Very recently I saw discussions on the subject matter in a TV programme. Participants were using the terms as they liked to suit their debating skills. I felt that this needs clarity of thought.
R.K.Singhal
Coexistence of Science, Technology, God & Religion Introduction Just as science & technology are different but complimentary so also God and religions are different but complimentary.Science through research converts ideas, thoughts, surmises and theories developed by human intellect and imaginative mind into a realm of proven possibilities through repeated physical experimentation and explains why various phenomenon occur with certainty. Technology converts scientific possibilities into a viable mechanism for exploiting commercially or otherwise for the benefit of mankind.Science showed the possibility of generating electricity when a coil could rotate in a magnetic field. Technology converted the phenomenon into well known electric generators and motors for human comfort. Science proved that when a current is passed through a tungsten wire it would glow and emit light. Technology converted the idea into a light bulb for our benefit.Science indicated the possibility of generating immense power through atomic fission. Technology converted the theory into atomic bombs and reactors for generating electricity. Man could use it any way. Similarly God and religions are also different, yet essential and complementary.Concept of God is an amazing ingenuity of a fertile human mind. God is an unknown Supreme Power and is vested with overall authority over the universe. Since He has no form or substance He does not exist physically. He can only be seen in mind through intense meditation in ones own perception as visualised by him. He therefore has no beginning or end. He is eternal. He can create and destroy the universe. God has all the purest values and attributes which humanity could think of. Everyone wishes and strives to assimilate these ideal values and virtues. Otherwise people may face God’s wrath. This is essential to keep societies alive, intact and peaceful. No normal human being can live at peace with himself without having faith in God. In adversity one finds solace mainly from Him. Faith ultimately begets belief. He becomes the savior. So God is an absolute necessity for all humanity.
Religion is a guide to human beings for achieving salvation and become godly and pure like God without any desires and vices. This means complete adoption of God’s values and virtues without being aware that self has disappeared of its own without making any effort. One loses ones entity entirely in God. All actions are like writing on a slate and wiping them off. All actions or inactions are what God would have wished. To achieve this ideal state is an uphill task. This is where religion comes. Religion indicates ways and means along with rigid and auster rituals to tread the holy and virtuous path to attain the heavenly bliss. Many saints from time immorial have rigidly followed this path. Even in ordinary people religion imparts good human values and selflessness for a peaceful and happy life together in this world . Assimilation of Science and Religion Science creates knowledge for physical and material benefits of mankind. Religion creates philosophies for the spiritual needs of the human mind. Both are essential as material comforts and disease free environment are necessary for the body and philosophical pursuits for peace of mind. Humanity needs both for a peaceful happy existence in pluralistic societies. All individuals have the intellect to discern and assimilate the best in both to suit their needs. Human intellect can create a balanced relationship for a happy, healthy and a meaningful life through coexistence..
Wednesday, June 24, 2009
Monday, October 13, 2008
Religious Violence
Religious Violence
The new generation seems to be disappointed that the previous generation had miserably failed the country in curbing evils in society and in ushering equality, justice and dignity to human life. I appreciate their sincerity of purpose and vehement determination to achieve this goal. They have every ones blessings in their pious endeavors.
Perhaps they may also like to consider the views as hereunder.
To begin with both evil and good , though appearing opposite , are complimentary . Without one the other does not exist. Creator of life gave human beings intellectual freedom. If the creator desired the existence of only good , human beings could easily be programmed like animal and plant life. Then the life would be without excitement and depression would take over. Since there would be good every where , all would remain satisfied and there would be no need for effecting any change what so ever. Creator purposely let the good and evil co-exist and thus gave meaning to life. It is left for the human beings to balance it out. Here the role of values imbibed from the parents matter. Parents behavior which the children copy should be above board. It is essential that they sat a good example. Schools and other institutions would also have a role in later life as also their peers.
It is common knowledge that generally the children are always better than their parents as they have a head start over their parents. They begin their lives at a point where parents end theirs. They have more awareness as they actually see the progress in all the fields, be it science, technology, computers, television, print media , agriculture, etc etc. If it is not so then the parents have to be blamed. So the next generation should learn from the past mistakes of the earlier one and improve on them. It will be a stagnant society where people are afraid to experiment with ideas. In any case next generation would always find fault with the previous one. This is as it should be. Otherwise there would be no change for the better.
Our generation brought independence from British dominance and set up a solid base for a democratic society . It never intended to create a classless society with equality to all. It only tried to provide equal opportunities to all. In a democracy vested interests with different ideologies but with the common aim to improve the lot of people become essential as each group tries to gain the confidence of the people at large. Assimilation of conflicting views and arriving at either a consciousness or acceptance of the majority view are paramount. Confliction of views expressed by people working together is the very essence of democracy unlike military or communist dictatorships with single agenda. Hence the creation of different parties was necessary outcome and a welcome change from the past. But the obvious result is that each party or group when in power strengthens its own voter base. This is how the democratic system works. It may not be ideal but it ensures freedom of speech and action and is therefore preferable .
In a democracy there is freedom of religious beliefs and faiths for all individuals. Persons can profess any religion and convert to any on their own. But mass conversions with inducements and allurements of monetary and other benefits to poverty stricken people is undesirable and would lead to conflicts as some ones vote bank is adversely affected and the country’s demography is altered with fall outs in future. This needs to be nabbed by the party in power in the bud. Otherwise helplessness would lead to violence . Affected people would have no recourse left. Such public grievance must need to be addressed. Indians should not be left at the mercy of foreign money easily brought in. When a mob frenzy develops it leads to very undesirable and despicable actions. This is avoidable with proper actions satisfactory to all before an ugly situation develops.
Religions are a source of peace of mind and tranquility and generate a beautiful value system for a common fruitful life in a society . Religions also unite people of the same faith through common rituals and religious gatherings, festivals etc . It is a strong binding force and leads to common goals and aspirations. It sometimes leads to conflicts when mutual interests clash and also when there is lack of tolerance for other faiths.
In Islam cruelty and intolerance is built in the Text. For them there is no other supreme one than Allah . People professing other Gods are nonbelievers and infidels and Allah has no mercy for such Kafirs. Their meat has to be Halal , ie , the animals have to be killed slowly and not swiftly in one blow when it becomes Haram and is prohibited to be consumed by Muslims . It induces cruelty. Since the Holy Quran is the word of Allah as told to His messenger Prophet Mohammed , it can not be altered except if Allah ordains so through another messenger. Hence intolerance continues.
Christianity became some what more tolerant and benevolent with the New Teatament subtly enunciated and introduced by Jesus Christ , Son of God. Only a Son of God could ever embody such a change. But he had to pay for this by being crucified by the people in power as he became too popular. The Church considers its right to convert people of other faiths. It is fine with others so long it is voluntarily done and not by allurement and inducements. It leads to conflicts.
In the Vedic way of life ( Hindu is not a religion ) tolerance and democracy is built in . Arjun accepts Shri Krishna as Paramatma only when He proves it so. In all scriptures the disciple always questions the teacher before he accepts his teachings. He does not accept if he has doubts. All the doubts have to be cleared by the teacher.
Though there is only one Supreme Being – Paramatma , yet He works through a trinty. Brahma – the Creator , Vishnu- the Sustainer and Mahesh – the Destroyer. These Gods too work through several minor Gods .Paramatma’s authority is thus diversified and shared. This is democracy in action. Jews and Parsies were willingly given refuge in India when they were driven out of their abode by religious diehards.
However of late seeds of intolerance have been sown as the guardians of the faith are afraid that other faiths would poach on their followers by allurements and inducements with monetary help from abroad. They consider it a matter of survival lest they be out numbered in their own country. They now seem to be ready to resist conversions even by force if needed. A serious conflict of interest is brewing.
Suggested Solution
An amicable solution is to be found at the earliest to avoid alienations. I suggest that in order to prevent people taking recourse to violence by taking law in their hands due to their helplessness , the law should be made simple, clear, explicit , unambiguous and very strong both for public at large and the Law Enforcing Agencies along with very very harsh punishment as a deterrent and to create fear of the consequences if people indulge in violence.
Since fear of God is not effective, fear of punishment might be successful. Let us give a trial. Even in Ramayan it is said , “ Bhaya bin hot na preet “ Fear is necessary to create respect for law.
The new generation seems to be disappointed that the previous generation had miserably failed the country in curbing evils in society and in ushering equality, justice and dignity to human life. I appreciate their sincerity of purpose and vehement determination to achieve this goal. They have every ones blessings in their pious endeavors.
Perhaps they may also like to consider the views as hereunder.
To begin with both evil and good , though appearing opposite , are complimentary . Without one the other does not exist. Creator of life gave human beings intellectual freedom. If the creator desired the existence of only good , human beings could easily be programmed like animal and plant life. Then the life would be without excitement and depression would take over. Since there would be good every where , all would remain satisfied and there would be no need for effecting any change what so ever. Creator purposely let the good and evil co-exist and thus gave meaning to life. It is left for the human beings to balance it out. Here the role of values imbibed from the parents matter. Parents behavior which the children copy should be above board. It is essential that they sat a good example. Schools and other institutions would also have a role in later life as also their peers.
It is common knowledge that generally the children are always better than their parents as they have a head start over their parents. They begin their lives at a point where parents end theirs. They have more awareness as they actually see the progress in all the fields, be it science, technology, computers, television, print media , agriculture, etc etc. If it is not so then the parents have to be blamed. So the next generation should learn from the past mistakes of the earlier one and improve on them. It will be a stagnant society where people are afraid to experiment with ideas. In any case next generation would always find fault with the previous one. This is as it should be. Otherwise there would be no change for the better.
Our generation brought independence from British dominance and set up a solid base for a democratic society . It never intended to create a classless society with equality to all. It only tried to provide equal opportunities to all. In a democracy vested interests with different ideologies but with the common aim to improve the lot of people become essential as each group tries to gain the confidence of the people at large. Assimilation of conflicting views and arriving at either a consciousness or acceptance of the majority view are paramount. Confliction of views expressed by people working together is the very essence of democracy unlike military or communist dictatorships with single agenda. Hence the creation of different parties was necessary outcome and a welcome change from the past. But the obvious result is that each party or group when in power strengthens its own voter base. This is how the democratic system works. It may not be ideal but it ensures freedom of speech and action and is therefore preferable .
In a democracy there is freedom of religious beliefs and faiths for all individuals. Persons can profess any religion and convert to any on their own. But mass conversions with inducements and allurements of monetary and other benefits to poverty stricken people is undesirable and would lead to conflicts as some ones vote bank is adversely affected and the country’s demography is altered with fall outs in future. This needs to be nabbed by the party in power in the bud. Otherwise helplessness would lead to violence . Affected people would have no recourse left. Such public grievance must need to be addressed. Indians should not be left at the mercy of foreign money easily brought in. When a mob frenzy develops it leads to very undesirable and despicable actions. This is avoidable with proper actions satisfactory to all before an ugly situation develops.
Religions are a source of peace of mind and tranquility and generate a beautiful value system for a common fruitful life in a society . Religions also unite people of the same faith through common rituals and religious gatherings, festivals etc . It is a strong binding force and leads to common goals and aspirations. It sometimes leads to conflicts when mutual interests clash and also when there is lack of tolerance for other faiths.
In Islam cruelty and intolerance is built in the Text. For them there is no other supreme one than Allah . People professing other Gods are nonbelievers and infidels and Allah has no mercy for such Kafirs. Their meat has to be Halal , ie , the animals have to be killed slowly and not swiftly in one blow when it becomes Haram and is prohibited to be consumed by Muslims . It induces cruelty. Since the Holy Quran is the word of Allah as told to His messenger Prophet Mohammed , it can not be altered except if Allah ordains so through another messenger. Hence intolerance continues.
Christianity became some what more tolerant and benevolent with the New Teatament subtly enunciated and introduced by Jesus Christ , Son of God. Only a Son of God could ever embody such a change. But he had to pay for this by being crucified by the people in power as he became too popular. The Church considers its right to convert people of other faiths. It is fine with others so long it is voluntarily done and not by allurement and inducements. It leads to conflicts.
In the Vedic way of life ( Hindu is not a religion ) tolerance and democracy is built in . Arjun accepts Shri Krishna as Paramatma only when He proves it so. In all scriptures the disciple always questions the teacher before he accepts his teachings. He does not accept if he has doubts. All the doubts have to be cleared by the teacher.
Though there is only one Supreme Being – Paramatma , yet He works through a trinty. Brahma – the Creator , Vishnu- the Sustainer and Mahesh – the Destroyer. These Gods too work through several minor Gods .Paramatma’s authority is thus diversified and shared. This is democracy in action. Jews and Parsies were willingly given refuge in India when they were driven out of their abode by religious diehards.
However of late seeds of intolerance have been sown as the guardians of the faith are afraid that other faiths would poach on their followers by allurements and inducements with monetary help from abroad. They consider it a matter of survival lest they be out numbered in their own country. They now seem to be ready to resist conversions even by force if needed. A serious conflict of interest is brewing.
Suggested Solution
An amicable solution is to be found at the earliest to avoid alienations. I suggest that in order to prevent people taking recourse to violence by taking law in their hands due to their helplessness , the law should be made simple, clear, explicit , unambiguous and very strong both for public at large and the Law Enforcing Agencies along with very very harsh punishment as a deterrent and to create fear of the consequences if people indulge in violence.
Since fear of God is not effective, fear of punishment might be successful. Let us give a trial. Even in Ramayan it is said , “ Bhaya bin hot na preet “ Fear is necessary to create respect for law.
Wednesday, January 9, 2008
China has no religion yet they have progressed unlike India- Why
In India we have religions but generally people are not religious. Religions have become an hindrance to material progress. Selfishness and corruption has seeped in the society unfortunately at all levels mainly due to the examples set after independence by the elite of the country. Nehru ji occupied the most levish and best house in the capital , that of the outgoing British Commander-in-chief . Others followed suit. They changed their life styles. That needed easy money. Corruption was the only viable means. Birla's were given monopoly for their Ambassador car to be exclusively sold to all the Govt Departments both civil and military. Fiat people were obliged separately by not permitting manufacture of imported cars. The seeds of corruption were sown. Nehru's all relations and even his family cook were taken care of either bringing them as members of parliament or nominated to IFS, IAS or other coveted posts. How could he stop others following him. Greed has no religion. Gandhi ji accepted the hospitality of Birla's every where except for a very brief period when he went to Bhangi Colony. He kept mum. He was the only one who could tell Nehru to have a frugal life style and occupy a modest house. A bad and a dangerous example was put in motion to be followed by the people as Nehru was venerated by all. Once the self takes over who bothers about the country.
In contrast, China had a benevolent and dedicated leadership , though despotic, yet very patriotic with a determination to make China a top class country, militarily, politically and economically even at the cost of social well being and personal freedom of the masses. Dissent had no place. They created a largely corruption free society. Main aim was the material progress of their country. How was it achieved was meaningless. Result was the main thing , means had no value. They seem to have done well but at the cost of personal freedom.
Officially China has no religion. So there is no hindrance or obstacle in taking hard decisions. For decades every one in China wore the same type of clothing , even stitched the same way-closed collar coats. Remarkable thing to be noted is that every one including the elite wore the same. It led to large scale manufacture of the same cloth. What a saving of money needed for progress in other directions. Once the wealth is created , it is easy to deal with social backwardness. China is doing fine as religion is personal to people as it should be. It has nothing to do with the governance of the country. Otherwise each religion would try to pull the country towards it and a chaos would result.
I may add that human beings whether in China , India or else where in the world can not live at peace with one self if one does not believe in some God or an unknown Force. In adversity only God helps us in tiding over the tough period . We say that what ever happened was God's will and it was not our fault. In China too all individuals would be believing in some God . Truth would come out in the open when democratic freedom comes to the people. Example is the upsurge of Christianity after the dismemberment of the erstwhile Soviet Union. All Churches every where had remained intact. Religions can not be wiped out from the minds of the people. It remains in the mind for ever.
R.K.Singhal
10.01.2008
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In contrast, China had a benevolent and dedicated leadership , though despotic, yet very patriotic with a determination to make China a top class country, militarily, politically and economically even at the cost of social well being and personal freedom of the masses. Dissent had no place. They created a largely corruption free society. Main aim was the material progress of their country. How was it achieved was meaningless. Result was the main thing , means had no value. They seem to have done well but at the cost of personal freedom.
Officially China has no religion. So there is no hindrance or obstacle in taking hard decisions. For decades every one in China wore the same type of clothing , even stitched the same way-closed collar coats. Remarkable thing to be noted is that every one including the elite wore the same. It led to large scale manufacture of the same cloth. What a saving of money needed for progress in other directions. Once the wealth is created , it is easy to deal with social backwardness. China is doing fine as religion is personal to people as it should be. It has nothing to do with the governance of the country. Otherwise each religion would try to pull the country towards it and a chaos would result.
I may add that human beings whether in China , India or else where in the world can not live at peace with one self if one does not believe in some God or an unknown Force. In adversity only God helps us in tiding over the tough period . We say that what ever happened was God's will and it was not our fault. In China too all individuals would be believing in some God . Truth would come out in the open when democratic freedom comes to the people. Example is the upsurge of Christianity after the dismemberment of the erstwhile Soviet Union. All Churches every where had remained intact. Religions can not be wiped out from the minds of the people. It remains in the mind for ever.
R.K.Singhal
10.01.2008
-----
Monday, December 17, 2007
Prophet's Words make Muslims Intolerant
Sometime back I had written an article bringing out that intolerance against other religions is in- built in Islam leading to violent extremism by its adherents. This could be eradicated by none other than someone whom Muslims consider a part of Almighty Allah , just like Christians assumed Jesus Christ as son of God and he subtly altered and diluted the sacred Old Commandments . My article was not published by Hindustan Times, perhaps due to some kind of assumed blesphemy.
In todays( 17.12.2007) times of India a letter to the editor has been published reinforcing one of the basic facts based on which I had reached the above conclusion.
I quote
"I write this with reference to " Why The Devout Muslim Performs The Haj" ( Speaking Tree Dec 5) by S.Mazhar Nawaz. The writer quotes the Prophet that " Islam is built upon five pillars: testifying that there is no true God except Allah and that Muhammad is the messenger of Allah...."
Since in the Islamic concept , there is no true God except Allah, the tolerance of Islamic followers towards gods of all other religions of the world is the minimal and it creates a situation wherein it is Islam versus all other religions and their gods.Perhaps this is the reason the followers of Islam the world over are mostly intolerant and more prone to fundamentalism and violence."
- Radha Raman , Delhi
Submitted by R.K.Singhal
In todays( 17.12.2007) times of India a letter to the editor has been published reinforcing one of the basic facts based on which I had reached the above conclusion.
I quote
"I write this with reference to " Why The Devout Muslim Performs The Haj" ( Speaking Tree Dec 5) by S.Mazhar Nawaz. The writer quotes the Prophet that " Islam is built upon five pillars: testifying that there is no true God except Allah and that Muhammad is the messenger of Allah...."
Since in the Islamic concept , there is no true God except Allah, the tolerance of Islamic followers towards gods of all other religions of the world is the minimal and it creates a situation wherein it is Islam versus all other religions and their gods.Perhaps this is the reason the followers of Islam the world over are mostly intolerant and more prone to fundamentalism and violence."
- Radha Raman , Delhi
Submitted by R.K.Singhal
Friday, November 16, 2007
Deepawali -- Maa Lakshmi
Dipawali is one of the most important festivals of India which has both social and spiritual significance. Dipawali is celebrated in autumn. According to Pauranic scriptures, on the night of the new moon, when Dipawali is celebrated, the Goddess of Prosperity, Maa Lakshmi, descends on earth and visits everyone's home to find the ones worthy of having the priviledge to provide Her with shelter. How does Lakshmi decide which is the right place for Her to stay? According to the Pauranic scriptures, the Goddess says: "I live in the house of those who are good in moral appearance, who have good character and are wise in their actions, those who are always ready to fulfill their duties, those who never misuse their energy on anger, those who have faith in God, are grateful and have control over their senses, those who follow the path of righteousness carefully and serve the elders and gurus with devotion, those who have full control over themselves in all kinds of circumstances and are confident, those who have the forgiveness in their hearts and have the passion to help others." According to the scriptures, the Goddess says: "I love those women who care for their family's unity and who have character and discipline." We can assume that the female form signifies a safe and warm shelter. Whereas the male form might suggest a atern father. This is just the case when young children are upset. They need a female form to feel safe again. In the meditation, the smiling Lakshmi gives courage to Her restless children. She shows them the path to tranquility, away from the restlessness of amabasya. She shows them her four hands. The first hand (lower right) has all five fingers joined together and there is the sacred swastik on the palm. The swastik symbolizes nobleness of character. The enjoined five fingers signify that all five senses are under control. In the upper right hand, Maa Lakshmi is holding a red lotus. The flower again represents character, and the colour represents materialism and warmth of sentiment. The interpretation can be that we are reminded that even in material aspects we must maintain the character of a lotus. Only then can the five senses come under control.The lower left hand of Maa Lakshmi is releasing the eternal river of wealth. This signifies that we must release the material world from our minds. This can only happen when the heart is pure. In Her last hand, Lakshmi holds a pitcher that symbolizes true wealth and prosperity, not the material sort that most believers mistakenly expect from the Great Mother on this auspicious day. Hindus erroniously believe that we perform Lakshmi puja to receive material wealth. Many of the nights of Dipawali are spent gambling, in the opes of inspiring Maa Lakshmi's generosity. This must be far from the truth, She must surely be leery of and tire from those of us who simply crave Her presence for the sake of material gains. The wealth and prosperity that we associate with the Goddess Lakshmi is supposed to be the evolution of the soul, mind, character, and therefore behaviour. On Kartika Amabasya, Lakshmi forearms Her devotees with the advise to leave the path of worldly comforts and pleasures and to move towards the paths of purity, generosity, and compassion. Happy Dipawali to all of you!
Chhat Parva--Kartikeya- Murugan
Skanda Sashti --- Chhat Parva
By Shri P.Venkatesh
The culmination of the six day worship of Lord Muruga or Kartikeya, elder son of Shiva and Parvati and sibling of Ganesha , falls on the sixth day after Deepawali , the festival of lights . Called Skanda Sashti , the occasion celebrates the victory of Skanda , the supreme commander of divine forces , over demons Tarakasura Surapadman . Krishna declared in the Gita, “Of Generals, I am Skanda”.The victory symbolizes our surmounting of inner demons and vices.
The number six is special to Skanda.There are six holy abodes of His in Tamil Nadu: Palani, Swamimalai, Thirupparangunram, Pazhamudircholai, Thiruthani and Thiruchendur. The legend goes that he was born of the six rays of light that emerged from Lord Shiva’s third eye. This event happened in the month of Kartik ( November ), hence Kartikeya is one of His names. The six rays fell in Sara Vana, the forest of green grass, hence his six syllable name Sarvanabava. The mantra is so potent that its recitation is believed to attract people (Sa), wealth (Ra), removes debt and disease (Va), suppresses problems(Na), charms others (Ba), and stops negativity(Va).
The six rays turned into six babies, each looked after by one of the six maidens of the constellation of Kritikai ( Pleiades). The six babies were united into one by Goddess Parvati when she held them in her arms .So, He was called Shanmukha, the six faced one. The six faces bestow six divine attributes to the devotee: Jnana or wisdom, vairagya or detachment, Bala or strength ,kirti or fame, Sree or wealth, and Aishwarya or divine powers.
Muruga’s weapon is the spear called Vel. The Vel represents Shakti, the universal power that destroys the effects of sins and grants liberation. He is married to Devayani, daughter of Indra, and Valli, a tribal chieftain’s daughter, signifying that class does not matter. When He killed Surapadman, the demon’s body split into two. One half became a peacock , His vehicle, and the other half turned into a rooster and features on His flag. The Snake below the peacock’s feet symbolizes conquest of ego and fearlessness. The rooster heralds the dawn of wisdom with removal of the darkness of ignorance.
Muruga is the preceptor of Om, the primordial sound that is the all pervading Reality. Owing to a curse, Shiva forgot the knowledge of Om. Shiva approached his son Muruga, who in turn requested his fatherto become his disciple. Shiva placed the child Muruga on his lap, and Muruga whispered the secret divine knowledge in his father’s ears. Hence, Muruga came to be known as the Swaminatha Swami, the One who taught the Universal Teacher Shiva, revealing that age is not a constraint to disseminating knowledge. You are never too young to teach nor ever too old to learn.
Once, Arunagirinathar, a devotee, was disillusioned with life and was about to end his life by jumping of the temple tower of Thiruvannamalai. Muruga not only saved him, but also inspired him to compose the Thiruppugazh, a compilation of devotional songs, which is recognized to be a great literary achievement. The poet declares in a composition that Muruga never fails to come to the rescue of a true devotee.
Most temples dedicated to Kartikeya or Muruga—including the Malai mandir in Delhi--bear the following words of reassurance at the entrance: “ Why fear when I am there?”
By Shri P.Venkatesh
The culmination of the six day worship of Lord Muruga or Kartikeya, elder son of Shiva and Parvati and sibling of Ganesha , falls on the sixth day after Deepawali , the festival of lights . Called Skanda Sashti , the occasion celebrates the victory of Skanda , the supreme commander of divine forces , over demons Tarakasura Surapadman . Krishna declared in the Gita, “Of Generals, I am Skanda”.The victory symbolizes our surmounting of inner demons and vices.
The number six is special to Skanda.There are six holy abodes of His in Tamil Nadu: Palani, Swamimalai, Thirupparangunram, Pazhamudircholai, Thiruthani and Thiruchendur. The legend goes that he was born of the six rays of light that emerged from Lord Shiva’s third eye. This event happened in the month of Kartik ( November ), hence Kartikeya is one of His names. The six rays fell in Sara Vana, the forest of green grass, hence his six syllable name Sarvanabava. The mantra is so potent that its recitation is believed to attract people (Sa), wealth (Ra), removes debt and disease (Va), suppresses problems(Na), charms others (Ba), and stops negativity(Va).
The six rays turned into six babies, each looked after by one of the six maidens of the constellation of Kritikai ( Pleiades). The six babies were united into one by Goddess Parvati when she held them in her arms .So, He was called Shanmukha, the six faced one. The six faces bestow six divine attributes to the devotee: Jnana or wisdom, vairagya or detachment, Bala or strength ,kirti or fame, Sree or wealth, and Aishwarya or divine powers.
Muruga’s weapon is the spear called Vel. The Vel represents Shakti, the universal power that destroys the effects of sins and grants liberation. He is married to Devayani, daughter of Indra, and Valli, a tribal chieftain’s daughter, signifying that class does not matter. When He killed Surapadman, the demon’s body split into two. One half became a peacock , His vehicle, and the other half turned into a rooster and features on His flag. The Snake below the peacock’s feet symbolizes conquest of ego and fearlessness. The rooster heralds the dawn of wisdom with removal of the darkness of ignorance.
Muruga is the preceptor of Om, the primordial sound that is the all pervading Reality. Owing to a curse, Shiva forgot the knowledge of Om. Shiva approached his son Muruga, who in turn requested his fatherto become his disciple. Shiva placed the child Muruga on his lap, and Muruga whispered the secret divine knowledge in his father’s ears. Hence, Muruga came to be known as the Swaminatha Swami, the One who taught the Universal Teacher Shiva, revealing that age is not a constraint to disseminating knowledge. You are never too young to teach nor ever too old to learn.
Once, Arunagirinathar, a devotee, was disillusioned with life and was about to end his life by jumping of the temple tower of Thiruvannamalai. Muruga not only saved him, but also inspired him to compose the Thiruppugazh, a compilation of devotional songs, which is recognized to be a great literary achievement. The poet declares in a composition that Muruga never fails to come to the rescue of a true devotee.
Most temples dedicated to Kartikeya or Muruga—including the Malai mandir in Delhi--bear the following words of reassurance at the entrance: “ Why fear when I am there?”
Monday, October 15, 2007
This article is so lucid and helped me a lot in understanding the evolution of God concept. I have heard many great men say that 'God lies in simplicity' and your article has made such a complex subject of God so SIMPLE. Although I am too insignificant to comment yet I am forced to put in some lines out of inner instinct. The corollary between the Trinity of God and the Trinity of our democracy is just amazing -- even in Christanity I think there is a concept of Holy Trinity.
Moreover the proposition of "Dauna" causing a social revolution is so convincing. I think the first seed of greed in human being was sown with the invention of 'dauna'. The saga of insatiated greed continues till today causing so many social unrests amongst and emotional turmoil within ourselves.
Its really a compelling read. I would venture to suggest that this article must be published in leading dailies for the benefit of larger audience.
Ajay
On 10/8/07, Singhals <maharanibagh@airtelbroadband.in > wrote:
Hi,
Here is an article to generate some thinking to delve into the minds of our ancestors for creating a society which seemed appropriate and very relevent at the time . Even the present caste system degenerated along the times from a simple labour distribution. The reason being that expertise of the profession was passed on from father to son . It did not spread horizontally. Society did not visualise the long term ill effects of the arrangement which appeared simple at the time. This is a food for our thoughts . we should think ahead of our times while taking actions which may have long term effects. Case in point is reservation on the basis of castes.
I would appreciate your comments for improvement
Ancient Vedic Civilization--- Unique Example of A Functional Democracy
At the outset it is considered necessary to appreciate the distinction between 'Science','Faith / Belief',and 'Fiction'. Science establishes 'truth' by proving it and demonstrating it repeatedly. Faith / Belief intutively assumes 'truth' which can neither be proved nor demonstrated repeatedly. It may perhaps be felt by the inner self. Fiction is complete imagination devoid of basic tenets of truth.
Primitive human beings needed to live together for their very existence. Their only means of learning was by watching the behaviour of animals in their vicinity. Survival instinct brought the people together to live as a society . Individual societies thus erupted all over the world where human beings lived .
Initially there were no major problems as there were neither clothes to wear nor any personal possessions. Each day all will go and eat whatever was available and edible in the jungles. This continued till the time man developed the art of stitching the leaves together to make a receptacle ( Dauna). A social revolution had taken place. A storage device was in existence. Every one collected the edibles for future to avoid the necessity of going to jungle every day. Soon there was shortage of food and fights and quarrels became the order of the day . Thus a need arose for discipline in the society to avoid a possible extinction.
An accepted code of morality was required. Rules for morality had to be framed for individual conduct. Some one had to be put in authority for ensuring and enforcing these rules. Easiest way was to accept the strongest member as head as was prevalent in animal kingdom. Fear of punishment had to be instilled in the society. So the need for awarding punishments for delinquency emerged. Head's position was coveted by all young adults . Regular fights ensued to asume this position. The society was on the brink of disintegration. Ways and means had to be found out to avoid this .
The wise men among them felt the need of some one Supreme from outside the existing society . They had observed that among all there was fear of the Unknown , who was controling the bounties and furies of the nature. They used this vital information in creating a concept of a Supreme Being who would control every thing in this world including human beings. Then they needed to connect all the beings with the Supreme Being to justify their hypothesis to the other members of the society . Hence they wisely and cleverly thought of the concept of 'souls'( Atma ) in all nonliving and living beings on earth. They logically related these 'souls' with the highest and noblest 'Soul' - "Paramatma"- the Supreme Being with all powers at His command. This divine view was easily acceptable to all the members of the society without questioning. Supreme Being is now called by various names ,such as , God, Allah etc
Then the wise men , we now call them 'Sages' or 'Rishies",held long discussions on connecting the Paramatma with the universe and imparting Him with qualities which would be acceptable to all the persons just as a simple corollary to the basic tenet. This had to be a conscious effort for general acceptance.
Thus unwittingly and spontaneously a modern Democratic process was evolving in such ancient times. They thought that a single person be He a Supreme Being should not be assigned all the powers and authority , lest He may appear to be a Despot , a Dictator or an Autocrat . They felt that human beings would copy the Almighty some time or the other and absolute power would corrupt them with evil results. They thought of devolution of power just as democratic societies do now. A trinity was created of three semi gods. Brahma was given the responsibility of creation of universe, Vishnu for its sustenance and Mahesh / Shankar / Shiv for destroying the evil . The feature of destruction or punishment was necessary to instil fear in the minds of errants. Powers were further devolved into many more lesser gods , syuch as , Indra for controling rains, Surya for light and heat , Varun for air etc ,etc. Thus each lesser god was assigned a specific regime. They all were vested with advisory and implementing authority by the tiinity , who themselves were responsible to Paramatma for their actions.
After so many centuries modern democratic concept follows the same intutive knowledge of our old Rishies and Sages. Modern democracies have a powerful Prime Minister or President who exercises authority through his cabinet and is held in bounds by the trinity - Legislature ( Creating laws), Executive (Sustaining the society through implementation of rules and regulations ) and Judiciary ( Destruction of evil through punishment ) . This can not be brushed away by mere coincidence. Humanity owes a great deal to our wise ancestors. We pay our homage to them.
Moreover the proposition of "Dauna" causing a social revolution is so convincing. I think the first seed of greed in human being was sown with the invention of 'dauna'. The saga of insatiated greed continues till today causing so many social unrests amongst and emotional turmoil within ourselves.
Its really a compelling read. I would venture to suggest that this article must be published in leading dailies for the benefit of larger audience.
Ajay
On 10/8/07, Singhals <maharanibagh@airtelbroadband.in > wrote:
Hi,
Here is an article to generate some thinking to delve into the minds of our ancestors for creating a society which seemed appropriate and very relevent at the time . Even the present caste system degenerated along the times from a simple labour distribution. The reason being that expertise of the profession was passed on from father to son . It did not spread horizontally. Society did not visualise the long term ill effects of the arrangement which appeared simple at the time. This is a food for our thoughts . we should think ahead of our times while taking actions which may have long term effects. Case in point is reservation on the basis of castes.
I would appreciate your comments for improvement
Ancient Vedic Civilization--- Unique Example of A Functional Democracy
At the outset it is considered necessary to appreciate the distinction between 'Science','Faith / Belief',and 'Fiction'. Science establishes 'truth' by proving it and demonstrating it repeatedly. Faith / Belief intutively assumes 'truth' which can neither be proved nor demonstrated repeatedly. It may perhaps be felt by the inner self. Fiction is complete imagination devoid of basic tenets of truth.
Primitive human beings needed to live together for their very existence. Their only means of learning was by watching the behaviour of animals in their vicinity. Survival instinct brought the people together to live as a society . Individual societies thus erupted all over the world where human beings lived .
Initially there were no major problems as there were neither clothes to wear nor any personal possessions. Each day all will go and eat whatever was available and edible in the jungles. This continued till the time man developed the art of stitching the leaves together to make a receptacle ( Dauna). A social revolution had taken place. A storage device was in existence. Every one collected the edibles for future to avoid the necessity of going to jungle every day. Soon there was shortage of food and fights and quarrels became the order of the day . Thus a need arose for discipline in the society to avoid a possible extinction.
An accepted code of morality was required. Rules for morality had to be framed for individual conduct. Some one had to be put in authority for ensuring and enforcing these rules. Easiest way was to accept the strongest member as head as was prevalent in animal kingdom. Fear of punishment had to be instilled in the society. So the need for awarding punishments for delinquency emerged. Head's position was coveted by all young adults . Regular fights ensued to asume this position. The society was on the brink of disintegration. Ways and means had to be found out to avoid this .
The wise men among them felt the need of some one Supreme from outside the existing society . They had observed that among all there was fear of the Unknown , who was controling the bounties and furies of the nature. They used this vital information in creating a concept of a Supreme Being who would control every thing in this world including human beings. Then they needed to connect all the beings with the Supreme Being to justify their hypothesis to the other members of the society . Hence they wisely and cleverly thought of the concept of 'souls'( Atma ) in all nonliving and living beings on earth. They logically related these 'souls' with the highest and noblest 'Soul' - "Paramatma"- the Supreme Being with all powers at His command. This divine view was easily acceptable to all the members of the society without questioning. Supreme Being is now called by various names ,such as , God, Allah etc
Then the wise men , we now call them 'Sages' or 'Rishies",held long discussions on connecting the Paramatma with the universe and imparting Him with qualities which would be acceptable to all the persons just as a simple corollary to the basic tenet. This had to be a conscious effort for general acceptance.
Thus unwittingly and spontaneously a modern Democratic process was evolving in such ancient times. They thought that a single person be He a Supreme Being should not be assigned all the powers and authority , lest He may appear to be a Despot , a Dictator or an Autocrat . They felt that human beings would copy the Almighty some time or the other and absolute power would corrupt them with evil results. They thought of devolution of power just as democratic societies do now. A trinity was created of three semi gods. Brahma was given the responsibility of creation of universe, Vishnu for its sustenance and Mahesh / Shankar / Shiv for destroying the evil . The feature of destruction or punishment was necessary to instil fear in the minds of errants. Powers were further devolved into many more lesser gods , syuch as , Indra for controling rains, Surya for light and heat , Varun for air etc ,etc. Thus each lesser god was assigned a specific regime. They all were vested with advisory and implementing authority by the tiinity , who themselves were responsible to Paramatma for their actions.
After so many centuries modern democratic concept follows the same intutive knowledge of our old Rishies and Sages. Modern democracies have a powerful Prime Minister or President who exercises authority through his cabinet and is held in bounds by the trinity - Legislature ( Creating laws), Executive (Sustaining the society through implementation of rules and regulations ) and Judiciary ( Destruction of evil through punishment ) . This can not be brushed away by mere coincidence. Humanity owes a great deal to our wise ancestors. We pay our homage to them.
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