Magazine Q1 - Hindu Education Link

Transcription

Volume 5 . Issue 1
ISSN# 1920-9339
Jan / Feb / Mar 2013
INSIDE THIS ISSUE
From Editor’s Desk................ 3
Om Tryambakam: A Potent
Mantra In The Vedas............ 4
Right Or Wrong: Face It,
India Is All About Caste........ 6
Too Many Temples, Too Little
Divinity................................. 8
The Meaning Of Hindu
Customs And Beliefs............. 10
Take The False Guru Test....... 12
The Scientific Reasons For
Visiting Temple Regularly........ 15
Tamil Weaver’s Wisdom......... 16
The Legend Of The Tamil
Poets.................................... 17
• WINTER 2013 ISSUE •
Canadian
Hindu Link
A Free Quarterly Journal Dedicated To Educating The New Generation Of Canadian Hindus
Hindu Youth Essay
Competition: A Grand
Success.................................. 20
My Viewpoint On
Hinduism............................... 21
Hindus’ Dilemma:
An Appeal For Action............ 22
Harvansh Singh: Discovering
An Amazing Unknown Saint
Scholar In Rajasthan.............. 23
Swami Rama Tirtha................ 24
Sir William Jones.................... 25
The Upanishads: The Supreme
Work Of Hindu Mind............ 26
Transmitting Hinduism To
Children Is A Challenge......... 28
Holi - Spring Festival Of
Colour.................................... 30
Spiritual Effects Of Television
& Movies............................... 31
Many Shades Of Secularism
In India: Hindus In India An
Oppressed Majority............... 32
Reader’s Feedback................ 33
THE MEMBERS OF THIS SOCIETY BE OF SINGULAR RESOLVE, THEIR
“ MAY
HEARTS FILLED WITH LOVE FOR EACH OTHER AND UNITED IN ONE
THOUGHT. MAY INDIVIDUAL POWERS BE COMBINED TO ACHIEVE
”
THE BEST RESULTS IN THE PERFORMANCE OF THE GREATEST DEEDS.
Rig Ved, 10-191-4
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From Editor’s Desk:
WE MUST LEARN TO RESPECT VOLUNTEERS
Thanks to our selfless volunteers, donors and sponsors,
the Canadian Hindu Link enters its 5th year of publication. In January of 2009, this non-profit, free Hindu
educational publication started with only eight pages
and 2500 copies with the help of only four sponsors. Its
circulation then was limited to temples in Mississauga
and Brampton. Today, it contains 36 pages and it is read
in 9000 Hindu families across southern Ontario, from
Windsor to Pickering.
Without the dedication of our volunteers, this would not
have been possible. They sacrifice their personal time
and energy to help us fulfill our mandate to link Hindus
to their cultural and spiritual heritage. Our volunteers do
everything – copy editing, proofreading, graphic design,
and distribution. However, our volunteers who deliver
the copies of this magazine to temples and other pickup points in all kinds of weather, storm, rain or snow,
deserve special thanks. They use their own vehicles,
and receive no remuneration in any form, not even gas
money. They are motivated by their will and spirit to
serve Hindu community of southern Ontario. They are
also driven by the fear that our Dharma may not survive in Canada unless our new generation learn and be
proud of their Dharma and culture.
Such Selfless volunteers are very difficult to find in our
community. We must value them, we must honour
them. Unfortunately, some of our volunteers report
that certain temples where they deliver copies, do not
receive them with even basic courtesy. They are treated
by some officials of the temple as if they were a doorto-door salesmen. Nor do these ignorant officials realise
the value of this magazine to their devotees who eagerly
wait to read the next issue. One volunteer in Scarborough area reported that she was asked to walk bare
feet in the snow by the caretaker from her car to the
entrance of the temple. Another volunteer who delivers
to a major temple in Brampton received severe tongue
lashing from a member of the temple management,
just because he placed the copies in the wrong place.
Such incidents are very shameful and must not occur
in a temple. In fact, many volunteers who render their
selfless service in temples also complain of shabby treatment by some temple officials; they boss them around
as if volunteers were their domestic servants. These
volunteers clean washrooms, mop the floor and deliver
other services, essential to the day-to-day operations of
every temple. What a shame, it happens in the House of
God!
However, it must be noted that there are some temples
in Greater Toronto Area (GTA) which have a policy of
recognizing and encouraging volunteers. These volunteers work even harder once their selfless activities are
appreciated by the temple management. By recognizing
volunteers, it builds their confidence and self esteem.
Some of these volunteers will get into the temple management and take these temples forward in serving the
community further.
We strongly urge the management of all temples to pay
immediate attention to this matter, and teach their staff
and office bearers to treat volunteers with respect. Remember, volunteers are not paid because their services
are priceless.
Ajit Adhopia, Volunteer Editor
asadhopia@hotmail
Tel. 905-273-9563
Canadian
Hindu Link
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PAGE 3
OM TRYAMBAKAM:
A POTENT MANTRA IN THE VEDAS
By Aruna Duggal
Om Trymbakam yajamahe sugandhim pushtivardhanam
urvarukmiv bandhanan mrityor mukshiya mamritat
There are two mantras in the Vedas with powers of
such potent magnitude that they are chanted with deep
fervour and devotion by all sects of devotees. One is
the Gayatri Mantra, the other is Om Tryambakam. Both
have won acclaim in different parts of the world and are
recognized for their potent powers in meditation. These
two mantras are even chanted by foreigners.
Om Tryambakam is a tribute and recognition of
God’s supreme power to release humanity
from the cycle of life and death.
It Translates As:
We meditate on the fragrance, purity
and love of that Reality, which permeates and nourishes the three worlds
like a fragrance. May we, like the
fruit that is severed from the vine, be
liberated from death (i.e. all forms of
darkness, ignorance and limitations
of the body) to achieve eternal
divine wisdom.
Arya Samaj Reformists’
Interpret It As:
O sustainer of the three
worlds and destroyer
of illness and giver
of strength, just as
the fruit is released
from its pedicel,
so too, release
us from death
and grant us
immortal life.
Hindus Who Worship Deities Interpret It As:
We worship the three eyed (Shiva) who is fragrant and
nourishes all beings. May He liberate us from death
for the sake of immortality, even as the fruit is liberated from its vine.
Worshippers of Lord Shiva refer to it as Rudra Mantra.
They infer that trya which means three and ambakam
which means eyed, refers to Lord Shiva who is
believed to have three eyes, but keeps the
third eye shut. God has an infinite number of names. Many Hindus, instead of
accepting that Brahma, Vishnu, Shiva,
Indra etc. refer to the one supreme
God, have bestowed the title of God to
these different names, with attributes
that distinguish them separately. Hence
Shiva is the destroyer and is depicted as
three eyed. The third eye is regarded as
that of omniscience, with imperceptible powers of awareness of the
supreme truth, related to the past,
present and future. Any major catastrophe which could ire Shiva
– who is famous for his short
temper – could provoke him
to open his third eye, and
by a mere glance, cause
destruction and bring
doom.
This mantra is
also referred
to as the Mrita
Sanjivni or Mrityunjaya Mantra
(the great Death Conquering Mantra) in the Rigveda and
Yajurveda. A mantra has a special setting of sounds and
syllables, which, when chanted with great devotion in
a specific tone, procure the desired results of producing
spiritual transformation. It is believed that daily incantation of Om Tryambakam, rids the chanter of his miseries
and grants him/her a long life. After death the soul of
that devotee blends in with the Maker.
Om Tryambakam is regarded as a “Moksha Mantra”
(salvation mantra). It has great healing powers; enunciation of the mantra curbs accidents, heals incurable
diseases, and bestows immortality. So great is the faith
in the dynamic powers of the mantra to curb tragedies,
illnesses and obstacles, that it is chanted in the Bihar
School of Yoga, started by Swami Satyananda, at six
o’clock every Saturday. Those who cannot attend, send
their names for inclusion of chanting of the mantra. Yoga
is a discipline which focuses on complete detachment
of the senses from all mundane matters. The inclusion
of the mantra in surroundings removed from the general hustle and bustle of daily activities, is believed to
be perfect for positive results. Branches of the spiritual
teachings of that school, have now spread as far as Europe, Australia, New Zealand, Japan, Singapore, North
America and Colombia.
In times of dire distress and sorrow, families and friends
gather together in an atmosphere free of pressures of
outside life, and sit and chant the mantra. The collective
force, created by the rhythm of the melodious incantation, produces results against negative forces, which it is
believed, can even change destiny.
Hindus recognize forty days for anything auspicious.
So in order to achieve beneficial results that stabilize
the mind, purify the karmas and enlighten the soul,
Om Tryambakam should be chanted for forty days.
Improvement in both mental and physical health will
be achieved, and peace and contentment will uplift the
mind and permeate the body. Hindus believe in the
significant power of the mantra and chant it with deep
humility and devotion.
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PAGE 5
RIGHT OR WRONG:
FACE IT, INDIA IS ALL ABOUT CASTE
By Swapan Dasgupta
In recent times the world has witnessed a lot of crying
over spilt milk. Germany has apologized to the Jews for
the Holocaust; Japan has said sorry to the US for Pearl
Harbour; the Pope has publicly taken the burden of his
errant clergy on himself and bowed his head in shame;
the federal government of Australia has apologized to its
aborigines for wilfully killing so many of them; Russia has
apologized to Poland for Stalin’s massacre of its nonCommunist leadership in 1939; and 13 years ago, the
Queen apologized for the Jallianwala Bagh massacre.
Compared to these grave wrongs of history, the abuse
showered on long-forgotten British civil servants by
the cheerleaders of Indian nationalism seems a case of
petty theft. For six decades, generations of Indians have
been taught to believe that the colonial rulers saw India
through the lens of ignorance and prejudice. Sir Valentine Chirol, a distinguished journalist who was prolific
on ‘Indian problems’ epitomized the type of Englishman Indians loved to despise. Writing in 1926, Chirol
observed that “Hinduism could not build up a nation
because the one vital structure which it did build up
was the negation of everything that constitutes a
nation.”
Commissioner for the 1911 Census, Sir Herbert Risley
went one better. It wasn’t enough merely to record the
caste preferences of individuals. To make life easier for
policy makers, the Census had also to identify “social
precedence as recognized by native public opinion.”
In other words, the administration had to locate a caste
in the ritual and social hierarchy and determine which
caste was high, intermediate or low.
Risley’s attempt to define caste precedence triggered
an upsurge in civil society. Caste groups mobilized to
redefine their varna status, undertake changes in ritual
practices and even press for changes in caste names.
India experienced a bizarre ferment with caste leaders
pressing for vegetarianism, restrictions on widow remarriage and changes in the rituals governing marriage and
mourning. The Census led to a government-induced
process of what MN Srinivas was later to call ‘Sanskritization’ — social changes premised on the belief that
Brahmins were role models.
The “vital structure” that Chirol alluded to was
caste. National allegiance, he felt, “was secondary to the loyalty each (Hindu) owed to his
caste since his caste was his karma, determining much more than his present life,
namely, all his lives still to come.”
Chirol mirrored the colonial perception
of India as a land obsessed by caste
and unable to rise above it. Since the
foreign rulers never aimed at being
social reformers, they attempted to
accommodate this caste obsession in public policy. They
documented caste in all its
bewildering complexities in
the Gazetteers and, most
important, attempted to
quantify caste allegiances
in the Census operations
from 1881. As Census
For nationalist historians, Risley was a villain promoting
‘false consciousness’ and furthering a divide-and-rule
approach to undermine national unity. The Census was
perceived, not merely as a quantitative exercise, but
a divisive game which, in the process, reduced Indian
society to a hideous caricature. Even though Mahatma
Gandhi felt compelled to accommodate the ‘depressed
classes’ through the Poona Pact, the conventional
Congress view was that caste, like religion, was purely a
social institution that had no place in public life and political decision-making. There would be some compensatory discrimination in favour of Scheduled Castes and
Scheduled Tribes but that’s where the encroachment of
caste would end. In line with this thinking, the first postIndependence Census in 1951 dropped the enumeration
of caste altogether.
So strong was this nationalist consensus that when the
first Backward Classes Commission was appointed in
1954, reputed Gandhian and anthropologist Nirmal Kumar Bose proclaimed “the desire and will of the Indian
nation to do away with the hierarchy of caste…and prepare the ground for full social equality.” Indeed, when
the Backward Classes Commission identified 2,399 nonSC and non-ST communities as ‘backward’, the report
was fiercely contested by Congress.
In five decades, politics has come full circle. Last week,
the Cabinet deliberated on the wisdom of reviving
the enumeration of caste in the Census. There was no
unanimity but the government finally conceded that was
little point persisting with the old nationalist consensus.
Already politicized by democracy, caste has become
the basis of the government’s elaborate redistributive
programmes. Sixty years of experiments with modernity have proved to be mere ripples on the surface; the
depths of India’s ‘vital structure’ have been unmoved.
India owes an unqualified apology to the British Raj for
suggesting that its officials didn’t understand India and,
indeed, vilified it. It’s our nationalist modernizers who
have been defeated by the ‘real’ India. The future appears to belong to the khap panchayats. Chirol was right
and we may as well acknowledge it.
SOURCE: Posted By Swapan Dasgupta 09 May 2010
on Times of India Blog
PAGE 7
TOO MANY TEMPLES, TOO LITTLE DIVINITY
By Aneeta Chakrabarty
The man with a lean hungry look worked feverishly
chipping at the stone carving by the temple site. The
fierce sunlight mercilessly scorched the back of the
child in rags. Close by a monkey danced a jig to the
latest screen tunes while his master scooped up the
pennies. Two boys haggled and fought each other for
a stolen piece of bread. Horn toting rickshaws tried to
break up a crowd of women mesmerized by the bearded swamy. Fortune tellers offered phantoms of hope to
a desperate humanity. In God’s great crucible thus live
the anvil of society bearing everything, feigning nothing, great hearted men and women reduced to poverty
by the bludgeons of chance. Faith throbs in their hearts
like muffled fire, mellow and steady, keeping their cold
lives warm.
In God’s great crucible also thrives the better half that
does not care to acknowledge the existence of this half.
The wily bania for example counts his money, trembling
with anticipation while millions starve. He is an honorable man and regularly goes to temples. So does the pillar of society, the judge who would rule without hesitation in favor of the politician, the corrupt and the jet-set
mahatmas. Such men’s beliefs are bad but they believe
it will be improved just by going to the temple. Then we
have the nouveau rich, the yuppies, the politicians with
big tilaks, smooth talking intellectuals who do not hesitate to display ostentatious wealth right up to the gates
of the temples; who take their clothes and jewelry to the
temple rather than themselves; who paste their eyes and
ears with stained glass to shut out the cry of the hungry
and the hurt; and who change the purpose of a temple
from being the dharamshala and conscience of society
to an instrument of the rich and the powerful.
Still Hindus will pour millions into building these grand
temples rather than open their hearts to the blossoms
in the dust all around them right in the precincts of the
temple. As Shakespeare would say, “Judgement thou art
fled to brutish beasts and men have lost their reason”.
Temples have been built all over Fiji, Trinidad, Africa
and Guyana. But what has happened to Indians in these
places? Have the temples helped when country after
country scattered the unorganized race and sent them
scampering like mice to seek safety in some distant
shore? If they had spent a fraction of the cost of pouring
into temples towards owning their own media, newspa-
pers, lobbying for political power and protecting their
interests, they would have become powerful minorities
with a place under the Sun.
Can temples stand tall when men learn only to pray
without also learning to row to the shore at the same
time; when men pray to live easy lives but not to
become stronger, when men pretend to have faith but
shun to do good deeds; when men prefer to become
slaves of the wheel of labour but not masters of destiny,
when men do not have the will to accept that survival
involves using the discus, gandiv and chanakyan skills
in addition to the mala and the japmala? Even fools
have learnt in the expensive schools of experience and
hard-knocks but hypnotized Hindus follow a mirage
seeking the beauteous eye of heaven as charted by the
ever increasing tribe of escapist swamis.
Money for temples has also been pouring at an ever
increasing rate in the land of Mammon, America, on the
strength and showmanship of the wealthy of many cities, mainly doctors. The culture of the elitist permeates
the atmosphere where people socialize on the basis of
equality in status versus equality as Hindus; where a
house owner will talk condescendingly to his fellowmen living in apartments; where a doctor or engineer
has somehow acquired superiority in the divinity scale
versus a waiter or laborer, where people find it more
comfortable to talk about stocks, bonds, promotions
and career satisfaction than dharma, karma, Hinduism
or problems in India and where echoes of disdain roll
from soul to soul when you are in trouble of any kind.
It is again old wine in new bottles. The escapist culture
started by the swamis has acquired a glamorized, intellectualized version in foreign shores.
Where there is no equality in our thoughts can it be
changed by going to these “country club” places of
worship? Can the children pick up true values or are
they going through the rituals of puja to buy peace
and compromise at home? A confidential survey of the
thoughts of today’s teenagers would reveal remarkable
insights not even remotely dreamt about by their immigrant parents who migrated at a much later age.
Needless to say, achieving emotional unity or responding to crisis is a Herculean task in a city where there
could be four or more temples, one for North Indians,
one for South Indians, one for Jains, one for Gujaratis
and so on and so forth. The energies of the unorganized
race is further dissipated by regional, caste and elitist
groups focusing exclusively on rituals instead of values
such as courage, honesty or justice. A powerful character building sermon crystallizing the essence of the
sublime Vedas would not only rejuvenate a cautious,
apathetic and nerdy diaspora but also provide the spunk
to live in a predominantly Anglo-Saxon culture.
The golden links to God can be accomplished with even
one temple. The rest of the money could go to building
several community centers with funds for legal, medical, unemployment, hardships cases, loans for students,
establishing Vedic and Sanskrit studies, think tanks,
lobbying in Congress against anti-India bills, hot lines to
deal with emotional and psychological problems of uprooted, alienated Indians, transportation for the elderly,
support groups, matrimonial services, sports, and other
causes which would bring Indians of all denominations
under one banner. The energy of a society, like sap in a
tree, rises from the bottom up and so the bottom must
be fortified for a strong foundation in order to avoid disintegration, unhappiness and misery. The true progress
of a nation lies not on how well the strong and fit thrive
but how well the weak survive. As we all know Society,
like a chain, breaks at its weakest link.
It has been said that Indians have the highest per capita
income among immigrant groups but as a community
the Hindus can be blown apart with very little effort.
The huddled masses of Hispanic immigrants may not
have the highest per capita income but they have shown
their teeth in Florida where they have enforced bilingualism in Miami. A single arrow is easily broken, but
not ten such arrows in a bundle.
The day the temples develop an emotional heart and
follow the ancient adage, “Service to mankind is service
to God”, that day the psychologically splintered nation
of India will unite and reverse a long History of slavery
and defeat. And temples which are instrumental in
influencing millions of Indians have a key part to play in
inspiring and leading. Hiding behind rituals is escapism
similar to being the “opium of the masses.”
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PAGE 9
THE MEANING OF HINDU CUSTOMS AND BELIEFS
By Shakun Narain
Hinduism is as old as the hills. The word “Hinduism” is
a misnomer. The Hindu Dharma was known as Sanatana Dharma, the Eternal Law. This springs from the
ingrained faith of the Hindus that all creation, animate
and inanimate, is one family. The ancient sages and
seers repeatedly impressed upon us the truth that by
harming another one is injuring oneself.
As we all know, in day-to-day life, what we do to
others we receive back in the same coin. Hatred
begets hatred, jealousy begets jealousy, and
love begets love. It is
as simple as
action and reaction.
Therefore,
if we wish to be
loved
by others it is incumbent
upon us to send forth
thoughts of love to them.
Why Cow Is
Sacred?
Belonging to a
race which firmly
believes that creation is
one family, Hindus were basically vegetarian.
However, they were
not fanatics and in determining what food may be taken,
and they took into account various factors of consumption. First in order are vegetables; then fish, and finally
other animals. They prohibited slaughtering of cows for
consumption. The reason is not far to seek. The cow is
more useful to us alive than dead. It provides milk for
our babies and grown-ups alike; it ploughs our fields; its
urine has medicinal properties and the dung is used as
manure for our crop as well as to light village fires. The
smoke that emanates from it kills mosquitoes and other
disease-carrying germs. Small wonder that Hindus worship the cow as mother!
Why Tulasi Plant Is Sacred?
The Tulasi plant is tended with love and reverence by
the Hindus. The Tulasi leaves have medicinal properties
and destroy malaria germs, stopping vomiting, destroying worms and are good for curing asthma. Many are
the unique powers of the Tulasi leaves that I shall
be dealing with it in a separate chapter by itself.
In the morning we Hindu children were made
to place a glass of water with Tulasi leaves in
our prayer room as prasad (offering to the deity) which we would consume after finishing
our prayers. We were supposed to be
fasting until then. Today, the
doctors tell us that it is
good to have a glass
of water first thing
in the morning. It
leaves no doubt in
my mind that a Tulasi leaf or two added
to this glass of water would
be most beneficial for our health.
The ladies were asked to go round
the Tulasi. As they would do this, they
would breathe in more heavily thereby
inhaling
the air full of Tulasi fragrance, which, supposedly, I am told, would cleanse her system making it
easier for her to conceive. We were made to worship
the Tulasi plant as it is delicate and unless it is tended
with care it does not last long. Like the Tulasi, Haldi
(turmeric) also has medicinal properties so it is a part of
ritual to give a packet of it as a gift to a daughter when
she is blessed with a child.
When a child gets measles, chicken pox, small pox,
Hindus are told not to panic as Durga Mata, (mother
“There are two mistakes one can make along the road to truth…
”
not going all the way, and not starting.
– Buddha
of Creation) has manifested within the patient. We are
asked not to give medicines but to feel positive and pray.
Today we know that measles is caused by virus. There
is no known medicine to combat it. It takes its own
course. All we should do is to have a prayerful, positive
attitude and keep the patient as comfortable as possible.
However, we Hindus are allowed to give medicines,
after the 5th or 7th day when the temperature subsides
and that is when it is necessary to administer cough
syrups and other antibiotics to prevent complications.
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Restrictions on Women in Menstruation
In the Hindu community a girl, after she reaches puberty
is barred from entering the prayer room or performing
any religious prayers during her menstruation. The only
reason mentioned in our scriptures is that she is (ashudha) unclean during that period.
Let us go back to where this custom started. During
those days ladies would have their bath either in the
river, pond or near the well. During the time when the
girl would be menstruating, it would be awkward to
bathe together with the rest of the ladies as she would
probably ‘pollute’ the water.
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Since the ladies did not bathe and there were no bathroom facilities for the rest of the day during the menstruating period, they would naturally be termed ‘unclean’
during that time. Hence, their being barred from the
clean’ places in the house, namely the prayer room or
the kitchen. This is, as far as the physical aspect of being
(ashudha) unclean, goes.
However, when the scriptures spoke of ‘ashudha’ they
may have not only meant the physical aspect but the
mental aspect as well. Science talks of the menstrual
syndrome, i.e. a woman is more irritable during those
days because of a hormonal imbalance. Psychics claim
that there is a different aura around a menstruating woman, maybe again a chemical reaction. Gathering to pray
requires a positive attitude and people tend to respond
to the negative vibrations of a person standing next to
them; maybe that was the reason why a woman was
barred from public places of prayer during these days.
Whatever the reason, the ladies who used to work so
hard during the month would get a well-earned rest during that period of time.
Source: Hindu Customs and Beliefs by Shakun
Narayan, pub. Bhartiya Vidya Bhawan, 1987
PAGE 11
TAKE THE FALSE GURU TEST
By Andrew P.
If seven or more of the following describes your guru or
spiritual teacher, then unfortunately he or she may not
be as enlightened or good for your soul as you would
like to believe:
States His Or Her Own Enlightenment
The wisest masters tend not to state their own enlightenment or perfection for they know that it is both unhelpful to themselves and to their students. The false teachers often make this claim because they have little else to
offer to attract followers.
Is Unable To Take Criticism
False teachers strongly dislike either personal criticism
or criticism of their teaching; they do not take kindly to
ordinary unenlightened individuals questioning them.
They or their organisations will even undertake multimillion dollar law suits to stop ex-members from spilling
the beans.
Acts All-Powerful With No Accountability
Some spiritual communities are run like concentration
camps, with the guru and his chosen ones acting like
Gestapo officers. Unjust or outrageous behaviour by the
guru is passed off as what is needed to help the followers grow (how kind). These are the dangerous gurus
who have often severely damaged their students. A real
master respects your will even if he or she understands
that your particular decisions may not be in your interest, and he or she will act accountably to an ethical
code of conduct.
Focuses On Enlightenment Itself Rather Than
Teaching The Path Leading To It
It is amazing how much false gurus have to say about
enlightenment. They argue their points in the same way
that the scholars in the middle ages argued about how
many angels could sit on the head of a pin. Any fool can
talk about the end goal because what is said is irrefutable to most of the listeners. It would be apt to guide
those listeners to an awakening within themselves. The
real teacher focuses on the path and strictly avoids any
talk of enlightenment.
Does Not Practice What Is Preached
Contrary to spiritual myth, you don’t reach a point of
realization whereby you can act care-free of all those
who surround you. If a teacher preaches love and
forgiveness, then he should act that way, at least most
of the time, showing suitable regret for any lapses. If he
teaches meditation, he should meditate. If he insists that
his followers live in austere conditions, so should he.
Takes Credit For A Particular Meditative Or
Healing Technique:
The fact is that meditation and guided visualisation
work. Anyone doing them will experience major outcomes and benefits. The false guru will try to own or
trademark particular methods and techniques so that
he has something unique to attract followers, and will
hijack the effects of meditation as the guru’s blessing
rather than each individuals natural potential. Often the
students or followers are forbidden from divulging the
techniques to maintain a sort of intellectual property
right, usually under the guise of needing the technique
to be taught correctly.
Specifically Holds Satsang Or Darshan When
It Is Not Part Of His Culture
Darshan is when the disciples or students of a master
line up to pass their master--who is usually seated-- with
either a bow or traditionally kissing their feet (yes it does
happen). In the East, this is part of their culture and a
normal thing to do to show respect and reverence (even
children will kiss the feet of their fathers). However, here
in the West, this behaviour is a strong indication that
the guru is acting a role. Satsang, on the other hand,
literally means “the company of the Truth”. In a deeper
sense it is an affirmation of the Guru-Disciple relationship in Eastern traditions. But some Western gurus will
use this terminology because they are playing a role.
Lives In Total Opulence
There is nothing wrong with living in luxury or being
wealthy. But when that luxury turns to unnecessary
opulence using funds that were not explicitly donated for
that purpose, then you are probably dealing with a false
guru. Money is collected from followers usually in the
form of donations, and those donations are given as an
act of love, appreciation and to help spread the influence
of the master. However, a genuine master is more likely
to use such wealth to lessen the suffering in this world,
not to buy another yacht, private jet or Rolls Royce.
Encourages Or Permits Adoration From His
Followers
Avoid any group that focuses on the “master” rather
than the teachings or spiritual practices. This will be a
hindrance to your self-realisation for your focus will be
drawn outside of yourself, and usually indicates that
there is not a lot more on offer than guru worship.
Presents A Fashionably Glamorously
Appearance
Beware of masters who present glamour photographs of
themselves and dress overly fashionably (whilst proclaiming that they have no ego and leading ego-death
retreats). Yes it does happen!
Demands Love And Devotion From Students
Keep clear of any master who demands love and devotion. One very well known Western guru stated, “Anyone
who loves me is guaranteed enlightenment” Real love
and devotion is earned over time when we begin to really
know the whole person and not their public image.
Speaks With An Indian Accent Or Vernacular
When He Is In Fact A Westerner
Not sure how much this happens now but there are
some high profile Western gurus who have (or had)
Indian accents, mannerisms and vernacular. Unless they
have genuinely spent considerable time in other cultures, they are probably playing out a role.
Runs Expensive Miracle Workshops & Courses
You are unlikely to reach enlightenment after a few
weekend workshops with cheesy titles. In our society
of “must have now”, we want to be able to purchase
spiritual development with minimal fuss. Also, avoid
meaningless accreditation — it is often used merely to
encourage followers to do more courses.
Takes Sexual Advantage Of His/Her Followers
This happens much more than many believe. It is not
being prudish to include this one because when a follower falls under the spell of a guru he or she is likely
to do anything for the Chosen One. It is only afterwards
that it may dawn on the follower that his or her openness has been used and abused. This can be very psychologically scarring.
Flatters You And Treats You As Very Special
Sure we are all special in some ways, but this is one of
the things that a false guru may do to hook a potential
follower or to get a current follower to do a particular
task. Nothing can be more intoxicating to the ego than
to be selected by the master or leader (or any high
profile person). A real master will stand back and allow
you to make your decision whether to accept his or her
teachings without trying to influence the process.
Talks Bollocks
It is surprising what a person will listen to when he or
she is devoted to the speaker. It is always a good idea
to get hold of a written transcript of what has been said
and really read the message. Then tell an open-minded
friend who is not a follower what their opinion is purely
on the strength of the words. You will soon find out
whether there is any real substance to the teacher’s message, or whether you are merely being drawn in by the
charisma of the messenger.
Overly Relies On Slick Presentation
Slick presentation can often mask poor content, and
so it is important for you to look past the lovely music
and video shows at the actual message. The slicker the
presentation, the harder it is to see what exactly the
teaching is.
Gives Him Or Herself Outrageous Titles
Not satisfied by being “merely” an enlightened being,
many false gurus give themselves titles (or allow their
followers to do so) to indicate that they are literally GodIncarnate, the reincarnation of the Buddha or Christ, or
THE chosen one. Some continually change their names,
to keep pace with their burgeoning egos.
Runs Abundance Workshops
A guru or master is there tohelp us find an authentic life.
This is nothing to do with becoming more successful at
work or making more money, although this may or may
not follow from being more authentic. There is nothing
wrong with abundance weekends, but if we mistake
spirituality for increased business success, then we are
guilty of spiritual materialism and we find ourselves
deeper in the illusion. (The Japanese say that the Gods
laugh at those who pray for money.)
Is Not Interested In You Personally
If a teacher or guru does not have time to interact with
you personally, then you may as well read his teaching from a book, because merely being in his presence
doesn’t help you find realization inside you. You may
model some of his spiritual characteristics, but that often
only places you deeper in illusion.
PAGE 13
Allows His Followers To Set Up A Hierarchy
Of Access
A guru must be accessible. If he is not, or if he allows
his followers to block your access, then he is playing the
role of a king and not a spiritual guide. A guru is only
useful to the process of awakening if you can directly interact with him. With the false guru, it is often the case
of the more you donate the greater your access.
Makes False Claims Of Lineage
Many mistakenly believe that realisation
can only happen under the guidance of a
realized master. In this belief system, gurus
are only authentic when they come from
a line or lineage of realized gurus. Desperate not to be left out, some gurus claim a false
lineage of enlightened masters to bolster their authority to teach. Another pseudo form of “lineage”
is to recount a miracle that once happened to them
(maybe they cured themselves of some disease or God
spoke to them personally) which infers that they are
“chosen” and therefore have the authority to set themselves up as teachers and gurus.
Presents Themselves As
Non-Profit Whilst
Raking In The
Millions
Collects A Large Band Of Angry Ex-Followers
This is an indication that something is seriously wrong. If
she has used kindness and love in her interactions with
her students, and has discouraged them from projecting denied spiritual characteristics onto the guru (rather
than encouraging their integration into the self), then it
is extremely unlikely that there would be more than a
few disheartened ex’s. Many might drift away and feel
they have wasted their time, but they are only likely to
have the great anger if they have put their teacher on a
pedestal, given him their power, and later realized that
he was never worthy of such adoration. Contrary to
what some believe, it is actually the teacher’s responsibility to strongly discourage students from putting them
on pedestals, for this is counterproductive to finding
realisation inside.
Uses Pseudo-Technology
Many false prophets and organisations base
themselves around pseudo-technology in the
effort to appear scientific — special meters,
communication devices (do you really expect
the aliens to use a mobile?) and energy clearing instruments and pendants that involve
crystals and copper wire. Once again, this
is to distract the unwary from the poor
quality of the actual teaching.
Acts Like A Complete Paranoid
Mad Person
Often, the
false
prophet will present her teachings for free,
whilst strongly encouraging her
devotees to make large donations. In this way she can
appear above money considerations, whilst maintaining
her greed and opulence.
If your Precious One acts like a complete paranoid schizophrenic or psychotic then he or she probably is. Run!
Remember that there is no such thing as
“crazy wisdom”—wisdom is the art of
being balanced. However charismatic they
may be, and sane between moments of madness, you
WILL be damaged by them.
Author: Andrew. P writes on the exploration of consciousness and our awakening from mental virtual realities.
Prime interests include the limitless nature of being, the
limits to conceptual knowledge, natural health and
alternative worldviews. His website is: www.zeropoint.org.
HAPPY NEW YEAR
TO ALL OF OUR READERS, VOLUNTEERS AND SPONSORS
Ajit Adhopia, Editor ([email protected] | 905.273.9563)
THE SCIENTIFIC REASONS
FOR VISITING TEMPLE REGULARLY
There are hundreds of temples all over India in different
size, shape and locations but not all of them are considered
to be in the Vedic way. Generally, the temples are located
in a place where earth’s magnetic waves pass through.
In simple terms, these temples are located strategically
at a place, where the positive energy is abundantly available from the magnetic wave distribution of norBecause
of its location, where high magnetic values are available,
the Main Idol is placed in the center, and also because
they place a copper plate written with some Vedic scripts,
which is buried, beneath the Main Idol’s placement known
as “Garbhagriha” or Moolasthan, the copper absorbs the
earths magnetic waves and radiates to the surroundings.
Thus a person who regularly visits a temple and makes
clockwise pradakshina of the Main idol’s placement,
automatically receives the beamed magnetic waves, which
get absorbed by his body. This is very slow and a regular
visit will make him absorb more energy, known as positive
energy. In addition, the Sanctum Sanctorum is completely
enclosed on three sides. The effect of all energies is very
high in here. The lamp that is lit radiates the heat and light.
The ringing of the bells and the chanting of prayers gives
sound energy. The fragrance from the flowers, the burning of camphor give out chemical energy. The effect of
all these energies is activated by the positive energy that
comes out of the idol. This is in addition to the north/south
pole magnetic energy that is absorbed by the copper plate
and utensils that are kept in the Moolasthan.
The water used for the Pooja is mixed with Cardamom,
Benzoine, Holy Basil (Tulsi), Clove, etc is the “Theertham”.
This water becomes more energized because it receives the
positiveness of all these energies combined. When persons
go to the temple for Deepa araadhana, and when the doors
open up, the positive energy gushes out onto the persons
who are there. The waterthat is sprinkled onto the people
passes on the energy to all. That is the reason why, ladies
have to wear more ornaments because it is through these
jewels (metal) that positive energy is absorbed in ladies. It is
proved that Theertham is a very good blood purifier, as it is
highly energized.
In addition, temples offer holy water (about three spoons).
This water is mainly a source of magnet therapy as they
place the copper water vessel at the Garbhagriha. It also
contains cardamom, clove, saffron, etc to add taste and
Tulsi (holy Basil) leaves are put into the water to increase
its medicinal value! The clove essence protects one from
tooth decay, the saffron & Tulsi leave essence protects one
from common cold and cough, cardamom and benzoine
known as Pachha Karpuram, acts as a mouth refreshing
agents. This way, one’s health too is protected, by regularly
visiting Temples!
Source: Unknown, forwarded by Dil Dubey, Mississauga
PAGE 15
TAMIL WEAVER’S WISDOM
Saint-poet Kabir is a household name in the North-West Regions of India. In their every day conversation, people
often quote Kabir’s couplets to back up an advice or an argument. Saint Kabir came from a humble weaver’s family.
People of Southern India, too, have their version of Kabir who lived many centuries before him. His name was Tiruvalluvar. He was born in the hamlet now called Chennai [formerly Madras] in 2200 B.C. Like Kabir, Saint Tiruvalluvar also belonged to a weaver family. His work called TiruKular meaning sacred or holy couplets/verses, consist
of 1330 couplets. These verses cover every aspect of human life and relationship. Saint Tiruvalluvar’s wisdom is not
obsolete, but relevant to daily living even today, and represents traditional Hindu values.
Possession of Self-Control
Possession of Virtuous Conduct
Self-control will place one among the gods,
While lack of it will lead to deepest darkness.
Virtuous conduct leads a man to eminent greatness.
Therefore, it should be guarded as more precious than
life itself
Guard your self-control as a precious treasure
As there is no wealth greater than this.
Comprehending and acquiring self-control
confers upon one the esteem of a wise man.
More imposing than a mountain is the greatness of
a man who, steadfast in domestic life, has mastered
self-control.
Humility is a precious quality in all people,
But it has the rare richness in the rich man.
Like a tortoise withdrawing its five limbs into its
shell, those who Restrain the five senses will find safe
shelter for seven.
Whatever you fail to guard, guard well your tongue
For flawed speech unfailingly invokes anguish and
affliction.
In your striving, be mindful to preserve good conduct
In your deliberations, discover it as your staunchest ally.
Morality is the birthright of high families,
While immoral conduct’s legacy is lowly birth.
If a priest forgets the Vedas, he can relearn them.
But, if he falls from virtue, his high birth is forever
lost
Prosperity is not for the envious,
Nor is greatness for men of impure conduct
The firm-minded never slacken in upholding virtuous
conduct, For they know the miseries brought on by
such neglect.
By honest conduct one achieves honorable eminence,
While corrupt conduct brings nothing but blame.
The goodness of one’s virtues can be lost
By speaking a single word of injury.
Good conduct is a seed in virtue’s field;
Wicked conduct’s harvest is never ending sorrows.
The wound cased by fire heals in its time;
The burn inflicted by inflamed tongue never heals.
Men who conduct themselves virtuously,
Are incapable of voicing harmful words, even
forgetfully
Virtue will wait in the street to meet a man
Possessed of learning and self-discipline,
his anger subdued.
Those who cannot live in harmony with the world,
Though they have learned many things,
are still ignorant
THE LEGEND OF THE
POETS
Many names adornTAMIL
classical Tamil
literature. Tiruvalluvar, and
Saint Tiruvalluvar
Featured on 1 Rupee
Avoidance of Backbiting
Silent about virtue and swift to act wrongly,
One who does not slander others may still be called
good
More vile than violating virtue and committing crimes,
Is slandering a man, and then smiling to his face.
Virtue declares dying, not living, will bring
Better rewards to deceiving backbiters
Though you speak unkind words to a man’s face,
Do not talk behind his back heedless of harm.
Though his every word is full of kindly virtue,
A man’s mean backbite will betray an empty heart
If a man spreads tales of others faults,
His worst fault will be exposed and spread
Not knowing the companionable art of cheerful conversation, Men estrange even friends by divisive discourse.
If men are disposed to spread the faults of friends,
What deadly harm might they do to strangers?
Only because she weighs duties well does Earth bear
the weight, Of those who wait for a man’s departure to
defame him.
If men perceive their own faults as they do the faults of
others, Would misfortune ever come to them?
Source: Taken from the Weaver’s Wisdom book, translated from Tamil to English by Satguru Sivaya subramuniyaswami of Hawaii Hindu Monastery, and republished
with their consent
Kapilar are among them. We know very little about these gifted
Many
names adorn
Tamil
literature.
Tiruvalluvar,
poets
as individuals,
butclassical
there is an
interesting
legend
pertaining
and
Kapilar
are
among
them.
We
know
very
little
to them that has become part of Tamil literary history, about
these gifted poets as individuals, but there is an interesting
A pious
Tamil
Brahmintoonce
distant pilgrimage,
legend
pertaining
themwent
that on
hasabecome
part of Tamil
abandoning
his
little
son
whose
name
was
Bhagavan. When
literary history,
Bhagavan grew up to become a young man, he went in quest
A lost
pious
TamilIn
Brahmin
onceofwent
on a distant
pilgrimof his
father.
the course
his journey
he halted
in the
age,
abandoning
his
little
son
whose
name
was
small town of Melur. There he stayed in a boarding Bhagavan.
house.
When Bhagavan grew up to become a young man, he
The went
proprietor
of the
boarding
houseInhad
girljourof a
in quest
of his
lost father.
the adopted
course ofahis
lowly
caste.
One
evening,
while
Bhagavan
was
busy
preparing
ney he halted in the small town of Melur. There he stayed
his own
meal, thehouse.
girl happened to come in his vicinity. This
in a boarding
was a contamination of the young man’s Brahminical purity, and
The proprietor
the boarding
house had
adoptedThe
a girl
he therefore
flung aofstone
at the intruding
youngster.
stone
of apoor
lowly
caste.
One evening,
hit the
girl’s
forehead,
leaving awhile
scar. Bhagavan was busy
preparing his own meal, the girl happened to come in
Bhagavan
left Melur
in disgust.
After yearsofofthe
fruitless
his vicinity.
This was
a contamination
youngquest
man’s
for his
long lost father
happened
to return
Byatnow
Brahminical
purity,he
and
he therefore
flungthere.
a stone
the
the little
girl
of
lowly
origin
had
grown
into
a
beautiful
damintruding youngster. The stone hit the poor girl’s forehead,
sel. leaving
Bhagavan,
not realizing who she was, was captivated by
a scar.
her charms, fell in love with here, and decided to take her as
Bhagavan
left Melur
in disgust.
of fruitless
his wife.
Bhagavan
was happy
that After
at lastyears
he had
found love,
quest
for
his
long
lost
father
he
happened
to
return there.
and he hoped to have a peaceful life. A joyous wedding
was
By now the little girl of lowly origin had grown into a
arranged.
beautiful damsel. Bhagavan, not realizing who she was,
On the
day of the
rituals,
whenfell
Bhagavan
parted
herand
hair,
wasfifth
captivated
by her
charms,
in love with
here,
he recognized
the
scar
that
had
been
left
by
the
stone
he
had
decided to take her as his wife. Bhagavan was happy that
flungatatlast
hishe
bride
called
her Adiyal
(thea peacefirst
had years
foundago.
love,He
and
he hoped
to have
woman).
In
shame
or
self
pity,
he
left
the
scene
and
ran
away.
ful life. A joyous wedding was arranged.
But Adiyal went after him, and would not let him leave her.
On theagreed
fifth day
of theher,
rituals,
when Bhagavan
her
Bhagavan
to take
but remembering
the parted
treatment
hair,
he
recognized
the
scar
that
had
been
left
by
the
stone
meted out to him by his father, he insisted he would do so only
hepromised
had flungtoatabandon
his brideall
years
He called
herhad
Adiyal
if she
theirago.
offspring.
Adiyal
no
(the
first
woman).
In
shame
or
self
pity,
he
left
the
scene
choice.
and ran away. But Adiyal went after him, and would
As the
herBhagavan
various infants
into
succession,
each of
notmother
let himgave
leaveup
her.
agreed
take her, but
themremembering
is said to have
with out
a verse
whose
essence
theconsoled
treatmenther
meted
to him
by his
father,
is that
are allheprotected
Providence.
Indeed
he we
insisted
would dobysothe
only
if she promised
to these
aban-are
among
poets of the
Tamilhad
speaking
world.
donthe
all great
their offspring.
Adiyal
no choice.
Source:
This
articlegave
is taken
from
the INDHER
magazine
issue,
As the
mother
up her
various
infants in
succession,
and each
republished
here
with
the
consent
of
editor
V.V.
Raman
of them is said to have consoled her with a verse
whose essence is that we are all protected by the Providence. Indeed these are among the great poets of the
Tamil speaking world.
Source: This article is taken from the INDHER
magazine issue, and republished here with the consent of editor V.V. Raman
PAGE 17
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PAGE 19
HINDU YOUTH ESSAY COMPETITION: A GRAND SUCCESS
By Nitin Deckha
Winners And Participants Who Attended The Youth Essay Competition-2012 Reception
Canadian Hindu Link organized an essay competition for
Hindu youth in the Greater Toronto Area. Some 22 youth,
14 girls and 8 boys, aged 13 to 19 had submitted essays that
explored what they liked and disliked about Hindu practices,
customs and traditions. The call for essays was conceived in
order to generate interest in young people in exploring their
Hindu identity and spirituality amidst the context of growing
up in Canada. As one of the essay readers, I was pleased
with ability of our youth to tackle a range of topics in the
name of Hindu dharma, from caste and gender inequality
(common dislikes of Hindu practices) and bhajans and khatak,
to daily rituals to the grand celebrations of Diwali (some of
the favoured Hindu traditions).
On December 2, 2012, Canadian Hindu Link held a reception to congratulate and present prizes to the winners, and
gifts to other participants of the 2012 Youth Essay Competition. The Reception was held at Crestwood Centre, 3038
Hurontario Street in Mississauga. A few of the essay writers
rose above the rest and we were happy to award them with
coveted prizes such as 7” Tablet [First Prize] 10” Netbook
Laptop [Second Prize] and two MP3 players [Third & Fourth
prize]. The prizes and gifts were generously donated by sponsors: Mr. Ashok Kalia, Dr. B. Sood, Vinesh Agarwal, Ramji
Sahadeo, Rajinder Khosla, Aruna Duggal, Shashi Gupta and
Janak Gupta.
The afternoon saw a capacity crowd of 15 essay participants
and their families who were joined by Canadian Hindu Link
editor, sponsors, and some volunteer copy editors of Canadian Hindu Link. We heard from Ajit Adhopia, the magazine’s
publisher, editor and tireless promoter of making Hinduism
understandable to Hindus living in Canada. Mr. Adhopia
spoke about why he decided to start educating himself and
others about Hinduism decades ago, a quest that eventually
led to the establishment of Canadian Hindu Link in January,
2009. This free quarterly magazine is distributed at mandirs
and major Indian grocery stores across the Golden Horseshoe, from Niagara Falls to Pickering.
We also heard from Mr. Ramji Sahadeo, a local lawyer who
started a project to put a copy of the Bhagavad Gita in each
GTA Hindu home and spoke about Mahatma Gandhi’s own
translation of the epic. Both Messrs Adhopia and Sahadeo
conveyed the passion for communicating Hindu thought and
its relevance to everyday life. Then, I spoke to the youth in
the room about the importance of developing their writing in
the age of the Internet and social media and urging them to
embrace the multiplicity of their spiritual and cultural identities. Subsequently, we heard from another key sponsor of the
magazine, Mr. Ashok Kalia, and I was then pleased to assist
Mr Adhopia and Mrs Shakun Adhopia, who orchestrated the
whole reception, announce the winners and hand out the
prizes and gifts.
In first place was Samrat Chowdhury. In second place was
Anjali Pandey and Neil Ramchand in third. Following close
behind in fourth was Sarina Sharma. The other participants
were (in alphabetical order): Nareshri Babu, Sourav Biswas,
Davon Jhordhan, Peenak Joshi, Sohum Kulkarni, Namita
Kalra, Tricia Mahabir, Nagma Mathur, Sharvari Mulye, Preethi
Narayanan, Akriti Pandey, Avanish Pandey, Akshaya Radhakrishnan, Sanjana Raman, Rohansham Deonarayan, Aishwarya Shetty, Prathmesh Shetty, and Srishti Shrivastava.
Afterward, photographs were taken by Mr. Ved Sharma.
Thanks to the kindness of volunteers Suchitra Goswami and
Rita Shah, we spent the rest of the afternoon munching on
dokhla, barfi and samosa, washed down with chai and loads
of conversation.
MY VIEWPOINT ON HINDUISM
By Samrat Choudhury, Age 15
Religion, described as a system of faith and worship
differs from Dharma, the natural law. Nonetheless, this
system of faith or natural laws holds a place in the heart
of most citizens of the world but it also has practices
that are questionable and are detested by many. “What
religious practices, customs and traditions do you like
and dislike most in Hindu dharma?” Before we get to
that we must have a little bit of historical information and insight on Hindu Dharma.
A religion that began thousands of years ago
is arguably the most complex and mysterious religion in the world today. From the times of the pharaohs
of Egypt through the conquests of great empires this religion
has resisted conversion and is the oldest religion still practiced
today. I and other Hindus have many customs and traditions
that we practice on a regular basis due to their deep meaning
and value. Our name Hindu is derived from the Sanskrit word
‘Sindhu’ and that word was used to refer to people that lived
on one part of the Indus river, but overtime as the Persians
had no “s” in their alphabet, they called them Hindus and we
adopted the name. Moving on to the question, yoga and meditation are one of the most well-known practices in Hinduism,
and therefore it is practiced by people of many ethnicities. It is
a work of physical, mental and spiritual discipline even mentioned in the Vedas; it is practiced to calm the body and mind
from overflowing thoughts to focus on a single thought and is
one of the practices which I like the most due to its help to our
mind, body and overall health.
Another tradition practiced by most Hindus is being vegetarian. This is a practice that I highly respect and follow for the
reason that it saves innocent animals, it fulfills Hindus first
religious obligation to practice nonviolence, and it is medically
proven to be healthier because a vegetarian diet is easier to
digest, provides a wider range of nutrients and imposes fewer
burdens and impurities on the body. Hindus also believe that
our choice of food has Karmic consequences, so by involving
oneself in the cycle of inflicting injury, pain and death, even
indirectly by eating other creatures, one must in the future
experience in equal measure the suffering caused.
Likely one of the most disliked practices by children is touching feet and obeying elderly. As a child I also disliked this practice but now I believe that listening to the elderly and touching
their feet is essential. Touching elder’s feet lowers your ego
and is a way of showing respect. If the elderly person says
something against your ego or opinion, they are saying it out of
their own knowledge, experience and wisdom.
Moving on, I dislike the caste system as a whole, it
was established thousands of years ago to divide
duties, making people specialists in their own field
and prevent unemployment. It meant that the son
would take the job of the father, but overtime some
castes became discriminatory to other castes calling
them “lower castes”. Even now some people in
India are not respected in society and are
called lower castes or ‘untouchables’.
Lastly, because of certain customs Hindus
in general became non-adventurous and
non-aggressive. It was due to customs such as “anybody that
crosses the sea to go to another country will become polluted”. After following such customs, Hindus did not explore
the world like other Europeans and Chinese, they also became
non-aggressive as Hindu emperor “Pritviraj Chauhan” defeated
Shahabuddin Muhammad Ghori many times but let him go
and escape, but when Muhammad Ghori won, he blinded
Pritviraj and dragged his body to Afghanistan on a horse, then
the invaders pillaged the Somenath Mandir and mercilessly
killed the people. This set India to be under foreign rule for
almost the next 900 years. If Pritviraj had killed Muhammad
Ghori when he had won, yes he would have gone against the
gentleness of Hindu Dharma, but he would have saved Hindus
from countless deaths, many forceful conversions, and 900
years of struggle.
In conclusion, Hinduism is a religion of great beliefs and traditions; it is the foundation of our family values and we believe
that families which eat together and pray together stay together. It has many strict followers to the point where even people
of other ethnicities have found it appealing and have begun to
follow it. It has survived under foreign rule for several periods
and has changed greatly, making it the oldest religion still practiced today. It has many beneficial practices but also some that
people may dislike. However, followers of Hinduism respect all
life, love all, hate none and have proven in 1947 that through
peace and love, war can be overcome.
Author: Samrat Choudhury won first prize in the Hindu Youth
Essay Competition- 2012, for writing this essay. The competition
was organized by Canadian Hindu Link. The original title of this
essay was, “What Religious practices, customs and traditions Do
you like and dislike most in Hindu Dharma? Explain why”
Samrat is a grade 10 IBT student at North Park Secondary
school. His parents immigrated to Canada when he was 6 years of
age. He volunteered at many summer camps at various temples.
He enjoys playing video games and spending time with his 6 year
old brother.
PAGE 21
HINDUS’ DILEMMA:
AN APPEAL FOR ACTION
Dr. Greesh C. Sharma, DMSP, Dipl ApA, AABM, Ph. D. [USA]
I receive lots of email from individuals of Dharma. I read
articles and letters to the editors written by Hindus. I am
a subscriber to many Hindu websites and every time I
read their desperate exchanges, I shudder with fear, low
self-confidence, concerns, hopelessness, helplessness
and utter anxiety. I share their concerns that Hinduism is
under attack and that Mother India as we know is again
being humiliated. The Offenders of Dharma (OOD) as
identified usually tend to be Chinese territorial aggression, ruthless proselytization by Christians, remorseless
violence by Jihadis
and finally Government of India’s
unparalleled incompetence.
fenders of Dharma (OOD). This simple act will change
the dynamics. We all have known all along, who the offenders are. It is time to keep your money in your pocket
and boycott all products whether groceries, pickles, nuts,
bolts, books or restaurants.
Traditional Hindu apathy (Koh nripati hoi, hame ka
hani), criticizing Dharma (Ghar ko lagi aag ghar ke
chirag se) are character defects. The statue of limitations
has expired. Now is the time to walk in the footsteps of
Swami Vivekananda.
Hindus do not
have to live in the
dilemma about
opting for violence.
Indian tradition has
been that Rajput,
Kshatriya and Sikhs
have defended the
nation and the people. We do not have to be born into
Kshatriya clan or in Rajasthan. We can choose to be
Rajput, Kshatriya and Sikh so to confront the offenders of
Dharma on their terms, anywhere and anytime.
“It is neither late nor over.”
Hindus need to opt
for courage against
fear, Chankya style
of wisdom against
naiveté, Lord Krishna’s counselling to fight criminals
against Dharma, Mahatma Gandhi’s strategies to practice
Satvik minimalism, Subhash Chandra Bose’s militancy,
and USA’s style of salesmanship. It is neither late nor
over. The solutions are simple once the strategy is clear.
Following are the steps: Join Hindu platforms whether
based on religion, politics or militancy. Even if you do
not like them, join them so from inside you can improve
them. I prescribe “devil’s advocate” role to constantly
hammer Hindu organizations to stop being paper tigers
and either to deliver or get out of the way. Joining to
change from inside and stop public criticism will alter
the context and Defenders of Dharma (DOD) will feel
empowered.
Think of Mahatma Gandhi’s Swadeshi Only campaign.
Practice minimalism and refrain from buying the products of countries, businesses and people who are Of-
Stop expecting organizations, Government, UN, Human
Rights Commissions or any other agency to come to
rescue Dharma. It is a joint effort and collective pledge
that we all have to take by realizing that it is Kurukshetra
all over again. If we do not do this, then Hindu holocaust
is in the making. No body had come for the Jews and I
am sure of the same fate for Hindus. We can save Bharat
and Hindu Diaspora now or will have to fight all over
again to reclaim it.
Dr. Sharma is a Clinical Psychologist and the Founder
& Director of the Lower Bucks Institute of Behaviour
Modification, Morrisville PA 19067, USA. He MAY be
contacted by email: [email protected]
“How wonderful it is that nobody need wait a single moment
”
before beginning to improve the world.
– Anne Frank
HARVANSH SINGH: DISCOVERING AN AMAZING UNKNOWN
SAINT SCHOLAR IN RAJASTHAN
By Vish Murthy
I recently found myself traveling in Rajasthan, India. The
fine countryside of Rajasthan is of course, dotted with
constant reminders of an ancient and chivalrous past; of
beautiful palaces, glorious narratives of valiant Rajput men
and honourable women, great carvings and filigree work,
paintings and music, and an extra-ordinary legacy of heritage to behold from a traveler’s perspective. It is also a lot
more enjoyable, when one is ensconced, too, amidst the
modern amenities of some magnificent hotels.
However, I also found myself looking for things that were a
little less on the senses and more to do with man’s esoteric quests. I think I might have found one on the desert
road, in Pokhran, where India’s great nuclear tests get
conducted. I happened to stop at a very fascinating but
quite the mysterious place. It was the abode of supposedly a great man called Sant Harvansh Singh. This Sant,
I was told, spent a large part of his life in meditation and
contemplation, and in the very cavern where it seems he
performed his experiments with “shakti”, I found one of
the most unique libraries that I may have ever seen in my
life (and all of this is coming from a person who has visited
Washington’s monumental libraries, the Smithsonian, Harvard and Yale libraries etc).The Saint, single handily, in this
great remote desert, seems to have collected no less than
200,000 books on every possible subject that has ever
been in discussion and print in India, including rows upon
rows on India’s jurisprudence, it’s monumental history of
7000 years or more, an incredible linguistics wing (past,
present and future where Michigan U researchers point to
a usage of 50,000 languages and dialects in India), books
on all of its major and minor religions, all it’s possible military strategies, its great routes of trade and navigation, it’s
remarkable past wealth, it’s ornithology, horticulture etc.
etc. est. found the ability to name just about any subject
and to find an incredible number of references there! The
library has also huge wings or corridors which go as far as
your eye can take you, and it just takes one’s breath away!
Mind you all of this is underground! The saint also, remarkably, seems to have reversed Nature’s intentions for a
desert place. Where nothing could possibly grow, he succeeded in planting vegetation for acres around his habitat
and has installed a remarkable husbandry for thousands
of cows. In the time I spent there, I was rendered speechless with wonder, as to how a single human force could
perform such mind boggling feats, in so remote a corner of
the world! Surprisingly, I could not glean a single tangible
account of this holy person, other than the usual collected
whispers of faith, that he was an unparalleled Yogi who
had dedicated himself to “shakti-path” in these modern
times, and had lived in complete testimony to the strength
that emanates from constant “mauna” (silence).The only
tangibility that I have obtained on this surrealistic scene,
seems to have come from it’s recognition by another great
soul, APJ Abdul Kalam. The President of India, speaking at
the Animal Nutrition World Conference Feb 16, 2009 at
NASC Centre, New Delhi, had this to say of a model display of life from this great Being Beautiful societal mission
“While thinking about nutrition for cattle, I am reminded
of my visit to Pokharan range. On the way to Pokharan, I
had visited Bhadariya village where a new social welfare
model has been created by Baba Sri Bhadariya Maharaj.
He has an Ashram with a large underground library having around two lakh books. Baba ji has worked on deaddiction programme in 60 to 70 villages in the vicinity of
Bhadariya.
He has a mission of planting over one lakh trees in the
region. He has got tube-wells which provide water in the
desert condition. With the availability of the greenery,
many stray cattle gather there and Baba has given shelter
to over 600 cows. The feed is being provided by the locally available grass and feed provided by the neighbouring villagers where the de-addiction programme has taken
place. As a thanks giving, the de-addicted villagers are
providing good quality fodder to the cows of the Ashram.
Ashram is also providing knowledge on naturopathy and
herbal medicines to the rural community and treatment of
the cattle. When the cows start giving milk, Baba distributes milk and butter milk free of cost to all the needy and
travelers passing through that region. Thus, we can see an
integrated development of communication, dissemination
of knowledge, Medicare, cattle rearing, fodder management are all taking place together in the desert area. “The
Sant breathed his last on Feb 26, 2010.
Author Vish Murthy can be contacted at pcsi2000@
hotmail.com
listen to apna radio apne geet at cmr.fm <http://cmr.fm/> 101.3 from 5-7 pm, mon-fri for music & valuble info | PAGE
23
SWAMI RAMA TIRTHA (1873-1906)
Swami Rama Tirtha, previously known as Gossain Tirtha
Rama, was born in 1873, at Murariwala, a village in the
district of Gujranwala, Punjab, India. His mother passed
away when he was but a few days old and he was
brought up by his elder brother, Gossain Gurudas.
As a child, Rama was very fond of listening to recitations
from the holy scriptures and attending Kathas. He often
put questions to holy men and even offered explanations. He was very intelligent and loved solitude.
Rama was barely ten years old when his father got him
married. His father left him under the care of his friend,
Bhakta Dhanna Rama, a man of
great purity and simplicity of life.
Rama regarded him as his Guru,
and offered to him his body and
soul in deep devotion. His surrender to his Guru was so complete
that he never did anything without
first consulting him. He wrote numerous loving letters to him.
Rama was a brilliant student, especially in mathematics. After completing his degree, he served for a
while as Professor of Mathematics
in the Forman Christian College. It
was at this stage that his spiritual
life began to blossom. He began
to read the Gita and became a
great devotee of Lord Krishna. His
intense longing gave him a vision of
Sri Krishna. He delivered lectures on Bhakti under the
auspices of the Sanatana Dharma Sabha of Lahore.
Rama Tirtha commenced his spiritual life as a Bhakta
of God and then turned to Vedanta, studying under the
inspiration of Sri Madhava Tirtha of the Dwaraka Math.
A great impetus was given to his spiritual life by Swami
Vivekananda, whom he saw for the first time at Lahore.
The sight of the great Swami as a Sannyasin kindled in
him the longing to don the ochre robe.
His passion for the vision of the all-pervading Lord
began to grow more and more. He longed and pined
for oneness with God. Indifferent to food and clothes,
he was always filled with ecstatic joy. Tears would often
flow in a limpid stream down his cheeks. It was not long
before he had the vision he yearned for, and thereafter
he lived, moved and had his being in God.
Swami Rama was a living Vedantin. He saw and felt
God in all names and forms. His beautiful words are
often addressed to the trees, rivers and mountains.
Rama soon resigned his post and left for the forest. His
wife and two children and a few others accompanied
him to the Himalayas. Owing to ill-health, his wife later
returned with one of her sons. The other was left at
Tehri for his schooling there.
Rama Tirtha took Sanyas a few days before the passing
of Swami Vivekananda. Swami Madhava Tirtha had already allowed him
to take Sanyas whenever he wished. A
few years later he returned to the plains
to preach. The effect of his presence
was marvellous. His infectious joy and
his bird-like warbling of Om enchanted
everyone.
Swami Rama’s burning desire to spread
the message of Vedanta made him leave
the shores of India for Japan. He went
with his disciple Swami Narayana. After
a successful visit to Tokyo, he departed
for the U.S.A. He spent about a year and
a half in San Francisco under the hospitality of Dr Albert Hiller. He gained a
large following and started many societies, one of them being the Hermetic
Brotherhood, dedicated to the study of
Vedanta. His charming personality had a great impact
on the Americans. Devout Americans even looked upon
him as the living Christ
On his return to India, Swami Rama continued to lecture in the plains, but his health began to break down.
He went back to the Himalayas and settled at Vasishtha
Ashram. He gave up his body in the Ganges on 17 October, 1906, when he was only thirty-three.
The Rama Tirtha Publication League has brought out
most of the writings of this great saint of India. They are
given in several volumes, entitled, In the Woods of Godrealisation. His inspiring writings show us that he saw
his Beloved Lord in all names and forms. In many of his
poems he sings the glory of nature.
Source: Taken from the website www.sivanandadlshq.com
SIR WILLIAM JONES
From the early days of European incursions into India
until the last Portuguese soldier was removed from
Indian territories, India had suffered much economic exploitation, political domination and imperialist arrogance
at the hands of European governments. Yet, there have
also been individual Europeans who have displayed
genuine interest and friendship towards India and her
people. Some of them even fought on behalf of India in
their respective countries. Others have made positive
contributions in development of India as a modern nation in the world.
There have been a variety of
European and American politicians and statesmen, scholars,
ecologists, scientists and educators, literary and religious
men and women who have
thrown light upon Indian history, unearthed ancient Indian
civilizations, investigated tropical diseases, interpreted Indian
wisdom and philosophies to
the world. They established
universities, research centres,
founded museums of Indian
arts and sculptures, wrote
dictionaries of Indian languages and stimulated young
minds in India. The names and
contributions of these Western
friends of India are known to
scholars and historians, but not
to common people in India.
Sir William Jones was one of the earliest Britons to
recognize that a wealth of scholarly materials reflecting
the hearts and minds of Indians lay in the subcontinent
to be explored and interpreted. He himself was a gifted
linguist, who had, before he even left his native land,
taught himself Hebrew, Persian and Arabic, not to mention modern European languages. He translated a variety
of Europeans works from Arabic and Persian into English
and French.
In 1783, at the age of 37, Jones arrived in Calcutta in the
capacity of a Supreme Court Judge. There he discovered
that a number of European residents felt the need to
meet periodically to discuss maters related to scientific
and scholarly interest. This prompted him to organize a
scientific club, which was called Asiatick Society, which
became The Royal Asiatic Society of Bengal in 1784.
This society played a very important role in Indian science and scholarship.
Jones was the first to recognize the antiquity of the Sanskrit language, and to suggest its possible relationships
with Greeks, thus laying the foundation for the science
of philology. He studied Hindu and Islamic law extensively, and did much work on Hindu chronology. His
opening address at the opening of the Asiatic Society
reflects his breadth of vision.
The following is an excerpt
from that speech:
You will investigate whatever is rare in the stupendous
fabric of nature; will correct
the geography of Asia by new
observations and discoveries;
will trace the animals, and
even traditions of those nations, who from time to time
have peopled or desolated
it, and will bring to light their
various forms of government
,with their institutions, civil
or religious; and will examine
their improvements and methods in Arithmetic, geometric,
in trigonometry, menstruation,
mechanics, politics, astronomy
and general physics; their skill
in surgery sand medicine and their advancement, whatever may be in anatomy and chemistry. To this, you will
add researches into their agricultures, manufactures and
trade, and whilst you enquire into their music architecture, painting and pottery. You will not ignore those
inferior arts, by which comforts, and even elegance of
social life, are supplied or improved.
Source: This article is taken from the INDHER JOUNAL [Issue IV-5, Sep-Oct. 1982] and republished here
with the consent of its Editor Dr. V. V. Raman.
25
THE UPANISHADS:
THE SUPREME WORK OF HINDU MIND
By Subhamoy Das (about.com Guide)
Upanishads form the core of Indian philosophy. They
are an amazing collection of writings from original oral
transmissions, which have been aptly described by Shri
Aurobindo as “the supreme work of the Indian mind.”
It is here that we find all the fundamental teachings
that are central to Hinduism — the concepts of ‘karma’
(action), ‘samsara’ (reincarnation), ‘moksha’ (nirvana),
the ‘atman’ (soul), and the ‘Brahman’ (Absolute Almighty). They also set forth the prime Vedic doctrines of
self-realization, yoga and meditation. The Upanishads
are summits of thought on mankind and the universe,
designed to push human ideas to their very limit and
beyond. They give us both spiritual
vision and philosophical argument,
and it is by a strictly personal effort that one can reach the truth.
Meaning Of ‘Upanishad’
The term ‘Upanishad’ literally
means, “Sitting down near” or “sitting close to”, and implies listening
closely to the mystic doctrines of
a guru or a spiritual teacher, who
has cognized the fundamental
truths of the universe. It points to
a period in time when groups of
pupils sat near the teacher and
learnt from him the secret teachings in the quietude of forest ‘ashrams’ or hermitages. In
another sense of the term, ‘Upanishad’ means ‘Brahmaknowledge’ by which ignorance is annihilated. Some
other possible meanings of the compound word ‘Upanishad’ are “placing side by side” (equivalence or correlation), a “near approach” (to the Absolute Being), “secret
wisdom” or even “sitting near the enlightened”.
Time Of Composition
Historians and Indologists have put the date of composition of the Upanishads from around 800 - 400 B.C.,
though many of the verse versions may have been written
much later. In fact, they were written over a very long
period of time and do not represent a coherent body of
information or one particular system of belief. However,
there is a commonality of thought and approach.
The Main Books
Although there are more than 200 Upanishads, only
thirteen have been identified as presenting the core
teachings. They are the Chandogya, Kena, Aitareya,
Kaushitaki, Katha, Mundaka, Taittriyaka, Brihadaranyaka, Svetasvatara, Isa, Prasna, Mandukya and the
Maitri Upanishads. One of the oldest and longest of the
Upanishads, the Brihadaranyaka says:
From the unreal lead me to the real,
From darkness lead me to light,
From death lead me to immortality.
The crux of the Upanishads is that
this can be achieved by meditating with the awareness that one’s
soul (‘atman’) is one with all
things, and that ‘one’ is ‘Brahman’,
which becomes the ‘all’.
Who Wrote The
Upanishads?
The authors of the Upanishads
were many, but they were not
solely from the priestly caste. They
were poets prone to flashes of
spiritual wisdom, and their aim
was to guide a few chosen pupils
to the point of liberation, which they themselves had
attained. According to some scholars, the main figure in
the Upanishads is Yajnavalkya, the great sage who propounded the doctrine of ‘neti-neti’, the view that “truth
can be found only through the negation of all thoughts
about it”. Other important Upanishadic sages are Uddalaka Aruni, Shwetaketu, Shandilya, Aitareya, Pippalada,
Sanat Kumara. Many earlier Vedic teachers like Manu,
Brihaspati, Ayasya and Narada are also found in the
Upanishads.
The human being is the central mystery of the universe
holding the key to all other mysteries. Indeed, human
beings are our own greatest enigma. As the famous
physicist Niels Bohr once said, “We are both spectators
and actors in the great drama of existence.” Hence the
importance of developing of what is known as the “sci-
ence of human possibilities.” It was such a science, that
India sought and found in the Upanishads, in an attempt
to unravel the mystery of human beings.
Science Of The Self
Today, we see a growing urge in everyone to realize the
‘true self’. We are keenly feeling the need to make our
knowledge flower into wisdom. A strange yearning to
know about the infinite and the eternal disturbs us. It is
against this background of modern thought and aspirations, that the contributions of the Upanishads to the
human cultural legacy, become significant.
The purpose of the Vedas was to ensure the true welfare of all beings, worldly as well as spiritually. Before
such a synthesis could be achieved, there was a need to
penetrate the inner worlds to its depth. This is what the
Upanishads did with precision and gave us the science
of the self, which helps man leave behind the body, the
senses, the ego and all other non-self elements, which
are perishable. The Upanishads tell us the great saga of
this discovery — of the divine in the heart of man.
The Inside Story
Very early in the development of the Indian civilization,
man became aware of a strange new field of human
experience — the within of nature as revealed in man,
and in his consciousness and his ego. It gathered volume
and power as years rolled on until in the Upanishads it
became a deluge issuing in a systematic, objective and
scientific pursuit of truth in the depth of experience. It
conveys to us an impression of the tremendous fascination that this new field of inquiry held for the contemporary mind.
These Indian thinkers were not satisfied with their intellectual speculations. They discovered that the universe
remained a mystery and the mystery only deepened
with the advance of such knowledge. One of the important components of that deepening mystery is the
mystery of man himself. The Upanishads became aware
of this truth, which modern science now emphasizes.
In the Upanishads we get a glimpse into the workings of
the minds of the great Indian thinkers who were unhampered by the tyranny of religious dogma, political
authority, pressure of public opinion, seeking truth with
single-minded devotion, rare in the history of thought.
As Max Muller has pointed out, “None of our philosophers, not accepting Heraclitus, Plato, Kant, or Hegel
has ventured to erect such a spire, never frightened by
storm or lightning.”
Bertrand Russell rightly said: “Unless men increase in
wisdom as much as in knowledge, increase in knowledge will be increase in sorrow.” While the Greeks and
the others specialized in the subject of man in society,
India specialized in man in depth, man as the individual, as Swami Ranganathananda puts it. This was one ruling passion of the Indo-Aryans in the Upanishads. The
great sages of the Upanishads were concerned with man
above and beyond his political or social dimensions. It
was an inquiry, which challenged not only life but also
death and resulted in the discovery of the immortal and
the divine self of man.
Shaping the Indian Culture
The Upanishads gave a permanent orientation to Indian
culture by their emphasis on inner penetration and their
wholehearted advocacy of what the Greeks later formulated in the dictum “man, know thyself.” All subsequent
development of Indian culture was powerfully conditioned by this Upanishadic legacy.
The Upanishads reveal an age characterized by a remarkable fervency of thought and inspiration. The physical and mental climate that made it possible, is the land
of plenty that was India. The entire social milieu of the
Indo-Aryans was ripe with great potentialities. They had
found leisure to think and ask questions. They had the
choice to utilize the leisure either to conquer the outer
world or the inner. With their mental gifts, they had
turned their mental energies to the conquest of the inner
world rather than of the world of matter and life at the
sensate level.
Universal & Impersonal
The Upanishads have given us a body of insights that
have a universal quality about them and this universality
derives from their impersonality. The sages who discovered them had depersonalized themselves in the search
for truth. They wanted to go beyond nature and realize
the transcendental nature of man. They dared to take up
this challenge and the Upanishads are the unique record
of the methods they adopted, the struggles they undertook and the victory they achieved in this astonishing
adventure of human spirit. And this is conveyed to us in
passages of great power and poetic charm. In seeking
the immortal, the sages conferred the immortality upon
the literature that conveyed it.
Source: gleaned from [email protected]
This is a short, edited version of the full article on this
website, republished here with the consent of the author.
PAGE 27
TRANSMITTING HINDUISM TO CHILDREN IS A CHALLENGE
By Ajit Adhopia
When Hindu parents suddenly find out that their young
daughter is dating a non-Hindu youngster at school
or college, they start panicking. Suddenly, issues like
cross-cultural dating, pre-marital sex and inter-racial or
inter-faith marriage, become a cause of serious conflict
with children and destroy family harmony. In a panic
mode, parents start taking drastic, irrational actions for
damage control, severely restricting the child’s outdoor
activities; send him or her to India during the summer
to acquire cultural orientation or looking for a Hindu
match for engagement followed by an early marriage. In
order to avoid this situation, parents must educate their
children, and transmit their cultural values to them from
childhood. Educationists believe that the moral, cultural
and spiritual values a child imbibes by the age of ten
stays with him or her for life. Therefore, cultural and
spiritual orientation of children must commence as early
as possible. In this guide, we offer Hindu parents some
helpful suggestions to meet the challenge of raising their
kids outside India, in a non-Hindu mainstream society.
HELPFUL SUGGESTIONS FOR PARENTS
Give A Hindu Name To Your Child
At birth, give your child a Hindu name, but it should
be short and easy for non-Hindus to pronounce. All
Hindu names are beautiful and meaningful. To find a
name suitable for your child seek your parents’ assistance or visit a website that shows an alphabetic list of
Hindu names and their meaning in English. When you
tell your child the English translation of his or her name,
he or she will take pride in the uniqueness of the Hindu
name. Refrain from calling or naming your children as
Sam, John, Sid, Jackie or Melissa etc., just for the convenience of others. Hindu name is your child’s identity,
which is worth keeping.
Teach Your Language
Language is the most effective medium to connect your
child to your cultural heritage. Teach your language
to your child from a very early age; sooner the better. Make your Indian language as the language of the
household. Many parents converse with their child only
in English fearing that if they did not, their child may
have problem at school. This fear is baseless. Your child
has the amazing ability to learn to speak more than one
language during early childhood. Many Indian children
lose their mother tongue after they start going to school.
Some parents overcome this problem by one parent
speaking with the child only in mother tongue and the
other in English. Make it a rule that every member of
the family must converse in your mother tongue at the
dinner table, and enforce this rule strictly. If your child
does not speak your language fluently or correctly, do
not make fun of him.
Educate Yourself About Hinduism
All too many young Hindus, born or raised outside
India, are not attracted to their religion that they feel is
hard to understand, or not respected by the society they
live in. They demand rational and logical explanation of
what their parents want them to believe and practice.
Parents must give reasons to believe; it is not enough
to tell them, “This is our tradition. You must learn it.”
Our children do not buy that argument. Parents have
to educate themselves first, if they wish to transmit their
spiritual and cultural heritage.
Prepare yourself as well-informed parents by acquiring
the knowledge about Sanatan Dharma. This will equip
you to answer your children’s questions about their
Dharma, customs and traditions. Even if you know your
basic beliefs and rituals, enrich your knowledge by reading Hindu literature published by some reputable Hindu
institutions --Vedanta Society, Arya Samaj, Himalaya
Academy of Hawaii, Chinmayananda Mission, or by
reading books written by well known Swamis such as
Swami Dayanand, Swami Sivananda; Swami Prabhupada of Hare Krishna Movement and Swami Prabhavananda, and subscribe to Hindu magazines and journals
like Hinduism Today (Hawaii), Canadian Hindu Link
(Mississauga, Ont.) Websites of reputable Hindu organizations can also enrich your knowledge. Attending the
discourses of reputable Swamis from India organized by
your local temple will be helpful. Build up a personal
library at home by saving the books on Hinduism that
you have bought and read.
Provide Correct Information
Do not tell your children ‘All religions are the same’.
This is not the correct translation of sarvo Dharma sam
bhava. All religions are not the same; otherwise there
would not be so many religions in this world. Hindus
are enjoined to respect all religions. It does not mean
all religions are the same. Hinduism is different, distinct,
pluralistic and inclusive in character, but claims no monopoly over God.
Do not tell your kids that our Devis and Devatas are
Hindu gods and goddesses. According to Hinduism,
there is only One God who is genderless, and formless. By translating Devis and Devatas as gods and
goddesses, parents are unknowingly perpetuating the
misconception in the West that Hinduism is a polytheist
religion, and that we believe in many gods. It may also
confuse your child.
Many parents are confused by the diversity of Hinduism,
and often wonder which brand of Hinduism they should
transmit to their children. Indeed, Hinduism is a parliament of diverse streams
of beliefs, schools of philosophy and traditions. However, there is a set of core
beliefs, and values, which all Hindus
agree upon. Hindu Parents should focus
only on those common beliefs, and not
worry about any sect or ‘ism’ within
Hinduism.
Before registering your child for a summer camp or daycare, Hindu parents
should investigate the background and affiliations of
the management board that runs these programs. It has
been reported that many summer camps and daycare
centres, operated by church groups, have hidden
agenda to influence the young minds.
Do Not Ignore Questions
Do not ignore your child’s question if you cannot answer it. While answering a question, be sure you feel
confident about your answer. If you are not absolutely
sure, tell your children, “I don’t know, but I will find out
for you.” Research the answer by talking to a Punditji
(Shastriji) at your local temple, surfing internet or consulting books in your personal or public library.
In the process of educating your child, ensure that you
do not condemn other religions; it goes against the spirit
of Hinduism. Also, remember your child would have
non-Hindu friends, and will be living in a non-Hindu
society.
Visiting Temple Regularly
Visit regularly your local temple with your children
dressed in traditional attire. Ensure that your children
know and comply with the rules and rituals required
in the temple, e.g. removing the shoes at the entrance;
washing of hands; standing at the altar quietly with
folded hands and head bowed; sit with legs crossed, and
not to stretch out the legs with feet facing the idols. Not
to run around the temple making noises. Encourage your
child to follow what you do after entering the temple.
Provide Educational Material & Environment
Taking your child to temple regularly alone is not
enough to make your child imbibe your spiritual and
culture heritage. The process of educating the child
begins at home at a very early age. Temples can only
complement your own efforts. To start with, set up a
special place of worship, Mandir, in a separate room or
in the quietest part of your house. Every evening hold a
family prayer with your children, reciting
Gayatri Mantra and Aarti. Instruct your
child to bow in front of the deities with
folded hands, every morning before going to school. You will be surprised how
quickly your child will learn to follow
this routine.
Enroll your child in a children’s program,
e.g. Bal Vihar, if available at your temple. If not, urge the temple management
to organize special programs and activities for children and youths. As a donor and devotee,
you have the right to do so.
Provide your child with Hindu story books, comics like
Amar Chitra Katha. There are many Hindu educational
DVDs (both in Hindi & English) available at your local
Indian video stores that your children may enjoy. Pick
up a few books, comics and DVDs during your next trip
to India.
Celebrate Festivals
Celebrating all Hindu Festivals with fun-filled enthusiasm is also an effective channel to connect your child
with your culture. Our festivals are very colourful, and
can be fun for children. Get your children involved
in preparations -- cooking, craftwork, decorating the
Mandir at home and making Deeyas etc. Explain to
them the significance of the festival with the colourful
stories connected with it. Encourage you children to
invite their friends, with their parents’ consent, to join
the family feast.
I hope the aforementioned suggestions may help Hindu
parents transmit their spiritual and cultural heritage to
their next generation in Canada. I request our readers to
send their comments and suggestions on this important
issue for our community.
29
HOLI - SPRING FESTIVAL OF COLOURS
By Subhamoy Das
Holi or ‘Phagwah’ is the most colourful festival celebrated by followers of the Vedic Religion. It is celebrated as harvest festival as well as festival for welcoming
the spring season in India.
Why Celebrate Holi?
The festival of Holi can be regarded as a celebration of
the Colours of Unity & Brotherhood - an opportunity
to forget all differences and indulge in unadulterated
fun. It has traditionally been celebrated in high spirit
without any distinction of cast, creed, color, race, status
or gender. It is one occasion when sprinkling coloured
powder (‘gulal’) or coloured water on each other breaks
all barriers of discrimination so that everyone looks the
same and universal brotherhood is reaffirmed. This is
one simple reason to participate in this colorful festival.
Let’s learn more about its history and significance.
What is ‘Phagwah’?
‘Phagwah’ is derived from the name of the Hindu
month ‘Phalgun’, because it is on the full moon in the
month of Phalgun that Holi is celebrated. The month
of Phalgun ushers India into Spring when seeds sprout,
flowers bloom and the country rises from winter’s slumber.
Meaning of ‘Holi’
‘Holi’ comes from the word ‘hola’, meaning to offer
oblation or prayer to the Almighty as Thanksgiving for
good harvest. Holi is celebrated every year to remind
people that those who love God shall be saved and they
who torture the devotee of God shall be reduced to
ashes like the mythical character Holika.
Legends & Myths
Like all Indian and Hindu festivals, Holi is inextricably
linked to mythical tales. There are at least three legends
that are directly associated with the festival of colors: the Holika-Hiranyakashipu-Prahlad episode, Lord
Shiva’s killing of Kamadeva, and the story of the ogress
Dhundhi.
The Holika-Prahlad Episode
The evolution of the term Holi makes an interesting
study in itself. Legend has it that it derives its name from
Holika, the sister of the mythical megalomaniac king
Hiranyakashipu who commanded everyone to worship
him. But his little son Prahlad refused to do so. Instead
he became a devotee of Vishnu, the Hindu God.
Hiranyakashipu ordered his sister Holika to kill Prahlad
and she, possessing the power to walk through fire unharmed, picked up the child and walked into a fire with
him. Prahlad, however, chanted the names of God and
was saved from the fire. Holika perished because she
did not know that her powers were only effective if she
entered the fire alone.
This myth has a strong association with the festival of
Holi, and even today there is a practice of hurling cow
dung into the fire and shouting obscenities at it, as if at
Holika.
The Story of Dhundhi
It was also on this day that an ogress called Dhundhi,
who was troubling the children in the kingdom of Prthu,
was chased away by the shouts and pranks of village
youngsters. Although this female monster had secured
several boons that made her almost invincible, shouts,
abuses and pranks of boys was a chink in the armor for
Dhundi, owing to a curse from Lord Shiva.
The Kamadeva Myth
It is believed that it was on this day that Lord Shiva
opened his third eye and incinerated Kamadeva, the
god of love, to death. So, many people worship Kamadeva on Holi-day, with the simple offering of a mixture
of mango blossoms and sandalwood paste.
Radha-Krishna Legend
Holi is also celebrated in memory of the immortal love
of Lord Krishna and Radha. The young Krishna would
complain to his mother Yashoda about why Radha was
so fair and he so dark. Yashoda advised him to apply
colour on Radha’s face and see how her complexion
would change. In the legends of Krishna as a youth he
is depicted playing all sorts of pranks with the gopis or
cowgirls. One prank was to throw coloured powder all
over them. So at Holi, images of Krishna and his consort Radha are often carried through the streets. Holi
is celebrated with éclat in the villages around Mathura,
the birth-place of Krishna.
SPIRITUAL EFFECTS OF TELEVISION & MOVIES
Introduction To Effects Of Television
Television and movies are a way most people opt to both
escape from their everyday problems, seek pleasure, as
well as connect to the world in search for information
and experiences. Given the universal appeal of television and movies we decided to study their effects at a
spiritual level, both on the viewer and their immediate
environment. Among the questions we sought to answer,
were: What is the effect of television and movies on the
viewer and their closer environment? And Does the type
of programme influence the effect we experience?
Effects Of Television
While we on average rely heavily on television for news,
information and relaxation, research studies have also
documented the negative impacts of television. Below
we list some of the more common criticisms that television faces in today’s society (Ref: CyberCollege).
•Television contributes to obesity
•Television encourages escapism from personal
responsibilities
•Television sets up false images of reality and distorts
reality through omission
•Television engages in economic exploitation. It utilises
commercials to generate needs that uphold a culture
of consumerism
•Television undermines moral standards through depic tions of or allusions to sex, etc.
•Violent scenes on television instigate violence in
everyday behaviour (Ref: New Scientist)
Many people nowadays experience that they cannot move away from the television, or spend irrational
amounts of time thinking about, discussing or watching
re-runs of television programmes. So what exactly captivates people and lures them towards television, despite
all its ill-effects? To answer this question, SSRF undertook spiritual research that reveals what happens in the
spiritual dimension while watching TV.
Spiritual Effects Of Television
Ms. Priyanka Lotlikar, a seeker with advanced sixth
sense studied what happens in the spiritual dimension
when one watches an entertainment programme on
television. She presented this in the form of a picture
based on subtle-knowledge.
The findings have been verified by H.H. Dr. Athavale for
accuracy. Below is a summary of the findings:
•When an entertainment programme is being played,
an activated ring of distressing energy is created
around it and this distressing energy is emitted into
the premises as rings of sound.
•A web of thoughts of distressing energy is created in
the viewer’s mind and a covering of distressing energy
is created around them. The distressing energy vibra tions are emitted into the atmosphere even through
the thoughts of the person watching the television
programme.
•A ring of illusion-creating energy is generated around
the television. This creates an activated ring of illusion creating energy in the viewer.
•Illusory (Myvi, mayavi) vibrations are emitted through
television programmes. Most television programmes
do not represent reality; as a result, illusory vibrations
are emitted into the premises and atmosphere on a
large scale. Moreover, the viewer starts getting more
and more immersed in the fictional world, which has
no existence.
•The person watching these television programmes
becomes extroverted since his mind and intellect are
affected and he starts behaving accordingly.
The spiritual research findings therefore explain why
viewers are mesmerised by television. They also offer
a foundation for explaining the ill-effects of television
observed by modern science.
Effects Of Television Content And Programming
The findings led us to wonder if they were limited to
entertainment programmes, or whether they were applicable across all programme genres or shows. We found
that watching Sattva-predominant content is beneficial
to us, whereas watching Tama-predominant content
is harmful. The distressing energy vibrations emitted
depend on the type of television programme. Our seekers with advanced sixth sense analysed the impact of a
variety of TV genres on us at a spiritual level.
Source: This article is taken from the website of the
Spiritual Science Foundation, www.ssrf@org and
republished here with their consent. It has been slightly
edited to save space.
PAGE 31
MANY SHADES OF SECULARISM IN INDIA:
HINDUS IN INDIA AN OPPRESSED MAJORITY
In India, with 80% Hindu population, and the only
homeland of Hindus in the world, the birthdays of
great sons of the soil, Shri Ram and Shri Krishna, are
not compulsory central government holidays, while the
birthday of Saudi Arabia born prophet Mohammad and
both the birth and crucification day of Bethlehem born
Jesus, are compulsory holidays throughout
India. This seems in sync with the secular
hypothesis that Ram and Krishna are imaginary comic characters while Mohammad
and Jesus are actual historical characters.
There are only 2 Hindu holidays out of
compulsory 14, in contrast with 4 Muslim
ones.
The Constitution of India enables the government to take control of Hindu temples
and trusts and appoint its nominees in
their controlling body and even control
its funds. The government doesn’t have
this privilege for the mosques or churches.
The government cannot interfere in the functioning of
the mosques, madarsas and any minority institutions
even if they receive government aid, which is taxpayers’ money. The minority institutions are not bound to
comply with the Right to Education act either. This can
be seen as a lighter version of Pakistan and Bangladesh’s
enemy property laws, which enable their governments
to confiscate the properties of Hindus by declaring them
enemy properties.
Everyone knows that India doesn’t have uniform civil
code. Indian muslim males are legally allowed to have
up to 4 wives at a time, and can divorce them by saying
‘Talaaq’ thrice, in compliance with Sharia. Hindus and
Christians have to follow proper court procedures to file
for divorce. The women right activists, who organize
‘slut-walks’ to celebrate their ‘rights’ and advocate girls
visiting pubs, do not speak on this matter. Shah Bano
case stands as a glaring example of how secularism is a
constitutionally prescribed drug meant only for Hindus,
not for minorities.
PRAYAGRAJ, one of the holiest pilgrimages of Hindus,
is called Allah-abad. Kashi, Ayodhya and Mathura, each
of these 3 holy sites has been desecrated and yet not
fully restored. The signboards of Auragzeb road in Delhi
stand as the testimony to India’s slavery that Indian
secularism celebrates so profusely. In 2007, over 1 lakh
Indian muslims paid homage to Aurangzeb’s tomb on
his 300th anniversary, that’s when Aurangzeb is known
to be the perpetrator of the largest Hindu genocide
ever. Aurangzeb had even got Guru Teg Bahadur
beheaded in his court for his refusal to
convert to Islam.
An instance of Indian secularism is the
1978 directive to NCERT which instructs it
to erase all medieval history which paints a
picture of clash between native Hindus and
invading muslims in that era. Consequently, we have a chapter each from Akbar
to Aurangzeb, but Shivaji and Maharana
Pratap are squeezed into a paragraph each
in history books. Despite all the evidence
to the contrary, discredited Aryan Invasion
Theory is still taught in Indian schools. The
history books do not cover the Mahabharata despite a plethora of archaeological evidence
available to conclusively establish its historicity.
The Archeological Survey of India in its
annual report of 1924-25 published a long list of Hindu
temples demolished during Islamic rule. Sita Ram Goel,
Arun Shourie and others have published a book after
conducting research and they’ve given a 64 page long
district-wise list of Islamic monuments which were
constructed by demolishing Hindu temples. This list, in
the book, “Hindu temples - what happened to them”,
includes around 2000+ temples and gives in most cases,
the year of construction of those structures also. Even in
Kashmir, hundreds of temples, small and large have been
desecrated over during the exodus of Hindus in early
90s. The same, however, is a non-issue in larger secular polity. It’s continued unabated in whichever time or
space, Hindus have become weak.
From Ram MANDIR to Ram SETU and to BHAGVAD
GEETA, all have been dragged into Indian courts. India
is the only country in the world where the faith of 100
Crore people is humiliated. It’d be silly to look for parallels where in a Muslim majority country, Quran or the
prophet, or in a Christian majority country, Bible or the
Christ, could be dragged into a court of law. In India,
the central government filed an affidavit in the Supreme
Court suggesting that Ram never existed. In the same
country, Christian missionaries openly preach about
Hindus’ false and ‘characterless’ gods, and so do Islamic
missionaries like Zakir Naik, but the tag of ‘hate-monger’
has been attributed to Hindu right wing by secular luminaries in media and otherwise.
There are numerous government schemes that are run
exclusively for the benefit of minorities at the expense
of taxpayer money, despite an apparent prohibition to
the same in the constitution. Pashchim Bangal government paying monthly stipend to all the Imams of all the
mosques in the state is a glaring example of this. The
same is not extended to Hindu pujaris. The Haj subsidy,
against which the Supreme Court finally ordered, which
had been running since Independence even when no
other country, not even Pakistan offers it, is another
example.
The pious Human Right Activists, known for their
love for Jihadi terrorists, those who have been running
<http://justiceforafzalguru.org/> justiceforafzalguru.org
for years now, have not spoken for the inhumane treatment meted out to Sadhvi Pragya, and Swami Aseemanand. Their love for those displaced in Gujarat riots,
their sympathy on crores of Bangladeshi infiltrators and
their disgusting silence and aversion on lakhs of Kashmiri Hindu refugees and Pakistani Hindu refugees is another jewel of the muddled waters of Indian secularism.
The practice of Saraswati Vandana has been discontinued from almost all government events with the rise of
secular fanaticism. The TV series Chanakya of 90’s was
asked to remove Saffron flags from it, its being indispensable to the picturaization of Chanakya’s Akhand
Bharat notwithstanding. Doordarshan’s ‘Satyam Shivam Sundaram’ had also been removed before being
brought back. Off late, even the practice of lighting a
lamp has been criticized as ‘unislamic’. A lawsuit was
filed in Gujarat high court for inaugurating a room by
breaking a coconut for its being a Hindu (not Secular).
A case was lodged in Chennai High Court to prohibit
the employees celebrating festivals in office space. The
beast of secular fanaticism has gone wilder over the
years, and if not us, posterity will have to bear the brunt
of our callous ignorance.
Source: IBTL
READER’S FEEDBACK
Let me introduce myself. I am Bob Gopee, a national
of Trinidad and Tobago and a very ardent Hindu. I am
the Vice President of the Hindi Foundation of Trinidad
and Tobago and reasonably active in Hindu matters.
Three years ago I authored, GEET ARPANAM, a collection of just over 70 bhajans and gazes (purely of
my liking) giving the Devnagri script, Roman transliteration, English meaning and words and meaning. This
book has been well received in Trinidad.
Last week I was in Toronto and I was presented with
a copy of Volume 3 of the CANADIAN HINU LINK.
I am very impressed with your work and the work
of your editorial team. The selection of the articles is
excellent and the nature of coverage is exactly what I
believe many of the Hindus and Indians generally of
the Diaspora need. Very soon I will develop a list of
some of my friends and relatives in Toronto and send
you a draft for an annual subscription, commencing
with Diwali this year.
Keep up the good work. If I may humbly make a suggestion, you may wish to consider a REQUEST CORNER, inviting readers to request articles on particular
topics. Writers may use this as a base for further
research and publication.
Bob Gopee
Trinidad & Tobago
After reading the July-Sep 2012 issue of the magazine Canadian Hindu Link, it is my opinion that your
valued publication is indeed serving the Hindu community well. It is without question a praise-worthy
initiative to fill the void in our understanding of Vedas
and Scriptures about which I profess to know almost
nothing. I enjoyed perusing some thought-provoking
and stimulating articles, e.g. “Rama & Krishna: Myth
or History”, “Be Happy with What You Have” and
“Are Rituals in Hinduism Relevant Today?” I do feel
enriched in mind and spirit and look forward to your
next edition, perhaps in fall 2012.
Thanks once again,
Raj Badhwar
Oakville, Ontario
CON’T ON PAGE 34
PAGE 33
READER’S FEEDBACK
I am from INDIA and at present visiting my daughter. I
had the opportunity to visit the temple of Devi Ma and
got hold of the Canadian Hindu Link magazine, Vol. IV
Issue 4 - Diwali/Fall 2012 Edition.
I was highly impressed by the quality of the articles published there in. The article on Vedic Hymns of creation
(Gramophone) the art of GOD symbolism, Teachings of
Raman Maharishi and the others on Hindu religion were
really informative. My hats off to the article on HINDU
TERRORISM which depicts the views of a Christian
writer amplifying the injustice that is matted out to Hindus under the guise of secularism. I am sure the articles
and the magazine will serve the purpose of educating
the Indian youths brought up in Canada. They do need
to know more about India, its culture and heritage and I
am sure all these are taken care of in the magazine.
The quality of printing, the papers used and the artistic
presentation calls for appreciation and mention.
I wish the magazine continues to do the omen service to
Canadian youths and elders and fulfil the objective with
which it has been started.
With love, BEST WISHES FOR HAPPY DIWALI AND
PROSPEROUS NEW YEAR and regards to volunteers,
editorial team and the readers of this wonderful magazine.
With regards,
Vipin Trivedi
Most Hindu temples in USA and probably in Canada
spend most of their time and money on rituals which
most Hindus and particularly young people don’t
understand. I am not against rituals but any ritual done
without understanding its meaning does not bring any
spiritual benefit to the devotees.
I have also found that most trustees of Hindu temples
have very little knowledge of the depth and breadth of
Hindu scriptures and meaning thereof. They are trustees
just because they have donated some funds towards
building temples. As a result, their focus is basically to
administer the temples with a blind eye on rituals and
puja.
No doubt, some temples do conduct classes on Hindi,
music and Bharatiya dances. But one never finds any
class to teach young Hindus about the real history of
India, ancient rich Hindu traditions, culture & heritage.
Nor does any Hindu temple ever teach or talk about the
study of comparative religions, particularly Christianity
and Islam, both predatory religions with the concept of
world domination. I have spoken to several trustees of
Hindu temples about starting such awareness program
in their temples and their reply is always in negative.
They tell me that they don’t want to talk about any politics or about other religions in their temples. As a result,
most Hindu students in USA learn about Hinduism in
their school classes which is basically about ‘caste, cow
and curry’. While the Abrahmic religions are portrayed
in their class text books in the most positive manner,
Hinduism is depicted in the most negative and abusive
manner. This turns young Hindus against their own faith.
They develop a low self-esteem about themselves and
their heritage.This will have a devastating and lasting
effect in the long run on the fate of Hindu Dharma. In
few decades these grand Hindu temples will become
‘Khander’ left with a few old devotees.
While I don’t want to be too negative about Hindu temples and their management, I strongly believe that unless
Hindu temples and Swamis/Gurus preach the central
message of Bhagwan Krishna to Arjun in Gita to their
devotees that it is the duty of every individual to fight
against the Adharmic forces in order to protect and save
Dharma, the future of the survival of Hindu Dharma is
not bright. It is necessary to teach Hindus that ‘Desh
Dharma’ is more important than their own self-realization which is now being taught by these swamis/Gurus.
This refers to the letter from Anant Sharma of Milton
published in your Diwali 2012 issue.
The Vedanta Society of Toronto in Toronto is running
almost 10 soup kitchens a month. If Mr. Anant Sharma
prefers to contact Vedanta society he may contribute his
service to carry out the Soup Kitchen.
Regards,
Indumathi Sholinghur. (Shortened to fit)
Your feedback is truly valuable and as such, we encourage more readers to send us their comments,
thoughts and/or feedback. Look forward to hearing from you.
THIS ISSUE IS SPONSORED BY:
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Canadian Hindu Link is a quarterly, non-profit educational publication. Our Mission is to educate Canadian
Hindu parents and youths, born or raised in Canada, to help them retain and transmit their spiritual & cultural
heritage and traditional values to a new generation. This will also help them cope with the challenges and strains
of the fast pace life in the post-modern world.
DISCLAIMER
THE VIEWS AND OPINIONS EXPRESSED IN THIS PUBLICATION ARE THOSE OF THE WRITERS
AND NOT NECESSARILY THOSE OF MANAGEMENT OF THE CANADIAN HINDU LINK JOURNAL.
Acknowledgements
Canadian Hindu Link
VOLUNTEER TEAM
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Magazine Q1 - Hindu Education Link

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