The ‘Lankan –baaNa’ fired at Sonia!

Sonia is perhaps tasting what it means to fall a prey to the political machinations of the world's no 1 Master politician.

While the devout were praying for Rama-baaNa to trounce the offenders of Ram setu, the Lankan-baNa has been fired at her by none other than the offender of Lord Rama!

This gives the hope that other offenders too will fall some day, one by one!

The age-old Pancha tantra tales speak of a strong moral of not siding with folks of different spots. But Sonia did – just for the sake of power – ignoring the strong sentiment of what happened to her husband – nation's former Prime minister.

She did dance to the tunes of the Master Politician and earned –and continues to earn - the wrath of millions of people of this country for whom Ram and the land have no distinction.

She did ignore her own party men – mortgaging their aspirations and self- interest at the feet of the Master politician.

But she did not know how to call the shots at her will. She is till a baby in front of Indian – particularly Tamilnadu politicians.

As happened earlier and as expected by observers, Mr Karunanidhi is going to distance himself from the Congress at the hour of elections. One can not rule out that he will eye for the BJP camp!

As it generally happens, resignations were not sent to where they will be acted upon and the effective resignation of the Lok Sabha MPs were not sought.

If that had happened many would have rejoiced at the exit of TR Baalu, as a natural justice happening to correct the blunders in Ram setu issue.

If the government falls, it is not a matter - as it is anyway nearing completion. But certainly, the cause of the fall will not become an all India issue as to worry about its fall-out. Politicking on Srilankan Tamils has no takers beyond issue-craving Tamil politicians. Sonia can well isolate the one who is at the verge of deserting her now.

If Sonia is smart enough, she must do her best to avoid a three cornered contest in Tamilnadu and blunt the strategy of her until-now- trusted friend.

If she moves her coins well, all the actor politicians of Tamilnadu will be lining in front of 10 Janpath – emissary of Jayalalitha not excluding!

Seems exciting times are ahead with 'veera-vachanam' and confessions and coalitions of sorts.

-jayasree

*****************************************

From

http://www.rediff.com///news/2008/oct/15sheela.htm

At an all-party meet in Chennai on Tuesday chaired by Chief Minister�M Karunanidhi, a resolution was adopted that if the central government does not ensure a ceasefire in Sri Lanka within two weeks, all members of Parliament from the state would resign. Leaders of the Congress, Communist Party of India and CPI-Marxist were also present at the meet. Opposition parties including the J Jayalalitha-led All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam, the Vaiko-led Marumalarchi Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam and the Bharatiya Janata Party stayed away from the meet.

On Wednesday, Karunanidhi's daughter and Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam Rajya Sabha member Kanimozhi resigned�from the Rajya Sabha. Her act is symbolic (she submitted her resignation to the party chief only) but nevertheless it's a strong political gesture.

There are 39 MPs from Tamil Nadu in the Lok Sabha and one from Puducherry. Out of 40 MPs, except two MDMK MPs, the remaining 38 have threatened to resign within two weeks if the issue of human rights of Sri Lankan Tamils is not addressed by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.

It is unlikely that the 38 MPs will carry out their threat -- since it would reduce the United Progressive Alliance government to a hopeless minority. But Karunanidhi has sent a strong message from Chennai to New Delhi that it's no longer possible for India to ignore 'Tamil' sentiments. And that message should be sent to Colombo, immediately.

But Karunanidhi's critics say they may be reasons other than Tamil sentiments for his move. Janata Party President Subramanian Swamy dubbed the all-party meeting on Sri Lankan Tamils as a 'flop' exercise because the principal opposition party, the AIADMK boycotted it.

According to an AIADMK Rajya Sabha MP, "Karunanidhi has made a smart move. He is in a win-win situation. If the central government puts pressure on the Sri Lankan government to go slow in their war against LTTE, he will claim victory and if it carries on with its current policy of clandestine support to finish off the LTTE, Karunanidhi will get an excuse to drift away from the UPA."

A senior Tamil MP, talking off the record, alleges, "Karunanidhi has assessed that the UPA is not strong. As elections are close, Karunanidhi has to do something to boost his party's dwindling credibility. He has decided to remain close to the Left parties and the Pattali Makkal Katchi, which makes them a formidable force. By isolating the Congress, Karunanidhi is virtually eliminating one enemy (Congress) from the electoral field."

The AIADMK and the BJP think the resignation move is a ploy for the DMK to move away from the Congress.

A senior AIADMK leader says, "When Karunanidhi wanted a plum portfolio for his party in the Union cabinet he threatened to resign immediately but on the Sri Lankan Tamil issue, he is giving two weeks notice. The Tamil people do not need such drama. As you know, the Congress members were present at the meeting in Chennai. They could not have attended without Congress President�Sonia Gandhi's permission. Does it mean that she is endorsing the Tamil Eelam issue? We would like to now."

He also asks why Karunanidhi is complaining now when his ministers in the central government were tacitly endorsing Indian support to Sri Lanka for the last two years.

The resolution also binds Union Finance Minister P Chidambaram and Health Minister Anbumani Ramadoss. The resolution also demanded that defence equipment supplied by India to Sri Lanka should not be used against the Sri Lankan Tamils.

The war in Sri Lanka is fast becoming a hot button political issue in the state with the pro-LTTE Tamil parties propagating that 'Sri Lankan Tamils are being killed by the Sri Lankan army trained by India'. This is hurting the feelings of Tamils, says a security analyst and a retired army officer based in Chennai.

Rama Setu affidavit by GOI- an affront to sentiments of millions of people

http://setubandha.blogspot.com/2008/10/latest-rama-setu-affidavit-of-upa.html

Press Release

by

Dr Kalyanaraman,

National President,

S. Vedantam,

National Secretary Rameshwaram Rama Setu Protection Movement

15 October 2008

 

 

Latest Rama Setu affidavit of UPA government is an affront to sentiments of millions of people – Ramasetu protection movement

 

The surreptious manner in which the Government of India has submitted an affidavit to the Supreme Court on 14 October 2008 shows that the Counsel Nariman and the UPA Government are in a state of panic.

 

As Dr. Subramanian Swamy has noted it is unethical conduct not to have given copies of the affidavit to the petitioners.

 

What is the UPA Government trying to hide? It appears that the UPA Government has forgotten the fact that they were forced to withdraw their affidavit denying Sri Rama and Ramayana after nation-wide peoples' protests. The reference to Kamba Ramayan cited in the affidavit as referring to breaches in Rama Setu caused by Sri Rama has already been proved to be false and later-day interpolations.

 

Is the UPA Government trying to influence the Pachauri Committee in its deliberations by submitting yet another affidavit indulging in suggestio falsi and suppressio veri? The affidavit does not refer to the fact that Rama Setu functioned as a bridge between India and Srilanka right upto the 18^th century as recorded in Royal Asiatic Society research archives. People from both sides had been using this as a causeway for centuries; if so, how could there have been a breach in the Setu? Searching for alibis in a desperate bid to continue with a project disaster and hurting sentiments of a billion Hindus seems to be the objective of this unethical, unsubstantiated affidavit.

 

The Supreme Court directions are a clear indication that the Rama Setu, a place of worship is central to the belief of millions of people and that it cannot be damaged for any channel project. Hence, the direction by the highest court of the land asking UPA Government to seek an alternative channel route without damaging Rama Setu. Earlier, the Madras High Court had also directed the UPA Government to consider declaring Rama Setu as an Ancient Monument under the 1958 Act.

 

Instead of carrying out the court directions honestly, UPA Government and its counsel continue to politick on this issue of intense concern to millions of people of the nation whose very core identity is linked with Sri Rama and Setubandha Rameshwaram. At this Setu, every year more than 5 lakh pilgrims assemble on Ashadha amavasya day to offer homage to the ancestors through pitru-tarpanam. This sacred pilgrimage, this ecological treasure should be protected as World Heritage and bequeathed to future generations.

 

The contempt with which UPA Government treats Hindu sentiments is shocking beyond belief. While being ready to succumb to sentiments of some communities by changing Metro route of Delhi or amend the Constitution on Shah Banu SC judgement, it is clear that UPA Government is demonstrating only its anti-Hindu, anti-national stance.

 

 

Ram Sethu not a place of worship: Centre

 

Zeenews Bureau

New Delhi, Oct 14: The Congress-led UPA government has filed a fresh affidavit in the Supreme Court on the controversial Ram Sethu issue. In the 100-page affidavit, reportedly filed on October 11, the Centre claims that Ram Sethu, or Adam's Bridge as it is popularly known, is not a place of worship as being claimed by many religious groups and political parties.

The Centre further says that Ram Sethu is not an integral part of Hinduism and repeated its earlier claim that it no longer exists. According to the affidavit, which contains replies to various petitions filed in favour of the Ram Sethu, including by J Jayalalitha's AIADMK, Lord Ram had himself destroyed the bridge while returning from Ravan's Lanka (present day Sri Lanka).

Intriguingly, the Centre, which has formed a six-member committee headed by noted environmentalist Rajendra Pachouri to explore the new alignment but chose to file the latest affidavit even before the committee could come out with its findings.

Moreover, the development came days after the Centre set in motion the process of examining an alternative alignment of the Sethusamudram Shipping Channel Project (SSCP) following a directive from the Supreme Court.

In the first week of this month, a team of engineers had commenced a survey of the area to work out an alternative alignment.

A total of six alignments were suggested since the project was conceived. One alignment chosen was stoutly opposed by political parties, including the BJP and Shiv Sena, as it cut through the Ram Sethu.

In July also, the Centre had told the SC that it had concluded Ram Sethu does not fulfil the criteria for being declared a national monument.

 

 

(Vide www.zeenews.com   dated October 14, 2008)

 

 

 

Ram Setu: Latest affidavit of GOI in SC is sacrilege.

 

PRESS RELEASE

by

Dr. SUBRAMANIAN  SWAMY

14.10.2008

 

 

            The clandestine manner in which the Counsel for the Union of India had chosen in the Supreme Court today, to file Written Submissions in the Setusamudaram Shipping Channel Project case, two and a half months after the Orders on the same were reserved by the First Bench of the Supreme Court, speaks volumes about the panic in which the Government of India is in the matter. Moreover, the Counsel for the Union of India made a Mention in the Supreme Court of the intention to file their Written Submissions without informing the principal parties in the Writ Petition, such as myself. This is unethical behaviour in the code of law, for which I shall appear in the Court on Thursday to protest.

 

 

            These Written Submissions do not add any weight to the arguments already made by the Union of India.  What is  clear though  is that the Government continues to maintain that Rama Setu is not an essential part of Hindu religion  The law is however, very clear and explicit, namely, that what is to be held sacred is decided by a sizeable section of the people and not by any Government or court.

 

 

            The mere fact that the Prime Minister Dr.Manmohan Singh and the UPA chairperson, the Italian Catholic Ms. Sonia Antonia Gandhi chose to go on Vijadashmi day to the Ramlila Ground to put 'tilak' on the drama 'troupe's, Rama, Sita and Lakshmana, and by prominently being photographed in order for it to be published in the front pages of media newspapers,   itself proves how Ramalila epic including Rama Setu, is central to the Hindu religion.

 

 

            The people of India should give a befitting reply to the sacrilege being committed in the courts of law by the Government by rubbishing the Hindu religion. It sadly is only to facilitate earning of illegal commissions by some functionaries of the UPA in the Setusamudram Project.

 

 

Politics of ‘hate’ promoted as secularism!

 

 

 

"Hate sells. The more you add poison to it, the more you get elevated on the scales of leadership and fame …….Anything that defines that uniqueness is under assault and like a colonial dispensation; this has become a business of profit and comfort. Grants, awards and fellowships are reserved for those who yield and say yes to the secular protocol that defines India as a non-Hindu entity, using terms like 'shackled in the old', 'outdated', 'obscurantist Brahmanism' and 'weird ritualism which makes the practitioner rigid, backward looking' and 'pot-bellied, unintelligent creature with a tuft'.

 

..The contemporary seculars use exactly the same language and show identical concern as was used and shown by the British when they urged the Christian missionaries to civilise the Hindu savages a hundred years ago.

 

….Hence converting tribals to Christianity is acceptable, preserving their culture is not. An assault on a nun is deplorable; a murder of a lady Hindu monk is no news. Burning alive of Hindu Bodos finds a brief mention, burning alive of non-Hindus deserve a front page editorial. Post Godhra, Kandhmal, and Mangalore, Hindu symbols like Trishul must be turned into symbols of 'Hindu terrorism'

 

(read the complete article by Mr Tarun Vijay at http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Opinion/Columnists/Tarun_Vijay/The_Right_View/A_secular_protocol/articleshow/msid-3584631,curpg-3.cms

 

 

 

 

A secular protocol

11 Oct 2008, 2019 hrs IST,

 

By  Tarun Vijay

 

 

 

 

Patience is the key that defines facilitating others' survival more than your own. Earth, mother we call her, symbolises that element of life. She lets the barbarian exploit her boons and the bliss, and waits for a millennium to show she is angry.

Indian society, which believes in the values of the civilisational flow so painstakingly preserved and handed over to us, is being subjected the same kind of test of patience by the forces that represent the colors of Roman and Arab ancestry.

Like history can't be understood through secondary or tertiary sources, original references have to be consulted, watershed incidents in a nation's life have to be analysed through original events. Hence after Meenakshipuram, the forced exodus of Kashmiri Hindus, Godhra and Kandhmal murders, its now the turn of Bodo Hindus in Assam to face Muslim attacks.

So far 40 Hindus have been reported killed and 76,000 people have left their villages out of fear and taken refuge in 32 state government camps in Udalguri and Darrang. Twelve villages have been burnt. In Jhakuapara village the gaon budhaa (village head) was burnt alive along with his mother and sister. It all began after local Hindus resisted the forcible occupation of their lands by Muslims. The area has suddenly seen Bodo Hindus reduced to a minority and a spurt in the activities of the All Assam Minority Students Union (AMSU), SIMI, All Assam Muslim Chatra Parishad and Muslim Students Association (MUSA). Now, having burnt Hindu villages and forced them to flee, Muslims are occupying the villages vacated by Hindus.

The Assam United Democratic Front (AUDF - Badruddin Ajmal's Muslim Political Party) MLA Rasul Haq Bahadur and AAMSU president Abdul Aziz have been demanding a separate autonomous area for the Muslims in lower Assam. The recent violence is considered as a 'warming up' exercise' to chase away Hindus from their traditional hamlets.

Saw any report or interviews of the victims or front page 'shame' editorials condemning the roasting alive of Hindus, or making them refugees in their own land? Got any call from Vatican or admonishment from Paris? Sorry, the victims happened to be Hindus so we can devote our space and time on matters more earthly like ICL cricket and red alerts in the stock exchange.

Hate sells. The more you add poison to it, the more you get elevated on the scales of leadership and fame. They say terrorism is the main issue. But do you think any one wants to fight it? All that appears on the list are a few ghastly pictures of the terror-struck common people, a few 'good' slogans, emotional lines of poetry and the election plank is ready. Greed, intolerance, revenge and bigotry of the secular kind have taken centrestage to constitutionalise a hate regime that thrives on disrobing India of her unique characteristics. Anything that defines that uniqueness is under assault and like a colonial dispensation; this has become a business of profit and comfort. Grants, awards and fellowships are reserved for those who yield and say yes to the secular protocol that defines India as a non-Hindu entity, using terms like 'shackled in the old', 'outdated', 'obscurantist Brahmanism' and 'weird ritualism which makes the practitioner rigid, backward looking' and 'pot-bellied, unintelligent creature with a tuft'.

The sultans of this secular protocol define an assertive Hindu as anti-women, anti-minority (read Muslims and Christians), Hindi chauvinist, having a fossilized vision that tries to revive a dead language like Sanskrit, worshipper of snakes, rats, cow, phallus, trees, who uses cow urine, cow dung for various purposes including medicine. They light fire and throw some herbs to please gods, who are elephant-shaped, and use peacocks, oxen and owls as their vehicles. They have to be civilized. And to do that they get grants from the ministry of culture.
From the Germans and Dutch.

 

 

The contemporary seculars use exactly the same language and show identical concern as was used and shown by the British when they urged the Christian missionaries to civilise the Hindu savages a hundred years ago.

In 1913, British forces under Major Hamilton shot dead 1,500 Hindu Bhil freedom fighters who had waged a struggle under the leadership of a great reformist, Govind Giri, a disciple of Swami Dayananda. Having performed this act of "valour", Major Hamilton invited the church to start work amongst the Bhils to "give them the divine message". He made the following appeal to Rev. D.G. Cock of the Presbyterian mission, Neemuch: "Against my wishes, I ordered police to fire on the innocent persons. Knew and loved them for years together.

Really it was a sad experience of my life. You go there and do work which I could not do for them. Their hearts have broken. Give them divine message. I want to do something and I know the best one will be to establish a mission centre." (Planting a mission among the Bhils of south Rajasthan', in man and Life, vol 10, pp 77-96).

Fifteen hundred innocent Bhils were killed. And the British officer asks the Church, almost as an order, to go and work among them. First physical annihilation, then organizing efforts for disrobing them of their culture and religion.

And they are the adorable icons of the contemporary secular.
Hindus, medical doctors, MDs, law graduates, IITians,MBAs, working among tribals to help them get better education never finds a place of honour or even a mention in the passing. Because they preserve the culture and indigenous traditions. In secular protocol, only those who dispossess Hindus of their identity are eligible for enlisting.

Hence converting tribals to Christianity is acceptable, preserving their culture is not. An assault on a nun is deplorable; a murder of a lady Hindu monk is no news. Burning alive of Hindu Bodos finds a brief mention, burning alive of non-Hindus deserve a front page editorial. Post Godhra, Kandhmal, and Mangalore, Hindu symbols like Trishul must be turned into symbols of 'Hindu terrorism'.

Post 90s till this date, jihadi symbols like crossed rifles in the backdrop of Koran or a jihadi killing infants or a NSCN activist in Nagaland demanding Nagalim for Christ, must not be used as symbols of hate because that's against secular tenets.

It's a universally accepted norm of the secular fraternity. Have you ever, anywhere seen a jjhadi's barbaric face as a symbol of terrorism? The only face you might have seen shows a Muslim tailor with folded hands, a Hindu "goon" with a saffron headband, a trishul terrifying the minorities. Even the Maoists are never depicted as barbaric goons who have killed more than 12,000 Indians so far and government has to set up a special cell in the Ministry of Home Affairs to tackle the left extremism problem. They are seculars, hence can't be depicted as terrorists.

 

 

Recently I saw a magazine depicting Jesus crucified on a trishul .
Even if for the sake of argument one may say some Hindus are indulging in such activities which these seculars find bad, is their depiction of a Jesus crucifixion on a trishul to convey their dismay and disapproval acceptable and responsible behavior? Do they think the trishul is the sole property or the patented symbol of the kind of Hindus they despise? What about those Hindus who do not vote BJP or support Bajrang Dal? Do they all belong to a non-Trishul order of faith?

Depicting and institutionalizing the trishul as a hate symbol is acceptable behavior for the secular. What about the cross of the separatists in Nagaland who kill and maim non-conformists? And the two AK-47s around the Koran used by terrorist groups? Has any one; any secular, journalist, leader or human rightists ever used such symbols to depict bloodthirsty aggressors?
A subservient media, a colonized mindset, a "manageable" pen – this is all that is needed to clothe a secular protocol.

It's a protocol that directs them to bury and subvert the truth. When the killers of Swami Lakshmananada were arrested, the news was filtered and published in a muffled way. Only in one newspaper did I see a statement  that pointed towards Christian involvement in the ghastly murders. Maoist leader Sabyasachi Panda admitted to a group of media persons that "it is a fact that Christians form the majority in our organisation. Our supporters in Rayagada, Gajapati and Kandhamal also belonged to the Christian community". According to him, Saraswati was killed because he did not pay heed when the Maoists' warned him to end his anti-Christian activities.

Anyone condemned the confession?

This secular protocol insults a police officer even in death, humiliates his family in grief, reinstates a teacher involved in the attack on Parliament, demand a ban on Hindu organizations without any proof or court order, but comes out on the streets seeking freedom for a terrorist sentenced to death by the highest court of the land.

The secular protocol accepts permissiveness and exploitation of women as acceptable smart behavior; opposition to sex in Meerut parks was booed as "moral policing", "they" were dubbed anti-environment and as consuming more and conserving nothing. This protocol is anti-family values – it turns homes into serais by legitimizing 'live-in' relations, it is anti-societal stability – which rejects institutionalised relationships, replacing them with discount coupons of pleasure trips, likes to invest in old age homes rather take care of parents. (So much power this secular protocol has wielded that the state felt compelled to make a law to punish children who do not care for their parents). It supports gay marriages as a mark of human advancement and abhors the only institution that has sustained global societies – motherhood, as a symbol of women's slavery.
Having done that, it organizes seminars on the fall in civility and ethics.

They love to say they are not Hindus but 'humans' and when it comes to making profit they are in the forefront to sell Hindu songs and bhajans .All those media houses who love to deride Hindutva as a house policy, do not hesitate to make millions by selling Sanskrit mantras, bhajans, kirtans, in CDs and VCDs, and present the same dramas they deplore as "mythological" called Ramayana and Mahabharata, to increase TRP ratings. They are the same seculars who had opposed such Ramanand Sagar serials during the 90s, saying "such mythological dramas" helped fan the flames of the Ayodhya movement, which was, in their eyes, anti-minority.

When it comes to lucre and power sharing and a good berth after life, everyone comes closer to the forces representing Rama's side. So not a single secular would say he should be buried after death and no Sanskrit mantra be chanted because it's a dead language of deplorable Brahmins. So a sense of personal profit, here or after life, makes them to protect and support a Hindu character. If votes too begin flowing to their boxes this way, they, and not the BJP, would be the first to build Ram temple at Ayodhya.

That's the moral of their secular protocol.

Tribals are part of Hindu stream.

Tribal Jagannath as a Hindu deity

Sandhya Jain (Pioneer, 14 Oct. 2008)

A 24-feet-tall Hanuman statue, installed at Sunset Point, Kanyakumari, on September 21, 2008, was surreptitiously removed by the Tamil Nadu administration in the wee hours of September 30 after alleged complaints from local fishermen.

The task was directed by Kanyakumari district collector Jyothi Nirmala, who claimed, "The trust which installed the statue had only obtained the permission of the panchayat and this was insufficient." The panchayat had permitted Chaitanya Mahaprabhu Nama Bhiksha Kendra to create a 'Hanuman Park,' but, said vice-president S Pushparaj, "My wife Felicity, elected head of the panchayat, did not understand the difference between a simple park and the installation of a large statue in a public place, and allowed the installation. She wrote to the collector and withdrew her permission."

There cannot be a greater example of religious intolerance than this peremptory removal of an image of India's most popular deity. The incident is also indicative of the extent to which the country's sensitive coastline has been turned anti-Hindu through evangelisation. This raises the question: Why are monotheistic traditions unable to live in peace in pluralist societies?

It is precisely this kind of de-nationalisation that tribals are doggedly contesting in the remote jungles of Orissa, where Christian missionaries are trying to tell them that they (tribals) are not Hindus! Orissa is a State whose spiritual-cultural landscape explicitly reveals the deep symbiotic relationship between tribals and non-tribals from ancient times. Tribal gods have always dominated the Hindu pantheon and in Orissa this has coalesced into a regional tradition centred around Jagannath, one of the foremost deities of the all-India Hindu pantheon.

Jagannath was first worshipped by the Sabara (Savara, Saora) tribe, and 'miraculously' appeared in Puri much later. Till today, Daita (Daitya)priests, descendants of the original tribal worshippers, alone have the right to dress the god, move him, and regularly renovate his wooden image. Similarly at the Lingaraj Temple in Bhubaneswar, tribal Badu priests alone are allowed to bathe and adorn the deity. 

Orissa is equally famous for the legend of Narasimha, the Vishnu avatar who burst out of a pillar to kill the asur Hiranyakasipu. The pillar is a uniconical image worshipped in tribal areas and to this day Orissa abounds with Narasimha images on wooden pillars symbolisingKhambheshvari (Goddess of the Pillar). Narasimha is believed to derive his power from the shakti residing in the pillar. The pillar motif became so popular in Hindu tradition that Shiv as Bhairav was said to have emerged from a pillar.

The girija or hill-born aspect of Narasimha reinforces the tribal roots of Hindu dharma. An aboriginal god in the form of the head of a lion or tiger was worshipped in the caves and mountains of Orissa and Andhra Pradesh. Orissa has instances of Narasimha being worshipped as asaligram stone.

Jagannath, Vishnu as 'Lord of the World', shows the metamorphosis of a tribal god into a pre-eminent deity of the classical Hindu pantheon. The god's icon is even today carved out of wood (not stone or metal), and the tribes whose rituals and traditions were woven into his worship are still living as tribal and semi-tribal communities in the region. This tribal god took a fairly circuitous route to his present pinnacle, via absorption of local shakti traditions and merger with the growing popularity of the Narasimha and Purushottam forms of Vishnu in the region in the medieval era.

Queen Vasata in the eighth century built the famous Lakshman temple in brick at Sripur. The temple plaque opens with a salutation to Purushottam, also titled Narasimha, suggesting a trend in Vaishnav tradition to stress the ugra aspect of Vishnu. This culminates in Puri where Jagannath, widely revered as Purushottam until the end of the 13th century, had close connections with Narasimha who became popular in Orissa in the post-Gupta period. 

But who exactly was this wooden god? After the death of Anantavarman Chodagangadev, who reputedly commissioned the Puri temple, his chief queen, Kasturikamodini, built a temple in his homeland in Tekkali (present Andhra Pradesh), east of his first capital Kalinganagar, in 1150 AD. The temple was dedicated to the god Dadhivaman, and the inscription reveals that the image installed was of the 'Wooden God', and not the famous Puri Trinity of Jagannath-Balabhadra-Subhadra. Scholars say this means that Chodagangadev was a devotee of this god, and as the god's name is preserved in Tekkali in this early period, it seems likely that Dadhivaman (or the tribal form of this Sanskritised name) was the original name of the 'Wooden God'.

As the original 'Wooden God' was a unitary figure, temples for the single deity continued to be built even after a Trinitarian image emerged at Puri. Even today there are 344 Dadhivaman temples in Orissa, which perpetuate the original state of the god. The Kondh continue to practice a ritual renewal of wooden posts.

There is also something striking about the figures comprising the Jagannath triad. Subhadra's image consists of only a trunk and a head, but Jagannath and Balabhadra are larger, with a trunk, over-dimensional head, and arm stumps. But while the heads of Subhadra and Balabhadra are oval with almond-shaped eyes, Jagannath's head is curiously flat on top and is dominated by enormous round eyes.

Scholars explain this in terms of Narasimha's association with wooden posts representing tribal deities. In the Andhra village Jambulapadu (Anantapur), Narasimhasvami is worshipped as a pillar to which a sheet shaped in the form of a lion's head is attached. This lion-head explains Jagannath's large round eyes, typical of Narasimha on account of his fury (krodh). The head of the Jagannath image makes sense when perceived as a lion's head, where the emphasis is on the jaws, rather than as a human head.

If, as missionaries allege, classical Hindu tradition was different from the tribal, why would tribal deities rise to become the dominant figures in the Hindu pantheon? As this has been a regular pan-India phenomenon, it seems reasonable to deduce that tribals were never culturally subordinate in their interaction with non-tribal (caste Hindu) communities, but were rather the fountainhead of the Hindu cultural evolution.

http://dailypioneer.com/127543/Tribal-Jagannath-as-a-Hindu-deity.html

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Naveen, BSY pick holes in Govt claims

Pioneer News Service | New Delhi (14 Oct. 2008)

The Chief Ministers of Karnataka and Orissa, the two States where communal violence prompted the Central Government to call the National Integration Council (NIC) meeting, have shot back at their critics for trying to "frame" the State Governments "without any reason".

Seeking to deflect attention from the Bajrang Dal, Orissa Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on Monday said the recent incidents of violence were a manifestation of the "conflict of interest" between Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes.

Speaking at the NIC meeting, Patnaik referred to the two incidents of communal violence in Kandhamal and said there were clashes between members of SC and ST communities in the past "on account of the conflict of interest in the matter of land rights, employment opportunities and religion".

"The recent incidents of violence in Kandhamal are a manifestation of such discord," he said about the district where STs constitute 53 per cent of the population and SCs constitute 22 per cent.

Patnaik insisted that the State had been having an "excellent track record of communal harmony" for eight years, "barring the two sets of incidents in one district" — Kandhamal.

With his Government facing flak over recent attacks against churches, Karnataka Chief Minister BS Yeddyurappa blamed certain Christain organisations for flaring up "disharmony and social tension" in the State.

"While Christians and Hindus have co-existed peacefully in the State, there have been unconstitutional and illegal efforts by some Christian organisations, such as 'New Life', to forcibly convert or to induce conversion to Christianity," he told the NIC meeting.

"Efforts of such organisations include publishing booklets like 'Satya Darshini' in which Hindu gods and goddesses were denigrated. Our constitution provides for freedom of religion but does not permit forcible or induced conversion," he said.

He also criticised some Union Ministers and alleged political vendetta. "It was very unfortunate that our State was targeted for political vendetta by Ministers and officials of the Government of India," he said.

He stressed that there was no need to send Central advisories or rush a team to Karnataka in the aftermath of the attacks on minorities. "There have been serious communal and terrorists activities in other States such as Jammu and Kashmir, Assam, Tripura, Delhi and Andhra Pradesh. The Union Government was not so active in sending advisory notes at times touted as notices (under Article 355) to these States," he added.

http://dailypioneer.com/127615/Naveen-BSY-pick-holes-in-Govt-claims.html

‘Chandrayan’ starting with Chandra in Jala-nadi!

The following piece of information makes interesting reading.

The government office of meteorology can not be depended by the nation's top scientists when it comes to weather 'predictions'!

The purpose of this post is not to discuss the already known declining standards

and the reasons for such decline.

It is about what in-house knowledge is developed on meteorology.

My suggestion is the vast number of notes of meteorology

as found in Jyothisha must be researched

and included if proved dependable.

One instance which I do with naked-eye observation is

by looking at the moon regularly.

The moon will be surrounded by an aura

when there are rains in and around a place.

We call this aura as 'pari-vEsha'.

The aura may be too close to the moon just encircling it

or may be away from it.

It may be thick and bright

or transparent.

By observing the parivEsha of the moon, one can say about the rainfall.

If the aura is too close to the moon,

know that it is raining in places far away from the place -

where the moon is observed like this.

One such very bright aura close to it was seen for days in Chennai some time ago

when rains lashed North India resulting in Bihar floods .

On the other hand if the aura is seen away from the moon,

know that it will rain in the place the moon is sighted like that.

Yester days' moon at 11 PM which poked out of the clouds in Chennai

was a feast to watch.

There was a thin layer of bright aura close to the moon

But a large circle of the diameter of 2 moons was spread thinly away from the moon

making it look like a huge splendid 'chakra'.

The transparent layer indicated limited rainfall in my place

whereas the close bright circle indicated good rains

in places away from mine.

This is just a sample of how heavens show up on any event.

There are a number of such indications

that can be checked and researched.

One such indicator is coinciding with the launch of Chandrayan!

October 22^nd will see the moon close to

what is called 'jala nadi' – a node that ensures good rains.

If the launch is delayed, rains will follow.

If the launch is on time, cloudy skies can be expected.

The time is really good but for the Navami thithi,

which is not good for travel.

I only hope the goodies of that day over-weigh this Navami

and perhaps the time of launch (which I don't know)

will be good - holding the key for success.

But the ISRO meteorologist will have tough time

in guiding them on weather.

The basic thumb rule in astrology of rains is that

moon in gandantha - particularly in its own house of Cancer

and while passing through Aslesha and Maga

will give rains.

180 degrees opposite to that location, same results will happen.

Added to this is the location of other planets in specific nadis

about which I will write later.

That is how it was possible to experience 3 rains

(maadham mum-maari / thingaL mum-maari)

in a month in those days

as told in olden Tamil texts.

-jayasree.

http://www.dc-epaper.com/DC/DCC/2008/10/13/ArticleHtmls/13_10_2008_003_003.shtml?Mode=0

ISRO looks to its weathermen

To make the Chandrayaan mission a hassle free affair, the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) is leaving no stones unturned. Satish Dhawan Space Centre (SDSC), the country's modern spaceport has been fortified and hundreds of commandos of the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) guard the installations round-the-clock. Since the East Coast of the country is notorious for cyclonic storms during the months of October, November and December, ISRO authorities are taking extra precautions to ensure complete success of the Rs 380 crore mission, rated as the most ambitious space project of the country.

"We have drawn up a team of meteorologists from ISRO units spread across the country to monitor the weather. Seven meteorologists from establishments like the Physical Research Laboratory, Space Application Centre and Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre will start monitoring the weather from October 16," said Dr M Y S Prasad, associate director, SDSC. He said the meteorologists would monitor the weather on an hourly basis. It is interesting to note that the Indian Meteorological Department (IMD), which specialises in weather forecast, has been totally sidelined for the Chandrayaan mission. Past instances of wayward forecasts by the IMD could be the reason behind ISRO's sudden preference for in-house meteorologists. ISRO officials though were tight-lipped when asked about this new development.

"We want precise and exact weather predictions since this is a very sensitive mission," said a senior SDSC scientist. Does that mean IMD experts are not capable of providing this 'precise and exact' data?

Homa for rains

After its success in Hyderabad, the TTD has been invited by the Government officials on behalf of the Government of Tamilnadu

(it was reported so in the media) to conduct a homa to attract rains in the rain-starved Chennai / Tamilnadu.

As a result, the 3-day Subhiksha yagam started yesterday in Chennai.

The sudden over-cast skies and the intermittent downpours from yesterday had sent the tongues wagging whether this is due to the Homa.

The meteorological department does not think so and it's vague assessment is likely to undermine any connection to the homa.

The dept has acceded that there was no indication of rainfall until the previous day.

But the clouds had gathered thanks to trough that has suddenly come up.

Believers would wonder whether this formation of the trough is related to the homa.

My take is that – it is so.

But timing also had mattered for widespread / long spell of rains.

By time I mean, is the choice of time (muhurtha) for conducting the homa

that would also have gone along with the varsha- yogas (combination for rainfall)

formed by the planets.

If not, or in the absence of such timing,

the homa would have resulted only in a shower or two –

not continuous downpour as we experience now..

For any homa that is done for a specific purpose,

the month – seasonal conditions also must be conducive.

A homa for rain is not conducted in, say, autumn or winter season.

It will attract best rains only when conducted in rainy season.

It is like cloud seeding done on clouds that bear potential for rains.

The best results can be had only in such conditions.

The present times are such that some favorable combination for rainfall

are also seen in the sky.

Like many planets coming in the front of the Sun.

Mars coming in between Venus and the Sun.

And with Mercury completing retrogression on 30 th

and coming forward to pick up speed,

better rains can be expected after it overtakes the Sun but when positioned behind Mars.

Generally planets in conjunction in Leo, Virgo and Libra ensure rains.

Current indiacions from the sky are such that

this solar month of Libra will experience rains.

But the conditions are not ensuring the season's maximum rainfall.

In such a scenario homas do help in bringing out copious supply.

Homas have been basically designed to give results such as this.

-jayasree

http://www.dc-epaper.com/DC/DCC/2008/10/13/ArticleHtmls/13_10_2008_001_022.shtml?Mode=0#

Science and spirituality – Rain gods smile on yaga.

Oct 13, 2008.

Deccan chronicle, Chennai edition.

Sunday's unexpected showers took Chennaites by surprise. Though the local weather office had not forecast the possibilities of rain for Sunday, there was a heavy downpour throughout the morning and forenoon. Incidentally, Sunday morning also saw more than 130 Vedic scholars from Thirumala Thirupathy Devastanam beginning the sacred Subhiksha Yaagam in the city, which will last for three days. The timing of the Yaagam and the downpour set the tone for another debate on the relations between science and spirituality.

The Regional Meteorological Office attributed the rain to the formation of a 'trough' off Tamil Nadu coast, which extended up to Sri Lanka. "It is not possible to predict these troughs since they are part of a larger weather system," said the officer on duty at the RMO, who did not want his name to be quoted.

But Parappanangadi Unnikrishna Panikker, well known astrologer and religious scholar pointed out that all kinds of Poojas and Yaagams held for the welfare of the people usually led to copious rainfall.

Defective Vaastu of Congress Head quarters!

 

 

The Vaastu corrections done at Satyamurthy bhavan

as reported in the media (given below)

seem to be heading for making Thanga balu, the state congress chief,

as 'Thangaatha balu' (the one who will not stay / be there.)

 

 

What else can I say for the defects  that are done in the name of Vaastu corrections?

The rear entrance is a laughable stock –

which is similar to the sarcasm 'Crazy' Mohan showed in his latest drama,

"Chocolate Krishna".

 

 

The rear entrance is the worst Vaastu defect of all 'Dwara doshas'.

Such a door will make the owner lose money.

In this case both Thanga balu and his party would lose

money and votes with this kind of defect.

 

 

The loss of fortunes for the Congress right from 1969

must be traced to the defects at the time of construction of the building.

Or some salya defects must be there under the ground.

The 'pada' division of the site  may not have been properly adhered to

and room and seat arrangement must be suffering from marma vedhas.

Certainly a rear door can not solve the problems

It can only accentuate the problems.

 

-jayasree

 

************************************************

 

 

 

TNCC tries 'vaastu' for party HQ

 

 

BY K. KARTHIKEYAN

(reporter's diary )

Deccan Chronicle Oct 13, 2008

 

 

With his present tenure as TNCC chief not starting off on a bright note state Congress president K.V. Thangka Balu has turned to vaastu to bring about much needed changes at the Satyamurti Bhavan and in his political career.

 

Poor Thangka Baalu found himself upbraided in public by M. Karunanidhi for being over enthusiastic about the DMK chief's hint at sharing power with the Congress in the state. Before he could recover from that shock the Salem MP was given a cold dressing down by Congress president Sonia Gandhi who told him off not to raise the issue again. Also he has been unable to assemble his team of office-bearers due to sustained opposition from the G.K. Vasan group.

 

It was then that some of his well wishers suggested that the vaastu of Satyamurti Bhavan, where the TNCC is headquartered, did not match his horoscope. So under the pretext of improving the acoustics of the large auditorium the entire complex is being remodeled.

 

The auditorium itself is being made into a standalone hall. More importantly Thangka Balu would enter the building through a new entrance at the rear of the main building, which, according to his astrologers would augur him well.

 

Sometime ago a peanut vendor was asked by some of Thankga Baalu's chelas not to sell puffed rice (arisi pori) in the complex which they claimed was proving inauspicious for the state unit. But the veteran vendor had refused to change his wares.

 

Satyamurti Bhavan was built in 1962 during former chief minister Kamarajar's regime. "This is the first time someone is attempting such major changes to this building. Mr Thangka Balu should instead spend his energies in reconstituting the state office-bearers by including all the groups," said a senior MLA.

 

 

Geologists plan to clear the air on Rama Setu

http://www.dnaindia.com/report.asp?newsid=1197594   Geologists plan to clear the air on Ram Setu DNA Correspondent   Monday, October 13, 2008  03:24 IST        BANGALORE:  The Geological Society of India will come up with a white paper to clear the air on Ram Setu. Earlier, the government cited scriptures while the supreme court favoured exploration of a scientifically and "politically" viable solution to the controversy.   Speaking on the sidelines of the golden jubilee celebrations of the society in Bangalore on Sunday, society president Harsh Gupta said the report will cover all aspects of the bridge, its pros and cons, the science behind it and many sensitive issues. "Many interesting questions like did the stones float in water will also be answered. All such queries will be posted on the society's website in three months. People would be able to post their comments for five months, after which, a final version of the report will be prepared and released," he said. The society's centres across India will participate in the study.   Gupta added the department was also preparing a report on linking rivers in India to meet water scarcity. *********************

http://www.deccanherald.com/Content/Oct132008/state2008101294856.asp

White paper on Rama Sethu soon, says GSI

DH News Service, Bangalore(Oct. 13, 2008)

The Geological Society of India (GSI), one of the premier institutions of India to carry geological studies, will shortly release a white-paper on the river inter-linking project and Rama Sethu.

Talking to reporters on Sunday, at IISc where the GSI is holding a two-day international level seminar to commemorate golden jubilee, Society's president Harsh Gupta said these two issues become extremely difficult whenever they surface for discussion.

"The whole issue gets politicised the moment someone wants to give a fair judgment on it," said Gupta. 

He added that the GSI will shortly release a white-paper on the subject and release it in Society's website. When asked to give a gist on the findings on Rama Sethu and river inter-linking project, the scientist asked media persons to wait for some more weeks.

On the query about the stones shown to people at Rameshwaram that float in water, he said there could be a trick. "The stone may be having bubble," said Gupta.

In curriculum

He added that the GSI is also trying to make geology a popular subject of the common man and is struggling to make it included in school curriculum. He was happy that in Karnataka geology is a subject in 10+2 but other states do not have geology in the curriculum.

The Geological Society of India also plans to bring out a book for small children titled 'Story Of The Ocean'. 

This book will be brought out in 14 different languages including Hindi, English and Kannada.

Trees around the house.

Trees around the house.

Continuing my notes on Vaastu,

http://jayasreesaranathan.blogspot.com/2008/10/residential-houses-around-temple.html

let me look at what Vaastu texts say about the garden around your house – the tress that are to be there or not there.

‘Vriksha dosha’ is something that must be seen for keeping proper Vaastu.

Certain trees are not desirable near the residential house.

According to Vaastu principles, the tall trees must be little away from the house.

The reason is that the shade of the trees should not fall on the Main door (simha dwara) of the house at any time of the day and

on the house in general during the second and third part of the day

(between 9 AM to 3 PM ).

If it happens, it will cause vriksha dosha and vrisksha chaaya dosha respectively.

The rationale can be traced to the very basics of Vaastu.

Vaastu means ‘ vasa nivase’ – where devas and humans reside.

The devas are none but the energy forms of the sun light / rays.

The sun light that falls on anything on the earth

(everything has ‘vaastu’ as per this sastra -Mayamata, Vishwakarma,

King Bhoja et al say this),

distributes its energy in a methodical fashion.

As far as land is concerned, if the land is a perfect square or rectangle,

the solar energy distribution takes place perfectly.

(This holds good in town and city planning too.)

One my wonder how the energy distribution follows the contours of one’s plot.

It is like how a billion images of suns can be captured in a billion cups of water.

Each cup having a dimension and water in it,

captures the image of the sun and its rays.

Similarly each piece of land marked with a boundary or fence

does capture the image of the sun with its rays.

That is why the first important thing to be done after purchasing a site is to fence it.

The results will be optimal if the site is square or rectangle in shape.

If not, re-arrange the markings on your site and

make it into these geometrical shapes

by fencing them in these two shapes.

In the previous post where I wrote about Veedhi shoola,

a similar marking will help in removing the Veedhi-shoola defect.

Don’t construct in that portion facing the street.

Raise a fence (with a gate to access this part from the inside and not from the roadside )

around that area facing the road and make a garden there.

The garden - not your house - with defined contours will be facing the road.

The veedhi shoola will be absorbed by this garden.

Coming to the topic of sun rays falling on the ground,

anywhere between 32 to 100 forms of solar energy called as Deities or devas

settle down on the plot and therefore on the house in the plot and

they continuously reinforce their energy level in their respective regions of settlement.

It is on this basis only the rooms such as

kitchen, bed room etc are constructed.

The basic theory is that sun rays distributed in the plot

energize the plot.

One will be surprised to know that the famous prayer chant of the Upanishads,

pray to these deities accompanying the sun.

The Mithra, Varuna and Aryama of “shamno mithra.. chant”

are the deities accompanying the sun all the time.

They are repeatedly praised in Rig veda

and I have quoted them from Purananuru texts too

and written in the ‘Pithru tarpan’ posts.

These three along with the core sun, settle in the central portion of the plot.

These three accept the water oblations for pithrus offered at mid-day.

That means that from of energy which evaporates the water oblations

are known as these deities.

The general and vast evaporation that is happening all the time

is another form of energy of the sun.

A lot of research can be done on the sun-rays alone and

the forms of energy that they convert into.

Jyothisha contains lot of inputs to give leads to such a research.

Coming to the main topic of this post – the trees-

since the aim is to grab as much as energy from the sun,

any feature that hinders that energy from falling on the residential area is discouraged.

That is how vriksha sastra has a relevance in Vaastu.

(elsewhere in astrology there are other areas of importance for trees. They will be discussed in course of time).

The basic condition is that sun light should not be hindered.

The second condition is that the trees by their own energy vibrations must not harm the inmates of the house.

So there must be some element of discrimination in the choice of trees.

Coming to the first condition,

the shade of the tree should not fall on the simha dwara or

main entrance door of the house.

If it does, it will cause Vriskha dosha and the owner will have problems

in getting progeny.

A verandah in the front of the main door will ensure a cool environ needed

when one enters the house.

But no tree shade must fall directly on the main door.

This also takes to mean that there must be no tree right in front of the door

either within the compound or outside the compound.

But there can be tress at a minimum distance of 10 yards on other sides.

Here the measurement of yard is different from the British system

or the ones mentioned in an earlier post.

In the ancient Indian system, the measurements vary from item to item

depending on the requirement and utility.

The measurement with reference to residences must be based

on purusha pramana,

i.e., the height of the owner of the house.

The measurement of yard in this case is equivalent to two hastas.

One ‘hasta’ is equal to one – fifth of the height of the owner of the house

measured from his feet to the tip of his ring finger when his hand is stretched

above his head in standing posture.

Two hastas of this measurement make one yard.

Any tree must be away from the plinth of the house by a minimum of ten such yards.

It must be noted that the height of man as told in texts like Brihad samhita

is not the same as the average Indian height of today.

It seems Indians were taller in those days.

The average male was said to be of madhyama pramana i.e., 6 ft high.

The superior or ‘uthama pramana’ of a man was six feet and nine inches.

The inferior of ‘heena pramana’ was 5 feet three inches.

But what is known is that the average height of Indian male was 6 feet.

The hasta as calculated above is generally about the height of the owner of the house.

On the basis of the hasta of the purusha pramaana,

the distance at which the trees must be kept within the compound must be determined. But today we don’t have so much space in cities.

Keeping trees within residential compound is almost ruled out in cities

but allowed in multi storeyed buildings.

Because the basic purpose is not hinder sunlight falling on the house.

This problem does not arise in high rise buildings.

In individual residential houses Vaastu permits coconut tress near the compound walls.

But no neem tree in the east or

mango in the south or

plantains in the west.

Generally trees having water content such as plantains are not advisable

in the west and north east.

Likewise fruit trees in the east and

milk bearing trees in the south and south east are not advisable.

But lot of bush like plants, creepers, flower bearing plants are advisable

anywhere around the house.

One caution is that thorny bushes and thorny plants/trees are not advisable

in north east and north west.

The kind of garden maintained in the olden days and in rural India

are ideal and Vaastu compliant.

The front door can be stretched with creepers such as jasmine pandhal.

As many as flowering plants particularly those fit enough for puja

are to be planted around the house.

In this day of Bonsai culture, short trees are also acceptable close to houses

as long as they don not hinder sunlight falling on the house.