APRIL-21 BOUDHIK YOJANA
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DATE |
TOPIC |
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Apr 4 |
1. Samachar Sameeksha: ABPS Resolution |
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Apr 11 |
2. Boudhik: Varshapratipada or Ugaadi |
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Apr 18 |
3. Charcha: Religion, temples & Politics |
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Apr 25 |
4. Katha: Pa Pu Doctorji |
Apr-04-2021 Samachar Sameeksha: ABPS Resolutions
Ø ABPS or Akhil Bhartiya Pratinidhi Sabha was arranged in Bangalore from 19th to 20th March
Ø It is the largest agglomeration of top functionaries in RSS and Parivar organizations
Sangh and Swayamsevaks to work towards inculcating Family Values, Environmental issues and Social Harmony – RSS Sarkaryavaha Dattatreya Hosabale
Addressing a press conference today at Jan Seva Vidya kendra in Bengaluru, RSS Sarkaryavaha Dattatreya Hosabale said that the organization will work towards inculcating Family Values, Environmental issues and Social Harmony in the next 3 years.
The unanimous verdict on Shri RamJanmbhoomi by the honorable Supreme Court followed by the formation of a public trust “Shri RamJanmbhoomi Teerth Kshetra” for the construction of the Shri Ram mandir, the sacred ritual for commencing the grand mandir construction, and the NidhiSamarpan campaign have become a golden page in the history of Bharat that shall also inspire generations to come. The ABPS is of the considered opinion that through the aforesaid program the intrinsic strength of Bharat has been invigorated and these programs became the unique symbol of spiritual awakening, national integration, social harmony, goodwill and dedication.
On Bhadrapad Krishna Dwiteeya, yugabda 5122 (5th Aug 2020) entire world elatedly stood witness to the hallowed program of the beginning of temple construction in the esteemed presence of the Honorable Prime Minister of Bharat, Pujaniya Sarasanghachalak of RSS, trustees of Shri RamJanmbhoomi Teerth Kshetra and venerable Saints, Seers and Dharmacharyas of all sects. The ritual was consecrated with sacred soil from the all pilgrim centers and water from all the holy rivers of Bharat. Keeping in view of all the regulations during the height of the Covid 19 pandemic, the gathering was kept limited in number, but its impact was unlimited. Physical presence was finite, but the entire Hindu society joined the program through virtual media. All sections of society and political parties welcomed this event unanimously.
The ABPS of RSS wishes to recognize and put on record the exemplary, collective and comprehensive response of Bharatiya society to the global pandemic Covid-19 and heartily appreciates the role played by every section of the society in containing the ill effects of the pandemic.
Many of our Corona warriors, who rendered selfless service, have laid their lives fighting the pandemic. The ABPS, with devout thankfulness, recollects their courage and sacrifice and expresses immense gratitude. So far, tens of thousands of people have succumbed to the virus. We offer tributes to the departed souls and express heartfelt condolences to the bereaved families.
2)https://samvada.org/2021/others/abps-resolution-2-bharat-stands-as-one-against-covid-19-pandemic/
3) https://www.rss.org/Akhil%20Bharatiya%20%20Annual%20Report%202021%20English.pdf
Apr 11-2021 Boudhik: Varshapratipada
Varshapratipada or Ugaadi or Gudi Padava as we call it is the first day of Hindu New Year.
Panchang
Hindu calendar begins from the month of Chaitra. The month in which Purnima has “Chitra” nakshatra is called Chaitra. Our Panchang is closely tied to variations in celestial objects especially Moon. So every Masa begins from Amavasya or Poornima. Pratipada of Chaitra i.e day following Phalgun Amavsya is first day of our new year.
Astrological significance
It will also mean start of Kaliyugabda 5123. All our Panchang and Jyotisha calculations are based on start of Kaliyug. It is said that as per Gregorian calendar that 18th Feb 3102 BCE is the day of start of Kaliyug. When British came to India they were intrigued by Hindu calendar and studied it with Brahmins of Kashi. Missionaries and British officers sent astronomical tables back to England. They were surprised that Hindus could predict eclipses so accurately as well and go back almost 46 centuries to predict planetary positions.
The planetary positions at start of Kaliyug were found to be accurate and it was concluded that Hindus must have kept a record of it rather than accepting that they possessed deep knowledge of trigonometry and calculus.
Influence on Roman calendar
Varshapratipada falls in March or April of Gregorian calendar. March is derived from Martius, first month of Roman calendar. It remained the first month till 153 BCE and there were religious observances which were actually New year celebrations. It can be surmised that our calendar influenced other calendars as well around the globe.
In fact the months from September to December were actually seventh to tenth months of Roman calendar. They are derived from septem (seven), octo (eight), novem (nine) and decem (ten) in Latin. The words closely resemble the way these numbers are pronounced in Sanskrit (sapta, ashta, nava, dasha).
Yogic significance
Festivals are unique part of each culture and are celebrated with all its fervor across the globe. Bharat especially has the most diverse spread of festivals across regions with new year also beginning at different times. Our Rishis who saw the life as whole and did not divide into silos as West will not leave the festivals for just enjoyment. It is this thought, which is beautifully woven across Yog, Ayurved, Nritya, Sangeet as well if you observe closely. The central piece of Hindu or Vedic thought is Moksha and all pieces of human life revolve around it.
This day also signifies the ‘ghatstaphana’ for Chaitra Navratri. As on the 9th day i.e Navami, Bhagwan Ram is born. A ‘sadhak’ has to begin his ‘sadhana’ to achieve Bhagwan Ram. Our body has been described in Upanishads as ‘ghata’ or an earthen pot which is mortal and takes 9 months to form in mother’s womb. It is said ‘je pindi te brahmandi’ i.e whatever is in pind (body) is also in brahmand (universe), our human body is the best instrument to realize all the knowledge and ultimately achieve ‘Mukti’. The beauty with which it has been woven across festivals is astonishing.
Reference: 1) Science and Technology in Ancient India by Acharya Dharampal 2) Yogic secrets of Vedic Festivals by Yogiraj Manohar Harkare
Apr 18-2021 Charcha: Religion, temples & Politics
The Supreme Court on Monday asked as to why should government officials manage religious places and temples in the country while taking note of the fact that several devotees visiting the Jagannath temple in Puri were being harassed.
A Bench of Justices S.A. Bobde and S.A. Nazeer observed this while hearing a plea which has highlighted difficulties faced by the devotees at Jagannath temple and their alleged harassment and exploitation by the ‘sevaks’ (staff).
“It is a matter of perspective. I do not know why government officials should manage temples?” Justice Bobde observed during the hearing.
Hindu Temples are pillars of strength and source of divine energy for Hindus. Hindu Dharma has existed for thousands of years despite foreign invasions. One of the reasons for which is its Temple culture. Not too many Indians are aware that even though India is officially a secular democracy, state governments in India can take over Hindu temples and their properties, can appoint the people who will run temple committees and operations, and can take away hundi collections and other donations from temples and use them even for non-Hindu purposes. And they have been doing this for almost six decades now all over India. Such government interference does not occur with churches or mosques or gurudwaras or other places of worship of non-Hindu faiths. They are left alone by the government, and are allowed to own and operate their institutions autonomously, without state interference. In secular India, with an 83% majority of her citizens being Hindus, Hindu temples are singled out for government control and management.
How Hindu temples came under Government control ?
The British government in collusion with local leaders in Orissa took over the properties of the famed Puri Jagannath temple in 1878. Continuing the stance of the British regime and its proxies towards the appropriation and looting of Hindu temples, Indian politicians after Independence in 1947 concocted the fatally flawed, and the blatantly anti-secular, Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments Act (HRCE Act) in 1951 to “provincialise the administration of Hindu Religious Institutions.” Under its aegis, variously amended and often challenged by Hindu groups over the years, the state governments have taken over thousands of temples, generally under the pretext of preventing “mismanagement” by Hindus. In other words, Hindus, and only Hindus, are not considered capable of managing their places of worship without government oversight.
Thousands of small and medium temples, in addition to nationally and historically important temples such as Jagannath in Puri, Tirupati, Kashi Vishwanath, Vaishno Devi, Shirdi, Guruvayoor, Chamundi Devi, Dattapeeth, Kali Mandir of Patiala,Amarnath, Badrinath, and Kedarnath, are already under government control, and have been so for decades in many cases.
Status of Hindu Temples
This astounding fact of a supposedly secular government operating, selling the assets of, distributing the collections of, and in other ways imposing state control — often with appointees who are non-Hindu, and even anti-Hindu, bureaucrats or politicians —over Hindu temples, is directly responsible for the pathetic condition of many Hindu temples in India. Many magnificent buildings are deteriorating; and even the daily ritual of cleaning and purifying the precincts is not happening. Some temples don’t even have oil for their lamps because the paltry rupees the government promised when it took over the temple seldom comes on time; priests on miserly salaries are reduced to poverty and asking for money from devotees. These are all too common sights at many Hindu temples today. While there are many causes for the problems faced by temples, chief among them is the misappropriation of temples’ lands and monies.
Examples and Effects of Government Interference
The devastation caused to Hindu temples and other institutions, as a direct result and consequence of the HRCE act, can be illustrated by a few examples:
Maharashtra
Siddhi Vinayak Temple
The famous Siddhi Vinayak Temple in Mumbai was “nationalized”, i.e. the state government took over its previously independent board of trustees, in 1981. Various political and government appointees have siphoned off crores of rupees out of the temple’s coffers. Some of this money is given out as ‘donations’ — of Rs. 50 lakhs or more — to other non-profit institutions, selected on the basis of political connections.
Karnataka
In 2002, from the 2,07,000 temples in Karnataka the government took in revenues of Rs. 72 crores, returned Rs. 10 crores for temple maintenance, and granted Rs. 50 crores for madrasas, and Rs. 10 crores for churches. The fundamental question to be asked is: Why is money from Hindu temples disappearing into government accounts in the first place, to be distributed to other third party interests, be it non-Hindu or otherwise? Why did only six crores make it back to the temples that generated the Rs. 72 crores? An estimated 50,000 temples have shut down during the last five years in Karnataka due to lack of resources. How can this happen if there is a surplus Rs. 66 crores of Hindu temple money in the hands of the government?
Andhra Pradesh
A. Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanam (TTD)
The government demolished a centuries old, 1000 pillar mantapam in the Tirumala complex.
The state government has not denied a charge that 85% percent of revenues from the TTD, which collects over Rs. 3,100 crores every year as the richest temple in India, are transferred to the state exchequer. The non-temple use of this colossal amount of money is not fully accounted for by the government.
An attempt to take over five of the seven hills that belong to Lord Venkateswara,according to legal deeds, and hand them to Christian institutions, was thwarted last year only when Hindu religious leaders, under the aegis of the Hindu Dharma Acharya Sabha united to lodge strong, and unprecedented, protests.
B. Elsewhere in Andhra Pradesh, out of 420,028 acres owned by temples in Vishakhapatnam, Kakinada, Guntur, Kurnool, Warangal, and Hyderabad, 60,843 acres were allowed to be occupied illegally by professional land grabbers. The state government, the inheritor of the responsibility under the HRCE Act to prevent such actions, did nothing to prevent these incursions, even though it has a staff of over 77,000 people (paid from a 15% charge on temple revenues) to look after temple interests.
C. In August 2005, the state decided to sell 100,000 acres of the Sri Narasimha Swamy Temple in Simhachalam and other nearby temples.
https://www.hindujagruti.org/hindu-issues/save-temples/free-hindu-temples-from-government
Apr-25-2021 Katha: Pa Pu Doctor Hedgewar
Dr. Hedgewar was born on Varsha Pratipada (Yugaadi) in 1889, Apr 1st. His parents were Baliram Pant Hedgewar and Revatibai, a couple of modest people. Even as a child, his flaming spirit of patriotism was transparent to one and all. As a tiny tot he asked questions which amazed his elders: "How could these handful of foreigners (the English) coming from six thousand miles away become our masters?". Even as a school boy, he entered the arena of freedom movement and bore its brunt.
22nd June 1897. On that day, Queen Victoria of England completed exactly 60 years of her ascent to the British throne. Naturally, an atmosphere of pompous festivity of that Diamond Jubilee prevailed everywhere. The British Government had arranged grand functions in all villages, towns and cities in Bharat too. Among other things, they distributed sweets among the school children. The poor were served with food. But amidst all this, one young boy was not happy. He threw away the sweets given to him, and sat alone in a corner brooding. His elder brother came and asked him, "Why are you downcast? Didn't you get the sweets?" 'What's there in that sweet?" - The boy pointed to the sweets thrown away by him and added, "But why should we celebrate the jubilee of the Queen who has snatched away our Bhonsle's kingdom?" The sweets, which were sweet to others, were bitter for this boy.
In 1905 Lord Curzon, the then Viceroy of Bharat, partitioned the Bengal Province into two. This was the time when "Vande Mataram" had become the refrain of the freedom struggle. Keshav was then studying in Neel City High School of Nagpur. The very mention of "Vande Mataram" used to enrage the British. One day during 1908, an officer of the Department of Education arrived for inspection of the Neel City High School. Barely had they reached the threshold of the classroom when, like a bolt from the blue, a deafening cry of "Vande Mataram" rang out of that classroom piercing the ears of the duo. The Inspector was angry beyond words. Shutting his tears, he moved to the next class. There too, the same scene awaited him: same resounding roar of "Vande Mataram" greeted him.
He graduated from the Calcutta Medical College. But he had long back vowed to remain a bachelor and dedicate himself at the altar of the motherland. He chose to become the `Doctor of the Nation'.
At Nagpur he plunged into the various freedom struggles, as the duck takes to water. He underwent hard terms in prison. He participated in social activities as well. But in none of these he found the final means of national emancipation. After deep cogitation, the Doctor made his diagnosis: absence of national awareness, i.e., utter lack of the feeling of being the organic limbs of a single national life, and the resultant mutual selfish feuds - well, it was these which had eaten into the vitals of our nation over the last one thousand years.
When Pandit Madan Mohan Malaveeya was visiting Nagpur (1926), P.P.Doctorji brought him over to the then Sangha shakha. Pandit Malaveeya was overjoyed to see the inspired youth and their games. Looking at the dilapidation and ruins surrounding the shakha ground, Pandit Malaveeya thought that sangha must be facing a desperate shortage of funds (which indeed, was the case). He said to P.P.Doctorji: "Doctor sahib, people call me " King of Beggars" -I am famous as a fund-raiser. If you say so, I can beg around and raise some funds for your organization.” P.P.Doctorji replied with humility: "Panditji, I have a shortage of inspired manpower, not of money. For our work, we seek blessings of elders like you, that is sufficient." Pandit Malaveeya was stunned and speechless to hear this. After a while, he said: "Doctorji, my heart is filled with joy -I have heard such a noble sentiment for the first time. You put people above money; everywhere else the reverse is usually true. I will spread the word about Sangha everywhere I go!"
Doctorji never posed himself as a great person. In fact, he shunned publicity. Doctorji's life was, simple and austere. Ordinary footwear on his feet; a simple dhoti-, an ordinary shirt on his person: a coat with collar, and a high cap on his head this was all that constituted his attire. When Doctorji was available in Nagpur, many acquaintances were coming to his house. It was his habit to welcome all respectfully and make kind inquiries about their welfare. If he found that the visitors had no arrangements for staying elsewhere, he would invite them to stay in his house, and to partake in the humble roti available in his house. In case the food available was insufficient, he would say, "I have had my meal. Kindly come and have food."
At the spot where the RSS Karyalaya (Dr. Hedgewar Bhavan) stands today, there was a dilapidated, ancient "Mohitewada" (place of the Mohite Dynasty) building in the past. It actually was little better than a heap of broken bricks and stones. On the assigned clean up day, swayamsevak were dumbfounded to see that Doctorjee was the first to arrive, and he was cleaning up, removing dirty, stinking, rotting garbage with great enthusiasm. This was a great lesson to the rest of us: Any work of Sangha, however small or big, important or not, even the chief of RSS (Sarasanghachalak) will personally do it. In every small or big event, his behavior gave us the message that he was one among all other Swayamsevaks, and that he expected no special treatment. He came, like all others, to the shakha on time, wore the Ganavesh (uniform) and participated in all the shakha activities.
Reference: 1) Dr Hedgewar by N H Palkar 2) Dr Hedgewar: Architects of Modern India by Prof Rakesh Sinha
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