November 2010
Diwali
Edition
In this EditionThe
Ayodhya Issue: What it Means to Us, by Balakrishna
SastryDiwali:
Welcoming Ram to the Home of our Hearts, by Aparna
Garg
Interfaith
Youth Core: Celebrating the Religions of the World (A Sanatana
Dharma Perspective), by Sai Santosh Kolluru and Apurwa
KaushikEvolution
of Tantras (Part 1 of 2), by Nithin SridharBharati
Krishna Teertha: Presenter of Vedic Mathematics, by Sai
TennetiMahavidhya
Sketch - Bhuvaneshwari, by Deepak SagarShloka:
Bhojan MantraNews and
EventsHindu Yuva, Florida held its
first Regional Yuva Sangam (Youth Conference) from October 9th
through the 10th at Camp Owaissa Bauer, FL.17
participants from 4 universities (Nova University, Florida
International University, Florida Atlantic University and
University of Miami) attended, including first and second
generation students and young working professionals. One
student from each of these universities served on the
coordinating team. <<
Read the full report here
>>University of Washington Hindu
YUVA serves a local elementary school in
need. Concord International Elementary School is
a unique bilingual school in Seattle: One of the few to offer
lessons in all subjects in both Spanish and English to all
their students, who comprise a fairly balanced mix of native
Spanish and English speakers. The school also caters largely
to lower income families, so they rely heavily on grants from
various NGOs/local governmental sources for facility upgrades.
Many programs that they have match any volunteer hours devoted
to the school with an equivalent sum of money, which goes a
long way towards providing the school with funds for their
expansion plans. On this occassion, the school is planning a
major upgrade of their playground, adding a big play area
catering specially to older kids. They needed volunteers both
to help setup the play area and to help raise the money to pay
for it. <<
Read the full report on the UW Hindu Yuva webpage
>>Hindu American Foundation will
soon be launching its first Hindu American Capitol Hill
Internship Program in 2011. The foundation
released the following message in its October 27th
newsletter: "For the past seven years, HAF has been the
only Hindu American organization consistently advocating on
Capitol Hill. As we continue our public policy advocacy
efforts, we recognize the importance and need of involving and
engaging the next generations of Hindu American leaders in
this type of work. In this light, HAF is excited to
soon be launching its first Hindu American Capitol Hill
Internship Program in 2011 for rising college juniors and
seniors. Selected applicants will have the opportunity to work
as college interns in Congressional offices for approximately
eight weeks next summer. Interns will work in a fast-paced
environment where they will experience first-hand the inner
workings of our nation's government. Prior to their first day
on the Hill, the interns will participate in HAF's training
sessions where they will learn not only about Hinduism and
public policy, but also about substantive policy issues
affecting Hindu Americans...." Visit HAF online at
www.hafsite.orgPresident
Obama Offers Diwali Greetings
<<Read
his message here>>
In September, National
Public Radio's "All Things Considered" ran a story titled
"City's Parking Tickets Tell Drivers To Strike Yoga
Pose." The program begins, "Finally this hour,
if you get a parking ticket in Cambridge, Massachusetts, the
city has a message for you: Inhale, exhale, strike a pose - a
yoga pose, that is. On the envelope of your parking violation
are drawings of different yoga positions. This is all part of
a new approach to parking enforcement. " <<Listen
to the segment on NPR's website here>> |
From the Editor's
Desk
Dear
Readers,
Shubha Dīpāvali! Dīpāvali, or
Diwali, is the festival of lights symbolizing the lighting of
the lamp of knowledge and removing ignorance, in our lives,
and in those of others.
The shloka "Asato
Ma Sadgamaya, Tamaso Ma Jyotirgamaya, Mrtyorma Amrutangamaya"
(lead me from untruth to truth, from darkness to light, from
death to immortality) captures the significance of Dīpāvali.
We would like to share a quote along the same lines for your
thoughts:
Your own self-realization is the
greatest service you can render the
world. - Sri Ramana
Maharshi
On
a lighter note, did you know that American Express now has a
Diwali gift card?
Respectfully,
Tattva
Team
The Ayodhya Issue: What it Means to Us, by
Balakrishna Sastry
 To a common observer or even an average
Hindu living in the US, a question would come up as to why is
the case of Ayodhya even relevant. A segment of Hindus
and Muslims are fighting over some piece of land as to whether
there really was a temple or a mosque and who should the land
belong to. There are so many temples and a good number of
mosques as well, so presumably there are better things to
worry about in a country as large as India where problems of
poverty, lack of healthcare, education and other issues
require attention. This seems to sound logical but is this
really the case?
This brings up a broader issue
that needs to be touched upon and that is the importance of
history and its influence on current social and political
actions....
Read
the rest of this article » Diwali: Welcoming Ram to the Home of our
Hearts, by Aparna
Garg
 This year, on November 5 th,
Hindus around the world will celebrate Diwali, continuing the
same traditions that our ancestors have been practicing for
centuries. We will light up our homes, enjoy sweets, get
together with our families, and prepare to welcome Ram to our
homes with the same excitement and happiness as the people of
Ayodhya thousands of years ago. In a deeper
sense, on Diwali we are not trying to bring Ram merely to our
physical houses, but rather to the homes of
our hearts. In the midst of the
fireworks, delicious sweets, new clothes, parties, and other
material pleasures that Diwali has come to be known for, let
us not forget the deeper spiritual message of Diwali...
Read
the rest of this article»
Hindu YUVA Goes to Washington, by Sai
Santosh Kolluru and Apurwa Kaushik  It was on a bright, crisp and sunny
autumn morning that we arrived, brimming with excitement, at
our nation’s capitol to participate in the White House
Interfaith Youth Core Leadership Institute as representatives
of Case Western Reserve University and Hindu YUVA (Youth for
Unity, Virtues, and Action). Our road trip from Cleveland to
Washington D.C. had certainly set a powerful and deeply
reflective tone. While discussing with our campus ally,
Professor Sree Sreenath, the shifting of semantic content
through time, the power of words, and their usage in today’s
word, we concluded that a “tolerance” for different worldviews
must be replaced by “celebration.” Read
the rest of this article »
Evolution of Tantras (Part 1 of 2), by Nithin
Sridhar
In
April, Sri Sri Ravishankar has been reported to have made a
statement that Swami Nityananda violated the rules of tantra,
misusing it for fulfilling his pleasure. Further he is quoted
as saying “Only a house holder is entitled for tantric sex.
Claiming to be a monk and using so many people for one’s
pleasure is unpardonable. He should have had one partner and
announced himself as a tantric guru. It has caused damage to
the faith of people in the institution and traumatized
many.”
Read
the rest of this article »
Bharati Krishna Teertha: Presenter of Vedic
Mathematics, by Sai Tenneti
Many are familiar with the
concept of Vedic Mathematics, a system of mathematics that
originated in Ancient India and has been compiled into a list
of 16 basic sutras. However, not everyone knows about the
genius of the scholar behind this work. Bharatiya Krishna
Teertha was not only a great mathematician, but also was a
significant spiritual giant who lived during the early part of
the 20th century. He was born on March 14, 1884 in Tinnavelly,
Tamil Nadu to a highly illustrious family, and was given the
birth name Venkatraman Shastri. (Since he composed a poem that
presented the value of π to 32 decimal places, is it mere
coincidence that he was born on π-day?)
Read the rest of this
article »
Mahavidhya
Sketch - Bhuvaneshwari, by Deepak Sagar
Bhuvaneshwari, the queen of the
world. She is the mother of the world. Her body is the cosmos
and her ornaments are the infinite beings. She is the creator
of space and thus is complimentary to Kali, the controller of
time. Bhuvaneshwari sets the stage on which Kali performs and
in turn enjoys the performance of Kali. She is Iccha Shakthi,
the power of Love as also she is Maya, the power of illusion.
Worshiping her helps us to obtain a cosmic vision and rids us
of narrow beliefs and opinions. She gives us a sense of the
infinite, a global vision and an understanding approach. She
is depicted similarly to Shodashi, with a goad and a noose in
the upper two hands with the lower hands in Abhaya and Varada
Mudras. The Meru (three dimensional projection of Shri Chakra)
lies at her feet. She is extremely beautiful just as he is
caring. A true mother to all who inhabit this
universe.
Shloka:
Bhojan Mantra
 (Before eating food)
ब्रह्मार्पणं
ब्रह्म हविः ब्रह्माग्नौ ब्रह्मणाहुतम् |
ब्रह्मैव तेन गन्तव्यं
ब्रह्म कर्म समाधिना ॥
brahmarpanam brahma havih
brahmagnau brahmanahutam
brahmaiva tena gantavyam
brahma karma samadhina
Sanskrit to English Word
Meaning:
Brahma- The Supreme Lord;
arpanam- offering; brahma- The Supreme Lord; havih- clarified
butter (offered in in the fire); agni- fire; brahmanahutam- by
brahman in to the fire; brahmaiva- brahman will only be; tena-
by the one; gantavyam- realized/attained; brahma karma
samadhina- considering everything as an act(karma) of
brahman
Translation:
Brahman is the oblation (fire
sacrifice). Brahman is the ghee (clarified butter, used in a
fire sacrifice) The oblation is poured by Brahman into the
fire of Brahman. Brahman shall be realized by the one who
considers everything as (a manifestation or) an act of
Brahman.
Brief
Explanation:
It is customary to partake food
before eating and offer it as ‘prasad’ to God and chant this
shloka. The shloka draws a parallel between the sacrificial
fire (yagna) and the fire of hunger. In essence, the meaning
conveyed by the act of chanting the shloka and by partaking
food is as follows: ‘Dear Lord You are provider of this food,
taster of this food and you’re food. I take this food as a
gift from you and I offer this food at your divine lotus
feet.’
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