Swetha Sundaram's Blog, page 4

FORTITUDE - A SHORT STORY ON SUICIDE PREVENTION

FORTITUDE - A SHORT STORY ON SUICIDE PREVENTION
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Fortitude is a short story about suicide prevention. The high school students in India face a lot of pressure and challenges; because of the population size and the highly competitive environment often, even an average of 99% is not sufficient to secure admission in a good university. “According to  2015 data from the National Crime Records Bureau, 8934 (6.7% of all suicides) students are committing suicide every year. That's ONE STUDENT EVERY HOUR !  Inspite of being the advanced states of India, Maharashtra holds the first place with 1230 of 8934 suicides (14%) and Tamil Nadu holds the second place with 955 of 8934 suicides (10%).” [Ref: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Suicide_in_India]
Fortitude is a short story about suicide prevention. Life is not a bed of roses may be a cliché, but it is the crux of our experience in this world. Our experience in this world is cyclic; we feel the twins of joy and sorrow, pain and pleasure, heat and cold and so on. Our life is like a pendulum that swings both ways. Often at times of crisis, it is important to know that our life will definitely return to normal. We need to know that the Sun always shines at the end of the night.  
Fortitude is termed as “Dhairyam” in Sanskrit. The Sanskrit word “Dhairyam” loosely translates to “courage”. We have heard people say that those who committed suicide lacked “dhairyam” i.e they lacked the patience to endure the tough times. If they had been patient, they would have been rewarded with better things in life. 
Newton’s Third Law states that for every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction. By committing suicide people do not evade consequences. Whether in this world or the other, the results of one’s actions will always catch up with us. By committing suicide people do not evade the sins because one can never escape the accumulated karmas. Whether in this world or the other, karma will always catch up with us. Suicide only adds additional sins to the karmic account; after all, every action has an equal and an opposite reaction.
There have been problems faced by people during every century whether it is a massive famine, world wars or economic downturns. History teaches us that things always improved and that people always recovered from the problems they faced in their lives. In Alberta, we are going through a significant economic downturn. Times are very tough, but this is something that Albertans have endured in the past. If we wait out the tough times patiently, we will definitely be rewarded in the future.ac
 Fortitude is a short story about a high school student, Raj in India. After seeing his final exam results, Raj finds himself spiralling down the vortex of self-pity and considers the unthinkable when he meets a stranger who changes his life.

Prahalada Charitram As narrated In Vishnu Puranam 4

 Continued From: https://thoughtsonsanathanadharma.blogspot.com/2019/11/prahalada-charitram-as-narrated-in_7.html [image error]Again after a few months, Hiranyakashipu sent for his son. He once again placed the boy on his lap with love. ‘Which is the best amongst the things you have studied?’ Prahaladan once again sang the glories of Lord Vishnu. ‘Shravanam is listening to the glories of Perumal, Keerthanam is the act of singing Perumal’s praise, Smaranam is to think about Him with constant uninterrupted devotion like an oil stream which never splatters, Pada Sevanam is the act of serving Bagawan and His Bagawathas, Archanam is a way to worship Perumal with flowers, Vandanam is to prostrate before Him, dasyam is to know that we always depend on Him and that He is our master, Sakhyam is the  act of staying the true friend of Perumal and atmanivedanam is the ultimate act of offering oneself to Perumal. Even any one amongst the nine acts is enough to obtain the Lord’s divine grace.’ Hiranyakashipu’s eyes turned red with anger. He felt steam coming out of his ears. ‘Who is teaching you all this nonsense and controlling you against me?’ yelled Hiranyakashipu. ‘Father,’ replied Prahaladan, ‘the same person who as your antaryami is making you ask this question is also in my heart. He is the only one who controls everyone including you from within. Except Him who else has the capacity to control us? If He directs a person to yell at us or inflict punishment upon us it is only to help us improve ourselves so that we can become a better person.’ Prahaladan taught us the most important concept through his slokam. He brought out the fact that Lord Vishnu as the antaryami controls and directs everyone from within them. Parents, government, teachers etc advise their children, citizens, and students dos and donts. They can only tell the children and citizens about the dos and donts but cannot control them to follow the dos and donts. Lord Narayana, on the other hand, is our antaryami. From within us, He controls us to do certain activities while preventing us from doing other activities. All the changes we see around us occur per the will of the indwelling Perumal. Lord Vishnu’s will is the internal driving force. All the activities we do are per His will. There is an anecdote in the Mahabharata which illustrates this point. Krishna was on His way to conduct the peace talks with the Kauravas. Duryodhana found Bhishmacharya, Dronacharya, Vidura and all the other elders making preparations to receive Lord Krishna. Duryodhana was annoyed with these preparations. He didn’t want to receive Lord Krishna with respect. He ordered all the elders that they must remain seated when Lord Krishna entered the courtroom. He ordered that no one must stand up in respect to receive Lord Krishna. Bhishmacharya agreed to Duryodhana’s wishes but said that he would follow Duryodana; if Duryodana remained seated they would all remain seated but if Duryodhana stood up then they will stand up as well. Vidura was confused to see that Bhishmacharyar agreed to Duryodhana. He met with Bhishmacharyar in private and asked him why he had agreed to humiliate Lord Krishna. ‘Please don’t be worried,’ replied Bhishmacharyar. ‘Just remember number 3.’ ‘What is number 3?’ Asked a confused Vidura. ‘I will explain to you when the time comes,’ said Bhishmacharya.
Continued On:

Prahalada Charitram As narrated In Vishnu Puranam 3

 [image error] Continued From : https://thoughtsonsanathanadharma.blogspot.com/2019/11/prahalada-charitram-as-narrated-in_4.html
After many months Hiranyakashipu wanted to see his son. He sent for Prahladan. When Prahaladan entered the court, Hiranyakashipu was drinking heavily and was watching the apsaras dance. Prahaladan did not judge his father for being intoxicated but instead paid his obeisance to Hiranyakashipu. Hiranyakashipu hoisted the child on to his lap.‘Tell me, my child, what have you learnt?’‘I will answer after worshipping Achyuta,’ replied Prahaladan. ‘I have learnt that men should not lust after wealth but dedicate themselves to the service of Lord Narayana for this world is not permanent,’ started lecturing Prahlada to the utter horror of Hiranyakashipu. ‘Lord Vishnu is the first cause of all-cause. He has no beginning or end, nor does he grow or decay. He never lets down those who have faith in Him and have taken refuge in Him.I have learnt that men should not lust after wealth but dedicate themselves to the service of Lord Narayana for this world is not permanent,’ started lecturing Prahlada to the utter horror of Hiranyakashipu. ‘there was a man who was chased through a thick jungle by a tiger. As it was very dark, the man couldn’t see the path clearly and soon fell inside a deep well. Fear grasped the man’s heart as he fell through the deep well and frantically tried to grab at anything which would stop his fall. At last he caught hold of a tree branch which extended into the well. Heaving a sigh of relief the man looked down into the well as he heard loud hissing. He was terrified to see a large python lying in wait for him. As the man looked up towards the mouth of the well, he found the tiger waiting for him to climb out. He heard crunching noises. He turned towards the direction the noise was coming from and saw two gophers chewing the branch he was holding on to. He realised that very soon they will chew through the branch and he will have to fall into the mouth of python. He decided to swing to the opposite wall and climb outside the well in order to avoid the tiger. As he swung himself from the tree branch, he smashed against a large beehive and was soon under attack as angry bees attacked him from all sides. As he yelled in pain, a drop of honey from the hive fell on his tongue. He licked his mouth in delight and exclaimed how tasty the honey drop was. This is our life! The tiger is our past karmas and it chases us forcing us to run through the forest of samsara. We fall into the deep well called home. Hunger, thirst and desire lie in wait for us like the python while family members pester us like the bees. Time in the form of old age and disease attack our body like the gophers chewing through the tree. Any enjoyment we feel is like that single drop of honey which is not permanent. Hence we should leave home, go to the forest and meditate upon the divine feet of Lord Narayana.’‘Nonsense!’ yelled Hiranyakashipu. ‘Who has been feeding you this garbage? Don’t you know that it was Narayana who killed your uncle? What's the use of making you understand all this! After all, you are a child who is easily impressed. Send for Shandan and Amarkan immediately!’ thundered Hiranyakashipu.The two teachers denied the accusations laid on them by Hiranyakashipu. ‘We only teach about your glories! Why would we take the name of Narayana when you are there?’‘Alright, I give you one more chance. Take my son back to school but if I find that you have been influencing his mind, I will cut your heads with my sword!’
Continued On:

Prahalada Charitram As narrated In Vishnu Puranam 2

Continued From: https://thoughtsonsanathanadharma.blogspot.com/2019/11/prahalada-charitram-as-narrated-in.html
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The Devas after capturing Hiranyakashipu’s kingdom were taking his wife Kayathu as their prisoner. Along the way, Sage Narada intercepted the Devas. ‘Where are you taking the wife of Hiranyakashipu? She might be the wife of your arch-nemesis but as she is his dharmapatni, you have to treat her with respect.’‘She is with child and as she will soon give birth to another Asura we want to ensure that the entire race of Hiranyakashipu is destroyed!’ answered Devendran.‘Don’t be in a hurry to destroy this innocent child. This child will turn out to be the greatest Bagawatha and because of him, the world will find relief from Hiranyakashipu. Release Kayathu into my custody!’Sage Narada saved Kayathu from the Devas and gave her shelter in his ashram. Kayathu requested the boon that her child should not be delivered until her husband returned home from the forest. Sage Narada granted the boon and Prahladan stayed in his mother’s womb for 10,000 years. Every day Sage Narada lectured Kayathu about the glories of Perumal accompanied by the music from his veena. The pregnant Kayathu would often fall asleep as she was very tired but Prahladan listened to every single word uttered by the sage from his mother’s womb. Prahladan retained the knowledge he had obtained from Sage’s lecture. The music from the veena helps the unborn child to listen easily and therefore the Sage used veena to make sure that Prahladan paid attention to his lectures. This is why it is essential to use the veena while chanting the seemantham manthram ‘sOma yEva nO’.In the meantime, 10,000 years rolled by, pleased with the dedication of Hiranyakashipu, Lord Brahma appeared before him. ‘You have proved your devotion to me. I am very pleased with your dedication. What boon do you seek?’Hiranyakashipu wanted to get immunity from death. He, therefore, started to list all the ways by which he shouldn’t face death.‘I should neither die during day time nor at night, neither be killed inside nor outside, neither be killed by a weapon which has life nor by a weapon which is non-living, neither be killed by man , Devas, Asuras, Gandharvas, Nagas, yakshas, beasts or for that matter any being/creature created by you.’As soon as Lord Brahma granted him the boons, Hiranyakashipu waged war against the Devas and brought their kingdoms under his dominion. He then returned home to his city after taking Kayathu from the ashram of Sage Narada. Soon Prahladan took birth to the delight of Hiranyakashipu. Hiranyakashipu sent Prahaladan to learn from Sukracharyar’s sons Shandan and Amarkan.
Continued On:

Prahalada Charitram As narrated In Vishnu Puranam 1

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Unlike Bagawatham, Vishnu Puranam composed by Sage Parasarar doesn’t elaborate about Lord Narasimha’s appearance from the pillar or his fight with Hiranyakashipu but tells us about the difficulties endured by Prahalada in order to motivate us. This charitram is the heart of Vishnu Puranam.Daksha Prajapati’s daughters Diti and Aditi married sage Kashyapa. Hiranyakashipu and Hiranyakshan were the sons of Diti and Kashyapa. Entering the palace, Hiranyakashipu found Subhanumat the wife of his brother Hiranyakshan in tears. The attendants were all quiet. His own wife Kayathu was sitting next to Subhanumat trying to console her. Hiranyakashipu knew the reason for the sombre mood. His brother Hiranyakshan had been killed by Lord Vishnu in the form of Varaha. ‘Wipe your tears,’ said Hiranyakashipu looking at Subhanumat. ‘I vow to you that I will avenge the death of Hiranyakshan by making Vishnu who killed my brother non-existant!’‘This is not an easy task! In fact, it is an impossible task!’ said Hiranyakashipu’s minister.‘No task is impossible. I know the source of Vishnu’s powers! Torment all Brahmins who practise the Vedas, not a single verse from the Vedas should be uttered! Make sure no one follows their varnashrama dharma. You have my standing instructions to torment anyone who disobeys my decree. I will do severe penance to obtain special boons from Lord Brahma which will benefit us.’Hiranyakashipu soon left to the forest to do severe penance. Hiranyakashipu’s men started to torment people per his decree. The Devas in the meantime invaded the kingdom of Hiranyakashipu. They soon captured everyone and dragged all those people who were the supporters of Hiranyakashipu as prisoners. Along with the prisoners they dragged the wife of Hiranyakashipu as well.
To Be ContinuedContinued On: https://thoughtsonsanathanadharma.blogspot.com/2019/11/prahalada-charitram-as-narrated-in_4.html 

EXCERPTS FROM THIRUPPAVAI - GODA'S GITA VOL 3

   I have been occupied for the past few weeks writing Volume 3 of Thiruppavai Goda’s Gita which with the blessings of acharyans and the Divya Dampathis was released this year on the day of  Sri Hayagreeva Jayanthi.  Sharing below, a sneak peek into Volume 3 of Thiruppavai Goda’s Gita.I am learning Sri Bashyam, Tatparya Chandrika from my acharyan Sri U.Ve. Dr. V.S. Karunakarachariar Swamin the 27th descendant of Sri Nadadoor Azhvan – the nephew of Swamy Ramanuja. When my acharyan Sriman Villur NadathUr KaruNAkarAcchAr Swamy found out about my desire to publish books on Thiruppavai, Swamy arranged a kalakshepam of the commentary of Periyavachchan Pillai the “Three Thousand Padi on Tiruppavai” to guide me! Adiyen considers it a great baghyam to study our sacred granthams under the guidance of Swamy.After attending Thiruppavai kalakshepam, adiyen understood the magnitude and the greatness of this sacred grantham and wishing to submerge myself in the anubhavam, adiyen has been listening to legendary upanyasams by various acharyans. Like a honey bee collecting nectar from a variety of flowers, adiyen has been occupied with the activity of collecting the nectarine vak of our acharyans which has come out as Thiruppavai – Goda’s Gita.  Through Thiruppavai – Goda’s Gita, I am sharing excerpts from the Thiruppavai UpanyAsams of legendary AchAryAs. These volumes of Thiruppavai – Goda’s Gita have been written to bring out the essence of Marghazhi UpanyAsams of renowned AchAryAs like Srimad Mukkur Azhagiyasingar(44th Azhzgiyasingar) ,Srimad Thirukkudanthai Andavan Srimad, Villivalam Azhagiyasingar , Sri U.Ve Mukkur Lakshmi NarasimhAchAr of MattappaLLi AasthAnam and the author of Godhayin Paathai ,and ,Sriman Villur NadathUr KaruNAkarAcchAr Swamy and many others.The intention of composing these volumes is to make the anubhavams obtained from the UpanyAsams of legendary AchAryAs available to those who do not have the baghyam of attending upanyasams.Whatever I have tried to convey through these bookss are because of the teachings of our great acharyas.I requests the blessings from everyone as the volume 3 of Thrippavai – Goda’s Gita Please read the preview presented below.
*******************************************************************************************************We are surrounded by a flood of milk while our hair is drenched by dew and our heart is drenched with love for Krishna. Ease our pain, help us by letting us inside. We feel weak, unable to withstand the effects of the flood. We are trying to hold on to your doorknob. Please, come and open the door for us!You are very dear to us. You are like Parankusa Nayaki. Do you remember the following verse Parankusa Nayaki’s mother said about her? 

Her mother said, ‘my daughter has made this entire Earth utter His praise!’Like Parankusa Nayaki, you make us sing Krishna’s praise, so, how can we have darshan of Krishna without you? Please come with us. How can you sleep when we are singing your favourite naama sankeerthanam? ’
‘Why are we performing nombhu?’
‘Weren’t you there last night? We are performing the nombhu to obtain Krishna as our husband.’
‘To obtain Krishna?’ She asked sarcastically. ‘Have you lost your mind? Why would you desire the impish Krishna! He has no good qualities. If you sing His praise, I won’t allow you into my home you are welcome only if you sing the praise of Lord Rama. Where is Lord Rama with His extraordinary qualities and where is the roguish Krishna! Lord Rama is truly our sweetheart! Krishna, on the other hand, is bitter like neem leaves! If there is space in your yard for only one tree, will you plant sweet mango tree or bitter neem tree? Goda, after singing “pennin varutham ariyAdha perumAn” i.e He neither understands nor cares about our feelings,  why are you singing the praise of that rogue Krishna?  Didn’t you sing “mAlAip piRanda nambiyai   mAlE Seyyum maNALanai ElAp poygaL uraippAnai   i’ngE pOdak kaNDIrE?” You called Him a Cassonova who entices the hearts of young and you also called Him a compulsive liar! Did you not sing, “kaNNan ennum karum deyvam”? Translate “karum deyvam” for us in English. Literelly “karum deyvam” means a “Black God” and figuratively refers to a cruel, heartless God! He is becoming blacker by the day! He not only has black complexion but He also has a black heart! Define Krishna.’
‘What do you mean by define Krishna?’ asked the girls. They were shocked to hear their friend speaking ill of their darling Krishna.
‘I will explain,’ said the girl. ‘Krishna means the storehouse of trickery! He revealed His true colour when He was just a baby by letting Putana nurse Him. It’s no wonder He is such a scamp because He drank the ghoul Putana’s milk!’
‘Why are you scolding Krishna? What did He do to you?’
‘What hasn’t he done to me?’ asked the girl. ‘Last week He promised to meet me. As requested by Him, I went alone to the Yamuna in the evening. It was very chilly that day and I didn’t even have a shawl with me. I waited for Him all through the night. Even though I was feeling tired and cold, I believed that He would keep up His promise. When the Sun came up in the morning, I realised that He had lied to me.
The following day, He visited my home when I was churning butter. He cajoled me and charmed me with His sweet words.
‘You shouldn’t work so hard when I am here,’ He told me. ‘Come, let me help you.’ He said and took hold off the churn rope and started churning. By then I was wary of Him because He had stood me up the previous night. I was sure that He had come to steal butter and not to console me. I kept my eyes fixed on Him. The fraudster knew I was on to Him.
‘Look over there!’ He exclaimed.
I naturally looked in the direction He pointed and was shocked to see a huge snake shedding tears from its eye. The snake was so huge that I felt very afraid.
‘What is that?’ I asked Him. ‘Where did such a large snake come from and why is it crying? I caught hold of Krishna’s shoulder and cried,’ I am afraid.’


‘That’s Vasuki,’ He replied. ‘The Serpent King who helped me churn the milky ocean. When I used Mount Mandara as the churn stick, Vasuki volunteered to be the churn rope. Now he is feeling sad because instead of using him I am using an ordinary rope. Look over there and there,’ He pointed.
I was surprised to see a beautiful maiden standing in the other corner and I was even more surprised to see divine looking beings hovering over our house. I could clearly see these beings from the varendah where we were churning.
‘Krishna who is this maiden and who are those people?’
‘Don’t you know who She is?’ He asked. ‘This is Goddess Mahalakshmi. She appeared from the milky ocean the last time I churned the ocean. Now, She is anxious because She is afraid that some other maiden may appear from this pot to marry me. Those people hovering over your house are the Devas. Look, they have brought golden cups with them. Last time when I churned, they got to taste elixir. They have come here thinking that elixir will appear from this butterchurn.’
‘From here?’ I asked turning towards Krishna but He had vanished. I immediately looked into the butterchurn and realised that He had swallowed the butter while distracting me with extraordinary visions! That day, my mother scolded me.‘Don’t you know Krishna is always after butter? Why would you let Him help you? Look how He has duped you!’ scolded my mother.’
To continue reading, please visit  https://books2read.com/u/3Raz5j

BOOK RELEASE - THIRUPPAVAI GODA'S GITA VOL 3

I am pleased to announce that  Thiruppavai – Goda’s Gita Vol 3 was released on the day of Sri Hayagriva Jayanthi. The book is available in both paperback and ebook from many retailers like Amazon, Apple, Scribd to name a few. Please visit https://books2read.com/u/3Raz5jA preview of the book was published in the July 2019 and Aug 2019 Newsletters and is also available from the following link http://tiny.cc/2kw5cz After publishing the books, I was trying the search results in Google when I came across positive reviews for Thiruppavai – Goda’s Gita Vol 1 & 2 by an online book reviewer. Following is a snippet of the reviews . Please see the following links to read the full reviews. Vol 1: http://tiny.cc/68v5cz    and Vol 2: http://tiny.cc/vaw5cz

“I liked all the connected stories that are displayed like a bouquet of fragrant flowers. The stories brought back childhood memories of how the story used to be told………...I feel this volume was such a pleasure to read for two main reasons. One reason is that the small and big stories about Lord Vishnu and his many avatars were simply superb to read. The other reason being that I got to know so many unknown stories and the wonder of it is present like nectar consumed in Godai’s Vrindavan along with the Gopikas as another Pillaiy.”
“The Volume 2 stories are as compelling as those from the volume 1. These are small incidences picked from various Puranas and Vedic time stories. She also picks up stories from the contemporary era too, when she talks about the Alwars who lived before her and their life stories. The never-ending link of stories and facts of the rites provides for an entertaining conversation among the girls....The stories felt like an ambling aging river carries with slush pile of silt in its bed. The time spent on the three girls in Goda’s list of missing girls is well spent on learning so many interesting news bites about the Lord and His gracious benevolence towards His devotee...The Volume 2 keeps the interest going while providing new information about where the Pavai Nombu gathering has arrived at. This volume may be spent on waking up the girls, but at the same time, there is a lot happening with the internal cleansing process. With every discussion and arguments with the Goda and her friends to wake the missing girls, the internal thought is cleared and focused on Lord Krishna and his many avatars.”

Animal rights In Ancient India

The Vedic Laws of Ancient India prohibited cruelty towards animals and decreed that all life was sacred. The humane treatment of animals was and is an integral part of our glorious culture. The following well- known story from the annals of Indian history is one such example that upheld the rights of even animals.
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The young Chola prince sped through the royal streets in his new chariot pulled by the best thoroughbred horses. The people gathered along the streets to watch the young prince drive the chariot skillfully. They cheered and clapped as the prince handled the corners adeptly and never lost control of the chariot or the horses even when driving at a very high speed. As he turned a corner, a young calf suddenly sprinted across the street. The prince pulled at the reins and tried to bring the chariot to a complete stop but, alas, the calf was trampled by the horses and the chariot wheels ran over the baby calf which was crushed by the weight. All this happened in just a fraction of a second and in front of the watchful eyes of the mother cow which stood helplessly as it watched its child die!
 


The grieving cow ran towards the Bell of Justice and tugged at the bell-rope with its teeth. The bell rang loud and clear signalling the need for justice. The Chola King heard the call for justice and rushed towards the Bell of Justice. ‘Who is calling for justice,’ he wondered as he ran towards the Bell Tower followed by his ministers. He stopped dead in his track when he saw that a cow was ringing the bell. He proceeded towards the cow and stroked its back. ‘Are you seeking justice?’ he asked it and was saddened to see tears flowing from its eyes. The cow led the King to the place where its calf had been hit by the chariot. The King’s heart missed a beat when he saw the baby calf lying under the chariot wheels. ‘Who would do such a gruesome deed!’ he cried.



‘It was me, father,’ cried a meek voice.
The King was shocked to see his son standing next to the chariot. ‘I was driving this chariot when this baby calf suddenly rushed across the street. I tried very hard to stop the chariot but, …it was too late!’ cried the prince.



‘At what speed were you driving the chariot ?’ asked the King. ‘Didn’t you know that the streets are not meant for racing or that driving the chariot is a privilege not your right? You were granted permission to drive after an evaluation of your skills and after you had agreed to follow the rules. It was your duty to drive safely on the streets. Your reckless behaviour has resulted in the death of this calf. The mother cow has called for justice. When I was crowned as the king, I took an oath to protect all creatures and vowed to obey the Laws of Manu. The law is very clear on negligent manslaughter. I condemn you to death,’ cried the king.
 


The onlookers cried when they heard their king condemn his only child to death.
‘It is the king’s duty to uphold dharma. Sinners must be punished by the king according to the severity of the crime. If they are not adequately punished, then, the sinners are forced to endure many severe punishments in hell. You have taken a life. The shastras state that all jeevatmas are equal to one another and the differences we see is because of the bodies they have taken at birth. The body is like a dress worn by the jeevatma. Hence, whether it’s a cow, a dog or a human being, all are equal to one another and we must not discriminate based on their appearance. I thereby, condemn you to death and you too must feel the pain the baby calf felt when it was trampled by the horses and when the chariot wheels ran over its tiny body. I also am condemned to endure the pain felt by this mother cow. Your death will be my punishment. I myself will drive the chariot over you.’



Today in many countries capital sentence is banned and often violent offenders are released after just a few years in prison. This may seem like a humane law but, in reality by releasing such violent offenders back into the society the governments are endangering the lives of the innocent people. This is a classic case of hinsa in ahimsa – i.e injury to the innocent resulting from seemingly non-violent approach.
 


Legend has it that the moment the King drove the chariot over his only son, both the calf and the son came back to life. As the king hadn’t strayed from justice even when he was hearing the case against his son, he was proclaimed as “Manu Neethi Cholan.” The readers may find the justice practised by the Chola King hard to digest especially since in this day and age one cannot expect such fairness even among fellow human beings.



 The Cholas are descendants of the Solar Dynasty and were the upholders of Vedic Dharma in Southern India as noted by the above history in which the King strictly followed Manu Smriti. Manu Neethi Cholan was the Chola king Ellalan who ruled from 205 BCE to 161 BCE. He is proclaimed as a just and benevolent ruler a  statement which is acknowledged even by the Sinhalese. The Mahavamsa composed by the Sinhalese praises him for treating both friends and foes with fairness.

 

 

Scientific Theories In Atharvana Veda

The Atharvana Vedic verses also instructs to spin water in turbines to extract electricity.



வித்யுதஸி பாப்மாநம்  யத் வித்யுத:
தீர்த்தே பூமம் அக்ஷி சூர்யோ  சந்திரமா:
நக்ஷத்ரே இதஸ்தத:

The above verse predicts the generation of electricity from natural resources.


The Atharvana Veda informs us of electricity present inside Earth, Moon, Sun and the stars.

We can see the practical use of the concepts mentioned in the Atharvana Veda in the Kali Yuga We extract energy from the Sun rays by using solar cells. We build hydroelectric plants to extract the energy contained in water and we use coal power plants to generate electricity from coal mined from the Earth.

We memorise the Chemical formula of water as H2O; i.e a water molecule is made of hydrogen and oxygen gas. It has two parts hydrogen and one part oxygen. The Atharvana Veda gives the chemical formula of water as “pranan ekam anyath dwe” (பிராணம் ஏகம் அந்யத்வெ ) ; i.e per Atharvana Veda, water is made of prana vayu one part (oxygen)and two parts of another gas (hydrogen).



The Atharvana Vedic verses also provide instructions on weaponry and also in health sciences. Three chapters in the Atharvana Veda provide instructions on atomic energy. 

A verse in the Atharvana Veda predicts atomic warfare and the destruction of this world by the release of atomic energy. It states that there are subatomic particles which continuously orbit around the nucleus. Each particle revolves around the nucleus but, if they change direction and collide with each other, a large amount of destructive atomic energy is released. Scientists have recently discovered two tiny subatomic particles called as bottom quarks which could fuse together in theory to produce a powerful explosion so strong that it would equal the energy released by crores of hydrogen bombs!


The Atharvana Vedic verse state that like the subatomic particles, we must stay focused on our swadharma but, when we refuse to follow our swadharma and interfere with the swadharma of others, Vedic Dharma is destroyed and this destruction is more catastrophic than the atomic energy released by the collision of sub-atomic particles. The Vedic Verse is given below.


அணவ: தத் தடவ: தத் அந்தர் பூத பரம  அணவ:
பாம்யந்தி தத்ரைவா நாந்யத் பச்யதி
அந்யத் பச்யதி நேதரா கச்சதி



We are asked to meditate upon Angiras Maharishi to be freed from various doshams because of the powers attained by Angiras Maharishi by performing many types of Yagam. There is a particular yagnam called as Sayana Yagnam which was performed by Angiras Maharishi. The yagnam kundam for the Sayana Homam should be built by mixing earth with the dirt obtained from the surface of the moon. Vedam says “சந்த்ரமஸி  கிருஷ்ணம்”, i.e the soil present on the surface of the moon is dark in colour. Sample of the Lunar Dust is exhibited in many places like the Birla Planetarium and to our surprise, it is grey (Krishnam) in colour!
 
Today, if we want Lunar Dust to perform the Sayana Yagam, we have to fly in a rocket all the way to the Moon after burning a   hole in the Earth’s ozone layer. We do not have the power to obtain Lunar Dust instantly but, with the power of Vedic manthras, the ancient sages closed their eyes and chanted a manthram asking for the Lunar Dust to appear before them and it immediately appeared for their use! This is the main difference between the mechanised , scientific power and the power of the Vedic Manthrams! Atharvana Vedam itself differentiates between the two powers. It says that Vedic manthram is limitless (மந்த்ரம் அபரிமிதம் (வரையறையற்றது)) while yanthram , i.e mechananised power relying on scientific theories is limited (யந்த்ரம் பரிமிதம் (வரையறைக்குட்பட்டது ))

There is nothing which is not mentioned in the Vedas. All the inventions and discoveries are already explained in the Vedic verses!

 
 
 

Agni In Water

The Vedic verses speak about Badaba Agni in the ocean. Badaba refers to a mare, a female horse in Sanskrit. The verses state that there is a fire in the middle of the ocean called Badaba Agni which absorbs the excess water entering the ocean and prevents the water from breaching its shores. This Badaba Agni is also the fire which will destroy everything during pralaya.
Interestingly, NASA has detected many thermal anomalies that appear to be fires in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean. We have also heard of the horse-shoe shaped ring of fire in the Pacific responsible for producing earthquakes and volcanic eruptions.  
The ocean currents are generated by a factor called thermohaline circulation driven by surface heat and density gradients. Agni represents energy. It is clear that there is energy contained in the oceans responsible for generating ocean currents and other thermal anomalies noted by NASA. The Pacific Ring of Fire also often spews fire into the ocean. A greater number of the volcanoes which are active on Earth are hidden from our view as they are located on the ocean floor. Isn’t it amazing that the Vedic Verses mention about the Badaba Agni in the ocean is also the fire that will destroy our world during Pralaya! The destructive fire which will occur during pralaya is probably the multiple volcanic eruptions triggered by sub-sea volcanoes which would have a catastrophic impact on our planet.
Another interpretation of Agni hidden in water is the latent heat. Latent heat means hidden heat. We know that all matter whether liquid, solids or gases are made of molecules which are in turn made of atoms. When heat is added to a substance, the atoms vibrate and the space between the atoms increases. This increase in space between the atoms alters the state of the substance; i.e, a solid is turned into liquid and a liquid into vapour. Likewise, when the heat is removed from a substance, the space between the atoms decreases and the substance changes into a liquid or a solid.
This hidden energy , latent heat which is found in fluids is the agni. There is agni in water. When we add more agni to the water, it turns into steam and when we remove agni present in water, it tuns into ice. 
Latent heat can be understood as heat energy in a hidden form which is supplied or extracted to change the state of a substance without changing its temperature. The latent heat assosiated with freezing a liquid is known as the heat of fusion. When water transforms into ice, the heat energy which was hidden in water is released. When 1 mol of water at 0°C freezes to ice at 0°C, 6.01 kJ of heat is released into the surroundings and when the same amount of ice transforms to water, 6.01 kJ of heat energy is absorbed by water. See how beautifully Atharvana Veda explains the concept of latent heat, the heat energy hidden in the water!