Deepavali and Kashi Sri Annapoorani

 

Deepavali, the festival of lights, also celebrates delicious food, especially in Kasi, where the golden deity of Annapoorani, the goddess of nourishment, takes center stage, attracting countless devotees to the temple.

According to the Puranas, Parvati once playfully closed Paramasivan's eyes, which resulted in devastating darkness enveloping the earth and affecting all living beings. To rectify this, Sivan opened his third eye. Feeling remorseful for her playful act, Parvati decided to perform penance on earth. She took residence in Kasi, adopting the name Annapoorani, and was depicted holding a rice bowl in one hand and a serving ladle in the other. 

The once-prosperous town fell into the grip of famine, and the King prayed to Annapoorani to relieve their suffering. She answered his prayers and eased the famine. In gratitude, the King asked her to stay in Kasi for eternity to ensure the prosperity of his subjects, and she graciously agreed.

According to the Kasi Kandam, Brahma originally had five heads, and Shiva removed the fifth head, which symbolized ego. To atone for this act, Shiva traveled to Kasi and prayed to Annapoorani to relieve him of the consequences. The Purana states that she offered him a ladle of rice as alms. Since she fed Lord Shiva Himself, devotees pray to her with complete faith and fervor.

 The Annakoot festival is celebrated in India each year after Deepavali. On this occasion, the Sri Annapoorna temple attracts a large crowd of devotees. Mountains of fruits, sweets, and cereals are presented before the Goddess and then distributed to the poor as Prasad. Coins are also given to the devotees, and it is believed that anyone who worships these coins will be blessed with a successful and prosperous life.

A highlight of the temple is that every year, on the day before Deepavali, the golden idol of Sri Annapoorna is opened for darshan (viewing). This idol can only be seen on that day, making it a truly remarkable sight. Goddess Annapoorna is seated in the center, holding her bowl and ladle. On her left is Goddess Lakshmi, and on her right is Sri Bhudevi. All of these idols are made of pure gold and are stunning to behold. In front of them stands Shiva, made of silver, asking for alms. A grand procession accompanies the event of Annapoorani in a chariot, adorned with laddoos, which is another highlight during the celebrations.

Sri Annapoorna Temple is located on Dashaswamedh Road, Viswanath Gali, near the Kashi Viswanath Temple in Varanasi.

There is a legend from southern India that tells how Lord Shiva was cured of a curse known as bharamahatya dosha. This curse resulted from Shiva removing one of Lord Brahma's five heads. According to the legend, Brahma's skull became attached to Shiva's hand, earning him the name Kapalieeshwara. The curse was lifted when Shiva was offered food by Annapurna Devi. Consequently, all the tri-devi goddesses are referred to as Annapurna Devi.

 अन्नपूर्णे सदापूर्णे शङ्करप्राणवल्लभे ।

                                         ज्ञानवैराग्यसिद्ध्यर्थं भिक्षां देहि च पार्वति ॥११॥

                                      (Srimad  Shankaracharya )                                                                                                  

Meaning:
 O Mother Annapoorna, You Who are always Full (with the gift of Food and Blessings), You Who are the Beloved of Shankara,  O Mother Parvati, Please grant me the Alms of Your Grace, to awaken within me Spiritual Knowledge and Freedom from all Worldly Desires.

(**Reposted  an article: 'Faith' - The Hindu, dated 28/10/2024, and Nangia Blogs, dated 28/10/2016, with minor modifications)

The Legend of Sudarshana Chakra

There is a very popular legend behind the origin of the Sudarshan Chakra. According to this theory, the Sudarshan Chakra was created from the Sun’s rays. Viswakarma, the architect of the cosmic Gods, had married his daughter Sanjana to Surya Deva. However, due to the intense heat and light of Surya, Sanjana was unable to look at him and could not approach him. Sanjana told this misery to her father, Vishwakarma.

On hearing this request, Vishwakarma decided to lessen Surya’s shine. He collected Sun dust and made three objects. One was Lord Shiva’s Trishul, the next was Pushpaka Vamana, and the third was Sudarshan Chakra.

The sacred disc is always in a spinning motion and has 108 serrated edges. The Sudarshan Chakra is used for the destruction of evil and negative forces. The movement of this sacred wheel is initiated by mind control and the power of the will. Once the Chakra leaves the finger, it is still under the control of the wielder. The sacred wheel goes after the enemy relentlessly and does not return until the task at hand is accomplished. The sacred disc follows the path of zero-stress nature and can reach the target within the blink of an eye. The Sudarshan Chakra is noiseless, and in case of any obstacle in the path, it amplifies the speed. The Chakra has tremendous spiritual and supernatural powers.

The Sudarshan Chakra has six spokes and the Vajra at the center. The Chakra finds occasional mention in the ancient holy Vedic texts of the Rigveda, Yajurveda, and Puranas. The Sudarshan Chakra is a symbol of preserving law and order and annihilating the enemy.

According to popular belief, during the Dwapara Yuga, the eighth incarnation of Vishnu, Krishna is said to have acquired the Sudarshan Chakra from the fire God, Agni. When Sage Parashurama came to know this, he taught Krishna everything about the mastery of the weapon.

Another belief is that when Lord Krishna took incarnation Shri Vishnu gave him this Chakra which he could use immediately at any time, it was his own property. (Vishnu Purana Part-3 Cha.2). During Samudra Manthan, Lord Vishnu used the Sudarshan Chakra to cut through the Demon Swarbanu who then became Rahu and Ketu. During Daksha Yagna, Shri Vishnu used it to cut Sati's body into 51 parts which fell on Earth and became Shakti Peeths, holy places for worshipping Goddess Shakti.

The Mahabharata mentions that both Sri Krishna and the famous Pandava Arjuna assisted Agni Deva in burning the Khandava forest. Agni Deva was believed to be suffering from a severe stomach ailment. Brahma, the Creator, advised the Fire God to consume the Khandava forest, which was rich in herbs. However, Agni Deva found it difficult to enter the forest as Takshaka, the serpent king, resided in the Khandava forest. He was close to Indra, the King of Gods.

When Agni Deva tried to consume the forest, Indra would send thundershowers to extinguish the fire of Agni Deva. Sri Krishna and Arjuna arrived at the place one day. Donning the guise of a Brahmin, Agni Deva approached them for help, and they agreed. To fight Indra and his divine army, Agni Deva presented Sri Krishna with the divine Sudarshana Chakra and gave Arjuna the Gandheevam. Sri Krishna and Arjuna helped the Fire God burn down the Khandava forest. Thus, Sri Krishna received the Sudarshan Chakra.

Here are other three more popular stories where Sudarhana Chakra was used:-

1

 Shishupala was one of the relatives of Lord Krishna. When he was born, he had three eyes and four arms. It was prophesied that his surplus body parts would disappear when a certain person would take him on his lap, and the same person would kill him. The body parts of Shishupala disappeared when Lord Krishna took him on his lap when he was an infant. Shishupala’s mother requested Lord Krishna not to kill him. Therefore, Lord Krishna promised her that he would not do so until Shishupala committed 100 offenses. In the Pandavas’ Rajsuya yajna, Lord Krishna was honored as the chief guest of the ceremony. It infuriated Shishupala because Lord Krishna had married Rukmini whom he wished to marry. He also must have heard about the prophecy of his death. Therefore, he started verbally abusing Lord Krishna. Lord Krishna remained calm but warned him before his 100th offense, but it was in vain. He continued to abuse him and Pandavas. Therefore, Lord Krishna conjured the Sudarshana Chakra and ordered it to kill Shishupala. He ran here and there but was killed by the Sudarshana at last.

11  

According to the ancient Puranas, Sri Krishna held up the mighty Govardhan mountain when he was a child. The elderly people of Braj, including his father Nanda Maharaj, were preparing for the pooja for Indra, King of Gods when the child Sri Krishna asked them the purpose of the preparations. They explained that the pooja was performed every year to please Indra so that he would bestow abundant rain whenever they required. Sri Krishna replied that the farmers should concentrate on fulfilling their duties, by focusing on farming and protecting their cattle, instead of conducting poojas for a natural phenomenon such as rain. Upon hearing this, the villagers were convinced and did not perform the pooja.

Indra became furious, and he punished the people of Braj for listening to Sri Krishna. He sent terrible rainclouds and heavy showers to flood Vrindavan. The King of the heavens called upon the Samavartaka clouds of destruction to lash Vrindavan with torrents of rains and thunderstorms that would cause extensive damage to the crops and livelihood of the villagers. The thunderstorms and torrential rains lashed Vrindavan, which became submerged. Frightened villagers ran to Sri Krishna for help. Understanding the situation immediately, the child Sri Krishna lifted the Govardhan mountain at once with his left finger. He held it up like an umbrella, and all the villagers and their cattle took shelter under the mountain. For seven days, the villagers and cattle stayed safe under the mountain, without hunger or thirst, surprisingly. They were astounded and completely taken aback to see a child lift a mighty mountain with his finger.

It is said that Sri Krishna used the divine Sudarshan Chakra to support the Govardhan mountain from below as he lifted the mountain with his finger. It is said he used the celestial and sacred disc below the mountain for support. A stunned Indra called back the clouds of devastation. The skies became clear, and Sri Krishna bade the villagers return to the village with their cattle. Later, Indra came down and, with folded hands, asked Sri Krishna for forgiveness. Sri Krishna bestowed his grace upon Indra and enlightened him about Dharma and his duties.

111

Sri Krishna is believed to have used the Sudarshan Chakra in the epic Mahabharat, during the Kurukshetra war. Arjuna’s son Abhimanyu had been brutally killed by the Kauravas the previous day in war, and Arjuna had vowed to avenge his son’s death. Jayadrath was the main culprit. Arjuna had taken a terrible vow to kill Jayadrath before sunset the next day. If he failed in his mission, he would jump into a burning pyre and end his life. The Kauravas had planned to give all protection to Jayadrath as they knew the Pandavas, especially Arjuna would want revenge. They kept Jayadrath in hiding until it was time for sunset. The sunset and Jayadrath came in front of Arjuna, confident the latter had lost the challenge. The sun suddenly reappeared, and Sri Krishna advised Arjuna to shoot an arrow at Jayadrath quickly. Arjuna sent an arrow that beheaded Jayadrath. The sun stayed on for a while during this process and then set a second time.

It is widely believed that Sri Krishna used the divine Sudarshan Chakra to create a false sunset the first time around, forcing Jayadrath out into the open, and lulling him into a false sense of security that Arjuna had lost the challenge. As the eighth avatar of Vishnu, Sri Krishna used the Sudarshan Chakra on a few occasions.

 However, it is believed he never used the divine disc directly in the Kurukshetra battlefield to kill anyone.

Musings- 5

 Guruji

 Many people gathered to listen to Guruji's speech. After listening to his motivational speech, I was inspired for a while. I decided to accept his servitude. So, after the speech, I conveyed my request to him backstage. After hearing that, he laughed and said thus.

"Do you think I am a good man? But you don't want that. You have a hundred thousand ways to be like me. But you only have one way to be like yourself and live for yourself. Shouldn't you know that better than me? In that case, you should be enslaved to yourself."

 🙏

Typo-error

From the day he learned to write letters together, he started writing stories and poems by connecting each sentence like bogies. The truth is that many people called the whole writing by many names. All the readers started saying that the writing was good. Will write again for some time. Once he began to self-evaluate his writings, many of his writings did not match the letters. Many sentences are broken. He wrote not only stories and poems but all typos. He was angry with all the letters A and Aa and E and Ee. They gathered in front of him and protested in unison that he had been ignoring them for so long. Finally, he read the conjoined letters together - typo.

😶

The thought

I tend to be around people who think a lot about me rather than people who think a lot. We can think as much, or even more, with a quarter of the energy of believing what another person has thought and trying to put it into practice. It's just that no one is trying.

😌

Zero

My favorite number is zero. In its emptiness, there is a vast space to contain everything. When we recognize that and add it to the right side with us, we gain value. We become rich with heart.

😚

Understanding Mukhalinga of Lord Shiva

The linga is a divine image of Shiva. A linga with one or more human faces is known as Mukhalinga. 

As per Linga Purana, Panchanana Shiva represents the five faces of Lord Shiva. It also narrates the significance of Shiva. Each of these faces is assigned a specific aspect.

The names of the five faces of Lord Shiva are: Isana, Tatpurusha, Aghora, Vamadeva, and   Sadjyota.

The significance of Five Faces, according to Linga Purana are:-

The upper face is Ishana or Sadashiva, who oversees the sky and is rarely represented. Sadyojata or Mahadeva, the Earth’s protector, is shown on the East face. The West face is Tatpurusha or Nandi, which means “wind” in Sanskrit. Aghora or Bhairava (fire, Agni) faces South, whereas Vamadeva, Uma, or Tamreshvara faces North. In certain writings, the East face is called Tatpurusha, whereas the Western face is called Sadyojata. The five-aspect icon represents the entire universe.

To make it easier for individual Souls to adore him, the almighty, infinite, and eternal God Shiva has shown himself in various forms. “Nishkala” is the name given to the formless shape of Shivalinga. Mukhalingas, on the other hand, are Shivalingas with Shiva’s head on their faces and are classed as “Sakala Nishkala” form.

Five holds a deep significance in Hinduism, especially about Lord Shiva. One of the most venerated mantras of Lord Shiva, Namah-Shivaya, also consists of five syllables. 

It must be noted that Lord Shiva is said to be the supreme lord for the following five functions:

1.     Creation – Srishti: He creates all the worlds and beings.

2     Preservation – Sthithi: He is responsible for the continuation of all the worlds and beings. He is the sustaining power of breath (praneswara) and the digestive power of fire (jatharagni).

3      Concealment – Tirobhava: He is the one who casts the net of delusion or maya, upon the whole creation. He does it so that the order and regularity of the worlds are not disrupted.

  4. Revelation – Anugraha: He is the master of liberation. No one can achieve liberation without his grace and blessings. 

   5. Destruction – Laya or Samhara: He is the one responsible for death and destruction. However, with this aspect, he is also responsible for the renewal of life and rebirth.

Lord Shiva, revered among Hindus, is believed to exhibit five essential forms of existence, continuation, transformation, purification, and liberation. Consequently, we must recognize Shiva’s five faces and worship him accordingly.

Extension of Mukhalingas:-

Mukhalingas are found throughout India and Nepal. They are also found in the former Champa kingdom, which is now in Vietnam, as well as Cambodia and Borneo in Southeast Asia, and Afghanistan in western India. Similar images of phalluses with carved faces from Greece and Celtic Europe resemble Mukhalingas of Shiva. A five-faced Mukhalinga from Bhita, dated to the second century BCE, is one of the earliest examples of the Mukhalinga.

Om Namah Shivaya 🙏🏻

Shani Dev: The Powerful Deity of Karma and Justice

 

 

|| नीलांजनसमाभासं रविपुत्रं यमाग्रजम्‌।

छायामार्तण्डसम्भूतं तं नमामि शनैश्चरम्‌ ||

 

“Nilanjana samabhasam raviputram yamagrajam.

Chaya martanda sambhutam tam namami shaishcharam.”

 Meaning: ‘Looking like a blue cloud, the sun of the Sun, he is the foremost of those who control. He can even put his shadow over the glorious sun. To that Saturn, the emblem of control, we bow down in devotion.’

This mantra is a lovely description of Shani Dev's distinctive traits and pleasantries, and this evokes his blessings on anybody who recites them with dedication and perseverance. The lines are rather simple to comprehend and recite

 

It is believed that Shani Dev never bothers others unnecessarily. We don't get anything we don't deserve. This maha mantra thus helps reduce the Karmic liabilities that can cause suffering in a person’s life. Nobody is immune to the karmic cycle's grip. This mantra helps reduce troubles in life.

Shani Bhagwan (also known as Sani, Shani Dev, Sani Maharaj, and Chayyaputra) is one of the most powerful deities in the traditional Hindu religion. Shani is the harbinger of bad luck and retribution, and practicing Hindus pray to Shani to ward off evil and remove personal obstacles.

The name Shani comes from the root Sanaischara, meaning slow mover (in Sanskrit, "Shani" means "the planet Saturn" and "chara" means "movement"); and Shanivara is the Hindu name for Saturday, which is dedicated to Shani Baghwan.

Shani is the son of Surya, the Hindu Sun god, and Chaya ("Shade"), a servant of Surya who acted as the surrogate mother for Surya's wife Swarna. While Shani was in Chaya's womb, she fasted and sat under the hot sun to impress Shiva, who intervened and nurtured Shani. As a result, Shani turned black in the womb, which is said to have enraged his father, Surya.

When Shani opened his eyes for the first time as a baby, the sun went into an eclipse. In a rage of his own, Shani temporarily turned his father black.

The elder brother of the Hindu god of death, Yama, Shani delivers justice while a person is alive, and Yama serves justice after a person's death. Shani's other relatives are his sisters—the goddess Kali, destroyer of evil forces, and the goddess of the hunt Putri Bhadra. Shiva, married to Kali, is both his brother-in-law and his guru. 

 According to Vedic astrology, Shani is one of the nine planetary deities called the Navagraha. Each deity (Sun, Moon, Mars, Mercury, Jupiter, Venus, and Saturn) represents a different face of destiny. Shani's destiny is karmic, making individuals pay for or benefit from the good or evil they do during their lifetime.

Saturn is the slowest of the planets in astrology, staying in a particular sign for about two and a half years. Saturn is most influential in the seventh house of the Zodiac and is considered beneficial for Taurus and Libra ascendants.

In Hindu astrology, an individual is believed to be most susceptible to bad luck when Saturn is positioned in their house or in the signs before and after their home. Consequently, once every 27 to 29 years, a believer can anticipate 7.5 years of misfortune, occurring in intervals of 2.5 years (3 times).

Shani Baghwan is often considered cruel and easily enraged, but he is also the greatest troublemaker and well-wisher, a strict but beneficent god. He is the god of justice who oversees the 'dungeons of the human heart and the dangers that lurk there.'

Temples dedicated to Lord Shani are spread across India, each with unique traditions and rituals.

 Among the most revered is the Shani Shingnapur Temple in Maharashtra. Here an ancient, self-emerged black stone idol of Lord Shani stands unguarded in an open space. It symbolizes the deity’s omnipresence and invincibility.

The Shani Dham temple in the capital city of Delhi has the world's tallest statue of Lord Shani. The idol was installed in 2003, and since then, the temple has become a major attraction for all devotees of Lord Shani.

Thirunallar is a small town in Karaikal, Puducherry. It is best known for its temple dedicated to Lord Saturn or Shani, Tirunallar Saniswaran Temple. It is believed that King Nala got relief from his disease caused by the influence of Saturn after worshipping at this temple. The place has been called the Nala Theertam ever since then. Devotees from all over the world come here to bathe and get rid of any problems or diseases caused by the past karmas.

Another revered temple dedicated to Lord Shani, the Shanichara temple, Morena, near Gwalior is visited by devotees from all over the world. According to the legend, when Lord Shani was thrown by Lord Hanuman from Lanka, he came and fell at this place.

The legend of Lord Shani continues to resonate with believers and scholars alike. It symbolizes the eternal principles of justice and righteousness. In every phase of life, his presence acts as a guiding force. It reminds us to embrace virtue and lead a life free of deceit.

 As the embodiment of justice and the celestial magistrate, he stands unwavering, guiding humanity toward the path of righteousness and karma.

 

"Chembarathi" ( Hibiscus )

 

 No one knows my troubles. Everyone loves roses. What did I do wrong to leave me like this? Everyone is driving me crazy.

What people used to like about me?. When I went to the temple in the morning, I was taken for the deity's puja. The women of your house needed me to anoint and oil their heads. Now all of you have killed my distant relatives. I am lucky to be alive.

But now, this new generation only allows me to grow in the courtyard of this old family home. In the past, when my grandmother was in the family, medicine, and oil were made from me. All the children who came when the grandmother died last month are going to turn this family home into a resort. Yesterday, a lorry filled with new flower pots and unknown plants arrived here. It was the wind that came from the south side of the palace that told me. He is the only one I have here to talk about. I smiled at the plant in the pot in the distance, but she was terribly serious,... the flowers didn't laugh either. I am trying to remember the name the wind said. They even sit in the living room of the big house. They seem to dislike the sun, rain, and light.

In the morning, I heard the sound of a car and looked up to see a yellow machine with a trunk like an elephant approaching me. Later, I was uprooted and thrown into the nearby river along with other debris. Despite this, I still held onto the hope of survival if I could settle down somewhere with a bit of soil. However, as I tried to take root in the soil, the rain and wind came, and the river water carried me away to a different place through a wild path.

I opened my eyes and looked around. No, I am not hurt. I am completely safe. This is a jungle. I don't know if I can live here without fearing anyone. It is good to try to root myself in this unknown jungle. In any case, even if I have to die in a country that sees me as crazy, I am not.

Or why should I go back? I think everyone in a country who has been likening me to madness and imagining me to be just a flower for the madman will feel at peace when I am gone.

=========================================

Wayside view

 

An old man in dirty clothes, smoking a beedi, sitting on the corner bench was a daily sight for me as I waited at the bus stand. It became a habit for me to keep looking at him until the bus arrived. Some days, I would see a young man getting out of a car and giving him money. I thought of the young man as a well-dressed gentleman. However, I couldn't understand why the old man would murmur or scold him when the money was being paid.

One day, the young boy talked to him longer than usual and gave him more money. Then he got into the car and left the place. I never saw the young man near the old man again. 

That day, there was a lightning bus strike. Then, everyone went back home without going to work. I walked to the old man's usual place. He was sitting there as usual with a beedi and smoke around.

I asked, "Doesn't it take a lot of money to smoke beedi like this all the time? Isn't it because the young man used to give you money and you scold him that he doesn't come nowadays?"

The old man slowly looked at me and then said in a dry voice, "He is my son. Now that he has sold the house and land and moved to a new flat, will I not be his father? How long will he leave me here alone in this rented house behind the bus stand and not share the money he got from selling the land where his mother sleeps? He came to give her share of the money to me last time. I know he will come to call me one day. He is my only son.

I stood there for a while, not knowing what to say, and then I walked away as if I were his only son... 

Is this not sufficient to break the spirits of young people?  Sometimes, a few words can reveal a lifetime of pain. Be kind, always.

To lie or not to lie, that is the question?

 

Many of us have noticed how small babies are given small balls of food, with the caregiver showing them the moon in the bright sky while coaxing the baby to eat the full quantity. Some mischievous children who do not finish their food will see another side of the mother. She may scare them by saying that a big demon with horns and teeth is in the sky and will take away the whole food and the baby while they sleep, or she may share some other fearful incident or story to force them to eat and obey.

Stories become ingrained in our minds during childhood. Don't mention if you grew up in old family houses with grandparents. Nowadays, fewer grandmothers used to tell numerous mythological stories and folk tales. Many of the things presented to us as stories in childhood are simply lies. So, why don't we begin lying?

We have another story from the Epic Mahabharata: When it was certain that Dronacharya, the mighty warrior, couldn't be defeated and killed, Lord Krishna found a way and suggested to Bhima to kill an elephant named Ashwatama, and then claimed to Drona that he had killed Drona's son Ashwathama. However, Drona did not believe Bhima's words and approached Yudhisthira.

 Drona was aware of Yudhisthira's unwavering commitment to truth. When Drona asked Yudhisthira if his son was truly killed in battle by Bhima, Yudhisthira responded with the cryptic Sanskrit phrase "Ashwathama hathaha iti, narova kunjarova", which means "Ashwathama is dead. But, I am not certain whether it was a human or an elephant."

 Krishna also knew that Yudhisthira couldn't lie outright. Following Krishna's instructions, the other warriors blew trumpets and conches, creating a tumultuous noise in such a way that Drona only heard "Ashwathama is dead." Eventually, Drona, disarmed out of grief, was killed through trickery and deceit.

That's how we, who were innocent, begin telling small lies. Is it such a serious offense? Parents attempt to discourage such 'harmless' habits in children with corporal punishment.

Many believe lying is a bad thing and that those who lie will be punished by God. Who on earth has not lied? Why would people have started telling lies? Is lying such a big sin? Isn't lying an art in a sense?

In today's language, a "lie" is the act of knowingly providing false information to another person. There are various types of lies, such as innocent lies, dangerous lies, circumstantial lies, coercive lies, stonewalled lies, etc.

 Many heroes in our society share their experiences in the form of stories. These stories are often exaggerated but generally accepted as valid. This is why most people enjoy listening to these storytellers. In some situations, it is acceptable to bend the truth, and it should not be considered a crime. When we think about the stories created by writers, they are essentially lies, but we appreciate them as products of imagination. In this light, it could be argued that not all lies should be considered crimes.

Sometimes, the tranquility of society is disrupted by false propaganda spread by individuals who are willing to harm others or themselves. It is important to oppose only those falsehoods that are harmful or distressing to others.

"Lying is a unique ability given to humans by God, unlike other animals. Humans had to learn to use this ability wisely. But, one might wonder, did God forget that the same man who dared to eat the forbidden fruit should also show wisdom in using this ability?"

In any case, healthy and enjoyable lies can be beneficial. Judging whether a lie is a crime should be based on the intention behind the lie.

Do you agree?. I will leave it to your better judgment.

Witness to a Comedy of Devotion and Drama

 

Much later, after Maharshi Valmiki, Tulsidas, Kambar, and many others had written the Ramayana, Sri Ramananda Sagar dared to adapt the epic into a television serial for the multitude of devotees and non-believers.

Its waves rippled in every corner of India. In Madhya Bharat, Gwalior is no different from the evolution of visual culture in India.

The changes that the Ramayana serial made at that time in all areas of life are not small. The contribution of the Ramayana serial in starting the trend of people squatting in front of the TV is worth mentioning. People refused to travel. Weddings and other special events on Sundays are not attended. Even the buses and local trains were less crowded at that time. The elders at home started making some small changes in their prayer times. It was heard that nearby temples were getting petitions addressed to their favorite God to deny Yama, the God of death permission to land on earth every Saturday from noon to Sunday evening. Behind it was the concern about the availability of people to take care of the dead body and perform cremation rather than their appetite to watch the Ramayana.

Back in those days, television wasn't as common in every household as it is today. As a result, people would flock to houses with TVs to watch popular shows like Chitrageet and Ramayana, similar to how people gather to watch a cricket or football match. Over time, fans of Ramayana gained the privilege to watch the show in any house with a TV during its broadcast, much like how anyone can visit a temple to pray without needing to be acquainted with the deity. No one needs to teach a drunkard how to find a bar in an unfamiliar place! Similarly, they had a particular determination to reach homes with televisions, no matter how far they seemed from the tall antennas. So, even when unfamiliar faces appeared in the audience, the television owners closed their eyes.

Its waves rippled in every corner of India. In Madhya Bharat, Gwalior is no different from the evolution of visual culture in India. I was stationed in Gwalior as part of my service career.

Just because we have a television at home, we have become involuntary participants in this social service. As it was once said, "Mata Pita Guru Daivam," people have turned it into one of our duties. The number of viewers, which was originally four or five, gradually grew to twenty and thirty. Since there was not enough space in the hall, both young and old people watched this great event from the balcony and above the window in our home. Some of them, finding sitting quietly and watching Ramayana to be a boring event, chose this place and occasion as a platform to display their adventures and personal tastes. The sponge started oozing through the cuts in the clean sofa in our house. The walls were covered with handprints, footprints, and dried noses up to three feet high, and over time, the place began to feel like a Treta Yuga setting.

 After the show, the hall was empty of spectators. It resembled a festival field after a ballet, scattered with paper chits, shells, dirt, and dust. Meanwhile, during the show, there were wedding invitations, profanity, food exchanges for midday meals using a barter system, and other small romances. I used to interrupt and discourage all such romantic gestures, as I was not very interested in finding a place for love outside of my own family, which provided so many comforts.

As the Ramayana serial progressed, people's devotion gradually increased. Their rivalry was more about displaying one’s devotion than real piety. Their leader was Suman, our next-door neighbor, who was an ardent devotee of Sri Ram. We, who put our pride first, could only watch helplessly as everything slipped out of our hands.

Their belief was that Lord Ram and his companions were actually manifesting for these devotees every week. Suman and her team will arrive half an hour before the start of the show. Then there will be a performance of Bhajan, Akhandanama Japam, etc. After a few days, they started to offer Poha, misri, nuts, and jaggery according to their artistic taste. To accompany this, they selected a presentation song to be played before the start of the show. I was hesitant to object because the event was organized by our neighbors and my wife had agreed to participate in the exchange of mythological and devotional events. I was also worried that Suman, who was known for being outspoken, might spread rumors about us if we took a different stance, especially because we are from the far south.

The serial and related art programs continued to progress. The sofa was completely stripped down, leaving only the springs and cover. The murals on the walls reached a height of about five feet. Each week, we grew more eager to see the serial end as soon as possible, while Ramananda Sagar was determined to drag it out as long as possible.

Amid prayers, chanting, and counting, Suman would interject with dialogues to convey the depth of her devotion. Concerned that others might doubt their sincerity, they intensified their counting and chanting. The situation escalated when a couple more devoted disciples arrived to offer support. All the neighbors, drawn by the commotion, were already present at the scene.

It was when our landlord, Lakmi Chand Jain, intervened as the situation started to escalate. He abruptly turned off the power supply, switched off the TV, rang the bell, and dismissed the Ramayana school. He then addressed the disgusted and angry audience, explaining that the dreaded dacoit, Lakkan Singh Tomar, had escaped from the Central jail the previous night. The police had information suggesting that he was hiding near the Hanuman Temple in the Moti Nagar area, close to our vicinity. The Superintendent of Police had ordered utmost vigilance and silence until the dacoit was apprehended.

 Anyway, due to these developments and with the support of some tough police decisions, the locals excluded us from this social service sector. With that, our Sundays slowly returned to normal and our house issued a notice of giving up its position as Serial Theatre. But not before LC Jain forfeited our lease rent caution deposit for damaging his walls and corridors, dirty and filthy.

Note:

I am compelled to inform my loyal readers about these challenging truths that have been hidden for so long. The TV series aired from 1985 to 1987.

 

Becoming a Fakir .

 

 

Becoming a Fakir:  Mahatma Gandhi’s Iconic Loincloth Attire

 Nearly a century ago, Winston Churchill was overwhelmed by Mahatma Gandhi’s attire. In a moment of anger, he called Gandhi, a ‘half-naked seditious fakir’!

“It is alarming and also nauseating to see Mr Gandhi, an Inner Temple lawyer, now become a seditious fakir of a type well known in the East, striding half-naked up the steps of the Viceregal Palace, while he is still organizing and conducting a defiant campaign of civil disobedience, to parley on equal terms with the representative of the King-Emperor.”

His humble clothing was in non-violent defiance of the British Rule–a message that he wore on himself for the rest of his life. Yet, the choice of clothing has a deeper story set in the ancient city of Madurai, Tamil Nadu.

 ‘Fakir’ is a term derived from the Arabic word ‘faqr’ which means poverty and depicts a person who has renounced his worldly possessions for a humble, spiritual life. Mahatma Gandhi’s life also took a turn during his South India tour in September 1921.

While crusading for the civil disobedience movement by boycotting British goods and promoting Khadi, he was suddenly hit with a practical reality when someone asked- “If the laborers burn their foreign clothing, where are they to get Khadi from?”

He wrote, “On the way (from Madras – now Chennai – to Madurai by train) I saw crowds wholly unconcerned with what had happened in our compartment. Almost without exception, they were bedecked in foreign fineries. I entered into conversation with some of them and pleaded for Khadi. They shook their heads as they said, ‘We are too poor to buy Khadi and it is so dear.’ I realized the substratum of truth behind the remark. I had my vest, cap, and full dhoti on. When these uttered only partial truth, the millions of compulsorily naked men, save for their langoti four inches wide and nearly as many feet long, gave through their limbs the naked truth. What effective answer could I give them, if it was not to divest myself of every inch of clothing I decently could and thus, to a greater extent, bring myself in line with ill-clad masses? And this I did the very next morning after the Madura meeting.”

After a few days, this doubt finally translated into concrete action when he reached Madurai to stay at Sri Ramji Kalyanji’s residence on 175-A, West Masi Street.

He arrived in silence, with a cloud of doubt about his head, the silent indication of the storm of revolution awaiting the nation.

On September 22, 1921, he abandoned his usual attire of a shirt and hat, donning just a simple white loincloth.

Two issues were worrying Gandhiji. He had been struck by the poverty he had seen around him as far back as during the Champaran satyagraha days. But this visit to South India made it all the more starker to him. The sight of poor peasants working in the fields in their loin clothes and their struggle for food and livelihood troubled him.

This act, not only highlighted and strengthened the fight to boycott British goods but also created the everlasting symbol of a common man and his spiritual strength, reaching out to the hearts of fellow Indians.

 “I do not want either my co-workers or readers to adopt the loincloth. But I do wish that they would thoroughly realize the meaning of the boycott of foreign cloth and put forth their best effort to get it boycotted, and to get khadi manufactured. I do wish that they may understand that swadeshi means everything,” Gandhi clarified, in Navajivan.

“The adoption of a dhoti and a shawl in the place of an elaborate Gujarati attire is a symbolic external manifestation of an internal revolution. The dress of liberty turned into the Mahatma’s identity".( Gurusamy, secretary, Gandhi Museum)

From a simple piece of cloth to a mass movement, he directed the nation to a path of freedom, not just from the British, but from its innermost evils that separated its people from one another.

Much like the khadi cloth weaved into existence with numerous strands of thread, his journey embraced the nation in unison!

 He may have been mocked as a 'half-naked seditious fakir', but his iconic makeover became the quintessential symbol of the common man and his spiritual strength.

*(Adapted from an article in Navrang, October 2019)

Mahatma Gandhi- Some interesting glimpses into his life.

"Some men changed their times, but one man changed the world for all time!"

His name is MAHATMA GANDHI.

 (Here are some interesting facts about Gandhi that provide a glimpse into the life of the Father of the Nation on his 155th birth anniversary.)

1. Gandhi's first name was Mohandas. "Mahatma" is a title denoting love and respect, which roughly translates as "great soul." It's believed that a friend of his, Pranjivan Mehta, was the first to refer to Gandhi as "Mahatma" in writing a letter from 1909, decades before he became a globally renowned figure.

2. Guru Dev Rabindranath Tagore was credited with naming Gandhi as Mahatma. Subhas Chandra Bose sought his blessings and gave him the title "Father of the Nation" in June 1944.

3. In 1883, thirteen-year-old Gandhi entered into an arranged marriage with fourteen-year-old Kasturbai Kapadia. Gandhi later recalled that at the time, they didn't know much about marriage, and for them, it simply meant wearing new clothes, eating sweets, and playing with relatives. At the age of sixteen, Gandhi became a father, but unfortunately, the baby lived only a few days. The couple went on to have four more children who survived to adulthood.

4. Gandhi ate fruit, nuts, and seeds for five years but switched back to strict vegetarianism after suffering health problems. He maintained that each person should find their own diet that works best. Gandhi spent decades experimenting with food, logging the results, and tweaking his eating choices. He wrote a book named "The Moral Basis of Vegetarianism".

5. Gandhi took an early vow to avoid milk products (including ghee), however, after his health began to decline, he relented and started drinking goat’s milk. He sometimes traveled with his goat to ensure that the milk was fresh and that he wasn’t given cow or buffalo milk.

6. Gandhi was incredibly meek and shy by nature. During one debate at the London Vegetarian Society, he felt such stage fright that somebody else had to read out his arguments on his behalf. It was a serious stumbling block for his burgeoning career as a barrister. The first time he tried to cross-examine a witness, he got so nervous that he flopped back into his chair and simply gave up the case, returning his fee to his (presumably disgruntled) client.

7. Despite his disaffection with racist colonialist attitudes, the young Gandhi also felt patriotic towards the British Empire. During the Boer War of 1899-1902, he took it upon himself to form the Natal Indian Ambulance Corps, gathering hundreds of volunteers to whisk wounded British troops from the front lines to field hospitals.

‘I felt that, if I demanded rights as a British citizen, it was also my duty, as such, to participate in the defence of the British Empire,’ Gandhi later said.

8. Wearing his now-iconic white loin cloth and shawl wasn’t simply a matter of Indian tradition for Gandhi. It was a political move, which he very deliberately adopted on 22nd September 1921. It was part of his push to encourage Indians to boycott foreign-made clothes and embrace homegrown, hand-spun fabric known as khadi. The move utterly reinvented Gandhi’s image for all time.

9. Gandhi was nominated five times for the Nobel Peace Prize, first in 1937, but the Nobel committee’s advisor was skeptical, saying that even though Gandhi was non-violent, his Indian nationalist beliefs spurred violence among followers. Gandhi was shortlisted in 1947, but again he was rejected for his nationalism. He was killed in 1948, and – significantly – no Nobel Peace Prize was awarded that year.

10. Mahatma Gandhi, fondly known as "Bapu" never traveled by plane, throughout his life. He preferred to travel by Train.

11. Gandhi attended law school in London and was famous among the faculty for his bad handwriting.

12. Gandhi denounced” Gandhism” and did not want to create a cult-like following. He also conceded that he had “...nothing new to teach the world. Truth and nonviolence are as old as the hills.”

13. Gandhi fought for much more than independence. His causes included civil rights for women, the abolition of the caste system, and the fair treatment of all people regardless of religion. His mother and father had different religious traditions.

14. Gandhi demanded fair treatment for the untouchables, India’s lowest caste; he underwent several fasts to support their cause. He called the untouchables Harijans, which means "children of God."

15. Gandhi shared a significant friendship with the renowned Russian novelist Leo Tolstoy, who authored "War and Peace". Tolstoy's writings on non-violent resistance greatly influenced Gandhi.  Additionally, Gandhi was connected with other influential world figures such as Winston Churchill, Hitler, Charlie Chaplin, Einstein, and Bernard Shaw.

16. Gandhi never had a 'God Complex', unlike many other modern leaders.

17. Gandhi showed the world that true strength lay not in using muscle power but in winning people's power. This is why he was respected by even those against him.

18.  Gandhi influenced many leaders beyond borders and time including Nelson Mandela, Martin Luther King Jr., Dalai Lama, Will Durant, Rabindranath Tagore, Barack Obama, and Pearl S. Buck.

19. Gandhi was assassinated as his country grappled with the bloody aftermath of Partition when India and Pakistan gained independence in August 1947. He was shot dead on 30th January 1948.

20. Mahatma Gandhi's relics are still preserved in the Gandhi Museum in Madurai. An urn that once contained Mahatma Gandhi's ashes is now at a shrine in Los Angeles, California.

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Gandhi's wisdom is frequently cited by business leaders and volunteers. Here are some of his most famous quotes:

"You must be the change you wish to see in the world."

"An eye for an eye only ends up making the whole world blind."

"The greatness of a nation can be judged by the way its animals are treated."

"There is more to life than increasing its speed."

"Man is but the product of his thoughts. What he thinks, he becomes."

"The best way to find yourself is to lose yourself in the service of others."

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