Tuesday 30 August 2011

Thenpaandi seemaiyilae keyboard...


Guys, If I can then ofcourse you also can, so just try..

Comments are very welcome...

Madras High Court stays execution of Rajiv case convicts for eight weeks

The Madras High Court on Tuesday stayed for eight weeks the execution of three Rajiv Gandhi assassination case convicts.
The three — Murugan, Santhan and Perarivalan — lodged in Vellore Jail, were scheduled to be hanged on September 9.
Granting the interim stay, a bench comprising justices C. Nagappan and M. Sathayanarayanan observed there had been a delay of over 11 years in the disposal of the mercy petitions filed by the convicts to the President seeking clemency.
The matter involved a question of law, the judges said and admitted the writ petitions and issued notices to the Centre, the state and Tamil Nadu police.
Their case was taken up by senior lawyer Ram Jethmalani and others.
A crowd that had gathered outside the court welcomed the court order. MDMK leader Vaiko, who strongly pleaded for the commutation of capital punishment, was also present in the court.
Senior counsel Ram Jethmalani, R Vaigai and Colin Gonsalves, appearing on behalf of the three convicts, contended that the “inordinate and inexplainable delay” in disposing of their mercy petitions violated Article 21 of the Constitution (Protection of life and personal liberty).
Mr. Jethmalani later told reporters that the delay of 11 years in deciding their mercy plea was “mental torture” for the convicts. “You make him suffer thousand times. Is this justice?” he asked.
He said the government should consider the “people’s voice” against execution.
The mercy petitions of the three convicts were rejected by President Pratibha Patil early this month, 11 years after the submission of the petitions and 20 years after the assassination.
Santhan, Murugan and Perarivalan had sought to set aside the order of the President on the ground of ‘undue delay’ in disposing of their mercy petitions.
They claimed “an unwarranted, illegal and unconstitutional delay is caused by the President and the Union of India in the disposal of the mercy petition“.
“No explanation has been offered either for the delay in forwarding of the mercy petitions by the state government to the President or the delay in disposal by both the authorities,” they contended.

Thanks The Hindu

Monday 29 August 2011

How to play "Chand Sifarish" in keyboard


Guys, I have posted this clip to give easy grasping for new learners like me. Please excuse me experts, I am just a learner and know very little about music and keyboard.

I will try post more of this kind of clips.

      
Comments and requests are very welcome.

Origin of Vedas







In this article, we shall briefly discuss the origin of Vedas. With this article, we begin a series to understand the Vedic framework – origin, definition, content, concepts etc. The series would be based on works of our great scholars from dawn of civilization to recent times. All conclusions shall be made after thorough analysis. We may skip certain details for sake of readability. The articles largely follow the structure laid in Introduction to Vedas (Rigvedadibhashyabhumika) by Swami Dayanand Saraswati and readers are advised to read this book for further details.
The only promise that can be made about this series is that one who carefully reads this, shall never ever face any depression or helplessness in life, shall be in a position to live life more blissfully and meaningfully, and contribute utmost for defense of truth and Dharma.

Origin of Vedas
Note: This chapter assumes reader to be a theist. Atheism has been rejected in previous article and we shall do a more comprehensive rejection later.
Yajurved 31.7 clearly states that Rigveda, Yajurveda, Samaveda and Atharvaveda were originated from Him – the ultimate Ishwar who is omnipresent.
Atharvaveda 10.7.20 reiterates the same essence beautifully. It says that Rik, Yajuh, Sama and Atharva originated from the ultimate Ishwar. It asks “Which deva (provider ofbliss/knowledge) gave the Vedas?” And answers that the One who is controlling and maintaining the entire universe is the creator of Vedas. Atharva is like the mouth of that Ishwar, Samaveda is like the hair on the skin, Yajurveda is akin to the heart and Rigveda is the Prana or source.
Shatpath Brahman 14.5.4.10 states that Ishwar, who is present even beyond the Akash/Sky created the Vedas. The way breath goes out of body and then comes in, during inception of creation, Ishwar creates the Vedas and illuminates the world, and in the phase of dissolution (Pralay), Vedas no more remain in world. However just as a sapling remains inside the seed, Vedas still remain in knowledge of Ishwar, unchanged.
Shankaracharya writes in commentary on Geeta 3.15 that Vedas are actually never created or destroyed. They merely get illuminated and de-illuminated but remain in Ishwar.
Rigveda 10.190.3 states that the creation remains same in all cycles and hence even the constitution of the creation – the Vedas – also remain exactly the same.


Doubt: When Ishwar is shapeless, how did He create the Vedas?
Ishwar does not need physical organs like humans to perform His tasks. Such limitations do not exist in case of Ishwar. Vedas describe Ishwar as possessor of infinite limbs and mouths. It implies that Ishwar can perform all His functions without recourse to physical organs or support of anyone else. When Ishwar can create such a magnificent world, why should one doubt His capability to create Vedas!
Shwatashwataropanishad 3.19 states that he holds everyone even though He has no hands and legs!
Doubt: No soul can create the world, but they can definitely create books of grammar and other fields of knowledge. Why then is Ishwar necessary to create the Vedas?
The knowledge possessed by humans is dependent. It needs training and dissemination of knowledge to further research and discover new knowledge. If you keep a person isolated in jungle since birth, he or she would be unable to learn the ways of humans even a bit. Even today we find many tribes in jungles who live like animals. Similarly knowledge is necessary at inception for humans to possess the capability to discover new knowledge or create books.
Doubt: Ishwar has gifted humans with basic knowledge or natural instincts. This is superior to all texts because only through this we understand anything. So with progress of this knowledge, why should people not be able to design Vedas. Why should then we consider Vedas to be originated from Ishwar?
1. Was natural instinct not available with junglee tribes and child born and brought up in isolation? Why could not they turn scholars? Why chimpanzees fail to evolve and learn over centuries. Why insects continue to commit suicide in light and not learn from it?
2. Even language originates from Vedas. In absence of belief in Vedas, origin of language also remains a mystery for modern superstitious scientists!
3. Even we learn because we go to schools or receive lessons from our mentors. How could then people during early ages learn so much as to draft Vedas that contain such a huge number of mantras, in a language that is more encompassing than any later language, covers such a wide number of topics, contains such fine thoughts that surpass any text of later era, and is preserved in such a manner through Paatha and Maatra method that change of even a single syllable is not possible!
4. What is claimed to be basic knowledge is merely sufficient to allow us to learn more complex knowledge and  not create new knowledge out of nothingness. Just as eye is capable to see only when linked with mind and mind can function only when linked with soul, similarly basic knowledge or natural instinct is capable only to lead us to higher sources of knowledge and not to discover knowledge of Dharma, Artha, Karma and Moksha (Duties, Purpose, Desire and Salvation).
5. That is why initial knowledge from Ishwar is necessary to kickstart the process of knowledge assimilation. Yogadarshan 1.26 states that He is the teacher of the oldest teachers and is unhindered by time. Kumarilbhatta writes in his treatise on Meemansa that Vedas are Apaurusheya (not created by humans) because no one knows their creators. Sankhya 5.6 states the same. Sayana also reiterates the same opinion.

Thanks: Agniveer

Click here to know what was the purpose of Ishwar in creating the Vedas?

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Bhartiya Scriptures


Bhartiya Scriptures
The aim of human life is to attain God realization while doing good in the world; the means of God realization is bhakti and God's Grace; and God, Who is omnipresent in His eternal Divine personal form, is all-kind, all-loving, all-Gracious and all-beautiful. Out of His extreme loving kindness to all the souls, He instantly reveals Himself to anyone whenever a person wholeheartedly surrenders to Him in total love and dedication. Thus, this theme of 'God realization through bhakti' has been the focusing point of all Bhartiya scriptures.
Bhartiya scriptures include the Vedas, the Upvedas, the Vedangas, the Smritis, the Darshan Shastras, the Upnishads, the Puranas, the Mahabharat, the Ramayan, the Gita, the Bhagwatam, and the writings of the Jagadgurus, acharyas and Saints.

The scriptures are produced with the Divine will for the mankind, to show them the path of God realiza-
Bhartiya scriptures
tion. They provide the guidelines for all kinds of people of the world, which, if followed, leads them towards God realization. In brief our main scriptures teach the following: Vedas tell to become a good person; Upnishads tell to love God and don’t be attached in the world because it is illusion; the Gita tells to love God selflessly and reveals the secret of the spiritual practices that only through bhakti one can realize God; and then the Bhagwatam tells what is the most loving form of God that encharmed the heart of the topmost Yogiand Gyani, Shukdeo.
The prime Bhartiya scriptures are shown in the chart below. By clicking on the links in the chart, you will find a brief introduction and description of the scriptures.

Vedas

There are four Vedas: Rigved, Yajurved, Samved and Atharvaved. According to the Muktikopnishad they had 21, 109, 1,000 and 50 branches, respectively, having a total of approximately 100,000 verses in their 1,180 branches. Nowadays only 20,379 verses in total are available. 10,552 verses of Rigved (arranged in 10 sections calledmandal), 1,975 verses of Yajurved (in 40 chapters), 1,875 verses of Samved (in 21 chapters) and 5,977 verses of Atharvaved (in 20 chapters). These verses are in praise of celestial gods and goddesses and some of them are also for the Divine
The Vedas
form of God. They are called mantra bhag or Sanhita. Then there are the same number of branches (1,180) called the Brahman, and the same number of branches (1,180) called theAranyak which have the same number of (1,180) Upnishads. This whole collection is called the Vedas.
The verses of the Rigved are mainly in the praise of Vedic gods and are used in theyagyas.
Yajurved is for the addhvaryu priest who conducts the yagya. It has prayers and praises related to gods and also tells how to create the fire altar for yagya and describes various kinds of yagyas.
Samved is for the udgata priest who singingly chants the verses of Samved. Samved and Yajurved deal with the practical side of the used of the invocativemantras of the Rigved in the yagya.
Apart from the general philosophical descriptions of soul and God and His Divine Greatness, which cover a small section of the Atharvaved, the major section of it deals with the mantras and the ritual observances that are prescribed for the fulfillment of the material needs of worldly people or for general welfare of the family.
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Vedangas
 
Vedangas

There are six Vedangas (parts of the body of the Vedas):Vyakaran, Jyotish, Nikrukt, Shikcha, Chand and Kalp Sutras.
Vyakaran is Sanskrit grammar. The very ancient Sanskrit grammar books are all extinct. The grammar that we have now is Panini grammar. It has eight chapters so it called Ashtadhyayi. It was directly graced by God Shiv.
Jyotish is astrology. Astrology was used to determine the auspicious moment to commence the yagya or for any other felicitous work. Very few books of Jyotish are available; the rest are extinct.
Nirukt has three sections that describe the detailed explanation and the meaning of the Vedic words. Nighantu is the collection of the Vedic words with simple meaning and Nirukt is the complete explanation of all those words like a detailed dictionary. To understand the meaning of the Vedic words one has to understand the Nirukt perfectly because the words of the Vedas have sometimes very unusual and entirely different meaning than what is commonly understood.
Shikcha generally means the teachings of how to correctly pronounce the Vedicmantras. But it is not that simple as someone learning the pronunciation of the words of any language. It is a complete science in itself.
Chand simply means a poetic stanza of Vedic verse, but the poetry of the Vedas is quite different. It has many kinds of chandas and they all have their proper name. The book of chandas teaches how to create the chand, but how to sing a chandinvolves the correct pronunciation of the words of the Vedic mantras.
Kalp Sutras are the concise forms of the Vedic Religion. They are of four kinds.Shraut Sutra describes the protocol of the yagyasGrihya Sutra describes the rituals for a family man; Dharm Sutra describes the religious, social and moral duties of an individual; and Shulb Sutra describes the formation of the altar foryagya.
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Upvedas

There are four Upvedas (up means subsidiary):
Arthved (science of sociology and economics) is related to Rigved
Dhanurved (science of defense and war and the making of its related appliances) is related to Yajurved
Gandharvaved (science of music, both singing and instrumental) is related to Samved
Ayurved (the medical science) is related to Atharvaved
The first three are almost extinct, the fourth one, Ayurved, is still in existence but all of its books are not available. Our Sages wrote a number of books on the science of the preparation and the uses of herbs, roots, gems, metals and pearls etc., for all kinds of diseases but only some of them are available nowadays, although the basic theory ofAyurved is available in full.
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Upnishads

There were 1,180 Upnishads, related to 1,180 branches of the Vedas. Out of them about 200 Upnishads are still available. The Upnishads tell about the illusive nature of the world, introduce a correct understanding about the soul and God and they normally use the term brahm or a pronoun for all the forms of God. The Upnishads distinguish the celestial gods from the Divine forms of God. The main theme of the Upnishads
Vyas ramayan
is to surrender to God (brahm) and receive liberation from the bondage of maya (the cosmic power or the material power) and enter into the eternal state of the Divine Bliss. Following are explanations of eleven prominent Upnishads.
Ishopnishad is the first one in the list of Upnishads. It starts with the very first word Ishwar which means the Divine personality of God. It only has 18 verses. It its first verse it gives a condensed philosophy of God and God realization which is the gist of the Upnishadic philosophy.
Kathopnishad has six chapters in two sections, and is in the form of question and answer where Nachiketa is questioning and the god of justice, Yamraj, is answering. The Kathopnishad advises the souls and says, “Human body is the only chance where a person could receive liberation from the eternal bondage and the inflictions of maya. If you do not realize God before death overtakes you, it would be the greatest disaster of your life and you will be suffering for uncountable lifetimes by taking birth in various species.” (2/3/4)
Mundakopnishad has six chapters in three sections called mundak. In this Upnishad Sage Angira is telling about God and the method of God realization to Shaunak who desired to know as to what is the absolutely knowable truth. In one of the verses of Mundakopnishad, Sage Angira says, "The ritualist brahmansdiscovered that the vedic discipline of observing yagyas only provides celestial luxuries which is only mayic and does not take the doer to God, so they renounced it. To know and to realize God one should dedicatingly go and surrender to such a God realized Saint who has also full knowledge of the scriptural secrets." (1/2/12)
Mandukyopnishad has only 12 verses and explains the nirakar (impersonal) aspect of God, and in fact, this is the only Upnishad that truly defines the nirakar brahm. Other Upnishads relate to the personal form of God, which is the main form of God.
Tattariya has three big chapters called Shikcha, Valli, Brahmanand Valli and Bhrigu Valli with their subsections. It tells more about the creation of the universe.
Shvetashvatar has six chapters and is one of the important Upnishads. It explains the definite characteristics of all the three: soul, maya, and God; and also tells the definite procedure of God realization. Figuratively describing the human body as a tree, the Shvetashvatar Upnishad says, "Two birds, which are eternal friends, live on the same tree, whereas one bird (the soul) is enjoying eating the fruit (sensual pleasures) of that tree and the other one (God) is simply watching the first one." (4/6) Revealing the true secret of God realization, it further says, "When a devotee has infallible love and devotion for his beloved and Gracious God and he is equally dedicated to his Spiritual Master (who is a God realized Saint), only then that soul (with the Grace of the Saint) perdceives, conceives and understands the Divine secrets (and becomes God realized)." (6/23)
In the Muktikopnishad Hanuman is asking Bhagwan Ram as to what is the simplest path which could ensure liberation from the mayic bondage, and Bhagwan Ram is answering. It says that Mandukyopnishad is for conceiving the theme of nirakar brahm, and the knowledge contained in the other Upnishads ensures the attainment of the Divine abode (1/27), which clearly indicates that the Upnishads primarily relate to the personal form of God and not the nirakar (impersonal form of God).
Yogshikhopnishad relates to the yogic practices for the attainment of true brahm gyan that ensures kaivalya mokch (the liberation of gyanis). It has it importance as it is said by God Shiv Himself Who is God of yogis (Yogishwar).
Tripadvibhushit Mahanarayanopnishad reveals certain eminent issues that were mentioned in the first eleven of the 108 Upnishads, but not explained. In its last chapter, it says, "Without bhaktibrahm gyan can never be attained. Thus a soul, leaving all other practices of heart purification, should firmly stick to the path ofbhakti and establish his mind only in bhaktionly in bhakti, and only in bhakti, because through bhakti one can attain anything and everything in the Divine world."
Krishnopnishad reveals the supremacy of Krishn love upon all other forms of Divine Blissfulness. It gives the example of the devotees of Dandak forest oftretayug when Bhagwan Ram, during His descension period came to Grace them. It further details that during the descension period of Krishn the eternal Divine existences, powers, and the Divine personalities also descended in Braj to serve Krishn and to experience the sweetness of Krishn love.
Gopal Poorv Tapiniyopnishad has two chapters. The statement of Tattariyopnishad is “He is the absolute Bliss or He is the Bliss of Bliss” is further explained in this Upnishad.
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Smritis

These are the books of codes related to the social living. They describe what are the sins and the good deeds; define what penances, or what kind of fasting, or what kind of charity could redeem what sin, or what should be the punishment for a particular sin. They also describe what kind of rites and rituals a person is supposed to observe in the family, and what is the right conduct and right behavior for the people of various orders of life in the society and so on.
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Darshan Shastras

There are six Darshan Shastras called the six schools of philosophy. They are (1) Poorv Mimansa by Sage Jaimini, (2) Nyay by Sage Gautum (3) Vaisheshik by sage Kanad, (4) Sankhya by Bhagwan Kapil, (5) Yog by Sage Patanjali and (6) Uttar Mimansa (Brahm Sutra) by Bhagwan Ved Vyas. All the six Darshan Shastras are in sutra form.
The Vedic literature is so extensive that it is hard even for a Vedic genius to comprehend and remember the theme of all of them. So Sage Jaimini, who was the pupil of Ved Vyas, wrote the Poorv Mimansa Sutras to facilitate the correct understanding of the Vedas. Nyay and Vaisheshik Sutras describe the logical steps of how to determine the rights and the wrongs in terms of finding the absolute good for a person. Sankhya Sutras explain the extent of mayic creation and Divinity beyond that. It tells that the entire mayic creation is worth discarding and only the Divinity is to be attained because that is the only source of Bliss. Yog Sutras then explain the practical process of heart purification which may qualify a person to experience the absolute Divine. Then the Brahm Sutra (Uttar Mimansa) reveals this secret that God is absolute Divinity and absolute Bliss, and He is Gracious. So yearnfully remember Him and with His Grace experience His absolute Blissfulness forever. This is the general outline of all the six Darshan Shastras.
Poorv Mimansa by Jaimini is the condensed explanation of the Vedic theme and at the same time the clarification of its issues. It has 12 chapters for a person who desires to know the rightful means (called dharm) of obtaining the personal happiness in this life and the life after. Poorv Mimansa does not relate to God realization, its subject matter is the attainment of celestial luxuries only.
Nyay by Sage Gautum is a logical quest for God, the absolute Divinity. It tells that the material power maya, with the help of God, becomes the universe. In the beginning of the book the Nyay Darshan goes into intricate discussions to establish as to what is the right substance to know (which of course is the Divine) and it designs 16 steps of logical discussions called the 16 padarth. Nyay Darshan is based on establishing the fact that only the Divinity (God) is desirable, knowable and attainable, and not this world.
The philosophy of the Vaisheshik Darshan by Sage Kanad is like the Nyay Darshan. Its aim is to receive happiness in this life (by renouncing worldly desires) and finally to receive the ultimate liberation (through the attachment of the true knowledge of the Divine). Nyay Darshan and Vaisheshik Darshan are written in the form of questions and answers and are in themselves a complete science of logical representation of the futility of mayic creation, and the natural and absolute desirability of the Divine (God) which may terminate the bondage of the karmasand ensure liberation. The aim of Nyay and Vaisheshik Darshan Shastras is to invoke a deep desire to find God by describing the karmic consequences of material attachments, but they do not provide the detail of the nature, form, virtues and the Graciousness of God.
Sankhya Darshan by Bhagwan Kapil starts with a sutra explaining that the aim of Sankhya is to eliminate all kinds of physical and mental pains and to receive liberation. It tells about the 24 aspects of maya and God, the Divine. Souls are parts of the Divine but they are eternally affiliated with maya. Sankhya Darshan says that attachment in the mayic world creates the bondage; and the understanding of the Divine truth (God) releases the soul from such bondage.
Yog Darshan by Sage Patanjali has four chapters and accepts three kinds of evidences for determining the aim of life (perceptual, inferential and scriptural). It also tells about five kinds of pain inflicting modes of the mind: ignorance, ego, attachment, hatred, and fear of death, with which a soul is always affected. To get rid of these pains of life a person has to practice yog and observe total renunciation. The Yog Darshan defines renunciation as the elimination of all the thoughts and the desires that arise either out of the perception of this world, or have been heard from somewhere. The practice of perfecting this renunciation isyog, which is eightfold. Patanjali advises to take the help of God (in sutra 2/45) because with His help the aim of perfecting the state of samadhi could be fulfilled.
Uttar Mimansa (Brahm Sutra) has four chapters and each chapter has four sections. It starts by defining the prerequisite that the Brahm Sutra is for that person who has a real deep desire to know God. Then it declares that true liberation could only be attained by lovingly surrendering to Him. Further it tells that God has unlimited and absolute virtues. In its four chapters, it reveals that God has His Divine personal form with all of His Divine virtues, describes the existing status of the universe, details the existing form and situation of a soul which is under the bondage of maya, and tells about the greatness of bhakti by explaining that through bhakti a devotee easily receives the Grace of God. The Brahm Sutra represents the theme of the Upnishads which are the essence of the entire literature of the Vedic realm.
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Puranas

There are 18 Puranas: Brahm Puran, Padm Puran, Vishnu Puran, Vayu Puran, Bhagwat Maha Puran, Narad Puran, Markandeya Puran, Agni Puran, Bhavishya Puran, Brahm Vaivart Puran, Ling Puran, Varah Puran, Skand Puran, Vaman Puran, Kurm Puran, Matsya Puran, Garud Puran and Brahmand Puran.
It is a general feature of all the Puranas that they fully explain the creation aspect and also the dissolution aspect of the universe, give the description of all the Manus and tell the history of the important families along with their family successions and the dynasties of kings etc. Whatever the Puranas describe, their main concentration is to introduce a feeling of bhakti and dedication towards a personal form of God in the heart of the reader. Thus their every description is in the praise of God and established the Graciousness of the actions of those Divine personalities who represented themselves as Sages, Rishis, Saints, family men, kings or hermits etc. Most of those whose life history is described in the Puranas are the eternal Saints.

The Puranas, in general, are for all kinds of people, from an ordinary family man who is deeply attached to his family and friends and up to a renounced person who is longing to meet his Divine beloved God in His personal Divine form.

The Puranas explain that the Grace of God is never at random and also it is not the consequence of any amount of good actions or yog or austerity. It is automatically experienced when a soul lovingly and totally submits himself to God. This loving submission is bhakti. The philosophies of the Upnishads and the Darshan Shastras are a kind of dry description of the theory of God realization; the Puranas make them lively and easy to understand.
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Bhagwatam

Bhagwatam
It is a common saying that where the philosophy of the Gita ends, the philosophy of the Bhagwatam begins. The Bhagwatam tells only selfless devotion of Krishn which ensures everything: liberation from all the pains of the world, Divine vision and the Divine love of Krishn. The Bhagwatam is like a crown jewel among all other scriptures but it has to be properly understood and correctly followed.
The seven Divine virtues of the Bhagwatam:
It has a very systematic description of the events.
It is beyond the Puranas.
It is beyond dharm, arth, kam and mokcha, and it is beyond the Vedas and the Upnishads.
It was taught to such a Saint (Shukdeo) who was totally absorbed in the Divine Bliss.
It embodies all the spiritual philosophies.
It represents the true form of Krishn love which is not fully described in the Puranas or the Upnishads.
It describes the greatness of Radha Rani is a special way.
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Itihas

Ramayan and Mahabharat are called the ithihas (history) books because, along with regular description of their own topic, they also tell a lot about the general history of that period.

Ramayan
Ramayan describes the Divine leelas of Bhagwan Ram Who descended on the earth planet 18.144 million years ago in Ayodhya from His Divine abode, Saket, along His brothers Lakchman, Bharat and Shatrughn. The eternal consort of Ram, Goddess Sita, had descended in Mithila, the kingdom of King Janak, who was called videh because he was always absorbed in the Bliss of absolute brahm. Sage Valmiki was during the time of Bhagwan Ram. He wrote the Ramayan (called Valmiki Ramayan) in Sanskrit language while living in his hut as he saw all the leelas of Ram from his Divine eyes. Ved Vyas, about 5,000 years ago, reproduced the Valmiki Ramayan.
Ramayan

Mahabharat

Mahabharat was produced by Bhagwan Ved Vyas after the war of Mahabharat, and after that the Bhagwatam was produced by him. Mahabharat has 18 sections called ‘parv.’ Out of these only five Parvas relate to the actual war. The rest of them, like the Puranas, describe the general history of the creation and manvantar, the history of Sages and Saints, the important family succession, the total history of the Puru dynasty in which the Pandavas were born, and the detailed history of the Pandav Family along with the general teachings of dharm and devotion to God. In about fourteen chapters in Van Parv the leelasof Bhagwan Ram are described and the Gracious description of Krishn comes almost everywhere in the Mahabharat. The two Parvas, Shanti and Anushasan, reveal the philoso-
Mahabharat
phies of the Vedas and the Upnishads in a simple way; that’s why it is also called the fifth Ved. It explains about karm, gyan, yog,sankhya, austerity, general worship to God, the behavior of a pious king, the liberation, renunciation,varnashram dharm, the hellish sufferings from the evil deeds, futility of the worldly happiness and the greatness of bhakti etc. The most famous scripture, Gita, is a part of Mahabharat.
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Gita

The Gita is a prime Upnishad and it is the practical guide that gives the true knowledge of God and God realization. It has eighteen chapters. Gita is the direct speech of Krishn, the supreme personality of God, Who Himself descended on the earth planet in His Divine form to show the path of God realization. It contains the essence of the Upnishads and the theme of all the Divine philosophies.
Gita
Krishn Himself summarizes the teachings of the Gita in one verse and says, “O Arjun! You are very dear to Me. So, for your own good, I am telling you the greatest secret of the Divine world. Listen carefully. If you or any soul of the world desires to come to Me and be with Me forever, the easiest path is that he should worship Me, love Me, remember Me all the time and dedicate his life for Me. Then surely he will come to Me. It’s My promise.” (18/64, 65)
Courtesy : http://www.thevedicfoundation.org/authentic_hinduism/bhartiya_scriptures.htm

Friday 26 August 2011

Samayal - The Pleasures of South Indian Vegetarian Cooking

Thirukkural

Thirukkural


Tirukkural constitutes one of the most important literary works in Tamil. It is generally reckoned that Kural was composed during the Sangam Period of literary development in Tamil (500-200 BC). Kural continues to be important today, in the twentyfirst century, for scholars believe that Kural conveys many many important messages to the society. International interest in the study of Kural can be traced to the second half of the Nineteenth century.
This comprehensive reference has been made possible due to the availability of the Multilingual software from IIT Madras. Visitors to these pages should be able to view the text in Tamil script on most graphic enabled web browsers. The presentations are unique and one of a kind on the web.

Introduction to Tirukkural

Tirukkural is a masterpiece of Tamil literature, composed during the last of the three Sangam eras. While it has not been possible to exactly date the work, the reference to Kural in the great epics Manimekalai and Silappadhikaram give us some idea of when it would have been composed.

About Tiruvalluvar

Not much is known about Tiruvalluvar, the author of the work though it is believed that he was born in Mylaopore (Chennai, Tamilnadu) and belonged to the weaver community. He is also known by several other names e.g., Nayanar, Theivappulavar, Perunavalar. The work itself is often called Tamil Marai, a reference to its identification with the Vedas.

Historical Information

It is believed that Valluvar composed the work on request from his close friend and student by name Elela Singan. Upon completion, Valluvar took the work to Madurai, as per the prevailing practice of reading out new compositions in a public forum where critics and scholars would be present.

The conceited scholars at Madurai, insisted on measuring the greatness of the work through a test where the manuscript would be placed with other works on a plank kept afloat in the tank of the great temple and it was to be seen if the plank remained afloat. The significance of this is that the greatness of a work is realized on the basis of not the weight of its manuscript (written on Palm leaves) but the devine qualities of the work which foced the plank to stay afloat.

It is said that to the amazement of the critics, the Sangam Plank shrunk itself in size to hold only the Kural manuscript and in the process throwing out the rest.

There is also a belief that Valluvar and the great poetess Auvaiyar were siblings and it was Auvaiyar who went one step ahead of what had been said about Kural earlier. Idaikkadar had praised Kural with a reference that the greatness of Kural is such that Valluvar had packed inside a mustard seed, the essence of all knowledge from the broad world spanned by seven seas. Auvaiyar had substituted the term kadugu (mustard) by Anu (meaning an atom). It is interesting to note that the concept of Atom had already been established in the Tamil country two thousand years ago!

Kural - statistics

Tirukkural is a work of 1330 couplets each of which conforms to the structure of "Kural Venba", a grammatical construction with two lines of four and three words respectively. The work is arranged in 133 Adhikarams, each with 10 couplets. The 133 Adhikarams are divided into three major groups known as "Aram", "Porul" and "Inbam". Aram represents Virtue, Porul defines the principles of Life for common people as well as the State. The last section deals with aspects of Love. The overall organization of Tirukkural is as follows, based on seven ideals prescribed for people followed by observations on Love.

40 couplets on God, Rain, Virtue and Ascetics.
200 couplets on Domestic Virtue
140 couplets on Higher Virtue based on Grace
250 couplets on Royalty
100 couplets on Ministers of State
220 couplets on the Essential requirements of Administration
130 couples on Morality, both positive and negative
250 couplets on Human Love and Passion

List of Adhikarams

The list provides the titles of the 133 Adhikarams (in Tamil script).

In praise of Kural

Today, one also reads an appendix to the work where great men had praised the author. This appendix is known as "Tiruvalluva Malai" or the "Garland of Valluvar". It has fiftythree verses from fiftythree different poets spanning several centuries. This appendix is a goldmine of information about Tirukkural. Thiruvalluva Malai is presented in an independent page with the text in the Tamil script.


Contents
Introduction to Kural

About Tiruvalluvar

Historical Information

Kural - statistics
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Browse the text of Kural
(The complete text arranged in Adhikarams)

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Linguistic Analysis of Kural

Letter, word frequencies
(Distribution of the letters of Tamil in the text of Kural)
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Kural a day
(couplet chosen at random each day)
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Search the text of Kural
(A simple web interface to search for words in the text of Tirukkural, with a provision to enter the query string in Tamil)
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Kural Word list
(Alphabetically arranged list of words from the 1330 couplets. Approx. 6000 words)

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Kural on the web
(Links to other sites)

Siddharthan Ramachandramurthi has setup a web site presenting the text of kural with an added search facility. A good example of an attempt to present Tamil text through images and thus avoid the vagaries of fonts!

Acharya Logo
The statue of Saint Tiruvalluvar greets visitors at Kanyakumari, the southernmost tip of India. The 133 feet tall statue stands next to Vivekananda Memorial, a temple for meditation. The height of 133 feet signifies the 133 "Adhikarams". The pedastal measures 38 feet in height, representing the 38 "Adhikarams" of the first part of Kural "Aram".

Courtesy:Aacharya.iitm.ac.in

To download in pdf format please use below link
http://www.tamilcube.com/thirukkural/#Download

Mahakavi Bharathiar

Mahakavi Bharathiar
( 11th Dec 1882 - 11th Sep 1921 )



Mahakavi Subramania Bharathiar was one of the greatest Tamil poets, a prolific writer, philosopher and a great visionary of immense genius. He was also one of the most prominent leaders of the Indian independence movement. His national integration songs earned him the title "Desiya Kavi" (National Poet). His patriotic songs emphasize nationalism, unity of India, equality of men and the greatness of Tamil language.

Bharathiar was born on December 11, 1882 in Ettayapuram, which is now part of Thoothukudi District. Bharathiar was educated at a local high school where his talents as a poet were recognized even at the age of 11. He had voracious appetite for learning ancient and contemporary Tamil literature and had gifted intellect to derive astonishing truths from ancient poems.

At the age of 22, he became a Tamil teacher at Setupati High School in Madurai and the same year he was appointed as Assistant Editor of a daily newspaper called "Swadesamitran". In 1906, he was editor of a weekly magazine called "India".

By 1912, Bharathiar was already a legend in South India and his political meetings were attracting multitudes of young patriots, ready to join the non-violent movement for attaining freedom from the British rule.

Bharathiar died on September 11, 1921, at the young age of 39.

The legacy of the poet however endures forever.

Courtesy: tn.gv.in

Maruthu Pandiyar


Maruthu Pandiyar



The Maruthu Pandiyar brothers (Periya Maruthu and Chinna Maruthu) ruled Sivagangai, Tamil Nadu towards the end of the 18th century.They were the first to issue a proclamation of independence from the British rule from Trichy Thiruvarangam Temple, Tamil Nadu on June 10, 1801,56 years before the - Sepoy mutiny (also known as the first war of Independence) which broke out in many parts of north India in 1857.

Childhood


Marudu brothers were the sons of Udayar Servai alias Mookiah Palaniappan (Agamudayar) Servai and Anandayer alias Ponnathal. Maruthu Pandiyar, the Elder was born on 15.12.1748 in a small hamlet called Narikkudi near Aruppukkottai in the Ramnad principal state.In 1753 the younger Marudhu Pandiyar was born in Ramnad. Their father Udayar Servai served as a General in the Ramnad state military and he shifted his family to Ramnadu from Narikkudi.

Early life


The brothers were trained in martial arts at Surankottai which served as a training centre for the Ramnad army. Boomerang is a peculiar weapon to India. Two forms of this weapons are used in India. These are normally made of wood. They are known as Valari stick in tamil. It is said that Maruthu brothers were experts in the art of throwing the valari stick. It is said that Maruthus used Valari in the Poligar wars against the British.They contested in and won many competitions of martial arts and distingusihed themselves.The Raja of Ramnad Muthu Vijaya Raghunatha Sethupathy issued the title of ‘Pandiyas’ to honour the brothers.

Bravery


The Raja of Sivaganga principal state (near Ramnad), Muthu Vaduganadhar came to know of their brave deeds and requested the Ramnad king to assign them for serving the Sivaganga army.They were appointed as Generals of the Sivaganga military and the brothers left an indelible impression in the history of Tamil Nadu.
In the year 1772, the English military of the East India Company, under the command of Lt.Col. Bon Jour attacked the state at Kalayar Kovil. During the war, Raja Muthu Vaduganadhar lost his life in the battlefield. But the Maruthu brothers managed to escape along with Rani Velu Nachiar, wife of Raja Muthu Vadughanadhar and arrived at Dindigul which was ruled by Hyder Ali – the Sultan of Mysore as refugees. Hyder Ali supported them with all respects.
The Nawab of Arcot, the alliance partner of East India Company was not able to collect any taxes from the people of Sivaganga state for eight years,entered in to an agreement whereby the rule of Sivaganga was restored to Rani Velu Nachiar after he collected his dues from her. The Marudu brothers with 12,000 armed men surrounded Sivaganga and plundered the Arcot Nawab's territories. The Nawab on the 10th of March 1789 appealed to the Madras Council for aid. On 29 April 1789, the British forces attacked Kollangudi. It was defeated by a large body of Marudu's troops. Maruthu brothers are very famous for Tiger fight -- it is said that they could kill the tiger without any arms.

War against British


They were in close association with Veera Pandiya Kattabomman of Panchalankurichi. Kattabomman held frequent consultations with Marudhus. After the execution of Kattabomman in 17 October 1799 at Kayattar, Chinna Marudhu gave asylum to Kattabomman's brother Oomadurai (mute brother). But, the British took this reason to invade and attacked Sivaganga in 1801 with a powerful army. The Maruthu Pandiyars and their allies were quite successful and captured three districts from the British. British considered it as a serious threat to their future in India that they rushed additional troops from Britain to put down Maruthu Pandiyars' rebellion. These forces surrounded Maruthu Pandiyars' army at Kalayar Koil, and the latter scattered. The Maruthu Brothers and their top commanders escaped. They regrouped and fought the British and their allies at Viruppatchi, Dindigul and Cholapuram. While they won the battle at Viruppatchi, they lost the other two battles.

Administration


Marudu brothers were not only warriers and noted for bravery, but they were very great Administrators. Rani Velu Nachiar made a Will and paved way for Marudhu Pandiyar Elder to rule. Marudhu Pandiar younger was made as Dewan of the state. During the period from 1783 to 1801, they worked for the welfare of the people and the Sivaganga Seemai was reported as fertile. They constructed many notable temples like Kalayar Kovil, Sivaganga many Ooranis and Tanks.

Death


Maruthu Pandiyars and many of their family members were captured at Cholapuram and they were hanged on October 24, 1801.
Courtesy: Discovertamilnadu

Vanchinathan


Vanchinathan


Vanchinathan (1886 - June 17, 1911) , popularly known as Vanchi, was an Indian Tamil independence activist. He is best remembered for having shot dead Ashe, the Collector of Thirunelveli and having later committed suicide in order to evade arrest.
A nameboard at the Vanchi Maniyachi station named in his honour

Personal Life


Vanchinathan was born in 1886 in Shenkottai to Raghupathy Iyer and Rukmani Ammal. His actual name was Shankaran. He did his schooling in Shenkottai and graduated in M.A. from Moolam Thirunal Maharaja College in Thiruvananthapuram. Even while in college, he married Ponnammal and got into a lucrative Government job.

Freedom Movement


On June 17, 1911, Vanchi assassinated Ashe, the district collector of Tirunelveli, who was also known as Collector Dorai. He shot Ashe at point-blank range when Ashe's train had stopped at the Maniyachi station, en route to Madras. He committed suicide thereafter. The railway station has since been renamed Vanchi Maniyachi.
Vanchi was a close collaborator of Varahaneri Venkatesa Subrahmanya Iyer (normally shortened to V.V.S.Aiyar or Va.Ve.Su Iyer), another freedom fighter who sought arms to defeat the British.

Vanchinathan's letter

I dedicate my life as a small contribution to my motherland. I am alone responsible for this. 3000 youths of this brave country have taken an oath before mother Kali to send King George to hell once he sets his foot on our motherland. I will kill Ashe, whose arrival here is to celebrate the crowning of King George in this glorious land which was once ruled by great samrats. This I do to make them understand the fate of those who cherish the thought of enslaving this sacred land. I, as the youngest of them, wish to warn George by killing Ashe who is his sole representative and has destroyed the Swadeshi shipping company and several other freedom fighters by subjecting them to severe torture.
Vande Mataram. Vande Mataram. Vande Mataram

Trivia

In the movie Kappalottiya Tamizhan, Actor Balaji played the role of Vanchinathan. Sivaji Ganesan roled as Va.U. Chidamparam
Courtesy:Discovertamilnadu

Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam




Scientist APJ Abdul Kalam
Avul Pakir Jainulabdeen Abdul Kalam (Tamil: அவுல் பகீர் ஜைனுலாப்தீன் அப்துல் கலாம்) born October 15, 1931, Tamil Nadu, India, usually referred to as Dr. A. P. J. Abdul Kalam^, was the eleventh President of India, serving from 2002 to 2007.[2] During his term as The President, he was popularly known as the People's President.[3][4] Before his term as India's president, he worked as an engineer with DRDO and ISRO and was awarded India's highest civilian honor Bharat Ratna in 1997 for his work with ISRO and DRDO and his role as a scientific advisor to the Indian government. He is popularly known as the Missile Man of India for his work on development of ballistic missile and space rocket technology.[5]. In India he is highly respected as a scientist and as an engineer.
Kalam played a pivotal organizational, technical and political role in India's Pokhran-II nuclear test in 1998, the first since the original nuclear test by India in 1974.[6] He is a professor at Anna University (Chennai) and adjunct/visiting faculty at many other academic and research institutions across India. Although he is an engineer he has received many honorary doctorate degrees.
With the death of R. Venkataraman on January 27, 2009, Kalam became the only surviving former President of India.
Political Views

Political views


APJ Abdul Kalam's probable views on certain issues have been espoused by him in his book India 2020 where he strongly advocates an action plan to develop India into a knowledge superpower and into a developed nation by the year 2020. Kalam is credited with the view that India ought to take a more assertive stance in international relations; he regards his work on India's nuclear weapons program as a way to assert India's place as a future superpower.
Kalam continues to take an active interest in other developments in the field of science and technology as well. He has proposed a research programme for developing bio-implants. He is a supporter of Open source software over proprietary solutions and believes that the use of open source software on a large scale will bring more people the benefits of information technology.
Kalam's belief in the power of science to resolve society's problems and his views of these problems as a result of inefficient distribution of resources is modernistic. He also sees science and technology as ideology-free areas and emphasizes the cultivation of scientific temper and entrepreneurial drive. In this, he finds a lot of support among India's new business leaders like the founders of Infosys and Wipro, (leading Indian IT corporations) who began their careers as technology professionals much in the same way Kalam did.
In the 3,000-year history of India, barring 600 years, the country has been ruled by others. If you need development, the country should witness peace and peace is ensured by strength. Missiles were developed to strengthen the country.
Personal Life

Personal life:


Kalam's father was a devout Muslim, who owned boats which he rented out to local fishermen and was a good friend of Hindu religious leaders and the school teachers at Rameshwaram. APJ Abdul Kalam mentions in his biography that to support his studies, he started his career as a newspaper vendor. This was also told in the book, A Boy and His Dream: Three Stories from the Childhood of Abdul Kalam by Vinita Krishna. The house Kalam was born in can still be found on the Mosque street in Rameshwaram, and his brother's curio shop abuts it. This has become a point-of-call for tourists who seek out the place. Kalam grew up in an intimate relationship with nature, and he says in Wings of Fire that he never could imagine that water could be so powerful a destroying force as that he witnessed when he was thirty three. That was in 1964 when a cyclonic storm swept away the Pamban bridge and a trainload of passengers with it and also Kalam's native village, Dhanushkodi.
Kalam observes strict personal discipline, vegetarianism,[citation needed] teetotalism and celibacy. Kalam is a scholar of Thirukkural; in most of his speeches, he quotes at least one kural. Kalam has written several inspirational books, most notably his autobiography Wings of Fire, aimed at motivating Indian youth. Another of his books, Guiding Souls: Dialogues on the Purpose of Life reveals his spiritual side. He has written poems in Tamil as well. It has been reported that there is considerable demand in South Korea for translated versions of books authored by him.
Dr. Kalam received an honorary doctorate from Carnegie Mellon University.

Kalam as an engineer

Engineer
Abdul Kalam graduated from Madras Institute of Technology majoring in Aeronautical Engineering. As the Project Director, He was heavily involved in the development of India's first indigenous Satellite Launch Vehicle (SLV-III). As Chief Executive of Integrated Guided Missile Development Programme (IGMDP), he also played a major part in developing many missiles of India including Agni and Prithvi. Although the entire project has been criticized for being overrun and mismanaged.[8]. He was the Chief Scientific Adviser to Defence Minister and Secretary, Department of Defence Research & Development from July 1992 to December 1999. Pokhran-II nuclear tests were conducted during this period, led by him.
He is one of those scientists who aims at putting technology created by him to multiple use. He used the light weight carbon-compound material designed for Agni to make callipers for the polio affected. This carbon composite material reduced the weight of the calipers to 400 grams (from its original weight of 4kgs.) Nizam's Institute of Medical Sciences (NIMS, Hyderabad) was the birthplace for the defence technology spin offs from Kalam's labs via the DRDL (Defence Research and Development Laboratory), DMRL (Defence Metallurgical Research Lab) and the RCI (Research Centre Imarat). Addressing a conference at Athens, Greece, Kalam told that "Seeing the children run with lighter callipers brought tears to the eyes of their parents. That was the real moment of bliss for me".
Honour of AJP Abdul Kalam

Honours

He has received honorary doctorates from as many as thirty universities .[9] The Government of India has honoured him with the nation's highest civilian honours: the Padma Bhushan in 1981; Padma Vibhushan in 1990; and the Bharat Ratna in 1997.
Kalam is the Third President of India to have been honoured with a Bharat Ratna before being elected to the highest office, the other two being Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan and Zakir Hussain. He is also the first scientist and first bachelor to occupy Rashtrapati Bhavan.
Referred to as the "People's President", Kalam is often considered amongst India's greatest presidents, going on to win a poll conducted by news channel CNN-IBN for India's Best President. Dr. Abdul Kalam is not only popular in India, but he is widely known in adjacent country such as Pakistan.
Kalam has also patronised grassroots innovations. He is closely associated with the Honey Bee Network and The National innovation Foundation. The NIF is a body of Government of India and operates from Ahmadabad, Gujrat.
Kalam has been chosen to receive prestigious 2008 Hoover Medal for his outstanding public service. The citation said that he is being recognized for making state-of-the-art healthcare available to the common man at affordable prices, bringing quality medical care to rural areas by establishing a link between doctors and technocrats, using spin-offs of defence technology to create state-of-the-art medical equipment and launching tele-medicine projects connecting remote rural-based hospitals to the super-specialty hospital. A pre eminent scientist, a gifted engineer, and a true visionary, he is also a humble humanitarian in every sense of the word, it added.
Courtesy: Discovertamilnadu