\SAMVAD श्री विश्व निकेतन SHRI VISHWA NIKETAN
Ashadha Poornima, Vik. Samvat 2076 Yugabda 5121: 16 July 2019
1. FESTIVALS: JAGANNATH RATH YATRA: JAGANNATH Rath Yatra
began on Ashadha Shukla 2 corresponding to 4th July this year at Puri in Odisha.
Lakhs of people witnessed Bhagwan Jagannath, Bhagwan Balabhadra and Devi
Subhadra riding three giant wooden chariots as they travelled to Gundicha
temple. As the story goes, on this auspicious day the three sibling deities –
Bhagwan Balabhadra, Bhagwan Jagannath and Devi Subhadra wrap up their annual
nine-day sojourn to Sri Gundicha Temple, their birth place and return to
Srimandir riding their three majestic wooden chariots. On July 12, lakhs of
devotees from across the country and abroad witnessed ‘Bahuda Yatra’ – the
homecoming of the Holy Trinity from Gundicha Temple to Srimandir on their
chariots.-GoToTop
2. 1.5 LAKH PILGRIMS PERFORM AMARNATH YATRA: 144,058
pilgrims had darshan of the holy ice lingam in the Amarnath Cave during the
first 11 days after the yatra started on July 1. This year's 45-day long yatra
to the Amarnath Cave shrine will end on August 15, coinciding with the Shravan
Purnima. Situated at 3,888 metres above the sea-level, the cave shrine houses an
ice stalagmite structure that waxes and wanes with the phases of the moon.
Devotees believe the ice stalagmite structure symbolizes powers of Bhagwan
Shiva. -GoToTop
3. RSS POPULARITY GROWING IN YOUNG GENERATION: “The
young generation is actively joining the RSS. The RSS has also started six new
activities keeping in view the changing atmosphere in the country. These
activities include environment protection, village development, cow protection,
social harmony and Kutumba Prabodhan,” said RSS Akhil Bharatiya Prachar Pramukh
Arun Kumar while talking to the media persons during the Yojak Varg organized at
SR Engineering College, Jhansi. RSS Akhil Bharatiya Sah Prachar Pramukh Narendra
Thakur and Prant Sah Karyavah Anil Srivastava were also present. A total of 140
workers from various parts of the country joined the Yojak Varg. Shri Arun Kumar
pointed out that Sangh is continuously expanding since the year 2010 because the
acceptability of the RSS has increased in society. He said there were 40,000
Sangh Shakhas in 2010, which increased to 60,000 in 2019.-GoToTop
4. HSS PARTICIPATION IN CANADA DAY PARADE: For the first
time in Canada, 65 HSS Swayamsevaks and Sevikas participated in the Canada Day
parade on a two-kilometre long path on July 1 in Toronto. They had 3 ganas doing
Ghosh, Yogchap, and Vyayam Yog. Kishor, Yuva and Tarun, both Swayamsevak and
Sevikas were dressed in Ganvesh, in the presence of Bhagva Dhvaj and the
Canadian National Flag. They had a chance to showcase their activities at many
points in the parade, and while in motion, they had Path Sanchalan that visitors
across the road enjoyed and complemented with cheers.
-GoToTop
5. RASHTRAPATI KOVIND OFFERS PRAYER AT ATHI VARADAR TEMPLE:
Rashtrapati Ram Nath Kovind on July 12 had 'darshan' of Athi Varadar at
Devarajaswami Temple in Kanchipuram. The 12-foot idol of Athi Varadar (made out
of fig tree), lying in a silver casket underwater in the temple tank for the
past 40 years, was taken out on June 28 early morning. Devotees were allowed to
have 'darshan' for 48 days from July 1 to August 17 at the Devarajaswami temple,
popularly known as Varadaraja Perumal Temple. The last time Athi Varadar was
raised out of the water was on July 2, 1979.
-GoToTop
6. UPA RASHTRAPATIJI CALLS UPON TO PRESERVE COUNTRY’S
CULTURAL HERITAGE: Upa Rashtrapati M Venkaiah Naidu was speaking after
releasing the book “Sri Ranganathaswamy Temple, Srirangam: Preserving Antiquity
for Posterity,” at a function in Chennai on July 13. Shri Naidu said Bharat has
many priceless treasures of art and architecture, song and dance, poetry and
theatre, mythology, philosophy, Mathematics and Material Science. He added that
it is a sacred and patriotic duty of the present generation to preserve and
protect the country’s antiquities for the next generation.
-GoToTop
7. NATION IS ALWAYS SUPREME: RASHTRA SEVIKA SAMITI: We
are mortal beings but nation is immortal. A person, who considers nation above
himself, will only consider himself as the means to raise the esteem of the
nation because it is not he, but the organization and nation that are supreme.
These thoughts were expressed by Chitra Tai Joshi, Akhil Bhartiya Sahkaryavahika,
Rashtra Sevika Samiti in a seminar “Ideological Congruence – A Challenge”
organized by Medhavini Sindhu Srijan, the Intellectual Wing of Delhi Prant
Rashtra Sevika Samiti to commemorate 114th birth anniversary of Laxmibai Kelkar
(Mausiji), the founder of Rashtra Sevika Samiti on July 6. She said that the
ideology, with which Mausiji founded Rashtra Sevika Samiti in the fourth decade
of last century, is still relevant and works as building block of the society.
Lakshmibai Kelkar was born on July 06, 1905 (Ashadha Shukla Dashami) in Nagpur.
She was affectionately called as “Mausiji”.
Founded on Vijayadashami day in 1936, Rashtra Sevika Samiti is today the largest
women organization in the world upholding Bharatiya culture, values and
traditions. It has 4356 Shakhas (branches) in 546 districts and more than three
lakh Sevikas (women volunteers) actively involved in socio-cultural activities.
Samiti also runs more than 855 service projects all over Bharat for the poor and
underprivileged, without regard to religion, caste, creed, sect, gender or
ethnicity. These include schools, libraries, computer training centres, free
tuition centres etc. -GoToTop
8. SWAYAMSEVAKS AND VOLUNTEERS OF UBSS RENDERED SERVICE
DURING RATH YATRA: Utkal Bipanna Sahayata Samiti (UBSS), Bhubaneswar, Odisha
in association with RSS swayamsevaks provided 8 different types of seva
(service) during the recently concluded Rath Yatra in Puri. The Seva activities
included first aid, distribution of medicines, sprinkling of water, distribution
of drinking water, stretcher seva, provisioning ambulance services, creating
corridor for ambulance & emergency services and attending to ailing patients.
Stretcher Seva was coordinated by 25 Swayamsevaks. 8 volunteers took care of
Ambulance services while many assisted in creating a corridor for the ambulance.
1200 Swayamsevaks and volunteers of UBSS also worked towards creating a smooth
passage for the ailing pilgrims and also tended to ailing patients in hospitals
as their bed side attendants. -GoToTop
9. JAINA HOSTS 20TH BIENNIAL CONVENTION IN CALIFORNIA -
ATTRACTS OVER 3,500 ATTENDEES: JAINA or the Federation of Jain Associations
in North America, in partnership with the Jain community of Southern California,
hosted its 20th biennial convention at the Ontario Convention Center in Ontario
July 4-7, attracting over 3,500 attendees, many from the Bharatiya American
community. The theme was “Celebrating Jain Religion in 21st Century.”
Convention convener Mahesh Wadher and co-conveners Dr. Nitin Shah and Dr.
Jasvant Modi explained the theme and purpose of the convention and its five
distinct tracks of learning about Jain principles and practices, representing
the five elements – Seva, Satsang, Samarpan, Sadhana, and Self-Realization – and
other tracks on focus groups, including for young Jain professionals, young
adults, youths, and ‘Jain Connect’. The five tracks depicted in the convention
logo represented the steps onto the path of progression of a spiritual journey
towards achieving moksha, the final liberation. This convention was
extraordinary also because over 600 youths and young adults were among the
attendees. -GoToTop
10. SEWA SUMMER INTERNSHIP 2019 REPORT WEEK 2 THROUGH 3:
Sewa International, Atlanta chapter’s summer internship for high schools has 11
interns for tutoring classes for Bhutanese community in Decatur and 7 interns
for Stone Mountain High School survey. The group of interns responsible for
tutoring kids from the Bhutanese has been getting a steady attendance each day.
The students are primarily from elementary school with a proportion of them
being from middle school as well. There are two locations for the tutoring
project – one at the English Oaks Apartment and the other at the Carriage Oaks
Apartment. Overall there has been a steady and healthy attendance of 25
elementary and middle school children.
-GoToTop
11. HARVARD RECOGNIZES VISION-AID FOUNDER RAM RAJU WITH
DEREK BOK PUBLIC SERVICE PRIZE FOR 2019: Harvard University announced on 1st
June that Ramakrishna Raju, Bharatiya American founder and executive director of
Vision-Aid, was honored with the Derek Bok Public Service Prize for 2019. Raju
received the honor on May 30. The Derek Bok Public Service Prizes are
prestigious awards given at Harvard University's commencement each year to
graduating students from the Harvard Extension School. It carries a medal, a
citation and a cash prize of $3,000. The award recognizes creative initiatives
in community service or long-standing records of civic achievement. The Derek
Bok Public Service Prize was instituted in honor of the former president of
Harvard University, Derek C. Bok, for his interest in encouraging public service
by all Harvard students. Raju has decided to give the cash award of this prize
to Vision-Aid, saying he is grateful for the recognition it brings to the cause
of Vision-Aid and its volunteers and beneficiaries. Raju began his journey at
Harvard, with a master’s degree in information management systems at the Harvard
Extension School in 2014 and graduated in May 2019.
-GoToTop
12. THROUGH MURALS AND BALLETS, HINDUISM BEING KEPT ALIVE
IN INDONESIA: It is widely known that Indonesia was once ruled by a Hindu
kingdom. In many parts of the country which has a predominant Muslim
(approximately 83 per cent) population, Hindu temples, scriptures, murals and
sculptures of Hindu gods and goddesses are still preserved. Sanskrit words are
weaved into the local language. An example of this is the motto of the
Indonesian Navy – Jalasyeva Jayamahe – which is in Sanskrit. Another major
attraction in Yogyakarta city for locals and tourists alike is the musical
rendition of the Ramayana that is performed at regular intervals at the historic
9th century Prambanan temple, which is now a UNESCO world cultural heritage. The
influence of Ramayana is seen in Prambanan as well, where walls of the temple
contain murals depicting the mythological story of Bhagwan Rama and his heroics.
By establishing a connection with Hinduism, officials believe that tourism and
an exchange of culture between Bharat and Indonesia can largely flourish.
-GoToTop
13. MAGNIFICENT £5M SHREE SWAMINARAYAN HINDU TEMPLE COMING
UP IN OLDHAM, UK: Oldham Council have approved plans for the temple, which
will feature a prayer hall, teaching and community spaces, gardens and up to 60
parking spaces. The building, on Copster Hill Road, will be the new home of the
Shree Swaminarayan Mandir temple. Suresh Sorasia, speaking on behalf of the
temple, said it would be a “landmark” building. The site of the new temple was
previously used by housing association First Choice Homes as a local depot,
which has since been demolished. -GoToTop
14. SRI SRI RAVI SHANKAR RECEIVES HONORARY DOCTORATE FROM
RUSSIAN UNIVERSITY : Global humanitarian and spiritual leader, Sri Sri Ravi
Shankar, has been conferred with an honorary doctorate for his contribution to
the development of inter-cultural friendship between Bharat and Russia. The
63-year-old has received the degree from the Ural Federal University, one of
Russia's largest institutions of higher learning named after the country's first
President, BN Yeltsin. In his address, Sri Sri Ravi Shankar emphasized on the
need for an education that is inclusive and humane.
-GoToTop
15. PINK CITY JAIPUR DESIGNATED UNESCO WORLD HERITAGE SITE:
Bharat’s nomination of the Jaipur City, Rajasthan got inscribed on July 7 on
the World Heritage List of UNESCO during the 43rd Session of the World Heritage
Committee held at Baku, Azerbaijan. The nomination of Jaipur City has
successfully been done by complying with the various UNESCO guidelines of 2017.
With Successful inscription of Jaipur City, Bharat has 38 world heritage sites
that include 30 Cultural properties, 7 Natural properties and 1 mixed site.
-GoToTop
16. SHRI SADHGURU INAUGURATES AAPI’S 37TH ANNUAL CONVENTION
IN ATLANTA: Shri Sadhguru, recognized around the world for his pioneering
efforts to nurture global harmony, inaugurated the 37th annual convention,
organized by The American Association of Physicians of Indian Origin July 4-7 at
the Omni Atlanta at CNN Center and Georgia World Congress Center in Atlanta, US.
Attended by over 2,000 delegates from across the nation, the event began with
the welcome address by Dr. Naresh Parikh, Bharatiya American president of AAPI,
highlighted some of the major accomplishments during his tenure, particularly
pointing to the campaign to rid Bharat of TB with $9 million funds from the
USAID. In his keynote address, Sadhguru said, “The moment we learn to see things
as they are, we will be peaceful. No one can make me happy or angry. I do it to
myself by choice. You need to treat the lifestyle illness. What happens within
you is your choice 100 percent.” “Today doctors themselves are having serious
illnesses. Those addressing health need to be healthy. Stress, tension,
paperwork, rather than patient care, are contributing your health issues,” he
told AAPI delegates. -GoToTop
17. 51% JUMP IN BHARATIYAS ACQUIRING PERMANENT RESIDENCY IN
CANADA: During 2018, more than 39,500 Bharatiya citizens obtained permanent
residency in Canada under the express entry system. Canada admitted over 92,000
new permanent entry residents under its express entry system in 2018, a rise of
41 per cent over the previous year. It may be noted that permanent residency is
similar to a green card in the United States. In 2017, Canada had admitted
nearly 65,500 permanent residents through its express entry route, of which 40
per cent, or 26,300 odd, were from Bharat. However, the number of Bharatiya
citizens obtained permanent residency in 2018 has increased by 51 per cent from
2017. -GoToTop
18. US HOUSE PASSES BILL REMOVING CAP ON ISSUING GREEN
CARDS: The US lawmakers on July 10 passed a Bill aimed at lifting the
current seven per cent country-cap on issuing Green Cards. Passed by the US
House of Representatives, the Bill, on being signed into law, would considerably
reduce the agonizing wait for talented professionals from countries like India
seeking permanent work and residency permits in the United States. It also seeks
to eliminate the seven per cent per-country cap on employment-based immigrant
visas. Additionally, it removes an offset that reduced the number of visas for
individuals from China. Hindu American Foundation welcomed the Bill.
-GoToTop
19. ANCIENT HINDU TEMPLE IN SIALKOT REOPENS AFTER 72 YEARS:
An ancient Hindu temple in Sialkot in Pakistan’s Punjab province has been
reopened for worshippers after 72 years on the directives of country’s Federal
government. Fulfilling the long standing demand of minority Hindu community, the
Shawala Teeja Singh Temple was recently opened and inaugurated according to
Hindu traditions.”For several years, the Hindu community has been demanding that
the temple be opened,” said Syed Faraz Abbas, the deputy secretary of the
Shrine. Abbas added that the work on restoring the temple will soon begin after
estimating the renovation cost. The idols of Hindu deities will be brought in
from Bharat. -GoToTop
20. BHARAT HANDS OVER 250 HOUSES TO MYANMAR: Bharat has
handed over 250 pre-fabricated houses to Myanmar for use of displaced returnees
from Bangladesh. The Bharatiya government had taken up the project under its
Rakhine State Development Programme (RSDP) under which $25 million was allocated
for a period of five years. The MoU on RSDP signed between Bharat and Myanmar in
December 2017 aims to contribute to the socio-economic development of the area.
The programme, said the Bharatiya embassy in a statement, includes creation of
infrastructure in the areas of education, health, agriculture and allied
activities, agro-processing, community development sectors and related training
in these areas. -GoToTop
21. Shri Vishwa
Niketan: Pravas: Saumitra Gokhale, samyojak Vishwa Vibhag will
travel to Caribbean countries. Visitors:
Food for Thought: “Karya Purusha Karena Lakshyam Sampadyate” : With determined human efforts, the task will surely be completed.. From Chankya Niti as quoted by Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitaraman in her budget speech on July 5 in Parliament. -GoToTop
Jai Shree ram
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ANCIENT WISDOM, COMPASSION & MODERN EDUCATION
Rajiv Malhotra
The
Dalai Lama is 84 years old today. Prayers resonate for his long life from across
the world: From the land encircled by snow mountains/ You are the source of all
happiness and good/ All-powerful Chenrezig, Tenzin Gyatso/ Please remain until
samsara ends. The Dalai Lama is revered as an incarnation of Chenrezig, patron
of Tibet, the living Buddha who embodies the compassion of all Buddhas. This
drives him to help others find happiness so profoundly that he chooses to remain
eternally in samsara, as the prayer entreats, embracing the endless cycles of
birth and rebirth in human form with its inherent struggles and suffering to
serve all sentient beings. His Holiness describes India as Guru for Tibetans and
himself. He passionately feels that India has the obligation and potential to
serve humanity by combining its ancient wisdom with modern education, to address
contemporary predicaments. One of his missions is to help with the Nalanda
tradition, of which he is a much celebrated heir. Seminal to this tradition is
the significance of karuna, compassion, not merely as an abstract virtue, but of
practical value. It is what defines the Dalai Lama.
Individuals with psychological problems have an exaggerated sense of self. They
frequently use the words – ‘I’, ‘me’, ‘mine’. When this extends to communities,
corporations or nations, where self-interest transcends reasonable needs, they
become seeds of inequity and disharmony. Compassion softens this obsession with
self. Until recently, we believed that our brains were hardwired at birth and
therefore, unchangeable. Today the science of neuroplasticity demonstrates that
our thoughts can reshape our brains. Brain imaging demonstrates that when we
help others, a circuit in the brain is activated, making us feel good – there is
a powerful connection between compassion and happiness. We can train our minds
to be compassionate by consciously changing our thoughts. The techniques have
been available for thousands of years.
The Dalai Lama has worked with educators and scientists from around the world
for decades to help traditional wisdom and modern science learn from each other.
It has led to a curriculum to train young minds in Social, Emotional & Ethical
Learning (SEEL). It works to nurture universal values, at the heart of which is
the cultivation of compassion. It was released in early April this year in 19
languages in Delhi. His Holiness asks why we do not find time to train our minds
– as the instrument through which we experience and craft our lives – though we
spend decades training ourselves to be materially fulfilled. He continues to
meditate for several hours each day on compassion, and the less easily
accessible ‘shunya’. Till recently, he continued to receive instruction and oral
transmission – sometimes from those younger than himself. It is hard work being
a Dalai Lama.
Now old age and the infirmities that go with the human form have begun to creep
up on Tenzin Gyatso, the ‘simple Buddhist monk’ as he describes himself. His
cosmic laughter, his compassion and profound wisdom acquired over aeons of
lifetimes juxtapose effortlessly with a beginner’s mind. They endure with a
quality of effortless ease.
So does his determination to fulfil his favourite prayer: “For as long as space
endures/ And for as long as living beings remain/ Until then may I, too, abide.
To dispel the misery of the world.” (Times of India, July 6, 2019)
-GoToTop
Shri Vishwa Niketan vishwav@bol.net.in
