Guru as Trinity - #Thread

This sloka is taught to all of us in early childhood. This is very popular sloka. This sloka can be recited in front of any Guru. The widely prevalent meaning of this sloka is to
worship Guru as the form of Trinity & hence Parabrahma.

significance & worship to be performed on a rare combination occurring Jan 12th

In the culture of Bhāratadēśa, ‘Time’ has great significance. Tithis, days of the week, stars – everything has its own distinction. All the beings are bound by time and time is in the control of God.

With compassion, the Supreme God graced that one performing worship in some special stipulated times acquires special merits. This is true in case of every deity. Worship of a particular deity on a particular tithi bestows the grace of that particular deity quickly and certainly.

Among those, Kr̥ṣṇāṁgāraka Caturdaśi is imp. The combination of Tuesday & Caturdaśi in the dark fortnight is a great occasion.

विरिन्चिशक्रविष्णूनां मनुष्याणां तु का कथा ।
तेन त्वं सर्वसत्त्वेन ग्रहराजो महाबलः॥

Not only present as one among the nine planets, Aṅgāraka..

Aṅgāraka (Mars) planet is the king of all the planets. The reason for this is mentioned below that Aṅgāraka is the son of Śiva.

पुरा तपस्यतः शम्भोर्दाक्षायण्या वियोगतः ।
भालस्थलात्पपातैकः स्वेदबिन्दुर्महीतले ॥

ततः कुमारः सम्जज्ञे लोहिताङ्गो महीतलात् ।
स्नेहसम्बन्धिनः सोఽथ धात्र्या धात्रीस्वरूपया ॥
माहेय इत्यतः ख्यातिं परामेष गतः सदा ।

Skānda Purāṇa mentions that a waterdrop fell on the earth from Paramēśwara deeply immersed in tapas from which came a red-complexioned boy.

Agree or Disagree - This Country is Hindu Country

During an informal discussion some time back in St. Louis USA, a researcher of medical sciences said, ‘After attaining independence, couple of leaders left Hindus without their own country’.

Though he is settled in USA for around 50 years, he is great person still intact with roots of Bhaarata.

This statement is thought provoking. Except those having hatred towards Hinduism, every individual endowed with positive vision, accepts this truth.

Before obtaining independence, every struggle for the freedom of this country was identified with the word ‘Hindu’

All the people in this country were declared as Hindus. Even to this day, some remember the slogan ‘Hindustan Hamara’ i.e. Hindustan belongs to all of us.

Many are aware that ‘Hindu’ word originated from the word ‘Sindhu’. Right from Ganga to Kaveri, all the rivers in this country are called ‘Sindhu’. Truly the Vedas that elucidated the ‘Sapta Sindhus’ have their origin in Bhaarata.

Having flourished on the banks of Sindhus, Bhaarata is rightly called ‘Hindu Country’. Another name for this country is ‘Bhaarata’. These two names are but for natural for this country.

But, foreigners mentioned it as India. Some prominent leaders of the day confirmed the same.

The distinction of measuring the time in a scientific manner is achieved only by Bhāratīyas. Time has been measured from the smallest dimension to infiniteness. Even Time is envisioned as God and venerated. Paramēśvara was extolled as ‘Mahākāla’, the very embodiment of Time.

Nārāyaṇa Upaniṣad envisages Nārāyaṇa as ‘Kālaśca Nārāyaṇa:’, the very embodiment of Time, ages ago. The measurement of Time by Bhāratīyas is as ancient as the very God Himself. Count of many future ages has also been done even from very ancient times.

Since these calculations aren't dependent upon the birth & death of any individual, but are done based on astronomical science, they are thoroughly scientific. Unfortunately, during the British rule, the Bhāratīya way of Time measurement was casted as an illusion...

...with an evil intention to establish their command. Though it is 70+ years since independence, blindly time is still measured as BC & AD or CE in this religion-less land without even making any attempt to comprehend the magnanimity of Bhāratīya Time measurement methods.

Time measurement based on inhalation and exhalation : (image)

śambhōrmurtiścarati bhuvanē. #Thread

Maharshi Veda Vyasa’s compassionate contribution towards the upliftment of humanity is incredible. As time is the biggest devourer of everything, few centuries after His advent, around 72 different Anti-Vedic schools appeared on the horizon.

Vedas r thoroughly misinterpreted suiting one’s convenience & such propaganda reached its pinnacle. It’s like the gigantic tree of Sanatana Dharma is encircled in poisonous creepers producing poisonous fruits & covered by thorny bushes, which though r attributed 2 d tree itself.

Chaos prevailed all over. In such dangerous situation, Sanatana Dharma needed one who has clarity in direction, command in Vedas, conviction in Dharma, control over senses, capacity to organize, and courage to establish truth. All the gods decided to seek the help of Lord Siva..

They all went to Lord Dakshinamurti & said "Till now, You have been catering towards the intellectual community, which is not sufficient. Of course, to come down to earth, You have to hide two hands and third eye." Lord Dakshinamurti adhered to the request of gods.

He hid His two upper hands and left the bottom two hands that contain the book and chinmudra i.e. the symbol of Self-knowledge. He sent His third eye backward. Thus, Lord Dakshinamurti came down to earth as Sankara Bhagavatpada. Sage Vidyaranya described this as below.

Ratha Saptami, Surya Jayanti - Importance - #Thread

The seventh day of the lunar calendar in the bright half of ‘Magha’ month is called ‘Ratha Saptami’. Worship of Sun on this day grants immense merits equal to the worship of Sun for one complete year.

On this day at the time of brahmi muhurta, all the stars will be in the shape of chariot. Worship of Aditya, the embodiment of all gods, on this day grants brilliance, abundance, health etc. Giving ‘Arghya’ to Sun in copper pot, worshipping with red sandalwood and red flowers..

..should be done and milk pudding cooked using cow dung cakes as fuel should be offered in leaves of green bean tree. Offering of pumpkin is very meritorious, as this time is equivalent to the time when the eclipse of sun is happening.

Goddess presiding the Saptami Tithi is propitiated with the following sloka.

जननि सर्व लोकानां सप्तमी सप्त सप्तिकौ
सप्त व्याहृति के देवि नमस्ते सूर्य मण्डले॥

Those who want to have health, knowledge, wealth & good life should worship Sun irrespective of caste, creed, & gender.

"सूर्यग्रहण तुल्या तु शुक्ला माघस्य सप्तमी".

As this time is equivalent to the time when the eclipse of sun is happening, it is very auspicious for bathing, charity and Japa. Offering of pumpkin is very meritorious on this day.

Prasanna Venkatesa Perumal #temple -Gunaseelam,Near Trichy,TN #Thread

Gunaseela Mahatmyam,a chapter of Bhavishyottara Purana describes greatness of this place.

Venkatachlapathi of Tirumala Tirupati appeared b4 Gunaseela Rishi here,so Gunaseelam is known as Ten(South)Tirupati

Prasanna Venkatesa Perumal is in a standing posture with 4 arms holding sankha & chakra in the upper hands.The lower right hand is in abhaya pose,blessing devotees &left hand is in kati hasta,resting on waist.

A sceptre(senkkol)rests on right shoulder,with which this murti is believed to cure people affected by mental illness.These patient stay here for a period-48 days& participate in poojas&most of them get relieved of their problems.There is a temple run Mental Rehabilitation center

#storytimethread -As per Sthala Puranam,existence of this temple is due to efforts of Gunaseela Rishi, a disciple of Thalpiya Maharishi.
Thalpiya Maharishi along with his disciple Gunaseela Rishi once went to Himalayas.On his way back, Gunaseela Rishi stayed back at Tirupathi.

He was so wanted to have darshan of Venkatachalapathy in Gunaseelam near his asharam & bless the devotees.

He came back, bathed in the Cauvery,took blessing from his guru &undertook severe penance here in his ashram in Gunaseelam.

Knowledge & Bharat : Part V

The Curriculum of Vedic Education :
According to the Ancient Indian theory of education, the training of the mind & the process of thinking, are essential for the acquisition of knowledge.

#Thread

Vedic Education System delivered outstanding results.  These were an outcome of the context in which it functioned.  Understanding them is critical in the revival of such a system in modern times. 
The Shanthi Mantra spells out the context of the Vedic Education System.

It says:

ॐ सह नाववतु ।
सह नौ भुनक्तु ।
सह वीर्यं करवावहै ।
तेजस्वि नावधीतमस्तु मा विद्विषावहै ।
ॐ शान्तिः शान्तिः शान्तिः ॥

“Aum. May we both (the guru and disciples) together be protected. May we both be nourished and enriched. May we both bring our hands together and work

with great energy, strength and enthusiasm from the space of powerfulness. May our study and learning together illuminate both with a sharp, absolute light of higher intelligence. So be it.”

The students started the recitation of the Vedic hymns in early hours of morning.

The chanting of Mantras had been evolved into the form of a fine art. Special attention was paid to the correct pronunciation of words, Pada or even letters. The Vedic knowledge was imparted by the Guru or the teacher to the pupil through regulated and prescribed pronunciation,

In Islamic eschatology, the world will be flooded by a mighty invasion in the end of days.

The great army of the monstrous Yajuj and Majuj (Gog and Magog) will rampage throughout the earth.

A thread-

Yajuj and Majuj are mentioned in the Qur’an (Kahf and Anbiya).

They are sealed away behind a mighty wall by a legendary king, Dhul al-Qarnayn who is frequently linked to Alexander the Great and occasionally Cyrus the Great, though neither are exact matches

It is commonly believed they scratch at the wall daily, tearing nearly through until God intervenes and restores the barrier.

Thus sealed away, the world is safe from Yajuj and Majuj, that is, until the end of days.

Once released they are so numerous it is said when they come upon Tiberias lake or the Tigris and Euphrates they will drink it dry.

When they stand in formation their army stretches from Syria to ends of Persia.

Islamic eschatology regularly features the idea of an invading army and a great battle and Yajuj and Majuj is central to the narrative.

It has long been a custom in the Islamic world to compose collections of 40 Hadith (sayings and actions of the Prophet Muhammad) for believers to memorize. Thread for the the era of Covid.

The most famous perhaps that of the thirteenth century Shafi’i jurist al-Nawawi, which I use in teaching.

Collections of Prophetic traditions also exist for specific subjects or according to specific transmitters. And, separately, since the beginning of Covid, Muslim jurists the world over have been handing down legal opinions (fatwa/fatawa) on how best to respond.

Most recently, and the first such collection I have seen since the spread of Covid, the South African Shafi’i mufti Taha Karaan published a collection of hadith dealing with epidemics along with his own extensive comments.

The collection is fascinating for various reasons, both for the degree that it builds on premodern hadith commentaries and that which it presents a new synthesis of premodern views. If you’re interested in the premodern stuff, check out my book.