hinduism today, may, 1997
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Hinduism Today, May, 1997TRANSCRIPT
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Affirming Sanatana Dharma and Recording the Modern History of a Billion-Strong Global Religion in Renaissance
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HINDUISM To,,",y was founded January 5, 1979. by Salguru Sillllya Subramuniyaswami to strengtben all Hlndu lineages. Published by Himalayan Academy, 107 Kaholalele Road. Kapaa, Hawaii 96746·9304 USA. Editorial Office Ph: 1·808-822-7032. Subscriptions: 1·808-822-3J52 or 1-8OQ.89().1008. Advertising: 1·808-823-9620 or 1·80(). 850-1008. All·department falC 1·808-822-4351. USA subseripUons: "S35Il year, 86512 years, 89513 years, $5OOIlifetime. Foreign rates on request. Q 1997 Himalayan Academy. All rights reserved. JSSN# 0896-080L
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COVER: An elderly Orissqn woman still works in the fields to feed family, including a great-granddaughter. She's lucky. Many seniors in shunted aside, forced into impersonal old-age homes and forgotten. Seelr):)ag,es
·MAY, 1997
INTERNATIONAL Human Rights: Can Canes Correct Kids? 17 Cover Story: Old Questions:
Aging Matters in Modern India 22 Math-a-Magician: Manjul Bhargava
Chalks Up the Morgan Prize 28 Economics: Dr. S.K. Bajaj Unearths the
Truth about Indian Agriculture 34 Religion and State: India's High Court
Mandates Temple Management 49 Honored: 199i s Temyleton Prize,
... US$l27 MiL, Goes to Shastr i .4thavale 52
"LIFESTYLE Cliillienge: Tragedy Reveals Artist's Gift 27 Astrology: When Mars Meets Saturn 27 Insight: Sacred Pilgrimage 30 Business: America Likes Mantras 40
• Music: Professorial Percussionist 47 Children: Toddlers' Tailored Toys 48
OPINION Publisher's Desk: Exploring the Difference
Between Good Money and Bad 6 Editorial: The Kwest for Komedy 8 My Turn: Our Venerable Elders 10 Letters 14 Healing: Growing ~nto W6~anhood 44 Minis,ter's Message: Vegetarian Dharma 50
DIGESTS Quotes & Quips Diaspora Briefly
9 Evolutions 44 11 Digital Dharma 54 20
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PUBLISHER'S DESK
Good Money, Bad Money
~~-------------
Bad money can never do good deeds. Nor can good money used wrongly reap right results.
BY SATGURU SIVAYA SUBRAMUNIYASWAMI
Y SATGURU, THE VENERABLE
Sage Yogaswami, discriminated between good money and bad money and taught us all this lesson. Money coming
from dharmas honest labor was precious to him to receive, and he used it wisely in promoting the mission of the mission of his lineage. Money coming from adharmic attainments was distasteful to him. He warned that such gifts would, when spent, bring the demons from the Narakaioka into the sanctum sanctorum of our shrines to create havoc in the minds of devotees. This has been the unsoughtfor reward for receiving bad money-funds gained through ill-gotten means-for 'many ashrams this century. One day a rich merchant came to Yogaswami's hut with a big silver tray piled with gold coins and other wealth. Yogaswami, knowing the man made his money in wrongful ways, kicked the tray on the ground and sent the man away.
Yes, there is such a thing as good and bad money, because, after all, money is energy. Why is money energy? Money gives energy. Money is power. Money is a form o£prana captured in paper, in silver and most importantly in gold. Actually, gold is real money, the basis of all paper money, coinage, checks and bank drafts. All the money in the world fluctuates in value according to the price of gold, as far as I know: And, mystically, if you have gold in YOl,lf
home or your corporation-I mean real gold-your real wealth will increase according to the quantity of gold th~ you have.
Good money is righteous money, funds derived from a righteous source, earned by helping people, not hurting people, serving people, not cheating them, making people happy, fulfilling their needs. This is righteous money. Righ~ous money does good things. When spent or invested, it yields right results that are long lasting and will always give fruit and many ~eeds to grow with its interest and dividends from the capital gains.
On the contrary, bad money does bad things-money earned through selling arms, drugs, taking bribes, manipulating divorce, performing abortions, gambling, fraud, theft-money gained through a hundred dark and devious ways. Bad money issues from a Dad intent which precedes a wrongdoing for gain or profit. That is bad money. When spent or invested, it can be expected to bring unexpected negative consequences. Good money is suitable for building temples and other institutions that do good for p~ople. Bad money is sometimes gifted to build temples or other social
6 HINDUISM TODAY. MA¥ , 1997
institutions, but often only to ease the conscience of the person who committed sins to gain the money. Nothing good will come of it. The institution will faiL The temple will be a museum, its darshan nil; its ghakti, though expected to be present, will be nonexistent. Bad money provokes bad acts which are long lasting, and it sours good acts within a short span of time within the lives of the people who receive it.
In 1991 I composed an aphorism to guide those who have sought my opinion on this matter. It says, ''All seekers of truth know bad money can never do good deeds and refuse soiled funds from any source. Nor can good money us.ed wrongly reap right results. Ill-gotten money is never well-spent, but has a curse upon it. Aum."
Some postulate that using bad money for good purposes purifies it. That is a very unknowledgable and improper concept, bec~use prana, which is money, cannot be transformed so frivolously. Many among this group of misguided or naive individuals have lived to witness their own destruction through the use of tainted wealth. Also, 'we come into the illegality of laundering money. Money cannot be laundered by religious institutions. Money cannot be legally laundered by banks. Money cannot be laundered by individuals. FUrther, we kno"! that those who give ill-gotten bounty mQney to a religious institution will subtly but aggressively seek to infiltrate, dilute and eventually control the entire facility, including the swami, his monastic staff, members and students. If bad money is accepted, it will bring an avalanche of adharma leading to the dissolution of the fellowships that have succumbed, after which a new cycle would have to begin, of building back their fundamental. policies to dharma once again.
My own satguru set a noble example of living simply, only overnighting in the homes of disciples who live up to their vows and only accepting good money. He knew that accepting bad
money brings in the asuras and binds the receiver, the ashram or institution to the external world In a web of obligations. How does one know if he has received bad money? When feelings of psychologicai obligation to the giver arise. T his feeling does not arise after good money is given freely for God's work. Bad money is given with strings and guilt attached.
Our message to religious institutions, ashrams and colleges is: don't take bad money. Look for good, or white, money-known in
Gun money: A man sells weapons of destruction to a mercenary (above), then offers it to the head of an ashram in a misguided attempt to purify it and ease his conscience. The sainVis not fooled. ...................... " ................ 4 ...................................................... u~ ..................... u ......... .
Sanskrit as shukladana. Reject bad, or black, money-called krishnadana. If you don't know where the money came from, then tactfully find out in some way. How does the donor earn his living? Did the money come from performing abortions, gambling, accepting bribes, adharmic practices of law or shady business dealings? Is it being given to ease the conscience?
Even today's election candidates examine the source of donations exceeding $10,000 or more-investigating into how the person lives aI'\d how the money was gotten-then either receive the gift wholeheartedly or turn it back. When the source is secret, the source of gain is suspect. When the source is freely divulged,.: it is freed from such apprehension. In the Devaloka, here are devas, angels, who monitor carefully, 24-hours a day, the sources of gain leading to wealth, because the pranic bonds are heavy for the wrongdoer and his accomplices.
Imagine, for instance, an arms seller who buys his merchandise surreptitiously and then sells it secretly or in a store-shotguns and pistols, machine guns, grenades and missles-instruments of torture and death. Money from this enterprise invested in a religious institution or educational institution or anything that is doing good for people will eventually turn that institution sour, just like putting vinegar into milk.
The spiritual leader's duty is to turn his or Her back to such a panderer of bad money and show him the door, just as an honest politician would turn back election donations coming from a subversive source, gained by hurtful practices, lest he suffer the censure of his constituancy at a later time, which he hopes to avoid to hold his office. A politician has to protect his reputation. The spiritualleader will intuitively refuse bad money. He doesn't need money. When money comes, he does things. If it doesn't come, he also does things but in a different way.
In Reno, Nevada, for many years the. gambling casinos gave college scholarships to students at high schools. Then there came a time of conscience among educators when they could no longer accept these scholarships earned from the sin of ~ambling to send children forward into higher studies. They did not feel in their heart, mind and soul that it was right. Drawing from their example, we extend the boundaries of religion to education and to the human consc'ience of right conduct on this Earth.
Humans haven't changed that much. Over 2,000 years ag9, Saint Tiruvalluvar wrote in his Holy Kural, perhaps the world's greatest ethical scripture, sworn·on in Indian courts of law in Tamil Nadu:
The worst poverty of worthy men is more worthwhile than the v.;ildest wealth amassed in wlcked ways (657).
What is gained by tears will go by tears. Though it begins with loss, in the end goodness gives many good things (659).
Protecting the country by wrongly garnered wealth is like pre; erving water in an unb~ked pot of clay (660).
Riches acquired by mindful means, in a manner that harms no one, will bring both piety and pleasure (verse 754).
Wealth acquired without compassion and love is to be eschewed, not embraced (verse 755).
A fortune amassed by fraud may appear to prosper but all too soon perish altogether (verse 283).
'Finding delight in defrauding others yields the fruit of undying suffering when those delights ripen (verse 284).
MAY, 1997 H I NDU ISM TOD AY ?
I
\~~~~~~~~~-~ EDITORIAL
What~'s So Funny About Hinduism?
trickery and satire. In folktales, there is, of course, the magical Panchatantra, one of the world's greatest colle"ctions of fables, filled with repartee, jest and jocularity-all in the name of learning about life. As the true story of the Panchatantra goes, a Kashmiri king who lived over 2,000 years ago had three bl6ckhead sons. He found they learned best through illustrations, and gathered master storytellers to weave para-
In our kosmic kwest for komedy, we stu1Jlble on ancient and farce-seeing Indian texts
bles about friendship, money, bad conduct and such. Children love these, and if readers have never encountered them, you should. One of the finest translations from the Sanskrit is by Arthur Ryder in' an edition by the University of Chicago Press.
BY THE EDITOR
H , RELIGION, THAT SOBER, SOMBER, SOMNIFEROUS
science, so soulful and oh-so-solemn. Perhaps. But only one whose funny bone has been surgically removed would remain unaware of the rich, even zany, Hindu comic tradition (believe me, writing a humorous editorial for Islam
Today or Shintoism Today would pose greater challenges). That it is widely ignored may be due to the fact that India's cultural and philosophical gifts are often approached with reverence, even awe. So the playful parodies perish, whacky wisdom is waived and mirthful merriment maligned. This is a loss for us alL In his Anatomy of Satire, Gilbert Highet noted, "If you want to understand any age, you ought to read not-only its heroic and philosophical books, but its comic and satirical books." In Indian aesthetics, comedy is called hasya-rasa (from hasa, laughter) and is one of nine "tastes," of which some others are heroism, fear, tranquility and love.
As with most things plebeian and profound, Indian humor has established a beachhead on the World Wide Web. An Alta Vista search returned 6,000 pages (and that's just the English). Most of it is laughably disappointing. Among the best we found: http://www.webhead.comlwwwvVindiaiindia208.html; http://w2.meer.netiusers/genius/indolinklHumoriindex.html; http://members.aoLcomiindialinksihumor.htm; and http://ugweb.cs.ualbhta.cal-srinivaslindialhumor/
Humor is rampant in Hindu literature, both sacred and secular. The Rig-Veda rishis jested about the ordinary human state of mind, full of imaginings and opportunism: "Our thoughts wp.nder in all-directions and many are the ways of men: the cartwright hopes for accidents, the physician for the cripple, the priest for a rich patron and the frog for a pond to plunge into. For the sake of Spirit, 0 Mind, let go of these wandering thQ.ughts" X. 112. 1. In the same Veda (X.l21) there are clever metaphysical puns in the Hymn to Who that presage Abbot and Costello's "Who's on first?"
Where else is there laughter in Heaven, bantering among the Gods? In most faiths, there's rqrely a smile in the sacred texts, and heaven and its deni!Zens are seldom viewed as having a lightheart-ed side. Yet laughter is so wonderfully human, so natural and somehow necessary for a full and healthy life, whether hen'; or hereafter. It seems destined that the Divine would have immense capacity for the joy and fun He built into His creation.
The Puranas are filled with bawdy (sometimes salacious) jests and amusing deceits. The Mahabharata excels in its master-t of
8 HINDUISM TODAY.
The stories of Birbal are rich. Raja Birbal (1528-1583) was an impoverished but witty brahmin writer who became one of
Emperor Akbar's favorites. The tension between Hindus and Muslims in Akbar's court was real in those days, and Birbal had an uncanny ability to leaven it with levity. Their comic battle was waged at the expense of his Muslim brothers, though sometimes Akbar himself was the target. One day Akbar lamented to Birbal, '1\s emperor, I am allowed to meet only wise and learned men. Show me the ten greatest fools in the kingdom." Birbal brought him a collection of morons, figures typical of the fool in Indian literature: the first man, riding a horse, carried a bundle of firewood on his head, reasoning that the burden would be too heavy for the horse if he placed it on the saddle; another was found looking at night for a ring he had lost, searching not where he dropped it in the dark under a tree, but in a nearby clearing where the light was better. Birbal brought eight such simpletons to the king who soon reminded him that he had asked for ten. "There are ten," the trickster laughed, "including you and me-the two biggest fools of all-you for giving me such a ludicrous order, and me for obeying it!"
Of Indian humor, Lee Siegel, who spent five years studying it, says, '1\t the core of hi.dian comedy there is an irony, a revelation of the humanness of the Gods and the divinity of human beings. The human comedy has two heroes-the fool and the trickster. The divine comedy recapitulates the human. The trick~er and fool find their wholeness embedded in consciousness as the laughing child, and that child is deified as Krishna. As that God has been examined for the ways in which He reveals the seriousness of humor and its capacity to affirm life, so Siva has been invoked to indicate the humor of seriousness-the ludicrousness of all human endeavors in the face of death." Both Krishna and Siva sanctify humor, but in different ways. Krishna giggles and teases, Siva roars with the ascetic's scoff Either way, their laughter links Heaven and Earth.
This not -so-serious side. of Hinduism is evident in saints and sages. Some consider wittiness a warrant of egolessness and spiri- . tual attainment, for the greatest souls are often jovial, and many go for the jocular vein. Ramakrishna was notoriously playful, as was
MlJktananda in recent times. Ma'ny outstanding swamis today are (arce-seeing humorists, tickling us with words until we
weep with laughter, droIling all over ourselves. Then they smile that know-it-all grin that tells the world
they know something it doesn't. Why not? They are liberated, done with sorrow. 'You'd be happy, too! Laughter can be an embrace with Loving Existence, a selftranscendent sharing of the essence of things, of Brahman's inmost heart, our innermost Self Humor is like God. You can't
explain it. Either you get it or you don't.
/
\~-~~~~~~~~~ U'
/
"What you have is His gift to you, and what you do with wh~t you have is your gift to Hif)1."
"Today is the golden present. Today we are OK. So enjoy it. Do what good we can. Tomorrow will happen only then, not today. ¥y guru, Swami Sivananda, used to say, 'D.I.N. , D.I.N.' DO IT NOW, DO IT NOW." Swami Satchidananda speaking to the HINDUISM TODAY staff during his Jan
uanJ visit to our Hawaii ashram
/
''I've i:tlways been a supporter of mind over matter. If you don't mind, it doesn't matter." Satguru Sivaya Subramuniyaswami
, Swami Chlnmayananda (1916-1993)
A 'devotee heard his guru say, "God is in everything and everyone." As he walked away pondering this wisdom, an enraged elephant appeared on the road ahead. "Run!, Run!" shouted the mahout. The man thought to himself, "I am God and the elephant is also God, why should I be afraid?" The charging elephant knooked the man in the ditch. Bruised and upset, the man set off to see his guru to complain. After hearing the story, the guru said, "You are right that both you and the elephant are God. / But why did you not listen to the mahout, who is also God, and get out of the way?"
A small income is no cause for failure, provided expenditures do not exceed it. Tirukural Verse 478
"I slow, br~ [brother] , but I still ahead of you!" A Pidgin English bumper-sticker spotted on a rusty old pick-up truck. It reflects the casual way of living which still
exists on the Hawaiian Islands
Seeker: "Guruji, what is the difference between the Vedic and Agamic teachings?"
I Sage: "In the Vedas man becomes GocJ...:in the Agamas it's the other way around."
"If an evil person falls in the well, what should be done? Pull him up. Do not think that the bad will always be bad, lead them to the right road." From the Nitya Sut;ras of Nltyananda of Ganeshpur i who attained
mahasamadhi in 1961
DID YOU KNOW?
Word Power! ANSKRIT (MEANING "CULTURED,"
"purified" or "refined") is one of the oldest languages in the world.
The vastness, versatility and power of expression of Sanskrit can be appreciated by the fact that it has 24 words to describe rainfall, 65 for earth and 67
for water. The language, written in the Devanagiri script, has been undergoing a revjval. Ten years ago Forbes magazine wrote, "Sanskrit is the most convenient language for computer software."
OR CONTEMPLATE OUR DESTIN'(
AND BEST OF ALL ..
MAY , 1997 HINDUISM TODAY 9
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Loving Ganesa, at once simple,
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many ways that Ganesas grace
can be attained by sincere devo-
tion, song, prayer and meditation
to bring greater harmony.
contentment and spirituality into
ones daily life. An BOO-page illus-
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Sivaya Subramuniyaswami. $ 1 9.95
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Elders: Our Blessing Not Our Burden Hindu traditions that honor elders are diminishing due to nuclear families
BY, P R A B HAP R A B H A 1<: ARB H A R D W A J
a J"''''L1 TWO DECADES AGO left India to live and work
Af;ica. On my .T·p("~nt return, I noticed
certain changes on the shopping scene. I was looking for New X\ ar greeting cards and, to my shock, discovered every card I liked was produced by HelpAge India to raise funds for the less fortunate elderly. No other wellknown charities were represented. Why is the most popular charity in India HelpAgeJi In India, a country predominated by Hindus elders-especially parents-have had a ~ecial place of honor through thousands of years of tradition. The wh'ole household revolves around the wishes, even the whims and fancies, of seniors. Why do these aged suddenly need help? These questions are mind-boggling. The popular belief is that Westernization, urbanization and the breaking up of the joint family is responsible for this situation. Hindu elders are regarded as a burden on societYzinstead of holqing the traditional position of receiving respect and giving guidance. In . my childhood, I, started my day by seeking blessings from my grandparents. That lifestyle was the norm then, but such extended families are rare in India today.
I have often pbserved that when a community moves to a new country they tend to preserve their culture and religion by putting them in a deep free~e. This is an effort made to maintain their idel1tity. They do not permit their cultural values to be diluted or eroded. ·Ih Africa, I have never come across an Iridian or Hindu home for the aged. Hindu ol~ people occupy the seat of power and respect in their own households. It is very difficult for me to accept such a difference between a transplanted Hindu society on another continent and the origin3.l society.in the motherland.
Equally sh0cking is the need for the en-
actment of Himachal Pradeshs law [see page 25]. Ins a great i,nsult to all Hindus. Neglect of parents is usually attributed to urbanization. However, Himachal Pradesh does not have any major city. It is hilly and backward by more than one criteria, so these reasons become irrelevant.
I believe Hinduism is not only a religion but a way of life based upon age-old religious customs, social traditions and family ties and values. Does this bill reflect the loss of all that? In my opinion this is the biggest cultural loss, greater than any bio-divt'lrsity loss of any species on this Earth.
I have been able to analyze the situation and have arrived at a c:jifferent perspective. The need for homes for the elderly has arisen from the current t(8nd for small families. Culturally, parents are not able to accept any help from daughters, especially married daughters. So, elderly w~th no sons end up in the care homes. Secondly, the middle class predominates in Indian society. Both parents work away from the Ihome. There are no longer daughters-in-law available to take care waged parents. I
Tpirdly, improvement in medical treatment has increased the average life span. Senio~ citizens (above 65) who have living I1arents do not have the capacity to look after their aged paren1:s even if they have the desire. Lastly, but most importantly, it is the questiQn of parental attitude. Young parents work very hard to raise and educate their / children. But they never explain to their children what they as parents will need. Children grow up into adults knowing their rights but not their moral responsibilities.
MRS. BHARDWAJ and her husband, retired army officer Col. Bhardwaj, are former residents of Kenya now living in India.
------------ -- --- ---;----
Prime Minister Basdeo Panday, left, opens Gandhi institute
TRINIDADIINDIA
Hindu Leader's Indian Roots
TIINIDAD'S PRIME MINISTER, BASDEO PAN DAY, BECAME
one of only four Hindu heads of state in the world after his election last year. His grandparents came as inden
tured laborers to work on British-owned sugar plantations in Trinidad in 1908. His first-ever visit to India in January was a joyous, emotional time as the proud motherland greeted her son of distinction from the other side of the world. Panday and his wife Uma shed tears on arrival at Azamgarh, his grandmother's farming village a few miles north of Banaras in Uttar Pradesh. Thousands lined the 20-km route from his hotel to the Banaras Hindu University (Asia's largest, with 20,000 students and a favorite school among Trinidad students) to see the 64-year-old lawyer, trade unionist and cane-cutter's son who made it to the top. In his address to the students he spoke of his Gandhian-like struggles in the trade union movement when he was tear-gassed and jailed, and his committment to harmony in Trinidad.
C H A 1\1 T Y / <? U LT U R E
Light Work jarat) but also .included Assamese, Rajasthani and Bengalj numbers. The highlight was the "Deep Nritya" where 16
HINDU ANATH A'SHRAM stu- girls, each h~ding 12 lamps and dents (orphans) from Nadi- one on their heads, turned the
ad, Gujarat, gave a superb folk 208 lights into various arrange-dance performance in Florida ments such as the trishul (tri-recen.tly to close the Asian dent1 and swastika (symbol of American Hotel Owners Asso- ~uspiciousness.). ciatioN convention. The 29- The Hindu Anath Ashram, member troup included singers, founded in 1908, has received musicians and dancers. The au- the patronage of great men like dience was so enthralled that I Mahatma Gandhi and Vallabhai $32,000 in donatioI\s was spon- Patel. The institution has raised taneous raised for the orphan- over 250 girls and successfully age. The India Tribune, report- arranged their marriages. To-ing on the convention, said ' day there are 50 boys and 110 most of the dances were in the girls being brought up at the Raas and Garba style (of Gu- Ashram.
CLOC ... ·WISE FROM TOP: HINDUISM TODAY, COREL, SHELTON HETTlARACHI, COREL
SRI LANKA
. Gayatri Gets A Face Lift
DESPITE WAR IN SRI LANKA,
Hindu institution~ that are not under siege continue to thrive as seen in the recent second Maha KiImbhabhishekam of the Lankatheesvarar Gayatri Temple in Nuwara Eliya, s6uthern Sri Lanka. The consecration ceremonies installed a Gayatri Goddess Deity made in India of nine spiritual elements in a new temple to replace the old one. Devotees from allover the world joined founder and spiritual guide, Swami Murugesu, who propounds the power of chanting the ancient Vedic prayer called Gayatri mantra.
Murugesu (right) installs Deity
President switches to stre:~hing
THE WHITE HOUSE
Did Yale Yoga
U .S.NEWS & WORLD REPORT
in January notes that President Clinton stopped painful jogging and switched to a new workout that includes stretching, push-ups and occasional weightlifting each morning. Remarking that maintaining flexibility is the key to good health as one ages, he says, "I feel a lot better. It k~eps my energy level up." It appears a number of Oval Office advisers have taken up yoga. When asked if he would follow suit, Clinton said that his wife Hilary once took him to a yoga class while they were at Yale Law School. But he has no imIl1ediate plans to resume yoga postures.
TRENDS & TRADITIONS
NEW YORK
Ve~ie Girls Sway Boyfriends
C OURTNEY CENTNER IS AN
English student and Animal Defense League coordinator in Buffalo, New York. While her January Vegetariron Journal article presumes a lessthan-conservative lifestyle, 0n the positive side she details assertive veggie girls' methods in "converting all the meat-eating Lasses lead beaus flT"om beef boys who have crushes on us. My girlfriend and I decided that we would transform any prospective beau into a vegetarian. You can practically talk your partners into it! Try not to inundate them with t00 much information. Add vegetarian related comments to your conversations; take them to vegetarian restaurants. If you fmd out he's a jerk, no harm done-just one more vegetarian in the world."
MAY , 1 9 9 7 HI N D U ISM TO DAY 11
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FAMILY LIFE
Poll Plumbs Wedded Ways j\DECEMBER1gg6REPORTIN
.i=\India Today surveys the state of marriage in India. It says the media- TV, l(lagazines, newspaper columns and movies-projects a false image
of liberated couples getting quickly divorced. An "India Today-Marg poll shows a traditional core at the heart of middle-class India, where aFranged J
marriages are still preferred
• RIGHTS
,
and the ties of matrimony insoluable." The poll covered 616 people in the 20-35 age group; 81 % said' their marriages were arranged; 94% said their marriages were successful.
But India's traditional committment to vows may be. the only thing unchanged. A sweeping matrimonial transformation is underway, affecting everything from joint family structure to the intimate details of conjugal life. "There is a gnawing, growing fear amongst the young about marriages breaking up." Young w0uld-beweds are looking closely at long term compatibility, instead of tying the knot by forced arrangements or fleeting infatuation. Couples, with young educated wives taking the lead, are working hard at new forms of intimacy, companionship and understanding. An old ideal, the Jodi or "pair," (the indissolubility of the couple like SitaRam, Radha-Krishna) is taking new form in the concept of marriage as partnership. M0re
husbands say they are closer to their wives than their mothers. Extended farhilies are breaking up as couples reject restrictions that in-laws impose on the newlyweds' relationship. Nuclear couples face new stress, and young wives lose built-in controls over husbands· with violent tem-' pers, bUT the drive for quality time together is making India's marriages as strong as ever.
YOUTH
Kool, Kapil!
Being Kind to Kine Beings KAPIL CHADHAURY, A 1=7- .
~ear-old Hindu ,youth from Springfield, Illinois, was in the limelight in a Newsweek ad sponsored by Amway and Junior Achievement. JA is a program in wlJich local businessmen volunteer time to guide students to set up and run their own companies. They raise capital by selling stock, develop a product and, hopef}llly, turn a profit. Kapil became president of a mini-company which grossed US$11,582 selling 300 Monopoly-like games in the three-week holiday season qf 1995.
DEITIES AND DEVAS
Math Angel? w:EN DANIEL GREEN RAN
a simple mandelbrot (raIjdom image generating program), a picture appeared "complete With eyes, ears, headdress, arms and crossed legs. An Indian cQ-worker instantly recognized it as God • Ganesh." The "coincidence" was ' froot-page news in Australia's Knowledge of Reality magazine, and Green says, "If I were religious, I would certainly take
\ V fHILE MANY'OF HER SISTERS W roamed free in India, one
young cow waited outside a slaughterhouse in Massachusetts, USA. People Weekly reported t;hat the 1,400 pound heifer miraculously jumped the 5-foot fence and evaded captur~ for a month until vegetarian school teachers Meg (photo) and Le}Nis
Randa bought her for $1. They captured her with grain, named her Emily and let her stay on school grounds, where Meg, 40, says, she is "an ambassador of compassion for animals." Emily gets letters now saying, "Because of you, I don't eat meat anymore." Rights have been sold for a movie on the bovine's life.
Kapil, when asked about challenges he faced growing up as an American vegetarian Hin-
I du, told HT, "Dealing with, the cultural and social differences with my parents. They didn't like me watching a lot of TV." I
But careful guidance has paid off Named JA's "President of the Year" last May, Kapil started Picture Perfect, selling framed motivational sayings. His own message to Hindu youth:
this as some sort of sign." Emily in her well-decorated barn paid for by film producer'S gift "Working hard can insure success. Stay focused. Get involved."
12 HINDUISM TODA;Y MAY, 1997 CLOCKWISE FROM TOP: INDIA TODAY - RAvl SHANKAR, ruCB SAAL, DANIEL GREEN~
PEOPLE WEEKLY © -FRANK VERbNSKY
Aryan-Invasion Theory Debunked Vedic Aryans and the Origins of Civilization: a Literary and ScientifiC Perspective, by N. Rajaram and D. Frawley, combines new insights into the meaning of the Vedas and other ancient scriptures with scientific analysis of ~cient sources. Systematic comparisons of Indian, Egyptian and Babylonian science show that Harappan civilization corresponds to that of the Sutric period, after the Vedic period. Hence, the Rg Veda is the product of an earlier layer of civilization, before Egypt, Sumer and the Indus Valley. As a result, the view of Mesopotamia as the cradle of civilization is no longer tenable. • US$20 + $5 pstg. Checks to: World Heritage Press, 1270 St-Jean, St-Hyacinthe, PQ J2S 8M2 Canada.
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_______ meBR(
Beastly Pageant? THESE MEN AND WOMEN ACTIVISTS (BANgl}lore Battlefield," COVER ST0RY, March '97) should turn their attentioti and ca,mpaign against the low-grade films churned out every year iIi hundreds 'by Bollywood where women are portrayed as vampish dolls of pleasure and sex objects. I agree with Mark West that the Indian screen is more damaging to our ancient culture. It was truly embarrassing for Hindus like me living outside of India to witness their fanaticism at the time. I do understand their fears and objections and share many of them, but they nave damaged the Hindu image worldwide by the extremist measures they proposed to take and the sheer vehemenee of their threats and overtones of violence. Indians themselves have many deeply ingrained prejudices regarding women and their physical attributes. How marly matrimonial ads do we see where boys advertise for -and girls advertise themselves as-"fair, slim and attractive" as essential requirements? How many girls born in Indian families have a ruined self-confidence because they have been taunted for being born darkskinned rather .than light-skinned? A beauty page,ant can neither enforce nor destroy these attitudes. Let's stop making this beauty pageant a dumping ground for all the problems Indian women have. Let us address the serious problems of child brides, dowry murders, wife beating, infanticide and aborting of femilie babies. In my opinion, these are the truly obscene menaces to ~dian sQciety. The West, or beauty, is not responsible for them. We ~e. ,
RUKz'UNI DEVI DUBLIN, IRELAND
BEAUTY PAGEANTS ARE DANGEROUS! I APplaud Jayati Ghosh and her .supporters. I pray this Western poison never reaches the lips pf India's purity and high regard for tolerance. They devalue the spirit of womankind, reducing her to a commodigr to be used and disposed of.lThe standardization of beauty has devastated many women in the West. When I was a psychiatric aide, many of our young American women suffered from anorexia nervosa, starving themselves to fit a beauty ideal which is far from ide;li. Sadly, it does not matter if a woman in our country is artistic, compassionate, nurturing and kind. If one do€s not fit the physical ideal of thinness, one is treated as a lesser being. It is as though only the outer shell of a woman matters and not the richness of her ~oul's voice. The spirit of woman is too precious to be compartmentalized into tiny notions ofbe~ty. She is meant to be free. To . me, giving an US$80,000 cash prize to Miss Greece is a waste of money. Why not give
14 HINDUISM TODAY MAY, 1997
LETTERS that $80,ObO to a spiritual woman who gives of her heart and her soul-a woman who serves her village in providing medical care and nurturing? I think the West has lost the true spirit of womanhood. I mourn such a loss. Womanhood is not about make-up and fitting an image ot: perfection that few of us can obtain. Womanhood is about nurturing, love and the joy of expression. 1 pray the West's notions of womannood does not reach your Indian shores. It hurts too much.
WENDY SCHULJAN NEW YORK, USA
I WAS SOMEWHAT BEMUSED BY 'THE CAPtion above the photo of students burning beauty pageanf effigies. It says "Delhi university students in traditional Indian garb." But all the people within the photo are wearing what appears to be Western shirts, jeans or trousers, and sneakers. Perhaps the caption was intended to read "students, in nontraditional Indian garb." In any case it seems ironic that students are protesting a "cultural invasion of India by the West" while wearing clothing , which is itself a product of that invasion. What happened to dhotis ~d sayis?
MR. KIWI "[email protected]
V We had the same question, hence our tongue-in-cheek caption. We are glad someone noticed.
Bali's Different Dharma w'HEN I SURFED YOUR WEB SITE, IT WAS like finding a treasure. We share the same spirit and faith, yet Hinduism in Bali is somewhat different from the rest of Hindus of the world. We don't understand why Hindus respect cows. Bali Hindus eat beef (except our priests) . Our children are not encour~ed to learn the Vedas because parents fear they will become crazy. Most 0f us never,heard of them. Every village in Bali has at least three temples. Our priest never gave us spiritual gui<;lance nor did we hear of the Upanishads or the Bhagavad Gita. We can only give a few explanations ab6ut our rituals. We have our own unique symbol of
. 'i\um." I'll will be grateful if you could help me enlighten the Indonesian Bali Hindus.
PUTU BACUS KRISHNA BALI, INDONESIA
Caught in Indra's Web I MUST SAY THAT YOUR EXQUISITELY beautiful religion and philosophy truly inspire me. I became so peaceful and loving to all living things that I quickly converted to strict vegetarianism. Could you please
send me something that explains your most important beliefs and how I might get in touch with a Hindu, especially a guru?
SCOTT GOOLSBY IDAHO, USA
The Yogic Life \
IN THE WEST, YOGA IS SEEN AS A FORM OF exercise, p~rhaps with some "breathing" exercises thrown in. Dr. Swami Gitananda Giri, late, of Pondicherry in South India, taught us that"'Yoga is Life." He taught that, Without an understanding of and adherence to the yamas and niyamas [ethical restrmnts and observances] as outlined by Patanjali any attempt to "do" yoga could not succeed. Most importantly, he taught us to seek the guru within, satguru, that Truth which we must all strive to realize. I would not call myself a Hindu; but Hinduism and yoga are inextricably part of each other. And any seekers of the path could not1ielp but be moved by Swami Bua's word ("Truth Prevails," MINISTER'S MESSAGE: February '97). Surely in what he said lies the key to the Truth, the answer to the ills of the world.
Calcutta Kudos
RUDHRA KUMAR GIRl QUEENSLAND, AUSTRALIA
I ALWAYS FELT DEEP CONNECTION TO THE staff of HINDUISM TODAY, particularly Satguru Sivaya Subramuniyaswami f0r nis tireless efforts to inspire the people of this troubled planet to a higher energy field, to a higher quality of life. Swamiji's leadership to uphold the time1ess spiritval heritage of Mother India and Sanatana Dharma will be remembered by seekers of Truth all over the world.
SWAMI SRUDDHANANDA BRAHMA~HARI LOKENATH DIVINE, LIFE MISSION
CALCUTTA, INDIA "[email protected]
..... 1 NEVER KNEW SUCH A WORK OF HINDU brilliance ever exist¢ until I bought your February issue. I'm enormously (mpressed with its contents. I particUlarly like your Karma Kat.
ANIL MAHABIR TRINIDAD, WEST INDIES
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Shaktipat initiation will be offered by appointment each weekend. "With Shaktipat, the student is saturated with Divine Energy. After Shaktipat, the Kundalini is permanent-1y awakened and, like a mother, constantly cares for and nourishes her infant. One may be of any religion, caste, or creed to benefit; for all persons, the field of inner joy is the same. After Shaktipat, the Shakti will take the student to the ultimate goal, without doubt."
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HUMAN RIGHTS
The Caning Backlash >
Schools try to briI;lg back corporal punishment-but is it right? Does it even work?
'!j 18TH-CENTURY AMERICA AND
most other countries, the' master of the house could freely beat his wife, his
:' child, his dog or his slave. Around 1830 people realized slaves were human beings, too, and laws eventually granted them freedom and the human right not to be beaten. A century or so later people realized dogs had fecli.ngs, and laws were passed against mistreatment of animals. Recently, society is taking wife-beating seriously and has slowly begun to put a stop to it. Now, with the 21st century nearing, it may/ have come the turn of children to gain their'right as human beings to not be beaten.
A 12-year-old UK boy who ~as caned by his stepfather challenged- British laws allowing 'Teasonable physical punishment of chil-
. dren" and is getting his case heard before the Europ~an Court of Human Rights in France. A decision by the court would be binding, and a finding in favor of the boy could force Britain to oha1lge its laws about punishing children. "This is a landmark decision for children, the first step towards confirming that 'childr~n have the same rights as adults to protection from violence," said Peter Newel, Goordinator for the British
• . groti~ End Physical Punishment of Children.
students. "But between growing indiscipline among our schoolchildren and the problem of abuse, the former is the greater evil," stated an editorial in the New Sunday Times which endorsed the return of the cane. -/ Caning is commonly employed in schools for such minor infractions as being late to class, talking in class, not bringing one's
r
produce better behavior, but rather arouses a seething anger in the child which later results in antisocial and violent tendencies.
Maly ysia's schools are faced with an alarming growth of gangsterism and drug use, among students. This has, in part, fueled the call for the cane. It is not clear, however, how punishment for such offenses as talking in class would prevent a teen from becoming a drug dealer. Discipline problems in some American schools, such as in Los Angeles, are so bad that metal detectors are installed at the doors to catch students entering with guns or knives.
It is common for parents to tell teachers to .... do whatever is necessary to make their children study and behave, .including striking them. But Malaysia's International Trade and Industry Minister, Rafidah Aziz, said, "If I
have my way, I would have these parents grilled for not monitoring their children's activities. We believe that many youths are involved in vice because 'there might be something wrong at home."
A widely published UK study pinpointed one thing wrong at home: mothers are out working. Researchers at North London University found that children with working mothers are twice as likely to fail the GCSE (final high school) exams as those whose mothers stay at home to bring them up. Children of working mothers, especially boys, were more likely to have behavioral problems. A recent Dutch study found that women with high status jobs were more likely to have children who failed to reach their academic potential.
A hot subject in todays international debate about child abuse is corporal punishment in schools. The practice of hitting students was reduced or abandoned in many countr.ies in the 1980s or earlier. But growing incliscipline in and outside class has caused many tr;1 call for the return of the teacher's paddle. In a UK poll, 68 percent of the public were in favor of the cane's return. Teachers, however, say they will not beat pupils, even if given the power. Nigel de Gruchy, general secretary of the National Association of Schoolmasters said teachers do not feel it will be effective. A real concern is retribution by the student-in February, a 16-year-old boy in Alaska, USA, shot dead the school principal who had frequently disciplined him. In India thugs c$l be hired by students to harass or even cripple a teafher
Children: Do they have a right to not be beaten? /
Patrick Morgan, of the Institute of Economic Affairs, says the evidence will force working mothers to rethink -what is ~st for their children. "The entire deba'te has been hijacked by a feminist clique, determined to uphold women's rights. But what about the rights of the child? . ;You can always go
. who cl'ares beat them. . In Malaysia, caning had been greatly reduced since 1983. About one percent of the country's 300,000 teachers had been reported for abusing their authority to strike a child-not a great percent, yet it represents 3,000 abusers and' perhaps 300,000 abused
books or scoring low on tests. Students are . hit on their hands or buttocks with long, rattan canes, are slapped, have their ears twisted, a rubber band snapped against their ear, or their hand held against their head, one finger pulled back as far as poss~ble and then released sharply. Some teachers administer diScipline with restraint, others with uncontrolled anger. Studies on corporal punishment suggest the method does not really
,
back to work, but the damage done in a child's early years ca,n never be rectified."
Indiscipline to the point of criminal behavior among youths is a serious problem in countries around the world. The question teachers and parents face is whether misbehavior can be solved by more physical punishment in schools, and just how such policies infringe children's right to be protected, as adults are, from physical abuse.
MAY , 1997 HINDUISM TODAY 17
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A ; YOGA THERAPY WING" is being added to five Delhi-area hospitals. It's a decision reached over two years ago when Delhi's Health Minister visited the Vlvekananda Yoga Kendra hospital in Bangalore. He was impressed by their success with diabetes, cancer and ulcer patients. The ~ndra is now charged with training therapists.and instructors for the new wingsl.over 150 so far. "It is our dream that yoga therapy will become a normal form of treatment in most hospitals in the near 'future," said the Kendra's Dr. Nagendra.
JUST AS KRISHNA lovingly herded His eows, primatologists tried to tenderly trap and relocate over sixhundred Rhesus monkeysnearly half the sacred city's "Hanuman sena"-from Vrindaban to si·x other forest- Vrindaban monkey ed sites 20 to . 40 miles away. The monkeys had long been a nuisance to the residents-19% said they had been bitten, 96% harassed. But it wC!s growing mamourishmenj: and disease among the monkeys whicl.! prompted the removal to better areas. Careful to preserve family units, not a sirfgle monkey was reportea injured in what is believed to be the world's lqrgest monkey translocation. ,
HONG KONG HINDUS are among the up to 8,000 mostly Indian and Pakistani citizens chosen to receive full British National Overseas passports. The decision partially resolves the danger that non-Chinese ethnic minorities possessing British Dependent-Territory Citizen passports would be rendered stateless when Britain gives Hong Kong back to China in June.
. -/ THAIPUSAM MAY BE a safer, more traditional festival now at Malaysia's Batu Caves. Mod-' ern drums and bongos have been banned from devotional ceremonies; "only traditional musical instruments are to bellsed in the functions," said Sri Subramaniaswamy. Temple secretary G. Gopalakrishna. Also banned ar-e whips, and s~ars over three- . feet in length. The annual Murugan festival is -certainly more efficient at Singapore's Sri Thendayuthapani Temple, where instead of shaving 7,000 heads at the temple tank on Thaipusam d~, all but 500 pilgrims had their heads snaved a day or two earlier.
! ,
I
20 H INDUISM TODAY M A Y , 1997
NAZHAT SHAMEEM, FIJI'S Director of Public Prosecutions, says the courts have a duty to preserve religious tolerance by imposing sentences strict enough to deter those who would break into clturches or temples and violate peoples' religious freedom. A man who pleaded guilty to vandalizing the image of a Hind\! deity receiveCl. just a suspended sentence. He said he was acting on instructions of the Bible when he damaged the statue, "God said people should not worship idols." Ms. Shameem notes in most
': of the 76 such incidents over the last twoyears, the suspects remain unknown. , PARENTAL RESPECT IS PART of the new daily . regimen for New Delhi's school students instituted by former election commisS'ioner T.N. Seshan. A government-issued calendar containing Dos & Don'ts for children includes this at the top Qf the list: "Today I have greeted or touched the feet of my parents." After that cOlnes things Seshan's campaign like being on time, being quiet, not fighting, finishing homework and caring for books. Students are expected to evaluate themselves daily
SAFEGUARDING TilE HIMALAYAN environment means protection even from pilgrims. GUidelines recently decreed by the High Court in Allahabad include regulating ~e burning of trash and collection of nonbiodegradable materials, relocating tea shops from too near the glacier between BhQjbasa and Gomukh and placing toilet facilities every 2.5 miles between Bhojbasa and Gangotri. Environmentalists, however, say th e Court and state are still too accommodating to development and tourism, and inMferent to the delicate alpine meadows so easily distllrbed by tourist's trash and grazing cattle.'
·1
BHUTAN'S KING Jigme Singye Wanchuk has' . granted US$5,500 to promote the teaching
of SansKfit in two pathasalas (traditional schools). Noting that the royal gift will strengtheJ,1 the teaching of Hinduism in the predominantly Buddhist kingdom, Devi Charan Dayal, pandit of the Dhoban pathasala, said "We Me very grateful for the grant because it Signifies the King's sU13port to his citizens and his encouragement in preserving. our cultural heritage."
GRtENPEACE, the international non-governmental organization dedicated to environ~ental concerns, hopes to see Greenpeace India fully formed and self-sufficient in two years. Known for its "Save the Whales" cam, paign at sea, and for its anti-rmclear flotilla in the South Pacific, Greenpeace hopes to distribute information aimed at holding Indias industrial development in check while offering alternative technologies. , , RIGHT-WING TERRORISTS are claiming responsibility for anti-Indian attacks in South ,Africa, including three Christmas Eve bombings which killed four and injured scores of others. "The bombers demanded that Indians be withdrawn from Parliament The bombers said they did not regard Indians as indigenous people, describing them as 'anti-Christ because they did not accept Jesus Christ," .reports India Abroad. The Mandela government has condemned the attacks, adributing them to people unprepared to forget the "days of the apartheid era."
SADHANA AND SHASTRAS for MBAs? Sure. It's part o£ the Vedantic Approach in Management curriculum for post-graduate Business Administration students at the Sri Sringeri Shar~da Institute of Management, founded in part by Swami Paramananda Bharati. The two-year, full-time program has alr the rigors of a business school, but also includes transformational workshops and selt-developmt nt throug~ sadhana so that students "will acquire strength, fearlessness and wisdom to identify and traverse the difficult path to the goal of life."
MONUMENT TO SAINT Tiruvalluvar is pro: ceeding once again in Tamil Nadu. Chief Minister M. Karunanidhi says his government is committed to
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BRIEFLY is compiled from press, TV and tqire-service reports and edited by RAVI
PERUMAN, award-winning radio journalist at KGG in San Francisco. .
CLOCKWISE FROM, TOP: HELMUT ~PEL, INDIA TODAY, HINDUISM TODAY,
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SOCIETY
To Be' Elderly in I~dia The aged suffer silently as materialism steals their traditional seat of honor '
I
By M.P. MOHANTY, NEW DELHI OR UNTOLD CENTURIES I$ INDIA, IT had' been routinely regarded as immoral to neglect the needs of one's el
In 1996. it became clearly illegal. The passing of the Maintenance of Par
ents and Depenci'ents Bill of Himachal Pfade'sh attempts to insure proper care for anyone who is dependent upon another. It has raised significant concern over the care of India's aged, but it also applies to children, wives and widows [see page 25]. The passing of such a law in Himachal Pradesh, a
22 HINDUISM TODA.Y M4Y, 1997
small hill state known for the culture of its peace-loving, religious people, ilas greatly shaken the conscience of thoughtful observers of Indian soCiety. Hindus around the world are inquiring, "Why do we need a law to make us care for our elders? Are they not attended to by their families?"
Mr. Pran Nath Malik, 70, a retired government servant now living in Delhi, gives -an ominous answer-"No. The population of old people he~e is in· the tens of millions. As about half of 'our total population are living below the poverty line, most of the aged poor
are merely existing, without proper food, shelter or medical care. The assistance proviaed by the government is.negligible. Social and religious organizations also are not doing' much. We can see many elderly living as beggars in the big cities. Many die of hunger." I Those who do not starve to death may die of loneliness. The tales of dereliction are bone-chillingly crueL HINDlJISM TODAY writer Shikha Malaviya of Mitmesota recounted one example upon her recent return to the US from India. "For some people, old age means shouldering a burden. Take the
case of the Miglanis (not their real name), a Hindu family in New Delhi living next to my uncle. From the outside, they appear to be an honest, caring and religious . family. A plaque of Lord Krishna playing the flute above the main entrance of their home greets visitors. Inside, however, lies a different story. For more than two years, ,Mr. Miglani's father lived in a makeshift room with a tin roof on the back verandah. He was not allowed in the main house and was verbally abused constantly by his children and grandchildren. Mr. Miglani Sr. was ill, but did not receive proper treatment and eventually died of neglect in the summer of 1995."
Malaviya says the elderly, and often their children, take illness too lightly, and go much too long before diagnosis or treatment. "My grandmother has a heart' condition called angina. She also has gastric trouble. For one month she had palpitations, fever and painful gas attacks, but she didn't go to the hOspital until four days ago. She shares the attitude, like many others do in India, that 'it isn't bad until its really bad: The cost of healthcare
Waiting and wanting: Many aged spend their final clays in ~anaras, the c,ity of liberation
inhibits many from getting regular checkups,· let alone treatment for ailments."
Another grim account of callousness comes from Delhi businessman Govind Chandra Rout. He confessed that, "Even in our Orissan village, yes, in my own family, old people are being neglected. The old mother of my cousin has been left in1 he village alone. She is begging. There are thousands of such examples. Sons beat their old parents, even the educated ones. I do not want to name them or blame them. I tell you a fact: one son refused to recognize his poor, Old father when his father came to school to meet him. The old father died unattended. This same son later retired as a senior government official. When he died, both of his own sons, staying in Bombay and the US, failed to come and perform the funeral };ites. You can see, this was the result of his karma."
Rout recalls and keeps alive the ' way it used to be. ' '1\.s children, we learned that our father is the Adi Guru, first teacher, and I still impart these Hindu values to my grandchildren. The doors of our home are always open for saints. Every morning and evening we assemble and pray to Lord. J tell them to be truthful and religious. This way of living must be taught in schools at the primary leveL We must preserve our great heritage. Unfortunately, today's generation believes they know it all, and better than us."
The symptoms of neglect are usually less tragic, but they clearly indicate the change in ethos that se'ems to have infected the nation. This reporter recalls an incident at a frienel's place. Grandmother had wanted to watch a classical music concert, while the grandson was eager for the latest pop news on Zee TV, a private television channeL In walks the father, who settled the argument by scolding his mother, "Why don't you let him watch his rock show? You can catch another concert when we are not here." The old wo~an walked away in a huff. It is a revealiIlg incident, and it is all too common.
Ajay Sunder of HelpAge, India, the most active Indian ch~ity for the elderly, explains a primary source of distress for seniors. "For the senescent in the upper and mid"dle classes, the problems are loneliness and depression. If these problems remain unaddressed, they intensil:y into bitterness and a feeling of being unwanted, especially in the really old.
. For those in the age bracket of 60 to 70 the solution can lie in involving themselves with volunteer work or any activity in the neighborhood. But the problem becomes i~tense for those beyond 70 or 75."
Raji~ru:asimhan, 68, finds hersetf regretful ten years after the death of her parentsin-law. Both of her sons are away in the US, and her only daughter struggles with a busy
"To live on a
footpath in the winter is hell."
RARI BILAS, 70 RAJASTHAN
career and a demanding family, with little time for Raji. Between loneliness and boredom, Raji rec~s her in-laws' predicament. "Now I wish I had spent more time with them and not lost my temper so often. They only needed a little understanding, patience ,and reassurance that they were cherished." Remorseful, she realizes how concrete theit contribution to the family was. "I never had
,
to worry about what my children were doing ·after schooL And on occasions such as weddings, they were always there to guide us."
No time, no place: All fingers point to the '/ ' breakdown of the joint family tradition ["JOint Family at Risk," January, 1997] as the root cause of neglect. ConcerJl over the dissolution of this social order, along with the rising presence of women'in the workplace, hp.s primarily focused on children growing up without mothers at their side. But the el-derly are equally dependent and vulnerable. "The ideal situation is, of course, caring for the aged in their own homes," offers Sunder. "But for many, attending to aged people seems a tedious, time-consuming and often unproductive affair. Given the pressures of managing a home, careers and the conflict-ing needs of children and old people, it is the elders in the family who are expected to adjust to the youngers' needs while their own take a back seat." One analy;;t observed that "The breakdown commenced when the maharajas, Indias regional kings, were de-posed. Until then, these monarchs and their families modulated society and kept the joint and extended family structure, intact:"
What has resulted is a distorted attitude toward the aged. Social activist and educator Rekha Vohra Bhalla implores, "Do we not reali'l:e how lonely they are? They do not re- . quire luxury. What they .... seek is love, affection and company. They want their ch:ildren to be with them in the evening oflife, to provide warmth and comfort them. The whole concept of age-care in India is an ancient part of our civilization, whereas ageing as a problem is a product o:(..modern India. Earlier, old people were taken care of within the joint family. Our cult.ure and ethics taught us not to neglect them. We were mor-ally bound to take care of them. Our value system has changed. This is the real problem."
Hari Bilas (photo above), whom I met at a traffic light, drove home this point. He looked like a mendicant, yet he insisted, "I am not a beggar. I have my elder brother and his family, and the government of Rajasthan
MAY , 1997 Hl'NDUISM TODAY 23
pays me Rs.lOO a month. But I have chronic asthma, and I need tea and medicine ·at regular intervals, including two-to-three times during the night. At home, they feel disturbed to assist me. So I stay here on the footpaths. I carmot afford an old-age home. Life is misery. I certainly feel marginalized and discriminated against, and it-saddens me, this lack of respect towards us, the poor and old. It was not this way in our times. We looked up to elders, respected their experience and knowledge and learned from them."
The modern'Indian family has left the elders behind. "We have divided our families based on economy," ,Bhalla elaborated. "The middle-class is moving to cities in search of opportunities, leaving old parents in rural areas. At least there, neighbors, friends and other relatives do take care. But in cities it is very difficult. Rents are so high that we can afford only small flats or apartments. So, we claim that due to lack of space and monetary considerations parents carmot be accommodated. Actually, space,is not the real problem, not even the financial burden, but we do not have an honest approach. We have/become small-hearted due to modernization."
Gift buys grief: One way seniors are left in the INrch is in the transfer of estates and assets to their children. In the West, this transaction usually takes place after death through a legal will. In India, it has been common to , legally transfer such properties and accounts long before death. When performed ethically, this practice frees the elder of the burden of property and money management so that he may better advise his children and intensify his spiritual disciplines-¢.e natural functions of this stage of life. It is rightfully understood that the children would continue "
,
'ill our times, we were
given moral am;} spiri
tualles::;ons in school.
This has stopped. I
blame the Western
, materialistic lifestyle.
We have scrapped our
spiritual teachings. " COVIND CHANDRA ROUT, DELHI
as a &!orified maid, he was bundled off to this pay-and-stay home. His son claims the rented apartment in which they live is too small to accommodate all of them.
H.e. Bakshi, Former Joint Secretary of the Prime Minister's Office, cautions parents to be wary of this trap. "Old people must have independent financial support. While living, you should not transfer property to your son, but make a wilL Children should inherit the property only after death. Without financial support, you are a loser. I know of a case in Patel Nagar, Delhi, where the retired person transferred his property while living. Afterwards, he was treated as a virtual slave. He was moved against his will to a small room on the roof. Later, he was dumpeJ into the garage."
Even lawmakers were alert to this familial flimflam. Section 18.1 of the Himachal Pradesh Bill states, "Where any person, who after the commencement of this Act, has transferred, by way of gift or otherwise, his property, subject to the condition that the ' transferee shall provide the basic amenities, and basic physical needs to the transferrer and such transferee refuses or fails ,to provide such all}enities and physical needs, the said transfer of the property shall be deemed to have, been made by fraud or coercion or under undue influence and shall at the option of the transferrer be void."
"We have not left
our cultur~ alto
gether.. .yet." to care for the p~ent. But in an inhuman . '--"""--"""L....:_---'
twist, once the transfer is made, sons may completely neglect the parents, ,sometimes even ejecting them from the home. A retired Indian administrative officer has been forced to spend the last few years of his life in an old-age home. Indignant, he explained that he had transferred his assets to his son. While the mother has been allowed to stay at home
REKHA BHALLA, DELHI
24 HINDUISM TOD A,Y M~Y, 1997
Who will help? "This problem must be handled," beseeches Bhalla. "Tomorrow we will grow old. We have to shock ourselves w;ith the reality that our children might put us in old-age homes, uncared for. Are we preparing for such a fuhIre?" India today has nearly 60 million elderly people, and demographic pro-
jections forecast 75 million by the year 2000. Yet assistance for the aged has been a low priority among the varioG.s welfare schemes being implemented by the government and voluntary agencies. Critics concede that the government simply does not have the resources to effect a significant change.
,Most governmental and private agencies and persons engaged in care of seniors thinK that the malaise of p'bverty among the multitude of elderly can only be offset if significant funds are made available for implementing welfare programs-homes for the aged, eye-care, walkers and other handicapped aids, day-care, health-care, mobile medicare vans, etc. Current prClgrams concentrate in ~ities and towns and do not impact people in rural areas. Bakshi concludes, "This is a tremendous crisis that can be solved only by I
public-spirited individuals and institutions." HelpAge deputy director Liniaye admits
that rest homes are a secondary choice. "Our programs work towards resettling them within their families. But when their children are abroad or no one is there to look after them, they 'pan resort to this option." A ,Primary source of fundraising for HelpAge is· the sale of greeting cards, and many Indians become aware of the plight of India's elde~ly through HelpAge cards. They even gave me a shock. Out of the total one-hundred and eleven new year's greeting cards that I received this year, sixty/two are HelpAge cards. On the back of each card reads, "The less privile~ed elderly need your love and care. When you buy this card you contribute to making their world healthier and happier." HelpAge is leading the way, but many more need to follow.
admonishes. "We were young and needed them. So we will jolly-well look after them in return, They are part of our life."
"It is important to remember that old age in our religion is associated with the sannyas ashrama (stage of renouncing materialism and attachment to embrace God and spirituality), and that old age is a stage of spiritual evolution," stresses Malaviya. "Old age doesn't mean gray hair, stiff joints and slurred speech. There are volumes we can leai'n from the wisdom they have culled from their own successes and failures. Growing old is an inevitable physical and mental transition that doesn't have to be painful or debilitating. We need to accommodate the needs of elders 1iithout their asking, and we can't do that until we understand what aging is all about."
tures state that whatever thought that you have in the last moments influences your next birth. One should die with positive, noble anj spiritual thoughts. Old people should bellow the path of dharma. They have the full, experience of life. They are society's thought-bank. They should educate the younger generations from day one, tell their experiences-how they feel at this age. It will help them in this life, and improve the next."
Legislature does not automatically make a society good and caring. And though passing a law is relatively simple, the efficacy of implementation and enforcement remains to be seen. At least the verdict for this negligency ", case has been handed down-"Guilty." Where the softer versionsfoflaw-the natur-
The way it was: Of course, not every elder is forsaken. For Jayanti Nair, looking after her ailil'lg parents and in-laws was never a matter of choice. "They looked after us," she
M.e. Bhandari, president of Bharat Nirman (Build India) and editor of Mystic India, echos the ideal for elders, "Our scrip-
#'
al justice of our cultural expectations-seem to have failed, it now requires courts for el·derly care to be enforced. .;
HELPAGE INDIA, C-14. QUTAB INSTITUTIONAL AREA, NEW DELHI 110016 INDIA. PHONE: 91- 11- 686-5675
Together: This distinctive Rajasthani elder has maintained close fellowship with his grandchildren
It's the Lavv The bill that dares to arrest neglect
lMACHAL p!lADESli's
Maintenance of Parents and Dependents Bill (number 29 of 1996)
paints a bleak picture of the care of India's elderly. On the last page of the bill, Ministerin-Charge, Vidya Dhar, gives a Statement of Objectives and Reasons: '10 the developing age of science and technology, our old virtues are giving way to materialistic and separatistic tendencies. The younger generation are neglecting their wives, children and aged and infirm parents, who are now being left beggared and destitute on the scrap-heap of society, thereby driven to a life of vagrancy, inlmorality and crime for their subsistence. Thus it has become necessary to provide compassionate and speedy remedy to ameliorate the difficulties being faced by those so neglected."
The bill is not limited to protection of the elderly. It encompasses, with stipulations, parents and grandparents, wives, sons, unmarried daughters, widowed daughters, any widow of the son, minor illegitimate sons and
illegitimate daughters. The government will form
tribunals as needed in each district to deliberate applications. Section 3.1 of the bill clarifies, 'Any person, who is unable to maintain himself and is resident in the State of Himachal Pradesh, may apply to the Tribunal for an order that [the responsible party] pay a monthly allowance, or any other periodical payment or a lump sum for his maintenance." Depending on who is applying, the person held responsible for maintenance may be the children or grandchildren, the husband, the father, and where father is dead, the mother, or the person who takes any share in an estate of the ancestor.
Section 3.4 defmes the broad ctiteria of maintenance eligibility. "This Act shall apply to that person if the Tribunal is satisfied that he is suffering from infirmity of mind or body which prevents or makes it difficult for him to maintain himself or that there is any other special reason." The Bill continues with a definition of what constitutes
need. '~ parent is unable to mainfain himself if his total or expected income and other fmancial resources are inadequate to provide basic amenities and basic physical needs including (but not limited to) shelter, food and clothing."
Vidya Dhar states in his conclusion, "In our society, the maintenance of aged parents had been a matter of great concern and of personal obligation. Our ancient seers held this obligation on the highest pedestal by declaring that, 'The aged mother and father, the chaste wife and infant child must be maintained, even at great cost.' This Bill seeks to achieve the aforesaid objectives."
MAY , 1997 Hl'NDUISM TODAY 25
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CHALLENGES
Devotional Artist by Fate
I
Personal disaster uncovers 4idden gift
AWRENCE PAUL IS A THIRD-GENERA
tiowPakistani Hindu whose family originally hailed from Gujarat, but elected to stay in Karachi after Partition. One
fateful night in 1989 while taking a shortcut home across a trainyarcl"he was attacked and robbed by twelve men, beaten severely and left for dead. He regained consciousness just as a train was bearing down upon him. Pulling himself off the tracks, he lost both legs as the train passed over him. Unable to work any longer, h~s family finances deteriorated untiJ his mother was forced to take a job. Lawrence then turned to artwork, which had been his hobby, as a way to help the family. "I never stUC'lied with anyone, no
ASTROLOGY
Lawrence's art: Artist at work retouching a painting. Lord Siva blesses Goddess Parvati.
one ever taught" me. God gave me a gift of art. It is a power to help my struggle in1ife," he said. An excellent artist, he doesn't make as much as he might, since most ' of his pieces are ' devotional works. He has done life-size statues of Lord Siva, Goddess Durga and Shirdi Sai Baba, plus a variety of oil and watercolor -paintings. His commissioned portraits are noted for their sensitive depiction of the subject's personality, "Peop)e are forever kll0cking on his door, even coming from far away places," his sister-in-law Yvonne, reports. "But since he does mainly devotional work, a lot is for free or materials
cost only." "My dream is to stand and walk berore my
mother again," Lawrence says-something possible with minor surgery, artificial legs and rehabilitation. Beyond ..... a used, \]S$14 wheelchair, little has been done for him in Pakistan where his treatment options are ina9.equate. Yvonne is raising money to bring him to the USA. Here the surgery and his rehabilitation would be a relatively routine, if costly and extended, process. To assist in his effort to walk again, contact: Yvonne Paul, 11100 Highway 99 South, Ashland Oregon, 97520, USA. ..,.;
Mars-Saturn Opposition posed are all more likely to surface at these times. Unusual and harsh weather patterns prevail as well.
defeated, their spirit remains optimistic; 3) While it gives tremendous experience in dealing with life, by making the person go through all kinds of difficult situations, these very experiences enable the person to rise above the circumstances and become successful; 4) Things which are difficult to change can be changed. It is because of this planetary combination people or countries can make radical changes which would otherwise take ages. These changes ultimately bring progress; 5) These planets remove the stagnation of laziness to promote action and busy-ness; 6) This planetary connection promotes hard work, which is always good; 7) Mars, when aspecting Saturn, gives its power to Saturn. The power of Mars is energy and action. It makes people awaken to the challenges of life and become action oriented."
FROM DECEMBER 17, 1996, through March 24 of this year, Mars was in Virgo
opposite Saturn in Pisces, as will occur again from June 3 to August 4. This combination makes for an opposing, confrontational vibration in the world, caused by the Earths being directly in-between the aggressive force of Mars on one side and the restraining energy of Saturn on the opposite. This opposition affects persons differently according to their birth chart (it especially affects those with prominent Virgo or Pisces), but in general it results in facing more obstacles in life. Projects started will face added set-backs, have to be revamped and started over again. At times, life may seem
I
like one enormous gridlock. The mind and senses tend to conflict, causing impulsive acts. Anger, resistance to authority, resentments or revengeful feelings when op-
Sri Chakrapani VIlal has a special gift of seeing the positive side of these difficult planetary periods: "Though this combination is most destructive, there are always elements of positive influences that manifest. In fact, this association makes the progress faster than otherwise possible, whether in politics, economics or social structure. What is left after the destructive influence is positive and progressive: 1) This combination enhances the ability to think and use logic, diplomacy and strategy which will help in surmounting the difficulties; 2) It makes the person rise to the occasion and fight it out and not get a sense of defeat. Even when
Mangala: A personified depiction oj the planet Mars
MAY , 1 997 H I' N D U ISM TO DAY 27
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EDUCATION
Math'~a-Magicia,n Harvard's #2 graduate balanc~s brillance with art and atman
By LAVINA MELWANI, NEW YORK
OU COULD HAVE HEARD A PIN DROP.
After all, the event was one of awe-inspiring pomp and' circumstance in that blue-chip, Ivy League temple of higher
learning-Harvard UniversIty. Manjul Bhargava'stepped up to the microphone, clad underneath his graduation gown in his Indian kurta and pajama. As one of the top two students graduating in Harvard's 1,600-strong 1996 class, he had been invited to lead the commencement. Surrounded and undaunted by the trappings of maipstream America, he began with teachings from the Vedas. Manjul recalls, "I thought this would be the perfect beginning to this auspicious ceremony. I recited in .sanskrit some of my favorite verses, and a translation into English was read immediately afterwards and broadcast on radio throughout-the Boston area."
Yes, you can take the boy out ofIndia, but you certainly can't take India out of the boy! Confident and proud of his Hindu culture and identity, thIS young Ontario-born son of a chemist father and mathematician mother has proven that he is-truly Aryabhatas descendent in mind and spirit. This January he received the prestigious Frank and Brennie Morgan Prize for outstanding research in mathematics by ' an undergraduate student. Manjul, whose academic CMeer has been flawless, received the award for the four papers he submitted to the Morgan Prize- Committee. His Senior Honor's Thesis, "On P-orderings and polynomial functions on arbitrary subsets of Dedekind-type rings" unifies and generalizes the results of about 20 previous papers, many by wellknown mathematicians.
This may all sound a bit cerebral to ordinary mortals like us, but in Cllse you think tIkt Manjul is one of those Super I.Q .. ·brains with the social life of a nerd, thinJ5: again! He was editor 'of the school magazine Ventures, played on the tennis and bowling teams and was in the Ecology and French Clubs. He attracted academic awards and scholarships throughout school and college as -effortles~ly as honeycombs draw bees. He cheerfully admits: "I never really liked going to school, and so I rarelY attended. Instead, I spent most of my childhood biking, playing tennis and . basketball with neighborhood kids, writing, flying kites, reading recreational
28 HINDUISM TODA.Y M4Y, 1997
math books, and learniI).g to play the sitar, guitar, violin and the tabla."
Manjul, the winner of the First Annual New York State Science Talent Search, almost didn't graduate because of his carefree inclination to skip classes that couldn't teach him anything he didn't know already. After all, he had completed all his high school's math and computer courses by nin~h grade! Still, he did manage to graduate-as the class valedictorian, no less.
At Harvard, he was awarded the Thomas Hoopes Prize for outstanding research work. While taking gradua(e courses, he also taught undergraduate mathematics as a teaching fellow for three years and was a
three-time recipient of the Derek Bale Award for Excellence in Teaching. b-ll this before he reached voting age!
Even at Harvard, Manjul found time to pursue Sanskrit, table tennis and the tabla, which. he played at various musical performances in the Boston area. His extended' Hindu family, with whom he spent many vacations in Jaipur, nurtured in him an overwhelming love of India. His grandfather, Dr. PUFUshottam Lal Bhargava, was a renowned scflolar of Sanskrit and ancient Indian history, and was recently honored by the president of India for his groundbreaking research. His mother, Dr. Mira Bhargava, is a noted mathematician, but as Manjul ob-
serves, ~'She is also a wonderful and dedicated traditional Indian mother and homemaker."
Though Manjul grew up in several cities in C¥ada and the US, Hindu values were instilled in him as a child. He says: ""My first language was Hindi, and I picked, up most of
school, but ManfUl stood his ground: "Sometimes kids I ate with would make fun of me for not eating meat-'You've never had a hamburger in your life?' they'd ask incredu'lou sly. I would remind them that what they were eating were slices of dead cow and pig, and I'd relate cruel and gruesome stories of
Proof positive: Manjul, 22, points to one of his formulas which earned him the Morgan Prize. Three of the four honorees of this prestigious award hqve been Hindu.
the slaughterhouse to them. This generally grossed them out enough to never make fun of vegetarianism again. In f$.ct , afterwards many of diem stopped eating meat altogether-at least in front of me!"
. / my English later on from school and from friends. I took a leave of absence from school in the second half of my sophomore year and spent it in Jaipur with my grandparents. I learned Sanskrit at the Rajasthan Sanskrit ViClyapeeth and took further tabla lessons from my teacher there."
While he was growing up::discussions of the Vedas, the Puranas and the Mahabhara-
. ta were as common as those on current news. All major Hindu holidays were celebrated with puja, arati (offering of lights) and lots of festive food. His Hindu upbringing did not clash with Wowing up in America.
The family's staunch vegetarianism did cause some minor clashes in elementary
Manjul's commitment to vegetarianism persists, and at Harvard he was involved with the Animal Welfare Committee. The idea is fa raise awareness of animal rights through such activities as fur protests and examining the humane treatment of laboratory animals. Recalls Manjul: "I was very surprise a to be ·the only Hindu member on the committee. While it is gratifying to see so many non-Hindus becoming dedicated to the cause of ahimsa, I wish that more Hindus would get involved ip proII].oting
" this noble Indian practice." . As a youth in North America, Manjul had one minor problem: the Hindu holidays almost never coincided with school holidays. He .says, "I would miss many school days throughout the year for various Hindu festivals. But to tell you the truth, I always found sitting through classes all day rather dull and boring, and so was very happy on those days when I was able to skip school, all with a valid excuse, too!"
How does he feel about being raised half in the East and half in the West? Manjul observes, "I am so glad to have grown up in two cultures! It has allowed me to extract the best of two worlds .
The wisdom and values of Hindus together with the confidence and work ethics of Americans has really been an Inspiring combination. It has also allowed me to grow up as a truly multilingual person and to be exposed to fuany different schools of literature, music and art."
. Because of his frequent trips to India and his exposure to Indian culture at home, he feels very much a part.of the home country too. He thinks young Hindus growingup in 21st century US should hang on to their culture and religion. "People don't reaJize the tremendous advantage of growing up in two different cultures," he points out. "Hinduism is an especially adaptable, rational and uni-
versal way of life, and growing up in America does not in any way prevent one from holding on to our Sanatana Dharma."
Ind>ed, Manjul has taken bits and pieces from both cultures and created his own ide~ universe. He wears kurta pajamas but also Western clothes; he is adept at computer science but also fascinated by Vedic ganita jyotisha, or astronomy. He says, 'Tve read the marvelous exposition of ganita jyotisha by Aryabhata (4th century) who is recognized worldwide as the founder of modern astronomy and trigonometry."
Living on American campuses and exposed to the hard-sell of television shows ,. and commercials, how has the handsome bachelor dealt with dating? He points out that this is certainly an issue on which the Indian and American cultures differ, adding -that young Indians in America are under tremendous pressure by their peers to date. He says, "I personally have chosen not to date and have a large circle of close friends -male and female, mostly American-who have accepted and respected my decision. I attend social functions, not with a date, but with family members or fhends."
As for marriage, Manjul protests: "I haven't thought much about marriage yet, so I can't say whether I will have an arranged marriage eventually-I'm only 22 and am in school for a couple more years!" He does add though that he would not insist on marrying from the same community but would certainly hope to marry someone who shares his Hindu values, speaks Hindi, enjoys Indian music and likes the natural sciences.
At Harvard, he graduated summa cum laude in math and waj awarded the prestigious Hertz Fellowship which he. is currently using to pursue a Ph.D. in mathematics at Princeton University. He eventually hopes to be a mathematician at a research institution: "I would really like to open some sort of chain of national math and science gurukulas (schools) in India. There is so much mathematical and science talent in India, but unfortunately, such talent is not fostered anti attended to as it is in the United States." .
Asked what helps him,.get through rough times, Manjul points to' the ten ca'i-dinal virtues of Hinduism-the yamas and niyamas-as prescribed in the Manusmrti, including fortitude, forgiveness, truthfulness, absence of anger and pursuit of knowledge. To that he adds, "Growjng up in a traditional Hindu family also makes tough times much easier, as fam\ly members are always willing to sacrifice their own time and resources when others are in need. My mother especially has be'en the paramount example of sacrifice, having dedicated almost her entire life to the well-being of our extended family." And the ornnipotent'Ganesha sitting in the family shrine in New York extends a helping hand, too! wi
MAY, 1 997 H I'N D U ISM TO DAY 29
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INSIGHT
Sacred Pilgrimage Searching for God, atoning for misdeeds or begging for boons, pilgrims visit the holy places
IVE DUTIES, CALLED PANCHA KRIYA, FORM
the traditional minimal practices expected of every Hindu: upasana (worship);
utsava (holy days); dharma (virtuous living); tirthayatra (pilgrimage); and sam
skara (rites of passage). Thus, most Hindus proceed on pilgrimage from time to time, choosing from among the seven sacred rivers or seven liberation-giving cities, the twelve Siva mandirs or the vast temple complexes of Mathura and Vrindavana, or thousands more holy places of India. Some visit the hallowed sanctuaries of Sri Lanka, Bali, Nepal and Bangladesh, Southeast Asia 0r the modern temples of Europe, America and Australia. How we follow the pilgrims' way is more important than where we go.
The concept of Mrshana is inextricably woven into tirthayatra (literally "journey to the river's ford"), and all of its encounters, mundane and metaphysical. In fact, one cannot understand how a Hindu experiences pilgrimage without a deep appreciation for the notso-obvious concept of Mrshana, which means "sight or vision." The direct encounter, or seeing, of the Divine, is the ideal that carries a Hindu on pilgrimage. He wants to see holy men and women, to see holy shrines, to see the images abiding in the ancient sanctums. Ultimately, he wants to see God, to have a personal, life-changing, blissengendering, karma-eradicating vision of Truth within himself. The pilgrim also wants to be seen by God, to reveal himself, uncover himself, stand before God and be known to Him. Darshana is the essence of every pilgrim's journey, the rationale, the inner and outer goal. Working diligently with himself, the pilgrim observes his yogas and his sadhanas (disciplines) so that his seeing may be pure and untainted. Traditional questors' practices of snana, the sacred bath, especially at the confluences of rivers, and munMna, shaving of the head, are part of attaining that purity.
Pilgrimage is a pan-human religious behavior, practiced by all cul-
30 HINDUISM TODAY MAY , 1997
tures in much the same manner and for similar reasons-boons, expiation of sins, healing, nearness to God and enlightenment. A pilgrim of ancient Egypt testified, "1 made myself a stranger to all vice and all Godlessness, was chaste for a considerable period, and offered the due incense in holy piety. I had a vision of God and found rest for my soul." The Aborigines of Australia travel to Ayer's Rock and other places of the continent. American Indian tribes undertake a "vision quest" at their sacred places. The Olympic Games were originally part of a pilgrimage to the temple of Zeus in Olympia, Greece. The Christians of the Middle Ages traveled to the holy city of Jerusalem, often at great personal peril. Muslims are expected once in their life to perform the hajj, the visit to Mecca, holiest city of Islam-about 10% are able to do so. Buddhists visit the four-sanctified sites: Buddha's birthplace in Lumbini, Nepal; his place of enlightenment at Bodhgaya, India; Deer Park (Sarnath), where he gave his first sermon; and Kusinara, where he had his great departure. Jains pilgrimage to Mount Abu in Rajasthan and Parasnath in Bihar; Sikhs to the Golden Temple at Amritsar; Shintoists to Mount Fiji in Japan. There are numerous places in China sacred to Taoists and Confucianists. Catholics are ardent pilgrims-four million a year to Lourdes in France, a million to Fatima in Portugal, to name just two destinations. Protestant Christians are possibly unique for rejecting the practice of pilgrimage as "childish and useless works." But even they can be found at Lourdes or Jerusalem. Not only the
practices but even the people are the same. What Hindu pilgrim would not recognize from his own experience the Christian characters of John Bunyan's novel Pilgrim's Progress- Mr. Worldly Wiseman, Mrs. Hopeful, Mr. Faithful, Mrs. Much-afraid and Mr. Ready-to-halt?
Pilgrimage is not a vacation, a chance to "get away from it all" and enjoy scenic vistas in far-off lands. The true blessing of pilgrimage comes with singlemindedness of purpose, rather than combining it (especially as a secondary purpose) with visits to relatives or the handling of business or professional concerns. Pilgrimage is a going toward holiness and a going away from worldly life. Sri Swami Satchidananda of the Integral Yoga Institute told HINDUISM TODAY, "There is a tradition that when you take a pilgrimage you temporarily become a sannyasin [renunciate]. It is called yatra sannyasa. You go as a sannyasin, doing with simple things and depending on God."
"Pilgrimages," explains Swami Chidanand Saraswati (Muniji) of Parmath Niketan, in Rishikesh, "may be undertaken for realizing specific desires; as a prayashchitta (penance) for cleansing one's sins or for spiritual regeneration. Seekers go on pilgrimages in quest of knowledge, enlightenment and liberation. The great acharyas like Shankara, Ramanuja and Madhva went on pilgrimages to teach Sanatana Dharma." Pilgrims perform the shraddha rites at an auspicious place in honor of their ancestors. They seek the company of holy people. By such proximity, the pilgrim hopes to absorb a bit of the saints religious merit, or maybe to capture a glimpse of the lofty
state of the knower's consciousness. The Mahabharata, in the Tirthayatra section, lists hundreds of
holy destinations. Sage Pulastya describes to Bhishma a tour circumambulating all of India in a clockwise fashion, beginning from Pushkara in Rajasthan, then to Sornnath and Dwarka in the West, to the Himalayas, across the top of India through Varanasi and Gaya to the mouth of the Ganges in the East, then southward to Kanyakumari, back up the western side of India to Gokarna in Karnataka, and ultimately returning to Pushkara. The existence of this pilgrimage route in ancient times proves, they say, that undivided India was a one culture unified by a one religion. In Hindu Places of Pilgrimage in India, Surinder Mohan Bhardwaj states, "The number ofHindu sanctuaries in India is so large and the practice of pilgrimage so ubiquitous that the whole of India can be regarded as a vast sacred space organized into a system of pilgrimage centers and their fields." The continuous circulation of tens of millions of pilgrims throughout India has forged a national unity of great strength. Swami Chidanand explains, "Pilgrimages have culturally and emotionally unified the Hindus. They have increased the generosity of people. Pilgrims learn and appreciate the many subcultures in the different regions, while also appreciating the overall unity."
The pilgrim, according to Sage Pulastya, must have contentment, self-control and freedom from pride and anger. He must eat light, vegetarian food and regard all creatures as his own sel[ "The pilgrims," notes Ma Yoga Shakti, "should not entertain anything which is not spiritual. A pilgrim must go with total surrender, with a total faith in God, that it is only with God's grace that he can finish the pilgrimage." All along the way, there is help from others. "People know you are a pilgrim," Swami Satchidananda continued. "They say, 'We cannot go ourselves. We are all busy in the world. Please, by helping you, you can go and get some benefit, and parts of it will come to us.' " Pilgrims often sense a divine guidance during their journey, as obstacles unexpectedly disappear and needed assistance comes in a timely, unplanned fashion. Helping pilgrims is an important obligation. The langar, free vegetarian kitchen, and free rest houses at pilgrimage sites are common methods of assistance.
In addition to participation in the normal temple or festival events, the pilgrim's devotional practices include circumambulation, bathing, head shaving, sraddha offering to ancestors and prostration. Prostration and circumambulation are sometimes combined in the rigorous discipline of "measuring one's length"-prostrating, rising, stepping forward two paces and prostrating repeatedly around a sacred site. There are pilgrims who undertake this formidable penance the entire 33-mile path around Mount Kailas. Many destinations have a prescribed set of observances for pilgrims. Some, such as that to the temple of Lord Ayappan in Sabarimala, have complex disciplines requiring months to complete.
Pilgrims pay obeisance to every Deity along their way. After worshiping at all the shrines in each temple, one fmds a quiet place in meditation. Manasa puja, "mental ritual worship," is then performed to the Deity who stands out most strongly in one's mind, explained Swami Satchidananda. It is not enough to run from shrine to shrine taking Mrshana for "just five minutes:' as the tour guides insist. One must also reflect internally in meditation and thus become open to receiving the gracious boons of the God. Even a life-changing vision of God may come to the pilgrim in his meditation, or later in a dream.
H.H. Swami Prakashanand, an ardent devotee of Radha-Rani, explains how to conclude a sacred journey. "Normally while going to a holy place people think of God, but as soon as they have the Mrshan of the Deity and they start back home, their mind is totally engrossed in business affairs. This is not correct. While coming back he should be further engrossed in feeling the closeness of God. Otherwise it is a sight-seeing trip." It is customary to return with holy water, vibhuti (holy ash) and other temple sacraments and place them upon the home altar after lighting a lamp. This establishes the holy places' blessings in the home and keeps the pilgrimage alive for months.
MAY , 1997 HINDUISM TODAY 31
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Divine Destinations HE EARLIEST PILGRIMAGE DESTINATIONS ARE THOUGHT TO BE
the saptanadis (seven holy rivers), hence the Sanskrit term for pilgrimage, tirthayallra, literally "journey to the river's ford." These seven rivers-Ganga, Yamuna, Godavari, Sarasvati, Narmada, Sindhu and Kaveri-remain preeminent among
holy sites on their own accord and in association with the temples along their course. Each Hindu sect holds certain sites in high regard, though few Hindus would pass up the opportunity to visit any of the great sanctuaries. Paramount is the Kumbha Mela, the largest gathering of humans in the world, according to the Guinness Book of World Records. The 1989 Kumbha Mela at Prayag drew 30 million devotees. The month-long festival is held four times in each 12-year cycle of Jupiter, once each at Haridwar, Prayag, Nassik and Ujjain. A bath in India's sacred rivers yields immeasurable blessings. Hundreds of thousands of holy men emerge from caves and forests to bestow their blessings on humanity at the Kumbha Mela.
Haridwar, where the river Ganges enters the Gangetic Plain, is the gateway to the sacred Himalayan shrines, tirthas and ashrams. It attracts thousands of pilgrims year-round. The Kumbha Mela is held here when Jupiter is in Aquarius and the Sun in Aries-next occurring in January-February of 1998. Prayag, "place of sacrifice," attracts millions who travel great distances and endure hardships for a purifying bath to absolve sins and seek moksha, freedom from rebirth, in the confluence of three rivers-Yamuna, Ganga and the invisible Sarasvati. This city holds the biggest Kumbha Mela of all when Jupiter is in Taurus and the Sun in Capricorn. The next one will be in January-February of 2001. Near the source of the Godavari River in Maharashtra, Nassik is revered as Lord Rama's forest home during exile. One of ten cave temples here was Sita's abode, from which Ravana abducted her. Shrines of the area include the Kapaleshvara and Tryambakeshvara Siva temples. The Nassik mela (festival) is much smaller than those of Haridwar and Prayag. It next occurs in August-September 2003, when both Jupiter and the Sun are in Leo. Historic Ujjain is one of India's seven cities of liberation.
Pilgrimage moments: Elderly women hike 46 km to Amamath cave in ] ammu. Evening Ganga puja in Banaras. QUiet moment of meditation before Lord Vishnu at Badami, Kamataka State. The infirm are carried by hired porters to difficult sacred destinations.
This site of the relatively small 1992 Kumbha Mela, on the Shipra River in Madhya Pradesh, shelters an array of destinations, including the Mahakala Siva Temple and the Amareshvara Jyotir Linga. Its next mela will be April-May 2004, when Jupiter enters Leo with the Sun in Aries. A biannual Kumbha Mela of the South was begun in 1989 by Sri la Sri Tiruchi Mahaswamigal and Sri Sri Sri Balagangadharanathaswami of Bangalore at an auspicious site near Mysore.
Among the foremost religious retreats for SaiYites is Chidambaram, the great Siva Nataraja temple, site of the Lingam of Akasha, located in Tamil Nadu. It was here that Lord Siva performed the Tandava dance of creation, overcoming the arrogance of the rishis, and where sage Patanjali later lived and wrote the Yoga Sutras. Here also lived Rishi Tirumular, author of the Tirumantiram. The glistening roof of the main sanctum contains 17,500 solid gold tiles, one for each breath a human takes in a day.
High north in Uttar Pradesh is Kedarnath, one of the twelve Jyotir Linga temples of Lord Siva. It was established at the foot of the Himalayas by the five Pandavas after the Mahabharata war to atone for their sins. Recent improvements have made the previously arduous ascent to this 12,000-foot sanctuary easier, but unfit trekkers are still cautioned about the cold and the 5,000-foot hike from Gaurikund, the last motorable outpost.
One of the greatest and most austere pilgrimages, Mount Kailas, Himalayan abode of Lord Siva, is sacred to five religions. Pilgrims perform a three-day, 33-mile circumambulation of the peak. At the foot of Kailas lies Lake Manasarovara, symbolizing a quieted mind, free from all thought. Kailas is the Mount Meru of Hindu cosmology, center of the universe. Within 50 miles are the sources of four of India's auspicious rivers.
The Ramanathaswamy Siva Linga Temple at Ramesyaram near India's southern tip was built by Lord Rama in penance for killing Ravana, a brahmin. Two Lingams (egg-shaped icons) are worshiped there, established by Sita and Hanuman. Each day the abhishekam (bathing) is performed with Ganges water. The temple is enormous in extent, with a mile of stone corridors. Pilgrims bathe in the sea and at 22 wells, each of which removes a particular kind of sin.
Pilgrims to Banaras, Siva's City of Light, bathe at the ghats (river steps) along the River Ganges to cleanse the sins of a lifetime. Most pilgrims attend Siva Linga puja (devotional rites) at Kashi Vish-
wanatha, foremost of the 1,500 temples here. The devout journey here at life's end.
One of the greatest Shakta temples is Vaishno DeYi. Those who climb the mountain trail in the Trikuta mountains north of Jammu are rarely disappointed as they implore the Goddess for boons. It was here in the Himalayan foothills that Vaishno Devi, a devotee of Lord Vishnu, defeated the demon Bhaironatha. Though hid-den within a cave, the shrine receives more than 20,000 pilgrims a day, even when wintery snows are piled deep outside.
At the very tip of India, where the Bay of Bengal, the Indian Ocean and the Arabian Sea meet, lies the ancient shrine of Kanyakumari, Goddess Parvati as the eternal virgin. It was here She defeated the demon Bana. Boats take pilgrims offshore to the Vivekananda Rock Memorial; where the young swami cognized his mission to begin a Hindu renaissance.
Madurai, the Athens of India, holds the labyrinthine Meenakshi Sundaram temple. Here Siva came as Somasundarar to wed the Pandyan Princess Meenakshi, a manifestation of Par- Pilgrim: Searching for God vati. Thus, this edifice encases two temples, one to Siva and another to Sakti. The towering entry gates, 1,000-pillared hall, sacred tanks and shrines vibrate with thousands of years of worship at this seven-walled citadel on the Vagai River.
Only a few centuries ago the Kalighat temple was established in what was then a remote jungle near the river Ganges. The now highly congested Calcutta expanded to envelope the shrine, which is filled daily with devotees' cries of "Kali Ma, Kali Ma," beseeching blessings from the incomparable Protectress and Mother of liberation.
Kamaksha is the Goddess of Love. Her holiest sanctuary is a small temple built on the rock of Nila Hill near Gauhati in Assam. The town and its legends are described in the Mahabharata and the Kalika Purana. This temple of magic for the sincere devotee contains no image of the Goddess, but in the depths of the shrine is a cleft in the stone, adored as the yoni of Sakti.
VaishnaYites revere Ayodhya, birthplace of Lord Rama, "Jewel of the Solar Kings." Here devotees worship and seek the blessings and boons of the seventh incarnation of God Vishnu. This orthodox Vaishnava town in Uttar Pradesh is among Hinduism's seven most
sacred cities. Temples and shrines in every quarter honor famous sites of Rama's celebrated life, including the reclaimed Ram Janmabhoomi shrine and a temple to His devout servant, Hanuman.
Mathura is the birthplace of Lord Krishna, eighth incarnation of God Vishnu. Mathura and nearby Vrindaban and Gokula are an outdoor paradise for devotees visiting places of the Lord's youth. A tenmile circumambulation of the city takes enchanted pilgrims to dozens of shrines and bathing spots for this beloved God's blessings.
Puri, in the state of Orissa, is the site of the famous Rathayatra, car festival, held around June each year at the sprawling, 900-yearold Jagannatha temple complex. A million pilgrims flock for darshana of God Vishnu as Lord of the Universe, and His brother and sister, Balabhadra and Subhadra. Using 500-meter ropes, throngs of devotees pu1l40-foot-tall wooden chariots to the Gundicha temple.
Along with Yamunotri, Gangotri and Kedarnath, Badrinath lies in the area known as Uttarkhand, high in the Himalayas. During the half-year when not blocked by snow, hearty pilgrims climb 10,000 feet to the temple of Badrinarayana, where God Vishnu sits in meditation with a large diamond adorning His third eye and body bedecked with gems. Pilgrims take a purifying bath at the Tapt Kund, a sacred hot water pool.
India's richest and most popular temple, Tirupati, daily draws 25,000 pilgrims. They joyfully wait hours for a precious two seconds of darshana of the two-meter tall, jet-black image of the wish-fulfilling Sri Venkateshwara, or Balaji. His diamond crown is the costliest ornament on Earth. The temple is a Dravidian masterpiece of stonework, gold and jewels. Head-shaving here is a prized testimony of penance and devotion, and famed laddu sweets are the pilgrim's prized gift of blessed food.
In ancient times the rishis of the Rig Veda sang in praise of pilgrimage: "Flower-like the heels of the wanderer, his body grows and is fruitful; all his sins disappear, slain by the toil of his journeying." So meaningful is pilgrimage in the Sanatana Dharma, the world's oldest religion, that Hindus today have thousands of destinations, at which God awaits the pilgrim.
Recommended Resources: Hindu Places of Pilgrimage in India [comprehensive study for North Indian sites], Surinder Mohan Bhardwaj, University of California Press, 2120 Berkeley Way, Berkeley, California, 94720. Pilgrimage Past and Present In the World Religions [useful for Western faiths], Simon Coleman and John Elsner, Harvard University Press, 79 Garden Street, Cambridge, Massachusetts, 02138-1425. Pilgrimages and Journeys, [fIne children's book], Katherine Prior, Thomson Learning, 115 Flfth Avenue, New York, New York, lQOO3. l Hlstoricalltlas of South Asia [maps and historical accounts], Joseph E. Schwartzberg, Oxford University Press, 200 Madison Avenue, New York, New York, 10016. Journeys to the lands of the Gods [a pilgrims diary, especially good for South Indian sites], Rajalingaro Rajathurai, Printworld Services Pte Ltd, 80 Genting Lane, #04-02 Genting Block, Ruby Industrial Complex, Singapore 349565
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ECONOMICS
India:-Once P'lentiflil Records -reveal British sch~mes diminished crops anc;l dismantled a native system of abundance
OST OF US COLLEGE-EDUCATED
Indians were taught that inefficient technologies and low productivities pervaded through long ages in practically all parts
_ of .India," states Dr. S.K. Bajaj: dIrector of the Centre for Policy Studies, a Chennai think tank. In the 1920s Gandhi's Young India pr.esentep some proof of a rich and prosperous pre-British India. Then in the 1960s, the Centre's founder, historian Sri Dharampal, discovered at the Thanjavur Tamil University a set of palrnleaf records documenting a British survey of 2,000 villages of Chengalpattu, a large area surrounding present -day Chennai. "Startling features of Tamil society in the 18th century emerge from these palmleaf accounts," said Bajaj. "Between 1762 and 1766 there were villages which produced up to 12 tons of paddy a hectare. This level of productivity can be obtained 'only in the best of the Green Revolution areas of the coumry, with the most advanced, expensive and often enviroIlJllentaily ruinous technologies. The annual-availability of all food averaged five tons per household; the national average in India today is three-quarters ton. Whatever the ways of pre-British Indian society, they were definitely neither ineffective nor inefficient."
Food production is just one aspect of the
colonial impact geing addressed by the Centre. The Chengalpattu records are part of Dharampal's research which has uncovered a politically, technologically and economically vibrant Indian society of the il.8th cEi,ntury. "That society was dismantled and atomized by the British, by force," states the Centre's brochure, "and the diverse skills of the Indian people were pushed out of the public sphere and n;tade to rust and decay. For India to become a vibrant and dynamic nation again, we only need to re-awaken the political, economic and technological skills of our people." The records are especially useful for understanding how Hindu religious institutions were originally supported, and why they declined under British rule.
Dliarampal believes Indians must rediscover their nation's traditional sense of chitta, mind, and flow of time, kala. "Since we have lost practically all contact with our tradition, and all comprehension of our chitta and kala, there are no standards and norms on the basis of which to answer ~estions that arise in 9rdinary social living. Ordinary rndians perhaps still retain an innate understanding of rig~t action and right thought, but our elite society seems to have lost all touch with any stable norms of behavior and thinking. The present attempt at imitating the world and following every passing tad
Ola leaf records: Sample of the meter-long palmleaf manuscripts of the British survey
34 HINDUISM TODA,Y ~ Y, 1997
can .... hardly lead us anywhere. We shall have no options until we evolve a conceptual framework of our own, based on chitta and kala, to discriminate between right and wrong, what is useful for us and what is futile."
The Centre's three main researchers .are: M.D. Srinivas, a theoretical physicist teaching at the University of Madr~, who specializes in Indi"an science; T.M. Mukundan, a mechanical engineer specializing in technologies such as water management and iron smelting; and J.K. Bajaj, also a theoretical -physicist, now involved in economy, agriculfure and energy.
The Chengalpattu data was a Godsend for the Centre, and has allowed them to support many of their central theories about pre-British 1ndia. The accounts
. detail a complete economic, social, administrative and religious picture of the society. Every temple, pond, garden and grove in a locality is listed, the occupation, family size, hpme aI).d lot
.... size of 62,500 households metic, ulously recorded. Crop yields between 1762-66 are tallied. Per capita production of food in this region (which is of average fertility) was more than five times that achieved on average today.
Hajaj and his associates didn't do all their work in a library. The team set off in person
across the Chengalpattu region to verify the picture presented in the leafs. They found most of these villages deserted-.perhaps since !.he beginning of the 19th century-by all who had any resources, education or skil~s . Inhabitants had left behind their palatial houses, their temples and groves. Abandoned as well were the eyrs-the irrigation tanks and channels-often cut across by British~built roads which left· dry land on one side and stagnant water on the other. Their on-the-~round inspection confirmed many aspects of the inscribed leaves.
Of importance to Hindu history is how the religious institutions were maintained. Lands .... callen many am were assigned for the support of various fundions, .Including religious activities. Certain percentages of the production from this land were divided among ·the various public functions, such as administration, army, education and religious institutions. Small temples received incorhe from nearby villages. Larger ones, such as those of the great center of Kanchipuram, received income from over a thousanCl. villages. The amount dedicated to religion from the many am lands, according 'to the leaves, was a. substantial four percent of the total produce of the region. It supported temples, academies of learning, dancers and musicians. A portion was also provided for Muslim and Jain institutions. This system resulted in the vast network of temples, most now neglected, seen across South India.
The British government changed this system. In some areas they calculated a percentage figure of total tax revenue going to the institutions and fixed it as a dollar amount, in 1799 dollap. Some institutions still receive this same govermpent allot-
Hovv the Green Revolution failed
DB. RAMON DE LA PENA OF THE UNIVERSITY OF HAW All IS ONE OF
the worlds foremost experts on rice. He also ha'ppens to be a neighbor of the ashram from which HINDUISM TODAY is produced. Asked to comment on the Chengalpattu reports, he said: "Such yields as 12
tons per hectare were definitely possible with the old methods and two crops a year. The best modern US production is eight to nine tons per hectare (one annual crop). The world average is presently three to five tonslhectare. Before the Green Revolution [which introduced new, high-yielding strains] the average was one to one-and-a-half tonslhectare. The Green Revolution worked in some areas but not in others. The short variety of rice developed for it grew just one meter high. To be productive, it needed fertilizer, and the fields had to be kept weed free. The old varieties were two meters high, not so suspectible to weed competition, resistant to insects and did not need fertilizer. If the new varieties are not managed correctly-with fertilizers, pesticides and insecticides-the harvest is less than with the old methods of minimum input. New is not always better."
MAY, 1997 Hl'NDUISM TODAY 35
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No pain, no grain: Himalayan women winnow grain. Such ancient methods created an abundance unmatched in India today.
, -, ment-worth next to nothing to-day. Others became owners of the land from which a' share of production once came. This introduced its own set of problem~, also still with us today, where temples are unable to collect the rep.t. The collective result was that the great religious and cultural institutions of the 18th century decayed and lost touch with the community. The ,British taxes were so high there was no money left to support the administlfation or cultural establishments. School teachers, musician;' dancers, keepers of the irrigation works, moved away, or took to farming. By 1871, 80% of the area was engaged in agriculture (up from less than 50% earlier), and many of the services and industrial activities that dominated the Chengalpattu ~oci'ety of the 1770s ceased to exist.
The value of the Centre's re- ' search is obvious: India, and Hinduism with it, flourished in the not-so~distant pas.t-without the Green Revolution or the Industrial ,Revolution or the Worker'sRevolution. Dharampal, Bajaj and' their associates want India to look back at this time, dissect and understand it, and use that indigenous. knowledge to reinvigorate the world's largest democracy._
Dharma's Foundation Dr. J.K. :8ajaj lauds duty to create and s?are abundance
11 reliabte statistics indicate that the average availability and consumption of food in
our country is among the lowest in the world. We on the average eat at least one-third less of staple foods thqn the norm in almost every other part of the world. And In,dia is perhaps the only major countr.}: of the world where cattle do not share in the produce of the lands. The Indian people and cattle are living in a state of hunger while highly
.' fertile Indian lands, even those that fall in the plains of the great life-giving rivers, such as the Ganga, are lying -idle. This has been the situation of India for about two hundred years.
India was never so callous abollt scarcity and hunger. Growing an abundance of. food and sharing it ln plenty, annabahulya and annadana,
have always constituted the foundation of dharma. All else, even the search for moksha, liberation, is built on this foundation. We believe that if India is to come into her own and assert her civilizational greatness in the present-day world, then first of.all we have to overcome scarcity and recover the traditional diScipline of ensuring plentiful food to share with all.
111 order to propagate anq: make this discipline a national pri-ority, we invited prominent saints to the temple of Sri Tirumala, Andhra Pradesh, on October 11, 1996. Srimat K.aliyan Vanamamali Ramanuja Jeer Swami told our gathering that scarcity in India is not merely an economic failure, it is a moral failure. Sri Kanchi
Kamakoti Shankaracharya said we neither need to learn anything fr~sh from anywhere, nor esta:blish any new institution. We only have to recollect the memory of the discipline that has always been with us. Tirumala-Tiru-
pati Devasthanam's executive officer, M.K.R.
Vinayak, said anfladana was dis- , continued not due to a lack of foodgrains, but a ~ack of moral values.
The assembled saints unanimously
blessed the release of our book, Annan Bahu Kurvita, in Hindi, Tamil and English, which treats all aspects of annabahulya and annadana.
Annan Bahu Kurvita is available from: Centre for Policy Studies, 2, Thyagarajapuram, Mylapore, Chennai, 600 004, India.
36 HINDUISM TODA.Y MY, 1997 /
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"India Ink" on the Internet Books on India/Hinduism. Featuripg this month Loving Ganesa and Dancing with Siva by Satguru Sivaya Subramaniyaswami. Available from India Ink at www. [email protected]
Palani Panchang 1997. Trivedi's American Panchang available in English or Gujarati. US$9 (+ US$2 s/h). In 3 versions for NY, Chicago, San Francisco times. 510-490-1533. Devendra Trivedi, 4831 Piper St, Fremont, CA 94538-2525 USA.
Reach out to Hindus worldwide. Your classified or display ad in Hinduism Today will reach out to more than 100,000 Hindus in over 120 countries every month. In USA call, 1-800-850-1008. Outside of US: 808-823-9620. Fax: 808-822-435. E-mail: [email protected]. hi.us. Internet: http://HinduismTo day. kauai. hi.us (USA)
Free metaphysical booklist: Ast~ology, Dreams, Healing, Inspirational, Mysticism, Oriental, etc! (www.sunbooks.com) Sunbooks, Box 5588 (HT), Santa Fe, NM 87502-5588 USA.
Real Estate
Magnificent historic stone building in NW North Carolina mountains. 20,000 sq ft. Ideal center. 'Very reasonable price for right cause. Dr. Gandhi, Tel: 540-782-9987 USA
Vacation/Retreat
Beautiful rooms by the ocean. Ayurvedic meals. One hour north of San Francisco. Brighton Beach HAUS. Tel: 415-868-9778.
Videos
Acclained spiritual videos: Sadhana-India's holy men, see the kumbha mela. 60 min. US$33.95 pstpd (ck) Pal and Catalog available. Penny Price Media. 355C Lake Pleasant Dr. Staatsburg, NY 12580 USA. 914-876-0239, Fax 914-876-0260.
Yoga
Yoga in Daily Life Yoga classes, guest lecturers, satsang. Yoga related items, books, audio and video tapes and more. 1310 Mt. Vernon, Alexandria, VA 22301 USA Tel: 703-299-8946 • Fax: 703-299-9051
The Yoga Research Center is dei:licated to research and education on all aspects of Hindu, Buddhist, and Jaina Yoga. YRC publishes "Yoga World" bimonthly newsletter and two booklet series. Subscriptions: US$18.00; membership: $35.00. Yoga Research Center, PO Box 1386, Lower Lake, CA 95457-386 USA. Tel: 707-928-5751. Fax:707-928-4738.
Yoga at home video series, all levels, with Ramesh Yogi, Indian guru, 25 years experience. US$25 each, inc!. postage. Yoga Center, PO Box 36-D-67, Los Angeles, CA 90036-1363 USA Tel: 213-876-9970. http://www.indolink.comlgloballyogaCntr.html
Sri Chinmoy Ayurvedic Institute Tamil, Hindi, Sanskrit Summer Courses
The Sri Chinmoy Institute of Ayurvedic Sciences offers authentic training in the ancient traditions of Ayurvedic . Medicine. Comprehensive programs taught in all areas: nutrition, pulse diagnoses, Ayurvedic skin care, massage, Panch Karma (cleansing and rejuvenation), and herbal medicine. Taught by Virender Sodhi, MD. (Ayurved), N.D. and N.D. staff Now enrolling evening and weekend seminars.
June 26-Aug 19, 1997
Sri Chinmoy Institute of Ayurvedic Sciences 2115112th Ave NE, Bellevue, WA 98004-2946 USA. Tel: 1-206-453-8022 • Fax: 1-206-451-2670 e-mail: [email protected]. http/www.ayush.com
The Center for South and Southeast Asian Studies, University of Michigan (USA), offers intensive Beginning and Intermediate Tamil, Hindi and Beginning Sanskrit in the summer term. Courses are equivalent to a full year's language instruction.
College students, high school seniors, and other adults are eligible to apply, no later than April 15.
For details, contact Marga Miller: Tel: 313-764-8571 Fax: 313-936-0996 • E-mail: [email protected].
'We are going to strengthen
Hinduism in our area. Our orphan-
age children are good in studies
and leading a religious-centered
life. The gurukulam is playing a
v ita l role in preserving and main-
taining our Hindu identity." These
are hard times for Sri Lankan
children . Please give freely to
the Endowment Fund for the
Tirunavakkarasu Nayanar
Gurukulam in Batticaloa.
1-800-8 9 0- 1 008 Ex t . 2 35
1-808-822-3152 Ext . 235
http:// www.HinduismToday. kauai.h i.us/ashram/
HHE.html
ENDOWMENTS
HINDU HERITAGE ENDOWMENT
107 KAHOLALELE ROAD
KAPAA. HI 96746-9304 USA
INVESTING IN THE FUTURE OF HINDUISM
·.~~"_"~l BUS I N~ S S
Amerioan Maotras Sanskrit words plunge into the mainstream
HE HEADLINE IN A RECENT MACWEEK
-, . magazine, "Netscape's Good Karma,'" is typical of a growing trend of corporate America tb adopt Sanskrit terms.
The fascination for "cool" words from India such as guru and karma first developed in the 1960s when hip baby-boomers put on Nehru jackets and swayed to the sitar sounds of Ravi Shankar. Today these words of the rishis are common in movies and television and the norm in periodicals ranging from computers and finance to gardening, sports and theatre.
Companies in the US have adopted Hindu names such as Shiva Corp. (communications har~are), Avatar Systems (hard drives) and Digital Guru (computer bookstore). Manag'ers and CEOs in US firms . are being dubbed "cOIp-puter gurus" or "investment pundits," titles which originally indicated a teacher in any subject, such as music, dance and sculpture, but especia1ly in religion. The
. usage of the word guru is so omnipresent that ever;: garden enthusiasts can fill in a digital application to qualify as a "Virtual Garden Curu" on the World Wide Web. Just type . you~ name in the box which says "Guru Applicant." . '"
Guru or pundit may be an honOFific title, but you have to be an industry, giant to be pnmounced an avatar. Borrowed from the SanSkrit word for the forms in which Vishnu desc~nds to Earth, avatar now "deifies" a powerful leader or a modern folk hero and is
used in expressions like "consider- the avatars of 70s culture." Avatar also names a new. wave of cyber-characters, cartoony beings Internet surfers can use to float around and communicate with other avatars in virtual chat rooms on the Web.
Other terms of t,9-e times indude mantra, meaning "my.stk formula," a y.rord of choice when describing hot new trends or ways of doing business. Phrases such as "liquidity, profitability, and growth, which has become a real mantra for the company," found in Fortu.ne magazine, are becomiI1g corn.IDonplace in the pages of economic arid financial news, including the Wall Street Journal.
Karma, the law of cause and effect, is be-..-jng taken seriously, even on Wall Street. One 'Money Daily writer .-commented, "There is still enough good karma among i{vestors to halt the market's downward mobility."
In the"70s programmers coined computer terms like "guru meditation," used to n,ame the cryptic message indicating what the problem was when ~ Amiga computer's system crashed and "cycle of reincarnation," re~ ferring to a funcQon in computer hardware.
Now Hindu Deities are becoming favorites for software names, and people are playing games on the Web using a connection named Kali. In one shoofem-up game called Qescent, the programm~r slipped in a message of nonviolence. By entering a secret code a player can stop the enemy ships from firing-the code word: "ahimsa." II
Saraswaf; Dev;: A Remarkable CD Enjoy 75 min. of Sanskrit and Hindi songs composed and performed in a North Indian classical style by Aditya Verma, a dynamic young artist whose musical lineage draws from the greatest teachers and performers of Indian music, Pundit Ravi Shankar and Ustad Aashish Khan.
A musical tribute to the Goddess of inspiration and beauty. Saraswati Devi celebrates classical Indian music and the ancient tradition of Mantra. "This album is an auspicious beginning for me," says Aditya Verma who sees his music as the means to share Indian culture.
• Composer: Aditya Verma • Vocals: Kala Ramnath • Tabla: Narendra Verma • Narration: G.S. Birla
New release price: US$15 CD, $10 Cassette., $4 shipping and handling. Overseas additional $4 please.
For orders or free catalogue: Galaxy Publications & Recordings 351 Victoria Ave. Westmount, Quebec H3Z 2Nl Canada Tel: 1-800-307-2292 or 514-484-8090 • Fax: 1-514-488-3822 www.palmistry.comlGalaxy.html
Karunamayi
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-/
The Year in Review
/
-Hindu Heritage Endowment
1 '
1996, Annual Report -",
-",
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The mission of Hindu Heritage En~owment is to provide permanent financ,ial security, t;1:trough managed endowments, for institutions around the world that promote and preserve classicsU and traditional Hindu cultUl;e and values, Below is a listing of the endowments managed by Hindu Her-itage Endowment at the end of,1996, showing the balance in each endowment. '
ENDOWMENTS SUPPORTING EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTIONS OR PROGRAMS
ENDOWMENTS THA1; SUPPORT HINDU SOCIAL SERVICE PROGRAMS
018. Sri Siva Subramaniya Swamf Dev- ....
016. Malaysian Bindu Youth Educational Trust: Malaysia. $9,030.67.
;" 012. Thirunavukkarasu Nayanar GurUkularri - Fund: Amparai District (Hindu Or
phanage F,-\nd), Sri Lanka. $16,815.83. ENDOWMENTS THAT SUPPORT HINDU
, TEMPLIlS AROUND THE WORLD
002:-: Iraivan Temple Endowment: Kauai, Hawaii, USA $657,507.90. •
011. Iyarappan Temple Trust: Thiruxaiyaru, Tamil Nadu, In,)!ia. $5,099.34.
003. Kauai Aadheena'm Annual Archana Fund: Kauai, Hawaii, USA. $33,278.70.
ENDOWMENTS DEDICATED TO PUBLISHING HINDU BOOKS OR JOURNALS
604. Hinduism Today Distribution Fund: Kauai, Hawaii, USA. $229,517.65 .
005. Hindu Businessmen's Association Trust: Kauai, Hawaii, USA. $102,387.00.
ENDOWMENTS-THAT SUPPORT WORLD HINDU RELIGIOUS LE.(\DERS
007. Hindu of the Year Fund: Kauai, Hawaii, USA. $6,663.44/ '
006. Kailasa Peetham Gift Fund: Kauai, Hay.'aii, USA. $128,'365.51.
/ ENDOWMENTS THAT SUPPORT HINDU MONASTIC COMMUNITIES .
001. Kauai Aadheenam Monastic Endowment: Kauai, Hawaii, USA. $674,165.58.
014. Sri Subramuniya Ashram Scholarship Fund: Kauai, Hawaii, USA. $5,875.63.
009,. Mathavasi Medical Fund: Kauai, Hawaii, -: USA. $16,444.42.
ENDOWMENTS THAT SUPPORT HINDU MONASTIC COMMUNITIES
001. Kauai Aadheenam Monastic En~wment: Kauai, Hawaii, USA. $674)65.58.
014. Sri SubramuniY<l Ashram SchOlarship Fund: Kauai, Hawaii, USA. $5,875.63.
009. Mathavasi Medical Fund: Kauai, Hawaii, USA. $16,444.42.
• MEMORIAL AND FAMILY ENDOWMENTS
010. Nadesan Family Lord Murugan Shum Fund: Kauai, Hawaii, USA. $12;308.57. , .
025. Sundari Peruman Memorial Scholarship , Fund: Kauai, Hawaii, USA. $5,356.05.
037. A Shanmugam Family Fund (Ipoh): Tamil Nadu, India. $5,067.07.
038. The William E. Daniels Endowment for Hindu Religious Art and Artifacts: Kauai, Hawaii, USA. $5,067,.07.
/ FUNDS IN THE PROCESS OF FORMATION (ENDOWMENTS ACtIVATE AT'US$S,OOO)
013. Himalayan Academy Scholarship Fubd: Kauai, Hawaii, USA.
015. Sri Subramuniya Kottam Fund: Kopay, Jaffna, Sri Lanka.
017. Kumbhalavalai Ganesha Temple En-, dowment: Alaveddy, Jaffna, Sri Lanka. ",
asthanam Trust: Lautoka, Fiji.
019. Dancing with Siva.E.ndowment: Kam1i, , Hawaii, USN.
020. Hinduism Today Endowment Trust: Kauai, Hawaii, USA.
ot1. Vishwamata Gayatri Trust FUlfd: Delhi, India.
023. Sri Lanka Refugee Relief Fund: Jaffna,
,
Sri Lanka. ....
024. Jeyanandarajan Family Fund: Jaffna, Sri Lanka.
026 Kailasa Peetham Travel Fund: Kauai, Hawaii, USA.
027. Nallai Aadheenam Trust Fund: Jaffna, Sri Lanka.
028. Loving Ganesa Distribution'Fund: Kauai, Hawaii, USA. '
029. Saiva Dharma Shastras Endowment: ' ~auai, Hawaii, USA.
030. Saiva Agamas Trust: Worldwide.
031. Panchamukha Ganapati Endowment: Ri,;,iere du Rempart, Mauritius.
032. Kalakshetra Scholarship F\lnd: Madras, Tamil Nadu, India.
033. Tirumular Sannidhi Preservation Fund: Tiruvavaduturai, Tamil Nadu, India.
034. Mauritius Saiva Dharmasala Endowment: Riviere du'Rempart, Mauritius.
. . ",
.f HINDU HER'ITAGE END~WMENT '107 KAHOLALELE ROAD' KAPAA, HI 96746-9304 ;l;1SA TEL (USA) 800-890"1008,808-822-3152 FAX: 808-822-4351
E - MAIL: Sadhaka_Adinatha(1j>Hindui.smToday.kauai.hi.us
, ", , , ",
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Paid Advertisement 1996 Annual Report Page 2
Serving Hindu I!JStitutions Around the World
It was ,the poverty and lack of education that 28
. years ago attracted a school principal Thiru ~. Tambiah to Northern Sri Lanka's Amparai Dis
trict, an agricultural area now torn oy civil war. There, using his small pension income, he he dedicated his retirement years to social-religious service in the region, eventually establishing and running a small orphanage for boys called Thirunayukkarasu Nayanar Gurukulam. Tambiah passed away in 1995, but his vision live on: "We are going to strengthen Hinduism in
", our area. Our gurukulam children are good in sJudies and leading a religious centered life. The gurukulam is playing a vital role in preserving and maintaining our traditional Hindu identity." So writes B. Chandres- -
. waran, current gurukulam treasurer. Orphanages are often themselves orphaned by society, hidden away and ignpred. But this one is a powerhouse, despite a lim!ted 'budget. The youths raise much of their own food, care for themselves ancl serve the district by cleaning temples, organizing festivals, helping at hospitals and co.mmunity ,centers, holding religious classes ap,d more. This year they ~onst~ucted a religious library for the, village. Hindu-Heritage Endowment provides additional support through the Thirunavukkarasu Na1anar Gurukulam Endowment Fund. Donations:to the fund are invested, and earnings provide a stable, secure income. To invest in such a fund is to ens;'ue the future of Hinduism.
Statement of Revenues and Expenses for the 12 months ending December 31, 1996
Endowmenf Endowment Total Operating
.f Income Principal All -, Fund' _ ;"
REVENUES Contributions Dividend andlnterest Income $1,174.58
TOTAL REVENU,ES $1,174.58
EXPENSES /
-Charitable Grants Advertising and Promotion $5,279.94 Amortization Expen~e / $1,956.36 Office Expense $11,470.67 Transfer of HHE Administrative Fee ($17,299.38)
TOTAL EXPENSES $1407.59
Excess of Revenues Over-Expenses before Investment Activity Realized and Unrealized gain on Investments
", Decreased Valuation of Donated Land Fund Balances, Beginping of the Year Fund Balances, End of the Year.
/
", . $173.17 ($59.84)
Fund
$110,902.49 $110,902.49
$93,603.11
.. $17,299.38
$110,902.49
$0.00 $0.00 --:
Fund
$244,531.24
$244,531.24
$0.00
$244,531.24 $33,082.53
($100,000.00) $1,854,270.30 $2,031,884.07
Funds
$244,531 .24 $112,077.07 $356,608.31
$93,603.11
/ $5,479.94 $1,?56.36
$11,470.67 $0.00
$112,310.08
$244,298.23 $33,082.53
($100,000.00) $1,854,270.30 $2,031,824.23 ,
", .... Hindu Heritage Endowment is a publicly supported charitable organization which received recognition of its tax exempt status from the IRS in April, 1994. Its employer ID number is 99-0308924. The foundation n\aintaiIi an office at the Hindu Monastery on Kauai, Hawaii, and is overseen by four trustees: Satguru Sivaya Subramuniyaswami, Acharya Veylanswami, Acharya Palaniswami and Acharya Ceyonswami.
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HEALING
Coming of Age, .. From . L~ssto Lady,
,
A girls puberty· may be a tumultuous time, but careful tutelage can guide her into ad~lthood
BY DE V A NAN D A' TAN D A V AN, M . D .
ERE Arm THREE IMPOR
'tant milestones which we reach in our lifetimes-child
, hood, from birth to age 16 (kapha) , adulthood :from 16 to 5Q (pitta) and old age from 50 onwards (vata). These three cycles co-exist with the cycle of the body's constitution, and at the juncture of each period a great turmoil naturall¥ occurs.
During the first transition, called puberty, the body and mind are growing, maturing and adjusting to a new purpose in life; Le. , procreation. Puberty brings with it a collision between kapha and pitta which, in itself, is tryi?g an~.< explosive . •
Parents should teach their daughters what to expect when puberty begins. On ~yerage it starts at about age ten but may occur as early as eight. The first signs are budding of the breasts ana growing of pubic and underarm hair. Coarse hair on the legs llild arms may also appear. The body experiences a surge of growth that begins at the feet ap.d leads to,an awkward gait. This is followed by a lengthening of the legs whit;.h may produce even more clumsiness.
Often a skin condition called acne develops which brings great concern to the girl because it is unsightly/ and she may be the only one in her class to be so marked. This . can best be treated, as can all of the indications of puberty, by eating a pitta-satisfying ayurvedic diet, by having plenty of exercise and by seeing that the digestive process is always functioning at an optimum. -
While these external metamorphoses are happening, marked chan~~s are going on within the'body. The sexual mgans begin to-trow, as well as an awareness of them. Hormonal changes commence which will initiate menarche, but this beginning of the menstrual cYge comes fairly late in tHe puberty process. It may initially occur as a feeling of d~pness or only as a spot of
I
44 H:rNDU~SM TODAY MAY, 1997
blood. As she develops further, . the flow increases. Wh~ the ovaries begin producing -eggs, the Dow usually becoPJ-es more regular. In the meantime, the breasts continue to enlarge, and their ultimate size is determined by genetic and-other factors which CanD.ot be predicted.
Along with physical changes come psychologtcal traJ'}.sforma
tions which may lead to erratic behavior, moodiness, inactivity and self-protecting attimdes. These must be understood as a part of the grand process of growing into adulthood. Many children may not desire this change bftcause' they have developed a . dependency on peing a child. On the other hand, most welcome it with ex~itement and look at it as a time of great challenge. ./ A blooming young lady.may feel a need
to experiment with her independence by desiring to do more things for herself and separating Sit times from authority figures. Usually this is not a troublesome phase if it is understood as a' normal part of development. The main emotional probfems to be dealS-with are self-consciousness, a feeling of isalation and of "being different:"
;reaching celibacy and planning early for the coming-of-age samskara, the ritukala, will help her.tp adjust to this period of change and prepare for adult responsibilities. A persistent healthy <;liet, g'ood exercise' meditation, parental guidance and uri-
. derstan0.ing siblings will insure that she grows ali'd matures into a graceful, beautiful, loving, alluring, mystifying and exciting embodiment of Shakti, capable of bearing wonderful children.
r DR. TANDAVAN, 76, retired nuclearphysi-cian and hospital staff president~ lives in Chf:cago, where he specializes in alternative healing arts. Visit his home page at the HINDUISM TODAY W ebsite. ,
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EVOLUTIONS SUCCESSOR: Swami Radhananda to Swami Sivananda Radha who passed away in November 1995. Initiated into sannyasa by Swami Sivananda in 1956, Swami Radba founded the Yasodhara Ashram located on the remote banks of Kootenay Lake in British Columbia, Canada. Swami Radhananda continues her gurus work and offers year-round live-in yoga training programs and retreats for children, teens, men and women.
ARRIVED: A Thrkmenistan Airlines Boeing 757 at Amsterdams Schipol airport carrying 173 Sri Lankan Tamil refugees. All have requested asylum and are allowed to stay while their pleas are being processed, which could take years. The Dutch practice a policy of leniency toward Sri Lankans, compared with some less sympathetic neighbors. No reports indicate the aircraft was forced to fly to the Netherlands nor did the Dutch give permission to land.
Stealthing into Holland
NO REDUCTION: In the 20-year prison term of former ISKCON leader, Klrtananada Swami Bhaktlpada, following an assessment of his physical condition. He plead guilty in August for his part in a fraud scheme. Suffering from various ailments, it was recommended he be placed in a chronic care unit of a
" federal prison in Kentucky. He still has a small but loyal following of devotees.
BLESSED: Sarah Ferguson, Britain's royal Dutchess of York, with sacred ash and a gold chain and cross, apparently out of thin air, by Sri Satya Sai Baba. Visiting India with a holistic bealer, salwarkameez clad "Fergie" told reporters in Bangalore she is interested in practicing homeopathy. Dutchess does India
-
What Is Enlightenment!' Magazine
On the cutting edge of contemporary spirituality, What Is Enlightenment? magazine brings a fresh perspective to the most challenging and important spiritual questions of our time. Inspired by the passionate inquiry of spiritual teacher Andrew Cohen, What Is Enlightenment? is a dynamic forum which brings together pioneering thinkers from a broad spectrum of paths and disciplines. Its thoughtful and engaging essays, dialogues and interviews are a thrilling exploration of the fundamental issues at the heart of the spiritual quest.
Featured in our current issue, Can Science Enlighten Us? Science, Spirituality and the Revelation of the Unknown: • Huston Smith • Rupert Sheldrake • Amit Goswami • Fritjof Capra • E. F. Schumacher • David Bohm
U.S. Subscription Rates: 1 year (2 issues), US$11; 2 years, $20; 3 years, $29. Call for international rates.
Available at bookstores or by calling: 800-376-3210 (USA), 413-637-6000. Visit our website at http://www.moksha.org/wie
Two Modern Classics by Lex Hixon
Great Swan Meetings with Ramakrishna
"A vital pastel portrait of one of
Hinduism's most extraordinary sages, 19th century guru of Swami Vivekananda. Its factually faithful but fearlessly free style makes an ageless voice intimate, earthy and contempo-rary." - Hinduism Today
"Great Swan offers deep insight into the true nature of an advanced being."
- Deepak Chopra 320 pages 6 x 9 0-9431914-80-9
$16.95 paper (Larson Publications)
Available in fine bookstores or direct: 1-800-828-2197
Learn at Home by Mail
Self study courses: • Hindi in 2 months • Sanskrit in 6 months • Speak Hindi in 2 weeks Other Vedic University Publications: • How to befriend God • Win the battle of life • Happy Home • Valmiki Ramayana • Unknown facts revealed
Call or send us an e-mail for a free catalog: Vedic University of America, 10509 Caminito Basswood San Diego, CA 92131-1704 USA. Tel: 1-619-578-7790 Fax: 1-619-578-8293 • E-mail: [email protected] Visit us on the internet: http://www.cris.coml-vedicul
Gurani Anjali (Guruvi)
Author, poet, songwriter and artist. Hear her message for the body, mind and spirit. Experience the Yogic perspective. Books: Ways of Yoga, Rtu (meditational poems), and the soonto-be released: Think on This. Audio cassettes: Someone is Calling, From the Silent Depth Within Me and other works. Yoga Anand Ashram. Tel 516-691-8475 • Mailing address: 49 Forrest PI, Amityville, NY 11701-3307 USA • http:/www.santosha.com
Mother of the Universe: Visions of the Goddess & Tantric Hymns of Enlightenment
"Lex Hixon is a poetic genius with deep knowledge of eastern wisdom. These songs are prasad."
-Professor Bhabani Ganguli, Ramakrishna Mission Institute of Culture, Calcutta
Ecstatic love poems to the beautiful, black warrior Goddess Kali by the 18th century Bengali poet Ramprasad, given new expression in Hixon's vibrant recreations.
223 pages 6 x 9 0-8356-0702-X $16 paper (Quest Books)
(Visa/MC orders only). Check or MO in US funds to Larson Publications, 4936HT Rt. 414, Burdett, NY 14818. Add $4.50 s/h for first item, $.50 for each additional item in same shipment. Free catalog and additional information, call 607 546-9342, M-F 9 am - 5pm EST.
4j
BETRAYAL OF THE SPIRIT My Life hebind tbe HeadlineJ of tbe Hare Krubna Movement NORI J. MUSTER Foreword /nJ Larry D. Shinn, Pre.Jident of Berea College, leading Hare Krifhna expert
"Nothing less than mesmerizing. . . Confronts the ways in which traditional patriarchy and philosophical rigidity regularly defeated spiritual vitality. Muster's book is an important testimony that might be instructive to those involved in the leadership of any religious movement." --- PuhliJherd Weekly
"A delightfully written narrative tapestry that presents a controversial and marginal religious move-ment in the United States." --- Larry D. Shinn, from the foreword
Combining behind-the-scenes views of an often besieged religious group with a personal account of the author's struggle to fmd meaning in it, Betrayal of the Spirit takes the reader clos than any other source so far to the reality of life in the Hare Krishna movement.
Nori J. Muster, a California native, joined the International Society of Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON) --- the Hare Krishnas--in 1977, shortly after the death of the movement's spiritual master, Srila A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada. She worked for ten years as a public relations secretary and editor of the organization's newspaper, the ISKCON WorLJ Review.
Her story of the Hare Krishnas' decline is a gripping presentation of facts gleaned from personal reminiscences, published articles, and internal documents. Betrayal oj the Spirit details the dynamic of schisms that forced some 95 percent of the group's original members to leave.
MUSIC
A Master's in Rhythm
Professor Trichy Sankaran delivers
dynamite drums
While steeped in tradition, Trichy has been taught by his exposure to the world's music to think in contemporary w.ays. Betwee!}.. concerts in Chennai and classes in Toronto, he also composes music for gamelan, Indonesian orchestra, and he experiments in Jazz and Western classical traditions. He has performed with such Jazz greats as Charlie Haden, Anfhony Braxton and Dave Brubeck. When asked what led him to the gamelan, Sankaran reminisced, "I went to Bali"in 1982 to study the spread of Hindu culture in Java and Bali. I was so intrigued by their music, which is also percussive, that I composed Swara- Laya for the --: Evergreen Club Gamelan Ensemble of Toronto, which involved tunIng my instrument to the pitches and scales of the gamelan. "
. On a roll: A poundi,1;tg, pulsating, palpitating preceptor .j
For Sankaran, cross-cultural excursions ·stem from an understanding of other traditions rather than a penchant for stylized hybrids. He notes, "In India, there are some who mix a few instruments together and call it 'Karnatak jazz' without knowing exactly how jazz works or even its hIStory. Thats not right. People here simply laugh." When asked if, with his ventures into other musicp..! styles, he is still committed to pure mridangam tradition, he beat back at once, "Of course. Thats my music, and thats my God."
EW PERCUSSIONISTS VENTURE FROM
the orchestra into the limelight, and . fewer stay for lOI'lg. :Sut Prof Trichy Sankaran, the mridangam maestro who
heads the Indian Music Studies at York University, Ontario, is'a multI-faceted exception. With the dexterity of a craftsman and the wisdom of a, philosopher, Sankaran has ele-
.. vateR the mridangam, South Indian barrel drum, to the rare position of a solo instrument. You may have heard his facile fmgers fly on HMV recordings from the 1960s, behind such stalwarts as T.R. Mahalingam, Emani Sankara Sastry or S. Balachander. But in three compact disc releases on the Music
of the World label, the spotlight shines on him-and he doesn't blink.
For Sankaran, who was born a Hindu in Poovalur, just outside of Trichanapoli, Hinduism is inseparable from his music. "The rhythms that I play are a reflection of my culture and beliefs. The instrument itself has religious significance. The mridangam is supp6sed to have been played by Lord Ganesha, and the rhythms are of Lord Siva-He gives the rhythm to the universe. The five basic sounds of the mridangam: tha, dhi, thorn, nam and jem, have come from the five faces of Siva-Isana, Tatpurusha, Aghora, Vamadeva and Sadyojata."
Trichy considers the Shankaracharya of Kanchi Peedam to be his spiritual' guru. He confided, "I have had the blessings of the Sankaracharya on many, many occasions. Whene.ver I go to India, I try to visit him in Kanchipuram." Trichy labels himself a "trueblue Brahmin" and a "strict vegetarian." He said, "1 worship Siva and Vishnu and perform Ram nam japa .}repetition of Ramas name) morning and evening." During his prayers, when the music moves him, he may perform for the Gods. He explains, "1 worship through my instrument and through my music. That is the most pleasurable thing for me-to play for the divine beauty of it." ~
By R ADH IKA SRINIVASAN, New Jersey
Hearing Is Believing The second disc, Sunada (pure sound), contains a traditional ensemble spiritually empowered throughout with the sublime sounds of the vina, played with aplomb by Karaikudi Subramaniam. Yet in terms of both aesthetics, energy and devotional beauty, the newest release, Lotus Signatures, surpasses all else. The mellifluous expression of Dr.
rhythmiC segments heighten the devotional songs, as Sankaran deftly shows how subtle and measured treatment on the mridangam can embellish and empower a melody. A superb studio recording, Lotus develops into a virtual concert, including a glorious rendition of the raga Kiravani. The alternating solos of the percussion ensemble give a fitting finale
EYA-VINYAS (RHYTHMIC
elaboration), Sankarans first CD with Music of the World, is a delightful
display of dazzling drum wizardry. Only two short tracks include melodies played on the vina. Sankaran recalls, '1 found it very fulfilling, especially the piece where my mridangam, kanjira (frame drum) and konnakol (voice) were super·imposed using over-dubbing." Laya complements Sankarans
f
hands-on manual, RhythmiC Principles and Practice of South Indian Drumming (Lalith Publishers) and comes as a prelude to his instructional video.
N. Ramani, the phenomenal South-Indian flautist, is matched and magnified by the flawless textural finesse of Sankaran. Delectable Cross-
to the realm of improvisation that this recording soars into.
LALrrB PUBLISBEBB. 3 1 MANADON ORlVE. NORTH VORK. ONTARIO M2M 1 w8 CANADA· MUSIC OF THE WORLD, P.O. BOX 3620. CHAPEL HILL, NORTH CAROLINA 2 75J5 USA
MAY , 1997 HINDUISM TODAY 47
'/
Surrounding Iraivan Temple is an
extraordinary botanical garden par
adise, providing an area of
contemplative, natural beauty.
Pilgrims enjoy groves of plumeria,
konrai, hibiscus, heliconia, native
Hawaiian plant species and more.
At the entrance to the 5 J -acre
sanctuary is a forest of healing
rudraksha trees. Send US$ J 2 to
purchase a single-bead necklace of
a sacred rudraksha, receive as aUf
gift another bead to plant and sup'
port the Ira ivan Temple project.
1-808-639-8886 http://www. HirnduismToday.
Kauai.hi.us/ashram/fraivan.htmf
RUDRAKSHA FOREST
SAN MARGA IRAJVAN TEMPLE
107 KAHOLALELE ROAD
KAPAA. HI 96746-9304 USA
A TEMPLE BUILT TO LAST 1. 000 YEARS
l . ' -~~~~~~
CHILDREN
Dolls of Devotion Why settle for trite toys for tots , when kids can play with the -Gods?
ECESSITY IS THE MOTHER OF INVE~tion, they say, and accordi~g to one inventive mother, Rukmini Devi Dasi, Hindu children need divine dolls to
play with. "Children want heroes," she explruns. 'And the media: provide a host to choose from-Barbie, Barney, Ninja Turtles, G.I. Joe and others. But its in the Vedic literature that we find the most heroic personalities. When Cabbage Patch dolls were popular, I saw how attached children became to them. Those mundane dolls became their heroes."
Rather than introducing her own daughter, Mallika, to such secular companions, Rukmin' created her own, aptly calling them Dolls of Devotion. "For Malhka's third birthday, I made twenty-five dolls~Radha and Krishna, Lord Chaitanya, Nityananda, Sita, Rama, Hanuman, Lord Nar.asimha and many more. My idea was .not to start a business. I just wanted to give my daughter an opportunity to play in Krishna consciousness." But good news travels fast, especially when carried on the fee~ of jubilant children,. and soon Ruk-
mini's dolls were the heart's desire of Mallika's young fr-iends. "Other parents saw the 'dolls and asked me to make some for their children. Now I receive orders from all parts of the world."
Rukmini recalled that her original inspiration developed out of her own child-hood desire for a Krishna doll, which went unfulfilled. "I grew up in an ISKCON ashram where a few of my friends had dolls of Lord Jagannatha, and I wanted to have Krishna dolls, too. An Indian lady gave me a doll, but because it wasn't related to Lord Krishna, I didn't like it. By t4e time I got a Krishna doll, I was already out of the ashram. So, I regret that I didn't get to grow up taking care of Lord Krishna. But this made me determined to proVide my own children with
sacred dolls." . Rukmini confesses that she still loves her dolls. "Not only do the dolls ,help the children's awareness of Krishna, they also improve mine: When I make the dolls, I become fully absorbed in thoughts of the Lord." Each doll is custom made, signE1d and dated and takes 13 hours or more to make. Their sacerdotal threads come from cloth worn by temple Deit!es. For Rukmini, "they are too ' much\ work to mass-produce." She recommends that parents train their children t9 consider them sacred and han-dle them reverently. ,
, "Several mothers ordered.Lord Narasimha dolls [photo above 1 because their Ghildren had disturbed sleep," relates Rukmini! "The children had so much faith in Narasimha that as soon as they
< received Him they slept peace~ fully. Parents call or write from ~ all ever the world thanking us for ~ doing this service. This response ~ keeps me going." ...-
L_ -.o.JL-_....,.-___________ ----!.---l ~ RUKMINI DEVI DASI, POST OFFICE BOX 14 23,
'" ALAETUA, FLORIDA 32616 USA
Two dolls: Mailika Devi Dasi, the doll-maker's daughter
Government-run Goddess: The sanctum sanctorum of Va ish no Devi Temple in Jammu ,
RELIGION AND STATE
Court OK's Takeover / .
State can administrate Vaishno-;Devi temple j
JA,NUARY DECISiON BY INDIA'S SUCOtITt validated the 1988 gov
takeover of the Shri Mata Devi Shline in Jammu. The
court did not allow the government to take title to any of the. temple lands or possession§, or to alter the temple's tenets, customs or usages. But the two-member division bench did validate complete control of the national shrine's finances, including the appointment and pay of priests and all other personnel. The court ruled the government can terminate the rights of the hereditary priests ~as was also done recently at Tirupati temple). 'The decision stated that the right to religion guaranteed under ArtiCles 25 and 26 of the Indian Constitutiowis not an absolute or unfettered right. The state may make legislation limiting or regulating any economic, financial, political or secular activity associated with religious belief, faith, practice or custom. A second part of the ruling gave the State Governor, who is ex-officio chairman of the Vaishno Devi governing b6ard, sole power to oversee the sh,(ine, which receives a mind-boggling 20,000-plus pilgrims each day of the year. He is no longer required te consult with members of the gov-erning board. .
Under Vaishno Devi's original management, the daily aonations were allotted in turn to the hereditary priests of the Baridaran Association. Each of these nearly
1,000 families collected the day's receipts once in three years. Little was set aside for the temple's upkeep, and as a result it was in a state of considerable neglect-in part prompting the 'government takeover. Even other Hindu institutions in Kashmir, i"nitial
.ly sh6cked at the takeover, admit the temple has been improved by the ruling. The COUl\t directed that the Baridaran Associationwhich mounted the court challenge to the government takeover-receive compensation as a result of their loss of income.
Most temples in India are al~eady under government control, but this has not necessarily n;sulted in better management. A Times, of India editorial, lauding the Supreme Court decision, said, "In Tamil Nadu temples have failed ~o collect crores of rupees of arrears of income due from land and buildings. Ther,e have been numerous ~ports of ancient idols and valuables disappearing arid being replaced with fakes." Another newspaper 'believed the ruling could lead to government control of mismanaged Christ-
. ian or Muslim religious properties. Inquires by HINDUISM TODAY indicate that even informed people in Delhi are not sure what the ruling means with respect to non-fundu religions. It would be an historic-and therefore mrlik~ly-shift in policy if the' government were to impose state management upon Christian or Muslim organization, no matter how they were managed. ..
,
N~ Calypso for Hindu Kids A musical misst~p
RINIDADI, HINDUS BLASTED A GOVernment minister's proposal to make
calypso-the native folk music-a compulsory subject in the Caribbean na- "
tion's primary schools. "We strongly object to any compulsion on this matter, which must be a matter of choice for parents and school boards," said Sat Maharaj, secretary-general ·of the Sanatan Dharma Maha Sabha. The Sabha runs 20 schools and is one of the largest Hindu organizations in Trinitlad.
Calypso is a home-grown musical form developed by, and very popular among, Black Trinidadians, the descendants of African slaves brought to the islands to work the sugar plantations. The calypsbnian singer comp,Oses a simple ballad with highly imagina-
Calypso singer: Voice of social conscience
tive language sung to a syncopated rhythm. It has from the beginning been the satirical and consequential Black voice on politics and social issues. Many a politician has lost an election after street singers poured thinly veiled scorn upon him or his policies.
Pundit Ramesh Tiw$U"i of the Edinburgh Dharmic Sabha in Trinidad said the proposal was made by the, minister somewhat innocently with the thought that all children should learn about this local art form. But the Hindu community felt calypsos political orientation would have a detrimental impact on )Toung minds. Calypso fans believe the art form-which has been t onsiderably influenced by Indian music-can and should be appreciated by all Trinidadians. ..
MAY , 1 99 7 HI N D U ISM TO DAY 49
MINISTER'S MESSAGE manifest in the temperament of man: the quality of sattva, or goodness and purity,
Veg~tarianism: Roots of 'RIghteousness
rajas, or passionate activ{ty and tamas, inertia and darkness. Meat -eating leads to darkness of mind, thoughts, vision and action. It stimulates everything that is against the tenets of Hindu Dharma. The Gita advocates that fodd should be tasteful, juicy, stable, qualitative and good looking. It ' should increase age, good mind, physical strength, strength of sense, health, physical and mental happiness and brotherly feelings. This kind of food is sattvic and preferred by people with pious minds. In the Yajur Veda we find a prayer, "May our sons, animals, cows and ho?'ses be protected from ",iolence-caused death." The great poet
The basis of true religion is nonviolence . and its fund<:tmental practice is vegetarianism
BY SWAMI P·RAGYANAND
ANATANA DHARMA, TODAY KNOWN AS HINDU DHARMA,
the eternal religion, is an integration of nature and scientific principles. Being a part of nature itself, its nature is sanatana-eternal. Dharma is synonymous with prakriti, or primal nature. Dharma is the nature of indi
viduals like salt's salinity, ~ugar's sweetness and the bitterness of neem. The nature of dharma is to be humane. Animal nature is pashuta (bestial). Dharma is a way of life. It is mental discipline. It relates to life in its entirety.
Our sages, saints and biologists have proved that God created two categories of inimals-vegetarians and nonvegetarians-each with unique characteristics from birth. Vegetarians are born with open eyes; meat-eaters with closed eyes. Puppy dogs' eyes open days after birth. Vegetarians have small teeth to chew vegetables. Meat-eaters have large teeth to grab, ~ip and chew meat. Dogs, cats and lions must carry prey with 'their teeth. Nails also distinguish vegetarians and meat-eaters. Vegetarians have sI\lall nails, whereas meat -eater animals have big, sharp claws, to tear their prey. Vegetarians have long intestines. They eat fibrous vegetables. This kind of food is digested quickly, but meat residues remain there for seven and more days. Meat-eaters have short intestines. Vegetarian animals drink water with the lips, whereas meat -eaters use theiNongue. Vegetarians perspire through pores in the skin; meat -eaters cool themselves through their tongue. Dogs reject certain human food, like honey which comes from flowers. Even animals understand what to eat and what not to eat. The elephant, which is very powerful, is a vegetarian, but the lio~ is a meat -eater. When a vegetarian becomes a meat -eater, that goes against nature. It is also leads to mental perversion. According to ones food so be<;omes one's mind, and the liq~ds you drink affect your speech. So, human beings have become more degenerate than dogs because they eat meat, which is dog food, but reject human food. All human beil'lgs are born pure vegetarians. Nonvegetarianness is thrust on him or her. PEi!ople in ancient times lived on fruits, ro'ots and ate greens and vegetables. But when animals died in forest fires they got roasted, and humru(beings started eating them and became n6nvegetarians. But it is not the food of civilized peoples.
All <;ommunities, from the Middle East to Tibet, dispose of dead bodies by cremation or burial, but always away from the city, not downtown. Yet human beings have made their own stomachs the mobile mortuary, the grave yard,' the cemetary for dead goats, cocks, pigs and other animals, inviting fatal diseases like cancer. And if ghosts, 16wer astral spirits, earthbound souls come to graveyards, will they not also come to meat-eaters?
The entire approach and direction of Sanatana Dharma is based on understanding of the three principles of primal nature which
50 HINDUISM TODA.Y M y\Y, 1997
saint Tulsidas said, "The highest righteousness and the law of scripture is nonviolence ... Mercy-compassion-is the root of righteousness, and the root of'sin is injurious intention." But we are not merciful; we kill chickens, goats, etc., innocent beings every day, just to fill our bellies.
No religion preaches violence. Jainism exhorts, "nonviolence is the highest religion." Likewise, one of the ten commandments of the Christian Bible is "Thou shall not kill." It is evident from this that Christanity is also not in favor of meat-eating. The Ramayana, says, "There is no dharma like benefitting others, and no sin like giving agony to oth-
ers." It is better to follow the Ramayana in practice rather than just ritually reading it. The definition of religion is that what is not favorable to one's own self should not be done to others. We do not like our children to be hurt. Then w):J.at right do we have to cause pain to the children of other creatures? Kindness is the only religion. Otherwise we are just demons and devils-man in appearance, but animal in nature-of human form but animal conduct.
Vegetarianism is natural, based on a universal truth. Ultimately, nature is beyond or above human capacity to cr~te, whereas distortions and perversions are manmade. Hindu dharma, the natural universalfaw of righteousness, is beyond human actions. It is eternallike God Al,mighty. Anyone against nature is distorteg, and their religion. is not religion at all. And those sects in which meat eating is prevalent are man made, having a beginning and an end.
Throughout the world, people are realizing that meat-eating cannot be justified on any grounds. So, l~t not Himlus, wherever they are, commit the sin of distorting Hinduism with the fallacy and misconception that it rationalizes meat-eating as modern and progressive. Hinduism is the best means of achieving the highest ' progressiveness. It needs to be practiced with faith and con~istency. Vegetarianism is an integral aspect of it. There is no basic mora.! or ethical sanction for meatieating, and certainly no sap.ction for jt.in the philosophy of Hinduism.
SWAMI PRAGYANAND, 51, based at Pragya. Dham, New Delhi, ha.s 'been teaching Hinduism throughout the world for over a decade and is responsible for inspiring thousands to become vegetarians.
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En?lish-spea~ng Hindus, yoga enthusiasts, and anyone interested in spirituality will be o-:erJoyed ~y thIS re~arkable reference work of Hindu belief and culture. The best EnglIsh overvIew of Hlllduism available today-Napra Review The swami concisely answers 155 key questions, ranging from "What is the ultimat I
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Dancing with Siva and other HAP titles available in:. Australia: Yoga in Daily Life Tel: 02 951 8 7788 Fax: 02 951 8 7799. .' . . . Fax. 604 5241395. Europe: Om Vishwa Guru Deep Hindu Mandir PH/Fax 36 11143504 email: ervin @mail.matav hu • In Canada. Int Yoga In Dally Life: 6045242942 11-n7:1668 Fax:11-751-2745 •. Bangal~re: Jiva Rajasankara Fax: 91-80-839-7119 email: [email protected]:in • M dla. Munshlr~m Manoharlal Publishers Delhi: PH: cations. PH. 03 331 9242. MaUritiUs: Salva Siddhanta Church PH: 412-7682 Fax: 412-7177. New Zealand ' I d' E alaysla. HindUism Today / Sanatana Dharma Publi(RUSSian Language edition.of Dancing with Siva) Centre of Tantra Sangha Tel: 70 95 465 0339 Fax: 70 95 97~ ~~30 :~rI~m Tel: 09 3773733 Fax: 09 3733300 • Russia: Sanatana Dharma Publications: Tel: 957 66 012 • South Africa: Wizard's Warehouse Tel: 021 461 9719 Fax: 021 45 1417
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~~~~~~ __ ~ ______ --__ ~ ____ ~~~~,~~~ 51 <::l
Selfless feat: Cooperative efforts help his team to Spiritually elevate the masses
HONORED
Athavale Earns Award Accepts US$1.21-million Templeton Prize in NY
P. ANDURANG SHASTRI ATHAVALE,
founder and leader of a spiritual selfknowledge movement that has liber
ateu millions from the shackles of poverty and moral dissipation, secured the 1997 Templeton Prize for Progress in Religion. The award was announced on March 5, 1997 at the Church Center for the United Nations in New York City.
Begun in 1972 by. renowned global investor Sir John Templeton, who
lepers and others now live their lives with dignity and compassion.
The ~ate Sir Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan, president of India from 1962 to 1967, used his position to offer a healing voice of universallove and wisdom for all, regardless of race or religion. He also advocated a non-aggressive military posture with Pakistan and worked to end political corruption. For his efforts, he received the prize in 1975.
CULTURE
Yoga for Kids
Athavale, 76, known as Dada (brother) by his co-workers, began bhavpheri (devotional visits) in 1954. With le'ss than 20 helpers, he went to the villages around Bombay to spread the message of love for God and love for all people, considered by the workers to be God's children. Believing in self-knowledge as the preliminary condition for an inner growth that leads to a loving, enlightened' social concern and outreach, Athavale initiated the practice of swadhyaya-a Sanskrit word meaning self-study.
Swadhyaya has spread to nearly 100,000 villages across India and is estimated to have directly improved the lives of 20 million people. Athavales Hindu philosophical beliefs ask people to recognize the inner presence of God which, he says, leads to a sense of self-esteem as well as an awareness I
of the divine presence within all persons. This belief has led to the betterment of individuals and communities around the world.
In nominating Athavale, Texas A&M University professor Betty M. Unterberger wrote, "Motivated by a deep commitment to the service of God's work, Athavale has sought nothing less than the creation of a divine world undergirded by a divine current of thought."
In a statement prepared for the March press conference in New York, Athavale said, "This award is to advance the human spirit's quest for love and understanding of God and expansion of spiritual resources. I see it as a tribute to the conviction that existence of God is central to life, and true religion is the guiding principle of life. It is my experience that awareness of nearness of God and reverence fo~ that power creates reverance for self, reverence for the other and reverance for the entire creation." ..
felt that the Nobel Prize unfairly excluded religion from its honored 9isciplines, the prize is given each year to a living p'erson who has shown extraordinary originality in advancing humankind's understanding of God and/or spirituality. Valued at £750,000, (US$I.21 million), it is the world's largest annual mone- T
HE ADVENTURE OF
Yoga" is a delightful ohildren's book written and illustrated by Moo and
Don Briddell. The main characters, Magnolia and her brother Doon, are led on a journey with their hatha yoga master and guide, Ijimaws
allowed to pass through each kingdom. The journey teaches them philosophical principles,
such as seeing the great 'Love Force" in all things. Here is truly an innovative, interactive approach for teaching hatha yoga and spiritual values to children, ages 3-8.
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tary award. I
Many Templeton Prize winners have been well-known personalities such, as Mother Teresa, who won in 1973, Rev. Dr. Billy Graham in 1982 and 1983 recipient Aleksandr Solzheriitsyn. But most have earned the · prIze through pursuits often removed from the public eye-including Baba Amte, a wealthy Hindu lawyer who abandoned the comforts of money to develop communities in India where
(for fun, read that backwards). Their goal is to reach the top of the Mountains-at -All, or simply '~ll." On the way, they must perfect asanas (yogic postures), in order to please the animal or plant each pose represents. Only then are they
52 HINDUISM TOJ),AY .~AY , 1997
Perfect poses: Frogs and fish are pleased with kids' posflures
The All Attractive Couple © by Vishnu Dasa
A window into the spiritual world, where love divine is eternal. Radha, the Goddess of compassion and Her Consort, Krsna, the reservoir of all p leasure, bestow their unconditional love on all. Lim.ited edition litho, signed and numbered, on acid free museum. paper. Measures 28" x 32". Regularly $108 Offered to the Mystic Trader's friends for the special price of $59. (#PDIVINE) a color catalog.
Explore the sights and sounds of Hinduism and seven other religiOns
C ELEBR ATION
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place, or should we say, the CD. Magic Software takes you on an interactive ride through Buddhism all the way to Zoroastrianism. You can read about each faiths beliefs and historical backgrounds along with an explanation of the religions unique calendar. Click on a sound button, and words and phrases are pronounced for you. Festivals and ceremonies are described in
detail and video vignettes take you inside of shrines and march you in parades only those within the religion are privileged to see. This is a powerful tool for building tolerance and understanding of others' beliefs and practices. Available for US$39.95, it's for Windows only (not againl ). Write to: Magic Software Pvt. Ltd., F-6 Kailash Colony, New Delhi, 110 048, India.
IF YOU HAVE EVER WONDERED
where to learn about the why and how of celebrations of Indias major religions, this is the
ARTS
Web Laureates
A NASUYA SENGUPTA' S
"Silence," a poem about woman not speaking out, became famous when Hillary Rodham Clinton recited it during her 1996 India tour. And now other Hindu poets are waxing poetic on the Web. Examples at Indolink (genius. net!
...
indolinklPoetry Itgor Indx .html) include Srinivas Uppugunduris "Final Journey," a reading on reincarnation, and Bhargavi C. Mandava's poignant piece concerning an aged grandmother entitled, "Moonsweets." Writes Mandava, "She stares straight ahead as if rudraksha beads were passing beneath her thumb, but she is not meditating-she is cooking." You can also read
the classic poetry of Rabindranath Tagore such as "Benedic-
tion," "The Gift" and "The Banyan Tree" and selected works of Swami Vivekananda including "The Song of the Sannyasin," "The Blessing" and "Quest for God."
Some of the Web's best
RESOURCES
JOtJrneyto the East ~AVE TIME SEARCHING
~or sites dealing with Eastern religions, oriental culture and Asian countries on the Web. The people at Panthers
Cave (check out their Hawaiian pages) have collected links to over 120 of some of the best and most unique. Specializing in Nepal, you can also browse through travelogues full of photos from Bhutan, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Tibet and Myanmar. Visit rare Asian art and photo galleries and dance, music, Sanskrit, astrology and Buddhism pages. Listen to broadcasts at Radio Asianet and find Indian Internet providers, online newspapers, universities, chat and FTP sites. You can even shop on-line for Asian clothing, handicrafts and spices. Go to lava. net!panther/east.html
HEALTH
Teen E-zlne
N OW A BUDDING
digital magazine is on the Web-"Teen Vegetarian." :Published by and for like-m.inded vegetarian teens, it's a pl€lce to read and submit articles and book reviews, share recipes, link to vegetarian websites and organizations and find email addresses. And that's a breath of fresh air for some veggie teens. One 16-year-old girl from Calgary, Canada, wrote in the pengal
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Hot new w ebsite for youth
section, "I have been a vegetarian for 4 years and am working towards being vegan. It's hard growing up surrounded by animal-eaters. I've never m~t another vegetarian! I'm looking for anyone who wants to talk!" Make new friends at geocities.comiHot SpringS/2657 I
The mind, indeed, is this fleetin~ wQrld
TherefQre, it shQuld be purifled with~eat effQrt.
Qne becQmes what is in Qne's mind-this is the everlastin~ secret. KRISHN~ Y:A.J UR VED~ M :A.ITREY;1I. UP:A.NISH:A.D 6.34