The Flame of Divine Name

How sweet is the name of the Lord! How soothing and elevating are the names of Hari, Rama, Krishna, Shiva. There is an unfathomable depth and charm in the Lord’s name. It is beyond the futile explanation of the limited intellect. It is a thing knowable only through experience.

There is a mysterious power in the name. There is an inscrutable shakti in God’s name. All the divine potencies are hidden in the Lord’s name. It is the seed of the tree of spirituality and destroyer of the impurities of the mind. It bestows supreme peace, eternal bliss and infinite knowledge. It infuses divine love in the heart of one who recites it. It is the fountainhead of all happiness.

God and His name are identical; they are inseparable. He dwells where His name is sung. The whole atmosphere becomes sanctified. Peace, purity and bliss prevail there. His name carries the message of love. His name frees the soul from affliction, unrest and bondage. His name knows no barrier or distinction. His name purifies the lower self and elevates it to sublimity of universal consciousness and the transcendent Godhead

dynasty: Shiva The Cosmic Dancer

dynasty: Shiva The Cosmic Dancer: Hindu philosophy lays great store on the greatness of Lord Shiva . Every other Hindu is his devotee. Destruction is necessary for re-crea...

dynasty: Shiva The Cosmic Dancer

dynasty: Shiva The Cosmic Dancer: Hindu philosophy lays great store on the greatness of Lord Shiva . Every other Hindu is his devotee. Destruction is necessary for re-crea...

Shiva The Cosmic Dancer

 Hindu philosophy lays great store on the greatness of Lord Shiva . Every other Hindu is his devotee. Destruction is necessary for re-creation. When Lord Shiva does the tandav, or the cosmic dance of destruction, we fear that  the whole creation is annihilated, so that it can be re-created. There are so many tales woven around this belief. Anger caused Shiva to dance with the lifeless body of Sati his wife, whose insult He could not tolerate. This dance was viewed with fear and wonder--fear because it denoted destruction and wonder because it was so full of rhythm and beauty. But this is a story to many, not a reality.

The real truth is that Shiva dances  when the laws of nature are broken and then  imperfection sets in. The cosmos suffers from the negation of the laws of nature, and when this  reaches its climax the whole order of things is upset.

Then comes the necessity to re- order, to re-organize the natural forces and energies, for which Nature invites mass destruction. There is chaos everywhere,  and hence the body of Lord Shiva, which is governed completely by natural forces, automatically starts performing the tandav, so that the message of the impending doom is conveyed to the whole creation. There is harmony and rhythm even in this aspect of nature.

Lord Shiva is beautiful and serene, always deep in meditation. Contemplation and compassion are ingrained in Him. He is known as the granter of all boons. He makes no distinction as to the efficacy of granting something to someone. He is satisfied by the effort and penance made by a devotee and therefore does not consider any of his desires as illogical or undeserving.

We all love Him as our true lord and our wellwisher. This Shiva ratri let us honour Him by observing a night vigil while the torch climbs up the temple walls to be installed at the highest point.

The Human Zoo by Desmond Morris

The Human Zoo is an explication of the concept of the city as a concrete jungle. In this book the author analyses issues pertaining to the people living in dense urban communities. He underlines the sameness of animal and human behviour under captivity. The zoo becomes a metaphor for urban life Living in a jungle is more rewarding for animals as for animal-men or men in a natural state of innocence. But just as living in a zoo under subjective conditions is depressive for animals, similarly for human beings who live in a human zoo, not a concrete jungle,  living in the human zoo of cities has its hazards.

Morris is depressingly near the truth when he says that our craze for progress has unleashed powerful urges which is a part of our biological inheritance and this has made the human zoo possible which promises food and shelter and other amenities of life. But the price that humans have to pay in terms of loss of selfhood and visions of loneliness has to be taken care of.

Among some of the problems he addresses are the invention of weapons of destruction that kill at a distance, the creation of specialized class of killers,frustrated status aggression within the groups. Loss of social identity, and the exploitation of the urge to aid friends under attack.

 I n the end he pleads for tolerance and developing strategies that  encourage stimulating heterogeneity.

dynasty: What I Like About My Daughter-in-law.

dynasty: What I Like About My Daughter-in-law.: A daughter-in -law is more than a daughter. She is bound to you by ties of marriage as well as by the law. Now the law sounds to us a bit ...

What I Like About My Daughter-in-law.

A daughter-in -law is more than a daughter. She is bound to you by ties of marriage as well as by the law. Now the law sounds to us  a bit intimidating. It culls up images of the court room and witness stand, lawyers and liers, a judge and a holy book. No wonder a woman feels a sense of grave forboding when she is  preparing herself to either don the bridal garb or inversely, using her search engine to pounce upon the most eligible of maidens for her dear son. Both ways the" -in law" tag has to be worn.

My daughter-in-law made it her primary duty to toss of the tag as soon as she entered the threshold of my life. The veil was off, the long skirts flung aside, the slow walk became a purposeful stride, and the soft whispering voice which is supposed to be the pride of a bride ,was supplanted by a cheery bright tone, a chattering that left me dumb for some seconds.

Apprehensions of how to pull along with a daughter-in -law,  who would perhaps be crooking an evil eye beneath her veil, whispering complaints along with sweet nothings to her husband who she would forget was my son too, and taking him away from a mother's empty arms forever, vanished in the onslaught of new emotions.

The next day saw us both putting up our feet on the divan seat and enjoying tea with noisy slurps. The tea was good though not the type I generally drank, but it was kind of O.K with me. She insisted I redo my hair and drove me down to her favourite parlour for a shampoo and dye, and facials and all the works.

I was like totally at her mercy, but I found myself enjoying it first a little , then whole heartedly.

The secret to a happy life with your mother-in-laws, dear about-to-wed-girls, is grab your mother-in-law by the waiste and pamper her for all she is worth.

Her long years of sacrifice and hard work will be amply rewarded.