read and discuss the story on page 86.

5. Remind the students that they will have a session quiz next week.Allow time for them to form small study groups to review theirworkbooks.

6. To help them prepare for the quiz, divide the class into twoteams. Scramble the order of the questions written on the Check forUnderstanding pages in the student workbook. Each team mustanswer a question correctly to get one point. (Before class, you maywant to write some of your questions, as welL) The team with themost amount of points at the end of the game, wins!

Name: --------Session QuizVaisnava Saints

Circle the correct answer:I. The appearance of Narottama Dasa Thakur was predicted by:a. Lord Krishnab. Vyasadevac. Lord Chaitanya Mahaprabhu

2. Sri [ahnava devi was the wife of:a. Lord Chaitanyab. Lord Nityanandac. Advaita Acarya

3. Madhavendra Puri desired to make for his-------beloved Deity.a. sweet riceb. burfic. amrita-keli

4. Haridasa Thakur chanted the Lord's Holy Names _times a day.a.400,000b.30,000c.300,000

5. Bilvamangala Thakur lived in the century.a. 12thb. 11thc. 13th

Write the songs under the name of the correct author:

Narottama Dasa Thakur

Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakur

Bilvamangala Thakur

Sri Guru-vandanaSri Sri GurvastakaSri Krsna KarnamrtaSri Govinda Damodara StrotraNama-sankirtanaSaparsada-bhagavad-viraha-janita-vilapa

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Mark True or False:

I. Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakur established the Deities of SriSri Radha Gokulananda in Vrindavana.

2. The Deities of Krishna-Balarama appeared to MadhavendraPuri in a dream.

3. Ganga Mata Gosvamini ruled Jagannatha Puri for a shorttime.

4. The great devotee, Malati, was the wife of Srivasa Thakur.

5. Lord Chaitanya filled the Ganges River with I<rishna premafor Narottama Dasa Thakur to later receive.

You have completed the Session Quiz for Vaisnava Saints.Congratulations!

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