Hindu tit-bits: 2009

Wednesday, December 30, 2009

Sunday, December 6, 2009

Hindu defined

Himalayam Samaarabhya Yaavadindusarovaram Tam Devanirmitam Desam Hindusthaanam Prachakshatey.
From the Himalayas all the way to Indian ocean, the Devas created the sacred land called Hindustan

Saturday, November 28, 2009

13 year old Sanyasini on the fate of Pakistan

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HZ8QSVvu2bw&feature=player_embedded

Tuesday, October 20, 2009

Tuesday, September 15, 2009

Majority Churchgoers pick up Hinduism

http://www.newsweek.com/id/212155
Newsweek Article

http://www.newsweek.com/id/212155/output/comments

Comments on article

Tuesday, August 4, 2009

Questions from a Muslim

http://krishna.org/questions-from-a-muslim-with-answers-from-khan/

Monday, July 27, 2009

Tuesday, June 30, 2009

Vedas say there is only one God - Muslim proof

UPANISHAD:Upanishads are one of the sacred Scriptures of the Hindus.Chandogya Upanishad Chapter 6 Section 2 verse 1“Ekam Evadvitiyam”“He is one only without a second.”(The Principal Upanishad by S. Radhakrishnan pg. 447 & 448)(Sacred Books of the East Volume 1, the Upanishads Part I Page 93)Shwetashvatara Upanishad Chapter 6 verse 9“Nacasya kascij janita na cadhipah”“Of Him there are neither parents nor Lord.”(The Principal Upanishad by S. Radhakrishnan pg. 745)(and in Sacred books of the East volume 15, the Upanishads Part II Page 263)Shwetashvatara Upanishad Chapter 4 verse 19“Na tasya pratima asti”“There is no likeness of Him”.(The Principal Upanishad by S. Radhakrishnan pg 736 & 737 )(and in Sacred books of the East Volume 15, the Upanishads part II, Page no. 253)Shwetashvatara Upanishad Chapter 4 verse 20“na samdrse tisthati rupam asya, na caksusa pasyati kas canainam”.“His form cannot be seen, no one sees Him with the eye”.(The Principal Upanishad by S. Radhakrishnan pg. 737)(And in Sacred books of the East Volume 15, the Upanishad part II, Page no. 253)BHAGWAD GEETAThe most popular amongst all the Hindu Scriptures is the Bhagwad Geeta.Bhagwad Geeta mentions“Those whose intelligence has been stolen by material desires worship demigods” that is “Those who are materialistic, they worship demigods” i.e. others as deities besides the True God.(Bhagwad Geeta 7:20)It is mentioned in Bhagavad Gita“He who knows Me as the unborn, as the beginning-less, as the Supreme Lord of all the worlds...”(Bhagwad Geeta 10:3)YAJURVEDAVedas are the most sacred amongst all the Hindu Scriptures. There are principally 4 Vedas: Rig Ved, Yajur Ved, Sam Ved, and Atharva Veda.Yajurveda Chapter 32, Verse 3“na tasya pratima asti”“There is no image of Him”It further says,“as He is unborn, He deserves our worship”.(Yajurveda 32:3)(The Yajurveda by Devi Chand M.A. pg. 377)Yajurveda Chapter 40 Verse 8“He is bodiless and pure”.(Yajurveda 40:8)(Yajurveda Samhita by Ralph I. H. Griffith pg. 538)Yajurved Chapter 40 Verse 9“Andhatma pravishanti ye assambhuti mupaste”“They enter darkness, those who worship natural things.”E.g. worship of natural elements air, water, fire, etc.(Yajurveda 40:9)It further continues and says“They sink deeper in darkness those who worship sambhuti i.e. created things”E.g. created things such as table, chair, idols, etc.(Yajurveda Samhita by Ralph T. H. Griffith pg. 538)ATHARVA VEDAAtharva Veda book 20 hymn (chapter) 58 verse 3It is mentioned in Atharva Veda“Dev Maha Osi”“God is Verily Great.”(Atharva Veda 20:58:3)(Atharvaveda Samhita Vol. 2, William Duright Whitney pg. 910) RIGVEDAThe oldest and most sacred amongst all the Vedas is the Rigveda.Rigveda Book no. 1, Hymn No. 164, verse 46It is mentioned in Rigveda Book no. 1, hymn No. 164 verse 46“Ekam sat vipra bahudha vadanti”“Sages (learned Priests) call one God by many names”.(Rigveda 1:164:46)Truth is one, God is one, sages call it by various names.A similar message is given in Rigveda, Book 10, hymn 114, verse 5.Rigveda Book 2 hymn 1Rigveda gives no less than 33 different attributes to Almighty God. Several of these attributes are mentioned in Rigveda Book 2 hymn 1a. Brahma - Creator - Khaliq – Rigveda Book 2 Hymn 1 Verse 3Amongst the various attributes given in Rigveda , one of the beautiful attributes for Almighty God is ‘Brahma’. ‘Brahma’ means ‘the Creator’. If you translate into Arabic it means ‘Khaliq’. Islam does not object to anyone calling Almighty God as ‘Khaliq’ or ‘Creator’ or ‘Brahma’, but if someone says that ‘Brahma’ i.e. Almighty God has got four heads and on each head is a crown and this Brahma has got four hands, Islam takes strong exception to it because such descriptions give an image to Almighty God. Such descriptions are also against what is propounded in Yajurveda Chapter 32, verse 3 which says:“Na tasya pratima asti”“There is no image of Him”.(Yajurveda 32:3)b. Vishnu – Sustainer - Rabb : Rigveda Book 2, Hymn 1, verse 3Another beautiful attribute mentioned in the Rigveda Book 2, Hymn 1, Verse 3 is Vishnu. ‘Vishnu’ means ‘the Sustainer’. If you translate this word into Arabic it means ‘Rabb’. Islam has no objection if anyone calls Almighty God as ‘Rabb’ or ‘Sustainer’ or ‘Vishnu’, but if someone says that Vishnu is Almighty God and this Vishnu has four arms, one of the right arms holds the ‘chakra’ i.e. a discus and one of the left arms holds a ‘conch shell’ and Vishnu rides on a bird or reclines on a snake couch, then Islam takes strong exception to this, because such descriptions of Vishnu give an image to Almighty God. Such descriptions are also against what is taught in Yajurveda Chapter 40 verse 8.Rigveda Book 8 hymn 1 verse 1It is mentioned in Rigveda“Ma Chidanyadvi Shansata”“Do not worship anybody but Him, the Divine One, Praise Him alone”(Rigveda 8:1:1)(Rigveda Samhiti Vol. IX, pg. 1 & 2 by Swami Satyaprakash Sarasvati & Satyakam Vidhya Lankar)Rigveda Book 5 Hymn 81 verse 1It is mentioned in Rigveda“Verily great is the glory of the Divine Creator”(Rigveda 5:81:1)(Rigveda Samhiti Vol. 6, pg 1802 & 1803 by Swami Satyaprakash Sarasvati & Satyakam Vidhya Lanka)Rigveda Book no. VI, Hymn 45, verse 16It is mentioned in Rigveda“Ya Eka Ittamushtuhi”“Praise Him who is the matchless & alone”.(Rigveda 6:45:16)(Hymns of Rigveda by Ralph T. H. Griffith pg. 648)BRAHMA SUTRA OF HINDU VEDANTAThe Brahma Sutra of Hindu Vedanta is:[u]‘Ekam Brahm, dvitiya naste neh na naste kinchan”“Bhagwan ek hi hai dusara nahi hai, nahi hai, nahi hai, zara bhi nahi hai”.“There is only one God, not the second, not at all, not at all, not in the least bit”.[/i]All the above quoted verses and passages from Hindu Scriptures clearly amplify the Oneness and Uniqueness of Almighty God, the Creator of all. Furthermore, they negate the existence of any other deity besides the One True God. These verses essentially propound monotheism.Therefore only if one carefully studies the Hindu Scriptures, will one understand and realize the correct concept of God in Hinduism.

Friday, June 19, 2009

Ram Gopalji's speech on Ramayana

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cCf9A09cOAs&feature=channel

Friday, June 12, 2009

The ICAI Logo – A little known Story

By O.P. Dani
The logo of an organization packs in both heritage and brand DNA. Not to mention trivia gems.
Think the swoosh and you'll think Nike. The genial, bearded and bow-tied Colonel Sanders is the KFC mainman. MontBlanc's snow-tipped mountain-top and McDonald's golden arches are as well-known as the brands themselves. Nestle's 'small nest' bird family has stood for baby food, milk and milk products for the past nearly 100 years…
Logos pack in more than corporate identity. They are about history and heritage. Although very well-known, few people buying a Lacoste T-shirt will know the crocodile motif is a reference to founder Rene Lacoste's fearsome reputation on the tennis court. Fewer still will connect the Goodyear winged shoe with the Greek god Hermes. Or the Dove pigeon as a peace logo harking back to its military antecedents.
That's perhaps why history of logos can be both an interesting and rewarding subject. Take the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India, a professional body which was set up in 1949 under an Act of the Parliament. Its Garuda with an Upanishad quotation logo was actually conceptualized by Sri Aurobindo. And like most logos, the history of its conceptualization also packs in as much trivia gems as its DNA and brand identity.
Chennai-based chartered accountant CS Shastri, a devotee of Sri Aurobindo and a Council member of the ICAI, sought his advice on a symbol that would capture the spirit and intent of the newly formed organization. According to Prasanta Mukherjee, who wrote about the history of the organisation's emblem in `The Chartered Accountant’ "Sri Aurobindo gave CS Shastri the emblem with a Garuda in the center and a quotation from the Kathopanishad: Ya esa suptesu jagarti, One who is awake amongst those who are asleep." This logo was finally selected amongst all the suggestions which were received.
The choice of Garuda as a mascot was an interesting one. The Garuda packs in strong symbolism as the Vahana of Lord Vishnu. He flies faster than thought and destroys the Nagas and Serpents. Sri Krishna, in the Gita, in the verse 10.30 says: "Vainateyashcha Pakshinam" (I am Garuda, the son of Vinata, among the birds.)
The connection between Garuda and the Nagas is crucial to the philosophy of the logo for the newly founded organization. As Sri Aurobindo once described the connection between Garuda and Nagas thus, "....the winged Garuda revered to be the upbearer of divinity, who opens his vans to the sunlight and soars to the highest seat of Vishnu," is also the eternal destroyer of the Nagas and "the Naga is the symbol of the mysterious earth-bound force in man."
The emblem was placed and adopted at the first meeting of the Council of the Institute in New Delhi on August 15, 1949 which happens to be Sri Aurobindo’s Birthday. What a coincidence!