Ananda Sangbad 2014 Q2

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Ananda Sangbad

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April 2014 A Quarterly Publication of Ananda Mandir, New Jersey

INDIA IMPRESSIONS

Ananda Mandir Calendar of Events

By Amitabha Bagchi

(Dates are subject to Change) Please check our website frequently

Editor's Note: A fresh look at current India from economic and historical perspective is provided in two parts by the author while traveling in company of a foreigner. The first part describes their experiences of Delhi, Agra and Rajasthan. The second part about West Bengal will be covered in the July 2014 issue of Ananda Sangbad.

I. Leafy Trees and Motorcycles There are definite virtues in traveling through one's country with a foreigner. You get an extra pair of eyes to see things a native might otherwise miss; and a fresh perspective on things that may at times be at variance with your own. Such was indeed the case on my recent India trip when I was accompanied by a longtime friend from Mexico.

I had known my friend since graduate school where we had briefly shared an apartment.

Later our professional careers intersected as we collaborated on physics research for a number of years. We used to exchange visits to our respective universities, and in the process I got to see various parts of Mexico. So when he expressed a desire to visit India with me, I was extremely pleased. We decided to spend some three weeks traveling through parts of the country.

We flew into Delhi and met up with my wife to begin our trip. On our first day in the country, my Mexican friend warned me in passing that he had been told he “would be shocked by the sight of extreme poverty in India.” From that day onward, as we took in the sights and sounds of the country, we would idly and occasionally look for examples of

“extreme poverty” and compare notes.

We started off in the morning from the New Banga Bhavan in New Delhi. As we drove off in our rented car – a spacious and attractive Toyota Innova – what rose before us was a broad boulevard of Chanakyapuri flanked by rows of leafy trees and super-size estates of foreign embassies where the offices and living quarters were set deep inside and mostly hidden from view. Extreme poverty was nowhere to be seen.

I told my friend not to worry, that extreme poverty, if not round the corner, would be visible before long. We drove first to the seat of Government – Rashtrapati Bhavan, India Gate, Lok Sabha – and then to Connaught Place, the commercial hub of Lutyens' Delhi. It was now mid-morning, and we could see crowds of vendors and office workers, but extreme poverty proved elusive.

I reacted to my friend's quizzical look by mumbling about finding it in the impoverished neighborhood of Old Delhi, where we planned to head after Qutub and lunch.

We proceeded next toward Jama Masjid, but the traffic was horrendous and the afternoon sun was declining, so we ditched

that plan and veered toward Red Fort before it would close. The roads were now truly crowded; itinerant vendors had spilled from footpaths onto streets, and the cap-and-kurta clad crowd milling around them easily took up half the roadway. But they were all neatly attired and looked well-fed. We saw not a single beggar, just one pre-teen girl who approached our car to sell some trinkets.

My friend shook his head; he was yet to see extreme poverty.

What we saw instead was a plethora of motorcycles. They were everywhere, and easily outnumbered bicycles – the common man's conveyance from the days of my youth – by a ratio of 5 to 1 or more.

This to me was indeed a surprise. The motorcycles were apparently meant for the Indian scene, with thinner tire sizes somewhere between a Lambretta (scooter) and a full-blown Royal Enfield or Harley Davidson (motorcycle).

(Both the latter companies sell popular brand motorcycles in India.)

My friend noticed them too, and his innocent inquiry sent me to a Google search on the number of motorcycles sold annually in India. Per Wikipedia, “annual sales of motorcycles in India are expected to exceed 10 million by 2010.” The figure is impressive, and I can only scratch my head about how frequently Wikipedia entries are updated and if anyone monitors such updates.

II. Mausoleums and Mughal Gardens The new toll road from Delhi to Agra, known as the Yamuna Expressway, was another surprise and actually an eye-popping experience for me. I had traveled that route several times in the past, and there was nothing special about the regular national highway that connected the two cities. The Y a m u n a E x p r e s s w a y, however, is different. “It is,” in the words of Wikipedia, “India's largest six-lane

controlled-access expressway stretch.” I looked in vain for pedestrians, bullock-carts, bicycles or roadside dhabas: there were none. I was reminded instead of the expressway on a drive I took in the early 1970s from Marseilles to Paris. It has taken India forty-odd years to begin to catch up with the First World!

The expressway ends on a bridge spanning the Yamuna on National Highway 2 connecting Agra with Kanpur.

It is also one's entry into the real or eternal India – of chaos and congestion, unruly crowd and construction mess.

Garbage and filth were now much in evidence, including the striking scene of a toddler standing in the middle of a field of plastic and rubbish next to a Bahujan (new name for those formerly called untouchables) colony. The lad looked healthy though, and my friend still refused to accept the scene as depicting “extreme poverty.”

One comes to Agra to see the Taj, of course. The first time I saw it, some forty years ago, a friend and I had to go through narrow alleyways and low, arched doors until all of a sudden, without any warning, the gigantic, white-marble mausoleum burst into view. It was an awe-inspiring sight.

The next time I came, two decades later, the approach was streamlined with policemen, fencing and metal detectors. This time around, I noticed, the arrangement has been further modernized.

Gone are the serpentine alleyways and low buildings that used to lead up to the entrance door to the Taj Mahal compound. They have been razed in favor of a large and well-maintained esplanade acting as a drop-off and pickup spot for tourists. The whole set-up, though, is strangely antiseptic. Gone is the thrill of suddenly finding immense beauty in the midst of an ocean of dross.

It would be pointless for me to expatiate on the grandeur of the Taj. Let me speak Turn to page 03

www.anandamandir.org Tel: 732-873-9821 NOTE: If a particular Puja time is not listed, please contact temple or visit our website:anandamandir.org APRIL Basanti Durga Puja Saturday, 05 to Wednesday, 09 (See details in center page) Ram Nabami Puja Tuesday, 08, 5:30pm Nil Yatra Sunday, 13, (morning) Satyanarayan Puja Sunday, 13, (evening) Chaitra Sankranti Monday, 14, (call for time) Nababarsha Tuesday, 15, 5:30pm Sahitya O Alochana Friday, 18, 8:00pm Ananda Sandhya To be announced MAY Akshaya Tritiya Friday, 2, 9:00am Ram Thakur Utsav (Kirtan & Puja) Sunday, 4, 4:30pm Satyanarayan Puja Sunday, 11, 6:00pm Phalaharni Kali Puja Wednesday, 28, 6:15pm Sahitya O Alochana Friday, 16, 8:00pm Ananda Sandhya To be announced JUNE Satyanarayan Puja Sunday, 08, 6:00pm Yaagtraannath Mahaprabhur Snan J Friday 13, 8:00am Shyama Puja Thursday, 26, 6:30pm Rath Yatra Sunday, 29, 6:00pm Sahitya O Alochana Friday, 20, 8:00 pm Ananda Sandhya To be announced JULY Satyanarayan Puja Sunday, 6, 6:00pm Punor Yatra Monday, 7, 6:30am Guru Purnima Saturday, 12, 10:00am Shyama Puja Saturday, 26, 6:00pm Sahitya O Alochana Friday, 18, 8:00 pm Ananda Sandhya To be announced

Special Religious Services: Upon request, the priest of Ananda Mandir offers services such as in-house Sraddhas, Rituals associated with Cremations (Antyesti Kriya), Death Anniversaries, Pre-wedding rituals (Naandimukh, Ashirwad, etc), Upanayan (Paitey), Annaprasan, Wedding Ceremonies & Wedding Anniversaries, Griha Prabesh (Bhumi Puja), Consecrations of new cars (New Car Pujas) and others. If you have needs for any of the above or more, please feel free to contact Biswabhai @ 732-873-9821 If you have needs for any of the above or more, please feel free to contact Biswabhai @ 732-873-9821

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Ananda Sangbad

April 2014

ANANDA SANGBAD A Periodical Newsletter Published By ANANDA MANDIR (A Tax-Exempt, Non-Profit Organization) 269 Cedar Grove Lane Somerset, NJ 08873 Ph: 732-873-9821 Website: www.anandamandir.org Publications of Ananda Mandir Editorial Board : Chairperson:

Pronoy Chatterjee, pkc_usa@yahoo.com Assistant Chairperson:

Debajyoti Chatterji, debsmee572@gmail.com Editor-in-Chief:

E We are experiencing what is probably the harshest winter in our memories of living in this country. The question naturally comes to the minds of many why is this happening while we hear so much talk about global warming? The global warming phenomenon indicates a warming trend in climate, yet we continue to experience the exact opposite of what is expected. How are these two things linked anyway - climate and global changes in the weather pattern?

The National Atmospheric and Oceanographic Administration (NOAA) defines climate as the average of weather over at least a 30-year period. So the periodic change in a particular season is just an aberration. Extreme

Amitabha Bagchi, amitabhanj@gmail.com Co-Editors:

Subrata Bhaumik, bhaumik.subrata@gmail.com Debajyoti Chatterji, debsmee572@gmail.com Sushmita Dutta, sushmitadutt@novel-ebiz.co Kamal Raychaudhuri, kamal.raychaudhuri@gmail.com Members-at-large:

Bhaswati Bhadra Santosh Mukherjee Ashok Rakhit All queries, articles, news reports and letters should be directed to the Editorial Board: Phone/Fax : 732-651-8802, E-mail: pkc_usa@yahoo.com.

For general information, please contact the following executives of Ananda Mandir: Dipak Sarkar,

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weather events from snowstorms to droughts are likely side effects of a climate in transition. Most scientists maintain that year-to-year variation in weather cannot be directly linked to either a warming or a cooling climate.

"You can't tell much about the climate or where it's headed by focusing on a particularly frigid day or season, or year even," writes Eoin O'Carroll of the Christian Science Monitor. It's all in the long-term trends," concurs Dr. Gavin Schmidt, a climatologist at NASA's Goddard Institute of Space Studies.

So how does the warming of the poles affect the weather conditions in populated areas?

In a recent television talk show, Michio Kaku, a physics professor

at the City College of New York, explained that as the North Pole gets heated due to global warming, the excess heat generated by the warm mass of water exerts a destabilizing effect on the cold air mass which can cause snow storms of gigantic proportions. The same must be true for the South Pole and the weather in the southern hemisphere. "The decade that just passed, it was the hottest decade ever recorded in the history of science," he also mentioned.

Scientists are almost unanimous in projecting the slow but sure warming trend with its adverse consequences.

As we struggle with the endless efforts to shovel the snow off our driveways in the early

morning hours to get to work, and pay off the frightening monthly heating bills, we keep consoling ourselves that this season is indeed an aberration and that the next winter is going to be totally snow free.

Note: Reference materials extracted from Internet news

Changes in the Editorial Board Kamal Raychaudhuri has agreed to join the editorial board of Ananda Sangbad and Anandalipi as a co-editor. Jayashree Chatterjee, a current co-editor, has decided to step down for a while.

Guru Chakravarty Editor, Ananda Sangbad

PRESIDENT'S MESSAGE

Editor, Ananda Sangbad:

Editor, Anandalipi:

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Global Warming and A Harsh Winter

Pronoy Chatterjee, pkc_usa@yahoo.com Guru Chakravarty, guruchakravarty@yahoo.com

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The Bengali New Year (Pohela Boishakh) is on April 15, and I wish "Shubho Nababarsha" to all of you. The Ananda Mandir board will hold it's annual general meeting on Sunday, 13th April, at 12:30 pm. The purpose of this meeting is to report activities of all the Committees and the Sub-Committees, ratification of any amendments to the Constitution and Bylaws, and other important matters. I invite all life members to attend this meeting not only to hear our progress but also to provide input for our improvement.

Ananda Mandir's expansion plan is progressing steadily. Our construction project of the expanded temple and a new community center is going forward on schedule despite a

harsh winter season. The target timeline is to finish construction by mid-April, 2015.

We successfully raised the funds required by the bank to be eligible for further loan to continue the expansion project.

Our objective is to raise additional funds in next two years to pay off some of the loan. That will be essential to reduce an otherwise large monthly mortgage payment. Once the construction is completed, the community hall will be open to the public for their personal celebrations. Devotees will be able to use our religious services more frequently.

I also want to bring your attention to the new initiatives that Ananda Mandir has undertaken related to youth

activities. For the past two years, we are running a summer internship program. Last year, we provided opportunities to seven youth members to work in research laboratories and at the Ananda Mandir facilities.

Also, a group of youths has started a monthly wall magazine called "Kishaloy" which hangs on a wall at the facility. All youth members of Ananda Mandir are invited to submit poetry, small stories, scientific articles, art and photographic materials, etc. for the wall magazine. The Ananda Mandir youth group meets the last Sunday of each month.

The youth group volunteers receive an official certificate for their services at Ananda Mandir.

I need your help to spread this information to your family and friends.

As you know, Ananda Mandir depends on financial and volunteering help from our community. We are always in need of more volunteers. If you have some time to spare, please come to Ananda Mandir and give us an extra hand to keep our organization running smoothly.

Then there is the need of more revenue for the on-going construction project and for our continuing growth. Please consider becoming a life member by donating $1000, or a patron member by donating $5,000.

Please join me to make Ananda Mandir strong so that this organization can continue to provide religious and cultural services to the Bengalis and others in the Tri-state area.

Dipak K. Sarkar, President

Didn't Receive Your Copy of Ananda Sangbad?

If you are a Life Member or an Associate Member, but didn't receive your copy of Ananda Sangbad, it may be because we do not have the correct address on file for you. Please send an email to Guru Chakravarty (guruchakravarty@yahoo.com) with your correct address, and we will send you another copy.

President Jaiprakash Biswas, Vice President Suprasad Baidyaroy,

Vice President

Acknowledgement The Board of Trustees expresses its deep appreciation to Suprasad and Rita Baidyaroy for their continued financial support to the publication of Ananadalipi.

Chanu Das,

Treasurer Suprasade Baidyaroy

General Secretary

Acknowledgement The Board of Trustees expresses its deep appreciation to Santosh and Ambalika Mukherjee for their financial support to the publication of the April issue of Ananda Sangbad.

Ananda Sangbad Continued from page 1

instead of two remarkable bequests of the Mughal Empire that I saw for the first time. The first was the tomb of Itimad-udDaulah (né Mirza Ghiyas Beg), the father of Noor Jahan, who commissioned it to be built. Noor Jahan was the wife of the alcoholic Emperor Jahangir and the virtual Empress of India in her heyday. The tomb sometimes called the “Baby Taj” - is the first Mughal architecture to use white marble (as opposed to red sandstone) and stone inlay work, and is truly the precursor of the Taj Mahal.

Remarkably enough, Itimad-udDaulah was also the grandfather of Mumtaz Mahal. Standing in the mausoleum's courtyard, I was awed by the memory of the exiled Persian nobleman whose progeny included two of the most celebrated beauties of Mughal India.

The second was the Mehtab Bagh – one of several gardens built by Shah Jahan in and around Agra. It had fallen into disrepair for centuries until the Archaeological Survey of India embarked on its restoration in the 1990s. Situated right across the river from Taj Mahal, Mehtab Bagh is an exquisitely pretty garden of perfect rows of fruit and flower trees, neatly trimmed hedges, well-manicured lawns and a fountain amidst a large pool of water. Gazing at the Taj through the morning haze, I admired the aesthetic taste of the Mughal rulers and wondered if Independent India could not have devoted some of its (admittedly limited) resources to similar pursuits.

III. My Vanishing India I had confidently told my traveling companion that I would show him bear handlers, monkey handlers and snake charmers in India. I was thinking, of course, of the India of my youth. Little did I realize that much of that India had vanished.

In all of our travels through north India, I looked in vain for a black bear standing upright on its hind legs - a man by its side holding tightly to a chain fastened to a metal collar around its neck. I saw plenty of monkeys, but none chained to a handler who would sing and make noise with a damroo or the like to draw a crowd and then officiate over the marriage between a male and a female langur (hanuman).

And we saw exactly one snake charmer – right by the lake under the Amber Fort in Jaipur.

Clearly I was looking at a new and different India.

Our driver provided me with the explanation. Street shows with animals were now verboten, thanks to Maneka Gandhi, who had campaigned against the practice as “cruelty to animals.”

Modern India did listen, accept and enshrine her viewpoint in law. I remembered the monkey

April 2014

India Impressions handler character in “A Fine Balance,” but Rohinton Mistry was writing about India of 1976, not 2013!

After photographing the snake charmer, my friend and I clambered on the back of an elephant for the ride up the steep slope to the top of the hill where Amber Palace is located.

The trek up was indeed scenic, but I had occasional anxiety attacks about sliding down the elephant's back (there was no protecting howdah) and over the crenellation of the fort wall to drop hundreds of feet into the reservoir below.

Amber Palace, like many royal palaces of Rajasthan we saw, was laid out as a seemingly endless series of courtyards that suddenly and sequentially pop into view as one passes through a narrow opening or archway.

The farthest of these, it was claimed, belonged to the devout princess Jodhabai, who was one of the consorts of Emperor Akbar. Jodhabai was indeed from Amber, but historians are dubious about the details of the claim, attributing it rather to the popularity of the princess after the recent Bollywood movie, “Jodha Akbar.”

Back down on level plain, we came to the “pink city” of Jaipur, which was fortified and built (with design advice from the Bengali architect and scholar, Vidyadhar Bhattacharya) around the palace of Maharaja Sawai Jai Singh II. In the palace museum, one thing we noticed was the immense interest in polo in that part of the country. We were curious to see a game of polo, and especially to know the dimension of the goal and the size of the ball, but although we reached the polo ground after some effort in late afternoon, no match was in progress.

Around that time, I also started musing about another aspect of my “vanishing India,” the absence of holy cows from city streets. I did see cattle graze at a distance as we drove from Delhi to Agra and Jaipur, but no bovine was visible on any of those cities' streets. This was a tad surprising in the so-called “cow belt,” but my tension was finally relieved when we reached Jodhpur and saw enormous cows resting calmly on the traffic circle around the Clock Tower and on a promenade by the lake. At the bazaar that evening, it was hilarious to see a cow quickly snatch a long white radish and be chased away by the shopkeeper. I had a feeling that I had finally arrived in my native land!

IV. Queens and Concubines The Mehrangarh Fort of Jodhpur, sitting high atop a hill, looked impressive and impregnable. Its stone wall bore shell marks from cannon

bombardment during an abortive siege by Jaipur forces. The design inside was vintage Rajput – a blend of Islamic and Hindu architecture and motifs – with narrow gates (for security from invaders), elaborate and decorative archways, and lattice work veiling the female quarters.

But my biggest impression is of the enthusiastic guide we hired and his effusive narration of Jodhpur's princely history.

The one he gushed the most about was Maharaja Takht Singh, who ruled Jodhpur from 1843 to 1873. His achievements in life were impressive: helping the British during the Sepoy Mutiny (1857); two sons who would be kings; and a daughter married to the king of Jaipur. But our guide was more fixated on his sexual prowess. He married 30 wives and had 17 concubines to boot. Not only that, but our guide solemnly assured us, the Maharaja built separate quarters for all of his 30 lawful wives.

(How he herded the members of his unwed harem was less clear.)

The guide was taking us through the museum of the palace – run by a Trust set up to avoid confiscation of treasures by the rulers of independent India – showing elaborate and ornate thrones, howdahs, palanquins and assembly rooms (Diwan-eKhaas). He also pointed to paintings of heroic figures from Jodhpur's long history, most of them either armed and on horseback in martial postures, or in amorous trysts with females on tree-lined and shady courtyards. The many paintings of Maharaja Takht Singh, however, showed a thickly bearded and mustachioed man in regal costume but with the droopy eyes of an opium addict – a weakness of his that our guide readily confirmed.

An odd question suddenly popped in my head. What would happen when the king died?

Would the royal widows vacate their quarters? If not, how would the new king find space for his own queens and concubines?

I asked our guide the question.

His answer was instantaneous: They would dig a large pit, build a fire and jump into it!

“You mean Suttee?” I said. I was flabbergasted. It is true that the practice of Suttee (or Sati) was said to originate in Rajasthan with Rani Padmini's Jauhar to escape the clutches of Alauddin Khilji. But the image of 30 royal widows serially jumping into their husband's funeral pyre seemed preposterous, especially in the second half of the nineteenth century. “Suttee was banned by that time,” I protested.

“Ah yes. Raja Ram Mohun Roy and Lord Bentinck,” said the guide, showing his familiarity with recent Indian history. And I Turn to page 11

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"Virtual" Interviews with the Winners of 2013 Gayatri Memorial Award Reported by Amitabha Bagchi 2013 marked the third year of the Gayatri GaMarsh Memorial Awards. Last year's winners, as already reported in Ananda Sangbad (January 2014 issue) are: Gouri Dutta (winner in

of sorts during our lunch break when we were about twelve years old, and we scribbled out novellas of high adventure in longhand on the lives of triplets named Mickey, Millie and Ruby.

English publications category); and Ivy Chatterjee and Sumit Nag (co-winners in Bengali publications category). Gouri Dutta also won the award two years earlier in the Bengali publications category.

Following our practice from previous years, Ananda Sangbad takes this opportunity to introduce the winners to our readership. Gouri Dutta and Sumit Nag live in Massachusetts, while Ivy Chatterjee resides in Jamshedpur, India. Since faceto-face interviews with the winners would have been difficult, we chose to conduct "virtual interviews" with them via e-mail. Here is a condensation of those interviews, in Q&A format, largely in the authors' own words.

Gouri Dutta Q: Tell us something about you and your background.

A: I was born in Varanasi, UP (where my mother's family lived) and grew up in Bihar - Patna for schooling, and Darbhanga for college and medical school.

My interest in languages came from growing up in the trilingual atmosphere of 'prabaas.'

My interest in reading books in all three languages (English, Bengali, and to a lesser extent, Hindi) came from growing up in a conservative family with reading as the main form of self entertainment.

Q: When did you get interested in writing - and why or how?

A: My interest in writing was spawned in our school where the best essay of the month would be pinned up on the main corridor wall, behind a glass frame, for all passers-by to read.

That was high honor and a great incentive! I remember doing pieces like "A Day in the Life of a Coin" and "What was Caught in the Spider's Web" and competing with my best friend, Chandra, to see who could get more essays up on the board every year! Five of our classmates started a writers' club

Those notebooks remain dustencrusted in our respective basements!

Incidentally, I attended the same school as Gayatri in Patna -St Joseph's Convent - although we were years apart. I had felt inexplicably moved upon hearing of that connection!

One other factor shaped my interest in writing. Many towns of Bihar and UP have an area called "Bengalitola" where a coterie of Bengalis would live and create a Bengali ambience for their families amidst Hindispeaking surroundings. In Laheriasarai, Bihar, my parents lived in such a "Bengalitola."

There was a great atmosphere of people writing their own Bengali plays for Durga Puja, preparing their own handwritten Bengali magazine annually, staging Bengali functions at the rambling old Binapani Club, and so on. I would get a taste of this Bengali-ness (outside of my home) during the school holidays. So though I did not have a formal education in Bengali [language and literature], the imbibing of the language happened in scraps and pieces from a strong culture code at home, peers, old Bengali books at the Binapani Library, and later Bengali books that our family, especially my mother, would get for me from Kolkata seeing my growing interest in the language and literature.

Q: What topics interest you most as a writer?

A: Literary fiction and poetry mainly. Also humor and mystery My favorite writers are: Sunil Gangopadhyay, Shirshendu Mukhopadhyay, Pratibha Basu, Narayan Gangopadhyay, Mahashweta Devi, Jibanananda Das, Lila Majumdar, and P.G. Wodehouse, to name a few. I still read children's books by writers like Enid Blyton and the "William" series by Richmal Crompton (hilarious!). I read a lot of modern Bengali poets in Turn to page 4

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Ananda Sangbad

April 2014

"Virtual" Interviews Continued from page 3

Desh Patrika, try to read up on anyone who garners a significant recognition or if I hear a recommendation. I love Urdu shayaris written in Hindi so that I can read them My hobbies are: Reading whenever I find the time, looking at art, singing in the shower, listening to other, more serious singers/musicians, doing puzzles, playing board games, generally day-dreaming, and discovering fun in banal things.

Q: How do you balance family/ career demands against your interest in writing?

A: I do find it tough. My work and family give me interesting material to write about, but I am often pulled in too many different directions to settle down and write.

Enforced deadlines help. So do competitions like the Gayatri GaMarsh Awards. Also helpful are writing groups, like the two I am involved with in Boston: LEKHONI for Bengali, and ROSALIE RD WRITERS for English. They help rein in my runaway thoughts.

Q: Any comments on your winning the Gayatri GaMarsh Award?

A: I was delighted and flattered when I won the Bengali award two years ago. When Pronoyda (Chatterjee) called me about the English Award for 2013, I felt like the cricketer who does two centuries back to back and hears the crowd roaring!

I decided that Ananda Sangbad and Anandalipi were going to get constant benefits of my potent pen, but I have not been able to follow through on that resolve. Believe me, however, that I am working on it in my lazy languorous way!

One suggestion: How about a Gayatri GaMarsh Award in Hindi Creative Writing? I am sure Ivy Chatterjee, being from Bihar like myself, will support me in this!

Ivy Chatterjee Q: Tell us something about you and your background.

A: I was born and brought up in the Steel City of Jamshedpur, state Jharkhand, India. I have been working for the State Bank of India for 28 years. As for educational qualifications, I have a Master's in Zoology, MBA in Banking and Finance, and CAIIB (Certificate in All India Institute of Bankers exam) - Part II. I love reading books; I am a voracious reader. I love reading both fiction and non-fiction and poetry as well. Other than Literature, I have special attraction for Religion, Mythology, Science-Fiction, and general scientific articles; especially on Astronomy and Space Science. I love to read about the sky, the stars and outer space.

Other than reading, I love music.

(I have a Sangeet Ratna degree in Rabindra Sangeet from

Rabindra Bharati University, Calcutta). I used to perform in and organize different stage shows of dance dramas in and around Jamshedpur for many years. I was a regular participant on All India Radio, Jamshedpur, for several talk shows and discussion panels.

I have a strong attraction for meditation and spiritual activities.

I love to experience different meditation techniques. I am a 3rd degree Reiki channel certificate holder. I do not believe, however, in the rapid chanting of mantras, or in rituals and temple-hopping. My God resides in every sentient living being.

I do respect and admire people who are engaged in philanthropic activities. I am closely connected with two NGOs called Bhalopahar and Grace India; they work for the less-privileged children and senior citizens respectively.

Q: When did you get interested in writing - and why or how?

A: I am basically an introverted person - a loner actually. I love solitude. So naturally I do not have friends to share my emotions, my reaction to a particular incident, or my observations on the society as a whole. Being sensitive, and being a woman, I needed space to open up. I needed an escape actually. My writing is my escape - my free wandering in the sky.

Perhaps I was awakened by the most basic questions everyone faces in life, the philosophical questions that human beings have asked a million times: What is life all about? Who am I? Why am I here? What is the purpose of my existence? I began to be bothered by my living what I felt was a disciplined, cautious and socially approved but dreary existence. I began to wonder if I was missing the true perspective of life - a glimpse of something really beautiful. I realized that to live is not just to exist. To live is not just to survive.

All of a sudden I began feeling a gap - a space between my own self and my mind, between myself and my body, between myself and my conditioning. I discovered, in fact, a gap between myself and the whole of our values and experiences, a conflict that is the result of the tremendous pressure and expectations imposed by the society. I felt a strong urge to receive the light that would lead me from the slavery of the conditioned mind to the joy of spontaneous freedom. I felt a strong desire to have the golden key of unprejudiced and nonjudgmental observation so that I could grow. I started writing as an escape.

Though I used to write from my childhood days, and used to write for my school, college and

university magazines, I started writing seriously around the year 2002. And I realized that the escape route was actually making me happy, was giving me tremendous joy.

It was my little daughter who gave me the idea that I send my writings to publish in the print media. In fact, she forced me to send my stories to different magazines in Kolkata.

Internet helped me a lot. My earlier writings got noticed on the net and I got offers for writing from the editors of different magazines and newspapers from Kolkata and different states in India. Very soon, I began writing for magazines published in the US and Bangladesh.

I owe a debt of gratitude to all my editors who published my stories and articles. They nurtured my creations, and that helped me open up more and write more freely.

Q: What topics interest you most as a writer?

A: Being a woman, I do identify with feminine issues immediately.

So most of my writings are women-centric. At the same time I am empathetic to the oppressed and the weaker sections of society. I believe I have a duty to carry their message to the larger world.

Being born and brought up in a city like Jamshedpur, with forests, river and natural beauty, I have learnt to appreciate the beauty of nature and its (tribal) people.

That interests me much more than the so-called civilized society.

I have seen that sometimes relationships, especially emotional conflicts in relationships, make an individual mentally crippled. I love to observe and analyze such conflicts. I have also seen how relationships made a paradigm shift in an individual. I would like to write about both. I also love to write for children. I am really happy and light-hearted when I finish a children's story. For a while, I really forget about the obvious tension and stress of life. This is really an escape.

Q: How do you balance family/ career demands against your interest in writing?

A: I am lucky that my family is a big support to me. Both my husband and my daughter want me to write more. The office work is really an issue. But I strongly believe that life is definitely not only about work.

Life is a balance of work, play, family and personal time. One has to define priorities, realize where one is able to compromise.

So we must identify and reflect on our potential to usher fundamental changes in our lives, our work environment and our family as well. We need to learn to balance work, family and personal passion. We must take responsibility for our feelings.

You may call it as my very own philosophy.

Q: Any comments on your

winning the Gayatri GaMarsh Award?

A: It was a red-letter day for me when Pronoy-da called me to inform me about winning the Gayatri Award. I believe, the best and the most beautiful emotions can never be expressed in words.

They must be felt with the heart. And that's it. I really cannot express my feelings for this precious moment.

This is my very first literary award and I really feel honored and privileged to receive the award from you. My writing spirit gets real pampered. I am grateful to all who created this special moment for me. 'Thank you' actually says nothing.

Sumit Nag Q: Tell us something about you and your background.

I am basically trained in Economics and Statistics, but I have an eclectic interest in literature, music and mathematics. I am fiscally conservative but socially liberal, and thus cannot be easily pigeonholed as an Economist of any particular school; similarly my writing style cannot be easily categorized by using commonly accepted definitions. I try to see the world through a looking glass called logic. Lack of efficiency in any system bothers me more than anything else.

May be that is why my passion in my profession is all sorts of Mathematical Optimization.

Despite my left-brain dominance, I indulge in right brain activities in music and writing. Bursts of creativity give me immense pleasure, but unfortunately the average number of lines I end up writing per day over the last twenty years is close to a paltry 1.61, a number awfully close to the golden ratio. I love reading poetry, but usually write only in prose. I love writing both fiction and nonfiction. I seem to write best under some sort of pressure or threat.

Q: When did you get interested in writing - and why or how?

A: I started writing at an early age of seven or eight. Back then, writing poetry fascinated me, and I thought that rhyming at the end of every other line is a wonderful piece of art. My mother gave me Tagore's "Katha O Kahini" when I was in the third grade and I was amazed at Tagore's ability to tell a story in rhyming verses. Later during my teen years, when I first tasted the rhythm in non-rhyming poetry of post Rabindranath modern poets, I realized how hard it is to write a good piece of modern poetry and so immediately gave up writing poems from that point onward.

I began instead my prosaic journey into prose writing.

Q: What topics interest you most as a writer?

A: Being a first generation immigrant in the USA, I love to explore the lives and emotions of both immigrant families

outside of India as well as Indians in India. Most of the characters in my writings are typical Indians who grew up in India and then went abroad and settled somewhere outside of India. I can see myself in those characters and therefore it is easier for me to identify with their happiness and sufferings.

Q: How do you balance family/ career demands against your interest in writing?

A: Writing is any writer's passion, or at least in theory it should be.

I believe where there is a will, there is a way, and so the will has to be strongly applied to eke out time for writing, even when life is otherwise hectic both at home and at work. I do not see much difference in the struggle for this balancing act among aspiring writers in India and the USA. Life is hard for most people no matter where they choose to settle. So the driving force has to be the hunger for creativity. As long as one keeps this flame of hunger burning, one can always strike a functional if not a totally amicable balance among priorities.

Q: Any comments on your winning the Gayatri GaMarsh Award?

A: I was in Kolkata when Pronoyda was desperately looking for me to talk over the phone.

Finally we connected with each other via e-mail and he called my Kolkata mobile number one fine morning and said that he had some good news to share with me. Those words sounded so sweet to my ears. Needless to say, I was delighted to know that I was this year's winner of GG literary award in Bengali. The recognition certainly gave me more confidence and incentive to be more creative in future.

I thank you all associated with the management of this award for giving me the honor. I'll also like to take this opportunity to thank all my fellow members of Lekhoni, a Boston based writing club, who sometimes ruthlessly critique my writings. They all have made me work harder to write better.

I have a friendly and helpful suggestion regarding how the Gayatri GaMarsh Awards are managed. In order to make it more competitive and widen the circle, the Awards committee could invite both published and unpublished articles. I have heard the reason why the awards are given for only published materials; however a previously published article does not always guarantee its quality or originality by any means. There may be many good amateur writers all over the world who never cared to publish in a journal. So with this little tweaking of the rules, participation will probably increase, and therefore the quality of the best writing is expected to improve. That's what I call a path to a more efficient point, which in theory should be a better place to be in for all of us.

Ananda Sangbad

April 2014

TOMATO WARS

EXTRANIA 101

By Amrita Kangle I love all things that grow.

I realized that this was a very general statement the minute I wrote it. I had wanted to make a very profound beginning and all my thoughts and emotions leading up to this statement had been very profound, I can assure you. I had wanted my story to be to the world of literature what da Vinci and Michelangelo are to the world of Art. Well thereabouts! But I have sadly come to the conclusion that profundity does not sit well on my head, so never mind. I shall make my beginning again.

I love all things that grow, Plants, Animals, Babies, Money ... you get the picture? But they each come with their own unique problem. Money: well I have a proven track record, that I am unable to grow it. Babies: well they just never grow. I have a 27 year old, so I consider myself an authority on the subject. In fact, they are at their best when just born. Totally in your control. After that, it is a downward slide. Animals: I cannot have a baby elephant because it will grow and the husband has also declared that we cannot afford one. So the only option I have is to grow plants.

I got into my act with gusto. It was our first year in our new house and I was just waiting for Spring to "spring" so that I could attack my backyard. Before this, my efforts towards growing plants had been concentrated towards growing them in pots, so for me a whole backyard was like an empty canvas which I intended to fill with a rainbow of colors.

Let me mention at this stage that we have as our neighbors a very nice family and they come from my part of the world. Let me call them the Zs. Mr. Z is as big a garden enthusiast as I am.

He was the one who encouraged me to start digging and pick up boulders and cart them away on my shoulders before I started planting. This, he assured me, was the only path towards sweet fruit. Just like one attains Nirvana. He also gave me small saplings and different kinds of seeds along with his advice as a starter kit.

So fully armed, I started out.

Please note the use of the singular "I". I shall be referring to this down the line. Early in the morning, each day would find me fully gloved, equipped with my digging tools, ready for a day of toil. The chirping of birds was the sweetest music I heard and the balmy breeze was heaven. "Jannat" as they call it was right in my backyard. Hour upon hour, day after day, I prepared my garden patch. The husband was full of encouraging words and care.

"You said that you were working in the garden the whole day.

The jungle is not cleared" (This was on day one of my gardening effort).

"If I didn't have office, I could have helped you. I would have cleared it all up in no time" "You mustn't work so hard...dinner also gets delayed."

(No, we do not appreciate Subway dinners.)

So one weekend I decided to take him up on his kind offer. A small chair was procured so that he could sit and dig. Chilled drinks were constantly provided.

Garbage bags held open so that the weeds and bramble could be put inside. He really had to work under very adverse conditions, as you can see. After about three hours he declared that special work should be delegated to the specialists existing in this world for just that specific purpose. We should have a gardener. He had suddenly remembered his mother's saying that every person should do the job that he or she is best suited for. For example, an engine driver cannot fly a plane, etc. (This used to be said for my fatherin-law's benefit, as I remember, but that is, as they say, another story). So saying, he went back to his laptop. When I reminded him about his promise, he told me to start looking for a good helper. After that, periodically he would give me an update about the neighbor's garden and tell me where all I was falling short.

So there "I" was on Monday, back on my knees working in my garden."I" was my own gardener. I planted the saplings and all kinds of seeds. Watered them. Spoke to them. Fertilized them. They were my babies.

And they did not argue with me. What a refreshing change!

Suffice it to say that all my care paid off and Mother Nature rewarded me with her bounty.

Mr. Z in the meantime, continued to wave across the fence and we compared our progress like two perfectly friendly humans. Our families met over potluck dinners and lunches. We grilled together.

They came and admired my garden and oohed and aahed over my perfect Aubergines and Tomatoes and Strawberries and

Okra (the seeds of which had been given by them). We went over and admired their produce.

I was as happy as happy could be.

The husband was so proud of "our" garden. "We" had toiled all summer long. He took photographs from every conceivable angle (no, not of me, because by then I had started resembling a dried Aubergine as he so kindly informed me) and sent them out to all and sundry, as living proof of our efforts. Anyone who visited our home was given a goody bag filled with different varieties of tomatoes and cucumbers and what have you…

Stories were told as to how hard "we" had worked. Advice was given to the admirers as if we were the garden "specialists" mentioned above.

As for the Zs, well I have been reminded that winter is almost over and the new planting season is upon us. We must have much more "GROWTH" than the previous year. I have been told that this year "OUR" garden has to be better than "THEIRS". Huh???? Where did that come from? I thought that we were friends and anyway it had been Mr. Z who had given me my "starter kit" on gardening. So I would always remain thankful to him. And how could I even think of competing with sweet Mrs. Z when she was feeding me her delicious idlis? We even go shopping together!

But, no!! Competition it is...only the other party is blissfully unaware and on this end of the fence it is "I" who will be toiling in "our" garden!

DEATH OF A SALESMAN

by Basab Dasgupta I have tried many things in my life – as a profession, as a hobby, as an entertainment or simply as a way to satisfy some curiosity, and with some reasonable degree of success in almost all of these activities. However, I miserably failed in one area – in the job of a door-to-door encyclopedia salesman.

The year was 1972. I had secured a teaching assistantship at the physics department of the University of Wisconsin where my wife was already working. However, I did not have any financial assistance or job during the summer of 1972.

By virtue of my wife’s appointment, we had just enough money coming in to pay for the rent, food etc. and I was initially quite content to stay

home all day, watching the game shows and soap operas on TV. After a couple of weeks of my wife’s constant nagging at my laziness, I started to look for a summer job.

I do not remember where I saw the ad for an encyclopedia salesman, but I showed up at the sales office, was interviewed and hired soon thereafter. Later, I realized that they hired just about any young person healthy enough to walk and speak English. The compensation was 100% commission-based so the company had nothing much to lose by hiring someone. All the new recruits, including myself, spent the first three days in “training” which included cramming a three page long sales pitch and strategic

5

guidelines from an experienced salesman.

our job would be to counter that reason.

I still remember the opening sentence of the sales pitch: “I am interviewing some folks in the area about some new educational material that would be used in schools; may I come in?” The basic idea was to get a foot in the door without mentioning the word “encyclopedia”. The educational system in India had given me a good memorizing capability, and I had no problem in vividly remembering the entire pitch after a few rehearsals.

The emphasis in training was to not take “no” for an answer, and to bug the potential customers for a reason for their lack of interest in immediately signing up for an order. Once a reason was given,

The most common expected response would be “Oh, I wish I had such a set, but I really cannot afford it”. We were prepared to refute this excuse with an attractive payment plan, spread over a three-year period, costing only a quarter or so per day – merely the cost of a cup of coffee! We were ready to show them how cost competitive we were with other companies, such as Encyclopedia Britannica, with all kinds of facts and figures. Another excuse could be “Oh, I have simply no room in my house for an entire set like that”; this was just the perfect prompt necessary to show our accessory – a very Turn to page 6

By Jerry GaMarsh In my article "Anatomy 201", I pointed out some of the more bizarre aspects of the human anatomy. After reading the article, a friend of mine stared at me for a long moment and then pronounced me "a veritable fountainhead of extrania". This fascinated me because I had never heard the word before. Assuming it was a synonym for extraneous, I looked it up in several types of dictionaries and couldn't find it.

The only word that comes close is extraneous which is generally taken to mean not pertinent, irrelevant or superfluous. In as much as I assumed this was a back handed salute to the article involved, my response is to give you another bunch of "extrania" for your amusement or perhaps edification.

There are 92 known cases of nuclear bombs lost at sea.

It takes glass one million years to decompose, which means it never wears out and can be recycled an infinite number of times!

The tooth is the only part of the human body that cannot heal itself.

Gold is the only metal that doesn't rust, even if it's buried in the ground for thousands of years.

Your tongue is the only muscle in your body that is attached at only one end.

When a person dies, hearing is the last sense to go. The first sense lost is sight.

If you stop getting thirsty, you need to drink more water. When a human body is dehydrated, its thirst mechanism shuts off.

Picasso's full name was Pablo Diego Jose Francisco de Paula Juan Nepomuceno Maria de los Remedios Cipriano de la Santisima Trinidad Ruiz Picasso.

Each year 2,000,000 smokers either quit smoking or die of tobacco-related diseases.

Zero is the only number that cannot be represented by Roman numerals.

Soldiers do not march in step when going across bridges because they could set up a vibration which could be sufficient to knock the bridge down.

Kites were used in the American Civil War to deliver letters and newspapers.

Drinking water after eating reduces the acid in your mouth by 61 percent.

Turn to page 6

6

Ananda Sangbad

April 2014

EXTRANIA 101 Continued from page 5

The song, Auld Lang Syne, is sung at the stroke of midnight in almost every English-speaking country in the world to bring in the New Year.

Nine out of every 10 living things live in the ocean.

Peanut oil is used for cooking in submarines because it doesn't smoke unless it's heated above 450 F.

which stated that you couldn't beat your wife with anything wider than your thumb.

The world's largest recorded gathering of people was at a Hindu religious festival in India in 1989. It was attended by about 15 million people.

The longest jail sentence passed was in the United States 10,000 years for a triple murder.

The roar that we hear when we place a seashell next to our ear is not the ocean, but rather the sound of blood surging through the veins in the ear.

It is impossible to sneeze with your eyes open. Try it!

The banana cannot reproduce itself. It can be propagated only by the hand of man.

Babies are always born with blue eyes. The melanin in a newborn's eyes often needs time after birth to be fully deposited or to be darkened by exposure to ultraviolet light, later revealing the baby's true eye color.

The University of Alaska spans four time zones.

In ancient Greece, tossing an apple to a girl was a traditional proposal of marriage. Catching it meant she accepted.

Warner Communications paid $28 million for the copyright to the song Happy Birthday.

Intelligent people have more zinc and copper in their hair.

A comet's tail always points away from the sun.

The Swine Flu vaccine in 1976 caused more death and illness than the disease it was intended to prevent.

Caffeine increases the power of aspirin and other painkillers; that is why it is found in some medicines.

The military salute is a motion that evolved from medieval times, when knights in armor raised their visors to reveal their identity.

If you get into the bottom of a well or a tall chimney and look up, you can see stars, even in the middle of the day.

In ancient times strangers shook hands to show that they were unarmed.

The Earth gets 100 tons heavier every day due to falling space dust.

The average person who stops smoking requires one hour less sleep a night.

Babies are born with 300 bones, but by adulthood the number is reduced to 206.

If a native Hawaiian woman places the flower on her right ear, she is available. (The bigger the flower, the more desperate!)

The Sentinelese are a people who live on a tiny island in the Indian Ocean called North Sentinel Island. For thousands of years, they have refused contact with the outside world.

Using only stones and arrows, they have successfully repelled all invaders and remain one of the last totally isolated tribes in the world.

If Earth's life was compressed into 1 year, then humans would have been around for only 2 seconds.

Sleeping on the job is acceptable in Japan. It is viewed as exhaustion from working hard.

Some people fake it to look committed to their job.

Your stomach has to produce a new layer of mucus every two weeks or it will digest itself.

Strawberries are the only fruits whose seeds grow on the outside.

The number of possible ways of playing the first four moves per side in a game of chess is 318,979,564,000.

The moon moves about two inches away from the Earth each year.

Astronauts are not allowed to eat beans before they go into space

The letter J does not appear anywhere on the periodic table of the elements.

because passing wind in a spacesuit damages them.

Due to earth's gravity it is impossible for mountains to be higher than 15,000 meters.

For every extra kilogram carried on a space flight, 530 kg of excess fuel are needed at liftoff.

The phrase 'rule of thumb' is derived from an old English law

By raising your legs slowly and lying on your back, you cannot sink into quicksand.

Celery has negative calories. It takes more calories to eat a piece of celery than the celery has in it to begin with.

An old law in Bellingham, Washington, made it illegal for a woman to take more than three

Continued from page 5

DEATH OF A SALESMAN

elegant and compact book-shelf which would go nicely with any home décor, like a piece of furniture. If there was any concern about obsolescence of the information in our set, we were to show how we intended to offer an annual update at no extra cost for a number of years.

We were taught to show colorful photographs from some volumes of the set depicting some major sequences of events such as development of a human embryo into a baby, landing on the moon, assassination of John F. Kennedy, etc.

By the fourth day, I felt ready.

We gathered at the company office around three o’clock in the afternoon. By four, we were all on the road in several large cars, with about five people in each car, excluding the driver.

Each car took the sales people to a different rural location or small town within an hour’s drive from Milwaukee. We were dropped at some easily identifiable location, such as a gas station or in front of a bar and told to be at the same location around nine o’clock at night in order to be picked up.

The few hours in between were completely at our disposal in terms of what we did or where we went in our effort to make a sale.

I will share some of the more amusing aspects of my experience. One day I knocked on a door and just as I had started my pitch by saying “I am interviewing some folks …..”, the man who had opened the door interrupted me by saying, “I take it that you are selling encyclopedias, and I am not interested” and just slammed it on my face.

On another occasion, although he did not slam the door, the man of the house was really annoyed at me because I had interrupted a romantic evening he was about to have with his wife, and simply told me to get lost.

There was also some suspense steps backwards while dancing!

Einstein couldn't speak fluently until after his ninth birthday. His parents thought he was mentally retarded.

Peanuts are one of ingredients of dynamite.

the

Maine is the only State whose name is just one syllable.

It has been calculated that in the last 3,500 years, there have only been 230 years of peace throughout the civilized world.

In 1920 for the first time in recorded history, the average life expectancy of human beings exceeded that of goldfish.

In ancient Egypt, people shaved

and drama during my sales days.

One night I was waiting with two other sales persons for a rather long time at the designated pick-up location. Our ride finally showed up with the remaining two guys from our sales group.

The delay was caused by a brief imprisonment of those two because they were apparently trying to sell in an apartment complex which had a clear “NO SOLICITING” sign, and someone had called the police.

My experiences were sometimes sad. On one occasion I met a middle-aged woman and her teen-age daughter. I gave them my overview, and showed them a bunch of color pictorials from the various sample volumes I used to carry. The daughter was very intrigued by the pictures showing development of a human baby and pleaded with her mother to buy the set.

“No, I can’t,” the mother said with almost tears in her eyes.

She did not elaborate, but I knew that she was a single mother (by the absence of a wedding ring, among other things) and struggling financially.

Our three-day training did not provide me with any guideline about how to handle emotional situations like that, and I did not push.

I finally called it quits after five days of such outings. I did not make one single sale, and did not earn one single penny. I concluded that I was not cut out to be a door-to-door encyclopedia salesman, and my foreign appearance and accent were probably not helping either. Besides, it was very exhausting. In addition to continuously walking for hours, there were not many opportunities to take a break.

Apart from a couple of bars and a corner grocery store, most of these small neighborhoods did not have a fast-food joint where one could grab a cup of coffee and a burger. Also, I did not have much money and time to waste. By the time I came home at nine thirty or ten o’clock at night, I was extremely hungry and ready to collapse into my bed right after eating.

The conventional wisdom was that if you could get into a house and deliver the complete sales pitch, chances were very high that you would make a sale.

Not for me, alas! The closest I came was this one time a very friendly gentleman opened the door and invited me in. He not only listened to my whole spiel, he also offered me something to drink. When I was getting ready to close the deal, he finally confessed that he really had no intention of buying encyclopedias. He said that he was a door-to-door salesman himself and therefore empathized with my plight, especially the rejections and rude receptions.

He just wanted to be nice!

I met my good friend Avijit at the end of summer when I visited New York. I found out much to my surprise that he had also been working in a summer job, selling door-to-door a “Black History” book in the ghetto areas of Cleveland.

What a coincidence, I thought!

Contrary to my failure, however, he had a huge success, and was even awarded a trophy for being one of the top selling salespersons. I asked him, “What was your secret?” “Oh, it was very easy”, he said.

“Whenever I knocked on a door, some black woman would open the door. She would take one look at me and say something like, “You have straight black hair! Come on in, I want to take a look at it”. The rest was easy.

They bought the book, if nothing else, as price for having the privilege of getting a close look at straight black hair. That was probably the only time I was envious of Avijit’s looks, or more precisely, his hair. Those days, my hair used to have quite a bit of curl, so I doubt that I would have been successful in selling black history books either.

eyebrows as a mourning symbol when their cats died.

Dolphins sleep with one eye open!

Pilgrims did not eat potatoes for Thanksgiving as they thought they were poisonous.

Honeybees have a type of hair on their eyes.

At the height of inflation in Germany in the early 1920s, one U.S. dollar was equal to 4 quintillion German marks.

To take an oath, ancient Romans put a hand on their testicles.

In the 1800s, if you attempted suicide and failed, you would have to face the death penalty.

Harry S. Truman was the last U.S. President with no college degree.

Human babies are born without knee caps which develop 2-6 years later.

Cigarette smoke contains 4800 chemicals among which more than 60 are known carcinogens Tiger shark embryos fight each other in their mother's womb.

The survivor is born.

And finally, for those of you who are looking for quick way to lose weight: Everything weighs one percent less at the equator.

Ananda Sangbad

April 2014

7

Is hosting an Olympics a sprint towards financial ruin?

Can't Agree with Your View!

Ban!

by Tathagata Ghosh

by Rahul Ray

Hosting the Olympics was always about national pride and showcasing the country and its culture to the world. The cost of hosting an Olympics was supposed to be just a genteel afterthought. The astonishing price tag was about USD 40 billion on the Beijing Summer Olympics in 2008 and about USD 50 billion for the 2014 Winter Olympics at Sochi. These prices make it seem like it is a vainglorious attempt of politicians to have the spotlight on their country and on themselves for a few days by busting the treasury. The general populace of a country largely seems to favor hosting the Olympics as a matter of pride. Many a time though, the runaway costs come home to roost in a manner that is painful and hard to forget or ignore.

A few years ago, we were visiting Montreal and made a daytrip to see the Olympics venue.

The Summer Olympics of 1976 was held at Montreal. The Montreal Olympics cost a tiny fraction of today's cost of holding an Olympics. It cost only about USD 1 billion but the debt took about 30 years to be repaid and it was a financial nightmare.

The main stadium was not even completed on time.

The Olympic structures are unique to Montreal and a tourist attraction but mainly viewed as a relic of past glory. The Olympic village is still viable commercially because it can be rented out as condominiums. The main stadium lies empty but it is staffed and there are regular guided tours for the sporadic visitors. An occasional expo takes place there but it remains a monument to some politician's grandiose vision funded by public money. The iconic structure created a sense of grandeur for a couple of weeks of the Olympics and then there is an eternal attempt to keep it functioning through public funding and meager ticket sales.

Another dismal economic failure was the 2004 Summer Olympics held in Athens, Greece.

Some people blame the unchecked spending on the Olympics as one of the key factors for the Greek economic crisis. The tab was over USD 10 billion which might have been the final squandered billions that made Greece descend into a financial crisis. Currently most of the Olympic stadiums in Athens are in disuse which causes even more public frustration and anger while continuing to drain money for their upkeep.

In contrast, the Tokyo Summer Olympics in 1964 had a huge positive economic impact

to Japan's GDP. The GDP growth rate doubled from 10 percent to more than 20 percent in the years following the Olympics. That was the 'Boom' of the Tokyo Olympics.

The Seoul Summer Olympics in 1988 had a similar salubrious effect on the South Korean economy, propelling it to becoming one of the leading Asian economies. The Barcelona Summer Olympics in 1992 was extremely beneficial to the city and the region. Tourism benefited from the increased number of hotels built for the Olympics and from a fortuitous climate of easier and friendlier travel after the Olympics due to Spain's entry in the EU and deregulation of air travel.

The Olympics need not necessarily be a money pit. If costs can be tightly controlled, if existing facilities are leveraged and some degree of commercialization is pursued, the Olympics can even turn a profit. Over the last 30 years, more than half of the Summer Olympics broke even or even made money. The Los Angeles Summer Olympics of 1984 and the Seoul Summer Olympics in 1988 made large profits. There are severe disruptions for a city where the Games are held.

Construction projects lay waste to areas used for the building of stadiums and destroy the tranquility of a city if the projects are near an existing urban center.

In many cases, the locals empty out the city to make way for the visitors during the time the Olympics are held. The public debt to finance an Olympics during the 1990's ranged between USD 2 billion to about USD 7 billion. The long-term costs for keeping the stadiums functioning run into the hundreds of millions of dollars.

The upside for a city is that there is definitely an infrastructure upgrade when the Olympics or the World Cup or the Asian Games are hosted in that city. In 1982, New Delhi hosted the Asian Games and with that came a major overhaul to the city with flyovers and modern stadiums being built.

World class stadiums were constructed, such as the upgrade to the Jawaharlal Nehru stadium, the Indraprastha stadium (now Indira Gandhi stadium) and the Talkatora swimming pool. One immense technological advance at that time for the whole country was the advent of color television broadcasting in India. That was the beginning of the boom in the sales of color televisions, and in the programming and the broadcasting infrastructure. The

1996 Summer Olympic Games at Atlanta led to rail infrastructure being built for the Games which later helped in urban renewal by attracting residential units around the new train stations.

The Barcelona Summer Olympics in 1992 enhanced the profile of the city and made it a tourist destination for future decades which brought in visitors and economic benefits that go along with it. The infrastructure investments made in transport facilities make an enormous impact on the city for many generations if it is built well and built with future growth in mind.

The world-class facilities constructed for the Olympics in a country set the stage for the building of similar structures in other parts of the country because the know-how and technology have been learned and can then be replicated. The sports facilities that are created serve to develop the sport in a country. Top-class facilities for gymnastics and swimming were first introduced in India during the Asian Games in 1982 and that could have led to the creation of sporting traditions in these disciplines for the coming decades.

The 2008 Beijing Summer Olympics and the 2014 Sochi Winter Olympics also attempted to present to the world a technological sophistication which normally is not a focus of a sporting event. A fine blend of artistic sensibility and technology created a spectacular stadium in Beijing affectionately known as the Bird's Nest. The opening and closing ceremonies at both these venues showcased some of the most breath-taking performances ever attempted on a grand-scale. It was a debutante's coming-of-age party determined to show the world the artistic traditions that had been nurtured for centuries in relative obscurity. The technological showmanship was also on display when the world saw for the first time, the giant OLED screens at the Beijing Olympics. These screen displays seem to have been carried to even greater heights at the Sochi Olympics. This would have an enormous cachet in trade shows featuring China and Russia, countries which were not particularly known for their cutting-edge technological advancements.

Maybe the time has come for world-class events like the Olympics to be held in a fixed venue every four years by some benevolent government with cost being distributed between Turn to page 11

Recently, Penguin India has made an out-of-court settlement stopping further publication, and destroying all remaining copies, of Wendy Doniger's book entitled 'The Hindus - An Alternative History', first published in 2009. Penguin bowed to a demand from 'Siksha banchao andolon', a right-wing Hindu organization, who alleged that this book depicts Hinduism in an overtly sexual overtone. As expected, this controversy has made this book an overnight best-seller.

Whether we agree with Dr. Doniger's view or not, this newfound attention on this book should spur healthy discussions about its content. India is a multi-lingual, multi-ethnic country with various religious adherences.

Therefore, discussion on almost anything, particularly religion, is most welcome to calm the nerves and to prevent emotions from boiling over. However, a ban quickly puts an end to it, with a resultant effect of pitting one group against another.

The most troublesome aspect of this recent book-banning is that it is coming on the heels of a long list of recent bans in India.

Last year, Salman Rushdie, the highly acclaimed writer of 'The Satanic Verses', was banned from appearing at the Jaipur Literary Festival. The organizers caved in to the demand of a minority voice that Mr. Rushdie has provoked anti-Muslim sentiments. On the reverse end, Maqbul Fida Hussain, probably the most prominent Indian artist and painter of his generation was forced to leave the country and settle in Qatar under pressure from a Hindu majority group that felt that Mr. Hussain had compromised the sanctity of Devi Saraswati in some of his paintings. Ms. Taslima Nasreen, the noted Bangladeshi feminist writer who championed women's rights is banned from traveling to India under pressure from Muslim fundamentalists. It appears that intolerance, be it artistic or religious, is the norm of the day in India. It is to be understood that religious zealots usually do not have the power to institute a ban, but politicians do, and they quickly line up behind religious groups of their choosing. Therefore, in many cases a ban against a book, painting or a person becomes a state-sponsored affair.

Democracy for all is a constitutionally guaranteed principle of the Republic of India.

This enshrined view includes freedom of expression. Artists, writers, poets and scientists of distinction by nature must explore uncharted territory.

Galileo Galilei was persecuted viciously by the Catholic Church for his doctrine that the earth

revolves around the sun.

Rabindranath Tagore was criticized bitterly by many fellow countrymen for writing poems in a 'feminine language'!

Abstract painting is the norm of the day, yet it has been criticized vehemently in some circles for incomprehensibility.

Dr. Doniger's book has been criticized by an intolerant few for eroticizing Hinduism. But our religious texts, including Ramayana and Mahabharata contain copious sexual innuendos. Vatsyayana, the writer of the Kama Sutra, probably the first recorded study of human sexuality, is considered a sage. The highly erotic sculptural reliefs on the walls of the Sun Temple in Konark attest to the sanctification of human sexuality. Therefore, shouldn't the contents of Dr. Doniger's book inspire a national dialogue to explore the true meaning of Hinduism in the context of sexuality instead of banning it?

The world has witnessed demonic effects of the suppression of artistic freedom in Hitler's Germany and Stalin's Soviet Union. It is also not unheard of in the United States.

McCarthyism in the 50's aka 'redbaiting' was nothing short of a state-sponsored attempt to gag the freedom of expression. In the 80's there was a huge uproar and multiple attempts to ban exhibition of photography by Robert Mapplethorpe on the ground of obscenity. The ban could not be instituted, and in effect Mapplethorpe's photographs created a national dialogue on artistic freedom.

In India, banning of books has a long history. Numerous books penned by westerners/ foreigners and Indians are in the banned list, including 'An Area of Darkness' by V.S. Naipaul, a Nobel laureate in literature.

Another banned book is 'Mother India' by Catherine Mayo, first published in 1927. Mahatma Gandhi called it a 'drain inspector's report' due to Ms. Mayo's scorching commentaries about various aspects of Indian life and practices. As a result the contents of the book were never brought to a national dialogue, but much of the foulsmelling 'drains' that Ms. Mayo depicted in her book have remained intact in India today.

Although a majority of the bookbanning enthusiasts belong to religious fundamentalists/fanatics and nationalists, the political left can be blamed for one celebrated case. In the state of West Bengal the Left Front government banned the publication of 'Dwikhandito', a novel by Taslima Nasreen on the ground that the book was insensitive towards the Muslim minority sentiments.

Banning books usually has the Turn to page 11

8

Ananda Sangbad

April 2014

Sapta Tirtha

By Sushmita Dutta Author's Note:A special series of reports on seven holy places prescribed in Hindu scriptures

Highlights of Recent Puja Activities Reported By Krishna Dutta Roy, Chair, Puja Committee

January

In our special series of articles on Sapta Tirtha (seven prescribed holy pilgrimage centers in India), we have covered Mathura, Puri, Ayodhya and Varanasi over the past four issues of Ananda Sangbad. In this issue, we are covering Dwarka located in the Jamnagar district of the state of Gujarat in Western India. Derived from two Sanskrit terms "Dwar" meaning door and "Ka" denoting Brahma, Dwarka literally means the gateway to the ultimate Brahma (one universal energy) for attaining moksha (liberation) from the cycle of birth and death. Situated on the banks of river Gomti, Dwarka is also included on the list of Char Dham - four prime holy places in India. Seen in the picture here, the original temple of Dwarka called Dwarkadhish was built over Shri Krishna's residence in 400 B.C., by Shri Krishna's grandson Vajranabha. Dwarka was the kingdom of Shri Krishna, the eighth incarnation of Hindu Supreme God Lord Vishnu.

Bhagavat Puran, one of the widely read Hindu scriptures, mentions Shri Krishna as "Swayam Bhagavan" (God personified) and a "PurnaAvatara" - complete incarnation of Lord Vishnu. This article describes Dwarka as one of the Sapta Tirthas and also ties-in Shri Krishna related myths and mythological stories that reportedly occurred at this place. Read on. Jai Shri Krishna.

Dwarka, located on the banks of river Gomti, has been mentioned in Mahabharat - one of the longest known epics consisting of over 100,000 slokas, 200,000 individual verse lines and about 1.8 million words. Dwarka mentioned in this epic describes the place as the capital of Shri Krishna's kingdom of Yadavs (the clan's name)

where he conducted his assembly. Today, Dwarka has a population of over 38,863 (2011 Indian Census) with 64%, literacy rate. The place is obviously vibrant with Krishna devotion. To every Hindu, especially the Vaishnav cult followers, Dwarka is divine, blissful and soul stirring.

Dwarka in the ancient times was so prosperous that it was called "Suvarna Dwarka" meaning the golden place.

Though considered a "Mokshalav Dham" (place for attaining liberation from the cycle of life and death), the temple of Dwarka has two entrances, one called "Moksha Dwar" (door to salvation) and the other called "Swarga Dwar" (door to Heaven). It is not known why these entrances were named differently but it definitely relates to human desires to either attain a heavenly existence or merge with the universal energy after death of this mortal body.

Pilgrims visiting the temple enter through the Swarga Dwar, as if entering the heaven and after offering prayers to Shri Krishna leave through the Moksha Dwar as if there is nothing else left in this world to desire for.

Shri Krishna is worshipped in this temple as Dwarkadhish - the king of Dwarka. Built in the 15th century AD, the temple is a five storied building supported by 72 pillars and has rich Indian temple architecture carvings on the walls. The temple top (Shikhar) is 170 feet tall and hoists a flag that symbolizes Shri Krishna's abode. The flag is religiously changed three times a day.

Devotees arriving from different parts of the world are considered blessed witnessing the flag changing ceremony.

Special tailors are appointed to stitch the flag and donations from devotees are accepted for its cost. From its very beginning,

the temple has been supported by both kings and common people.

Besides the Dwarkadhish temple, Dwarka and its vicinity hosts many other temples, such as the Trikamji, Kalyanrai, Patrani and Durbasa temples, the Sharda Pith established by Adi Shankaracharya, and in a place named Daruka Van, in the outskirts of Dwarka, there is the Nageshwar temple, one of the 12 Shiva Jyotirlingas, and Rukmini temple. Myth has it that once Shri Krishna and his wife Rukmini went to invite Durbasa rishi to Dwarka. The rishi accepted the invitation on condition that his chariot would have to be pulled by Shri Krishna and Rukmini in place of horses.

Both Shri Krishna and Rukmini agreed, but while driving the chariot, Rukmini became thirsty.

Shri Krishna made sweet holy water from river Ganges available at this west coast land of India where water is salty, by digging the soil with his toe. This annoyed rishi Durbasa and he cursed that Rukmini would stay away from Shri Krishna and hence this temple named after Rukmini was built about 2 kilometers away from Dwarka. It is believed that one's Dwarka pilgrimage is not complete if the Rukmini temple is not visited.

When I visited Dwarka a few years ago, I was amazed to drink the sweet water at the Rukmini temple stored in a well-like structure. In the midst of a strip of dry land close to the salty sea, who else could create a reservoir of sweet water but Shri Krishna himself? Jai Shri Krishna.

Shri Krishna's association with Gopis is also visible in Dwarka.

There is a lake about 14 kilometers from Dwarka named "Gopi Talav" where the soil is yellow in color because myth has Turn to page 9

Like other years, Ananda Mandir started the New Year by keeping the Temple open for public all day. In the evening, Ananda Mandir's own volunteer group Anandadhwani presented a few devotional songs to celebrate the occasion. An estimated two hundred fifty people visited the temple throughout the day.

The monthly Satyanarayan puja was held on 12th January amid a gathering of about 60 people.

Makar Sankranti was celebrated on 14th January. The big event of this month was Ratanti Kali puja which was held on 29th January. About 75 devotees braved the bitter winter cold to celebrate this auspicious day.

The monthly Shyama puja was held on 30th January.

February February is always a busy month for pujas. It started with the celebration of Saraswati Puja, which fell on a Tuesday. Though it was a weekday, there was no lack of enthusiasm of the public.

Ladies clad in yellow sarees were all around. Kids and adults alike brought their books for Ma Saraswati's blessings. About twelve young boys and girls had their Bidyarambha/ Hatekhori with the help of our priests, as the beaming parents were busy taking pictures. The puja and anjali were completed by noon.

The Saraswati Puja celebration continued on Sunday, 9th February, in the form of "Bani Bandana". This event was planned specially for all the school-age children because a large number of them could not attend the Puja during the weekday. So we had puja of Mother Saraswati again with anjali and also another set of Hatekhori for the beginners of learning whose parents looked

BASANTI

more excited than them. But the special event of the day was a cultural show designed for the young kids. The program started with Shiva Bandana by Anirudh and Aniketh Sarkar, followed by Saraswati Bandana by Shivam Mukherjee. The next program was presented by the students of Mrittika, the Bengali school at Ananda Mandir. They presented a medley of songs and recitations. Kirin, Sunaya, Abir and Emon all recited poems from the collection of Sukumar Roy, the everlasting poet of children's books. Everyone, not just the parents, felt proud while listening to them, observing their grasp of Bengali pronunciation and the understanding of those poems.

Rishi, Riya, Hiya, Andi, Srijon - all participated in presenting various forms of performance.

The chorus Rabindra Sangeet showed the talents of the kids as well as the expertise of the teacher. Little Auroni charmed the audience with a poem by Sukumar Roy in her debut performance. Sunirmal Bose also performed well. Rishab Das recited the ever popular "Baburam Sapure" of Sukumar Roy collection. Our youngest singer Adwaita performed two "Chharar gaan"with her sweet melodious voice Shankhadeep Chakraborty and Roshmi Banerjee showed their excellence in Rabindra Sangeet and devotional songs. Nikhil Kundu sang one Shyama Sangeet and one Rabindra Sangeet. Shounak, Parama and Shreya, all well known for their singing talent, were appreciated by the audience. Srijon did a good job playing tabla. Amrita Pal presented a dance, with Shreya's song, that was immensely enjoyable. On the key board, Prijat Kundu played a few Bengali tunes and then Turn to page 12

DURGA PUJA

SASTHI -5th APRIL, SATURDAY, 5:30 pm SAPTAMI -6th APRIL, SUNDAY, 9:00 am to 11.30 am ASTAMI-7th APRIL, MONDAY, 9:00am to 1:30am SANDHI PUJA (Monday Midnight) - 2:53 am to 3:41 am NABAMI & RAM NABAMI- 8th APRIL, TUESDAY, 9:00 am to 2:30 pm DASHAMI-9th APRIL, WEDNESDAY, 10:30 am to11:30am

Ananda Sangbad

April 2014

Sapta Tirtha

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Continued from page 8

it that Gopis traveling from Vraj Bhumi to Dwarka gave their lives in this pond after performing Ras Leela with Shri Krishna on "Sharad Purnima" - the full moon night of the Hindu lunar month of Ashvin (SeptemberOctober).

Travel Tips: I visited Dwarka over a combined trip to Somnath temple and Dwarka. I took a flight from Mumbai to Jamnagar and then rented a car from the airport to drive to Somnath and Dwarka.

The coastal road along the Arabian Sea is blissfully scenic.

The salty breeze from the sea is pleasing and often carries the message that you are visiting a land where Shri Krishna himself lived for years and the same land has two of the famous 12 Shiva jyotirlingas - Somnath and Nageshwar where Lord Shiva appeared in person. From Jamnagar, I first visited Somnath and stayed in a hotel and then drove to Dwarka where I stayed in another hotel for longer time and visited Nageshwar temple and other temples in the outskirts of Dwarka. The hotels were extremely comfortable and served good vegetarian food.

From all major cities in India you can take a flight to Rajkot, Jamnagar or Ahmedabad. All major Indian carriers- Kingfisher, Spicejet, GoAir and Jet Airways have regular flights to these cities. In case you want to visit the beautiful state of Gujarat and include Dwarka in your trip, Ahmedabad is the best destination both from international and Indian airports.

Dwarka is 450 kilometers from Ahmedabad. The Dwarka railway station is just about 2 kilometers away from the main temple, in case you want to enjoy a train ride from Ahmedabad and travel with the people of the soil, get to know them better, taste the culture and flavor of the land.

Places to see around Dwarka: Other than the Dwarkadhish temple at the small city of Dwarka, here is a list of places around that you can cover in just one or two days: 1.

Nageshwar Temple - One of the 12 Shiva Jyotirlingas.

2.

Rukmini Mandir Dedicated to Shri Krishna's wife Rukmini. A must visit after offering prayers at the Dwarkadhish temple.

3.

Gopi Talav - Shri Krishna played with the Gopis at this lake.

4.

Bet Dwarka - The residence of Shri Krishna. This place is about 30 kilometers from Dwarka. It is believed that Meera Bai merged into the idol

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of Shri Krishna at the temple of this place which was built by Rukmini.

5.

Hanuman Mandir - This temple is in Bet Dwarka.

6.

Bhadkeshwar temple - A lovely temple embraced by the sea shore. Other temples you may want to visit are: Gayatri Shakti Peeth, Geeta Mandir, Siddeshwar Mahadev and Bhadrakali temple.

SAMRAGNEE MAJUMDAR

Ritualistic Chores at Dwarkadhish temple:

Email: smajumdar@ft.newyorklife.com

Normally, these are the ritualistic chores held daily at the Dwarkadhish temple. While visiting Dwarka, this list may be handy in choosing temple visits: 1.

Devotees take a dip in the Gomti river located next to Dwarkadhish Temple and then take a fresh water bath in adjacent bathrooms before visiting the temple while repeatedly chanting"Dwarkadhish ki Jai", "Dwarkadhish ki Jai".

2.

Devotees enter Dwarkadhish temple through riverside entrance having 52 steps.

3.

Devotees join "Shri Vishnu Sahashsranama" chanting in the morning recited by Brahman students at the temple.

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4.

Mangal Arti performed at 7:00 o'clock in the morning.

the doors of the temple are kept open for the darshan of the Lord.

5.

Abhishek Snan, the holy bath given to the Lord is performed after Mangal Arti.

13.

Sandhya Arti is performed at the evening dusk time.

6.

Shringar is an important ritualistic chore after Abhishek when the Lord is worshipped with petals of tulsi (basil) and chandan (sandalwood) and adorned with golden yellow colored (pitambar) silk clothes and ornaments.

14.

Shayanbhog is the next ritualistic chore when the Lord is offered dinner.

7.

Shringarbhog, having offerings of sweets to the Lord is performed after Shringar when a curtain is pulled for privacy and the devotees have to wait till the bhog is over.

8.

Shringar Arti is performed at 11:00 o'clock after Shringarbhog.

9.

Madhyahan bhog is offered after Shringar Arti and after the bhog viewing of lord is kept open up to 12 O'clock.

10.

Rajbhog is the main bhog (food offered) to Lord Dwarkadhish after 12 noon.

11.

Anosar is the time after Rajbhog when the Lord takes rest and the temple doors are closed from 1:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m.

12.

Utthapan is the ritualistic chore at 5:00 in the evening when the Lord is wakened and

9

15.

Shayan Arti is performed around 9:00 p.m. After Shayan Arti all the ornaments and clothes which are worn by the Lord are removed. This is called 'Shringar Bada Karna'. Around 9:30 p.m. Dwarkadhish goes to bed and darshan is also closed for the public.

Contact information: The Administrators of Shree Dwarkadhish Temple at Dwarka can be contacted at: Address361 335 Dist.: Jamnagar, Gujarat, India. Telephone contact is available on all working days between 9:00 a.m. to 1.00 p.m. 3:00 p.m. to 6.10 p.m. at local India number: 011+91 - 2892 - 234090.

Among seven prescribed holy pilgrimage centers - Sapta Tirthas, we are left with Haridwar, Kanchipuram and Ujjain to complete this special series of articles for Ananda Sangbad readers. We will cover Kanchipuram in the next issue of Ananda Sangbad. Please stay tuned. And, stay blessed.

Nominations are invited for 2014 Gayatri Memorial Awards For Literary Excellence Cash awards of $500 each will be given to recognize two writers of excellence (one in Bengali, one in English) who have authored essays, poems, short stories or plays in magazines published in North America within the last five years.

Gayatri Memorial Awards have been made possible through a contribution made by Jerry GaMarsh to honor his late wife.

Please visit our website for further details on nomination eligibility and submission requirements including nomination form.

Submission Deadline for 2014 Awards: July 31, 2014

ANANDA MANDIR 269 Cedar Grove Lane, Somerset, NJ 08873 For Further Information: Please Visit www.anandamandir.org/ gayatriaward.html. or Contact: Debajyoti Chatterji (debsmee572@gmail.com) or Guru Chakravarty (guruchakravarty@yahoo.com)

10

Ananda Sangbad

April 2014

THE DRUM BOYS

By Mandira Chattopadhyay In Bangalore one summer vacation, I was having a lazy lunch and sipping cool creamy lassi when a sudden din arose out in the street. Banging drums and jeers rang out. I walked along the verandah to see what was going on outside. As I stepped out of the house, I watched the jubilant, young crowd. They were jumping up and down and welcoming a young man, calling his name, "It's Manu again."

They sounded very familiar with him and his performance. Swaying in the heat of downtown Bangalore, the young man named Manu shot his fellow percussionists a look, and assuredly

out of school, he made his living as a construction worker and decorator, but he taught himself drumming to earn a little income on the side. "The only things certain in life are death and taxes," he said. "The drum boys figure in that." The group earned money by performing in funeral processions. Their work was sporadic and not lucrative, but that became increasingly less important to the four friends.

The question of whether it is right to evade taxes was comically presented by these boys on behalf of the municipality.

It is useful to remind us that there is law and order in our lives

hollered: "Faster!"

Hunched outside a local builder's posh mansion, Manu, Anil, Gopal and John started banging their drums more and more feverishly, aiming for the moment when their audience could not take it anymore. Manu looked ridiculously young, blazing with life, squinting a bit in bright sunlight and smiling slightly as if to show satisfaction. At that moment I was amazed to see how the chaotic scene was warmly welcomed by the audience, but the crowd was disappointed as soon as the drummers stopped beating their drums. Soon I gathered that this was not a musical performance. It was not meant to be a nuisance; this group was paid by the Bangalore City Council to perform outside the residences and businesses of tax evaders. I noticed they held soiled banners bearing the target's name and the amount owed in taxes - in an aim to embarrass and annoy the deadbeat into submission. It was an uncomfortable situation, but seeing the tax evader's name I was sure that the neighbors could not have any regard for a man who was trying to fool the government. Still, I had my doubts about this whole event, but the clerk from the city office standing nearby assured me that this was much cheaper and faster than prolonged litigation.

Someone in the audience whispered to me: "Quite often the defaulters cough up at least part of the money owed to Manu, the goateed drum beater."

Manu, the lead drummer, was in his twenties. Having dropped

and they have to be obeyed.

The last resort is to harass the wrongdoer; it is a lesson for him.

It also proves that anything can be done through the power of music. The municipal corporation of the city of Bangalore uses musical magic rather than mere legal threats to ensure tax evaders pay their fair share. Their unique enforcers are the drummers whom I just saw in action.

The group bangs their drums outside the culprits' offices until they respond in the proper fashion - paying their tax levies. The deputy mayor of Bangalore endorses this musical enforcement and points out we should not sympathize with the defaulter.

Their sonic humiliation is deserved - and the remedy is readily available: pay their debts to the city.

I soon could tell that a struggle was going on between the two parties. Abruptly the young guy Manu spun around. He hissed loudly and sharply, and the atmosphere froze for a moment.

I sat and gazed at the drum boys. When Manu turned towards the door of the mansion, I noticed a man coming out of the building. As he opened the door I heard the puja bell ringing, and the smell of incense wafted out, as if someone was praying inside for the hidden guilt. Now all these things started to merge together. The prayer, the music, the law, the innocence versus guilt all came together. I wished I knew what the tax evader was thinking as he was going back to his house with head bowed, but sometimes you don't want to know.

Joyous Journeys through Midwest, U.S.A.

By Bakul Banerjee It was a frigid February day. The steady snow falling outside my window inspired me to reflect on the past year. Perhaps, it was the absolute silence of the vertical movement that made me still. For a few minutes, there was no sound in my writing room - no whirring of the heater and no footsteps anywhere. Even the fans of my laptop and other attached devices were noiseless.

Three heart-shaped greeting cards with red envelopes were sitting in front me, two for my adult daughters and one for my toddler niece. I have not written any Valentine cards for at least ten years. My oldest daughter would probably roll her eyes at the sight of the card.

My younger daughter would love the cat-themed card and I could imagine her having a discussion about the card with her pet. I worried about the one I chose for my niece. It was splashed with glitter. I worried if she might swallow some.

Over-thinking again - I brushed aside that thought. Then, the curmudgeon inside me raised its ugly snake-like head.

"You know Valentine's Day is nothing but a ploy of the corporate world to promote consumerism." It announced.

"What's wrong if it brings happiness to somebody, even for a couple of hours? It is certainly a good excuse to avoid apologies." I said. I recalled the sweet scene I witnessed in a fast food restaurant between two love-struck teenagers as the boy gave a card to the girl sitting across from him. The city mall was located in South East Asia. No matter where it originated, the world has caught on to the Valentine's Day rituals a while ago and there is no turning back.

After reminiscing on far-away journeys, my thoughts turned to my snow-clad neighborhood and the journeys I took in search of spiritual love during the past year. I wished to witness the processes my neighbors were using. My preliminary research for places to visit overwhelmed me. Within fifty miles of my hometown, I counted hundreds of temples, churches and mosques of every denomination. Some of them were outstanding architectural examples and others were simple homesteads converted into places of spiritual gathering.

I decided to limit my search, seeking affinity to religions that had their roots in the Indian subcontinent. My primary objective was to observe the

actions of people of faith in the context of divine love.

My endeavor began on the New Year's Day, 2013, with a visit to the Hindu Temple of Greater Chicago1. For more than 25 years, I had been coming here, often with my children. It began as a small temple located on the side of a hill in Lemont, Illinois.

The black granite statues of godking Rama, his ever-suffering wife Sita, and his loyal brother Lakshmana inspired reverence in me and I hoped in the hearts of my children as well. As I pulled into the newly paved parking lot, the ten-foot tall bronze statue of Swami Vivekananda loomed above me in benevolence. The statue was a fitting tribute to the orange-clad monk who came to Chicago2 more than a century ago to win the hearts of his American brothers and sisters and spread the ideals of religious harmony.

More than fifteen years ago, the magnificent main temple was erected on the hilltop with an 80-foot tall tower, or Gopuram, above the main entrance. The tower and the temple were constructed as specified by the 10th century architects sponsored by the Chola dynasty of Indian kings. I remembered the incessant work done by the highly skilled artisans who came from India. Even the smaller temple, dedicated to Shiva and Durga, was redone in a much earlier architectural style of the Kalinga Dynasty which reigned during the first century BC. Both of these temples were humming with adults and children in their beautiful Indian outfits. Priests were performing various rituals in front of the icons and individuals were offering prayers in their own special ways. I was surprised to see some of them were reciting the entire Bhagavad Gita consisting of 700 couplets in Sanskrit from memory - quite a testimony to divine love. In the temple dedicated to Radha and Krishna, representing the union of God and Man, I made my usual stop in front of the plaque displaying a Sanskrit inscription of my favorite Mantra from Bhagavad Gita: "You have the right to work only, but never to its fruits. Let not the fruits of action be your motive. Nor let your attachment be to inaction."

In front of the deities, many women volunteers were busy making garlands with detailed specifications for the New Year celebration. I spent a few moments with a friend of mine who was in the garland-making

team. I thought it was a perfect example of an action without any expectation of the fruit of the labor.

As the season changed to spring, I heard about Dalai Lama's Wisconsin visit. I was able to buy two tickets for his public teaching at the Alliance Energy Center, Madison, Wisconsin on May 4, 2013. My first-born and I went to listen to the teachings of this charismatic person.

About eight years earlier, I had the opportunity to visit Tibet and appreciated firsthand the incredible dedication of Tibetan Buddhists to their faith. I had the good fortune of visiting Potala Palace and multiple major monasteries nearby where the young Dalai Lama lived. In Madison, we made a serious effort to visit the Deer Park Buddhist Center where he was now staying. However, we were not allowed to even stand outside the campus and were practically chased away by the Wisconsin State Police. Next morning, the same heightened security presence was everywhere at the lecture venue. I could not help thinking about the life and the last days of Gautama Buddha, the prince of non-violence or Ahimsa.

"One of my commitments is to promote human values in the interest of human happiness; my second commitment involves fostering inter-religious harmony3." That was one of Dalai Lama's messages. He used the ancient text of "In Praise of Dependant Origination" written by the fourteenth century Tibetan monk Lama Tsongkhapa. The presentation hall was filled with mostly Tibetans and their children, but also with people of many different races and faiths. It was a joyous gathering of humanity.

It was heart-warming to see children dressed in their best Tibetan outfits and unplugged, sitting quietly with their parents or in the front rows. My daughter, who has been studying Dalai Lama's teachings for self-improvement, was pleased with the shared experience. We met several people who came out of their way to attend the event. A Christian father came to bond with his Buddhist adult son and to find out what made his son happy.

As the summer rolled along, I discovered more places to visit.

My next two trips were only a few miles away from my home.

First, my Sikh coworker recommended the Gurdwara or Turn to page 11

Ananda Sangbad

April 2014

Joyous Journeys through Midwest, U.S.A.

India Impressions Continued from page 3

began to fret over the weakness of my argument. After all, the writ of the East India Company (and later Queen Victoria) did not technically run over the nominally independent principality of Jodhpur.

Fortunately for me, the guide offered a way out. “Maybe they retired to Benares?� This was a clear reference to another custom with Hindu widows. I accepted the explanation (true or not) and spoke no more on the subject. And I idly wondered if the need to accommodate a large harem after a Mughal succession lay behind the emperors building so many palaces and occasionally shifting the capital. An intriguing thought indeed!

V. Random Thoughts on Rajasthan Rajasthan has certainly become adept at welcoming tourists and treating them well. The state is full not only of high-end hotels but also less expensive but decent bed-and-breakfast places, and eateries that range from good to excellent. Many hoteliers and guides spoke to my Mexican friend in fluent Spanish; a number of them claimed to speak French, German and Italian as well.

It is also a place to showcase the religious tolerance and syncretism of India. This was evident at the Dargah (Muslim shrine) of the Sufi saint Moinuddin Chishti at Ajmer Sharif. When we reached the shrine at the time of the Friday noontime namaz, the place was jam-packed with kneeling devotees, and it was hard to

Continued from page 10

make way to the tomb at the center. The worshippers were Muslim, of course, but the religious icons and other paraphernalia being peddled at the shops outside indicated that the Dargah drew a substantial number of Hindu devotees too.

A bigger surprise of this nature lay in store for me at the Golden Fort of Jaisalmer. Many Bengalis of my age group have been familiar with the Golden Fort (Sonar Kella) because of the movie by the same name made

by Satyajit Ray; and the fort, situated on a hill, indeed looks golden because of the color of the locally available stone used in its construction. But I was wholly unprepared for the set of beautiful Jain temples inside the fort, built by Jains driven out of their native Gujarat, who were given sanctuary by the Hindu King of Jaisalmer. The Jains returned the favor by generating a lot of the city's wealth through trade and bankrolling its expansion and fortification. The city boasts a large number of ornate golden palaces outside of the fort wall that belong to rich tradesmen dealing in gold and silver ornaments and jewelry.

From Jaisalmer, we did the touristy camel-back ride to the edge of the Thar Desert to watch the sunset and then partake of entertainment provided by tribal musicians and dancers. The camel ride was uncomfortable but manageable; as for the sunset, I have seen prettier ones on the Ganges in Bihar. But the folk song-anddance program was indeed memorable.

Is hosting an Olympics a sprint towards financial ruin?

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the participating countries and commercial interests. If there was a venue in every continent, maybe that might give a sense of parity. This is not as strange as it sounds. The tennis major events are held yearly at fixed locations and most of them are financial successes. The Billie Jean King US tennis center at New York is a study of a good financial model. The tennis center is available for use by the public excluding the few weeks when the US Open is held.

The World Cup Soccer 2014 preparations in Rio are going

11

slowly and poorly as many other disastrous beginnings, like the Olympics in Athens and the Winter Games at Sochi. It is late, a budget-breaker and a flashpoint for public unrest. It will probably be cobbled together by a massive push just before the Games begin. There will be great fan-fare for the few weeks of the World Cup. After the players head home and the dust has settled, a pall will set in.

The party would have ended and the bills would still have to be paid, probably by a generation of Brazilians yet to be born.

Can't Agree with Your View! Ban! Continued from page 7

opposite of the desired effect, and makes the authors instant celebrities. Besides, people have always found ways to acquire a book that is banned and hence controversial. Furthermore, the Internet revolution in the late twentieth century has rendered book-banning practically a non-issue. The majority of banned books in India are openly and freely available on the Internet, as well as copies of the controversial Saraswati paintings by M.F. Hussain.

Therefore, in the future, book-banning enthusiasts have to find a better and more effective way to gag freedom of expression.

the Sikh temple in Wheaton.

Early one Sunday morning in July, a friend and I wove our way through a tree-shaded residential neighborhood to a big homestead at the center of a large property. I took a peek at the community kitchen before entering the main hall. Many men and women were busy preparing large meals. A big part of the Sikh religion is community service. Participating in the community meal, called "langar", is a good way to show respect to the Sikhs. The prayer began with the veneration of the holy book, Guru Granth Sahib. Then the lead singer began Kirtan, or singing hymns from the holy book. His melodious voice, accompanied by the Harmonium and Mridanga, the two sided drum, was hypnotic. Since the texts in Gurumukhi script and the English translations were projected on two big screens, it was easy to follow. There were only a few people in the large hall when we arrived, but it was full in a couple of hours.

Parents with smaller children came later.

After the service, both of us sat on the shaded porch outside.

We participated in the "langar" of a delicious vegetarian lunch, freshly cooked by the congregation. We exchanged our stories from India with others and met a family who lived in Kolkata, my hometown.

Apart from Punjabi, their own language, they spoke fluent Bengali, making them trilingual.

My last visit was to the International Society of Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON) temple in Naperville4. When I first arrived in the U.S., I used to be mesmerized by the boldness of mostly white men with shaved heads and robed in unstitched orange cloth, chanting and

dancing in public places to the beats of the traditional Mridanga.

Such activities performed by the devotees of Lord Krishna, commonly known as Hare Krishna people, were nothing new to me. I grew up in India surrounded by the devotees of Lord Krishna, formally called Gaudiya (of Bengal) Vaishnava (devotees of Vishnu or Krishna).

Bengali followers of this religious movement, originally established by the saint Chaitanya Deb in the 15th century, were everywhere around me during my childhood. In Kolkata, I looked forward to the annual gathering of one such group in our town. Once a year, the big fish market was closed and emptied out. The raised cement floors for the fishmongers and the walkways surrounding them were scrubbed spotlessly clean.

The roof overhangs of the openair market were decorated with orange festoons and long garlands of marigold flowers of many shades. Singers, famous and not-so-famous, sang devotional songs and danced in frenzy to the collective chants.

The festivities continued roundthe-clock for an entire week. On my way to and from the school, I spent many hours standing on the walkways packed with people. Much later, I realized that the bare feet of a Krishna devotee knew no difference between the carpeted floor of an airport and the cement floor of an ancient fish market. While reminiscing about my childhood, I pulled my car into a grassy spot in front of the temple. The scent of caramel and cinnamon from the temple mingled with fresh-cut grass welcomed me.

It was a hot and humid Sunday morning in August. Soon, the temple hall filled up with men and women of all ages and from

all walks of life. The leader of the worship was a tall, middle aged professional with an impressive knowledge of the scriptures. He presented an hour-long discourse on Bhakti, or the love felt by worshippers for their personal God. Later, I joined other women in the group for the chanting and dancing accompanied by the beats of the familiar Mridanga.

The morning concluded with another delicious lunch served by young men and women.

Sporting my gray hair was certainly advantageous in temples. Like previous trips, my scientifically trained rational mind could not explain the lightness in my soul at the end of the day.

The snowfall became lighter, as I readied the Valentine cards for mailing. Remembering those joyous journeys rejuvenated me as I lingered inside the aura of peace experienced during trips to those diverse religious communities. I also visited other great places of worship last year, but I reserve those stories for another time. The volunteers and donors who keep these small islands of sanity available deserve my heartfelt thanks.

The Hindu Temple of Greater 1. Chicago: http://htgc.org/ Home/index.php 2. Tribute to Swami Vivekananda: http:// www.ap.sv150.org/index.php/ world-news/83-chicago-paystributes-to-swami-vivekanandaon-his-150th-birth-anniversary.

3. Excerpts from Dalai Lama's Lecture: www.dalailama.com/ news/post/946-publicteachings-addressing-tibetanresidents-and-visiting-the-statelegislature-in-madison-wisconsin 4. The ISKCON Temple of Greater Chicago: http:// www.itogc.org

Recent Sahitya O Alochana Sessions at Ananda Mandir Reported by Subrata Bhaumik Sahitya O Alochana is a monthly literary and topical discussion forum under the aegis of Ananda Mandir that endeavors to achieve its motto "Alochana Brings Good Things to Mind." It held several exciting sessions in the December 2013 - February 2014 period.

philosophy and religion, science and mathematics, economics, social issues, and finally sports.

And the December - February period was no exception with topics that are very eclectic in nature including cricket, Bengali renaissance, and literature mixed with philosophy.

It is interesting to note that the scope and the reach of the discussions at the forum are ever widening and deepening. Over the last several years, these sessions covered some very exciting and illuminating discussions on a wide variety of topics including literature, theater and movie, history,

The December discussion was the "holiday session" of a sort, and was kind of an experiment with a sports topic, which we introduced for the first time.

The session featured a presentation on "The Cricketing Life of Sachin Tendulkar." It was a timely topic that coincided with the retirement of this most

celebrated icon of the cricketing world. Attendees indulged in the intoxication of their younger days; appreciated his outstanding career; and paid respect to arguably the best ever cricketer. A healthy debate ensued, and the attendees exchanged opinions on some of the non-cricketing issues related to Tendulkar including some of his awards and accolades; his demigod status in India; and the obsessive fanfare that he enjoys in sports thus the cricketing world.

Rishi Bhattacharjee, the discussion leader, enthralled the Turn to page 12

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Ananda Sangbad

April 2014

Seniors Forum Another Successful Field Trip

by Ananda Mandir Seniors

by Debajyoti Chatterji

Anand Mandir Seniors Forum members joined hands with the members of the Women's Group to target another interesting New Jersey attraction for an excursion: Northlandz, in Flemington, NJ. Northlandz is advertised as "the home of the world's largest model railroad museum". It is a very large indoor facility (over 50.000 sq ft of display floor space) that is climate-controlled.

There is also a steam-powered, glass-enclosed train outside the main building that goes around the museum campus in about ten minutes - and this train ride can be enjoyed on most days.

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participants with a vibrant, passionate, and informative audio/video presentation.

The January 2014 session featured screening of a documentary film entitled "Disconnected Genius" on Dwarakanath Tagore, grandfather of Rabindranath Tagore, and a discussion on early Indian Entrepreneurship. It examined the notion that whether the failure of Carr Tagore Company (Dwarkanath's business empire) might have marked the end of Bengali entrepreneurial spirit for a long time to come. It sought as well to identify a palatable explanation for the lack of business success of the Bengalis'.

The film depicted Dwarkanath, who flourished in early nineteenth-century Calcutta, as a man of many facets-business and industrial entrepreneur; patron of western education and theater; social leader who broke taboos by associating with Europeans and bringing British and Indian elites together; and hobnobbed with the British literati and social leaders, and the venerable Queen Victoria. It was a vivid and concise portrayal of

Several hundred model trains run through the complex in continuous loops. Children and grown ups alike cannot help but wonder at the detailed planning that went into building and operating this huge and complex facility that beautifully combines engineering, architecture and aesthetics.

The following members participated in this January 19 field trip: Amitabha Bagchi, Pronoy and Swapna Chatterjee, Debajyoti and Sikha Chatterji, Haimonti Chaudhuri, Roma Das, Amal and Reeta De, and Prativa Hore,

Continued from page 8

Recent Puja Activities

Anirudh played some English tunes.

The next program was a dance recital by the students of "Rhythms of Dance" school. The students of reputed dance teacher Mitra Purkayastha, of various age groups, keep improving year after, never failing to charm the audience with excellent performances. The dance number with "Mama Chittey niti Nrittey" was superb to watch. There was tabla to complement the dance program.

The talented participants were: Aheli Basu, Ahana Banerjee, Ishani Banerjee, Pranita Kundu, Nisha Singh, Anwesha Misra, Isha Mohapatra, Sunaya Dasgupta Mueller, Meena Stalhamer, Upasana Banerjee, Saraswati Mukherjee, Arunima Paul, Oli Mukherjee, Aishi Roychowdhury, Aishani Chakraborty, Sunayana

Aniruddho Sanyal, the maker of the documentary screened the film and led the post screening discussion. It was an informative and well-structured session that made many of us look back at the history of 19th century Bengali Renaissance with renewed vigor.

The February session marked the homecoming for our alochana sessions - we started the program at Ananda Mandir six years ago in February with a literary discussion, which still remains the core of our discussion topics. This session combined literature and philosophy, and featured a discussion on "Influence of Indian Philosophy on Two Giants of Modernist English Poetry: W.B. Yeats and T.S. Eliot."

This session examined the popular notion that many dominant figures in the modernist movement of western literature were greatly influenced by oriental philosophies including Hindu and Buddhist thoughts. Notables

The concluding performance of the day was an Instrumental music program by a youth group called "Freedom Band".

They played a few Bengali patriotic songs that were very much appreciated. Participants were Johin and Nirban on Violin, Rahul on Key Board, and Shayom on guitar. The entire program was planned and organized by Rita Bhowmik and Krishna Dutta Roy and conducted by Arun Bhowmik.

The day was still not done.

There was the monthly Satyanarayan puja in the evening.

Maha Shiva Ratri was celebrated on Thursday 27th February. Puja timing was 7:0011:00pm. It was a severely cold winter evening, still about 80 devotees showed up to

offer milk on the Shiva Linga. Shiva Linga's Rajbesh was done around 10pm. Puja continued all through the night, because offerings are made in four "prahars".

Next d we celebrated monthly Shyama Puja on 28th February.

March The upcoming festival will be Dol Purnima on Sunday, 16th March.

It is a very popular event at Ananda Mandir with lots of "abir" spread over the assembled people. We will be looking forward to it and also the monthly Satyanarayan puja on the same day. The monthly Shyama puja will be held on Sunday, the 30th March.

All puja events are so enjoyable at Ananda Mandir only because of dedicated support from the puja committee volunteers. To join the team, just call Krishna at 732-390-8069.

Ananda Mandir Seniors Forum ("Seniors Helping Seniors") Invites retirees and near-retirees to participate actively in Forum meetings and activities.

Seniors Forum usually meets on the third Sunday of every month at 1:00 PM. However, the date may change because of conflict with other Ananda Mandir events.

Please contact Debajyoti Chatterji

(Cell: 908-507-9640) for latest updates on the meeting dates.

News You May Have Missed

Sahitya O Alochana Dwarkanath that also explored the mystery surrounding the lack of recognition on Rabindranath's part of the achievements of his illustrious ancestor.

Mukherjee.

10 among Intel Science Talent Search finalists include the nineteenth century American transcendental poet Ralph Waldo Emerson, and a number of 20th century poets including Yeats, Eliot, Herman Hesse (German/English), and Ezra Pound. Yes, Ezra Pound at least in his early years.

However, the central focus of the session was a review of such influence specifically on the works of Yeats and Eliot - two of the most influential poets in the English-speaking world.

Amitabha Bagchi and Subrata Bhaumik jointly led the session.

It was a well-attended session with quite lively participation and debate.

Future sessions - Quite a few interesting sessions are in the pipeline for the next few months including a reading of works of local writers; a session on Suchitra Sen evaluating her place and contribution to Indian Cinema, and a potential session on the "Evolution and Future Outlook of the Indian Outsourcing Industry."

The organizers and the friends of Sahitya O Alochana would like to thank Ananda Mandir for its continued support for the forum's contribution to the cultural enrichment of the local Bengali and Indian community.

Ten high school seniors of Indian origin are among the 40 finalists in the Intel Science Talent Search 2014. Students are selected based upon their scientific research and also on their overall potential as future leaders of the scientific community. The ten finalists of Indian origin are: Soham Daga - New York Shaun Datta - Maryland Neil Davey - Maryland Anubhav Guha - New Yotk Preeti Kakani - New York Esha Maiti - California Rahul Siddharth Mehta - Illinois Ajay Saini - Massachusetts Anand Srinivasan - Georgia Parth Thakker - North Carolina *********

"BHARAT RATNA" for a Scientist

Our readers probably know that Sachin Tendulkar, the great Indian cricketer, was awarded Bharat Ratna ("Jewel of India") last month by the President of India. This is the first time a sportsman has received India's highest civilian honor. However, our readers may not have noticed that Bharat Ratna was also awarded this year to a scientist, Prof C N R Rao, a rare event in the 60-year history of civilian awards in India. Prof Rao is only the third scientist to receive Bharat Ratna; the previous two scientists to win this award were C V Raman (in 1954) and A P J Abdul Kalam (in 1997). An engineer, Mokshagundam Visvesvaraya, had received the same honor in 1955. Prof Rao is an internationally recognized solid state chemist who has published over 1500 scientific papers and authored some 45 technical books. He is currently the Head of Scientific Advisory Council to the Prime Minister of India.

Ananda Sangbad

April 2014

13

YOUTH SECTION KISHALOY

MEDICAL AND HEALTH SECTION

Kishaloy is a monthly wall magazine for the youth. When you come to Ananda Mandir, you will see it hanging on the wall in the community building. Any youth member of Ananda Mandir can submit poetry, short stories, scientific article, artwork, and photographs for the magazine. The youth group of Ananda Mandir meets generally on Sunday afternoons. An email list of the youth group volunteers will be published shortly. All youth group volunteers will receive official certificates from Ananda Mandir for their volunteer services. For more information, contact Dipak Sarkar at email: sarkar@AESOP.Rutgers.edu; Phone: 609.651.1023

This column is prepared with the assistance of Dr. Rajat Bannerji (Member, Rutgers Cancer Institute of New Jersey; Associate Professor of Medicine, Robert Wood Johnson Medical School).

The Higgs Boson

Alpesh Patel, MD, FACC, FACP

Aniketh Guha Sarkar, Age 16 In 1964, 35-year-old Peter Higgs wrote a paper containing his theory on why there were certain anomalies in the masses of many elementary and composite particles. He sent his paper to "Physics Letters", a physics journal, to get published, but it was rejected, with the editors of the journal deeming it "of no obvious relevance to physics". At a moment like that, the last thing that would have come to Higgs' mind was that his paper contained one of the most monumental theories (and later, discoveries) of all time. In the universe, there are four fundamental forces: electromagnetism, the strong force, the weak force (those are their actual names), and gravity.

A theoretical physicist, Higgs had a problem with the weak force.

The weak force is expressed through two particles, the W and Z bosons. He calculated that those bosons should have a very small mass, and consequently a very large range of effect.

However, only the reverse was true: all experimental studies of the W and Z bosons showed that they were very massive (relative to other particles), and had a very short range. From that revelation came the main part

of his theory. Higgs theorized that when the universe was created, no particles had mass.

However, very soon after their creation, those particles started interacting with a field that gave them mass. Later, this field would be called the Higgs field.

That was the basic context of what he first sent to "Physics Letters". However, he added another paragraph, explaining a particle that could be brought forth from this field, to prove that his theory was correct. This was the final bit of information necessary to get his paper published, now by "Physical Review Letters".

Shortly into this century, after much debate, a particle accelerator called the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) was built with the primary purpose of discovering, or disproving the existence of, the Higgs boson.

Why is this so important? The Standard Model, the elementary particle analog to the Periodic Table of elements, is widely regarded as the most accurate representation and explanation for all of the elementary particles (particles which are not known to be made up of any other particles) that are currently

known to exist. However, there were some missing pieces and contradictions which comprised some of the great mysteries of physics, such as the mass anomalies of the W and Z bosons. Many of these questions could be solved if the Higgs boson, and subsequently the Higgs field, were discovered.

If the Higgs boson were discovered, the Standard Model would be cemented in history as, for now, the guide for all things subatomic. From that, many other conclusions and new theories could be derived, most notably supersymmetry, the true nature of dark matter and dark energy, and even if there are multiple types of Higgs bosons. It was even nicknamed "The God Particle". In the real world, however, there would be almost no immediate benefits.

However, many important discoveries take decades to come to fruition. For example, it was years before the Special Theory of Relativity, an abstract formalism which spawned Einstein's famous mass-energy equivalence E=mc², gave rise to the nuclear reactor, a major source of energy in today's world.

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Looking Back: Feminism and its Achievements in 2013 Priya Mukherjee, Age ~17 Through numbers, determination, and major perseverance, big steps are being taken by women, and the role of the female is changing drastically around the world. It is a tragedy that some countries still refuse their women even the right to education, but it is also a challenge to fight for and another reason to realize that this feminist movement is an ongoing battle.

For young girls growing up in America, where different influences and different worlds collide to shape everything we know and believe, exposure to feminism can be confusingly varied. On the one hand there is the cheap and degrading exhibitionism of singer Miley Cyrus (most recently as an exponent of 'twerking', a sexually provocative dance fad), and on the other, the inspiring championship of women's abortion rights by Texas State Senator Wendy Davis in the ever-raging Pro-Life/Pro-Choice debate.

While abortion is a very touchy topic among many cultures and communities in the United States, it has been particularly heavily debated in Texas and Florida. In Texas, State Senator Wendy Davis led an inspiring filibuster against a bill that would close five abortion clinics in the state. She successfully continued for eleven hours in her debate and was

Cardiovascular Disease Among South Asian Indians

not allowed to sit, drink, eat, use the bathroom or even rest against any furniture for the duration of this period. She showed immense dedication to the cause: keeping these clinics open and allowing women to choose whether they will continue a pregnancy or not, instead of having that choice taken away from them by a group of old white men.

As a young girl of Hindu descent, I am lucky to have a wider set of influences than the average American. This includes the learning of our Hindu mythology, culture and religion.

Throughout our Hindu culture, we see the idea of female power. We see it in Maa Durga and her composure and ferocity; we see it in Maa Kali and her rage and remorse. While these divine figures are revered by a sizeable segment of Indian society, in this very society many things happen that do not reflect this reverence. For example, just earlier this year, much controversy surrounded a particular case in India, of a young girl raped in a bus. This case garnered much attention from the media and was an immediate target for feminist activists. In the Hindu culture, the concept of feminism is apparent. The idea

Editor's Note: Dr. Alpesh Patel is a native of New Jersey and has performed over 1000 angioplasty and stents and is skilled in the latest tools in interventional cardiology including Rotablator, Laser atherectomy and Cryoplasty. He is also well trained in peripheral vascular intervention and non invasive imaging. He is Board Certified in Internal Medicine, General Cardiology, Nuclear Medicine and Interventional Cardiology.

Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is the world's largest killer affecting men and women of all ethnicities and ages. It has a greater impact on middle and low-income countries, where more than 80% of cardiovascular related deaths occur.

Cardiovascular disease annually kills about 17.3 million people around the world due to lack of physical activity, unhealthy diet and the increase in tobacco use.

By the year 2030, it is predicted approximately 23.6 million people per year, worldwide, will die of cardiovascular diseases.

Atherosclerosis causes hardening of the arteries through fat, cholesterol and other substances that build up plaque on the inside walls of the arteries. This leads to strokes, peripheral vascular disease and heart attacks. Many South Asians develop the risk factors that lead to cardiovascular disease. The most common heart disease is coronary artery disease which develops over time by narrowing or blocking the coronary arteries that supply blood to the heart muscle and can result in myocardial infarction, angina pectoris, heart failure and coronary death.

Increased Risk of Coronary Artery Disease in the South Asian Population South Asians represent one fifth of the global population with ethnic roots in the Indian subcontinent, including India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Nepal and

Bangladesh. Many case studies have shown South Asians have a 3 to 5-fold higher risk of myocardial infarction and cardiovascular death compared to other ethnic groups. Asian Indians have a higher percentage risk of coronary artery disease and have heart attacks earlier in life than any other ethnic group. A case study conducted in Canada compared whites and South Asians, and demonstrated that South Asians are younger at the time of cardiac catheterization, heart failure and are more likely to have anterior myocardial infarction before the age of 40 in men. Multiple case-control studies have shown South Asians have similar or higher prevalence of common risk factors than any other ethnic group.

A study done in the United Kingdom from the British Heart Foundation shows the incidence of coronary heart disease is 46% higher in South Asian men and 51% higher in South Asian women compared to the UK population as a whole.

In the United States, an analysis of the California Mortality Database between 1990 and 2000 shows Indian men and women have the highest mortality ratio for coronary heart disease compared to 6 other racial groups.

Cholesterol is one of the top concerns for cardiovascular health in South Asians. Your body carries two types of lipids that are low-density lipoprotein (LDL) and high-density lipoprotein (HDL) as well as triglycerides and Lp(a) or lipoprotein (a) that help determine your total cholesterol level. LDL (Bad Cholesterol) can slowly build up in the inner walls of the arteries that provide blood to the heart and brain.

HDL (good cholesterol) helps protect against heart attacks by removing excess cholesterol

that women are actually human beings is something that shouldn’t have to be a concept, or a movement. It should be inherent and obvious. And yet from this case and many others, we see the dehumanization of, and violence toward, women.

2013 has been a progressive year for feminism. With different

movements and organizations working tirelessly to change perspectives and enforce new regulations, in India, in the US, and across the world, women have shown their strength.

Feminism has come far and will only go further in the years to come.

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Youth Section

Reflections on the Natural Leaders Legacy Camp

By Sophie Sarkar, Age 24 At age 24, I was lucky to land a great position with a federal agency doing work with communities to improve access to parks and trails in urban areas. Although I was dedicated to and passionate about my work, there was one major thing missing from my professional life that often left me feeling isolated and sometimes disempowered - I had no peer support. The average age of my office was about 25 years my senior. This meant that there were very few individuals my age or experience-level in my program, let alone in my office or agency, with whom I could share ideas and challenges, and with whom I could collaborate.

I then got the opportunity to attend the Natural Leaders Legacy Camp. The Legacy Camp is held under the auspices of the C&NN1 Natural Leaders Network, which “empowers a worldwide youth movement to strengthen the bond between children and nature”2 .

With Legacy Camp, the vacuum in my professional life became a thing of the past. Over the course of the Legacy Camp, I built relationships and made connections to a network of over fifty other young leaders and individuals active in the movement to get more young people outdoors. The camp provided us with a unique opportunity to establish a tight-knit community of young environmental educators and activists. I left the camp, not only feeling impassioned and energized to continue my work in the children and nature movement, but also feeling secure that I had the infrastructure and personal support to do so.

It has been less than three months since I attended the Legacy Camp, and the Natural Leaders network has already proven to be an invaluable resource. Within days of leaving Bainbridge Island (my Legacy Camp location) I began to have conversations with my fellow Natural Leaders about potential partnerships and collaborations. I have exchanged ideas, programming, and volunteer time with other Natural Leaders to help each other plan and facilitate our respective outdoor events. I have also received a number of friendly “check-in” messages from many of my fellow Natural Leaders, just to ask how I am doing and to demonstrate their care and support for my work and my general well-being. The Natural Leaders Legacy Camp was a tremendous opportunity for me, which has left its own legacy—a peer support network—in my personal and professional life.

1 2

Children and Nature Network http://childrenandnature.ning.com/group/NLN

The Higgs Boson Continued from page 13

On March 14, 2013, the LHC powered up for another day of smashing particles together. The 27 kilometer long circular tunnel's detectors and magnets stood at the ready, prepared to guide the colliding particles to their destination, and track what happens in those precious few millionths or billionths of second before almost all the debris from the collision decays. The magnets started their work, guiding 2 proton beams traveling in opposite directions to collide with each other. The particles were accelerated to 99.999999% of the speed of light in other words, a millionth of a percent slower than light . Then the protons collided. As experimental physicists analyzed the data, they saw an unusual particle. It had a mass of 126 GeV/c2, positive parity, no spin, electric charge, or color charge. These were the exact specifications of the Higgs boson On June 24, 2013, a conference was held in Geneva to confirm and explain this information, and Peter Higgs gave a speech at this conference. Even though his initial paper was rejected by "Physics Letters", Higgs got the last laugh, for the very place where he announced the discovery of the Higgs boson was the exact place where his idea was first rejected.

As of this writing, the LHC is the largest machine on Earth. It is the world’s most powerful particle accelerator; it contains the world’s largest man-made vacuum, and uses the most power of any machine on Earth.

2 Light travels at about 300,000 kilometers per second. The particles in the LHC travel at 3 meters slower per second, or about 299,999.997 kilometers per second.

1

Ananda Sangbad

April 2014

COMMUNITY NEWS Dipak Sarkar honored in India Congratulations to Dipak Sarkar, Distinguished Professor of Animal Sciences and Director of Endocrine Program, who delivered the prestigious 2013 S.K. Manchanda Memorial Oration at the Fifth Congress of the Federation of Indian Physiological Societies (FIPS) in Tirupati, India on December 17.

His selection as Foreign Scientist speaker of the FIPS Oration is the most prestigious honor given by the Federation of Indian Physiological Societies. Dr. Sarkar's lecture was titled "BetaEndorphin Neuronal Activation: A Potential Measure to Prevent Cancer Growth, Progression and Metastasis." Dr. Sarkar is the current President of Ananda Mandir.

Nobel Laureate Prof Sir A.F. Huxley delivered the first FIPS Oration on March 16, 1991.

On November 9, 1998, the FIPS Executive Council renamed the FIPS Oration as the "S.K. Manchanda Memorial FIPS Oration" to honor the late Professor S.K. Manchanda for his contributions to Physiological Sciences in India and FIPS in

particular. This award, bestowed on one Indian and one foreign scientist working in any branch of Physiology, is given in the form of a plaque during the FIPS Congress, which usually takes

place once every three years.

Source - Carol A. Bagnell, Ph.D. Professor and ChairDept of Animal Sciences Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey

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Bengali Audio Book Released as a 2-CD Set A Bengali audio-book, "Golpopather Ashor", has been released by Miranda, a non-profit organization based in India, primarily to help the blind and the aged enjoy literary works of famous Bengali authors. This 2 CD set features 12 evergreen Bengali short stories (From Rabindranath to Bibhutibhusan to Sunil to Sirshendu), narrated by eminent voice artists. To mark the release, Miranda has distributed free copies of the CD to schools for the blind and several old age homes in Kolkata. One of the voice artists is Bidisha Roy, a resident of Jersey City. and she is supporting the cause through her reading. The audio book has received critical acclaim in literary and philanthropic circles in Kolkata, Mumbai and other cities. The audio book was launched commercially at this year's Kolkata Book Fair. Snippets of the book can be heard on YouTube (Part 1 -http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eH7tfRl_EJU; Part 2 - http://www.youtube.com/ watch?v=W4R_GzP_gD0). To purchase a copy, please email to tupuroy@gmail.com ***************************

Jayanta Deb publishes his second book Jayanta (Jay) Deb (a member of the Ananda Mandir community and an active member of ICC of Garden State) has published his second book, "The Assassin". The book is available from the author and from Amazon.com (www.amzn.to/1c78REl in paperback and in Kindle editions) and has received excellent reviews from readers. "The Assassin" is an espionage novel about how an ex-CIA agent handles personal loss, betrayal and terrorism. Jayanta lives in Rockaway, NJ, with his family and is a computer scientist by profession, but reading and writing are his passion. His first book, "Contrived", was a mystery novel. The author can be reached at jay8191@gmail.com or though https://www.facebook.com/AuthorJayDeb ********************************

Kumud Roy publishes his third book Kumud Roy's third book "Bharater Sadhakder Aloukik Kahini" (meaning Miracles of Indian Saints) in Bengali was published at Kolkata in January 2014. The book has 264 pages and contains miracles of 12 famous Indian Sadhaks (Sadhus). In Srimad Bhagabad Gita, Srikrishna showed Biswarup (or Universal Form) to Arjun to create confidence in him. Similarly, many Indian Sadhaks showed miracles to their followers either to create confidence in them or for their welfare. This book contains many of those miracles. The book also contains a list of 126 Sadhaks and Sadhikas of India. Kumud is a life member of Ananda Mandir.

This author's two previous books - "Srimad Bhagabad Gita" and "Upanishad" were published in 2011 and 2013 respectively. Readers may contact Kumud Roy at kumudrroy@hotmail.com

Ananda Sangbad

April 2014

15

COMMUNITY NEWS

Suchitra Sen

ICC Corner Reported By Soumyendra Seal On behalf of the ICC Executive Team, I wish all readers a very Happy, Healthy and Prosperous 2014.

The ICC Annual General Meeting was duly conducted on December 15th 2013, at the Union Hill Church, Denville. The Executive Committee presented the financial statements as well as future initiatives that are planned for this year to the attending members. Members were generally appreciative of the work done by the Executive Committee. Any concerns expressed by the members were addressed and/or noted for future action. A sumptuous dinner was served at the conclusion of the meeting.

ICC celebrated this year's Saraswati Puja on January 25th at the Central Middle School in Parsippany.

A heavy snowfall overnight and into the morning threatened to severely hamper the event. But in spite of the inclement weather, members and patrons joined in large numbers to make it an enjoyable experience. A handful of vendors also braved the weather and set up their stalls to add more variety to the atmosphere.

Suchitra Sen and her evergreen smile

2014), is no more. The strikingly beautiful superstar S January of the Bengali cinema had a profound influence on the

uchitra Sen, born Roma Dasgupta (6 April 1931 - 17

movie watchers during the 1950- 1970 period like no other actress ever. In 1972, she was awarded the Padma Shri. In 2012, she was conferred the West Bengal Government's highest honor: Banga Bibhushan.

Suchitra Sen's acting career was intertwined with that of Uttam Kumar, the heartthrob of Bengali population. Together they made movies that became romantic classics in the history of Bengali cinema. Some of the greatest romantic movies made by them are: Agnipariksha, Shapmochan, Harano Sur, Saptapadi, and others. The scene in which they ride on a motorcycle in the movie Saptapadi, while singing "Ei path jodi na shesh hoi" in the background voice of Hemanta Mukhopadhyay and Sandhya Mukhopadhyay, remains as one of the greatest romantic scenes ever.

From 1979 on, Suchitra Sen retreated from public life and shunned all forms of public contact. Since then, she devoted her time to the Ramakrishna Mission. Despite being Bengal's greatest female star, referred to as "Mahanayika", she had consciously chosen to lead a completely private life and she remained an enigma till the last day.

NJPA Corner Reported By Kankana Sengupta NJPA celebrated Saraswati puja on Saturday, February 15th this year at the Monroe Township Senior Center. To the dismay of the crowd, snow fell on the ground mercilessly. However, the winter and the rampant exasperation did not stop the organizers in going with the puja. The crowd was small, but the excitement was big.

Snow gave a homey and relaxed feel. Amidst the unfortunate inconvenience caused by it, the goddess of learning was worshipped with floral offerings, prasad, bhog distribution, and dinner followed by an impressive cultural program.

As you all know the local music and entertainment scene in NJ bursts with vibrancy, and is always striving to promote young talents.

In keeping with the tradition of Saraswati puja, NJPA decided to focus on young talents. Stunning performances by Mukti, the Freedom Band, a group of very talented young and creative musicians on the keyboard and guitar, the clear pristine voice of Nikhil Kundu and Shreya Choudhury's melodic spell, all stood up as an encouraging indication of what they can accomplish. They are all truly a phenomenon and will only get stronger and stronger with age. Their exceptional talents reinstate our belief that the present generation of artistes, given due time, can help redeem Bengali modern music among the entire community. And to end it all, who could have done it better than our very own Arun da - Arun Bhowmik, a versatile artist of extraordinary ability who mesmerized listeners with his enchanting voice. In the end, the small number of people that did come made this show very cozy and intimate.

Please stay tuned for future updates or log on to http://njpa.net.

The event started around 6:00 p.m., with a group of members setting up the deity, stage and puja samagri. The rituals were solemnly performed by Suddasatta Acharya. All ladies and girls dressed in their beautiful saris devotedly observed the puja. Many men and boys had the traditional attire on.

Pushpanjali, the showering of the 'Shanti Jal' and 'Hathe Khori' marked the conclusion of the Pujas.

As the guests proceeded to enjoy the Prosad and Puja Bhog, the stage was set for the next phase of the celebrations.

ICC Member Sangrami Lahiri accompanied by her son Rajdeep, opened the cultural program with a Saraswati Bandana, followed by a Rabindra Sangeet. The next item was an Indian classical music presentation by the ICC junior members - with Sourin Seal singing 'Ankhi a Laage' accompanied on the tabla by Nitant Gupta and on the harmonium by Sourav Seal.

ICC junior members Portia Sarkar, Monisha Nath and Mishti Paul presented a scintillating dance rendition of Rabindranath Tagore's 'Kharo Bayu Bohe' choreographed by Rumeli Dutta Majumdar.

ICC children continued to enthrall the packed hall with a lively performance of Rabindranath Tagore's 'Juta Abishkar', conducted by Baruna Haldar. The final two programs of the day were recitations of Sukumar Ray's poems by Mr. Amitava Sengupta and a medley of Hindi and Bengali songs by Trinmoy and Ranjita.

Sougata Chatterjee once again provided his usual high quality audio and lighting support and Ms. Sonali Nath was the master of ceremony.

A sumptuous Bengali dinner consisting of Khichuri, Bandhakopir Tarkari, vegetable fries, Chutney and Misti marked the end of this year's Saraswati Puja.

On behalf of myself and the rest of the Executive Committee members, I take this opportunity to thank all members and patrons who attended, for their help and support in making this a grand success.

Our next program will be the 2014 Baishakhi, to be held on April 27th. Please stay tuned for announcements for upcoming events at our website www.icc-gs.org Continued from page 13

from the arterial plaque. South Asians have lower HDL levels but also have higher concentrations of small, less productive HDL particles. Lower levels of HDL cholesterol increase the risk of coronary heart disease (CHD).

The prevalence of diabetes mellitus, another important risk factor for CHD, is higher in South Asians than in any other ethnic group.

Treatment To help prevent cardiovascular diseases in the South Asian community, people are advised to go to their primary care doctor or cardiologist to get screened for high cholesterol, diabetes and hypertension.

There are many different screening methods that can detect increased risk for cardiovascular disease such as measuring the waist circumference and waist-hip ratio (WHR) or determining the body mass index (BMI).. Patients who have a family history of diabetes should get an oral glucose tolerance test. This test will help determine how your body metabolizes glucose and can diagnose if you're prone to

Cardiovascular Disease getting diabetes or already are diabetic. Since studies show HDL is lower in South Asians, individuals should get a standard fasting lipid panel test that will help measure the total cholesterol in their body.

Improving HDL levels is an important goal in South Asians, and can be accomplished by increasing omega-3 fats in the diet.

Another important preventable risk factor is cigarette smoking. Smoking cessation programs are an important resource to prevent CVD. A key factor to help prevent cardiovascular diseases is to keep yourself healthy by keeping your body active through daily exercise and tracking your diet.

Keeping your body weight low can help improve your body's metabolism and can prevent the metabolic syndrome to help delay or prevent atherosclerosis and diabetes. The metabolic syndrome is a combination of three of the following conditions abdominal obesity, hypertension, high fasting blood sugar, a high triglyceride level and a low HDL level. The syndrome

puts individuals at increased risk for diabetes, heart disease and stroke. Working out for 30 minutes a day, 4-5 days a week, can make a big difference in preventing these risk factors.

South Asians develop high cholesterol with just a little excess weight, with increased risk at a BMI of 23, rather than the BMI of 25 threshold for other ethnic groups. Screening and prevention can help reduce the mortality of CVD and will save many people's lives.

References: Gupta, M, Narendra S, and Subodh V. "South Asians and Cardiovascular Risk: What Clinicians Should Know."

Circulation 113.25 (2006): E924929.

Wilson, Peter. "Overview of the Risk Equivalents and Established Risk Factors for Cardiovascular Disease; "Overview of the Risk Equivalents and Established Risk Factors for Cardiovascular Disease (2014): 1-33. Uptodate Inc. Manuscript assistance by Neil Matthew

16

April 2014

Ananda Sangbad

ANANDA SANDHYA Reported By Arun Bhowmik, Chair, Cultural Committee Sankumani Sarma

Arindam Chakraborty

only by a focused listener. It needs many years of practice and experience in conveying that meaning through variations in Ghazal singing.

Sankumani has been able to attain that standard through his well balanced, flawless rendering. His aim has always been to give the audiences good music and to reach out to people and touch their hearts.

Dr. Arindam Chakraborty is a well known and popular tabaliya at Ananda Mandir, who has performed with m a ny c l a s s i c a l , s e m i classical and contemporary vocalists, instrumentalists and dancers from USA and India. Arindam is a disciple of the tabla maestro Pandit Bikram Ghosh. He created his own group "RHYTHMThe most enjoyable monthly event of Ananda Mandir is arguably Ananda Sandhya. Music lovers of all ages and genders come together for a couple of hours of enchanting music, all of a classical nature, soothing to the ear and heart.

Rendered in the temple, in front of Gods and Goddesses, this is a unique experience, opposite to high-pitched loud drum beats of disco, that is e age r ly awai te d by the community.

The January and February events were not held as the Mother Nature was unkind to us with a harsh winter weather. The March event is scheduled for the 14th. Sankumani Sarma will present a delightful musical evening with selected Ghazals suitable for temple

environment, Geet and Bhajans of the late Jagjit Singh. Our very own Dr. Arindam Chakraborty will accompany him on tabla.

Sankumani Sarma is a renowned Ghazal singer in the USA. With his melodious voice and strong hold on Urdu diction, and deep sweet voice he is uniquely suited for rendering Ghazals.

Sankumani has been greatly influenced by Ghazal singers like the Late Jagjit Singh, the Late Mehdi Hasan, Ghulam Ali and Pankaj Udhas.

Ghazals, with the use of Urdu-rich-Hindi, have the power of conveying beautiful yet very deep meaning, which can be understood

SPEC" to promote the rich vocal concert by a top singer in the tri-state area: Swagata heritage of Indian Music.

For April, we will have classical Chakrabarti, who has enchanted the audience at Ananda Mandir on previous occasions.

Swagata is a recognized musical talent from Kolkata, West Bengal. She has been a regular performer for All India Radio and Doordarshan. She has performed extensively throughout India and in the US. Her talent has won her many awards from several reputed organizations and committees.

Swagata received many years of training in Hindustani Classical Music under the tutelage of several famous performers. She specializes in vocal Hindustani classicals and light classicals such as Bhajans, Thumris, Hori, Jhula etc. She also performs Rabindra Sangeet, Najrul-geets and modern Hindi and Bengali songs.

Swagata Chakrabarti

Announcement Dear Members of Ananda Mandir, As you all know by now, the cultural events presented by Ananda Mandir (musical shows during Kali Puja, Durga Puja, Live Mahalaya to name a few) have gained great popularity in our community of music lovers. One such routine event is the monthly ANANDA SANDHYA, presented usually on second Friday evening of the month. This is a wonderful platform where our community musicians get a chance to showcase their talents.

Are you interested in doing an Ananda Sandhya program at Ananda Mandir as a solo artist, or presenting a group program? If you have attended any, you know that this is a 2 hour program of high quality. If you are "READY, WILLING AND ABLE", please contact our cultural secretary Arun Bhowmik at arun.bhowmik@hamonusa.com, or call him at 908-672-1452 for details. We look forward to hearing from you.

The Board of Trustees of Ananda Mandir recognizes “Outstanding Volunteers,� selected from the nominations received from the Life Members of Ananda Mandir.

The application form for nomination is available at www.anandamandir.org.

If you are a Life Member and believe that someone deserves this recognition, please feel free to e-mail your nomination to Pronoy Chatterjee (pkc_usa@yahoo.com)

Ananda Mandir's membership category changes for the Forth Quarter of 2013 Grand Patron - Gold (1) Haimonti Chaudhuri

Grand Patron - Silver (1) Pfizer Foundation (2) Suranjan B. and Sudipta Choudhury

Patron (1) Saroj and Sipra Bhol (2) Amitava and Asha Das (3) Nil and Keya Mukhopadhyay (4) Swati Ray Life Member (1) Padmini and Sudeep Bagchee (2) Bhaswati Bhadra (3) Amitava and Archana Biswas

(4) Urna Biswas (5) Andrew Bose (6) Tapan and Arupa Ganguly (7) Manish and Chandrabali Ghosh (8) Vaswati Mallik (9) Debashis and Mona Nag (10) Ajoy and Geeta Roy (11) Dipak and Jhunu and Pavela Saha (12) Sumit and Sharmistha Sen (13) Trina Sengupta (14) Bhargav K. Shukla

Please note that you can become an Associate Member of Ananda Mandir by donating a minimum of $50. Your subsequent donations of $50 or more are credited to your account. When your total cumulative donation reaches $1000, you become a Life Member.

Your support, small or large, is most welcome and sincerely appreciated.