Nepotism-a Way of Life?

We have Chief Minister in Tamil Nadu,India whose- Elder son is a Federal Minister

Another is Deputy Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu

Daughter through companion an MP in federal Government
Nephew is a Federal Minister.

A grand daughter is an important functionary in the party

TV channels owned by him get all privileges from both federal and State governments

Net worth of the above two is upwards Rs 2000 Crores( $= Rs 48 appx)

This man has come to Madras with hardly any money till he entered politics;he was a screen playwright prior to his present position.

http://ramanan50.wordpress.com/2009/10/14/nepotism-a-way-of-life/

The changing Political scenario in TN

When Jayalalithaa had come to Delhi the last time, it was speculated that the Congress was again going to change its partner in Chennai. But all such speculation cleared out when PM Manmohan Singh and Sonia Gandhi reached Chennai for the inauguration of the new building of the Tamil Nadu Assembly.

Now, local Congress leaders have again started singing the same tune. A new Government comes in every five years in Tamil Nadu; keeping this history in mind, this time Congress leaders want to fight elections with AIADMK. They argue that Jayalalithaa would be giving around 120 seats to the Congress whereas DMK will not give more than 80. G K Wasan, president of Pradesh Congress has given a 50:50 formula. It means, out of 234 seats the Congress should fight on half and DMK should take the rest. But DMK is not ready on this. Making this an issue, the local Congressmen want to change the alliance partner. They argue that there is much infighting in Karunanidhi’s family; first Azhagiri and Stalin would be fighting for the ticket and then plotting the defeat of one another’s candidates.

They argue that in this scenario Congress would be facing a great loss. Jayalalithaa can be benefitted from this family feud. But senior leaders are eying the equations of the Lok Sabha. The DMK has 18 MPs and the AIADMK has only 9. Despite this fact, former Minister K V Thangabalu wants that Congress should go for an alliance with Jayalalithaa and fight on more seats.

That is why the loyal leaders of Thangabalu are blowing up the corruption charges on Telecom Minister A Raja. It’s also a fact that Jayalalithaa can make an alliance with lesser seats only to keep the DMK out of power.

http://www.dailypioneer.com/265223/Power-play-in-TN.html

Who knows...? Arasiyalla Ithellam sahajanga.....!!!

A week ago, the UPA government postponed the auction of 3G spectrum till the next fiscal. This despite the fact that Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee was counting on collecting a cool Rs 35,000 crore to help tackle the massive deficit India has racked up (unless it comes down, he will lack monetary tools to fight inflation and will have no room for new Budget initiatives). Reports mention some hogwash about a delay by the army. The true story can be heard in a certain house in CIT Nagar, Chennai, wherein lives a powerful woman whose discretion is inversely proportional to her political ambitions for her daughter. She complains about how her second favourite politician, Telecom Minister A Raja, has been marginalised by the UPA government.

The fact of the spectrum postponement seems to support her suspicions.
Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M Karunanidhi probably saw the postponement coming. Earlier that same week, a tectonic shift in Tamil Nadu’s politics took place when bête noire J Jayalalithaa went to Delhi and met Congress president Sonia Gandhi. Karunanidhi apparently flew into a rage at his intelligence officials. Aren’t you supposed to be tapping her phone? he shrieked. She did not book a commercial flight but went by a chartered plane, was all they could mumble.

The old man is trying to put a brave face on things, but events are not going as planned. It started well enough: a comeback win in the Lok Sabha polls, M K Stalin’s anointment as deputy CM, the party bagging bypoll after bypoll… And then, an astrologer (yes, the Great Rationalist is not averse to sneaking a peek into his future) told Karunanidhi that his life span was, well, coming to a close this July. The CM has taken this prediction to heart. He knows that after he goes, Chemicals Minister M K Alagiri is not going to reconcile to Stalin as CM. He knows that Alagiri’s frustration will tear the party apart, since Alagiri is a far stronger political force than Stalin. Karunanidhi’s only hope for his family is to put them in power for another five years with Stalin as CM, and hope for the best.

So Karunanidhi has been preparing for an early election, one that may even take place mid-2010. As the last Lok Sabha elections proved that voters in the state can be bribed into re-electing incumbents, he recently summoned a state minister and a former Union minister, both of whom are reputedly resourceful, to go out and start “election work”. You might have noticed a lot of babies being named or their earlobes getting pierced by DMK politicians these days. These functions provide a good venue for the start of “election work”.

Yet Karunanidhi hoped the alliance with the Congress would continue; it gave him ministers at the Centre (though he did not reciprocate in the State) with lucrative portfolios, even if they embarrassed Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. If you recall, Jayalalithaa made an overture to the Congress a year ago, before the Lok Sabha elections, asking the party to desert the DMK which was a “sinking ship”. A well-kept secret from those days is that Congress scion Rahul Gandhi responded to this overture. He even met emissaries — though not from the AIADMK — in Delhi to try and convert the overture into a formal alliance.

Sonia fortunately saved the day for Karunanidhi by turning down Rahul’s suggestion of aligning with Jayalalithaa, and she advised her son to focus on UP — a focus that paid rich political dividends.

The old man has puzzled over why Rahul wanted to dump him and hook up with Jayalalithaa. Some have told him that Rahul is unlike his sister Priyanka in many ways, one of them being his attitude to those who killed his father Rajiv Gandhi. While Priyanka was willing to meet Nalini, one of the assassins currently trying to have her life sentence commuted, in family discussions Rahul has reportedly differed. He could not be bothered about the people who killed his father. And he, it is said, dislikes Karunanidhi for the latter’s support to and defense of the killers. Perhaps that explains why Rahul did not call on the old man when he visited the state in September to help revitalise the Congress.

Sonia, however, stuck by Karunanidhi, and he was banking on this alliance continuing for the advanced state assembly elections. But something has made Sonia change her mind. The state Congress leaders may insist that nothing be read into the two ladies’ meeting; but for a man like Karunanidhi who eats, breathes and sleeps politics, the writing is on the wall. The meeting on the occasion of the Election Commission’s diamond jubilee in Delhi was engineered by Sonia herself, possibly through Chief Election Commissioner Navin Chawla, who for years has been a Sonia confidante.

Sonia has obviously calculated that the UPA does not need the DMK’s 19 MPs, even if the AIADMK’s nine MPs don’t fully replace them. So it might happen that the Congress’ vote block will not help push DMK candidates over the victory line in various assembly constituencies. What will surely happen, though, is that the election commission will be extra vigilant during the assembly elections. Karunanidhi knows that might cramp Alagiri’s style.

After Sonia and Jayalalithaa met, the old man summoned his sons and explained to them what it meant. So what, Alagiri thundered, we can win these assembly elections on our own. Alagiri’s strategy apparently is not to focus on all 234 assembly seats in the state, but on only 150 winnable ones. He thinks the last Lok Sabha elections prove that with his new strategies, the DMK can win these many seats on its own. How can he be sure? He is said to believe he can think up 2,500 crore reasons for victory.

Karunanidhi may not be as sanguine as his son; a vigilant EC and an embittered Rahul Gandhi are both factors not to be trifled with. Yet what choice does he have? He is pretty much locked into an advanced election. All he can do is wonder why Sonia had a change of heart. Is it because his buddy is no longer the National Security Advisor? Is it because the headaches Sonia has been given ever since the powerful YSR Reddy died (first his son tried to pressure the party into making him CM, and now the Telangana debacle)? Does Jayalalithaa represent a more reliable ally than Stalin-Alagiri in 2014, when Rahul will contest to be the next PM?

Who knows? All that is certain is that 2010’s political event will not be Bihar’s assembly elections (which CM Nitish Kumar has under control) or the Maharashtra civic polls (the posturing for which is generating a lot of heat on TV and among middle-class twitterati, but not among voters). It will be the change in Tamil Nadu.

http://expressbuzz.com/Opinion/Columnists/jab-sonia-met-jaya/145833.html

Know the Real face of Athiesm

“15th August 1947 is a day of mourning and sorrow; He who worships God is an idiot; Tamilians are barbarians and Tamil is a barbarous language” - Thus spake EV Ramaswamy Naicker, popularly known as EVR, the founder of Dravidar Kazhakam. He was a hatemonger and had schemed one community against the other in Tamil Nadu. He was a staunch supporter of British rule and worked against India’s independence. He was an ‘atheist’ but never uttered a single word against Islam and Christianity.

EVR married Maniammai, 18, when he was 71. Such a ‘man of character and integrity’ is the mentor of DMK, ADMK and MDMK, who have no compunction in trumpeting him as a great ‘Reformer’.

In earlier years, while visiting temples in TN, it used to be very easy to reach the sanctorum. But today, when you go to any temple, you will have to stand in the queue for at least a few hours before you take Darshan of the deity. Had the ideology of atheism propagated by EVR succeeded in TN, temples there should have gone empty. But, every temple and every religious event in TN is brimming with devotees. Still, it is a paradox that such ardent Tamil Hindus have always voted either DMK or ADMK to power, similar to West Bengal Hindus who are voting for the anti-Hindu communists while simultaneously celebrating Durga Pooja with gaiety.

Emboldened by the gullibility of Tamil Hindus, the DMK government has permitted the installation of the statue of EVR in front of the Srirangam temple (in Trichy Dist.) - with the tallest Hindu Gopuram in Asia, with a height of 295 feet - inspite of vehement protests by many Hindu organisations and Dharmacharyas. The installation took place in the first week of Dec. 2006.

It is reported that a few infuriated Hindus had damaged the statue before it was unveiled. But serious doubts are expressed about the identity of the miscreants. In the first place it could have been damaged by the anti-Hindu forces themselves to create confusion in the minds of the people and use it as a pretext to indulge in violence by attacking and damaging temples, mutts etc., as they practically did.

It is said that non-Hindus were present while the statue of EVR was being erected. There is strong suspicion that as in other episodes like the Sabarimala conspiracy and Kanchi Sankaracharya issue, the Church organisations may be involved in all this. Some naxalites were also reported to be involved in the attack on temples. Hence all these point to a deeper conspiracy.

No one can object to the installation of a statue. What is objectionable is the location and the inscription that ‘One who believes in God is a fool; and one who invented God is a barbarian’ etc. erected in front of a temple popularly called ‘Bhuloka Vaikuntam’. Every year the Ganapathy Visarjan procession is barred from entering a particular street in Chennai because a mosque is situated there. The argument of the police and the administration is that it may create law and order problem. On the same lines, will not a plaque with inscriptions insulting Hindus erected near a very famous temple give rise to law and order problem? On auspicious days like ‘Vaikunta Ekadasi’, lakhs of people throng the temple. Is there not a possibility that on such an occasion taking advantage of the heavy rush, the anti-Hindu forces and anti-Nationals could themselves damage the statue? And using it as a pretext they may indulge in more attacks on temples, mutts etc.

The DMK government is hand in glove with the forces which are stirring a hornet’s nest. Merely for addressing a press conference, joining the peaceful protest and distributing hand bills criticising the injustice meted out to Hindus, some activists are arrested. Most farcically the name of Swamy Dayanandha Saraswathiji, the most respected Hindu Acharya and founder of the Hindu Dharma Acharya Sabha was initially included in the FIR.

Compare this with the lenient attitude of the government in taking action against rape cases involving Christian missionaries, provocative speeches and vulgar languages against Hindus by Dravidar Kazhakam activists, murder of Hindu leader in Thenkasi, etc. The question is, will the anti-Hindu forces and anti-Nationals in the guise of DK, naxalites and other outfits dare to erect such plaques in front of any Mosque or Church, say Nagore dargah or Velankanni church? So it is clear that these forces are not against the concept of God per se, but against Hinduism and Hindu culture.

May be these forces are receiving their pay packets from anti-Hindu forces in India and abroad to undermine the faith of the Hindus in their culture and beliefs so that they can be converted to alien religions like Christianity and Islam and ultimately make Bharat a puppet of the West or Saudi Arabia.First on the pretext of digging a trench for drainage line, the 500 years old ‘Mottai Gopuram’ of the temple was demolished. Now Hindus are insulted by installing the statue of atheist EVR in front of the Rajagopuram.

Considering the demoralising tactics by creating confusion about Kanchi Mutt, Thirumala-Thirupathi, Amarnath, Ayodhya, Sabaramalai, and now Srirangam, one can be sure that Hindu Spiritual centres are under attack by Christians, Muslims, Communists, Naxalites and Maoists, with the connivance of our power-hungry politicians. The sooner Hindus wake up, it is better for Hindu Dharma and Mother India.

http://hinduvoicemumbai.blogspot.com/2007/01/hindus-spiritual-centre-under.html

Facts about Dravidian Politics

DMK Chief and Tamilnadu CM M.Karunanidhi’s views that Rama is a fictitious creation and might not have existed should be seen in the light of the Dravidian politics of Tamilnadu and should not be blown out of proportion.

The origin of Dravidian movement and Dravidian parties can be traced to the Self Respect Movement (Suya Mariyadhai Iyakkam) founded in 1925 by EV Ramasamy Naicker (popularly known as Periyar) in Tamilnadu. The major objective of the self-respect movement was the removal of caste inequalities from the society and creation of self-respect among the socially backward sections.

Periyar held the Tamil Brahmins responsible for the plight of the backward castes and scheduled castes and tribes in Tamilnadu and elsewhere. Consequently, the self-respect movement soon morphed into anti-Brahminism and there were sporadic attacks on Brahmins of Tamilnadu, this despite Periyar’s opposition to violence as a means of setting social and political differences.

The Tamil Renaissance began roughly around the time when the Nationalist Movement started in the country, and the starting of Self Respect Movement by Periyar soon led to the rise of Dravidian nationalism. The establishment of Annamalai University in Chidambaram and the Tamil Isai Sangam (Tamil Music Society) in the erstwhile Madras also contributed to the growth of the Tamil ‘identity’ as a distinct one.

However, it was not the Dravidian movement that raised the issue of separate nationhood for the Dravidian region. In 1926, Sankaran Nair, a nominated member of the Council of State in Delhi, put up a demand for self-government for the ten Tamil districts of the then Madras Presidency, with its own army, navy and air force. In 1929, Tamil scholar V. Kalyanasundarar wrote that Tamil land or nadu constituted a nation within the Indian nation. (It is important to remember here that the erstwhile Madras Presidency comprised of much of the south India: the present state of Tamilnadu, Rayalaseema and coastal Andhra regions of Andhra Pradesh, Udupi, Dakshina Kannada and Bellary districts of Karnataka, the Malabar regions of Kerala, and the Lakshadweep Islands.)

And once, Periyar became the chief of the Justice Party (also known as “South Indian Liberal Federation) in 1937, the very next year (1938) he raised the demand for a separate “Dravida Nadu”. Interestingly, this was two years before Mohammed Ali Jinnah came up with his formal demand for a Muslim land or Pakistan at the Lahore Conference. The Justice Party re-christened itself as Dravida Kazhagam (DK) in 1944.

However, Periyar could not sell his idea of separate Dravida Nadu to the British, as Jinnah successfully could for a separate Muslim land. Some of the reasons could be: with his atheistic views, Periyar ended up alienating a majority of the Hindus of the region. Also, while it was easy for Jinnah to mobilise Muslims and make them identify with the demand for a separate Muslim land, it was not easy for Periyar to mobilise such disparate linguistic groups as Tamils, Telugus, Kannadigas and Malayalees under the banner of “Dravida”.

After independence in 1947, the Dravida Movement fizzled out in the erstwhile Madras Presidency, and once the States reorganisation Committee reorganised the states along linguistic lines, the Dravida identity was swamped by the local linguistic identity.

The definition of the word ‘Dravidian’, as used in Tamilnadu today, is in order here. From a linguistic or philological point of view “Dravidian” refers to the people of South India who speak Tamil, Telugu, Kannada and Malayalam – the languages that originated from the same source. However, in the political lexicon of Tamilnadu, the term ‘Dravidian’ is associated exclusively with the Tamil-speaking people. In other words, after the reorganisation of the states, what Periyar and his Dravida Kazhagam were left with was only the present Tamilnadu.

Unfortunately, Periyar’s noble ideology soon became a victim of its own shortsightedness. While Periyar was, in a way, right in finding fault with the Brahmins for the caste differences in the society, he failed to address the caste discrimination and atrocities perpetrated by non-Brahmins within the Hindu fold. His ‘thanmaanam’ (self-respect) and ‘Pahuthu arivu’ (rationalism) led to blind opposition to anything and everything related to Hinduism, which cut no ice with even the people whose cause he was championing. His tirade against ‘mooda nambikai’ (superstition) and the novel protests that his cadre indulged in only served to alienate many Hindu believers.

CN Annadurai (popularly known as ‘Anna’), who joined the DK in 1934, had become the most popular leader in the party. His charisma, his inspired pieces of writings and his famed oratorical skills contributed a lot to the awakening of Tamil consciousness and won him a huge following. He was in the forefront of many anti-Hindi agitations in the 1940s. However, he fell out with his mentor Periyar in 1949 following their differences on converting DK into a political outfit. Annadurai was of the opinion that only democratic power, achieved through elections, can help in bringing about a change in the society. Periyar was not interested in the political process.

This resulted in Annadurai’s breaking away from the parent outfit and starting a political party of his own named ‘Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam’ (DMK) in 1949. However, the Annadurai-led DMK continued following almost all the ideologies of its parent outfit. The DMK now spearheaded the anti-Hindi agitation and the campaign against ‘Aryan’ cultural invasion from the north India.

Annadurai also believed in mass reservation for the backward sections of the society and considered Tamil Brahmins Aryans. In the 1967 general elections to the Tamilnadu assembly, Annadurai led his party to a historical victory and became the first non-Congress Chief Minister of Tamilnadu.

The untimely death of Annadurai in 1969, led to the emergence of M Karunanidhi as the leader of the party with the backing of his friend actor MG Ramachandran (MGR). However, MGR’s popularity made Karunanidhi distrust him. And, in 1972, when MGR, who was the treasurer of DMK, demanded that the financial details of the party be publicised, Karunanidhi expelled MGR from the party for indulging in what he called anti-party activities. MGR formed his own party named Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (ADMK) which was later renamed All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK).

Coming back to the Dravidian parties’ brand of atheism, while Periyar was a diehard atheist, Annadurai replaced that extreme stance with his slogan ‘Onre kulam Oruvane devan’ (One Community, One God). While Karunanidhi has all along remained seemingly an atheist, MGR and his protégé Jayalalithaa have never tried to hide their faith in god and religious rituals.

However, Karunanidhi’s atheism is a bit suspect. While he openly chided one of his cabinet ministers for ‘fire walking’ (walking on hot coals) at a Maariyamman (Durga) temple, he never said anything about his first wife Dayalu Ammal touching the feet of Puttaparthi Satya Sai Baba, when the latter visited their home in Chennai. Also, the yellow towel that he drapes over his arms in public is another mystery. Many say that Karunanidhi started sticking to the same colour on the advice of astrologers. That is some sort of pahuthu arivu (rationalism)!

Karnandihi’s recent remarks questioning the existence of Rama should be seen in the backdrop of the Dravidian ideology.

Though Tamil poet Kampa, who lived around 9th Century AD, wrote the ‘Kampa Ramayana’ (a Tamil version of Ramayana that is largely based on Valmiki’s version), Rama is more or less regarded as a north Indian import. In other words, Lord Rama never strikes an emotional chord with a majority in Tamilnadu, as say, Goddess Maariyamman (Durga) or Lord Murugan (Subrahmanya) does. Though Rama was said to be kshatriya, he is seen as an Aryan or Brahminical god in Tamilnadu. Hence, expecting that a majority of Tamils would be up in arms over Karunanidhi’s snide remarks against Rama and Ramayana is to expect the impossible.

Karunanidhi knows this only too well. He wouldn’t mind needling the BJP and the Sangh Parivar some more with his own brand of sarcastic remarks against Rama. For, he has nothing to lose electorally by denigrating Rama. However, at the same time, he wouldn’t think of questioning the authenticity of Lord Murugan or Maariyamman because that would be akin to inviting trouble on the home turf and committing political hara-kiri.

However, Karunanidhi should be careful not to stretch things too far. The sequence of events that began with ASI’s affidavit, his remark against Rama, the ransacking of his daughter’s house in Bangalore by Sangh Parivar activists, the reported ‘fatwa’ by Vedanti, the attack on the BJP party office in Chennai by the DMK cadre, the reported attack on DMK workers in Mumbai could spiral out of control and give an opportunity to a party like Shiv Sena to revive its anti-Tamil campaign in Mumbai. Hence, the focus of Karunanidhi and his dispensation should be on the Sethu Samudhram project and finding a way out of the imbroglio and not on the authenticity of the Ramayana.

http://www.merinews.com/article/lord-rama-and-dravidian-politics/126597.shtml

What Hindus Must Know About Dravidian Leaders

E. V. Ramaswamy Naicker was a non-entity as long as he was in Congress party and to achieve his ambition of becoming a leader and making it big in politics, he came out of Congress and started his own movement called Dravidar Kazhagam, after a short stint with the 'Justice' party. He became the epitome of Hindu hatred by his atheistic views and made out a strategy of 'Anti-Brahminism' to come to the limelight. He sowed the seeds of casteism & separatism in the minds of the innocent Tamils and very soon developed a big following. Later on, his own disciples like Anna & EVK Sampath left him purely for personal reasons and in due course the state witnessed the formations of DMK, AIADMK, etc. He has spoilt the society to such a great extent that even after 40 years, the state of Tamil Nadu is not able to regain its old glory. His so-called followers are still ruining the state by cheating & fooling the people in the name of a bogus policy called 'Dravidianism'.

The present Chief Minister has uttered some damaging remarks in the last few days, which need to be dealt with strongly.

A Dramatist 'Sudra' & A 'Namesake' Brahmin:

In Chennai, two days back, a book by name "Plain speaking - A Sudra's story" written by one Mr. A.N.Sattanathan was launched and the launch function was graced by the presence of our Chief Minister Karunanidhi & Union Minister Mani Shankar Aiyer.

Mr. A.N.Sattanathan was a retired bureaucrat from Tamil Nadu and he led the "Backward Class Commission" constituted by Karunanidhi in the early seventies. Ms. Uttara Rajan, the grand daughter of Sattanathan, who also happens to be the Editor of the book, organized the function.

While speaking at the function after the launch of the book, Karunanidhi said, "Tamil Nadu is a pioneer in uplift of the backward classes" and "Brahmin community considered itself as the custodian of education in those days". In his anxiety to praise E. V. Ramasamy Naicker, he went to the extent of ridiculing the great freedom fighter V.O.Chidambaranar by saying that even the schools run by VOC practiced untouchability by segregating upper castes from lower castes, (neither VOC is alive, nor his grand children are traceable to deny) because of which, EVR came out of Congress. In fact, EVR was the first & foremost in sowing the seeds of hatred, casteism & atheism in the otherwise peaceful & God loving state of Tamil Nadu. If Tamil Nadu has been the pioneer in the uplift of backward classes, why should he & other backward class champions cry for reservations & quotas in education & employment, even after 60 years of independence? Karunanidhi, who never looses an opportunity in ridiculing the Brahmin community, shamelessly takes the help of Brahmins for his medical, legal, personal & family problems, like how his mentor EVR took the help of Rajaji during crucial times in his life.

In the same function, our namesake Brahmin, Mani Shankar Aiyer, who boasts of drinking alcohol, eating beef & pork and not wearing the holy thread (poonal) in the name of 'secularism', released the above said book. After releasing the book, he has told that, "Sudra Rajyam established in 1967 in Tamil Nadu had succeeded in overthrowing the Brahmin Rajyam, which is a major milestone in the development of society". He has clearly exhibited his ignorance on TN politics. The state never had a Brahmin Rajyam, barring the short tenure under the Chief Ministership of Rajaji, which cannot be called as a Brahmin Rajyam due to the fact that many cabinet ministers were from different communities including Dhalits. Rajaji did a lot to the poor & downtrodden, like waiving farmers' loans, framing laws for the entry of Dhalits in Temples & ensuring admission & education to Scheduled Caste & Scheduled Tribe students in schools, etc. Mani Shankar has conveniently forgotten the fact that, it is the impotency & inefficiency of his own party, the Congress, which had led to the capture of TN by the Dravidian parties and even for that, the Dravidians had to depend on the intelligence of the Brahmin Rajaji, who invented the new methodology called 'alliance' politics. The state Congressmen insulted & isolated Kamaraj and rallied behind the selfish Indhra Gandhi after the defeat in 1967 and had been riding piggy back with either of the two Dravidian parties since then, which has resulted in the waning of the party & loss of its cadres in Tamil Nadu.This secularist Aiyer, who claimed of turning his constituency Mayiladuthurai in to a Dubai, has done nothing for the uplift of Dhalits, Muslims & Brahmins, who form the major chunk of his constituency. A visit to Mayiladuthurai will give us a pathetic picture of his own constituency.

Last but not the least, I would like to know the services rendered by Uttara Rajan, who is now settled in London as a professor in London University, and her grand father A.N.Sattanathan (the author of the book) to the Sudhra & Dhalit communities, if any.

Dravidian Madness called 'statue culture':

The statements of our chief minister on EVR statues and the statues in our Temples were quite amusing. Karunanidhi has said that EVR is a Hindu atheist and that atheism has some space in Hinduism. He has compared the dress-clad statues of EVR with that of the nude statues on Temple towers. He has also denigrated Lord Ganapathy by saying that, the "Vallabha Ganapathy" of Chidambaram Temple & "Uchishta Ganapathy" of Thiruvarur Temple are nude and that, the priests cover them with pieces of clothe due to embarrassment. First of all, thanks to MK for accepting the fact that EVR is a Hindu, even though Hindus do not accept him as one. MK had tried to give a picture as if EVR was not against Christianity & Islam, while in fact, EVR had ridiculed the rituals & culture of Christianity & Islam at one or two instances. With regards to MK's statements on the nudity of Temple statues, we can only say that he has a 'jaundiced' vision and he has a mind & eyes, which are of the same colour (yellow) as his 'shawl'. What else can we expect from a man, who has created cheap sexual versions out of Thirukkural (Kaamathu paal) and Tholkaappiyam? The weekly magazine 'Thuglak' has been publishing a lot of important statements & opinions of EVR, in order to give tips & ideas for the producer & director of the movie on EVR. Why MK, Veeramani & other Dravidian cowards are keeping quiet? Why are they not talking about the statements of EVR on Kannagi, women, marriage & chastity?

If a leader had truly & sincerely worked for the uplift & betterment of the people, he would have automatically captured a permanent place in their hearts and history would keep them immortal forever. There is no need for erecting statues of those leaders to remind the people about their services. On the other hand, the erection of umpteen statues reveals the fact that they have done nothing worthwhile during their lifetime.

It seems the existing concrete & bronze clusters of 'Annas' & 'Thanthais' are not enough for these uncultured Dravidians. The DK has plans of erecting 128 more statues of EVR through out the state and the arrogant Chief Minister has committed to help the execution of the plans. In the process, the Dravidian thugs will denigrate maximum number of Hindu Shrines; attack maximum number of Mutts, assault maximum number of Brahmins and the government will put the 'victims' behind bars on National Security Act.

A few facts about 'Thanthai' & 'Magans':

Let the Dravidian world know that the so-called 'Thanthai' (EVR) never trusted his Dravidian 'Magans' (including Anna, Sampath, MK, Veeramani, et al) and married a very much younger Maniammai, in his seventies, on the clever advice of 'Brahmin' Rajaji, just to safeguard his huge wealth, with which he has done nothing for the welfare of the poor & downtrodden Tamils.

Let the Dravidian world know that Anna Durai came out of DK and launched his own DMK along with EVK Sampath, only because of the above-said reason.

Let the Dravidian world know that after the demise of Maniammai, K.Veeramani, who claims to be the only close & true disciple of EVR, is enjoying the wealth of EVR and also does nothing for the betterment of backward classes.

Let the Tamils know that the state government has funded the production of the worthless movie on EVR, despite the huge wealth of Dravidar Kazhagam, to the tune of Rs.95 lacs, which is the taxpayers' money.

Let the Tamils also know that, EVR remained as the 'trustee' of his Family's Pillayar Temple till his death.

Let the Tamils know the important advice of EVR to them: "What all I say and have said are my own views and I don't expect people to accept or follow them".

Every time when Karunanidhi is in power, anti-Brahminism takes the center stage of TN politics and it is a pity that he has still not realized the fact that, Brahmins are too good in self-empowerment & self-upliftment and no force on earth can stop it.

It is disgusting that a majority of God fearing & Temple visiting Hindus vote for the Dravidian Parties, without understanding the hypocrisy of Dravidian Leaders.

May God save Tamils & Tamil Nadu!

Vandemataram!

Author: B. R. Haran

http://www.hvk.org/articles/0107/46.html

Ten important Hindu Realities vs. Myths:

Hinduism is like an ocean of the combined knowledge of various rishis, sages, and saints. It was they who gave the religion the depth and complexity for which it is known today. Because of them Hinduism became more or less like an ocean that would absorb every thing that flowed into it from all directions.

There are wide misconceptions about the Hindu religion. According to my understanding, the following facts are realities in an effort to clarify such misconceptions.

1. Who is Hindu? Anybody who practices a little of and believes in the above listed tenets of Hinduism is a Hindu. There is no baptism, no fixed gods, and going to the temple is not compulsory.

2. Idol Worship: Hinduism does not promote idol worship. To the contrary, Hinduism urges to transcend all physical aids to worship, in our spiritual progress. Realizing that it is impossible for the mortal human to visualize the Infinite and instead of sustaining false hopes of such achievements, the religion urges us to slowly and steadily continue our progress in pursuit of the Truth. For such steady progress, it asks to start with physical aids such as temples and idols, and through practice and devotion, ultimately succeed in visualizing God without the aid of temples and idols.

3. Habits: There are no specifically laid out rules constricting a person’s eating/drinking habits, or clothing style or anything like that. In fact, Hinduism deals with concepts on a much higher platform, where such things are insignificant. It deals with the spiritual aspects of trying to understand God and to approach Him through many varied means (principal of which is love). As natural fallout, it also shows how to lead a meaningful life full of bliss, peace and love.

4. Conversion: Since Hinduism is a way of life, there is no formal conversion process. In fact, there is no fixed name for Hinduism; some call it Sanatana Dharma, some call it just Dharma, some call it Bhagawat Dharma, etc. There was no name “Hindu” in old scriptures but later invaders of India named people here as Hindu because they used to live on the banks of the river Sindhu.

5. Unity: This feature of Hindu religion has been unique. Some call the religion broadminded because Hindus believe in ‘Vasudhev Kutumbakam,’ meaning that all the world’s people are one family.

6. Rituals or superstitions: Hinduism runs on value education and some rituals. These rituals are added from time to time and changeable. But these rituals convey a lot of meaning when deeply thought and understood. They are not compulsory for Hinduism; some follow, some don’t.

7. Criticism: Another feature of Hinduism is there is no blasphemy clause; you may criticize openly some features you don’t like and may not follow or change them still you will be a good Hindu. I think it’s democracy like.

8. Food: Though many Hindus are vegetarian, still many Hindus are not. The rationale behind a vegetarian diet is to promote a physically, mentally and spiritually healthy lifestyle. However, there are no rigid rules concerning vegetarianism.

9. Caste System: The caste system, originally described in the Vedas, but much abused and maligned over the years, is nothing but a representation of an efficient human society. The four castes described in the scriptures are - the Brahmins, the Kshatriyas, the Vaishyas, and the Shudras. According to the Vedas, an efficient human society is based on the strength of its educational/knowledge-pursuit system (Brahmin), its military and defense system (Kshatriya), its economical and business system (Vaishya), and a strong, happy, productive workforce (Shudras).

This noble representation was misinterpreted, exploited, and abused by a few in the Indian society, leading to the indiscriminate creation of thousands of castes and sub-castes, including the so-called “upper” castes. It can be seen as a means of maintaining the status quo to the benefit of those in power. However, in ancient times, castes were not rigid (one could move from one caste to another). They were based on one’s karma (actions), not birth.

Fortunately, the distorted caste system has been more or less abolished since Indian independence and the distinctions are beginning to disappear.

10. Hindu Women: The role of women in Hinduism is often misunderstood. In Vedic times women and men were equal as far as education and religion was concerned. In ancient India, women occupied a very important position, in fact in some ways, a superior position to men. It is a culture whose only words for strength and power are feminine -”Shakti” means “power” and “strength.” All male power comes from the feminine.

Why do we fast?

We often hear this statement from the elders of our traditional Hindu family “I can’t eat today I am keeping a fast”. If someone doesn’t believe in fasting, then he or she is not a Hindu, right?

While most of the Hindus fast at least once in a week or any particular religious day that merit a fast. It is an accepted fact that fasting is good and it is associated with religion. Fine, but what is the outcome?

The Sanskrit word for a fast is “Upavaas” which is the amalgamation of the words “Upa” meaning near and “Vaas” meaning to stay. So the word “Upavaas” would literally mean staying near God. So what does not eating have to do with that? Surely you can stay near God even if you do eat three full meals during the day? Apparently the old school of thought disagreed.

You see a lot of time was spent each day in preparing the meals. There were a large number of chores involved in procuring, cooking, eating, and digesting food. Also eating too much rich food can dull a man’s senses, just see what happens after a lunch of tandoori naan and butter chicken if you don’t believe me. So basically food took your focus off God. That’s why a conscious decision was made to eat light food on certain more religious days.

So when you fast you eat fruits and uncooked vegetables. This also gave your digestive system an off day. Plus you remained alert and full of energy. Also, you were trained to overcome your desire to eat specific food on a daily basis, again helping you in overcoming your “vasana” or desire for food. After all gluttony was amongst the deadly sins in the Hindu religion as well as in Christianity,

Why do Hindus prefer Temple worship?

God exists everywhere. So, a question may be asked why there should be any temples built for Him. We know that God exists everywhere, but still the idea does not get firmly established in our mind. It does not get reflected in our daily actions. If one remembers God all the time, how can one utter any falsehood or commit evil acts?

If God is merely omnipresent, how can He help us? We all long for His grace somehow. So, we have to worship Him and get His grace. But the agama-shastras tell us how this should be done. The sun's rays contain a lot of heat energy. If we keep a piece of cloth in the sun, it does not catch fire by itself. But if we place a lens and focus the sun's heat rays on that piece of cloth, after some time, we find that the cloth catches fire.

Similarly, electrical energy is everywhere, but in order to bring it to our daily use, we need to have generators to channel that energy and transmission systems to distribute it at the places where we need it. In the same way, in order to get the grace of the Omnipresent Lord, we have to build temples, where we can focus the power of the Lord in a consecrated idol for our benefit in an easy way.

So, in our country, we find that there are many temples; of course, in other countries also, there are many places of worship, but there will be no idols, as in the case of our temples. They have just a big prayer hall where people assemble and offer some prayers or do some silent meditation and then disperse after getting some peace of mind. But in our temples, the idols are installed and they have divinity infused into them and, as such, they have certain sanctity about them.

Until a particular day, the sculptor goes on chiseling that piece of stone, but after a certain day, it becomes invested with divinity, and we start performing abhisheka, archana, deepaharati etc. for that deity; it acquires divine power and it obtains chaitanya. We see divinity in our idols and, therefore, we do abhisheka, alankara or decoration, naivedyam, haarati and many other upacharas.

Some people say that the places of worship, which belong to other religions, are quiet, but our Hindu temples are full of noise. Of course, this is true. Actually, there are two types of noises in our temples. One is the desirable type of noise such as ringing of bells, the sounding of musical instruments like nadaswaram and the shahnai; the recitation of namavalli archana, recitation of mantras and so on.

Of course, there is also the undesirable type of noise in the form of people indulging in idle gossip and purposeless talk. It is our duty to see that this idle talk, which results in undesirable noise, is totally eliminated from our temples. In other places of worship, this type of fanfare that we have in our temples is not there, because they do not recognize idol worship or worship of God in the saguna form and they believe in worship of God in his attributeless and shapeless form only.
In our temple, a huge temple bell is rung at the time of puja. This is done so that the evil spirits may go away from temple premises, and all abuses or other bad sounds may be stifled from being heard. In our houses, we do not have such a huge bell, but we ring only a small bell at the time of puja. But we do not offer musical instruments and other upacharas to the deity, but only akshata or unbroken rice.

The puja that we do in our houses is for our own welfare. We do it according to our convenience and, according to our mental frame of mind. But the puja done in the temples is for the whole of society and therefore, there is so much of fanfare, and sounding of musical instruments and singing of auspicious tunes; the deity is taken out in a procession during festival days and there is display of fireworks.

The reason for quietness and silence in the temples of other religions is this. In other religions, they just have a big prayer hall. People assemble at appointed times, and they offer prayers. They sing some hymns, mentally or in chorus. After that, everything is over, and people disperse. They just close their eyes for a few minutes, pray for some time, get some peace of mind and then disperse. There is no such thing as abhisheka of the idol, alankara or decoration of the idol, karpuraharati, dhupa, deepaharati, naivedyam, distribution of prasadam, etc. in other temples. There are various upacharas, which are also offerings to the deity. There is also scope for singing of prayers, hymns, silent meditation and so on.

We consider God as Rajadiraja or the king of all kings and so we offer him many upacharas such as umbrella, chamara, musical instruments, vahana and so on, which are all due to a king. The divine presence in our idols, when we worship them, helps us to banish poverty as well as evil. Thus, the idol with divinity which we see in our temples is an object of beauty for us, and worthy of meditation.

If our thoughts are of a high order, then we worship the deity in the above manner, so that we may get supreme happiness. It is with this idea that we perform abhisheka and decorate the idol with ornaments etc. Thus we worship God in these various ways by doing so many upacharas. This kind of worship is possible only in the Hindu religion.

Idol worship is very important in our religion, for the ordinary people. When we bow before an idol or pray before the deity consecrated in the idol, we never think that it is only a piece of stone, but we think that the deity in the idol is the protector and the root cause of the whole world. Thus, temples help to increase the devotion of a person to God and this devotion helps him to overcome or reduce his sufferings.

Ordinary people may not have the capacity, and strength of mind to bear their sufferings. But with bhakti or devotion to Ishwara, they can face them, and get also the mental strength to bear them. It is for this purpose that an ordinary person goes to the temple. He goes there, offers some prayers and then he feels all right. If one person talks about his sufferings to another, the other man will listen to him for some time, but after some time he will start narrating his own sufferings and say that he is having more sufferings than other individuals. So, sharing one's sufferings with another person, who is also suffering, will not result in the removal of the sufferings.

Therefore, we go to temple and pray to Him, and we pour out before Him our tale of woe and sufferings. If we go and narrate our sufferings to another man for a long time he will start abusing us after some time, and he may even slap us if we persist with the narration of our tale of woe and suffering. But when we go to a temple, we can tell God whatever we like, Have you not ears to listen to my prayers? Have you no eyes to see my suffering? And we may ask Him why He is not giving His grace immediately to us. After this prayer, when we come out, we shall have some peace of mind. The more we address God, the more is the peace that we get in our mind.

Saguna worship has got this capacity to give peace of mind because there is chaitanya in the idol installed in the temple and after pouring out our suffering before God in the temple, we get some peace of mind. That is why we have the habit of going to the temples.

Of course, some people do not go to a temple at all, but they go to a river or a lonely place and weep there for some time and they then come back with peace of mind. People get peace of mind wherever there is no reaction to what they say. So, a suffering man goes only to those places where there is no reaction to what he says.

When one prays to Ishwara, one gets mental peace, because Ishwara does not talk at all. If Ishwara starts replying, then we shall start talking something more, After all, Ishwara knows everything and He will give us whatever we want. Of course, this does not mean that God will give us exactly what we ask for. He will give us only that much which will give us peace of mind, though He has the capacity to give everything that we want.

God knows everything that we want to tell Him. Yet why is it that we go and narrate our sufferings before Him? It is just to get peace of mind by emptying our mind before Him. As Nilakanta Dikshita says:

"What is it that you do not know? You know everything. And yet I feel like speaking out things before you, because my mind is restless; it is only when I empty the contents of my mind that I can secure peace. That is why I am narrating all this before you."

There is another thing that we notice in the case of our temples, as compared with the places of worship or prayer halls of other religions. In other religions, the prayer hall is built according to the size of the audience. After they collect the statistics of the audience, they build the prayer hall to accommodate the audience, and all the people can assemble in that prayer hall, at appointed hours.

But in our temples, we have to go one by one near the sanctum sanctorum. Whatever be the size of the crowd, each one has to go in a disciplined manner and offer worship. Our temples have all been built with some sanctity. In fact, each temple has got a history behind it. Our temples are places where there are idols with shakti or power and divinity.

The puja that we do in our houses is for the welfare of ourselves and our families. But the puja done in the temples is for the welfare of the whole society, and therefore there is no scope for the puja being done in the temples according to one's personal likes. There is thus no scope for importing our individual methods of worship in the temples.

The deity in the temple has to be installed and worshipped according to the religious texts on the basis of which the idol has been installed. Further, the puja has to be done by the priests appointed for the purpose. These rules hold good right from the village deities to the big deities like Vinayaka, Subrahmanya, Vishnu, and Shiva.

Since a temple is a place of divine presence, we do many things as our expression of devotion to God. We have abhisheka on a grand scale, decorate the idol with ornaments and so on. We also have paintings and sculptures in temple mandapams to enhance the beauty of the place. We also take out processions during festivals, and have fireworks etc.

These temples are the great heritage of our country. Our country being a poor country, the needs of our people were very small, and therefore, they had built great structures like temples and temple gopurams to help people in their spiritual development.

But nowadays, things have taken a different shape. Instead, we have social service institutions, schools, and hospitals. But the benefits are not being realized to the fullest extent. On the other hand, these have led to corruption. At least the tribal people have been unaffected by all this and they are still preserving their good traits and habits. Instead of solving the main problem, the banks etc., have only increased our wants; when a bank goes into liquidation, we know what an amount of poverty it causes, among the depositors. By increasing our wants, we get into trouble. Happiness can be had only by leading a simple life. Our temples were the centers for social welfare in the olden days. At the time of festivals, food used to be distributed at concessional rates to the needy people.

Mass feeding of people was also done on those occasions. Of course, the State is doing certain things to the people through their social welfare agencies. In fact, the tax that we are paying to Government is just a token of our acknowledgment of the service done to the people by the State. But it is a fact that in spite of the existence of banks, hospitals and social welfare agencies, their objects are not being fulfilled to the extent required.

The best medicine for removing human misery and suffering and sorrow is to have unshakable faith in the grace of God. Bhakti alone is capable of giving that strength of mind which is needed to overcome and reduce our sufferings. Temples are but the agencies to nurture and develop this bhakti towards God. This is why temples have to be constructed at every place.

In the olden days, they used to build the temple first and then the township grew around them. But nowadays, we build the township first and then only start thinking of constructing the temple. The offering of naivedyam to God and the offering of money into the hundis kept at the temples are all but a token of our gratitude to God for what he has done to us.

We cannot create even a blade of grass. Therefore, if we offer anything to God, it is just for our own peace of mind and satisfaction. It is God who has given everything to us. So, if we eat food without offering it to Him, it is the greatest sign of ingratitude. We have to offer the best to God and then take it. All may not be able to do puja and other things in their houses and offer all upacharas to God. Therefore, temples have been constructed for this purpose.

Some people have a doubt whether they should go to temples daily, or not. Of course, it is absolutely necessary to do so. In the olden days, people never used to have their food in their houses unless they heard the temple bell ringing at the time of the morning, noon, evening and night pujas to the Lord.

It is up to us therefore to nurture the divinity in the temples by ensuring that the pujas are performed properly and that the temple rituals are observed with diligence. We should see that the temple premises are kept clean and the deepa is lit every day. We should also see that the cloth that we offer to Lord is washed daily. If only we could ensure these things, automatically we shall be able to derive as much benefit, if not more, than what we get by the establishment of hospitals and other social welfare institutions.

Since a temple is a place of divinity, of course we have to observe certain rules while we are in the precincts of the temple. For instance, we should not use anything meant for God for ourselves.

We should not go to the temple in a purposeless manner. One should not pass urine or spit or excrete fecal matter within the temple premises and within the vicinity of the temples. Nor should one blow his nose or sneeze or chew pan in the temple, or eat fruits or food, or sleep or sit with stretched legs, or comb the hair or tie the hair after combing, wear cloth over the head and over the shoulders, tread over nirmalya or tread over the shadows of the flag staff, idols etc, nor should one touch the idols or those who do puja to the idols. No one should gossip, laugh loudly, or play games or go between the idol and the bali peetha.

As for pradakshina or going round the temple, one should not stop with just one or two rounds only but should go round at least thrice. One should not have darshan of the Lord at odd hours or at the time of abhisheka or naivedyam. One should not enter into the temple and worship when the deity is not in the straight position. One should not enter a temple by any passage other than the main gate.

One should not go empty-handed to a temple merely for seeing the karpura-harati. One should offer what one has brought to the priest, have darshan and return without showing his back to the Lord. With folded hands, and reciting stotras, one should perform pradakshinas ranging between 3 and 21 times, preferably in odd numbers. As for namaskarams, one should do it an odd number of times for Ishwara, ranging from 3 to 21, and for Devi four times. After namaskara, one should do pradakshina and then return home.

All these rules have been prescribed only for our welfare and to preserve the sanctity of the temples. It is up to us all to observe these rules, protect and nurture the sanctity of our temples, which have been the greatest heritage.

Ram Sethu & DMK Chief

Here is a nice article by Gurumurthy In The New Indian Express, Chennai:

“Sethu critics are anti-national says MK.” This is how a newspaper front-paged Dr M Karunanidhi’s address at a public meeting in Chennai held in defense of the Sethu Samudram Project. The Chief Minister said that “those opposing the Sethu Samudram Ship Canal Project in the name of God, religion, epic and mythology are anti-national,” added the report.

His speech was widely reported yesterday (May 17). A related news item titled “Top Hindu leaders plan Sethu stir” also appeared the same day. Who are the Hindu leaders? Not Ashok Singhal and Pravin Togadia.

They are Shankaracharyas of Puri, Dwaraka, Badrinath and Sringeri, four high seats of spirituality in India. These Hindu seers have decided on a nationwide agitation against the Sethu Samudram Project, said the print medium report. The Shankaracharyas will never come on the streets to agitate. What is it that drives these noble souls to cross their limits of tolerance?

It is the Sethu Samudram project _ in the cause of which Dr MK addressed the public on May 16 _ that agitates them. Sethu, a Sanskrit word, means ‘bridge’. The seers believe, with long standing tradition to support that belief, that the Sethu is the one built for Sri Rama to cross the ocean from the mainland that is now India to go to Sri Lanka. The Rama Sethu is a land link between India and Sri Lanka even now.

The NASA satellite has captured on its camera this link millions of years old. There is a lot of historical evidence to say that centuries ago people used to walk on Rama Sethu. This ancient bridge is in danger of being broken and dismantled if the Sethu Samudram Project is implemented.

The project is intended to create a shipping route along the sea coast of India from the Bay of Bengal to the Arabian Sea without having to go around Sri Lanka. The advocates of the project say this makes eminent commercial sense. There is political opposition to the project, from Jayalalithaa and AIADMK to Advani and BJP. The VHP and RSS have also strongly opposed the project. Their opposition may be viewed as mobilisational. But the objection of the seers is founded on faith which a secular state is bound to respect.

These seers are pained that after the project is implemented, as Swami Dayanada Saraswati has said, there will be only Samudram and no Sethu, even though the project is named Sethu Samudram project! Political opposition to the Sethu Samudram project may be dismissed as motivated. But can the government ignore the voice of men of high spiritual standing like the Shankaracharyas who have no political motive at all? Can the government dismiss the concerns of the Hindu Dharma Acharya Sabha representing almost the entire Hindu religious spectrum which has no political agenda at all?

The government is questioning the beliefs of these seers and millions of faithfuls about the Rama Sethu. Dr MK says that the opposition is in the name of God, religion, epic and mythology. This logic is dangerous. That he would never have said it had the issue concerned Muslims or Christians is besides the point. A secular state should never make its relation with faith of the majority or a minority so adversarial.

Again the opposition to the project is not just an issue of faith. Experts like S Badrinarayanan, Retd Director General of Geological Survey of India, and V Srinivasan, consultant geologist, have said that the Rama Sethu is not a natural formation but man made. There is trans-religious opposition to the project. Eminent, secular intellectuals like Justice VR Krishna Iyer and Justice KT Thomas have also voiced concern about the project from the geo-political and security view point.

Dr Tad Murthy of Canada, one of world’s most respected tsunami experts, has said that Kerala which was saved by the Rama Sethu from the killer tsunami of 2004, will be exposed to tsunamis in future. This is not an exhaustive list of those outside the religious and political spectrum who are against the project. Why even the Prime Minister’s Office yes, the Dr Manmohan Singh’s office has raised 16 queries which were answered by the Tuticorin Port Trust two days after yes after commencement of the project, so as to make it a fait accompli!

Would Dr MK say that these experts and intellectuals who are against the Sethu Samudram project are also anti-nationals? Does he also accuse that the Sankaracharyas of Puri, Dwaraka, Badrinath and Sringeri as anti-nationals? In fact those concerned at the destruction of the Rama Sethu do not oppose the Sethu Samudram Project itself. They only want the Sethu canal constructed with the ancient Sethu the bridge intact. It is possible, say experts. This is what the government needs to examine. And that is precisely what it is unwilling to do.

An eminent leader like Dr MK, who just celebrated 50 years of legislative service, should have avoided using such abusive language against men of high standing in science and religion. On the other hand, he should order a review of the project in the light of the reasoned opposition to it. A government that does not listen to wise counsel invariably faces mobs on the streets.

http://www.ambimama.com/2007/05/23/ram-hanuman-sethu-bridge-is-real-says-nasa-and-karunanidhi-does-not-listen-to-science-facts-or-seers/

The 7 vows of Hindu Wedding ceremony

The Seven Vows:

Groom: You will offer me food and be helpful in every way. I will cherish you and provide welfare and happiness for you and our children.

Bride: I am responsible for the home and all household responsibilities.

Groom: Together we will protect our house and children.

Bride: I will be by your side as your courage and strength. I will rejoice in your happiness. In return, you will love me solely.

Groom: May we grow wealthy and prosperous and strive for the education of our children. May our children live long.

Bride: I will love you solely for the rest of my life, as you are my husband. Every other man in my life will be secondary. I vow to remain chaste.

Groom: You have brought sacredness into my life, and have completed me. May we be blessed with noble and obedient children.

Bride: I will shower you with joy, from head to toe. I will strive to please you in every way I can.

Groom: You are my best friend, and staunchest well-wisher. You have come into my life, enriching it. God bless you.

Bride: I promise to love and cherish you for as long as I live. Your happiness is my happiness, and your sorrow is my sorrow. I will trust and honor you, and will strive to fulfill all your wishes.

Groom: May you be filled with joy and peace.

Bride: I will always be by your side.

Groom: We are now husband and wife, and are one. You are mine and I am yours for eternity.

Bride: As God is witness, I am now your wife. We will love, honor and cherish each other forever.

Let us examine our hearts that how far every one of us is true to the aforesaid promises we made at the time of our wedding. The sad part is nobody has ever taught us the Mantras before we got married. Had we known already two things would have happened - either we wouldn't have dared to take vows or we would have taken the vows with the pretext of cheating of one another.

http://www.online-forum.co.uk/index.php?topic=35.0

Show Love to Your beloved Wife

Start discussing the below quoted list with your wife. Allow her to pick the one meaningful to her, and then have her arrange them in the order she considers important. You can use this list to learn what speaks “love” to her. It’s most likely very different from what speaks “love” to you.

1. Start and/or end each day by holding hands and praying together with your wife.
2. Pray for her every day and make it a point to pray with her when she is troubled.
3. Communicate with her instead of talking AT her or shutting her out emotionally.
4. Talk to her respectfully without demeaning her or hurting her feelings.
5. Compliment her for the uniqueness you see in her. Be specific.
6. Show interest in her friends and give her time to be with them.
7. Do something active together to lift her spirit —even taking a walk hand-in-hand.
8. Express to her that you need and value her.
9. Show enthusiasm for the things that she’s excited about—let your actions show it.
10. Find something that makes you laugh together.
11. Put your arms around her when she needs comfort, holding her silently.
12. Surprise her by doing something you think she would want done before she asks.
13. Try not to make sudden changes without discussing them with her first.
14. Show interest in that which she values as important in her life.
15. Allow your wife to teach you things without being defensive.
16. When you feel you must correct her, be gentle —speaking the truth in LOVE. Allow her to teach you things without being defensive.
17. Let go of the small stuff. We all have annoying habits and preferences that are different from our spouse’s. (Dave Ramsey)
18. Show her that she matters more to you than any activity you could do, or any one you could be with, that somehow threatens her sense of security in your marriage.
19. Be a good listener. Show her you value what she says.
20. Plan a mini-honeymoon, where the two of you can spend quality time together.
21. Go shopping with her and don’t sigh or look at what time it is even once.
22. Take her out to breakfast or make her breakfast (cleaning up afterward).
23. Make the time to set specific goals with her to achieve together for each year.
24. Give her grace when she offends you and forgive (even as you want to be forgiven).
25. Find ways to help her know you are her partner in all areas life.
26. Be polite, courteous, and mannerly with her—not taking her for granted.
27. Exhibit humility, admit your mistakes, and ask for forgiveness. She’ll appreciate that!
28. Defend her to others—especially to your family.
29. Don’t belittle her intelligence.
30. Scratch her back, rub her feet, or her rub her neck—whatever she’d prefer.
31. Get up in the middle of the night (letting her stay in bed) to take care of your upset child.
32. Be especially helpful when she is not feeling well.
33. When you’ve been apart for a time and she asks how your day went, don’t just say “fine” — actually give her details.
34. Thank God for her by name when the two of you are praying together.
35. Try not to argue over money. Peacefully discuss future expenditures instead.
36. Don’t embarrass her by arguing with her in front of others.
37. Lead your family in their spiritual relationship with God. This is important to her.
38. Make eye contact when she is talking to you and when you are talking with her.
39. Show her that you prefer her to others—give her your attention whenever possible.
40. Relate what happened at work or whatever you did apart from her.
41. Stay away from web sites, chat rooms or anything that gives you sexual gratification from anyone other than your wife.
42. Be helpful and cooperative, both before, and during the time you have other people over to your home. (If you’re not sure what to do, just say to your wife “What can I do that would help the most?”)
43. Brag about her to others, both in front of her and when she is not with you.
44. Surprise her from time-to-time with a card and flowers or a little gift.
45. Remember to tell her or call her as soon as you know you are going to be late.
46. Give her your undivided attention when she wants to talk.
47. Guard your tongue from saying “unwholesome words” or down-grading her.
48. Refuse to compare her unfavorably with others.
49. Encourage her to relax in some way while you clean up after dinner.
50. Be an involved partner and father in helping her with the children and spending time together.
51. Maintain good grooming habits so you look and smell good. It shows you care.
52. Be supportive. Help her to finish her education and goals that are important to her.
53. View and treat her as if God put a sign over her that said, “Make me feel special.”
54. Run errands without complaining.
55. Give her the love gift of being thoughtful and considerate to her relatives.
56. Don’t negatively compare her relatives with yours.
57. Sit close to her —even when you are just watching television.
58. Be verbally supportive and honor her in front of the children.
59. Show her you are her marital partner by not making plans without her knowing and agreeing with them (unless it’s a surprise for her).
60. Pro-actively do things that makes her feel cherished as a woman and as a wife.
61. Keep her trust at all costs. Leave no gray area when it comes to other female relationships, money and your word. (Dave Ramsey)
62. Surprise her by asking her to give you a list of 3 things she’d like done around the house within the next month. And then make it your goal to do them.
63. Ask her and then listen to what makes her fearful and insecure (without judging).
64. Pray about and act upon what you can do to alleviate those fears.
65. Find out what her sexual needs are (and then try to fulfill them).
66. Surprise her with a 15 second kiss (with no expectations to go any further).
67. Keep yourself in as good of shape as is reasonable so she’s proud to be with you.
68. Make it a point to write a mission statement together for your marriage and family.
69. Take the time to touch every day—even if it’s only for a minute or two.
70. Be polite and kind. (Often we’re kinder to strangers than we are to our spouse.)
71. Be sensitive enough to ask her if you offend or hurt her sexually in any way.
72. Go out of your way to help her feel valued over everyone else.
73. Consider her as your marital partner in how you spend money.
74. Continue to court her. You dated her before you married which helped you to fall in love, now date her to STAY in love.
75. Be careful to choose your words, especially when angry.
76. Show affection for her in front of friends.
77. Make sure your children speak to her and treat her in respectful ways.
78. Make a point of honoring anniversaries, birthdays, and other special occasions.
79. Make sure she has money each paycheck to spend any way she would choose.
80. Hold her close and vocally express your love and care for her when she is hurt, discouraged, or burdened.
81. Surprise her by giving her a special gift from time to time.
82. Share the responsibilities around the house (without looking for special recognition).
83. Don’t tease and belittle her, saying “I was just joking” when she doesn’t find it funny.
84. Allow her to express herself freely, without fear of being called illogical or dumb.
85. Don’t forget to hold her hand in public like you used to when you dated her.
86. Don’t criticize her in front of others—keeping her dignity in tact.
87. Don’t focus on the physical features of another woman (because, whether you understand her reasoning or not, that can make your wife feel dishonored).
88. Be sensitive to her needs—looking for ways to bless her.
89. Let her know you want to spend special time with her and the children.
90. Fix dinner for her sometimes.
91. Be sympathetic when she’s sick—and help her however you can.
92. Let her sleep in once in a while and you get the children ready for the day.
93. Honor her by not disagreeing with her in front of the children.
94. Don’t ignore the small things that bother her and let them build into bigger issues.
95. Surprise her by doing some things around the house that she’s wanted done.
96. Tell her (and show her) you love her often.
97. Call, email or text her during the day when you are apart from each other so she knows you are thinking of her.
98. Surprise her by suggesting you go to a marriage seminar or weekend retreat together to draw even closer in your marital relationship.
99. Express your love and appreciation for her in a love note which you give to her.
100. Show her affection without sexual intentions.

http://www.marriagemissions.com/100-ways-you-can-love-your-wife-her-way/

Grounds For Divorce Under Hindu Marriage Act

GROUNDS FOR DIVORCE

A petition for divorce may be presented by either the husband or wife for dissolving the marriage on the following grounds:

That the other party

1. has after the marriage had voluntary sexual intercourse with any other person; or
2. has after the marriage treated the petitioner with cruelty
3. has deserted the petitioner for a continuous period of not less than two years immediately preceding the presentation of the petition,
4. has ceased to be a Hindu by conversion to another religion,
5. has been incurably of unsound mind or has been continuously or intermittently from a mental disorder that the petitioner cannot reasonably be expected to live with such a person,
6. has been suffering from a virulent and incurable form of leprosy,
7. has been suffering from venereal disease in a communicable form
8. has renounced the world by entering any religious order.
9. Has not been heard of as being alive for a period of seven years or more by persons who would have naturally heard of it, had that party been alive.

• A word of advice on dealing with divorce lawyers. This is the female perspective: http://indiandivorce.blogspot.com/2007/11/on-your-guard-when-dealing-with-divorce.html
• Collection of judgments: SC /HC Judgments On Divorce/498A/Bail/DV
• The 498A Survival Guide: This is a must as a divorce leads to an automatic 498A in quite a few cases.

Marital Discord and Divorce in India—The Changing Profile

Family is the most important primary group in society. Family and marriage are considered to be the two pillars of any society and as such they are the two most important societal institutions. In India, traditionally and from time immemorial, marriage has been hallowed as sacred; and marriage for most Indians is not merely a sacrament but is sacrosanct. Once the couple enters into the bond of marriage, the relationship is considered perpetual—till death does them apart. In other words, marriage used to be for life and it worked as a bulwark against social vulnerabilities. It had an inbuilt system of checks and balances, and roles and priorities were defined by the society for the couple. What distinguished marriage in India from marriage in the West was the sanctity attached to marriage: a sense of perpetual bonding and an element of divinity in it.

The phenomenon of divorce, however, is not new to India, and it has existed at all times in known history. But it was resorted to only in extreme cases where there was unbearable cruelty, desertion, mental illness, impotence/infertility, and infidelity. But it is no longer so.

With the new strains and challenges that have emerged for the Indian family, the latter has been going through a new kind of transition. It has been wavering between traditional and Western models. The fast-changing social and family environment has thrown up new challenges, particularly to the young people, like growing instability, lack of communication, changing attitude towards sex, changing roles of husband and wife, and tensions of fast life. All these have resulted in the lack of harmony among married couples. The decline in harmony can be associated with values that emphasise individualistic, materialistic and self-oriented goals over family well-being.

Higher Incidence of Divorce:

Not only is the incidence of divorce in Indian society increasing but also the underlying causes of divorce have been assuming a new dimension or getting a new impetus, if not entirely changing. The underlying forces of change have been giving a new meaning to the causes of disharmony. It is not that conflict, for example, due to incompatible personalities did not exist earlier, but the fact is that it has become more vibrant and open. Factors such as incompatibility of personalities etc. have all existed in the past, but what is new is that the tolerance threshold seems to have slided down while the egos of individuals have risen remarkably.

An extensive study of the working of family courts in urban India by a Mumbai-based legal activist indicated that whereas in 1995, 2055 couples filed for divorce in Mumbai, in 2004, the number went up to 3400 in that city alone. In the eight matrimonial district courts of Delhi, at an average of 25 divorce petitions were filed every day in 2004. In Bangalore the number increased threefold from 653 in 1988 to 1861 in 2002. In Kolkata the number has gone up from 1633 in 1966 to 2388 in 2003. Seventy per cent of these figures represent divorces in the age-group of 25-35. In Kolkata, divorce cases have gone up nearly 200 per cent in the last few years. (India Today, February 28, 2005)

According to a consultant psychiatrist of Kolkata’s Belle Vue Nursing Home, nearly six out of ten married couples now require counseling to prevent break-ups and for every five weddings registered in Mumbai in the past five years, there have been two divorce applications—an increase of nearly 50 per cent. (Hindustan Times, February 17, 2008)

A very recent report points out that of the 1.3 lakh marriages registered every year in Delhi, about 10,000 do not live happily ever after. Alarmed by this, the Delhi Commission for Women (DCW) has set up a pre-marital counseling cell where young men and women and their parents can call for help and guidance. (Hindustan Times, July 29, 2008) Because of increasing number of young couples resorting to divorce, six more family courts have come up in Delhi since the late nineties to deal with over 9000 cases of matrimonial disputes.

An extensive study of 243 individual respondents, directly involved in disputes and who had approached some external formal agency [Marital Dispute Resolving Agency (MDRA)] for intervention, mediation or help, revealed that the main causes of marital discord (male and female taken together and in descending order) were (Jamwal, 1998):

Overall, the three prominent main causes (with 20 per cent or more incidence), which contributed to marital discord, were personality related behaviours/tendencies including deficiencies/disorders (24 per cent), material/monetary gains through marriage (23 per cent), and incompatibility (21 per cent).

A comparison of the data regarding marital discord between male and female respondents, as per the above study, brought out the following four main distinctive features:

1. While as many as 46 per cent of the male respondents attributed the main cause of their marital discord to ‘incompatibility’ factors, far fewer, that is, 11 per cent female respondents attributed the main cause to such factors.

2. For as many as one-third of female respondents, the main cause of marital problem was ‘material/monetary gains through marriage (mainly dowry)

3. Personality related behaviours/tendencies (including deficiencies/disorders) were reported more by female respondents than by male respondents (27 per cent vs 19 per cent).

4. More female than male respondents reported ‘desertion’ as the main cause (13 per cent vs three per cent).

In a study of 1165 cases from four urban cities—Mumbai, Pune, Aurangabad and Nagpur—concerned with the reasons for divorce, the researchers found that most couples seeking divorce were educated, between 25 and 35 years of age, and childless. Though they had arranged marriages and lived in joint families, seventy per cent break-ups took place due to reasons which included temperamental differences (apart from financial issues, family interference, dowry, and adultery). Eightyfive per cent called off their marriage within the first five years. (Desai and Bhujbal, 2004)

In the present scenario what is new is not only the growing number of divorces but also a qualitative difference in the undercurrents of the causes leading to marital discord and divorce. The social/societal stigma attached to divorce is also diminishing. Divorce is no longer a dirty word. A kind of social transformation that may lie at the crux of today’s marriage splits is the growing tolerance of society for divorcees. Divorced people are no longer looked down and judged by “there-must-have-been-something-wrong-with-him/her” kind of comments. They do not now have horns on their heads.

Divorce by Mutual Consent

More young people are filing for divorce, some in the first year of their marriage. Most of these divorces are mutual consent petitions. According to one estimate, the amicable separation within the first year of marriage has increased by 30 per cent since 2000. Contrary to what prevailed earlier, more women are initiating divorce proceedings. The society seems to be accepting the fact that divorcees need companionship. An increasing number of women are now hoping to click with someone online. For example, as reported (Hindustan Times, February 17, 2008), seven per cent of all registered women on jeevansathi.com are divorcees, as against four per cent of all male users.

Divorce is no longer a taboo and a divorced daughter is not unwelcome in her parents’ home even in small towns. Social trends originating in metros slowly percolate down to smaller towns and from there to villages. In the new socio-economic environment, women in small towns do not feel shy of walking out of marriage.

In the present environment two main causes/reasons stand out:
• Assertion of independence; and the
• Diminishing urge/capacity for adjustment.
These two factors, though different, are not unrelated to each other.

Assertion of freedom and the need for individual space, characterised by ambition and the fast pace of life, have created new pressures on marriage. For many career-oriented girls, their career, success and money are more important and hence get more priority over family. Priority of job over relationship is now an observable phenomenon. One partner likes films, the other the theatre; one wants to dance at night and get up late in the morning, the other wants to study and get up early in the morning. The words like “I hate you” and “I can’t stand you” have become commonplace. ‘Me’ and ‘you’ are now replacing ‘we’ and ‘us’. Psychological tiredness is one of the new realities, not much known earlier.

Many of the young divorces are the result of violent ego clashes. In many ways, these are the stresses of changing times and are generational issues and arise from work stress and changing mores. Unfortunately, however, the issues at dispute sometimes are so trivial that they do not fall in the age-old but still common factors like dowry harassment, impotence and the mother-in-law factor. Sixty per cent divorce cases, according to one Allahabad-based family court lawyer, relate to trivial issues. Today’s Indian wife has a mind of her own which unsettles the patriarchal male. For instance, it is interesting to note that a seven-year-old love marriage, in Darjeeling, went on the rocks because the man and his wife had different political affiliations. Obviously, the intolerance for each other is soaring and the tolerance threshold is declining.

Job opportunities for women have multiplied over the recent past, giving them economic independence. This motivates them to choose out of a bad marriage, particularly when they have no kids. Because of the opportunities the present-day work environment provides to the young people for closer interaction at the workplace and liberal views of the new generation, extra-marital relationship including sexual relationship, have become a common malaise over the recent past, especially if there is a context of a failed/failing marriage. It is a well-known fact that, with modern methods of contraception available, many a couple delays starting a family. In a way, these are the compulsions of modern times.

As many of the female spouses today are well educated and employed on good jobs, they have become quite conscious of their rights. They also expect cooperation and adjustment from their husbands. While women have tended to become assertive, many of the males, on their part, have not learnt to adapt to the new situation. Our society is in transition, in a state of flux. While old values are getting uprooted, the new value system has not got sufficiently entrenched. The frequent ego clashes may be the consequence of this fluid situation.

With the elderly sane counsel or intervention of the joint family system that earlier used to ensure the stability of the young couple’s marriage being largely not available or absent today, small differences get magnified in the nuclear family of today. While the level of intolerance has gone up, there is a diminishing urge/capacity for adjustment. In the early days, the non-likable personality traits, which got to be known after marriage and which led to sulks or temporary suspension of intimacy, are now resulting in divorce.

The assertion of independence and diminishing capacity for adjustment quickly gives rise to the emergence of a feeling of incompatibility. The couples are tempted to conclude that they are incompatible to each other. The so-called temperamental differences get highlighted.


Adjustment and Understanding:

Though, in general, incompatibility may arise from a number of factors such as: differences in values and beliefs; differences in educational, socio-economic status/level; differences in life style/social orientation; differences in personality characteristics, including temperament differences, differences in sexual behaviors; and differences in likes, dislikes, tastes, hobbies etc., however, it may be noted that no two persons can be totally compatible in temperament and behavior, even siblings may not be. In marriage two individuals with often-different backgrounds come together. The thinking, attitudes, mindsets and behavioral patterns cannot be expected to be similar or exactly matching. It naturally takes some time to know and understand each other. The understanding, resulting in compatibility in marriage, can thus develop only gradually and, further, if there is a desire to adjust with each other.

The essence of success in marriage is nothing but “understanding” which also means understanding of each other’s compulsions. Adjustment requires not only the merging or submerging of two personalities, but closer interaction to complement each other for mutual satisfaction and the achievement of common objectives. Conceptually, the two main elements of marital adjustment are cohesion and affection. This is not to say that there would always be perfect adjustment. Since marriage involves two persons, perfect adjustment is a myth. Some differences at times may take place or are inevitable. Perceptions about life, its problems and solutions are individualistic and vary from person to person. Speaking even about religion, Dr Radhakrishnan once said: “Religion is behaviour, not mere belief.”

From the practical standpoint, the concept of adjustment between husband and wife is not that of assimilating the one into the other but of togetherness and simultaneity in behaviour with the greatest possible level of feeling for each other. Marital cohesiveness is the glue that holds partners together. The other side of cohesiveness is marital commitment, that is, the desire to stay in the marriage relationship through thick and thin, good times and bad times over the years of marital life. Commitment springs from emotional bonding and the belief about the permanence of marriage per se. The greatest chance of divorce is where partners feel a lack of cohesiveness and are not committed to making the marriage last, despite personal dedications. (Jamwal, 1998, 232)

All said and done, however, despite the new strains on the marriage and the increasing number of divorces being filed or taking place, the faith in the universality of marriage as an institution remains unshaken in our society and will continue to be so in the foreseeable future. The survival of the family unit, in a large measure, is dependent on the ability of the family to absorb and adapt to the external challenges. And it should be explored how this adaptability or capacity to absorb the likely strains can be fortified in society.

http://www.mainstreamweekly.net/article1593.html

Wedding is a Divine Blessing....!!!

Dear readers,

Today I read a news in Maalai Malar i.e. dated 24.6.2010 (http://www.maalaimalar.com/2010/06/24112910/fifty-five-thousands-diverse-c.html). It says, in India, more than 55,000 couples have filed divorce petition and they are waiting for judgment. For some, it is a news. But I do not take it merely a News, rather, I started to think it over as to what made them to apply for divorce. The news further goes on that it takes at least 3 to 4 years for a couple to get divorced. In some cases the time exceeds more than 4 years. Hence, the Government is considering to make amendments in Hindu Marriage Act 1955 in view of making the Law simple for the petitioners to get speedy judgment. Neither the Government nor the Court wants to impose stringent Laws that could help the petitioners to find out their own solution and settling the conflicts without going to a Court. All they want is speedy disposals and there is no room for Humanity as far as the Law is concerned. Already the Court has passed on an Order in Kushboo's case that pri-marital sex is not an offense and an adult man and an adult woman can stay together, if they wish. It is none of anyone's business. In other words, if they are willing they can stay together without the need of Marriage and they can have conjugal relationship between them.

In India, the parents spend their hard-earned money from 5 to 10 lakhs for the wedding of their children and some are taking loan from the available sources at higher interest rate, just to fulfill their commitment. The petitioners for divorce have so many reasons for applying divorce but they don't think about the rest. Some are applying for divorce even after 10 years and have children. They don't mind the welfare of the children. There are no concrete grounds for them to go for divorce but just a little bit of disagreement is enough.

There is no issue in this world that could be hard to find solutions. The Government should plan to set up a counseling body in every district head quarter under the supervision of any reputable person/s and give the petitioners a chance to reconsider their decision. The Courts should take up the case for divorce only under the recommendations of this committee. Doing so will help the couples to lead a happy life forgetting the silly mistakes.

I request marrieds to stay united till the very end of your life and help those who are in need of guidance. Above all talk to one another and find out ways to solve any problem instead of blaming each other. According to the way you were brought up, give first place to God in your life Who is the Master of Universe. Its according to the plan of God you two have been chosen together and married. No man has ever decided it. Particularly for Hindus, there are ample lessons for them to learn from the lives of their ancestors and Epics like Ramayana. There are people to help them out in times of troubles if the couples are ready to speak out.

Here in this blog I have republished one or two articles analyzing the reasons for couples applying for divorce. However such statistics will not be going to help anyway but at least one can understand the menace of "divorce" culture.

Umashankar. K