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Item 288 War Mongers
Puranānūru 7, Poet Karunkulal Āthanār sang to Chozhan Karikāl Peruvalathān (Karikālan),( kari kaalan)
Karikal Choza was one of the greatest Cholza kings of Sangam Age. The worst thing about the Tamils is they fought among themselves continuously for over 1500 years in Tamil Nadu. Here the poet praised Karikal Choza for setting fire to his enemy towns without considering whether it is day or night. What we hear is the crying of the people. The king plundered the towns of the enemies. This is the message of the poem. Tamils were war mongers.
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289
Karikalan was riding an elephant unlike other kings who rode on a horse. He is called Black Legged or Mr Black Foot. There was a family fighting to get the throne and there was an arson attack against him where he got these black feet. We have a similar named king in Puranas- Kalmasha pada.
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290
Vishnu is praised as having Lakshmi on his chest. Here Karikalan is considered a king where Goddess of wealth and Kingdom resides on his chest refusing to go anywhere else. This is an ancient Hindu belief. Even the kingdom is called Rajya Lakshmi. Prosperity, Wealth, Asset are called Lakshmi in Hindu literature.
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291
Name of the poet
The same poet composed another poem about Karikalan. Commentators guess that his hair was so black even when he was old and so the poet was called Karun Kuzal + Aathan. We see more names in Tamil based on one’s body parts. More poets have Eye in their names such as Big Eye, Red Eye etc.
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Important lines from Puram verse
Your chest is so broad, and Thirumakal (Lakshmi) forsakes others for it.
………………..
You do not consider whether it is day or night to plunder enemy towns, blazing them as their citizens cry loudly.
மா மறுத்த மலர் மார்பின் Lakshmi in Chest, 5 ……………….
எல்லையும் இரவும் எண்ணாய், பகைவர் ஊர் சுடு விளக்கத்து அழு விளிக் கம்பலைக் கொள்ளை மேவலை Arson attack and plundering
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292
King is greater than Sun
புறநானூறு8, பாடியவர்: கபிலர், பாடப்பட்டோன்: சேரமான் செல்வக்கடுங்கோ வாழியாதன்,
Puranānūru 8, Poet Kapilar sang for Cheraman Selva Kadunkō Vāzhiyāthan,
Kapilar is the most famous poet of Sangam age. He had the highest praise from other poets for being a Brahmin of spotless character. Moreover, he was the one who has contributed highest number of poems in Sangam tamil Literature.
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293
Here Kapilar praised Chera King by comparing him with the Sun. According to the poet Sun is defective in many ways. Sun hides behind the mountain (implying Chera King never hides). Sun shines only in the day time (Chera king is shining for ever)
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294
My Comments
Commentators never mentioned Zodiac or Uttarayana (northward march of Sun) and Dakshinayana (southward march of sun). I think Kapilar meant only this when he said மாறி வருதி – you come from various directions.
Another point that I would like to add is the Zodiac. Sun travels in circles mean he moves from one sign to another sign. He completes one circle every year by travelling through 12 zodiac signs.
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295 Sanskrit Words
Note the Sanskrit words Bogam and Mandilam in the poem
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Important lines He (Chera king) is greatly generous.
O sun which goes rapidly in circles! How can you compare yourself to Cheralathan with a murderous army that fights battles?
போகம் (Sanskrit word) வேண்டி – desiring pleasure,
கடந்து அடு தானைச் சேரலாதனை யாங்கனம் ஒத்தியோ – how are you equal to Cheralathan with murderous armies that attack .
வீங்கு செலல் மண்டிலம் (Sanskrit Word) – O sun who goes fast in circles, மலை மறைந்து ஒளித்தி – you hide behind mountains,
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296
Puranānūru 9, Poet Nettimaiyār sang for Pandiyan Palyākasālai Muthukudumi Peruvazhuthi.
Go Brahmanebhya Subhamastu Nityam Loka Samstha Sukino Bhavantu
வாழ்க அந்தணர் வானவர் ஆனினம் – திருஞான சம்பந்தர்
புறநானூறு9, பாடியவர்: நெட்டிமையார், பாடப்பட்டோன்: பாண்டியன் பல்யாகசாலை முதுகுடுமிப் பெருவழுதி,
This Pandya King was praised in Puram verse six as a great worshipper of Siva and Brahmins reciting Four Vedas. Here Nettimaiyar adds the ancient Hindu prayer that the whole world should live happily. They always mention From Brahmin to people of all castes, From cow to all living beings should live happily. All the Sanskrit dramas and all the Hindu rituals end with this prayer.
வாழ்க அந்தணர், வானவர், ஆன் இனம்!
வீழ்க, தண்புனல்! வேந்தனும் ஓங்குக!
ஆழ்க, தீயது எல்லாம்! அரன் நாமமே
சூழ்க! வையகமும் துயர் தீர்கவே!
***
புறநானூறு9, பாடியவர்: நெட்டிமையார்,
“ஆவும், ஆன் இயல் பார்ப்பன மாக்களும், பெண்டிரும், பிணியுடையீரும் பேணித் தென்புல வாழ்நர்க்கு அருங்கடன் இறுக்கும் பொன் போல் புதல்வர்ப் பெறாஅதீரும், எம் அம்பு கடி விடுதும், நும் அரண் சேர்மின்” என 5 அறத்து ஆறு நுவலும் பூட்கை மறத்தின், கொல்களிற்று மீமிசைக் கொடி விசும்பு நிழற்றும் எங்கோ வாழிய, குடுமி, தங்கோச் செந்நீர்ப் பசும்பொன் வயிரியர்க்கு ஈத்த, முந்நீர் விழவின் நெடியோன் 10 நன்னீர்ப் பஃறுளி மணலினும் பலவே!
He announces in a righteous manner, “Cows, Brahmins with the nature of cows, women, those who are sick, and those living in the southern land with no gold-like sons to perform precious last rites, take refuge! We are ready to shoot volleys of arrows!”
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297
Dharma Yuddha- Hindu Wars based on Rules
Kannaki also ordered the Fire God Agni not to burn the above category of people in Silappadikaram.
In other verses of Purananuru ,we see those who have not got sons yet should not undertake any life threatening task or ritual. So, kings always announce before starting a war that all those vulnerable people should keep away from the war zone. We see this in Mahabharata as well. After sun set both the fighting parties even treated injured people.
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298 Kumari Kanda
This poet lived in the age when ancient South Madurai existed. Later the sea devoured a big area in a Tsunami catastrophe including Then Madurai. Here we get important geographic details about Pahruli River that ran in ancient Kumari Region and the Nediyon Hills.
We also get some details about Indra Festival (Ocean Festival). Silappadikaram and Manimekalai, two Tamil epics, give us full details of Indra Festival.
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our king Kudumi, live for long, more days than the number of sands on the banks of Pakruli River with fine water, where his ancestor Nediyōn celebrated ocean festivals, and gave musicians fresh, reddish gold gifts!
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299 Sand Simile
Hindu poets who composed poems in Tamil and Sanskrit wished long life to the kings. They always used infinity years by saying king should live more years than the sand particles on the banks or the number of stars in the sky.
Now we know that the universe has billion, billion stars. No one can even imagine the number of sand particles on any riverbank or sea shore. How clever our poets were!
***
300 முந்நீர் Three Waters= Sea
Tamils were great observers of nature. In Tamil only we have a strange name for sea or ocean Three Waters.
Two commentators give two different interpretations.
Sea is composed of River water, Rain water and Spring water and so it is Three Waters.
Another interpretation is that Sea does three tasks Creation, Protection and Destruction like Brahma, Vishnu and Siva.
Both are very scientific. We know how land came from sea and how they would be destroyed in Tsunami at the end.
Spring water: Now only scientists have discovered deep sea hot springs. Probably our ancestors knew this as well.
Imporatnt Lines in Tamil
முந்நீர்– தமிழகம் கிழக்கு தெற்கு மேற்கு ஆகிய மூன்று திசையானும் நீர்வளைவுண்டது. முந்நீர் என்னும் தமிழ்க்கிளவி இம்முப்புறக் கடலமைப்பைச் சுட்டுவது – வ. சுப. மாணிக்கனாரின் ‘தமிழ்க்காதல்’ நூல், ஆற்று நீரும், ஊற்று நீரும் மழை நீரும் உடைமையான் முந்நீர் – ஒளவை துரைசாமி புறநானூறு 9 உரை, நிலத்தைப் படைத்தலும் காத்தலும் அழித்தலுமாகிய நீர் – நச்சினார்க்கினியர் மதுரைக்காஞ்சி 75
Meanings: ஆவும் – and cows, ஆன் இயல் பார்ப்பன மாக்களும் – and Brahmins who have the nature of cows, பெண்டிரும் – and women, பிணி உடையீரும் – and those of you with diseases, பேணி – protecting, தென்புல வாழ்நர்க்கு – to those who live in the south, அருங்கடன் இறுக்கும் – performing final rites, பொன் போல் புதல்வர்ப் பெறாஅதீரும் – and those of you who have not given birth to gold-like sons (பெறாஅதீரும் – அளபெடை), எம் அம்பு கடி விடுதும் – we are going to shoot our arrows நெடியோன் – your ancestor Nediyōn, நன்னீர்ப் பஃறுளி மணலினும் பலவே – many more days than the number of sands on the banks of Pahruli river with good water (பலவே – ஏகாரம் அசைநிலை, an expletive)
To be continued…………….
Tags- Purananuru Wonders 5- Ancient Tamil Encyclopaedia Part 45 , Karikalan, Mudukudumi, Three Waters, war mongers, Arson attack, Kapilar
Pictures are taken from various sources for spreading knowledge.
this is a non- commercial blog. Thanks for your great pictures.
tamilandvedas.com, swamiindology.blogspot.com
xxxx
Ancient Tamil Encyclopaedia 44; One Thousand Interesting Facts -Part 44
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Item 278
புறநானூறு4, பாடியவர்: பரணர், பாடப்பட்டோன்: சோழன் உருவப்பஃறேர் இளஞ்சேட் சென்னி,
In Purananuru verse 4 composed by Paranar, we see a metaphor describing the king in the battlefield.
Blood stained sword of the Choza king- red sky;
Anklets- horns of the bull;
Shield with the holes- targets ;
Horses with red mouth- tiger that killed a deer;
Elephants- Yama, God of death;
The king riding a chariot- sun rising in the blue sea.
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279
தாயில் தூவாக் குழவி போல ஓவாது கூஉம், நின் உடற்றியோர் நாடே
There is a beautiful simile as well.
The countries conquered by you are wailing, crying like a motherless child.
Poet Paranar is famous for his similes and metaphors.
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280
Very interesting story about fox headed poet
புறநானூறு5, பாடியவர்: நரிவெரூஉத்தலையார், பாடப்பட்டோன்: சேரமான் கருவூரேறிய ஒள்வாட் கோப்பெருஞ்சேரல்
There are two interpretations. 1.He is from a town named Nariverūuthalai which is not correct.
2.He has a disgusting head like a fox which was cured by the king.
Here also there are two interpretations.
As soon as he saw the king, his head disease was cured by a MIRACLE. And he got normal face with normal head.
In those days kings were considered Gods. People believed that just kings could do miracles. Even Tiruvalluvar talks about such miracles. If the king rules justly, the fields will yield tremendous harvest without any effort, he said.
Second interpretation is the king helped him to get proper medical treatment.
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281
காவல் குழவி கொள்பவரின் ஓம்புமதி,
He is also using a simile about children.
I have to tell you something! Protect your country like you would guard an infant.
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Full of Hindu Puranic Details!
Puranānūru 6, Poet KāriKizhār sang to Pandiyan Palyākasālai Muthukudumi Peruvazhuthi
282
From Himalayas to Kanyakumari
Poet Kaarikizaar gives us very important details:
Eka Bharat- One India. From North to South and from East to West, One India.
Still there are some ignorant people in India who has been writing that British rule united India. But Hindu scriptures have been writing Aa Setu Himachala—From Dhanushkoti to Himalayas—
புறநானூறு6, பாடியவர்: காரிகிழார், பாடப்பட்டோன்: பாண்டியன் பல்யாகசாலை முதுகுடுமிப் பெருவழுதி
Pandya King Mudykudumi Peruvazuthi bows his head only on two occasions. When he is going around the Shiva Temple and when Brahmins bless him reciting the Four Vedas.
முனிவர் முக்கண் செல்வர் நகர் வலஞ் செயற்கே, இறைஞ்சுக பெரும நின் சென்னி! சிறந்த நான்மறை முனிவர் ஏந்து கை எதிரே
The word Shiva never occurs in Tamil until very late period like sixth century CE. But the poets used Blue throated, Three Eyed/Trayambaka god to mention Lord Siva. Here three eyed god is used.
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284
Throughout Sanskrit literature particularly, Kalidasa works, we see the kings are compared to Pancha Bhutas/five elements, Dik Palakas/Eight Vedic Gods of Eight Directions and Sun and Moon. Even in Purushasukta of Rig Veda tenth Mandala we see Sun and Moon are associated with the all-pervading God.
Here the poet compared the king with sun and moon. தண்கதிர் மதியம் போலவும், தெறு சுடர் ஒண்கதிர் ஞாயிறு போலவும், மன்னிய பெரும, நீ நிலமிசையானே!
Comparison with Kalidasa
Raghuvamsa – 1-29;2-75; 3-27; 4-11, 12; 6-31, 32.
In 4-11,12 and 6-31,32 we see Moon and Sun comparison to kings in Kaldasa.
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285 Go Loka
It looks like the poet was thorough with Hindu scriptures
He mentioned Yama;
He mentioned Go Loka (World of Cows)
He mentioned also the Sea Dug by Sagaras; that is why ocean is called Saagaram in Sanskrit
முப்புணர் அடுக்கிய Three Layers Bhur Bhuva Suvaha ; தொன்று முதிர் பௌவத்தின் குடக்கும் Ancient ocean; ஆனிலை உலகத்தானும் Go LOka –, தெரிகோல் ஞமன் போல Yama with Balance to weigh the Papa and Punya
*** 286
Sanskrit words used by the poet
Nagar- Temple
Gnaman -Yama
Yaagasaalaa – Firepit Sacrifice Shed
Ulakam – lokam
Desam- theyam
Muni- munivar
(Naan marai – four vedas)
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287
Dharma, Artha Kama, Moksha
Four Hindu values are mentioned in Tolkappiam and Tirukkural; in fact Kural is named (Muppaal in Tamil) Dharma, Artha, Kama in the same order.
Here the commentators add one more interesting interpretation. Poet Karikizar mentioned Mokha by mention the King Circumambulating temple, mentioned Dharma by the mention of Bowing to Brahmins in Yaga sala, Kama by referring to Let your anger disappear when you see family women, and Artha by mentioning conquering enemy lands.
To be continued…………
Tags- Purananuru Wonders 4, Go loka, Hindu Values, Yaga Sala, bowing to Brahmins, Going round temple, Ancient Tamil Encyclopaedia 44, One Thousand Interesting Facts -Part 44
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சிவபெருமானுடைய வடிவங்களில் வேறு சில மூர்த்திகளையும் காண்போம் :லிங்கோத்பவர் ஏகபாத மூர்த்தி , ஊர்த்வ தாண்டவர், கால சம்ஹார மூர்த்தி
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LINGODBHAVA
Lingodbhava is a familiar figure of Siva on the west wall of the central shrine of Siva temples in tamil Nadu. As his name implies, he is represented within a huge linga, the portion of the feet below the ankles being hidden in the linga. Brahma in the form of a swan is seen soaring up on the left side of Siva; while on the right side, Vishnu is delving below into the depths of the earth in the form of a boar.
The swan and the boar are in some pictures found to be half man and half animal.
On the east main gopura/ tower of the Chidambaram temple is an image of Lingodbhava surrounded by flames of fire.
Also these gods, i.e. Brahma and Vishnu stand on either side of Siva with folded hands.
The figure emanating from the middle of the linga has four hands and hold in its back arms the axe and the antelope and in the front hands, the Abhaya and Varada postures.
In Thanjavur inscriptions Lingodbhava is mentioned by the name Lingapuranadeva.
Story of Lingodbhava
A dispute arose between Brahma and Vishnu as to who is the greater of the two. Siva told them that whoever first saw the top or the bottom of his own fiery linga form and came back to report, he would be considered greater. Brahma soared on his swan to see the top of the Siva linga, while as a boar Vishnu dug down and down to see its bottom. Ages passed away and neither came to his goal.
At last Brahma saw one ketaki flower coming down; it had fallen from Siva’s head ages ago. Brahma suborned it to give false evidence and then came back and uttered a lie that he had seen the top of the linga, citing the ketaki flower as its witness. Sive knew the lie and cursed Brahma that he should thenceforward go without any worship in temples. Brahma had five heads at that time. Sive cut off the head that uttered a lie. The flower ketaki too, which abetted the crime, was excluded from the flowers dear to Siva.
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EKAPADAMURTI
Images called Ekapadamurti or Ekapada Trimurti show gods Brahma and Vishnu , with folded hands and characteristic symbols, are represented as proceeding out of the body of Siva at his waist as in the Tiruvotriyur sculpture or from behind his knee as in the image of Tiruvanaikkaval; they are either developments of Lingodbhava wherein the superiority of Siva over the two other members of the Hindu triad was established or an invention of the Hindu sculptor.
The Karanagama (kaarana aagama) mentions Ekapadamurti as one of the sportive forms of Siva and describes him as having one foot, three eyes and four arms in which are seen the tanka and deer and the Varada and Abhaya postures..
On the right and left sides of Siva, almost touching his shoulders, are Brahma and Vishnu holding their symbolical weapons in two hands and worshipping Siva with the other two.
The single foot, which is the characteristic feature of these figures , is in the case of Tiruvanaikkaval image , placed on the back of the bull. in it are also seen the vehicle of bBahma, the swan, at the right bottom and at the corresponding left bottom , the standing Garuda vehicle of Vishnu and a sage, perhaps Narada.
Apparently Ekapadamurti has to be connected with Aja Ekapad, a name given in the Rig Veda to one of the Ekadasa Rudras
Tamil version follows
To be continued……………………..
Tags- Hinduism through 500 Pictures in Tamil and English-33; படங்கள் மூலம் இந்து மதம் கற்போம்-33, Lingodbhava, Ekapadamurti
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xxxx
Item 260
Taittirīya Upaniṣad describes the five “sheaths” of a person (Sanskrit: puruṣa), starting with the grossest level of the five evolving great elements:
From this very self did aether come into being; from aether, air; from air, fire; from fire, water, from water, the earth; from the earth, organisms; from organisms, foods; and from foods, people. Different from and lying within this people formed from the essence of foods is the self consisting of lifebreath. Different from and lying within this self consisting of breath is the self consisting of mind. Different from and lying within this self consisting of mind is the self consisting of perception. Different from and lying within this self consisting of perception is the self consisting of bliss.[4]
In the Śvetāśvatara Upaniṣad, the deities is identified as the source of the great elements:
Some wise people say it is inherent nature, while others say it is time – all totally deluded. It is rather the greatness of deities present in the world by means of which this wheel of brahman goes around. Whom always encompass this whole world – the knowers, the architects of time, the ones with and without qualities, and the all-knowing ones – it is at their commands that the work of creation, to be conceived of as earth, water, fire, air, and aether, unfolds itself.[5]
The same Upanishad also mentions, “When earth, water, fire, air and aether arise, when the five attributes of the elements, mentioned in the books on yoga, become manifest then the yogi’s body becomes purified by the fire of yoga and they are free from illness, old age and death.” (Verse 2.12).
(from Wikipedia)
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Tamil Sangam Book Purananuru Wonders- 2
Ancient Tamil Encyclopaedia -42; One Thousand Interesting Facts -Part 42
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261
Purananuru verse two is very important from many angles. First and foremost is the science matter about five elements is from the Taittriya Upanishad. All the main Upanishads are written before Buddha (600 BCE). The same order of Five Elements is in modern science as well. First there was empty space (ether) a Big Bang (sound) happened billions of years ago. Then came the fire and water. Lastly the earth appeared and from water the living beings appeared. This order is seen in the Dasavatara stories as well.
262
Second important points is, Who is this Murinjiyur Mudi Nagarayar ?
His name is Mr Nagarajan. But if you give importance to Mudi (Crown or Hair), then it is Lord Siva who has a snake/Naga on his head. This was copied by Egyptian Pharaohs from the Hindus.
263
Third important point is NagaRAYar. We see the J is tamilized as Y. I have been arguing throughout my writings J was used only by Vedic Hindus. If one finds the migratory route of this letter J, one can easily find how Hindus spread their language throughout the earth. No ancient language has this J sound .
Another point is Western Scholars(??!!) have been arguing that letters J and Y were written in the same way and thus we get Yesu as Jesus, Yudha as Jew etc. I have shown this is absurd and here in the second verse also we see J becoming Y. This is Sanskrit grammar.
265
One more important point is look at the expressions
Three Fire of Brahmins
Four Vedas of Brahmins
Kanchana Srnga Himalaya (now they write it Kanchanjunga)= PorKottu imayam in Tamil.
Five Elements and Five Virtues
Each of the five elements has one power. That is compared with the powers of king which is also seen Sanskrit literature before Sangam literature.
266
Last but not the least The Big Controversy!
Here commentators wrongly suggested the Five and the Hundred mentioned in the verse refers to 5 Pancha Pandavas and Kauravas (100). And the lines say that the Chera king supplied food for both. Even scholars who don’t believe Kaliyuga date of 3102 BCE wrote that the Mahabharata war must have fought around 1500 BCE. This Chera king wont fit into that time frames.
According to historical scholars we need at least five kings for every century. For 1500 years in BCE period, we need at least 75 Chera Kings or at least Tamil kings. We don’t have any such thing in Sangam literature.
The word PERUNCHORU misinterpreted
The verse says that the Chera king gave both the Fives and the Hundreds (Pandavas and Kauravas) PERUNCHORU. Literal translation of this word is Big Cooked Rice (food).
267
The Hindu tradition is that if someone dies, they offer the Pitrs/ departed souls RICE BALLS on the death anniversary. This is called Perunchoru and Pindam in Sanskrit. I am not interpreting it out of my imagination. The same word PERUNCHORU occurs in (புறநானூற்றில் பெருஞ்சோறு 220, 235, 261) Puram 220,235,261 all these are elegy poem. Morever the Purapporul Venbamalai used the word Pindam which is food served in funeral rites.
Chera/Kerala King Uthiyan Cheralathan was praised as one “who provided BIG food” for the Pandavas and Kauravas (lot of people took it for actual feeding. But the word Big Food (Perunchoru பெருஞ்சோறு in Tamil) means big feast given in memory of the dead.
268
More Pancha Bhuta references:
Pari. 3-4; 3-66; 3-77. Pari.13-18; 24-15
Mathur. -line 453; Puram-2- 1; 20-1; 51-1;55-15
Pathitr- 14-1; Kurun.3-1.
Tol -305; Murukku. Line 254
The strange coincidence is, all the poets use the Pancha Bhuta matter in the very beginning of the poems.
Post Sangam book – Tiruk Kural 271
269
Earliest Anthathi
The first 5 lines gives us the first sample of Anthaathi genre (last word of the previous line should be the first word of the next line in Antham + Aathi. Both Sanskrit words!)
270
Kalidasa Echo
The poet is well versed in Kalidasa who lived in Second Century BCE. In his first ten verses of Kumarasambhava Kalidasa described the beautiful Golden Peaked Himalaya. And in the first ten verses of Raghuvansa described the glory of Raghu dynasty where he says they rule extended up to oceans.
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மண் திணிந்த நிலனும்,
நிலம் ஏந்திய விசும்பும்,
விசும்பு தைவரு வளியும்
வளித் தலைஇய தீயும்,
தீ முரணிய நீரும், என்றாங்கு
ஐம்பெரும் பூதத்து இயற்கை போலப்
போற்றார்ப் பொறுத்தலும், சூழ்ச்சியது அகலமும்
வலியும், தெறலும், அணியும், உடையோய்!
நின்கடற் பிறந்த ஞாயிறு பெயர்த்தும்நின்
வெண்தலைப் புணரிக் குடகடல் குளிக்கும்
யாணர் வைப்பின், நன்னாட்டுப் பொருந!
வான வரம்பனை! நீயோ, பெரும!
அலங்குளைப் புரவி ஐவரோடு சினைஇ,
நிலந்தலைக் கொண்ட பொலம்பூந் தும்பை
ஈரைம்பதின் மரும்பொருது, களத்து ஒழியப்
பெருஞ்சோற்று மிகுபதம் வரையாது கொடுத்தோய்!
பாஅல் புளிப்பினும், பகல்இருளினும்,
நாஅல் வேதநெறி திரியினும்
திரியாச் சுற்றமொடு முழுதுசேண் விளங்கி,
நடுக்கின்றி நிலியரோ வத்தை; அடுக்கத்துச்,
சிறுதலை நவ்விப் பெருங்கண் மாப்பிணை,
அந்தி அந்தணர் அருங்கடன் இறுக்கும்
முத்தீ விளக்கிற், றுஞ்சும்
பொற்கோட்டு இமயமும், பொதியமும், போன்றே!
****
Note Five Bhutas, For Vedas, Three Fires !
(Following is taken from Vaidehi Herberts translation)
Puranānūru 2, Poet Muranjiyur Mudinākanār sang to Cheraman Perunchōtru Uthiyan
Cheralathan
Your nature is like the five elements – the earth filled with sand,
the sky raised above the earth, wind that blows in the sky, fire that
sweeps up the wind, and water that differs from that fire.
You tolerate your enemies and your deliberation is broad. You are
strong, destructive and merciful. The sun rises from your ocean
and descends into your ocean in the west with waves topped with white surf.
………, or the four Vedas swerve from
………………
May you never be shaken like Mount Pothiyam, like the Himalayas with its
golden summits, where long-eyed does sleep on the slopes near their fawns
with tiny heads, at dusk, in the light of three fires lit by the Brahmins
who perform difficult rituals!
–Subham—
Tags- Tamil Sangam Book Purananuru Wonders- 2, Ancient Tamil Encyclopaedia -42; One Thousand Interesting Facts -Part 42, Upanishad, Kalidasa
Sanskrit returns to Pakistan’s varsity, first time since Partition
Need to consider languages as bridges, not barriers, say profs
article_Author
Seema Sachdeva
Tribune News Service
Chandigarh, Updated At : 07:14 AM Dec 11, 2025 IST
The teaching of Sanskrit has quietly returned to classrooms in the Islamic Republic of Pakistan for the first time since Partition, with the Lahore University of Management Sciences (LUMS) introducing a course in the classical language. What began as a three-month weekend workshop gradually evolved into a full four-credit university course after the overwhelming response it received.
Sanskrit returns to Pakistan’s varsity, first time since Partition
Need to consider languages as bridges, not barriers, say profs
The teaching of Sanskrit has quietly returned to classrooms in the Islamic Republic of Pakistan for the first time since Partition, with the Lahore University of Management Sciences (LUMS) introducing a course in the classical language. What began as a three-month weekend workshop gradually evolved into a full four-credit university course after the overwhelming response it received.
Dr Ali Usman Qasmi, Director of the Gurmani Centre, told The Tribune that Pakistan houses one of the richest but least-studied Sanskrit archives at the Punjab University library. “A significant collection of Sanskrit palm-leaf manuscripts were catalogued in the 1930s by scholar JCR Woolner, but no Pakistani academic has engaged with this collection since 1947. Only foreign researchers use it. Training scholars locally will change that,” he says.
The LUMS also plans to offer courses on the Mahabharata and the Bhagavad Gita. “Hopefully, this sets a momentum,” says Dr Qasmi. “In 10-15 years, we could see Pakistan-based scholars of the Gita and the Mahabharata.”
Dr Qasmi said initially, a weekend programme was offered that was open to everyone–students, researchers, lawyers and academics. “After we saw the response, we decided to introduce it as a proper university course. Even though the number of students is still small, we hope it will grow over the next few years. Ideally, by spring 2027, we should be able to teach the language as a year-long course.”
At the heart of the initiative is Dr Shahid Rasheed, Associate Professor of sociology at Forman Christian College, whose interest in Sanskrit began long before the LUMS approached him. “Classical languages contain much wisdom for mankind. I started with learning Arabic and Persian, and then studied Sanskrit,” he told The Tribune. With no local teachers or textbooks, he turned to online platforms, studying under Cambridge Sanskrit scholar Antonia Ruppel and Australian Indologist McComas Taylor. “It took almost a year to cover classical Sanskrit grammar. And I’m still studying it.”
After Dr Qasmi reached out, Dr Rasheed took a sabbatical from FC College to teach the course at the LUMS. “I mainly teach grammar. When I was teaching ‘subhashitas’, the wisdom verses or shlokas, many of my students were fascinated to discover that so many Urdu words come from Sanskrit. Many didn’t even know that Sanskrit was different from Hindi. In the first week, they found it a challenging language. But once they grasped the logical structure, they started enjoying it. The pleasure of solving something difficult is immense,” he says.
“Modern languages derive from classical traditions. There is just a veil that separates them–once you cross it, you realise they are all our own,” adds Dr Rasheed.
Dr Qasmi explains that the initiative also aligns with the university’s broader language ecosystem, which includes Sindhi, Pashto, Punjabi, Baluchi, Arabic and Persian. “We understand the importance of connecting with this incredible tradition, which is part of the Pakistani-Indian global heritage. So much of our literature, poetry, art and philosophy go back to the Vedic age. Many historians believe that the Vedas were written in this region. It then becomes even more important to read the classical texts in their original language.”
Despite the political sensitivities involved, both scholars believe the intellectual climate is shifting. Dr Rasheed often encounters curiosity about his own study of the language. “People ask me why I’m learning Sanskrit. I tell them, why should we not learn it? It is the binding language of the entire region. Sanskrit grammarian Panini’s village was in this region. Much writing was done here during the Indus Valley Civilisation. Sanskrit is like a mountain–a cultural monument. We need to own it. It is ours too; it’s not tied to any one particular religion.”
“If we want people to come closer, then it’s essential to understand and absorb our rich classical traditions. Imagine if more Hindus and Sikhs in India started learning Arabic, and more Muslims in Pakistan took up Sanskrit, it could be a fresh, hopeful start for South Asia, where languages become bridges instead of barriers,” concludes Dr Rasheed.
Who is Vedamurti Devavrat Mahesh Rekhe? 19-Year-Old Vedic Scholar whom PM Modi praised for…
Vedamurti Devavrat Mahesh Rekhe, a 19-year-old Vedic scholar from Varanasi, has successfully completed the Dandakrama Parayanam, a challenging recitation of 2000 mantras in Shukla Yajurveda in 50 days without interruption. PM Modi praised him for his remarkable achievement.
Indian culture is as deep as its thousands of years old history with ancient vedas, puranas and other scriptures detailing the many ways of life. A young Indian man has drawn from one of the most sacred Sanskrit text, Shukla Yajurveda, to achieve a remarkable feat even Prime Minister Narendra Modi praised him for.
Indian culture is as deep as its thousands of years old history with ancient vedas, puranas and other scriptures detailing the many ways of life. A young Indian man has drawn from one of the most sacred Sanskrit text, Shukla Yajurveda, to achieve a remarkable feat even Prime Minister Narendra Modi praised him for.
Vedamurti Devavrat Mahesh Rekhe, a 19-year-old Vedic scholar from Varanasi, has successfully completed the Dandakrama Parayanam, one of the most challenging recitations from Shukla Yajurveda, also known as the Vajasaneyi Samhita and one of the two main branches of the Yajurveda, one of the four Vedas. Rekhe is garnering immense praise countrywide for his rare achievement while it marks a historic moment for followers of Vedic tradition.
The young scholar shares the deep devotion to vedic tradition with his father and guru, Vedabrahmasri Mahesh Chandrakant Rekhe who is one of the top Vedic authorities and the chief examiner of the Shukla Yajurveda Madhyandina branch. The young prodigy went through years of tough training. The father-son duo, with their efforts and contribution is bringing the ancient Hindu tradition back to life as only a handful of masters have dedicated their life in living the ideals of Vedas.
Rekhe has completed the Dandakrama Parayanam, a recitation consisting of 2000 mantras of the Shukla Yajurveda’s Madhyandini branch, in 50 days without a pause. The recitation includes various Vedic verses and sacred words which he recited flawlessly with complete discipline.
How has PM Modi praised him?
Sharing his overwhelming emotions for the act on X, PM Modi said, “What 19 year old Vedamurti Devavrat Mahesh Rekhe has done will be remembered by the coming generations! Every person passionate about Indian culture is proud of him for completing the Dandakrama Parayanam, consisting of 2000 mantras of the Shukla Yajurveda’s Madhyandini branch, in 50 days without any interruption. This includes several Vedic verses and sacred words recited flawlessly. He embodies the finest of our Guru Parampara.”
Pictures are taken from various sources for spreading knowledge.
this is a non- commercial blog. Thanks for your great pictures.
tamilandvedas.com, swamiindology.blogspot.com
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சுவாமி சித்பவானந்தா
சித்பவானந்த சுவாமிகள் மதுரைக்கு அருகிலுள்ள திருவேடகத்திலும் திருச்சிக்கு அருகிலுள்ள திருப்பராய்த்துறை யிலும் ஆஸ்ரமம் , கல்லூரி, பள்ளிக்கூடம் வைத்து இந்து மதத்தைப் பரப்பிய பெரியார் . இவரது பகவத் கீதை பேருரையும் திருவாசகப் பேருரையும் அனைவரும் படித்துப் பொக்கிஷம் போல் காப்பாற்ற வேண்டியவை; 186 புத்தகங்களையும், சிறுவர்களுக்காக பல நாட கங்களையும் கதைகளையும் எழுதினார். மாதந்தோறும் அந்தர்யோகம் நிகழ்ச்சியை நடத்தி பக்தி யோகத்தைப் பரப்பினார். திருப்பராய்த்துறையில் ஸ்ரீ ராமகிருஷ்ண தபோவனம் ஆசிரமத்தின் நிறுவனர் ஆவார்.
Swami Chidbhavananda (11 March 1898 – 16 November 1985)
Swami Chidbhavananda (11 March 1898 – 16 November 1985) was born in Senguttaipalayam near Pollachi.. His guru was Swami Shivananda who was a direct disciple of Ramakrishna Paramahamsa; he established Sri Ramakrishna Tapovanam in Tiruparaithurai, near Tiruchi He has authored more than 130 books in Tamil and English. Now under Sri Ramakrishna Tapovanam around 56 schools and colleges are running in TamilNadu. Swamiji delivered more than 70,000 talks on religious harmony, Hinduism. His commentary on Bhagavad Gita is his masterpiece.
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கம்போடியா
தென் கிழக்கு ஆசியாவிலுள்ள இந்த நாட்டின் பெயர் காம்போஜம். கம்பு என்ற இந்திய மகரிஷியின் பெயரிலிருந்து வந்த பெயர் இது. சுமார் ஆயிரம் ஆண்டுகளுக்கு இந்து மற்றும் புத்த மத மன்னர்களின் ஆட்சியில் இருந்தது ஆயிரம் ஆண்டுகளுக்கு முன்னர் கட்டப்பட்ட அங்கோர்வாட் ஆலயம் உலகப் புகழ் பெற்றது இது முதலில் விஷ்ணுவுக்கு அமைக்கப்பட்டது; அதை பெளத்தர்கள் ஆக்ரமித்து புத்தமத சின்னங்களை எழுப்பினர் . உலகின் மிகப்பெரிய கோவிலான அங்கோர் வாட் அந்த நாட்டின் தேசீயக் கொடியிலும் இடம்பெற்றுள்ளது.
Cambodia- Country’s name derives from the Sanskrit name कम्बोजदेश Kambojadeśa, referring to the descendants of Kambu (a legendary Indian sage from the ancient Indian kingdom of Kamboja). World famous The Khmer Empire was Southeast Asia’s largest empire during the 12th century. The empire’s centre of power was Angkor.
Angkor Wat is a Hindu-Buddhist complex in Cambodia. Located on a site measuring 162.6 hectares within the ancient Khmer capital city of Angkor, it was originally constructed in 1150 CE as a Hindu temple dedicated to the deity Vishnu. It was later gradually transformed into a Buddhist temple towards the end of the century. Hailed as the largest religious structure in the world, it is a symbol of Cambodia, depicted in Cambodian national flag.
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சம்பா தேசம்
வியட்நாமின் பழைய பெயர் சம்பா தேசம்; தென் கிழக்கு ஆசியாவில் மிகப்பழைய ஸம்ஸ்க்ருத்க் கல்வெட்டு இங்குதான் கிடைத்தது; அதில் ஸ்ரீ மாறன் என்ற பெயர் இருப்பதால் அது தமிழ்நாட்டு பாண்டிய மன்னன் திருமாறனின் பெயராக இருக்கலாம் ; காலம் இரண்டாம் நூற்றாண்டு ; அதாவது தமிழ்ச் சங்க காலம்.
Champa– It is the old name of Vietnam. Lo of Hindu temples and Sanskrit inscriptions are in Vietnam. Sri Maran’s second century inscription is an important one.
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சதுர்முகன்
பிரம்மாவின் பெயர்; தமிழில் நான்முகன்; நான்கு தலைகளை உடையவன் என்பது பொருள்
Chaturmukha
One of the names of Brahma, creator. Literally Four Faced. It means Brahma’s Four heads.
***
சண்டிகேஸ்வரர் –
சண்டிகேசுவரர் சைவ சமயத்தின் பஞ்ச மூர்த்திகளில் ஒருவராகவும், சிவபெருமானுக்கு படைக்கப்படும் உணவு மற்றும் உடைகளின் அதிபதியாகவும் இருக்கிறார். இவருடைய சந்நிதி சிவாலயங்களில் சிவபெருமானின் கருவறை அமைந்திருக்கும் பகுதியின் இடப்பாகத்தில் அமைக்கப்படுகிறது. பஞ்ச மூர்த்தி உலாவின் பொழுது சிவாலயங்களிலிருந்து இவருடைய உற்வசர் சிலையும் ஊர்வலமாக எடுத்துவரப்படுகிறது. பஞ்ச மூர்த்தி உலாவில் இறுதியாக இவர் வலம் வருகிறார்.சிவாலயத்திலிருந்து எந்தவொரு பொருளையும் தாங்கள் வீட்டுக்கு எடுத்துச் செல்லவில்லை என்பதைத் தெரிவிக்கவே, இறுதியாக அவர் சந்நிதிக்கு வந்து இரு கைகளையும் தட்டிவிட்டு வணங்கும் வழக்கம் வந்ததாகக் கூறுவர்.
Sandesa Nayanar
Chandikeswra is one of the pancha murtis. His shrine is at the left side of lord Shiva’s main shrine. He is in charge of all the Siva’s treasures. And Shiva devotees believe that no one should take any one from a Shiva’s shrine because it will destroy the family; so, devotees before leaving Shiva’s shrine by showing their empty hands by clapping. Some people believe that the clapping is don to register their presence in the temple. This post is offered to any sincere , exemplary devotee.
Chandesa
Anugraha murti. In Saivite temples of tamil nadu one can see lord shiva decorating his devotee with a flower garland. Lord is decorating the devotee’s locks with it. Chadesa sits on the ground at the foot of siva, with bending knees and folded arms., and receives the divine favour with gratitude. Above the demi gods gather round to see the kindness of shiva shown towards his devotee-
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சண்டேச நாயனார்
பெரிய புராணத்தில் போற்றப்படும் 63 நாயன்மார்களில் ஒருவர். இயற் பெயர் விசார சர்மர்.; மணலினால் சிவலிங்கம் செய்து பசும்பாலை அபிஷேகம் செய்ததை தந்தை கண்டிக்கவே யார் என்று தெரியாமல் குச்சியை வீசவே அது அவரது தந்தை யக்ஞ தத்தனின் காலைத் துண்டித்தது இருவருக்கும் இறைவன் வீடு பேற்றினை நல்கினார் சிவன் கோவில்களில் சண்டேச நாயனாருக்கு சண்டிகேஸ்வரர் பதவியைத் தாரும் காட்சியை சித்திரமாகவும் சிற்பமாகவும் வைத்துள்ளார்கள்.
Chandeswara Nayanar-
Vichara sarman was one of the 63 Nayanmars who were ardent Shiva devotees. When he made a Shiva Linga with sand and did Milk Abisheka, some people complained to his father Yajna Datta. He came and kicked him and the milk pot thinking that he was wasting milk. Without seeing who it was Vichara sarman threw the stick at his father that cut him and he fell down. Lord Shiva appeared and praised his devotion and offered him the post of Chandikeswar.
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சண்டி தாஸ்
இவர் பெரிய மகான்;14 ஆம் நூற்றாண்டில் வங்காளத்தில் வாழ்ந்தார்; ராதா, கிருஷ்ணன் மீது அவர் பாடிய பாடல்கள் மிகவும் பிரபலம் ஆயின. அவற்றை சைதன்யரும் பாடினார் ;அவர் மேல் அதிக செல்வாக்கு ஏற்படுத்தியவர் இந்த சாது மகான் தான். சிறு வயதில் படிப்பில் கவனம் செலுத்தாததால் தந்தையால் தண்டிக்கப்பட்டார் பின்னர் காளி தேவியின் அருள் பெற்று கவிதை பாடத் துவங்கினார் ராமி என்ற வண்ணாத்தியின் அழகில் மயங்கி முதல் கவிதையைப் புனைந்தார்; பின்னர் அதுவே ஆன்மீகக் காதலாக மலர்ந்து ராதாவின் மீதும் கண்ணன் மீதும் கவிதைகளை இயற்றினார் .ஆஸ்தானப் புலவர் வித்யாபதி இவரைக் காண நீண்ட தூரம் நடந்து வந்தார். ஜாதி இன வேறுபாடுகளை அகற்றி பக்தியைப் பரப்பினார்.
Chandidas
One of the greatest Vaishnava poets of Bengal was Chandidas. He lived sometime before Vaishnava reformer Chaitanya. Chandidas was the eldest son of a Brahmin who was the priest at the shrine of Basholi in the village called Nannur. He hated formal education and was punished by his father
Chandidas with a heavy heart went to the Basholi Devi’s temple near the Ajay river and sat there alone brooding. Just as he was pondering there was no point in living, the Goddess spoke to him and blessed him to become a great poet.
On his way back home Chandidas met Tara more popularly known as Ramitara or only just Rami., a washerman’s daughter. To him Rami was the source of inspiration and strength. To him Rami was the embodiment of Radha of Brindaban which inspired him to describe the divine love of Radha and Krishna through his poems. He was the inspiration for Chaitanya Mahaprabhu.
Even the court poet Vidyapati hearing of Chandidas, travelled all the way on foot to meet him.
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சொக்கன் ,சொக்கநாதன்
சுந்தரேஸ்வரன் என்பதன் தமிழ் மொழிபெயர்ப்பு; மதுரைக் கோவிலில் உறையும் சிவபெருமானை சொக்கா, சொக்கநாதா என்றும் அழைப்பார்கள் .
Chokkan
Shiva’s name in Tamil. Lord Shiva of Madurai Temple is called Sundareswar, the handsome one. And it is translated as Chokkan in Tamil.
***
கவரி / சாமரம்/ சவுரி
ஆங்கிலத்தில் செளரி என்று உச்சகரிக்கப்டும் இதனுடைய சரியான பெயர் கவரி. ஆண்டவன் அல்லது மன்னர்களின் இரு புறமும் நின்று சேவகர்கள் கவரி வீசுவர் மேலும் இருவர் இரு புறத்திலும் நின்று விசிறி வீசுவார்கள் . கவரி மானின் முடியால் செய்யாப்பட்ட இது வெண்மை நிறத்தில் இருக்கும் . அஷ்ட மங்கலங்களில் ஒன்று.
Chowry- Correct word is Kavari. It is the fly whisk made up of the hair (tail) of a kind of deer. It is one of the Ashtamangalam, that is Eight Auspicious Symbols. It is a royal as well as a divine thing. On either side of God’s idol or in the olden days, either side of kings, servants were used this like a fan. Even now temples use this.
***
சத்திரம்
யாத்திரை செல்லுவோருக்காக மன்னர்களும் தர்ம சிந்தனையாளரும் அமைத்த தங்கும் விடுதிகள் ஆகும். அண்மைக்காலம் வரை எல்லா புனிதத் தலங்களிலும் அல்லது வழிப்போக்கர்கள் செல்லும் முக்கிய சாலைகளிலும் இந்த விடுதிகள் இருந்தன. மதுரையில் உள்ள ராணி மங்கம்மாள் சத்திரம் புகழ் பெற்றது சில இடங்களில் தங்கும் வசதியுடன் உணவும் வழங்கப்பட்டது இப்பொழுது காசு வாங்கி தங்க வைக்கும் ஹோட்டல்கள், லாட்ஜுகள் போன்றவை இவை.
Choultry-
Travellers Inns, rest houses similar to modern lodges and hotels. But in the olden days, kings and philanthropists established these Chaththiram/Choultries for pilgrims along the way to famous holy shrines. Pilgrims were given free food and shelter. Mangammaal Chaththiram and Marwaadi Chaththiram are famous ones in Madurai.
****
சின்மயானந்தர்
கேரளத்தில் எர்ணாகுளத்தில் பால கிருஷ்ண மேனன் என்ற பெயருடன் (May 8, 1916) பிறந்த சுவாமிஜி பத்திரிகையாளராகத் தன் வாழ்க்கையைத் துவங்கினார். பின்னர் சுதந்திர போராட்டத்தில் பங்குகொண்டார். அரசியல் மீது வெறுப்பு உண்டாகவே ரிஷிகேசுக்குச் சென்று சுவாமி சிவானத்தாரின் கீழ் ஆன்மீக பயிற்சியில் முன்னேறி சன்யாசம் பெற்று சின்மயானந்தர்
என்ற நாமகரணம் சூட்டப்பட்டார் . அத்வைத வேதாந்தத்தை பரப்புவதற்கு 576 ஞான வேள்விகளை நடத்தினார்; பகவத் கீதையை முக்கிய நூலாகக்கொண்டு பிரசாரம் செய்தார். இத்தற்காக சின்மயா மிஷனை 1953-ஆம் ஆண்டு நிறுவினார் உலகெங்கிலும் பயணம் செய்து கிளைகளை நிறுவினார் 1993-ஆம் ஆண்டு (August 3, 1993) மஹா சமாதி எய்தினார்.
Swami Chinmayananda Saraswati
Swami Chinmayananda Saraswati, born Balakrishna Menon on May 8, 1916, in Ernakulam, Kerala, was one of the most influential spiritual leaders of modern India. He dedicated his life to reviving and spreading the timeless wisdom of Advaita Vedanta, making it accessible to people from all walks of life.
Balakrishna Menon started his life as a journalist and actively participated in India’s independence movement but grew disillusioned with political ideologies. His quest for deeper truths led him to Rishikesh, where he met Swami Sivananda Saraswati and took sannyasa (renunciation), adopting the name Swami Chinmayananda Saraswati. He later studied Vedanta intensively under Swami Tapovan Maharaj in Uttarkashi, living an austere life dedicated to the scriptures. In 1953, Swami Chinmayananda founded the Chinmaya Mission conducted over 576 jnana yajnas across the globe and authored numerous books on Vedanta. Swamiji attained Maha Samadhi on August 3, 1993.
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சோழ மன்னர்கள்
சைவத்திற்குப் பெரும் தொண்டாற்றிவர்கள் சோழ மன்னர்கள் ;காவிரி நதியின் இருபுறங்களிலும் எண்ணற்ற கோவில்களைக்க கட்டியுள்ளார்கள். ராஜராஜ சோழன் எழுப்பிய தஞ்சைப் பெரியகோவில் இதில் மிகவும் சிறப்பானது; ஆனால் அதற்கு முன்பாகவே பல சோழ மன்னர்கள் கோவில்களைக் கட்டி இருக்கிறார்கள்.
Chozas/Colas
Dynasty that ruled Tamil Nadu for several centuries. The Choza dynaasy kings were ardent supporters of Saivism. Under them hundreds of temples were built on either side of the Kaveri River (Cauvery). The most famous temple called Big Temple or Brihadeeswar temple in Thanjavur was built by Raja Raja Choza.
***
சரித்திரம்/ வரலாறு
வாழ்க்கைச் சரித்திரம் – பெரியோர் வாழ்க்கைக்குறிப்பு
Charithram – History
Life History- Biography
—Subham—-
Tags- HINDU DICTIONARY IN ENGLISH AND TAMIL 20, இந்துமத கலைச்சொல் அகராதி 20 ,சரித்திரம், Chandidas , Chinmayananda, Chidbhavananda,
As Hinduphobia peaks in the US, Christian and Islamist groups push new campaign against Hindus: How NY State Council of Churches and IAMC have joined forces to target Hindus
OPINDIA POST
A Christian nationalist church group and the Islamist outfit IAMC have teamed up to host anti-Hindu seminars in the US, accusing Hindus of “weaponizing” their faith even as attacks on the community rise. Hindu groups have slammed the events as an organised effort to vilify Hindu Americans and mainstream Hinduphobia. This collaboration comes amid IAMC’s long record of anti-Hindu propaganda in the US.
Amidst surging Hinduphobia in the United States, a Christian nationalist outfit and the Islamist group, the Indian American Muslim Council (IAMC), have joined forces to further vilify the Indian American Hindus and their faith. The New York State Council of Churches (NYCOC), through its Religious Nationalisms Project (TRNP), has announced a series of interfaith seminars from 20th to 23rd November, in North Carolina’s Bay Area.
The events titled “The Weaponization of Hinduism in Northern Carolina and India and the Relationships to Global Religious Nationalisms” are being co-organised by the Islamist group IAMC. The additional sponsorship for these anti-Hindu events comes from the White Christian Nationalisms Task Force of the California-Nevada Conference of the United Methodist Church.
As per the promotional material of the scheduled events, the seminars will be held at several locations, including the United Methodist churches in Roseville, Alameda, and Santa Rosa; First Church Berkeley (United Church of Christ). One of the seminars will also be held at a Sikh Gurudwara Sahib in San Jose.
This series of seminars will be on the theme of Religious Nationalisms, with “a special focus on Hindutva as a central case study.” The events will have three presenters: The Reverend Peter Cook, The Reverend Neal Christie, and The Right Reverend Joshua Lickter.
American Hindu rights groups call out Christian-Muslim collaboration to peddle Hinduphobia
The collaboration of a church-linked Christian outfit and a rabid anti-Hindu Islamist IAMC has sparked outrage among American Hindus.
The Hindu American Foundation (HAF) criticised the anti-Hindu tour and highlighted that it comes at a time when hatred against Hindus is increasing in the US. The HAF also questioned the city authorities why such an event is being allowed in California and why public funding is involved in such an anti-Hindu propaganda event.
“A New York based Christian church group joining the Indian American Muslim Council on a “tour” in spewing provocative lies against Hindus when anti-Hindu hate is at its zenith is absolutely unacceptable. Why does your office fund this @GovKathyHochul? Is this ok in California @CAgovernor?” the HAF wrote on X.
Suhag Shukla, the Executive Director of the HAF, said, “The New York State Council of Churches is joining a Muslim group to tour California—not to promote solidarity & peace—but to target peaceful Hindu Californians. This isn’t interfaith solidarity, this is an ambush. @GovKathyHochul, your NY Office of Faith-Based and Community Initiatives is funding NYCOC when anti-Hindu hate is peaking. How is this ok?”
IAMC and its anti-Hindu/anti-India activities and past Hinduphobic collaboration with the New York State Council of Churches
The Indian American Muslim Council (IAMC) is a Washington-based Islamist outfit which has been involved in anti-India activities and pushing an anti-Hindu agenda for many years. In 2021, IAMC, along with the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), campaigned to designate India as a “Country of Particular Concern”.
During the India-Pakistan conflict in May this year, when the Indian Armed Forces eliminated Islamic terrorists and their infrastructure deep inside Pakistan, the IAMC and CAIR condemned India’s Operation Sindoor.
The Indian American Muslim Council is reported to have links with the banned Islamic terror outfit, Students’ Islamic Movement of India (SIMI). Besides, the Indian American Muslim Council has ties with Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) and Jamaat-e-Islami (JeI) through its founder, Shaik Ubaid. The IAMC is a Jamat-e-Islami-backed lobbyist organisation claiming to be a rights advocacy group. The IAMC has also been involved in promoting antisemitism.
The IAMC has also formed the Hindus for Human Rights (HfHR) group, which is an open anti-Hindu and anti-India organisation based in the US.
Not to forget, in 2021, ‘Hindus for Human Rights’ also endorsed the anti-Hindu event ‘Dismantling Global Hindutva’ conference. It also came up with a “special toolkit” to propagate against Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi during his State visit to the US in June 2023.
In June 2023, Congress scion Rahul Gandhi was seen sitting alongside Sunita Vishwanath during an event hosted by the Hudson Institute. In October 2023, the X account of HfHR was withheld in India in response to a legal demand.
In the past, the IAMC had reportedly collaborated with and even paid money to various groups in the USA to get India blacklisted by the USCIRF (United States Commission on International Religious Freedom). IAMC had been caught spreading fake news and misinformation to further the Islamist cause in India. It had also been slapped with the UAPA in 2021. The IAMC often publishes dubious reports and propaganda materials slandering American Hindus and Hindus in India, under the pretext of countering ‘Hindu nationalism’.
From seminars to surveys, reports to speeches, the IAMC has long been vilifying the American Hindus and their faith. In September 2024, IAMC conducted a ‘survey’ [pdf] with the ulterior motive to brand the religious minority group as ‘racist’, ‘intolerant’ and ‘Islamophobic.’ OpIndia reported how the IAMC survey passed off vague and subjective opinions from its respondents as absolute truth.
Unsurprisingly, the upcoming ‘Weaponization of Hinduism’ seminars are not the first anti-Hindu collaboration of the NYCOC and the IAMC. In August 2024, the Federation of Indian Associations NY-NJ-CT-NE decided to include a Ram Janmabhoomi Temple float in the India Day Parade to mark the 78th Independence Day of India. This, however, did not go well with the IAMC and the New York State Council of Churches, who, along with other Islamists, pro-Khalistan and other anti-Hindu groups, wrote a letter to the New York Governor Kathy Hochul and then Mayor Eric Adams, peddling lies to oppose the inclusion of the Ram Mandir float in the parade.
These organisations have claimed that VHPA, an offshoot of Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) “has been designated as a militant religious organisation by the Central Intelligence Agency’s World Factbook”. However, OpIndia reported back then that while it is true that VHP and Bajrang Dal were designated as “militant religious organisations” on 4th June 2018, the names were effectively removed from the list by 25th June 2018. It was a mistake to call these two organisations “militant”, and the CIA itself had rectified it in less than a month.
In June 2025, the NYSCOC and TRNP joined the IAMC in issuing a statement slandering an event hosting several Hindu activists in Dallas. These anti-Hindu groups linked Hindutva with violence and religious hatred. They also hurled sweeping allegations about religious freedom and tolerance in India, insinuating that somehow Christians and Muslims are under threat in the Hindu-majority country.
Amidst rising racism against Hindus and Indians in America, anti-Hindu elements attempting to ride the wave and further their nefarious designs
From the 1907 anti-Indian mob violence in Washington, the 1910 Detroit Times “Hindoos (Hindus) Continue to Flock to the US” article referring to Hindus as ‘Oriental scum’, the discriminatory Johnson-Reed Act of 1924, the Dot Busters group in 1980s which targeted Hindus Americans based on their religious and racial identity and assaulted them, to the individual cases of religiously-motivated hate crimes against Hindus post 2001, attempts at revisingCalifornia’s K-12 history-social science curriculum to include stereotypical representation of Hindus and Hinduism in textbooks, Hindus in the US, have faced hatred, discrimination and violence.
Earlier, these Hinduphobic attitudes found manifestation in anti-Asian racism and labelling of Hindus as ‘caste-ridden savages’ and ‘heathens’, and attacks. It manifests today in temple desecrations, school bullying, media propaganda and online hatred. A 2022 Network Contagion Research Institute report documented a 1,000% increase in anti-Hindu slurs online, blending white supremacist “replacement” fears with Islamist narratives accusing Hindus of “genocide” in India.
History of the National Song, how it was called ‘anti-Muslim’ and given a communal colour, and how Congress found it ‘not suitable as national anthem’
Posted from OP India on 7-11-2025
Muslims argue that since the Vande Mataram song was an ode to Mother India, singing it is against the “tenets of Islam” and a “sacrilege against Allah” because a Muslim can bow to only Allah and no one else.
7th November 2025 marks the 150th anniversary of India’s National Song ‘Vande Mataram’. Today, Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the year-long commemoration of the iconic song at the Indira Gandhi Indoor Stadium in the national capital.
150 years ago, Bankimchandra Chatterji, also known as Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay, wrote the Vande Mataram song on the auspicious occasion of Akshay Navami, which was on 7th November 1875. Appearing first in the literary journal “Bangdarshan” as a part of Chatterji’s iconic novel Anandamath in 1882, the song invoked the motherland as a shining embodiment of strength, unity, prosperity and divinity. The song became synonymous with devotion to Bharat.
Chatterji’s composition transcended its literary origins and became a rallying cry for freedom fighters and nothing short of a national anthem during the independence struggle. Decades later, Vande Mataram became the national song of India, connecting Indians of independent Indian with those who fought and won freedom from the British colonial rule.
In the year 1896, Gurudev Rabindranath Tagore sang the poem for the first time at the Kolkata session of the Indian National Congress. It was officially adopted as the national song by the Constituent Assembly of India on 24th January 1950. At that event, Dr Rajendra Prasad had declared that Vande Mataram should be honoured equally with the national anthem, Jana Gana Mana.
Set against the backdrop of the Bengal famine of 1770, which claimed 10 million lives, the novel Anandamath portrays a dystopian Bengal ravaged by exploitation, starvation, deaths and oppressive foreign rule.
Vande Mataram is a lyrical ode to the motherland. It personifies India as a divine feminine figure akin to Goddess Durga. Rabindranath Tagore performed the song for the first time in front of an audience in 1896 during a meeting of the Indian National Congress.
Vande Mataram and the Fakir-Sanyasi Rebellion
At the heart of Anandamath and Vande Mataram lies the Sanyasi-Fakir Rebellion of the 18th century. The rebellion was a gritty precursor to the intensified resistance against British colonial rule.
Spanning 1763-1800, the Sanyasi-Fakir Rebellion united Hindu Sanyasis and Sufi fakirs or Derveshis in guerrilla warfare against the East India Company and its puppet Nawabs in Bihar and Bengal. The rebellions torched British outposts, raided Company treasuries, and disrupted revenue collection over the British bans on pilgrim taxes, tolls and grants by Zamindars. Earlier, when Zamindars were affluent, they used to give grants to ascetics; however, since the East India Company seized the Diwani or tax collection rights, demands for tax from zamindars increased. Resultantly, the zamindars were neither able to pay taxes to the Company nor give grants to Sanyasis and Fakirs.
Back in 1771, over 150 Hindu Sanyasis were killed for no apparent reason, triggering an uproar and violence in Natore (now in modern-day Bangladesh). The Britishers deemed the Sanyasis as plunderers and wanted to stop them from collecting money from zamindars or headmen en route to shrines. Many sects of Hindu ascetics, including the Dasanami Naga Sadhus, participated in this rebellion.
Drawing heavily from the history, Bankim Chandra fictionalised the Sannyasis as secret warrior-monks in Anandamath, the abbey of bliss or sacred abbey. These warrior-monks rise against a famine-stricken Bengal struck by the dual tyrannies, British mercantilism led by Governor Warren Hastings and the misrule of Nawab Mir Qasim. The rebels chanted Vande Mataram as their rallying cry, and the song went on to become the paean of Indian resistance against British colonial rule.
Vande Mataram given a communal colour due to its critique of the Bengal Nawab’s misrule, which led to famine
Anandamath was founded during the Bengal agrarian crisis, when the region was struck by three successive famines in the early 1770s, against the backdrop of the Fakir-Sannyasi Rebellion. However, interestingly, the novel blamed the agonising conditions on the ruler Nawab Mir Qasim and charged that the state’s downfall was caused by his tacit consent to the East India Company.
In Anandamath, Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay unflinchingly depicts the Muslim Nawab of Bengal, modelled on Mir Qasim, as an absolutely corrupt tyrant whose policies exacerbated the famine in 1770. While the scenes of Nawab’s soldiers looting granaries and oppressing peasants, while the East India Company pulled the strings from afar, the novel fuelled allegations by the Muslims that it vilified Muslims as oppressors.
This, however, was far from the truth. The Bengali Muslim elite at that time, installed by the Mughal tyrants and subsequently co-opted by the British, were indeed complicit in the oppression of common people.
Muslims had a special objection to the invocation of Maa Durga and Hindu temple imagery in the Vande Mataram song, arguing that it was idolatrous and against Islamic monotheism.
“The East India Company was then calling the shots from behind the facade of a puppet Muslim Nawab. It was rack-renting peasant surplus to augment revenues from which the Company extracted a massive tribute. The drive was so relentless that three successive droughts produced a famine of catastrophic proportions in 1770. Much of the land returned to waste and approximately one-third of the population starved to death,” noted historian Tanika Sarkar in “Birth of a Goddess: Vande Mataram, Anandamath and Hindu Nationhood.”
The account, according to her, held “the Nawab responsible not just for widespread death and starvation, but also for a deliberate and total destruction of Hindus, of their honour, faith, caste and women. In other words, it forces a split between the agents and victims of the famine: the agents are Muslims and the starving and dying people are always identified as Hindus.”
All India Muslim League to Mohammed Ali Jinnah, Vande Mataram got characterised as an ‘anti-Muslim’ song
First sung by Rabindranath Tagore in 1896, Vande Mataram evolved into a battle cry during the 1905 partition of Bengal and quickly advanced to become a strongly evocative representation of the freedom movement. However, the Muslim leadership at that time failed to see and embrace the nationalistic song beyond their narrow fundamentalist mindset. They argued that since the Vande Mataram song was an ode to Mother India, singing of Vande Mataram is against the “tenets of Islam” and a “sacrilege against Allah” because a Muslim can bow to only Allah and no one else.
Sadly, this Islamist viewpoint remains prevalent even in contemporary India, as many Muslim maulvis and Islamists in general refuse to sing Vande Mataram.
Many of the Muslim leaders in British-ruled India, who labelled Vande Mataram as some sort of ‘anti-Muslim’ or ‘Hindu nationalist’ song, ended up being the proponents of the separatist agenda that culminated in the creation of Pakistan. These Islamists not only derided Vande Mataram as idolatrous and anti-Muslim but also argued that the deification of the motherland amounts to ‘shirk’.
All India Muslim League President Syed Ali Imam while speaking at the organisation’s second session in December 1908, declared, “I cannot say what you think, but when I find the most advanced province of India put forward the sectarian cry of ‘Bande Mataram’ as the national cry, and the sectarian Rakhi-Bandhan as a national observance, my heart is filled with despair and disappointment; and the suspicion that, under the cloak of nationalism, Hindu nationalism is preached in India becomes a conviction.”
Three decades later, Mohammed Ali Jinnah, who partitioned the country on Islamic lines, echoed similar views in an article dated 1st March, 1938, published in The New Times of Lahore:
“Muslims all over India have refused to accept Vande Mataram or any expurgated edition of the anti-Muslim song as a binding national anthem.”
Muslim League members walked out and Jinnah used the episode for his divisive agenda and to rally Muslim support for the same.
Notably, the main offence over the full Vande Mataram song stemmed from the lyrics “त्वंहिदुर्गादशप्रहरणधारिणीकमलाकमलदलविहारिणीवाणीविद्यादायिनी, नमामित्वाम्नमामिकमलांअमलांअतुलांसुजलांसुफलांमातरम् (Thou art Durga, Lady and Queen, With her hands that strike and her swords of sheen, Thou art Lakshmi lotus-throned, And the Muse a hundred-toned, Pure and perfect without peer, Mother lend thine ear, Rich with thy hurrying streams, Bright with thy orchard gleams, Dark of hue O candid-fair In thy soul, with jewelled hair And thy glorious smile divine, Loveliest of all earthly lands, Showering wealth from well-stored hands! Mother, mother mine! Mother sweet, I bow to thee, Mother great and free.)
Jawaharlal Nehru truncated Vande Mataram to placate Jinnah and other Islamists
The Congress party’s ‘placate the Muslims at the cost of Hindus’ policy is not a post-independence phenomenon. Rather, the INC began to cede Hindu interests one at a time to appease Muslims, even in the pre-independence era. Since the Muslim community was offended by the Vande Mataram song due to its later stanzas mentioning Maa Durga, the Congress, instead of countering the Islamists by emphasising Bharat’s Hindu cultural and traditional foundation, chose to genuflect before the Islamist intransigence.
In consequence of Congress’s abject surrender, the Vande Mataram song was mutilated, and four stanzas were dropped out of six to satisfy those who, just years after, betrayed the nation.
It would not be wrong to say that, besides the support of Islamists, Mohammed Ali Jinnah’s biggest strength was Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi. M.K. Gandhi’s suicidal empathy for Jinnah and the ‘Muslim cause’ and undeserved attention helped Jinnah stay relevant and influential.
In 1937, Gandhi, apparently wary of alienating his Muslim ‘allies’, advocated that only the first two stanzas, which do not mention overt Hindu religious imagery, be sung. Thus, in the Faizpur Congress Session in that year, only the first two stanzas of Vande Mataram were sung. Prime Minister Narendra Modi also highlighted this fact in his speech on Friday.
To understand how submissively the Congress leadership acquiesced to appease Jinnah and other Islamists, one needs to go through the correspondence and addresses of India’s first prime minister, Jawaharlal Nehru.
In a letter to Urdu poet Ali Sardar Jafri, Nehru stated that the song Vande Mataram is unrelated to the Congress and is “not suitable as a national anthem.”
“The Congress has not officially adopted any song as a kind of national anthem. In practice however the Bande Mataram is often used in national gatherings together with other songs. The reason for this is that 30 years ago this song and this cry became a criminal offence and developed into a challenge to British imperialism,” Nehru wrote.
Although Nehru acknowledged the popularity and significance of the Vande Mataram song in uniting Indians against the British, he further tried hard to reinforce Congress party’s secular credentials and wrote, “I do not think anybody considers the words to have anything to do with a goddess. That interpretation is absurd. Nor are we concerned with the idea that the author of the book, which contains this song, had in his mind when he wrote it, because the public does not think on these lines.”
In his pursuit of distancing Congress from ‘Hindu nationalism’, Nehru went on to write, “It contains too many difficult words which people do not understand and the ideas it contains are also out of keeping with modem notions of nationalism and progress. We should certainly try to have more suitable national songs in simple language.”
Similarly, in his letter to Subhash Chandra Bose dated 20th October 1937, Nehru said that the Vande Mataram song was meant to “irritate the Muslims.”
“I have managed to get an English translation of Ananda Math and I am reading it at present to get the back- ground of the song. It does seem that this background is likely to irritate the Muslims…There is no doubt that the present outcry against Bande Mataram is to a large extent a manufactured one by the communalists. At the same time there does seem some substance in it and people who are communalistically inclined have been affected by it. Whatever we do cannot be to pander to communalists’ feelings but to meet real grievances where they exist,” Nehru wrote.
Similarly, in his letter to Subhash Chandra Bose dated 20th October 1937, Nehru said that the Vande Mataram song was meant to “irritate the Muslims.”
“I have managed to get an English translation of Ananda Math and I am reading it at present to get the back- ground of the song. It does seem that this background is likely to irritate the Muslims…There is no doubt that the present outcry against Bande Mataram is to a large extent a manufactured one by the communalists. At the same time there does seem some substance in it and people who are communalistically inclined have been affected by it. Whatever we do cannot be to pander to communalists’ feelings but to meet real grievances where they exist,” Nehru wrote.
Gandhi and Nehru’s arbitrary truncation of Vande Mataram to appease Muslims reminds of another similar doing of MK Gandhi. The corruption of the Hindu bhajan ‘Raghupati Raghav Raja Ram’ to secularise it and include ‘Allah’.
Although Gandhi is credited with popularising this hymn by using it during his famous Dandi March in 1930, the lyrics were taken from Shri Nama Ramayanan, an old religious text penned by Sri Lakshmanacharya, and modified by Gandhi.
While Gnadhi inserted “Ishwar Allah tero naam, sabko sammati de Bhagwan”, the original lyrics made no mention of Allah. Raghupati raghava rajaram, patita paavana sitaram, Sundara vigraha meghashyam, Ganga tulasi shaligram. Bhadra girishwara sitaram, Bhagat janapriya sitaram. Janaki ramana sitaram, Jaya jaya raghava sitaram.
Be it the truncation of Vande Mataram or bastardisation of Raghupati Raghava Raja Ram song, these episodes showed unmatched alacrity in stripping Hinduness of a song evoking nationalist fervour and distorting a Hindu religious song to address the reservations held by Muslims showed that just like in the post-independence Congress era, even in pre-independence times, it was always the responsibility of the Hindu majority to accommodate the demands of the Muslim minority while expecting nothing but betrayal in return.
Neither Gandhi nor Nehru nor the Congress party ever denounced the verses in the Holy Quran that call idol-worshipping a shirk/sin and ordain capital punishment for idolatry. Gandhi embraced the Khilafat Movement, which eventually gave strength to Muslims in Malabar and resulted in the Hindu genocide, also known as the Moplah riots of 1921. Gandhi embraced Jinnah, who eventually declared Direct Action Day, resulting in the killings and rape of thousands of Hindus, Sikhs and other non-Muslim communities.
History tells us that a Hindu departure from its religious roots has only pushed Muslims towards their religious extremist foundation. The more secular the Hindu leadership becomes by ceding its religious ground, the further Islamists expand their tentacles.
Vande Mataram: India’s National Song that does not get celebrated by all Indians
On 24th January 1950, Vande Mataram was adopted as independent India’s national song by the constituent assembly based on a proposal by President Rajendra Prasad. While the song is sung in school assemblies, Independence Day events, and patriotic programs, the portions truncated by Congress back in 1937 remain comparatively lesser known and sung. Such is the impact of Congress’s surrender.
Even today, the Muslim bodies in Jammu and Kashmir, including Mutahida Majlis-e-Ulema (MMU) and Anjuman-e-Ahl-e-Hadith, have come out in opposition against a government directive asking schools across Jammu and Kashmir to commemorate the 150th Vande Mataram anniversary.
These Muslim bodies have given the same old excuse of infringement upon Muslim religious freedom and “against our religious beliefs”. They have also called an order to commemorate Vande Mataram, as “a deliberate attempt to impose an RSS-driven Hindutva ideology on a Muslim-majority region under the guise of cultural celebration.”
Islamists in general, too, have been opposed to singing Vande Mataram or raising Bharat Mata ki Jai slogans, calling it against their religious tenets. As the nation commemorates the sesquicentennial of Vande Mataram, India must remember the historical communalisation and derision of the song by Islamists and take measures not to repeat the sinful mistake Congress leadership made back then. Accommodating the unreasonable demands of Islamists does not bolster secularism or ensure peace; it rather amounts to tightening the noose around one’s own neck.
Shraddha Pandey is a Senior Sub-Editor at OpIndia, where she has been sharpening her edge on truth and narrative. With three years in experience in journalism, she is passionate about Hindu rights, Indian politics, geopolitics and India’s rise. When not dissecting and debunking propaganda, books, movies, music and cricket interest her. Email: shraddha@opindia.com
Pictures are taken from various sources for spreading knowledge.
this is a non- commercial blog. Thanks for your great pictures.
tamilandvedas.com, swamiindology.blogspot.com
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Part 22
Snake Goddess Manasa Devi (manasaa)
Manasā (मनसा).—Name of a daughter of Kaśyapa, sister of the serpent king, Ananta, wife of the sage जरत्कारु (jaratkāru) and mother of the sage अस्तिक (astika); so मनसादेवी (manasādevī).
Indus Valley Seal of Sarpa Rajni (Rig Veda Poetess name in Tenth Mandala Hymn 189)
Snake Goddess is worshipped during Vedic time and in Harappan Civilization. She is also seen in Egypt, Greece and in the Middle East.
Manasa Devi is worshipped mainly in Bengal and adjacent states of Bihar and Assam. She is another form of Parvati, wife of Shiva.
Manasa is greatly revered in Bengal , where she is believed to ward off poisonous snakes. She is the daughter of Kasyapa and Kadru and sister of Ananta or Vasuki according to local legends. Lord Vishnu lies on the snake bed in the middle of milky ocean, and he is said to rest between cosmic emanations.
Manasa stands upon or is shaded by a seven headed snake. Her symbols or attributes are snake and water jar.
She is the wife of Jarat kaaru . she is also called Jagad gauri, Nityaa (eternal) and Visha -haraa. Visha haraa means one who has the special power of counter acting the venom of serpents.
Snake worship originated in India. All the words for snakes in ancient languages are derived from Sanskrit and Tamil (Naga-S/Nake, Sarpa- Serpent), Oviyar- Ophis, Uraga, Pannaga). All Hindu Gods and Goddesses have snakes as their ornaments. Egypt followed Hindus and we see snakes over the heads of Pharaohs. Snake and Garuda are seen with Vaishnavite Naamam symbol in Wedget/Udget .
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Stories of Manasa Devi are told in different ways in Bengal. The gist of the stories is one gentle man ignored Manasa Devi worship and he lost his children due to snake bites. Ultimately they were saved through the worship of Mansa.
From Rig Veda, Indus Valley to Sabarimalai in Kerala, we see snake worship.
The greatest wonder is Brahmins worship snakes with reverence in daily oblation Sandhyavandana with a mantra beginning with Narmadaayai Namah….
(Mandhata’s son Purukutsa married Devi Narmada and the latter was the sister of Nagaas of Rasatala. Nagaas were afraid of Gandharvas as some six crore Gandharvas resided in Rasatala tormenting Nagaas by hunting their ‘Ratnas’(jewels) from their hoods. The Nagaas prayed to Bhagavan Vishnu and the latter assured that the son of Mandhata viz. Purukutsa would destroy all the Gandharvas at the instance of Narmada Devi. As professed, Purukutsa eradicated Gandharvas and the Nagaas gave a boon to Narmada that whosoever bathed in the River or even recited the following would be safe from ‘sarpa-visha’ or the poison of serpents; the relevant Shloka or stanza to be recited states:
(Devi Narmada! My salutations to you in the day or night, do safeguard me from the fear of Serpents and their poisonous bites!) The full mantra includes the names of great seers Jarat kaaru, Aastika and the King Janamejaya)
The Harappan seal with a goddess surrounded by snakes on either side shows Snake Goddess was worshipped from 2000 BCE or before that, because Nagaraani is in the Vedas as well.
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Story of Manasa Devi (from old article)
Chand was a merchant who did not believe in the Goddess Manasa devi. As a result, he lost all his sons due to snake bites. But yet he was very obstinate and never paid reverence to the Goddess. He got one more son who was the apple of his eyes. He was still obstinate in not worshipping Manasa and Manasa Devi was also relentless and she bit his son on his wedding day in spite of his precautions. His newlywed wife Vehula did not allow his body to be cremated. She was fasting till her body became a skeleton but never stopped her prayers to Manasa. She begged to Manasa for the restoration of his husband’s life. At last Manasa relented and gave his life back.
It is the belief of many that a person supposed to be dead by a snake bite, really lives in a state of suspended animation for a long time after.
Bengalese plant a milky white plant (Euphorbia Lingularum) on these days on a raised mound of earth in the courtyards of their houses and worship Goddess Manasa Devi. They worship her to get immunity from snake bites or avoiding bitten by snakes. If anyone has died due to snake bite in the family all of them join in worship and they pour milk in the ant hills where snakes live.
Hindus, by not killing the snakes, the vital animal in the food production chain, increase the production of food grains. The snakes keep even frogs and toads in control which freely enters every home during rainy season.
Villagers don’t fear snakes even when it enters a house; they simply trap it in a box or pot and release it in the field. They know the value of it.
Manasa Devi
The serpent worship is universal. There is no ancient culture without a serpent God. Whether it is Egyptian or Mayan, Indus or Vedic, Minoan or Babylonian we see serpents with Gods and Goddesses. But Hindus are the only race in the world who maintains this culture until today. We have Naga panchami celebrations celebrated throughout India where live snakes are worshipped. Hindus respect Nature and Environment and use the natural resources to the minimum.
Snake Goddesses such as Manasa Devi and Naga Yakshi are worshipped in India. The Vedas has an authoress named as Serpent Queen. She was one of the 27 women poets of Rig Veda and her poem is in the Tenth Mandala (10-189). Her name is SARPA RAJNI (Serpent Queen)
We have two more references to this lady in Taitriya and Aitareya Brahmanas. Sarpa Vidya (science of snakes) is mentioned in Satapatha and Gopatha Brahmanas. (see Vedic Index of name and subjects by authors AB Keith and AA Macdonell, page 438 for more details).
Aligi is the name of a kind of snake in the Atharva Veda (V-13-7) and Viligi, another snake, is also mentioned in the same hymn. Earlier scholars like AA Macdonell and AB Keith mentioned them as snakes in their Vedic Index Volumes. Bala Gangadhara Tilak did lot of research and told us that these were from the Akkadian languages. He dated the Vedas to 6000 BC. Modern research by scholars Dr Bhagawatsharan Upadhyaya and Dr Naval Viyogi showed that they were not snakes, but kings of Assyria- Aligi (Alalu) and Viligi (balalu) of 3000 BC.
Garuda with Vaishnavite Naamam on head.(left); Snake/Naaga (on left); Eye in the middle . Egyptian Symbol Wedjet
Atharva Veda in Sumeria 3000 BC
Taimata is twice mentioned in Atharva Veda (V-13-66; V-18-4) as a species of snake according to Whitney and Bloomsfield. Once again, the old Vedic translations are wrong. Actually Taimata is nothing but Tiamat found in Babylonian literature as a Goddess. May be it is the corrupted form of Sanskrit DEVA MATA (Goddess).
More research shows many Sanskrit words in Sumerian and Babylonian literature such as Berorus (Vara Ruci), Ottaretas (Urdhwaretas), Mesopotamian god Dumuzi/Tammuz/Sammata (fish God). They are pure Sanskrit words. One and the same god was called in different names by different cultures at different times and that too in corrupted forms. When we read Sumerian names we have to remove prefixes Nan, Nin,Sin. They are equal to Sri, Sow etc. Future research will prove that they have migrated from India in the remotest time.
Naga Yakshi worshipped in all the Ayyappan temples including Sabarimalai and other goddess temples found in the Middle Eastern countries around 3000BC. We see them in Indus valley and the Vedas as well.
My conclusion can be summarized as follows:
1. Vedic translations of Aligi, Viligi and Taimata are wrong and they were all really people, may be people with snake totem (Nagas). 2. Since Atharva Veda mentions Kings who lived around 3000 BC, it must be dated around that period. Rig Veda is (linguistically) older than Atharva Veda. 3. We see snake gods or goddesses in all ancient cultures. In India, we see it from Vedic days. They are worshiped until today proving that Indian culture is the oldest living culture. 4. Last but not the least; such continuity is possible only when this worship originated in India. So we can safely conclude that Hindus went to different parts of the world taking their culture. Like we lost the whole of South East Asia after 1300 year Hindu rule, we lost the Middle East long before that.
Tamil Version follows…………..
To be continued……………………………..
Tags- Hinduism through 500 Pictures in Tamil and English; படங்கள் மூலம் இந்து மதம் கற்போம்- Part 22 , Snake Goddess, Manasa devi, Alii, Viligi, Harappan, Rig Veda, Atharva Veda, Tiamath
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