First Anniversary Celebrations were conducted in a grand way at the Nithyananda Vedic Temple on Nov 9, 2008. A variety of cultural performances were presented throughout the weekend. International media covered the event and approximately 1500 people visited the the Temple to participate in the celebrations. The First Anniversary celebration began with a stunning maha-abishekam of all Temple Deities.

Maha-abishekam was followed by a presentation on Nithya Yoga by Ma Maneesha, Maha Nithya Yoga Acharya from Bidadi and a panel discussion on the topic of "Bridging the Generations".

At noon, Maha Alankar of Temple Deities was revealed and Maha Arati was performed. Devotees enjoyed Maha Prasad and a variety of activities offered at the Vedic Expo, such as mehndi, aryuvedic consultation, and vedic astrology readings.

In the early afternoon, devotees gathered for Kumbha Mela. Kumbha Mela began with a grand procession around the Temple by devotees celebrating the third annual Kumbha Mela held in the US.

The Kumbha Mela procession completed with the gathering of devotees for immersion of the deities in water from 21 holy rivers in India. Swamis of the Nithyananda Order completed immersion of the deities in the holy water and devotees were able to have their personal deities as well as collect water for their home altars.

Following are pictures from the grand celebrations.

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