Satsang Seva Journal

Team SSM Kolkata offered monthly annadaanam seva on 26th March 2023 at the Nimtala Ghat on the banks of the River Hooghly near the famous Baba Bhootnath Dham temple which is 300 years old.  As devotees thronged the temple, the team members served hot khichadi  to about 400 daily wagers, pavement dwellers, and the less privileged living nearby. The refreshing ambiance and the gentle breeze from the River Hooghly brought much respite from the summer heat as the recipients savored the delicious, hot meal.  The team members expressed their gratitude for having experienced the joy of giving and sharing with the less privileged. To participate in the Annadaanam Kolkata initiative of Team SSM Kolkata, please write to us at connect@satsang-foundation.org .

Team SSM Kolkata collaborated with the Pratibodhayan Charitable Trust situated in the village of Moutor in Purulia District to offer 170 blankets to the residents of the rural communities living in this village and 15 neighboring villages between the 3rd and 7th of December 2022.     As groups of senior citizens gathered at the premises of the Trust to receive the blankets to protect them from the bitter cold of winter, the team members interacted with them and expressed their heartfelt gratitude for having had the opportunity to serve them.     To support Team SSM Kolkata in its initiatives, please write to us at connect@satsang-foundation.org .

On this auspicious day of Sri M's birthday, Team SSM Kolkata reached out to the specially-abled children at Behala, Sakher Bazar, Kolkata. They visited Voice of the World , an NGO, to distribute dry rations and plant saplings on the premises. Dry rations included 20 kgs minikit rice, 20 kgs wheat flour, and 20 litres of edible soybean oil. The plantation activity which included planting of various flower saplings was greeted with euphoric enthusiasm by the differently abled children who could not hold back their joyous emotions when the team members held their hands to plant the saplings. The children's gleeful faces and ecstatic gestures coupled with gentle, encouraging pats on their back truly made it all worthwhile!

Kalighat, one of the oldest neighborhoods of Kolkata, houses the ancient and legendary Kali Temple that attracts devotees across India. Always bustling with activity and densely populated, this locality also shelters some of the most impoverished citizens in the City of Joy: the homeless, living on the pavements in the vicinity of the Kalighat Kali Temple. Often depending on alms or odd jobs to eke out a living, they face crushing challenges just to survive another day.     On Sunday, 23rd October 2022, Team SSM Kolkata reached out to this marginalized community by offering them their monthly annadaanam seva .  Hot, freshly-prepared vegetable khichadi provided by ISKCON was served to over 350 people with much compassion and gratitude.     Tears of appreciation rolled down the cheeks of an elderly recipient as the youngest team member, a six-year-old girl, served her with loving kindness and care. The little child's enthusiasm and empathy touched the hearts of re...

As a run-up to Diwali, the joyous festival of lights, which ushers in radiance and great happiness for all, Team SSM Kolkata offered Diwali Ki Mithai , a sweet seva , to the less privileged who live near the legendary Kalighat Kali Temple in Kolkata on 20th October 2022.     They distributed 100 snack boxes filled with sweets and savory singhadas to the local residents comprising daily wagers, senior citizens, and the homeless in the neighborhood that leads to Gate 1 of the temple.     The children were particularly happy to receive these festive goodies and rewarded the team members with their innocent smiles. The entire team felt blessed to have shared these precious moments of joy with their less privileged brethren.   To experience the joy of giving and sharing and support Team SSM Kolkata in their endeavors, write to us at connect@satsang-foundation.org .

Team SSM Kolkata launched its 'Annadaanam Kolkata' seva on 21st August 2022 for the caregivers of patients at the Chittaranjan Seva Sadan and Shishu Sadan Hospital and the Chittaranjan National Institute of Cancer at Hazra, Kolkata.     The team members sourced freshly prepared, hot vegetable khichadi from the catering unit of the ISKCON given its excellent quality and taste. They served large spoons of this nourishing meal into meal boxes and offered them to the caretakers of patients outside the pediatric hospital and the cancer institute.   More than 200 meal boxes wound their way into the grateful hands of the caregivers whose sweet smiles of relief enthused the team members to extend this humble seva to several others who long for a simple meal to rejuvenate themselves while they care relentlessly for their loved ones in hospital. To participate in 'Annadaanam Kolkata' and experience the sheer joy of giving and sharing, contact us at connect@satsang-foundation.o...

On 28th July 2022, Team SSM Kolkata offered annadaanam seva to the less privileged street dwellers who live around the Howrah Railway Station.   The team members distributed 135 hygienically packed meal boxes filled with jeera rice and dal fry to these hungry folks most of whom were children and women. The recipients accepted the meal with much gratitude as their glistening eyes conveyed their infinite blessings upon the team members.     To join theTeam SSM Kolkata in such initiatives, contact us at connect@satsang-foundation.org .

Following an initial visit to the border village of Tokipur during April 2022, Team SSM Kolkata has initiated several sevas in May 2022 to support a few inhabitants of this impoverished hamlet. Ramen Ghosh, aged 78 years, had been suffering from cataract and had nearly lost his eyesight for want of medical help. The team members were able to facilitate his travel expenses and support his treatment over the course of multiple consultations at the Regional Institute of Ophthalmology, Kolkata.  Since April 2022, Debabrata Das and Saubhagya Das, two bright youngsters from Tokipur had received aid for their books and tuition fees. One of the team members had also offered them online English support classes. The intention was to eventually bring them to Kolkata after their 12th Grade exams and help them to become financially independent. On 6th May 2022, the team members secured their admission for the basic computer course at the Moulali Youth Computer Training Center which is one of th...

Team SSM Kolkata visited Tokipur village which is located near the Taki Indo-Bangladesh border on the 24th of April 2022 and interacted with the inhabitants who work there as farm laborers for a meager daily wage of 150 or 200 rupees.  Most of them are aged and ill. Some are bedridden and have no children to rely on and have to depend on their aging spouses. They have no other means to support their basic requirements of food, medicines, and education of their dependents. The dire lack of other livelihood opportunities and local municipal support have only worsened their situation through the COVID-19 pandemic. The team members distributed kits that comprised dry rations such as rice, semolina, broken wheat, pulses, sugar, and tea; and essential items such as clothes, bathing soaps, and clothes detergent. They also handed over cash to families which hardly have the wherewithal to buy vegetables and daily provisions.  Given the pitiable living conditions and lack of basic ameni...

Pathchala is a Kolkata-based NGO  that supports the formal education of children of street dwellers and sex workers in the Kalighat neighborhhod. The two women philanthropists who run this organization work relentlessly to ensure that these children receive inclusive education despite their challenging family circumstances.     On the 19th of March  2022, members of Team SSM Kolkata visited this safe haven which presently nurtures 60 children aged between 4 and 18 years. They offered them a goody bag filled with different items such as lentils, biscuits, bananas, potato wafers, mango juice; toiletries like bathing soaps and sanitary napkins; stationery items such as notebooks and pens; and Cadbury eclairs. The children enthralled the team members with graceful dance performances and interacted with them with great enthusiasm.   The team members expressed their gratitude at having spent these joyous moments with these wondrous children and supporting them with ...

Love is a many-splendored thing that simply fills our hearts with untold joy! The eve of Valentine's Day, the 13th of February, turned out to be a true testimony of universal love and fraternity f or Team SSM Kolkata as they dedicated this occasion to the 30 elders and mentally challenged residents of Maa Kali Old Age Home located at Panch Sayer, South Kolkata. The team members handed over a week's supply of dry rations comprising wheat flour, refined flour, semolina, lentils, sugar, oil, soya chunks, biscuits, and chyawanprash , a dietary supplement and immunity booster. The residents of this safe haven accepted these essential items with a bemused disinterest as all eyes were glued to the team members who festooned their home with red balloons, played music, and set the stage for a euphoric celebration of love sans frontiers. Watch the video here. Merry singing and dancing to foot-stomping music with the team members and ecstatic applause followed. The residents then receive...

The SSM Kolkata team decided to celebrate the birth anniversary of the legendary leader Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose which is celebrated on the 22nd of January by offering their seva to the pavement dwellers who live near the Syed Ali Shah Baba Mazar and the Masjid-e-Mazhaar in the Hastings area. On the 23rd of January 2022, the team members offered their prayers at the mazar or tomb shrine of the Sufi saint Syed Ali Shah Baba and then distributed little bags filled with dry rations such as wheat flour, rice, pulses, refined oil, sugar, and salt; and staples such as milk powder, tea leaves, and muri . The youngest team member lovingly offered toffees and biscuits to the  children and went on to feed the pigeons their share of grain too! The final part of this seva comprised the distribution of warm clothes such as shawls and sweaters. Given that the team members had made these donations in kind, their hearts swelled with gratitude for having had the opportunity of helping their le...

SSM Kolkata has been closely associated with the Ramakrishna Vedanta Ashram which nurtures 48 orphan boys in its sanctuary and provides them food, shelter, and education. On the 20th of January 2022, the team members provided a week's supply of fresh vegetables, refined oil, eggs, and milk powder. During this visit, one of the members noticed that the children were walking around barefoot in the bitter cold.  She recalled that she had a few pairs of socks in her car's glove compartment. She fetched them immediately and lovingly pulled them over the bare feet of the little children. She then returned the following day with 30 pairs of socks for the rest of the children.  Watch the video here . The team members left the Ashram feeling much contentment and gratitude for being able to support even the most elementary needs of these little adorable 'stars' whose endearing smiles and polite demeanor are simply heartwarming.

The homeless in the Park Circus neighborhood of Kolkata had much to cheer about when they received abundant gifts of warmth from the members of Team SSM Kolkata. The team members stepped out on the streets with mats, bedsheets, blankets, shawls, and jackets at 10 p.m. on the 20th of December 2021. They found several homeless brethren trying to keep themselves warm with meagre clothing and sleeping on the bare cold pavement or on tarpaulin sheets. They laid out the mats, spread the bedsheets, and lovingly wrapped the recipients with blankets and shawls. The sheer joy and gratitude they witnessed was indeed overwhelming. Watch the video here.

In continuation of the celebrations organized on the occasion of Founder's Day, Team SSM Kolkata served a special breakfast of idlis and coconut chutney to daily wage workers and their families on the 7th of November. Most of these workers live under the flyover at the Syed Baba Mazaar in the Hastings Road area. They were simply delighted to receive their special breakfast on a tranquil Sunday morning. The enthusiastic young children of the team members participated in the annadanam wholeheartedly and remarked that they were indeed privileged to have a home to live in and enough food to eat.

The Ramakrishna Vedanta Ashram in Vivekanandapur , Kolkata provides shelter to 45 young boys who have either been abandoned by their parents or lost them.  The members of Team SSM Kolkata frequently visit and spend time with them. On one such visit in September 2021, the team was able to support them with the donation of bed linen, buckets, mugs, curtains, and a mixer grinder. On the blessed occasion of Founder's Day, the 6th of November, the team members distributed warm blankets to the boys and spent some precious moments with them. The young lads started the interactive session with a prayer to the Goddess Kali in the temple situated on the ashram premises. They then wholeheartedly took the Jal Sevak Pledge in Bengali. Through this pledge they committed themselves to the mindful usage and conservation of water, Mother Earth's most precious gift to all. They concluded the session with a sweet treat of yummy cupcakes and juicy oranges. The innocence, sincerity, and diligence ...

The Ballygunge Phari and Gariahat stretch of South Kolkata is a fascinating shopping hub and bustling market area. However, it is also home to several daily wage workers who live under the flyover and on the pavements. When some SSM team members who stay in this neighborhood saw their miserable living conditions, they shared pictures of their make-shift homes and tents with the rest of the group.     Just before dusk, on the 5th of November, the team members distributed 50 food packets comprising a sumptuous serving of Bengali delicacies: luchis, vegetable curry, and gauja, a delicious sweet to celebrate the auspicious occasion of Deepavali with them.     The noble mien of these daily wage workers was extremely touching for they insisted on taking only one food packet for their children stating that they would share the meal with them instead of each individual partaking of a separate meal.     Despite these crushing challenges, most families have ensured...