Posted on 3:07 AM | by arun kumar
Holi, The Festival of Colors presents a wonderful opportunity for art teachers to use bright colors in their art lessons. Colored powders can be created to create powder paintings (similar to sand paintings). Paintings can be created to illustrate the history of the Indian holiday.
The Festival of Colours, (also called Holaka, Phagwa, Dhulheti, Dhulandi or Dhulendi) is a popular Hindu spring festival observed around the world. Holi is a time when humans and nature shake off the gloom of winter and rejoice in the colors of spring. The holiday is primarily observed in India, Nepal, and countries with large Hindu populations such as Suriname, Guyana, Fiji, Mauritius and Trinidad. In West Bengal of India and Bangladesh, it is known as Dolyatra (Doljatra) or Boshonto Utsav. The annual festival is celebrated on the day of the full moon in the Hindu month of Phalguna. That month is March in the anglo calendar. In 2009 Holi was celebrated on March 11. In 2010 it will be celebrated February 28. The most important day, Holi, is celebrated by Hindus throwing colored powder and colored water at each other. The Holika Dahan (or Chhoti Holi) is celebrated by lighting bonfires.
The legend that is commemorated by the festival involves an evil king named Hiranyakashipu. He told his son, Prahlad, that he was not to worship the god Vishnu but to worship him instead. Prahlad worshipped Vishnu anyway. The king became angry and poisoned Prahlad. However, the poison turned to nectar in Prahlad's mouth. The king ordered Prahlad to be trampled by elephants yet remained unharmed. He was put in a room with hungry, poisonous snakes and survived. Finally, he told Prahlad's sister, Holika, to put Prahlad on a pyre over a fire on her lap. It was believed that Holika would be immune from the fire due to her magic shaw. Prahlad prayed to Vishnu (Now called Lord Krishna) to keep him safe. Prahlad was unharmed by the fire, while Holika burnt to death. The king declared that she would be remembered from that point on Holi. Later Lord Vishnu took the form of half-man and half-lion (Narasimha) and killed King Hiranyakashipu at dusk on his porch steps by restraining him on his lap and mauling him with his claws.
There are alternate legends to the festival. In one, a Hindu god called Lord Shiva was tempted by Madana, the goddess of love, when she appeared in front of Shiva in the form of a beautiful nymph. Shiva recognized her and became angry. He shot fire out of his third eye and burnt her to a crisp. This is an additional reason for the bonfire during the celebration.
Holi is also associated with the love between Radha and Lord Krishna who was reincarnated from Vishnu. The reason why Hindus smear powdered paint on their faces is because it is said that Lord Krishna was jealous of Radha's darker complexion, so his mother told him to smear colors on his face to change his appearance.
In most places across the world, the holiday is celebrated over two days. In Vrindavan and Mathura, where Lord Krishna grew up, the festival is celebrated for 16 days. The holiday represents the loosening of social restrictions and norms. The holiday thus brings together people of all castes, sexes, status and age. Calm and polite behavior is thrown out the window as much merrymaking and wild behavior takes place. If anyone becomes offended during the holiday, many Hindus will say, "Bura na mano, Holi hai ("don't feel offended, it's Holi").
On the evening of the first day of Holi, they hold the public bonfire called Holika Dahan. Hindu boys bring firewood to the bonfire and light it between 10:00 PM and the rising of the moon. Everyone gathers around the fire and shout, curse, and to some, create general mayhem. During Holi, colored water and powders are thrown or applyed to faces and clothing. For those who celebrate the holiday over five days, Rangapanchami occurs a few days later on a Panchami (fifth day of the full moon), marking the end of festivities.
Colors are traditionally made of Neem, Kumkum, Haldi, Bilva, and other medicinal herbs prescribed by Āyurvedic doctors. Recently, many of the colors are now made synthetically. Traditional Indians are not happy with the artificial colors and believe everything should be kept pure.
Because everyone loves a festival, Holi is catching on with non-Hindus. In the UK and US, there are now many Holi festivals celebrated at universities, Hindu temples, and community centers. Because of the use of bright colors, the food, and letting go of inhibitions, the holiday is a popular one among young people.
Posted on 2:39 AM | by arun kumar
The beautiful mandir built without steel, consists of 234 ornately carved pillars, 9 ornate domes, 20 quadrangled shikhars, a spectacular Gajendra Pith (plinth of stone elephants) and 20,000 murtis and statues of India's great sadhus, devotees, acharyas and divine personalities.
The mandir is a fusion of pink stone and pure white marble, where pink stone symbolizes bhakti in eternal bloom and white marble that of absolute purity and eternal peace. Akshardham was created by HDH Pramukh Swami Maharaj in fulfillment to the wish of his guru, Brahmaswarup Yogiji Maharaj, the fourth successor in the spiritual hierarchy of Bhagwan Swaminarayan. In only a short timespan of five years Swaminarayan Akshardham became a reality through the blessings of Pramukh Swami Maharaj, 300 million man hours of epic services rendered by 11,000 volunteers, sadhus and artisans and the immense sacrifice, austerities, prayers of hundreds of thousands of young and old devotees of BAPS Swaminarayan Sanstha.
The Akshardham Temple complex in Delhi was opened to the public on November 8, 2005. It reflects the colorful Hindu religion. The Delhi Akshardham is an imitation of the Akshardham in Gandhinagar, Gujarat, India. Colossal. This is the word which comes in mind when we talk of the famous Swaminarayan temple in Delhi, as it is also known.
Here is all you wanted to know about Akshardham Temple at New Delhi. It is set in a vast 100 acre site. It has been built on the banks of the serene River Yamuna and has sprawling lush manicured lawns adorned with water fountains and carved pavilions. A staggering 2 billion was spent on the construction of this grand place of worship.The beautiful Akshardham mandir was built without steel and is entirely composed of sandstone and marble. It consists of 234 ornately carved pillars, 9 ornate domes, 20 quadrangled shikhars, a spectacular Gajendra Pith (plinth of stone elephants) and 20,000 murtis and statues of India's great sadhus, devotees, acharyas and divine personalities.This place is a must see on your Delhi tour.
Posted on 1:41 AM | by arun kumar
The Satavahanas were also called Andhras. The Aitareya Brahmana claims the Andhras as, the exiled and degenerate sons of Viswamitra. Ashoka inscriptions mentions the Andhras as border people. They were Dravidian people who lived between the Godavari and the Krishna. Simuka was the founder of the Satavahana dynasty. He was succeeded by his brother Krishna.
Scholars are of the opinion that the original home of the Andhras - Andhra bhrityas was the Bellary district. Others claim their recordsto be found in the Northern Deccan and central India. Satakarni was the successor after Simuka, and is a considerable figure, known for his performance of two aswamedha sacrifices. His reign was followed by the rule of Gautamiputra satakarni. He is said to have defeated the Yavanas, Sakas and Phalanas and re-established the ancient glory of the Satavahanas. Gautamiputra satkarni was succeeded by his son Vasisthiputra Sri Pulamavi in about 130 AD. He extended his rule towards the Andhra country. Yajna Sri Satakarni was the last great ruler of the Satavahanas. After him the weak successors resulted in the contraction of the territory of the Satavahanas. Hostility with the Saka rulers also led to the ultimate parceling of its territories and decleration of independence .
The Satavahana society reflected the existence of four classes. The persons who controlled and administered the districts, followed by the officials. They were followed by the Vaidhya, cultivators. The fourth class were common citizen. The head of the family was the Grihapati.Both Buddhism and Brahmanism was practiced during the Satavahana rule. A state of religions tolerance existed among of various sects of people following varied faiths.
Trade flourished and there existed organisation of workers doing various trades. Broach, Sopara and Kalyan were important trade points. The Satavahana rulers patronised Prakrit which was the common language used on documents.
The Satavahana empire is said to be partitioned into five provinces. The western territory of Nasik was possessed by the Abhiras. The Ikshavakus dominated over the eastern part in the Krishna -Guntur region.The Chutus possessed the southwestern parts extended their territory to the north and east. The south eastern parts were under the Pahalvas.
The Hathigumpha inscription at Udayagiri near Cuttack speaks of a remarkable rule of a contemporary of the Sungas known as Kharavela of Kalinga. He ruled from about 176Bc to 164 BC. He is said to be the third ruler of the Cheta dynasty.
In the first year of his rule he is said to be have furnished and improved his capital Kalinga. In the second year he subdued and destroyed the capital of the Mushikas disregarding the rule of Satakarni. In his eighth year he destroyed the fortification of Gordha and entered as far as Rajagriha in the Gaya district. He also conquered king Brihaspatimittra of the Magadha. He also built the Udayagiri and Khandagiri caves to provide shelter to the Jain.
It can be concluded that he was as accomplished ruler and a generous guardian of the people.
Posted on 12:57 AM | by arun kumar
The Mauryan empire in Indian history was reigned by the rulers from the Mauryan dynasty. According to the ancient history of India, the Mauryan empire happened to be quite strong and powerful in all respect including the political aspects and military aspects. The Mauryan empire had a duration of one hundred and thirty seven years from 322 BCE to 185 BCE.
The Mauryan empire in Indian history originated from the Magadha Kingdom that is located on the Indo- Gangetic plains. These are now form the major part of the states of West Bengal and Bihar. The capital city was at Patyliputra which is now near to where Patna is located. Chandragupta Maurya, Bindusara and Ashoka the Great were the remarkable rulers from the Maurya dynasty.
Chandragupta Maurya was admirably successful to establish a strongly centralized state. The administrations was quite complex in comparison to those that prevailed in the states of India in the earlier times. According to Megasthenes, one of the renowned visitors and travelers to the country of India, Patuliputra, the capital city of the Mauryan Empire in Indian history, was walled up by wooden walls with as many as 570 towers and 64 gates.
Bindusara, the successor of Chandragupta Maurya, expanded the area of the state that he inherited from Chandragupta Maurya who reigned for a fairly long period of 24 years. The main targets of Bindusara were the regions in the southern parts of India. Because of the scarcity of informations about Bindusara from the ancient Indian history, little is known about this ruler from the Maurya dynasty. Bindusara's mother was Durdhara. According to the informations in Puranas the duration of the reign of Bindusara was for a period of 25 years, almost same as his father.
Ashoka was the next emperor after the demise of Bindusara. Ashoka was also known as Ashokabardhan Maurya. But in all the times, even till the present time, he is known as Ashoka the Great. H. G. Wells is of the opinion that Ashoka is the greatest among all of the kings not only in the history of India, but also in the history of the world. Ashoka would have remained the Ashokabardhan for the whole of his life if he would not have come to the noble realization that he had when he visited the battlefield where the Kalinga war was fought. Ashoka invaded Kalinga and became victorious claiming the lives of at least 100000 soldiers and civilians. Nearly ten thousand soldiers who were fighting for Ashoka, also lost their lives. Ashoka was overwhelmingly pained at the loss of so many lives.
The impact of this negative war affair was a tremendously positive one. Ashoka changed his mind and came to the resolution that he would not ever wage any war in future. The reality showed Ashoka to be even more generous. He started spreading the message of peace and non- violence. He not only kept himself stuck to the teachings of Gautama Buddha, but also spread Buddha's messages to the neighboring countries.
Posted on 12:32 AM | by arun kumar
During the life time of Lord Gautam Buddha, sixteen great powers (Mahajanpadas/Mahajanapadas) existed in the 7th and early 6th centuries BC. Among the more important republics were the Sakyas of Kapilavastu and the Licchavis of Vaishali. Besides the republics, there were monarchical states, among which the important ones were Kaushambi (Vatsa), Magadha, Kosala and Avanti. These states were ruled by vigorous personalities who had embarked upon the policies of aggrandisement and absorption of neighbouring states. However, there were distinct signs of the republican states while those under the monarchs were expanding.
The political structure of the ancient Indo-Aryans appears to have started with semi-nomadic tribal units called "Jana". Early Vedic texts attest several Janas or tribes of the Aryans, living in semi-nomadic tribal state, fighting among themselves and with other Non-Aryan tribes for cows, sheep and green pastures. These early Vedic Janas later coalesced into Janapadas of the Epic Age.
The term "Janapada" literally means the foothold of a tribe. The fact that Janapada is derived from Jana points to an early stage of land-taking by the Jana tribe for a settled way of life. This process of first settlement on land had completed its final stage prior to the times of Buddha and Panini. The Pre-Buddhist North-west region of Indian sub-continent was divided into several Janapadas demarcated from each other by boundaries. In Panini, Janapada stands for country and Janapadin for its citizenry. These Janapadas were named after the tribes or the Janas who had settled in them. By circa 600 BCE, many of these Janapadas had further evolved into larger political entities by the process of land-grabbing which eventually led to the formation of kingdoms known in Buddhist traditions as the Mahajanapadas or the great nations (Sanskrit: Maha = great, Janapada = country).
The Buddhist and other texts only incidentally refer to sixteen great nations (Solasa Mahajanapadas) which were in existence before the time of Buddha. They do not give any connected history except in the case of Magadha. The Buddhist Anguttara Nikaya, at several places, gives a list of sixteen nations:
Kasi, Kosala, Anga, Magadha, Vajji (or Vriji), Malla, Chedi, Vatsa (or Vamsa), Kuru, Panchala, Machcha (or Matsya), Surasena, Assaka, Avanti, Gandhara, Kamboja
The Jaina Bhagvati Sutra gives slightly different list of sixteen Mahajanapadas viz: Anga, Banga (Vanga), Magadha, Malaya, Malavaka, Accha, Vaccha, Kochcha (Kachcha?), Padha, Ladha (Lata), Bajji (Vajji), Moli (Malla), Kasi, Kosala, Avaha and Sambhuttara. Obviously, the author of Bhagvati has a focus on the countries of Madhydesa and of far east and south only. He omits the nations from Uttarapatha like the Kamboja and Gandhara. The more extended horizon of the Bhagvati and the omission of all countries from Uttarapatha clearly shows that the Bhagvati list is of later origin and therefore less reliable (Political History of Ancient India, 1996, p 86; History & Culture of Indian People, Age of Imperial Unity, p 15-16).
The main idea in the minds of those who drew up the Janapada lists was basically more tribal than geographical, since the lists include names of the people and not the countries. As the Buddhist and Jaina texts only casually refer to the Mahajanapadas with no details on history, the following few isolated facts, at best, are gleaned from them and other ancient texts about these ancient nations.
