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July/August/September, 2006US$5.95Affirming Sanatana Dharma and Recording the Modern History of a Billion-Strong Global Religion in RenaissanceHoly ScripturEexploring ourwritten heritageCOVER: Linguist Sambanda Sivacharyar, 79, stands in front of the French Institute of Pondicherry’s extraordinary collection of8,600 scriptures, many in their original palm leaf form. The fragile leaves (above) are brushed with lemongrass oil preservative.July/August/September, 2006 • Hindu Year 5108Vyaya, the Year of Wealthcourtesy french institue of pondicherrycourtesy french institue of pondicherryInternationalFeature: Join as Millions Worship Lord Siva.as an Infinite Pillar of Light 18Social Customs: Why Madhu Kishwar Thinks India’sLaws Against Dowry Abuse Don’t Work 34Education: Hindu Group Sues California Board ofEducation over Hindu Depiction in Textbooks 36Legal: A Primer on How to Run a Temple, theModern American Nonprofit Corporation Way 54Legacy: The French Institute of Pondicherry.Fights to Preserve Our Scriptural Heritage 60L i fest y l eCulture: Concerned Moms Devise Myriad Means ofPassing on Our Sacred Heritage 30Insight: An Illustrated Overview of the Vast andSplendid Scriptures of Sanatana Dharma 37Health: At Last, a Cookbook that Teaches Us to.Heal Ourself with the Original Medicine: Food 53www.gurudeva.orgFood: Today’s Entree: Vegetarianism, Russian.Style, with a Side Dish of Zesty History 62Parenting: Storytelling—It’s Hard to Find a.More Powerful Way to Teach Children 64opinionIn My Opinion: Let’s Get Hinduism Right.in Our Public Schools 9Publisher’s Desk: What Is the Soul and How Does itProgress and Mature? 10Letters. . 12From the Vedas: Who Is a True Brahmin? 17Commentary: God on My Desktop 67digestsDiaspora 6 Digital Dharma 86Quotes & Quips 14Letters to the editor, subscription and editorial inquiries may be sent to Hinduism Today, 107 Kaholalele Road, Kapaa, Hawaii 96746-9304 USA,letters@hindu.org. Hinduism Today (ISSN# 0896-0801; USPS# 023082), July/August/September, 2006, Volume 28, No. 3. Editorial: 1-808-822-7032(ext. 227); subscriptions, copy or bulk orders: (from USA or Canada:) 1-800-850-1008 or (from all countries) 1-808-240-3108, subscribe@hindu.org; advertising: 1-888-464-1008, ads@hindu.org. All-department fax: 1-808-822-4351. Hinduism Today is published four times a year in January,April, July and October by Himalayan Academy, a nonprofit educational institution at 107 Kaholalele Road, Kapaa, Hawaii 96746-9304 USA. SatguruSivaya Subramuniyaswami, Founder; Satguru Bodhinatha Veylanswami, Publisher; Paramacharya Palaniswami, Editor-in-Chief. USA subscriptions:us $35/1 year, $65/2 years, $95/3 years, $155/5 years, $1,001/lifetime. Contact us for international rates. In India: Central News Agency Limited, 4E/4Jhandewalan Extn., New Delhi, 110055, Tel 011-5154-1111, E-mail: subs@cna-india.com. For permission to republish a Hinduism Today article,call 1-808-822-7032 (ext. 227) or fax 1-808-822-4351. Printed in USA. Periodicals postage paid at Kapaa, Hawaii, and at additional mailing offices.POSTMASTER: Send address changes to Hinduism Today, 107 Kaholalele Road, Kapaa, Hawaii, 96746-9304.© 2006 himalayan academy, 107 kaholalele road, kapaa, hawaii 96746-9304 usa. all rights reserved.Brazil. . . . BRL 10.55Canada. . . . . CAD 7.50India . . . . INR 85.00Malaysia. . . MYR 10.00Mauritius. MUR 65.00Singapore. . . SGD 7.50Trinidad. TTD 36.00UK . . . . . GBP 3.75www.hinduismtoday.com

Lord Siva’sNight ofLightThe festival, from above and below: (Clockwise from left) Oblivious to the wet chill of a rainytwilight, devotees gather on top of Arunachala mountain close to the large copper cauldronthat will cradle the brightly burning flame of Krittika Dipam; with a policeman’s help in downpouringrain, climbing pilgrims negotiate a dangerously slippery passage around a protrudingrock ledge near the summit of the mountain; at precisely 6pm on the eve of Krittika Dipam, thelighting of a fire in the Tiruvannamalai temple signals devotees miles away on top of the mountainto ignite the flame that will be seen by millions as Lord Siva’s infinite lightThroughout Tamil Nadu, millions of Hindus gather onKrittika Dipam to worship Lord Siva as an infinite pillar of light.In Tiruvannamalai, the fire that is lit on top of Arunachala mountainin the giant cauldron above is kept burning for 10 days, consuminga ton of ghee and a thousand feet of thick cotton wick. Page 18 ....a l l photos: thomas kelly

Left to right: Santhalinga Ramasamy, Tamil Nadu, SomasundaraThesika Gnanasampantha, Jaffna, Bodhinatha Veylanswami USAa u s t r a l i aSaiva Council ConferenceJanuary 27-29, 2006, sydney, australia, was the venuefor the 10th World Saiva Conference, held by the World SaivaCouncil, founded in 1992 in Chennai, by the late H.H. SwamiSiva Nandi Adikalar (UK). The Council is the internationaleducation arm of the London Meikandhar Aadheenam and isexclusively oriented to Saiva Siddhanta as manifest in Tamilculture and literature. Lingayat and Kashmir Saivism are not encompassed.This year’s gathering brought thousands of Saivitestogether from 10 countries. Three monastic religious leadersfrom Tamil Nadu, India, Jaffna, Sri Lanka and Hawaii, USA,were present. Discussions and presentations focused on basicSaiva Siddhanta, the challenges facing the revival of Saivism inthe modern era, clarifying the identity of Saivism within Hinduism,fostering participation of women and youth, and more.u s aSacred SpaceAt HomeWhile home shrines arenothing new to Hindus—or religious families of manyfaiths—it is interesting thatdesigning personal sacredspace is a hot new trend inAmerica. The spread of FungShui and Vastu knowledge, inresponse to the need for connectednessand peace in ournoisy, fragmented world, areleading many to establish analtar at home. The trend iseclectic, syncretic and greatfor business at shops that selleverything from statues ofGanesha, Mother Mary, QuanYin and Buddha, to incense,bells, lamps and books on Vastu.Light a lamp, add a few flowers,a bowl of water, open up yourlatest Internet dot com businessplan for review by your guardianspirits and sit for a twentyminutemeditation for peace ofmind before rushing off to work.Buddha and Ganesha are popular,along side pictures of yourfamily and grandmothert h a i l a n dBrahmaDeity Brokenin BangkokThe famed landmarkstatue of the four-facedBrahma outside the ErawanHotel in Central Bangkok,was smashed with a hammerby Thanakorn Pakdeepol, aMuslim, early in the morning,March 21, 2006. By the timepolice arrived, he had beenbeaten unconscious. He diedsoon afterwards. Two shrinecleaners were arrested for themurder. Thanakorn’s father saidhis 27-year-old son had been inand out of mental hospitals overthe past ten years. The popular50-year-old image was drapedwith sheets. The faithful prayedsadly and offered yellow garlandsand lotus flowers.Bangkok’s Brahma Deity was widely worshiped by Thai Buddhistsu s aCourt-Ordered Vote SettlesNew York Temple DisputeAfive-year long battle between a group of new yorkSri Maha Vallabha Ganapati Devastanam devotees and it’sboard of trustees came to a close in March of this year after a courtorderedelection resulted in the incumbent trustees’ being votedin and retaining control. The complex case raised temple managementissues side-by-side with larger questions on the separation ofChurch and State. “Insurgent” devotees claimed that the temple’soriginal by-laws required elections.But the incumbent boardcited a subsequent set of by-lawswhich made the board a self-appointedbody. The challengersclaimed, and the court agreed,that the latter by-laws were notlegally adopted. While the challengerswon by getting the courtorderedvote, their slate of directorslost to the incumbent boardby a wide margin. It remainsunclear if the by-laws will nowbe changed to make the boardself appointing, or if regular electionswill continue to be held.One of the oldest US templesembroiled in power strugglesm a l ay s i aDynamicNew MalaysiaHindu Missionnew organization isA arising in Malaysia, a countrywhose Hindu history goesback for millennia but wherehome-grown Hindu religiousleaders have been few and farbetween. Immigration lawshave not allowed ordained swamis(or temple priests) who arenot Malaysian to take up permanentresidence. For decadesthe only “official” swami in thenation was the one heading theDivine Life Society in KualaLumpur, presently Swami Guhabhaktananda.These days a few more Malaysiansare taking to renunciatelife. One is Maharishi ParamahamsaShankarananda Guruji,who was initiated in India by amystic sage in the lineage of SriRaghavendraswami, the famed16th century Tamil VaishnavaWeekly satsang at Sujata Jagwani’shome shrine, Montego Bay, Jamaicaj a m a i c aHindus ThriveIn JamaicaIn jamaica, the thirdlargest island in the Caribbeanand the tourist haven ofreggae music, 3.4 percent ofthe three million populationare Indians. The first wave ofHindu migrants, 36,000 indenturedsugar plantation laborers,arrived in 1845. Their religionproponent of Madhvadualism. ShankarananadaSwami says the sagegave him the title “MaharishiParamahamsa.”After a period of waderingand sadhana in India,he returned to Malaysiaand, in 1998, foundedthe Shankarananda Mission,also known as theDakshina Mantralaya,in the southern state ofJohore, just north of Singapore.The Mission hasevolved rapidly. Propoundinga universalistic-Hinduphilosophy,swami maintains an orthodoxHindu ritual tradition. Heconducts pujas and festivals,teaches yoga and meditation,and spiritual camps, and trainsaspirants for monastic life asmonks and nuns. The Missionand is also active in social service,providing four free mealsa day for the public, caring foranimals through its Pet CareCenter, delivering groceries tothe needy, holding motivationand culture went virtuallyunrecognizeduntil 1956. Despite this,many held on to theirfaith and customs. Thesecond wave of Hindusstarted in 1927 withthe influx of Sindhibusinessmen, and thethird with Indian professionalsin 1970.Michelle Daswanitells Hinduism Todaythat Hinduism is nowthriving on this tropicalparadise. Familiesconduct traditional celebrations,such as Dipavali, Sivaratri,Ganesha Chathurti and Janmashtami.A mandir locatedin the capital city, Kingston, iswell attended. Devotees holdprayers and satsangs in theirhomes. Some families have spacioushome shrines to accommodatelarger groups. HoldingJamaica’s motto “Out of Many,One People” close to theirhearts, Hindus here and arean integral part of the nationalethnic landscape.Maharishi Paramahamsa Shankarananda Guruji of Johore surrounded byhis disciples and devotees—a new young force for Hinduism in Malaysiasessions for students in schools,raising funds for victims ofnatural disasters. CurrentlyGuruji has a monastic order offive sannyasins, two yogis, anumber of brahmacharis andbrahmacharinis.m a u r i t i u sGiant SivaGraces Island108-foot tall sivaA statue named “MangalMahadev” now welcomes pilgrimsat Ganga Talao (GrandBassin) crater lake, a famouspilgrimage place on the islandof Mauritius. Minister of EnvironmentAnil Baichoo, master-mindbehind the project,told Hinduism Today,” It wasour dream to have somethingspecial to welcome pilgrimson their arrival to this holylake. The devotees can now seeLord Siva from a distance andbe inspired to lovingly walkup to the lake, despite beingexhausted after a long march.”In 1991 Baichoo was inspiredby the 80-foot Siva statue atIndia’s Palam Airport. A groupof volunteers led by the lateGulshan Kulmar started planningfor a similar one at LordSiva’s sacred home in Mauritius.The project finally took off in2003 when the foundation wasstarted. A crew from Rajasthan,India, under the supervisionof Shri Mathuram was commissionedfor the project. AfterThe Mission stands proudlyas a positive force for SanatanaDharma in this country whereHindus face challenges frommodernization and other forces.See www.gurunath.org108-foot-tall Siva: a prominentsign of devotion and inspirationfor Hindus of Mauritiusthree years the us$ 389,000, concretestatue is almost completewith the help and donationsof volunteers and well-wishers.Beautifully crafted, the statueinspires devotion. A copperand zinc coating is being applied.The official consecrationis scheduled for late 2006. hinduism today july/august/september, 2006clockwise from top: hinduism today; adrees latif, reuters;clockwise from top: shankarananda mission;hinduism today; tim street-porter, los angeles times rajen manick; michelle daswanijuly/august/september, 2006 h i n d u i s m t o d ay

Ramayana characters find a new home in aline of Virgin Comics featuring charactersfrom India’s rich literary heritageu s aVirgin ComicsRepackagesIndia’s LoreLooking toward asia asthe entertainment frontier,Indian comic book companyGotham Entertainment Grouphas formed a partnership withVirgin empire mogul Sir RichardBranson to create Virginin april, malaysia authoritiesdemolished a century-oldHindu temple in Kuala Lumpur,bulldozing the buildingas devotees cried and beggedthem to stop. The templewas standing on governmentland. Bulldozers camein the middle of prayers.a stolen 9th century stoneVishnu Diety with carvingsof all the ten incarnations ofLord Vishnu began its journeyComics and VirginAnimation. Amongthe companies’ firstprojects will be acomic book and televisionseries basedon The Ramayana,which Gotham Chopra(Deepak’s sonand the new venture’schief creative officer,)describes as “TheEastern equivalent ofThe Odyssey. It is ourLord of the Rings.”Chopra explains thatVirgin will have threedistinct types of comics:the Director’s Cutline, which will showcasework from Hollywood;the Maverickline, which will developgraphic novels;and the Shakti line,which will focus on“Asian-edged” contentto capitalize on thegrowing global interestin Indian and Asian characters.The new companies, basedin New York and Bangalore, areusing Asian-influenced comicsas the platform to build aglobal media company that willeventually create movies, videogames, digital applications andTV programming. The comicbook Ramayana Reborn isscheduled to be published thissummer, with the animatedseries to come later. See: www.virgincomics.com andwww.gothamcomics.comback home to be reinstalled inthe Varaha Temple in Mandsour,Madhya Pradesh, fromwhere it was stolen six yearsago. American investigatorson a tip from Indian policeand Interpol, traced it to anart dealer in New York whowas working out of his apartment.The Deity had passedthrough so many hands thatno charges could be made.decreasing Ganga waterlevels have devotees worried.u s aMinnesotaTempleVandalizedThe inside of a hindutemple under constructionin Maple Grove, Minnesota, wasvandalized on the night of April5, 2006. Temple doors werekicked in, windows broken andholes smashed in walls and ceilingsof the auditorium, dininghall and classrooms. Nine of the14 stone Deities were brokeninto pieces. The inauguration ofthe us $8-million temple, scheduledto open in early June, waspostponed to July, 2006. NewDeities are being prepared inIndia. Insurance only covereda portion of the damage, and aThey cite the filling of Tehridam above Rishikesh as thecause. This year in April, inHaridwar, the river was so lowthat pilgrims could not take aholy dip. Religious leaders arespeaking out and approachingthe government for solutions.Sri Sellathurai Swami,president of SivathondanNilayam, Jaffna, Sri Lanka(a society established bySiva Yogaswami, guru ofSivaya Subramuniyaswami,founder of Hinduism Today),passed away on April12 at 2pm. Three monthsearlier, he told devotees that$200,000 reconstruction and securitysystem fund-raising drivehas been startedA pickup truck was spottedleaving the temple, but thereare as yet no suspects. The FBIjoined the investigation. A weekafter the crime, a ConcernedCitizens Forum was held andattended by 600 people, includingcongress persons, statelegislators, the mayor, citycouncil members, the city administrator,the chief of policeand representatives from otherreligious organizations. Templepresident Shashikant Sane saidthey have also raised funds foran Interfaith Education Fund toeducate the local community inHinduism. Minnesota is hometo more than 20,000 Hindus.The new 43,000-square-foottemple will be the largest in thestate and surrounding area.Nine of the 14 stone Deities of the new temple in Maple Grove,Minnesota, were broken. New images are being made in India.he would discard his bodyafter the 42nd Mahasamadhicelebrations of Satguru Yogaswami,which took placeon April 7. He was 92.Somnath temple now offersremotes for devotees to performabhishekam. Security restrictionsprevent devotees frompersonally offering Gangawater to the Jyotirlinga. Now,with just a US $2.27 ticket, thepriest will give you a remotecontrol. Press the button andGanges water stored in a nearbytank flows down and bathesthe Sivalingam as you watch.hindu renaissance teamHinduism Today was founded January 5, 1979,by Satguru Sivaya Subramuniyaswami. It is anonprofit educational activity of HimalayanAcademy with the following purposes:1. Tofoster Hindu solidarity as a unity in diversityamong all sects and lineages; 2. To inform andinspire Hindus worldwide and people interestedin Hinduism; 3. To dispel myths, illusionsand misinformation about Hinduism; 4. To protect,preserve and promote the sacred Vedasand the Hindu religion; 5. To nurture and monitorthe ongoing spiritual Hindu renaissance;6. To publish a resource for Hindu leaders andeducators who promote Sanatana Dharma. Jointhis seva by sending letters, clippings, reportson events and encouraging others to subscribe.Founder: Satguru Sivaya SubramuniyaswamiPublisher: Satguru Bodhinatha VeylanswamiEditor-in-Chief: Paramacharya PalaniswamiPublisher’s Aide: Paramacharya CeyonswamiDeputy Editor: Acharya KumarswamiManaging Editor: Sannyasin ArumugaswamiGraphics Director: Sannyasin NatarajnathaswamiProduction Manager: Sannyasin SivakatirswamiSubscription and Distribution Manager:Sannyasin ShanmuganathaswamiAssistant Editor: Yogi JapendranathaAdvertising Manager: Sadhaka JothinathaCorrespondents: Choodamani Sivaram, Bangalore;Rajiv Malik, Prabha Prabhakar Bhardwaj, MadhuKishwar, Delhi; Mangala Prasad Mohanty, Orissa; V.S. Gopalakrishnan, Kerala; Archana Dongre, Los Angeles;Lavina Melwani, New York; Dr. Hari Bansh Jha,Nepal; Paras Ramoutar, Trinidad; V. G. Julie Rajan,Philadelphia; Rajesh Jantilal, South Africa; Iraja Sivadas,California; Tara Katir, Hawaii. HPI Staff: JanakaParam, Toshadeva Guhan, Clive Roberts, Easan Katir,Adi Alahan, Chandra Sankara, Shama Vinayaga, ArjanaDaswani. Sanskritist: Dr. P. Jayaraman, New York.Artists: A. Manivelu, S. Rajam. Cartoonists: M. Arumugam,Bob Thaves, Ripin Karla. Photo Contributors:Thomas L. Kelly, Stephen P. Huyler, Dinodia, Dev RajAgarwal, Gilles Flament, Vel Kadressen, Mu Devarayan,Indivar Sivanathan. Web Masters: Nitya Nadesan,Sadhunathan Nadesan. Distribution: USA: IngramPeriodicals, New Leaf, EBSCO Subscription Services,OneSource, Ubiquity. Europe: SWETS SubscriptionService. Malaysia and Singapore: Sanathana DharmaPublications. India: Central News Agency Limited,Delhi. Mauritius: CODIP. Trinidad: Pandit Narendra& Ashwinee Ragoonanan. Printer: Banta PublicationsGroup, Kansas City, Missouriin my opinionConfronting MisconceptionsHinduism should be properly taught in schoolsB y v a m s e e J u l u r iinduism has beenmisrepresented and insultedin California historytextbooks. Even beforethe state Board of Educationmet in March to vote on adoptingsuggested changes (Seepage 36), Hindu parents wereoutraged and the local Hinducommunity was at war over thisissue, all at a time when PresidentBush was saying that Indiaand America were “global leadersand good friends.”I feel a moral obligation to stand withindignant Hindu parents in demanding thatchanges be made in textbooks for Californiamiddle-school students. Such perpetuationof an unnecessary ignorance aboutHinduism and Indian culture has not onlyhurt the feelings of immigrant children, ithas also hindered a delicate alliance thathas just begun to flower between Indiaand the USA. When President Bush andPrime Minister Manmohan Singh signedtheir historic nuclear agreement earlierthis year, it seemed that the two countrieswere serious about working together onissues ranging from security and trade toeducation and culture. However, the futureof this relationship depends on rejectingold frameworks and mistaken assumptions.These misrepresentations of Hinduism intextbooks form a part of that negative pastthat has no place in a positive future.I disagree with those academics whoview these demands for changes in the textbooksas being part of a “Hindu extremistconspiracy.” I am no supporter of religiousextremism, but extremism is not an issuehere. All we seek to accomplish is to correctthree fundamental misconceptions.First, there is a problem with the Californiatextbooks defining Hinduism as areligion of caste and gender discrimination.This perception has been challengedby the Hindu community for a number ofreasons, including fairness (other religionsare not defined largely by their faults) and,of course, accuracy. I do not suggest thatthese problems do not exist. I simply feelthat there is a better time and place to addressthem than in the firstlessons schoolchildren receiveon Hinduism.Second, it is true that—asthe textbooks state—the term“Hinduism” refers to a complexdiversity of traditions thatare difficult to unify or summarizein terms of founders,dates and origins. But this isHinduism’s virtue, not its vice.The presentation of Hinduismin California’s textbooks isout of sync with the way that Hinduism islived by its followers. For example, manytextbooks, even in India, refer to Hinduismbeing the religion of “Aryan invaders.” Theissue of an Aryan invasion in India is complex.What is relevant here is that Hindussimply don’t dwell on this matter duringtheir daily worship.Third, the disrespect of Hindu “myths”in these textbooks is plainly insulting. IfHindus think about an Elephant God writingan epic and a Monkey God leaping overan ocean, they are neither ignorant nor arethey merely celebrating “stories.” For devoutHindus, these are not characters fromfairy tales; they are Gods.There has been a history of stereotypingand misrepresenting Hinduism in thiscountry. Katherine Mayo’s vicious 1927book, Mother India, was referred to byMohandas Gandhi as a “drain-inspector’sreport,” because of its graphic descriptionof the stench of India’s open drains. The1984 “Indiana Jones” movie, Temple ofDoom, deeply upset Hindus with its bizarrefantasies about Indian dining customs.Perpetuating these stereotypes is not in thebest interests of India or the United States.Religion is like a mother. It has made uswho we are. To use the name of a greatreligion as a synonym for vileness, as a fewscholars have done recently, is not onlyunscholarly, it is hurtful. I am tempted tosay to these people, “You are savaging themother of a civilization.”Vamsee Juluri is an associate professorof media studies at the University of SanFrancisco hinduism today july/august/september, 2006courtesy virgin comics; umesh singhjuly/august/september, 2006h i n d u i s m t o d ay

Publisher’s deskHow Our Soul MaturesPeople the world over are working for spiritual advancement.But just what is the soul and how does it progress and mature?b y s at g u r u b o d h i n at h a v e y l a n s wa m in hindu thought the concept of lifeand the soul are synonymous. For example, theSanskrit word jiva refers to both and containsthe meanings of individual soul, living being,life, vitality, energy, spirit and strength. TheTamil word uyir has the same double meaning oflife and soul.The soul, which is so perplexing and seeminglyout of reach to many, can be understood simplyas life itself. One of the advantages of this simpledescription is that it makes it easy to experience thesoul. How can we do this? Just look into a mirror.Specifically, look deeply into your eyes and see thelight and sparkle within them. That life, vitality,willpower and awareness is your soul, your divinity,the real you, that which continues on after thephysical body’s passing. Looking into the eyes ofanother, you can become aware of the life within that person andthereby see the soul and acknowledge his or her divine nature.The Tamil word uyirkuyir takes this concept of divinity onestep further. It is translated as “God, who is the Life of life, theSoul of the soul.” A philosophical phrase that conveys the samemeaning is “God is the essence of the soul,” implying that if youlook deeply enough into the soul, you will experience God.How do we know, when seeing the life within ourselves orothers, if we are experiencing the individual, evolving soul,or experiencing God as the essence of the soul, the Life oflife? Here is one way to make that distinction. When we areperceiving an individual soul or souls, there is a sense that everysoul is separate from the others. However, when we perceiveGod as the Life of life, that sense of separateness is replacedwith a sense of oneness. Thus, if you can look at a group ofpeople and be aware of the divine oneness that pervades themall, you would be seeing God in them. This deeper experienceis achieved through internalizing our awareness, going deeplyinside ourselves through worship or meditation.An analogy can be made to japa beads. We can focus onthe beads and perceive them as 109 separate beads. We canalso focus on the cord on which they are strung and see theoneness that connects all the beads. A popular story aboutParamaguru Yogaswami illustrates this point. There were fourpeople gathered to sing devotional songs in his small hut oneday. Yogaswami asked, “How many are here?” Someone replied,“Four, swami.” Yogaswami countered, “No. Only one is here.” Hesaw the unity; they saw the diversity.The Hindu idea that God is inside every person as the essenceof the soul, which can be experienced today, is quite differentfrom the concept of Western religions that God is up in heavenand cannot be experienced by those living on Earth. Theybelieve they have to die to meet God. Gurudeva often spokeof the immediacy of God’s presence: “God isso close to us. He is closer than our breathing,nearer to us than our hands or feet. Yes, He isthe very essence of our soul.”Turning now to the goal of life, we knowthe Hindu perspective is that life’s ultimatepurpose is to make spiritual progress. Thisis also described as evolving, maturing orunfolding spiritually. All of these terms referto enjoying ever more profound realizationsof God—personal experiences that deepen ourunderstandings of life and transform our verynature—culminating in moksha, liberation fromrebirth on planet Earth.We can usefully distinguish here the Hinduview of the spiritual destination—experience ofGod and subsequent liberation—and the journeyto that destination, which we are speaking of here. By focusingon the journey and the steps in front of us, we progress moresurely and swiftly.Let’s ask the question, “What, exactly, is it that makes thisspiritual progress?” Not the personality. Not the intellect. Notthe emotions. It is, of course, the soul. In thinking of spiritualprogress, it is helpful to understand the concept of the soul as ahuman-like, self-effulgent form comprised of the life and lightwe previously talked about. Technically, there are two terms inSanskrit for this immortal soul body: anandamaya kosha, “blissbody,” and karana sharira, “causal body.” Just as our physicalbody matures from an infant into an adult, so too does this selfeffulgentbody of light mature in resplendence and intelligence,evolving as its consciousness expands, gradually strengtheningits inner nerve system, progressing from ignorance of God tointimate communion with God. In Sanskrit, this advancing onthe path is called adhyatma prasara, spiritual evolution. It is aprocess that takes place over many lifetimes, not just one.Gurudeva shared, from his own experience, a mystical descriptionof the soul body in Merging with Siva: “One day you will seethe being of you, your divine soul body. You will see it inside thephysical body. It looks like clean, clear plastic. Around it is a bluelight, and the outline of it is whitish yellow. Inside of it is blueyellowishlight, and there are trillions of little nerve currents,or quantums, and light scintillating all through that. This bodystands on a lotus flower. Inwardly looking down through yourfeet, you see you are standing on a big, beautiful lotus flower.This body has a head, it has eyes, and it has infinite intelligence.It is tuned into and feeds from the source of all energy.” Similardescriptions of the soul as a body of light are found in our sacredscriptures and in yogis’ writings.Hastening progress: Let’s turn now to the question of whatcan we do to hasten the unfoldment of our soul. In Hinduthought, there are fourteen great nerve centers in the physicalbody (sthula sharira), in the astral body (sukshma sharira) andin the body of the soul (karana sharira). These centers are calledchakras in Sanskrit, which means “wheels.” Esoterically, spiritualunfoldment relates to the raising of the kundalini force, theserpent power, and the subsequent awakening of these chakraswithin our subtle bodies. Everyone has all of the chakras, thoughthey usually are content to live in only a few.There are six chakras above the muladhara chakra, whichis located at the base of the spine. When awareness is flowingthrough these chakras, consciousness is in the higher nature.There are seven chakras below the muladhara chakra, and whenawareness is flowing through them, consciousness is in the lowernature. Most Hindu teachings regarding the chakras focus on theyogi’s awakening, balancing or stimulating the muladhara chakraand the six above. These seven centers of consciousness govern,in order, memory, reason, willpower, direct cognition, divine love,divine sight and illumination/Godliness. However, my guru hasa different emphasis. He states that spiritual unfoldment is not aprocess of awakening the higher chakras, but of closing off thechakras below the muladhara. The seven chakras, or talas, belowthe spine, down to the feet, are all seats of instinctive consciousness,the origin, respectively, of fear, anger, jealousy, confusion,selfishness, absence of conscience and malice.Brahmadvara, the doorway to the Narakaloka located justbelow the muladhara, has to be sealed off sothat it becomes impossible for fears, hatreds,angers and jealousies to arise. Once this beginsto happen, the muladhara chakra is stabilizedand consciousness slowly and naturally expandsinto the higher chakras. As the kundalini forceof awareness travels along the spine, it enterseach of these higher chakras, energizing themand awakening, in turn, each function accordingto the intensity of spiritual effort.This understanding of the centrality ofsealing off the lower chakras highlights howimportant emotional control is to our spiritualprogress. Certainly the emotion that is the mostimportant for people on the spiritual path tocontrol is anger. Just possessing the knowledgethat anger prevents us from experiencing thehigher chakras increases our motivation to livea life that is totally free from this devastatingforce. Anger comes in many forms, rangingfrom frustration and resentment to uncontrollablerage. In its simplest shade, it is aninstinctive, emotional protest to happenings ata particular moment. “Things are just not right!”anger shrieks. The source of peace and contentmentis the opposite sentiment—a wholesome,intelligent acceptance of life’s conditions, basedon the understanding that God has given us aperfect universe in which to grow and learn,and each challenge or seeming imperfectionwe encounter is an opportunity for spiritualadvancement. To those who are anger-prone, Iadvise replacing that fuming reaction with anaffirmation that everything is just as it shouldbe in God’s perfect universe.An initial focus on controlling anger andthe other lower emotions and instincts is wisely built into thetraditional concept of yoga as having eight limbs. The first limbis yama, which means restraint and is exactly what we havedescribed—controlling our base emotions and instincts. Unfortunately,many modern yoga teachers and texts leave out thisessential step that allows us to keep awareness above the lowerchakras. Having sealed off the lower chakras, we are naturallydrawn to be of service to others, to worship regularly and therebydeepen our devotion to God and to look within through meditationto experience our soul nature and eventually God’s indwellingpresence as our very essence.The regular practice of these traditional spiritual disciplinesnot only keeps our awareness in the higher chakras, it alsoprovides nourishment to our soul body. The soul body startsto grow within the emotional body. Gurudeva described thisgrowth process by saying that the soul body grows like a child,fed by all of our good deeds. All of our service and selflessactions toward others feed that body. All of our working withourselves to conquer instinctive emotions is food for that body,as it draws from the central source of energy. Finally, the spiritualbody matures to the point where it becomes aware in thesuperconscious, intuitive mind, taking on more spiritual forcefrom the Infinite. Ultimately, it takes over the astral emotionalintellectualbody. And after moksha is achieved, it continuesmaturing in the inner worlds.a. manivelMature souls: Spiritual men and womengather in a sacred forest retreat in India.Their efforts to transform themselves, thoughstrenuous, have brought purity, deep insightand a maturity of soul. Their radiant aurasare a sign of their attainment.10 hinduism today j uly/august/sep t ember , 2 0 0 6click the play button at the top of the pageto hear hinduism today publisher satgurubodhinatha veylanswami read his articlej u ly/august/sep t ember , 2 0 0 6 h i n d u i s m t o d ay 11

Ti nsi g ht sI NE D U C ATI O N A LSI G HT Speople ask…and ten terrific answers!i n s i g h tVISITING AHinduTempleE D U C ATI O N A LI N SI G HA BEGINNER’S GUIDE TO THE JOYS OF WORSHIPT from the vedasWho Is a True Brahmin?Scriptures declare that only a realized soul can claim to be a brahmin PLUS…Lord Vishnu stands with the vastocean of truth behind Him. In thesky above, ten birds—symbolizingpersistent misconceptions aboutHinduism—take flight as we tackle tencommon questions about our faith.© 2004 by Himalayan Academy, 107 Kaholalele Road, Kapaa, Hawa i 96746To order additional copies of this Educational Insight, e-mail: pamphlets@hindu.orgSimilar resources on the web include “Four Facts of Hinduism,” “Nine Beliefs of Hinduism” and “How toWin an Argument with a Meat-Eater.” You can access these at www.himalayanacademy.com/basics. welcome tothe temple! M e d u c ati o n a lMy Friend, LordIntroducing Hinduism’s Lord of Dharmandia’s caste system can be seen as a codificationof social classes found in any human society. Whether the latedevelopment of the jati system (wherein caste is determined bybirth) along with related social injustice and abuse, should beattributed to Hindu religion or seen as a purely social phenomenonis a hot topic. Our scriptures have a clear answer. Listen now to theVajrasuchi Upanishad, which, along with other ancient texts, statesunambiguously: membership in the priestly brahmin, or brahmana,caste is determined by character, conduct and attainment, not bybirth.Your Keys To Unlock theMysteries of Hinduisme d u cati o n a li nsi g ht sVisit www.himalayanacademy.com/teachingtools(or call 1-800-890-1008) for contemporary, practical brochures tohelp you fathom and explain the world’s most venerable faith.Created with the needs of parents and educators in mind.p icturearts; background image, corelna n dhini nagarat namConscious that it is God who sustains him, the good soul cares forthe other creatures of the Earth, the hallmark of a true brahmanaI shall describe the Vajrasuchi doctrine which blasts ignorance,condemns those who are devoid of the divine knowledge and exaltsthose endowed with the eye of knowledge.The brahmana, the kshatriya, the vaishya and the sudra are thefour castes. That the brahmana is the chief among these classesis in accord with the Vedic texts and is affirmed by the Smritis.Here there is a point worthy of investigation. Who is, verily, thebrahmana? Is he the individual soul? Is he the body? Is he theclass based on birth? Is he knowledge? Is he the deeds (previous,present or prospective)? Is he the performer of the rites?To assume that the jiva, or the individual soul, is brahmana, itis not so, for the individual’s form is one and the same in the largenumber of previous and prospective bodies. Even though the jivais one, it assumes many bodies due to the stress of (past) karma,and in all these bodies the form of the jiva is one and the same.Therefore the jiva is not the brahmana.If it is said that the body is the brahmana, it is not so, because ofthe sameness of the nature of the body which is composed of thefive elements, in all classes of human beings down to the chandalas(outcastes), etc.; on account of the perception of the commonfeatures of old age and death, virtue and vice. Therefore the bodyis not the brahmana.If it is said that birth makes the brahmana, it is not so, for thereare many species among creatures, other than human, many sagesare of diverse origin. We hear from the sacred books that Rsyasrngawas born of a deer, Kaushika of kusha grass, Jambuka froma jackal, Valmiki from an ant-hill, Vyasa from a fisher girl, Gautamafrom the back of a hare, Vasistha from Urvasi (the celestialnymph), Agastya from an earthen jar. Despite their birth, thereare many sages who have taken the highest rank, having givenproof of their wisdom. Therefore birth does not make a brahmana.If it is said that knowledge makes a brahmana, it is not so, becauseamong kshatriyas and others there are many who have seenthe highest Reality and attained wisdom. Therefore knowledgedoes not make a brahmana.Then if it is said that work makes a brahmana, it is not so, forwe see that the work commenced in the present embodimentor accumulated during the previous or to commence on a futureembodiment is common to all living creatures and that good menperform works impelled by their past karma. Therefore work doesnot make a brahmana.Then if it is said that the performer of religious duties is a brahmana,it is not so, for there have been many kshatriyas and otherswho have given away gold—a religious duty. Therefore the performerof religious rites is not the brahmana.Then who, verily, is the brahmana? He who, after directly perceiving,like the amalaka fruit in the palm of one’s hand, the Self—withouta second, devoid of distinctions of birth, attribute and action,devoid of all faults such as the six infirmities, and the six states, ofthe form of truth, wisdom, bliss and eternity, that is by itself, devoidof determinations, the basis of endless determinations, who functionsas the indwelling spirit of all beings, who pervades the interiorand the exterior of all, like ether, of the nature of bliss, indivisible,immeasurable, realisable only through one’s experience and whomanifests himself directly (as one’s self)—and, through the fulfilmentof his nature, becomes rid of the faults of desire, attachment, etc.,and endowed with qualities of tranquillity, etc., rid of the states ofbeing, spite, greed, expectation, bewilderment, etc., with his mindunaffected by ostentation, self-sense and the like, he lives. He alone,who is possessed of these qualities, is the brahmana. This is theview of the Vedic texts and tradition, ancient lore and history. Theaccomplishment of the state of the brahmana is otherwise impossible.Meditate on Brahman, the Self who is being, consciousness andbliss, without a second; meditate on Brahman, the Self who is being,consciousness and bliss without a second. This is the Upanishad.Sama Veda, Vajrasucika Upanishad 1-9Translated by Dr. S. RadhakrishnanDr. S. Radhakrishnan (1888-1975), born in Tamil Nadu, worldrenownedphilosopher, statesman and President of India, was agifted and prolific commentator on Hindu philosophy.The Vedas are the divinely revealed and most revered scriptures, sruti, ofHinduism, likened to the Torah (1,200 bce), Bible New Testament (100 ce),Koran (630 ce) or Zend Avesta (600 bce). Four in number, Rig, Yajur, Samaand Atharva, the Vedas include over 100,000 verses. Oldest portions may dateback as far as 6,000 bce.j u ly / au g u s t / s e p t e m b e r , 2 0 0 6 h i n d u i s m t o d ay 17

thomas kellyA humble servant: A fisherman is chosen tolight the ceremonial flame atop ArunachalaON THE MOUNTAINWorshiping Lord SivaIn a Celebration of LightBy Choodie Shivaram, Bangalorehe all-pervading quiet of earlymorning is suddenly disrupted by a madclamor of thunderous sound. Ringing bells,pounding drums and piercing nagaswarams(temple horns) almost overpower the beltingvoices of hundreds of devotees who are singingsongs in praise of Siva, the Lord of Arunachala.It is 4:30 am on the 14th of December, 2005,and the small main sanctum of the massiveTiruvannamalai Siva temple in Tamil Nadu ispacked with souls who have been waiting inline all night for this moment.The chief priest has just finished a simpleritual called bharani dipam and now ceremoniouslywaves a huge camphor flame in the directionof nearby Arunachala mountain. Althoughhe is chanting Sanskrit slokas, he cannot beheard amidst the deafening furor of devotionthat surrounds him. Finally, he touches theflame he is holding to the wicks of five huge,earthen, ghee-filled pots, representing the sacredelements earth, air, fire, water and ether.As these five flames loom up with red-yellowlight, the famous, one-day, South Indian festivalof Krittika Dipam officially begins.I am here with my mom, my dad and my aunt.As ardent Hindus, we are all enjoying ourselvesimmensely and worshiping fully. My father is80. Generally, he stays away from crowds. Forhim, a group of five is a lot of people. Yet, whenI invited him to come with me on this pilgrimage,he accepted without hesitation.s e thuA most holy site: South India’s famousTiruvannamalai Siva temple with Arunachalamountain looming in the background18 hinduism today july/august/september 2006july, july/august/september august, september, 2006 h i n d u i s m t o d ay 19

hinduism todayThe infinite God: Lord Vishnu and Lord Brahma worship Lord Siva as a columnof light that extends, both up and down, into infinityI am also attending this sacred event as a correspondentfor Hinduism Today. In that capacity, I am everat the ready for a good quote. As soon as the bharanidipam concludes, I approach a very official looking person.With one finger poised on the “start”-button of myhandy, pocket-size tape recorder, I introduce myself andbegin an informal conversation. The lady I am talkingto tells me her name is Dr. Malathi and that she is agovernment doctor on duty here in service to devoteesattending the festival.“There is immense significance in this first KrittikaDipam ceremony called bharani dipam,” she explains.“At this time, the universal Lord manifests as the five elements,which will later fully merge to become one whenthe Krittika Dipam flame is lit in the evening. From oneto many and many to one. This is the whole essence ofSaivism and the meaning of Krittika Dipam.”All across India, millions of bonfires are lit on hills andin temples on Krittika Dipam. But nowhere is this festivalcelebrated like it is in Tiruvannamallai, also knownas Annamalai, Arunachala, Arunadri and Tiruvarunai—and famous as the home of Sri Ramana Maharshi.Krittika Dipam occurs annually in the lunar monthof Kartika, which occurs in November/December, onthe last day of the 10-day festival called Brahmotsavam.It is on this auspicious day that, at precisely 6:00 in theevening, a sacred fire is lit on top of the 2,682-foot-highArunachala mountain to symbolize the merging of allmanifest existence back into the one source of all things.It is said that those who witness this sacred ceremonyreceive the blessings of Siva and Parvati in person. Allof the traditional temple rituals that are performed duringBrahmotsavam create a spiritual fervency that culminateswith great power on Krittika Dipam as a grandcongregation of devotees, holy men, officials,police personnel and media squeeze together,shoulder to shoulder, to witness thefestival’s magnificent consummation.“Preparations for this holy day begin onemonth in advance with the local administration,revenue department, police and templeauthorities synergizing their efforts,” saysMr. Jayram, deputy commissioner of Tiruvannamalai.“It’s not an easy task managingtens of millions of people. Even a small lapsecan be very costly. It is God who guides usand gives us the strength we need. We endeavorto see that we give our best to thosewho come seeking Arunachala.”Since early morning, temple staff and volunteershave been carrying five-gallon containersof ghee and large pots of thick,braided cloth wicks to the top ofArunachala mountain. Once themountaintop flame has beenlit, it must be kept burningfor ten days, which requiresvast quantities of wick andclarified butter.As the day wanes intodusk and night begins todarken the sky, pilgrimsstand or sit, motionlesswith anticipation, at thebase of Arunachala mountain,preparing to worshipGod Siva as an infinite pillarof light (See sidebar: ALegend of Fire).At 6 pm, a roaring fire is ignited in the templeat the base of Arunachala. This signalsthe lighting of a similar blaze on the summit.When that flame is seen by the thousandsof devotees below, the entire countrysideexplodes with flashing luminescence. Bonfires,lamps, neon lights and fireworks lightthe night like day as a surging, thronging,emotionally charged mass of devotees chant,“Arunachala Siva,” “Annamalai” and “AnnamalaiHarohara.”Long-time pilgrims assert that, even yearslater, the very thought of an otherworldlymoment like this recreates it, just as if it ishappening fresh and new. I can certainlysay with full assurance that it is not an experienceI will ever forget. No words inany language—spoken, whispered orthought—could ever express evena hint of the intense spiritualityI felt right then and therein the middle of that perfectdevotion.Through my eyes onlyAlthough Tiruvannamalaiis only a five-hour drivefrom Bangalore, whereI live, I have never beenthere. Imagine the thrill I felt when I wasasked to write this story.As I enter the ancient temple town on theday before Krittika Dipam, it is raining—ablessing, so they say. We become abruptlyaware that we are but four of thousands, perhapsmillions. Mothers with babies cradledin their arms, men with children perchedon their shoulders, pilgrims of all shapes,sizes and ages are streaming in from all directions.Public and private transports arepacked beyond capacity. Hotels have beenbooked for months. Yet, none of this seemschaotic. It’s all somehow just wonderful.I have never witnessed a congregation ofsuch gigantic proportions. When we movein the street, we are all so tightly packedtogether we can’t even see our own feet. Iquickly discover that a crowd like this has amind of its own. When it moves, we do, too.We have no choice.Maneuvering about is also difficult becausethe roads are so muddy from the incessantrain. Although many pilgrims ferventlypray for the skies to clear so the festivitieswill not be disrupted, none of the activitiesis actually thwarted by the weather.Our first objective is to make our waythrough the crowds to Kailas Ashram, wherewe will be most cordially hosted for the nextThe moment of magic: At 6 pm on Krittika day, a flame lit in Tiruvannamalaitemple signals the lighting of another fire atop Mount Arunachala.(Inset) The temple flame, fully ablaze.A Legend of Firehe popular Hindu festival of KrittikaDipam is inextricably connected to anancient Hindu legend recorded in animportant Hindu literary work entitledSkanda Puranam. According to this story,two Hindu Gods—Lord Brahma, the creator,and Lord Vishnu, the preserver—eachclaimed superiority over the other. Somewhatembarrassed that distinguished Godsof the celestial realm should be engagedin such a puerile altercation, Lord Siva,the Lord of the Universe, appeared beforethem as a pillar of fire, known as sthanu orlingodbhavamurti in Sanskrit. In an effortto somehow ameliorate their discord, Heboomed forth in a deep voice, “Whosoevershould find either the beginning or the endof this light of mine shall be considered,now and forever more, the superior of youtwo. Let this be true.”Upon hearing this, Vishnu took the formof a boar and dug into the depths of theEarth, seeking the beginning of the light.Alas, he returned disappointed. Brahmabecame a swan and flew up and up, seekingthe light’s end. He, too, was about togive up in despair when, by chance, hehappened upon a falling flower that, amazingly,started talking to him.The flower—a pandanus odoratissimus,commonly known as a screw pine—askedthe God what in the world he was doingflying up so high. Brahma replied thathe was seeking the end of Siva’s light buthad been thus far unsuccessful in findingit. Upon hearing this, the screw pine—notknowing the light had no beginning orend—delightedly struck upon a mischievousplan: They could tell Siva they foundthe end of the light and be each other’switness to the fact. Brahma liked the ideaand so they returned and reported theirstory.Siva, of course, was upset. He had nopatience with liars. Hence, He decidedand so decreed that Brahma and the flowershould be provided a lesson in humility, bywhich they might learn the error of theirways. Lord Brahma, He proclaimed, wouldnot be deified in temples, and the screwpine would never be used in worship. Thishas indeed come to pass. There are noBrahma temples (except for one), and nobodyever worships with screw pine flowers.It goes without saying that Vishnu wasjudged superior to Brahma.There is an epilogue to this story, whichapplies specifically to Arunachala mountain.Lord Siva was so upset with Brahmaand the flower that he was scorching allthree worlds with the roaring flames of Hisrighteous indignation. Finally, the celestialsasked Him to stop. Siva obliged by coolingdown and manifesting as Arunachalamountain. Both Brahma and Vishnu prayedto Siva that He take the form of a lingamon the east side of the mountain and, in remembranceof His own blazing fire, appearas a light, further up toward the top, eachyear on the Hindu holy day of Krittika Dipam.Lord Siva granted this prayer.Today, the 2,682-foot-high Arunachalamountain is actually regarded by many asTejo Lingam, Lord Siva as a pillar of fire.Some even say that the traditional worshipof the Siva Lingam, as it is currentlypracticed throughout India and around theworld, commenced on Arunachala. Theeight-mile circuit around the base of themountain is itself a pilgrimage destination.Along its way are more than 360 tirthams(holy tanks) and 400 lingams. Ramana Maharshi’sashram is situated on this circuit,making it all the more famous. ∏πthomas kelly20 hinduism today july/august/september 2006click the play button above to view a slide show of additional,remarkable photos that thomas kelly shot forthis tiruvannamalai articlejuly/august/september 2006 h i n d u i s m t o d ay 21

two days, thanks to the caring hospitality ofSri Jayendra Puri Swamiji (See sidebar: Heirto the Throne). Due to a shortage of accommodations,many people are literally livingon the streets, finding shelter wherever theycan. Even the hundreds of ashrams in thisholy town are full.Internationally renowned photographerThomas Kelly—also on assignment forHinduism Today—is working with me onthis story. He arrived before me and is alreadysnapping photos with great enthusiasmand inspiration. When we first connect,he is bubbling with excitement at the abundantphotographic opportunities that havealready come his way. After he gives me aquick update of what he has done thus far,we set off together to explore new festivaladventures.The devotees around us are firmly focusedand seem to know exactly what they are doing.Although many of them do not live here,few are first-time pilgrims like Thomas andme. Still, their faces betray a newcomer’sfresh sense of anticipation. All day long,devotees have been climbing Arunachalajust to touch the vessel that will hold theflame that will be lit that evening.“They look like ants on a march,” exclaimedThomas, pointing to the continuous streamof people trekking up the slopes. Ah, yes!Another photo opportunity. In a flash, he iscapturing the scene on camera. Althoughdevotees are discouraged from climbing themountain because it is said to be Lord Sivaincarnate, thousands still scale the slopesunabashedly on Krittika Dipam.The chosen fishermenA flame taken from the five earthen pots thatwere lit just after the early morning templeall photos: thomas kellyAt the cauldron: Devotees clamor to touch the vesselthat will hold the krittika dipam on the mountaintopceremony of bharani dipam is kept burningin the temple throughout the day as a symbolof the merging of manifestation backinto God, the one source of all. This singleflame is referred to as the bharani dipam. At10:00 in the morning, a select group of fishermenare blessed by the temple priest witha small ceremony. At this time—amidst ringingbells and temple music—the priest givesthe fishermen a lamp that has been lit fromthe bharani dipam in the temple.This lamp, also called bharani dipam,will be taken by the fishermento the top of the mountain.Local fishermen are traditionallygiven the privilege of carryingthe bharani dipam up themountain and lighting the krittikadipam in the evening, because—accordingto a popularmyth—Parvati (the wife of LordSiva) was born in a fishing village.“There are around 75 fishing familiesthat are bestowed with thishereditary privilege,” explainsSaravana, a young fisherman wholives nearby. “Three of them carrythe dipam. Each year, the dutyrotates. There is never infightingamongst those who share thisduty. The elders decide.”After their consecration ritual,the fishermen take off up themountain. Their hike up the steep,rugged slopes will take about fourhours. They take their sacred taskseriously, never losing sight of thefact that the flame they carry willbe seen by thousands as the eternallight of Lord Siva.After photographing the pujasin the temple, Thomas—an experiencedmountaineer—takes off barefoot up the hill,hunched forward under the considerableweight of his large, heavy camera bags (Seesidebar, page 24: OK, I Can Do This). Hemoves quickly to keep up with the fishermen,who are waiting for no one. It was notexactly our plan that Thomas would go upthe mountain at this time, but he is movingon inspiration, and I don’t want to impedeAn Historic Templehe 1,300-year-old arunachalaSiva temple of Tiruvannamalai inTamil Nadu, with its giant, 217-footgopurams (entrance towers), is India’ssecond largest temple and one of itsmost sought-after pilgrimage destinations.Great South Indian kings—including RajarajaChola, Rajendra Chola, HariharaBukkar, Krishna Deva Rayar, as well asthe kings of the Chera, Pallava, Pandya,Rashtrakotta, Hoysala and Naik dynasties—wereproud to have this sanctuarywithin their kingdom boundaries.Historical details about it are revealedin stone inscriptions on the walls andcopper plates of the temple itself. Theseinscriptions, which refer to a period oftime spanning a thousand years, startingfrom 750 ce, indicate that the greatnessof this holy, pilgrimage destination wasmade known to the kings of the times,primarily through important South Indiandevotional literature like the Thevaramand Thiruvasagam.Aruna means “force” and achala means“that which cannot be moved.” Thus, theArunachaleswarar Temple representsLord Siva as an indomitable, unmovablepower. This special Siva temple is located125 miles from Chennai, the capital ofTamil Nadu.Its day-to-day administration is currentlycontrolled by the Hindu Religiousand Charitable Endowments departmentof the Tamil Nadu Government.From the holy mountain: The vast TiruvannamalaiSiva temple as viewed from thebase of Arunachala Mountain and (right)from a vantage point near its summit22 hinduism today july/august/september 2006 july/august/september 2006 h i n d u i s m t o d ay 23

him.In the temple, all is quiet afterthe fishermen leave. The rainscontinue. No one cares. Everyoneis engrossed in preparing for thecoming evening. Some wait to enjoyentertaining events scheduledfor the afternoon. The festival administrationis busy making seatingand security arrangementsin and around the temple for thescores of VIP guests—politicians,film stars, senior court judges, bureaucratsand more.A lot of people are seeking specialtreatment, but few are gettingit. Temple officials are constantlyhassled for “festival passes.” Althoughsome devotees just wantthese tickets so they can snuggleup close to VIPs, others have abetter reason. On Krittika Dipamday, the temple is closed after 3 pm tothose without passes. Luckily, I have one.By 5:00 in the evening, the area surroundingthe temple flagpole, as well as the adjoiningterrace, is packed. Unmindful of theincessant drizzle, people are grabbing seatsto observe the dramatic arrival of five exquisitelydecorated palanquins, carrying theHindu Gods Vinayaka, Subramanya, Siva,Amba and Chandikeshwara. The devoteesall photos: thomas kellyBraids of fire: It is considered a blessing to carry or even touch thethick braided cotton wicks that will be lit on Krittika Dipamare constantly moving and adjusting theirpositions to get a better view and to makeway for still more people pouring in. Experiencedpilgrims know exactly what’s goingto happen. For first-timers like me, the anticipationis enhanced by a sort of blessedignorance.Not wanting to miss even the smallest detailof what is going on and fully determinedto perform my duty as a reporter well, I amconstantly dispatching a barrageof questions to peoplearound me. While some ofthese kindly folks answer mewith courteous patience, othersfind me a distraction andslowly inch away or pretendnot to hear.Suddenly, the crowd’s attentionshifts to the temple entrancefrom behind the flagpole. Some devotees jump upto get a better view. The policeshout at them to be seated. Thefirst palanquin arrives with adramatic flair. It’s the VinayakaDeity, a form of Lord Ganesha.Exquisitely bedecked with avariety of flowers artisticallyarranged, this relatively smallDeity seems magically large inits luxurious setting. More thaneight people are carrying the heavy woodenpalanquin. They dance with graceful dignityto the accompaniment of temple music,devotional singing and Sanskrit prayers.Soon enough, they reach their designatedposition in front of the flag pole and cometo a stop.In a few minutes, the next palanquin arrives,as if in competition. It’s a little bigger.Unmindful of its weight, those who are carryingthis celestial cargo somehowmanage to dance withabandon, rocking the Deity joyously.I ask the person next tome which Deity this is. “Subramanya,”he snaps impatiently.No one wants to shift theirgaze even for a moment. I’mbeginning to think that maybeI had better do the same—otherwise,I might miss somethingimportant. I try to get closer tothe flag pole, but a policewomenstops me.Now another palanquin is arriving,rocking to and fro. “Swami,Swami,” the crowd shouts.Here, “Swami” is referring toSiva. Amba (Goddess Parvati) isright behind, followed by Chandikeshwara.I have learned that,when the crowd shifts its gaze,something new and important isabout to happen.Within about 30 minutes, five palanquinshave arrived in all their spiritual pageantry.Now, we wait for the climax, the comingof Ardhanarishvara (Lord Siva as half man,half woman). I am told that this will occurimmediately after the krittika dipam is lit.People are now either stubbornly holdingtheir seated positions or inching forward forThe summit: Within sight of the peak of Arunachala and oblivious to pouring rain, devotees struggle tocatch a glimpse of the holy vessel that will contain the sacred Krittika flamea better vantage point. Everyone wants tobe able to see the mountaintop. The drizzlecontinues. There is a bit of agitated commotion,but it is of little consequence. All eyesare looking up.Finally, the appointed moment arrives.Against the backdrop of a sunset sky,crowned with the rising star of Kartika,thundering firecrackers, ringing templebells and a frenzy of rhythmic chantingmerge to create a cacophony of chaoticsplendor. Camphor is lit in a cauldron bythe temple flag pole, signaling priests on topof the mountain to light their flame. Thetiming is perfectly synchronized. The air ischarged as the overpowering sight of light,Climbing Arunachala: Devotees volunteer to carry oil and wicks up the mountain behind theTiruvannamalai temple for the lighting of the flame at 6 pm on Krittika Dipam day. A ton ofoil and 1,000 feet of wick will be consumed during the 10 days the fire is kept alive.OK, I Can Do This!By Thomas Kelly, Kathmandu, Nepalhe fishermen who have beenchosen to light the Krittika Dipamare all gathered together inside a sideshrine adjacent to the main temple.They have just been blessed by the templepriest who now lights the ghee lamp theywill carry up Arunachala mountain. Tothe thundering of drums, they all suddenlyrise together to stride quickly out into themain temple courtyard where hundredsof pilgrims are waiting for them. As theymake their way out of the temple into thestreet heading for the trail that leads up themountain, I think to myself, “Should I followthem and risk not being able to returnto the main temple in time to photographthe events that will take place there at 6:00pm?” I look at my watch. “OK,” I thought, “Ican do this.”I run with my camera gear to catch upwith the procession. The main maagi, whois carrying the ghee lamp, is moving veryquickly. At first, a few of his colleaguesstumble behind him with a cluster of pilgrimsclumsily striving to keep up. As theprogression proceeds, more pilgrims jointhe march. Soon, there are hundreds. Thenthere are thousands.As we approach the beginning of the climb, I suddenly notice everyonetaking off their shoes. This requires some thought, but thereisn’t much time. Soon enough, off come my Teva sandals.Pilgrims scramble along the snake-like trail, snatching blessingsat various shrines along the way. Storm clouds are gathering rapidlyaround the mountain’s summit. Now we are meeting devotees comingdown. There is only one trail and we tangle in a humantraffic jam. Miraculously, the maagis thread their waythrough this obstacle as if it is not there.The rain begins in earnest halfway up the mountain.I don’t have an umbrella, and my camera gearis wet. I search anxiously for a plastic bag of somesort to cover my camera. Luckily, I find a man sellingpopcorn to pilgrims. Before I can ask, he sees myneed and gives me an empty bag. I cut a hole in thebottom of it so that my camera lens can stick throughenough that I can continue shooting pictures.The maagis have gotten ahead of me. I have tohustle to catch up. After two hours more ofcontinuous walking, we arrive at a restingpoint within 200 meters of the summit.There is a huge crowd of people alreadyhere. Policemen are desperately trying tocontrol and direct many of these peoplearound a precarious rock outcropping,which cannot be avoided by those wantingto reach the summit. It takes all thestrength that I can muster just to hoistall of my camera gear over that rock obstacle,but it is worth it. I now have a greatvantage point from which I can take photographs in a number ofdirections.The rain is really coming down. Everyone is soaked—yet no oneis unhappy. The excitement of having reached the top of the mountainmakes it all worthwhile. There isn’t much room on the summit.I can see a copper vessel about five feet deep and five feet wide.All the pilgrims are wanting to touch this sacred container that willhold the Krittika flame. Some are making offerings of ghee intoit. I madly snap photos for about 20 minutes, before beginningmy descent. My feet are aching from the stone bruisesI got coming up. I check my watch and realize that I mustnow move quickly.By the time I reach the main temple, it is 5:30 pm.Pilgrims are everywhere. The main temple entrance isblocked. I am in a panic. How am I going to get in?I take out my press pass and struggle toward the policewho are holding back the crowds. They let me through. Withsome degree of effort, I reach a balcony in view of the maintemple courtyard. From there, I can also see themountain summit. As the temple fire is lit at 6pm, the mist on the mountain is just breakingup. The moment is overwhelming. Thousandsof pilgrims are chanting “Aum Namasivaya.”I close my eyes briefly to relish the moment.When I open them an instant later, the firstsight I see is fire jumping skyward fromthe top of Arunachala. “Magnificent,” Ithink to myself as I start clicking shots.“Siva and Parvati are one.”Photographer/author Thomas Kelly24 hinduism today july/august/september 2006july/august/september 2006 h i n d u i s m t o d ay 25

signifying Siva in the form of Jyoti(divine light), merges with Parvatito become Siva/Sakti. Now, finally,Ardhanarishvara is brought out ofthe temple with great ceremonialfanfare. This is the only day of theyear that this particular Deity isever moved. It is most auspicious.The sight of the krittika dipam ismagical. It brings an inexplicable joy.People are ecstatic, mesmerized bythe light. In a moment of completeabsorption, I forget myself and loseconsciousness of everything and everyonearound me. The rain cloudsthat have intermittently masked thedipam now create a diffusion of light andcolor that produces a most striking effect.Even though this is uniquely beautiful, Iam aching for at least one moment of perfectvisual clarity so that I can witness themountaintop flame unobstructed. I shoutloudly with impatience, “Arunachala, pleaseremove that cloud for just a moment.” In ajiffy, as if in answer to my plea, the cloudvanishes like a curtain pulled aside. Thepeople nearby look at me in surprise as ifto ask, “How did you do that?” Well, that’sArunachala! My aged parents are standingthere with me at this precious time. Theglow on their faces betrays their fulfillmentand brings me great joy.all photos: thomas kellyNo seating room: The colorful festivities prior to the flamelighting in the temple at 6 pm draw record crowdsA few minutes after the dipam is lit, thecrowds reluctantly and slowly disperse. Yet,the experience is not over. In a sense, it hasonly just begun. Wherever we all go, wewill carry with us the sublime thrill of thedivine adventure the we have all just shared.The overwhelming aftermath of our exaltationtakes a long time to settle down into thereality of routine life. I resolve to return tothis holy place again and again.On Krittika Dipam day, many devoteesfast all day, taking food only after the lightingof the sacred fire in the evening. Thisis the traditional practice of the fishermenwho light the krittika dipam. “We don’tdrink even water the entire day,” says Senthil,one of the fisherman. “Onlyafter returning from the hill lateat night do we take prasadam (sacredfood offering)—and even then,only from the temple.”Thomas, our photographer, alsofasted. To be honest, he reallydidn’t have a choice. When he followedthe fishermen up the hill inthe morning, he carried no food orwater. Little did he know that hisnext opportunity to eat or drinkanything at all would be only latethat night. When I catch up withhim in the evening, he is famished.“You have certainly become an ardentdevotee of Arunachala,” I tell him jokingly.He laughs. He is happy.After nightfall, we see groups of peoplelighting lamps in the streets. Every house,every shop, every temple—not only in Tiruvannamalaibut in all surrounding villagesand towns—is bedecked with beautifullyflickering lamps.Throughout the day, street merchantshave been performing annadana (freedistribution of food). For this one day, theentire town has merged as one family ofunforgettable warmth, amity and cordiality.Even amidst the discomfort of the crowdedstreets, life runs smoothly and everyone getsalong harmoniously. A senior police officerinforms me that there has not been a singleinstance of misbehavior, theft or crime duringthe festival.“Nearly 2,500 police personnel are on dutyduring the festival,” he explains. “They havebeen briefed that this is a religious congregation,and devotees should not be harassedor dealt with harshly. Our work has mainlybeen crowd control.”When the dipam was lit, I saw scoresof policemen and policewomen forgettingthemselves in devotion as they merged inthe experience of Arunachala.The residents of Tiruvannamalai takegreat pride in the spiritual heritage of theirfamously powerful temple town. “I grew uphere and never miss a single cerebration,”says Dhanalakshmi, who sells coconuts infront of the temple. “See how many peoplecome to see our God here.” She is not disturbedthat the crowds attending the templemight place a burden on her small town.The temple is closed for a day after KrittikaDipam, because it is believed that, whenArunachala manifested Himself in the dipam,He temporarily shifted His abode fromthe temple to the hilltop.Walking around the mountainOne of many distinctive features at Tiruvannamalaiis the custom of giri pradakshina, orgirivala, as it is sometimes called—the eight-Feeding mendicants: Sri Ramana Maharshi’s busy and thriving ashram, one of many inTiruvannamalai, provides a daily vegetarian meal to hundreds of local sadhusHeir to the ThroneBy Choodie Shivaram, Bangaloreo one who knows sri jayendra puri swami couldever doubt that he would be a worthy successor to His HolinessSri Tiruchi Mahaswamigal, who attained Mahasamadhion January 14, 2005. Although Jayendra Puri Swami was officiallynominated as the successor to the pitam (seat of authority)at Sri Kailash Ashrama Mahasamsthana in Bangalore, India, onDecember 11, 2003, he has been in charge of the administrationof both Tiruchi Swami’s ashram and its adjoining Rajarajeshvaritemple since 1993.Homage to Mahaguru: Sri Jayendra Puri Swami performs puja(worship ceremony) to his guru, Sri Tiruchi SwamiJayendra Puri was born on October 20, 1960. His family waswell respected. His childhood was happy and fulfilling. And hewas a bright student at the top of his class. Yet something wasmissing. “I had experienced a lot of success in life,” explainedSwami, “but I felt a strange hollowness. I came from a somewhatmodern family, so my first exposure to Hindu scriptures was whenI was 27 years old. What was amazing was, when I finally readthese scriptures for the first time, it was like I knew them already.They all seemed so very familiar.”It was then that Jayendra Puri felt inspired to make his way toKailash Ashrama Mahasamsthana to seek guidance on the divinepath from His Holiness Sri Tiruchi Mahaswamigal. The instant hemet the elder swami, he knew immediately that he had found hisguru. There was not even a trace of doubt in his mind.“My aim in life was to attain the Divine Mother in all of herbeauty and divinity,” said Sri Jayendra Puri Swami. “I came toMahaswami in 1987. As soon as I met him, I expressed to him mydesire to take sannyas (Hindu monastic vows of renunciation). Hetold me to wait. A month later, he sent me to Haridwar to learnscripture and to be of service to a saint there who was old. Justbefore I left, he gave me the robes of brahmacharya (white robessignifying a vow of celibacy). I lived there for seven-and-a-halfyears. Early in 1989, before the Allahabad Kumbhmela, I wroteto Mahaswamigal, again seeking initiation into sannyas. He finallygave me permission with instructions that my guru in Haridwarshould conduct the rituals in his name.”In Haridwar, Sri Jayendra Puri Swami kept to himself and performedhis disciplines well. On completing his duties and study, hereturned to Sri Kailash Ashrama Mahasamsthana to serve the Goddessand his guru, His Holiness, Sri Sri Sri Tiruchi Mahaswamigal.One of Jayendra Puri’s many special talents is his aptitude forlearning languages. He can speak all the South Indian dialects, aswell as Hindi. He is also fluent in German and Italian. “Seeing myflair for languages,” said Swami, “Mahaswamigal arranged for a tutorto come here and teach me Italian in the ashram.”When His Holiness Sri Tiruchi Mahaswamigal wasasked why he chose Jayendra Puri Swami as his successor,he said, “This man is well educated and sincere. Hehas a thorough knowledge of the shastras and carrieson the tradition of the ashram with complete devotion.He is compassionate. He has concern for the poorand works for the welfare of all. He is calm andcomposed. He understands our sampradaya(spiritual lineage).”After nominating Jayendra Puri Swami ashis successor, Sri Tiruchi Mahaswamigalcalled together all of the ashram and templeresidents, as well as a select group of distinguisheddevotees, to inform them of his decision.At this time he made it known thatproper respects should be paid to his successor,and that all appropriate protocolsshould be followed. Everyone felt blessedto have witnessed their Guru’s ordinationand blessing of his most worthy successor.I first met Jayendra Puri Swami when Iwas appointed guardianship of nine smallchildren from Malaysia, who had come tolearn scriptures in the Kailas Ashram gurukula(priest training school). When hefirst spoke to me, his sparkling eyes andbright face made me feel like I was inthe presence of an enlightened man.Through the years since then, my family and I have interactedwith Jayendra Puri Swami on many occasions. Each of these experiencesleft us feeling refreshed and rejuvenated. The easewith which he narrates and quotes from scriptures leavesus spellbound. Under the brilliant stewardship of JayendraPuri Swami, the high standards of Hindu tradition set bySri Tiruchi Mahaswamigal have been raised still higher, andwithout dilution.I had the opportunity to stay at Kailas Ashram’sbranch in Thiruvannamalai during the KrittikaDipam festival. It was an experience I will alwaystreasure. We were humbled by the hospitality, careand warmth we felt there. My father has alwaystold me, “Never aspire to receive from an ashramor a temple. Seek only to give.” Nevertheless,there we were at Kailas Ashram, seeking nothing,yet receiving all.Swami was particularly careful in seeing tothe needs of my parents. He personally ensuredthat they experienced no discomfort.Swami’s personalized care was not confinedto my family alone. Everyone who stayedat his ashram was a recipient of his love.Jayendra Puri Swami is already famous forthe special love and care he gives pilgrims anddevotees who come under his guardianship. Bythe example that he sets, he inspires us all towardhumility and service.Sri Jayendra Puri Swami26 hinduism today july/august/september 2006july/august/september 2006 h i n d u i s m t o d ay 27

s. rajamAn artist’s rendering: S. Rajam portrays RamanaMaharshi with the Tiruvannamalai temple andArunachala mountain in the backgroundmile circumambulation of the holy Arunachalamountain. No one knows when this custombegan. One of the 1,008 names given toArunachala by Adi Shankara is Giripradakshinapriya,which means “loverof giri pradakshina.”Bhagwan Ramana Maharshioften spoke of the significanceof this sacred practice. Heperformed giri pradakshinahimself many times. “Do notconsider, even for a moment,that Arunachala is merely ahill of rocks and boulders,” hecautioned devotees. He offereda unique interpretation of theword pradakshina (literally “circumambulation”):“Pra stands for‘removal of all sins,’ da stands for‘fulfilling of desires,’ kshi standsfor ‘freedom from future births,’na stands for ‘deliverance receivedthrough jnana.’ ”The attitude of the peoplecoming here, even during nonfestivaltimes, is strikingly focused.Completely unmindful offormalities and protocols, mostof them could not care less aboutVIPs who might also be visiting.They also seem oblivious to inconveniencesor discomforts ofthomas kellyany sort. These rare pilgrimswait patiently in long queues forhours, just for an instant of eyecontact with their precious Lord.And they will perform giri pradakshinain the worst of weather.Giri pradakshina is best performedearly in the morning, on aday when the sun is just rising behindArunachala, yielding the subtlepastels of daybreak. Eight temples,constructed to face in the four primaryand four secondary directions,constitute important stops for thedevotee as he treads the path aroundthe holy mountain. There are alsomany other temples to visit alongthe way. This journey is traditionallyperformed barefooted, startingat Ramanashram. It is consideredespecially auspicious to perform thisholy practice on purnima (full moonday), when the crowd is said to be asmassive as during Krittika Dipam.The entire road around the mountainhas been recently resurfaced,thanks to a donation from the famousTamil movie actor, Rajnikant.Locals tell me he hascontributed immensely towardthe development ofTiruvannamalai.There is a strong beliefthat prayers will be answeredwhen giri pradakshinais performed. This convictionhas increased the number ofvisitors to this holy place considerably.Yet, sincere devotees strive to maintaina selfless purity in their worship by notseeking personal reward. “Girivala shouldbe done on foot and with devotion. Then,automatically, Arunachala will answer yourprayers. He knows what you need. Performingthis act with a motive dilutes devotion,”asserts Mani, a local auto driver.I could not stay awayI performed the giri pradakshina when I returnedto Arunachala, one week after KrittikaDipam. This time I came with my husbandand children. As we entered the townat two in the morning, we eagerly looked forthe dipam atop the mountain. Nothing wasvisible. Suddenly, my daughter spotted thefire, flickering daintily. For hours, we stayedup watching the divine flame. It was sup-Hermitage: Bhagwan Ramana Maharshi spent a year absorbed in yogic contemplation in the cavehere known as Skandashram. Tucked away in the jungle foilage at the base of the mountain, the hutbuilt out from the cave (magnified inset) is still accessible.The Silent Sage of Peacehen the legendary indian sage, sri ramanaMaharshi, attained mahasamadhi at the age of 70 onApril 14, 1950 in Tiruvannamalai, witnesses saw abright shooting star moving toward the holy mountain ofArunachala. Such an auspicious event was the perfect culminationto a life so quietly powerful in its enduring spiritual influence, evenbeyond the shores of India.“A conscious bliss ensues when one abides as the Self,”he told his devotees. “Inquire: ‘What is the true importof I?’ The bliss of That is spontaneous, indestructibleand limitless.”English novelist and playwright SomersetMaugham pilgrimaged to visit the sage in1938. When he entered the ashram after thetiring journey, he fainted and was taken toa hut where he remained unconscious forsome time. When he opened his eyes, RamanaMaharshi was sitting by his bed. “Hebore himself with naturalness and at thesame time with dignity,” the famous authorlater wrote. “His mien was cheerful, smiling,polite. His eyes with a gentle benignity restedon my face. His body was absolutely still. Hesaid, ‘Silence is also conversation.’ ”Ramana Maharshi was born with the nameVenkataraman in Tirucculi near Madurai in SouthIndia. His father died when he was 12. At that time,he was sent to live with his uncle in Madurai where heattended school, played with friends, swam in the villagelake and frequently won in games of competition that he playedwith local neighborhood boys. Even as a child, he was religiouslydevout—yet open-minded. One of his closest friends was a Muslimnamed Sab Jan. “God’s creation is alike,” he told his friend. “Thereis no differentiation in creation. God is the same. The apparent differencesin God are created by men.”One day, when Venkataraman was alone in his home, the fear ofdeath overwhelmed him. He explained, “The shock drove my mindinwards, and I said to myself mentally ‘Now death has come. Whatposed to have burnt out on the previous day,yet there it was—still burning.We started our giri pradakshina just beforedawn. It was beautiful. Yes, my feet did hurtand there were pebbles and thorns, but thetrek was certainly not tiring. Elderly pilgrims,even people with disabilities, were walkingwithout too much difficulty. They took theirtime, and their devotion was exemplary.During the 10 days that the flame burnson Arunachala after Krittika Dipam, it consumesa ton of ghee and 1,000 feet of thick,cotton wick. The fishermen who have beenchosen to light the dipam hike up the mountainevery day to restock the cauldron andkeep the flame alive. They consider theirtask a sacred privilege.A month after the celebration has endedthey perform fire-walking to absolve themselvesof any sins they have accrued by settingfoot on the mountain while carryingthe dipam. They also arrange for special pujas(worship ceremonies), abhisheka (waterceremonies) and homas (fire ceremonies) tobe performed in their names.Countless holy men—including Agasthya,Brighu, Valmiki, Vyasa, Narada, Apasthambha,Vashistha, Sambandar, GuhaiNamasivayar, Manikyavachagar, Arunagirinathar,Seshadri Swamigal, Siva Yogaswamiand Sivaya Subramuniyaswami—have receiveddivine inspiration in this holy place.Illumined saints and sages, most notablyBhagwan Ramana Maharshi, have madeArunachala their home. That these greatsouls lived and influenced so many is proofof the power of a spirituality that is unknownto many of us who spend so muchtime absorbed in the problems of everydaylife. I can say from my own experience thatanyone who makes a pilgrimage to Tiruvannamalaiat any time will come away feelingcompletely recharged, cleansed and bornanew.∏πThe author: Choodie Shivram has been ajournalist for 25 years. She holds a BA degreeand a full law degree. She resides in Bangalorewith her husband and two children.does it mean?’ I dramatized the occurrence of death. I lay with mylimbs outstretched stiff, as in rigor mortis, and imitated a corpse.‘Well then,’ I said to myself, ‘this body is dead. It will be carried tothe burning ground and burnt and reduced to ashes. But with thedeath of this body am I dead? Is the body I?’ ” Suddenly the fearof death vanished, and he became absorbed in the Self.Shortly after that, he pilgrimaged to the great Siva temple inTiruvannamalai at the base of Arunachala Hill. There he found acave, sat in meditation and entered a trance-like state. Day by day,his austerities intensified. His absorption was so deep thatants ate into his skin, leaving scars that would be visiblethroughout his life. When his uncle, Nellaiappan,finally found him a year later, Venkataraman couldneither speak nor hear. Nellaiappan notified theboy’s mother, who soon arrived to help nursehim back to good health. She lived with himfor the rest of her life in the ashram thatRamana Maharshi established following hisfamous austerities.Today that ashram is still a living, thrivingplace. Although it is located on the edgeof town, it is a world unto itself, comprisedof a temple, a meditation hall, library, largedining hall with excellent food, gardens, peacocksand lots of guest cottages. A free middaymeal is served to the local holy men.Ramana Maharshi taught a method calledself-inquiry, in which the seeker focuses continuedattention on the I-thought in order to find itssource. Those who have practiced this method testifythat in the beginning, a relentless effort of concentrationis necessary. Yet eventually, long-term consistencyyields a blissful sense of oneness as the mind dissolves into theheart center.Although Ramana Maharshi left no formal successor, his teachingstoday guide thousands around the world. Some read his booksand visit his ashram; others follow one of several teachers who perpetuatehis wisdom. “The mind is a form of energy,” said the sage.“It manifests as the world. When the mind sinks into the Self, thenthe Self is realized; when the mind issues forth, the world appearsand the Self is not realized.”h induism todayhinduism today28 hinduism today july/august/september 2006 july/august/september 2006 h i n d u i s m t o d ay 29

p a r e n t i n gPassing on Our Way of LifeWhat concerned Hindu moms across America are doing to transmitendangered religious, cultural and linguistic traditions to their childrenBy Lavina Melwani, New Yorkor hindu children who grow upin India, their religion is all aroundthem. It resounds from the bells oftheir neighborhood temple, in the storiestold by grandparents and in the countlessrituals and ceremonies that are a part ofdaily life in India. Living in a country thatis more than 80 percent Hindu, they absorbtheir religion by osmosis, surrounded bylarge, loving extended families, by colorfulfestivals and holidays that permeate theseasons. The Hindu way of life wafts in thevery air they breathe.But what about Hindu children born infast-moving America, where there are fewmarkers of Indian life? Religion and cultureare best absorbed in childhood, yet thesechildren do not see Hindu culture echoedin the world around them, especially if theylive in Smalltown, USA, where there may befew people who look or worship like them.Well, now there’s good news for such families:they are not alone. A number of enterprisingwomen—all of them mothers—have created innovativeways to pass on language and cultureto American-born Indian children.Meenal Pandya, a writer and consultant,has brought up two daughters in Massachusettsand successfully taught them abouttheir religion and culture. She has writtenseveral popular books about Indian culture,including children’s books on Holi and Diwali.But especially valuable to Indian parents isThe Indian Parenting Book: Imparting YourCultural Heritage to the Next Generation.In it, she points out that Indian culture hasevolved around the Hindu way of life that isbased on three principles: all creation is onefamily; every life is potentially divine; andthere are many different paths to arrive atthe same truth. “Cultural parenting is, in essence,helping your next generation on thepath of this journey,” she says. “On a morepractical level, it is what you teach yourchildren, how you teach your children andwhat you emphasize in your own life. Everyact of a parent becomes a learning processand creates a cultural imprint for the child.”For those struggling to impart Indianculture to their children in a new countrywithout the help of extended family, thep hotos: courtesy rathi rajaCulture bound: (above) Students at the Young Indian Cultural Group at a rehearsal of theRamayana and (below) in a group picture with the founder, Rathi Raja (center)book provides a useful blueprint for achievingsuccess. Pandya discusses such topics asboth parents working as a team, how to dealwith a child’s resentment and even choosingthe values you want to pass on.She talks about the importance of thename you give your child and of impartinglanguage, music and dance at an early age.They will always learn about the dominantWestern culture they live in, but what’slearned in babyhood becomes inborn.Pandya suggests exposing young childrento the many religious ceremonies that takeplace in the community. “These activitiesoffer a wonderful opportunity to teach ourchildren the fundamentals of puja rituals,some shlokas and some religious stories.In fact, these events are so beautifully intertwinedthat it is as amazing to see howreligion and social needs are seamlesslyintegrated within a society. For example, aSatyanarayan puja can combine ritualisticaspects, storytelling and delicious food all inone event.”As she points out, religious ceremoniesand rituals are the backbone of Hindu life,and it’s important to get children involvedright from the start. She suggests familiarizingthe child with puja items and gettingthem to participate in small gestures, suchas ringing bells and introducing them to differentGods and Goddesses.Other useful suggestions she makes aretaking children frequently to India andshowing rather than telling them aboutculture. She recently took her teenagedaughters to the spice markets of Keralawhere they learned firsthandthe value of different Indianspices to their health andlooks—a much more compellingway to make them eat theirfood! She also suggests cookingmeals when the childrenare around, rather than awayat school, so that they can participateand the spices and aromas become anintegral and natural part of their lives.For parents who themselves may notknow enough about Hindu samskaras (ritesof passage) or ritual ceremonies and festivals,the book provides useful informationon bringing Hindu culture into everyday life.Indeed, the good news is that culturalorganizations and schools aresprouting up everywhere, and a danceor music class is usually within reach.Rathi Raja, who is Director of theYoung Indian Culture Group (YICC)in Long Island, NY, observes: “Thereare so many basement operations. Forevery one institution we see in thepublic eye, there are a hundred miniorganizations of people doing somethingthat they believe in.”Raja’s Young Indian Culture Group,a not-for-profit organization, startedwith just 30 children 13 years ago andhas grown to more than 200 childrenbeing taught Vedic traditions, classicaland folk dance, music, languages, yogaand Vedic traditions by more than 25teachers. The classes are held at theHerricks Middle School, thus becomingpart and parcel of the mainstream anda community resource.She feels that teaching native languagesis as important as music and dance. “Whatis missing is an emphasis on language, andwithout that there is no depth to any of theother activities. You do bharatanatyam, andthe patron God is Lord Siva. If the childdoesn’t have some ongoing education of thespiritual basis of it, then that education isincomplete.”The Vedic curriculum at the center,called Vedic Heritage, focuses on the symbolismin the Hindu tradition—units on Ramayana,Mahabharata and Bhagavad Gitaand also a five-year program on the Gita,which starts with children in the middleschool. “It’s a very solid program that takesup certain chapters of the Gita and throughthat really opens the window to the broadphilosophical underpinnings of Hinduism,”says Raja. “I find high school students arevery satisfied in terms of the study of whothey are and what their roots are. With thatinterest, they may take up the study for therest of their lives.”The center has a unique way of celebratingfestivals through a combination of storytellingand bhajanas. It goes back to theancient oral tradition with stories told ina musical fashion emphasizing values andmaking a connection between the storytellerand the listeners.“It touches the spirit of all these stories,”says Raja. “With all the automation andmaking Ramayana into shows and cartoons,children may know these stories but I don’tthink the bhakti is there. So, in a sense, wehave to go back to our roots, to the ancienttraditions of storytelling to make humanconnections with children and families,which helps bhakti to flower.”There are bhajanas for the younger childrenand chanting for the older ones. As Raja observes,“In our tradition there is such a vast arkahaniLiterary route: (left) Monika Jain(left) and Leena Chawla with theirSouth Asian literary magazine forchildren, Kahani, (above)Culture through dramatic artsFor Indian children, as with all young ones,it’s important that the mainstream knowsof and accepts their culture. In New York,noted bharatanatyam dancer Swati Bhisehas been teaching and performing for morethan 20 years and has taken Indian danceto scores of American public schools, teachingchildren from all cultures the music anddance of India.In 2004 she founded Sanskriti Institutefor Indian Culture with classes taking placeat All Souls Church in Manhattan. Theschool integrates the ethos of Indian dance,music, literature and philosophy. Whilebharatanatyam is the basis, the curriculumincludes the teaching of Carnatic music,yoga, Hindi classes and Sanskrit slokas,along with cultural history.Many of the Indian parents who come arepleasantly surprised that it’s not just aboutdance but also about asanas, the navagrahasand even Hindu iconography, be it in atemple or the Metropolitan Museum. Sincethe students are from many religions, Bhiseand Bunty Sawhney, the director, teachabout the Indian ethos but not directlyabout religion.30 hinduism today j u ly / au g u s t / s e p t e m b e r , 2 0 0 6 j u ly / au g u s t / s e p t e m b e r , 2 0 0 6 h i n d u i s m t o d ay 31

sheetal singhalMeeraMasi mom: Sheetal Singhal of San Jose, California, with her children. She and her sisterSonali Herrera teamed up to create high-quality Indian language books for children.ray of prayers, you can never run out of them!”There is also a “Mommy and Me” programmodeled on the mainstream programs, buthere, mothers and their pre-school childrensing Indian rhymes, the national anthem anddo yoga, prayers and Indian crafts. Says Raja:“It’s just a lot of fun—it’s a cultural connection.”Raja points out that credit has to be givento the Indo-Guyanese community, whichdoes a lot to keep Hindu culture flourishingthrough classes, programs and concerts.The Indian-American community, though,needs to pick up on the momentum andbe more aware in buildingfor the future, like the Jewishcommunity. The Indiancommunity, while buildingmany temples, has generallynot been into institutionbuilding.“Every synagogue has a riteof-passageprogram for all themilestones of a child’s life. It’sa whole cycle of life approach,and children grow up andthen come back with theirchildren,” says Raja. “Theirsystem works, and I think it’sbecause they’ve institutionalizedthings and if a new personcomes in, there are placeswhere they could go.”Teaching languageOut in Fremont, California, Ruchira Agarwal,who was in the IT industry, decidedMagazine for childrenIn Boston, Monika Jain, a journalist,and Leena Chawla, a software consultant—bothmothers—teamed upto create a much-needed product for theirchildren that was not out there in the market.Mainstream libraries had no magazinefor South Asian children, and the materialavailable did not reflect the realitiesof these children. One day five-year-oldSejal came home asking when they wouldbe celebrating Passover—a Jewish holiday!Kahani was born, and this quarterlymagazine (www.kahani.com) has qualitywriting and art by noted children’s writersand artists who themselves are South Asian.While these stories are intentionally notadvocating religion, they celebrate India inall its diversity and also place Indian namesand faces and lives in the American landscape.A charming story tells of a girl’s firstkolu, the setting up of a shelf of dolls duringNavaratri festival. (See ww1.mid-day.com/metro/ghatkopar/2003/september/64581.htm for a description of kolu.) Another isabout a young boy learning learning yogafrom his sari-clad grandmother as part ofgetting to know her and understanding hisown ancestry.The kolu story, for example, is as much aHindu story as it is an Indian story, becauseit teaches children about their Indian culture.“So although we don’t write specificstories about any religion in particular, wetouch upon all those cultures through ourstories,” says Chawla. “It’s a secular magazine,but we do teach them about Indian culture,science, geography and history so thatthey can be proud of their Indian heritage.”Jain emphasizes that Kahani is about conmeenalpandyaMeenal Pandya’s excellentbook of adviceto venture into something totally new. Themother of two young kids, she has takenon the task of simplifying the learning ofIndian languages for children born in thiscountry. Indeed, language is one of the mostimportant gifts that parents can pass on totheir children and this is so often lost whenparents are not vigilant enough or don’tshare a common language. So you haveBaby Hindustani videos, which are modeledon the Baby Einstein videos—and nota single word of English is spoken on them!These creative language-learning toolsteach basic words, colorsand numbers, set to the musicof Mozart, which is supposedto improve memoryand language skills, as wellas visual development, intoddlers. Now kids can learnGujarati, Tamil, Telegu, aswell as Hindi words andphrases, even as they sit onthe sofa in front of the VCR.Another useful tool comesfrom MeeraMasi (“AuntyMeera”), a company createdby two sisters, Sheetal Singhaland Sonali Herrera of SanJose, California. Sonali canspeak and understand Hindi,but not read or write. She decided to createbooks that would fill that need for secondgenerationIndian-Americans who may bein the same boat. Sheetal, who is older anda bharatanatyam dance teacher, grew up inIndia and can read and write Hindi.She came up with original nurseryrhymes and translated some popularAmerican ones for the children’sbook collection, the Khush ManäoSeries. It offers five books of popularrhymes along with an audio CDto assist with Hindi pronunciationand tone. It is targeted at kids frombirth to five years, the formativeyears for learning a language.The cheerfully illustrated booksare written in Hindi with Englishtransliteration, which is helpful forthose who don’t know how to writethe script. Their next book is VarnamalaGeet, the equivalent of theABC song—in Hindi. The sistersplan to do high-quality books in otherIndian languages, too. Says Sonali,who is in marketing, “We think it’sgreat that there are books out therein English, but we want to reallystay true to our mission: producingmaterials in Indian languages.”temporary storytelling and art that the childrencan relate to. So in the kolu story, thedolls on the kolupadi, a set of shelves, includea Japanese superhero called Ultra Man,a great favorite of her son’s. It brings cultureinto their realm in terms they can understand.Kahani also fosters creativity in childrengrowing up in America. In the magazine, amother, Sujatha Ramnani, shares how thefamily uses colored blocks to create rangolipatterns and says, “One difference is inIndia it’s mainly a women’s affair but heremy son and husband are equally involved.”The magazine encourages children tobe proactive by initiating a young writers’short story competition. Now the call hasgone out for children to illustrate their stories,thus making children realize the importanceof their lives and experiences.Temple-based programsThere are no formal schools for Hindu culture.Now some Hindu temples in the UShave started outreach programs. They haveincorporated classical dance, sitar and tablaclasses, along with yoga, Vedic traditionsand language for their congregations. Inthe US there are more than 800 temples,small and large—the majority of South Indiantradition—be it the Hindu Temple Societyof North America in New York, theVenkateshwara Temple in Pittsburgh or theMeenakshi Temple in Texas.In fact, many Hindu temples have takenon the task of imparting Indian classicaldance and music, regional language lessonsand yoga to the children. For example, theGanesha Pathashala at the Hindu Temple inFlushing, New York, runs religion classes, aswell as language classes, teaching Hindi, Telegu,Tamil, Kannada and Sanskrit to children.But the temples are still scattered andLanguage learning:. MeeraMasi’s Khushe Manäo series of nursery rhymes, both Easternand Western, include an audio CD, Hindi script and English transliteration, all complimentedwith charming illustrationsfar-flung, and what Rathi Raja of YoungIndia Cultural Group would like to see isa community center model, a gatheringplace available to all members of the familyto practice whatever interests them, fromdance to music to meditation, a space whereeveryone from children to seniors can be intouch with their culture.“Language, music, dance all have theirplace, but the concept of a community isvery important,” she says. “ In areas whereyou have a lot of Indians it’s good to have anorganization that can serve the community.The children will grow up seeing Indianculture in their mainstream school and feela connection to the people who run it andcan share it with their peers. It’s bringingrole models in front of them.”Other Hindus could also take inspirationfrom South Indian families. Music anddance is part of the family tradition in SouthIndia—every daughter and son learns it rightfrom childhood. Many go to India during thesummer holidays where their children maytake classes in Carnatic music and dance.ConclusionThe Hindu children who grew up in America20 years ago had few resources and werebasically alone in a mainstream environment.Now many of them are having children oftheir own, and for them it’s a challenge topass on something they never had themselves.In many cases, language and ritualshave been lost. So these books, CDs videosand classes are a useful resource for them.Many of today’s young adults are so completelymainstreamed that they are lost tothe culture, especially if they did not see itin their own family. “So much is dependenton individual families,” says Raja, “A culturecan’t survive if it’s so based on individualperformance. Institutions, including temples,have to make these rituals available ina systematic fashion.”The large Indian population in the USnow makes it possible for the community tohave many more resources. Young familiescan find others like themselves who havesimilar backgrounds and needs. Collaboratingwith each other and forming communitycenters seems the ideal.It is important to catch them young. AsPandya points out, “That is the only timewindowyou have as parents. The minds ofchildren under the age of 10 (this age mayvary but between the ages of seven and 10they start asserting their own logic) are likea sponge, and they absorb everything yougive them. Culture and religion are quitesubtle—unlike, say, learning a new sport—and subtle things are absorbed, not givenfrom the environment.” She points out thatyounger children are more likely to spendmore time with their parents and at home;as they get older, the outside influence willstart weighing more into their lives.Hindu parents can expose their children tothe rich traditions of dance, music and languageand make it an intrinsic part of theirlives, rather than something that is a tackedonoption. If children absorb the culture asthey learn to walk and talk and dream, it willnot be something alien to them; it will belongto them, as do the family’s precious silver Deitiesand puja paraphernalia, to be cherishedand passed on to the next generation. ∏πm eeramasi32 hinduism today j u ly / au g u s t / s e p t e m b e r , 2 0 0 6 j u ly / au g u s t / s e p t e m b e r , 2 0 0 6 h i n d u i s m t o d ay 33

editorialProtecting Women in MarriageIndia’s anti-dowry laws may cause more problems than they solveb y M a d h u K i s h wa r , n e w d e l h ihen a man commits domesticviolence, he is using brute force to conditionthe women of his family to accepta position of servitude. Only men withlow self-esteem employ this approach,because they feel that they cannot adequatelycope with a woman who thinks and acts as a freehuman being with a mind of her own.A man’s stated reason for wife abuse shouldnot be taken as the actual cause of thatviolence. Most explanations are only an excuseto destroy a woman’s sense of self-worth. Thesame logic applies to dowry-related violence.Although the terms “dowry death” and “dowryviolence” have recently become popular, it israre to find instances where a man battersa woman solely to extract additional dowryitems or money from his in-laws. The beating is aimed atdestroying her sense of self-worth. This is why a large dowryis no guarantee against domestic violence. I have learned ofnumerous situations where a woman suffers violence because herhusband’s family feels she might start considering herself highand mighty just because her natal family paid a large dowry.Although I do not believe that dowry is the sole cause ofdomestic violence, there is no denying the fact that the sharpescalation in the amounts of money being spent on dowries hascontributed to an increased perception of daughters as familyburdens. Dowry-giving is now spreading even to communitiesthat had no such tradition a generation or two ago, despite thefact that in the last two decades anti-dowry laws have becomevery stringent. Many interpret the failure of these laws to lessendowry-giving as a sign of their poor implementation. It is mybelief, however, that these laws have so many inherent flaws thattheir honest implementation is virtually impossible. This is oneof several reasons why these laws have created more problemsthan they have solved.A great many of these problems arise from ambiguousdefinitions of “dowry,” combined with draconian provisions forbreaking the dowry law. For example, “dowry” is prohibited,but voluntary “presents” to the bride and groom are allowed,provided that “such presents are of customary nature and thevalue thereof is not excessive and provided that such presentsare recorded on a list maintained in accordance with the rules.”Who decides which gifts are voluntary and which onesare given under pressure of demand? Often, the very samefamily that declares, at the time of marriage, that they gaveonly “voluntary gifts” to the groom’s family will not hesitate toattribute all their “gift-giving” to extortionist demands once themarriage turns sour and is headed for a breakdown. Moreover,how can it be decided when a gift is excessive, relative to thegift-giver’s income, when, in India, very few people declare whatthey earn, and those who do often grossly under-report? Howcourtesy madhu kishwardoes one judge the paying status of a familywhose wealth is amassed from the “blackmarket” or property holdings held in bogusnames to avoid taxes? Finally, given the factthat dowry-giving is a crime, why would thegroom’s family dare put their signature onany list of gifts being given to them?Although the law states that both dowrygivingand -taking are illegal, there is almostnever an instance where a bride’s family isprosecuted for giving dowry. The assumptionis that “takers” are guilty and “givers”are hapless victims. Those campaigningagainst dowry make it appear as if escalatingdowries are solely due to the greed ofthe groom’s family. This is not true. If greedwere the sole cause of dowry, India wouldconsist of two distinct sets of families: those who produced onlysons and those who produced only daughters. The “son-blessed”families would be permanent winners and “daughter-cursed”families would be permanent losers. This is clearly not the case,since the family that gives on its daughter’s wedding receiveswhen its sons get married.Among the most misleading and harmful aspects of theanti-dowry laws is the blurring of definition between the ancienttradition of stridhan, “woman’s gift,” with rapidly changing,modern-day marriage transactions described as dowry-giving.Stridhan is that portion of family wealth which belongs exclusivelyto women. It is usually passed from mother to daughter. Itincludes gifts of money, property, jewelry or a share in a familybusiness. Stridhan also includes wealth generated by a womanthrough her own work or wealth coming to her through inheritance.It includes gifts given to a woman when she is married,not only from her mother but also from her in-laws. A definingcharacteristic of stridhan is that no one in the family has rightsover it, except the woman to whom it is given.Unlike stridhan, present-day dowries include gifts and wealthgiven at a daughter’s wedding, not only to her, but to her husbandand his relatives as well. This includes household goods as well assimple gifts ranging from clothing and jewelry for the daughter toexorbitant sums of cash and expensive pieces of property for thegroom and his parents. The amount given as stridhan is supposedto be in proportion to the traditionally defined norms of whatconstitutes a woman’s share in the family wealth.However, the amount of dowry commanded by a groom hasa direct relationship to his social status, income potential andsocial-familial connections. For this reason, that which is givento the groom and his family has assumed more the form of“groom price,” paid with an intention of passing off the burdenof an “unwanted” daughter to the groom’s family. High dowrypayments are more like an investment by the bride’s familyto gain an alliance with the groom’s powerful connectionsand moneymaking potential. That is why IAS or IPS officerscommand the highest dowries, while schoolteachers commandfar less. The marriage of a daughter to a well-placed man oftenmeans upward mobility for her entire natal family.One component of dowry that still retains some resemblanceto the traditional stridhan involves the bride’s trousseau, goldjewelry, household goods and any property that her parentsmight put in her name. But even this does not always remain inher control, and often becomes the cause of future tussles.Dowry amounts are rising exponentially, not so muchbecause people have become greedier, but because standardsof living are rising dramatically. Today, refrigerators, airconditioners, automobiles and a whole range of gadgetry havebecome an integral part of middle- and upper-middle-classdowries, because many families now perceive these items tobe necessary in everyday life. Another important reason forthe increased cash demands by the groom’s family is that hisparents see this as their only chance to be compensated fortheir investment in their son’s upbringing and education. In thepast, joint families were the norm and most parents could counton their sons to support them in old age. However, with thebreakdown of joint families and the reluctance of many womento stay with their in-laws, the insecurity of the groom’s parentstriggers an impulse to extract what they can from the bride’sfamily at the time of their son’s marriage.An important reason for the increase in domestic conflicts,rising dowry demands and the transformation of stridhanto groom price is that our legal enactments, administrativeinterventions and state policies are forcing the neutralizationof families without due attention to the fact that the primarysecurity for the vast majority of the elderly of India must comefrom their children, especially their sons. Parents invest allthey can in their son’s education and career with the hopeand expectation that those sons will get jobs that bring aboutupward mobility for the whole family. Sons are expected to contributeto the education and marriage costs of younger siblings,as well as take care of parents in their old age. However, toomany parents find this expectation unfulfilled when their sonsget married, especially if those sons take up well-paying jobs orsucceed in independent enterprises that are separate from thejoint family economy. Not just in metropolitan cities, buteven in small towns and villages of India, young wivesare increasingly prone to insist on moving away fromthe joint family and setting up independent lives,even when their in-laws are not abusive.The anti-dowry agitators do not take thesenew dynamics into account. They rely uponpious outrage and emotional outbursts whenthey demand that the law be made more andmore stringent to abolish what they define asa “social evil.” The only effect of the anti-dowrylaws and campaign has been that the giving andtaking of dowry has become more surreptitious.Earlier, families ensured that proper lists andaccounts were prepared. The groom’s family wasmade to sign lists of the things they received, andthe dowry itself was put on display for all to see.There were numerous witnesses to the transaction.Today, no such lists are signed and most of thegiving and receiving is shrouded in secrecy.To further complicate the problem, many oftoday’s women use the anti-dowry law to bookhusbands for maltreatment even if dowry isnot the cause of marital breakdown. Thus,the anti-dowry law has not curbed thegiving and taking of dowry; it has only provided a powerfulweapon for revenge. Lawyers and even police routinely advisefamilies to list “dowry demands” as the primary cause ofmarital violence, even if in actual fact this is not at all the case.Those who characterize dowry-related problems as a legacyof traditional Indian social norms ought to remember thatthere is little mention of exorbitant dowries causing the ruin offamilies in the literature of pre-British India. Dowry becamean issue during the nineteenth century when colonial rulerscarried out land-settlement operations in India. In conformitywith Victorian norms that they were familiar with in theirhome country, land entitlements were given to “male heads ofthe family,” bypassing India’s then customary laws allowingvarious categories of secure entitlements to women. This concentratedthe possession of property in the hands of men in anunprecedented way and paved the way for the disinheritanceof women.As the disinheritance of women became a widespreadphenomenon, daughters began to be viewed as liabilities. Ourmodern inheritance laws have increasingly moved in favor ofthe interests of men and against those of women. The recentamendments in the Hindu Succession Act have tried to removesome of the glaring gender inequities, but there is no evidencethat the government has an effective implementation plan tomake that law a living force in property devolution.However, the real battle lies in building a social consensuswhereby parents begin to consider it a primary duty to providethe means of a secure and dignified life with or without marriage.Parents of brides should be urged to give their daughtersincome-generating forms of property, instead of spending hugeamounts of money on expensive consumer items, which soondepreciate in value and therefore provide no long-term securityto the woman. They should also endeavor to provide them witha house of their own (no matter how small and modest), so thattheir daughters have a safe dwelling from which no husbandcan throw them out.∏πMadhu Kishwar lives in New Delhi and is editor of Manushi,India’s leading magazine on social issues and human rights, especiallywomen’s rights. E-mail: editor@manushi-india.orgd inodia34 hinduism today july/august/september, 2 0 0 6july/august/september, 2006 h i n d u i s m t o d ay 35

e d u c a t i o nCalifornia Textbook IssueHas Its First Day in CourtHindu American Foundation takes the State Boardof Education to task over adoption procedurehe california superior court inSacramento ordered on April 21 thatan expedited hearing schedule be determinedin the lawsuit of the HinduAmerican Foundation, HAF, against theCalifornia State Board of Education, SBE,over the adoption of sixth grade social studies’books for next school year. The lawsuitwas brought when Hindus were dissatisfiedwith the book review process, which left inplace inaccuracies, distortions and an unbalancedpresentation of Hinduism vis-a-visother religions. In his ruling, SuperiorCourt Judge Patrick Marlette statedtwice that he was “troubled” by theSBE review process in adopting thebooks. HAF had charged that whatis supposed to be a documented andtransparent system of review actuallyprogressed through 2005 and2006 in a haphazard manner. Partsof the review, HAF contends, werecontrary to California state law.HAF’s request for a preliminaryinjunction was rejected by Marlette infavor of a speedy schedule to resolvethe complex case prior to the school year.It would be rare for a preliminary injunctionto be issued against a government.Marlette could have dismissed the case, ifhe felt it had no merit, but did not. He hasinstead ordered the SBE and HAF to conferand propose a schedule for hearing the caseexpeditiously, before the textbooks in questionare distributed this fall. He also recommendedthe two parties explore any possibleresolution of the issues between them.Important testimony in the case was givenby Stan Metzenberg, a member of theSBE’s Curriculum Commission. At theirDecember 2 meeting, the Commissionsided with the Hindus on most issues inthe textbooks. Normally, their recommendationwould be adopted by the SBE, butin this case were not. The SBE contendedthat its own Curriculum Commission failedto follow the guidelines laid out for it inreviewing the proposed Hindu “edits” (asthe changes are called). As a result, theSBE held a separate, closed-door meetingon January 6 to again review the edits,and arrived at a different set of recommendations,one less acceptable to Hindus.Metzenberg, a professor at California’sNorthridge University, contends in his testimonythat the Commission did indeed followthe Board’s instructions. He is no stranger totextbook review, having been involved in improvingthe science curriculum in Californiaand testifying before the US Congress on thesame issue. During the December 2 meeting,Metzenberg, a molecular biologist, tookissue with the claims that there was an “AryanInvasion” in ancient times in India—oneof the main points of dispute with the texts.He took it upon himself to read the studiesthat had been done on the genetic makeup ofindividuals of the Indian subcontinent, andreviewed them with his wife, also a professorat Northridge and an expert in human genetics.At the meeting, he sided with the Hindusagainst the recommendation of several Westernnon-Hindu Indologists. In his testimony,he states, “My opinion as a scientist, and whatI recommended to my fellow commissionerson December 2, was that Aryan InvasionTheory is not easily supported by geneticevidence, and, in fact, the preponderance ofmore recent genetic evidence would tend torule out a major invasion of Europeans. Thisis why I believe that it would be inaccurateto portray Aryan Invasion Theory as a fact inCalifornia textbooks. Our [the Commission’s]addition of a qualified statement, ‘Aryan invasiontheory has been contradicted by somescholarly evidence,’ is a sensible solution.”Another declaration submitted is thatof Dr. Shiva Bajpai, who was hired by theBoard as an expert in Indian history to reviewthe proposed edits. Upon the entry ofthe non-Hindu Indologists in December, hewas sidelined in the process. At the criticalJanuary 6 meeting, in which all contestededits were reviewed again, he was told thatchanges would only be made if he and Dr.Witzel of Harvard, leader of the non-HinduIndologist group, agreed. This effectivelygave veto power over the edits to Dr. Witzel,with the result that significant editsHindus sought were not made. Bajpai concludesin his testimony, “It is my view andopinion that if the textbooks reflect only theedits recommended by the subcommittee[mostly the results of the January 6 meeting],those texts will portray Hinduismand Indian history inaccurately and in amanner that puts Hinduism in a ratherunfavorable light. It is my view andopinion that the texts continue to requirechanges to make them complywith the standards imposed by lawfor textbooks in California.”On April 21, Judge Marlette requestedthe groups explore a settlement.The charges brought againstthe Board by HAF are fairly extensive,ranging from improper processto the specifics of five issues: women’srights, caste and untouchability,theology, comparison with other faithsand Aryan Invasion. Toward the end ofJanuary, prior to the final Board decisionon the edits, HAF submitted a documentwith their recommendation on two dozenor so critical edits related to these five issues.This submission was rejected by theBoard, which led to HAF’s filing the lawsuit.The possibility remains that the Boardand HAF could revisit this list of edits andtry to work out a solution that does nothold up the entire textbook printing process,as a trial might. A solution based onthese specific edits would not address thelarger problems with the texts, but it wouldestablish the rights of Hindus to at least anequal part in the process with Western,non-Hindu Indologists, some of whom appearto regard Hinduism with disdain. If,however, HAF prevails at trial, then courtorderedchanges to the books to bring thetreatment of Hinduism on par with theother religious would necessarily be quiteextensive, as the court would not be limitedto the relatively small corrections allowedin the Board’s review process. ∏π36 hinduism today july/august/september, 2006

The man who rejects the words of the scripturesand follows the impulse of desire attains neitherhis perfection, nor joy, nor the Path Supreme. Letthe scriptures be, therefore, thy authority as towhat is right and what is not right.Bhagavad Gita 16.23-24, Mascaro, p. 111dinodiaPresenting a mountaintop viewof the vast library of wisdom thatmolds and influences Hindu lifeHinduism proudly embraces an incrediblyrich collection of scripture. The holiest andmost revered are the Vedas and Agamas,two massive compendia of shruti (that which is“heard”), both revealed by God to illumined sagescenturies and millennia ago. The array of worksknown as smriti (that which is “remembered”)is equally vast, the most prominent and widelycelebrated of which are the Itihasas (epic dramasand history)—the Ramayana, Mahabharata—andthe Puranas (mythology). The Vedic arts and sciences,including ayurveda, astrology, music, dance,architecture, statecraft, domestic duty and law,are reflected in an assembly of texts known as Vedangasand Upavedas. Moreover, through the agesGod-realized souls, sharing their experience, havepoured forth volume upon volume that reveal thewonders of yoga and offer passionate hymns of devotion.The creation of Hindu scripture continuesto this day, as contemporary masters reiterate thetimeless truths to guide souls on the path to Divinity.In this Educational Insight, we offer a simpleoverview of Hindu scripture and an anthology ofverses from this luminous library of dharma.The stack of books at left holds one bound volume fromeach of the four Vedas in the Sanskrit language. For centuriesthey have been the basis of philosophical discussion,study and commentary. The Vedas are also the subject ofdeep study and meditation, to realize the wisdom of theancients within oneself. Their mantras are chanted andused in rites of worship, prayer and japa.© 2006 by Himalayan Academy, 107 Kaholalele Road, Kapaa, Hawaii 96746 To order additional copies ofthis booklet, as well as other Educational Insights, visit www.himalayanacademy.com/teachingtoolsd inodiaWhat AreHindu RevealedScriptures?The Vedas and Agamas, revealedby God, are Hinduism’s sovereignscriptures, called shruti, “thatwhich is heard.” Their timelesstruths are expressed in the mostextraordinarily profound mysticalpoetry known to man. Aum.Veda, from vid, “to know,” means “supremewisdom or science.” Similarly, Agama,which names the sacred sectarian revelations,means “descent of knowledge.” The Vedasand Agamas are eternal truths transmitted byGod through great clairaudient and clairvoyantrishis. They are Hinduism’s primary and most authoritativescriptures, expounding life’s sacrednessand man’s purpose on the planet. These psalmsof wisdom were disclosed over many centuries,memorized and orally conveyed from generationto generation within priestly families, then finallyart by s. rajam background photo, thomas kellyAbove, God holds the holiest of scriptures, the Vedas andAgamas. Around these are an array of other scriptures,enscribed on stone, wood, pillars and scrolls. At left, wesee a copy of the Rig Veda Samhita. In the dimmed background,lamps are offered, as prescribed in the Agamas,by priests at Nallur Kandaswamy Temple in Sri Lanka.written down in Sanskrit in the last few millennia.The subtly symbolic language of shruti, the cherishedword of God, is lyrical and lofty. In impartingreligious practice, rules and doctrine, the Vedas aregeneral and the Agamas specific. The Vedas extoland invoke a multiplicity of Gods through elaboratefire rituals called yajna. The Agamas centeraround a single Deity and His worship with water,flowers and lights in sanctified temples andshrines. The Tirumantiram lauds, “Two are thescriptures that Lord Siva revealed—the primal Vedasand the perfect Agamas.” Aum Namah Sivaya.july/august/september, 200 6 h i n d u i s m t o d ay I-3

What Is theNature of theVeda Texts?The holy Vedas, man’s oldestscripture, dating back 6,000to 8,000 years, are a collectionof four books: the Rig, Sama,Yajur and Atharva. Eachhas four sections: hymns,rites, interpretation andphilosophical instruction. Aum.art by s. rajam background photo, hinduism todayHow Are theVedas SignificantToday?The Vedas, the ultimate scripturalauthority, permeate Hinduism’sthought, ritual and meditation.They open a rare windowinto ancient Bharata society,proclaiming life’s sacredness andthe way to oneness with God. Aum.reuters/raj patidar background: afp photo/deshakalyan chowdhurythomas kellyAbove, using the traditional elutani, stylus, a panditscribes memorized Vedic verses on dried palm leaves.For centuries the Vedas were passed on orally, thenfinally transcribed. Left, a devotee leafs through hisholy text as he performs his morning sadhana.reuters/jitendra prakashAbove, a young Smarta priest conducts a fire ceremony,havana, as decreed in the Vedas. At left, a Vaishnavapriest blows a conch horn during prayers in Allahabad.Background photo, at Manikarnika Ghat in Varanasi, apriest performs antyeshti, the cremation ritual, last in theseries of rites of passage prescribed in the Vedas.The oldest and core portions of theVedas are the four Samhitas, “hymn collections.”They consist of invocations to the OneDivine and the Divinities of nature—such as theSun, the Rain, the Wind, the Fire and the Dawn—as well as prayers for matrimony, progeny, prosperity,concord, domestic rites, formulas for magic,and more. They are composed in beautiful metricalverses, generally of three or four lines. The heartof the entire Veda is the 10,552-verse Rig Samhita.The Sama and Yajur Samhitas, each with about2,000 verses, are mainly liturgical selections fromthe Rig, whereas most of the Atharva Samhita’snearly 6,000 verses of prayers, charms and rites areunique. The Sama is arranged for melodious chanting,the Yajur for cadenced intonation. Besides itsSamhita, each Veda includes one or two Brahmanas,ceremonial handbooks, and Aranyakas, ritualinterpretations, plus many inestimable Upanishads,metaphysical dialogs. In all there are over 100,000Vedic verses, and some prose, in dozens of texts.The Tirumantiram confirms, “There is no dharmaother than what the Vedas say. Dharma’s centralcore the Vedas proclaim.” Aum Namah Sivaya.Like the taoist tao te ching, the bud-dhist Dhammapada, the Sikh Adi Granth,the Jewish Torah, the Christian Bible andthe Muslim Koran, the Veda is the Hindu holy book.For untold centuries unto today, it has remained thesustaining force and authoritative doctrine, guidingfollowers in ways of worship, duty and enlightenment—upasana,dharma and jnana. The Vedas arethe meditative and philosophical focus for millionsof monks and a billion seekers. Their stanzas arechanted from memory by priests and laymen dailyas liturgy in temple worship and domestic ritual.All Hindus wholeheartedly accept the Vedas, yeteach draws selectively, interprets freely and amplifiesabundantly. Over time, this tolerant allegiancehas woven the varied tapestry of Bharata Dharma.Today the Vedas are published in Sanskrit, English,French, German and other languages. But it is themetaphysical and popular Upanishads which havebeen most amply and ably translated. The Vedassay, “Just as the spokes are affixed to the hub ofa wheel, so are all things established in life, theRig and Yajur and Sama Veda, sacrifice, the nobilityand also the priesthood.” Aum Namah Sivaya.I-4 hinduism today july/august/september, 2006 july/august/september, 200 6 h i n d u i s m t o d ay I-5

fr. institute of pondicherryWhat Is theNature of theHoly Agamas?The Agamas, SanatanaDharma’s second authority,are revelations on sacredliving, worship, yogaand philosophy. Saivism,Shaktism and Vaishnavismeach exalts its own array ofAgamas, many more than2,000 years old. Aum.french institute of pondicherry background, thomas kellyAbove, Dr. Ganesan, a scholar at the French Institute of Pondicherry,India, shows the volumes of Saiva Agamas they haveprinted to date. They are keepers of 8,000 ancient manuscripts,mostly palm-leaf books, such as those seen stored onshelves on the left, which one day will be published to theworld. In the background, a devotee offers flowers to the Lord.thomas kellyHow Arethe AgamasSignificant Today?While the Vedas, with myriadDeities, bind all Hindus together,the Agamas, with a singlesupreme God, unify each sect in aoneness of thought, instilling inadherents the joyful arts of divineadoration. Aum Namah Sivaya.t homas kelly bac kground photo, hinduism todayLike millions of Hindus before them, the youth in thesetwo photos are learning precise recitation of liturgy fromthe Agamas and Vedas. They will spend years perfectingthis training, enabling them to perform ritual worship,puja, in temples around the world. In their priest school inTirupati, India, they will memorize hundreds of mantras.In the vast agamic literature, traditioncounts 92 main Saiva Agamas—10 Siva, 18 Rudraand 64 Bhairava—77 Sakta Agamas and108 Vaishnava Pancharatra Agamas. Most Agamasare of four parts, called padas, and possess thousandsof metered Sanskrit verses, usually of twolines. The charya pada details daily religious observance,right conduct, the guru-shishya relationship,community life, house design and townplanning. The kriya pada, commonly the longest,extols worship and temples in meticulous detail—from site selection, architectural design and iconography,to rules for priests and the intricaciesof daily puja, annual festivals and home-shrinedevotionals. The yoga pada discloses the interiorway of meditation, of raja yoga, mantra and tantra,which stimulates the awakening of the slumberingserpent, kundalini. The jnana pada narratesthe nature of God, soul and world, and the meansfor liberation. The Tirumantiram declares, “Vedaand Agama are Iraivan’s scriptures. Both are truth:one is general, the other specific. While some saythese words of God reach two different conclusions,the wise see no difference.” Aum Namah Sivaya.God is love, and to love god is thepure path prescribed in the Agamas. Veritably,these texts are God’s own voice admonishingthe samsari, reincarnation’s wanderer,to give up love of the transient and adore insteadthe Immortal. How to love the Divine, when andwhere, with what mantras and visualizations andat what auspicious times, all this is preserved inthe Agamas. The specific doctrines and practicesof day-to-day Hinduism are nowhere more fullyexpounded than in these revelation hymns, delineatingeverything from daily work routines to astrologyand cosmology. So overwhelming is Agamicinfluence in the lives of most Hindus, particularlyin temple liturgy and culture, that it is impossibleto ponder modern Sanatana Dharma withoutthese discourses. While many Agamas have beenpublished, most remain inaccessible, protected byfamilies and guilds who are stewards of an intimatehereditary knowledge. The Tirumantiramsays, “Nine are the Agamas of yore, in time expandedinto 28, they then took divisions three, into onetruth of Vedanta-Siddhanta to accord. That is SuddhaSaiva, rare and precious.” Aum Namah Sivaya.I-6 hinduism today july/august/september, 2006 july/august/september, 200 6 h i n d u i s m t o d ay I-7

Do Smriti andSacred LiteratureDiffer?Hindu sacred literature is atreasury of hymns, legend,mythology, philosophy, scienceand ethics. From among thisvast body of writings, eachlineage recognizes a selectportion as its secondaryscripture, called smriti. Aum.manas das background photo by thomas kellyWhat TextsAmplify Vedasand Agamas?Many texts support the Vedasand Agamas. Vedangas detailconduct, astrology, languageand etymology. Upavedasunfold politics, health, warfareand music. Upagamas andPaddhatis elaborate theAgamic wisdom. Aum.dinodia seshu badrinath/pipal productionsdinodiaAbove, Masako Ono voyaged from Japan to India to learnthe ancient Odissi dance style and remained there toteach it. The many human arts are found in ancient scripture.At left, a collection of Hindu holy texts stacked in aDelhi store. In the background, two girls reverently touchthe holy feet of Lord Vishnu at a shrine in Tirupati.d inodiaAbove, a bride and groom are in the midst of their wedding;at left they hold an offering of sacred grasses; weddingchants derive from the Vedas, Agamas and ancillarytexts; attitudes and guidelines for family life are found inthe Sutras and Shastras. In the background photo, a girlreceives sacraments after a puja.While the vedas and agamas are sharedas part of every Hindu’s primary scripture,shruti, each sect and lineage defines its ownunique set of smriti. The sacred literature, punyashastra, from which smriti is drawn consists of writings,both ancient and modern, in many languages.Especially central are the ancient Sanskritic texts,such as the Itihasas, Puranas and Dharma Sastras,which are widely termed the classical smriti. In reality,while many revere these as smriti, others regardthem only as sacred literature. Smriti means“that which is remembered” and is known as “thetradition,” for it derives from human insight andexperience and preserves the course of culture.While shruti comes from God and is eternal anduniversal, the ever-growing smriti canon is writtenby man. Hinduism’s sacred literature is the touchstoneof theater and dance, music, song and pageantry,yoga and sadhana, metaphysics and ethics,exquisite art and hallowed sciences. The Vedas inquire,“In whom are set firm the firstborn seers, thehymns, the songs and the sacrificial formulas, inwhom is established the single seer—tell me of thatsupport—who may He be?” Aum Namah Sivaya.Much of hinduism’s practical knowl-edge is safeguarded in venerable textswhich amplify shruti. The Vedangas andUpavedas are collections of texts that augment andapply the Vedas as a comprehensive system of sacredliving. Jyotisha Vedanga delineates auspicioustiming for holy rites. Kalpa Vedanga defines publicrituals in the Srauta and Sulba Sutras, domesticrites in the Grihya Sutras and religious law in theDharma Sastras. Four other Vedangas ensure thepurity of mantra recitation, through knowledge ofphonetics, grammar, poetry and the way of words.The Upavedas expound profound sciences: Arthavedaunfolds statecraft; Ayurveda sets forth medicineand health; Dhanurveda discusses military science;Gandharvaveda illumines music and the arts; andSthapatyaveda explains architecture. In addition,the Kama Sutras detail erotic pleasures. The Agamas,too, have ancillary texts, such as the Upagamas andPaddhatis, which elaborate the ancient wisdom.The Jnaneshvari says, “The Vedas in their perfectionare as the beautiful image of the God of whichthe flawless words are the resplendent body. Thesmritis are the limbs thereof.” Aum Namah Sivaya.I-8 hinduism today july/august/september, 2006 july/august/september, 200 6 h i n d u i s m t o d ay I-9

Does HinduismHave Epics andMyths?The Mahabharata and Ramayanaare Hinduism’s most renownedepic histories, called Itihasa.The Puranas are popular folknarratives, teaching faith, beliefand ethics in mythology, allegory,legend and symbolism. Aum.dinodiaAre ThereOther Types ofSacred Texts?India’s lofty philosophical textsexpound diverse views in exactingdialectics. Yoga treatises unveilthe mysterious path to ultimatesamadhis. Intimate devotionalhymns disclose the raptures ofconsummate Divine love. Aum.dinodia background photo by thomas kellydiinodiaAbove, a woman performs a dance depicting a scene fromthe Ramayana in Java, where the world-renowned epicis widely depicted in gala dance and theater. At left, Sanskritvolumes of the famed poem are shown, along withHinduism’s other epic, the Mahabharata.d inodiaAbove, a recluse, clearly immersed in his yoga sadhana,sits in meditation beneath a gnarled banyan tree. Atleft are displayed two primary yoga scriptures, YogaSutras and Yoga Vashishtha. In the background, ayoung lady lights a ghee lamp to offer in personalworship, as her ancestors have done for centuries.Hinduism’s poetic stories of rishis,Gods, heroes and demons are sung by giftedpanditas and traveling bards, narratedto children and portrayed in dramas and festivals.The Mahabharata, the world’s longest epic poem,is the legend of two ancient dynasties whose greatbattle of Kurukshetra is the scene of the BhagavadGita, the eloquent spiritual dialog between Arjunaand Krishna. The Ramayana relates the lifeof Rama, a heroic king revered as the ideal man.The Puranas, like the Mahabharata, are encyclopedicin scope, containing teachings on sadhana,philosophy, dharma, ritual, language and the arts,architecture, agriculture, magic charms and more.Of 18 principal Puranas, six honor God as Siva,six as Vishnu and six as Brahma. The witty Panchatantra,eminent among the “story” literature, orkatha, portrays wisdom through animal fables andparables. The Bhagavad Gita proclaims, “He whoreads this sacred dialog of ours, by him I considerMyself worshiped through the sacrifice of knowledge.And the man who listens to it with faith andwithout scoffing, liberated, he shall attain to thehappy realm of the righteous.” Aum Namah Sivaya.In addition to the epics, legends and sup-plements to the Vedas and Agamas, there is awealth of Hindu metaphysical, yogic and devotionalwritings. Considered foundational are theearly texts defining the six philosophical darshanas:the sutras by Kapila, Patanjali, Jaimini, Badarayana,Kanada and Gautama. Hailed as leading occultworks on yoga, asanas, nadis, chakras, kundaliniand samadhi are the Yoga Sutras, Tirumantiram,Yoga Vasishtha, Siva Sutras, Siddha SiddhantaPaddhati, Jnaneshvari, Hatha Yoga Pradipika andGheranda Samhita. Widely extolled among thebhakti literature are the Bhagavad Gita, NaradaSutras, Tiruvasagam, the Vachanas of the Sivasharanasand the hymns of mystic poets like Surdas,Tukaram, Ramprasad, Mirabai, Andal, Vallabha,Tulasidasa, Tayumanavar, Lalla, Tagore, Auvaiyarand the saintly Nayanars and Alvars. The BhagavadGita explains, “As a blazing fire reduces the woodto ashes, O Arjuna, so does the fire of knowledge reduceall activity to ashes. There is nothing on Earthwhich possesses such power to cleanse as wisdom.The perfect yogin finds this knowledge in himselfby himself in due time.” Aum Namah Sivaya.I-10 hinduism today july/august/september, 2006 july/august/september, 200 6 h i n d u i s m t o d ay I-11

thomas kellyHow Did theSage of KanchiExtol the Vedas?As when a fire is lit with damp fuel,different clouds of smoke comeforth. In the same way from thisgreat Being are breathed forth theRig, Yajur, Sama and Atharva Vedas.Shukla Yajur Veda, BrihadaranyakaUpanishad 2.4.10Sri Chandrashekharendra Saraswatiwrote, “The Vedas are eternal andare the source of all creation. Theirgreatness is to be known in manyways. Their sound produces inour nadis (subtle nerve channels),as well as in the atmosphere,vibrations that are salutary not onlyto our own Self but to the entireworld—to the good of mankindas well as of all other creatures.”art by s. rajamSri Chandrashekharendra Saraswati [1894–1994], 68thpontiff of Kanchi Kamakoti Pitham, depicted above,walked throughout India teaching of the Vedas. Here heis shown before an image of Siva as Dakshinamurti, thesilent guru seated beneath a banyan tree. Above left, anearthen mandala on a wall of Muktinath Temple in Nepal.agence france presse, mahadevo send inodiaAbove, an Indian boy piously pours ghee on the sacredfire, keeping the flame of devotion alive. At left, devoteesworship the Sun in Bihar during Chhat festival, when, forone night and day, the people live on the banks of theriver Ganga making offerings to Surya, the gracious SunGod, a primary Deity honored in the Vedas.concern for all creation that finds“Theexpression in the Vedas is not shared by anyother religion. Shanno astu dvipade shanchatushpade—thisoccurs in a mantra. The Vedas prayfor the good of all creatures including bipeds, quadrupeds,etc. Even grass, shrubs, trees, mountains andthe rivers are not excluded from their benign purview.The happy state of all these sentient creaturesand inert objects is brought about through the specialquality of the Vedas.“The Vedas are also notable for the lofty truthsexpressed in the mantras. The tenets of these scriptureshave aroused the wonder of people of otherlands, of other faiths. They are moved by the poeticbeauty of the hymns, the subtle manner in whichprinciples of social life are dealt with, the metaphysicaltruths embedded and expounded in them, andtheir moral instruction as well as scientific truths.“There are mantras that are specially valuable fortheir sound but are otherwise meaningless. Similarly,there are works pregnant with meaning but with nomantric power. The remarkable thing about the Vedasis that they are of immeasurable value as muchfor their sound as for their verbal content. Whilethey have the mantric power to do immense goodto each one of us and to the world, they also containteachings embodying great metaphysical truths.“It must here be emphasized that on the doctrinallevel the Vedas deal both with worldly life andthe inner life of the Self. They teach how to conductourselves in such a manner as to create atmic wellbeing.And their concern is not with the liberationof the individual alone; they speak about the idealsof social life and about the duties of the public. Howthe brahmin ought to lead his life and how the kingmust rule his subjects and what ideals women areto follow: an answer to these—stated in the form oflaws—is to be found in these scriptures.“My duty is to impress upon you that it is yourresponsibility to keep the Vedic tradition alive. Ifin India the Vedas retain their original vitality eventoday, it is because they are being continuously repeatedby students and teachers of the Vedas, andthe purity of the sounds and accents of the wordsare retained in that process. But it is only by practicingthe Vedic injunctions that we can obtain thegrace of God, both for our individual welfare andfor the welfare of the whole world.”I-12 hinduism today july/august/september, 2006 july/august/september, 200 6 h i n d u i s m t o d ay I-13

Life illumined with scriptural wisdomagence france presse, indranil mukherjee dinodiaurudeva, Sivaya Subramuniyaswami, founder ofHinduism Today, was once asked, “What can Isay if a missionary comes to my door and asks,‘Does Hinduism have a Bible?’ ” He answered, “You cansay, ‘Yes, we have the Vedas and Agamas, plus a hundredother scriptures that serve us very well, thank you.’ ” Indeed,this diverse body of knowledge is unlike the oneHoly Book of other world faiths. It is diverse, a bit neglected,some nearly lost, some actually lost, but all of it precious.In truth, it yet defines and colors Hindu life like themarriage & familyblessingsThe soul is born and unfolds ina body, with dreams and desiresand the food of life. And then it isreborn in new bodies in accordancewith its former works. The qualityof the soul determines its futurebody—earthly or airy, heavy or light.Shvetashvatara Upanishad, 5.11–12.The Upanishads, Mascsaro, p. 94With earnest effort hold the senses incheck. Controlling the breath, regulatethe vital activities. As a charioteerholds back his restive horses, so does apersevering aspirant restrain his mind.Shvetashvatara Upanishad, 2.9. The Upanishads,Prabhavananda & Manchester, p. 192The guru who has attainedSelf Realization can alone helpthe aspirant in acquiring it.Siva Sutras 2.6, Jaideva Singh, p. 12genetic code that makes a starfish a starfish. It is reflectedin the beautiful Hindu style of music, art, drama, dance,work ethics, law, domestic values, spiritual striving, relationships,rites of passage, astrology, medicine, games, loveand business, architecture and storytelling, governmentand diplomacy, and the working together of this physicalworld with the heavenly realms of existence. This grandlegacy helps make Hindus the gracious people they are,with qualities of humility, appreciation, love of God, forbearance,joy and soulful depth of character.If daily to his home the friendswho love him come, and coming,bring delight to eyes that kindlebright, a man has found thewhole of life within his soul.Panchatantra, Ryder, p. 218In the beginning of worship, atthe conclusion of the rite, in theoffering of water, in the anointingof the image, in the bathing of theimage, in the offering of light, in thesprinkling of the image with sandal,in the bathing of the image withconsecrated liquids, in the offeringof incense, in the act of worship, andin all other things to be done, theSivacharya should strike the great bell.Karana Agama 19-191, Motivations of TempleArchitecture in Saiva Siddhanta, p.16hinduism todayMantra yields early success due to practicedone in previous life. Self-fulfilling, too, is themantra which is received according to the line oftradition, with due diksha, obtained in the rightway. Innumerable are the mantras; they but distractthe mind. Only that mantra which is receivedthrough the grace of the guru gives all fulfillment.Kularnava Tantra 11.3, Woodroff & Pandit, p. 112O thou who pervades all space, both now andhereafter, as the Soul of souls! The Vedas, Agamas,Puranas, Itihasas and all other sciences inculcatefully the tenet of nonduality. It is the inexplicableduality that leads to the knowledge of nonduality.This is consonant with reason, experience, tradition,and is admitted by the dualists and nondualists.Tayumanavar, 1.3, The Poems of Tayumanavar, Coomaraswamy, p. 44By overthrowing the aggregate of the six enemies[lust, anger, greed, vanity, haughtiness and overjoy],he shall restrain the organs of sense; acquire wisdomby keeping company with the aged; see through hisspies; establish safety and security by being everactive; maintain his subjects in the observance oftheir respective duties by exercising authority; keepdinodiavenerating gurus blessing a new home love of natureedwin bernbaumup his personal discipline by receiving lessons in thesciences; and endear himself to the people by bringingthem in contact with wealth and doing good to them.Book I, Chapter 7, The Life of a Holy King, Kautilya’sArthashastra, R. ShamasastryOnce Rama asked Hanuman, “How do you look atMe?” And Hanuman replied: “O Rama, as long as Ihave the feeling of ‘I’, I see that Thou art the wholeand I am a part; Thou art the Master and I am Thyservant. But when, O Rama, I have the knowledge ofTruth, Then I realize that Thou art I, and I am Thou.”From the Ramayana, as quoted by Sri Ramakrishna ParamahamsaLet us have concord with our own people, and concordwith people who are strangers to us. Aßvins, createbetween us and the strangers a unity of hearts.Atharva Veda Samhita, 7.52.1In him who is pure of mind, intellect and ego,the senses and their perceptions are pure, infact, and he finds everything pure as well.Sarvajnanottara Agama, Atma Sakshatkara 62,Collected Works of Ramana Mararshi, p.110dinodiadiet, ayurvedabapspandit hindraj divekarupi photo service, amin warindex stock imag e rydinodiafestivals music pilgrimage devotional art nurturing childrenI-14 hinduism today july/august/september, 2006 july/august/september, 200 6 h i n d u i s m t o d ay I-15

One who is established in thecontemplation of nondual unity willabide in the Self of everyone andrealize the immanent, all-pervadingOne. There is no doubt of this.Sarvajnanottara Agama, Atma Sakshatkara 14,Collected Works of Ramana Maharshi, p.17The Self resides within the lotus ofthe heart. Knowing this, consecratedto the Self, the sage enters dailythat holy sanctuary. Absorbed inthe Self, the sage is freed fromidentity with the body and livesin blissful consciousness.Sama Veda, ChandogyaUpanishad 8.3.3-4, The Upanishads,Prabhavananda & Manchester, p. 122With the help of the gardeners calledMind and Love, plucking the flowercalled Steady Contemplation, offeringthe water of the flood of the Self’sown bliss, worship the Lord with thesacred formula of silence!Lalla, The Sources of Indian Tradition, p. 36The Lord of Appati is both insideand outside, form and no form. He isboth the flood and the bank. He is thebroad-rayed sun. Himself the highestmystery, He is in all hidden thoughts.He is thought and meaning, andembraces all who embrace Him.Tirumurai 4.48.7. Poems to Siva, The Hymnsof the Tamil Saints, Peterson, p. 114At the time of the sacrifice, O Lordof the wood [Agni], the worshiperssmear you with sacred oil. When youstand upright or when you reposeon Earth’s bosom, you still will grantus good fortune. Set up to the Eastof the sacred fire, you accept ourprayer, intense and unflagging. Holdyourself high to bring us prosperity.Drive far away dearth of inspiration.Lord of the wood, take now yourstance on this, the loftiest spot of allEarth. Well-fixed and measured one,give to the worshiper, who brings asacrifice, honor and glory.Rig Veda 3.8.1-3, The VedicExperience, Pannikar, p. 373-374There is no difference betweendevotion and perfect knowledge. Aperson who is engrossed in devotionenjoys perpetual happiness. Andperfect knowledge never descends ina vicious person averse to devotion.Siva Purana, Rudra Samhita. 23.16, AncientIndian Tradition and Mythology, vol 1, p. 38As wide Earth, as fire and water, assacrificer and wind that blows, aseternal moon and sun, as ether, asthe eight-formed God, as cosmic goodand evil, woman and man, all otherforms and His own form, and all theseas Himself, as yesterday and todayand tomorrow, the God of the long,red hair stands, O Wonder!Tirumurai 6.38.1. Poems to Siva, The Hymnsof the Tamil Saints, Peterson, p.113paul estcourt/herald picture reuters, bazuki muhammad hinduism todaymeditationpenancedancereuters, dipak kumarin the militarybapsguiding childrenhinduism todaymonastic lifeI-16 hinduism today july/august/september, 2006

a y u r v e d aCooking for Your HealthPart textbook, part cookbook, this colorful guide tutorsus in the Ayurvedic ways of using food as medicinephoto by ed oullette, food syling by denise vivaldoBy Jane Srivastava, USAlthough eat, taste, heal: anAyurvedic Cookbook for ModernLiving, by Thomas Yarema, M.D.,Daniel Rhoda and chef JohnnyBrannigan (352 pages, Five Elements Press,US $29.95), has the word cookbook in itstitle, it is equally a comprehensive guide toayurvedic medicine and nutrition. Writtenby a unique trio of a medical doctor whooperates a holistic clinic in Hawaii, a patientled to the study of ayurveda by a debilitatinghealth condition and an ayurvedicchef, respectively, it contains two books inone: “The Guidebook” and “The Cookbook.”Drawing on knowledge of the ancient medicineof ayurveda, the authors persuasivelyassert that we are our own best healers, capableof leading lives of vibrant health by appropriatelynourishing our bodies and souls.The book’s interactive nature will undoubtedlycreate a feeling in each readerthat it speaks to him or her personally.Just from the first chapters of the guidebook,the reader can take a questionnairethat helps determine his or her constitutionaltype (dosha), ascertain whetherTrumpet dosa: This large fried crepe is made with a wheat-free batter of rice and lentilsthen filled with subji, a spiced mixture of potatoes, green peas, leaks and coconut milkit is in the state of imbalance, and immediatelystart on the road of self-healing.Rather than classifying the foods accordingto their physical qualities, such as fats,carbohydrates and proteins, ayurveda categorizesfoods according their effect on eachdosha and presence of the six tastes (sweet,sour, salty, bitter, pungent and astringent).There are no dogmatic diets in ayurvedicnutrition. Eating fresh, organic foods rich inenergy (or prana) and in accordance withour individual needs is a key to health. Theold premise, “You are what you eat,” is stilltrue, but ayurveda expands the premise toread: “You are what, how, when and why youeat.” It emphasizes other factors important tohealthy eating, such as proper state of mind,ambiance and eating only when hungry, aswell as changing seasonal nutritional needs.The authors proclaim that, to stimulateour senses and promote digestion, foodshould taste delicious. In the cookbook,chef Johnny uses his cross-cultural cookingexperience and training in ayurveda to createversatile, savory and therapeutic dishes.The stunning photographs will make yourmouth water as you read through the recipes.The first part of the cookbook is a collectionof menu options for each dosha thatis fairly easy to tackle, even for a beginnercook. The expanded recipe section offersmore complicated recipes that include maindishes, grains, side dishes, soups, salads,starters, snacks, dressings, sauces, condiments,breads, beverages and desserts. Anentire section of the cookbook is devoted tothe preparation of ayurvedic basics, suchas ghee, yogurt, seasonings and stocks.Throughout the cookbook, each recipe ispresented according to the specific dosha itis designed to balance. Modifications of thesame recipes are suggested for the other doshas.One whole chapter is devoted to “Foodas Medicine.” It recommends foods for certainillnesses, pregnancy and breast-feeding,cleansing and fasting.Both vegetarians and wanna-be vegetarianswill find the book useful, since it offersvegetarian, as well as a few fish and chickenrecipes to tide the meat eater through thetransition. The authors recommend that asuccessful transition will include adoptinga diet fitting your unique constitutionand making gradual dietary changes.The book is thoroughly researched andanswers many important questions consumershave about organic food, geneticallymodified foods, safety of food additivesand water. It gives advice on stocking yourayurvedic pantry, food storage and kitchenutensils and appliances. The presence of thecolor-coded pages, charts and tables makethe book easy to follow and to refer back to.This thought-provoking, multifaceted bookmakes us reflect not only about our ownnature and food choices, but on how thesechoices affect the world around us. Eat,Taste, Heal can proudly grace anyone’s cookbookand holistic/self-healing collection. ∏πeat, taste, heal: an ayurvedic cookbook for modernliving, by thomas yarema, daniel rhoda and chefjohnny brannigan, five elements press, 4504 kukui st.,suite 13, kapaa, hawaii 96746. telephone: 808 822-4177e-mail: danielrhoda@eattasteheal.comj u ly / au g u s t / s e p t e m b e r , 2 0 0 6 h i n d u i s m t o d ay 53

arun mishra/dinodia photo libraryGod as chairman of the board: Lord Rama is portrayed here as Chairperson of the temple board, overseeing a meeting of thetemple’s directors. He reminds them that they are managing God’s home in a professional manner for the benefit of His devoteesl a wBy Katherine Nanda, Colorado, USAn an ideal world, getting togetherto build an edifice for the worship ofGod would be a very simple matter ofduty and dharma. Until that ideal worldis in place, though, we are stuck with one inwhich the laws of society largely influencethe enterprise of temple organization. Thebetter prepared we are to deal with it, themore successfully we can spare ourselvesthe myriad headaches that often arise fortemples in the US today.The purpose of this article is to alert templeleaders and members to these issues inorder that we anticipate the potential problemsand thereby avoid or mitigate them.Some of the suggestions here are legal in nature,while many are based on simple commonsense. While the discussion centers onManagementManaging a Hindu TempleMeeting the challenges of operating under American laws and tax codesUS law, most of the same advice applies inother nations. And, naturally, with regard toa particular temple or situation, it is prudentto consult a lawyer familiar with the factsand circumstances of the specific templegroup as well as the law of the particularstate. Please note that this article should notbe construed as legal advice.Why incorporate the temple?There are three goals to keep in mind inestablishing a temple organization: first, theorganizational structure should serve thestability of the temple, so that, second, thetemple can serve the religious and spiritualneeds of the community, so that, third, thecommunity can worship and serve God. Ofcourse, there are many models of templeorganization, from huge temple complexesto simple shrine mandirs served by a singlepriestly family, to monastic societies, andeverything in between. For any temple, theobjectives of holding property and avoidingpersonal liability of directors are twoparamount considerations. Formalizing theentity is critical in doing so. I suggest thatincorporation is mandatory.Incorporation means adopting a formalstructure and filing documents with thestate’s corporation office to recognize the entity.Unincorporated religious organizationsare not recommended, as the risk of personalliability is too high, although it may betechnically allowed in some states. Specifically,anyone acting on behalf of an unincorporatedassociation may be held personallylegally responsible for the debts and liabilitiesof the association, such as those arisingfrom contracts or personal injuries.A temple is generally set up as a not-forprofitor nonprofit corporation under thelaws of the state. There is no one set of rulesgoverning all the 50 American states and theDistrict of Columbia, so the temple’s own attorneywill be the best source of informationabout this, as well as all other aspectsof the operation.Being a nonprofit corporation means thatno one can profit personally from the activityof the temple: any economicactivity can only be for the taxexemptpurposes of the temple.The fact that no one can profitdoes not, of course, mean thatthe temple cannot pay a reasonablecompensation for servicesrendered, even by directors. Ifthe temple ever closes, all of itsremaining assets have to go toanother similar organization orthey will be taken over by thestate. A temple also cannot intervenein political campaigns oremploy a substantial part of itsactivity in attempting to influencelegislation.By incorporating, we formalizethe institution of the temple,establishing it as an entity witha certain set of relationships andresponsibilities to the community.At that time we create aboard of directors or trustees whose obligationsto the temple and the community arestated and understood. Incorporation givesmembers (if the temple has members), donors,the congregation and the communitya reason to have confidence in the futureof the temple. It sets up a fairly predictabledecision-making process, and it protects thedirectors or trustees from personal exposurefor the debts and liabilities of the temple.Even if the temple organization is startingout very small, it should be incorporatedfrom the beginning.It is also important to take the time toagree on an operating plan that will trulyserve the temple’s distinct needs. Whendrawing up these instruments, organizersshould work closely with an attorney andbe vigilant that nothing is taken for granted.Having rules in place and following themhelps to avert conflicts before they arise.The bylaws of an organization are especiallyimportant, as they state the details of how itwill operate, such as its governing structure,board and officers, election procedures,membership rules and methods for changingall the rules.The organization need not be set up as ademocracy, with each member having anequal say in the election of the board. TheCatholic Church, for example, is set up in away that recognizes its internal hierarchicalarun mishra/dinodia photo librarynature. A Hindu temple set up under a dominantreligious leader can adopt a set of rulesand guidelines as a part of the constitutionor articles of incorporation and bylaws of thetemple that recognize the leader’s preeminencein deciding matters of both religiousteaching and organization. For example, bylawsof this type of temple organization canprovide that its religious leader may appointall or a certain number of members of theboard. Or it may provide that the leader hasLiabilityAccidents happen: The temple faces several potential sources oflawsuits, most obviously from devotees being hurt on the templepremises. But the actions of temple volunteers in the course oftheir work or driving temple vehicles can also bring liability.veto power over all or certain decisions ofthe board, such as those entailing mattersof religious principles. It is also possible toset up the temple with a self-perpetuatingboard that appoints new board memberswithout a vote of the membership.A very small temple corporation may consistof two or three directors, and a largeone may have dozens, depending upon staterules. One individual’s say in a small situationis far greater than on a larger board.The character of the temple and the desiresof its organizers and supporters will dictateits organizational framework and personality.In this regard, an organization that dependson public support may also find thatit must be open to more inclusive decisionmakingthan a smaller or more specializedone that may be able to function via a moreexclusive system.After incorporating, the temple will be requiredto observe certain formalities of statelaw, including the very important annualmeeting, which must be held, with formallyrecorded in minutes kept by the secretary.Although this and other rules might seemto be unnecessary to a small organization,compliance is the best way to protect thecorporate good standing and public goodfaith of the temple. Most states also requirecorporations to file certain basic informationperiodically to keep their registration current.Failure to do so may result in suspensionof the temple’s corporate standing. Thestate also has the authority to suspend anycorporation if it violates state law or policy.Designate the temple as a “church”?When they hear the word church, manypeople do not realize that under Americanlaw and tax codes the term includes the institutionsof all types of religious faiths, notjust Christian. In fact, the designation of aHindu temple as a “church” declaresthe truth of our existenceas religious institutions on equalpar with all others. We enthusiasticallyacknowledge our statusas members of the rich diversityof the American religious life.A religious organization doesn’thave to use the word church inits name to be a church. A currentexample is the Hindu Societyof Minnesota, whose newtemple suffered extensive vandalismjust before it was to open.The temple is a legal church, andits president would occasionallyrefer to it as “our church” whentalking with the media aboutthe attack. The language madeit easier for the local people,mostly church-going Christians,to understand the significance ofthe temple for the Hindus.After incorporating, most temples inAmerica obtain tax exempt status as a“501(c)(3) organization” (named for the sectionof the tax code regulating them). The“church” designation can be requested whenapplying, or later. Section 501(c)(3) status isavailable to corporations that demonstratethat they are supported by the public foreducational, scientific, religious or charitablepurposes. Under the 501(c)(3) designation,the temple is exempt from real estateproperty taxes on land used for religiouspurposes, from sales tax in some states andcan get nonprofit rates for postal mail. As a501(c)(3), but without the “church” designation,the organization is required to file form990 with the IRS each year detailing its revenue,expenses and activities, and answeringquestions about political activities, family orbusiness relationships among directors andemployees, etc. The form is public record,available to anyone who requests it. Thereis also the little-known “corporation sole”structure—see sidebar, page 57.To be considered a church, the organizationmust have characteristics such as“recognized creed and form of worship,… distinct religious history; ordained ministersselected after completing prescribedcourses of study; literature of its own; [and]established places of worship” (See IRS TaxGuide for Churches and Religious Orga-54 hinduism today july/august/september, 2006 j u ly / au g u s t / s e p t e m b e r , 2 0 0 6 h i n d u i s m t o d ay 55

arun mishra/dinodia photo librarynizations, www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/p1828.pdf). Although the Sanatana Dharma doesnot track these features as closely as someother religious traditions, it is well within thedefinition, and Hindu places of worship easilyqualify as churches. As a church, a templeis not required to file the IRS form 990annual information returns. A church doesnot have to disclose finances. And althoughchurch records are not entirely inaccessibleby the authorities, it is much more difficultfor the government to audit a church. TheIRS may only initiate a church tax inquiryif the authorities reasonably believe that theorganization: (a) may not qualify for the exemption;or (b) may not be paying tax on anunrelated business or other taxable activity.Board functions and responsibilitiesIf the temple has a board of directors ortrustees, the confidence of the membershipin that board depends on its functioningstrictly according to its authority. Its highestpriority is its fiduciary duty, that is, thespecial care it must take with the resourcesand trust of others. Conflicts of interest, selfdealing,willful misconduct, and recklessnessare all violations of fiduciary duty andmust be strenuously avoided. A system thatplaces great importance on transparency inthe board’s work will help tremendously.It is important that the temple board payclose attention to paperwork, for so muchdepends on written documentation as tothe existence, health, financial condition,liabilities and, especially, the accountabilityTemples as“Churches”Church, American style: An IRS official walks down a row of religious centers. He stamps each “church,”as they so qualify under US law, thus keeping the “wall of separation” between church and stateof the temple. A board must always act byway of resolutions—proposed, debated andpassed—with the secretary keeping a recordin the minutes of every step. By clarifying upfront what it intends to do through carefullychosen language in a resolution, the boardavoids later conflict and misunderstandings,and the action becomes an official act of theboard. It is also a good idea to institute andto follow rules for the conduct of board andmembership meetings. These may or maynot be included in the bylaws but should beformally adopted by the board. At the sametime, temple leaders must be flexible in theirleadership styles without being capriciousor arrogant.Members of the temple board should recognizethat their membership is a matter ofservice and responsibility, not status or privilege.They must be actively involved in thetemple’s life, be interested in solving problemsand be able to work with the other membersand the temple’s management. Accountabilityto the best interest of the temple mustalways be the goal of each board member.For instance, the temple must always pay itsdebts, as the payment of debts is part of thepurpose of any organization that serves thepublic trust. This is an example of accountabilityto others. The board’s accountabilityto donors and members can be demonstratedthrough a practice of keeping all books ofthe temple open for inspection by membersand, if necessary, the public, as to salaries,donations, debts, assets, etc. This is an excellentway to preserve the community’s trustin the temple’s leadership.Especially in these days ofpublic mistrust, a templecan protect its public imageby demonstrating thatit is open to scrutiny.It is especially incumbentupon the temple board tokeep the administrativeand financial books andrecords open to reasonableinspection by membersand in excellent conditionto ensure confidence of themembership and the community.Great care shouldbe taken to avoid financialmisconduct by the board,and the best way to accomplishthis is to keep the processscrupulously accurateand transparent. Receiptsmust be given for all donationsover $250 and shouldbe given for donations over$100.Above all, it is critical toavoid abusing the eligibilityrules for tax exemption.The organization mustbe organized and operated exclusively forreligious or other charitable purposes; netearnings may not go to benefit any privateindividual, and the purposes and activitiesmay not be illegal or violate fundamentalpublic policy. And while it might appearto be flouted by many highly visibleAmerican religious organizations, perhapsthe most stringent rule is the prohibitionagainst attempting to influence legislationor intervening in political campaigns.Accountability of the board to the templeitself is greatly aided by directors’ avoidingany activity that might possibly be a conflictof interest. Temples are particularlysusceptible here, because those in positionsof authority are so eager to help, includingassisting in the many business transactionsthat keep a temple going. Even when thismotivation is above reproach, as it generallyis, a profit motive can occasionally comeinto play—or appear to do so (which may bejust as dangerous). And, unfortunately, evensituations that begin in good faith can gobad as well, if we are not careful.An example of a conflict of interest wouldbe a situation where Director X, who hasvolunteered to get the temple roof repaired,gives his brother-in-law’s roofing companythe contract at a good price. Later it is discoveredthat another company would havebeat that price if it had been allowed tobid. Of course, it’s more common for templemembers and directors to give selflessly andwithout regard for gain in matters concerningtheir temple, but that makes it even morekrisanne johnson/afp/getty imagesPriest-Owned TemplesHow a religious organization can be set upwith a priest or spiritual leader in sole controlome states (16 or 17) permit the little-knowntype of entity called a “corporation sole” for churches,which may provide a good format for some smalltemples. It gives a single individual who is the head ofa religious organization, such as a priest, swami or pandit,certain legal capacities and advantages, especially beingable to: 1) hold church property in perpetuity, 2) holdchurch property without subjecting it to personal debts,and 3) protect personal assets from church liabilities. Essentially,the person is the corporation, and when he diesthe successor takes his place. So, the corporation-sole templecan exist in perpetuity, just as a major temple can. SatguruSivaya Subramuniyaswami, founder of Hinduism Today,advocated priest-owned temples under the corporation-solestructure. He felt that entire priest communities, such asthe Sivacharyas of South India, could establish a network oftheir own temples in the West. Instead of being underpaidand overworked employees, they could run their own independenttemples earning both a good income and respect inthe process.Washington is one of the states that allows corporationsole. Their Revised Code 24.12.010 states, “Any person, beingthe bishop, overseer or presiding elder of any church orreligious denomination in this state, may, in conformity withthe constitution, canons, rules, regulations or discipline ofsuch church or denomination, become a corporation sole, inthe manner prescribed in this chapter, as nearly as may be;and, thereupon, said bishop, overseer or presiding elder, asthe case may be, together with his successors in office or position,by his official designation, shall be held and deemedto be a body corporate, with all the rights and powers prescribedin the case of corporations aggregate; and with allthe privileges provided by law for religious corporations.”Some other states allowing corporation sole are California,Colorado, Hawaii, Michigan and the two Carolinas. SeeCatholic management: Bishop WilliamSkylstad of Spokane, Washington, thenewly elected president of the US Conferenceof Catholic Bishops, meets withPresident Bush in the Oval Office. Asbishop, Skylstad is the “corporate sole”of all church properties in the Spokanediocese and answerable to no lay boardof trustees.www.geocities.com/corporatesole/ formore information.The corporation sole is the modelused by the Catholic Church (andsome other churches) in many states.In fact, the concept of corporation soleoriginated with the Catholic Churchas far back as the 4th century. It cameinto American law via English CommonLaw, under which it was usedby the Church of England. In theCatholic system, the bishop or archbishop,as the head of a diocese, ownsthe Church property in his capacity as“corporate sole.” The Catholic Churchis a hierarchical organization, strictlyfollowing what is known as canon law,which dictates all powers and dutiesof Church officials, including howdecisions are made, how funds are allocated, and how successorsare chosen. This structure has been followed by theCatholic Church for generations, and the Internal RevenueService is perfectly comfortable with it for those reasons.The hierarchical structures present within many guru andpriestly lineages, for example, are clear and traditional andshould sustain the requirements of the corporation sole.The IRS states, “A corporation sole may own property and enterinto contracts as a natural person, but only for the purposesof the religious entity and not for the individual office holder’spersonal benefit. Title to property that vests in the office holderas a corporation sole passes not to the office holder’s heirs, butto the successors to the office by operation of law.”It should come as no surprise that this type of entity issubject to tremendous abuse. There have been numerous taxscams over the last several years—and they continue today—that promise to protect individuals’ personal assets from taxliability. All the person has to do is to claim to be a leader ofhis own church and file the corporation sole documents inan approving state (usually for a fee to the person promotingthe arrangement, of course). In fact, there is no protectionfor personal assets from tax liability through the corporationsole, and the government stringently prosecutes thosewho would avoid paying taxes by these means. They do soin order to enforce the underlying rule that the corporationsole exists only for the benefit of the religious entity.Because of these problems, a corporation sole will obviouslyraise a red flag with the IRS. But a temple that adheresin good faith to the rules should not have any problemsobtaining approval and maintaining good standing. There isa wealth of information on the web regarding the corporationsole, but beware, much of it is produced by scammers,so read carefully and look to the sources. Also, do not besurprised if your otherwise competent attorney has neverheard of this corporate form before you mentioned it!56 hinduism today july/august/september, 2006 j u ly / au g u s t / s e p t e m b e r , 2 0 0 6 h i n d u i s m t o d ay 57

important that not only the conflict but eventhe appearance of a possible conflict mustbe avoided. In the roofing illustration, DirectorX can avoid the conflict by disclosinghis relation to the roofing company, tellingthe board it needs to receive a number ofcompetitive bids and removing himselffrom consideration of the contract. Thenthe board is able to weigh all the factors—includingthe fact that the brother-in-law is agood friend of the temple—before grantingthe contract to him or another.As another illustration that is not so obvious,temple fund-raisers often casually suggestto potential donors that their gifts tothe temple might be advantageous for theirtax situation, without realizing that they are1) giving unqualified tax advice and 2) in aposition of a direct conflict of interest. Theconflict is that their unqualified tax adviceis being used to encourage the donation. Solicitorsshould always tell potential donors toobtain independent tax advice.If board members act with a reasonablestandard of care, most states’ laws shieldthem from personal liability. A simple limitationof liability provision in the temple’scharter or articles of incorporation will helpin giving a sense of security to would-be directors.The most common kinds of liabilityin temples are claims for personal injuriesoccurring on temple premises or accidentsinvolving temple automobiles driven bytemple employees or volunteers on templebusiness. Legitimate claims like these arepart of doing business and are covered bythe temple’s ordinary liability insurance. Unfortunately,it is not unheard of for people toname directors individually in an attempt tospeed up a settlement. On the other hand, aboard that recklessly hires a manager witha known criminal history could, in fact, incurconsiderable financial difficulty for thetemple if the manager causes harm to, say,a festival bystander. To avoid such possibilities,it is wise to work with the temple’s insuranceagent and attorney to put into placea complete system of risk management stepsfor the board.Actual misconduct or gross negligence ofboard members is not generally covered bya limitation of liability/indemnity clause inthe charter or articles of incorporation. Ifa board member strongly disagrees with aboard course of action to such a degree thathe feels the board is no longer acting in thebest interest of the temple, it is importantto create a clear record of the disagreementin order to avoid potential personal risk. Heshould have his dissent explicitly recordedin the board’s minutes.It is good to remember at all times the factthat a temple board is supporting the religiouslife of its congregation and that it owesa high duty of care to the temple and its resources.This should be kept in mind evenTransparent accounting: Money shouldbe handled most carefully in the temple,as shown here by the priest counting theday’s receipts on the temple floor in frontof the Deity and devoteesto the smallest consideration, like accidentallywalking off with a pen that belongs tothe temple in one’s pocket. Maintaining thehighest standards of honesty and integrity inour behavior as temple leaders is a minimalethical requirement to fulfill our service.Practical Temple ManagementIn dealing with management, a few goodpractices will help keep the temple runningsmoothly and demonstrate integrity for allto see:•State the manager’s authority clearly interms of the nonprofit purposes of thetemple.Set out in writing job descriptions, ethicsrules and conflict-of-interest preventionpolicies for board members and officers,management, employees and volunteers.Create and work within an annual operatingbudget and have regular independentfinancial audits; annually prepare cashflow and income projections and a financialstatement.Plan fund-raising programs in compliancewith the Council of Better BusinessBureaus’ Standards for Charity Accountability(see www.give.org/standards/newcbbstds.asp).Follow a set procedure for hiring and evaluatingmanagers.Devise a procedure for reporting and disclosureby the manager to the board onmatters such as employment problems,potential or threatened litigation by anyone,illegal or criminal acts of employeesand any violence or threats of violence.If a manager is ineffective, the temple•••••board should take steps proactively to helpimprove his or her performance before thesituation becomes difficult. Likewise, ifboard members are ineffective or impedethe work of the board, the best course isalways to strive to improve by discussing,asking questions and seeking to find alternativeswith the person involved. Of course,the fact that someone frequently has objectionsmight not mean that the person is justbeing troublesome. Maybe there are significantproblems with how the board operates.The board leaders should be open to consideringthese matters in light of the mission ofthe temple and treating everyone concernedwith the greatest respect and dignity possible.The process and outcome will thuselevate everyone.It should be remembered that while thecourts are extremely reluctant to look intothe internal affairs of a church, this privilegedstatus is not absolute. A court will ac-arun mishra/dinodia photo libraryMoneycept a dispute that can be decided on “neutralprinciples of law,” such as a real estate orcontract matter, in which the temple is actingas a business corporation, even if it mayconcern purely internal matters, but notwith respect to issues where the decisiondepends on doctrinal matters. While theywould refuse to examine whether a priest’squalifications made him unsuitable for hiring,they might consider whether his contractallowed for termination without cause.While they would avoid issues regardingdisciplining members for doctrinal reasons,they might look into allegations that certainactivities violate the rule against assets benefitingindividuals. My advice is to stay outof courts as much as possible by using alternativemethods of dispute resolution.VolunteersVolunteers are a tremendous asset to a templeand should be treated as such. For theirbenefit—and the temple’s as well—volunteers’duties should be carefully delineated.Set forth the expectations of volunteers inwriting and give them clear guidelines forthe work to be done. The volunteer shouldknow the extent of the commitment in advanceso that there is a clear understandingon both sides. Again, for the protectionof all, volunteers should be included in thetemple’s liability insurance and should beadvised to speak with their own insuranceagents to determine whether they have anypersonal risk that should be covered undertheir own policies. This particularly appliesfor those volunteers who drive a temple vehicleor drive their own vehicle on templebusiness or who work with children. In theprocess of working to carry out the missionof service to the temple, volunteers do, afterall, often have quite a lot of contact with thepublic. It is a good idea for frequent volunteersto consider buying an inexpensive umbrellapolicy to supplement their ordinaryhomeowners’ liability policy.Zoning disputesThere can be nothing so contentious as initiallyobtaining land for a temple. In 2000,President Clinton signed the Religious LibertyLand Use and Institutionalized PersonsAct, which gave religious institutions a specialstatus vis-a-vis local land use regulations.In the past, zoning and planning obstaclescould be placed in the way of religiousgroups meeting in everything from privatehomes to storefronts and rented theaters tolarge complexes. It often seemed that thistreatment was reserved for minority religions,but Christian groups frequently hadthe same complaint. Under this new law,government units making land use determinationsmust treat religious organizations atleast equally with secular ones, and cannotexclude or limit religious uses just becausethey are religious.This law is in response to neighborhoodconflicts over land use, often the source ofdifficult disputes and a huge obstacle formany—if not most—new temple projects.While the law is a valuable aid and certainlywill help in intractable situations, itis a better idea to take a positive, proactiveapproach with activities like neighborhoodevents, open houses, distribution of sweetsto neighbors at festival times, and even facilitatedmeetings where both the temple bodyand the prospective neighbors can maketheir feelings known in order to minimizethe potential animosity. Forcing the temple’sway into the community through legal meansfound in this act may result in decades of disharmonywith the surrounding community.Conflict resolutionNumerous relationships exist within atemple, between and among the board, themanagement, the priests, volunteers, donors,members, temple devotees and the outsidecommunity. In each combination there isthe potential for disagreements, disputesand full-blown conflict. I strongly recommendthat difficulties affecting any of theserelationships be handled first through a typeof process called “alternative dispute resolution”or “ADR.” These are methods otherthan the system of lawyers and courts. Themost widely used methods are mediationand arbitration.Litigation, unfortunately, seems to bringout the worst in people, is costly, and tendsto freeze people’s positions, leaving littlechance of reaching a truly amicable resolutionor settlement. ADR, on the other hand, isa way of resolving disputes that honors bothsides and aims to reach a win-win solution.It is a good idea to include a clause providingfor disputes to be submitted to arbitration ormediation in all organizational documents,including bylaws, as well as in all contractsand agreements to which the temple is aparty. In this process, which is less formalthan litigation, a religious elder or other individualrespected by both parties may actas the arbitrator/mediator, or it can be doneby a person trained in ADR. The AmericanArbitration Association (AAA) has offices inmost every city and has experienced peoplewho will get acquainted with the basic factsof the situation and then allow both sidesto present their case as part of the processof arbitration or mediation. Temple leadersshould be comfortable calling upon them toassist when there are disputes, for the mutualbenefit of all involved. The AAA hasguidelines for “Drafting Dispute ResolutionClauses” at www.adr.org.In conclusionTemples generally operate without problems.People work together smoothly to serve Godand the congregation, but difficulties canarise, so it is advisable to prepare for suchdifficulties in advance. To protect the assetsof the temple is the first responsibility ofthose involved in temple work. It is thus importantto be up front. Don’t shy away fromthese issues because they embarrass you ormake you uncomfortable. Set up the rulesby which everyone will play and then followthem yourself most carefully. Keep in mindthe tremendous responsibilities entailed inoperating a public institution and ensurethat they will all be adequately met.As you may know, the US is perceived asa highly litigious society. But there is anotherreason for stressing, as I have, this strictway of doing business in your temple. It iscommon for US temples to be built with thecontributions of a large number of peopleand with broad public interest. There is a lotat stake. Notwithstanding the nature of ourown personal involvement in temple work,the mission must be unaffected. Remember,the temple is the place where we leaveour egos at the door seeking darshan and toworship God.∏πKatherine Nanda, nowretired, practiced in anumber of fields of lawin Colorado for almost20 years. She was afounding member ofthe Hindu Temple andCultural Center of theRockies near Denver, Colorado, USA.58 hinduism today july/august/september, 2006 j u ly / au g u s t / s e p t e m b e r , 2 0 0 6 h i n d u i s m t o d ay 59

“Saving our Scripturess c r i p t u r e sFrench Institute holds the world’s largest collection of Saiva holy textsjust cannot sit idle,” says s. sambandaSivacharyar of Cuddalore. “Oneday, if I don’t read or see a manuscript,that day I shall be very uncomfortable.”The white-bearded, wisened Sivacharyarhas been with the French Institute ofPondicherry for 37 years, purchasing, organizing,cataloging and assisting with thecritical editing and translation of ancientSaiva manuscripts. Even at 79, having authoredfive books on temple rituals himself,he’s not ready to retire. There is much workyet to be done to preserve and bring forthtens of thousands of texts which record theritual and philosophical knowledge that hasbeen locked within his Adisaiva priest traditionfor millennia.The French Institute of Pondicherry is aresearch institute of the French Ministry ofForeign Affairs. Most of the Institute’s activitiesfall into the areas of social sciencesand ecology. The Indology department isworking to preserve the subcontinent’s extraordinaryheritage of ancient religiousmanuscripts, one of only a handful of suchbodies in the world.The collection began in 1955, shortly afterthe Institute’s founding, when Dr. JeanFilliozat, late founder-director of the Instituteand director of the French School ofthe Far East, wished to explain the Hindutemple and what happens in it. He set outto collect as many of the materials he couldfind relating to South India’s rich Saivite tradition.Pandit N.R. Bhatt, 81, a scholar ofthe French School and now retired head ofIndology at the Institute, spearheaded thecollection effort in the late ’50s. The manuscriptswere gathered from private collectionsof temples, priests and monasteriesacross South India. Bhatt scoured the Tamilcountryside for Saiva manuscripts, sometimesbringing back entire collections that includedmany other categories of texts as well.The Adisaivas, Tamil Nadu’s hereditaryclan of Sivacharya temple priests, trustinglysold and sometimes gifted manuscripts,mostly in the form of palm-leaf bundles,which had been in their families for centuries.Sambanda Sivacharyar recalls, “In1975, a priest in Chennai who was so poorwillingly gave us a bag full of manuscriptsunconditionally.” The Institute’s promise inreturn was to carefully protect and preserve,and eventually transcribe and translate, it all.The Institute now has about 8,600 manuscriptstransmitting approximately 60,000texts. Jointly with the French School of the FarEast, the total collection of over 11,000 manuscriptsincludes the world’s largest assemblageof texts of Hinduism’s Saiva Siddhantatradition. More than half of these are SaivaAgamas, honored along with the Vedas asHinduism’s revealed scriptures, and paddhatis,ritual manuals based on the Agamas.Included in the collection are significantnumbers of devotional hymns and legendsabout holy places, Vedic astrology texts, epics,myths and legends, traditional medicaltexts, Vedas and other literary works.Among the manuscripts, 6,850 are writtenin Sanskrit, 1,200 in Tamil, with others inTulu, Telugu, Malayalam, Manipravalam (acombination of Malayalam and Sanskrit) andKannada. The Sanskrit texts are inscribed inall of the nine Indian scripts used to writeSanskrit: Devanagari, Grantha, Tamil, Malayalam,Kannada, Nandinagari, Sarada(Kashmiri), Tulu and Nepali. In additionto plain text, there are Oriya manuscriptsthat have abundant drawings and diagrams.Some Tamil manuscripts show yantras, anda few Malayalam manuscripts show illustrationsof the human body.Of palm leaves and people: (Left) Vimalanathanperuses palm-leaf bundles in theair-conditioned storage room. (Right) Themanuscripts come in many shapes andsizes. (Middle left) Vimalanathan applieslemongrass oil to the leaves to deter insects.(Middle right) Two of the smallest palmleafbundles. (Below) Sambanda Sivacharyarand translator T. Ganesan with theInstitute’s published Agama translations.Most of the manuscripts—8,187, to be exact—arein the form of palm-leaf bundles asmuch as three centuries old. In addition tothe palm-leaf bundles, there are 360 papercodices and 1,144 recent paper transcripts,hand copies of palm leaves that were madewhen the owners wouldn’t allow the leavesthemselves to be taken.The palm leaves come in a range of sizes,from the Ramayana Aaroodam at just a fewinches across to one on the Saiva Agamasat 45 inches long. These leaves, onto whichletters are incised with a stylus, can deterioratequickly in South India’s climate. Manyof them are perforated with holes left byinsect larvae. They are so fragile that theyare damaged each time they are handled;pieces break off, sometimes carrying withthem fragments of writing. In an effort topreserve the leaves as long as possible, thecollection’s unsung hero, Vimalanathan,spent two years methodically brushingthem free of insect debris, applying lemongrassoil and placing the leaves in the hotsun to dry before restacking them.Since the effort began in the 1950s, theInstitute has published thirteen books translatingseven of the 28 Saiva Agamas intoFrench. More translations are underway,but the bulk of the department’s energy iscurrently being consumed in an effort todigitally photograph and catalog the entiremanuscript collection. This is no easy task.Describing the texts contained in the manuscriptsis difficult and tedious, consideringthat a single palm-leaf bundle can containdozens of texts. The tiny letters are typicallyengraved without spaces between words orbetween where one text ends and anotherbegins. There is not even any emphasis toindicate chapter titles.Thus, this process is a slow one, requiringnot only great physical care but intimate familiaritywith Sanskrit scriptures. The Institute’sgoal is to make the collection availablein a searchable online database for anyoneresearching Saiva religion and philosophy. Apilot CD entitled “Parampara” was releasedin 1999. The first complete section of thecatalog, covering the 1,144 paper transcripts,is to be published on the web by the end of2006. Indeed, after 50 years of effort, thebulk of the project is yet to be done. ∏πWith Kesava Mallia, Hyderabad, Indiafor more information visit www.ifpindia.orgall photos: copyright © french institute of pondicherry60 hinduism today july/august/september 2006july/august/september 2006 h i n d u i s m t o d ay 61

f o o dRussian Vegetarianism?Famous for its meat and potatoes, the country hasa real style with veggies—and here are two recipesBy Jane Srivastava, USAjoke from my birthplace goessomething like this: Someone notfamiliar with Russia asks a Russian:“Are there any vegetarians in Russia?”To which the Russian responds: “Ipersonally don’t know any, but thosewho tried it have not survived.” Thisjoke rings true because for manyyears it had been virtually impossiblefor Russians to be vegetarians.The Soviet regime considered vegetarianisma pseudoscientific andbourgeois theory that contravenedSoviet ideology. They severely persecutedfollowers of vegetarian lifestyles.During Soviet times, due tothe year-round shortage of foodof any kind, people simply couldnot survive on vegetarian diets.The idea of abstention from meatis not foreign to the Russians. Beforethe Revolution of 1917, themajority of Russians observed OrthodoxChristian traditional fasts,which excluded meat. In 1901, thefirst vegetarian society opened inSaint Petersburg. In the followingyears, nine other vegetarian societieswere founded that carried out avariety of activities. They openedvegetarian restaurants and cafesjane srivastavain many cities, operated vegetarianhospitals, published vegetariannewspapers and magazines. Amongsome of the famous Russian vegetariansof the end of 19th, beginning ofthe 20th, centuries were writers Leo Tolstoyand Ivan Bunin, composer AlexanderSkriabin and painter Isaac Levitan. Tolstoy,incidentally, carried on a lengthy and influentialcorrespondence with the young MahatmaGandhi in South Africa. Gandhi, infact, used his ideas to found Tolstoy Farmin South Africa, which served as a trainingground for the passive resistance movement(see www.anc.org.za/ancdocs/history/people/gandhi/bhana.html).After the fall of the Soviet Union in 1991,interest in vegetarianism and the number ofvegetarians have continued to rise. The newRussia offers freedom and the link to therest of the world that citizens had not experiencedfor over 70 years. Several vegetariansocieties have been created to promotehealthy lifestyles and oppose animal killing.All-vegetarian restaurants can now be foundin big cities, such as Moscow, Saint-Petersburgand Vladivostok. Supermarkets of theButtermilk and apple oladyi: These small pancakes areserved with jam and sour creamnew Russia carry a variety of vegetablesyear-round that make it possible to maintaina non-meat lifestyle.Many Russians have discovered vegetarianismas part of their interest in Easternreligions and philosophy, which are gainingpopularity among the Russians. Somehave chosen not to eat meat in their desireto achieve optimal health. Others do so justbecause it is fashionable. Whatever the motivation,vegetarian lifestyle is not affordableto everyone. A poll conducted by EurasianVegetarian Society (founded in 2001)learned that most vegetarians are amongthe intelligentsia and the wealthy. Manuallaborers, retired and the poor have the leastinterest in vegetarian lifestyle, or means toomeager to adopt it.Still, there are currently precious few vegetariansin Russia. The majority of Russiansare still skeptical about vegetarians andvegetarian lifestyle, and new vegetarians oftendo not find support and understandingfrom their friends and family. Many Russiansthink that voluntarily foregoing meatis crazy and may even harm your health. It’snot easy to be Russian and vegetarian whenthe rest of the community offers you a coldshoulder. Moskovite veggies are in need ofsupport and encouragement of their lifestyle.Visitors to Russia should not expect manyvegetarian choices in most restaurants andprivate fares. You can find a list of Moscowvegetarian restaurants at www.unclepasha.com/vegetarian_russia.htm. One is the upscale,pure vegetarian restaurant“Avocado” on Chistoprudny Boulevard,with mostly Russian cuisine.The traditional Russian table offersplenty of wonderful vegetablebaseddishes. However, the uniquemeat and fish dishes are still essentialto any spread. In fact, to mostRussians, absence of meat on thetable is considered a sign of povertyor inhospitality. Travelers who arewilling to cook their own meals willfind in local supermarkets most ofthe necessary ingredients to whipup a vegetarian meal.In my own kitchen in the UnitedStates, I utilize the best of thecuisines I grew up with—Russian,Jewish and Lithuanian—and, to accommodatemy husband, recentlyacquired Indian cooking skills. Myinterest in Indian culture, religionand cuisine led me to re-examinemy eating habits. As a result, I startedto make more healthful vegetable,grain and legume dishes, while atthe same time experimenting withthe recipes I grew up with. I wantto share some of my favorite healthyand easy recipes with HT readers.The first is that quintessential Russiandish, borscht, a beet soup. The traditionalversion calls for a meat base, but myvegetarian variant of this winter soup isjust as flavorful. The ingredients are: threeor four medium-sized beets, peeled andgrated; four grated carrots, one thinly slicedonion, two thinly cut medium potatoes, oneshredded small head of cabbage, three tablespoonseach of ketchup and tomato paste,a half teaspoon of sugar, a small bunch ofdill, oil, salt and pepper.Cook the potatoes and cabbage until tenderin six to eight cups of boiling water orprepared vegetable stock. Saute the onions,beets and carrots on medium heat for about10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Whenthe vegetables take on a nice aroma, addketchup, tomato paste, dill, salt, black pepperand sugar. Turn to coat well, then add tothe cooked potatoes and cabbage. Serve garnishedwith sour cream and dark-rye bread.Makes about six servings.The next recipe is for buttermilk andapple oladyi. Russian pancakes are of twokinds: oladyi (similar to the American pancakesbut smaller in size) and blini (similarto crepes). The ingredients are one cup plustwo tablespoons of all-purpose flour, twocups of buttermilk, one teaspoon of cornmeal, one apple, a quarter-cup raisins, onehalftablespoon of sugar, a pinch of bakingsoda and salt, and oil or ghee for frying.Pour buttermilk into a bowl. Grate onelarge peeled apple into the buttermilk. Addsugar, raisins, a pinch of baking soda and allHot beet borscht: This winter soup is Russia’smost famous dishthe flour to make the consistency of thicksour cream. Stir well. Heat about four tablespoonsof oil in a large frying pan. Thereshould be enough oil that the oladyi don’tstick. When the pan is hot, take a tablespoonand make several three-inch pancakes, cookand turn several times until golden brown.Add more oil as you put on a new batch ofpancakes. If you have enough oil in the pan,but can’t turn the pancakes or they stick,you will probably need to add the flour tothe mixture. This makes about 15 oladyi.Serve with jam and a dollop of sour cream.Priyatnogo appetita!∏πTolstoy’s 19th Century Vegetarian CrusadeThe following article is excerpted fromthe address of Valentin Bulgakov to the8th World Vegetarian Congress held inBerlin and Hamburg, Germany, in 1932(posted at www.ivu.org/congress/wvc32/bulgakov.html). Bulgakov was at one timeTolstoy’s private secretary. It is translatedfrom a summary of the talk given in Russianand published in The VegetarianNews (London), September, 1932.t is now four years since thecentenary of the birth of Leo Tolstoy,who certainly must be accounted oneof the great ones of the earth, wascelebrated. During the last twenty-threeyears of his life he was a vegetarian and,by reason of his great fame and moralauthority, he has done great service tothe vegetarian movement.He understood thoroughly the hygienicgrounds for vegetarianism, but it was notfor such reasons that he became a vegetarian. Most assuredly, itwas the ethical standpoint that influenced him. Nor was the ideathat was in his mind either detached or isolated. On the contrary,that idea was essentially associated with his world outlook, thatoutlook, perhaps, being most correctly summarized in all that isexpressed in the word humane. Tolstoy always declared that hewas a Christian, by which he meant he had no new teaching topromulgate, his business being simply to translate the teachingsof the gospels into modern speech and practice. Man, he held,though confined within the limits of the flesh, yet remains theexpression of an eternal Principle. In a word, he is a son of God,and by inference all men are brothers. The natural bond betweenthem is the bond of love, and this should extend also to all livingcreatures. One and the same “soul” is common to all; and, realizingthis, it becomes impossible that men should either slay or hurtanimals. The publication of Tolstoy’s essay, “The First Step” had aquite staggering effect upon the Russian society of his day, manyfine and sensitive people thus becoming vegetarians.Tolstoy felt very keenly the absolute inhumanity of eatingflesh, and on one occasion (as has so often been told), by waygetty hulton archiveCount Leo Tolstoy (1828-1910): The renownedauthor of War and Peace and Anna Kareninajane srivastavaof clinching an argument with a sisterin-lawwho was a confirmed flesh-eaterordered a live fowl to be tied near herplace at the luncheon table and calledfor a plate and large knife likewise to beprovided, whereupon he proceeded toaddress her somewhat as follows: “Weall know, dear one, how fond you are offlesh, and we should like to provide youwith what you wish, but the difficultyis that none of us can bring himself toslay the bird for you. Therefore, thereseems to be no other way but to ask thatyou should do it for yourself.” His guest,however, who was much perturbed,could not bring herself to do as was suggestedand was obliged, for that occasionat least, to deny herself the right to eatflesh, which she had hitherto so vehementlyclaimed to be her due.The friends and followers of Tolstoyplayed a great part in the work of theMoscow Vegetarian Society; but the whole of its possessions wereconfiscated three years ago in 1929 by the Soviet Government,and today in Russia there is no organized vegetarian movement.So weak, it seems, is the position of the dictator that even thevegetarian idea is accounted dangerous! Russian vegetarians,amid all their difficulties, yet continue to show a spirit of “victoriousearnestness.”Many economic communities were also established by followersof Tolstoy, but, finally, I must tell you something about the Doukhobors,a people (the name means “warriors of the spirit”) whoseexistence, as a following, goes back even to the middle of the eighteenthcentury. The Doukhohors are, in fact, a Christian peasantsociety, existing without the fold of the Church, whose messagereceived an added strength by reason of the influx of the teachingof Tolstoy, the whole society in 1890, under the direct influenceof one Peter Werigin by name, electing to become vegetarians. In1898, under the Russian regime at that time, and with the directassistance of Tolstoy, about 8,000 Doukhobors decided to migrateto Canada, where their numbers have since grown to about15,000—all, with but few exceptions, still being vegetarians.62 hinduism today july/august/september, 2006 july/august/september, 2006 h i n d u i s m t o d ay 63

p a r e n t i n gA Parent’s EssentialSkill: StorytellingWith stories, you can teach your children, intheir developing years, the art and craft of lifeb y r a m a d e va g u p t ay father was nevertrained as a professionalstoryteller; heis a retired engineer.And yet, some of my fondestchildhood memoriesand valuable learning experiencescan be traced tothe innumerable stories myfather narrated to me as achild and teenager. It did notmatter what day of the weekor what time of night it was.Besides the daily morningroutine, where he would tell a story whilegetting ready for work, whenever there wasa moral to be conveyed, a painful lesson tobe learned, after my mother’s questioningand reprimanding was over, my father wouldamazingly narrate a story whose characters,by some strange quirk of fate, also happenedto be encountering questions, frustrationsand dilemmas similar to mine.Often, by the end of the story, even as achild, I’d gain a new perspective regardingmy feelings and emotions, and come outwith a deeper understanding of the nextstep of action. Modern psychologists mightvery well state that listening to parables, legendsand fables allowed me to come to termswith my own “case history” with feelings ofrenewed spontaneity, creative problem-solvingand wonder.“Children learn best when they are unawareof the fact that they are being taught,”explains my master, Shri ParthasarathiRajagopalachari (affectionately known asChariji), the president of Shri Ram ChandraMission and spiritual guide for Sahaj Margmeditation practitioners. “That is why play,perhaps, is so intimately intertwined withthe teaching process. Children learn practicallyall they are ever going to learn withinthe first six or seven years of their lives.”It is, therefore, no wonder that storytellinghas been employed as a powerful toolthroughout the centuries—by parents, grandparents,teachers, educators, saintsand seers. In fact, storytellinghas been part and parcelof mankind since the beginningof time—from the daysof petrography utilized byprehistoric cave-dwellers toCD-ROMs created by computerscientists for kids growingup in the modern era.“When did we first get exposedto the presence of ahigher power in our life?” we might occasionallywonder. Walking down the obscureroad of foggy, distant memories, we mayeventually recognize that, in all likelihood,our first exposure to God, to religion andto spirituality started from a tale narratedby a parent or grandparent at bedtime. Forinstance, the Hindu psyche has imbibed itsknowledge and insights from the deep treasurechest of Ramayana, Mahabharata andPuranas. Native Americans draw inspirationfrom their vast storehouse of oral folklore.Buddhist teachers reveal the timeless wisdomhidden in Zen stories and Jataka tales.Islam depends on its wealthy inheritance ofstories from Sufi scholars and saints. Judaismdraws its richness from Hasidic examples aswell as Biblical histories of Abraham, Isaac,Jacob, Joseph, Job and others. In Christianity,the New Testament describes how Jesustaught the masses in parables, and reservedthe esoteric teaching for his disciples whenthey were away from the crowds.Augusta Baker and Ellin Greene, authors ofStorytelling: Art and Technique, speak aboutthe need for this craft in simple, everydaylanguage. “Storytelling brings to the listenersheightened awareness,” they say, “a senseof wonder, of mystery, of reverence for life.”Joseph Campbell, the world-renownedscholar of mythology, states pithily, “Thefolktale is the primer of the picture-landinodiaNever outgrown: In Hindu culture, storytelling isn’tonly important for our children, but is a means of communicatingthe deeper concepts, principles and valuesof our religion and culture—as well as practical advice—throughouttheir formative years.guage of the soul.” In Care of the Soul: AGuide for Cultivating Depth and Sacrednessin Everyday Life, Thomas Moore writes:“Storytelling is an excellent way of caringfor the soul. It helps us see the themes thatcircle in our lives, the deep themes that tellthe myths we live.”In Stories to Nourish the Hearts of OurChildren, contemporary storyteller LauraSimms shares from her professional andpersonal experience: “Listening to a storyis a dynamic process that delights childrenwhile allowing them to imagine themselvesin a variety of situations. Stories are nondidacticteaching tools. A story heard isnot an explanation, but an experiencethat is enduring and enriching. Eachchild personally integrates the story,embodying the characters and experiencingthe events.”“Stories contain seeds of healing,”she adds, “and telling themencourages growth and rejuvenation.Storytelling is an ancientmethod that has always served to bringpeople together and to stimulate creativeimagination, wisdom and compassion.”Unfortunately, the fabric of today’s society iswoven together by nuclear families consistingof over-exhausted fathers and mothers, andits tapestry is strewn with the complexities ofmodern technology and gadgets. Consequently,it is not surprising that stressful parents havelittle time and no energy to spare, and areunable to live in the present and enjoy thelaughter from the oral tradition. Even the littleones do not have the freedom to indulge in themake-believe world of dressing up, play actingand fantasy games. In order to get a head startand be one step ahead in tomorrow’s rat race,more and more youngsters are being sent topreschools and kindergarten at a ridiculouslyyoung age—victims of “the hurried childhoodsyndrome.” Additionally, due to the indiscriminateexposure to cable television, videos, DVDsand computer games, the youth in developedas well as developing world nations are facinga major crisis of values.“Modern life has deprived the youngergeneration of access to the fairy tales of yesteryears,” laments Shri Rajagopalachari inDown Memory Lane. “They were entrancingbeyond belief. But their greatest valuelay not in their charm, but in their ability togive children, during their formative years,a permanent foundation of value systemswhich they absorbed without being awareof the fact that they were learning the mostprofound values of life. And since such valueswere implanted deep into the child’sinner core of the developing human being,those values remained, to be called uponlater in life in the form of hidden reserves ofstrength and fortitude, when the now-grownupadult faced temptations or trying situationsin actual life.”One can safely conclude that the loss ofmorals and ethics is a clear reflection of thediminishing importance given to folktales,myths and legends in our fast-food cultureand life in the high-speed lane. One way oranother, we have to learn to simplify our livesand attend to our inner growth and nurturethe spiritual development of our children.Drawing attention to the timeless wisdominherited from the collective human experiencein myths and symbols, and stressingthe importance of reading myths, JosephCampbell explains how “they teach you thatyou can turn inward, and you begin to getthe message of the symbols.” He suggeststhat we ought to “read other people’s myths,not those of your own religion, because youtend to interpret your own religion in termsof facts—but if you read the other ones, youbegin to get the message. Myth helps you toput your mind in touch with this experienceof being alive.”When I was a child, little did I realize theimportance of storytelling in my life! Neither64 hinduism today july/august/september, 2006 july/august/september, 2006 h i n d u i s m t o d ay 65

did I know that reading and telling storieswould eventually become an integral part ofmy parenting philosophy and style. My eleven-year-oldson and nine-year-old daughterhave been exposed to myths, fables, legends,folktales and spiritual stories from birth.The very first piece of music my son hearda few hours after coming into this worldwas the heartfelt devotional rendition of theRamcharitmanas by the late Indian singerMukesh—thanks to the audiotapes I had deliberatelypacked in the maternity bag for66 hinduism today july/august/september, 2006my hospital stay. Ever since, it has become adaily ritual in our house to share stories frommythology and scriptures at bedtime.During the last decade, I have observedmy children responding to storytellers andreaders with varied reactions—ranging frominterest and rapt attention to passiveness andplain disinterest—at school, in the librariesand in the comfort of our home. Watchingtheir love for stories, I am nostalgically remindedof my father’s gift for storytellingand the role that mythology and folktalesStorytelling: A Dozen Practical Tipsplayed in my self-development. As JosephCampbell claims, these stories became thelaunching pad for my spiritual journey, asthe writers and narrators had a clear, unmistakablegoal in sight: to evoke inspirationand deeper thinking in the young listener’sheart and mind.∏πrama devagupta, ph.d., is a full-time mother and freelancewriter. she has been published in hinduism today,parabola, yoga international, u: you can changethe world, tri-city herald, constant remembrance,the new times, sirs renaissance and ascent. she maybe reached at rama_devagupta@msn.com.n light of the wisewords of scholars and spiritualteachers in my storyabove, I hope parents willfind it worthwhile to reflecton the significance of the artand craft of storytelling for thebenefit of the younger generation.I hope parents will tryto claim the torch of storytellingby following a few of thetips listed below. At one timeor another, I have used themmyself and it has been an enjoyableexperience for me andmy children.1) Read the story for yourselfbefore you read it to thechild. Absorb it, digest it andtry to capture not just itsmoral, but also its essence.2) Know the story well sothat if you are interrupted,you can jump back into itcomfortably.3) Identify yourself mentallywith the child. Listen to thestory with a child’s ears andsee how you might make itmore appealing. Feel free toadapt and revise dependingon the age of your child.4) Don’t use a monotonousvoice. Polish up your tone andstyle with some drama.5) Allow yourself to get intothe heart of the characters tomake the tale come alive. Itis important for the child toidentify with the emotionsand feelings of the characters.6) Be natural. Allow thestory to flow through you.For smaller children, facialexpressions and hand movementsused in a spontaneous,creative way evoke an enthusiasticresponse.Simple gestures, likea sparkle in the eyes,happy smile, angeror sadness in thevoice, can successfullyrecreate thestory’s original atmosphere.7) You are Helping not givinga performance byhands: Doing right by your elder parents now means your children should do rightyoufor a critical adultaudience. Don’t bestiff-necked and selfconscious,worriedabout appearing silly.Your prime objectiveshould be to narratein a pleasurablemanner.8) Some storybooks come withcommentaries. Donot read the commentariesto youngcourtesy rama devguptachildren as theymight sound likea lecture. Mentionthe moral in fleetingreference. Wait forthem to ask questionsand when they do, guidethem in their thinking.9) Allow time and space fora dialogue with your childrento instill the higher values oflife. Reflection doesn’t have totake place immediately aftercompleting the reading; it canbe done during the ordinarymoments of your family life,during garden work, an eveningwalk or even at dinnertime.10) Sincerity is important instories that deal with ethicsand spirituality. The slightestStory-tellling friends: The author’s children, Sriram and Shanta (at right)with their friend Mukthi and their favorite auntie, Prashaanti, at the RichlandPublic Library during children’s storytime.hint of adult scepticism, andchildren will see through itimmediately. Remember thepower of thought: Your demeanorwill radiate whateveryou feel—whether it be faithor cynicism.11) Learn to live in the moment.Consider why we lovereading the stories narratedby spiritual masters like Buddhaand Shri RamakrishnaParamahansa with such enchantment.It is due to theirsimplicity, faith and surrenderto the Divine.12) Shri Ram Chandra ofShahjahanpur, affectionatelyknown as Babuji, the founderpresident of Shri Ram ChandraMission, once said: “Spiritualityis a science of wonder”and “Doubt is a poison forthe will.” So let us rememberto read these spiritual adventureswith a feeling of wonder,narrate them with wonder,and somewhere along the way,we would have taught our childrenthe art and craft of livinga well-integrated, balanced,happy life.∏πCommentaryGod on My DesktopMoving to America didn’t mean I had to leavemy favorite Deities and festivals behind in Indiab y K a u s a l y a s a p t h a r i s h iver since i can remember, god always played anintegral part in my traditional Tamil brahmin upbringingin Delhi. I would wake up to the sound of tinkling bellsemanating from our shrine room where my parents wouldbe seated on cane mats reciting aloud Sanskrit chants and offeringfresh flowers before a bevy of Gods, the morning sun addingeven more dazzle to the Deities’ ornamental glory.When I would come back from school, the lingering redolenceof incense from the day’s puja worship would tickle mynostrils even before the delectable aroma of the special dishesto be offered in the worship, such as payasam and kesari frommy mother’s kitchen, could enslave my olfactory senses.In my devout Hindu family, not a day passed without a puja,not a week elapsed without at least one visit to temples and nota month went by without marking some festival or other on theTamil Hindu calendar. By the time I hit my teens, in addition topopular festivals such as Janmashtami, I was also able to rattle offthe names of numerous lesser-known religious occasions such asKaradayan Nombu (observed by married women for the longevityof their husbands) or Maavilakku (for the prosperity of the family).Just a glance at the special dishes being prepared for a specificpuja was enough for me to guess the festival being celebrated.For instance, ezhu thaan kootu—a stew prepared with seven vegetables—meantit was Thiruvadarai in honor of Lord Siva, or thepointed tips of glistening sweet modakams signaled the arrival ofGanesh Chathurti.My grandparents and parents never lost an opportunity to teachme new chants, explaining the significance of each and the God forwhom it must be recited. I understood that each God has specificpowers in the celestial space: Ganesha removes obstacles, Lakshmishowers wealth, Hanuman gives prowess, Siva blesses women withgood husbands, and so on. Such constant familiarity with God hadme sometimes grumbling to my parents about going to templesmore often than necessary. And it wasn’t as if I saw a simultaneousreflection of rewards from the heavens in return for my dutifulreligious actions, such as inscribing “Shri Ramajayam” in Sanskritatop a letter addressed to my grandmother. My faith in the almightywas especially shaken when I once flunked math in spiteof memorizing the difficult Shyamaladandakam, the powerful Sanskirtchant for Saraswati that assures success in academics. Onceagain I questioned the existence of Gods when my pimples didn’tmiraculously disappear after a dip in the holy Ganges in Haridwar.I only hope, to this day, that I had better luck with my sins.My protests about my family’s overly religious ways came toan abrupt halt when I moved to the US. Suddenly, there wereno bells to wake me up, lighting incense sticks became bothersomedue to the sensitive smoke alarm in the apartment, and thenearest “temple” was a distant sixty miles away. To make mattersworse, I was in for a disappointment when I first saw the “HinduCultural Center,” which didn’t boast of any statuesque Chola-typetemple architecture replete with ornate entrance towers. I learnedthat it was formerly someone’s house andthat most Hindu temples in the US beararchitectural affinity to this one. It alsofrustrated me that I had to increasinglydepend on long-distance phone calls tomy family and friendly e-mail remindersfrom my mother to alert me to the arrivalof each of those festivities I had oncetaken for granted. Let’s just say that it wasa humbling experience for me and a tadamusing for my parents, who saw a deeplyreligious side of their daughter surface ona different continent.Within a few months of my newfoundspiritual awakening on foreign shores, Irealized the need to connect with Godin ways my parents had taught me to. Iset up a small puja space in the bedroom,visited the temple as often as I could andrecited all those chants with alarmingregularity. But this wasn’t enough to nourishme spiritually.Now in the US, in the absence of myfolks’ guiding presence to veer my religiousdestiny, my hunger for findingGod led me to rediscovering Him on theInternet. It all started with my Googling“Saibaba,” which took me to the home pageof the Shirdi Saibaba web site (www.saibaba.org), where not onlydid I have His darshan (sight of the divine), but was also treatedto melodious Saibaba hymns. For a divine moment I was magicallytransported to the Shirdi shrine in Nasik, Maharashtra—whichI have visited in the past—but this time minus the meanderingqueues leading up to his enshrined statue.This e-experience had me hooked. And still has, in my seventhyear in the US. It’s like fast food for the soul. Whenever I am inthe mood for having a darshan of a particular God, all I have todo is Google His name. The God of my preference lights up mycomputer screen with a click of the mouse and I don’t even haveto struggle for His glimpse like in an actual temple. I take my owntime savoring the beauteous image of Balaji and His two consortson Tirupati’s official web site (www.tirumala.org) without having tobother with jostling crowds and strict temple authorities interruptingmy darshan as they generally do in the Tirupati Devasthana.My e-pilgrimages not only take me to temples I have never visited,but also offer added privileges, like allowing me to partakein real-time worship and order special pujas of my choice—allfrom the convenience of my laptop. Moreover, unlike real temples,these e-darshans are accessible 24/7, paying scant heed to God’snoon-time or late-night rest requirements. However, I do make it apoint to remove my footwear before I enter God’s online sanctumsanctorum. There are no shortcuts for some habits.My parents are now so accustomed to my online temple visits thatthey occasionally advise me to go to a particular Deity’s web site foradding to my treasury of punya, religious merit. Like the other day,my mother told me to visit Garbaratchambikai Devi’s web site (www.garbaratchambigai.com) to seek Her blessings for progeny. The Goddess,who is known to grant children to couples, is now on my favoritelists. While vacationing in India, I no longer take my temple visits forgranted. I genuinely feel happy to go “temple-hopping” (the term usedby my amused husband) with my parents and feel equally blessed tosee God on my desktop when I return to the US.Kausalya Saptharishi is a freelance journalist living in NewJersey with her husband. She is grateful to the Internet for bringingher closer to God.j u ly / au g u s t / s e p t e m b e r , 2 0 0 6 h i n d u i s m t o d ay 67

Visit www.hindu.orgh i s t o r yMahenjodaro and Harappan Civilizations, Alive on the Web!With all the debate over ancientIndian history, you may have wondered,“What do we really know about theancient Indus civilizations?” Well, thanksto the years of dedication and sacrifice byarcheologists and a competent web teaman historical “revelation” awaits you atwww.harappa.com and its sister site www.mohenjodaro.net.Does history normally put you to sleep?Well, this could be your wake-up call.These sites may get your heart pounding,unfolding a remarkable ancient civilizationand a fascinating tale of discovery.The two cities of this 5,000-year-old civilization,located in what is now Pakistan,come alive with flash movies, sound bites,2,151 substantive web pages with images,essays and movies. Did you know that thecity of Harappa, started around 3300 bceand had an estimated 40,000 population?If the Aryan Invasion debate gets abit heavy at times, you will find thesesites refreshingly free of opinions on thesubject. For those, see www.archaeologyonline.net.Meanwhile, here is just a tiny glimpseof images offered at these sites [left toright, top to bottom:] the great bath ofMohenjodaro, 12 meters long, 7 meterswide, 2.4 meters deep; Richard Meadowphotographs the “Great Granary;” thefamous Mohenjodaro “priest-king” sculpturewith “eye bead” ornament; Harappansteatite bead necklace fragments,fired and glazed, ca. 3100 bce; stonewarebangle; faience swastika button seal; Mohenjodarobath and “granary” at dawn;clearing outside the southeast corner ofthe “granary;” hand-built pot, ca. 3100bce; large square unicorn seal, a symbolfound throughout the culture; deep diggingat the “granary” reveals buildingsdated to ca 2450 bce. The visible “granary”appears to have been constructedca. 2300 bce, with a third structure builton top after 2200 bce.www.harappan.com, www.mahenjodaro.net

J a n u a r y t o M a r c h E n d o w m e n t C o n t r i b u t i o n sP l a n n e d G i v i n g t o H H E C h a r i t i e sWhat is planned giving? A planned gift can be any kind of gift, large or small,and can be for any purpose. While gifts of cash are the largest source of charitablegifts, planned gifts are typically not outright cash gifts. Rather, they aresizeable asset gifts, such as life insurance, real estate, stocks and bonds or mutualfunds to be used in the future. Charitable remainder trusts, gift annuitiesand other gift-planning arrangements are regularly funded using assets otherthan cash. Another definition of planned giving is the process of making acharitable gift of estate assets to one or more nonprofit organizations, such asHindu Heritage Endowment.The most common example of a planned gift is through a Will. A revocable Living Trust resemblesa Will, and setting it up is more involved, but it may have advantages for some people. Another exampleis a charitable remainder trust. During the life of a person, he or another person receives anincome from the trust and then the remaining assets would go to one or more charities. In 2005 theIraivan Hindu Temple Fund, HHE fund #2, received over US$1.3 million from a charitable remaindertrust.Life insurance policies provide the means by which a donor can make a large charitable gift at amodest out-of-pocket cost. There are three ways to give through life insurance: (1) the charity is thebeneficiary of the policy; (2) the charity is the owner and beneficiary of the policy; and (3) the lifeinsurance policy is a replacement for donated assets. Several HHE endowments are beneficiaries oflife insurance policies.A popular deferred gift is the charitable gift annuity, which is a lifetime contract between the donorand the charity. It is relatively simple to understand and establish. The donor can also namesomeone else as the annuitant to receive the annuity payments. The donor gives a gift, $50,000 forexample, and receives a set amount of money every year for the rest of his or her life.Some planned gifts, such a charitable gift annuity, are irrevocable. Others, such as will bequests,can be revoked. Depending on the country of the donor, an irrevocable gift can generate an immediateincome tax charitable deduction, whereas revocable gifts do not. A planned gift requires carefulthought on the part of the donor, considering his or her overall estate plan. Legal documents,created with the help of planned giving professionals, are often required. Planned gifts are usuallyarranged now and fulfilled later. There are numerous professional advisors in the charitable giftplanningfield: certified financial planners; estate planning attorneys; life insurance professionals;certified public accountants and trust officers.Kauai Aadheenam Monastic EndowmentAnonymous US$ 100.00Rajendra Giri 21.00Gunasekaran Kandasamy 320.00Niraj Thaker 14.20Other Donations 81,452.73Total 81,907.93Iraivan Temple EndowmentAnonymous 516.50Maruthu Pandian Dharmalingam 26.82T. Sri Ganesan 26.30Rajendra Giri 240.00Victoria Johnson 9.00Mohan Rao Korukonda 75.50S.V. Ravi Rahavendran 903.00Rakesh Sood 325.00Rajeswari Sundararajan 90.00Niraj Thaker 14.20Other Donations 27,773.68Total 30,000.00Kauai Aadheenam Annual Archana FundAnonymous 5.00Gunavadee Caremben 2.41Somasundaram Caremben 2.41Sukanta Caremben 2.41Maruthu Pandian Dharmalingam 359.94Rajendra Giri 21.00Tirunyanam Gunasegaran 4.95Victoria Johnson 3.00Kartikeya Easan Katir 243.11Dasan Mahadevan 720.00Saroja Devi Manickam 11.03Bhaveshan Moorghen 27.37Shanda Kumaran Moorghen 27.37Udeyadeva Moorghen 27.37Sathialingeswari 13.36Loganatha Shivam 50.00Devaladevi Sivaceyon 5.25Nutanaya Sivaceyon 5.25Patudeva Sivaceyon 5.25Hemavalli Sivalingam 1.61Kantha Ruben Sivalingam 1.61Rohini Sivalingam 1.61Potriyan Sivanathan 4.01Girish Skanda 13.00Javanya Skanda 4.52Subasene Skanda 13.00Devi Tandavan 464.65Total 2,040.49Hinduism Today LifetimeSubscription FundVed Chaudhary 240.00Sundar Mani Dixit 240.00Suresh Gadasalli 800.00Suguneswary Gunasegaran 55.90Kriya Haran 101.00Kartikeya Easan Katir 1,001.00Amravadee Kownden 96.64Sevanti Kumaran 10.00Panna Nagarsenker 765.00Charles & Jan Roberts 30.00Jacob Russell 80.00Nalayini Shanmugarajah 160.00Lavanadevi Sivam 45.00Meghasyamarao Theertham 161.25Other Donations 16,000.00Total 19,785.79Hindu Businessmen’s Association TrustVel Mahalingum 12.88Manogaran Mardemootoo 32.21Vishwanaden Moorooven 19.33Janaka Param 20.00Vedapragassen Peruman 6.44Total 90.86Kailasa Peedam Gift FundRajendra Giri 21.00Total 21.00Hindu of the Year FundRajendra Giri 21.00Amit Kale 8.33Total 29.33Boys School for Iraivan PriesthoodAnonymous 100.00Maruthu Pandian Dharmalingam 13.30Rajendra Giri 21.00Bala Sivaceyon 20.98Total 155.28Kauai Aadheenam MatavasiMedical FundAnonymous 474.00William & Barbara Bachmann 100.00Rajendra Giri 21.00Carmel V. Hawn 590.42Gowri Nadason 123.82Nalakini Niranjana 50.00Chamundi Sabanathan 108.00Vayudeva Varadan 18.00Other Donations 6,300.00Total 7,785.24Iyarappan Temple TrustRajendra Giri 21.00Total 21.00Kauai Aadheenam RenovationEndowmentRajendra Giri 21.00Total 21.00Sri Subramuniya AshramScholarship FundRajendra Giri 21.00Total 21.00Sri Subramuniya Kottam FundAnonymous 50.00Rajendra Giri 21.00Total 71.00Malaysian Hindu Youth Education TrustRajendra Giri 21.00Total 21.00Kumbhalavalai GaneshaTemple EndowmentAnonymous 50.00Rajendra Giri 21.00Manoharan Navaratnarajah 75.00Total 146.00Sri Siva Subramaniya SwamiDevasthanam TrustRajendra Giri 21.00Total 21.00Malaysia Hindu Renaissance FundRajendra Giri 21.00Total 21.00Hinduism Today Production FundRajendra Giri 21.00Amit Kale 8.33Total 29.33Vishwamata Gayatri Trust FundMohan Rao Korukonda 75.50Total 75.50Hindu Orphanage Endowment FundAnonymous 225.00Lila Shakti Devi 125.00Rajendra Giri 21.00Gunasekaran Kandasamy 320.00Ramakumar & Sailaja Kosuru 30.00Sukesh Parasher 50.00Alex Ruberto 55.00Rakesh Sood 125.00Rodney & Ilene Standen 30.00Rajeswari Sundararajan 10.00Niraj Thaker 14.20Total 1,005.20Hindu Education EndowmentRajendra Giri 21.00Total 21.00Suntheram Family Trust FundSuntheram Family Trust Fund 1,500.00Total 1,500.00Hindu Press InternationalEndowment FundAnonymous 30.00Rajendra Giri 21.00Total 51.00Loving Ganesha Distribution FundAnonymous 401.00Rajendra Giri 21.00Manoharan Navaratnarajah 75.00Gassa Patten 802.00Total 1,299.00Swami Agnivesh Endowment FundMaruthu Pandian Dharmalingam 13.30Rajendra Giri 21.00Total 34.30Saiva Agamas TrustRajendra Giri 21.00Total 21.00Spiritual Park of Mauritius EndowmentRajendra Giri 21.00Total 21.00Tirumular Sannidhi Preservation FundRajendra Giri 21.00Total 21.00Mauritius Saiva Dharmasala EndowmentRajendra Giri 21.00Total 21.00Alaveddy PasupatheeswararTemple FundAnonymous 50.00Rajendra Giri 21.00Jeremiah Umakanthan 25.50Total 96.50Hindu Heritage EndowmentAdministrative FundAnonymous 100.00Amit Kale 8.34Total 108.34Kauai Aadheenam ReligiousArt and Artifacts FundRajadeva Alahan 153.00Rajendra Giri 21.00Total 174.00Thank You Bodhinatha FundAmarnath & Latha Devarmanai 324.00Rajendra Giri 21.00Sakuntalai Krishnan 29.21Manoharan Navaratnarajah 150.00Shanta Devi Periasamy 230.00Alex Ruberto 45.00Chamundi Sabanathan 101.00Niraj Thaker 14.20Jeremiah Umakanthan 25.50Vayudeva Varadan 18.00Total 957.91Mathavasi Travel FundRajendra Giri 21.00Total 21.00Udayan Care Endowment FundRajendra Giri 21.00Total 21.00Saivite Hindu Scriptural Fundfor the Visually ImpairedMaruthu Pandian Dharmalingam 13.30Rajendra Giri 21.00Alex Ruberto 45.00Total 79.30Sri Chandra MadhabDebnath EndowmentShyamal Chandra Debnath 100.00Rajendra Giri 21.00Total 121.00Murugan Temple YalpanamFestival FundRajendra Giri 21.00Jeremiah Umakanthan 51.00Total 72.00Manitha Neyam Trust FundBala Sivaceyon 20.98Total 20.98Tiptur Shiva Temple & Youth Hostel FundRajendra Giri 21.00Total 21.00Kerala Temple TrustRajendra Giri 21.00Total 21.00Taos Hanuman FundRajendra Giri 21.00Total 21.00Kapaleeshwara Temple OrphanageAnonymous 125.00Rajendra Giri 21.00Prasad Krishnan 7.50Ganesan & Rajalakshmi Ramalingam 75.00Sundaresan Subramanian 10.00Total 238.50Kapaleeshwara Temple OrphanageJayanthi Vasudevan Naiker 300.00Total 300.00Manjung Hindu Sabha Orphanage FundRajendra Giri 21.00Eesan Sankara 20.00Total 41.00Pazhassi BalamandiramOrphanage FundRajendra Giri 21.00Natraj Narayanswami 15.00Ganesan & Rajalakshmi Ramalingam 75.00Total 111.00Karnataka Temple Development FundRajendra Giri 21.00Hiranya & Saraswathi Gowda 606.16Total 627.16Sri Ganesha Hindu Temple ofUtah Endowment FundRajendra Giri 21.00Total 21.00Swami Vipulananta Children’sHome EndowmentAnonymous 50.00Rajendra Giri 21.00Total 71.00Hindu Literature FundDaren Clare 7.00Rajendra Giri 21.00Shirin Stave-Matias 11.61Total 39.61Hinduism Today ComplimentarySubscription FundRajendra Giri 21.00Hiranya & Saraswathi Gowda 153.00Total 174.00Himalayan Academy BookDistribution FundDaren Clare 7.00Yuvraj Saharan 10.00Niraj Thaker 14.20Total 31.20Kauai Aadheenam Yagam FundAnonymous 5.00Rajendra Giri 21.00Victoria Johnson 3.00Total 29.00Yogaswami Hindu Girls’ Homeof Sittandy EndowmentAnonymous 146.00Daren Clare 7.00Lila Shakti Devi 72.50Maruthu Pandian Dharmalingam 40.13Rajendra Giri 21.00Julia Hall 75.00Simon Low 108.00Yuvraj Saharan 10.00Jutikadevi Sivaraja 324.00Silas H. Zirkle 375.00Total 1,178.63Siva Poomi School TrustShun K. Sunder 5,000.00Total 5,000.00Pooled Income FundRajendra Giri 1,000.00Satya Palani 1,875.00Total 2,875.00Total Contributions $158,730.38Funds at Market Value, March 31, 2006Total Endowment Funds $7,147,514.82Total Pooled Income Funds $205,964.42Grand Total $7,353,479.24In the US, the National Committee on Planned Giving is the primary association linking plannedgiving officers and allied professionals. More than 120 planned giving councils represent 11,000gift planners. For the council nearest you call 317-269-6274 or visit www.ncpg.org. In Canada theCanadian Association of Gift Planners represents 1,000 gift planners throughout the country. Theirwebsite is www.cagp-acpdp.org and the contact number is 888-430-9494.The Charities Aid Foundation in the UK is committed to helping donors give in a tax-efficient andeasy way. Visit their website at www.cafonline.org/individual/ and download their guide to tax-effectivegiving. CAF also has offices in India, Australia, Bulgaria, Brussels, Russia, Southern Africaand the USA.New to planned giving and want to learn more? Please visit HHE’s planned giving link at www.hheonline.org. Here you can read all about providing the security you seek from your investmentswhile eventually providing much-needed gifts to one or more of the 65 HHE endowments andtheir charities.MISSION STATEMENT: Hindu Heritage Endowment is a publicly supported, charitable organizationrecognized as tax exempt by the IRS on April 22, 1994. Employer ID 99-0308924. Founded by SatguruSivaya Subramuniyaswami, its philanthropic mission is to provide secure, professionally managedfinancial support for institutions and religious leaders of all lineages of Sanatana Dharma.PROFESSIONAL ADVISORS: Halbert, Hargrove/Russell, Investment Counsel; Alvin G. Buchignani,Esq., Legal Counsel; and Sonoda & Isara, LLP, CPA. HHE is a member of the Council on Foundations,an association of more than 2,000 foundations which interprets relevant law and managementand investment principles.Hindu Heritage EndowmentKauai’s Hindu MONASTERY, 107 Kaholalele Road, Kapaa, Hawaii, 96746-9304 USA808-822-3012 Ext 244 • Fax: 808-822-3152 • hhe@hindu.org • www.hheonline.org

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Once upon a time you took a journey...Do You Remember?A journey weaved into existence from the very fabric of yourmost exotic dreams that saw you nestled between rice paddiesin Siem Reap, exploring the world’s largest temple, Angkor Wat,and other millennia-old temple ruins of the Khmer empire.Do you remember? You discovered life in four undisturbeddays in a village-style resort perched on the shores of a gorgeoustropical island just off the border of Malaysia and Thailand, anisland steeped in mystery, legend and once a hideaway for pirates,where we sat in the presence of Satguru Bodhinatha Veylanswamias he unfolded the mysteries of meditation and innerlife to us.Do you remember, when you joined a million-strong devotionally-drenchedlovers of Lord Murugan in a Thaipusam celebrationparallel to none at the famed Batu Caves of Malaysia with its140-foot tall golden Muruga statue before flying off to southernIndia where you were whisked away to the sacred town of Tiruvannamalai.Then there was our train ride, a cultural experiencein itself of sights and smells, chaiwallahs and impossibly crowdedstations through this land of extremes that knows no halfways tothe sleepy fishing village island of Rameswaram where we bathedin 22 sacred wells at Lord Siva’s 1,000-pillared citadel.And who can forget Tiruchendur, the heart melting seaside temple,Kanyakumari, India’s southern most tip where three oceansmeet and our journey northwest to Kerala, where life is gentleand relaxed, as we settled down for gem-like moments of reflectionand study amidst intricate waterways, lush surroundingsand beautiful beaches.Now do you remember your Asian Odyssey? It was in January 2008.American Institute of Vedic StudiesExpand your horizons inVedic and Hindu Dharma.Practical teachings ofVamadeva Shastri (Dr.David Frawley). AuthenticVedic knowledge in a clearmodern idiom. Books,courses, conferences andresearch information fromthe ancient Rig Veda toIndia in the Planetary Age.Dr. Frawley’s latest books:• Yoga and the Sacred Fire:Self-realization andPlanetary Transformation• The Rig Veda and the History of India• How I Became a Hindu: My Discovery of Vedic DharmaCourses from the Institute:• New Advanced Yoga and Ayurveda Distance LearningProgram • Ayurvedic Healing Course for Health CareProfessionals • Astrology of the Seers, Vedic AstrologyCourse.American Institute of Vedic StudiesPO Box 8357, Santa Fe, NM 87504-8357 USAtel: 505-983-9385 • fax: 505-982-5807info@vedanet.com • www.vedanet.com(Note our Vedanet resource guide andon-line books and information.),C e l e l A s s i s t a n c e i n D a i l y L i f eJoin the publisher of this magazine in January 2008 on a spiritual odyssey toSiem Reap, Cambodia • Langkawi Island & Kuala Lumpur, MalaysiaTiruvannamalai, Rameswaram Island, Tiruchendur, Kanyakumari & Kovalam, South IndiaFor more information, to request a brochure or to register for Himalayan Academy's 2008 Innersearch, please contact(t) 1-808-822-3012, Ext. 239 • (f) 1-808-822-4351 • (e) innersearch@hindu.orgwww.himalayanacademy.com/innersearchVVydic Yagnya Centre is dedicated to helping bring peace, contentment, inspirationand general happiness into the lives of sincere devotees by the intercession of Godsand Devas through the traditional Vedic yagnya, or holy fire ceremony.aastu rectification yagnyas are available for houses that are non-sthapatya-vedic. If there are inaccuracyissues with your house, business site or office, we will perform a traditional vydic Vaastu-rectification Yagnyaon site, including installation of a copper-plate yantra. This first part of the year is one of the most auspicioustimes to do Vaastu Yagnyas. (Astrological consultation is also available: family, health, wealth, romance, marriage etc.)Special Lakshmi Yagnyas for prosperity and success in business—traditional, powerful and highly focussed—haveremarkable impact, often measurable in improved sales and profits.Our Yagnyas have also proved highly effective in resolving personal, health, family or professional issues. If you haveconcerns in any area of life, please feel free to consult with our highly trained priests in utmost confidence. They will consultastrology, perhaps suggest certain sadhanas or mantras, and tailor a ceremony to your needs, or your group’s needs.All consultations are free of cost.Contact us about other yagnyas and spiritual services we provide to make your life happy and abundant.info@yagnya.com ● 1-888-835-7788 ● www.yagnya.com ● www.vydic.org73

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Do you want to know more about Hindu Culture and the Dharmic Traditions ofIndia? Do you want to know about Hindu's contributions in Maths, Science, Artand Architecture? Do you want to share this knowledge with family and friends?Hindu Swayamsevak SanghPresentsExhibitiononHindu Culture&the Dharmic Traditions of India30 posters on various themesBasic Dharmic concepts & the way of livingHindu Roots & the sacred landHindu temples & ArchitectureFestivals, dance & musicContributions in Maths, Science, & technologyMaritime History, Hindu Diaspora, & its influenceDharma in Nature & serviceYoga and AyurvedaThis exhibition will tour many cities and towns all overAmerica.Quality Ayurvedic ProductsDirect from Kerala, IndiaTri Health offers the finest AyurvedicHerbs, Food Supplements, MedicinalOils, Aristhams, Leyhams and otherRasayanas (Rejuvenators) preparedin strict accordance with the sacredclassical texts. And... when on Kauai(Hawaii) be sure to experience our luxuriousSouth Indian Massage Treatments.Tri Health Inc., PO Box 340, Anahola HI 96703-0340 USAoffice: 800-455-0770/customer service: 808-822-4288/clinic: 808-828-2104oilbath@aloha.net l www.trihealthayurveda.comThe life of Shri Shri ShriShivabalayogi Maharaj. To readabout Him is to experience.“Yogi is love.”Available through bookstores, onlineretailers, and www.handloom.orgISBN 0-976078-30-9If your organization or community in your town wants to hostthis exhibition, please contact exhibition@hssus.org orKhanderao 408 737 7930HSS offered this project as a tribute to Shri GurujiGolwalkar (1906-1973), on the occasion of his birthcentenary. A spiritual leader and a social organizer.Shri Guruji inspired thousands of people to dedicatethemselves for the mission of reforming the Hindusociety and rejuvenating Sanatana Dharma.http://www.hssus.org7879

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A traditional Hindu ashramGitananda Ashram● Weekly and Summer seminars● Certification courses● Samnyas training centre● Siddha Siddhanta Yoga● Sri Vidya traditions● Yoga ● Yoga therapy ● Ayurveda● Indian dance and music● Special pujaLocated in an ideal setting immersed innature’s peace and silence where you canenjoy the bliss of ancient Oriental culture.PO Box 51, 17043 Carcare (Sv) Italy ● tel: +39-158-4692fax: 584838 ● dharmin@tnt.it ● www.hinduism.itLOTUSPRESS LOTUSPRESS LOTUSPRESS LOTUSPRESS LOTUSPRESS LOTUSPRESSLOTUSPRESS LOTUSPRESS LOTUSPRESS LOTUSPRESS LOTUSPRESS LOTUSPRESSAyurvedic AstrologyAyurvedic AstrologySelf-Healing Through the StarsSelf-Healing Through the StarsDr. David FrawleyDr. David FrawleyAyurvedic Medicine represents theAyurvedic Medicine represents thehealing branch of yogic science, whilehealing branch of yogic science, whileVedicVedicastrologyastrologyprovidesprovidesitsitsunderstandingunderstandingof of time time and and karma. karma. Ayurvedic Ayurvedic astrology astrologyteaches teaches the the interface interface of of these twoextraordinary systems in in the Vedicastrology of of healing. The book explainshow how the the different mind-body andplanetary types of of the two systemsinterrelate. It It examines disease factorsfrom an an astrological perspective andgoes into depth into astrologicalremedial measures, particularly gemtherapy. It It also contains many notableexample charts.Dr. Dr. David David Frawley (Pandit Vamadeva Shastri) is a recognized experton on both both Ayurveda and and Vedic astrology, having already authorednumerous numerous books books and and course course materials on both subjects. The The current currentbookbookisisaaculminationculminationofofhishistwentytwentyyearsyearsofof researchresearchintointothethefield.field.ISBN 0-940985-88-8 288 pp pb $19.95 + ($2.50 s/h)ISBN 0-940985-88-8 288 pp pb $19.95 ($2.50 s/h)LOTUS PRESSLOTUS PRESSPO Box 325, Twin Lakes, WI 53181 USAPO Box 325, Twin Lakes, WI 53181 USA800.824.6396 • www.lotuspress.com • lotuspress@lotuspress.com800.824.6396 • www.lotuspress.com • lotuspress@lotuspress.comAmerican Institute of Vedic Studies: 505.983.9385 • vedicinst@aol.com • www.vedanet.comAmerican Institute of Vedic Studies: 505.983.9385 • vedicinst@aol.com • www.vedanet.comLOTUSPRESS LOTUSPRESS LOTUSPRESS LOTUSPRESS LOTUSPRESS LOTUSPRESSLOTUSPRESS LOTUSPRESS LOTUSPRESS LOTUSPRESS LOTUSPRESS LOTUSPRESS82Arsha Vidya GurukulamInstitute for the Study of Vedanta, Sanskrit and YogaFounded by Pujya Swami Dayananda Saraswatil Bvhagavad Gita classesl Vedic Heritage forchildren and youthl Meditation workshopsInvites you to attend:1st and 3rd weekends of every month:l Vedic chantingl Yogal Sanskritl Classical Indian danceResident Vedanta Programsl Bhagavad Gita coursel Holiday weekend family Vedanta retreatsl Week-long family Vedanta retreatsl Month-long Vedanta retreatsl Yoga l Sanskrit l Classical Indian danceWorkshopsl Yoga l Ayurvedal Astrologyl Classical Indian musicl Classical Indian danceLord Daksinamurti Temple & Homa Kundl Temple services: Vedic pujas, samskaras and homasP.O. Box 1059, Saylorsburg, PA 18353tel: 570-992-2339 l fax: 570-992-7150avp@epix.net l www.arshavidya.orgUNIVERSITY OF WALES LAMPETERIndic SpiritualTraditionsPathway to an MA inThe Study of ReligionA programme of home-based study,exploring spiritual traditions which haveoriginated in the Indian sub-continent.Modules include: Self in Hinduism, AdvaitaVedanta, The Bhagavad Gita, Buddhismand Religious Experience, The Guru GranthSahib, Bhakti Traditions, Samkhya andYogaFull-Time or Part-Time StudyFor further information contact:Dr Maya WarrierDept of Theology and Religious StudiesUniversity of Wales, LampeterCeredigion SA48 7EDTel: 01570 424913 Fax: 01570 424987Email: indic@lamp.ac.ukwww.lamp.ac.ukChakrapani Ullal, Vedic AstrologyWorld-renowned teacherand advisor, Chakrapani Ullal,consults internationally withpeople from all walksof life. As the founding honorarychairman of the ACVA(American Council of VedicAstrology), he has playedan active role in bringingtogether the Eastern IndianVedic astrologers andWestern astrologers. Considereda teacher of teachers, hetravels widely as an author,lecturer and consultant.Born into a traditional Hindu lineage of astrologers inSouth India, Chakrapani began his training at an earlyage and enjoyed associations with many of India’s most reveredand celebrated saints and sages. With over 45 yearsof experience, his depth of knowledge and unique understandingof how astrological principles apply to differentcultures are sought out by people from all over the world.For more information and a schedule of his upcomingitinerary, please contact:Chakrapani Ullal • 12044 Kearsarge StreetLos Angeles, CA 90049-4113 USATel: 310-476-9942 • Fax: 310-471-3205info@vedicastrology.com • www.chakrapani.com83

Matter is art, and in a World of matter,Matter matters to the spirit:Give me three meals a dayA roof over my head;Money to travel;And I shall take a boat on the NileContemplating on Art all the Way.T he A rtist& H is A rtW hat forces of fate have brought me to sitBeside the Manasorova Lake?My eyes are on The Mountain YonderIn the distance, The Kailash Wonder.My heart is free of weightSuch that arises from harbouring hate.Sitting here, feeling there is no tomorrowNot that my soul has not been touched by sorrow.The Artist and His ArtCause a lingering sadness in my heart.Is all the beauty before me in vain?Is this an illusion? And is this the cause of my pain?In body or in spirit, where I am is my Home;My reality of the moment is the Yonder Dome.On the sand shores I pray:Is the Artist and His Art the same?Against the dull sky gray, the word comes:The answer is in the game.A glass of red wine Is art by itself.A lady in stone is cold.A model on the catwalk is totally a different matter.An eagle in ice.An actor in wax.Art in words, a poet’s world.Art in oil, a painter’s world.Art in sand, dreams of children.Fascinated by art in glass;Elevated by poetry in words;Inspired by Mandela on the African canvas.Art in light, shades of delight.Art in clay, a potter’s play.A volcano in eruption is art in awe.The California cedar fires are art in terror raw.The Cosmos in ArtIs the Dancing Shiva.What Forces bring me to this Lake,In the evening of my life so late?On the sand shores, I again ask –By Dr Arjunan Subramaniam31st October 2003Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia84