லாகூர் கோட்டைக்குள் இடிக்கப்பட்ட இந்து கோவில்கள்

பாபர் கட்டிய கட்டிடம் இடிக்கப்பட்டபோது அதனை காரணமாக வைத்து ஏராளமான பாகிஸ்தான் இந்துக்கோவில்கள் உடைக்கப்பட்டன.
அதில் ஒரு இந்து சன்னியாசியின் சமாதியும் அடக்கம்.
அது லாகூர் கோட்டைக்குள் இருப்பது
அதனைப் பற்றிய டெய்லி டம்ஸ் கட்டுரை

முன்னாள் இந்துக்களான பாகிஸ்தானியர்கள் மீண்டும் இறைவழி அன்புவழி இந்துவழி திரும்புவார்கள் என்று விரும்புவோம்.



The bygone Hindu shrines of Lahore Fort
By Hina Farooq

LAHORE: An old ruined monument lying outside the Lahore Fort wall is the samadhi (shrine) of Wasti Ram, a renowned Hindu figure, which was demolished in 1992 by an angry Muslim mob in retaliation of Babri Mosque demolition, a Punjab Archaeology Department (PAD) official told Daily Times on Monday. He said when the FAD handed over Lahore Fort to the PAD, the samadhi was not handed over to the PAD.

PAD director general Muhammad Shahbaz Khan said local Hindus had written to both the Federal Archaeology Department (FAD) and to the PAD for the restoration of the samadhi. He said the PAD had finalised the proposal to conserve the samadhi as local Hindus, after writing several times to FAD, had contacted PAD to preserve their worship place. He said a summary of the project had been prepared to get approval from the chief minister. “The summary urges the Punjab government to allocate some funds to preserve monuments like Katas Raj temple, which is initiated by the PAD,” he said.

FAD representatives told Daily Times that there were two, not one, samadhis outside Lahore Fort wall. They said one samadhi was of Wasti Ram and the other was of Jhenga Shah Suhtra. FAD curator of Lahore Fort Afzal Khan said Wasti Ram was a spiritual leader of Ranjeet Singh. He said there always had been a caretaker of the samadhi before it was attacked in 1992. He said the samadhi had been built in the 19th century in Ranjeet Singh’s era.

Khan said the FAD had taken no action because the Hindus who had complained to the FAD and personal motives. “We want that impartial Hindus take over the samadhi and I request to the government to ensure impartiality and do not let this place be run by a particular lobby,” he added.

புளோரிடா டல்ஹாஸ்ஸியில் கிருஷ்ண ஜயந்திக்காக குழுமும் பக்தர் குழாம்

டல்ஹாஸ்ஸியில் கிருஷ்ண ஜயந்திக்காக குழுமும் பக்தர் குழாம் பற்றிய கட்டுரையை டல்ஹாஸி நகர மையத்தின் இணையம் வெளியிட்டிருக்கிறது.

வாழ்க வளமுடன்

Worshippers flock to Hindu temple
By Sharon Kant-Rauch

In an old storefront in downtown Quincy, devotees come to the Hindu Sanatan Temple to participate in aarti, a ritual in which lighted candles are offered to the deities. In Sanskrit, aarti means "toward the highest love of God."

Prior to igniting the ghee (purified butter), the priest, Shree Bhavesh Bhatt, offers food and drink to more than 10 colorfully dressed idols, including Lord Krishna, Lord Rama, Lord Shiva and Ambamataji. Someone rings a bell hung from the ceiling, and the priest shakes a hand bell to invite the devotees to the ritual and to help focus the senses on God. The group then sings a devotional song.

The lit candles are waved in a circular motion before each murti (idol), absorbing the power of the deity. (Hindus believe in one God, Para-Brahman, who is manifested in many different forms.) Then the candles are passed before the people present, who cup their hands over the flame and then bring them to their foreheads, receiving the deities' blessings.

The aarti ritual has been performed once in the morning and once in the evening every day since the temple opened in April of 2004. It's the only temple in the Panhandle that is open every day and has a full-time priest. People come from miles around to attend rituals. About 30 to 50 people might come on weekdays, around 100 on weekends and as many as 500 for holidays and celebrations, according to Tarun Shah, one of the organizers of the temple.

On Tuesday, more than 350 people are expected to celebrate Lord Krishna's Birthday from 7 p.m. to midnight. A large crowd also is expected for the 10-day celebration of Navaratri, which starts on Oct. 19.

Shah said he was surprised at the number of people who attend temple events.

"Once you build it," he said, "people will come."

Shah also is involved with fundraising efforts at the Gujarati Samaj Hindu Temple in Tallahassee, which burned down in 2005. (Members plan to rebuild it.) But the Samaj temple didn't have a priest, so he and others decided to create a more formal temple.

Bob Patel, a local businessman and owner of the storefront in Quincy, donated the building. The inside was gutted and remodeled, and idols of solid marble were purchased for the altar. Some temples are devoted to just one god or goddess, but the Quincy temple honors them all, Shah said.

Before it opened, a priest from India came to the temple for three days to perform rites to bring the gods' souls into the statues. Now, every day, when people come to pray, they bring prasad (food) for the gods. At the end of their prayers, the devotees eat some of the food.

Pooja and Rohit Khurana, who came to the temple on Wednesday night with their young daughter, said they had been coming almost every night for the last month. They don't stay long - perhaps 10 or 15 minutes - but said the time there was valuable.

"It's good to have a place where you can have peace of mind," said Rohit.

Kevin Patel, a 22-year-old Tallahassee Community College student who lives in Havana, said he's particularly devoted to Swaminarayan, who lived more than 200 years ago and came up with 201 rules to live by. A statue of Swaminarayan is on the left side of the temple.

At home every morning Patel prays and recites the 108 names of God. But he also likes to come to the temple twice a week because he feels peaceful as soon as he enters.

"Here," he said, "you can totally concentrate on God."

Patel, who has lived in the United States for only two years, said he also enjoys connecting with the Hindu community.

"If you want to know your culture," he said, "you have to go to temple. It will keep you going in a straight way."

Patel's experience is one reason Shah, Bob Patel and others wanted a temple that was open every day.

"The ultimate goal," Shah said, "is for people to come here and forget the worries of the day."

What: Lord Krishna's
Birthday

Where: 19 W. Jefferson St. (Highway 90) in Quincy

When: 7 p.m. to midnight Tuesday

Details: Call 627-8666, e-mail hindutemplequincy @yahoo.com or visit www .hindusanatantemple.org

சபரிமலைக்கு எல்லா பெண்களும் செல்லலாம் - சட்டதிருத்தம்

சபரிமலைக்கு எல்லா பெண்களும் செல்லலாம் என்று கேரள அரசு சட்டதிருத்தம் கொண்டுவர இருக்கிறது.

Kerala wants women to be allowed entry to Sabarimala temple

Thiruvananthapuram, July 25: Kerala Devasom Minister G. Sudhakaran told the state assembly Wednesday that the government would like to allow women of all age groups to enter the Sabarimala temple.

"In several speeches and writings, eminent teacher and culture expert Ambalapuzha Rama Varma has said that in the past, women used to go to the Sabarimala temple and so far no one has disputed this claim," said Sudhakaran.

The minister said in the 1940s the then queen of Travancore had visited the Sabarimala temple.

"In that period, women with babies in their arms used to arrive at the temple and since climbing of the 18 steps in front of the sanctum sanctorum was an arduous task, they used to take a different route to have darshan of lord Ayyappa," said Sudhakaran.

He also told the assembly that in an affidavit to the Supreme Court, the government has it would be best if an expert committee of religious scholars, leaders and social people be formed to look into the controversial issue of women's entry to the temple.

"I have been getting numerous letters from people from all walks of life that the government should take a stand to open the temple to all women. A person has even suggested that it would be best if all women are allowed entry during a season exclusively for women," added the minister.

He said the basic question was of faith and not practices and customs.

"Over the years, if one looks into the practices and customs being followed in Sabarimala, I myself have found out that changes to customs in at least a dozen aspects have taken place. So the basic premise is faith alone," the minister reiterated.

Currently, the Sabarimala temple is open to girls who have not attained puberty and women who have reached menopause. Debates over the entry of women of all groups to the temple has been raging here since last year after controversial claims that Kannada actress Jaimala had prayed at the temple years ago.

--- IANS