Monday May 28, 2012
Once of a time, the great Indian kingdom of Ayodhya was ruled by the childless king Bhagiratha, who desperately yearned for Ganga to come down and wash away the sins of his forefathers. Bhagiratha hailed from a royal family that claimed its ancestry from the Sun God himself.
Bhagiratha went to the Himalayas to perform terrible austerities for a thousand years to draw the Ganga down from the skies. Eventually, humbled by the dogged dedication of the ascetic king, Ganga appeared in human form and agreed to purify the ashes of Bhagiratha's ancestors.
But the great river feared earth, where sinful people would bathe in her waters, sullying her with bad karma. She felt that if the sinners of the earth, who do not know what kindness is and who suffered from egoism and selfishness, came into contact with her, she would lose her sanctity. But the noble Bhagiratha, eager for the salvation of his ancestors' souls, assured Ganga: "Oh! Mother, there are as many sacred and devoted souls as there are sinners, and by your contact with them, your sin will be removed."
When Ganga agreed to bless the earth, a fear still persisted: The land of the sinners could never possibly withstand the great pressure with which the frothy waters of the holy Ganges would descend upon ungodly earth. To save the world from unimaginable calamity, Bhagiratha prayed to Lord Shiva - the God of Destruction - who that Ganga would fall first on the matted locks of his head to enable the waters to exhaust their, furious energy beforehand and then descend to the earth with diminished impact.
The great Ganga rushed in a mighty torrent onto Shiva's gracious head and, making her way through his tangled locks, the Mother Goddess fell upon the earth, in seven distinct streams: Hladini, Nalini and Pavani flowed east, Subhikshu, Sitha and Sindhu flowed west, and the seventh stream followed the chariot of Bhagiratha to the place where the ashes of his great-grandfathers lay in heaps, awaiting their journey to the heavens.
Read on to find out how the waters of the holy Ganges finally sanctified the ancestors of the dynasty of the Sun... more
Sunday May 27, 2012
The River Ganges or Ganga is perhaps the holiest river in any religion. Though equally polluted, it bears immense significance to the Hindus. Besides being a sacred river, Ganga is also worshiped as a deity in Hinduism and respectfully referred to as 'Gangaji' or 'Ganga Maiya' (Mother Ganga). 
Hindus believe that rituals performed by the river Ganga multiply in their blessedness. The land over which Ganga flows is regarded as hallowed ground. It is believed that those who die around this river reach the heavenly abode with all their sins washed away.
Every summer, the Ganga Dusshera or Ganga Dashami festival (May 31, 2012) venerates the auspicious occasion of the descent of the sacred river on earth from heaven. On this day, a dip in the holy river invoking the Goddess is said to cleanse all sins. A devotee worships by lighting incense and lamp, and offers sandalwood, flowers, and milk. Fishes and other aquatic animals are fed flour balls. Read more...
Monday May 21, 2012
"Death is not extinguishing the light; it is putting out the lamp because dawn has come." ~ Rabindranath Tagore
In Hinduism, death is not viewed as an anathema or the end of all but only a step in the existence of soul, a temporary cessation of physical activity. Since Hindus believe in reincarnation and the trans-migration of the soul, they approach the subject of death without much fear.
Let's accept the fact that we loathe death because of the uncertainty of its time and place. Failure to survive when the time comes is the basic fear. The unwillingness to face this fear with proper understanding is due to the emphasis we lay upon the physical body. It is also based upon an innate fear of loneliness due to the loss of those we have been familiar with during our worldly existence.
Gyan Rajhans, scientist and spiritual thinker is approaching 72 years of age. In this article, he contemplates upon the inevitable end of life - death, and comes up with words of advise about what should be the right attitude to death, and how one should approach it... Read more
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Monday May 21, 2012
While watching those elaborate Indian arranged marriages and thinking about the complexity and effort involved, have you ever wondered how and when this practice originated?
According to a recent research conducted by a post graduate student of Amity University, New Delhi, such marriages in India originated during the Vedic period of Indian history (1700-1100 BCE). The ceremony and the institution of arranged marriages also took its shape during this time.
Says the research, Hindu marriage rituals are derived from laws interpreted in the Dharmashastras or sacred texts, which has its roots in the Vedas, the oldest surviving works from the Vedic era. These scriptures are said to have been written by Aryan sages who inhabited the areas across the Indus river, long before the word "Hindu" came to be associated with religion. It is common knowledge that "Hindu" is an evolved Persian word for the people who lived across the river "Indus" or "Indu".
The evolution of arranged marriages has been a gradual process with its roots in the Vedic period. Arranged marriages can be said to have initially risen to prominence in the Indian subcontinent when the historical Vedic religion gradually gave way to classical Hinduism. The Manu Samhita that was written in around 200 BC, is known to have laid down the marital laws, which is followed even today. Read more...
