We have come to a fairly momentous decision here to change the name of the Culinary Institute, and are putting the call out for some suggestions. The initial proposal was to name it “The Yamunā Devī Institute of the Vegetarian Culinary Arts,” and we don’t feel at all embarrassed about that initial proposed name, but we have nevertheless come to the conclusion that it’s not the right name. The name of the Culinary Institute is obviously of massive importance, and we want to get it right.
It does not seem to make sense to do “Bhaktivedanta Institute” because that already exists. But other Ācāryas in the disciplic succession are certainly legitimate, and many of the names seem to sound quite good, like Jñānasindhu, or Vidyānidhi, or Jayadharma.
Also, the chosen relevant theme or līlā is the Churning of the Ocean of Milk, so the name could also be from 8th Canto of Śrīmad Bhāgavatam. For example, the Ocean of Milk is given there in Sanskrit as Kṣīrasāgaraḥ, Payodhim, or Samudra, all of which might be good names as well.
Just a note that Mother Yamunā Devī’s award-winning cookbooks are still envisioned to be primary instructional textbooks at the Institute, and we are still planning the large mural of the Goddess Yamuna, with the sun god and so on that was previously proposed. We wouldn’t want to throw out the baby with the bath water.
Alright, we will now open this up in the comments below for some new name suggestions. We had our shot at it, so we will now open it up to others.
Dandavat Pranāmas! All Glories to the Great Service of the Ancient Nāga Kings!
I think “Samudra Institute” sounds good, from the 8th Canto of Śrīmad Bhāgavatam. Longer versions would be “Samudra Culinary Institute,” or the full name would be “The Samudra Institute of the Vegetarian Culinary Arts.”
I looked up if there was any Samudra Institute already, and all I found was a “Samudra Maritime Institute,” in Maharashtra, India, which carries out scientific ocean research. My guess is that they chose that name from the Ocean of Milk connection as well.
Dandavat Pranāmas Project Commander Ṅeṅkaḥ Devi! Thank you! It is true that the Ancient Nāga Kings are very famous for their great service, like with Ananta Śeṣaji who serves as the bed of Lord Viṣṇu, and King Vāsuki helping the Matsya incarnation to pull the ship, and helping to churn the Ocean of Milk of course. If we may say so, you might be on your way to joining them with all the great service you have been doing with the Culinary Institute Project.
Thanks so much for your suggestion of adopting Samudra Institute as the name. It sounds good to us too. We will just give it a bit more time to see if there if there is more feedback about this from others.
Dandavat Pranāmas! All glories to those who serve the gods nicely! I think Samudra Institute sounds good as well, although it is possible there is an argument for choosing one of the Ācāryas in the Sampradaya because they may have a unifying effect. It is not that other missions do not support or accept Srila Prabhupada, but Ācāryas that are further back in the disciplic succession are definitely in their line and completely accepted by all the different missions.
There are quite a few names in the disciplic succession that I think would sound good, but at least to me, it seems like “Jayadharma Institute” sounds the best. We could say it means “All glories to those follow the dharma,” especially the dharmic occupation of cooking prasad. It seems to be accepted as a very dharmic occupation.
Possibly there’s a special argument for “Bhaktisiddhānta Institute.” One could say,joking a bit, that the final siddhānta of the bhakti yoga process is to get some good plates in front of the deities and to take some delicious prasād. But as they say, every joke has a kernel of truth in it.
Dandavat Pranāmas Shaman Torbak! All glories to those who serve the gods nicely! And if we may say so, you seem be doing quite well on that score. Lets’ see, already some great service to Kurma Avatara, and to Mohini Avatara, and to the Goddess Laksmi, and many other personalities mentioned in the Culinary Institute Project.
Thanks so much for your suggestions Shaman Torbak. Those sound like some good possibilities there. We will see if we can hear from some others to help pick between them.
Actually, “Payodhiṁ Institute” may be a stronger contender from the Bhagavatam, since it more specifically refers to the Ocean of Milk, rather than a regular saltwater ocean. The Sanskrit roots “payo” or “paya” seem to mostly end in words that have something to do with milk, breasts, or the Ocean of Milk.
Those seem like some good meanings for Payodhim. The Sankrit roots seem to be more connected to milk than to oceans. That’s probably good. The graduates are supposed to know how to turn out some really serious milk sweets.