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New Delhi, October 4, 2017 : You might have been moved by the way followers of the Hindu dharma bow down and welcome you inside their homes. Or by the way Hindu women dress, with jewellery adorning their hands and legs. Who doesn't like the crinkling of their bangles, after all? But have you ever wondered the rationale behind their customs and traditions?

According to popular notions, the traditions and practices of the Hindu dharma have been equated with superstitions. However, a deeper look into the practices reveal that they are based on scientific knowledge and have been observed over generations , keeping in mind a more holistic approach.

Hinduism can hence, be called a dharmic scientific religion rather than just scientific religion. We prove you how!

1. Worshiping the Peepal tree

Hindu dharma entails a myriad gods and goddesses and there exist a variety of reasons that propagate worship of Peepal tree. According to Brahma Purana, demons Ashvattha and Peepala hid inside and lured people to touch the Peepal tree and consecutively killed them. They were killed by lord Shani and hence the tree has been worshiped ever since. Another legend believed Goddess Lakshmi resides under the Peepal tree every Saturday which lends it a divinely touch. Another school of thought believes lord Hanuman sat on top of the Peepal tree in Lanka to witness the hardships faced by Sita.

The Peepal tree does not have a succulent fruit, lacks strong wood and does no good other than provide shade. However, it continues to enjoy increasing devotion from people practicing the Hindu dharma. Science confirms that Peepal is the only tree which produces oxygen even during the night. Hence, in order to preserve this unique property, ancestors of the Hindu dharma related it to God. Additionally, the tree is of utmost significance in Ayurveda and its bark and leaves are used to treat diseases and illnesses.

2. Do not chew leaves of Tulsi plant

The Tulsi plant is revered in the Hindu dharma. Apart from its medicinal qualities, the plant is also known for its symbolic presence in Hindu mythology.

According to popular belief, Tulsi is the wife of Lord Vishnu. Hence, biting and chewing it is considered disrespectful.

However, according to botanists, Tulsi has high quantities of mercury. If raw mercury comes in contact with teeth (calcium), it can possibly result in inundation, making the teeth fall. Hence, leaves of the Tulsi plant are suggested to be swallowed and not chewed.

3. Applying tilak on your forehead

Application of tilak is a religious ac. According to the Hindu dharma, the forehead signifies spirituality. Hence, application of a tilak on the forehead denotes an individual's thoughts and conviction towards spirituality. Various Vedic scriptures and Upanishads maintain that energy, potency and divinity comes to those who apply a tilak.

However, science asserts that during the application of a tilak, the central point in the forehead and the Adnya-chakra automatically pressed which encourages blood supply to the facial muscles. According to body anatomy, a major nerve point is located in the middle of the eye brows on the forehead. Application of the red tilak is believed to maintain vitality in the body and prevent the loss of energy. The Tilak is also believed to control and enhance concentration.

4. Obsessive cleaning during Diwali

Diwali, the festival of lights honors the goddess Lakshmi, the deity of wealth. The festival also commemorates the return of lord Ram after an exile of 14 years to his kingdom in Ayodhya. According to Hindu mythology, the night of his return was a new moon night. To illuminate his path in the pitch dark night, the villagers of Ayodhya cleaned the entire village and lit it with lamps.

Hence, Diwali is preceded by extensive cleaning of the entire house in honor of both the deities of Hindu mythology. Legend also believed goddess Lakshmi comes home on Diwali and thereby, the entire place should be cleaned and decorated to welcome the goddess.

However, science backs the concept and explains that Diwali essentially falls in October and November, and mark beginning of winters and end of monsoon season.

In older times, the monsoons were not a good period as they were characteristic of excessive rains that often resulted in floods and damaged homes, which then needed repair. This is why people indulged in repair, cleaning and beautification of their homes.

5. Folding your hands for 'Namaskar'

You will often find people practicing Hindu dharma greeting people by joining their palms together. The 'Namaskar' is believed to signify respect for people.

This pose requires an individual to join all finger tips together that carry the pressure points of ears, eyes and mind. Science says pressing them together activates these pressure points, making our mind attentive. This aids us to remember people for a longer duration.

The Namaskar can also be backed up by an act to maintain hygiene and cleanliness since it does not involve any physical contact.

6. Wearing toe rings

Traditionally, toe rings are worn by married woman on the second toe and are treated as a sign of holy matrimony. However, they are believed to be a part of the Indian culture since the times of Ramayana when Sita threw her toe ring for her husband lord Ram, upon being abducted by Ravana.

Science says that a nerve on this toe connect the uterus to the heart. Wearing a ring on this finger helps regulate blood flow, thereby, strengthening the uterus and regulating menstrual cycle. It is also believed to have an erotic effect.

7. Applying henna on hands and feet

Mehendi or henna is usually applied during weddings and festivals to enhance the beauty of the women-folk. According to popular beliefs, the color of the henna denotes the affection a girl will enjoy from her husband and mother-in-law.

However, science provides rationale of applying henna during the stressful times of festivals and weddings. Festivity stress can bring fevers and migraines, which when mixed with excitement and nervous anticipation can prove to be harmful for an individual.

Thus, besides lending color, henna also possesses medicinal qualities that relieve stress and keeps the hands and feet cool thereby shielding the nerves from getting tense.

8. Fasting during Navratri

There are four major Navratris throughout the year, however only two are celebrated on a grand scale. Throughout the nine day festival, devotees observe ritualistic fasts, perform several pujas and offer bhog (holy food) to Goddess Durga in an attempt to gratify her.

But according to science, these navratris are celebrated when the seasons are transitioning. As the seasons and the temperatures change, our eating habits also do.

Fasting during Navratri allows our bodies to adjust to the changing temperature. Individuals get a chance to detox their bodies by quitting excessive salt, sugar and oil. Additionally, Navratris allow them to meditate and gain positive energy. This helps them prepare for the upcoming change in seasons.

9. Applying sindoor

In traditional Hindu societies, the Sindoor denotes a woman's desire for their spouse's longetivity. The red powder is believed to be the color of power, symbolizing the female energy of Parvati and Sati. The Hindu dharma holds a woman is 'complete' or ideal only when she wears Sindoor.

Science explains that sindoor is made out of Vermilion, which is the decontaminated and powdered type of cinnabar (mercury sulfide). Because of its characteristic properties, mercury is known to reduce anxiety, control blood pressure and also initiate sexual desire, the primary reason why married women are advised to wear the 'holy' red powder. This is also the reason why widows are prohibited from wearing sindoor.

10. Wearing bangles on wrists

Bangles have been worn in the Hindu dharma since times immemorial- goddesses are also pictured to adorn these beautiful rings in their wrists. Bangles are believed to enhance feminine grace and beauty. The Hindu dharma almost makes it mandatory for newly-wed brides and to-be brides to wear bangles as they are believed to symbolize the well-being of the husbands and the sons.

Science suggests the constant friction caused by wearing bangles in the wrists expands the blood flow level. Besides this, the energy passing through the external skin is once again returned to one's own body due to the round-molded bangles which has no ends to pass the energy out.

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Hindu Dharma and Science :10 Hindu Customs Explained by Science

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New Delhi, October 4, 2017 : You might have been moved by the way followers of the Hindu dharma bow down and welcome you inside their homes. Or by the way Hindu women dress, with jewellery adorning their hands and legs. Who doesn't like the crinkling of their bangles, after all?

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How a quest to define the faith has resulted in a shift of power away from the common man.

A young British Muslim girl visited Mumbai and saw the line of people making their way to the Dargah at Haji Ali. She turned to her friend, and said, 'That's not real Islam.' She herself did not wear a hijab as she was educated and privileged enough to argue that wearing a hijab is not an essential feature of Islam. Religious leaders in Saudi Arabia would not agree, however.

Defining the truth of any religion is tough. More so in Hinduism, than Islam, as Hinduism has no clearly identifiable 'go-to' holy book such as the Quran. So how does one define Hinduism? Must one define Hinduism at all? Isn't the strength of Hinduism that it needs to be discovered rather than defined? Sadly, modern scholarship is designed around definitions. And different people are defining Hinduism differently, from American academicians to Indian politicians, from Brahmin clergy to Dalit revolutionaries. Each has an agenda.

Until the 19th century, only religious leaders defined what religion was; no outsider was allowed to do it. Those who opposed these leaders and came up with their own definitions were cast out, and forced to start sects of their own, which thrived only if they secured political support.

Europeans invented the word religion only in the 19th century. Until colonial times, there was no need for the word as most Europeans believed that only one religion existed in the world - their own - and everyone who did not share their views was either an infidel or a heretic. Yet, at the time Europe was busy burning witches and Jews, Kabir was composing songs of religious harmony in India.

Europe grudgingly acknowledged the existence of alternate religions, such as Buddhism, only to gain a foothold of trade in Japan, whose rulers brutally blocked all missionary activities. It was a strategic, not asn authentic, move. The violence of 1857 in India, forced the British crown to pull back the religious, or rather 'civilising' agenda and focus on commerce. But efficient commerce meant efficient governance, which meant good law, and law demands documentation, and definition. That is when the fluid Hinduism became fixed, in templates created by outsiders.

But as the colonisers discovered, Hindu society had no single authority, and was mapped around caste. Then they realised even local Muslims and Christians clung to their caste roots that determined their position in the village hierarchy. Worse, there was no uniform caste structure across the land. Castes that existed in the North did not exist in the East or West, or South. This made documentation, and defining, difficult. But the British were determined to conquer the beast, give Hinduism a proper shape, complete with a holy book (Veda? Manusmriti? Gita?).

This has led some academicians to conclude that Hinduism was an invention of the British, just like India. Such a conclusion reveals an engineering mindset - a mindset that assumes that if something does not fit into a box (as elements fit into a periodic table), it cannot exist.

Most academicians studying Hinduism were familiar with religions that have a top-down origin, descending from a person and/or a book like Buddhism, Judaism, Islam and Christianity. The idea that religion can be bottom-up, an organic creation of tribes and communities, over hundreds of years, with no singular authority, despite the presence of numerous authority figures, was, and is alien to many.

That is why we are, just like Orientalists of 19th century, conditioned to look to the Vedas to understand Hinduism, rather than looking at practices and beliefs around them. We assume there is a 'real' Hinduism out there, in the past, and the pathfinder is either a religious guru or a secular academic. Thus we hand over power to those on top, when in fact, the power exists at the bottom.

This is what has ruined Africa. Unable to formalise tribal religions, European rulers simply displaced it with monotheistic mythologies. The continent, once home to many tribes, was first cut like a cake into nation-states, with boundaries splitting tribes, and is now the warzone between Christian and Islamic fundamentalists, both of whom deny the existence of homosexuals and transgenders, and, in the name of God, even refuse to give contraceptives to heterosexual men and women. Religion is being forced from the top, as it is powerful tool to harness votes.

Democracy demands subscription to one idea if one wishes to dominate. What should this idea be? Science mocks diverse tribal beliefs as irrational. Secular ideas are not empowering. How does one rally a mob? The idea of one God is so much easier. And hence the need for Bharat Mata as a goddess, and a song to praise her, Vande Mataram, never mind if the song was actually written for Bengal, not India. This new artificial top-down view of Hinduism is convenient for politicians, and activists. For the rest, a bottom-up exploration of Hinduism, with its refusal to be boxed, makes better sense.

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How a quest to define the faith has resulted in a shift of power away from the common man. A young British Muslim girl visited Mumbai and saw the line of people making their way to the Dargah at Haji Ali. She turned to her friend, and said, 'That's not real Islam.'

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May we never hate each other.
The Katha Upanishad
The aim of this essay is to recover the true history and real meaning of key words, which have got muddled in the time of aggressive political and cultural propaganda.
How did Hindus become Hindu
It was the imperial British who demarcated on basis of religious beliefs - before that all major religious beliefs and practices, which originated in India, were termed together as Hindu - a word coined by the Persians to denote the land beyond the Sindhu or Indus river - after whom India has been named.

The name Indica has been used by the Greeks to name India since the time of Herodotus and Megasthenes. Two works with the same title Indica - by Megasthenes and Arrian - described the Indian subcontinent.

So the name of India got linked to the Indus River. The Persians followed the Greeks and named India after the river. But they followed the original Sanskrit name for Indus, and derived Hindu from Sindhu. In old Persian, "s" sounded like "h".

So Hindu originally had a geographical connotation - from the Persian perspective - to denote "the land beyond the Sindhu"; the term wasn't coined to denote any religious meaning. The suffix "stan" - indicative of a geographical place - was added to form "Hindustan".

Sindhu in Sankrit also means river. India is that ancient river which is flowing since 5,500 years, or according to a recent archaeological discovery that happened in 2016, for 8,000 years.

That's why the word "Hindu" doesn't appear in the four Vedas, the Upanishads and the Buddhist scriptures. Even Adi Shankaracharya - who is known to have revived "" in the 8th century after centuries of Buddhism - didn't have the word "Hindu" in his consciousness or vocabulary. He introduced the esoteric "Advaita" philosophy for the learned, while he simultaneously revived the worship of gods and goddesses for the masses.

Adi Shankaracharya also established the famous four peethas at Sringeri (South), Joshimath (North), Puri (East) and Dwarka (West). But he never used the word "Hindu" in any of his works of philosophy, commentary and spiritual poetry.

But Buddhism didn't completely vanish from India. The Buddhist Pala dynasty ruled Eastern India - including Vanga - from 750 CE to 1174 CE during which the proto-Bengali language was developed along with the early "Bengali" culture.

The word "Hindu" doesn't appear in any ancient text of Sanatan Dharma - of all sub-religions and sub-cultures - before few Sanskrit texts started to use the word after 12th century.

The various traditions used their philosophical and spiritual practices such as Vaishnavs, Shakta, Mahayana, Vajrayana, Advaita etc - to identify themselves. But no one called themselves Hindus.

India is that ancient river which is flowing since 5,500 years, or according to a recent archaeological discovery that happened in 2016, for 8,000 years.

The Punjab region - Sapta Sindhava of the Vedas - has been called Hapta Hindu in Zend Avesta. A 6 BCE stone inscription of Persian King Darius I mentioned the land of Hi(n)dush - referred to North-Western India. The people of India were also referred as Hinduvan and Hindavi in the 8th century Persian text Chachnama. As pointed out earlier, the word "Hindu" is an ethnographic geographical word and didn't denote any religion. Al-Biruni's 11th century text Tarikh Al-Hind and also the texts of the Delhi Sultanate used the word "Hindu" to denote all non-Islamic people of India, and it remained ambiguous about whether Hindu denoted a region or a religion.

In the late 12th century, Prithviraj Raso by Chanda Bardai - that some scholars say was written later than 1192 - documented the defeat of Prithviraj Chauhan at the hands of Muhammad Ghori. That text is full of references to "Hindus" and "Turks".

Here as well geographical meaning was used - it was a battle between "Hindus and Turks"; not Hindus and Muslims.

The Indian invaders didn't come from Persia - the seat of Islamic high culture represented by modern day Iran - but they came from Central Asia and they were mostly Turks.

The main religion of ancient Persia was Zoroastrianism. That was transformed by the Arab Conquest of Persia in 651 CE that expanded the Islamic Caliphate.

King Darius I of the Zoroastrian Persia annexed parts of the Indus Valley in the north in 515 BCE, when the rest of ancient India was dominated by sixteen Mahajanapadas (great countries in Sanskrit) that included Magadha in the East - from where the Maurya and the Gupta Empires evolved and spread.

The Muslim Persian never tried to conquer India throughout its history. They never sent out an army towards Hind to annexe it with the Persian Empire and their scholars translated countless Sanskrit texts into Persian.

So what is being viewed as "Muslim invasions" in present India in context of our history wasn't viewed as such in the medieval times of the invasions. The invaders were Central Asian Turkish warriors who were exceptionally skilled as horsemen. The first Mughal emperor Babur was a Central Asian Uzbeg. He was born in Andijan, Timurid Empire that is present day Uzbekistan.

Even the Lodhi Sultanate Dynasty that Babur dethroned in Delhi originated from Afghan Pastun dynasty that was ruling North India since 1451.

Muhammad of Ghazni, Muhammad Ghori and the Khilji dynasty - all originated from modern-day Afghanistan.

One has to keep in mind that the great empires of ancient India - such as the Mauryas and the Guptas - had extended beyond Afghanistan into Central Asia. Many of the Turks and Afghans who are now seen as "invaders into India" came from regions which were once part of the ancient empires of India.

*

The Persian "Hindu" slowly caught on among the people of India and they started to use that word to denote the difference between them and the Turks. Certain 16th-18th century Bengali Gaudiya Vaishnava texts started to use the word Hindu to contrast themselves with Yavanas (foreigners).

Chaitanya Charitamrita (16th century) and Bhakta Mala (17th century) - both in Bengali - used the phrase "Hindu dharma".

There are countless more examples. But the essential truth is that the people of India started to think themselves to be "Hindus" slowly over several centuries, after 12th century. This happened because of the Central Asian invasions that slowly popularised the Persian word among the populace. And the Imperial British added "ism" to Hindu in the early 19th century in order to execute its divide and rule strategy.

All the three words: Hindus, Hindustan and Hinduism have no connection with ancient India, prior to 12th century. They began to get accepted gradually after 16th century by a larger populace.

The recent DNA genealogy studies - from multiple sources - suggest: India has been populated primarily by three waves of ancient migrations. The last two waves from Central Asia, Caucus region and southern Siberia - around 12,000-15,000 years and 4,500-3,500 years ago - have given birth to India of now, in terms of "Hindu" population.

Hindus are also the descendents of "invaders" into India; our world has been formed by migrations, and continues to be formed by migrations.

But the ideology thinks India as a "pure land" for "pure Hindus". The ideology staunchly identifies with the three crucial words - "Hindu" and "Hindustan" coined by the Persians and "Hinduism" coined by the British - which are at the heart of its nationalistic narrative and worldview.

The three words - Hindu, Hindustan and Hinduism - were coined and popularised by Muslims and Christians - whom the Hindutva ideology identifies as "invaders".

The irony of this truth is astonishing.

*

All the diverse philosophical traditions and the sub-traditions which originated in India are part of Sanatan Dharma that translates to "Eternal Law" or "Eternal Way of Things" or "Eternal Order". What are now called Hinduism, Buddhism or Jainism were the sub-cultures (with sub-sub-cultures) within the larger culture of Sanatan Dharma.

Sanatan Dharma has to be seen like a Great Wheel whose spokes are the diverse thoughts and belief systems which originated in India. Most of the major systems also imbibed aspects from the other systems of thoughts - ideas were mixed with other ideas to create more ideas. So the flow of Sanatan Dharma over time was like a braided stream.

Plurality and syncretism were the essential part of Sanatan Dharma; this is reflected in the diversity of modern India.

S Radhakrishnan's Indian Philosophy and Surendranath Dasgupta's A History of Indian Philosophy record the progression of all the major schools of thought which have shaped our history and culture. All the traditions and sub-traditions of all the religions under Sanatan Dharma stem from the major schools of Indian thought: the Vedas, the Upanishads, Buddhism, Jainism, Samkhyas, Advaita, Kashmir Shaivism and so on. They have got mingled with myths, legends, folklore, epic literature, passage of history and regional propensities to produce the diversity of religious and spiritual practices of India.

So where does Hindutva fit within this scheme of things? From where did the word come into our consciousness?

I have observed that books which have been written while the author is incarcerated tend to have a lasting impact in some sphere or the other.

In 1923, while being incarcerated in Ratnagiri, VD Savarkar wrote his manifesto Essentials of Hindutva. He coined the word Hindutva to frame his far-right political philosophy that uses nationalism and religious identity. Hindutva was ideated by Savarkar, not the spiritual sages of India. In the essay Hindutva: Who is a Hindu? Savarkar himself wrote, "Hindutva is not identical with what is vaguely indicated by the term Hinduism." His aim was the political mobilisation of all those with "Hindu" identity to form a nation of militant nationalists.

By this time Savarkar was already a political person. In 1915, he had founded the right wing political party Akhil Bharatiya Hindu Mahasabha.

VD Savarkar coined the word Hindutva to frame his far-right political philosophy.

Dr KB Hedgewar read Savarkar's Essentials of Hindutva and was greatly inspired by the ideas. He severed his association with Indian National Congress and founded the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) in 1925.

The Sangh Parivar started its journey when Hindu Mahasabha joined forces with RSS, and the Parivar adopted Savarkar's Hindutva to frame their essential far-right ideology that was also influenced by MS Golwalkar - the second sarsanghchalak or the second supreme leader of the RSS.

So Hindutva took birth as a political ideology and has little connection with the esoteric philosophical and spiritual ideals of Hinduism/Sanatan Dharma. It has always linked itself with patriarchal conservatism and ritualistic religion which they framed as "Hindu culture" and "Indian culture" while neglecting the plural and secular traditions of the broader and more diverse Hinduism/Sanatan Dharma.

The RSS also campaigned for Manusmriti as the Indian Constitution. Its inherent ultra-orthodox worldview always opposed liberal and progressive principles. They still dream to alter the Indian Constitution and change the Indian Tricolour to saffron.

They also tend to think that the "Hindi-Hindustani" version of Hinduism is superior to the other kinds of Hinduism that are practised, especially in the South and Eastern India. They look down upon plurality as a sort of "religious and cultural" distortion.

India never had a single all-powerful Church-like organisation to define the practices of Hinduism/Sanatan Dharma. This allowed multiple orthodox and unorthodox traditions and sub-traditions to take birth and flourish in India.

Respecting the freedom of the human spirit to seek, interpret, develop and pursue religious and spiritual activities as per one's own will and preference is an unsung hallmark of Indian civilisation. Plurality is not only the reality of modern of India, but it is also the essential "civilisational spirit" of our land.

*

In reality, when one looks behind the symbolisms, tokenisms and propaganda, one can assess that the ideals and principles of "Hindu Rashtra" resemble Hindutva Rashtra. More than "Hindu" interests, they represent Hindutva interest.

The far-right ideology was also influenced by MS Golwalkar - the second sarsanghchalak.

Looking at our times, I am not sure, whether the Hindutva leaders and supporters believe in any of the prime concepts of Hinduism/Sanatan Dharma: truth, non-violence and karma.

So one shouldn't confuse Hindutva with Hinduism/Sanatan Dharma; Hindutva is not a religious idea, but a far-right political ideology, just as Zionism is the far right political ideology of Judaism.

The essential aim of any political ideology is to seek political power. The far right ideologies tend to exploit religion in a way that other moderate, liberal and progressive ideologies don't.

By supporting or opposing Hindutva, one doesn't necessarily support or oppose Hinduism.

By supporting or opposing the government, one doesn't necessarily support or oppose India.

Democracy gives the power to the people to rightfully oppose those who are in power; when this power of the people is diluted, then democracy turns into anti-democratic authoritarianism.

The government is not the nation; neither Hindutva is Hinduism.

The "politically-motivated" practice to call those who oppose the BJP government or the Hindutva ideology as "anti-nationals" and "anti-Hindus" is absurd. It's a manufactured polarisation and a psychological operation to divide people for the sake of political power.

The "non-Hindutva Hindus" in our country are not "lesser Hindus" as the far-right would want their supporters to believe. The "non-Hindutva Hindus" are being derided as "sickulars", "libtards", "leftists" and so on.

The Hindutva brigade is aggressively fighting the fellow citizens of one's own country and all the fellow Hindus who don't ascribe to its ideology. They have made "enemies" out of people, who simply don't agree with them.

Hinduism/Sanatan Dharma is so vast and diverse, that no single definition of Hinduism can exist or be imposed upon India. That's why the Supreme Court of India defined Hinduism as a "way of life".

The socio-cultural engineering mission of the Hindi-Hindustan-Hindutva brigade to "convert" all the Hindus of India with their practices, worldview and angst-ridden ideals, is doomed to flounder.

India is syncretic, multi-lingual, multi-cultural and diverse. When a single political party, religious organisation or a linguistic cultural group self-select themselves as the sole custodian of Hinduism, and wish to impose their ways on the rest, then they not only cause regional anxieties and stressful fissures in the wider social fabric, but they also violate the traditional "civilisational spirit" of our land.

Theocracy-infused nationalism or 'theo-nationalism' that supplants humanism cannot also define patriotism in the 21st century when our collective progress is deeply inter-connected with the world.

One also doesn't need to hate targeted groups of fellow citizens to display love for one's nation. Social, cultural and communal tensions in the time of a severe economic downturn will only peg back India.

Those who are misunderstanding Hindutva as Hinduism and Hindutva nationalism as Indian nationalism should examine the nature of the ideals, values and actions which they are unwittingly supporting, and contrast them with the essential spiritual and philosophical principles of Hinduism/Sanatan Dharma.

Also read: Is India unknowingly 'aiding' North Korea's cyber war against the US?

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How did Hindus become Hindu and why Hindutva is not Hinduism

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May we never hate each other. The Katha Upanishad The aim of this essay is to recover the true history and real meaning of key words, which have got muddled in the time of aggressive political and cultural propaganda.

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During the nine-day Navaratri festival, hundreds of thousands of people and followers of Shakti cult from all over country but more so from Jaipur and surrounding areas will continue to throng the temple to pay offerings to Shila Mata.

It is said that the revered and famous idol of Durga at the temple was brought by Raja Man Singh I of Amber from Jessore of East Bengal in 1604 CE which was recovered from sea in the form of a shila or slab and thus acquired the name Shila Mata.

Meanwhile, according to an official release, the elephant rides to the Amber Palace and at Jaleb Chowk have been halted. However, the evening sound-and-light show at the palace will continue as usual for the tourists. The elephant rides will resume from October 1, added the release.

The elephant rides have been suspended looking at the crowds of the devotees that visit the famed temple that belongs to the Shakti cult subscribing worship of Durga in her varied forms as goddess of power as well as feminine divine energy of creation, preservation and destruction.

Though the temple premises are visited daily by tourists for its architectural beauty consisting of immaculate workmanship consisting of elegantly carved pillars, walls, panels with floral patterns, but the devotion, piety and reverence of devotees is worth watching during Navaratri.

In devotional Hinduism, broadly three paths to self-realisation exist, namely, Shaktism, Vaishnavism and Shaivism. The popularity of Shaktism is on the rise if one looks at number of devotees that visit Vaishno Devi in the north and Meenakhi Temple in the south.

This also shows that principally, devout Hindus are needed to be brought up with a deep reverence for the female principle and treat the feminine divine as an essential part of their religious experience.

In Hinduism, a mother is given the status of a Goddess. The mool matra of Shaktism is 'Matru Devo Bhava'.

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Devotees throng famed Shila Mata temple at Amber Palace in Jaipur to mark beginning of Navaratri festival

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During the nine-day Navaratri festival, hundreds of thousands of people and followers of Shakti cult from all over country but more so from Jaipur and surrounding areas will continue to throng the temple to pay offerings to Shila Mata.

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The worship of Devi in Sri Chakra is set forth by Adi Shankara in his 'Prapanchasara' and 'Saundaryalahari', and this form of worship occupies a high place in the traditions of the Maths organised by him.

Shakti worship, properly understood, is a synthesis and harmony in which diverse, and sometimes, conflicting tendencies of human endeavour have been accommodated, and each, in union with the rest, has been assured its fullest development and satisfaction.

An adept in Sri Vidya can be a Shakta at heart, a Shaivite in outlook and a Vaishnavite in practice. That such a reconciliation is not only possible, but necessary, was revealed to us in Sri Ramakrishna, the avatara purusha of the age. He has proved that all paths pursued with devotion, lead to the one God, that mantras are efficacious, that yantras are potent, that devatas and higher powers exist, that siddhis do come, and that, step by step, the Divine Mother leads the sadhaka to higher and higher levels of perfection till he reaches the goal.

Sri Ramakrishna says: "That which is Brahmn is also Kali, the Mother, the Primal Energy. When inactive, it is called Brahmn. Again, when creating, preserving and destroying, it is called Shakti. Still water is an illustration of Brahmn. The same water, moving in waves, may be compared to Shakti or Kali.

What is the meaning of Kali? She who communes with Maha Kala, the Absolute, is Kali. She is formless and, again, she has forms. If you believe in the formless aspect, then meditate on Kali, as that. If you meditate on any aspect of hers with firm conviction, she will let you know her true nature.

Ultimate Reality is Sat-Chit-Ananda, Existence-Consciousness-Bliss. The essence in man is identical with this reality but under the influence of maya, illusion, he has forgotten his true nature. He takes to be real, a merely apparent world of subject and object, and this error is the cause of his bondage and suffering.

The goal of all spiritual practice is the rediscovery of his true identity with Reality. For the achievement of this goal, Vedanta prescribes an austere method of discrimination and renunciation. The way is, 'Neti neti', to negate the asat or unreal upadhis.

If upadhis are eliminated through service to a guru and proper enquiry, one realises the identity of the jivatman and Paramatman. But this is not so easily done.

Sri Krishna says in the Bhagwad Gita, "The difficulty of those whose thoughts are set on the unmanifested, is greater, for the goal of the unmanifested Brahmn is hard to reach for embodied beings (who are attached to their bodies)."

Sri Ramakrishna says, "It is God Himself who makes us feel this difference, and on account of this difference, one sees man and woman, light and darkness, and so on. As long one is aware of this difference, one can accept Shakti as personal god. It is God who has put 'i-consciousness' in us. As long as we are conscious of differentiation, we must accept Brahmn with attributes. Vedas, Puranas and Tantra have declared Kali, the Primal Energy, to be Brahmn with attributes.

(Abridged from the Foreword to 'Saundarya Lahiri of Sri Sankaracharya', translated by Swami Tapasyananda, published by Sri Ramakrishna Math, Chennai.)
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Shakta, Shaivite & Vaishnavite come together

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The worship of Devi in Sri Chakra is set forth by Adi Shankara in his 'Prapanchasara' and 'Saundaryalahari', and this form of worship occupies a high place in the traditions of the Maths organised by him.

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Vishwesha Tirtha Swami of Paryaya Pejawar Mutt said here on Tuesday that the Lingayat community should remain in the fold of Hindu religion.

Addressing presspersons, the seer said that in his opinion though there were two traditions (Lingayat and Veerashaiva) in the Lingayat community, they were not separate. Lingayat and Veerashaiva were branches of the same religion.

The Dwaita and Advaita schools had fundamental philosophical differences but were branches of the same Vedic religion. The two traditions of Lingayat and Veerashaiva could never be separate.

However, as this was an internal matter relating to the Veerashaiva-Lingayat community, he would not like to interfere in it. "But if these two traditions are accepted as branches of the same religion, the Veerashaiva-Lingayat community would get more strength. This is my opinion and suggestion. I leave it to that community to decide the rest," he said.

The seer said that when people of both these traditions were worshipping Shiva as their chief deity, doing Shiva Panchakshari Japa and offering prayers to the Shiva Linga, how could they be different or separate from the Hindu religion?

The followers of Lingayat tradition had stated that they did not accept the caste system in Hinduism, he said. But even the followers of Sri Ramakrishna Mission and Arya Samaj did not accept the caste system and so also various other traditions of Vaishnavism and Shaivism. Did that make them separate religion? he asked.

He had posed this question some time ago but none had answered it. "Hence, all the Lingayats and Veerashaivas should not separate from Hinduism. They should stay with us. This is my fervent appeal," he said.

Some had questioned his interference in this matter. "When a brother thinks of leaving a family, the other brothers persuade him not to do so. My fraternal intervention should be seen in this light. Let us all stay together and try to protect our religion and culture," he said. In today's society, it was not possible for one community to exploit another community. "In the present political scenario, the minority Brahmin community could not do injustice to the majority non-Brahmin community. Is it correct to blame the Brahmins for the tragedy which took place during the time of Sri Basaveshwara? Is it correct to blame today's Muslims for the violence during the medieval period in the country?" he said.

"Just as Hindus and Muslims have to live in harmony now, so too communities among Hindus too should live together in harmony. Besides Vaishnavas or the exponent of the Dwaita philosophy Sri Madhwacharya never lived during the period of Sri Basaveshwara," the seer said.

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udupi pejawar seer vishwesha tirtha lingayat veerashaiva hindus shiva linga

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'How can Lingayat-Veerashaiva be different from Hindus when they worship Shiva?'

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Vishwesha Tirtha Swami of Paryaya Pejawar Mutt said here on Tuesday that the Lingayat community should remain in the fold of Hindu religion. Addressing presspersons, the seer said that in his opinion though there were two traditions (Lingayat and Veerashaiva) in the Lingayat community, they were not separate.

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A quick video explaining why Hindus believe in reincarnation, explaining some vocab and evidence towards the idea

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Hinduism and Reincarnation |  Why do Hindus believe in Reincarnation?

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In this video we continue our talks on 4 facts of Hinduism as a way to describe some the beliefs in Hinduism and answer the question -- What do Hindus believe in?. In our previous videos we discussed Karma and if you have already done so, please check out those videos in the link below.

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As a very old ethnic religion, Hinduism has a lot of history. Here is a video that briefly goes over it.

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People of Mumbai prepare months in advance for the giant Ganesh Chaturthi festival

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ganpati bappa morya echoes across streets in mumbai

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Ganesh Chaturthi 2016 : Ganpati Bappa Morya Echoes Across Streets In Mumbai | Video Footage

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There is no bigger celebration than Ganesh Chaturthi in Mumbai. From massive sculptures to small and eco-friendly Ganpatis, idols are taken to pandals and homes with dhol, music, dance and devotion.

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Around the year 800, Muhammad bin Qasim was appointed by Islamic leaders to invade India with 6000 men. They spread Islam with violence and met little resistance.

Article:
http://lostislamichistory.com/how-islam-spread-in-india/

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India has had conflict in its Punjab province since 1980. It is general conflicts, ranging from marches to the occasional violence between Hindus and Sikhs.

Article:
https://sikhsiyasat.net/2010/06/12/historical-hatred-between-hindus-and-sikhs-are-again-haunting-punjab/

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Hindus vs Muslims, dubbed Huslims by Carter Stephan, are having conflicts over a region called Kashmir. As well as this, there are riots in India because 14% of the population is Muslim while 80% is Hindu.

Article: http://www.pbs.org/wnet/religionandethics/2002/05/24/may-24-2002-hindu-muslim-conflict-in-india/12044/