1. FESTIVALS: If Winter comes, can Spring be
far behind—P.B.Shelley. Vasant Panchami, the initiator of spring in Bharat, falls on 5th day of
Magha Shukla corresponding to 4th February this year. The festival is
more commonly associated with Maa Saraswati, the goddess of learning, wisdom,
knowledge, fine arts, refinement, science and technology. The day is celebrated
as Saraswati Puja in eastern parts of Bharat and as Sri Panchami in other parts
of Bengal . The ritual of initiating education
to children, known as Akshar-Abhyasam or Vidya-Arambham/Praasana, is one of the
famous rituals of Vasant Panchami. The color yellow plays an important role in
Vasant Panchami as it is related to the bloom of mustard flowers during this
period. Celebrants usually wear yellow garments, Saraswati is worshiped in a
yellow dress, and sweet saffron rice and yellow sweets are consumed within the
families. The festival is celebrated by the Bharatiya diaspora all over the
world.
2. Dwindling number of Parsis a concern: rashtrapatiji:
Expressing concern over the
population of Parsis worldwide shrinking to about 1.4 lakh, Rashtrapati Pranab
Mukherjee on December 27 urged the
community to address the issue "pragmatically and sensitively". Inaugurating
the 10th World Zoroastrian Congress, he lauded Parsis for their immense
contribution to Mumbai in particular and Bharat as a whole. He referred to the
contributions of Dr Homi Bhabha, Homi Sethna, JRD Tata, Field Marshal Sam
Manekshaw, Admiral Jal Cursetji and Air Marshal Aspy Engineer, and named Ratan
Tata, Fali Nariman and Zubin Mehta among the 25 greatest Bharatiya living
legends.
3. VAIDYARATNAM AYURVEDA
MUSEUM: Showcasing the richness, the variety and the evolution
of the Ayurveda
heritage of Bharat, the museum was established
and is maintained as one of a group of institutions collectively known as the
Ashtavaidyan Thaikkattu Mooss Vaidyaratnam group of institutions, located in Thaikkattussery,
near Ollur in Thrissur
District in Kerala.
The museum was inaugurated by
Dr. A. P. J. Abdul Kalam, former Rashtrapati, on
27 December 2013. The exhibits in the museum include diorama presentation of
the history of Ayurveda from mythological period to modern times, a library of texts
on Ayurveda, descriptions of various branches of Ayurveda, an exclusive section
on Susrutha,
a picture gallery, a 3-D gallery, and a digital
library.
4. My Take,
Rashtra Sarvopari, and Drishtikon, by LK Advani released: "Whatever Advaniji speaks or writes is pramanik
and the national interest is always above everything for him. There are very
few political leaders in the country like Advaniji, who follow extraordinary
transparency in their life,” said Rashtriya Swyamsevak Sangh Sarsanghachalak Mohan
Bhagwat, while releasing three books based on the blogs of octogenarian BJP
leader LK Advani in New Delhi
“I have worked as per my conscience and my
inner voice even though at times I have had to hear criticism from my opponents
as well as from my own people,” Advani said. The 86-year-old former deputy PM
credited his frugal eating habits and clean conscience for his excellent
health.
5. THEY SWAM IN
THE PATH OF SWAMIJI: Under Swami Vivekananda 150th Jayanti Celebrations, an
‘All Bharat Swimming Rally’ was conducted at Kanyakumari recently. Swimmers
hailing from fishermen community residing along the coastal areas of the
country participated in the rally and swam the distance from the shore to the
Vivekananda Rock. They did dhyana at the Swaami Vivekananda Rock Memorial
situated in mid sea at the southern tip of Bharat. Bula Chowdhry, MLA (CPM) and
former national women’s swimming champion was the Chief Guest of the
event.
She observed: ‘Swami
Vivekananda is the only answer for the present day problems,’ recalling
how Swamiji swam across the turbulent waters and reached the Rock. He drew
inspiration from this land and shook the whole world by his powerful speech at Chicago
Kshetra Samparka Pramukh
Mohananji, Kshetra Pracharak Stanumalayan, Prantha Sanghachalak Dr. M L Raja
and other adhikaris graced the event. Earlier a Samudra Pooja was also
performed.
6.
RSS calls for debate on Article 370: Alleging that the parties in power in Jammu and
Kashmir (J&K) are misusing Article 370 ‘to accomplish their personal
agenda’, RSS Akhil Bharatiya Sah-sampark Pramukh Arun Kumar called for a debate
on it while addressing a seminar, "Article 370: Reality and Myths",
organized by Jammu and Kashmir Study Centre in Jammu on December 25.
Maintaining that J&K has
been "mis-quoted", "mis-handled" and
"mis-carried", Kumar said nationalist forces all over the country
have decided to take political discourse of the state by highlighting issues,
which remained unheard due to vicious campaign of some forces of the Kashmir
Valley.
Former Law department head of
Jammu University K L Bhatia said, "Article 370 was not part of the draft
constitution prepared by the drafting committee headed by B R Ambedkar."
"...it was introduced in
the Constituent Assembly of Bharat by Gopalaswamy Ayyengar after persistent
persuasion by the representatives from J&K, that is National Conference
headed by late Sheikh Mohammad Abdullah."
7. The psychological barrier between people of
J&K and rest of the country must go: Jammu & Kashmir unit of Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP)
organised a seminar on ‘Benefits and Harms of Article 370’ in Jammu on December
18. Former Justice of J&K High Court Justice GD Sharma presided over the
seminar. The speakers were of the unanimous opinion that the Article is a
psychological barrier between people of J&K and rest of the country and it
must go.
Initiating the discussion,
eminent columnist Daya Sagar said Article 370 is a barrier in the total
constitutional integration of J&K with Bharat. Eminent historian Prof Hari
Om demanded abrogation of Article 370 and full constitutional integration of
the State with the rest of Bharat. Prof Varinder Gupta said Article 370 gives
special status only to those who are already enjoying power.
Dr Jatinder Singh, Sunil
Ambardar and others also spoke on the occasion. Justice G D Sharma also
supported the demand of abrogation of Article 370 and said this Article is
harmful for the common masses of J&K. National vice president of ABVP Dr
Narinder Singh said since 1990 ABVP has been holding debates all over the
country on Article 370.
8. Don’t ignore repeated Chinese intrusion: A high level delegation of Janjati leaders from
Arunachal Pradesh under the banner of Arunachal Vikas Parishad urged the policy
makers, top political leaders including Up-Rashtrapati Hamid Ansari, Leader of
Opposition in Lok Sabha Smt Sushma Swaraj and Rajya Sabha Arun Jaitley, and the
Army Chief General Vikram Singh to create a sense of responsibility among the
political and bureaucratic elites of the state to overcome the Chinese menace.
The delegation stressed the need to strengthen the remotest border area of the
state.
The delegation included
Arunachal Vikas Parishad Chairman Pratik Potom, and other officials, Akhil
Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad activist Smt Joram Aniya Tana, Gyati Rana from
IFCSAP, Vanvasi Kalyan Ashram president Jagdeo Ramji, Adhyaksh Purbanchal
Kalyan Ashram Ranjit Bhattacharya, and NE Convener of Faith & Culture forum
of ABVKA Ramesh Babu.
9.
Memorable Pravas to Bogota , Paipa and
Duitama in Colombia : Abhimanyu
-- Nov 23rd - 30th, I accompanied Saumitraji for pravas to Colombia in South America .
At the airport, Edwin and Carlos, the translator, received us along with few
people from Vaishnava community, who are followers of Sri Chaitanya Saraswat
Math (SCSM) from Navadeep, West Bengal . We
were taken to a home in Bogota Bogota Duitama
The men in the community wear dhoti or kurta-pajama and women wear
Saris as much as possible! Surprisingly, they wear Bharatiya clothes even when
they go outside of their home. All the initiated men keep a Shikha, and many of
them would even wear dhotis during the kirtan sessions. All of the devotees
have adopted a Hindu name such as Radharani Devi Dasi, Dwija Hari Das, Lakshmi
Rani Devi Das etc. They do daily Sri Krishna kirtan in morning and evening,
with special services on weekends and fast on all Ekadashis too. At the moment,
devotees are looking to build a big Sri Krishna temple in Paipa to help expand
their efforts.
We were extremely well treated by folks in Vaishnava community. It
appeared that the people had not only learned about Atithi Devo Bhava but have
fully imbibed it. We were always served before anyone else and that too in
larger quantity than the rest! We received vegetarian meals all the seven days,
and every meal was different. The food was mix of Bharatiya and Colombian, and
was always followed by a different sweet item e.g., Halwa, Malpua etc. We were
served freshly cut Colombian fruits every morning, along with coffee and large
different variety of teas and fruit juices throughout our stay. Although we all
met for the first time, we pretty soon got along as though we know each other
for a long time. When we departed Paipa on Tuesday evening to come back to Bogota
During our stay, we met heads of various section of Dharmic society in Colombia Colombia Mexico South America .
Additionally, we visited very well run Sai
Baba Center
in Bogota Colombia
Additionally, we met a Brazilian devotee who lives in Colombia South America by giving
talks at various places.
We also visited an Ayurvedic Treatment / Spa center in Paipa. This
center has been created by a Colombian doctor, with training from Bharat.
We met only 3 people from Bharat in our week-long stay in Colombia Colombia Colombia
10.
NON-CITIZEN SHOULDN’T BECOME
EDITOR: HC – Delhi High Court on December 17 observed that it was desirable that
non-citizens should not be the editors of any publication in Bharat. A bench
comprising Justices Pradeep Nandrajog and VK Rao said that since the Parliament
was set to consider the new Bill on the related issue, the court was not
intended to pass any order in this regard.
“If being a citizen of Bharat is the pre-requisite of the three pillars
of democracy: The Legislature, The Executive and The Judiciary; no person can
be elected to a legislature unless he is a citizen of India, no person can hold
a public post if he is not a citizen of India, no person can hold the office as
a judge if he is not citizen of Bharat, it would be illogical that a person who
is the pivot of the Fourth Estate is not a citizen of India,” said the
judgement highlighting the role of Fourth Estate in Bharat. The court observed
that “citizenship kindles a sense of patriotism and loyalty and thus it may be
desirable that a person who is not a citizen of Bharat should not be an editor
of a publication in Bharat”.
The order came on a petition filed by BJP leader Subramanian’s Swamy
against The Hindu newspaper for appointing a US US
11.
Flawless mission :
The Strategic Forces Command (SFC),
fired the long range Agni 3 missile with a range capability of over 3,000 km
from Wheelers Island
Agni 3 missile is equipped
with advanced high accuracy navigation system and guided by an innovative
guidance scheme.Quoting an SFC spokesman, “Such successful training launches
clearly indicate our operational readiness to meet any eventuality as also
establishes the reliability of this deterrent component of Bharat’s Strategic
arsenal”.
12. Malviya Jayanti at BHU: Banaras
Hindu University
13.
Yoga Room at Chicago
A wall-mounted video monitor plays soothing sounds and displays yoga
exercise techniques and images of nature. And to provide privacy and let in
natural light, there are frosted windows along one side of the room. The yoga
room at Chicago 's O'Hare airport continues a
trend begun by San Francisco
International Airport Dallas , San Francisco
and Burlington , Vt.
14.
Bharatiya Population Up By 48% In New
Zealand : The population of Bharatiya ethnic
group in New Zealand New Zealand
15. SHRI VISHWA
NIKETAN: Pravas: Saumitra Gokhale, Samyojak Vishwa Vibhag is on a
tour to Kenya , Uganda , and Tanzania Mauritius
and South Africa
Visitors:
Nitin Deeal and family -- Mauritius ,
Shivkumar – Sydney , Australia ,
Vinay Sharda – Toronto , Canada
FOOD FOR
THOUGHT: Politics should be in accord with the Dharma i.e., that which sustains
the society, with the eternal laws that govern human relationships, and should
maintain harmonious concord in all such fields. — Shri Guruji.
JAI
SHREE RAM
The
legend called
Balasaheb
Deshpande
Virag
Pachpore
The late Ramakant Keshav alias Balasaheb Deshpande, founder of Akhil
Bharatiya Vanvasi Kalyan Ashram, was a top ranker legendary personality in
modern Bharat. Born in a traditional Brahmin family on December 26, 1913 at
Amaravati in Vidarbha, he became an RSS swayamsevak in his teen age and
received indelible impressions in patriotism, discipline and Hindutva.
A graduate from Hislop College , Nagpur
In this area, Christian missionaries were those days converting the
simple tribal people to their religion by using all means fair and foul. The
entire education system was controlled by these missionaries there.
No other agency was allowed to work without the permission of the
missionaries. Balasaheb opened 100 government schools in 1948 in just one go in
the tribal areas to counter the missionaries work, overruling all objections
and difficulties. Surprised at this achievement, Thakkar Bappa visited Jashpur and
as a token of appreciation, gave him Rs 251/- as prize for his accomplishment.
But the goverenment machinery was not in a mood to give free hand to Balasaheb
in his mission in Jashpur. Shri Guruji advised him to give up the government
job and start an independent mission for the welfare of the tribal brethrens.
The Christian missionaries had been working in Bharat since 1793 with a
mission to convert the people here to Christianity. These missionaries
concentrated in Bastar, Chhota Nagpur ,
Assam
He was assisted by Morubhau Ketkar, a senior Pracharak of RSS on the
instructions of Shri Guruji. The Jashpur principality and its royal family
always supported the activities of Kalyan Ashram.
The work was two-fold: To bring back those tribals who were converted
to Christianity by fraud, allurement or some other means and to inculcate in them
a strong sense of belonging to the Bharatiya culture and religion. At the same
time, the Niyogi Commission, appointed by the Madhya Pradesh Government exposed
the anti-national character of these Christian missions and their missionaries.
Balasaheb accepted the challenge of the tribal areas and with his
undaunted courage, untiring zeal and uncompromising commitment plunged into the
mission of his life. Education was his basic instrument to reach to the tribal
people and once he made a place for himself, he served them treating them as
his ‘god’. He gave them love and affection which they wanted very much and in
turn realised the highest satisfaction of his life- both mundane and spiritual.
Vanvasi Kalyan Ashram is a mission of national renaissance. It has been
the most difficult and daunting task. Balasaheb pioneered this seemingly
difficult mission and achieved success. –
(Abridged)
Satyameva Jayate
Truth Alone Triumphs
Narendra Modi
My dear sisters and brothers,
The law of nature is that Truth alone triumphs — Satyameva Jayate. Our
judiciary having spoken, I felt it important to share my inner thoughts and
feelings with the nation at large.
The end brings back memories
of the beginning. The devastating earthquake of 2001 had plunged Gujarat into the gloom of death, destruction and sheer
helplessness. Hundreds of lives were lost. Lakhs were rendered homeless. Entire
livelihoods were destroyed. In such traumatic times of unimaginable suffering,
I was given the responsibility to soothe and rebuild. And we had wholeheartedly
plunged ourselves into the challenge at hand.
Within a mere five months
however, the mindless violence of 2002 had dealt us another unexpected blow.
Innocents were killed. Families rendered helpless. Property built through years
of toil destroyed. Still struggling to get back on its feet from the natural
devastation, this was a crippling blow to an already shattered and hurting Gujarat .
I was shaken to the core.
‘Grief’, ‘Sadness’, ‘Misery’, ‘Pain’, ‘Anguish’, ‘Agony’ - mere words could not
capture the absolute emptiness one felt on witnessing such inhumanity.
On one side was the pain of
the victims of the earthquake, and on the other the pain of the victims of the
riots. In decisively confronting this great turmoil, I had to single-mindedly
focus all the strength given to me by the Almighty, on the task of peace,
justice and rehabilitation; burying the pain and agony I was personally wracked
with.
During those challenging
times, I often recollected the wisdom in our scriptures; explaining how those
sitting in positions of power did not have the right to share their own pain
and anguish. They had to suffer it in solitude. I lived through the same,
experiencing this anguish in searingly sharp intensity. In fact, whenever I
remember those agonising days, I have only one earnest prayer to God. That
never again should such cruelly unfortunate days come in the lives of any other
person, society, State or nation.
This is the first time I am
sharing the harrowing ordeal I had gone through in those days at a personal
level.
However, it was from these
very built up emotions that I had appealed to the people of Gujarat on the day
of the Godhra train burning itself; fervently urging for peace and restraint to
ensure lives of innocents were not put at risk. I had repeatedly reiterated the
same principles in my daily interactions with the media in those fateful days
of February-March 2002 as well; publically underlining the political will as
well as moral responsibility of the Government to ensure peace, deliver justice
and punish all guilty of violence. You will also find these deep emotions in my
recent words at my Sadbhavana fasts, where I had emphasised how such deplorable
incidents did not behove a civilised society and had pained me deeply.
In fact, my emphasis has
always been on developing and emphasising a spirit of unity; with the now
widely used concept of ‘my five crore Gujarati brothers and sisters’ having
crystallised right at the beginning of my tenure as CM itself from this very
space.
However, as if all the
suffering was not enough, I was also accused of the death and misery of my own
loved ones, my Gujarati brothers and sisters. Can you imagine the inner turmoil
and shock of being blamed for the very events that have shattered you!
For so many years, they
incessantly kept up their attack, leaving no stone unturned. What pained even
more was that in their overzealousness to hit at me for their narrow personal
and political ends, they ended up maligning my entire State and country. This
heartlessly kept reopening the wounds that we were sincerely trying to heal. It
ironically also delayed the very justice that these people claimed to be
fighting for. Maybe they did not realise how much suffering they were adding to
an already pained people.
The Gujarat Government had
responded to the violence more swiftly and decisively than ever done before in
any previous riots in the country. Yesterday’s judgement culminated a process
of unprecedented scrutiny closely monitored by the highest court of the land,
the Honourable Supreme Court of India. Gujarat ’s
12 years of trial by the fire have finally drawn to an end. I feel liberated
and at peace.
I am truly grateful to all
those who stood by me in these trying times; seeing through the facade of lies
and deceit. With this cloud of misinformation firmly dispelled, I will now also
hope that the many others out there trying to understand and connect with the
real Narendra Modi would feel more empowered to do so.
Those who derive satisfaction
by perpetuating pain in others will probably not stop their tirade against me.
I do not expect them to. But, I pray in all humility, that they at least now
stop irresponsibly maligning the six crore people of Gujarat .
Emerging from this journey of
pain and agony; I pray to God that no bitterness seeps into my heart. I
sincerely do not see this judgement as a personal victory or defeat, and urge
all - my friends and especially my opponents - to not do so as well. I was
driven by this same principle at the time of the Honourable Supreme Court’s
2011 judgement on this matter. I fasted 37 days for Sadbhavana, choosing to
translate the positive judgement into constructive action, reinforcing Unity
and Sadbhavana in society at large.
I am deeply convinced that
the future of any society, State or country lies in harmony. This is the only
foundation on which progress and prosperity can be built. Therefore, I urge one
and all to join hands in working towards the same, ensuring smiles on each and
every face.
Once again, Satyameva Jayate!
Vande Mataram!
-- Written on Blog, 27 December 2013
The
secret of existence
MP Ajith Kumar
The metaphor of cosmic dance is quite beautifully expressed in the
bronze image of the dancing Siva. It is not just art but also science par
excellence, says MP Ajith Kumar
All things... are aggregations of atoms and by their movements produce
sounds. When the rhythm of the dance changes, the sound it produces also
changes... Each atom perpetually sings its song, and the sound, at every
moment, creates dense and subtle forms.”
This dance as described by Alexandra David-Néel in Tibetan Journey
offered a mystic and spiritual experience to Fritjof Capra, a leading scientist
of our times. It inspired him to write his classic work, Tao of Physics.
Sitting by the ocean one late summer afternoon, he saw all his former
experiences snowballing into an unbearable ecstasy.
“I saw the cascades of energy coming down from outer space in which
particles were created and destroyed in rhythmic pulse. I ‘saw’ the atoms of
the elements and those of my body participating in this cosmic dance of energy;
I felt its rhythm and I ‘heard’ its sound and at that moment I knew that this
was the dance of Siva, the lord of dancers”, he said.
The metaphor of cosmic dance is beautifully and profoundly expressed in
the bronze image of the dancing Siva — Nataraja. Created during the 10th
century or earlier in south India, the citadel of Indian art and philosophy,
the image of the dancing Siva is the most excellent creation of the Chola art
(an age of refinement of Dravidian art and architecture under the imperial rule
of the Chola dynasty from 850 CE to 1250 CE).
Marked with classic grace, grandeur and perfect taste for creativity,
the image of the dancing god has attained worldwide recognition and is an
esteemed sanctum of classical art. With its complexity that baffles a
philosophical explanation, the Nataraja image has infused the scientists as
well as artists with awe and inspiration. For, it is art at its best; it is
science par excellence as well.
Symbolically representing the cycles of creation and annihilation, the
king of dance upholds rhythm and exaltation. He is surrounded by the flaming
aureole of the prabhamandala, the circle of the world which he both fills and
exceeds. Playing the tambourine with one of his right hands, he draws all
beings into his rhythmic motion and exhorts them to take part in the dance
which represents the merciless act of universal annihilation.
His flying locks and the blown scarves depict the speed of this universal
movement, which crystallises matter and reduces it to powder in turn. In one of
his left hands, he holds the fire which annihilates and devours the world in
this cosmic whirl. He is also crushing a demon with one of his feet; he dances
on the bodies of the dead. It is the dance of total annihilation — samhara —
but it is the dance of creation too, symbolising the divine mercy. Like
Shelley’s West Wind which is a juxtaposition of creation and annihilation, the
God of dance too executes many steps sending vibration into the potential
elements lying dormant, and exhorts them to dance to life.
Are creation and annihilation separate entities? The Bhagavad Gita
refutes the notion. What one sees is only the world that is visible, but its
end remains invisible. In between this beginning and end, one locates the
cosmic dance in its camouflaging speed. Speed, as both philosophy and science
say, forms visibility. The word jagat then represents world that is always in
the process of rapid movements. It is this swiftness that makes the world loka
and the subject to the eye, lochana.
The world (or loka) is visible because it is jagat (the one that moves
in speed). The lord of dance thus combines in him all the three aspects —
creation, preservation and destruction — which in their final fusion result in
creative unity. Aspects of ananda and samhara thus embrace in perfect harmony
where the ostensible opposites cease to differ from each other and samhara
leads to the final bliss, ananda. Everything the Taittiriya Upanishad says is
the expression of ananda. Born of ananda, they return to ananda. Shiva is the
infinite time, Mahakala, with no beginning and end and the infinite space with
circumference everywhere and centre nowhere. Time and space are mere constructs
of mind which vanish when the ultimate bliss (ananda or shivam) is attained.
His dance is thus symbolic of the dynamic universe which dances its way to the
infinite ecstasy.
One of the Lord’s right hands is making the gesture of reassurance —
abhayamudra — that creation is within destruction and vice versa. That the
merciless nature of this universal determinism has in it the touch of mercy is
the generative principle of future. He bears a broad smile, both at death and
life, at pain and joy alike, as he combines in himself the pain of annihilation
and joy of creation. It is the sport of life and death in which all things fall
in their proper stead finding their explanation and logical conclusion.
Finally comes the backside view of the statue. The steadiness of shoulders
upholding the world and the majesty of the torso symbolise the stability and
immutability of the substance, while the leg’s gyration in whirling speed
speaks of the vortex of phenomena. Also, the dance stirs up the psychic planes.
Shiva dances in tillai, the centre of the universe. It takes place at
Chidambaram, the mental horizon. The idea behind the cosmic dance brings modern
physics, ancient mythology, and religious art in unity. It is philosophy at its
best. It is, as Ananda Coomaraswamy said, “poetry but nonetheless science”.
(The author is Associate Professor, Sanatana Dharma College
-- 29 December 2013 | The Pioneer
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