April 2010
In
this Edition
Hinduism and the Scientific
MethodBringing Hindu Youth Together
Pratah Smaranam
Indo-Greco-Coptic Nexus
News and Events
Hindu
YUVA's "Speaker on Campus" was organized on university
campuses across the state of Florida in February. Hindu
Students Council and Sangam were instrumental partners in
these efforts. Professor Sreenath of Case Western Reserve
University was the speaker for this lecture series. His
discourses covered Vedic mathematics, sewa, and Bhutanese
refugees in America. Read the full report hereHindu YUVA
Camp was held at San Jose State University and attended by 25
youth from SJSU, the University of California at Berkeley, and
the surrounding communities. The camp theme was "Hindu
identity in the 21st century" and featured a leadership
workshop, discussions, and physical and intellectual
games. Twenty students attended a Yoga presentation at
Brandeis University (Massachusetts) on March 18th. This event
was organized jointly by Hindu YUVA and the South Asian club
at Brandeis. The speaker, Vikas Deshpande, spoke
about Yoga as both philosophy and practice to attain
healthy body, mind and spirit, as well as to fulfill duties
towards the society and humanity. The emphasis was not just on
Yoga that develops healthy body, mind and spirit, but
also to utilize the strength gained for betterment of
humanity. It was a great learning experience for everyone
who attended. Check out a sample of the Dwarka Digest,
a weekly e-mail sent to participants of Hindu YUVA at New York
City. Read the digest here25 students and
young professionals attended a Hindu YUVA Camp in Ohio in
February. Games, presentations, discussions, and food filled
the 2-day agenda. Read the full report here. Hindu
YUVA at UNC Chapel Hill participated in the 2nd annual Holi
event on campus. The event was co-sponsored by 4 other
organizations. The event was held in the center of campus with
almost 500 people in attendance. Holi was a fundraiser for the
Bhutanese Refugee Empowerment Project. Read the full report here
The spring
festival of Holi was marked late Tuesday by U.S.
Representative Steve Israel of New York, in a speech inserted
into the Congressional Record. The Hindu American Foundation
(HAF) lauded Rep. Israel for the speech as colorful Holi
celebrations and traditional bonfires continued in community
halls and temples throughout the nation.
Read the full report
here.
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From the Editor's Desk
Namaste,
A major trend the
western world has witnessed over the past couple of centuries
is the rise of individualism and self-expression. People are
experimenting with their lifestyles at an increasingly younger
age, whether it is through appearance or even career choices.
Finding oneself is in, conforming to the norm is out. But I'm
not satisfied that this is enough; I believe that we're
missing a major piece of the puzzle. People today are not
socialized to integrate character building into their lives. I
mean, it is not common practice to identify our personality
flaws and address them. For example, we vent to our friends
who then encourage us to see the glass half full, but we are
not taught to research why we had to vent to begin with, let
alone develop our capacity for patience and understanding.
Rather, the self-expression (venting) and character building
(research and development) are both vital to finding that
peace in our lives. Ironically, this practice does not
rollover years; it must be maintained lifelong, and we can't
do it alone. So whether it is spiritual practice, volunteer
work, skills development, or something else, find a medium for
personal growth.
Just trying to do our
part,
Tattva Team
Hinduism and the Scientific Method, by Jayant
Avva
 The intent of this essay is to
delineate the use of scientific method in core Sanatana
Dharma. By core Sanatana Dharma I mean the practices
that are encapsulated in source texts such as the Vedas. I
have borrowed the thread of argument from the integral
philosopher Ken Wilber (1).
I am going to make a
statement: Sanatana Dharma is scientific. The spiritual
techniques under the umbrella of Sanatana Dharma follow the
strict definition of science. The whole purpose of this essay
is to prove this.
Bringing Hindu Youth Together: Dwarka Shakha
Profile
 “If God is everywhere then why do
we go to temples? What’s your take on inter-religious
marriages? Is it realistic to adhere to Gandhian principles in
today’s world? Why do Hindu values become popular after the
west embraces them? How is homosexuality viewed in Hindu
culture?” - These are just a few examples of the interesting
discussion topics at Dwarka Shakha - a Hindu young adult group
that meets every Thursday near the Washington Square Park in
Manhattan. Attended by a combination of university students
and young professionals in the greater New York City area,
Dwarka Shakha is a unique opportunity that allows participants
to regularly engage and learn about their Hindu
roots.
Read the rest of this entry
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प्रातः स्मरणम् - Pratah Smaranam (Morning
Prayer)
कराग्रे वसते लक्ष्मीः
करमूले सरस्वती |
करमध्ये तु गोविन्दः प्रभाते
करदर्शनम् ॥
Karagre vasate lakshmi kara
mule saraswathi
kara madhye tu govindah
prabate kara darshanam
Sanskrit to English
Word Meaning
Karagre-on the tip of your
fingers; vasate- dwells; Lakshmi- the Goddess of Prosperity;
karamule- on the base of your hands; Saraswathi- the Goddess
of Knowledge Saraswathi; karamadhye- in the middle of your
hands; tu-whereas; Govindah-the Lord Govindah; prabhate-in the
morning; karadarshanam-look at your palm.
Translation
On the tip of your fingers is
Goddess Lakshmi; on the base of your fingers is Goddess
Sarasvati; in the middle of your fingers is Lord Govinda. In
this manner, look at your palm.
Brief Explanation
This is a morning prayer called
“karadarshana”. One begins the day with this prayer. “Kara”
means the palm of the hand and it stands for the five
karmendriyas, or the organs of action. While looking at the
palm, one invokes the Lord in the form of various deities,
thus sanctifying all the actions that will be done during the
day. By acknowledging the Lord as the giver of the capacity to
perform actions and as the giver of the fruits of those
actions, one sanctifies the actions. Thus, one prays in the
morning to reinforce the attitude that all actions are
performed as a service to the Lord.
-By Ravi Chandra
Chakinala
Indo-Greco-Coptic Nexus (Part 1 of 3), by
Vrndavan Parker
The historic connections
between India and Greece are many. Recognition of this reality
is of great import and value. Properly identifying the many
commonalities between not only India and Greece but those of
ancient Egyptian or the Coptic civilization as well will do
much towards the development of an accurate understanding of
the entire history of human civilization.
Read the rest of this entry
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