Unsung heroines of Independence

I have been on thought many days and also every year on Independence day, about those people who have struggled for our Independence but not came under limelight. Those who stretched their lives, made sacrifices, who came out from the clutches of family and societal pressures for the sake of contributing to the Nation's welfare. They did not think a moment, if they would be part of the publicity, or their sacrifices will be written in history, or they will get some reputation and more than everything, if their participation would even be fruitful!

The drive for all of them, would be (in my opinion) the humiliation they have undergone under British rule, the heart's yearn to express and live independently, and respect to our traditions and culture. During this struggle, there should have been many unsung heroes and heroines from different parts of our country. I was actually on look for some articles about these ordinary people who made extraordinary attempts in their own ways for Independence.

The Hindu article on August 14, 2012 threw some light about these unsung heroines.

Here is the link to the article http://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/Delhi/article3764609.ece

And here is a copy of it, for our future reading.

Thanks to Bula Devi and "The Hindu" newspaper for this article.

Women’s participation in the freedom struggle, barring a few cases, has received little attention in post-1947 male-centric historical records.Though India’s freedom struggle saw a significant participation of women, unfortunately several of them have remained invisible to this day — unknown and unsung. The few women freedom fighters who made it into history books invariably came from elite or middle class backgrounds and their male relatives had often encouraged them to join the movement. In contrast, there were innumerable ordinary women, with no formal education or very little schooling, hailing from poverty-stricken, conservative homes, who got involved in the struggle with undaunted spirit and great commitment.

 Raj Kumari Gupta was one of them. Born about a century ago in the little-known Banda zilla of Kanpur, she and her husband worked closely with Mahatma Gandhi and Chandrashekhar Azad. Her crucial contribution to the Kakori dacoity case barely figures in the narratives of freedom. Raj Kumari, who was given the charge of supplying revolvers to those involved in the Kakori operation, apparently hid the firearms in her undergarment and set out in khadi clothes to deliver them, with her three-year-old son in tow. On being arrested, she was disowned by her husband’s family and thrown out of her marital home.

There is also the case of Tara Rani Srivastava. She was born in Saran near Patna and participated actively with her husband Phulendu Babu in the Quit India movement. On Gandhiji’s call, Phulendu assembled a massive crowd of men and women in front of the Siwan police station to hoist the national flag on its roof. The just-married couple stood in front of the crowd and raised slogans. Phulendu soon fell to police bullets but Tara Rani was not deterred. Demonstrating exemplary courage, she bandaged his wounds and marched with the national flag straight towards the police station. By the time she returned, her husband had died.

 Whether these women can be considered as revolutionaries or not, there can be no denying that they fought against great personal odds for the freedom of the country. They displayed great resolve despite seeing their children ascend the gallows. It is said that the night before activist Ram Prasad Bismil, a member of the Hindustan Socialist Republic Association, was to be hanged on December 18, 1927, in Gorakhpur jail, his mother came to see him. On seeing her, Bismil’s eyes became moist, but his visitor remained calm. She had never actively participated in politics but she understood the underlying importance of her son’s passionate espousal of revolution. She apparently told Bismil not to shed tears like a kayar (coward). Bismil is then said to have answered saying that he was crying because he would not have a mother like her. Steeled by her son’s death, she is believed to have said in a speech subsequently that she was ready to give another son to the nation. Saying this, she had raised the hand of Bismil’s brother.

Given domestic constraints, many women found it difficult to get directly involved in public action, but contributed in their own ways. Many took to spinning the ‘charkha’ as a mark of support for the Swadeshi movement. Others acted as secret envoys and messengers — passing on proscribed material, helping fugitives from the law shift from one place to another and ensuring that they were fed and looked after.

Ganga Devi from Uttar Pradesh had no formal education and had been married at the age of 13 into a home which had over 60 family members. Her husband, a government employee, enforced strict restrictions on her movement so as to keep her away from the raging political ferment of those times. But that did not stop Ganga from encouraging her children to be sympathetic to the rebels. She saved money from the household expenses and cooked food for men in hiding while her husband was asleep, washing the utensils herself to keep the matter a secret even from family retainers.

 The stories of these women do not generally surface in contemporary India save for efforts like those undertaken by the Gandhi Smriti in Delhi recently, when it launched a permanent exhibition on ‘Great Indian Women Freedom Fighters’.

According to Charu Gupta, associate professor, Department of History, Delhi University, history writing in the 60s did not register the role of ordinary women in the freedom movement. She observes, “Implicitly the history of that time projected only a select group and this gave rise to a distorted vision.” She points out how the entire portrayal of the freedom struggle tended to be male-centric, bourgeois and upper caste, with the participation of women being seen as an extension of their domestic roles of serving their families.

 The lack of the presence of ordinary women in historical work, according to Ms. Gupta, was due to several factors — the biggest constraint being that history writing was generally based on official records. She, however, believes that this approach has been undergoing a change, with historians now more inclined to base their work on “creative sources” like personal diaries, family histories, newspaper reports, magazine articles and oral narratives.

 As Suruchi Thapar-Bjorkert observes in her book Women in the Indian National Movement Unseen Faces and Unheard Voices, 1930-42: “Reinterpreting Indian nationalist history required going beyond archival, official and unofficial sources.” On oral narratives, she says, “As a methodological tool, these narratives revealed the individual subjectivities of participants in the nationalist movement. Documenting these life histories opened a new world before me: a world more real than officials records.”

  Women like Abadi Bano Begam, a widow and a freedom fighter from Lucknow, known by her honorific ‘Bi Amman’, need acknowledgement. She observed strict purdah all her life and when the time came to speak on behalf of her jailed son, she did so from behind her burqa in 1917. This was, perhaps, the first time a Muslim woman in purdah had addressed a political gathering. (Women's Feature Service)

Courtesy: The Hindu, August 14, 2012

Guru Poornima - Story and thoughts

The Full moon day on Aashada month which falls on 3rd July, 2012 is the Janma dina (birth day) of Veda Guru "Veda Vyasar" and is celebrated as Guru Poornima. The Hindu culture strongly emphasize the importance of learning knowledge from a Guru and more importantly doing Seva (self-less work) for Guru as the foremost thing. The reasoning behind Guru Seva is to inculcate humility in the hearts of the Shishya (disciple), which is a requirement that enables the learning aspect from Sishya.

On this auspicious Guru Poornima day, I would like to share an incident from Life of Sri Krishna, which shows how Guru takes care of a Shishya both in terms of being strict and showing love towards his Shishya.

When Krishna was ruling Dwaraka, His childhood friend Sudhama visited him. They both were having friendly chat and was recollecting incidents from their childhood days at Guru Sandeepani's ashramam.
One day Krishna and Sudhama went to forest to collect dry wood as per the orders of their Guru Sandeepani. After few hours, the clouds turned black and there was a heavy downpour of rain in that region. The heavy rain had blocked the way back home and both the children (Krishna and Sudhama) find it struggling to find their way, as the roads were filled with rain water. Being afraid, both of them got hold of their hands and wandered the forest all night without food.
Guru Sandeepani not finding his Shishya's return from forest, got worried and went in search of them. After he saw both the Shishya's next morning, he felt bad on how much trouble they have gone through because of his orders. However, Krishna and Sudhama were happy to see their Guru and told that they were saved from wild animals and heavy rain because of their Guru Seva. Guru Sandeepani was pleased with their response and blessed them that the Vedic knowledge they possess would protect them forever.

This incident recollected and shared by Krishna to Sudhama conveys that while Guru is strict to his Shishyas, he is bountiful of love towards his Shishya at the same time. So as a Shishya, it is important to oblige Guru's orders, though we might not get the implied meaning behind their strict teachings.

Story taken from: "Deivathin Kural part 4" by Sri Ra. Ganapathi

MahaPeriyava Jeyanthi 2012

Today June 4th, 2012 marks Tamil month Vaikasi and Nakshatra (Star) Anusha is auspicious as it marks the Jayanthi (birthday) of HH Sri Chandrasekarendra Saraswathi Swamigal also widely known as "MahaPeriyava".

He is one of the Matt Guru of Kanchi Sankara Matt. Though I could not meet him even once, I am drawn towards His teachings through various books and articles.
From my limited knowledge, I have to say that His teachings are far more simple, that He gives common man examples to explain many spiritual questions.

On this auspicious day, I would like to share with you two of such examples, whose mere simplicity will let us believe in the concepts He relate them to.

Once a group of His devotees came to see him and request him to send some well versed pundit to perform poojas, and other rituals in their city. They complained that the only one pundit in their location though he performs pooja well, does not know the meaning for the mantras and poojas he is doing. So the younger generation are not interested in taking part in those."
On hearing it, Periyava told, "Yes what they say is  true and and has to be acknowledged. At that time, a postman brought some posts to the mutt and delivered it to Periyava and waited for his darshan.
Periyava read some posts and asked the officials and the post man standing there, "All these letters have the word PIN. Do you know what is PIN?". They thought for sometime and later told that they do not know". He replied that PIN means Postal Index Number.
He continued saying, "Even those people who wrote PIN and the number might not know what does PIN correspond to. Postman though he delivers letters based on the PIN does not know what it corresponds to. However, if the sender writes the number correctly, it will reach the correct destination, though the sender and the postman do not know what PIN corresponds to.
Similarly, you might not know the meaning or reason behind these mantras and practices. But if you pronounce it correctly and perform it with Shraddha (determination) it will yield the result it is destined for."

This explanation clears the misconception, that it is better to abstain from telling these mantras without knowing meaning. This example clearly sends a message to follow the rituals laid out by our ancestors which provides nothing but good for us.
It is equally important here to quote that Hindu Dharma also encourages people to strive towards knowing the meaning behind these rituals as discussed in this post (http://meinall.blogspot.fi/2011/06/guiding-verse-of-my-life.html)

So while the first thing is to tell Shlokas with belief, further goals should be to find the reasoning by ourselves.

The second example is about preserving our Vedic knowledge and resources. MahaPeriyava elucidates that our ancient Vedic knowledge is rich in analysis of various subjects like Vimana Shastra (Aeronautical), Pakshi Shastra (Birds science), Astronomy etc. Varahamihra has compiled all of them and gave a book named "Bruhat Samhita". Though we personally could not gain understanding of these knowledge, texts and literature, our future generations could be interested in knowing them.
He explains the importance of it with a simple example. Once, a blind man was walking on the road holding a lantern during night. Another man came on  his way and seeing the blind man carrying a lantern (which is of no use to him) asked him, "Why are you carrying the lantern, when you cannot even see things around?". The blind man replied, "Though I am not having vision, I am carrying it because you have vision. If I am not carrying the lantern, then you would have stumbled upon me during this night time." Thus He explains the importance of preserving our ancient knowledge and pass it on to the future generations, though we are not interested in them.

This raises me the question, "In what ways we can preserve and pass our ancient knowledge?" If you have any thoughts please share them here.

Guru Bhakthi - Story from life of Adi Shankaracharya

Vaishaka Masa Shukla Panchami (5th day of bright half of Vaishaka month - April 26th, 2012) is an auspicious day marking the Jayanthi of our Jagad Guru Adi Shankaracharya.
On this auspicious day, let us take few minutes to know about one of the four main disciples of Sri Shankaracharya and his beautiful composition on his Guru.

Sri Shankaracharya had four disciples namely Sri Sureshwaracharya, Sri Padmapadacharya, Sri Thotakachaarya and Sri Hasthamalakacharya similar to Lord Dakshinamurthy who had four disciples - Sri Sanaka, Sri Sananda, Sri Sanath Kumara, and Sri Sanatna.

 Sri Bagavathpaadha after successfully completing his bhashyam on the Brahma Sutras by the graces of Sri Parameshrara at Kashi, used to deliver Vyakyanam (discourse) on the Bhasyas, Vedhas, Upanishads and the Advaitham daily to his disciples. Sri Shankaracharya had abundant compassion for his disciples & he would start his Vyakyanam and Paatam (lectures) only after all four of them had come. Among all four of them, Sri Thotakachaarya was a little bit silent and was not out-spoken like the rest of them. However, he had deep devotion towards his Guru. Sri Bagavathpaadha understood this, and he wanted to make the rest of the three disciples understand the fact that, Sri Thotakachaarya's devotion to the Lotus Feet of Guru is much greater than the knowledge of all of them. Surrendering everything at the Lotus feet of the Sadguru and doing bakthy or devotion to the Lotus Feet of the Sadguru itself would present one, with the complete wisdom of Self-Knowledge, which is the essence of all the Vedas. Sri Bagavathpaadha wanted to convey the message that, Guru Padha Seva is superior even to the Seva to the Almighty himself.

One morning, Sri Thotakachaarya was a couple of minutes late and our JagadGuru Bagavathpaadha was waiting for his arrival. The rest of the three disciples were wondering why would Sri Bagavathpaadha wait for someone, who is not as "bright" as them. Sri Bagavathpaadha had blessed Sri Thotakachaarya and Sri Thotakachaarya came walking, singing a hymn with wonderfully rhythmic words. Sri Thotakachaarya’s words were showing his over flowing Guru Bakthi. This hymn was metered with very complex poetic meter called Thotaka meter. The rest of Sri Acharya's disciples, now understood the deep Gnanam (Poorna Gnanam) and Guru Bakthy of Sri Thotakachaarya and they regretted for their ignorance and they all praised Sri Thotakachaarya’s knowledge and his fervent Guru Bakthi. Since then he was called as Sri Thotakachaarya although his deeksha namam was Giri.

Here is the composition made by Thotakacharya

Thotakashtakam:

Vidhithakila Shaasthra Sudha Jhaladhe Mahithopanishadh Kathithartha Nidhe
Hrudhaye Kalaye Vimalam Charnam Bhava Shankara Deshika Me Sharnam

Karuna Varunalaya Paalayamam Bhava Saagara Dhukka Vidhoona Hrudham
Rachayakila Darshana Tathva Vidham Bhava Shankara Deshika Me Sharnam

Bhavatha Janatha Sukitha Bhavitha Nija Bhodha Vichaarana Chaarumathe
Kalayeshwara Jeeva Viveka Vidham Bhava Shanakara Deshika Mey Sharanam

Bhava Eva BhavaaNidhi Me Nitharam Sama Jaayatha Chethasi Kouthukitha
Mama Vaaraya Moha Maha Jaladhim Bhava Shanakara Deshika Mey Sharanam

Sukruthe Dhikruthe Bahudha Bhavatho Bhavitha Sama Darshana Laalasatha
Athi dheenam imam paripaalayamam Bhava Shanakara Deshika Mey Sharanam

Jagadtheem Avithum Kalitha Kruthayo Vicharanthi Mahaamaha Shachalathah
Ahi Mamshuri Vathra Vibhaasi Guro Bhava Shanakara Deshika Mey Sharanam

Guru Pungava Pungava Kethana The Samatha Mayatham Nahi Kopi Sudhee
Sharanaagatha Vatsala Tathvanidhe Bhava Shanakara Deshika Mey Sharanam

Vidhithaa Na Maya Visha Dhaika Kala Nacha Kinchana Kaanchanam Asthi Guro
Drutham Eva Vidhehi Krupaam Sahajaam Bhava Shanakara Deshika Mey Sharanam

Sri Thotakachaarya has enlisted all the divine qualities of Sri Bagavathpaadha
in his 8 verses.

Kathithartha Nidhe (Vaibhavam of Sri Bagavathpaadha's writing commentary to all
the Upanishads, Vedas.., which are like the waves of milky ocean.)
Vimalam Charanam (preaches all of us to bear or to think of
the divine feet of Sri Bagavathpaadha, which he says would give us the knowledge of all
the darshanas and the Vivekam of Jeeva-Eshwara Vidham )
Krupaam Sahajaam (quality of daya or compassion by birth)
Tathvanidhe (sole authority for all the Thathvas or the philosophies)
Sukitha Bhavitha (Many householders are delighted by your grace and renderings)
Chaarumathe (pure consciousness moon)
Karuna Varunalayam (ocean of compassion)
Guru Pungava (JagadGuru or the Guru for all the "local" Gurus, who have been emerging from time to time in various parts of the Universe)
Samathamaya tham Nahi (one who does not have any one equal to His intellect)
Sharanaagatha Vatsala (one who always protects His refugees)
Ahimamsurivatra Vibhaasi Guro (Shines like a sun amidst the group of monks)





This incidence is a proof that Guru always recognize immense devotion and faith rather than the knowledge. It also emphasizes the importance of observing or putting into action in our lives whatever knowledge we possess, otherwise knowledge serves no purpose, but increases our ego.

Listen to this wonderful rendition of Thotakashtakam by M.S. Subbulakshmi amma.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QUGg29s0IQs

Satyavan-Savitri: The story of persistence, belief and wisdom

The story of the couple Satyavan and Savitri speaks the power of persistence and belief. The story is associated with a fasting ritual called "Karadayan Nonbu" in Tamil. Today, marks the transition of Tamil month Masi to Panguni and people celebrate it as "Karadayan Nonbu". Eager to know the story behind it!! Continue reading below..

King Ashvapati had no children and prayed towards Sun God "Savitr" (another name for Sun God) to bless him with a progeny for his lineage (a son). Soon his prayer was answered and he was blessed with a daughter. He named her "Savitri".

Savitri was very wise and beautiful. When she attained marriage age, her father asked her to choose her husband. She went in search out to woods and found Satyavan serving his parents with utmost dedication. Even before she knew that Satyavan was a Prince with his parents being thrown out of their kingdom, she fell in love with him and decided to marry him. Satyavan's parents & Satyavan also accepted her proposal. On her way back to her kingdom,  Narada told her that Satyavan has limited lifespan of one year from now and it would be better if she change her mind about the marriage. Savitri did not pay importance to Narada's words and replied that she has decided to spend her life serving Satyavan and his parents.

Later, she went and informed her father Ashvapati about her choice of Satyavan and he consented to it as well. Narada again came to his father and briefed him about Satyavan's lifespan. The news made Ashvapari worrisome and he talked to his daughter and told not to marry Satyavan. But Savitri was persistent in her decision and replied the same way as she did to Narada.

Soon the marriage of Satyavan and Savitri took place and Savitri accompanied her husband and in-laws to the forest.

When she knew that Satyavan's lifespan is going to end, three days before the destined death date, she started her fasting and prayer. Though her in-laws were hesitant initially, later they supported her vratam (fasting). On the destined day, she decided to accompany Satyavan wherever he go. Satyavan went to the forest to cut trees and Savitri accompanied him. Suddenly, Satyavan felt dizzy and fell down. Savitri knew that he is going to die, laid him to her lap. Satyavan died the very next moment. Savitri could see that Lord YamaDharma is approaching Satyavan's body with a rope. She went towards him and bowed down.

At first YamaDharma was surprised to know that he was recognized by a human. Because, YamaDharma cannot be perceived through human eyes. He enquired about her and she being a Pativrata (noble wife), begged and prayed to Him to give back life to her husband, so that they can live together and serve their parents. But YamaDharma denied saying its impossible for him to give life back to a mortal and also it is against nature laws. Savitri kept on saying verses from literature in praise of belief, obedience and noble conduct and presented her request again. YamaDharma pleased with her approach and her choice of marrying Satyavan even after knowing his limited lifespan, offered her 3 boons to make except the life of Satyavan.

Wise Savitri proceeded asking him, "May my in-laws be blessed with eye vision and kingdom they lost! May my parents are blessed with hundred sons to continue their lineage! May I be blessed with hundred sons as well!"

YamaDharma replied, "Dadastu (Done)"  and later realized the trick in her boon, that she wanted hundred sons for herself, which would mean Satyavan to be alive.

YamaDharma then replied her that he was impressed with her persistence and Pativratvam (noble chastity) and he would give life back to Satyavan. Savitri paid her obeisance to YamaDharma and was happy to see his husband waking up from his drowsy state. On return to her in-laws, she was happy to see them with eye vision and a news that they got their kingdom back.

People in South India (especially Tamil Nadu) observe this time of the year (when the month transition from Masi to Panguni) as "Karadayan Nonbu", the same way as Savitri did her 3 days pooja and fasting. They make sweet adai made of rice and offer it to Goddess Shakti, Durga or Ambal  and draw inspiration from Savitri's belief and persistence. Married women pray for their husband's long life and unmarried women pray for a good devoted husband.

Navarathri Special - Story of Kalidasa

The festival Navarathri commences from today (which is day after full moon during the month of Puratasi in Tamil calendar month). The word "Navarathri" means nine days which corresponds to worship of three forms of Goddess Devi namely, Durga, Lakshmi and Saraswathi; three days each for three forms of Devi.
During Navarathri, people display the idols of Gods in their home and invite neighbours and friends to visit. Children used to visit their friend's home and sing songs at their places and get some Prasad (food which is offered to God) usually called "Sundal".
During this auspicious time of worshipping Goddess Devi, let us listen to stories of Her great Bhakthas and Her divine grace.

Kalidasa is a well known poet in Sanskrit literature. He was not born intelligent, but was blessed with poetic prowess by Goddess Kali. There is an interesting story behind Kalidasa being blessed by Goddess Kali.

The King of Tejavathi had a well-learned daughter named Vidhyakumari. When the king wanted to arrange marriage of Vidhyakumari, she told that she will marry the person who defeats her in a debate on Shastras. A minister from the King's court wanted to make Vidhyakumari as his daughter-in-law, but his son was demeaned by her during the debate on Shastras. The minister kept vengence on her and wanted to teach her a lesson. He was set in search of a dumb man and found one near a forest. The man was cutting a tree branch while sitting on the branch edge. Seeing this the minister understood him to be a fool and plot a trick to make him marry Vidhyakumari.

The minister took the dumb man to Princess and introduced that he is one of the brilliant citizen of their country. He added that the dumb man would not speak anything, but could answer her questions. Princess got interested and the debate started. The princess showed him one finger saying `shakti is one'. He thought she will poke his one eye, so he showed her two fingers. She accepted it as valid answer, since `shakti' is manifest in duality (shiv-shakti, nar-naaree etc). She showed her the palm with fingers extended like symbolising a slap. He showed her the fist. She accepted it as answer to her question. She said `five elements' and he said `make the body' (earth, water, fire, air, and void). The mute debate continued and finally the Princess agreed that the dumb man is indeed a scholar and told that she would like to marry him.

Soon after the marriage got over, the Princess could understand that her husband is indeed not a scholar but a naive, dumb person. She felt grief-stricken and realized her mistake. However she did not deserted him, instead she tried to cultivate the knowledge in him. However being dumb he could not understand anything. Being a devotee of Goddess Kali, she asked him to pray to Her to bless with knowledge. The dumb man prayed to Kali everyday, but seeing that Kali did not bless him with knowledge, he decided he could sacrifice himself. Seeing his devout, Goddess Kali appeared before him and wrote Om syllable on his tongue and blessed that he will become a Sanskrit scholar. He is none other than Kalidasa (Devotee of Kali).

Kalidasa gained prowess in Sanskrit literature and became a poet with Kali's blessings.

Let us pray Goddess Kali to bless us with prowess in our field of knowledge and remove our fear.

Alongside, let us listen to this Shyamala Thandakam from movie Mahakavi Kalidasa
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-kVnRlyhqAk

Source: Movie Mahakavi Kalidasa, Discourse of Sri Muralidhara swamigal

Story of Ganesha

I like the months from April - Nov more, as it marks many festivals and gives us a festive atmosphere all around.
Tomorrow which is Tamil month of Avani (August), valarpirai chathurthi (4th day of waxing moon) is celebrated as Vinayaka Chaturthi.

All our prayers and worships start only after praying to Vinayaka. Let me start this post also after offering prayers to Vinayaka.
"Mooshika vahana mothaka hastha
samara karna vilambitha soothra
vamana roopa maheshwara puthra
vigna vinayaka patha namasthe"

As we celebrate his birthday, let us know his story of birth. This version of story is from Shiva Puranam.

One day Goddess Parvati wife of Lord Shiva, wanted to take bath. She made a small boy Ganesha out of the scurf from her body and placed him in the entrance and asked him not to allow anyone till she complete her bath. Lord Shiva returned home and was feeling thirsty. He was interrupted by the small boy Ganesha who was standing outside guarding at the entrance. Ganesha told, "Mother asked me not to allow anyone till she completes her bath. So please wait."
Shiva got angry on seeing this and told, "I am Shiva, Parvati's wife and no one can stop me from going inside my home." This created a tussle between them and Lord Shiva suspecting the boy to be an outsider cut off his head.
When Parvati came out and learnt what happened, she grieved for the state of the boy she created.
Lord Shiva in order to set things right, asked his Bootha Ganas to get the head of a creature which is sleeping facing north and bring that creature to Him.
Bootha Ganas found an elephant sleeping facing north and got its head to Lord Shiva. He then attached the head of the elephant over the boy's neck and made him alive.

Parvati was worried about Ganesha's elephant head, but Shiva consoled her saying Ganesha will be the foremost God to be worshiped before starting any activity or rituals. He bestowed that Ganesha will remove all the hindrances and obstacles in our efforts to achieve some task and bless us with success.

Let us all offer our prayers to Lord Ganesha and seek His blessings to remove obstacles on the path of our achievements.
Lord Ganesha's form has many significances which is good to know as we pay our worship to Him.

Big head reminds us to "Think Big"
Small eyes points us to "Concentrate in our work"
Large ears asks us to "Listen more"
Small mouth reminds us to "Talk less"
Long trunk symbolizes strength and fine discriminative power
(Elephant can pull off a tree with his trunk and also can pick a needle. A wise man should cultivate immense strength and fine capability to carry out big tasks as well as meticulous jobs)
Big stomach reminds us to digest patiently and peacefully the good and bad we face in life
Mothaka represents the rewards for our Sadhana.
(A point to be noted is that we cannot see Ganesha eating Mothaka. He just have them in His hand. So, a wise man never gets attached to the rewards of his deeds)
Mouse is the vahana (vehicle) for Ganesha and resembles that we should keep our desires under control.
(Senses and desires keep a man nibbling always and hence has to be kept under control, otherwise it will have a ride on us)

Let us listen to this beautiful Kids Bhajan on Vinayaka
http://vimeo.com/22187130

Inputs: The Symoblism of Hindu Gods and Rituals, by A. Parthasarathy

Krishna and Govardhana

Today is a special day as we observe Krishna Janmashtami. Kids always cherish Little Krishna and his stories. Let us listen to a story of Little Krishna today.

One day Krishna woke up from his bed and when he came out of his home, he found many people moving busily along with their children towards some place. He enquired his father ,"Father, is there anything special today? Why people are rushing towards something?"

Nanda Raja replied, "Today is the day to worship Indra for his grace on us and the rain he gives us every year. So people are going to Yagnya Bhoomi to perform the rituals."

Krishna was thinking for sometime and asked again, "I think the rain we are getting every year is because of our mountain Govardhana. He is the one who helps in gathering clouds and make them pour as rain towards our land. So we should worship and thank only Govardhana and not Indra!"

Nanda was taken aback on hearing Krishna's different thinking on this subject and told, "No Krishna, we should not do that. If we do not worship Indra, he will become angry  and can destroy us."

Krishna added, "Do you accept my theory on why we get rain and who helps us for this?".. "Yes", told Nanda. Krishna continued, "Then, let us worship Govardhana this time and see what happens. We should not worship someone out of fear!"

Nanda was bewildered with Krishna's pestering questions and this discussion slowly spreaded everywhere and gained momentum. Some of them supported Krishna and agreed with his theory. Nanda also got pacified by Krishna's words and soon they all decided to perform pooja and thank Govardhana for his grace on giving rain to them. As they started their worship on Govardhana, Indra came to know about this.

On hearing the villagers decision to ignore him and worship Govardhana, Indra became very angry. He wanted to teach the villagers a strong lesson for their decision. He used his thunderbolt and sent strong thunderstorms, wind and heavy rain. Soon Brindavan was filled with water and people started running out of their houses in fear of water washing out their houses. People understood that this must be the act of Indra, who was angry on them for their decision of worshipping Govardhana instead of Indra. They exchanged words that they should not have followed Krishna's words, which resulted in this devastation.

Krishna also understood that this heavy rain was indeed carried out by envious Indra. He wanted to teach a lesson to Indra's arrogance. He assured the villagers not to panic and consoled them that he will save them from heavy rain. Saying so, he went near Govardhana Giri (mountain) , bowed before him and prayed him to save them from Indra's envious act. He then lifted the big Govardhana Giri with his small finger and held it as an umbrella. Village people were astonished to see Krishna lifting Govardhana Giri and rushed under the Govardhana Giri umbrella. They were all happy that Krishna saved them from heavy rain.
Indra on seeing this understood his mistake and felt bad on his part of being arrogant. He bowed before Krishna and accepted his mistake.

This story emphasizes that we should never be arrogant, but try to be humble always. Though Krishna is all powerful, he bowed to Govardhana and seeked his blessings before lifting him up. Let us all try to be humble as we do our daily duties.

Listen to this kids performing a wonderful song on Govardhana Giridhari!

http://vimeo.com/22207066

Also there is an intersting story behind Krishna lifting Govardhana Giri here - http://meinall.blogspot.com/2011/03/story-behind-giridhara-gopala.html

Source: Amar Chitra Katha's "Krishna and Govardhana"

Sabari patti (granny) and her Guru-bhakthi

Today, July 15,2011 in Hindu calendar marks Ashada month's(June-July) pournami (Full moon day). This day is celebrated as Guru Poornima also known as Vyasa Pooja. It is believed that Sage Vyasa completed writing Four Vedas (Rig, Yajur, Sama and Atharvana Vedas) today. Today is considered auspicious to do Guru seva and start initiation from our Guru to learn our desired Vidya (art or knowledge).

All of us, especially kids like to be with our grand parents. Today we can listen to a granny's story and her bhakthi (devotion) towards her Guru.

There was a old granny called Sabari who lived in Sage Matanga's ashram (hermit). Her daily routine was to clean the ashram, decorate it with flowers and collect fruits from the forest, chant Lord Rama's name and by the end of the day, distribute the fruits to the children in the ashram. She did this every single day and one day a child asked her ,"Oh Granny, why are you decorating the ashram with flowers everyday though no one is coming to your home? You are also taking pains to go to forest to collect sweetest of sweetest fruits, but by the end of the day giving it to us, though we have never asked you for fruits"

She caressed the child and told, "Oh, vatsa (my son), I am looking forward for Rama who is the embodiment of love and an avatar of Lord Vishnu. My guru Sage Matanga has asked me to chant Rama Nama all the time and has blessed that he will come and meet me one day. As I do not know on what day he will come and meet me, I am decorating my home everyday to welcome him and collecting fruits to offer him. By the end of the day, I give the fruits to you kids, expecting Rama to come next day."

The kids got interested on Sabari's explanation for her act and asked, "Is that so granny?? Can you tell me how Rama will look like, so that we can search him if he is nearby our ashram?"

Sabari granny replied, "My intelligent son, I have not seen Rama myself. As my Guru told me, I am sure he would visit me once and I will be blessed to see him in person."

The kids laughed at her and told, "So, you do not know who is Rama, have not seen Him once, but collect fruits for him and decorate your house to welcome him! It seems you are getting mad..". Saying this the kids ran away.

Sabari lost in thoughts of her early life. She used to wander around the forest and eat animals by hunting them. While she was wandering, she reached the Sage Matanga ashram and found it to be very peaceful. She could feel that the environment is so conducive that she did not want to wander anywhere. She thought she could stay there by performing some cleaning duties in the Ashram. Later Sage Mathanga noticed her and consented her to be in the Ashram and do cleaning seva. From then on, she used to wake up early, clean the ashram premises, help collecting things for Ashram's activities. One day, Sage Matanga called all his Sishyas (disciple) and told that time has come for his Jeeva Mukthi and he would like to bless his sishyas and told them to ask for their boons.

His disciples came one by one and asked for attaining siddhis, mastering Vidyas, gaining popularity, gaining health and wealth etc. At the end was Sabari and when Sage Mathanga asked her on what she want, she replied, "Oh, Guru. I do not know what I want, for all these days I did not find any needs for me. I found peace and happiness in serving you. I am sure you will know what I would need, so please bless me with what I should be doing rest of my life."

Sage Mathanga was happy on her unparalleled devotion towards him and told, "Sabari, Rama the son of Dasaratha is none other than avatar of Lord Vishnu. Chant Rama Nama for the rest of your life and one day Lord Rama will come and meet you and will bless you."

Sabari from that day was chanting Rama Nama, decorating her house for his arrival and collect fruits to offer him. It has been 12 years and then one day, kids came running towards her and told,
"Granny, two persons have come to meet you. They are very beautiful and we think it should be Rama, the one you have been waiting for all these days."
On hearing this Sabari felt very happy and came running to welcome them. She could not believe her eyes and was astonished on seeing the beauty of Rama and Lakshmana. She washed their legs and offered seat. She then offered the fruits she collected from the forests. Lakshmana noticed that those fruits were already tasted and asked Rama not to eat them. However Rama told that Sabari wanted to ensure that the fruits are tastier before she can offer and so she tasted it. He continued, that he was moved by Sabari's devotion towards Him and would like to taste the fruits.
Lord Rama born on King's lineage has always been giving things from his hand and this was the first time when he got something from others. Sabari felt blessed on their presence and Lord Rama bestowed her Jeevan Moksha.

This is the story of granny Sabari's Moksha. People may laugh at our faith and beliefs but, Sabari granny proved that her belief in her Guru's words, blessed her with a Moksham in the presence of Lord Rama himself.

During this Guru poornima day, let us all pray to God to bestow us a Guru for us, for only he knows what we want and could show us a path to achieve it.

Listen to our beloved M.S.Subbulakshmi's devoted Guru-Bhajan "Guruvara Deejo"

Dukrin Karane, Dukrin Karane

Wondering what does the title refer to?
Before explaining about the title, let us know the significance of May 8th,2011 which is JagadGuru Adi Shankaracharya's Janmadina (birthday). Within a short period of his lifetime, he has given a strong message to us through his various shlokas and song compositions. In remembrance of our great Guru, here is a story behind one of his greatest compositions "Bhaja Govindam" also known as "Moha Mudgara".

During his stay on Kashikshetram (Varanasi), one day on his way back to Ashram (hermit) after having bath in Ganges, he heard a student intently repeating "Dukrin Karane, Dukrin Karane, Dukrin Karane" and was trying to memorize a Sanskrit grammar sutra (rules). The student was a youth who was about to finish his studies and going to start his career. Adi Sankara on hearing him cramming the Sanskrit Grammar sutra, felt pity for him and his ignorance. On that moment, he thought "Of what use would the cramming bring in the student's life? It might help him get a good career, but if he gets satisfied with that, he would fail to realise his purpose of life and repeats the birth-death cycle". On that very moment, he composed the song "Bhaja Govindam" and elucidates the real purpose of our life.
Ofcourse in order to make our living we need to study hard, work and learn more to grow in our life. However he emphasize in that song, while these things are required to run our life, they do not help us in realizing our purpose of life. All of us are born for a purpose, which would be known to us only when we seek towards that.
On his Janmadina, let us pray and seek his blessings to make us realize our purpose of life and help us in achieving it.

Here is the soulful rendition of "Bhaja Govindam" by our great M.S.Subbulakshmi.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r4FUQxn4CnY