SamajaChannu State President Kambalyal, esteemed Swamijis of VSNA, dignitaries and participants of the 2016 VSNA Annual Convention from USA, Canada, India and other countries, on behalf of VSNA, I would like to welcome all of you for your esteemed presence on this occasion of the 39th VSNA Convention to learn more about the philosophy of contemporary Basavas and Sharanas. By Friday evening, as convention activities began, we began to witness the energy of the Maryland Chapter members and the meticulous planning of the convention led by the convention committee chair – Dr. G. Jagadeesh. VSNA is grateful to the Maryland Chapter for its initiative to host the 39th convention. VSNA is proud of the Maryland chapter because it is a mature chapter that did not need oversight or guidance from the core team. Thank you to all the senior leadership of this chapter. As stated in Samaja State during the 2015 convention, VSNA has a unique track record of hosting the convention every year for the past 39 years and will continue to do so for generations to come. This is mainly due to the organization's resilient mission to preserve, protect and spread the Basava philosophy. I am sure that all of you will benefit in enhancing your spiritual understanding from this conference with a variety of programs like Anubhava Ghosti and other programs led by spiritual leaders. Before starting my speech on Samaja State, I would like to highlight and reiterate to all our members, that VSNA is based on a resilient philosophical mission that excludes any kind of caste system. So, we are not a caste-based organization as some would see it, and it is very important to come out of such thoughts that go against… middle of the paper… to host conventions. Additionally, many in the past wished to donate to the VSNA in the form of a will. Those wishing to donate through a personal will to keep VSNA as a beneficiary, please contact the President or any of the local chapter officers and presidents. We will provide the legal documents needed to add VSNA as a beneficiary in your personal will. In closing, I'm pleased to say that we have made some progress as an organization, but we still have a long way to go in organizing ourselves as an organization. Let each of us do our part in the form of Kayaka and Dasoha for the organization to preserve, protect and propagate the universal values ​​of Basava philosophy - the mission of VSNA. Finally, on behalf of all of you, I thank the Maryland Chapter for hosting this conference and I thank you all for your presence at the conference. Thank you.