India Herald 091218

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India Herald

VOL. 24 • NO. 37 • WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 12, 2018 • P.O. BOX 623, SUGAR LAND, TX 77487 • PERIODICAL PERMIT USPS 017699 • 25 cents

Message of unity envelopes largest gathering of Hindus outside India

RSS Chief Mohan Bhagwat, left, Acharya Lokesh Muni, Swami Swaroopananda, Swami Dr. Shamkant Sheth, Dr. Abhaya Asthana, VP of Suriname Ashwin Adhin, Purnatmananda, WHC Chair SP Kothari, Vice President of Suriname Ashwin Adhin, and Chair SP Kothari, Ashok Chowgule, Vice Chair Raju Reddy, and RSS Chief Mohan Bhagwat after unveiling the statue of Swami Vivekananda.

Satguru Dalip Singh light the lamp at the inauguration of the World Hindu Congress.

Photos by JAY MANDAL.

By SESHADRI KUMAR In Hindu dharma even a pest only when it works as a society, each other, Bhagwat said. to accept the consensus. We are With a backdrop of a life-size is not killed, but controlled. he said.

In this context, he alluded to in a position to work together,” statue of Swami Vivekananda, “Hindus don’t live to oppose One of the key values to bring the war and politics in the Hindu Bhagwat said. He urged the to the traditional clarion sound anybody. We even allow the the whole world in to a team epic Mahabharat, and said conference attendees to discuss of the conch, the second World pests to live. There are people is to have controlled ego and politics cannot be conducted and evolve a methodology Hindu Conference attended by who may oppose us. You have learn to accept the consensus. like a meditation session, and it to implement the idea of 2,500 Hindus from 60 countries to tackle them without harming For example, Lord Krishna and should be politics. working collectively, “Think had a resounding start on them,” Bhagwat said.

“To work together, we have Yudhishtra never contradicted See WHC, Page 6 Friday, Sept. 7, at the Westin “Our universal values now Lombard York Town Center in called Hindu values lead to Chicago. the welfare of the individual, With luminaries from the society, the nature and the spiritual, educational, business, environment. It is the duty of and political walks of life Hindus to remind the world, among the invited speakers, the universal values from time the message of Hindus coming to time.

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PAGE 2 • INDIA HERALD • WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 12, 2018

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INDIA HERALD • WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 12, 2018 • PAGE 3

NEWS Preservation of India’s heritage is nationalism, says Vice-president Naidu India’s Vice President Venkaiah Naidu renewed Swami Vivekananda’s message to the World Parliament of Religions in 1893 and appealed to the second World Hindu Congress delegates to follow the ideals of the great saint of India.

Naidu was delivering the keynote address at the concluding session of the congress, on the eve of the 125th anniversary of the Hindu monk’s exposition of Hinduism to the western world in Chicago on Sunday.

Swami Vivekananda was the embodiment of Hindu culture.

“Let us rededicate ourselves to the thoughts (of Vivekananda) for the greatness of mankind,” Naidu said.

Naidu peppered his speech with generous Sanskrit and Telugu quotes. He told the gathering though he was not in politics anymore, he was glad to come to Chicago and felt it was his duty to attend the great event happening in the name of Swami Vivekananda.

“I have retired from politics, but not tired from public life,” he quipped.

Naidu extensively referred to Swami Vivekananda’s epoch-making address, which described Hindu philosophy as “discovering of spiritual well springs” that have sustained the world for many centuries.

The philosophy of tolerance and acceptance of all religions,

was an essential part of the timeless, eternal, holistic, integrated and universal world view of Hinduism.

Naidu reiterated that “Hinduism is a way of life and share and care is the core of Hindu philosophy.”

Naidu elaborated on some of the essential elements of Hinduism namely the breadth of its vision in treating the world as one family, tolerance and acceptance of plurality, unity in diversity, and that truth is one though wise men describe it in different ways.

Naidu specially highlighted the place of women in Hindu society and discredited the view that women’s role is at home. All rivers in India have been named after women and the country itself is called motherland, he said.

The way women are treated is a thermometer to gauge that nation, Naidu said. As vicepresident, he had visited 56 universities and attended 32 convocations. He has been presenting awards to graduates earning gold medals. “Over 65 percent of the gold medalists are women,” he said to a resounding applause from the audience.

Naidu subtly alluded to the term “congress” and congress meant a platform (not a reference to India’s Congress Party) to present ideas.

Mahatma Gandhi had said “disband the Congress; back to the villages,” Naidu said. He did not want to deal with the political part, but added that “Rama rajya is not complete without grama rajya,” meaning rejuvenation and celebration of rural India, with an emphasis on agriculture and farming. That is a necessary tool to bridge the urban-rural divide, he said.

One should not condemn or appease other religions for the sake of votes, Naidu noted.

Compassion, service, charity, gender equality, protection of the environment and such noble aspects are key ingredients of Hindu philosophy and they are more relevant today than ever before, Naidu said.

The theme of the World Hindu Congress, “Think collectively, Achieve Valiantly,” was an apt motto, Naidu said.

True nationalism is in the preservation of India’s invaluable heritage, though some may consider the term Hindu as undesirable or untouchable.

In this context, Naidu said “We should guard against aberrations in Hinduism.”

“To serve fellow countrymen is patriotism,” according to Naidu.

“Kanyakumari to Kashmir, India is one nation, irrespective of religion or regions,” Baidu said.

India’s Vice President Venkaiah Naidu, right, receives an idol of Swami Vivekananda as a memento from Swami Vigyananand, joint general secretary of Vishwa Hindu Parishad. At left, Bharat Barai, committee member.

Naidu brought the Hindu mother tongue, while learning tradition of respecting one’s as many other languages as mother to the forefront and possible, Naidu said.

The organizers announced added that we should respect our motherland. Then, the guru that the third World Hindu Conference will be held in Bangor teachers deserved respect.

“Google can never replace a kok, Thailand, from Nov. 4 to guru,” he said in a lighter vein. 6, 2022. The conference theme Mother tongue is part of will be “Victory of dharma, not one’s culture and everyone adharma.”

—SESHADRI KUMAR should preserve their respective

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PAGE 4 • INDIA HERALD • WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 12, 2018

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INDIA HERALD • WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 12, 2018 • PAGE 5

COMMUNITY Convert Hindus to Hinduism, says spiritual head of Chinmaya Mission

By SESHADRI KUMAR Delegates to the World Hindu Congress being held in Chicago received a special sweet box in their welcome packet containing two sweet ladoos, one hard and one soft.

That box was symbolic and became a talking point to clarify the common perception that Hindu society is not united.

A panel discussion on “Collective efforts for Hindu emergence,” opened with this backdrop provided by Dr. Guna Magesan, coordinator of Hindu Organizations, Temples, and Associations. The sweet box was the brain child of Swami Vigyananand, who first wanted to give it to the delegates during the first WHC in 2014, but it only materialized now.

Hindus were compared to watermelons, which has many stripes but, the inner core is one and the same. Contrast this to a pomegranate which looks smooth outside, but its core can easily disintegrate.

The soft ladoo represents the status of Hindus today and they may be easily broken and swallowed. The future vision for Hindu society should be like a hard ladoo and strongly bonded.

Swami Poornatmananda of Bharat Seva Ashram said all Hindus should unite to achieve resurgence. Hindu religious teaching are for humanity. As such, schools and colleges in India should be opened to impart Hindu teachings.

Chinmaya Mission Spiritual Head Swami Swaroopananda said one need not merely state “I am a proud Hindu. We are proud Hindus.”

On the resurgence of Hinduism, he said “everything begins at home.” When family breaks down, culture breaks down and life of disharmony follows, Swami Swaroopananda said.

“We have to convert Hindus to Hinduism.”

“The spirit of unity does not mean all should be the same.

In the midst of diversity, we must have a common goal of dedication.”

We have to reform the education system that inculcates Indian culture and religion. We have to re-discover the way the rishis taught the disciples in the ancient gurukul system.

Swami Paramatmananda, secretary general of Hindu Dharma Acharya Sabha, said Hindus should think collectively not only for its resurgence, but for the resurgence of the whole world.

Especially, the ecological problems of the world need to be solved, he said.

Further, society has a “relationship problem,” where one person is unable to relate to the life of another person.

God did not create the world for man’s consumption. The responsibility lies on Hindus to protect the ecology, he said.

Satguru Dalip Singh of Namdari Panth told the Congress that Hindus and Sikhs can never be separated. The Guru Granth Saheb says that Sikhs should remain Hindus.

Satguru Dalip Singh urged Hindus to stop using English to describe India and call it Bharath and Hindus who know Hindi should always speak in Hindi. He also decried those who habitually blamed their motherland. Instead, one should find what is good in India and espouse it.

Satguru Dalip Singh also visualized a Bharatiya organization encompassing Hindus, Jains, Sikhs and Buddhists.

Madhu Pandit Dasa, chairperson of Akshaya Patra Foundation, ISKCON, Bangalore, said the different denominations of Hinduism are a strength and not a weakness. There are common grounding principles in these denominations.

Madhu Pandit Dasa drew attention to the declining birth rate among Hindus in India as an aftermath of the one-child family planning program promoted by the Indian govern-

ment. Other faiths don’t buy into this program and their population is not declining, he said.

“Take pride in having more children,” Madhu Pandit Dasa concluded.

Earlier, ahead of the panel discussion, Congressman Raja Krishnamurthi (D-IL) address the World Hindu Congress.

Krishnamoorthi, said “Some of my friends and constituents were very concerned about my presence here today…I decided I had to be here because I wanted to reaffirm the highest and only form of Hinduism that I’ve ever known and been taught…namely one that welcomes all people, embraces all people, accepts all people regardless of their faith including all my constituents.”

“In short, I reaffirm the teachings of Swami Vivekananda…It is because of his legacy of equality and pluralism that I stand before you as a Hindu, as an American and a United States Congressman.”

He also spoke about the division and despair in the world and called for the need to em-

Swami Swaroopananda, Head, Chinmaya Mission Worldwide, receives an award from RSS Chief Mohan Bhagwat for the mission’s outstanding contribution to the Hindu cause in spreading the message of Bhagavad Gita. Vice President of Suriname Ashwin Adin is at center. brace ahimsa – the concept of non-violence so that there is no place for prejudice, violence or hate, not anywhere in

the world. We must teach our children tolerance and love, diversity and inclusion which Hinduism embodies, he said.

INDIA HERALD • WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 12, 2018 • PAGE 6

COMMUNITY tainted with hate. I have chosen to disregard those petitions WHC as originating from a lack of From Page 1 Collectively, Act Valiantly.”

The congress recognized four organizations for their outstanding contributions to spreading Hindu philosophy.

The Bochasanwasi Aksharpurshottam Swaminrayan Sanstha (BAPS) was honored for its extreme visual idealism around the world as it built architecturally beautiful mandirs. Chinmaya Mission for explaining the essence of the Gita, Geeta Press, Gorakhpur for making sacred Hindu literature easily accessible, and the International Society for Krishna Consciousness for spreading the message of Gita were also honored.

SP Kothari, chair of WHC, said he and many speakers attending the conference received calls and petitions from organizations and individuals to withdraw from the Congress on the ground WHC or some of its organizers are “socially and religiously divisive.” “I categorically reject this supposition,” Kothari said.

“I urge them to listen to my talk and reflect on whether it is

complete understanding of the World Hindu Congress.”

The three goals of WHC are “enlighten, reform and advance.”

WHC brings enlightenment throughout the world about the Hindu community through spirituality, harmony and inclusiveness, he said.

Vice-president of Republic of Suriname Ashwin Adhin in his address said “We, as Hindus, never forsake our mission.

Hindus have always been the missionaries of renunciation and service.”

Words like peace, harmony and spirituality do not appeal to ordinary people easily and they have to be framed in right perspective terms so that they get established in people’s mind, Adhin said.

“Much change is needed and we need action,” Adhin said and recalled Swami Vivekananda’s stirring call, “Arise, awake and stop not till the goal is reached.”

Addressing the “confluence of Hindu leadership who have come to connect, share ideas, inspire one another and impact the common good” WHC

coordinator Dr. Abhaya Asthana stated that “we have gathered to reaffirm the same message of diversity, cooperation and universal acceptance” uttered

by Swami Vivekananda 125 years ago.

WHC, he stated is not an event, it is a community movement.

It seeks to encourage Hindus around the world to ascend to the highest levels of excellence.

This Congress, he stated, was important so we “may graduate from individual success to collective success.”

This land mark event, he said, will help Hindus around the globe to introspect and deliberate the challenges and issues facing Hindus globally and to seek tangible solutions for the progress and prosperity of Hindus.

Stating that it was a big achievement for a poor Kashmiri Hindu boy to be speaking at the event, award winning actor Anupam Kher saluted “our country India…a place that has been home to all cultures, religions and faiths.

Hinduism is a way of life, he added, and one becomes a Hindu by living like one.

Tolerance was the centerpiece

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Houstonians Swapan Dhairyawan, left, Deputy Consul-General Surendra Adhana, Nisha Mirani, Col. Raj Bhalla (Retd.), Ajit Patel and Charlie Patel at the WHC. Col. Bhalla said. “Being a Sikh, 87 years old, I always had a belief that Sikhs are part of Hindus. The World Hindu Congress further enlightened me and strengthened my conviction. May I share my earnest desire: In India, Sanskrit should be taught to our children at a very young age so that they learn about Vedic, Spiritual and Scientific knowledge that Hindus gave to the world 5000 years ago - a rightful matter of pride. The Congress demonstrated the true spirit of volunteerism.” of Vivekananda’s message.

He stated that despite being refugees in their own country, Kashmiri Pandits have practiced tolerance for 28 years like nobody ever has “My roots are steeped in Hinduism. I refuse to be defined by other people’s fears.

My Hindu teachings and life’s experiences have taught me that there is time for peace and there is time for war. I use war as a metaphor; platforms like this from which I can speak to the world, remind me of my karmic duty. I draw inspiration from Swami Vivekananda to shine a light on all of us gathered here and beyond. As a Hindu, it pains me deeply to see how ignorance and half knowledge are trying to destroy one of the oldest, world’s most peaceful religion.”

Vice Chair Raju Reddy described the congress as an extraordinary opportunity to shape the dialogue about Hindus going forward and change the perceptions of Hindus as very positive change makers wherever they may be

in the world.

Conference host Dr. Shamkant Sheth spoke of the two years of hard work that went into bringing together the WHC and of the opportunity to connect, inspire and learn to strengthen the global Hindu community in these productive 3 days of discussion.

Vice Chair Raju Reddy described the congress as an extraordinary opportunity to shape the dialogue about Hindus going forward and change the perceptions of Hindus as very positive change makers wherever they may be in the world.

Conference host Dr. Shamkant Sheth spoke of the two years of hard work that went into bringing together the WHC and of the opportunity to connect, inspire and learn to strengthen the global Hindu community in these productive 3 days of discussion.

Houstonian Dr. Sangeetha Rangala, now in Chicago, impressed the audience as a pleasant emcee at the inaugural session.

INDIA HERALD • WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 12, 2018 • PAGE 7

COMMUNITY

Permanent secretariat proposed for Hindus worldwide

By MANU SHAH Hindus worldwide should become more visible as positive change makers in their respective countries they call home, wherever they may be today, is the main consensus emerging from World Hindu Congress 2018, Dr. Abhaya Asthana, convener of the conference said at the concluding session in Sunday.

The Hindu Political Conference, a subset of the World Hindu Congress 2018, held in Chicago from Sept. 7 to 9, has suggested the need for a permanent secretariat in the US or UK for the cause of Hindu rights around the globe. To accomplish this task, a group of eminent persons will be recruited.

The political conference highlighted the importance of asserting a strong political voice especially in countries like the Caribbean, Fiji and the African countries, and developing young political leaders.

A dynamic digital database of all political leaders by country is to be developed.

The congress hosted ďŹ ve other parallel sessions, on youth, media, economy, women, education, and Hindu organizations.

To create awareness about atrocities committed against Hindus around the world, Hindu youth should leverage their social media skills, speak out against biased portrayals of Hindus, educate emerging politicians on the eective use of media and identifying the key roadblock to Hindu youth in embracing their Hindu identity proudly were key points.

The conference has decided to establish at least 20 internships for youth who aspire to enter politics.

Freeing temples from the control of the government and an operational mechanism to reach out to unreached areas as well as how Hindu activism in the US can be replicated elsewhere were the outcomes of the Hindu organizational conference.

The media conference called for activist media entrepreneurs who are not proďŹ t driven and making writing contemporary and relevant to the present generation and make it “coolâ€?

Finding new ways to open trade, further regulatory reforms in India, skill development, building ecosystems providing capital to startups and mentoring programs for young entrepreneurs were the recom-

mendations of the economic conference.

Entrepreneur and Grammy nominated artist Chandrika Tandon shared her insights at the women’s conference.

A short term goal was to conduct value based workshops, seminars and symposiums for young girls. Long term goals were an Angel Investor group for women entrepreneurs and a global Hindu Women Business directory.

A strategy for developing scholarship in religious studies and a strong international network of Hindu scholars were the outcomes of the Education conference.

Fifty six posters on inspirational stories and community service projects were on display.

The poster on Sewa International’s “Toilet and hygiene project for the Girl Child,� “Pakistani-Hindu - A genocide forgotten,� and a poster by Gurukula.com were chosen as three best posters.

Mohandas Pai, Sonal Mansingh, and Nagaswamy shared the dais for the third plenary session on Hindu Society: Glory of the Past, Pain of Present and Dream for Future. Prof.

Subhash Kak moderated the session. “We have a lot to be proud of,â€? said Subhash Kak and highlighted the many inventions and scientiďŹ c theories of today that have already been written about in ancient literary works such as the signiďŹ cance of the number 108. The true father of computer science should be Panini for his 4000 rules of Sanskrit language, he said, and the inventor of quantum mechanics is said to have said that the concept came to him from the Upanishads.

Renowned classical dancer Sonal Mansingh spoke about “Kala, Sanskriti and Vidya� and how one is always seeking eternal life in this ephemeral life.

This can be achieved by Nritya, which not just dance. Every breath you take is a dance, the blood owing in your veins is a dance, the heart beat is taal.

Even the word Bharath has music in it – as Bha means love, Ra means raga and ta means taal.

India’s economy is $2.6 trillion said Mohandas Pai chairperson of Board of Manipal Global, and is the third largest economy in the world, following China and the US. India will become a $10 trillion economy by 2030. Ev-

A panoramic view of the audience at the evening plenary session on the first day of the congress. from 60 countries including eryone should have the basic 3,500 years ago, he said.

Manu Dharma describes from countries like Peru and necessities of life like food, shelter, electricity, water and how a child should be raised, Gautemala.

It is noteworthy that there healthcare. These problems how a king should rule, crime will be solved by 2030. We and punishment, among other are more than 100 Hindu memneed to invest in education, things. These “laws� or Manu bers of parliament in 20 counfund political parties through Dharma should be established tries. Prominent among thme checks and demand honesty by great, learned people, who was the young vice president must be honest and have no ha- of Suriname. from our politicians, he said.

Among the delegates was R. Nagaswamy, historian tred, enmity or greed, he said. and archeologist from Tamil These laws inscribed on cop- Gautam S. Bhattacharya from Nadu, spoke about Manu Dhar- per plates have been found in Sweden. He is the deputy head ma which is derived from the ancient kingdoms across the of mission at the Embassay of Sweden in New Delhi.

Vedas. This was the ďŹ rst consti- Indian subcontinent.

The WHC drew delegates tution and law code established

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PAGE 8 • INDIA HERALD • WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 12, 2018

INDIA HERALD • WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 12, 2018 • PAGE 9

COMMENTARY

Left’s much ado about what is wrong with the Right

By SESHADRI KUMAR The howling of two girls for a couple of minutes during the three-day session of the World Hindu Congress literally drowned in a sea of delegates from around the world and ended as a damp squib, but the protestors sought to elevate the skirmish to the top news of the day with an obliging media.

As a panel discussion was in progress, couple of girls, each from both sides of the grand hall suddenly jumped up, tried to unfurl a banner and shouted slogans.

The surrounding delegates instantly held the girls down. The visibly upset delegates surrounded the girls shouting counter slogans even as other volunteers pacified the angry delegates, to prevent any assault. In a couple of minutes, the police arrived and escorted the girls.

As the girls were being handcuffed one of the delegates spat on their face and police arrested that person as well.

The protestors, under the banner of Chicago South Asians for Justice, were ready to try any and all means to enter the venue, which was heavily secured and unauthorized entry was virtually impossible. But, these girls managed to sneak in as media persons. The organizers next morning issued new media badges to the media attending the congress.

The arrested people were released after a brief detention the same evening.

For about two hours the protestors sat silently and heard the speakers, but there was little to justify their characterization of the meeting organizers as fascists and Hindu extremists engaging in violence and genocide.

The literature they threw around the venue says, “With nationalist and fascist movements on the rise around the world, the WHC represents just one component of an interconnected global right. The response to the ascendant and oppressive powers must include an organized global left.

The concurrent rise of white nationalism in the United States and Hindu nationalism in India are not coincidental, but rather co-conspirators in the rise of global fascism.”

It looked as if the protest was for the sake of protest as a global leftist ritual and the girls themselves suggested in a statement that their protests in Trump rallies were not as violent and intimidating.

Ramesh Bhutada, National vice-president of Hindu Swayamsevak Sangh, felt pity for the girls and said how much hate they must be having in their hearts that they should venture into this type of behavior. He wished at least after listening to the proceedings they realized that they were misguided and misinformed.

The leftist groups were persuading elected officials, mainly Democrats from attending the congress.

Congresswoman Tulsi Gab-

bard succumbed to pressure, and threw the organizers under the bus.

A politician herself, and a self-proclaimed first Hindu Congresswoman who willingly accepted political contributions from Hindus who are among the organizers of the World Hindu Congress, she turned her back

ostensibly because of “partisan politicians” attending the conference. She had withdrawn from the WHC long ago, but issued a damaging statement on the eve of the Congress. Her Hindu supporters feel deeply hurt.

Chicago Congressman Raja Krishnamoorthi withstood the pressure and made an appear-

ance, but he continues to face criticism from the left.

Lt. Governor of Illinois Evelyn Sanguinetti welcomed the gathering on the opening day of the Congress. On the concluding day, area Congressman Bill Foster, a Democrat, addressed the gathering. Illinois Governor Bruce Rauner sent a proclama-

tion honoring the WHC. As WHC chair SP Kothari a professor from the MIT, who was himself being asked to resign from the WHC, rejected the charges that the organization was socially and religiously divisive .

He attributed the protests to their complete lack of understanding of the true nature of the WHC.

PAGE 10 • INDIA HERALD • WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 12, 2018

NEWS Harvard illegally discriminated against Asian-Americans Harvard University’s admissions policy has illegally discriminated Asian-American applicants, the United States Department of Justice stated last week.

In a statement issued, the Justice Department said Harvard’s admission process “significantly disadvantages” Asian-American students compared to other racial groups.

“No American should be denied admission to school because of their race,” Attorney General Jeff Sessions said in a statement.

“As a recipient of taxpayer dollars, Harvard has a responsibility to conduct its admissions policy without racial discrimination by using meaningful admissions criteria that meet lawful requirements.”

A group, Students for Fair Admissions, filed a lawsuit in 2014 claiming that Harvard uses “racial balancing” as part of its admissions formula and that the practice is illegal. Harvard has challenged those claims, saying the group is misinterpreting data it released about how it selects students.

Students for Fair Admission said in a June court filing, AsianAmericans would account for more than 43 percent of the students admitted to Harvard, rather than the 18.7 percent.

In its court filings, Harvard accuses the group of painting “a

dangerously inaccurate” picture of its admissions process, saying it also considers personal essays and teacher recommendations.

“Harvard College does not discriminate against applications from any group in its admissions process,” the universitysaid in a statement, vowing to “vigorously defend the right of Harvard and other universities to seek the education benefits that come from a class that is diverse on multiple dimensions.”

Justice Department lawyers said the group has presented “compelling evidence” that Harvard’s factoring of race into admitting students does discriminate against Asian-Americans.

Furthermore, they argue that Harvard agrees not to discriminate on the basis of race as a condition of receiving millions of dollars in annual taxpayer funding.

The Justice Department said the government has a vested interested in the case because Harvard receives millions of dollars in taxpayer funding on the condition it won’t discriminate based on ethnicity.

Harvard uses a “personal rating” that includes subjective factors including “likability” and whether someone is a “good person” with “human qualities,” according to court documents.

The school has admitted that, on average, it has ranked AsianAmerican applications lower

on these qualities, the Justice Department charges in its court filing.

The Justice Department lawyers said Harvard has not provided any meaningful criteria to explain how it weighs race against the other factors in a application, a requirement under Supreme Court of the United States precedent.

In June, both sides filed motions for summary judgment, seeking to head off a potential trial scheduled for October in a Massachusetts federal court.

The Justice Department’s motion asks the court to deny Harvard’s motion for summary judgement.

The American Civil Liberties Union said it will be filing a brief in support of Harvard, accusing the Justice Department of seeking to dismantle “progress in racial equity.”

“While the DOJ’s brief does not challenge Supreme Court precedent granting universities the right to freely select their own student body … the Trump administration has advocated for ‘race blind’ policies, which Harvard and virtually all other universities have found are demonstrably insufficient to achieve meaningful diversity, given the reality of historic and continuing racial discrimination in this country,” the ACLU said in a statement.

(More on Page 12)

Aishwarya Rai Bachchan gets Meryl Streep Award Actress Aishwarya Rai Bachchan was honored with the inaugural Meryl Streep Award for Excellence at the first Women in Film and Television (WIFT) India Awards.

The Miss World 1994, received the award on Saturday at the Hyatt Regency in Washington, DC along with her daughter, Aaradhya and her mother Vrinda Rai. The 44-year-old actress documented different facets from the ceremony on her Instagram account, from pictures of her collecting the award with Aaradhya, to sharing some loved-up BTS moments. For the special day Aishwarya opted for a dreamy embellished black outfit and she looked absolutely stunning, Aaradhya on the other hand looked cute as a button in a pink gown.

WIFT India said that Aishwarya was chosen to receive the award for showcasing a ‘distinction in her craft and for expanding the role of women within the entertainment industry.’

Apart from Aishwarya, filmmaker Zoya Akhtar also received the Wyler Award for Excellence in Direction, and “Dhadak” star Janhvi Kapoor will receive the WIFT Emerald Award. “The Wyler Award is so surreal for me as I grew up in Bombay (Mumbai), got a video player in the eighties and one of the first films I ever saw on it was BenHur,” Akhtar said. Aishwarya thanked her fans in a post and wrote: “A heartfelt thank you to all my well-wishers from India and all around the world, for being my Inspiration and strength. God bless and all my love too.” WIFT has been established to honor the best female talent in Bollywood and Hollywood.

Hari Venkatachalam Hindu Students Association, Board of Directors

Succeed In Your Business

PRESS RELEASE

rid of staffi ngAssociaproblems and spend more April 6, 2017Get – AUSTIN, TX –your The Hindu Students tion (HSA) would like to regretfully announce that Numbers it will be Good = Good Decisions cancelling its annual Gateway Retreat for the 2017 year. HSA prides itself in building a strong network of young Hindu Americans, and it looks forward to organizing other events in the future that will link students from its various branches.

HSA has been reorienting itself in recent months to doing more grassroots work. “We have been focusing more on accomplishing work on the local and branch level,” said Mrinalini Vijalapuram, National President of the Hindu Students Association. “We have been doing this through many different activities including interfaith events with other religious organizations, building community partnerships, and expanding into other campuses that don’t already have HSA branches.”

While the cancellation of Gateway may come as a disappointment for many prospective attendees, HSA hopes to get feedback from students on other projects and events that interest its branch members. Currently, several projects, including developing HSA’s podcast series and releasing monthly articles that highlight the accomplishments of members from the various campuses have been the focus of the organization’s efforts. HSA welcomes student and community members to get involved in these activities to help further the goals of the organization. “It is important that we meet the needs of the campuses and communities we serve,” reiterated Ms. Vijalapuram. “We want to make sure that we are putting our attention on projects that will truly benefit them.”

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INDIA HERALD • WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 12, 2018 • PAGE 11

NEWS

India’s Supreme Court strikes down criminality of gay sex NEW DELHI — India’s Supreme Court on Thursday unanimously struck down one of the world’s oldest bans on consensual gay sex, a groundbreaking victory for gay rights that buried one of the most glaring vestiges of India’s colonial past.

After weeks of deliberation by the court and decades of struggle by gay Indians, Chief Justice Dipak Misra said the law was “irrational, indefensible and manifestly arbitrary.”

News of the decision instantly shot around India. On the steps of an iconic courthouse in Bangalore, people danced, kissed and hugged tightly, eyes closed. In Mumbai, India’s pulsating commercial capital, human rights activists showered themselves in a blizzard of confetti.

The justices eagerly went further than simply decriminalizing gay sex. From now on, they ruled, gay Indians are to be accorded all the protections of the Constitution.

“This ruling is hugely significant,” said Meenakshi Ganguly, the South Asia director for Human Rights Watch. With restrictions on gay rights toppling in country after country, the ruling in India, the world’s second-most-populous nation, may encourage still more nations to act, she said.

Still, however historic the ruling of the court, considered a liberal counterweight to the conservative politics sweeping India, gay people here know that their landscape remains treacherous. Changing a law is one thing — changing deeply held mind-sets another. And few suggested that other major victories, like same-sex marriage, were on the near horizon.

Many Indians are extremely socially conservative, going to great lengths to arrange marriages with the right families, of the right castes. Loved ones who try to rebel are often ostracized. Countless gays have been shunned by their parents and persecuted by society.

Much of this may also be true in other parts of the world.

But what made India stand out from most — at least until Thursday — was its application of an anachronistic law drawn up by British colonizers during the Victorian era and kept on the books for 150 years.

The law banned sex considered “against the order of nature,” and thousands of people were prosecuted under it. But for gays in India, prison was only one of the risks. The law was often used as a cudgel to intimidate, blackmail and abuse.

Just to file the legal challenge that led to Thursday’s ruling was an act of bravery.

The more than two dozen petitioners, who included gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender

people, could have been rounded up and arrested simply for identifying themselves as gay and coming forward.

A pride march last year in New Delhi. Acceptance of gay, lesbian and transgender people has grown in India, but the law known as Section 377 discouraged countless people from coming out.CreditRebecca Conway for The New York Times On Thursday, conservative Christians, Muslims and Hindus, who often find themselves at odds with one another, blasted the ruling as shameful and vowed to fight it.

“We are giving credibility and legitimacy to mentally sick people,” said Swami Chakrapani, president of All India Hindu Mahasabha, a conservative group.

Gay activists said they needed to move carefully. The next step, they said, will be to push for more equality in the workplace. Gay marriage, they said, is still a long way off.

In their ruling, the justices said homosexuality was “natural.” They also said that the Indian Constitution was not a “collection of mere dead letters,” and that it should evolve with time.

The court did not rule that the law being challenged, known as Section 377, should be excised altogether. It can still be used, it said, in cases of bestiality, for instance. But it can no longer be applied to consensual gay sex.

The justices seemed moved by the stories they heard from the petitioners about harassment, blackmail, abuse and persecution.

“History owes an apology to members of the community for the delay in ensuring their rights,” Justice Indu Malhotra said.

Menaka Guruswamy, one of the lead lawyers representing gay petitioners, said that the court’s extension of nondiscrimination principles to gay people had laid a “very powerful foundation.”

“This decision,” she said, is basically saying: ‘You are not alone. The court stands with you. The Constitution stands with you. And therefore your country stands with you.’”

As the justices spoke, the crowd in the courtroom tried to remain composed. Outside, a cheer went up and people hugged.

Menaka Guruswamy, a lawyer for the petitioners, urged the Supreme Court to consider the effect that ending the law would have on gay people in their 20s. “Tell my young clients that their lives will be different,” she said.CreditVivek Singh for The New York Times India has a complicated record on gay issues. Its dominant religion, Hinduism, is actually

quite permissive of same-sex love. Centuries-old Hindu temples depict erotic encounters between members of the same sex, and in some Hindu myths, men become pregnant. In others, transgender people are given special status and praised for being loyal.

But that culture of tolerance changed drastically under British rule. India was intensely colonized during the height of the Victorian era, when the British Empire was at its peak and the social mores in England were austere.

In the 1860s, the British introduced Section 377 of the Indian Penal Code, imposing up to a life sentence on “whoever voluntarily has carnal intercourse against the order of nature.” The law was usually enforced in cases of sex between men, but it officially extended to anybody caught having anal or oral sex.

Though in recent years more gay Indians have come out, and acceptance of gay, lesbian and transgender people has grown to some degree, the fact that intimate behavior was still criminalized created much shame.

In hearings in July, lawyers argued that the law was out of sync with the times and legally inconsistent with other recent court rulings, including one made last year that guaranteed the constitutional right to privacy.

They pointed to similar hoary laws that had been toppled in the United States, Canada, England and Nepal, India’s smaller and poorer neighbor.

And they went beyond classic legal arguments.

Ms. Guruswamy spoke of the decades-long relationship between two older petitioners, Navtej Singh Johar and Sunil Mehra, and the sacrifices they had made in their personal and professional lives to keep their partnership secret.

Ms. Guruswamy encouraged the judges to think of all the

young gay people who did not want to follow that same road and spend their lives hiding who they really were.

“Tell my young clients that their lives will be different,” she pleaded. “The recognition of equal citizenship, that is the business of life, so that they know they are loved, protected.”

Interestingly, India’s leading politicians, who usually never resist an opportunity to weigh in on a hot issue, have mostly stayed out of the debate.

Ritu Dalmia, a celebrity chef, was one of the initial group of petitioners who challenged the law. Dozens more joined them as the hearings approached.

CreditVivek Singh for The New York Times Prime Minister Narendra Modi has said very little about gay rights, despite the conservative stance of his governing Bharatiya Janata Party on many social issues. The central government announced in July that it was not going to take a position on Section 377.

It was some of India’s Christian groups that put up the most aggressive defense of the law.

Lawyers for these groups argued that sexual orientation was not innate and that decriminalizing gay sex would lead to the transmission of H.I.V. Prosecution under the law was relatively rare. In 2014, 1,148 complaints were filed. In 2016, the number nearly doubled, to 2,187. That year, over 1,600 cases were sent for trial.

Many gays feared that if they reported crimes like rape, they would be the ones arrested.

Some gay people shared stories about being raped by police officers and then threatened with jail time if they ever came forward.

For several years, Section 377 was in the cross hairs, with the courts going back and forth.

In 2009, a court in New Delhi ruled that the law could not be applied to consensual sex.

But Hindu, Muslim and Christian groups filed appeals in the Supreme Court, and in 2013, the court restored the law, saying that Parliament, and not the courts, should take up the issue. In its decision that year, the Supreme Court said only a “minuscule fraction of the country’s population constitute lesbians, gays, bisexuals or transgenders.”

But gay activists did not give up. They regrouped and began looking for people willing to serve as petitioners and endure the personal scrutiny the case would bring. In 2016, five gay and lesbian Indians submitted a writ petition challenging Section 377 on the basis that it violated their rights to equality and liberty.

The initial group of petitioners in the latest challenge included Mr. Johar, a dancer, and his partner, Mr. Mehra, a journalist; Ritu Dalmia, a celebrity chef; Ayesha Kapur, a businesswoman; and Aman Nath, a hotelier.

As the Supreme Court prepared to hear the case, more than 25 other Indians with varied social and economic backgrounds joined them.

Among those to file a petition was Anurag Kalia, 25, an engineer living in Bangalore, who was once so afraid to say the word “gay” that he practiced doing so in front of the mirror.

“I used to whisper it,” he said.

As the court prepared to announce its verdict on Thursday, Mr. Kalia checked his phone “like crazy,” he said. After the ruling, he stepped out of his office for a few quiet moments, feeling ready to celebrate, a bit numb, unsure of what the future held, but also feeling “relief, relief.”

“It feels like there’s much more to come,” he said. “This is just the first strike.”

—The New York Times

PAGE 12 • INDIA HERALD • WEDNESDAY,SEPTEMBER 12, 2018

NEWS Vanita Gupta questions DOJ’s stand in lawsuit against Harvard A coalition of civil rights and Asian-American advocacy organizations, led by the former head of the Department of Justice’s Office of Civil Rights, Vanita Gupta, have slammed the amicus brief filed by the department in support of the lawsuit filed by AsianAmerican students and parents against Harvard’s race-conscious admissions policy.

Harvard is being sued by a group calling itself Students for Fair Admissions which is working to have the school dismantle its race-conscious admissions policy, which it said discriminates against Asian-American students.

The Justice Department on Aug. 30 in its amicus brief, said that Harvard has “failed to demonstrate that it does not discriminate on the basis of race,” siding with the AsianAmerican students, including some Indian-Americans suing the Ivy League school’s racebased admissions policy as discriminatory. The brief said, “Harvard is engaging in outright racial balancing.”

Last year, the DOJ opened a Title VI investigation into Harvard’s admissions process, based upon a complaint filed by several Asian-American organizations that also included some Indian-American organizations, arguing that admissions should be based strictly on merit.

Some reports have suggested that if Harvard and other institutions that have a raceconscious admissions policy eliminate these policies, the Asian-American student population would rise to as much as 40 percent for a population of approximately 6 percent in the U.S. while the African-American and Hispanic-American students admitted could drop drastically with the African American students admissions being reduced to less than 2 percent.

“Despite a lot of these programs, blacks and Hispanics are underrepresented in colleges and universities today even more so than they were in 1980,” Gupta said.

The Supreme Court has upheld use of race as a factor in college admissions as recently as 2016.

“The Justice Department’s investigation is unprecedented,” Vanita Gupta, who had led the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division under President Obama, had said in 2017.

She is now president and CEO of The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights.

“The Justice Department has never been a party in these cases directly investigating an institution.”

Gupta has filed an amicus brief opposing Harvard’s motion for summary judgment in the case. Gupta’s filing argues that the Justice Department, under Jeff Sessions, “opposes constitutionally sound strategies that colleges and universities are using to expand educational opportunity for students of all backgrounds.”

The Justice Department recently filed a statement of interest in the lawsuit which has called Harvard’s affirmative action policy discriminatory against Asian-Americans.

Gupta called justice officials’ action one more example of “the administration’s contempt for efforts to build a more inclusive, just society. It is now backing Edward Blum’s longstanding political agenda to undermine diversity in education and opportunity for millions of young people.”

Blum, a financial adviser considered the leading force behind Students for Fair Admissions, had filed the lawsuit charging Harvard with discrimination against AsianAmericans in its admissions practices. Gupta said that Sessions’ recent action shows his department “has once again abdicated its responsibility to enforce the law and protect the civil rights of all people in America.”

Sessions’ office, however, stands by its filing. “The Department of Justice has the responsibility to protect the civil rights of the American people.

This case is significant because the admissions policies at our

colleges and universities are important and must be conducted lawfully,” Sessions said in a press release. The DOJ press release said that “Harvard admits that it uses race to decide whether to admit certain applicants to the college. Under Supreme Court precedent, Harvard must demonstrate that its use of race does not result in illegal discrimination.” The department said that Harvard has failed to do so and plaintiffs should be allowed to proceed to a trial.

“No American should be denied admission to school because of their race,” said Sessions. “As a recipient of taxpayer dollars, Harvard has a responsibility to conduct its admissions policy without racial discrimination by using meaningful admissions criteria that meet lawful requirements.”

“The Justice Department

clearly seems to be trying to tee up another case for the Supreme Court. It looks like right now that they are looking for a sympathetic, attractive group of plaintiffs — here it’s AsianAmericans students who’ve been denied admission at Harvard — and to try to drive a wedge among communities of color by kind of pitting AsianAmericans against AfricanAmerican and Hispanic students,” Gupta had said.

National Council of Asian Pacific Americans (NCAPA) agreed with Gupta. Asian American Legal Defense and Education Fund, which also represents over two dozen Asian-American groups, joined by some senior education faculty at leading universities, for its part, filed an amicus brief in support of Harvard’s race-conscious admissions policy.

RBI intervenes as rupee breaches 72.5 to dollar Currency among worst performers in emerging markets ; widening current account deficit weighs, more rate hikes may be on the cards The rupee breached 72.5 a dollar on Monday and touched all-time low of 72.67 intraday as the current account deficit widened to five- year high in the first quarter of the current financial year, to $15.8 billion or 2.4%, of the GDP. Following media reports quoting unnamed Finance Ministry officials that steps would be taken to arrest the fall in the currency, including deposit schemes for non-resident Indians along with central bank intervention, the rupee strengthened to 72.18 but again lost steam during the end of the trading session.

“First time there was some verbal intervention by government that measures shall be taken to rein in rupee weakness,” said Sajal Gupta, head, forex and rates, Edelweiss Securities.

“And some dollars sold by RBI helped rupee recover from 72.67 to 72.18 and it closed at 72.44. But still, rupee looks slippery again unless some

policy measures or strong intervention [is taken]. It’s now slated to head toward 73.50 levels,” Mr. Gupta said.

Currency dealers said the central bank is not intervening aggressively as before. In June, the RBI had sold more than $6 billion in the spot market. The data for July and August are yet to be released by the central bank.

The rupee lost as much as 1.3% intraday before cutting some losses and ended at 72.45 a dollar — an all-time closing low, down 1% over it’s previous close of 71.73 a dollar. Rupee was the worst performer among emerging market currencies in Asia, depreciating about 13% this financial year amid limited intervention by the central bank. In September, rupee has depreciated 1.7% so far against the dollar.

According to dealers, investors are concerned over economies that are expected to experience worsening balance of payments position.

“On the external stability front, we expect the current account deficit to widen to 2.5% of GDP in FY2019 and 2.7% in FY2020, reflecting a com-

bination of adverse terms of trade and a pickup in capex,” Morgan Stanley wrote in a note to it’s clients.

Morgan Stanley expects inflation to accelerate prompting the central bank to hike interest rates by 50 basis points (bps), including 25 bps in the next policy review due in early October.

“We expect another 25bps rate hike in October, as we think the Reserve Bank of India will front-load its hiking cycle to keep inflation expectations anchored. We highlight the risk of another rate hike of 25bp in the remaining part of the fiscal year, contingent on evolving external conditions,” it said.

Bond yields spiked over fears of further rate hike as the yield on 10-year benchmark government bonds rose 13 bps to close the day at 8.16%. RBI had hiked interest rates by 50 bps since June this year over inflation concerns.

Moody’s Investors Service warned that a sustained weakening of the rupee would be credit-negative for its rated Indian companies.

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INDIA HERALD • WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 12, 2018 • PAGE 13

MUSINGS by Gadfly

A Shining Legacy Times…. they are a changing, judging by the glowing tributes for India’s 3-time Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee’ (ABV) who passed away in August after a long illness. It is not unusual in politics for brickbats in life followed by bouquets in death, in line with ‘not speaking ill of the dead’. It also boosts a politicians’ image to praise someone who was/is popular.

If you read the Congress/ communists-owned/ influenced Indian papers (that’s most of them even today) when Ataljee ‘rocked’ doing his balancing act as PM heading a coalition government, you’ll see he was, like Narendra Modi today, negatively linked with RSS, with the moniker Hindu nationalist as the medal of derision.

He was called ‘the leader of a fanatic movement partially rooted in European fascism (that word again…where have we heard that since 2014) who sought power by stoking public fears of India’s large Muslim minority’. Hmmmmmm!

So fascism fascinated Indians that long?

You wouldn’t know that from the compliments ABV received from non-BJP politicians after his death. Here’s Rahul Gandhi – ‘India has lost a great son who was loved & respected by millions’ (except RaGa himself, that is). Dr. Manmohan Singh, as the last Congress PM during a Republic Day function was noticed

deliberately ignoring Vajpayee on arrival.

He now calls Vajpayee ‘the Bhishma Pitamaha of Indian politics’, saying ‘Vajpayee shared Nehru’s vision of India’. So now even Dr. Singh thinks that Nehru’s & Vajpayee’s ‘idea of India’ was the same.

The interviewer, Suhasini Haider of The Hindu, asked, “But Mr. Vajpayee differed with Mr. Nehru and Nehruvian ideals on many counts, primarily on domestic politics. What do you think was the similar chord?”

Dr. Singh said, “I think in politics, people should not be judged by what they say, but what they do, and in terms of actions, the approaches of these two great men were not very different.”

Dr. Singh’s refreshing candor comes from two ground realities. One, he’s not a Prime Minister anymore speaking for SoniaG, and two, being not of this world anymore, Vajpayee is no threat to any gaddi.

If that sounds snide, it’s because no one from the Congress or Communists or the English press ever said or wrote anything like these posthumous glowing compliments when Vajpayee was alive. That’s politics of secularism.

As a Prime Minister, Vajpayee has a unique place in India’s history. He was Prime Minister first for 13 days (1996)), then for 13 months (1998) & then for five years (1999-2004),

thanks to coalition politics.

No one else has done that with or without trying.

The irony is astrologers had predicted that his 13-day & 13-month terms would be followed by a 13-year term. Instead, the co-incidence extended to the day he died – August 13. (Note to astrology critics: ABV’s chart may have merely indicated that number thirteen could be significant in his life.)

Until midway through his five-year term, I was not his fan. I believed India’s secular press about his being a farright Hindu nationalist who rose - supposedly to stoke our worst fears - from RSS ranks,..

I cringed with the thought that any day now he’d say something as India’s Prime Minister & embarrass me both as an Indian & as a Hindu.

I lived with that apprehension. The US & the Western countries – governments and the press – were toeing the line of Indian newspapers who had already given this ‘dog’ a bad name to shoot him. Instead Vajpayee proved them wrong and made me & a lot of Indians proud.

When the seemingly endless 2002 riots broke out in Gujarat, with a BJP government, he chastised his own Chief Minister (current PM Narendra Modi), reminding him about Raja Dharma. The press was full of ‘it’ about Modi being the sacrificial instigator & conspirator. What Indians read & heard in India’s papers & media was outrageous but a good fodder for India’s minorities &

the Western press to point an accusing finger at BJP, Hindus & India.

After various SIT’s (Special Investing Teams) appointed by the Supreme Court of India (following complaints of complicity, conspiracy & bias of BJP, Gujarat government & then CM Narendra Modi) cleared Mr. Modi repeatedly, the fakeness of the secular press began dawning on me.

(Yes, I’m aware not guilty does not mean innocent.)

But those 2002 riots & anti-BJP/Modi finger-pointing suited the Western countries’ already anti-India agenda. It is distasteful to say anything good coming out of 9/11 but one good thing did come out of that huge national tragedy.

Western countries changed their dark glasses about India almost overnight after 9/11.

These countries of equality & diversity realized that all Muslim countries & democracies & armies were not equal; that some (read Pakistan) were less equal than others.

Vajpayee’s restraint & caution earlier during the Kargil war (1999) by not escalating it, set the ball rolling for Western countries’ self-doubts if they backed the wrong horse – Pakistan - all these decades.

9/11 confirmed their worst suspicions.

The uniqueness of Vajpayee does not stop at number thirteen. Bharat Enterprises Founder & Chairman Sunil Bharati Mittal, supposedly competing with India’ Reliance Corp. for telecom market

1970-2018 1970 - 2014

said, “Vajpayee can truly be called the ‘Father of Modern Telecommunication in India’ having ushered in the National Telecom Policy in 1999.”

The Telecom revolution that Vajpayee’s economic reforms set in motion led to the current image of Indians in America as tech savvy & not the foreign faces at 7/11s & motels nationwide. Dr. Singh himself admitted that the economic reforms he set in as Finance Minister under PM Narsimha Rao were given new life & a new arm by Vajpayee’s telecom revolution.

The other uniqueness of Atal Bihari Vajpayee, the one that has not been noticed, hence not noted, is/was postIndependence India’s history of winning wars (with Pakistan) & then losing peace.

From Lal Bahadur Shastriji (Tashkent-1965) to Indira Gandhi (Shimla-1972), Pakistan came out a victor in peace negotiations & international diplomacy & yet a victim on international stage. No Western leader ever called a Pakistani president to withdraw forces first in any Indo-Pak war. Kargil was the first war when American President Bill Clinton called Mia Musharraf to tell him exactly that.

Vajpayee became bigger & better than any of his critics or admirers expected. Yours truly went from ‘about to cringe any minute now’ to a pleasantly surprised admirer.

One of my two frustrations (not cringeworthy) is with Vajpayee, the speaker – I don’t See Page 17.

“48Years Years “44 and Counting, Providing Services To Generations of Businesses and Professionals Around The World”

INDIA HERALD • WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 12, 2018 • PAGE 14

SANATAN SHIV SHAKTI MANDIR of HOUSTON

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Ganesh Utsav 2018

Ganesh Sthapna: Wednesday, September 12th, 2018 - 5:00 PM ĂŝůLJ 'ĂŶĞƐŚ WŽŽũĂ͗ ϱ͗ϬϬ WD ƚŽ ϲ͗ϬϬ WD ͮ ĂŝůLJ ĂƌƟ &ŽůůŽǁĞĚ ďLJ WƌĂƐĂĚ͗ ϳ͗ϬϬ WD ZĂĂƐ 'ĂƌďĂ͗ &ƌŝĚĂLJ͕ ^ĞƉƚĞŵďĞƌ ϭϰ͕ ϮϬϭϴ Θ ^ĂƚƵƌĚĂLJ͕ ^ĞƉƚĞŵďĞƌ ϭϱ͕ ϮϬϭϴ Ͳ ϴ͗ϯϬ WD ƚŽ ϭϭ͗ϬϬ WD

Ganesh Visarjan: Saturday, September 22nd, 2018: WƌŽĐĞƐƐŝŽŶ Ͳ ĂŶĐŝŶŐ ŽŶ ,ĂƌǁŝŶ ĂŶĚ ,ŝůůĐƌŽŌ ͗ ϱ͗ϬϬ WD ƵůƚƵƌĂů WƌŽŐƌĂŵ ďLJ <ĂůĂŬƌŝƟ ͗ ϲ͗ϬϬ WD ͮ DĂŚĂ ĂƌƟ ͗ ϳ͗ϬϬ WD ͮ DĂŚĂ WƌĂƐĂĚ͗ ϳ͗ϯϬ WD (Snacks and Drinks Provided)

Special Thanks to our Sponsors SHRI SITA RAM FOUNDATION USA Ɖ

Bhakta Samaj

Patel Samaj SHIV SAGAR Vegetarian Restaurant

^ĂŶĂƚĂŶ ^Śŝǀ ^ŚĂŬƚŝ DĂŶĚŝƌ ŽĨ ,ŽƵƐƚŽŶ Ͳ ϲϲϰϬ ,ĂƌǁŝŶ ƌ͕ ,ŽƵƐƚŽŶ͕ dy ϳϳϬϯϲ For Daily Prasad & Pooja Sponsorship, please call the temple @ 713-278-9099 or call Hardik Raval @ 361-243-6539

INDIA HERALD • WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 12, 2018 • PAGE 15

COMMUNITY

ISKCON of Houston celebrates Janmashtami

Midnight aarti (worship), inspiring kirtan, enlivening dancing and mesmerizing performances by Viva Kultura, a traveling theatre group from Poland marked the celebration Janmashtami (Lord Krishna’s Appearance Day) at International Society of Krishna Consciousness this year.

The annual festival – Kirtan Fest Houston, that started on Saturday, had devotees and visiting guests immersed in spirituality before Monday’s Janmasthami festival and continued on through Tuesday, Sept. 4, when Srila Prabhupada’s Appearance Day festival was celebrated.

This year’s Kirtan Fest included numerous famous Kirtan singers from ISKCON, such as Indradyumna Swami and Bhakti Bhringa Govinda Swami. Devotees also heard and danced to the melodious tunes from Bada Haridas, Akincana Krishna Dasa (formerly of Glassjaw band), Krishna Kishore Dasa (of Mayapuris) and Havi Dasa (a Latin Grammy Award winner).

Janmasthami is celebrated worldwide by the devotees of Krishna as the most important festival in the vaishnava calendar.

Janmashtami is observed by fasts and feasts, sacred chants and personal prayers and above all, the glorification of his holy name in the form of musical mantra meditation, kirtan.

Over 5000 people attended the events with the devotee community to celebrate the biggest birthday party for the year. They all experienced a cultural revolution of the heart as they milled about the various tents, met our beautiful calves – that came specially to visit from the Bhakti Urban Farm and heard talks from Srimad Bhagavad Gita and Srimad Bhagavatam by visiting saints like Their Holiness Indradyumna Swami, Bhakti Bhringa Govinda Swami, Giriraj Swami, Bhakti Sundar Goswami and so many more exalted Vaisnavas. With fresh flowers decorating their Lordships, Sri Sri Radha Nilamadhava, devotees got to have a very special viewing, or darshan, of the deities.

On Sunday and Monday, a colorful costume contest was taking place followed by various music concerts and traditional dance performances by students

of several Texas’ premiere arts schools. As Monday midnight drew closer, devotees were roused to their feet by the soul stirring and ecstatic kirtan of

Indradyumna Swami, causing several to shed tears of happiness when the curtains opened to reveal Their Lordships in all Their beauty and splendor. How

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PAGE 16 • INDIA HERALD • WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 12, 2018

COMMUNITY Life devoted to serving people in distress; service is their religion

By MANU SHAH Vinod Prakash has distinct memories of delivering flyers during the freedom movement in India. He was only 9 years old but vividly recalls that the flyers were printed in a concealed room by his brother. In the same breath, he reveals how his sister-in-law (Bhabhi) along with his mother, 3 unmarried sisters and brother offered Satyagraha (peaceful protest) against the British government.

This is the kind of personal history the Founder of India Development and Relief Fund (IDRF) Vinod Prakash, now 85, comes from. It would have a tremendous influence in shaping his character, sense of idealism and the life changing decisions he took from quitting a prestigious job at the World Bank, rushing relief measures to a quake hit area or refusing to pay a bribe to a government official.

The youngest of nine siblings, Vinod was born in Meerut, a city northeast of New Delhi.

He belonged to a lower middle class business family that ran a publishing house and owned the Prakash Educational Store selling books and stationery.

Vinod’s wife and partner in every social service endeavor, Sarla was born in Bihar Sharif, and is the 7th among 8 siblings. A topper right through, Sarla did her Bachelors from Kanya Gurukul Mahavidyalaya in Dehradun and then joined the DAV College in Kanpur for a Masters in Political Science. While in college, she agreed to meet Vinod at her brother’s request. The two met over a cup of tea at the Kanpur railway station. She liked his “simplicity,” while he appreciated her zest for knowledge.

A brilliant student, Vinod completed his Bachelors in Science and Masters in Mathematics at a local college in Meerut after which he headed to the Indian Statistical Institute (ISI) in Kolkata. He joined the Government of India’s Perspective Development Planning program which attracted several global experts from countries such as Australia, UK and the US. Vinod worked with all of them and they would refer to him as “a walking Encyclopedia.”

Seeing his potential, they offered Vinod a Fellowship in their countries but he opted for the Ford Foundation Fellowship at MIT. In 1960, he and Sarla left for Boston where Sarla joined Boston University for a Masters in Mass Communication and Vinod pursued his Fellowship at MIT. The couple returned to Delhi for a brief period where Vinod served as Joint Director of Monopolies and Enquiry Commission – an unusually high position for one so young. However they had to return to the US for treatment for their son who was diagnosed with cerebral palsy. Vinod secured a Graduate Scholarship at MIT and the family moved back to the US. He then joined the World Bank and was also heading the India

Relief Fund (IRF) for a decade.

When the Fund’s purpose was served, Vinod approached the World Bank Executive for India – M. Narasimham and explained that he would like to use IRF to provide relief assistance. Given Vinod’s integrity, capability and sincerity, a special provision was made and from 1977-1987 Vinod took charge of the Fund. The organization swung into action with relief measures when the Morvi Dam collapsed in 1979 and the Bhopal Gas tragedy struck in 1984.

In 1988, almost 20 years later, Vinod retired from the World Bank only to begin working fulltime for IDRF - his nonprofit.

In 1993, when Latur in Maharashtra was crumbling under a 6.2 Richter scale earthquake, IDRF moved swiftly, raised $303,000 with the help of Houstonian Vijay Pallod, and volunteers landed in Latur to provide relief measures.

Sarla, likewise, shared her husband’s idealism. A school for deaf children in Kolkata moved her so much that she asked every friend to contribute $100 dollars.

She also invited friends for a $25 sit down luncheon, served different Indian cuisines and raised $1000 dollars for many years. Vinod had jokingly told her he would match whatever she raised. She held him to his word and in her way demonstrated how even a homemaker can support a cause.

IDRF’s emphasis has always been “Putting power, not charity in the hands of the underprivileged.”

Vinod’s experience as a developmental economist had taught him that people must be provided with skills to make them self-reliant versus giving handouts.

Over time, the organization expanded its focus to 6 key areas: women empowerment, education, health, eco-friendly development, improving governance in urban and rural areas and relief and rehabilitation.

A tax exempt 501 (c) 3 public charity, IDRF’s transparency, accountability and financial health won it a coveted Platinum rating from America’s largest non-profit data resource GuideStar and a four out of four star rating from Charity Navigator for five consecutive years.

IDRF’s efficient use of resources helped the organization rush relief and rehabilitation measures to every major Indian disaster since 1991. When the earthquake struck in Gujarat in January 2001, Vinod describes the donations as “falling from the sky.” In the 1999 tragic Kargil war, the organization presented a check of Rs.51 lakhs to Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee.

They raised $100,000 to aid victims of flooding in Uttarakhand and equipped temporary shelters with beds, mattresses, cooking utensils and solar lanterns.

Over the years, IDRF, in cooperation with local NGOs and partners, built 2500 toilets, focused on education of impoverished

Vinod Prakash with his wife Sarla. tribal girls from the north east, created access to medical services for 50,000 people in the remote villages of Assam and IDRF’s medical van played a key role in improving the lives of the tribal people and in diverting youth from Naxalism to social work.

IDRF also helped construct 127 check dams/ponds and 147 wells putting an end to the daily long

trek for water. IDRF helped start the Savitri Soni Vidya Mandir Inter College in Meerut, UP with two teachers and two classrooms under a thatched roof. Today, the school has changed the educational landscape of the region and draws children from 30 adjoining villages.

Since 1988, IDRF has sent over $34 million to India, Nepal and

Sri Lanka – and helped thousands of donors give back to their homeland. This generosity and empathy is imbibed in the family.

Vinod and Sarla’s elder son, Sanjay and to-be-daughter-in-law Renu donated all their wedding gifts to Seva Bharati, a residential school for tribal boys in the outskirts of Delhi. Vinod’s younger son Gautam followed suit when he got married. By the time Sarla’s 60th birthday and Vinod’s 75th birthday came around, their friends knew what to expect! All gifts went to NGO’s in India through IDRF. In 2010, personal tragedy struck when an undiagnosed infection and a doctor’s negligence cost Vinod his vision. Today, he wistfully says he misses seeing the smiles on the faces of his grandchildren and visiting NGOs in India but reflects that the tragedy invigorated his purpose of a life of service.

Vinod and Sarla live in Maryland and their efforts continue to empower Indians in the remotest and poorest regions of India. Visit www.idrf.org for more information or call 301-704-0032

Visit www. India-herald.com. email: editor@india-herald.com

Call Ashok Vasan at 281-265-7745, Jay Malhotra at 713-962-5555 or Leela Krishnamurthy at 281-44-9768

INDIA HERALD • WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 12, 2018 • PAGE 17

NEWS 51 killed in Telangana RTC bus accident

Fifty-one people, including several women and children, were killed, and many suffered injuries on Tuesday morning when a Telangana State Road Transport Corporation (TSRTC) bus plunged into a gorge on the Kondagattu ghat road in Jagtial district. Earlier reports said 40 people were killed.

The death toll rose to 51 as the severely injured passengers died of their injuries at the Jagtial Area Hospital. More than two dozen passengers died on the spot and bodies of seven children have been recovered.

The bus, belonging to the Jagtial depot, had more than 60 passengers, who reportedly came to the hillock temple at Kondagattu. It was going from Shanivarampeta village to Jagtial via the Kondagattu ghat road and Muthyampet villages when the accident happened.

Eyewitness accounts said the bus was overcrowded.

Driver loses control of vehicle at curve Initial reports said the bus driver lost control of the vehicle at the third sharp curve, resulting in the bus plunging into the gorge. Most of the passengers lost balance and fell on the right side of the bus leading to the accident. Many due to suffocation as they fell on one another.

Some four-wheelers following the bus stopped and launched a rescue operation with the help of the locals. The severely injured were rushed to the Jagtial hospital.

Jagtial Collector A. Sharath, SP Sindhu Sharma and Karimnagar Police Commissioner Kamalhasan Reddy, and other officials reached the spot and shifted the injured to the Jagtial hospital. The bodies have been shifted to the hospital pending post mortem.

Chief Minister K.Chandrashekhar Rao expressed shock over the road accident. In a message, he expressed his condolences to the families of those killed. He directed the officials concerned to provide immediate medical assistance to the injured. He announced ₹5 lakh as ex-gratia for the family members of the deceased.

Minister for Finance and Civil Supplies Etala Rajender expressed shock and grief over the accident and instructed the officials to take all measures to provide proper medicare.

Nizamabad MP Kavitha also expressed grief over the accident.

In separate statements, Congress Legislature Party leader K. Jana Reddy, TPCC chief N. Uttam Kumar Reddy and YSRCP president Y.S. Jaganmohan Reddy also expressed shock at the loss of lives.

Musings From Page 13 mean to split hair - based on his speeches as a PM at international forums. His pauses with closed eyes felt so long that sometimes I’d say to myself, ‘Oh God! He is falling asleep’ & get ready to be embarrassed.

The other frustration is not with Vajpayee. It’s with BJP in the 2004 elections. Almost every other party & the entire media with their disdain for BJP, said that Vajpayee - based on his policies & actions as PM - was the right man in the

wrong party. They were right about his mostly independent streak from his party. BJP was certainly the wrong party with a wrong propaganda machine for the 2004 elections.

The Congress Party ought to thank the genius who came up with BJP’s 2004 election slogan. India Shinning. Fact is it was Vajpayee who was shining after his five-year term as PM, not India, not BJP. Neither BJP nor NaMo will get elected next year if they use that India Shinning slogan.

The average & below average families were NOT shining. They’re still not shining.

That slogan of national pride was in a wrong note (in prose or verse) at a wrong time (not in the near future) and in the wrong place (elections). The people who had that ‘feel-good’ feeling were all BJP members.

It was not realistic – it still isn’t – to expect Indian voters to express that kind of national pride at the voting booths.

To paraphrase a columnist, ‘a country or a city is never getting better OR worse. It’s always doing both & like any work in progress, needs more critics than defenders.’ In a democracy, the ruling party is the defender, the opposition (esp.

in India) is the vicious critic & the voters are judges with votes. Like the late American president Ronald Reagan said, voters ask themselves ‘are we better off today than we were five years ago?’ As much as the 2004 voters may have loved & admired Vajpayee, they said ‘The gall’ to India Shining and decided to give the boot to BJP’s misplaced self-patting for a ‘shining India’. Not surprisingly, BJP lost.

Vajpayee ranks with Nehru, Shastriji & PV Narasimha Rao. His legacy will always shine.

Send responses to gadfly7_7@yahoo.com;

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COMMUNITY CALENDAR Art Museum Kannappan Art Museum will be open for public Tuesday 5.30 PM to 7.30 PM, Saturday 10AM to 2 PM, Sunday 12 noon to 4 PM. Address: 2341 N. Galveston Ave, Pearland, TX 77581.

Ashirwad Classes for Kids in Katy Enrollments are open for Indian Heritage classes for Kids and Teens from 4 to 16 yrs. Class curriculum includes Yoga, Meditation, Sloka, Ramayan, Mahabharat, Bhagwad Githa, Sports Day, VEDIC Fair Presentations, Dance, Drama, Hindi & more. Contact : 281-995-0930 or AshirwadABlessing@gmail.com.

Durga Bari Temple Durga Bari temple is open from 9 to 11 a.m. and 4 to 7 p.m. Mon. thru Sat. Sandhya aarti at 6:30 p.m. Temple closes at 7 p.m. Sunday special from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m.

Temple is located at 13944 Schiller Rd (oďŹ&#x20AC; Hwy 6 bet. Bellaire & Westpark). Call Ganesh Mandal at 713-797-9057 / 832-423-8541.

Arya Samaj Satsang Weekly Havan Satsang every Sunday from 10 a.m. to 12 noon. DAV Sanskriti School Sundays 10 a.m. to 12 noon. - Havan, Hindi and Naitik Shiksha classes. DAV Montessori School for ages 2 to 7 years. Call Arti Khanna 281-759-3286. Free Yoga classes on Sat. Sanskrit & Upanishad classes Tue. 6-8 p.m. At 14375 Schiller Rd. (bet Westpark & Bellaire oďŹ&#x20AC; Hwy 6). 281-752-0100.

Brahma Kumaris The Brahma Kumaris Raja Yoga Meditation Center is open 7 days a week. The center oďŹ&#x20AC;ers free Raja Yoga Meditation classes: Mon-Fri @ BUY

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6:00-6:45am and 7-8 pm, Sat-Sun @ 7:00-8:30am, 10 am-2 pm. Visiting hours are Sat-Sun @ 10 a.m.-5 p.m.

Contact us at (832) 379-8888, houston@bktexas.com, or bktexas.com to sign-up for classes. All Raja Yoga Meditation teachers at the Houston center are samarpit and have 15+ years of teaching experience.

Chinmaya Mission Summer schedule Both BalaVihar and adult classes will remain closed from May 27th to September 8th. Classes will resume on Sunday, September 9th.

New member registration for Bala Vihar will be conducted in Chinmaya Smrti Hall on SUNDAY, August 12th from 2 PM to 5 PM and August 19th from 9:30 AM to 12 Noon. Detailed information will be provided at the time of registration. No registrations will be done for Bala Vihar during September 2018. For more information: Visit www.chinmayahouston.org or call Bharati Sutaria 281.933.0233 Jeeyar Educational Trust Translate knowledge into action classes every Sunday at 10:15 a.m to 12 p.m. at Sri Ashtalakshmi Temple, 10098 Synott Road, Sugar Land, Tx 77498. Call 785 550 3621 or 832-334-9163. Visit www. ashtalakshmi.org for registration.

Vedanta Society Vedanta Society of Greater Houston, VSGH (oďŹ&#x192;cial Branch Center of Ramakrishna Math, Belur), 14809 Lindita Dr. (77083), has lectures & talks on every Sunday 11 am - 12 pm, followed by Arati & Prasad; Bhagwad Gita Class on Tuesdays, 7:30 pm - 8:30 pm; and Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna on Thursdays, 11 am - 12 pm. Rev. OLD

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Temple timings: Monday to Friday: 9:00 AM - 12:00 Noon and 5:30 PM - 8:00 PM. Saturday and Sunday: 9:00 AM - 2:00 PM and 5:00 PM - 8:00 PM. For more information Contact 281-568-1690 or Jay Deshmukh at 832-541-0059 or visit www.saumyakasi.org Gauri Siddhivinayak Temple Darshan from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. daily. All major festivals as well as birthdays, naam karan, engagement and other ceremonies. Call Pandit Pradip Pandya 832-4669868 for puja and other ceremonies. At 5645 Hillcroft Ste 701, Houston, TX 77036.

Veerashaiva Samaja VSNA Houston is a group of families who believe in Veerashaiva dharma (Basava dharma).

Monthly Mahamane program for prayer and discussion on Vachana Sahitya followed by Prasada. Contact: vsnahous ton@gmail.com or Jagadeesh Halyal 832-744-4166.

Mar Thoma Church Trinity Mar Thoma Church every Sunday at 5810 Almeda Genoa Rd. Sunday School at 9:15 a.m.

Malayalam service at 9:30 a.m. on 1st & 3rd Sunday. Adult Bible class at 9:30 a.m. English service at 10:30 a.m. on 2nd & 4th Sunday. Call 713-991-1557 or 281261-4603.

Telugu Christian Fellowship Telugu Christian Fellowship meets every third Saturday of the month at Triumph Church, 10555 W. Airport Blvd., StaďŹ&#x20AC;ord TX 77477 at 6:30 p.m. Join us for a time of praise, worship and fellowship. Worship is in English.

For information call Chris Gantela 281-344-0707, or Rev. Vijay Gurrala 281-997-0757.

Sri Guruvayurappan Temple Hours: Mon to Fri 6 a.m. -8 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. Weekends & Holidays: 6 a.m. to noon and 5:00 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. Bhajans Saturdays 7 p.m. to 8 p.m.; Sundays 9 a.m. to 1 a.m. Special poojas (weekends and holidays) Choroon (Annaprasam) for kids, Thulabharam, Vahana Pooja, Nirapara. Temple is located at 11620 Ormandy St. (77035) Tel: 713729-8994 email: temple@ guruvayur.us Preksha Meditation JVB Preksha Meditation Center conducts weekly Meditation, Yoga and Swadhyay sessions inside its unique Pyramid hall under the auspicious guidance of Samani Kanchan Pragyaji and Samani Pranav Pragyaji who are stationed at Houston Center this year. It also runs special events and programs like I-Choose, Meditation Camps and Gyanshala program for children ages 4-14 yrs. JVB is located at 14102 Schiller Rd. Houston 77082. Every Tuesday, 9:30am11:30am, Samaniji has pravachan for all adults interested in learning about Jainism. Every Wednesday there is Swadhyay class from 7-8pm and meditation from 8-9pm.

Every Thursday from 9:30-11am there is special Yoga class for Ladies only. Every Saturday, there is Yoga Class from 9-10am and Meditation from 10-10.30am. Ist & 3rd Sundays, there is Gyanshala Classes for Kids ages 4-14yrs. from Saumyakasi Sivalaya Sri Saumyakasi Sivalaya is located 10-12:15pm followed by Lunch. at Chinmaya Prabha, 10353 Syn- Visit www.jvbhouston.org or send

Sw. Atmarupanandaji, the Resident Monk, gives all classes, lectures & talks. Ramnaam Sankirtan is on 1st Saturdays 6 pm - 7 pm.

Please visit www.houstonvedanta. org or call 281- 988-7211.

Jain Society Jain Society of Houston at 3905 Arc Street Houston 77063 is open M-F from 7:30 AM to 12 Noon and 4 to 7 PM with Aarti at 6 PM every weekday, and Sat, and Sun from 8 AM to 6 PM. JSH invites you to celebrate Mahaparva Paryushan from Sept. 6 to Sept. 13, 2018. Mahavir Janma Vanchan will be celebrated on Sunday Sept.

9. JSH has invited a well known scholar, Dr. Tej Sahebji, who has a PhD in Jainism and has lectured on diďŹ&#x20AC;erent topics of Jainism, including handling programs of teaching and training junior maharajs (monks) on preaching. Daily activity at the temple shall include an early opening of the temple at 7:30 AM followed by morning lecture on Kalpa Sutra, one of the precious Jain Book, Ekasana (one time eating), Evening Pratikraman starting at 6:45 PM, followed by Pratikraman, and lecture. Samvatsari Pratikraman and Sangh Kshamapana shall occur on Sept. 13, with Sangh Parna on Sept. 14 at 9 AM. Temple shall remain open from 7:30 AM to 9:15 PM every day during Paryushana. For more details call Jain Center at 713 789 2338 or visit www.jainsocietyhouston.org.

Shiv Shakti Mandir Sanatan Shiv Shakti Mandir, 6640 Harwin. Open daily 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. All major festivals, as well as birthdays, naam karan, engagement and other ceremonies. Call Pandit Virat Mehta 713-278-9099 or Hardik Raval 361-243-6539 for puja or other ceremonies.

Heartfulness Meditation Heartfulness Meditation is a practical technique of tuning inwards to experience our higher selves. Meditation with someone who has the capacity of yogic transmission can help you explore the Heartfulness practice more deeply. There are no charges for this, and we invite you to experience the unique beneďŹ ts of this transmission.

Workshops on Heartfulness relaxation and meditation are held weekly throughout Houston. Web: www.heartfulness. org; Email: houston.heartfulness@ gmail.com. Cell: 713-929-0040.

Hare Krishna Dham Houstonâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s original Vedic temple, ISKCON of Houston. At 1320 W 34th St. (77018). Daily Darshan & Arati Times: 4.30 a.m, 7 a.m, 8.30 a.m, 12 noon, 4.30 p.m, 7 p.m, 9 p.m. Sunday Festival: 5.30 pm to 7.30 p.m. Weekly Gita classes for adults; call 281-433-1635 or harekrishnadham @gmail.com Houston Namadwaar A prayer house where the Hare Rama Hare Krishna Maha-mantra is continuously chanted. Weekends: 8-11 AM & 4-7 PM, Weekdays: 7-8 AM & 6-7 PM. Weekly â&#x20AC;&#x153;Gopa Kuteeramâ&#x20AC;? childrenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s heritage classes and Srimad Bhagavatam classes. Call 281-402-6585; visit www.godivinity.org (Global Organization for Divinity).

email at info@jvbhouston.org for more details.

Patanjali Yogpeeth Free Yoga Classes every Sat/Sun at Arya Samaj from 8 am to 9:30 a.m. Call Anil 281-579-9433. For other free classes, call Indra 281537-0018. For Yoga/Herbal products, call Shekhar 281-242-5000. www.pyptusa.org; www.DivyaProducts.com.

Hindu Temple of The Woodlands 7601 S. Forest Gate Dr, The Woodlands, TX 77382 Temple Hours, Weekdays: 7:30 AM - 9:30 AM 5:30 PM - 8.30 PM Aarti @ 7:30 PM Saturday and Sunday 8:30 AM - 1:30 PM Aarti at 12:00 PM 5:30 PM - 8:30 PM Aarti @ 7:30 PM; Contact 832-585--0001 or temple@myhtw.net Sathya Sai centers Sunday program held at two locations (North Houston: 12127 Malcomson Road, Houston; South Houston: 246 Fluor Daniel Drive, Sugar Land) from 3:00 to 5:30 pm) - Sai Spiritual Education (SSE) classes for children; Study Circle for adults & Devotional singing for all. Service programs - food distribution, canned food drives, nursing home visits, tutoring at schools, etc. Contact Venkat Rao (North) - 602-503-2249 or Ranji Raghavan (South) 281-451-8238.

Visit www.sairegion10.org Sadhu Vaswani Center Sadhu Vaswani Center of Houston holds regular Satsang on 3rd Thursday of the month and daily Arti at 7.30 p.m. Call 281-4630379 or e.mail ramolaj@aol.com Gaudiya Math Shri Govindji Gaudiya Matha is a Hindu Vaishnava temple of Sanatan Dharam and worshipping place of Shri Shri Radha Krishna, Shri Gaur Nitai & Shri Ram Darbar. Mandir is open daily from 5.30 AM until 8.30 PM. We urge you to make a special eďŹ&#x20AC;ort to join our Sunday services regularly with your family & friends. The services are held from 5.30PM to 7.30PM followed by delicious prashad. Daily Aarti times : Mangala Aarti- 5:30 am. Bhog Aarti - 12:30 pm. Evening Aarti - 7:00 pm. Enroll your child in Sri Govindaji Vedic School. We oďŹ&#x20AC;er Hindi classes for all ages. Sri Govindaji Gaudiya Matha is located in Northwest Houston at 16628 Kieth Harrow Blvd Houston TX 77084. For more information, call at 832-464-4686 or visit our website: http://sggm.org.

Swaminarayan Temple Hindu Satsang at Shree Swaminarayan Hindu Temple, under Shree NarNarayan Dev Gadi kalupur.

Opens daily from 7 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. and from 4 p.m. to 8:30 p.m.

Daily aarti at 7 a.m. and 7 p.m.

Saturday sabha from 5 p.m to 7 p.m. followed by aarti at 7 p.m. and Maha-Prasad (free dinner). www.issotx.org. (281) 530-2565.

Sanatan Dharm Maha Sabha West Indian Religious Organization called Sanatan Dharm Maha Sabha Branch # 377 is located at 26100 Tina Lane, Katy, TX 77494.

Durga Mata Pooja is held every

INDIA HERALD • WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 12, 2018 • PAGE 19

NEWS

Swami Vedanta Desikan: Peerless Poet, Philosopher-II

By SRDIHAR SAMPATH Swami Vedanta Desikan’s 750th year after appearance is being celebrated on September 20th throughout the world with great pomp and splendor by the followers of Sri Ramanujacharya.

In the previous part (see India Herald 9/5/2018) of this two-part series, we saw a brief introduction to Swami Desikan and his early life. In this second and concluding part, we will get a glimpse of his multifaceted personality.

Incidents of miracles Swami Desikan’s life has miracles sprinkled all over it but the astounding fact about them is that he they all have happened purely as a result of his prayer and surrender to God. At no point he claims credit for these miracles nor is he set out to make them happen.

Early in his life, after continuous chanting of Garuda mantra, Garuda bhagavan himself appeared to Swami Desikan and provided him into Hayagriva mantra which is considered as the mantra of knowledge.

Upon chanting the Hayagriva mantra, Bhagavan Sri Narayana appeared as Hayagriva and blessed Swami Desikan with all-knowing knowledge. These incidents are remarkable as they mark the beginning of an illustrious life through which deeper divine truths and his deep knowledge have been revealed.

Later on, once a snake charmer challenged the Swami to control his poisonous snakes. Swami drew a line on the ground which none of the snake could cross. One ferocious snake crossed over the line to harm Swami who then recited the Garuda mantra. Garuda bhagavan came and took away all the snakes. While this is an astounding feat by itself, it does not just end here. The miracle is reenacted again when the repentful person begged to the Swami to give back his snakes since his livelihood depended on them. Swami Desikan took pity on the individual and prayed to Garuda who appeared again and brought them back.

In another incident, a magician decided to cause harm on Swami Desikan. Through magic he drank the water from a nearby pond. Swami Desikan was feeling extreme pain and understood the reason quickly.

He simply scratched his nail on a nearby pillar and all the water came rushing out of the pillar.

Once a poor brahmin came to Swami Desikan seeking alms so he could find a suitable bride to marry (in those days grooms had to pay for their wedding).

Swami Desikan, himself living on daily bhikshas (alms) lamented his helplessness to him but offered prayers to Perundevi Thayar, (Sri Mahalakshmi at Kanchipuram temple).

At that instance, the place was

showered with a rain of gold coins.

Master of all arts Swami Desikan was tested many times if he is truly a “Sarva tantra swatantrar” (Master of ALL knowledge, skills and arts).

In one incident, a mason challenged Swami to dig a well since he thought that the Swami was only trained in scriptures and would not have knowledge of construction. To make it even more challenging, he gave the Swami broken and irregular shaped bricks with which to build the well. Swami Desikan, created the well with the bricks which even now exists in the town of Thiruvahendara puram in Tamilnadu.

A sculptor challenged Swami to create a statue. To make it even more challenging, it was to be replica of the Swami himself and must be seated on a pedestal provided by the artist. Swami made an idol and the sculptor tried to fix it in the pedestal and could not do so. He thought that the idol was wrong and tried to chisel some part of the idol to fix it.

Blood flowed out of Swami’s corresponding part of the body where he chiseled out.

The sculptor accepted that the pedestal was of wrong size after which the Swami corrected the pedestal and installed the idol on it. This deity is even today available in Thiruvahendara puram Peerless poet Swami Desikan has produced about 120~150 works in four languages (Sanskrit, Tamil, Prakrit and Manipravalam).

His works can be categorized as (a) devotional compositions i.e. stotras (b) literary compositions i.e. kavya granthas (c) stage play (d) esoteric compositions i.e. rahasya granthas (e) expounding of vedanta i.e. vedanta granthas (f) vyakarna granthas or commentaries (g) daily practices i.e. anushtana granthas (h) compositions in Tamil i.e. Tamil prabandham (i) and several miscellaneous works. The sheer volume of work is so monumental that scholars are amazed at how one individual could have produced such a variety of material with such mastery and depth of the

language. Many debaters and poets of his day challenged him only to accept his greatness and mastery.

“Paduka Sahasram” is considered the magnum opus of all his works for a number or reasons.

A contemporary poet challenged Swami Desikan to write 1000 verses on Bhagavan Sri Ranganatha within one day. Swami then prayed to Sri Ranganatha who blessed him and ordered that the composition be on the holy sandals (padukas) of Sri Ranganatha.

Due to his busy schedule with lectures, Swami Desikan could not write anything during the day. It is said that he woke up early in the morning and wrote the entire 1000 verses in a matter of merely few hours. This is astounding since it takes more than 6 hours to chant the entire composition.

The verses of Paduka Sahasram have many hidden patterns that have been revealed so far.

The intricate patterns and hidden meanings of these verses are believed to be powerful “yantrams” or pictorial repre-

sentation of the mantra and are used for poojas and prayers.

For example, one of the verses creates a pattern like that of a horse (knight) movement on a battlefield (chessboard). To read the verse, one has to simply follow the numbers. Normal reading from left to right also produces the same verse.

These verses provided the original solution to the famous “Knights tour problem” which was solved more than 400 years later by Leonhard Euler from the West.

In another verse, one can follow the zig-zag pattern to read the verse. Normal reading from left to right also produces the same verse.

In another verse one can read from left to right or from right to left to generate the same verse.

In all about 25 different patterns have been revealed so far.

Teachings Sri Ramanujacharya developed the “Vishishtadvaitam” philosophy which is the core foundation of the Vaishnava Sri Sampradayam tradition. Swami Desikan dedicated his entire life to elaborating on the nuances of Sri Sampradayam and providing guidelines to practice this sampradayam. In particular, Swami Desikan advocated and emphasized on Prapatti or path of surrender as instructed

by Sri Ramanujacharya in his

works. It is said that while Sri Ramanujacharya’s teachings is the juice or essence from vedas and sastras, Swami Desikan’s works is the essence out of Sri Ramanujacharya’s teachings.

Celebrations Befitting Swami Desikan’s greatness and his contributions, his 750th anniversary has been celebrated throughout the world. As reported in the July 18th edition, The UK House of Commons commemorated the event this summer. Many other events have been happening in Kanchipuram, Srirangam and various other places in India.

Several books and audio lectures honoring the occasion have been released by various organizations.

In Houston, at Ashtalakshmi Temple, Sugarland, Thirumanjanam to Swami Desikan will be performed on September 22nd at 09:30 AM. Please call Ashtalakshmi Temple for details.

Meenakshi Temple, Pearland will be announcing its Purattasi Sravanam event schedule with additional details.

In Dallas, a week-long celebration is scheduled from September 16th through September 24th. For details please send an email to ahobilamutthouston@gmail.com with a contact phone number.

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