Monthly Archives: February 2011

Culture, Events, Religion

Art of Living is living and thriving in Tri Valley

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Recently a friend attended a three day Art of Meditation course, and another talked about it. And then another one. So looks like Art of Living San Ramon/Pleasanton center is coming of age.

There is a FREE event in the effering. Called “Meditation Marathon”, it will be held on March 5th 2011 at the Art of Living Center for Yoga and Meditation, Tri Valley location 6690 Amador Plaza Road, Suite 215 Dublin (925-5AOL-101). The event begins at 9am and ends at 4:00pm. There will have multiple sessions that will “help you explore your mind and bring you to the peace within”. This event is for beginners as well as seasoned meditators.

Schedule of Events:

SUKSHMA YOGA – ancient yoga that prepares the mind and body for meditation
BREATHING TECHNIQUES – learn techniques and tools to take home to quieten the mind and relax
GUIDED MEDITATIONS – led by world renowned Spiritual leader
VIDEO PRESENTATION – to understand the mechanics of the mind
CHANTING – Chanting meditation

Participants should bring a yoga mat, water and a blanket. There are no registration requirements, but confirm by calling the number above, or contact [email protected] for more information.

There is Art Excel Follow Up on Mar 06, 2011 at 4:00 PM, again a free event.

The next course (paid – $250) would be Saturday, March 17 – 20. In just three sessions of two hours each, participants “learn to tap the depths of our nature. After the course we can use this simple meditation practice to overcome the effects of inevitable stressful situations and make a positive impact on the quality of our lives”. The highlight of the course is the Sudarshan Kriya: An immensely powerful technique that incorporates specific natural rhythms of breath to release stress and purify the entire system by releasing toxins at the deepest cellular level. In addition you can expect talks on wisdom, useful breathing techniques, and even some fun!
There is another course from March 26th-28th, 2011

  • Friday Singing Satsang at 7 p.m. at the Tri-Valley Center
  • Long Kriya Schedule at the Center: Wednesday Long Kriya 7pm-8:30pm, Saturday Long Kriya 7am-9am
  • Mahasivaratri Celebrations, March 2nd, 2011 from 7pm onwards at Tri-Valley Center

The center may also organize Festival of Colors (Holi) on March 19th, 2011. Stay tuned for updates here.

Services

Table Tennis classes in trivalley

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Favorite game of millions of americans. The National sport in China. A big sport in India.

Learn from 2000 North American Olympic Trials Participant and 15-Time National Champion Shashin Shodhan
Table Tennis has been one of America’s fastest growing sports in the last decade. It was called the best brain sport on KQED and CBS recently.
For those interested in learning table-tennis, please contact Pleasanton Table Tennis Club Head Coach Shashin Shodhan at 510 366 5234 or at [email protected]
Two-hours sessions are tentatively scheduled to begin in March.
Culture, Education

Hindustani or Carnatic music teachers

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Tri Valley area (Pleasanton, San Ramon, Dublin, Livermore, Danville) fortunately has a handful of exponent-teachers in the field of Indian classical music and dance (both Hindustani and Carnatic). Here is a list (not all contact information is validated). This is by no means the exclusive list, so if any additional are known, please update in the comments section. For a list of more modern dance forms, including Bollywood, check this earlier post: http://www.trivalleydesi.com/bollywood-indian-dance-classes-in-tri-valley/

Hindustani Vocals in San Ramon!
Learn both classical and popular vocal music from Sunita (of SuSangeet) who has
been teaching music classes in the Bay Area since 1993. Students will begin
with a good grounding of classical octave/sargam sounds, then progress to Ragas
& Popular Music.
Notes will be provided for Keyboarding. Student performances are held along
with CERTIFICATION FROM INDIA.
Contact Sunita: 925-648-2820
Bach.in Music (Hnrs) – Banaras Hindu Univ.
Post Graduate – Prayag Sangeet Samiti SuSangeet.

Bharatnatyam & Carnatic Music
Name: Nityalakshmi Iyer
Email: [email protected]
Field: Bharatnatyam & Carnatic Music
Address: San Ramon, California
Telephone: (925) 480-7507
Misc. Info: Nityalakshmi Iyer is a versatile artist and has a Masters in Performing Arts in Bharatanatyam from Nalanda Kala Mahavidyalaya under the tutelage of Padmashree Dr. Smt. Kanak Rele. She is the proud recipient of many Awards and Scholarships, especially the coveted ‘Government of India Scholarship’ by the Ministry of Culture and the Nehru Center Scholarship. She has been a Guru to around 200 disciples till date.

Bharatanatyam, Carnatic Vocal
Name: Kalaikoil, Swetha Dixit
Email: [email protected]
Address: Kalaikoil-Dance & Arts of India 6715-G, Dublin Blvd, Dublin, Ca 94568
Telephone: 925 449-3714

Sloka and Devotional Music
Name: Prema Krishnamurthy
Email: [email protected]
Address: Pleasanton, CA, USA
Misc Info: Teacher is from Mysore, and has over 30 years of sloka and devotional music instruction experience. The following listing is not all inclusive, but gives an idea of the variety of instructional material that is available: * Devotional Devaranamas * Bhavageethe/Bhakthigeethe * Devotional songs, slokas and bhajans like; o Jayadeva”s Ashtapadis, o Adi Shankaracharya’s – Lalitha Sahasranamam, – Shamaladandakam, – Soundarya Lahiri, – Mantra Matruka Pushpa Maalam, – Adithya Hrudayam – Sowbhagya Panchadashi, etc. Contact to enquire about any special slokas or devotional music. Please contact for scheduling, fees and customizing instruction.

Vocal Karnatic
Name: Prema Murthy
Email: [email protected]
Adress: Pleasanton, CA
Telephone: 925-485-1454
Misc. Info: Customised music lessons for kids and grown-ups. Classes offered: Pure Karnatic Sangeeta, Bhava Geete, Dasa Padas, devotional music (e.g. Soundarya Lahiri), Bhajans

Indian Classical Instrumental Music – Santoor
Name: Madan Oak
Email: [email protected]
Adress: 5760 Newfields Lane Dublin CA 94568
Telephone: (925)-556-9611
Misc. Info: Madan is a disciple of the world renowned Santoor Maestro Pandit Shivkumar Sharma. Madan has been studying Indian classical music for more than 16 years. He would like to teach santoor if anyone is interested.

Bharata Natyam
Name: Dr. Bindu S. Shankar, Ph.D.
Email: [email protected]
Adress: San Ramon, CA 94583 (bay area)
Telephone: 925-875-1095
Misc. Info: I graduated in Bharata Natyam from Kalakshetra Foundation, Chennai. I also teach Folk dances on a limited basis. Website – http://www.vrindavanacademy.com

Bharatanatyam dance school
Thakadhimi Dance Academy
Lakshmi Priya Rajamani
(650) 504-6843
[email protected]
http://www.thakadhimi.com
9816 Belladonna Dr, San Ramon

Others
Kuchipudi Art Center, Sunita Pendekanti
(925) 484-2389 Pleasanton

Natya Rasa, Savithri Hari
(925) 943-1660 Walnut Creek

Sur-mandir, Ellora Jha
(925) 556-0748 Dublin

Legal and Tax, Services

Tax time!

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Its tax time of course, and many people could be looking to get help from some one who could provide tax consultation and do the filing. While filing personal taxes could be simpler, those with incorporation, multi-state or other complexities could need some hand holding. Generally using professional help ensures accuracy and at times also helps your eventual tax bill.
In looking for desi tax consultant in the area last year, I found Bheem Kolluru, and I am glad I used the help. He and Vishy are enrolled agents and are located right across Dublin BART and can be contacted at 1040.i…@g…com.
Other desi tax preparers that I have heard of on 1170 AM radio are www.ravitax.com, or CPA www.sanjivcpa.com/ – they are full service firms, offering accounting, book keeping, etc.
If anyone has any additional recommendations, please add here.

About San Ramon, Culture

Monthly House Concerts of Indian Classical Music

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To initiate, nurture,and promote the Hindustani and Carnatic forms of Indian Classical Music, we will be hosting monthly House Concerts at our home in Windemere, San Ramon. If you would like to be kept informed about our upcoming concerts please let us know. We will add you to our Mailing list for further updates.

Please feel free to pass the information along to your interested friends and families.

Thank You.
Varsha and Satyan