Hinduism Today January 2009 - Cover, Index, Front Articles

1979 • 1980 • 1981 • 1982 • 1983 • 1984 • 1985 • 1986 • 1987 • 1988 • 1989 • 1990 • 1991 • 1992 • 1993 • 1994 • 1995 • 1996 • 1997 • 1998 • 1999 • 2000 • 2001 • 2002 • 20032004 • 2005 • 2006 • 2007 • 2008 • 2008 • 2009Our publisher tells some tales... page 101979 • 1980 • 1981 • 1982 • 1983 • 1984 • 1985 • 1986 • 1987 • 1988 • 1989 • 1990 • 1991 • 1992 • 1993 • 1994 • 1995 • 1996 • 1997 • 1998 • 1999 • 2000 • 2001 • 2002 • 20032004 • 2005 • 2006 • 2007 • 2008 • 2008 • 2009HINDUISMTODAYYEARS 1979–2009

Welcometo hinduism today’s digital edition!Iam pleased to welcome you to the free digital edition of HinduismToday magazine. It is the fulfillment of a vision held by my SatguruSivaya Subramuniyaswami, founder of Hinduism Today, to bring themagazine’s profound Hindu teachings to the widest possible audience.The text of each issue has long been available on the Web, right backto 1979, but without the photographs and art. Now you have here theentire contents of the printed edition, with all photos and art. Plus, itis interactive—every link is live; click and you go to a web page. Youcan participate in the magazine in a number of ways, accessed throughbuttons on the right. And you can help support this free edition in twoways: make an online contribution (even a small one); patronize ourspecialized advertisers. Explore the resources here, enjoy our latestedition and e-mail us if you are inspired.Click here to beginreading the magazineClick links below to soar over other areas of our vastocean of internet resources in your web browserparticipate learn exploreMake a Donation toHinduism TodayHinduism TodayHome PageA Daily Chronicle ofKauai’s Hindu MonasterySubscribe to the PrintEdition of Hinduism TodayHinduism TodayArchives OnlineAmazing Publications,Viewable OnlineSubmit an Article toHinduism TodayRead the Story ofHinduism TodayShop at the HimalayanAcademy Online StoreSend CommentsTo the Editor(e-mail)Subscribe to HinduPress International, aDaily News SummaryAn Audio LibraryOf Inspired Talks

aliSpectacularCremationIt was the most spectacularroyal funeral in Bali inat least three decades. On theauspicious day of July 15, 2008,in a roar of orange flames, thebody of Agung Suyasa, who haddied in March, 2008, head of theroyal family of Ubud, and twomembers of his extended familywere reduced to their earthlyelements in a mass cremationthat included 68 commoners.In a Balinese tradition, the bodiesof the commoners had beenkept to join Suyasa’s cremation.Some had been buried or mummifiedfor months or even years,awaiting the auspicious occasionof a royal cremation. Althoughcremated at the same time, thepyres of the commoners were ina separate location.According to Balinese belief,the soul can return to inhabit anew being—generally a memberof the same family—only after ithas been freed through cremation.“None of us is brand new,”said Raka Kerthyasa, the youngerhalf-brother of Suyasa, who isnow the guardian of the ancientbut symbolic royal family andwho oversaw the cremation.“We are part of the cycle of life.”canadaToronto RitesGrowingCanada’s province ofOntario now has the largestSri Lankan diaspora in theworld. The 2008 annual chariotfestival of Toronto’s Sri VarasithiVinaayagar temple drewa crowd of 15,000. Sri Lankantemple officials and devoteespride themselves on conductinghigh-standard pujas andfestivals. They have carried thistradition to lands far and wide.For the annual rites, the templehired priests from India, nagaswaram(temple horn) playersand 12 temple drummers, plusan elephant from the local zoo.While their homeland continuesto sink under ruinouswarfare, Sri LankanHindus here are movingforward. Fifteen-year-oldVignesh Markandu writes:“I have been praying at SriVarasithi Vinaayagar Hindutemple since the year2001. I have become verydevoted to Lord Ganesha,Who has become indispensablein my life. Thereare no cultural/age differencein this temple. It hasa balanced blend of Hinduyouths, adults and seniors.Although the temple isbased on South Indianrituals and language, it isbecoming a multicultural, multiethniccenter. The last time Iwent to the annual festival I sawCaucasians and many Chinese.Everyone is accepted.“Recently the temple andpriests have begun publishingThe Sri Lankan community sets high standards for Hindu rites in Canada,where its festivals continue to grow in size, grandeur and public recognitionmaterials and explaining thingsin English, and the youth arepaying more attention. The templealso has a school for youthand programs for seniors. Thepriests here do all the ceremoniesaccording to the traditionalprincipals. This temple is trulyan example of opulent SouthIndian Hindu culture. Sri VarasithiVinaayagar is no ordinarytemple. It seems to have beenunearthed in Jaffna and broughtto Toronto.”His Holiness, Swami Chidananda Saraswati was a paragon ofmonasticism, a modern-day saint who inspired tens of thousandsindiaA Great SoulMoves Onwami chidananda sara-S swati attained Mahasamadhion August 28, 2008, at the ageof 92. Given his frail health, hispassing was not unexpected.Swami had been a monk since1949 and the president of theDivine Life Society (DLS) since1963. He was a direct disciple ofSwami Sivananda, the founderof DLS. Beyond his position asa world leader, Swami lived hislife at a transcendent level of purity,austerity, humility, simplicityand selfless service. He strucka deep spiritual chord in everyonehe met and was deemed aliving saint by all. He receivedHinduism Today’s Hindu Rennaissanceaward as Hindu of theYear in 1999.True to his principles to theend, he left written instructions(see www.sivanandaonline.org)that his body was to be unceremoniouslydisposed of withinthree hours in the nearest river(which was the Ganges) followingthe ancient tradition ofthe Shankaracharya Order ofsannyasins.He was ever urging his listenersto live the divine life, saying,“To enter into the spiritual life isa rare blessedness, it is a greatgood. To take it seriously and engagein active spiritual sadhanais a second blessedness and astill greater good. But to perseverein the spiritual life, to beever progressive and ceaseless inone’s spiritual life, is the greatestgood, the crowning blessedness.”On September 28, 2008, HisHoliness, Sri Swami Vimalananda,76, a senior monk of theSivananda Ashram, Rishikesh,was elected as the new Chairmanand ex-officio President ofthe Divine Life Trust Society.Balinese joyously celebrate the fiery liberation from the mortal coil ofthree members of the royal family and 68 souls of the common peopleShreeya, a farmer’s daughter from the town of Bhaktapur, met alltests and had the 32 physical attributes to become the Living GoddessnepalMaoists KeepThe GoddessTo the surprise of some, thenew Communist, allegedlyatheist, government of Nepalhas chosen a new Kumari, theliving incarnation of GoddessKali and protectress of the state.Formerly chosen by the King’sroyal priest, the selection wasmade under the auspices of thestate-run Trust Corporation thatoversees the country’s culturalmatters. Her selection from aBuddhist Shakya-Newar familywas performed in accordancewith tradition, after consultationwith astrologers. Previously herhoroscope had to be compatiblewith that of the King. How thismandate was fulfilled after theabolition of the monarchy is notknown, but it was encouragingfor Hindus to note that underthe new government, this sacredtradition was not discarded.usaWoman PriestFills ShortageWith over 3 million hindusin the US and Canada,attending more than 700temples and mandirs, there isa growing shortage of prieststo perform the necessary ritesin temples and in homes. Steppingin to fill the gap is ShashiTandon, 68, a retired teacher.She and a few other women inAmerica are learning the sacredrites out of neccesity. Malebrahmin priests once held aprestigious position in Hindusociety. But today educatedbrahmins are taking up secularwork and looking down on thepriesthood as a less sophisticatedand less lucrative vocation.When facing resistance fromconservatives, Tandon says, “Canyou tell me who gave birth toyou? The mother is the truepriest. She is the true teacher,the first teacher of the child.”Pandita Tandon performs the wedding of her grandson in Chicagodivine life society, afp photo/bay ismoyoc l o c k w i s e f rom t o p : v i g n e s h m a r k a n d u ; a b e l u r i b e ,6 hinduism today january/february/march, 2009 chicago tribube; xinhua/photoshotjanuary/february/march, 2009 hinduism today 7

Neo-nazis protest mosques, synagogues and templesgermanyProtesting Places of FaithGermany’s radical rightwingparty, the neonaziNational Democratic Party(NPD), is openly racist, anti-semeticand against minorities ofall kinds. Their membership of7,500 is raising alarms and controversyin Germany and Europe.In August, 2008, displayinga red flag (see photo) previouslymade for an anti-mosqueUS hindus are Possiblymarrying fewer Christiansand Muslims than has beenthought. Informal communityassessments have put the rateof marrying “out” at 50% to ashigh as 90%. Dr. Dilip Amin(dilipamin@yahoo.com) did ananalysis of Macy’s extensiveon-line marriage registry andfound lower rates. For example,170 of 494 Patels, 34%, marriedpartners of Abrahmic religions.While interfaith marriagesamong “dharmic religions”(Hindus, Sikhs, Jains) are historicallycommon in India, intermarriagebetween dharmicand Abrahmic religions can because for concern, as both Islamand Catholicism require childrento be raised in those faiths.protest, 155 NPD demonstratedagainst plans to build two Hindutemples—a Sri Ganesha templein Hasenheide and a Murugantemple in Blaschkoallee.Meanwhile thousands ofanti-fascist Germans protestedagainst the NPD, taking theside of Hindus, saying that“Berlin is not brown [the Nazicolor], it is multi-colored!”An EU-commissioned studyhas found that the globaleconomy is losing more moneyevery year from the disappearanceof forests than it hasin the recent banking crisis.The total lost value of forest“services”—providing cleanwater and absorbing carbondioxide—the study estimatesto be between $2 trillion and $5trillion annually. While WallStreet lost some $1-$1.5 trillionin its crisis, this $2-$5 trillionloss recurs year after year.Sri rangam temple authoritiesnear Tiruchirapalli, TamilNadu, have announced a decisionto demand rent from the3,600 families who live andown shops on 98 acres of landthat was granted to the templeby various Maha rajas and laterratified by the British. Suchlands were given to temples toprovide an endowment. But inrecent decades tenants have notpaid and left-wing courts sidedagainst the temples, leaving thetemples with little income.chinaUS HinduOlympianTexas hindus were jubilanton August, 12, 2008,watching Raj Bhavsar, a27-year-old artistic gymnast,earn a bronze medal asa member of the 2008 USOlympic Team, becoming thethird Indian-American everto win a medal at the Olympics,after Mohini Bhardwajand Alexi Grewal.Girish Naik, president ofHindus of Greater Houston,said, “Hindus of GreaterHouston would like to congratulateour own Raj Bhavsarof Houston on his accomplishmentat the Olympics.Hindus are great leaders inmany fields in the US, but weare lacking in sports. TodayBhavsar has filled the void.He is someone our youth canlook up to.” After returning fromChina, Raj was honored at anThe netherlands’ hinduEducation Foundation openedits fourth primary school inAugust, 2008, in Almere. TheShri Ganesha school has 35students and is expected togrow to 200. It is the sixthHindu school in the country.more than 100 schools in 26states use yoga in the classroomto relieve stress, saysNew York state Board of EducationPresident Julie Reagan.But after Christian parentsobjected to teaching yoga inclassrooms at the Massena,N.Y., high school, a compromisewas reached to allow an afterschool yoga program but not touse the word yoga. Instead itis called “Raiders Relaxation.”Orissa vhp leader, swamiLakshmanananda Saraswati,and several devotees were brutallymurdered in October,2008, sparking protests andviolence by Hindus acrossthe state that left dozens ofChristians dead and churchesRaj Bhavsar executes the ironcross on the rings in BeijingAugust 30th Janmashtami celebrationin Houston.damaged or destroyed. Initialreports blamed Maoist rebelsfor the murders, but subsequentpolice investigation uncovereda link between Maoists andyoung Christian militants whowere attempting to stop theswami’s successful reconversioncampaigns. The PoliceInspector General said, “Maoistswere given money to traincertain youths to eliminateSaraswati.” The conflict is compoundedby tribal rivalries.The Hindu Mandir ExecutiveCommittee met in Romulus,Michigan, September 30, bringingtogether representatives of113 temples and Hindu organizationsfrom 25 states, Canadaand the Caribbean. SwamiDayananda Saraswati encouragedthe group to make theirtemples halls of learning forthe youth, as well as altars ofworship, in serving America’s2.5 million Hindus. The grouppromised to “work as a familyto restore and further thedignity of Hindu identity.”Hinduism To d a y wasfounded on January 5,1979, by Satguru SivayaSubramuniyaswami(1927–2001). It is anonprofit educationalactivity of HimalayanAcademy, with the followingpurposes: 1. Tofoster Hindu solidarityas a unity in diversityamong all sectsand lineages; 2. To inform and inspire Hindusworldwide and people interested in Hinduism;3. To dispel myths, illusions and misinformationabout Hinduism; 4. To protect, preserve and promotethe sacred Vedas and the Hindu religion;5. To nurture and monitor the ongoing spiritualHindu renaissance; 6. To publish resourcesfor Hindu leaders and educators who promoteSanatana Dharma. Join this seva by sending letters,clippings, photographs, reports on eventsand by encouraging others.Founder: Satguru Sivaya SubramuniyaswamiPublisher: Satguru Bodhinatha VeylanswamiEditor-in-Chief: Paramacharya PalaniswamiPublisher’s Aide: Paramacharya CeyonswamiDeputy Editor: Acharya KumarswamiManaging Editor: Sannyasin ArumugaswamiProduction Manager: Sannyasin SivakatirswamiSubscription and Distribution Manager:Sannyasin ShanmuganathaswamiAssistant Editor: Sannyasin SenthilnathaswamiAssistant Editor: Sadhaka SatyanathaAdvertising Manager: Yogi 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; Ananta Krishnan, Chennai.Copy Editor: Chamundi Sabanathan. HPI Staff: JanakaParam, Toshadeva Guhan, Easan Katir, Adi Alahan,Chandra Sankara, Shama Vinayaga. Sanskritist: Dr. P.Jayaraman, New York. Artists: A. Manivelu, S. Rajam.Cartoonists: Tom Thaves. Photo Contributors: ThomasL. Kelly, Dinodia, Dev Raj Agarwal, Gilles Flament, VelKadressen, Mu Devarayan, Indivar Sivanathan. WebMasters: Nitya Nadesan, Sadhunathan Nadesan. Distribution:USA: Ingram Periodicals, New Leaf, EBSCOSubscription Services, OneSource, Ubiquity. Europe:SWETS Subscription Service. Malaysia and Singapore:Sanathana Dharma Publications. India: Central NewsAgency Limited, Delhi. Mauritius: CODIP. Trinidad:Pandit Narendra & Ashwinee Ragoonanan. Printer: RRDonnelley, Kansas City, Missouri.in my opinionEastern Children in a Western WorldA look at preserving our traditional values forthe text-messaging, Facebook generationBy mehdi rizviImmigrants to canada inthe 1950s and 60s camemostly from Europe. Nowthe pattern has changed;according to the 2006 census,58.3 percent of the last fiveyears’ 1.11 million immigrantscame from Asia and theMiddle East. These immigrantscame with their customs, traditionsand religious and socialvalues, and their children aretrained in Canadian schools to practice thequalities of honesty, mutual respect andtolerance to become good citizens.The blending of the noble values of thetwo cultures gives them the best of bothworlds. Canada has one of the planet’s besteducational systems, and parents feel fortunatethat their children have the opportunityto get a good education. On the otherhand, children also are more susceptible tounfiltered cultural influences. The parentalgeneration of Asian and Middle Easternimmigrants finds itself in a rare social predicament:the very quick assimilation oftheir children into a free society and, correspondingly,the fading of their own values.Rearing Eastern children in the Westernworld is a great challenge—rather likegrowing a tropical plant in the Arctic—andrequires determination, maturity and tolerance.Many immigrant parents and theirchildren have diametrically opposed viewson important family and social issues, suchas dress codes, moving out before marriageand mixed marriages. Many immigrantparents are careful about dietary practices—kosher, halal, vegetarian—but their childrenmay not be. Nor can it be easy for Sikhparents to welcome a clean-shaven, kirpan-and turban-less young man into thefamily, or for Muslim parents to be pleasedwith their daughter’s Jewish boyfriend, orvice versa. They think these cross-culturalmatches reduce the longevity of a partnershipand subsequently produce more brokenfamilies, single parents and neglectedchildren. A nuclear family needs commonvalues to survive, they believe.Asian and Middle Easternimmigrant parents do notgenerally accept sleepoversat a friend’s house, late nightsout and returning home withthe rising sun the next morning.They are concerned aboutshootings, drug- and sex-relatedcrimes and teenage pregnancies.Canadian parents are nohappier with these phenomenaand realize that too much freedomand the absence of parental and socialcontrol are among the main causes.Is morality irrelevant to any generationor cultural group? Can’t we design decentparameters for moral and social practices?Aren’t our intellectuals and policy-makersaware of the social implications of teenagepregnancies and fatherless children?Immigrant parents tend to believe thatyoung people are not mature enough toknow what really is important in life andwant to shelter their children from certaininfluences. But the children feel theirparents do not understand their problems;parents always seem to be telling old storiesfrom the frozen past in a distant land.Facebook, cellphones and text messaginghave opened new, unsupervised socialcircles for children. A child who sends a textmessage or chats online while a parent sitsnearby is actually disconnected from thefamily. Parents are ignoring this.Every generation has its own place on themap of history, and it is important for bothparents and children to see where they are.As a society, we need to help them find safepassage between the two points. Boundariesneed to be redefined, without prejudice, toweave a new social fabric and maintain avirtuous balance between the diverse conceptsof freedom, dignity and morality, withcomfort zones for all age groups, gendersand cultural traditions. This will help builda better future for our coming generations.mehdi rizvi is an industrial chemist. Hiseditorial appeared in The Toronto Star, June10, 2008. E-mail: smehdir@yahoo.com8 hinduism today january/february/march, 2009sean gallup, getty image; kazuhiro nogi, afpjanuary/february/march, 2009 hinduism today 9

Publisher’s deskThirty Years Serving DharmaWe celebrate Hinduism Today’s productive past, introduce a fewdesign changes and explore our impact and digital innovationsby satguru bodhinatha veylanswamiThe idea for hinduism today magazine cameas an inspiration to Satguru Sivaya Subramuniyaswamiin the late 1970s during his extensiveglobal travels to visit hundreds of far-flungHindu communities. His own words tell the tale: “Imade several world tours, visiting Mauritius, Sri Lanka,India, South Africa, Malaysia, England and othercountries where I spoke to hundreds of thousandsof people. I discovered that Hindus in each countrywere totally unaware of, or did not care about, whatwas happening within the realms of their religion inother places in the world. Out of these tours camethe mission of Hinduism Today, to strengthen allthe many diverse expressions of Hindu spiritualityand to give them a single, combined voice, becauseeverywhere else their voices were individualized.Through this magazine, we delineated the boundaries of Hinduismand placed this great and oldest religion alongside Islam, Christianity,Judaism, Buddhism, Jainism, Sikhism and the many other religionsof the world. We showed the strength of Hinduism in articles by topwriters and some of the finest photographers in the world, such asfor our articles on the Kumbha Mela, the largest human gatheringever on planet Earth. We have been able to bring forward and honora ‘Hindu of the Year’ and to listen to the wisdom of swamis andswaminis in our ‘Minister’s Message.’ ”Like Hinduism itself, the message of Hinduism Today, as articulatedby Gurudeva and the editors, has not changed over itsthirty-year existence. However, the form the message has taken continuesto evolve and improve with computer technology. Our firstblack-and-white newspaper issue when placed next to our latestfour-color magazine shows a quantum leap in the use of computertechnology. And certainly one of the reasons the magazine is greatlyappreciated by our readers is its world-class graphic excellence.Readers feel that the magazine’s aesthetic craftsmanship portrayswell the richness and grandeur of the Hindu religion.Our editorial staff is constantly finding ways to make improvements.In July of 1986 we moved the entire production platformfrom process cameras and light tables to that inventive little device,the Macintosh. In December of 1996 we changed from being abroadsheet newspaper to a full-color magazine. In 1998 we wereamong the first in the industry to adopt computer-to-plate technology,bypassing the old film-to-plate method. Since 2000 the imagequality has skyrocketed as photographers have migrated to everevolvingdigital cameras. In 2006 we collaborated with our printerin Missouri to better control the color calibration and correctionstandards.In celebration of our 30th year, the editors have made some smallbut significant changes. You will notice the cover type and art havebeen adjusted for better readability, and the page backgrounds havebeen lightened. Those who publish tendto love typography, and our team are avidtypophiles. They have found a new font,called Relato, which is more distinctiveand legible than the adaptation of NewCaledonia, which we used since 1996.New Caledonia (used to set this one sentence)was designed in 1938 by WilliamAddison Dwiggins of Linotype fame,whereas Relato was designed in 2005 bythe contemporary Spanish typographerEduardo Manso. Our team used somehigh-end tools to add diacritical marks tothe font and make some kerning improvementsthat augmented Relato’s versatile,legible and graceful presence on thepage. When we asked Eduardo to describe Relato froma designer’s perspective, he waxed poetic: “Relato has alow contrast and ‘muscular’ structure that makes it usefulfor setting longer text. In display sizes it has a varietyof details that lend it a unique and personal expression.The formal principle of the serif, the variety of terminalstrokes and the combination of curves and semi-straightlines gives Relato a more ‘human’ flavor. Relato is a decidedly contemporarytypeface, proposing individual ideas on the design oftype.“Through our type and tools, our resources and writing, we aredetermined to keep Hinduism Today on the cutting edge of communicationtechnology as the flagship magazine for Hinduismaround the world.Those efforts are not confined to the world of print. HinduismToday also enjoys a growing digital presence. We have an HTMLarchive of the magazine available on our website, going all the wayback to 1979. It is an ideal resource for searching back articles, somethingI myself often use. In 2006 we launched our digital edition ofthe magazine. Using an elegant software delivery system we developed,you can download and manage all the PDF files of each editionright on your computer. We know of some readers, residing in countrieswhere the print edition is not available, who exclusively perusethe PDF version. The digital version has additional audio and videofeatures that enhance some of the articles.Our latest expansion is into the realm of video and was launchedin 2008 by opening a YouTube channel (www.youtube.com/hinduismtodayvideos). After each issue is sent off to the printer, our editorsproduce a 10-minute video summary of the major articles, andI read my Publisher’s Desk article on camera. Thousands of peoplewho have never seen this magazine are learning about Hinduismthrough our YouTube videos. Now and then we add recordings ofpresentations our editors have given at conferences, including “Reli-hinduism todaygion and the Media” and “The California Textbook Controversy.” Weproduced our first major video in 2007, a three-part documentaryon the amazing Thai Pusam festival in Malaysia. It still holds therecord for the most views among our YouTube postings.To extend the distribution of Hinduism Today’s content, we printextra copies of key Educational Insight sections as 16-page bookletsthat can be purchased online and easily used in Hindu religiousclasses. One of the most popular is “Ten Questions People AskAbout Hinduism.” Back in the spring of 1990, a group of teens fromChicago sent a request to Hinduism Today for “official answers” tonine questions they were commonly asked by their peers. Thesequestions had perplexed the youth themselves; and their parentshad no convincing answers. Hinduism Today founder Gurudevatook up the challenge and composed thoughtful answers to the ninequestions. In 2004 we added a tenth dialog on caste, since that isthe most relentless criticism Hinduism faces today. In the questionand-answersession of lectures I give, one or more of these questionsis inevitably asked, which shows that the answers provided in thisbooklet continue to be useful.In 2004 quite a furor developed around the California State Boardof Education’s questionable approval of material on Hinduism for itssixth grade social studies textbook. The controversy still continuesin the form of an active lawsuit. Our own response to the matterwas to research, design and write a model 16-page lesson on Hinduhistory, beliefs and practices for sixth graders, written from theHindu point of view. It is historically sound, having been reviewedReaching out: Satguru Sivaya Subramuniyaswami in 2000 holdingthe magazine he founded to connect Hindus dispersed aroundthe world, to give them a shared global identity, to dispel the manymyths and misconceptions and to bring pride of place to the faithby prominent Hindu historians, and acceptable in content and toneto the various denominations of the global Hindu community. It, ofcourse, is a popular educational booklet with a distribution to date ofsome 35,000 copies. The first lesson covers the period from ancienttimes to 300ce. Lesson two of this series, published in the Oct/Nov/Dec, 2008, issue, covers the period 300 to 1100ce. Additional lessonsare planned over the next few years. This is an important way thatthe editorial staff is reaching out to the broader community, bothHindu and non-Hindu, to present an authentic view of Hinduismthat will be understood and appreciated in the West.An inspiration came to me in 2007 to create a book out of HinduismToday. Specifically, I envisioned the best of our EducationalInsight sections compiled into a book called What Is Hinduism?Approached from scratch, such a book would take a large team yearsto produce, especially with the level of artistry, research, patienceand care that is found in each chapter. The serendipitous beauty ofthe project was that the necessary thousands of hours of loving attentionhad already gone into researching and designing its chaptersover the last ten years by our talented team of writers, editors andphotographers. All that was needed then, in 2007, was to gather thebest features and assemble them in a way that offers a thorough yethighly readable introduction to Hinduism. Voilà! In all, 46 EducationalInsights comprise the book and create a user-friendly way toread them versus a pile of 46 magazines!The book What Is Hinduism? has been introduced to Hindusthrough dozens of my lectures, highlighting the book’s rich graphicsand clear presentations. Thousands have attended these seminarsover these last two years. The book has also been successfully usedat major Hindu summer camps. The students can take the bookhome with them and continue to refer to it, helping them rememberthe teachings over the subsequent months. It is yet another way themagazine is impacting Hinduism.Hinduism Today has become a resource for mainstream America,a place where people can find authentic and reliable informationon Sanatana Dharma, and our editorial team is often called upon forhard-to-find answers to questions that few other institutions seeminclined to take the time to address. Harvard University is engagedin a CD-based Pluralism Project which teaches high school childrenabout other cultures and religions. Prof. Diana Eck, head of Harvard’sreligion department, invited Hinduism Today to participatein the Hindu expressions. In 1997 the former editor of ChristianityToday, Terry Muck, invited us to collaborate on a chapter of his newDoubleday book, A Guide to Religions in America.We often get calls from religion editors in America, and was laudedas a solid source of Indian spirituality in a book published by JohnDart of the Los Angeles Times called Deities and Deadlines. TimeMagazine called years back to verify a story on Deepak Chopra’sphenomenal success. Indeed, Hinduism Today has gained a reputationfor credibility, access to authentic information and a commitmentto objective, unexaggerated reporting.But that’s just the beginning and doesn’t explain why a selectcommittee seeking the Hindu view on the ethics of human cloningfor a report to US President Bill Clinton called our editorial officesin March of 1997 or why the Ford Foundation sponsored two of oureditors to join fifty prominent religion editors in the US at a meetingin Atlanta, Georgia, or why we were asked to write a chapter onHindu medical ethics for the Southern Texas Medical Association...you get the idea; as interesting as our past has been, we think thefuture is going to prove even more remarkable.c l i c k t h e p l ay b u t t on at t h e t o p o f t h e pag e t o h e a r h i n d u i s m t o day10 hinduism today january/february/march, 2009 publisher satguru bodhinatha veylanswami read his articlejanuary/february/march, 2009 hinduism today 11

Love that Sari“Jai” to those who wear the sari and the bindi,the hallmarks of the Hindu woman. In urbansettings, especially among the youngergenerations, the sari is practically extinct. Ithas been replaced by the salwar-kameez orthe western pants suit. The bindi is also fastvanishing in Indian cities, a stunning developmentof the past decade or so. There wasa time when an Indian girl without a bindiwas automatically considered a Muslim,Christian or Sikh. Now I find myself asking,“Is she Hindu?” and feeling disgust at the alltoo-commonsacrilege.As for men, if they hurt when the womenthrow culture to the winds, they must firstpreserve it themselves. Otherwise, “For aRama like you, there will only be a Sita likeme!!” will be the irrefutable argument. Inthe streets of Delhi or New York, the dhoti,vibuthi, etc., must see the light of day.Some argue that it is the nature of Hinduismto adapt to changing times, that only thespiritual goal is important and not the externalsymbols of religion. It rather seems to methat it is the nature of Hindus to compromiseour culture, slave under the culture of othersand justify it all with philosophy. The externalssymbols are our protective fences. Theyprotect not only us but our entire community,religion and ways of life. My thanks toHinduism Today for highlighting this pointin various ways.Prabhu JanakiramanYpsilanti, Michigan USApjanakir1978@gmail.comI enjoyed reading the article on the sari (October/November/December,2008). You havedone a great job. You are probably not awareof the nine yard saris of the orthodox braminladies, the Iyers and Iyengars of Chennai. Mymother and mother-in-law both wore these.The bramin style is the most sensuous one.When I was at the University of Michigan,snow or sunshine, I clung to my Indian traditionsand always wore a sari.Lakshmi SridharanSan Jose, Californialakshmisridharan@lakshmi-sridharan.comAgainst the MissionariesI applaud your magazine for the article “AFraudulent Mission” (October/November/December, 2008) by Dr. David Frawley. I amJewish but a regular reader of HinduismToday. I work in the information technologysector in the US. A few years ago when mycompany started using many Indian contractors,missionary tracts aimed at Hindusstarted to show up in our break room. WhenI found them, I would throw them away. Iletterswas embarrassed that my Indian coworkersmight come to this country and be quicklyexposed to the message that many Americansdisrespect their religion. I am used toseeing missionary materials because I live inthe Bible Belt and Christianity is the acceptednorm, but I was shocked at how quickly materialsaimed specifically at Hindus showedup in our area, because my city had few Hindusprior to this point. This goes to show, Ithink, how well-organized the missionaryindustry is. Everyone who does not believe inthe supremacy of one religion over anothermust unite and stand up together againstmissionaries who preach that very message.We need to do a better job teaching othersabout what our religions have to offer—notto proselytize, but to inform. I particularlyagree with the last sentence in that article,“The world desperately needs better access toIndia’s wealth of spiritual resources.” Thankyou for all your efforts.Jennifer PlunkGeorgia, USAjplunk@bellsouth.netI was upset and shocked at the outright attackon Christianity by Dr. Frawley. As Hindus,we seem to pride ourselves in the tolerancewe have for other religions, yet here wasa representative attacking the cornerstone ofthe Christian faith. Yes, many Christians dosend plenty of money and manpower to India.I agree with the statement, but not the problem.What we should be asking ourselves is,“What void is Christianity filling for theseconverts that Hinduism is not?” It’s a toughquestion for the prideful, but our holy booksteach us to not be so arrogant. I believe thatwe all have been made with minds that thinkand make decisions. Far be it from me to lookdown on those who find happiness in anotherreligion as I have found in Hinduism.K. T. BrayLexington, Kentucky, USAktbray.artrep@gmail.comThese missionaries from outside India haveno knowledge or respect for the diversity ofIndia. For centuries tribals have celebratedtheir tribal faiths in peace in a Hindu India.Now they face the prospect of losing theirsmall faiths to a well-financed machine. Thishas already happened in Africa and northeastIndia. If we stand by and do nothing, we willcertainly lose that idea that is India, a placewhere persecuted people, such as the Parsees,Bohras, Jews and recently the Tibetans, havefound safe refuge. They did so because of ourHindu ideals and values.It is Hinduism that says God made man ahuman being, but we humans have dividedourselves into Hindus, Muslims and Christians.Once we die, we are no longer humansor animals but just souls and it is these souls,regardless of religion or faith, that ascend toRama’s heaven. All good souls, even atheists,are welcome in Rama’s heaven.Christians may have a better-funded organization,but we are not entirely helpless. Icall upon good Hindus to wake up and helpas much as they can. With the power of theInternet, we can now influence people withjust the click of a mouse. I see a lot of Hindusdiscussing whether Hinduism is dvaitaor advaita, whether Hinduism is polytheisticor monotheistic. These discussions areimportant, but what is more important is tospread the values of Hinduism. Even our ownyoung are ignorant of the glorious values thatHinduism teaches.Vanamali ThotapalliChicago, Illinois, USAmalipalli@yahoo.comDealing with HolidaysThe influence of Christianity is a problemfor Hindus living abroad. Well-educated andwell-heeled Indian Hindus living in the USroutinely throw elaborate Christmas parties.Their children brag about who had thebiggest Christmas tree and who received themost Christmas gifts. As a mother raisinga child in the US, I face this problem everyChristmas. I clash with my husband on theissues of bringing a Christmas tree home,buying Christmas gifts, etc., for the sake ofour children so they are not left out—leftout of what? A well-educated Hindu motheronce chided me when I spoke against the influenceof Christmas on our children. Her replywas, “It is such an innocent, happy holiday.What’s wrong if our children take part in it?”Most people fail to realize the subtle influencehere. We do not take part in the Muslimor Jewish holidays, so why Easter or Christmas?Hindus should look deeply into theirmind set and find out the answer themselves.If parents are not careful, our next generationwill be affected by the glamour and glitter ofChristianity which surrounds the celebration.Vidya BhideLedgewood, New Jerseybhi196@yahoo.com✔ Hinduism Today’s founder, Satguru SivayaSubramuniyaswami, developed the festival of“Pancha Ganapati” for Western Hindus toprovide Hindu festivities for the children duringthis holiday time, from December 21 to25. Google “Pancha Ganapati” for how yourfamily can celebrate the Hindu way duringthe Christmas season.Temple SafetyThe stampede at Jodhpur has come as a shockto everyone. How could the state governmentbe so lax when thousands attend the templeevery day? They should have made secureentry and exit routes for the crowds. And thisfollows on earlier stampedes at other temples,also the result of lax arrangements. Now wesee the usual giving out of checks to the nextof kin, but the same money could have beenused earlier to make the temples safe.Tuneer BondhopadhyayKolkata, Indiatuneer73@hotmail.comResponding to MissionariesI was raised a Catholic, but never believedwhat the church taught. Even as a smallchild, I could see through the argumentsthat everyone needed to be baptized to go toheaven. This led to me extensively readingbooks concerning Buddhism and Hinduism.My three sons rejected Christianity in veryshort order. As a family, we have establisheda coping strategy to deal with proselytizationattempts aimed at our children. When toldthey must accept Jesus, or that the Bible isthe word of God, they simply respond, “I donot believe that.” They are repeatedly asked ifthey go to church, and answer, “That’s noneof your business.”Now is the time for everyone to talk totheir children concerning how to deal withthese individuals. It is my belief that by makingthis a continuous topic within our home,it will make us stronger as a family and helpour children to develop a similar strategywhen they become parents in the future.Ron HigginsFlagstaff, Arizona, USAronaldwhiggins@live.comExcellent PublicationI came to know about your magazine throughthe Internet a few weeks back. It is excellentin content and the presentation of Hinduviews and way of life. I felt an inner urge tosubmit my thanks for the service you arerendering.C. SivaramanPondicherry, Indiasivadeeva@gmail.comA Gift from the Heart Begets Many MoreOne way to send blessings ’round the worldShailesh trivedi was born in theUSA in 1977, and grew up with arare advantage. His parents lovinglytaught him all the Hinduismthey knew and, when he was a little tot,they subscribed to Hinduism Today ! Themagazine was part of the family—a smalldetail of great consequence, as it happened.There were times when young Shaileshexperienced the inevitable second-generationgloomies. “I knew the basics, attendedbhajan and celebrated home puja,but there were gaps,” he explains. “Welived far from any Hindu community andthere was too much I did not understand.It all became a big blur. I belonged neitherhere nor there. I felt disconnected.”Fortunately, Hinduism Today was alwaysaround and, over time, it broughtin the clarity he was looking for. “TimeSunrise on the flower farm: Shailesh andhis parents among the myrtle. “The magazinehelped us maintain a blissful unity ofvision and continuity from past to present.”and again, I was awed, realizing what a greatculture I possessed. And the magazine wasalways bright, light, humorous, with nothingponderous anywhere. It was the perfectteacher, and it transformed me. I cannotInter-Religious MarriageAfter reading the article “Interreligious Marriage”(July/August/September, 2008) by Dr.Dilip Amin, I would like to give my owncomments. In my part of the world, Malaysia,Hindus are the third largest population groupafter the Malays and the Chinese. There isfrequent intermarriage between Hindus,Chinese, Toaists, Sabahans, Sarawakians andBuddhists. These intermarrying couples facevery few problems, religious or otherwise.At Hindu temples in Malaysia, it is quitecommon to see Hindu husbands coming topray with their “intermarried” wives, completewith Hindu attire. In Malaysia, womenusually follow the religion of their husbands.Hence, the issue of conversion seldom arises.Couples believe in the concept of one God,and that all religions are good. To these intermarryingcouples, love is all that matters.I have been married to my Taoist Chinesewife for the last fifty years, and we neverfaced any religious problems. Our childrenspeak fluent Chinese and Tamil and respectall religions. It looks like in Malaysia intermarriagesare here to stay, bringing forth newand better generations.K. ThuruvanRasah, Serembam, MalaysiaCorrections✔ The photograph on page 2o of the Octoberissue was by Amit Kumar. A photo onpage 22 showing arati being performed wasflipped. It incorrectly shows the pujari usinghis left hand for the worship, which wouldnever be done.✔ The article on Christian missionariesby Dr. David Frawley was drawn froma dialogue with the Catholic archbishop ofHyderabad in 1997, not 2007 as stated.Letters with writer’s name, address and daytime phonenumber should be sent to:Letters, Hinduism Today107 Kaholalele RoadKapaa, Hawaii, 96746-9304 USAor faxed to: (808) 822-4351or e-mailed to: letters@hindu.orgLetters may be edited for space and clarity and may appearin electronic versions of Hinduism Today.imagine my life without it.” Shaileshlives in Fallbrook, California, where heowns and operates a flower farm.Recently, he gave $500 to the HinduismToday Production Fund, which is a partof Hindu Heritage Endowment. “I wantedto help bring to others what has meantso much to me. What a great cause, helpingpeople be clear in their beliefs, knowwho they are and what they should do !And these treasures, more and more,Hinduism Today gives away free, resourceson their website and their digitaledition, for example. I find it inspiring togive so they may give more. My little gift,through their hands, becomes a great biggift to the world.”Please consider donating to theHinduism Today Production Fund sothat your magazine may continue to give,and give and give.Contact us to receive our ProductionFund e-newsletter: 808-822-3012 ext.244hhe@hindu.orgwww.hheonline.org/ht/plannedgiving/12 hinduism today january/february/march, 2009 january/february/march, 2009 hinduism today 13

Frank and Ernest © 2004 t h a v e s . r e p r i n t e d w i t h p e r m i s s i o n .Waste not a minute. Be bold.Realize the Truth, here and now!Swami Sivananda (1887-1963), founder of the Divine Life Society, RishikeshYou have been born in this world as ahuman being to worship God; thereforetry to acquire love for His Lotus Feet.Why do you trouble yourself to know ahundred other things? What will yougain by discussing philosophy? SriRamakrishna Paramahansa (1836-1886)For our cause I too am prepared to die,but for no cause, my friend, will I beprepared to kill. Mahatma Gandhi(1869–1948), Indian spiritual leaderIn a day when you don’t come acrossany problems, you can be surethat you are traveling in the wrongpath. Swami Vivekananda (1863-1902), disciple of Sri RamakrishaDid You Know?Hindu Gods in JapanAlthough hinduism has fewfollowers in Japan, still it hada significant, but indirectrole in the formation of Japaneseculture. Many Buddhist beliefs andtraditions come from Hinduism,spread to Japan from China from the6th century. Several Hindu Gods arerevered in the land of the rising sun.Japan’s very popular “Seven Godsof Fortune” are partly originated fromHindu deities, including Benzaiten(Sarasvati), Bishamon (Kubera), andDaikoku (Mahakala). Benzaiten isspecially popular. A text praisingBenzaiten, called The Sutra of GoldenLight, became an important scripturein Japan used to support the Imperialclaim to power and divinity. She isalso part of the popular Lotus Sutra.The Hindu god of death, Yama,is known as Enma. Garuda, thesean wilson - wikimediaNot until we see the richness of the Hinduspirituality can we understand India.Lin Yutang (1895-1976), Chinese writerFaith is like electricity. You can’tsee it, but you can see its lightshining on you. AnonymousThe highest form of grace is silence.Swami Chinmayananda (1916-1922),founder of the Chinmaya MissionWater is sufficient to cleanse thebody, but truthfulness alone canpurify the mind. Tirukkural 298Truth is not only Eternal but also unlimitedand infinite. Sanatana Dharma is verysimple and natural because it is basedvahana of Vishnu, is known asthe Karura. The japanese tenninoriginated from the Hindu apsaras.In a massive temple at the FutakoTamagawa area of Tokyo, Lord Ganeshais displayed so many times that Heeven outnumbers the Buddha!Through Buddhism, many ofthe facets of Hindu culture whichhave influenced Japan have alsoinfluenced Chinese culture.on the Laws of Nature. Swami RamaTirtha (1873-1906), one of the firstsannyasins to bring Hinduism to AmericaBefore I came on this earth, I was thesame. As a little girl, I was the same. Igrew into womanhood, but still I wasthe same. And, even now, I am the same.Though the dance of creation will everchange around me in the hall of eternity,I shall be the same. Sri AnandamayiMa, (1896-1982), Bengali mysticThe body of Benjamin Franklin lieshere, made food for worms like an oldand worn book. Yet it will appear oncemore, in a new and more beautiful edition,corrected and amended by its Author.Epitaph on the grave of Benjamin Franklin(1706-1790), American philosopher andpolitician, who believed in reincarnationAlways remember you’re unique, justlike everyone else. AnonymousI do nothing but go about persuading youall, old and young alike, not to take thoughtof yourselves or your properties, but tocare about the improvement of the soul.Socrates, (470-399 bce) Greek philosopherThe first day a guest, the second day aguest, the third day a guest, the fourthday a calamity. Indian proverbDo not be proud of wealth, people, relationsand friends, or youth. All these aresnatched by time in the blink of an eye.Giving up this illusory world, know andattain the Supreme. Adi Shankara, 9thcentury Indian philosopher and saintThe present is the result of past action.Man is the architect of his future. SatguruYogaswami (1872-1964), Sri Lanka’smost revered contemporary mysticAn equation for me has no meaningunless it expresses a thought ofGod. Srinivas Ramanujan (1887-1920), Indian mathematicianWake up and find out eventually who youreally are. In our culture of course, they’llsay you’re crazy or you’re blasphemous, andthey’ll either put you in jail or in the nuthouse (which is the same thing). But if youwake up in India and tell your friends andrelations, “My goodness, I’ve just discoveredthat I’m God,” they’ll laugh and say, “Oh,congratulations, at last you found out.” AlanWatts, (1915-1973), English philosopherand expert in comparative religionThe three pillars of hinduism arethe temples, the scriptures and thesatgurus. They sustain and preservethe ancient wisdom. If any two were todissapear, Hinduism would come backfrom the third, as perfect as it ever was.Here we describe the second pillar, Hinduscriptures. The holiest and most reveredare the Vedas and Agamas, called shruti(that which is “heard”), both revealed byGod through clairaudient and clairvoyantrishis centuries and millennia ago.The Vedas and Agamas hold eternaltruths. They are Hinduism’s primary andmost authoritative scriptures, expoundinglife’s sacredness and man’s purpose on theplanet. They were memorized and orallyconveyed from generation to generation,then finally written down in the last fewI think I get enough exercise justpushing my luck. AnonymousSometimes I wish karma could talk...That would take a lot of the guessworkout of what we do. Randy Hickey, TVcharacter, brother of the eponymous starin the American show “My Name Is Earl”Few women admit their age, butfewer men act it. AnonymousSurrender can never be regardedas complete so long as the devoteewants this or that from the Lord. Truesurrender is the love of God for thesake of love and nothing else, not evenbasics of hinduismHinduism’s Second Pillar: Scripturesmillennia. The subtly symbolic language ofHindu shruti is lyrical and lofty, impartingreligious practice, rules and doctrine.The Vedas extol and invoke a multiplicityof Gods through elaborate fire ritualscalled yajna. The Agamas are specificto each Hindu denomination, centeringaround a single Deity and His worshipin sanctified temples and shrines.The array of works known as smriti (thatwhich is “remembered”) is equally vast. Themost prominent and widely celebrated arethe epics Ramayana and Mahabharata.Devotees also revere the many Puranas,which contain Hindu mythology.Moreover, through the ages Godrealizedsouls have poured forth volumesthat reveal the wonders of yoga andoffer passionate hymns of devotion.for the sake of salvation. Love Himunconditionally. Sri Ramana Maharishi(1879-1950), South Indian mysticEach Hindu lineage has within it an innersound, a nada of a different velocity, variedin pitch and depth. This is sampradaya.This is parampara. This is nada-nadishakti. This is Hindu mysticism. To hearthis very high-pitched eee sound is yourfirst siddhi. It will bring many benefitsinto your life, smooth out the karmas,keep you inspired and on the subtle path,strengthening your personal force fieldand that of all those connected to you.Satguru Sivaya Subramuniyaswami(1927-2001), founder of Hinduism Todayhinduism today14 hinduism today january/february/march, 2009 january/february/march, 2009 hinduism today 15

feature storydinodiaHe is the charismatic leader of 500,000 sadhus of an ancienttradition who are transforming the Hindu world in IndiaBy Rajiv Malik, New DelhiSri avdheshananda giri maharaj,Acharya Mahamandaleshwar ofthe Juna Akhara, received the 2008Hindu Renaissance Award fromHinduism Today. A guru to thousands andan inspiration to millions, Swami Av dheshanandhas initiated more than a hundredthousand sannyasins, transformed lives withhis social initiatives and led Hinduism’slargest monastic order into the 21st century.Hinduism Today correspondent RajivMalik investigated the life of this moderndaysaint and the influences that shaped himinto a dynamic leader and a steadfast defenderof Hinduism.Under theblessings ofShankaracharya,Swami givesan upadesha tohis devoteesSwami Avdheshananda Giri,HINDU of the YEARAn early yearning for God“When you develop a craving to know theTruth, the mountains and caves start attractingyou,” Swami Avdheshananda Giri toldRajiv. “In 1980, that happened to me.”Hindu tradition holds that one should nomore inquire about the past of a sannyasinthan about the source of a river. The meagerstream at the beginning of a Ganga or aNile says nothing about the river’s greatness,its torrential waters that feed countries andgive life to millions. Tradition advises that weshould just be thankful for the abundant wa­phal girotaters. But when a sannyasin does talk abouthis path, it is to encourage others and inspireseekers. Last year, during the Guru Purnimacelebrations in New Delhi, Swami Avdheshanandashared with our reporter some of thesteps of his quest.Swami remembers that it was the year1980 in northern India when an unusuallyinquisitive young man arrived at conclusionsthat would later guide his spiritual progress.He realized he did not understand life,nor did those around him. He longed for atruth that, he reasoned, could only be foundat the feet of those no longer influenced bythe world. Thus began his search for a satpurusha,a soul who had realized the Truth.Wandering for months at the lower rangesof the Himalayas, the seeker realized heneeded a teacher to guide him, one who wasspiritually awake and blessed close connectionwith God. The young man, who wouldone day become Swami Avdheshananda,found his guru: Swami Avadhoot Prakash,a rare and elderly sage, expert in yoga andlearned in the ancient sacred Hindu texts.Under the master’s tutelage, in the coldfoothills of North India, he studied the scripturesand developed a taste for Sanskrit, thelanguage of the Gods. Eventually he receivedfrom his first formal initiation (diksha) as anaishtika brahmachari, opening doors todeeper yoga practices and confirming his aspirationto one day renounce the world.His resolve was soon tested when SwamiAvadhoot Prakash Ji Maharaj left his mortalform. The young novice did not falter. Hecontinued his practices and inner achievements,having faith that he remained underThe HinduRenaissance AwardThe Hindu Renaissance Award was createdin 1991 by the founder of HinduismToday to recognize and strengthenHindu leaders worldwide. Swami AvdheshanandaGiri was presented the awardin August, 2008, at a grand satsang duringhis visit to the Sunnyvale Hindu Temple inCalifornia. Hinduism Today’s representative,Easan Katir, gave the following short addressexplaining the award’s spirit, its history andthe choice of this year’s awardee.The Hindu Renaissance Award is given byHinduism Today magazine to leaders whoinspire, strengthen and reinvigorate Hinduism and its millions offollowers all over the globe,” Easan Katir explained. “Such peerlessleaders can come in many forms, reflecting the diverse ways of ourfaith. Some are silent sages, mystics who take us to the heights of ourown being by the force their own enlightenment. Others are tirelesssocial workers, servants of Hindus in need, helping children, priests,villages, the sick and the poor, living the Hindu ideals of ahimsa andthe protection of God and guru.In 1985 a very different, matured manemerged from the sacred caves. The yogiapproached the revered Swami SatyamitranandaJi Maharaj of Bharat Mata Mandir,a beloved former teacher. From Swamiji hereceived sannyas diksha, entering his newbrotherhood, the holy Juna Akhara, Hinduism’slargest order of renunciate monastics.Until now, he had been free and detached,an inner explorer, who gave little thought tothe external world. But after donning thekavi robes of the sannyasin, he became ateacher. Accustomed to the practice of mauna(silence), he had little idea how importanthis lectures would become to so many.Spending more and more time in teachingand social work, he became convinced thathe must become an agent of social reform,not just social help. This, he saw, had to bedone through the transformation of the individual,based on the precepts laid downby Hindu saints of yore. Swamiji became akatha vachak of the Juna Akhara—a speakerand storyteller—traveling almost incessantlyinside India and abroad. The katha vachakis a master of Ram katha, employing stories,drama, music and debate to elucidatereligious concepts. He must be able to speakfor hours, keeping the audience immersed inthe performance, entranced and spirituallyuplifted. The best katha vachaks are famousin the Hindu world, the likes of Morari Bapuand Rameshbai Oza, but few are renunciatesadhus. In his first years as a Ram kathaka,Swami’s gift for oratory and his inborn claritysoon earned him the respect and love ofeager seekers around the world.A gifted speakerRajiv Pratap Rudy, 52, a former high-rankingofficial for India’s aviation industry, explained,“Swamiji is able to strongly influenceus, the common people, whether it isa youth or a senior housewife. He interactswith us not only about religion, but about allof our lives and interests. Swami speaks in amodern manner, but rooted in tradition.”Many felt an instant connection withthe new katha vachak in the late 1980s andearly 1990s. The young sannyasin graduallybecame popular as a guest and a speaker.Swami told Hinduism Today that duringthose years he was quietly training himselfto live more attuned to the ancient teachingsof Hinduism, deepening his study of karmaand spiritual laws, undergoing a transformationthat would strengthen his convictionthat seva, selfless service, is the core of whata spiritual aspirant should do today.In 1998, Swami’s role as a world-travelingteacher reached a peak. Around the sametime, the Acharya Mahamandaleshwar ofthe akhara, the highest leader of the order,passed away. Though a few saintly renunciatescarry the title of Mahamandaleshwar—which translates as “supervisor of manymonks”—only one is the Acharya. The positionis not one of absolute authority, but ratherof deep respect. The acharya is the publicface of the time-honored organization. Heguides the spirit of the akhara’s activities andinitiates all new sannyasins joining the order.Swami Avadheshanda recalls, “In 1998,the Juna Akhara formally decided to makeme one of the Mahamandaleshwars. Therewas a formal ceremony and a religious ritual,compassion. Yet others are scholars,intellectual champions capable ofdebating deep scriptural truths andfighting in many arenas to protectdharma. This year’s recipient belongsto more than one of these categories.Swami Avdheshananda Giri Maharajwas chosen the Acharya Mahamandaleshwarof the holy Juna Akharaand has excelled at the task.”Previous awardees were SwamiParamananda Bharati (’90), SwamiChidananda Saraswati (’91), SwamiChinmayananda (’92), Mata Amritanandamayi Ma (’93), SwamiSatchidananda (’94), Pramukhswami Maharaj (’95), Satya Sai Baba(’96), Sri Chinmoy (’97), Swami Bua (’98), Swami Chidananda Saraswatiof Divine Life Society (’99), Ma Yoga Shakti (’00), T. S. SambamurthySivachariar (’01), Dada Vaswani (’02), Sri Tiruchi Mahaswamigal (’03),Dr. K. Pichai Sivacharya (’04), Swami Tejomayananda (’05), RameshBhai Oza (’06) and Sri Balagandharanathaswami (’07).18 hinduism today january/february/march, 2009 january/february/march, 2009 hinduism today 19

in which my ‘Mahamandaleshwar Pattabhishekam’was done. Immediately afterthat, I was also chosen as the new Acharya.This position is designated only by the assembledsaints. No one can ask for it, and noone will be appointed from outside.”As the Acharya, Swamiji assumed themantle of guru for the akhara’s numerousdevotees. He said to our reporter, “May Godforgive me and I say this without any kindof arrogance, but I interact with thousands ofpeople every day.” It requires stamina, dedicationand a strong spiritual foundation toremain centered, and Swami found the answerin discipline. No matter where he is inthe world, at 9am his doors will open to devotees.With three to four flights every monthand an average of twenty days away fromthe main ashram, Swami finds it helpful toplan ahead in detail. Everything is scheduled,even the time allocated for each meal. It is ademanding social routine, far removed fromhis beginnings as a Himalayan yogi. “Whatkeeps me alive is my meditation,” Swamisays with candor. “I cannot live withoutmeditation. It gives me energy, bliss, peaceand vitality. When you close your eyes andsit in a proper posture, energy will grow andflow at a very rapid speed. Just close youreyes and observe it. There is nothing morepowerful than dhyana. Dhyana gives birth toyou, it introduces you to your own Self.”As the Acharya, Swami Avdheshanandaalso became the preceptor for several sannyasinswho, like Swami Nachiketa Giri,were already part of the order and decidedto work closely with him. Swami NachiketaGiving villages new lifeGiri shared, “It is the greatness of AcharyaSri that he has open-heartedly accepted meand other sannyasins who are working inhis team. I am grateful to him because afterour meeting my life was transformed. I havebeen associated with him for over one decade.Whatever sankalpam (decisions) weundertake are quickly and auspiciously fulfilled.We do them all for the welfare of thesociety and for the world.”Service to others“This is an era of service,” Swami Avdhe shananda proclaims. Dressed in flawless robesbut with his cellphone hanging on his hip,ready to receive calls about the coordinationof many ongoing projects, he obviously livesby that dictum.One new initiative receiving much of hisattention today is the Bhopal Project, an outreachto educate the most promising mindsof the next generation—not in the latestfads of the global marketplace, but in skillsmeaningful to Hinduism. Though barely underway, this project carries the full force ofthe Juna Akhara, which is well known for itssuccessful social enterprises.“In our Bhopal Project we will try to educateyouth who are already talented,” Swamijienthused. “We are creating an institutethat will teach them Sanskrit and Englishprimarily, but also Spanish, Chinese andFrench. Our dream is to teach the VastuShastras (sacred architecture), the Vedas,astrology, Ayurveda and our culture to theseyouth. This will be a higher learning institutionto teach not only book knowledge, butalso introduce them to nature and provideorganic food for their meals from their ownfarms. We will prepare them to be sent tocountries outside of India, to go out all overthe world, spreading the message of the SanatanaDharma.”The candidates for this new ambassadorshipof dharma are children selected fromthe schools run by the Juna Akhara and otherrelated institutions. Sannyasins teaching atthese schools act as talent scouts. The goal isnot to create traditional pundits, but rather anew generation of professionals who can interactwith other professionals and pollinatesociety with traditional Hindu values. Theymay become engineers, doctors or scientistsor specialize in skills they learn at Bhopal,but they will be expected to always make adifference.The most influential of Swami’s ongoingprojects is Shivganga, a broad effort to helppeople in an arid part of Madhya Pradeshwho live in difficult conditions (see sidebarabout the project’s beginnings). Distinguishedfrom other projects by its commitmentto preserving the local’s customs andself-respect, it stands out for the efficiencyof its methods and has brought extensivepositive exposure in the Indian media.Swami Naisargika Giri, president of theSadhvi Shakti Parishad, and one of the fewwomen initiated as sannyasinis by SwamiAvdheshananda, says, “Swamiji has broughta revolution there. This was an area wherepeople had not seen automobiles. Today theyare good farmers, with enough water available.Some are moving out to get education inHow the Shivganga Project began“ If you ever need to cross Jhabua, do so inthe day time, never at night. There thetribals carry bows and arrows.” Thisrather foreboding warning was all thatneighbors had to say ten years ago aboutJhabua, a poor region of Madhya Pradeshdotted with impoverished, depressed villagesa few hours from Indore. Today thevillages are like small jewels in the aridlandscape. The transformation was broughtabout by the Shivganga project and its hundredsof volunteers.“It was in 1998 that Mahesh Sharma, asocial worker and devotee of Swami Avdheshananda,first visited Ghatia, just onemany villages in the Jabhua area, whichis notorious as dangerously distrustful ofstrangers. He was shocked by the poverty ofthe villagers, but impressed with their intelligence,candor and warmth. Determined tohelp, Sharma extensively traveled and stayedin many villages, making friends, learningthe customs, traditions and dialect.“In the old days,” the villagers told him,“we had enough water and crops to staywhere we were. People did not fight. Nowfood is scarce, and we have poverty andquarrels. But when the government and thecity-folk come to help, they do not connectwith us. They give us a lot, but they make usdependent on their ways.” Mahesh Sharmarealized, then and there, the need for a differentkind of social work.Changing the situation began with a carefulplan and much selfless work. Maps ofthe region were drawn and the problemsthe villages faced were studied in depth.The sannyasins contacted Shri RajendraPrasad, an award-winning engineer fromRajasthan, for guidance and technical support.Water scientists were consulted and astrategy was created that involved no moneyfrom the government, relying primarily onthe dormant capacity of the villagers themselves.A jal sansad (water parliament) wascreated to plan broader solutions, such asnew dams.With the support of the Juna Akhara, underthe blessings of Swami Avdheshananda,the Shivganga project was begun in Jhabua.Its mission statement is, “Self-reliance isessential for development. Self-respect isessential for self-reliance.” Hundreds ofsocial entrepreneurs and volunteers arelaboring in the ongoing effort to restructureand revive villages. Work is progressing, atdifferent stages, in 1,300 villages, helping touplift and inspired hundreds of thousandsof people and provide them with sustainablesupplies of food, water and the basicamenities of life, including schools, places ofworship and joyous festivals.Practical upliftment: (clockwise fromtop) A long line of young devotees on themove carrying Ganga water; joy and funat a sports event; a coordinator teacheshow to dig a well; villagers move dirt togetherto create an irrigation ditch;all photos: shivganga projectjanuary/february/march, 2009 hinduism today 21

the cities. For centuries their only goal was tofeed themselves, but now Swamiji has connectedthem to God by establishing Sivalingashrines in their villages, which gives a higherpurpose to their lives.”The process is well orchestrated. Workbegins by gathering young men who havecompleted a brief formal education and willlive in the village for rest of their lives. Traininghappens during 3- to 20-day intensivesin camps. The first step is to train them inteam skills and group cooperation. Becausethe young men as seen as the heart of thevillage’s transformation, they are taught tolead and make informed decisions. In themiddle of a remote, quasi-desertic area, theyhave classes on sangat (group interaction),udbhodhan (addressing the public), timemanagement, event management, evaluationmethodology and how to pass on what theyare absorbing. And, perhaps for the first time,they see others believing in their potential.Shivganga camp training moves from theoryto action quickly. A typical program includes:1) How to organize the village; 2) Theimportance of sports for youth; 3) Identifyingvillage problems and their root causes;4) Finding solutions; 5) Establishing a centerfor worship and bhajans. The initial projectsspearheaded by the group are designed toengage and give confidence to all participants.First they orchestrate a festival for LordGanesha and one for Lord Rama, then hold acommunity sports event. Later, the buddingentrepreneurs work on the water supply andbuild a permanent shrine or temple.“We have constructed 350 to 400 dams,”exults Swami Avdheshananda. And, he adds,1,300 new Sivalingas have been installed,one for each village. “We wanted to developtheir faith in God. The villagers themselvesworked to build them. In the past five yearsor so, the whole life of those people has beentransformed.” While he is pleased with theresults, Swamiji wants to go farther. “Nowwe want to provide better education andmedical help.” The Shivganga yields humanitarianresults and is also good for Hinduism.“Before we went there,” Swami continues,“large-scale conversion was taking place. Thathas stopped altogether. Before, no religiousevents were happening; now we even haveHindu priests officiating at festivals. It iswith a lot of enthusiasm that I am sharingwith you our extensive plans for that area.”Undeniably, Swami’s vibrant personalityhas advanced the works of India’s largestmonastic order to a new dynamic standard.But he is quick to point out that the cooperationwithin the akhara is so complete itblurs the lines between the organizationand himself. “My projects, the Juna Akharaand myself are so merged with one anotherthat they are just one for me.” And his team’sprojects are manifold. They like great ideasand small solutions, trying to make India andthe world a better place one step at a time,focusing on basic strategies—from breedingSwami’s devotees speak their heartsbetter cows to creating chemical-free farmsof ayurvedic herbs.Swami explained why he feels selflessservice is so important: “Dharma is somethingthat has to be imbibed and adopted inour lives. We ask that devotees spare sometime and devote it to projects which serveall people, contributing with both funds andpersonal energy. We must treat all people asGod. Their cities should be clean and green,their water pure. We should offer medicalservices and education. We are not claimingthat we will change the whole world. But wewant to appeal to the Hindu world. We mustunderstand that wherever selfless serviceexists, prosperity follows. With samskarasand education, prosperity is bound to come.People will become self-reliant and selfconfident.They will become strong. This iswhat I see for India.”A host of venerable sannyasins“The Juna Akhara is the supreme akhara ofIndia in terms of seniority and number ofsadhus. It is a huge gathering of saints,” saysSwamiji with unabashed pride. The numberof Hindu monks in India and abroad is notknown; estimates range from three to fivemillion. According to the Juna Akhara, its orderalone claims 500,000 sadhus. In comparison,the Catholic Church worldwide counts460,000 ordained men plus 750,000 women,who are serving full-time and under vows(according to a 2005 census from the Centerfor Applied Research in the Apostolate).Hinduism’s monastic structure is complexand organic. Most monks belong to a parampara(lineage) or a monastic order, such asthe thirteen famous akharas. The Hindiword akhara translates as “wrestling arena”or place of debate, a reference to vigorous, yetfriendly, theological discussions. The akharasvary in theology as well as size and influence;most are Smarta in practice, but threeare considered Vaishnavite and a few areSaivite. There is plenty of respectful acceptancefor different points of view among thegroups, and no dominance exists. Other largeorders exist outside the akharas, such as theSwaminarayan fellowship, the RamakrishnaOrder and the Nathas of South India. Withineach akhara, most sannyasins are also associatedwith one of the dashanami lineages(see sidebar on page 24). Adi Shankara, whooriginated the dashanami system and didmuch to revitalize and improve the structureof Hindu monasticism, is commonly thoughtto have founded the akharas as well; butthey actually predate him by centuries.Hinduism’s sadhus are in two broad categories,those who live in monastic communitiesand those who wander or live in solitude.The socially engaged Juna Akhara also hasthousands of naga sadhus and maunis whostrive to uplift the world by their silent existence,anonymously blessing society fromsecluded caves. Their lack of involvementmaintains a certain fluidity in the monasticorder; these outlying branches of the familyprevent the Acharya from becoming too centralto the structure. During the monumentalKumbha Melas, the mountain-dwelling sadhusjoin their brothers of the same akharain a surprisingly harmonious weave, populatingvast areas under colorful tents—and newsannyasins are initiated by the Acharya Mahamandaleshwar,usually by the thousandsin a powerful event. “I have directly initiatedaround one hundred thousand sadhus in aperiod of eight years,” reckons Swami Avdheshananda. The ordination of sannyasinsis perhaps his most important role, for thoserare souls become Hinduism’s leaders, theliving embodiment of wisdom and tradition.The initiation of new sadhusThe ancient rules that govern the initiationof sannyasins are found in the Vedas and inthe oral tradition of each monastic lineage. “Acandidate could spend anytime from three totwelve years in the company of sadhus beforehe is initiated,” Swami elucidates. “Histeachers protect and preserve the seeds ofnon-attachment. They also assess if the bramachari’srenunciation is truthful and hisdisinterest in the world is firm. It is the Mahamandaleshwars and the managing sadhusof the akhara who decide who qualifies forinitiation.”The training of a potential sannyasin varieswidely. Most candidates begin by joiningthe sannyasins in whatever tasks they do. Anaspiring monk will naturally seek those whoreflect his own affinities. Some join Sanskritistsand masters of scripture; others aredrawn to social service or yogic practices.Vairagya (renunciation) and the degree ofcontrol that the aspirant has over his sensesare the main qualifications. “You also haveto be truthful and ethical,” Swami explains.“Your heart has to be full of compassion.You must be connected to your soul. Yourinner being should be peaceful. If you arebereft of desires, you are ready to become asannyasin.”Once a disciple has been approved for thelifetime vows of sannyas, he begins a periodof intense preparation. Swami NityanandaGiri shares, “Sannyas diksha is preceded byintense sadhana (spiritual practices), longperiods of silence and extended fasts. For thefinal eleven days, we survive just on waterfrom the holy Ganga. We don’t sleep duringthe final 24 hours either, since sannyas isseen as a profound awakening.”The initiation, performed in seclusion, is apact between the initiate, his guru and God.The rites begin with the future sannyasinthrowing into the fire his clothing, his desiresand his former self. In the consumingflames he sees the dissolution of his karmasand family ties, his ignorance and doubts.He then vows that his sannyas is not takento fulfill any worldly aspirations, and hishead is shaved. In the tradition of the JunaAkhara, sannyasins make a vow to renounce“We met him due to the will of God. Swamiji is not just an individual. He hasa full ancient guru tradition behind him. At any time if I need any spiritualguidance, I can always talk to him. He speaks so clearly. The transformationthat has happened to me is that I learned to love everybody.”Shailaja Nair, a housewife from Mumbai“My parents and I used to see Swamiji on television, but one night he came to usin our dreams and asked us to go meet him. Since then my life was transformed.In my career I received so many blessings. Today I am a complete vegetarian and Inow respect my parents much more. Everything that happened to me is so positivethat I am never going to leave Swamiji.”Shantanu, 27, an operations manager from New DelhiA personal connection: (below) Swami Avdheshananda leads a satsang duringSatguru Purnima 2008 at his Ambala Ashram, joined by other swamis and Mahamandaleshwars.(left) Hundreds patiently wait for a chance to personally meettheir beloved guru on stage for a few moments and seek his blessings.“My life was a journey of seeking that came to an end when I met Swamiji.Today I finally feel that all I need is within my reach and I do not have tolook around aimlessly anymore. I just have to work, improve myself andthe things I want to change. Now, whoever I am is because of Maharaj, andwhatever I have belongs to him.”Sheel Singla, a housewife from New Delhi“My whole family have been his devotees for fifteen years.Swamiji has taught us the technique of living. He has given usstrength and motivation to work hard in life. He also taught usto live like a family, and we understand each other much betternow. He has taught us to love ourselves and help others as wehelp ourselves. For all this we are so happy to be in his presence.But even when we close our eyes, we can see him.”Sonia Jindal, 25, a fashion designer from Punjaball photos: phal girotajanuary/february/march, 2009 hinduism today 23

thomas kellyThe spiritual circle’s center: Swami Avdheshananda Giri is the regent of anenergetic swarm during Kumbha Melas, as in the 2004 Mela at Ujjain.physics, Ananda Giri is a skilled helper whoperforms his tasks with devoted zeal. “Firstof all, I am a disciple of my guru, Swamiji. Ido help him as his secretary, but our mainrelationship is that of guru and shishya. Thetruth is, I am hardly doing anything myself. Itis he who is getting everything done throughme.” This selfless attitude, which runs deepthroughout this time-honored order, has createda dynamic, trustworthy group for SwamiAvadheshananda’s ambitious endeavors.Under the Acharya’s leadership, they arecarrying out a mission or service and sadhana,one day at a time, molding the futureof the glorious Juna Akhara, while honoringits noble history, and holding high the peerlessstandards of Hindu monasticism. ∏πread more about sannyas vows atwww.gurudeva.org/sannyasany contact with fire, which in the old timeswas necessary for housekeeping and caringfor oneself. The next step is a samskaraperformed to liberate his ancestors from allobligations toward him and to liberate himfrom filial duties. The rituals continue, andthe last ceremony in preparation to meet theguru is the cutting of the shikha, a hair tuftat the back of the head that symbolizes statusand respect in society. The fully shaved headproclaims that the initiate no longer acknowledgesdistinctions between people. Finally, atthe banks of a sacred river, the initiate meetsthe Acharya Mahamandaleshwar who confersupon him the mystic ordination calledsannyas diksha and the guru mantra.the truth wherever they go. Paramahansas,like Swami Avdheshananda, are grand teachers,gurus who dedicate themselves to enlighteningothers, having no home or restingplace, and never staying in the same place formore than three days.Though all are vital to society, the dynamichansas and paramahansas weild the mostobvious impact in today’s world. This fact isexemplified by Swami Ananda Giri, a constantpresence in the busy, orange-robedswarm that usually accompany the Acharya.Formerly a post-graduate ins. rajaminterviewBring Forth the Dharmaphal girotaNewborn sadhus, ancient pathsThe Upanishads explain six levels of renunciation,based on what few monasticpossessions the sadhu has. In today’s JunaAkhara, the main distinction is betweenthe unfettered naga sadhus and those whostay in society to teach seekers and instructfamilies. But among the latter there are clearsubdivisions, as Swami Nachiketa Giri explains.“During their initiation, the saint [theacharya] passes on the samskaras to themaccording to their aspirations.” The half millionsadhus of the Juna Akhara serve God accordingto the kind of sannyas diksha chosenby each. “Aside from the naga sadhus, thereare the kutichars, the baudhiks, the hansasand the paramahansas,” Kutichars are thosewho live in a kuti (hut), stationed at one place,and remain available to society as counselors,guides and helpers, living frugally and fulfillingrenunciate vows. Baudhiks are intellectuals—scholars,Sanskritists, learned ones whoknow the written and oral wisdom of therishis of yore. Hansa sannyasins are teacherswho travels as a group of sadhus, preachingLasting work:The Kerala saintlived for only32 years beforedisappearingat Kedarnath, buthis influence on Hinduismwas deep and lastingAdi Shankaracharya & Hindu monasticismAdi Shankara (788-820) is a central figure to the Bhakti movement, a wave that sweptacross India in the 9th century and brought many Jains and Buddhists back to Hinduism.He was a quintessential nondualist. His Advaita Vedanta teachings can be summarizedthus, “Brahman (the Supreme Being) is the only truth. The world is an appearance. Thereis ultimately no difference between Brahman and the atma.” He revived and empoweredthe Smarta sampradaya, one of the four major denominations of Hinduism. Shankaracharya’sinfluence and philosophy were perpetuated by the creation of monastic protocolsand centers which remain influential to this day. From Adi Shankara came also thedashanami orders (Sarasvati, Puri, Giri, Bana, Tirtha, Parvati, Bharati, Aranya, Ashramaand Sagara) of which sannyasins from all the akharas are often members, as Swami AvdheshanandaGiri is associated with the Giri dashanami. The akharas and the dashanamisystem harmoniously overlap in a colorful tapestry.The contemporary and orthodox Swami Avdheshananda shares his wisdomBy Rajiv Malik, New DelhiEven as a reporter, i was always impressed with themajestic and pious presence of Swami Avdheshananda Giriin the few occasions we met. Our first encounter was in 2003,during the Kumbha Mela at the city of Nashik where he delivereda speech in the company of saints and spiritual leaders. I rushedto the staircase as he walked down the stage, touched his feet andhanded him a copy of Hinduism Today.For years, I had wanted to do an extensive interview, and it allfinally came together during his 2008 Guru Purnima functionsin New Delhi and Ambala. Devotees from all over the world weregathering for the celebrations in large numbers at his large five-acreashram. Swami granted me some time over a few days. The interviewswould take place in his private chambers.I was not expecting the mix of modernity and unapologetic traditionthat followed. Swami’s speech was articulate, contemporaryand relevant, yet not a grain of Hinduism’s cultural richness was lostin his translation from the ancient to today’s world. In his quarters,where a couple of his sannyasin initiates are always present to helpturn decisions immediately into actions, his personal secretary heldfast to his laptop during the interview, using a wireless connectionto send e-mails and gather information. Professionalism andefficiency seem to be the order of the day in the 21st century’s JunaAkhara. I found Swamiji to be sharper and more agile than a corporateCEO. Yet, after attending all the four Kumbha Melas and meetinghundreds of swamis, I can say that Swami Avdheshananda isone of the most orthodox Hindu saints in India. This can be seen inthe decorations of his ashrams or in the practices of his devotees. Itis also visible in his traditional robes and his ever-present personalkamandalu, a vessel that in the old days was a saint’s only possession,used alternatively to hold water or to store offerings received.His traditional ways are far more than just outward appearance.His speech is woven with flawless Sanskrit, and what he has to sayis brimming with Hindu truths that I have seldom heard so clearlyarticulated in my work as a correspondent.Here now, are excepts from that extemporaneous exchange withHinduism Today, in which Swami Avdheshananda Giri speaks ofhis life, his order’s work and his vision for the future.My journey to infinitySannyas is an unending journey. This is a journey which takes us tothe infinity of God. The goal is discovery of one’s own Self. Whenyou realize that everything around you is not the Truth and youfeel that all that you see is perishable, that all is changing every24 hinduism today january/february/march, 2009january/february/march, 2009 hinduism today 25

all photos shivganga projectmoment, then you start aspiring for the Truth. When the aspirationbecomes a craving to know That, that intense desire slowly becomesa state of sannyas. It dawns on you. The solitude of mountains andcaves becomes attractive. All this happened to me. I moved to theHimalayan mountains and lived there for a long time. During thatstay, I realized how important it is to dwell close to satpurushas(noble souls), those who are awakened and have the blessings of theAlmighty on them. Those are the jivanmuktas (liberated ones). Suchpeople are not much influenced by worldly things. I realized thatuntil you come in close touch with such sages, you cannot reallyunderstand life. This was my experience. That was what took me tothe feet of the great saint Swami Avadhoot Prakash.teaching by exampleI am the Acharya Mahamandaleshwar of Juna Akhara. My grouphas a few mahamandaleshwars, and our task is to lead and organizethousands and thousands of sannyasins associated with the JunaAkhara, all over India, who are serving the people. Our work, thesum of all of our efforts, is to create samskaras, deep impressionsin people’s minds. This is not done in the classrooms using theblackboards. We want to shape the devotee’s character. If you haveto civilize, educate and discipline someone to obey the law, or if youwant a person to keep his equilibrium with nature, then a certainawakening has to be catalyzed in that person.These things can be taught only by example. We sannyasins useour conduct, character and thoughts to reshape society. Most of usmay not do this in a very conscious or structured way. But that is theresult of keeping full control over the senses and living according tothe scriptures. By doing that, we are building the character of individuals.We develop the personality of those who come near.Our objective is to create harmony, all throughout the world. Sinceit is today’s wrong lifestyle which leads to the world’s problems, thesannyasins are teaching people the art of living.On India’s challengesIn India and all over the world, everyone fears terrorism. There arealso many other challenges, like global warming and the caste system.But in my view, even bigger and more dangerous than all theseproblems in India is the problem of bhogwad (desire for things andpleasures). We are following the consumerism of the West withoutunderstanding it. This lifestyle of blindly fulfilling desires is havingan adverse impact on our relationships. This lifestyle is making usfocus just on ourselves. I think we have to create proper samskarasto educate people on this. We are using my kathas to do it, which isalso a form of group counselling.ConversionAll the forces behind the attempts to convert Hindus have in commonpeople who are fanatics. They feel they are superior and arearrogant about it. Hinduism has no place for all this. We have beenhere for an eternity. I respectfully must declare that ultimatelyall religions are panths (sects). The only dharma is the SanatanaDharma, and all religions are but part of it. The most dire threat toHinduism is conversion. What could be a bigger threat? It is thesame whether it comes by the sword or by persuasion. Our wholecountry has been divided because of it, and Pakistan and Bangladeshwent away from us.Hindutva and ahimsaWe have to understand that a movement driven by devotion, faithand improvement of the world is good and acceptable. But when themovement’s aim is power, it does not become successful.Today Hindus are recognized as important members of society inthe Silicon Valley, in Los Angeles, in Tokyo, in London, in Paris andeven in China. Hindus are nonviolent. Hindus believe in the familysystem. Hindus are not aggressive, not attackers.Hindus will never harm anyone. There are four reasons why I saythis. The first is our principle of vasudhaiva kutumbakam, whichmeans the whole world is one family. For us, the whole world is a bigfamily. Second, par dara matravat, meaning women of others arelike our mothers. Hindus are known all over the world to maintainthe purity of relationships. Third, Hindus believe in sarve bhavantusukhina, let all be happy and blissful. We want the whole world tobe harmonious and joyous; we want the welfare of all beings. Thefourth principle is atmavrata sarvabhuteshu, treat others as theywould treat themselves. Hindus are the believers in one God. ThisGod is present everywhere and in every being, formless but also onEarth. Hindus are flexible and generous. They mingle freely witheveryone. If there is a least harmful community on this Earth, that isthe Hindu community.Our treatment of the planetDon’t you feel that the laws of nature are being violated? Globalwarming, forests cut down, rivers drying up. Chemicals and fertilizersare destroying the soil. All the glaciers are melting. I havetravelled to the North Pole, and I have seen the angry mood of nature.The Vedas say that if you deprive anyone of his honor, that is a sin.We want to protect the rights of even a lion, an elephant and, forthat matter, every element of nature, including a cloud. Such naturelovingis our dharma. Just imagine the kindness and open-mindednessof our heritage and culture. We are the people who offer milkto poisonous snakes. We consider trees as our devatas (village Gods).Hinduism and Hindus are the most nature- and environmentlovingpeople in this world.On this Earth, animals have never engaged in widespread killingsas we do. Earth has never been divided by them. We are less civilizedthan animals. They have not encroached on our lands; it is wewho have cut down the trees and attacked their places of living. Infact, there is a big debate going on about vegetarianism in the wholeworld. Research has highlighted that the production of white andred meat is behind global warming. Our teeth and mouth are notdesigned to consume nonvegetarian food.To Hindus Living outside IndiaThe Juna Akhara has very few sannyasins who can speak English.We do not have any direct branches outside India today, though weconstantly visit many western countries. An akhara needs a certainrespectful protocol, a decorum that is difficult to create in Europe orthe USA. For the past fifteen years I have been visiting America. Anawakening is happening there among Hindus about their religion.Today, they show a lot of faith in the Hindu traditions and festivals.From the very beginning I used to tell the Hindus outside Indiato preserve five things connected to our tradition and culture: ourlanguage, diet, dress, worship of the Ishta Devata (personal or familyDeity) and festivals. Language is critically important, and childrenshould know our language, too. The way we dress is part of our culture.Our identity as Hindus must be fully realized. Even the parentsare not sure if they are Hindus. They fail to understand most rituals,traditions and practices, so their worship falters. I also insisted onhome worship. If the Ishta Devata is there living in the home withthe family, then there will be discipline. Then our traditions andvalues will be preserved. My teachings have been emphasizing thesefive points as central to Hindus living outside India.What I want from our Hindus in western countries is to give backtheir due to their motherland. They are not truly giving back to theTangible manifestations of a saint’s blessings: Scenes of theShivganga project, one of the many initiatives of the Juna Akharaunder Swami Avdheshanada’s dynamic leadership. (from the left,opposite page) A new Sivalinga is worshiped in one of 1,300 enlivenedvillages; locals enjoy a mandir they built together; a Holi festivalorganized by the project’s youth ignites vibrant devotion.motherland the way they should. What are they doing for the preservationof the Indian religion, literature, art and culture ?A message About Today’s youthToday’s youth have a lot of temptations before them, especiallyin India. There are a lot of chances of their moving in the wrongdirection. One example is the tendency of trying to become richovernight, and doing every single possible thing to achieve it. Mymessage to the youth is that without hard labor and sadhana, successcannot be attained. A youth must be focused, have the qualitiesof patience and control over his senses, and work hard on both hisworldly pursuits and spiritual practices. But to have young peopledevelop these qualities, we need to have a dialogue with them; wemust motivate them. Before we guide the young, we must earn theirtrust and confidence.My adversities and AspirationsIn the life of every human being, times come when the circumstancesare not favorable. He feels that he is lacking something. Hefeels he is not capable. With the blessings of my gurus, I developedconfidence and experience. I can face the worst of adversities.Adversities could never defeat me. It would be incorrect to say thatI am beyond faltering. I also have vasanas and things to overcome.But I have always experienced that the inner presence of my gurusgave me such strength that when challenges came, I simply stood upand faced them.I have worked to realize my dreams of a better world with betterpeople. Another dream I have is to convey the spirituality of India tothe western world. I want to let them know that Indian spiritualityhas the human dharma defined for the welfare of all beings of theworld. Only the spirituality of India has the power to overcome anythingthat mankind will face.26 hinduism today january/february/march, 2009 january/february/march, 2009 hinduism today 27

youthA StorytellerWho Moves UsYoung and old alike flock tohear Morari Bapu’s magicalpreaching of Ramayanaby Punit PatelIentered the cincinnati gardens arena in ohio onJuly 5, 2008, with great anticipation. This would be myfirst opportunity to attend a Ram katha presented byMorari Bapu, one of its great exponents.Judging from previous kathas, I expected to be almost theonly youth (I’m 23) among hundreds of middle-aged adultsand their aged parents. Conventional wisdom in our communityis that Hindu youth raised in America are just notinterested in religion and are not about to sit for three hoursa day for nine days, no matter how talented the kathakarmight be. This belief conveniently focuses on our supposeddisinterest in religion rather than on the monotonous mannerin which Hindu tradition has been presented to us. I wasfully prepared to encounter adults who would first praise mefor attending, then tell me that more youth should have come,and finally launch into a speech on what is wrong with mygeneration, blaming the mass media, language barriers andAmerican culture—but not themselves—for our perceivedfailings.Entering the sports arena booked for the event, I removedmy shoes and found a central seat, perfectly situated to seeBapu. Most seats were indeed filled with people of my parents’and grandparents’ generation. However, a young girl inher mid-twenties sat near me—unwillingly dragged to theevent, I assumed, by her parents. But as she began flippingthrough the pages of her personal copy of the Ramayana, Ihad to conclude she was there of her own volition. Suddenly a largegroup of youth arrived, nattily dressed in Indian clothes, their japamalas wrapped in shawls embroidered with the name “Ram” andtheir Ramayana copies clasped like treasures. They took up severalrows in front, sitting cross-legged on the floor. It was a space theyhad reserved, my new neighbor explained, by showing up severalhours early. Now, this was exciting!Ram katha, a series of discourses interspersed with music, is apopular religious event in North India. The kathakar, or storyteller,is an expert in the Ramayana, a central Hindu scripture whichdetails the life of Lord Rama. Each katha deals with a single themefrom the voluminous work. I had attended many others, but neverone conducted by Morari Bapu. Typically, a katha is a nine-dayevent held during the evening. Bapu, however, conducted this one inthe daytime—9:30 am to 1:00 pm—for the express purpose, he toldus frankly, of making people devote the whole nine days to the kathaand not just show up for an evening program after work or school.sheetal patel sia digital photographyBapu in Cincinnati, Ohio: The meditating Lord Hanuman providesboth a visual backdrop and a spiritual focus for the katha’s nine daysSeated in front of an enormous portrait of a golden meditatingHanuman, Bapu softly said, “The topic of this katha will be ManasMithilesh, the mind of King Mithilesh.” The hundreds of youthresponded with a roar of excitement and applause. Bapu outlined histheme: “Mithilesh, or King Janaka (Sita’s father), is a great and powerfulyogi, a spiritual adept, concealed in the form of a worldly bhogi,one who enjoys the world. There are seven key dimensions to hisyoga: karma (action); gyan (knowledge); prem (love); dharma (duty);raj (royalness); brahma (creation); and viraha (longing).” Bapuexplained how in performing his duties, King Janaka maintainedself-control and decency and achieved a perfect balance betweendevotion and dispassion.Bapu spoke mainly in Hindi, tossing in a bit of Gujarati for culturalcontext or humor and quoting Western philosophers in English. Occasionallyhe led the audience in singing bhajanas, folk songs, stanzasof Ramcharitramanasa or popular religious Bollywood songs. Hepreferred to call the katha “our discussion” rather than “my preaching,”and took written questions from the audience each day toanswer at the beginning of the next session. Everyone sat quietly ashe told us, “I am not here to change any one of you. Rather, I am hereto learn to embrace you all. My job is not to moralize to others but tomaintain my own morality.” He is himself constantly in the processof self-discovery, and presents Hinduism with the full freedom ofhis own interpretation. He invited each and every listener to do thesame, encouraging the youth to take ownership of being a Hindu.I was fascinated by Bapu’s portrayal of Hinduism as a rich anduniversal religion—“as vast as the sky, as deep as the ocean and ashigh as the Himalayas.” I became convinced that I could be a partof something grand and larger thanlife. Bapu praises Hindu culture withpride and loyalty, while managingto encompass both Hindus andnon-Hindus of all backgrounds andnationalities within the audience.Jigar Patel, a senior in college whohas been listening to Bapu’s kathafor years, said, “Bapu is progressive bynature and forward thinking. That iswhy he encourages us to exercise ourfreedom to question beliefs and ritualsso we come to better understandthem.” Bapu encouraged the youth tothink about what was being said and,if we agreed with it, then and onlythen, should we accept it. However, ifwe decided to embrace the view, thereshould be no delay in incorporatingit into our daily life. He advised us,sheetal patel sia digital photography“Keep the windows of your mind open.Wherever good comes from, let it in.”I had never before heard a kathalike this, so vibrant and uplifting. I feltproud to be a Hindu. It seemed to meas though the Ramayana was freshoff the press. For example, Bapu presented a novel question, “Why isRam so often portrayed with the bow and arrow and Hanuman witha mace?” Bapu said that our Hindu Gods are more than warriors. Hepointed to the picture behind him of Hanuman in meditation. “Theneed of the hour,” Bapu said, “is to put down our weapons of externalwarfare and begin an internal battle against our own vices.”There is a common belief that heaven is promised to those whohear the stories of the Gods at katha. But Bapu said right off, “I ammaking no promises of anyone reaching heaven after the ninth dayof this katha. If you have come with such intentions, then get on aflight back home!” Instead, Bapu said that the best outcome fromlistening to katha is to maintain a peaceful atmosphere, whether athome, work or school.Bapu explained, “The main ingredient in a gathering of thespiritually minded should be love. We also include poetry, songs,Sanskrit mantras and folk songs. Singing together helpsus focus on God in the form of love, purity, duty and theultimate truth.” I enjoyed listening to the old Bollywoodtunes, traditional Gujarati music, Hindi ghazals and theSanskrit shlokas of Shankaracharya.I asked Sita Sharan, an avid listener of Bapu’s katha foryears and someone who has studied the Ramayana since1970, why she was there. She confided, “Bapu instills alonging, a renewed yearning, for us to do a better job atbeing ourselves.” In calling us to tabulate our lives andassess where we are spiritually and how far we need to go,Bapu urges us, the younger generation, to act with conscienceand to put into practice the values we have learned. Whendealing with conflict in our lives, for example, he said that thoughit is good to turn to God for forgiveness, we must first go to thosewhom we have wronged and humbly ask for their forgiveness.With jokes and subtle humor, Bapu engaged each listener, fromthe oldest to the youngest. He taught how to deal with the sorrowand difficulties of life with firm resolve. He pointed out that everyonenear Ram was defeated at least once in the story, regardless ofhow close they were to him. For example, in battle, Lakshman lost toIndrajit, Ravana’s son, and Hanuman lost to Kumbhkarana, Ravana’sbrother. Bapu said to the youth, “For life to be complete, losing isimportant. Though winning is ablessing, losing is an invitationfrom God to remember Him.”I realized that despite what Ihad heard from past kathakaarsand adults, I had never experiencedactual improvement inthe quality of my life by simplylistening to katha or doingrituals. But at that moment, asBapu offered his perspectiveon winning and losing, I recognizedour Hindu dharma ismeant to strengthen us in theface of difficulty so we may actwith wisdom and manage ouremotions through the wavesof sorrow and happiness. I hadfinally understood the wordsof my guru Sri Sathya Sai Baba,when he said, “Happiness is aninterval between sorrows, andKatha style: A combination of dramatic storytelling, teaching,operetic song and insightful commentary on Rama’s lifesorrow is an interval betweenhappiness.” To think that eventhose who were so close to Ramhad faced defeat in their lives,who are we to complain?I am forever grateful to Bapu for introducing me to Hinduism, alarge part of my own identity that otherwise would have been lost.Observing the other youth present, I saw their motivation to preserveHindu culture by their religious activities. Bapu rejuvenatedour religious beliefs.Throughout the nine-day katha, I had asked myself, “Whatunique influence has drawn so many young people to devote ninedays to attending long religious discourses?” My question was answeredon the last day. Listening to Morari Bapu’s closing message,my eyes welled with tears. I looked around and saw hundreds ofyouth, a generation of us, tears streaming from our eyes, enrapturedby his inspired and loving words. The answer to my question wasthis charismatic man of sixty-two years, wearing a white lungi, banyanand black shawl, my precious Bapu.∏πPunit Patel, 23, (at left withBapu) was born and raisedin Los Angeles, California.He attends Boston University,with a focus on bioethics. Heattended the Sri Sathya SaiEducation for Human ValuesProgram in California for 12years. E-mail: punitanilpatel@yahoo.com.28 hinduism today january/february/march, 2009 january/february/march, 2009 hinduism today 29

upi photo/jim ruymenspiritualityIn the Church of Oprah…Why does Hinduism get the short end of the stick?By Lavina Melwani, New YorkWho would have thought thata talk show host would be able tomotivate millions to look withinthemselves, reevaluate religion andreflect on spirituality? Of course, this is noordinary talk show host, for Oprah Winfreyhas a ministry all her own with millions ofviewers across the globe. According to Nielsenratings, her show has been number one for21 seasons and is syndicated in 135 countries.Oprah’s Soul Series on her XM radio showhosts teachers, thinkers and authors to talkabout matters of the soul. She has touchedupon many faith traditions, but none hascreated as big a reaction as her espousing ofthe book A New Earth: Awakening to YourLife’s Purpose by Eckhart Tolle, whose philosophyseems to have been gleaned for themost part from Eastern faiths.The book was published in 2005, but itonly became a major sensation after it wasanointed by Oprah’s Book Club. A New Earthis the centerpiece of a free, ten-part virtualclass on Oprah.com, which anyone canwatch. It has already been downloaded byOprah fans 30 million times!In the classes, Oprah and Tolle take readersthrough the book chapter by chapter, andeven lead meditations. “Being able to sharethis material with you is a gift and a part ofthe fulfillment of my life’s purpose,” OprahWinfrey told her viewers when she inauguratedthe new selection. “It was an awakeningfor me that I want for you, too.”Oprah’s “awakening” wasn’t particularlywelcome to many Christians. As John Jalsevacwrote in an article on LifeSiteNews.com,“Oprah, who is a self-labeled Christian, wasrecently named the ‘most dangerous womanin the world’ by Bill Keller, consideredby some to be the world’s leading Internetevangelist. He accused Oprah of peddlingthe equivalent of ‘spiritual crack.’”Indeed, looking at discussion boards onblogs you find many Christians are uncomfortablewith Oprah’s brand of religion,where she and Tolle basically say that Godis one, and the paths to God are many; lifeis eternal and that the stillness within usis who we are at the deepest level. That is amessage that Hindus will not find fault with;these principles are the very cornerstone ofHindu dharma. Browsing through the book,TV star: Oprah Winfrey speaks atthe 60th Primetime Emmy Awardsyou find many Hindu ideas and beliefs, althoughtheir source is rarely pointed out inthe book. Most of the philosophical conceptsare credited to Buddhism. Yet, the corehas clearly been derived from Hinduism.“The German word for breathing, atmen, isderived from the ancient Indian (Sanskrit)word atman, meaning the indwelling divinespirit, or God within,” writes Tolle. “The factthat breath has no form is one of the reasonswhy breath awareness is an extremely effectiveway of bringing space into your life, ofgenerating consciousness.” Now, isn’t thatsomething that Hindus have always known?On yet another page, Tolle writes: “WhenI no longer confuse who I am with a temporaryform of ‘me,’ then the dimension of thelimitless and the eternal—God—can expressitself through ‘me’ and guide ‘me.’ It alsofrees me from dependency on form.”Perhaps the strongest nod to Hindu beliefis this paragraph: “Through the presentmoment, you have access to the power oflife itself, that which has traditionally beencalled ‘God.’ As soon as you turn away fromit, God ceases to be a reality in your life, andall you are left with is the mental concept ofGod, which some people believe in and othersdeny. Even belief in God is only a poorsubstitute for the living reality of God manifestingevery moment of your life. However,there is an even deeper level to the wholethan the interconnectedness of everythingin existence. At that deeper level, all thingsare one. It is the Source, the unmanifestedone Life. It is the timeless intelligence thatmanifests as a universe unfolding in time.”Surely, the silken threads of Hinduismseem to run through the tapestry of the book.So how have Hindus taken to A New Earthand Oprah’s promotion of it? Hinduism Todaytalked to a young Hindu who has readthe book and has strong feelings about it.Suhag A. Shukla is a lawyer who advocatesfor the Hindu American Foundation. Shebelieves that all the negative feedback andwords of attack about the book are comingfrom dogmatic and fear-mongering people,who foster intolerance. “Oprah has embraceda path that is, in essence and fact, theHindu philosophy of Advaita Vedanta, andthose who have refused to respect multiplepaths to God and the divinity in all beingsare lodging the same attack on her that theyhave against Hindus for centuries,” saysShukla. As she points out, Oprah’s call forrespect of the various paths to the one Truthis not new, not revolutionary and is not theteaching of a modern prophet. It is nothingbut “ekam sat vipraha bahuda vadanti” or“Truth is one, the wise call It by many names.”While lots of Hindu beliefs are mentionedOprah’s Support Has Wrought WondersVed p. chaudhary, general secretaryof the Hindu CollectiveInitiative of North America andformer board member at Rutgers University,recently read A New Earth and has apositive opinion of the book with regardto its mention of Hinduism. He offered,“Overall, I was happy to see that Tolle citedHinduism, Vedanta, the Upanishads andIndia more times in this book than DeepakChopra did in his books.”Chaudhary feels that Tolle tries to involvethe American public by liberallyinterpreting the words of Jesus to agreewith the message of Hinduism: “I thinkthat’s a good approach because it allowsmany Americans to see the messages ofVedanta and Hinduism without prejudice;thus he is able to convey a radically differentmessage of Vedanta and Hinduism tothe American public.”Chaudhary feels Tolle is preparing theground for Americans’ greater acceptanceof Hinduism in the future. He added,“Oprah’s support has done wonders inthis regard. So, even thoughI wish he had given morecredit to Hinduism, on thewhole I would like to supporthim and promote his bookand ideas in the hope that heand other western authorswill be more forthcoming inacknowledging and spreadingthe message of Hinduismin America and Europe.”in the book, Hinduism is hardly mentionedby name. Anyone with even a passingknowledge of Hinduism cannot fail to noticethis lacking. As Shukla explains, “A NewEarth is nothing but a partial rendition ofAdvaita Vedanta, but without proper creditor citation. Eckhart Tolle himself, outside ofthe context of the book, has acknowledgedamongst his main sources of inspirationthe teachings of Ramana Maharshi and theBhagavad Gita.”While Tolle states that his teachings are acontinuation of the teachings of Maharshiand J. Krishnamurti coming together, Shuklafinds this a misleading statement. “It seemsthat Tolle is prescribing only the path ofraja yoga through short, daily meditationsin which individuals are asked to step backfrom daily behavior, relationships, situations,etc., and reflect upon their Beingness, Tolle’srelabeling of the unity of atman and Brahman,”says Shukla. She feels this gives onlyone part of the Advaita Vedanta approach.Ramana Maharshi prescribed a total pathincluding bhakti yoga (worship), karma yoga(selfless service), raja yoga (meditation) andjnana yoga (knowledge), to be utilized onewith another as a way of spiritual evolutiontoward liberation.What Shukla finds most disappointing asa Hindu who spends her time advocating onbehalf of Hindu Americans and Hinduismis Tolle’s reluctance to give Hinduism duecredit. She laments, “He is quite liberal inhis references to Buddhism, and throughoutthe book reinterprets select quotations fromthe Bible using Advaita logic. But the wordHinduism and Ramana Maharshi’s name arecited only a few times. Unfortunately, thisslight by Tolle is no different than that byleading teachers of today’s yoga movementin America.”Some say Hindus bring this upon themselves,citing the many spiritual teachers whoare Hindu yet decline to label their teachingsas Hindu. Shukla adds, “We Hindus for toolong have allowed those outside the Hindufold to create Hinduism’s image to the outsideworld, and we have lagged in definingour faith to better reflect our actual beliefsand practices. By this we have allowed thewidespread caricaturization of our faithand created an atmosphere in which non-Hindus have become most familiar with the‘caste, cows and curry’ version of Hinduism.The general understanding of Hinduism,then, is not based on its deep philosophy orlogic, but on ritual and social and culturalpractices (and taboos) considered to makeup a religious tradition that is not palatablefor a primarily Western audience. I believewe should take ownership of Hinduism anddefine it on our own terms.”Still, the very fact that Winfrey and Tollehave brought Hindu philosophy—by whatevername—to the printed page and the weband airwaves is a positive happening. Shuklaadmits that there are some plus points: “Tolleoffers a well-written introduction to oneschool of Hindu philosophy, and its age-oldteachings are now reaching regular Americansin an unprecedented way due to thepopularity and widely-held respect forOprah. It is indeed unfortunate that mostwill likely never know of the original sourcesbecause of the lack of credit and, more importantly,that there is so much more thatthey can learn, apply and benefit from, asthere are immeasurable amounts of spiritualwritings from Hindu saints and sages thatare readily available.”Oprah’s charisma has inspired even youngIndian Americans to take the online course.They rave about the wisdom in it. Some Hindus,unfamiliar with their own faith, are enthusiasticabout A New Earth without realizingthat many of the ideas have germinatedfrom Hinduism, an ancient faith from whichChaudhary believes that Tolle actuallyis at an advantage when he writes aboutHindu values: “I think no Indian authorcould write a book like this, because thosewho practice and promote Hinduismjust do not have the world view and themodern language proficiency. They justkeep repeating the deep Hindu ideasand philosophy in the language of theancients. And those Indians who havethe world view and the modern languageskill generally do not practice or promoteHinduism.”Teacher: Ekhart Tolle, bornin Germany in 1948, isauthor of A New EarthBuddhism later sprang.So what would Suhag Shukla say to Hinduswho tell her to read this book? “I havehad friends refer this book to me withoutrealizing that these teachings are not new byany means but simply a retelling of age-oldwisdom passed down from our great rishis,”she responds. “I tell them that if they enjoyedand found inspiration in A New Earth, theywould benefit from going to the source byreading the teachings of Ramana Maharshi,Aurobindo, Ramakrishna Mission, ChinmayaMission, Arsha Vidya Gurukulum, SaivaSiddhanta Church and so many others to finda deeper and more comprehensive approachto translate what on first reading can be overwhelming,esoteric philosophy into a trulyfulfilling and meaningful way of life.” ∏πAuthor Lavina Melwani, a popular freelancecorrespondent, was born in Sindh, grewup in New Delhi and has lived in Hong Kongand Africa. She currently resides in New Yorkwith her husband and two children.pat dishinger/wenn30 hinduism today january/february/march, 2009 january/february/march, 2009 hinduism today 31

Family worship: (left) Author’s children infront of the inner sanctum of the VajreshwariDevi shrine in Kangra district.runjhun noopuramit misraindra sharmaMy Family’s Goddess PilgrimageGrandma, mom, aunts, uncles and cousins visit five Durga templesBy Runjhun Noopur, IndiaDevotees of goddess durga believethat no one gets the opportunity tovisit any of Her 51 Shakti Peethas(divine power centers) unless SheHerself sends the call. As luck would haveit, I was blessed with an invitation from theGoddess and an opportunity to visit not one,but five of Her temples. Three are ShaktiPeethas and all are located in the land of thedivine, Himachal Pradesh. Joining me werenine members of my extended family: mymother, grandmother, two aunts, one uncleand my four young cousins, including seven-year-oldtriplets—Varun, Rimjhim andAryan.We had planned our five-day pilgrimage—oryatra, as we preferred calling it—forthe month of May. We hoped to escape thesweltering heat of India’s plains, even as wesatiated our spiritual longing; but as soon aswe got down at the Chandigarh station, ourguide explained that much of the trip wasat lower altitudes and there would not be asignificant difference in temperature fromthe plains. Fortunately, the weather, thoughhot, was bearable.A practical advantage we had over firsttimevisitors was already being well acquaintedwith a local guide. A trip with sucha guide is far more convenient and economicalthan a pre-planned and prepaid travelpackage. Also, even though looking for aguide may seem like a practical hassle, it isa convenient way of avoiding the fraudulentdealings by travel agents, who are extremelyprevalent in the tourist hots spots in HimachalPradesh and surrounding areas.Naina DeviFrom Chandigarh station, we set out by cabon an unexpectedly long journey throughHimachal’s winding, mountainous roads.Our first destination was Naina Devi, locatedin the district of Bilaspur, approximately 115kilometres from Chandigarh. The lush greenbeauty of the Himalayan foothills welcomedus, and the delight of a clean, pollution-freeenvironment was refreshing.Naina Devi temple is on top a somberlookingmountain. Most of the hundreds ofdevotees choose to walk two kilometers upa steep pathway or take the ropeway. Sincewe were accompanied by very young kidsand also by aged members of the family, wechose to reach the shrine by cab, which tookjust 15 minutes. The path to the Goddess wasflanked by shops selling offerings, flowersdinodiaHoly trekkers: (opposite) The author, age 21, stands third from right with her grandmotherShail Mishra and mother Vijay Dixit to her left and aunts Kumkum Mishra and KiranMishra to her right. Kiran’s husband Amit is behind the camera. Kumkum’s daughterShivangi, 11, is at back, and her triplets (left to right) Varun, Rimjhim and Aryan, all 7,are in front. (above) Mata Shri Chamunda Devi Temple, Kangra valley. (insets) GoddessDurga on Her vahana, the lion. A map of India showing the temples’ general location.and souvenirs peculiar to the region—altarsto capitalism we’d see at every temple.We reached the shrine in the evening,with the intent of attending the eveningarati worship. It had already begun as weentered. The temple echoed with the soundof the bells, conches and chants. As we stoodat the far end of the long queue to the mainshrine, nothing could really be seen. Yet thesound of worship drowned the chaos, andan immense stillness settled all around. Itwas an unsurpassed encounter.After several minutes of experiencingthis beautiful inner silence, our senses suddenlybecame aware of the hustle and bustlearound. The sound of bells faded away as thearati came to an end. A long wait to finallyenter the main shrine followed, made lesstedious by the delightful chanting of “JaiMata Di” (“Victory to the Divine Mother”),by the enthusiastic devotees.The Deity of Naina Devi inside the shrineis not a Deity in the conventional sense ofa human-like form. She is said to residehinduism todayPilgrimage Areahere and, for that matter, in all the peethasas an abstract pindi—a featureless red stonecovered with vermilion. The story of theShakti Peethas (see sidebar page 35) says thatSati’s eyes fell in this place, hence the nameNaina Devi, “Eye Goddess.” Accordingly, thepindi stone representing the Goddess hasprominent and beautiful eyes. Many devoteesoffer a pair of minuscule silver eyes in32 hinduism today january/february/march, 2009january/february/march, 2009 hinduism today 33

photos: amit misrathe belief that they and their family will beprotected from eye ailments.Chintpurni DeviOur next destination, Chintpurni Devi, islocated in the district of Una, 100 kms fromNaina Devi. We arrived there at about 11in the morning and found a two-kilometerqueue leading to the temple. The shopkeepersinformed us that today, Sunday, was themost crowded. We waited stoically for ourturn, even as the kids refused to show anounce of patience. Punjabi devotees handingout toffees and chips in massive quantitiesprovided a welcome relief.Finally, our turn came, and we entered theshrine amidst much hustle and bustle. Thehuge crowd refused to remain orderly, despitethe efforts of police deployed for thatpurpose. Nobody was allowed to stay in theshrine for more than two seconds as thehordes of people pushed their way inside. Itwas only with some luck and skill that wewere able to have a proper, though fleeting,glimpse of the Deity. The Goddess here, too,resides as a pindi. This shrine has an extremelypowerful vibration. The priests saidit is a seat of tantra, a mystical and magicalform of worship.A large “wish-fulling” banyan tree in thetemple courtyard is festooned with thousandsof red threads. Devotees make a wishOn pilgrimage: (clockwise from above)The silver Sivalingam at Naina Devi; thewish-fulling tree at Chintpurni bedeckedwith thousands of red threads tied thereby worshippers; triplets Varun, Rimjhimand Aryan pose in front of the four lionvahanas at the Vaj reshwari Devi temple.and tie a thread on the tree as a symbol oftheir wish and faith.After our tumultuous ordeal to meet withthe Goddess, we spent some quiet time nearthe temple enjoying the delicious suji kahalwa, a semolina sweet, served as prasadamby the temple priests.Jwala DeviOur next stop was Jwala Devi, just 30 kilometersaway. The Goddess here manifestsin the form of fire or jwala, emanatingfrom a wall. Sati’s tongue is said to havefallen here. Dedicated to the nine GoddessesJwalamukhi, those of “flaming mouth,” thetemple has nine permanent flames namedafter the Goddesses—Mahakali, Unpurna,Chandi, Hinglaj, Bindhya Basni, Mahalakshmi,Saraswati, Ambika and Anji Devi. Allthese flames, or jyotis, have been burningincessantly since time immemorial. Thismiracle reminds us of the triviality of humanknowledge and existence before theinfinite and unfathomable powers of nature.According to our guide, several excavationsfor the source of fuel were unsuccessful.The main attractions of the temple arethe arati sessions—at early morning, sunrise,afternoon, evening and bedtime. A beautifulroom has been designed for the Goddessin the spacious temple premises where Shesleeps every night after the evening arati.The bed in this room is piled high with richdresses decorated with precious ornaments.After visiting the shrine, we went to thelangar, a free feeding place providing generousquantities of dal and rice. In addition tothe devotees, thousands of poor and hungrypeople are fed here daily.Vajreshwari DeviOur next destination was Vajreshwari Devi,after whom the district of Kangra has beennamed, about 20 km from Jwala Devi. Theoriginal shrine was destroyed by severalinvaders, beginning with Muhammad ofGhazni in the 11th century ce, but it hassince been restored to its original glory. Thistemple was uncrowded and well organized,without the hustle and bustle that hauntedus in the previous shrines, and we had a longand lingering meeting with the Goddess.In the market here are shops that sellbrass wares unique to Himachal Pradesh.We saw beautifully designed incense stickstands, faces of Gods and Goddesses, showpiecesand statues. We spent a small fortuneon these items before proceeding on!Asked about the origin of the 51 Peethas, most Hinduswould relate the story of Daksha’s yajna, or grand sacrifice,to which he invited all the Gods except Lord Siva. Accordingto the story, Sati, Siva’s wife and daughter of Daksha,appears uninvited at the sacrifice to confront her father anddemand an explanation for the insult to her husband. Humiliatedby his arrogant response, she jumps into the sacrificial fire anddies. Siva, learning of the tragedy, destroys the sacrifice, cuts offDaksha’s head, picks up the body ofSati and dances distraught across India.Lord Vishnu, fearing the consequencesof Siva’s grief, cuts Sati’s body intopieces with His discus. As each fallsto the ground, it creates one of the 51sacred Peethas, each associated with aspecific body part, from Sri Lanka tothe Himalayas.Seeking further explanation ofthis story, Hinduism Today queriedDr. S. P. Sabharathnam, one of India’sforemost scriptural experts. Hereplied that according to the basicShakti scriptures, such as TantrarajaTantra, Yogini Hrudayam and NityaShodasikharnava, there are indeed 51Shakti Peethas, one for each of the 51 letters of the Sanskrit alphabet.But he disputes their association with Daksha’s sacrifice andthe decimation of Sati’s body.Instead, he says the peethas are related to Shakta or Tantricworship rituals, specifically, the practice of nyasa. Accordingto the website, www.shivashakti.com, “The word nyasa means‘placing’ and refers to a large component of Tantric worship inChamunda DeviOur final destination was Chamunda Devi, ashrine equally important for Lord Siva. Accordingto our guide, this site was originallyonly for Lord Siva and called NandikeshwarDham. The Chamunda Devi shrine waslocated 16 kilometers away, on top of theDhauladhar Hills. This is the place whereGoddess Kali is said to have defeated the demonsChand and Mund—hence the shrine’sname, Chamunda. The Deity or pindi ofthe Goddess is said to have come down themountain in a flood and ever since has beenhoused in the current shrine along withNandikeshwar Mahadev. It is one of themost powerful and fierce incarnations ofthe Goddess.The system of queues was well managed,as in the Kangra Devi shrine. Every devoteehad an opportunity to have a proper view ofthe Deity. The pindi of the Goddess is not asabstract as in the previous shrines. The traditionis that this Deity is so powerful thatno one can gaze at it directly. Hence, it iskept completely draped in a red cloth.A novel aspect of the shrine is the Deityof Lord Nandikeshwar or the Sivalingamwhich is located below a huge boulder. ThisSivalingam was found existing here naturally.A tiny temple was built around it withoutdisturbing the actual setting. Only oneperson at a time can go inside. Despite theclaustrophobic space, the temple is full ofpositive vibrations. Ardent devotees of Sivaclaim that a distinct sense of presence of theAlmighty can be felt inside that sanctum.The area on the river near the shrine hasbeen beautifully developed as a theme parkThe Origins of Shakti’s 51 Power Centersdinodia aadDevi’s chambers: The shrine at JwalaDevi where the Goddess spends the nightJwala Devi: Gold-leafed dome of the fire templewhich the practitioner touches various parts of his body while atthe same time pronouncing a mantra and visualizing a devata (divinebeing) or a bija (root) mantra. Nyasa is intended to ‘divinize’the body of the worshipper.”Dr. Sabharathnam goes to explain, “At the beginning of the SriChakra or Sri Vidya worship, six nyasas are to be performed, ofwhich peetha nyasa is the sixth. During this nyasa, the priesttouches 51 parts of his body—head, face, right eye, left eye, andso on—while reciting a bija mantraand naming the location of one ShaktiPeetha—Kamarupa, Varanasi, Nepala, etc.According to Dr. Sabharathnam, thescriptures listing the peetha nyasa predateany association with the story ofDaksha’s sacrifice. He said, “In order tolink the peethas with the Puranas, thelater Puranic writers—that is, after the16th century—added the story of Sati’sdismemberment. The Skanda Mahapuranadeals at length with Daksha’syajna but makes no mention of Siva carryingoff Sati’s body, nor do any of theauthentic Shakta Tantras. The story is afabrication.”“These later writers,” he goes on, “tookthe existing peetha nyasa, in which each Peetha is identifiedwith a part of the worshiper’s body, and incorporated it into thestory of Daksha’s sacrifice. In the process, they created at leastseven different lists of the Peethas, including one of 108. Theselater writings do not tally with the correct list provided in YoginiHrudayam and other authentic Tantric texts. Such fabricated listshave been proliferating endlessly from the 17th century.”34 hinduism today january/february/march, 2009 january/february/march, 2009 hinduism today 35

and picnic spot. Devotees can also take adip in a pool made for that purpose. Thereare beautiful statues of Lord Siva, Lord Hanumanand Goddess Parvati. After offeringprayers at both temples, the kids with ushad a great time boating and playing aroundin the water.The ReturnAs our cab once again followed the mountainouspaths, drifting away from the Devbhoomi,the land of the Gods, a sense of satiationdrowned our senses. It was a fulfillingjourney, a memorable rendezvous with theDivine. It was more than an excursion, it wasa spiritual outlet for our accumulated physicaland mental stress. The raksha sutras(protecting threads) tied on our wrists ateach of the five shrines carried the blessingsof the Goddess.In the wake of the August, 2008, stampedeat Naina Devi which killed 162 people andinjured 400, devotees have become apprehensiveabout visiting these shrines. Whilethe hazards of the crowd and the occasionalunruly bunch of devotees cannot be ruledout, most of these shrines do have suitablearrangements for maintaining order andsecurity. Incidents like the recent stampedeare rare and can be avoided if the devoteesthemselves behave in a more responsibleand aware manner and cooperate with theauthorities in taking security measures. ∏πphotos: amit misrarunjhun noopur, runjhun06@yahoo.co.in,is a student of national law school (nalsar), hyderabadand pursues writing as a hobby.she is a regular contributor to thespeaking tree column of the times of indiaChamunda Devi theme park: (clockwisefrom top left: Lord Siva; Lord Hanuman;the family boating in the nearby riverAnnual Statement of Ownershipas required by the united states postal serviceStatement of ownership, management, and circulation (required by USPS DMM707.8.3) of Hinduism Today, published four times a year at 107 Kaholalele RD,Kapaa, HI 96746-9304, for October 1, 2008. General business offices of the publisherare located at 107 Kaholalele RD, Kapaa, HI 96746-9304. Name and address ofpublisher is Swami Bodhinatha Veylan, 107 Kaholalele RD, Kapaa, HI 96746-9304.Name and address of editor is Swami Sivasiva Palani, 107 Kaholalele RD, Kapaa,HI 96746-9304. Name and address of managing editor is Swami Arumugam Katir,107 Kaholalele RD, Kapaa, HI 96746-9304. Owner is Himalayan Academy, 107Kaholalele RD, Kapaa, HI 96746-9304. There are no known bondholders, mortgagees,or other security holders owning or holding 1 percent or more of total amountof bonds, mortgages, or other securities. The average number of copies of each issueduring the preceding 12 months is: (a) Total number of copies printed: 16,071; (b)Paid circulation: (1) Sales through dealers and carriers, street vendors, and countersales: 6,801; (2) Paid or requested mail subscriptions: 4,174; (c) Total paid and/orrequested circulation: 10,975; (d) Free distribution by mail: 779; (e) Free distributionoutside the mail: 1,178; (f) Total free distribution: 1,957; (g) Total distribution:12,932 (h) Copies not distributed: (1) Office use, leftovers, spoiled: 3,139; (2) Returnfrom news agents: not applicable; (i) Total: 16,071; Percent paid and/or requestedcirculation: 84.87%. The actual number of copies of single issue published nearestto filing date is: (a) Total number of copies printed: 18,439; (b) Paid circulation: (1)Sales through dealers and carriers, street vendors, and counter sales: 8,016; (2) Paidor requested mail subscriptions: 4,200; (c) Total paid and/or requested circulation:12,216; (d) Free distribution by mail: 760; (e) Free distribution outside the mail:1,047; (f) Total free distribution: 1,807; (g) Total distribution: 14,023; (h) Copies notdistributed: (1) Office use, leftovers, spoiled: 4,424; (2) Return from news agents:not applicable; (i) Total: 18,447; Percent paid and/or requested circulation: 87.11%.I certify that all information furnished above is true and complete. I understandthat anyone who furnishes false or misleading information on this statement orwho omits material or information requested on the statement may be subject tocriminal sanctions (including fines and imprisonment)and/or civil sanctions (including multiple damages andcivil penalties).Swami Durganatha Shanmuga, Administrator.36 hinduism today january/february/march, 2009

dinodiaeducational insightParenting with LoveAn Introduction to “Positive Discipline,” with 14 ProvenStrategies for Raising Children without Blame, Shame or Pain

My Guru’s Quest for a CrueltyFree System of Raising ChildrenIn the mid-1990s, my gurudeva, satguru sivaya subramuniyaswami(1927-2001), founder of Hinduism Today, hada startling and discouraging revelation. He learned from severalyouth among his international Hindu congregation that manyof his family devotees were using corporal punishment to correcttheir children. Shocked that parents supposedly on the spiritual pathwould follow this common, worldly pattern, he immediately set aboutto catalyze a change.He devoted the July, 1998, edition of Hinduism Today to disclosingthe devastating, global phenomenon of corporal punishment of children.Corporal punishment in this context means slapping, spanking,pinching or hitting a child as a means of discipline at home orin school, either with the hand, a cane, a belt or a hard object. Suchpunishment-based discipline also includes other forms of physicaldistress, as well as emotional battering.Julie Rajan, the primary author of that issue’s feature story, “Sparingthe Child, Should Corporal Punishment End?” noted, “Though theydon’t say much about it, young Hindu adults today feel deep resentmentand anger at having been beaten as children. We struggle withfeelings of low self-esteem and failure. Many of us will continue thecycle of violence by beating our own children or our spouses simplybecause we are unable to resolve those feelings. We don’t blameour parents, who genuinely loved us and sacrificed for us, for theyare themselves just the previous round in this same cycle. We don’tblame our Hindu faith either, for corporal punishment of children ispresent in every culture. But as advocates of nonviolence, we do claima special role in solving this problem.”Gurudeva was eager to find a way to help Hindu families break thevicious cycle and learn to raise their children without harming them.He realized that many parents who do mistreat their children wouldhinduism todayBy listening we give children a sense of belongingand acceptance, as this little girl found out whilesharing her business plan with Gurudevalike to change their ways, but don’t know how. Dealingwith misbehavior without inflicting punishment,blame and shame sounds good, but how do you do it inthe face of a screaming child in the middle of a supermarket?Is there a system that can be learned and followed?Are there teachers who provide such training?Thankfully, Gurudeva discovered the work of Dr.Jane Nelsen, founder of a tremendously successfulsystem called Positive Discipline. Jane teaches thatchildren should be raised with encouragement, loveand respect rather than blame, shame and pain. Here,he discovered, was a person who had made nonviolentchild-rearing her life’s mission. And, she had developeda system with a proven track record. Aftermeeting Jane at his monastery, Gurudeva establisheda new pattern in his congregation: having parents notonly study her books but also teach Positive Disciplineclasses in their local communities to other parents andteachers who struggle with the same issues.We are deeply grateful to Dr. Nelsen for giving herwholehearted support to the use of her materials inthis Educational Insight. The following pages providea humble introduction to her thoroughgoing series,which includes Positive Discipline, Positive Disciplinefor Preschoolers, Positive Discipline for Teenagers andPositive Discipline A-Z. Visit www.positivediscipline.com for the full array of her resources. Yes, parenting is an adventure,with constant learning all along the way. Jane says that her considerableformal education is secondary to the education and experienceshe achieved from her successes and failures as a mother of sevenchildren and grandmother to 20.We hope this Insight will inspire readers to delve into a full studyand adoption of Positive Discipline to help children in your familyand community to develop self-discipline, responsibility, cooperationand problem-solving skills.Gurudeva spoke of the spiritual dimension of child rearing: “Thewhole world is reevaluating how we treat women, children, the agedand infirm. Ways of behaving toward our fellow human beings thatwere normal and acceptable one hundred years ago are no longer acceptable.We now comprehend, as never before, the tragedy of a batteredwife or an abused or neglected infant. Shamefully, we do notalways live up to the Hindu ideal in these areas.“What is that ideal? It is this: Never injure others. Hindu childrenare always treated with great respect and awe, for one does not alwaysknow who they are. They may be incarnations of a grandmother,grandfather, aunt or uncle, dearly beloved mother, sister, brother, respectedfather, a yogi or rishi re turned to flesh to help humankindspiritually. As parents and teachers, we must ask, ‘Who are thesesouls? What is their destiny to fulfill in this life? How can I help?’Parents love their children, or at least they should, and the principlesof ahimsa—nonviolence and nonhurtfulness, physically, mentally oremotionally—do apply in the parent-child relationship.”Positive DisciplineOn the following pages, one of the world’s foremost expertson child-rearing presents a practical and compassionatesystem of guiding children, complete with situationaltechniques and secrets that society should teachevery parent. Drawn from Dr. Nelsen’s books, the upperportion of these pages presents some key ideas of hersystem, and the lower portion presents fourteen strategies.Many of the stories, captions and photos in this Insightwere contributed by Kavita Mardemootoo of Mauritius,a parent and avid teacher of Positive Discipline.By Dr. Jane NelsenWhere did we ever get the crazy idea that childrenwill do better if we first make them feel worse? Please absorbthat statement. It doesn’t make any sense at all—yet itis the basis for punishment.Think of the last time someone put you down, humiliated youand made you feel bad. Did you feel motivated to do better? Did youthink, “This is so helpful. I can hardly wait to bring all my problemsto this person. She is so encouraging?” Or, did you feel like rebelling,getting even or giving up? One of the latter is what most children do.I call this the Three R’s of Punishment: 1) Rebellion, 2) Revenge, 3)Retreat, which comes in two forms: a) Low self-esteem: “I really ama bad person and need to please others to get love.” b) Sneaky: “I just14 strategies parents need to knowLet’s face it, perfection is an unrealistic expectation,and children would rather nottry at all than experience constant discouragementbecause they don’t live up to anadult’s expectation of perfection—or their own.Recognition of improvement is encouragingand inspires children to continue their efforts.A Story from Jane Nelsen: Mrs. Goel’s sonArjuna was getting into trouble at school. Histeacher was punishing him by having himwrite fifty sentences every time he misbehavedby talking or being disruptive. Arjunawould refuse to do the sentences—so histeacher would double the number. Mrs. Goelstarted lecturing and scolding him. Arjunarebelled further by acting like he didn’t care,and that he hated school.Finally, during a parent‐teacher conference,Mrs. Goel asked what percentage of Arjuna’sbehavior was “bad.” The teacher answered,“About fifteen percent.” She was amazed to realizethe negative reputation Arjuna was getting(and living up to) because more attentionwas being paid to his 15 percent misbehaviorthan to his 85 percent good behavior.During another conference, with Arjunapresent, they all agreed that every time hewas disruptive or disrespectful in class, hewould make up for it by doing something tocontribute, such as doing tasks for the teacher,or tutoring another student who needed help.Arjuna’s misbehavior was thus redirectedinto contributing behavior, and he had veryfew classroom problems after that.Working for improvement, instead ofexpecting perfection, this teacher beganwon’t get caught next time.”Most parents don’t think about the long-term effectsof punishment. They don’t realize that punishmentmay stop bad behavior for the moment but mayresult in future rebellion, revenge or sneakiness. Evenwhen a child becomes obedient, it may be becauseshe has decided (at a subconscious level), “I’m notgood enough. Maybe if I obey I will be loved.” Thiscan have disastrous results in the future when thissame child decides to do whatever her peers wanther to do so she will be accepted. When all theirintelligence and energy is directed toward provingthemselves to others, rebelling or giving up, childrendo not develop the perceptions and skills needed tobecome fully competent and capable people.Punishment is designed to make children pay for what they havedone. Positive Discipline is designed to help children learn from whatthey have done in a safe and encouraging environment. We followthe Five Criteria for Effective Discipline: 1) Does it help children feela sense of connection (belonging and significance)? 2) Is it respectfuland encouraging (kind and firm at the same time)? 3) Is it effectivelong-term? (Punishment works in the short term, but has negativelong-term results.) 4) Does it teach valuable social and life skills forgood character (respect, concern for others, problem-solving and cooperation)?5) Does it help children develop the belief that they arecapable?It is important to emphasize that eliminating punishment does1. Parents: Look for Improvement, Not Perfectionkavita mardemootooGuided by Positive Discipline, these children of Mauritius are developing healthy selfesteem,competence, significance, self-control, inner security and problem-solving skills thatwill be the foundation for fulfilling their dharma and facing their karma all through lifehaving class meetings, so problems that didoccur were solved by the class as a whole.He learned that it is encouraging to childrenand to parents when we focus our attentionon the positive rather than the negative andredirect misbehavior into productive efforts.I-2 hinduism today january/february/march, 2009 january/february/march, 2009 hinduism today I-3

not mean children should be allowed to do whatever they want. Weneed to provide opportunities for them to experience responsibilityin direct relationship to the privileges they enjoy. Most parents areafraid that if they stop punishing, permissiveness is the only alternative.Permissiveness doesn’t meet any of the five criteria. Permissivenessteaches children to believe that love means giving in, and thatthe world should bow to their every wish. The Positive Disciplinebooks offer hundreds of alternatives for discipline that are nonpunitiveand not permissive—and that meet all of the Five Criteria for EffectiveDiscipline. This Insight presents many of those alternatives.Swami Brahmavidyananda: “Hindu culture is kindness. Itteaches ahimsa, noninjury, physically, mentally and emotionally. Itpreaches against himsa, hurtfulness. My experience taught me that.I grew up in a simple, humble family in India. My father followedHindu principles strictly. He was closely associated with MahatmaGandhi, who always taught against violence. My parents never usedharsh words or corporal punishment with me or my brothers, noteven when we made mistakes. Rather, they guided us by communicatingverbally.”Love and Joy in Homes and ClassroomsThe primary goal of Positive Discipline is to enable both adults andchildren to experience more joy, harmony, cooperation, shared responsibility,mutual respect and love in their life and relationships—in other words, more connection. We often act as though we haveforgotten that sharing love and joy is the whole point of living andworking with children, and find ourselves acting out of fear, judgment,expectations, blame, disappointment and anger. Then we wonderwhy we feel so miserable. The following are some basic conceptsthat show us how to avoid the detours that keep us from experiencinglove and joy and satisfaction in our relationships with children.Children Are Social BeingsChildren make decisions about themselves and how to behave basedon how they see themselves in relationship to others and how theythink others feel about them. Children are constantly making decisionsand forming beliefs about themselves, about the world, andabout what they need to do to survive or thrive. When they are intheir “survival” mode (trying to figure out how to feel a sense of belongingand significance), adults often interpret this as misbehavior.Does misbehavior seem different to you when you think of it as “survivalmode” behavior? When they are “thriving,” they are developingstrength in the Significant Seven Perceptions and Skills. These are:1. Strong perceptions of personal capabilities: “I am capable.”2. Strong perceptions of significance in primary relationships: “Icontribute in meaningful ways and I am genuinely needed.”3. Strong perceptions of personal power or influenceover life: “I can influence what happens to me.”4. Strong intrapersonal skills: the ability to understandpersonal emotions and to use that understandingto develop self‐discipline and self‐control.5. Strong interpersonal skills: the ability to work withothers and develop friendships through communicating,cooperating, negotiating, sharing, empathizing and listening.6. Strong systemic skills: the ability to respond tothe limits and consequences of everyday life withresponsibility, adaptability, flexibility and integrity.7. Strong judgmental skills: the ability to use wisdom andto evaluate situations according to appropriate values.The extended family has its own challenges and built-instrengths for producing relationships of trust and cooperation.Teaching children respect for their grandparents is essential.dinodiaFour Steps for Winning CooperationChildren feel encouraged when they thinkyou understand their point of view. Oncethey feel understood, they are more willingto listen and to work on a solution tothe problem. Using the following Four Stepsfor Winning Cooperation is a great way tocreate a connection before seeking to solve abehavioral problem.1. Express understanding for thechild’s feelings. Be sure to checkwith him to see if you are right.2. Show empathy without condoninghis behavior. A nice touch hereis to share times when youhave felt or acted similarly.3. Share your feelings and perceptions.4. Invite the child to focus on a solution.Ask if he has any ideas on whatto do in the future to avoid theproblem. If he doesn’t, offer somesuggestions and seek his agreement.An attitude of friendliness, caring and respectis essential to these steps. Your decisionto create a connection will be enoughto create positive feelings in you. After thefirst two steps, the child will be won over.He will now be ready to hear you when youuse the third step (even if you may haveexpressed your feelings many times beforewithout being heard). The fourth step is2. Use the Three Rs for MistakesAgreat way to teach children thatmistakes are wonderful opportunitiesto learn is to model this yourselfby using the Three Rs of Recovery afteryou have made a mistake: 1) Recognize yourmistake. 2) Reconcile. Be willing to say, “I’msorry, I don’t like the way I handled that.”3) Resolve. Focus on solutions rather thanblame. It is much easier to take responsibilityfor a mistake when it is seen as a learningopportunity rather than something bad.If we see mistakes as bad we tend to feelinadequate and discouraged and may becomedefensive, evasive, judgmental or critical—ofourselves or others. On the otherhand, when mistakes are seen as opportunitiesto learn, recognizing them will seem likean exciting venture. “I wonder what I willlearn from this one.” Self‐forgiveness is animportant element of the first R of Recovery.A Story from Jane Nelsen: My signatureexample is the time I said to my theneight‐year‐old daughter, “Mary, you area spoiled brat.” Mary, who is very familiarwith the Three Rs of Recovery, retorted,“Well, don’t tell me later that you aresorry.” In total reaction, I said, “Youdon’t have to worry, because I’mnot.” Mary ran to her bedroom andslammed the door.I soon reverted back to my rationalbrain, realized what I had done, andwent to her room to apologize. Shewas still angry, and was not ready foran apology. She had a copy of PositiveDiscipline and was busy scribbling“phony” in the column.I left the room. I knew I had madea huge mistake. In about five minutesMary came to me, timidly put herarms around me and said, “I’m sorry,Mama.” I said, “Honey, I’m sorry, too.In fact, when I called you a spoiled brat, Iwas being one. I was upset at you for losingcontrol of your behavior, but I had lostcontrol of my own behavior. I am so sorry.”Mary said, “That’s okay, I was acting like abrat.” I said, “Well, I can see what I did toprovoke you to act that way.” Mary said,“Well, I can see what I did.”dinodiaraising childrenPuja, above, realizes that when she told hermother a lie this morning to save herselffrom getting in trouble, she was actuallycreating more trouble than the incidentitself caused. After her parents guidedher through the three Rs for recoveringfrom her falsehood, Puja is confident thatshe will not make that mistake again!14 strategies parents need to know3. Spend Time with Your ChildrenOne important way to help childrenfeel encouraged is to spend specialtime being with them. Have fun!One primary opportunity for cultivatingcloseness: when tucking children into bed,ask them to share with you their saddesttime during the day and their happiest timeduring the day. Then you share with them.You will be surprised what you learn.A Story from Amala Katir: Sita didn’t realizehow important one positive disciplinetool had become until one night when shetucked her two girls into bed and walkedout. One daughter, Ravindra, shouted,“Mom! You forgot to ask what was the saddestthing that happened today and whatwas the happiest thing.” Not only had theirprevious endless crying and getting out ofbed repeatedly stopped, but these questionsasked every night as a remedy had openeda wonderful new world of communicationand bonding.Scheduled Time: One of the most encouragingthings parents can do for their childrenis to spend regular, scheduled specialtime with them. You may already spendlots of time with your children. Howeverthere is a difference between “have to” time,“casual time,” and “scheduled special time.”There are several reasons why specialtime is so encouraging:1) Children feel a sense of connectionwhen they can count on special time withyou. They feel that they are important toyou. This decreases their need to misbehaveas a mistaken way to find belonging andsignificance.2) Scheduled special sharing is a reminderto you about why you had children in thefirst place—to enjoy them.3) When you are busy and your childrenwant your attention, it is easier for them toaccept that you don’t have time when yousay, “Honey, I can’t right now, but I sure amlooking forward to our special time at 4:30.”Plan the special time with your children.Up to age 6, it can be daily. From 6 to 12 itcan be more occasional, even weekly. Brainstormahead of time a list of things youwould like to do together then.dinodiaA father in Mumbai creates a rangolidesign with his daughter on Dipavali. Byhaving fun with her, he builds a relationshipof trust, affection and cooperation.I-4 hinduism today january/february/march, 2009 january/february/march, 2009 hinduism today I-5

likely to be effective now that you have created an atmosphereof respect.Swami Tejomayananda: “In a home I once visited, thehost had two sons. He told them, ‘Swamiji is here. Ask himwhatever you want to ask or know.’ The boys replied, ‘We don’thave any questions.’ After breakfast I went to them and asked,‘What is your hobby?’ ‘We like to play baseball,’ was the reply. Isaid, ‘Please teach me about baseball.’ Immediately they becameenthusiastic about educating me on the game. They showed mesome pictures and a video. Gradually they began asking me allabout religion and culture.” This shows that if you take an interestin a child’s interests, slowly a rapport will build.A Misbehaving Child Is a Discouraged ChildSometimes it is difficult for us to remember that misbehavingchildren are speaking to us in code—that they are trying to tellus they want to belong when their behavior inspires frustrationrather than love and caring. Some experts believe we willreinforce the behavior if we respond positively to a child whois misbehaving. If, however, we understand that a misbehavingchild is a discouraged child, it is obvious that the best way to removethe motivation for misbehavior is to find a positive way tohelp the child feel belonging and significance.Accepting this concept intellectually is one thing, but it isquite another to put it into practice for three reasons: 1) Mostadults do not feel like being positive when a child is misbehaving.2) Most adults don’t fully understand how their own misbehaviorcan invite misbehavior from children and thereforeare reluctant to accept responsibility for their part of the show.Awareness without blame can create a huge step in resolvingconflict. 3) The rare adult who is able to respond to misbehaviordinodiaWant kids to behave? Nothing workslike sharing. Even the simple task ofmaking sandwiches together createsclose ties and gives young ones a sense ofimportance and belonging. This preventsmisbehavior caused by discouragement.with positive encouragement will oftenbe rejected by the child. This is becausechildren (like most of us) are not alwaysreceptive to encouragement when theyneed it the most. They are too emotionallyupset to accept it. The solution: waitfor a cooling‐off period and try again withencouragement.The child who needs love the most isoften the child who acts the most unlovable.Understanding the four mistakengoals of behavior helps adults rememberwhat children are really saying with theirmisbehavior: “I just want to belong.” Italso helps us know what to do to resolvethe problem in ways that are encouragingwhile teaching children life skills.Think of the misbehavior as a code andask yourself, “What is she really tryingto tell me?” The child is not consciouslyaware of her coded message, but will feeldeeply understood when you deal withher hidden belief instead of reacting to thebehavior. You will feel differently if youremember that behind the misbehavior is a child who just wants tobelong and is confused or unskilled about how to accomplish thisgoal in a socially useful way. Look closely to see if your words andactions are causing the child to believe she doesn’t belong or havesignificance.The following chart shows the four mistaken goals and correspondingbeliefs that motivate misbehavior.A Child’sMistaken GoalUndue AttentionMisguided PowerRevengeAssumed InadequacyCorrespondingErroneous Belief“I belong only when I haveyour attention.”“I belong only when I’m the boss, or at leastwhen I don’t let you boss me.”“I don’t belong, but at leastI can hurt back.”“It is impossible to belong.I give up.”Undue Attention: Everyone wants attention There is nothingwrong with that. The problem occurs when a child wants excessiveattention. In other words, she seeks belonging in annoying waysrather than useful ways. The behavior is annoying because it comesfrom the child’s mistaken belief of the moment: “I belong only whenI am the center of attention.” This belief adds a sense of urgency andpersistence to the behavior that others find annoying. It can be veryencouraging to children seeking undue attention to redirect them toget attention in contributing ways, such as helping you with a task.Misguided Power: Everyone wants power. Power is not a bad thing;it depends on how it is used. When children have the mistaken beliefraising children14 strategies parents need to know4. Take Time for TrainingThe idea of setting aside time for trainingchildren is not as obvious as itmay sound. Too often, adults expectchildren to accomplish tasks for whichthere has not been adequate training. Thisis more typical in homes than in schools.Parents may expect children to clean theirrooms, without having ever shown themhow. Children go into their messy roomsand feel overwhelmed. It would help ifa parent said, “Put your clean clothes inyour drawers and your dirty clothes in thehamper and then I’ll let you know what isnext.” Next they could put their toys on theshelves or in toy boxes. To make it more fun,suggest all toys with wheels first, then toyswith body parts, then toys that are animals,etc. Before long, the child has internalizedthe idea and learns what is expected.There is often a great communicationgap. When Dad tells his daughter to cleanup the garage, each may have very differentideas of what this means. Taking timefor specific training can eliminate the misunderstanding.Taking time for trainingmeans being specific about your terms andexpectations.Even when you do provide training, rememberthat children will seldom dothings as well as you would like. Improvementis a life-long process. Remember too,the things you want them to do may not bea high priority for them until they becomeadults with children of their own to guide.We all do better at things that have a highpriority in our lives. Even though cleanlinessand manners may not be important forchildren, they still need to learn these qualities.Adults do, however, need to rememberthat kids are kids.A Story from Jane: A father of eightchildren complained that his son slammedthe door every time he left the house. Headmitted he was ready to slap the boy. Thegroup suggested that he take his son overto the door and show him how to close itcarefully—run through it a couple of times,actually train him how to close a door withoutslamming it. He came back to class thenext week amazed—“It worked!”dinodiaThis adorable child had a habit of drawingon walls with crayons and pens! Momand Dad tried everything, from time-outsto yelling, but nothing worked. Then Dadrealized it might be a simple trainingproblem, so they began asking her the samequestion every day, “What do we all writeon?” and together they replied, “Paper!”Soon she learned that drawings are ONLYto be done on paper, NOT on walls.5. Give a HugIn many cases adults can help childrenchange their behavior when they stopdealing with the misbehavior and dealwith the underlying cause: discouragement.Encouragement is providing opportunitiesfor a child to develop the perceptions, “I’mcapable, I can contribute, and I can influencewhat happens to me or how I respond.”Encouragement is teaching children the lifeskills and social responsibility they need tobe successful in life and relationships. Suchsupport can be as simple as giving them a hugto help them feel better and thus do better.A Story from Jane: A young father wasfrustrated and perplexed about the frequenttemper tantrums of his four-year-old son.Scolding or punishing only increased thetantrums. The father learned in his parentingclass that a misbehaving child is a discouragedchild, and that encouragement isthe best way to deal with misbehavior. Theidea seemed backward to him—sort of likerewarding unruliness. Still, he was intriguedwith the idea that children do better whenthey feel better. He decided to test the theory.The next time his son started a tantrum,the father got down on one knee and shoutedabove the racket, “I need a hug.” His sonpaused and asked through his sobs, “What?”The father shouted again, “I need a hug.” Hisson stopped sobbing long enough to ask incredulously,“Now?!?” The father said, “Yes,now.” The son seemed totally bewildered,but he stopped his temper tantrum and saidsomewhat begrudgingly, “Okay.” Then hestiffly gave his father a hug. Soon the stiffnessdisappeared and they melted into eachother’s arms. After a few moments the fathersaid, “Thanks, I needed that.” His son said,with a small tremor on his lips, “So did I.”Remember timing. Sometimes hugs don’twork because the child is too upset to give orreceive a hug or any kind of encouragement.You can still try. If the child is unwilling,you can say, “I sure would like a hug wheneveryou are ready,” and then leave the area.Parents report that when they try this, thechild usually comes after them right awaywanting a hug.dinodiaAshwin was playing in the rain and ignoredhis mother’s call to come inside. He waspeeved, and Mom was growing impatientand went out to fetch him. She surprisedher son by saying she was really hot andneeded a wet hug. They both laughed ashe tried to smother her in hugs and kisses.Next time he will want to please Mom.I-6 hinduism today january/february/march, 2009 january/february/march, 2009 hinduism today I-7

that they belong only when they are the boss, their use of powerlooks like misbehavior. When they operate from the mistaken goal ofmisguided power, they are not using their power in useful ways andneed redirection to use it in socially useful ways. A power-hungrychild can be shown how to lead others instead of dominating them.Revenge: It seems to be human nature to strike back when wefeel hurt. This is why revenge cycles are so common. It is ironic thatadults want children to control their behavior when adults have difficultycontrolling their own behavior. Controlling your own behavioris very important to break the revenge cycle. When you are feelinghurt, you can avoid striking back. Instead, validate the child’s feelings.Assumed Inadequacy: The child who operates from the mistakengoal of assumed inadequacy (because of a mistaken belief about hercapabilities) may not cause you many problems during the day, butmay haunt you at night when you have time to think about how sheseems to have given up. Unlike the child who says, “I can’t,” just toget you to pay attention, the child operating from assumed inadequacyreally believes she can’t. You need to take time to show hera small step. Don’t do all the steps. Having too much done for hercould be what gave her the impression that she is inadequate. “I’llshow you how to tie one shoe, and then you can show me what youhave learned and let me know if you need more help.”Clues for Identifying Mistaken GoalsThere are two clues adults can use to help identify the goal. Cluenumber one is to examine your emotional reaction. Ask yourself,“Underneath my anger or frustration, am I feeling annoyed, threatened,disappointed or inadequate?” If the child’s mistaken goal is undueattention, you will feel irritation, worry, guilt or annoyance. Ifit is misguided power, you will feel threatened, challenged, provokedor defeated. If revenge is the goal, you will feel hurt, disappointed,disbelieving or disgusted. When the goal is assumed inadequacy,you will feel inadequate, hopeless or helpless, askingyourself, “How can I possibly reach and inspire this child?”Practice observing your feelings and you will catch on tohow this works. Many parents and teachers have reportedthat they keep a copy of the Positive Discipline MistakenGoal Chart on their desk or refrigerator as a useful resource.It helps them remember the basis for most misbehavior, andto be more effective in helping their children during timesof stress.Clue number two is to observe the child’s response whenyou use conventional methods to cope with the behavior.Here is a guide: Undue Attention: The child stops for awhile, but soon resumes the same (or some other) behaviorto get your attention. Misguided Power: The child continuesmisbehaving and may verbally defy or passively resist yourrequest to stop. This can easily escalate to a power strugglebetween you and the child. Revenge: The child retaliatesby doing something destructive or saying something hurtful.This may escalate to a revenge cycle between you andthe child. Assumed Inadequacy: The child usually is passive,hoping you will soon give up and leave him alone. SometimesIt’s natural for siblings to compete, and even to fight. Oneway to defuse battles is to restrain your own emotions,and not put down one child in front of the other orblame either of them. Instead, end the activity theywere involved in before the conflict and send each to afavorite place for some alone time. Soon they will getthe idea that fighting in this family is not appropriate.dinodiathis child will act out (such as being the classclown to cover up feelings of inadequacy inacademics, sports, etc.).These two clues help parents and teachersbreak the code of what children are really sayingwith their behavior. Even when we understandthe motive, it may not be easy to respondwisely. When we encounter a child who ismisbehaving, it is much easier (and normal)to react from our secondary feelings of angerand frustration than it is to stop and wonder:“What is this child trying to tell me?” In mybook, we also explain a technique of askingstrategic questions of the child to determinethe hidden motives of her behavior. One furthercomplexity is that a child may be motivatedby more than one mistaken goal at time!Effective InterventionOnce you know the mistaken goal (and the beliefbehind it), you can choose an effective strategyto create a connection with children andhelp them achieve their true goal of belongingand significance. Here are some basic remedies.when the goal is Undue Attention1) Redirect the child into contributing behavior.2) Do the unexpected. A big hug is ofteneffective. 3) Set up a schedule for special timewith the child on a regular basis. 4) Smile ina knowing way that communicates you arepositive discipline14 strategies parents need to know6. Give Encouragement Freely 7. Establish Routine ChartsUse encouragement to help childrendevelop a sense of belonging, security,love and acceptance. They misbehavebecause they don’t feel this belonging.Celebrate each step in the direction ofimprovement (rather than focusing on mistakes).Give positive feedback at every opportunity.Communication is important. Don’tassume the child knows you love and careabout him or that you are pleased when hedoes something right. You need to expressthese feelings.A Story from Kavita: Priya was workinghard one night studying for her exams. Actually,she had been working hard every dayand night for the last year and she was completelyexhausted. It seemed as though hermind couldn’t retain one more word! At theage of seventeen she knew that her parentsloved her—well, at least until the exam, shethought to herself. Mom and Dad wantedher to be in the top ten in her class, so shewould get into the best university. They toldher it was for her own good, for her future,but the pressure of it all made her feel thatshe would lose everything if shedidn’t come out with the perfectscore. If she didn’t, would her parentsstill beam when they looked at her?Probably not. She had to earn theirlove or she would lose it, she saidagain to herself as she re-opened herEnglish book.Hours later she was awakened witha soft touch. She found herself facedown on her book. She must havefallen asleep. Confused, she looked upto see both her parents standing byher side. Her father gathered her intohis arms as if she were five again andsat on her bed, her mother following. She feltso safe, and in gentle voices her parents reassuredher that they would always be her refuge.She was trying her best, and no matterwhat the outcome of the exam, they wouldsupport and help her. Tears rolled down Priya’seyes and she felt more determined thanever, feeling a new strength surging throughher. Even young adults need encouragementto face life’s challenges.kavita mardemootooBasanti had the habit of putting her schoolwork off until the last minute. One day herparents took her out for a milkshake, and hadher look around at the people and considertheir many walks of life. They explained that,through her schooling, she has the power toopen many doors for her future. Since then,with the strong support of her family, shespends long hours studying—knowing thatfailure is okay, but not trying is unacceptable.The more children do for themselves,the more capable and encouraged theyfeel. One of the best ways to avoidbedtime hassles and morning hassles is toget children involved in creating routinecharts. Start by having your child make a listof all the things she needs to do before goingto bed. The list might include: pick up toys,snack, bath, jammies, brush teeth, chooseclothes for the next morning, bedtime storyand hugs. Copy (or when children are oldenough let them copy) all the items onto achart. Then hang the chart on a wall whereshe can reach it. Let the routine chart be theboss. Instead of telling your child what to do,ask, “What is next on your routine chart?”Often, she will tell you without your asking.Remember, the goal is to help children feelcapable and encouraged. A nice fringe benefitis that you will be able to stop naggingand will experience more peaceful bedtimesand mornings.A Story from Kavita: Aruna, an onlychild, was always around grown-ups, so shethought she was all grown up, too. When itwas time to get ready for bed, she always insistedon staying up like Mom and Dad. Thesix-year-old would hold on to the sofa andscream until she got her way. As a result, shehad difficulty waking up in the morning forschool and sometimes even fell asleep at herdesk. All this left her moody and irritable.One day Mom read about routine charts,and their wonderful potential to make childrenhappier and healthier. When Arunacame home from school the next day, Momhad big white paper with color pens, glitterand cut outs all over the kitchen table. Ofcourse, Aruna wanted to help! Before long, toher own amazement, she had created a funlookingbedtime chart! She couldn’t wait tostart putting the gold stars in the squares.Mom told her that when the small handon the clock reached the 8, she could startfollowing the chart. It was so much fun thatshe actually looked forward to getting readyfor bed. By the time the newness wore outand she was no longer impressed by thechart, she had developed a strong routineand bedtime was no longer a hassle.Like Aruna in the story, Jayendra loves hisroutine chart. Completing it each day makeshim feel competent and independent.I-8 hinduism today january/february/march, 2009 january/february/march, 2009 hinduism today I-9kavita mardemootoo

not “going to get hooked into this,” and then say, “I’m looking forwardto our special time at six o’clock.” 5) Set up nonverbal signalswith your child in advance: a hand over your heart to signal, “I loveyou,” or a hand cupped to your ear to signal you are ready to listenwhen the whining stops. 6) Give reassurance and show faith. “I loveyou, and I know you can handle this yourself.” 7) Ignore the behavior(but not the child) by placing your hand on his shoulder in a caringmanner while continuing your activity. 8) During pleasant moments,take time for training and role play other ways to behave,such as using words instead of whining. 9) Verbalize love and caring.when the goal is Misguided PowerWithdraw from the power struggle to allow for a cooling‐off period;then do one of the following: 1) Admit you can’t make the child doanything and ask her for help in finding a solution that works forboth of you. 2) Use the four steps for winning cooperation. 3) Followup with a one‐to‐one problem-solving session. 4) Redirect thechild to use power constructively. 5) Get the child involved in findingsolutions. 6) Decide what you will do, not what you will try to makethe child do. Example: “I will pull over to the side of the road untilyou two stop fighting.” It is important that such actions be done withkindness as well as firmness. It is especially effective to keep quietwhile following through—avoid reminders, threats and lectures.7) Set up a schedule for spending special time with the child. 8) Getchildren involved in creating routines and then let the routines bethe boss. 9) Offer limited choices. 10) Invite the child to put the problemon the family meeting agenda. 11) Verbalize love and caring.when the goal is revengeRemember that children cover up hurt feelings, which make themfeel powerless, by seeking revenge, which gives them a sense ofcontrol. Effective remedies include the following: 1) Withdraw fromthe revenge cycle by avoiding retaliation. 2) Make a guess aboutwhat has hurt the child and show empathy. Validate the hurt feelings.3) Use reflective listening. Get into the child’s world by reflectingback what you are hearing, “You sound very hurt.” Reflective listeningcan include curiosity questions, “Can you tell me more? Thenwhat happened? How did that make you feel?” The goal is to avoidsharing your point of view and to understand the child’s point ofview. 4) Use the Three Rs of Recovery if you caused the hurt. 5) Usethe four steps for winning cooperation. 6) After a cooling-off period,engage the child in one‐to‐one problem solving. 7) Show you careand give encouragement. 8) Set up a schedule for special time withthe child. 9) Verbalize love and caring.When the goal is assumed inadequacyRemember that the child is not inadequate, but will continue to actinadequate until she gives up her belief that she is. Here are someremedies. 1) Take time for training, making the steps as basic as necessaryfor the child to experience success. Demonstrate a small stepthat the child can duplicate. “I will draw half the circle, and you drawthe other half.” 2) Arrange for small successes. Find out anything thechild can do well, and give her many opportunities to share her expertise.3) Acknowledge any positive attempt, no matter how small.4) Eliminate all expectations of perfection. 5) Focus on the child’s assets.6) Do not give up. 7) Spend regular, special time with the child.8) Verbalize love and caring.Teach and Model Mutual RespectMutual respect incorporates attitudes of: 1) faith in the abilities ofyourself and others; 2) interest in the point of view of others as wellas your own and; 3) willingness to take responsibility and ownershipdinodiafor your own contribution to the problem. Thebest way to teach these attitudes to children isby modeling them yourself.Tara Katir: “We cannot teach Positive Disciplinewithout establishing rapport. Developingrapport means spending time doing thingstogether and talking with your children at theirlevel about things they want to talk about. Oftenthis can be achieved by just being togethersilently, or simply feeling the good bond of parentand child while enjoying an activity. Rapportcan easily be broken. Speaking sharply canbreak it. Then it needs to be repaired.”What We Do Is Never asImportant as How We Do ItThe feeling and attitude behind what we do willdetermine the “how.” The feeling behind wordsis often most evident in our tone of voice.One day I came home from a trip and waswelcomed by a sink full of dirty dishes. I feltdiscouraged and angry and started scolding andcriticizing, “We have agreed that everyone willput their dishes in the dishwasher. How comeThe values of Positive Discipline only work whena strong rapport has been created. There isno better way to build that foundation of trustthan to be with your children. Knowing this, thePatels have taken their children to the beach forthe day, to fly kites but mostly just to have fun.8. Focus on SolutionsGet children involved in finding solutionsto the cause of their misbehavioror mistake that are 1) related,2) respectful, 3) reasonable and 4) helpful(the “three Rs and an H”).Making amends is a solution that is encouragingwhen used in a non-punitivemanner, because children experience theopportunity to learn from their mistakesand correct any resulting problems. Makingamends is encouraging because childrenlearn they can be responsible and accountablefor their behavior without fear of blame,shame and pain.It is sad that some adults think it is moreimportant for children to feel blame, shameand pain for what they have done than tomake amends and experience encouragementthat will motivate them to stop misbehaving.It is important to note that childrendo not get away with misbehavior whenthey are encouraged to make amends. Theylearn to be accountable, while keeping theirdignity and respect intact.For example, when your daughter bopsa baseball through the garagewindow and together you decidethat the solution is to fix thewindow (with materials purchasedwith her allowance), youhave arrived at a solution thatis related, respectful, reasonableand helpful. So long as you stayout of a blaming mode and seethe mistake as an opportunity tolearn, you have practiced problem-solvingskills and respectwith your child, and you haveenjoyed some quality time together. Whenfocusing on solutions, one life skill that is oftenneeded is calling for a cooling off period(see strategy 9).A Story from Jane: Ravindra, the custodianin an elementary school, caught fivestudents defacing classroom doors. He spoketo them respectfully and together they decidedthey would make amends by helpinghim repaint the doors. He was so understandingthat he inspired the boys to takepride in their work and to discourage otherraising childrenAfter finding a way for Anjali to participatein the daily puja, the Gowda family wasamazed to witness an immediate change inher demeanor. Being the middle child, sheneeds a little extra responsibility to feel thatshe is an important member of the family.children from vandalizing. He had successfullyused three Positive Discipline tools:1) focusing on solutions, 2) creating a connectionbefore correction and 3) redirectingthe misbehavior.dinodia14 strategies parents need to know9. Cool Off Before Solving a ProblemIn coping with tough situations, propertiming will improve your effectivenesstenfold. It does not work to deal with aproblem at the time of conflict. Emotions getin the way. Thus, it is important to understandand to teach children that, in most cases,a cooling off period is necessary before seekinga solution. Since it is difficult to focus onsolutions when we are upset and respondingfrom our irrational brain, where the optionsare fight or flight, it is helpful to wait untilwe have calmed down and can access ourrational brains. I call this positive time out.How do you teach children about coolingoffperiods? By example and repetition. You(or the children) can go to a separate roomand do something to make yourself feel better,and then work on the problem with mutualrespect. “I think we are both too upset todiscuss this now, but I would like to get togetherwith you when we have had time tocool off.” Another approach might be, “Whatwould help you the most right now—to takesome positive time out, or to put this problemon the meeting agenda so we can getsome help from the whole family later?”Have your children help you design apleasant area (with cushions, books, music,stuffed animals) where they can go to calmdown when they are upset. Remember thatchildren do better when they feel better.A Story from Kavita: “I can’t believe whatjust happened!” Roshan’s father stammered.“I can’t even think straight, I’m so mad! Youneed to go upstairs. I need to calm down.”Roshan, age 6, ran to his favorite time-outspot and hurled his body on the cushions.His father, fraught with anger, went into hisstudy and shut the door, struggling to regainhis composure. Both gradually felt better as,in their own worlds, they were able to calmtheir breaths and maybe punch a couple ofcushions. After 15 minutes, young Roshanwas quietly playing with his favorite toy car.Downstairs his father had turned his attentionto today’s newspaper and was readingan article. When he saw the time, he walkedup the stairs, tussled Roshan’s hair and sat onthe floor next to him, eye level. Now the timewas right for solving the problem.dinodiaLittle Deepa has been overcome withemotion. Mom knows this is not the timeto sort out the problems that caused theupset, and arranges for her daughter tocool off in their agreed-upon place.I-10 hinduism today january/february/march, 2009 january/february/march, 2009 hinduism today I-11

no one keeps their agreements when I’m not around?”I looked for someone to blame, but everyone claimed, “I didn’t do it.”From a negative feeling I said, “Okay, we have to have a family meetingand decide what to do about this.” Can you imagine the outcomeif we had tried to have a meeting based on my feelings of blame andcriticism? We would not have found the kind of effective solutionthat comes from an atmosphere of love and respect. My attacking attitudewould have inspired defensiveness and counterattacks insteadof harmony and solutions. I realized what I was doing and immediatelychanged directions. I could see that my negative attitude wouldnot produce the results I wanted—to say nothing of how miserable itmade me feel at the time. As soon as I changed my attitude, my feelingschanged and I had immediate inspiration about how to get positiveresults. I said, “Let’s go out for pizza. Later we will have a familymeeting to look for solutions instead of blame.”Based on those feelings, we had a successful meeting. We laughinglyagreed that it must have been a phantom who left the dishes inthe sink. When we stopped looking for blame and concentrated onsolutions, Mark and Mary proposed that we all be assigned two daysa week to take care of the phantom’s dirty dishes. As you might guess,fewer dishes were left in the sink after this friendly discussion.Bodhinatha veylanswami: Kids can learn from parentsthat it is through taking a humble attitude, rather than a dominantposition, that conflicts are resolved smoothly and easily. Mastery ofresolving differences keeps our young one’s lives sublime and theirsubconscious minds free of the disturbances caused by memories ofunresolved disagreements.Give Children the Benefit of the DoubtEvery child wants to succeed. Every child wants to have good relationshipswith others. Every child wants to feel a sense of connection,belonging and significance. When we remember this, we will givemisbehaving children the benefit of the doubt. Instead of assumingthey want to be difficult, we will assume they want positive resultsand are simply confused about how to achieve them. They don’t havethe knowledge, the skills or the maturity to find belonging and significancein useful ways. It is our job to help them develop what theyneed. To be effective, our approach must be based on an attitude of, “Iknow you want to succeed. How can I help?”Dr. Krishna D. Bhat: “Parents should know the needs, aspirations,strengths and limitations of every child. Paramahansa Niranjananandacalls it the SWAN theory: Strengths, Weaknesses, Aspirationsand Needs. Children should be properly molded by parents.They are highly suggestible, like malleable metal. They are very imitativeand will copy our behavior, which is one of the greatest risks ofusing corporal punishment.”Freely Express Unconditional LoveChildren need to know they are more important to us than anythingthey do. They need to know they are more important than theirgrades. They need to know they are more important than the materialpossessions in our lives. Jiva’s mom made some mistakes beforeshe remembered this vital point. When Jiva broke one of herprize antique vases, she was so heartbroken over it that she sat downand cried. Jiva felt awful about what he had done, but finally asked,“Mother, would you feel that bad if something happened to me?”Children often don’t know how important and loved they are.Sometimes parents and teachers focus so much on misbehavior thatthey lose sight of the child—and the child loses sight of himself. Onemother asked her three‐year‐old, “Do you know I really love you?”The reply was, “Yes, I know you love me when I am good.” A teenagerreplied to the same question, “I know you love me if I get good grades.”dinodiaThe Teen YearsWhen children reach their teens, they naturallygo through a major individuation process. Theyare exploring who they are, separate from theirparents. This often translates into rebellion asthey test parental values.Peer pressure is extremely important toteenagers. Younger children are influenced bypeer pressure, but adult approval is even moreimportant to them. To teenagers, peer approvaltrumps adult approval.Many parents and teenagers have drawnbattle lines, which is intensified when parentsare intent on controlling their teenagers. We aresaddened by this, because we know it is absolutelyimpossible to control teenagers; it is too late. Themore you try to control them, the more defiantand/or devious they get.The best way to win the cooperation ofteenagers is through mutual respect and equalityin problem solving. Family meetings and classmeetings teach social responsibility and get theminvolved in the decision‐making process.When treated with kindness, firmness, dignity,respect and lots of joint problem-solving,teenagers usually fall back on parental values intheir twenties—and they will have learned more ofthe important life skills they need when they areno longer under the authority of adults.10. Connection Before CorrectionMaking a connection means creatinga feeling of closeness and trust beforeusing any of the many respectfuland encouraging corrective methodssuggested in the Positive Discipline books.Whenever possible, correction includes involvingchildren in focusing on solutions insteadof punishing them for mistakes. Effectiveconnections are made when both childand adult feel belonging and significance–even though it is the adult who takes thefirst steps. Some of these steps to connectionare: 1) Listen. Really listen. Stop doingwhatever you are doing and give your childyour full attention. 2) Validate your child’sfeelings. Don’t we all feel connected whenwe feel understood? 3) Share your feelingswhen appropriate. Remember that childrenwill listen to you AFTER they feel listened to.Children feel special when you respectfullyshare something about yourself. (Respectfullymeans no stories about “walking milesin the snow.”)It is important to understand that correctionthe Positive Discipline way is differentfrom conventional correction. PositiveDiscipline correction respectfully involveschildren—whenever possible, doing thingswith them.A Story from Kavita: Davishan, age 16,was a natural athlete. His parents enjoyedhis enthusiasm and encouraged him tochannel his energies into sports. The onlyproblem was the level of competition. Davishanwas starting to lose the enjoymentof striving by channeling all of his thoughtstoward winning. He became distraught fordays on end if he did not win.Calling for a quiet time one afternoon, thefather looked his son straight in the eyeswith such love and respect that Davishanturned away. After some time, he asked theboy questions about competing and listenedto every word the boy had to say. Davishanwas afraid his father would stop him fromcompeting. So, he was taken completelyby surprise when he asked what Davishanthought they should do to improve his frameof the mind when he lost a game. Davishanoffered that he could work more on excellingkavita mardemootooraising childrenKavita has a correction to make, but is wiseenough to first give Dipanjali her full loveand attention, and to listen to her daughter’sside before warning her about the dangersof being alone. Dipanjali, feeling very grownup at age 10, had walked back from hergirlfriend’s house unaccompanied in the dark.and helping his teammates than on winning.Dad liked that, and added that they couldwork through it together. Only if that didnot resolve the behavior problems wouldthey need to consider alternatives.14 strategies parents need to know11. Ask Curiosity QuestionsToo often adults tell children what happened,what caused it to happen, howthe child should feel about it, what thechild should learn from it, and what the childshould do about it. It is much more respectfuland encouraging when we ask what happened,what the child thinks caused it, how the childfeels about it, what the child has learned, whatideas the child has to solve the problem, or howthe child can use what she has learned in thefuture. This is the true meaning of education,which comes from the Latin word educare,which means “to draw forth.” Too often, adultstry to “stuff in,” instead of draw forth, and thenwonder why children don’t learn.One way to get the child engaged is to askquestions that arouse their curiosity. A few typicalcuriosity questions are:• What were you trying to accomplish?• How do you feel about what happened?• What did you learn from this?• How can you use what youlearned in the future?• What ideas do you have for solutions now?A Story from Jane: One of my favoriteexamples is the time my daughter sharedwith me her intention to get drunk at aparty. I gulped and said, “Tell me more.Why are you thinking of doing that?” Shesaid, “Lots of kids do it and it looks likethey are having fun.” I stifled my temptationto lecture and asked, “What do yourfriends say about you now, knowing youdon’t drink?” She thought about this andsaid, “They are always telling me howmuch they admire me and how proudthey are of me.” I continued, “What willthey think after you get drunk?” I couldsee her think before she offered, “I’ll betthey’ll be disappointed.” I followed with,“How do you think you’ll feel about yourself.”I could tell this question made herthink a little deeper. She paused a littlelonger before saying, “I will probably feellike a loser.” This was soon followed by,“You know, Mom, I don’t need to get drunk.Thank you for taking the time to help mewith this.”dinodiaAsking the right questions about asensitive issue can bring mother anddaughter closer together. It is good toremember that a child’s relationshipwith the parents can profoundly affecthis or her decision-making patterns.I-12 hinduism today january/february/march, 2009 january/february/march, 2009 hinduism today I-13

We often nag at our children to do better. We want them to bebetter because we love them and think they will be happier if theydo what we think is good for them. They usually do not hear that wewant them to do better for their sake. What they interpret is, “I cannever do anything well enough. I can’t live up to your expectations.You want me to be better for you, not for me.”Remember that children do better when they feel better. Nothingfeels better than unconditional love. Most parents are not aware thatthey are being unloving when they use punishment. In fact, mostparents use punishment in the name of love!Kavita: “When talking to children, it can help to get on the sameeye level with the child. I found that this simple practice changedmy communication with my young son. The hardest part is tryingnot to break into a smile when I ask him to look into my eyes andhe looks left and right trying to avoid my gaze. Once he makes eyecontact, I have his full attention. Looking into your child’s eyes bringsthe two of you closer and tunes you into how he or she is feeling inthat moment.”Help Children Develop a Sense of CapabilityAll the concepts taught in Positive Discipline help children developtheir sense of capability. Children will not acquire a sense of competenceand responsibility if adults keep doing for them what they canand should do for themselves.Put Positive Discipline to Work in Your LifeIf you like the concepts presented in this brief introduction, I stronglyurge you to read my Positive Discipline book, and then read itagain. I guarantee that you will get at least ten times more from it inthe second reading. You will see things you totally missed the firsttime. Once you understand the principles, your common sense andintuition will enable you to apply them in your own life. I know frompersonal experience, and from reports from hundreds of parents andteachers, that these concepts really work when used correctly.Adults have a leadership responsibility to help children developcharacteristics that will enable them to live happy, productive lives.It is our job to provide them with a good foundation that they canbuild upon. Teaching them self‐discipline, responsibility, cooperationand problem‐solving skills helps them establish an excellentfoundation. When children exhibit these characteristics and skills,they feel a greater sense of belonging and significance, which givesrise to positive behavior.Here is an inspiring testimony that Marianne McGinnis sent meafter attending my two-day workshop “Teaching Parenting the PositiveDiscipline Way.” “Your philosophy on living and parenting givesme more hope than anything else I have ever come across. I am trulyinspired, and am already incorporating many of the tools—familymeetings, remembering that mistakes are opportunities to learn, asking‘what’ and ‘how’ curiosity questions, looking for solutions insteadof blame, sharing encouraging messages (‘I have faith in you’ is myfavorite) and always getting the message of love across. Not only aremy boys responding with more love and helpful behavior, I can seehow encouraged and inspired they are! I’m not shutting them downanymore.” I called Marianne and asked her to share her success storiesfor a podcast. To hear her story, go to www.PositiveDiscipline.com and scroll down to podcast episode 49.If you find that Positive Discipline isn’t working for you, check tosee if something is missing or out of balance. For example, problemsolving may not be effective if adults or children do not understandthat mistakes are opportunities to learn. Family or class meetingsmay not be effective until people have learned mutual respect andsocial responsibility. Too much kindness without firmness maydinodiaA family has their new car blessed.There are many such opportunitiesin our religion to reinforce thepresence of the Gods and guru inthe lives of our children. Guidingthem to follow a daily religiousroutine is a vital part of upbringing.become permissiveness, and too muchfirmness without kindness may becomeexcessive strictness.Sometimes we have to stop dealingwith the misbehavior and heal therelationship first. Often the healinginvolves encouragement that removesthe motivation for misbehavior withoutdealing directly with the misbehavior.Encouragement may not seemto work until adults understand thebelief behind the child’s behavior byrecognizing the mistaken goals.There is never just one way to solvea behavior challenge. In parent andteacher study groups, participants canbrainstorm several possible suggestionsbased on the principles in thebooks. The parent or teacher seekinghelp can then choose the most acceptablesuggestion. You can also sendquestions to my blog, where I post12. Prepare Kids for SuccessIf you plan to bring your child to the store,a movie, or on any outing, be sure to havea conversation beforehand about theneedful behavior of the day. If children knowbeforehand, it gives you more freedom laterto explain consequences and respect. Otherwise,they can simply and truthfully tell youthey didn’t know any better. Respecting ourchildren creates respect in all aspects. Forexample, let them know that they can chooseonly one treat at the store and if they ask fora second treat, the first treat will be put backon the shelf. This limits argument in publicplaces, which often creates frustration in theparent, leading to incidents that are embarassingand hurtful to all involved.Story: Every Sunday the Ramdoo familygo to the temple for Ganesha puja. Mr. andMrs. Ramdoo always take a little time totell Siven, (age 7) and Purna (age 5) that thetemple is a special place and to remind themof the expected behaviors inside the templewalls. During their family meeting, they letthe children write out a list of things that areOK to do and things that are not OK. Thenthey have the children write downa list of things they could do duringthe puja that would help them to sitquietly. One Sunday, Purna decidedto bring her favorite doll to hold, andSiven brought his favorite toy car. Helearned in advance that he could notpush the car on the floor but he couldhold it in his lap and play with thetires. Because it was Chaturthi, Sivenand Purna also decided to each makefive drawings for Ganesha as a gift toHim on His special day.The family agreed on certain handsignals (not threatening looks) to letthe children know without words iftheir actions were appropriate or not.There were signals of encouragementthat made their faces light up! Andthere was a gesture that warned themthat if unacceptable behavior persistedthere would be consequences. Thatwas also agreed upon at the familymeeting.text & story by kavita mardemootookavita mardemootooraising childrenThe twins in the photo are showing the famousthumbs up sign of encouragement that manyparents use when children are following theground rules. Hand signals empower you, theparent, to privately guide behavior in publicsituations. Be careful not to point fingers ateach other, for that is a threatening gesturethat is counter to Positive Discipline.14 strategies parents need to know13. Try Limiting the ChoicesOne of the easiest and yet most powerfultools of Positive Discipline is “LimitedChoices.” You can actually guideyour children through their younger yearsby letting them make choices for themselves,so that they build character and individuality,while still retaining parental control of thesituation.Try putting two children in a candy storeand asking them to choose just one treat! Theyare overwhelmed by the options. Each watchesto see who got the best or bigger treat, and itends up being a competition, instead of a simplecandy treat.Now try it with “Limited Choices.” Tell thechildren that each may choose two pieces eachof two types of candy, one piece for themselfand the other for the sibling. You have let themchoose their own, but you have reduced thechoices from 50 to two, and you have avoidedthe competition—all in one sentence. They eachend up with four pieces of the same candies.This strategy can work for just about everything:“Would you like to ring the bell or decoratewith the flowers for this morning’s puja?”“Would you prefer a glass of water or a glass ofjuice?” Avoid asking, “What would you like towear?” “What would you like to drink?” Suchquestions invite conflict because the child maysay something that you do not agree with.Story: Before each family dinner or outing,Anuradha chose the appropriate outfit forher son and daughter. She would set out theclothes on the children’s bed and inevitablyface a storm of protest. One of them almost alwaysended up crying. One day Anuradha waschoosing her own outfit for an important dinner.She asked her husband what he liked. Hesurprised her by picking out two outfits, thensaying that she should make the final decision.She quickly picked her favorite and saw howeasy he had made it for her. She realized in thatmoment that she was frustrating her childrenby not respecting them enough to let themhave a say in their choice of clothes. Soon after,while preparing to go to their cousin’s house,she laid out three good choices for each childand left the room. No arguing, no tears!text and story by kavita mardemootookavita mardemootooKovishan couldn’t make up his mindwhich film to watch one evening. Whenmom asked him to choose between justtwo films, he was able to decide!I-14 hinduism today january/february/march, 2009 january/february/march, 2009 hinduism today I-15

my answers and advice on a vast array of issues. On-line classes inPositive Discipline are available, and I offer telephone consultationas well.Positive Discipline is not about perfection. It is helpful to have patiencewith ourselves and with our children as we work to changeold habits. As our understanding of the underlying principles deepens,practical application becomes easier. Patience, humor and forgivenessenhance our learning process. Remember to see mistakes asopportunities to learn when you fall back into old habits. We havefound that no matter how many times we react and forget to use theprinciples of Positive Discipline, we can always go back to the principlesand clean up the messes we made while reacting. It is true, overand over again, that mistakes are wonderful opportunities to learn.Have compassion for yourself when you make mistakes—and learn14 strategies parents need to knowfrom them. I have been learning from mistakes for almost 30 yearssince I first wrote Positive Discipline. I love these principles becausethey are wonderful guidelines to help me get back on track everytime I get lost.I have presented many new concepts and skills here that will takepractice for you to successfully apply to the special circumstances ofyour family. It can be confusing and discouraging to expect too muchof yourself. Apply one method at a time and move ahead slowly, rememberingto see mistakes as opportunities to learn. Many parentsand teachers have found that even though their children don’t becomeperfect, they enjoy them much more after applying these conceptsand attitudes. That is my wish for you.Dr. Jane NelsenThis expecting couple havefound a great help withPositive Discipline, especiallywhile reading aboutsomething their three-yearoldjust attempted last week!Young Kishore and Chandi both lookforward to family meetings as a time tobe heard, to create new rules that improvelife, enjoy the family and talk about anyproblems that occurred the previous weekkavita mardemootoo14. Hold Weekly Family MeetingsHaving weekly family meetings is animportant key to creating a loving,respectful atmosphere in the homewhile helping children develop self-discipline,responsibility, cooperation and problem-solvingskills.One of the activities is solving problemswith cooperation and mutual respect. Solutionsmust be agreed upon by consensus. Amajority vote in a family meeting would accentuatea family division. Convey an attitudeof faith in your family that you can work togetherto find unanimous solutions that arerelated, respectful, reasonable and helpful.Planning weekly family fun activities andother events is an important part of familymeetings. Family members are more willingto cooperate when they have participatedequally in planning events they will all enjoy.Also discuss chores at a family meeting sothat children can help solve the problems ofgetting them done. They are more cooperativewhen they can voice their feelings andbe part of the planning and choosing.Choose a chairperson. Children love to bethe chairperson and can do a very good jobafter they reach the age of four or five. Thisjob should rotate. The chairperson calls themeeting to order, starts the group sharingof compliments, begins the problem‐solvingsessions, and sends the “talking stick” aroundthe circle, which gives everyone a turn tovoice an opinion or make a suggestion.The job of secretary should also rotateamong members of the family who are ableto write. The secretary keeps notes of problemsdiscussed and decisions made. Familymeetings should include a review of the nextweek’s activities. This is especially importantas the children grow older and becomeinvolved in many activities, such as babysitting,sports, dates, lessons and so on. Coordinatingthe calendar for car use and mutualconvenience can be essential. Family meetingsshould not end without planning a familyfun activity during the coming week.End the meeting by doing something togetheras a family. You might want to play agame together, popcorn or take turns makingand serving desserts. Do not watch TV unlessthere is a program that the whole familylooks forward to. If you do watch a program,be sure to end by turning off the TV andhaving a family discussion about what values(or lack thereof) were portrayed, and howthis might apply in your lives.A Story from Kavita: The Peruman familyhad four children, ages 2, 4, 10 and 12. Familymeetings were always getting interrupted bytwo-year-old Vijay. He would scream at thetop of his lungs and throw toys at the table.The other siblings rolled their eyes as Motherspent most of the meeting time coping withhim. Finally, Father asked them for ideas onwhat to do about Vijay. “Put him in his room!”“Let him cry,” “Don’t give him any dinner!”came the responses. Mr. Peruman askedthem to calm down and think about whyVijay was acting up. Little Anjali (age four)surprised them all by saying, “He just wantsto be like us.” At that, the others sprang fromtheir chairs, grabbed their little brother withhugs and kisses, put cushions on a big kitchenchair, and placed him there, with everyone,at the table. Enjoying his beaming smile, theygave him a pen and paper, like they each had,and told him to choose the next person toshare, while he could take notes (scribbles).As the official co-chairperson at all familymeetings, Vijay fit in perfectly.kavita mardemootooA Full Complement of Child-Raising ResourcesBy Tara Katir, USADr. jane nelsen, author ofPositive Discipline for Parentssays, “We often act as thoughwe have forgotten that love and joy arethe whole point of living and workingwith children, and find ourselves actingout of fear, judgment, expectations,blame, disappointment and anger.Then we wonder why we feel so miserable.”Once the initial bliss of havinga newborn child begins to wane, parentsdiscover the hard truth of childrearing—their beautiful baby did notarrive with an instruction manual, andraising him is hard work! As much as youhate to admit it, you may find yourself gettingangry, frustrated with your child, thenfeeling a bit guilty. While there are no patanswers, Jane’s collection of Positive Disciplinebooks are an outstanding guide for parentsand teachers who are willing to make aconcerted effort. In them you will discoverhow to build a positive relationship withyour child, instead of becoming stuck in anendless morass of power struggles, whiningand defiance.In her wide range of books, Dr. Nelsendirectly addresses the issues for parents oftoddlers, teenagers, parents with “blended”families and parents in recovery from drugsand alcohol. Jane has also written booksfor teachers to assist them in training students,from kindergarten throughhigh school, to become self-reliant,successful adults. There is even PositiveDiscipline for Childcare Providers.Jane’s books can be ordered on herwebsite—www.positivediscipline.com.which is a treasure trove of resourcesfor parents and teachers. There are freearticles, an online forum, podcasts, freedownloads, e-books and MP3 audios,and information on Positive DisciplineWorkshops.The next time you find yourself frustratedby your rambunctious toddleror sassy teenager, give yourself a “timeout” and find some inspiration with solutionson the Positive Discipline website. Janecoaxes parents, “It doesn’t matter whetheryou’re a teacher, a parent or both.... On thisweb site, I’m going to show you how to solvedefiance, whining, and all the other problembehaviors children and teens use to driveyou crazy! And yes, you can do it all withoutever blaming or punishing them!” ∏πI-16 hinduism today january/february/march, 2009c op y r igh t © 2 0 0 9 him a l aya n ac a demywww.himalayanacademy.comjanuary/february/march, 2009 hinduism today 53

Why Ancient Cultures Allow Children toExpress the Natural Human Emotions, or RasasBy Vatsala Sperling, Vermont, USAIndian tradition recognizes nine rasas as representing ourmost important and basic emotions: love, joy, wonder, calmness,anger, courage, compassion, fear and dis gust. These emotionsare universal to mankind. Five are desirable, while fourare unpleasant and usually undesirable.Watch a small child carefully and you will be able to see displaysof all nine of the basic emotions: 1) A baby smiles and gazesadoringly at his mother, showing the emotion of shringara, charmor love. Overcome with love for the infant, she picks him up, cuddleshim and showers him with kisses. This is what the babywanted, a physical confirmation of mother’s presence and love. Heknows exactly how to display his needs by way of facial expressionswhen he is barely three months old. 2) Laughing when tickled is achild’s expression of hasya, joyous humor and laughter. Watch himplay with a pet. 3) A ladybug lands on his table, walks across, fluttersher wings and takes off. The child is wide-eyed with adbhuta, wonderor fascination, and has watched every move made by the ladybug.4) A well-fed and relaxed baby that is asleep does look angelic. He isshanta, tranquility or calmness, personified. 5) Children fighting maydisplay raudra, anger. 6) A child has learned to climb a ladder andgets a better view. He is feeling very accomplished and vira, brave, ahero of his own world. 7) In a hurry, the mother stubs her toe andcries out in pain. A child as young as two will reach out, wipe mom’stears and touch the injury in an expression of karuna, compassion,empathy or mercy. 8) A loud noise startles and wakens the baby andhe cries out in fear, bhayanaka. This cry is distinct from all othercries. 9) Try spooning a cooked and mashed vegetable into an infant’smouth. As he sniffs, tastes, spits out and makes a horrible face he isexpressing vibhatsa, disgust, with the new taste, very different fromthat of milk, his staple diet so far. Besides these, a child can displaywith equal ease and mastery a few more inherent emotions, such assadness, greed, selflessness, obstinacy, curiosity, clinginess, generosity,dependency, violence, arrogance and rudeness.The older, child-centered cultures take a different approach to thedisplay of rasas by the powerful beings called children. The parentingtechniques followed in many so-called primitive cultures fosterattachment, and create such a closeness and bond between motherand child that the mother develops a total acceptance and understandingof her child and his mind. When an entire extended familylives in a one-room longhouse in the rain forest of South America,the adults reach a high level of tolerance to childhood display of rasas.They do not expect the child to conform to the expectations ofthe adults the moment he opens his eyes to this world. Disciplineand assimilation into the community will come later, by way of numerousrites of passage.In a similar fashion, the child-centered and ancient culture of Indiatakes a very tolerant view of the childhood display of rasas. InIndia they let the children be children. They understand that childhooddoes not last forever. Soon enough the child will grow up andlearn the ways of the world. There is no need to rush the process, tocause premature aging and untimely maturation.When children have strong emotions, the adults do not feel theneed to resort to violent beatings or verbal abuse to suppress the expressionthose feelings. Such a response would only inflict rejectionand social humiliation on children for their natural displays. Adultsin these older cultures understand that just as a lion hunts a deer, thechild, in all his innocence, is simply following his inborn instincts. Heis not acting to please or displease. These adults understand that justas nature expresses herself through her elements, children expressthemselves through their displays of rasas. The display is not the child.It is just a state of mind and therefore is inherently changeable. ∏πsuresh muthukulamLove Joy Wonder Calmness Anger Courage Compassion Fear DisgustNine innate emotions:1) Shringara, love, devotion;2) hasya, joy, humor; 3) adbhuta,wonder, curiosity; 4) shanta,calmness; 5) raudra, anger;irritation; 6) vira, courage;7) karuna, compassion,empathy; 8) bhayanaka, fear,anxiety; 9) vibhatsa, disgustWhat Modern Parents Can DoBy Vatsala Sperling, Vermont, USAWhen the display of negative rasas by children gets out ofhand, there are certain positive things that parents can do:❖ Take a few deep breaths.❖ Commit to loving the child without conditions.❖ Be firm, yet remain flexible to the child’s needs of themoment.❖ See the child for what he is—just a small child in need ofsupport.❖ Impose no grown-up values and expectations on the child.❖ See the display of rasa for what it is—a little storm in a tinytea cup, which will calm down eventually.❖ At the peak of the display of negative rasas, do not force thechild to change his ways or engage with him in a forcefulmanner. A calm voice and a firm but peaceful demeanor is astronger weapon than force.❖ At no point are violent, physical punishments, frighteningtime-outs, deprivation or verbal abuse called for. Suchnegative devices affect children for the rest of their lives.How to cultivate positive rasasDo not, do not, do not suppress, neglect, ignore, putdown, discourage, demean or humiliate the child whenhe is displaying any sign of a positive rasa. Whileexcessive praise is detrimental, so are neglect anddiscouragement.Focus on cultivating tolerance and patience in yourself.Treat the child as you would expect him to treat youwhen you grow old, powerless, dependent and needy.Talk to your child about the expression of positive rasaswhen the time is right. In the meantime, just show himby the example of your own behavior how the expressionof positive rasas brings joy to the family.Set a family time—free from technology—to createan ideal environment for cultivating your child andteaching him about the display of positive rasas.Soon enough you will be able to speak to the childabout the universal laws of righteous behavior. Everybeing has the desire to be treated with love, courtesy,kindness, loyalty, generosity, consideration and warmth.While being taught to extend this treatment to one andall, the child will also need to be told about discretion.For example, loyalty is a good quality but the child mustlearn to choose his company wisely. If he befriends adrug pusher and becomes loyal to him, his loyalty tothis friendship will quickly take him right down thedrain and into the septic tank. This is wherediscretion comes in.When all is said and done, nobody candeny that these are challenging times forparents. Rootlessness, alienation, marginalizationand anonymity—these are someof the prices parents pay when they movearound the world in search of the perfect situation.Young parents are often cut off fromtheir original cultures and societies. Technocommercialvalues constantly push parentsand children to test one another. In pursuitof their individual ambitions and needs,parents and children often live in separateworlds, albeit in the same household. Andwhen children enter school, the child whohas not been given time to be a child, whohas not been accepted with tolerance, oftenends up in the school nurse’s office beingtested for and diagnosed with illnesses suchas bipolar disorder, ADHD or oppositionaldefiant disorder.Harried teachers, under pressure to maintainorder in their classrooms and to havetheir students meet minimum academicstandards, expect all of the children to behavelike obedient, quiet, perfect little ladiesand gentlemen. Children are not allowed tobe children. They are not allowed to deviatefrom the norm or to freely express all oftheir rasas.Sometimes as early as the age of three orfour, children are labeled with psychiatricdiagnoses and begin to be treated withpowerful drugs such as lithium or Depakote(mood stabilizers), Risperdal, Seroquel orZyprexa (atypical antipsychotics), Prozac (anantidepressant) or Ritalin (a drug for ADHD).Each of these drugs comes with a frighteninglist of side effects. If prescribed withoutany physical markers, but solely on the basisof behavior—or rather the display of rasas—what good (or harm) is being done to thechild, the parents and society?In the face of this, it becomes all the moreimperative that parents consider other, moreholistic approaches to child rearing. If, as issometimes the case, the child’s display ofrasas becomes detrimental to his own orhis family’s well-being, there are scores ofother, non-pharmaceutical options availablefor modifying mood and behavior. Hisparents might explore changing his diet,limiting his intake of sugar, preservativesand additives. Calming and healing herbsmight help. Perhaps homeopathy could shifthis energetic balance, or counseling for theentire family could diffuse the situation.Training a child in classical music, classicaldance or martial arts could help. All ofthese disciplines have been known to stabilizeand channel excessive or disruptiveenergy in more positive directions. A regulartime, free of TV, when family members sittogether, work together and converse withone another is also known to provide lasting,positive change for children.As children grow up and display rasas,parents need to continue to grow up aswell—not just in the physical manifestationsof age, the wrinkles and gray hair, but inwisdom. This is what a study of the displayof rasas in childhood is all about: a call forparents to monitor the growth of their wisdom.When parents learn to take charge oftheir own growth in terms of tolerance andempathy and resolve to let children be childrenfirst, allowing them an age-appropriatedisplay of rasas, they have an opportunityto become truly close to their children andknow them in their totality. As children mature,good parents take the initiative for gentlychanneling their rasas at the appropriatetime and place. When parents take this positiveapproach to child-rearing, the optionsof violent discipline and drug-based treatmentsbecome obsolete. While we continueto ponder who is raising whom, learning toflow with the rasas will bring about lastingpeace and joy in many households.54 hinduism today january/february/march, 2009 january/february/march, 2009 hinduism today 55

opinionFinding the PrideWill my generation be fully absorbed in Americanculture and forget their Hindu identity?by Sheetal shahIn many respects, i am your average indian-american20-something female. I enjoy Bollywood music and danceas much as hip hop and clubbing. I revel in Indian cuisineas much as I do in pizza. While I love visiting India, I amalways relieved to return to the US. And I am Hindu. The factthat I am proud of being Hindu is what separates me, and onlya handful of others like me, from most Indian Americans.The Hindu and Indian identities have been intertwinedto such an extent that few today make any reference to theirHindu identity. Most in my generation refer to themselvesas desi or Indian. From personal experience, at first glance, itis nearly impossible for a Hindu Indian American to definewhere one identity stops and the second begins. But in writingthis article, I realized that it is possible to find that fineline. Growing up in the US, where we are all able to form a strongAmerican identity, it is important to understand that being Hinduand Indian is not the same. Yet so many Hindu Indian Americanstoday find the distinction inconsequential.I generalize here, but Hindu Indian Americans seem to fall intoone of three categories. First, there are those who are disconnectedfrom being both Hindu and Indian. They have either never beentaught or have resisted all efforts to learn an Indian language, enjoythe cuisine, or learn the philosophy of Hinduism. I will leave thisgroup alone as the discourse concerning their “disconnectness” is adifferent topic altogether.In stark contrast to the above group are those who embrace bothidentities. Not only does this group embrace its Indianness, theyalso have an understanding, appreciation and pride in being Hindu.They have studied Hindu philosophy, acknowledge its importance inthe world today and are proud to share it with others. Unfortunately,few of my friends fall into this category.The final group, which is my focus, are those Hindu Indian Americanswho hide their Hindu identity but are proud to display their Indianidentity. This group is not only inclusive of those Hindu IndianAmericans who have been born and brought up in the US, but alsothose who are commonly called FOBs (“Fresh Off the Boat”—thosewho have just recently immigrated). Individuals in this group blastBollywood music on their stereos, require a weekly quota of Indianfood, and in college organize and attend Diwali shows which havelost any religious connotation. Diwali has just become an occasion tostage Bollywood style dances and throw massive after-parties.While this third group has retained a sense of Indianness, theyhave resisted or suppressed their Hinduness. So I wonder, if you areHindu and Indian, why is it ok to be Indian, but not Hindu?A large reason is that those of my parent’s generation arrived fromIndia with very little. They were forced to build a new life in a newcountry and many of them passed on to their children that whichwas easiest, the Indianness. Playing Bollywood videos and cookingIndian food is easier than explaining the underpinnings of Hinduphilosophy. So, my generation grew up as Indian Americans.56 hinduism today january/february/march, 2009In that transition, we lost the other halfof our identity. Perhaps, many in my parents’generation did not know Hinduismbeyond the ritualistic aspects of puja andattending mandirs. And perhaps growingup in India, surrounded by millionsof Hindus, they never needed to questionthe meaning of intricate rituals. But mygeneration does. And when we ask “Why?”and are met with ignorance, far from feelingpride in our religion, we shun it. Weare embarrassed by it because it is differentfrom our surroundings in America. Sowhen we are asked about the “elephantheadedGod,” instead of being able toexplain the rich symbolism, we shrug it offand change the topic. We are embarrassedbecause we do not know. In response, westick with what we do know–being Indian–andwe hide our Hindu identity.Ironically, it is only the Hindu identitythat can last for generations. While myparents are staunchly Indian, my own attachmentto India is less than my parents,and my children’s attachment to India willbe even less. As the generations of HinduIndian Americans progress, that Indianidentity will continue to diminish untilit disappears altogether. Just talk to thegrandchildren of European immigrants who arrived in Americamuch before Indians–they refer to themselves as Americans. Mygrandchildren will also be 100% American.Hindu identity is based on a 5,000-year old philosophy of life thatis universal. It is not based upon one’s birthplace. There is so muchto be proud of. Hinduism uniquely teaches a tolerance and acceptanceof multiple paths to God through one’s unique karma. It highlightsthe importance of performing one’s duty without attachingexpectations to outcomes that cannot be controlled. It shows us thatwhile we cannot control the world around us, we can control oursenses, and thereby maintain internal calmness. Hinduism bringsto the world the ability to control the mind, body, and soul throughthe practice of yoga. Of the world’s major religions, Hinduism isthe only one whose explanations of the creation of today’s universeare largely compatible with modern day scientific thought. The listis endless. And yet so many Hindu Indian Americans are still notproud of their Hindu identity.Fortunately, I have been raised to not only be proud of my HinduAmerican identity, but to ensure its survival. As the full-time Directorof Development with the Hindu American Foundation (HAF), anon-profit advocacy group, I have made a commitment to help builda national Hindu American voice by interacting with and educatingleaders in public policy, media and academia, as well as the generalpublic, about Hinduism and Hindu issues. I left a consulting careerto work for HAF because Hindu Americans need a credible voicethat is independent of an Indian identity; because without a unitedvoice, our Hindu identity will be lost; and because I am proud to bea Hindu American.sheetal shah, 27, based in New York City, is the director of Developmentfor the Hindu American Foundation, focused on fundraisingand marketing. She was previously a corporate consultant andtaught inner-city students for a year in Boston. She has a Mastersin Development Management from the London School of Economicsand a B.Sc in Computer Science from Georgia Tech.human rightsFacing Dalit IssuesWhat our Hindu Dalit brothers and sisters want iseconomic muscle and simple vocational respectby arvind chandrakantanAmerican-born hindus have very little exposureto the deep social problems faced by India’sDalit and Harijan communities, who comprise25% of our Hindu family. But time and again weface burning allegations of caste discrimination withinHinduism. Scriptural documentation of caste in Hinduism issparse. Most interpretations of caste come from proselytizingWestern Christian missionaries. In fact, the origin of thecaste supposedly from the four parts of Purusha, the CosmicMan, can be seen in another light. If Purusha represents thetranscendental nature of consciousness, then the brahminis he who lives eternally in Brahman (enlightened state), thekshatriya is he who fights the practical nature of the dualityof the mind, the vaishya is he who teeters towards thetamasic side of the mind but exists in the rajasic state, and the sudrais he who exists in the tamasic state. So before we label one of ourHindu brethren with a caste name, we should delineate our own.Myself and my friend Eswaran wanted to learn about the issues firsthand. Here is our interview with Dalit leader, Sri Kalidoss Swamigal,done during our summer 2008 trip to India. He elucidates the pivotalkeys needed for change.What is the form of discrimination faced by Dalit people?First, the concept of “Dalit” is found not just in the Hindu community.All religions, communities and races have had this throughouthistory. To think of it as a Hindu issue isa false concept. Poverty is our primaryproblem. Our children are unable tobenefit from reservations (affirmativeactions programs) because they areforced into the work force very early.Reservations for colleges and jobs don’thelp if you don’t even have enoughfood or water. Until basic amenitiesare met, reservations can do only somuch. Many in our community havedone well having those amenities. But,we are 25% of the Hindu population,yet we are still under-represented inSri Kalidoss Swamigal several areas because so many of ourreservations go unfilled each year.At a religious level, we often see money flow in from Christianand Muslim organizations overseas to help Dalits, but not fromHindu organizations. This leads many of our community to feel thatHindus do not care about them. The end of casteism would end alot of problems faced by our community, but it would not help usovercome poverty. If a man has food, water and basic necessities,then he can focus on education and upliftment. Education is thepanacea to many problems for all communities, not just for ours. Somany bright young Dalit boys and girlsare unable to fulfill their educational goalseach year because they are pushed into theworkforce at a young age to help providefor their families.How did the Dalit community cometo be? One third of the ancient SaiviteTamil saints were from Dalits.In ancient times, the caste system was notso stratified. This allowed several membersof the so-called “lower” communities tocome up. This is well recognized in religioustexts from all over India, not only inTamil classics. Caste classifications becamefixed only later.What is Hinduism to your community?Hinduism means a lot to our community.Even if people get converted to eitherChristianity or Islam, it is foreign. You cango to church or mosque for two or threedays, but you grew up with Lord Siva,Ganapati and Murugan. So we cannot denythis. Hence many reconvert to Hinduism.Other religions also do not have a trackrecord of treating Dalits well, which isanother reason for reconversion.What is the religious practice within your community? Do youhave your own temples and priesthood?Our practices are no different than any other Hindus. We eat andpray like other Hindus, and our festivals are the same also. Thereis no subcastes of priesthoods in the Dalit community, and, in fact,there are minimal subdivisions within our community.How do you see “untouchability” or impure vocations?There are jobs that the Dalit community do that other Hinduswould not do. But to label our jobs as ritually impure is unfair. Evenif we clean the temple floor, is this not a service to God? Manypeople in our community do not resent the work unless it is seen byother Hindus as being a “Dalit” job. These labels create resentment.What should the Dalit community do to improve its status?Many Dalits have been very successful over the years, but they don’thelp other Dalits to come up.Why are Dalits converted to Christianity and then somereconverting back to Hinduism?Dalits see Christians coming to help them, and they help to propagatethe misconception that Hindus do not care about them. Bothare untrue. Dalits who have converted to other religions have notbenefitted in any way, and many have converted back to Hinduismin recent years. If you are to struggle, why not struggle with yourown religion that you grew up with?contact: a l l i n d i a da l i t h i n d u m a a k a l a a n m e g a s a ng a m , s a n k r a l aya ,6 3 m ayor r a m a nat ha n s a l a i , c h e t p e t, c h e n na i , i n d i a 6 0 0 0 3 1 .h e a d o f t h e s a ng a m , s r i k a l i d o s s s wa m i g a l ( i n t e rv i e w a b ov e ) has b e e nnominated for the shri narayana guru award for outstanding leadersh i p i n s o c i a l r e for m g i v e n t h e t h e h i n d u a m e r i c a n fo u n dat i on a n dg l o b a l h u m a n r i g h ts d e f e nc e for o u ts ta n d i ng wor k t o u p l i f t da l i ts .visit: http://www.hafsite.org/harijan_award.htmarvind chandrakantan, md, 31, (photo at top) is a physician inMiami who works with the Hindu American Foundation and theLoka Dharma Seva Foundation and Trust.january/february/march, 2009 hinduism today 57

cultureVegetarian Myths DebunkedA tale of the hilarious misconceptions omnivores have about vegetariansEvery vegetarian remembers hisfirst time. Not the unremarkableevent of his first meal without meat,mind you. No, I mean the first timehe casually lets slip that he’s turned herbivore,prompting everyone in earshot to stareat him as if he just revealed plans to sail hiscarrot-powered plasma yacht to Neptune.For me, this first time came at an Elks scholarshipluncheon in rural Oregon when I was18. All day, I’d succeeded at seeming a promisingand responsible young man, until thatfateful moment when someone asked why Ihadn’t taken any meat from the buffet. AfterI offered my reluctant explanation—andthe guy announced it to the entire room—30people went eerily quiet, undoubtedly expectingme to climb on my chair and launchinto a speech on the virtues of an anarchicrevolution. In the corner, an elderly, suitedman glared at me as he slowly raised a sliceof bologna and executed the most menacingbite of cold cut in recorded history. I didn’tget the scholarship.I tell this story not to win your pity but toillustrate a point: I’ve been vegetarian for adecade, and when it comes up, I still get alook of confused horror that says, “But youseemed so… normal.” The U.S. boasts morethan 10 million vegetarians today, yet mostAmericans assume that every last one is aloopy, self-satisfied health fanatic, hellbenton draining all the joy out of life. Thoseof us who want to avoid the socialnightmare have to hide our vegetarianismlike an addiction, becauseadmit it, omnivores: Youknow nothing about us. Do weeat fish? Will we panic if confrontedwith a hamburger? Arewe dying of malnutrition? Youhave no clue. So read on, my flesheatingfriends—I believe it’s hightime we cleared a few things up.To demonstrate what a vegetarianreally is, let’s begin witha simple thought experiment.Imagine a completely normalperson with completelynormal food cravings, someonewho has a broad range offriends, enjoys a good time, isa carbon-based being, and soon. Now remove from this person’sdiet anything that oncehad eyes, and, wham!, youhave yourself a vegetarian. Normal person,no previously ocular food, end of story.Some people call themselves vegetariansand still eat chicken or fish, but unless we’retalking about the kind of salmon that comesfreshly plucked from the vine, this makesyou an omnivore. A select few herbivores goone step further and avoid all animal products—milk,eggs, honey, leather—and theycall themselves vegan (pronounced vee-gan).These people are intense.Vegetarians give up meat for a variety ofethical, environmental and health reasonsthat are secondary to this essay’s goal ofincreasing brotherly understanding, so I’llmostly set them aside. Suffice it to say thatone day I suddenly realized that I could neverlook a cow in the eyes, press a knocking gunto her temple, and pull the trigger withoutfeeling I’d done something cruel and unnecessary.(Sure, if it’s kill the cow or starve, thensay your prayers, my bovine friend—but fornow, it’s not quite a mortal struggle to subsiston the other five food groups.)I am well aware that even telling you thismakes me seem like the kind of person whowants to break into your house and liberateyour pet hamster—that is, like a PETA activist.Most vegetarians, though, would tell youthat they appreciate the intentions of groupslike PETA but not the obnoxious tactics.It’s like this: We’re allrooting for the same team,but they’re the onesin face paint, bellowingobscenities at theumpire and flipping over every car with aYankees bumper sticker. I have no designs onyour Camry—or your hamster.Now, here in America, when I say that vegetariansare normal people with normal foodcravings, many omnivores will hoist a lambshank in triumph and point out that youcan hardly call yourself normal if the aromaof, say, sizzling bacon doesn’t fill you withdeepest yearning. To which I reply: We’re notinsane. We know meat tastes good to manypeople; it’s why there’s a freezer case at yoursupermarket full of woefully inadequatemeat substitutes. Believe me, if obtaining bacondidn’t require slaughtering a pig, I’d havea bacon sandwitch in each hand right nowwith a bacon layer cake waiting in the fridgefor dessert. But, that said, I can also tell youthat with some time away from the butcher’ssection, many meat products start to seemgross. Ground beef in particular now strikesme as absolutely revolting; I have a vaguememory that hamburgers taste good, but theidea of taking a cow’s leg, mulching it intoa fatty pulp, and forming it into a pancakemakes me gag. And hot dogs... I mean, hotdogs? You do know what that is, right?As a consolation prize we American vegetariansget tofu, a treasure most omnivoresare more than happy to do without. Well, thismay stun you, but I’m not any more excitedabout a steaming heap of unseasonedtofu blobs than you are. Tofu is likefugu blowfish sushi: Prepared correctly,it’s delicious; prepared incorrectly,it’s lethal. Very early in myvegetarian career, I found myselffamished and stuck in a mall, so Iwandered over to the food court’sAsian counter. When I asked theteenage chief culinary artisanwhat was in the tofu stir-fry,he snorted and scoffed something.Desperation made meorder it anyway, and I cantell you that promises haverarely been more loyallykept than this guy’s pledgethat the tofu would tastelike, uh, that word he said.So here’s a tip: Unless youknow you’re in expert hands(Thai restaurants are agood bet), don’t even trytofu. Otherwise, it’syour funeral.mark alan stamatyAs long as we’re discussing restaurants, allowme a quick word with the hardworkingchefs at America’s dining establishments.We really appreciate that you included avegetarian option on your menu (and if youdidn’t, is our money not green?), but it mayinterest you to know that most of us are notsalad freaks on a grim slog for nourishment.We actually enjoy food, especially the kindthat tastes good.So enough with the bland vegetable dishes,and, for God’s sake, please make the Gardenburgersstop; it’s stunning how many restaurantslavish unending care on their meatdishes yet are content to throw a flavorlesshockey puck from Costco into the microwaveand call it cuisine.Every vegetarian is used to slim pickingswhen dining out, so we’re not askingfor much—just for something you’dlike to eat. I’ll even offer a handy trick.Pretend you’re trapped in a kitchenstocked with every ingredient imaginable,from asiago to zucchini, butwith zero meat. With no flesh available,picture what you’d make foryourself; this is what we want, too.For those kind-hearted omnivoreswho willingly invite subversive vegetariansinto their homes for dinnerparties and barbecues (really! we arenot afraid of them!), the same ruleapplies—but also know that unlessyou’re dealing with a vegetarian whois a unusually demanding person,we don’t expect you to bend overbackward for us. In fact, if we get thesense that you cooked for three extrahours to accommodate our dietary preferences,we will marvel at your consideratenature, but we will also feel insanely guilty.Similarly, it’s very thoughtful of you to askwhether it’ll bother me if I see you eat meat,but don’t worry: I’m not going to compose anepic poem about your corpse sandwich.Which leads me to a vital point for friendlyomnivore-herbivore relations. As you’reenjoying that pork loin next to me, I am notsilently judging you. I realize that anyonewho has encountered the breed of vegetarianwho says things like, “I can hear your lunchscreaming,” will find this tough to believe,but I’m honestly not out to convert you. Mygirlfriend and my closest pals all eat meat,and they’ll affirm that I’ve never even raisedan eyebrow about it.Now, do I think it strange that the samepeople who dress their dogs in berets andsend them to day spas are often unfazed thatan equally smart pig suffered and died to becometheir McSandwich? Yes, I do. Would Iprefer it if we at least raised these animalshumanely? Yes, I would.Let’s be honest, though: I’m not exactly St.Francis of Assisi over here, tenderly ministeringto every chipmunk that crosses my path.Not just salad: Unlike vegetarians of Indian heritage, Americansoften struggle to prepare a wholesome vegetarian mealI try to represent for the animal kingdom,but take a look at my shoes—they’re made ofleather, which, I am told by those with expertknowledge of it, comes from dead cows. Thisis the sort of revelation that prompts meatboosters to pick up the triumphant lambshank once again and accuse us of hypocrisy.Well, sort of. (Hey, you try to find a pair ofnonleather dress shoes.)My dedication to the cause might beA cartoon view: Dilbert’s pet, Dogbert, issurmised to be the alter ego of the cartoon’screator, Scott Adams, a staunch vegetarianincomplete, but I’d still say that doing somethingbeats doing nothing. It’s kind of likedriving a hybrid: not a solution to the globalwarmingdilemma but a decent start. Let’sjust say that at the dinner table, I roll in a Prius.Finally, grant me one cordial request:Please don’t try to convince us that beingvegetarian is somehow wrong. If you’re concernedfor my health, that’s very nice, thoughyou can rest assured that I’m in shipshape.If you want to have an amiable tête-à-têteabout vegetarianism, that’s great. But if youinsist on being the aggressive blowhard whotakes meatlessness as a personal insult andrails about what fools we all are,you’re only going to persuade methat you’re dumb.When someone says he’s religious,you probably don’t start thestump speech about how God is alie created to enslave the ignorantmasses, and it’s equally offensiveto berate an herbivore. I know youthink we’re crazy. That’s neat. Butseeing as I’ve endured the hassle ofbeing a vegetarian for several yearsnow, perhaps I’ve given this a littlethought. So let’s just agree to disagreeand joyously get on with it.Because, really, peace and understandingare what it’s all about:your porterhouse and my portobellocoexisting in perfect harmony—thoughpreferably not touching.We’re actually not so different, after all,my omnivorous chums. In fact, I like to thinkthat when an omnivore looks in the mirror,he just sees a vegetarian who happens to eatmeat. Or, no, wait, maybe the mirror seesthe omnivore through the prism of fleshand realizes we all have a crystalline soul.Hey, while you’re here: Have I ever told youabout anarchism?∏πby Taylor Clark, Slate Magazine58 hinduism today january/february/march, 2009 january/february/march, 2009 hinduism today 59usha krisunited media

The Continent: (left) The Indian troupewas a hit in France, where their talentswere better showcased than in England.ers. The first European play ever written ondevadasis was Antoine-Marin Lemierre’sLa Veuve du Malabar (1770); the first Europeanopera on devadasis was Charles-Simon Catel’s Les Bayadères (1810); and thefirst Western ballet centered around an Indiantemple dancer was Le Dieu et la Bayadère,with music by Daniel Auber (1830).Each of these emerged from France. Someof these creative pieces, such as Le Dieu etla Bayadère—rechristened as The Maid ofCashmere—and Antoine-Marin Lemierre’splay—modified and renamed The Widowof Malabar by the English writer MarianaStarke (1762–1836)—were later staged outsideFrance.Tardival could hardly have chosen a bettertime to present the devadasis in France.In the early decades of the century, Frenchappetite for the exotic East was obvious fromthe appearance of travelogues and new litgautieron dance godfrey new photographics ltd, sidcup, kentCulture1838: South Indian Dancers Tour EuropeThe bayadères dazzled the French, delighted the English and influencedsome of the leading artists, composers and choreographers of the 19th centuryBy Dr. Kusum Pant Joshi, EnglandToday, indian dance has a distinguishedplace on the world map.Despite its antiquity, the first Indiandance performance in the Westtook place less than 200 years ago—in 1838—when a group of devadasis set foot in Europe.These temple dancers were popularlyknown as bayadères in France and elsewhere.The word—from the Portuguese bailadeira—names an ethnic or folk dancer.Nineteenth-century Europeans knewabout Indian dance through accounts suchas The Travels of Marco Polo, which includedPolo’s observations about the devadasis ofMalabar in South India. Europeans living inIndia had also taken a fancy to nautch performances,a popular dance form differentfrom the temple-oriented devadasis.Western accounts of Indian dance inthe 18th century veered from highly positive(Jacob Haafner) to extremely negative(Abbé Jean-Antoine Dubois). The early19th-century Europeans tended to view Indiaand other Oriental lands and people withwonderment and fascination. Irrespective ofwhether we call this tendency “Orientalism”or “Romanticism,” a wave of curiosity aboutthings Indian swept over Europe. It was onthe crest of such a wave that the first troupeof Indian temple dancers was carried overthe seas and cast upon European shores.The French connectionCredit for bringing the troupe to Europegoes to E.C. Tardival, an enterprising Frenchimpresario. It was natural that the initiativecame from France, which had a special positionin Europe as its cultural trendsetter.Alone among the countries of Europe, Francehad consistently acknowledged, in her ownart, the existence of Indian temple danc-erature, as well the first French translationof Kalidasa’s Abhigyan Shakuntalam, entitledLa reconnaissance de Sacountala. Thiswas written in 1820 by Antoine-Léonard deChézy, the first European Professor of Sanskrit.With public curiosity further rousedby exposure to Western versions of devadasison the French stage, the time was clearlyripe for the real artists to be showcased beforethe French public.Tardival took care to ensure the success ofhis program. Near the French base of Pondicherryin South India, he found a group ofauthentic devadasis linked to the Perumaltemple of Thiruvanthipuram. He commissionedthem for 18 months. The troupe offive female dancers and three male musiciansconsisted of Tille Ammal, a womanof about 30, and four female dancers underher charge: Amany, 18, Saoundiroun andRamgoun, both about 14, and Veydoun, justsix years old. In contemporary sketches, Veydoun,who appears dressed in clothes identicalto the older dancers, looks like a miniversion of the others. She was aptly and affectionatelydescribed by a French theatercritic: “Imagine Cupid dyed in black. Veydounis the most charming, mischievous andthe brightest little devil.”Records indicate that Tardival offered thetroupe an excellent pay package, agreeing togive each dancer Rs. 10 per day (a generoussum in those days), plus an additional 1,000rupees—half at the outset of their engagementand the remainder when they returnedto India.“A sensation of dazzling light...”Ammal and her troupe arrived in France onJuly 24, 1838. At Bordeaux, their first port ofcall, they watched a performance of the ballet,Le Dieu et la Bayadère. Even as membersof the audience, the devadasis “excitedthe greatest attention,” according to reports.A week later, they gave their first performance,a private one. Soon they arrived inParis, where they were greeted with lengthyarticles in the French media. The excitementaugured well for the success of Tardival’sambitious program.The Parisian response was vividly reflectedby the city’s prominent theater critic, TheophileGautier. Regarding the prevailing mood,he wrote: “The very word bayadère evokesnotions of sunshine, perfume and beautyeven to the most prosaic and bourgeois mind.Imaginations are stirred, and dreams takeshape. There is a sensation of dazzling light,and through the pale smoke of burning incenseappear the unfamiliar silhouettes ofthe East. Until now bayadères had remainedclassical composersbibliothèque de l’opera, parisa poetic mystery like the houris of Muhammad’sparadise. They were remote, splendid,fairylike, fascinating. This scented poetrythat—like all poetry—existed only in ourdreams, has now been brought to us.” Afterwatching them perform in their residence inParis, Gautier wrote that they were, “charming,unimpeachably authentic and exactlycoincided with the idea we had formed ofthem.”Rumors that they were imposters vanishedafter a command performance beforeFrance’s King Louis Philippe on August 19,where they were showered with gifts fromthe royal family. Now publicity surroundingthe devadasis was so great that there weresome real attempts to kidnap them. Tardivallodged them in a secluded but verdantspot by the river Seine in a special bungalowprotected by a green shuttered fence with asoldier to guard the entrance. Being a dancetheatrical lonodonCritic’s choice: (above) Theater an derWien where the devadasis performed; (left)Influential theater critic Theophile Gautiergreatly contributed to their popularity; TheTheater Royal Adelphi in Londoncritic, Gautier was permitted into the houseand was accorded the privilege of watchingthe devadasis and their male musicians performat close quarters.Gautier wrote detailed descriptions of thedancers, particularly an extremely positiveaccount of the grace, beauty and charm ofAmany. From these reports and other sources,including a statuette of Amany craftedby French sculptor Auguste Barre, we canascertain that the devadasis were adornedin traditional jewelry, including nose rings,bangles, waist belts, ankle bells and silver toerings.A distinct picture of the three male musiciansof the troupe also emerges from Gautier’sreviews and is fully corroborated bycontemporary sketches. The grey-beardeddance master (nattuvanar) and senior-mostmember of the troupe, Ramalinga Mudali,conducted the devadasis as he sang, chanted60 hinduism today january/february/march, 2009 january/february/march, 2009 hinduism today 61

verses and beat the time (talam) with a pairof metal cymbals. The younger musicians,Savaranim and Deveneyagornam, played thebamboo pipes (tutti) and the rice-leaf drum(mattalam), respectively. (The musiciansand their instruments are seen at left in thedrawing on page 34.)The devadasis’ first public performance atthe Varieties was completely sold out. Whena short introductory piece withoutthe devadasis was being presented,the crowd reportedly grewso impatient to see them that themanagement was compelled tostop the performance and allowthe devadasis on stage!According to an account of theirreception in Journal des Débats,“Newpapers and magazines werereplete with articles about them.Their dancing art was comparedto the legendary Marie Taglioni,the ballerina who had played afundamental role in the rise ofromantic ballet with Le Dieu etla Bayadère. The dancers of allEurope dance with their feet, butv&a museumcourtauld institute of artAmany: Frenchsculptor AugusteBarre’s statue of leaddancer Amanythat is all. The bayadères dancein a different manner, with theirwhole frame. Their heads dance,their arms dance. Their eyes,above all, obey the movement andfury of the dance. Their feet clickagainst the floor; the arms and the handsflash in the air; the eyes sparkle; the bosomheaves; their mouths mutter; the whole bodyquivers.”Then, perhaps capturing the element ofdivine inspiration behind their performance,the Journal, added: “The dance of the bayadèresis something strange, impetuous, passionateand burlesque. It is a mixture of modestyand abandonment, of gentleness andfury. It is a species of poem in which a Bacchanterecites as she runs—a religious drama,which a young priestess delivers without apause—as the god of the pagoda pursued herto the last.”In addition to public approbation, thedancers were given considerable recognitionby French artists. SculptorJean-Antoine Barre (1811-1896)made the aforementioned statuetteof Amany in a dance pose,based on one of her danceitems called Malapou. He alsobegan working on anotherpiece modelled on Saoundiran.“The bayadères,” writes Gautier,“are therefore lacking in no typeof illustration. Art, society andfashion are all combining topay tribute to them; they aretruly the lions of the season.”Across the channel...Reverberations of the successof the devadasis were felt outsideFrance. England was thefirst to spring into action. Theinitiative was taken by FrederickYates, manager of London’sTheater Royal Adelphi. Yateshad an eye for “novelties,” coupledwith a fine business acumen. A discerningScotsman and a comic actor himself, heseems to have sensed that the devadasis hadevery chance of catering to the British public’sthirst for Oriental exotica and the mystiqueof India. He may have also seen this asa means of recovering the Adelphi’s recentinvestment in refurbishing the theater. Yatesmade a quick dash across the English Channelto book the devadasis. His offer—5,000guineas for the entire season—was accepted,and the Adelphi launched their program onthe first day of October, 1838.The devadasis were presented differentlyin London than in Paris. At the Adelphi, thefirst item was a prologue titled: “A Race fora Rarity,” a comic piece where Yates, his actresswife and others characterized the wayLondon’s leading theater managers hadmade a beeline to France and were desperateto secure the devadasis for themselves. Then,instead of allowing the devadasis to takeover the program, Yates treated them as supportingartists or auxiliaries. Instead of givingthem the freedom to present their dancerepertoire, their dance plots were cleverly allottedspace within popular English themesor frames with a potential to trigger localpublic interest.For instance, the devadasis’ dance itementitled: “Law of Brahma,” or the “HindooWidow” was incorporated into a scene set ata Hindu temple within The Widow of Malabar,a popular English play about the muchmalignedpractice of sati. Similarly, they werelater on fitted into Arajoon, or The Conquestof Mysore. This highly popular contemporarydrama celebrated the ultimate successof British arms over one of their most implacableenemies—Tipu Sultan of Mysore.Between October and December 1838, thedevadasis gave 55 performances in the Adelphi.In November and December, they alsoOn the road: This 1830s painting, “TanjoorNautch,” depicts a South Indian travelingdance troupe and their musicians who playcymbals, flute and mridagam, as well as theEuropean violin and bagpipes.danced almost every day in Egyptian Hall onPiccadilly street, in the heart of London.Some critics were initially skeptical abouthow the public would respond to them.There was a group of puritans who, presumablyinfluenced by the negative projection ofdevadasis as “temple prostitutes,” expressedfears that their performance might have abaneful impact on the “morals of the spectators.”On the opening night, some of thesepuritans had insinuated themselves into theaudience and begun a hissing campaign in anattempt to stir up trouble during the performance.However, as reported in the LondonTimes, their efforts failed. The great majorityof spectators found everything worth appreciatingand absolutely nothing offensive intheir dance.The positive response received from thepublic was reflected in various reviews oftheir London premiere. “The Bayadères atthe Adelphi have been completely successful,and are drawing crowds of inquisitivespectators,” wrote one critic. “We are in raptureswith the Bayadères,” gushed anotherin the Era. “Until now,” he added, “poetry ofmotion has been a mere term, and grace, abeau idéal, existing only in the fancy. TheseHindoo girls, however, embody and give lifeand portraiture to what has hitherto beenbut viewed with the mind’s eye. Their formsare symmetrical to perfection. Every movementis exquisitely graceful, and the animation—theflash and soul which lights upthe eyes of the dancers as they execute theirfascinating evolutions, is absolutely magical.They are said to have sparked off “a trendamong Adelphi actresses of dyeing their hairand eyebrows black, and eating olives, on theunderstanding that this would darken theirskin.” The devadasis’ success in London ledto tours both within and outside Britain. Beforeleaving for Europe, they also performedin Brighton.Though popular, their Adelphi program inthe long run did not reap a rich harvest forYates. Some forty years later, Yates’ son recollectedcaustically, “They were utterly uninteresting,wholly unattractive. My father losttheater museum ukphotos: itar-tass/yuri mashkov£2000 by the speculation. In the family theywere known as the ‘Buy-em-dears’ [not bayadères!]ever after.” It seems that, althoughtheir exoticism attracted the English public,their fascination was ephemeral. Withoutan introduction to even the bare basics ofIndian culture and arts, audiences were simplynot equipped to appreciate Indian templedancing and music, much less to understandits profundity, meaning or intricacies.A similar fate awaited the devadasis ontheir European tour, which included Germany,Austria and Belgium. In Vienna, thenunder Emperor Ferdinand, they were presentedat the Theater an der Wien, billedas “Bayadères and their Partners.” Sadly, theViennese public failed to respond positively.Apparently due to the troupe’s outlandishappearance, unusual complexion, clothes,jewelry, makeup, tattoos, music and style ofLondon: Ad placed by Adelphi Theater inThe Times in 1838 for the BayadèresBallet: Scenes from La Bayadère, a Russianballet with little influence fromactual Indian dance by Marius Petipa,first staged in 1877. Set in India, the storyrevolves around the temple dancer Nikiyaand her love for the warrior Solor,who is betrothed to the princess Gamzatti(at left). The ballet remains quite popular,especially for “The Shades,” a surrealscene of pure classical ballet (at right),which is often performed independently.dancing, the Austrian press is reported tohave gone to the extent of heaping ridiculeupon the devadasis.Nevertheless, they stirred the creativeenergy of some outstanding Austrian composersand artists. The same year that witnessedthe failure of the devadasis in Austriaalso saw Johann Strauss I (1804–1849)creating his “Indianer Galopp” under theirinspiration. A galopp—named after a horsein a hurry—is a ballroom dance which laterevolved into the polka. Similarly influenced,dance music composer Josef Franz Karl Lanner(1801–1843) composed his “MalapouGalopp,” a love-dance of the Bayadères. Bothwere well-received and are still extant. Furtherafield, conspicuous, tangible outcomesof the long-term impact of the devadasisincluded Gautier’s massive ballet Sacountala(1858), choreographed by Lucien Petipa(1815–1898) and Lucien’s brother Marius Petipa’s(1818–1910) highly spectacular balletLa Bayadère (see photos at top of page).ConclusionThe devadasis were a huge public sensationall over Europe, but the masses were unusedto their culture and the profundity of Indianclassical dance and music. The true devadasissoon slipped out of public memory andvanished into the limbo of history, and yetEuropean artists continued to strut acrossthe Western stage playing imaginary devadasisfor years to come! It was only after thedawn of the new century that Indian dancingwould once again draw public attentionin the West.∏π62 hinduism today january/february/march, 2009 january/february/march, 2009 hinduism today 63

eferenceHindu Encyclopedia ReleasedA Ramakrishna swami devoted three decades tocrafting this cogent and readable religious referenceBy Choodie Shivaram, BengaluruAfter thirty-three patient years ofresearch and writing, Swami Harshanandaji,head of Sri RamakrishnaMath in Bengaluru (as Bangalore isnow known), has released A Concise Encyclopediaof Hinduism. Alphabetically arranged,the three-volume work covers thegamut of all things Hindu, from scripture,philosophy, mythology, festivals, rituals andsacraments, to pilgrim centers, archaeologyand lives of great saints.The collection runs a total of 2,064 pages.Illustrations are sparse—a few hundredline drawings and black-and-white photographs—buteach volume has several pagesof color photos at the back. The set is pricedat Rs. 1,500 in India (e-mail: rkmblr_publi@vsnl.net) and about $150 in the US (temple@sfvedanta.org). It has sold briskly since itsrelease in April, 2008. (If you search for thebook online, do not confuse it with KlausK. Klostermaier’s popular singlevolumework of the same title, publishedin 1998.)“The encylopedia is written insuch a simple style that even anundergraduate student can understandit,” Swami Harshananda toldme. His writing is indeed lucid andaccessible. For example, in concludinga two-page article on “mind,” hewrites, “The main purpose behindthe study of the mind [in Hinduism]is to facilitate its ultimate purificationleading to the Realization of theAtman or the Self. Though there aredifferences of opinion regarding itsnature, the processes of purificationare almost universally accepted.”Swami, now in his late 70s, firsthinduism todaycame in contact with the teachingsof Sri Ramakrishna and SwamiVivekananda in 1948 and joined theRamakrishna Order. He hatchedthe plan for an encyclopedia ofHinduism in 1973 and started work in earnesttwo years later. He spent a year assemblingtopics, then commenced writing aboutthem alphabetically by hand.The most difficult entries, swami confides,were those of lesser-known philosophicalsystems. “Unless I understood them perfectly,”he explained, “I didn’t want to putthem in writing. For instance, Chaitanya Mahaprabhu’sAchintya Bheda Abheda Schooland even Madhvacharya’s philosophy arequite tough. I had to study these systemsand present them in a noncontroversial way.”In the early years of the project, his dutiesas head of the Bangalore RamakrishnaMission took up much of his time. “Later on,”he said, “as our monastic members becamemore senior, they were able to take greaterresponsibilities and—except for some policymatters—I was able to devote more time tothe work. Generally, I would devote aboutthree or four hours a day. Periodically, I wouldgo to a small meditation retreat we have inShivanhalli village for a week at a time andwrite up to ten hours a day. It was all doneby the grace of the Holy Mother, Sri SaradaDevi, to whom I have dedicated the work.”Asked what his conclusion was aftercompleting such a comprehensive study ofAll you need to know: Swami Harshananda’s lifetime ofstudy resulted in these three useful and lucid volumesHinduism, Swami responded: “After goingthrough so many books and studyingthe subjects properly, I came to the conclusionthat ours is a very great religion, a verywonderful religion. There is nothing that iswanting in it. It is like Sri Ramakrishna saidof a mother feeding her various children. TheThe author: Swami Harshananda, whojoined the Ramakrishna Mission in 1948basic materials are the same—rice is there,sugar is there, dal is there, milk is there. Themother of the house, depending upon thecapacity of the children, prepares differentdishes from these same ingredients. Just so,Hinduism has also given various methods ofphilosophical systems of sadhana (spiritualdisciplines) and upasana (worship). Ultimately,all of them lead to the same sense ofexperience. Suppose I don’t like advaita, thenondualist philosophy. Then there is dvaita,dualism, or vishishtadvaita, between the two.If people are serious and sincere about theirpersonal ethical and spiritual life,there is plenty of material in our religion.There is no need to search for itelsewhere. Hinduism is not a bundleof superstitions. It is a quite well organized,scientific religion. It wasdiscovered and rediscovered by thevarious sages through contemplationand meditation. Only then they gaveit to us. That is why our philosophicalsystems are called darshanas. Theyare not just intellectual philosophicalsystems. Darshana means seeingand experiencing. Through prayerand meditation they experience itand are able to see the truth throughthe inner eye and then present it inthe way people can understand.”Swami brings a love and respectto his subject which sets this encyclopediaapart from many producedby Western academics. Readers may,however, find his coverage of mosttopics necessarily but exasperatinglybrief, and treatment of recent Hindu figuresis spotty. Most importantly, there is no indexto enable readers to cross-reference topics.That said, the book is a remarkable, useful andreliable reference, written by one who has alifetime of first-hand knowledge and appreciationof Hinduism.∏πbook reviewsIndia’sWomenBy Tara Katir, Washington, USAStephen Huyler is well known to usfrom his previous books on India:Village India, Gifts of Earth, MeetingGod—Elements of Hindu Devotionand Painted Prayers. His newest book,Daughters of India—Art and Identity, is visuallybeautiful, emotionally sensitive andan intelligent look into the everyday lives oftwenty Indian women, of several religionsand living in various locations throughoutIndia and abroad.Huyler writes, “The women of India havelong been misperceived in the West. Abusetowards women pervades Indian society, asit does in many parts of the world, but thisabuse must be regarded with its own context.Much of Western reportage about Indianwomen is misinformed or misguided, depictingall or most of them as victims. Terribleinequities within Indian society mustbe addressed and changed, but it is essentialthat Indian women also be recognized fortheir strengths and for the phenomenal abilitiesto rise above adversity. India’s culturesare contradictory—a fact epitomized by theconflicting attitudes towards women.”Huyler’s work is an attempt to correct theseSwami Prakashananda’sbook Baba Muktananda—ABiography looksinto the life of an extraordinaryhuman being. SwamiMuktananda Paramahamsa,affectionately called Baba by hisdevotees, was known by millionsworldwide at the time of hisMahasamadhi in 1982. SwamiPrakashananda has written acompelling portrait of this saintlysoul. From his mother’s devoutprayers at the Manjunath SivaTemple in Mangalore, South India,seeking Siva’s Grace for a child, to Baba’sworld travels, Swami provides us an intimatelook into the life of this modern-day saint.Baba was born May 16, 1908. By the ageof 15 he had frequently seen the sadhuNityananda, who lived an austere life in theKadri Hills of South India with a sect of Nathayogis. An intense face-to-face meetingmisrepresentations while giving a voice tosome of India’s five hundred million women.Through their words and his amazing photographs,he has captured their strength andprofound dignity. Some may view the storiesand see these women as victims. However,Mr. Huyler says, “The chapters are not profilesof victims, but of women demonstratingstrength, fortitude, dignity and spirit.” Completewith full color photographs, Daughtersof India is an extraordinary look into theirlives. This book should help to bring understandingand respect to the most significantpart of Indian society today, her women.daughters of india—art and identity,abbeville press publishers (www.abbeville.com), 137varick st., new york, new york 10013, pgs 263, $65.00A Biography of Muktanandatook place in 1923, changingthe course of Baba’s life. Adeep yearning for a life of spiritualitytook precedence, andhe left home forever to pursuean inner journey.Swami’s account of Baba’searly life is interspersed withamazing stories of Nityananda,(who would become Baba’sguru) life at Ganeshpuri, andBaba’s travels throughout Indiaand the United States.Included in this marvelousbiography are many preciousblack and white photos of Baba and his guru,Nityananda.Baba’s spirituality inspired thousands ofpeople. Through Swami’s book, that darshancontinues to flow to the worldbaba muktananda—a biography by swami praka shananda,sarasvati productions, 1625 hollingsworth dr., mountainview, ca 94040. e-mail: email@sarasvatiproductions.com382 pgs, $23.95Gifts of theHarappansWe come now to an archeologicalstudy that showcases the ingenuity,creativity, science and technologyof the past: Harappan Architectureand Civil Engineering by Jagat Pati Joshi. TheHarappan civilization flourished during the3rd and 2nd millennia bce, reaching its peakaround 2600, shortly after the developmentof Mesopotamia and Egypt.Professor Joshi writes, “Like the other OldWorld Civilizations, the Harappan civilizationseems to have grown from the skillfulutilization of the fertile river systems andtheir valleys in the northwestern region ofthe Indo-Pakistan subcontinent. Systematictown planning, fortification of citadel,elaborate drainage system the idea of establishinggranaries and surplus economy,standardization of brick sizes, weights andmeasures, geometric instruments (e.g. rightangles, linear scale and plumb bob) are theprincipal gifts of the Harappans to succeedingcultures. It was the Harappans who gavethe idea of welfare of the workers for thefirst time. Different types of hydraulic architectureis another legacy of the Harappans,besides many others in social, economic andreligious fields.”Illustrated with maps, drawings and photographs,this scholarly study is a fascinatingand long overdue look at this ancient civilization.The Western educational view hasfocused on Mesopotamia and Greece as the“cradle of civilization,” ignoring the larger andequally advanced civilizations in the Indiansubcontinent and China. This biased viewof history is coming to an end. The InfinityFoundation’s support of Professor’s Joshi’sacademic efforts is applauded, as is the workitself, which is available at Amazon.com.harappan architecture and civil engineering by jagat patijoshi rupa & co., 7/16 ansari road, daryaganj, new delhi110 002, india, 218 pgs, $15.1164 hinduism today january/february/march, 2009january/february/march, 2009 hinduism today 65

ayurvedaAvoiding Food AllergiesA seldom recognized condition can be counteredwith a healthy diet and Ayurvedic remediesby Dr. virender sodhi66 hinduism today january/february/march, 2009Afood allergy or sensitivity is an adverse reactionto the ingestion of a particular food. It may becaused by a protein, a starch or by a contaminantfound in the food, such as today’s ubiquitous colorings,preservatives, chemicals, pesticides and insecticides. Itis estimated that 12 million Americans have food allergies,and the numbers are rising. Today, six to eight percent ofchildren under the age of three have food allergies. Nearlyfour percent of adults live with them. In my own clinicalexperience, I have found the occurrence of food allergiesand sensitivities to be even higher. It is a little-known factthat food allergy causes roughly 30,000 emergency roomvisits per year in the United States and, tragically, almost200 deaths.Although an individual could be allergic to any food,even fruits and vegetables, eight foods account for 90% of all foodallergicreactions: milk, eggs, peanuts, tree nuts (walnut, cashew,etc.,) fish, shellfish, soy and wheat. The most common food allergiesin children are caused by milk, eggs, peanuts, tree nuts and wheat.Food allergies are associated with a multitude of symptoms andcan result in a seemingly endless list of illnesses: chronic diarrhea,duodenal ulcer, gastritis, irritable bowel syndrome, malabsorption,ulcerative colitis, nephrosis, chronic infections, anxiety, depression,hyperactivity, inability to concentrate, insomnia, irritability, mentalconfusion, seizures, bursitis, joint pain, low back pain, asthma,chronic bronchitis, wheezing, acne, eczema, hives, itching, skin rash,arrhythmia, edema, fainting, fatigue, headache, hypoglycemia, itchynose or throat, migraines and sinusitis.What causes food allergy? The condition is often inherited.When both parents have allergies, there is a 67% chance that thechildren will also have them. In cases when only one parent is allergic,the chance of a child being prone to allergies is still high, almosta third. Other factors include constant exposure to a certain food,improper digestion and poor integrity of the intestinal barrier. Infact, allergenic foods are often among those we crave the most.We are exposed to environmental pollution and to food chainpollution, with genetically modified food, hazardous chemicals inour water and an increased intake of packaged food. These are newchallenges to the body, and our immune system does not cope wellwith them, creating a background for allergies and sensitivities.In its classic form, a food allergy occurs when an ingested foodmolecule acts as an antigen —a toxin or other foreign substancethat induces an immune response, producing antibodies, our body’sguardian cells. Antibodies are protein molecules, made by whiteblood cells. They bind themselves to foreign substances, in this casethe food antigens. These food antigens may cause the release of histamines,which cause swelling, inflammation and an array of differentsigns and symptoms.Lactase deficiency is a common cause of food intolerance, inwhich a person can experience bloating, abdominal pain and diarrheawhen drinking milk. Intolerance togluten (a component of wheat, rye, barley,kamut and spelt wheat) occurs as a diseasecalled gluten-sensitive enteropathy. In acommon phenomenon called cross-reactivity,a person with a history of reactingto a certain food, such as shrimp, may alsodevelop an intolerance to related foods, inthis example crab, lobster and crayfish.The most common food allergy symptomsare sometimes due to other causes.Some foods contain histamine readilyavailable and cause effects that mimic foodintolerance. Histamine can reach high levelsin cheese, some wines and certain fish.Common compounds most frequently tiedto adverse reactions that can be confusedwith food allergy are yellow dye number5, monosodium glutamate (MSG) andsulfides, which occur naturally in somefoods but are added to others to enhancecrispness or prevent the growth of mold.Some people have a food intolerance with apsychological origin.To correctly diagnose a real food allergy, adoctor first must determine if the patientis having an adverse reaction to specificfoods. The doctor makes this assessmentwith the help of a detailed history fromthe patient, the patient’s dietary diary or anelimination diet. Diagnosis is confirmed by more objective skin tests,blood tests or food challenges.An elimination diet is commonly prescribed to help mitigate foodallergies. Commonly eaten foods are eliminated and replaced withhypoallergenic foods. A standard elimination diet consists of rice,mung beans, lentils, banana, apple and a cabbage-family vegetable.It is extremely important that no allergenic foods be consumed inthis diet.In such cases, I often prescribe herbs like pippli three times aday to help increase the secretions of gastrointestinal tract. Trifalis helpful, eliminating the toxic load and at the same time restoringthe lining of the gut back to normal. I also advise curcumin 250mg three times per day. Curcumin helps to stop the inflammation.In addition, it is good to have coconut milk, which contains mostlymedium chain triglycerides. It is helpful as a food and boosts thecolonic bacteria. Probiotics are added to help the gut to recover itsgut flora back to normal.The patient stays on the elimination diet for at least one week,and up to one month. After the elimination-diet period, individualfoods are reintroduced every two days. Reintroduction of allergenicfoods will typically produce a more severe or recognizable symptomthan before, allowing us to identify the root causes.We can keep ourselves free from food allergies. Create a relationshipwith your food. Eat real food, in its original form, which hasbeen minimally processed or altered. If bugs avoid it, it probably isnot good for you either. Eat slowly and chew your food properly. Donot exercise right after eating. Also, avoid drinking much water withfood, as it dilutes your gastric juices. Water is better in-betweenmeals. Eat food which is available in season which has been organicallyor naturally grown.Remember, good food is a wonderful friend to our health.dr. virender sodhi holds an M.D. (Ayurveda) from India and aN.D. from Bastyr College of Naturopathic Medicine, USA. E-mail:drsodhi@ayurvedicscience.com. Web: www.ayurvedicscience.comminister’s messageConvey the Teachings!It is up to us to explain Hinduism to thebrilliant new generation. They are interested!by Sri Jayendra puri mahaswamijiDuring a recent visit to the US, Swamiji visited Kauai’s HinduMonastery, where we took the opportunity to interview himabout the impressions American Hindus had left on him.What did you see in young Hindus raised in America?I have spoken to young children in my recent visit to America,from six-year-old Hindus to teenagers. A girl from JerseyCity, who was silent while her parents avidly interacted withme, is a good example. After the formal ceremonies, the girlcame forward and asked me many questions. She actuallyhad listened intently to what I explained during my padapuja satsang and brought good questions that related to herpersonal life.The questions of the average youth about spiritual mattersare very deep now, more so than a few years ago. An eleventhgradeboy asked me, “Swami, have you seen God? And if youhave, can you explain it to me? I don’t seem to believe thatthere is any God.” On this trip I have come across many ofthis age who have similar questions about God, questions that usuallywould surface only later in life.I recently talked for a long time to that young seeker of Truth. Hehad been through the Western, modern education system, so I usedtakashastra, logic. I told him, “You have seen this building wherewe are sitting now. Naturally you presume that there is a builder.From a particular machine, you presume there is a manufacturerand some systematic intelligence behind it. So can you imagine sucha wonderful creation as our world, consisting of so many real ideas,so many species and you and me, that doesn’t have an intelligencebehind it? You cannot.” He hesitantly said, “Yes, yes.” So, I continued,“Inside of you there is some power which is making you move. Insideme there is the same power, making me speak. A car cannot movewithout energy. Similarly with my body and yours. But what is thispower?” He analyzed my arguments little by little. When I said thesum of all actions and all ideas and all power is God, he was convincedand sighed, “Now I know there is a God.”How can we encourage them to attend the temples?Temple worship, so central to our religion, is something we haveto carefully explain. The first step for the young to understand thevalue of temple worship is to meditate upon “janma mrithu jerrariadi,” meaning "the reason for their earthly birth." Why are weborn? And is death in our hands? And during old age, can you stopdecay and disease? Such is life, we are all afflicted with these thingswithout knowing why. Not only this, but all of us are internallyinspired to find something meaningful. That propels us to realizesomething beyond us, some shakti beyond us.How to connect ourselves with this shakti? I ask the children andthe youth, “Are you always successful in whatever you do? No, it’snot like that. You don’t control everything. You know that thereis one factor which is not in our hands: the divine power.” Templeworship will give you more power toachieve things in a better manner—notonly material things, but to go further andfind out the meaning of life.It is common for me hear, “Why dowe need temples? Isn’t the murti just astatue? Our elders say that God is presenteverywhere.” They deserve good answers. Iexplain with an analogy. Sunlight is everywherebut the Sun, in spite of its mightyheat, cannot burn even one small piece ofpaper under normal circumstances. Butget one magnifying glass, keep one piece ofpaper below it and then let sunlight passthrough. The paper will go up in flames. Ithappens not because of the glass, whichis simple, uncomplicated and costs just afew dollars, but because of the sunlightit intensifies. Similarly, God is, by sometechnical means, brought into the templeto bless us, the jivas. That is done by apranapratishta (ritual consecration) ofthe murti and by Sanskrit mantras. Thedifference between Sanskrit and normallanguage is crucial; it creates greater impact.Mantras are selective sound vibrations experiencedby rishis over thousands of years.What else is important to explainto the next generation?When I talk to our youth, I also pass onthe respect for our ancient sages. I say tothem, “How can you believe in the existenceof the rishis? Rishis are great people, like sage Vedavyasa, whohave given us spiritual knowledge.” I myself have never seen a rishi,but I believe in them. To make my point, I inquire, “Have you seenthe Mahabharata? Have you seen the Ramayana? Can you write abook like that? Could you write one particle of the Mahabharata?Just read them and see the power of the rishis. They are spiritualscientists.”I often explain two important Hindu practices, sadhana and meditation.Sadhana, daily spiritual practice, begins only when you areclear about your goal. When I ask, “Are you satisfied with what youare doing?” I often hear, “We are living, just like everybody, achievingthings.” But I ask, “Is that all? What is the purpose of life?” Mostwill say it is happiness. But is there such a thing as unwavering happiness?When you discover you need God to be your goal, then youbegin true sadhana. Then comes meditation, or dhyanam in Sanskrit.It is a continuous flow of mental energy in one direction. Forbeginners, I suggest meditating on Lord Ganesha’s white form. Themoment we have the mind flowing to Lord Ganesha’s white form,detached from all other colors or thoughts, one thing ties to anotherin a seeker’s mind.When I am asked how to reach a deeper state of meditation, Iexplain that one needs a guru for that. I say, “You have done yourpractice many times, but your mind is still wavering.” One needshelp to reach the source of the mind, which is the source of everything.What I can understand, a child maybe will not. Similarly, wecannot understand what an advanced yogi sees, but we hear about itfrom him. He helps us awaken our positive energies with discipline,and he makes us proceed toward realizing God.sri jayendra puri mahaswamiji is the guru mahasannidhanam ofKailash Ashram in Bengaluru, successor to his guru, the late Sri SriTiruchi Mahaswamigal, Hindu of the Year 2003.january/february/march, 2009 hinduism today 67

www.hinduismtoday.comarcheologyArchaeos Opens a Digital Window on Fabulous VijayanagaraSince we first wrote aboutthis site in 2001, Archaeos completedtwo more years of mappingthe renowned city of Vijayanagar inSouth India. In the 15th century, thisHindu “City of Victory” was possiblythe largest city (650 sq. km.) in theworld. It was ruthlessly destroyed450 years ago by Muslim armies.The Archaeos Vijayanagar MappingProject (www.archaeos.org/vmp/)was conducted from 2001-2003.From fields of rubble, Archaeos hascaptured remarkable views of a civilizationwhose influence reached thefar shores of Indonesia and Vietnamand changed the world. Archeostried to answer some key archeologicalquestions. How big was the city?What size were the complexes?What were they used for? The projectresult web site contains panoramas,photos, PDFs of archeologicalreports and videos. Be sure to gothrough each link. At the “Features”link, stop and click on every view tosee closeups of carvings, walls, enclosures,tools, etc.Only a limited area of the ruinshas been designated for conservation.The Archaeos mapping projecthas proved that the extent of the cityis much greater. “It is hoped that thework will aid in the preservation ofthe site as a whole, known as ‘Groupof Monuments at Hampi’ on UNES-CO’s list of World Heritage Sites. Itcovers zones not currently protectedor designated for excavation andprovides another perspective onmore areas within this culturallyrich and lively yet endangered site.”Above is a frame from one of the eleven panoramas thatsurvey the ruins of one of history’s earliest citiesagricultureMagical NeemNeem is india’s miracle tree azadiractaindica. The Neem Foundation(www.neemfoundation.org) has become averitable people’s movement, with a hightech Web 2.0 site and a mission of “GreeningIndia with neem.” The site explains thetree’s many uses and its history in India, itsimportance to ecosystems, natural medicine,animal health, organic farming, pest controland economic potential.While sharing information on a magicalplant that cures many ailments, preventspregnancy and repels pests, the NeemFoundationalso shows viewers how toget involved, using the neem tree as a focusfor environmental activism.The mission statement on the “WhoAre We” page says it all: “Neem Foundationis a voluntary, independent, nonprofitorganization. More importantly,it is a people’s movement —an initiativethat involves ordinary citizens of theworld, a forum for individuals and institutionswho would like to make a difference.“It is a platform for people, whowould like to see the world return to naturefor answers; who would like to lendtheir might to fight poisoning of our soil,pollution of air and ground water, anddesertification. The Neem Foundationstrives to popularize simple, natural solutionsand help people raise their voices untilthe authorities respond to stop the exploitationof the earth by commercial interests. It isthe apex body of all neem movements aroundthe world.”Don’t walk, but fly to this site to find outwhat you can do. And plant a Neem treetoday!

J u l y t o Se p t e m b e r En d o w m e n t Co n t r i b u t i o n sP r i e s t ’ s Fu n d Su p p o r t s Sa t g u r u ’ s Ma l ay s i a Tr a v e lWhenever Satguru Bodhinatha Veylanswami of the Kauai Monastery goes to Malaysia, a Hindupriest and astrologer from Ulu Behrang, Parak helps pay for his travel.The priest’s son, Selvanathan Jothiswarar of Kuala Lumpur, says his father combines generositywith practicality. “He says that when it comes to swamis, instead of giving what we like, it’simportant to give what they need,” Mr. Selvanathan stated.His father, also named Jothiswarar, helps offset anunavoidable expense. Though Veylanswami spendsmost of the year on the island of Kauai where heoverseas a monastery-temple and its publicationoperations, his duties require travel throughoutNorth America and Asia. He regularly holds pilgrimages,gives talks and conducts ceremonies inMalaysia, India, Mauritius, Canada, Singapore andelsewhere.The elder Jothiswarar first started supportingMalaysian travels for Veylanswami’s predecessor,the late Satguru Sivaya Subramuniyaswami(Gurudeva). Mr. Jothiswarar would ask the tripBodhinatha with Selvanathan (top center)and his father, Jothiswarar (right)organizers how he could help and then charge Gurudeva’s hotel and travel expenses to hiscredit card, making the holy visitor a guest to his nation.“Dad then got the idea of starting an endowment fund for Satguru’s Malaysian travels,” Mr. Selvanathanrecounted. His father established the Kodiswara Satguru Malaysia Travel Fund at theHindu Heritage Endowment, naming it after his grandson Kodiswara who had been named byGurudeva. In Mr. Selvanathan’s view, “It was as though Gurudeva himself had named the fund.”Mr. Jothiswarar’s personal journey was not an easy one. After being orphaned at age five, hewas adopted by a Sri Lankan family. He received training in astrology and the priesthood in SriLanka. He left his adoptive family at age 16, finally marrying and settling in Ulu Behrang. Hebecame active in politics and, with the help of a government grant, built a Tamil school and aLord Subramanya temple on a nearby estate in 1967 and a Lord Ganesha Temple in Ulu Behrangin 1975.Gurudeva visited the temple in 1983 and, according to Mr. Selvanathan, had a vision of LordGanesha listening to his father who by now was known throughout Malaysia as one of its leadingastrologers.Now 75, Mr. Jothiswarar is twice a recipient of the government’s Distinguished Conduct Medal(Pingat Pekerti Terpilih) and the Meritorious Service Medal (Pingat Jasa Kebaktian) for hissocial service work. His son, Mr. Selvanathan, has followed his father’s example and establishedthe Rani Jothiswarar Memorial Fund (fund #66) at HHE in honor of his late wife (see HinduismToday Oct-Nov-Dec 2008.) The fund supports the retreat facilities for the monks at Kauai’sHindu Monastery.An engineer by profession, Mr. Selvanathan now works as an astrologer in Kuala Lumpur andregularly assists his father with the Ganesha Temple prayer services in Ulu Behrang.For information about the Kodiswara Satguru Malaysia Travel Fund or to establish your ownfund, contact Shanmuganathaswami at hhe@hindu.org. To donate to this fund, visit www.hheonline.org.Hi n d u He r i ta g e En d o w m e n tKauai’s Hindu MONASTERY, 107 Kaholalele Road, Kapaa, Hawaii, 96746-9304 USA808-822-3012, ext 244 • fax: 808-822-3152 • hhe@hindu.org • www.hheonline.orgKauai Aadheenam Monastic EndowmentK. Lakshmi Kantha Reddy US$201.00Darma & Shivali Satgunasingam 75.00Niraj Thaker 98.50Other Donations 16,965.21Total 17,339.71Iraivan Temple EndowmentAnonymous 1832.00Hotranatha Ajaya 25.00Roger & Rosemary Brown 120.00Victoria Lynne Johnson 51.00Latha Kannan 153.00Trond Liland 60.00Rasa Rajanayagam 1,001.00Kumar Ranganathan 125.00S. & N. Ravindran 45.00Jnana Sivananda 100.00Niraj Thaker 98.50Gunavinthan Siva Thirumalai 80.00Raja Vishnu 30.00Other Donations 23,569.35Total 27,289.85Kauai Aadheenam Annual Archana FundSivanathan Batumalai 30.37Gunavadee Caremben 14.11Somasundaram Caremben 14.11Sukanta Caremben 14.11Sharath Chigurupati 369.00Tarakini Gunasegaran 20.54Victoria Lynne Johnson 17.00Amooda Koothan 34.76Saravan Koothan 3.74Saroja Devi Manickam 4.50Navindhiraan Murugesu 250.00Navukarasu Muthusamy 30.37Bijamati Pareatumbee 5.41Padmini Pareatumbee 5.41Kirtideva Peruman 11.11Niroshnee Peruman 5.77Akileiswaran Samuthiran 25.07Jayasutha Samuthiran 24.37Devaladevi Sivaceyon 11.88Nutanaya Sivaceyon 23.74Patudeva Sivaceyon 11.88Hemavalli Sivalingam 1.77Kantaruban Sivalingam 2.69Rohini Sivalingam 0.92Shivaani Sivananda 22.27Potriyan Sivanathan 12.09Siven Veerasamy 11.55Total 978.54Hinduism Today Lifetime Subscription FundYatrika Ajaya 109.70Jeri Arin 252.00Ram M Cheerath 240.00Rosa Jaramillo 77.80Subbiah Lakshmanan 696.00Navindhiraan Murugesu 260.17Shankar Paramasivam 240.00Akshar Patel 800.00Bharati Patil 240.00Subramaniam Pennathur 240.00Adi Sankara Perumal 30.79Anjeeni Devi Perumal 15.40Niroshnee Peruman 10.88Jayasutha Samuthiran 6.71Rohan Sundaralingam 240.00Siven Veerasamy 21.78Total 3,481.23Hindu Businessmen’s Association TrustJanaka Param 14.00Paramaseeven Canagasaby 18.57Vel Mahalingum 22.22Manogaran Mardemootoo 55.52Vedapragassen Peruman 7.22Total 117.53Boys School for Iraivan PriesthoodDavid Bohn 20.00Bala Sivaceyon 23.74Niraj Thaker 22.00Total 65.74Kauai Aadheenam Matavasi Medical FundShyamadeva Dandapani 63.00Maruthu Pandian Darmalingam 43.90Gowri Nadason 159.80Vayudeva Varadan 54.00Other Donations 4,800.00Total 5,120.70Tirunavukkarasu Nayanar GurukulamRoshan Nathoo 468.37Deva Rajan 108.00Total 576.37Sri Subramuniya Kottam FundAnonymous 50.00Kumbhalavalai Ganesha Temple EndowmentThulasidas Nadarajah 60.00Manoharan Navaratnarajah 75.00Total 135.00Sri Siva Subramaniya SwamiDevasthanam TrustAnonymous 30.00Malaysia Hindu Renaissance FundAnonymous 75.00Rajiv Verma 16.66Total 91.66Hinduism Today Production FundShashikumar Bellur 250.00Hiranya Gowda 93.00K. C. Gupta 1,001.00Vijay Pallod 504.00Urmil Shukla 1,000.00Total 2,848.00Vishwamata Gayatri Trust FundAnonymous 25.00Hindu Orphanage Endowment FundAnonymous 50.00Kumar Ranganathan 100.00Alex Ruberto 75.00Rodney & Ilene Standen 30.00Niraj Thaker 22.00Rajiv Verma 16.67Raja Vishnu 30.00Total 323.67Hindu Education EndowmentHasu N. & Hansa H. Patel 100.00Suntheram Family Trust FundRamachandran Suntheram 1,000.00Hindu Press International Endowment FundHiranya Gowda 63.00Arun J. Mehta 500.00Anonymous 108.00James Stapleton 54.00Total 725.00Loving Ganesha Distribution FundManoharan Navaratnarajah 75.00Gassa Patten 1,000.00Niraj Thaker 22.00Total 1,097.00Swami Agnivesh Endowment FundPrasad Krishnan 1.50Saiva Agamas TrustGanga Sivanathan 284.00Tirumular Sannidhi Preservation FundShyamadeva Dandapani 63.00Mauritius Saiva Dharmasala EndowmentAzagun Marudamuthu 30.00Alaveddy Pasupatheeswarar Temple FundPrasad Krishnan 1.50Kauai Aadheenam ReligiousArt and Artifacts FundRajadeva Alahan 153.00A. Saravanapavan Family MuruganTemple Pillaiyar Shrine FundChitranjan Saravanapavan 60.00Pathmini Saravanapavan 100.00Total 160.00Thank You Bodhinatha FundAnonymous 845.50Hotranatha Ajaya 22.00Durvasa Alahan 108.00Amarnath & Latha Devarmanai 324.00Toshadeva Guhan 108.00Thulasidas Nadarajah 60.00Kumar Natarajan 100.00Manoharan Navaratnarajah 150.00Shanta Devi Periasamy 115.00Alex Ruberto 45.00Aran Sambandar 108.00Laurie & Mark Scurich 300.00Niraj Thaker 22.00Vayudeva Varadan 63.00Raja Vishnu 30.00Total 2,400.50Udayan Care Endowment FundAnonymous 25.00Natraj Narayanswami 21.00Roshan Nathoo 468.37Total 514.37Saivite Hindu Scriptural Fundfor the Visually ImpairedAlex Ruberto 45.00Sri Chandra Madhab Debnath EndowmentAnonymous 30.00Rajiv Verma 16.67Total 46.67Manitha Neyam Trust FundBala Sivaceyon 47.47Kapaleeshwara Temple OrphanagePrasad Krishnan 1.50Natraj Narayanswami 21.00Niraj Thaker 22.00Total 44.50Manjung Hindu Sabha Orphanage FundRoshan Nathoo 468.37Pazhassi Balamandiram Orphanage FundPrasad Krishnan 1.50Roshan Nathoo 468.37Total 469.87Karnataka Temple Development FundHiranya Gowda 303.00Sri Ganesha Hindu Temple ofUtah Endowment FundAditya Vinadhara 400.00Hinduism Today ComplimentarySubscription FundHiranya Gowda 153.00Himalayan Academy Book Distribution FundShyamadeva Dandapani 63.00Raja Vishnu 30.00Total 93.00Kauai Aadheenam Yagam FundVictoria Lynne Johnson 17.00Yogaswami Hindu Girls’ Homeof Sittandy EndowmentAnonymous 231.00Jeri Arin 300.00Sunil Chacko 368.38Maruthu Pandian Darmalingam 43.90Joel Knepp 501.00Thulasidas Nadarajah 60.00Roshan Nathoo 468.37Kumar Ranganathan 300.00Ganga Sivanathan 200.00Soma Sundaram 30.00Silas H. Zirkle 450.00Total 2,952.65Siva Poomi School TrustShun K. Sunder 3,000.00Yogaswami Hindu Boys’ Home FundSiva & Dharshi Balasingham 75.00Maruthu Pandian Darmalingam 43.90Charles Hayse 1,000.00Betty Lee Holland 200.00Natraj Narayanswami 21.00Roshan Nathoo 468.37Kumar Ranganathan 75.00Dharmalingam Siddhan 50.00Total 1,933.27Kodiswara Satguru Malaysia Travel FundRani Jothiswarar Estate 100.00Maha Ganapati Temple ofArizona EndowmentChellappa Deva 75.00Murugan Temple of NorthAmerica Puja FundVayudeva Varadan 54.00Saivite Tamil Foundation EndowmentSuresh Jambunathan 25.00Rani Jothiswarar Memorial FundRani Jothiswarar Estate 250.00Mahendra Raj-Sharmila 50.00Total 300.00Ramanathaswamy Temple Cleaning FundJnanideva Cevvel 500.00Niraj Thaker 22.00Total 522.00Hindu American Foundation EndowmentHindu American Foundation 10,000.00The Endowment for Global Hindu RightsHindu American Foundation 10,000.00Anonymous 75.00Total 10,075.00Cows of Kadavul and Iraivan Temples(Kovil Maadu) EndowmentAzagun Marudamuthu 30.00Nigel Subramaniam Siva 5,000.00Niraj Thaker 22.00Total 5,052.00Jaffna Kannathiddy Kali Kovil EndowmentNigel Subramaniam Siva 5,000.00Hindu Temple of the Woodlands EndowmentSharad & Beth Kulkarni 1,000.00Urmil Shukla 4,000.00Total 5,000.00Kauai Aadheenam Renovation EndowmentOther Donations 600.00Total Contributions $111,779.67Funds at Market Value, Sep 30, 2008Total Endowment Funds $7,870,955.04Total Pooled Income Funds $195,143.95Grand Total $8,066,098.99MISSION STATEMENT: Hindu Heritage Endowment is a publicly supported, charitable organization recognized astax exempt by the IRS on April 22, 1994. Employer ID 99-0308924. Founded by Satguru Sivaya Subramuniyaswami,its philanthropic mission is to provide secure, professionally managed financial support for institutions and religiousleaders of all lineages of Sanatana Dharma. • PROFESSIONAL ADVISORs: Halbert, Hargrove/Russell, InvestmentCounsel; Sonoda & Isara, LLP, CPA; Phil Murphy, Planned Giving Specialist. HHE is a member of the Council onFoundations, an association of more than 2,000 foundations, and of the National Committee on Planned Giving, thevoice and professional resource for the gift planning community.

Miniature crystalGaneshasfrom Kauai's Hindu MonasteryKeep Ganesha close with thesedelightful images, 1 to 1.5 inchestall. Hand-carved in clear crystal(pictured), yellow topaz, tiger'seye, rose quartz, melakite, jadeor amethyst, from $25.1-800-890-1008www.minimela.comA Glimpse of Divinity“ A clear exposition of japa-yoga, chanting spirituallycharged words to quiet and concentrate the mind on itsGodward path.” —Satguru Sivaya Subramuniyaswami“ For seekers of knowledge and wisdom...A vision of life that transforms.” —reader responsesBy Mukund Hanumante, PhD.In English, Marathi or Gujarati.Hard cover, 180 pages, color$30 (incl. s&h in USA).Akkalkot Swami Samarth Foundationhttp://home.att.net/~swamisamarthmukund@juno.com70 71

HawaiiYour Family’sPerfect Pilgrimage DestinationCome to the ultimate Hindu pilgrimage destination.Here you will find Kadavul Hindu Temple, with itsdaily 9am Siva puja to the mystical Nataraja deity,established in 1973 by Satguru Sivaya Subramuniyaswami.Also you can visit the hand-carved, currently being all-gran-constructediteIraivan hand-carved Temple currently granite being Iraivan constructed, Temple, themany sacred areas of San Marga, such as Muruga Hill,the twelve-foot Dakshinamurti, the Narmada Sival-Sivalingamwhere you can conduct your own abhishekam,the sacred Wailua River and more — all availableto Hindus for worship, meditation, japa and quietreflection. Plan your pilgrimage to Iraivan Templenow—an icon of Hinduism’s beauty and strength!Kauai’s Hindu Monastery107 Kaholalele RoadKapaa, Hawaii 96746-9304 • USAiraivan@hindu.org • www.sanmarga.orgTel: 808-822-3012, Ext. 239 • Fax: 808-822-4351For Hawaii travel planner, see:www.bestplaceshawaii.com/ • www.gohawaii.comThe Kriya Yoga TraditionRoy Eugene DavisA direct disciple ofParamahansa Yoganandahas taught for five decadesin in North and South America,Europe, Africa, and India.Free literature with informationabout his books,DVDs, CDs and meditationretreat schedules from:Center for Spiritual AwarenessPO Box 7 Lakemont, Georgia 30552-0001Tel: 706-782-4723 Fax: 706-782-4560csainc@csa-davis.org www.csa-davis.org10 of Mr. Davis Books in Indiafrom Motilal Banarsidass www.mlbd.comand at their bookstores in Delhi, Patna, KolkataVaranasi, Chennai, Bangalore, Pune, Mumbai.Paramahansa Yogananda As I Knew HimFull Circle Publishing, J-40, Jorbagh Lane,New Delhi 110003 e-mail: fullcircle@vsnl.comWeb Site: www.atfullcircle.comLOTUSPRESS LOTUSPRESS LOTUSPRESS LOTUSPRESS LOTUSPRESS LOTUSPRESSLOTUSPRESS LOTUSPRESS LOTUSPRESS LOTUSPRESS LOTUSPRESS LOTUSPRESSThe Power Ayurvedic of Mantra Astrology TherapyAyurvedic AstrologySelf-Healing Through the StarsDr. Shivani holds Self-Healing a degree Through in the StarsAyurvedic medicine from Dr. David India Frawleyand is today recognizedDr.asDavidanFrawleyAyurvedic Medicine represents theexpert Ayurvedic in the Medicine ancient represents science of thehealing branch of yogic science, whilemantra healing therapy. branch of Top yogic researchers science, whileVedichave Vedicastrologynoted astrology herprovidesprovides successitsitsunderstandingunderstandingworkingof with of time time addictions, and and karma. karma. diabetes, Ayurvedic Ayurvedic astrology migraine, astrologyteaches and teaches other the the major interface interface diseases of of these andtwoafflictions. extraordinary For systems consultation, in in the Vediccontact astrology Dr. of of healing. Shivani: The 480-228-0119book explainshow how the the different mind-body docshivani9@yahoo.com •andwww.drshivani.complanetary 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 LOTUSPRESSSri Nagapooshani AmbikaSametha NagalingeswararSwamy Temple5637 Finch Ave E, unit 5AScarborough, ON M1B 5K9Canada1-416-412-1289info@srinagapooshani.orgwww.srinagabooshani.orgMain Eventsl Naga Thosha Poojal Kala Sarpa Thoshal All Types of HinduCeremoniesl Astrologyl Family & HealthCounsellingContact:Sri GuruP.S. KandaswamyGurukkal73

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