Bala Vihar is children’s spiritual and cultural educational program of Chinmaya Mission offered to children ages two through high school. Chinmaya Mission New York offers Bala Vihar classes at multiple locations in Manhattan, Long Island and Westchester. At Bala Vihar, children engage with the rich cultural heritage of India and its core values through stories, arts, crafts, classroom discussions and seva projects. Children also learn popular bhajans and shlokas and immerse in festive traditions at community celebrations.

Chinmaya Mission centers have become models for imparting India’s ancient spiritual heritage and the fundamentals of Vedanta to the next generation. Chinmaya Bala Vihar classes are organized into various grade levels from pre-K to Grade 12, aligning teaching resources and techniques with cognitive and emotional development of students. In promoting and teaching the universal philosophy of Oneness (Advaita Vedanta), children are made to understand that although Hinduism may appear to have many Gods, the Truth (God) is the one ultimate Reality, and thus it is one God manifesting in many forms.

The curriculum for Bala Vihar has been developed by the Chinmaya Mission and is taught in all our worldwide Bala Vihar locations. Chinmaya Bala Vihar curriculum includes various devotional, philosophical and ethical texts and topics, focusing in the early years on developing love for God, in the elementary years on learning and practicing value based living, and in the teenage years on understanding spirituality and fundamental Vedantic principles. The curriculum covers topics and texts from the Vedas, Puranas and Itihasas, taught in age-appropriate pedagogy.

Children between the ages of 2 – 5 years attend Chinmaya Shishu Vihar which is a parent and me class.  They have an extensive curriculum which explores one deity each month. Children learn through story-telling, arts and crafts, yoga and many more fun activities!

The Chinmaya Bala Vihar curriculum covers Grades KG-12. Specific courses offered at each center may vary based on number of students enrolled. Students in grades 9-10 are also called “Junior CHYK.” Students in grades 11-12 are also called “CHYK.” Chinmaya Yuva Kendra – CHYK covers ages 17-30 years.

Bala Vihar classes run on weekends during the academic year (Sept – June). We do not have classes on the weekends of major school holidays such as Thanksgiving, Winter break, Memorial Day etc. Bala Vihar class calendar and timings for each location Manhattan Uptown, Manhattan Downtown, Queens-Long Island and Westchester are detailed under their respective sections below. 

Bala Vihar provides spiritual and cultural orientation to children of the modern age. The purpose of the Bala Vihars as elucidated by Pujya Gurudev, Swami Chinmayananda is,

• To inculcate in our children and youth a reverence for our ancient culture, and inspire them to live up to it with correct understanding
• To create self-confidence so that they are able to serve and act cheerfully
• To generate a true affection in all contacts, inculcate personal discipline and a true spirit of leadership
• To mold their capacity to express and assert their individuality
• To bring out their dormant faculties while cultivating and improving their creative abilities
• To provide an environment to grow with noble ideals, healthy emotions and physical discipline
• To develop a healthy resistance against temptations in the environment in which they grow

Bala Vihar meets once a week, at several locations in Manhattan Uptown, Manhattan Downtown, Long Island and Westchester for 90 minutes, to learn about our rich culture, spiritual wisdom and core values in a fun and immersive environment. Bala Vihar classes for different age groups are conducted by trained sevaks and sevikas, who are parent volunteers. These dedicated volunteers impart the values of Sanatana Dharma to children toward character development, laying the foundation for a purposeful and fulfilling life ahead.

While children are in class, parents attend Satsangs, which involve lectures on specific Vedantic texts, self study and group discussions. Children benefit from seeing that spiritual growth is important to their parents as well and that their parents are also learning while they are in the classroom.

Chinmaya Mission Bala Vihar is a completely volunteer driven program. Parents are required to be present onsite while their children are attending Chinmaya Mission programs.

New families who wish to learn more about the program and apply for academic year 2026-27, please register for a trial session on April 25, 2026 or send an email to [email protected] with your name and contact phone number. Please also include the name(s), age(s) and grade in September 2026 for your child(ren).

Uptown Bala Vihar Schedule
Uptown Bala Vihar classes are conducted in person on the Upper East Side (UES) on Saturdays. The sessions starts at 10:53 am and concludes at 12:45 pm. Each session is organized as below:

*Please note that duration of the class varies from 45 min to an hour depending on the age group of the students.

Uptown Bala Vihar Curriculum
Uptown Bala Vihar offers the full K-12 curriculum as well as Shishu Vihar for ages 3-5 years old as detailed below.

*Curricula may vary depending on number of students enrolled.

Uptown Bala Vihar session dates for 2025-26 are as follows:

September: 13, 20, 27
October: 4, 18, 25
November: 1, 8, 15, 22
December: 6, 13
January: 10, 24, 31
February: 7, 21, 28
March: 7, 14, 21
April: 11, 18, 25
May: 2, 9, 16, 30
June: 6 – Graduation

*Above dates may be subject to change.

Contact:
[email protected]

Have more questions?
Please check out our frequently asked questions page.

Manhattan Bala Vihar Opening Prayers

Manhattan Bala Vihar Opening Prayers Audio

Manhattan Bala Vihar Closing Prayers

Manhattan Bala Vihar Closing Prayers Audio

My Prayers

Manah Shodhanam