IlINOVIS" Too"y was founded january 5. 1979.
by Sotguru Sivoyn Subrumwliynswnmi
Affirming Sanatana Dharma and Recording the Modern History of a Bilhon-Strong Global Rehgion in Renaissanoe
Canada ... .... C$3.95
Europe .. . ... US$3.50
India .... .. ... Rs.50
PUBLISHER: Sotguru Sivayn Subrnmuniynswami
duly, 1997 .--.-;--....,
"'2.9& to strengthen all Hindillineages. Publish'<l by Himalaynn Academy, J07 Kaholalele
Road, Kapaa, Hawaii 96746-9304 USA. Editorial Omce Ph: 1·806-822-7032. Sub-
ADMINISTRATIVE DIRECTOR: Acharya Veylanswami
EDITDR-IN-CHIEF: Acharya Polaniswarn;
scriptions: l~os.a22-3152 or 1..80Q.89().IOO8. Advertising: 1·8Q8.823-9620 or l-SOQ. PUBLISHER'S ASSISTANT: Acharya Geycnswami
850-l008. AII-depnrtment fax: 1~22-435J . USA subscriplions: "S35II year, S65I2 DEPUTY EDITOR: Acharya Kumars'vomi
years, S9513 yenrs, S5OQ/lifetime. Fbrelgn rotes on request. C 1997 Himninynn Acade- MANAGINO EDITOR: 'y.gi Arumugaswami
my. All rigbts reserved. JSSN# OS96-0801. GRAPHICS DIRECTOR: 'JYngi Natarnjnswami
CIIRRESPONDEHTS: Gown Shankar & Annndhi Ramachandran, Chennai; Choodamani PROMOTION/PRODUCTION: Tyngi Kathirswami
Shivarnm, Bangnlore; Rajiv Mnlik & M. P. Mohanly, Delhi; V. S. Gopnlnkrishnan, Ker· MANAGINO EDITOR'S AIDE: Tyngi Shanmuganathnswami
nIno S. C Debnath, Bangladesh; Archann Dongre, Los Angeles; Lavina Mehvoni, New ADVERTISING MANAGER: Sodhaka Jotbinatha
York; P. Bhardwaj. Kenyn: Dr. Hari Jlansh Jha, Nepnl; P. Ramoull1r. 1Tinidnd; Vetcha SUBSCRIPTION MANAGER: Saclhaka Haranandinalha
EDITOR-IN-CHIEF'S ASSISTANT: Sadhaka Yuganalha
.,- • Rajesh, London; Ravi Peruman, San Francisco; Dr. D. Tandavan. Chicago: V.G. Julie
Rajan, Philadelphia; Rndhika Srinivasan. New jersey; Shikha Malaviyn, Minnesota. DEPUTY MANAGING tDITGR: Yogi Kasinatha
Web lIIasters:.Deva Seyon; Sadhunathan Nadesan. Scanning: Vikrnm Potel. New York. MANAGINO EDITOR'S AIDE: Yogi Ekanatha
JULY, 1997
.. ~t . / . . f .~ · ,. ~
~--b7~ ··0-"-
INTE~NATIONAL
Church and State: us Judge Foists Prayer
and Commandments on Courtroom 17
Cults: Heaven's Gate Tragedy Discloses
Media Bias 22
Heritage: Kerala Temples: Magical
Monuments in Wood 27
Religion: K:-enya's Kinetic Service Ethic 34
Sacrilege: SONY Apologizes for
p,..erosrnith's Controversial CD 47
LIFESTYLE,...-
l!1sight: F).fteen Core Hindu Precepts for
Parents to Pass On to Children 30
Astrology: Was Suicide in their Stars? 36
Discipline: Beating the Devil Out of Kids 40
Leisure: Call it a "Nice-Word Puzzle" 48
~rt:' Satish Gupta Paints Indias Soul 52-
OPINION
f Publisher's Desk: Preparing to Pilgrimage
Through the Mind in Meditation 6
Editorial: Hinduism Denied Cult Status 8
My Turn: Heaven's G~te Did Not Open 9
Letters 14
Healing: Tools to Tame Pubescenoe 44
Minister's Message: All About, -HonOring 50
DIGESTS
. , Quotes &Quips 10 Evolutions 44
, Dlaspora 11 Digital Dharma 54
: Briefly 20
Malaysia ........RM5 Singapore ..... . . .S$4 Trinidad ... . .TDlB.OO •COVER Cotton-clad, young Hindu boys tour the streets of Sanku, near Kathmandu, http://wwW.HlndullmToday.kaual.hl.ul/
Mauritius .. .. .. .Rs.30 South Africa . US$2.95 UK . . . . . . . . £2.00 blessing villagers during Magh (January). Our Insight trus month presents parents .
Nepal .. , .. NRs.175 Sri Lanka .. .. Rs.BO Australia .. .. AUS$5.50 1117 EdIt8r'1 CblJce
with ways to pass on to children dharma's core beliefs and practices. See pag 30: ' .".....nrc!
Welcome
to hinduism today’s digital edition!
am pleased to welcome you to the free digital edition of Hinduism
I Today magazine. It is the fulfillment of a vision held by my Satguru
Sivaya Subramuniyaswami, founder of Hinduism Today, to bring the
magazine’s profound Hindu teachings to the widest possible audience.
The text of each issue has long been available on the Web, right back Click links below to soar over other areas of our vast
to 1979, but without the photographs and art. Now you have here the ocean of internet resources in your web browser
entire contents of the printed edition, with all photos and art. Plus, it
is interactive—every link is live; click and you go to a web page. You participate learn explore
can participate in the magazine in a number of ways, accessed through
buttons on the right. And you can help support this free edition in two
Make a Donation to Hinduism Today A Daily Chronicle of
ways: make an online contribution (even a small one); patronize our
Hinduism Today Home Page Kauai’s Hindu Monastery
specialized advertisers. Explore the resources here, enjoy our latest
edition and e-mail us if you are inspired.

Subscribe to the Print Hinduism Today Amazing Publications,

Edition of Hinduism Today Archives Online Viewable Online

Submit an Article to Read the Story of Shop at the Himalayan

Hinduism Today Hinduism Today Academy Online Store

Send Comments Subscribe to Hindu

An Audio Library
To the Editor Press International, a
Of Inspired Talks
(e-mail) Daily News Summary
PUBLISHER'S DESK
Meditation: the
I(ey Is Preparation
You've heard you are not your mind, boco/ or emotions.
Here's a way to experience that reality every day.
BY SATGURU SIVAYA SUBRAMUNIYASWAMI
EDITATION IS A LONG
a pilgrimage into the
itself Generally, we be-
aware that there is such
thing as meditation after
the material world has lost it attraction
to us, and previous desires-no longer
bind us to patterns of fear, greed, at-
tachment and ramification. We then
seek through philosoRhy and religion
to answer the questio~s, "Who am I?
Where did I come from? Where am I
going?" We ask others. We read books.
We ponder and wonder. We pray. We
even doubt for a while that there is a Truth to be realized or that
we with all our seeming imperfection can realize it if it does exist.
Oddly enough this is the beginning of the meditator's journey on
th"e path, for we must empty ourselves fully before the pure super-
conscious energies can flow freely through us.
When we try to internalize awareness too quickly through vari-
ous intense and sometimes fanatical ways, we reap the reaction.
Meditation goes fine for a brief span, but then externalizes again
according to the pro'gramming of our family and culture. To per-
manently alter these patterns, we hjive to work gently to develop a
new lifestyle for the totality of our being: physically, emotionally,
intellEtctually and spiritually. This we do a little at a time. ~isdom
tells ~s that it cannot be done all at once. We have to be patient
with ourselves. If we are impatient on the path, failure is in vie;vv.
We are going to fail because instant spiritual unfoldment is a fairy-
tale concept. It is far better that we recognize that there will be
difficult challenges as the subconscious looms up with all of its
conflicts and confusions, heavy and strong. If our eventual goal is
clearly in mind and we have a positive step-by-step plan on how to
reach that goal, then we won't,get excited when something goes
wr ong, because we view our mental and emotional storms in their
proper and temporary perspectii('e.
In the beginning, it is best to find a suitable room that is dedi-
cated solely to meditation. If you were a carpenter, you would get
a shop for that purpose. You have a room for eating, a room for
sleeping. Now, you need a room just for the purpose of meditation.
When you find it, wash the walls and ceiling, clean the windows.
Pt~pare a small altar if you like,bringing together the elements of
earth, air, fire and water and any divine images that inspire you.
Establish a time for your meditations and meet those times
strictly. There will be days when you just don't feel like meditating.
Good. Those are often the best days, the times when we make
6 HINDUISM TODAY. JULY" 1997
strong inner strides. The finest times to
meditate are just before sunrise and
sunset. The period of meditation should
be from ten minutes to one-half hour to
begin with.
By sitting up-straight, with the spine
erect, the energies of the physical body
are transmuted. Posture is important, es-
pecially as meditation deepens and
lengthens. With the spine erect and the
head balanced at the top of the spine,
the life force is qui.ckened and intensi-
fied as energies flood freely through the
nerve system. In a position such as this,
we cannot become worried, fretful, de-
pressed or sleepy during our meditation.
But if we slump the shoulders for-
ward, we short-circuit the life energies.
In a position such as rhis, it is easy to
become depressed, to have mental argu-
ments with oneself or another, or to ex-
perience unhappiness. So learn to sit dy-
namically, relaxed and yet poised. The
first obser'vation you may have when
thus seated for meditation is that
thoughts are racing through the mind
substance. You may become aware of
many, many thoughts. Also, the breath
may be irregular. Therefore, the next
step is to tr.ansmute the energies from .
the intellectual area of th~ mind through
the breath, in just the same way as the
proper attitude, preparation and posture
transmuted the physical-instinctive en-
ergie? Through regulation of the Ifreath,
thoughts C\!e stilled and awareness moves ..; '-'!..lLlU.lu.u...".........".
into an area of the mind which does not
think, but conceives and intuits.
There ru;e vast and powerful systems of breathing that can stim-
ulate the mind, sometimes to excess. Deep meditation requires
only that the breath be systematically slowed or lengthened. This
happens naturally as we go within, but can be encouraged by a
simple method of breathing, called pranayama, during which the
breath is counted: nine counts as we inhale, hold one count, nine
counts as we exhale, hold one count. The length of the beats or the
rhythm of the breath will slow as the meditation is sustained, until
, warmth. Feel the glow of the body. This is very easy, because the'
we are counting to the beat of the heart. This exercise allows
awareness to flow int.o an area of the mind that is intensely alive,
peaceful, blissful and conceives the totality of a concept rather
than thinking out the various parts. '
After you have quieted the body and the breath is flowing reg-
ularly, close your eyes. Close your ears and shut off the external
sense perceptionS. Having thus quieted the outer forces, we are
prepared to meditate. Just sitting is not enough. To meditate 'for
even ten or fifteen minutes takes as much energy as one would use
Meditating together: A family shares quiet moments in a foresJ. Fa-
ther has taught good posture, breath control, and indrawing atten-
tion first to the body's heat, then the nerve currents/ then the pow-
er within thl3 spine. Soon pure awareness is experienced .
. in rllllIling around the block three times. A powerful meditation
fills and thrills us with an abundance of energy to be used cre-
atively in the external world .during the activities of daily life.
Great effort is required to make inner strides; we J;Ilust strive very,
very hard and meet each inner challenge. .
But what to meditate upon? What do we focus on during medi-
tation? Usually the sincere devotee will have a guru or spil7itual
guide' and ~llow his instructions. He may have a mantra, or sound,
which he concentrates upon or a particular technique or attitude
he is perfecting. If he has no guru or specific instructions, then
here is a raja yoga exercise that can enhance inn'er life, making it
tang]bly real and opening4Jmer doors of the mind. Use it to begin
each meditation for the rest of yoUl' life.
Simply sit, quiet the mind and feel the warmth of the body.
Feel the natural warmth in the feet, in the legs, in the head, in the
neck, in the'hands and face. Simply sit and be aware of tha:t'
physical body is what many of us are most aware of Take five or
ten minutes to do this. There's no hurry. Once you can feel this
/
warmth that is cre::rted by the life force as it flows in and through
the' body's cells, go within to the next step. .
,The second step is to feel the nerve currerits of the bO'dy. There
are thousands of miles of nerve Cl!lrrents in each of us. Don't try to
f~el them all at once. Start with the little ones, with the feeling of
):he hands. Now,Jeel the life force going through these nerves ener-
gizing the body. Try to sense t11e subtle nerve~ that extend out and
around the body about three or four feet. Tune into the currents of
life force as they flow through these nerves. This is a subtle feeling,
and most likely awareness will wander into some other area of the
mind. When this happens, gently bring it back to your point of
concenrration;'to feeling the nerves within the body and the ener-
gy within the nerves.
The third step takes us deeper inside as we become dynamical-
ly aware in the spine. Feel the power within the spine, the power-
house of energy that feeds out to the external nerves and muscles.
Visualize the spine in your mind's eye. See it as a hoHow tube or
channel through which life energies flow. Feel it with your inner
feelings. It's there-subtle and silent, yet totally intense. It is a sim-
ple feeling. As }'0U feel this hollow spine filled with energy, realize
that you ru;e more that energy than you are the physical body
through which it flows, more that pure energy than the emotions,
than the thought force. Identify yourself with this energy and begin
to live your true spiritual heritage on this E,arth. As you dive deep-
er into that energy, you will find that this great P9wer, your sense I
of awru;eness and your willp9wer are all one and the same thing. '
The fourth step c'omes as we plunge awareness into the essence,
the center of this energy in the head and spine. This requires gJ eat
discipline and exacting control to bring awareness to the point of
being a\~are of itself-pure awareness~ not aware of any object,
feeling or thQ!lght. The Yajur Vedas states, "Sublest of the subtle,
greatest of of the great, the u.tman is hidden in the cave of the
-heart of all beings." Go into the physical forces that flood day and
night through the spine and body. Then go into the energy of that,
deeper into the vast inner space of that, into the essence of that,
into the that of that, ~d into the that of that. As you sit in th!s
state, new energies will flood the body, flowing out through the
nerve system, out int{) the exWrior world. The nature becomes
very refined in meditating in this way. Once you are thus C'entered
wifhin yourself, you are ready to pursue a meditation, a mantra or ,I
j
a deep philosophical question.
JULY , 1997 HINDUISM TG.DAY Y

24l&1t&Ta
EDITORIAL
Cult Status Denied ~
- t
An apocryphhlletter we received, explaining
why Hindus are discriminat~d against
BY THE EDITOR
From the Office of Cult Regulation and Licensing
United States Department of Justice,Washington, DC
To Acharya P'alaniswami, Editor, )finduism Today
" .l REETIN(;S FROM A VERY HIGH PLACE. WE ARE TRULY SORR,Y
application for recognition as a US-Approved cult,
~Jr"'f''''''''rl 1ast year, has been delayed. As you may know, al-
everybody in this country either wants to start a cult or
one down, ane! this offiGe (established by Bill Clinton to
monitor and license cults) has been inundated wi~ requests. When
tHe 39 members of a Christian group iIllSan Diego, California, left
their "containers" prematurely on March 23 [story on page 22], the
enormous outpguring of media awareness helped us to acquire new
funding, and so we are able at last' to process your application.
That said, we regret to inform you that your application has been
denied, and .¥.ou will not-qualify for special tax breaks available to our
licensees. By iaw, you are entitled to an explanation of this decision.
The US government takes no position for or against c~lts. While
cults have historically been viewed as dreadful, dangercrus and even
wicked, it is our'view that, like pharmaceuticals and nuclear fuels,
t~y can have a salubrious social impact if properly controlled by u~,
your trusted elected officials. After all, we run the military, arguably
the most sophisticated, lethal'and well-equiped cult (we mean that in
the most positive sense of the term) in the world. As you know, the
word cult is not inher~ntly negative. It derives from the same linguis-
tic root as culture and cultivate.
Our staff constantly counsels citizf1ns who think cult is a four-letter
w()rd and hold the fallacy that free-
dom ~s protected by staying away
from-powerful people. To them, a
cult controls one's life and guides
ones thinking. It is an organization,
with a central authority figure, that
imposes strict niles on members
and may restrict what one eats,
when one sleeps, what entertain-
ment one watches and what bopks
oil:e can read. It may even monitor
members' sex life, forbid the free '
use of certain language, require
that official clothes be worn and
dem~d obedience while denying
all challenges to leaders' authofity.
Under that defiflition everyone's grandparents ran the original cult
operation-the family. Families do all the above, and more. So do the
Boy Scouts, the White House, boarding schools, the armies and pris-
ons of every civilized nation, Olympic-bound sports teams !IDd virtu-
ally every religious order ever founded. In fact, a good argument can
be made that the medical profession is the worlds highest-paia pro-
8 HIN D U ISM T OD AY. Ju ~Y, 199 7
- - -- - -------------~
I
fessional cult, requiring blind obedience of
neophytes (called interns) , making them MY TURN
work 36 to 72 hours at a stretch without
sleep, feeding them drugs and cafeteria food
until they submit their weary wills to the
leaders who live luxuriously on the dona-
tions of aspiring doctors. Clewly, if we think
This Suicide Got ,
it's good to preserve human institutions
which "brainwash" y.oung minds with the
persuasions we call:bulture, the science we
call medicine anG! the rites we ca'll religion,
No One to Heaven
then we can no longer denigrate the institu-
tion of the cult. Before legislation was enact-
ed, most cults were nothing but the other
Blame the wrong-thinking philosophy of
man's way of life. You ~an easily see why
governmental controll:s so very needed.
Heaveiis Gate, not the 'Eastern·faiths
Of course, some orgaRizations, like some families, are harmful, so
we have two designations: Grade A (for altruistic) and Grade B (for BY SWAMI BRAHMAVIDYANA,NDA SARAsWA),I
bad). Our manual defmes a Grade B qualifier as "a malevolent
group, often with a charismatic leader, which deceives and abuses
OR THE MEDIA TO ASSOCI- .one body, it enters another, Loving Ganesa, at once simple,
members' and causes real harm to the society In which it functi~ns."
ate the lunacy of Heaven's . depending on the actions (kar-
Grade B licensees include dangerous groups that arm themselves
Gate suicides with Eastern ma) of the individual. Such
with automatic rifles, preach fear and hate and stockpile cyanide. deep and practical. teaches ever so /
beliefs is the height of igno- siinple and beautiful concepts
Grade A groups include churches and institutions. Indeed, most of
rance. The philosophy of Heaven's were so twisted and contorted
our licensees are'Christian. The reason behind this predominance is many ways that Ganesas grace
Gate members was man-made by a warped mind.
not governmental bias, but Congressiohal expert testimony that
, and not based on scriptures, • Heaven's Gate group mem-
ChristiaI).ity dwells on the End of the WorlcP, the Apocalypse and the
. whe~eas the' Hindl!! philosophy is bers spoke about spacecraft can be attained by sincere devo-
Day of Judgment. Psychologists, have concluded that when groups
a timeless gift from God to and ascending in these to
hold the idea that the ,end is near, coupled with the belief that their
mankind. heaven. Their concept, in light
leader is the Chosen One (as with "Do" of the Heaven's Gate group), tion, song, prayer and meditation
There are three' kinds'b f proof: of tne seriousness of the E~r-
you have all the ingredients for being a legitimate cult.
perceptional, inferential and scriptural. nal Vedic Dharma kno':"'n as Hinduism, is
We realize that the US press does sometimes ineptly brand East- to bring greater harmony,
Perceptional evidence is a -very weak fOl;m utterly silly. These people lived in a dream
ern religions as cultish, but their misjudgment will not help your-
of proof Basicafly, it says, "I see, therefore I world, hoping for a better experience out-
group to receive recognition from this office. That brings us to your
believe." But this proof fails very e?sily. An side of this world. Hinduism, on the other contentment and spirituality into
failed ·application. In your submissions, you have noted that we have
inferential 'evidence is, "Where there is hand, teaches one to live in the material
not approvehl a single Hindu cult, an9. you have said this strikes you
smoke, there is fire:" Fire may not 'be visi- world but to not allow the material wdrld to ones daily life. An BOO-page il/us-
as unjust. Scholarly informants assure us that Hindus just don't quali-
, ' ble, ~ut we infer the existence of fire look- live in the mind. It teaches the individual
fy. They cite the OsholRajneesh phenomenon in the '80s, but note he
ing at smoke. Sometimes, both these proofs to see the Omnipresent Lord in all beings
was a renegade Jain, not a Hindu. Transcendentpl Meditation is high trated resource by Satguru
fail, and that is where the third~ scriptural and objects.
on many cult lists, but they make no claims of being Hindu, and the
evidence comes in. This is the greatest proof In all that has been said of the Heaven's
only danger they pose is a ruinous loss of follower( anxiety. .
In the sad case involving the Heaven's Gate Gate group, there seems to be no mention Sivaya Subramuniyaswami, $ J 9.95
It may seem discriminatory, but there are no credible Hindu cults.
leader and members, we note that their of God or praying to God. The fact is that
We have c~ncluded that this is your fault, not ours. Why? Hindus
philosophy was not based on scripture,l>. this group was not guided by spirituality plus Shipping (US $2,
don't possess the narrowness that any
ACllording to HindU/scriptures, even con- but by a misguided man. This is clearl~
resourceful cult nurtures i~ memoers.
templating suicide is a sin, what then to the case of the blind leading the blind, He
Hindus see God everywhere and in Foreign $4), Also in bookstores,
speak ot: actually committing it! Our scrip- who associates these sorry individuals with
everyone. That belief renders them
tures hi'ghly praise the human form, which the lofty teachings ,of Hinduism is dearly
inept in the arrogant arts and the so-
is considered t@ be the rarest and most looking for a scapegoat, and, that too, a 1-800-890-1008
cial and psychological antagonism~
precious of all lives. He who willingly gives sHent one.
which are the bread and butter of 1-808-822-3152
up his body is punished by God. His soul is In my opinion, Hindus shoutd send let-
reputable cults. Moreover, they are
put into a lower form of life. It is made to ters to editors' of l1ewspape:t;s, magazines http://www. HinduismToday.
quite incompetent when it cOIl)es to
wander around, and it knows no rest. and such to express their outrage.
the requisite skill of forcing their be- kauai. hi.us/ashram
I think the Heaven's Gate group were Hinduism is a tolerant religion, true, but we
liefs" on others, thinking, as they do,
meant to die when they did: they would. tend to remain qUiet even as sO¥1eone de-
that all paths are worthy and each
not have even lived a moment long~, but nounces our faith right in front of u~ I am
soul will ultimately attain spirituallih-
still God will punish them for taking their not by any means propagating violent or
eration, with none suffering eternally I
in Hell: They are, to put it quite plain-
lives. The reason being that although the belligerent behaviors towards those who LOVING
time of death" right q,own to the exact mo- attack our faith. But I am saying, that we
ly, too occult to be a cult.
If ever these shortcomings are rectified-and especially ifyou or
ment, is determined even before 'birth, the
method of death is pot.
should become more familiar with om; own
, religion and defend it with a calm and
GANESA
your affiliated ashrams and,temples could offer some verifiable proof
Other concepts which were completely rational voice.
of commitment to'a Messiah or a millenarian worldview or if Hindus
misunderstood by this group are reincarna- HIMALAYAN ACADEMY PUBLICATIONS
are ever implicated in a mass suicide or if your tradition ever miti-
tion: and karma which are highly scientific SWAMI BRAHMAVIDYANANDA'is the director of I 07 KAHOLAlELE ROAD
gates its stubborn universalistic openness toward other paths-we
and logical truths. The soul carmot exist .o n the Satyanan'da Ashram, Florida, USA He KAPAA, HI 96746-9304 USA
will be pleased to reconsider your application.
earth without the body, and when it leaves has been teaching yoga fo r the past 27 years.
BOOKS YOU CAN TAKE. SERIOUSLY

,,
"We shoul'd ye~rn for the Divine Spirit with confidence
~ I
and with a.feelingof ~Ioseness as to a father and mother."
,-
If even a single one of the senses is uncon-
trolled, -all knowledge leaves a p'erson just
as water drainsofrom a leakinKwater vesseL
M~nu Samhita, Verse II. 99
"Fasting is possible. You can"stay without
food for a week or ten days, Feasting is also
possible. You simply~o and eat all you
want. Many people are really fast when
th~y end their fast: They are fast in getting
to the refrigerator." Swami ,Satchldananda
on the need to follow the "middle path"
I'M NOT ONLY A
VEGETARIAN, I'M ALSO AN
ENVIRONMENTALIST.
10 HINDUISM TODA'Y ]"!5,LY ,
a.tUIPS
•
Sri Karunamayi
. A deeply devout man lived down in a val-.
ley. He had absolute faith that C{od would
always look alter him. One day a great
storm came. It rained for days, and the
vaHey flooded. The waters submerged the
first £loor of his home. As he looked out
from the second floor, a rescue boat came
by. "Come. We will save you," t1!e rescuers
cried. "Thank you," the man replied, "but
God will save me. You go help the others in sell him a vacuum cleaner. The Buddhist
need." They tried to convince him to join
them, but finally gave up and left. The /
flqod continued, submerging the entire
house. The man took ~efuge on the roof A
helicopter flew (wer. "Come. The dam has
broken upstream. ~e will save you," the
rescuers cried. "Thank you, no," the man
calmly replied. "I know beyond any doubt
that God will save me." They tried and
tried t«: convince him. But h~ remained.
The waters continued to rise, and the man
drowned. He soared into the inner worlds
in hfs soul body and found himself face to
face with God. "I trusted you," he cried.
"Why didn't you save me?" God answered,
"I sent you a boat and a helicopter. What
more did you want?" , forest. Those who have disciplined their
Life is like photography. You use the nega-
tives to develop. Swami Beyondananda
I
BUT WHEN I CATCH'EM
FOR INSTANCE, I DON'T EAT THEM.
I STILL HUNT MICE...
1997
/
"Now I am become death, the destroyer of
worlds." J. Robert Oppenheimer (1904---1967)
quoting from the Bhagavad Gita as he
. watched the mushroQ..1n cloud of tlW first
'atomic bomb rise in the New Mexico, US4-
desert on July 16, 1945
There once was a salesman who knocked on
the door of a Buddhist monk and. tried to
monk thought about it for a minute and said,
"OK, I'll take one-but no attachments."
Mahatma Gandhi visited London in 1932. He
toured the city wearing traditional dhoti and
khadi shawl. People who met him were
shocked with his "ba,rbaric" attire, and he was
the subject of ridicule-notably by Churchill
himsel£ On one occasion Gandhi accepted an
invitation to tea from King George V, "Emper-
or of India." When asked afterwards if he felt
underdressecl, G~dhi replied, "His Majesty
had enough clothes on for both of us."
Those who have worldly desires suffer
from restlessness even in"the solitude of the
senses, they practice austerities ~ven while
liv-ing in a crowded home,
Hitopadesha, Chapter 4
I RECYCLE 'EM,
CONFLICT AND D ISPlACEMENT
IN SRI LANKA
POP C U L T. U R E
.Rock Star with
Hindu Planets
VULA SHAKER, LONDON'S
NJ.ot band named after an In-
dian.empel\.or poet combines Laugh club works out in India
Indian rhythms, Sanskrit
mantras and pop melodies. YOGA
Lead singer Crispian Mills, son
of actress Haley Mills, says, Laugh Asanas
"We have lost touch with spiri-
tualism in the West. Kula is ORE THEN 100 LAUGHING
about spirituality, innocence
and a bright future. " In 1993,
M clubs now provide Indians
with venues for chortlirig exer-
The cover of the USCR's March report on Sri Lankan Refugees he lived in a Hindu temple in cise. The Wall Street Journal
India, and last year returned to reported that Dr. Madan j
SRI LANKA Bharat for his Hindu wedding. Kataria started by organizing a
Last September, Mills asked that group of five jokers at his home
War's Ravages Finally Told Columbia Records wait for a in Bombay. The meetings grew
plantery alignment at exactly , in number and now the good
5:05PM, Sept. 29, to sign on Kula. doctor has "popularized an an-
Finto the war-torn Jaffna areas in the north of the ancient is-
OR YEARS MEDIA OBSERVERS WERE BARRED FROM ENTRY
land of Sri Lanka. In August of 1996, two representatives.of the
cient yoga breathing and yoga
posture" that exercises all 32 fa-
privately-funded U.S. Committee for Refugees-policy analyst cial muscles. Club members
Hiram A. Ruiz and research assistant Katie Hope-were grant- from all ag~s and walks of life
ed permission to visit Jaffna by the Sri Lankan government. line up, stretch and warm up
Their thorough March 1997 report details, with interviews and with a few "ha ha has" and ''ho
recommendations, the plight of over half a million displaced Sri ho ho's." They gradually move
Lankan Tamils under key categories: conflict assessment; Jaffna on to a rib-splitting workout
city security issues of rape, disappearances, checkpoints; the that devotees say opens the
possible food crisis facing 500,000 civilians in the Wanni area breathing, builds self-confi-
under the control of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam; dence and evep alleviates high
detention center conditions and asylum in India. Copies of the Crispian Mills tunes into stars blood pressure and arthritis.
report may be obtained from:
u. s. COM1UTTEE FOR REFUGEES, 17 1 7 MASSACHUSETIS AVE. , NW, SUITE 7 01 TRENDS
WASHINGTON, D .C., 20036 , USA; PH; 202-3 4 7 -3 507
MULTI-NATIONAL
S ELF ~ E S S .S E R V ICE Muslims Protest US Statue
BUilding Babaji's Hospital '7\ SCULPTURE OF THE PROPHET MOHAMMED HOLDING A
Rsword and the Koran has looked down from a marble frieze
~E " UNBORN" APPEAR- depicting history's great lawgivers upon the US Supreme Court
I ance in the Himalayas since 1935. In February the Council on American-Islamic Rela-
of a young ascetic known tions called for its removal. The coalition of Muslim groups
as Haidakhan Baba ("men- claims it is an insult to Islamic tradition and that the sword re-
dicant of Haidakhan vil- flects stereotypes of Muslims as "intolerant conquerors." The
lage") in 1970, was be- council's executive director, Nihad Awad, said "Muslims do not
lieved to be the return believe that the prophet can be symbolized in any picture or
of an immortal Hindu artistic sculpture." In rejecting their request, Chief Justice /
yogi. Babaji passed away William H. Rehnquist said the frieze honors the pmphet and
in 1984. In 14 years he carved will not be altered. Literature describing the £reize, however,
a pristine Hindu path: purity, will be changed to reflect Muslim sentiments on the issue.
simplIcity in living, the perfor- Kashmiri Muslims responded to his decision with demonstra-
mance of the Vedic fire wor- tions and a protest letter to the US. The situation is similar to
ship, chanting of God's name- the Hindu 1996 protests over Muslim artist Maqbool Fida Hus-
Om Nama Sivaya, meditation sain's 20-year-old nude painting of the Goddess Saraswati.
and service. Today Haidakhan Baba Haidakhan Hospital logo
CLOCKWISE FROM TOP: U.S . COMMI'ITEE FOR REFUGEES , LONDON FEATURES,
DR. MADAN KAT~IA, SHREE BABA HAIDAKHAN J~HARITABLE AND RESEARCH HOSPITAL JULY, 1997 HI N D U ISM TO DAY 11

Bearded Sri Reddiar wors1iips 529-year-old Sivalin&.a unearthed in Tamil Nadu, India
IN DI A
Unearthed After 529 Years
1985
Imaking
N SRIRADHAKRISHNA
Reddiar was having difficulty
progress building a
small Ayyappa temple in Tamil
Nadu. ·He went to Vellore's Pun-
dit Sri J. Hari for an astrological
reading. The pundit used as a
guide the 3,300-year-old text of
the Tamil siddhar [master of
spiritual knowledge] Theiryar.
It details the fruits of deeds
done in past lives as revealed in
the planetary positions of one's
birth. Pundit ~ari discovered
remarkable correlations while
matching Reddiar's planets
against the text. With prolific
precision, he unfolded 13 pages
of interpretative predictions
that explained how a 7-inch-tall
Sivalinga made of five "poi-
sons," which would have cura-
PHIL A TELY
Swami's Stamp
RI LANKA HAS HONORED
SSwami Vivekananda's 1897
landing in Colombo, the first
stop after his "victory tour" to
the West, with a centenary
stamp. Jbbiliant Hindus and
others welcomed him. But in
the ancient town of Anuradha-
pura fanatical Buddhists dis-
rupted his address. Swami re-
strained his audience, saying,
"Let us practice a bit of non-
violence, even if they do not."·
Lanka's 1997 Vivekananda stamp
tive powers, was made in 1368
in the Vijayanagar kingdom.
Later, to protect it from invad-
ing Muslims, it was chemically
treated, covered with beeswax
and copper acet-a.te and buried
32 feet under the bottom of a
temple pool. Only by un-
earthing this Sivalinga would
Reddiar be able to finish his
temple. He pIOceeded as Pun-
dit directed and dug up the
Lingam. The ancient text man-
uscript and Pundit's predictive
notes are all open for study.
Pooja, Devotional and Wedding Items
Pre-packaged items for Ganapati sitting (or dancing), Ram
havans • Religious statues
• Religious Books in Eng-
34159 Fremont Bvd
Fremont, CA 94555 USA
Tel: 510· 793·7930
•
•
::;:: ~
Darbar, Lakshmi, Shiva-Parvati,
Durga, Shirdi Sai Baba, Hanuman,
lish, Sanskrit, Gujarati Fax: 510· 793· 7026 Santoshi Ma, Tirupati Balaji, Vishnu,
and Hindi • Kohlapur
chappals, silk paintings, Pooja Shiva Nataraj, Krishna, Krishna with
Cow. 3 to 5" (7 to 12 cm) high. $19.95
brahmni booti, kut, agar,
tagar, bhojaptra, lotus
International to $39.95. $3.50 shippg. Catalog.
Discounts for retailers and temples.
seed • Men's, children's kurta, pajamas, sari blouses, sari falls - Nirvana Collection-
and petticoats, children's clothes • Jaintri and Panchang • 289 Route 416, RR3, Campbell Hall,
1997 shipment from India just arrived • Ask for list of items. NY 10916 USA • Tel: 1-800-374-2304
• Prompt delivery • M.Card, Visa, Am.Ex credit cards OK. or 1-914-294-1498. Fax 914-294-3870.
Moneesh Gifts and Books Timeless Values
I
• Religious Books: Hinduism, Sikhism, Buddhism, Jainism, Leading thinkers such as Swami
Judaism, Islam, Christi'anity and other modern faiths. Chinmayananda and Thich Nhat
• Religious Statues: wood, stone, metal, crystal-l in. to 5 ft. Hanh offer their perspectives on
• Pooja Items: incense, dhoop, floral oils, beads and malas. the values that help us face the
• Clothing: kurta pyjama sets, silk saris and punjabi sets, pooja . challenges of today.
clothes, wool shawls, cotton, rayon and silk prayer shawls.
• Natural Remedies: homeo, bach flower, vitamins, ayurvedic
ISBN 1-880687-11-9
US$lO plus $3.75 postage.
and herbal preparations, massage oils and and more. Tel: 215-396-0390 or 888-269-7323
• Posters and Pictures: posters and calendars of deities, all sizes. http://www.chinmaya.orglpublications
• And much, much more • Mail Order Inquiries welcome. Chinmaya Publications
Free Catalog: Moneesh • 467 Brickman Rd. , Hurleyville, 560 Bridgetown Pike
NY 12747 USA. Tel: 914-434-8990 • Fax 914-436-5878. Langhorne, PA 19053-7210 USA

THE VEDAS
God's Word,
Sages'Voices
Lead me from unreality to
reality. Lead me from dark-
ness to light. Lead me from
death to immortality.
YAJUR VEDA, BHIHADAHANYAKA
UPANISHAD 1.3.28
Subtlest of the subtle, great-
est of the great, the atman
is hidden in the cave of the
heart of all beings, He who,
free from all urges, beholds Him overC0mes sorrow, seeing
by grace of the Creator the Lord and His glory.
KRISHNA YAJUR VEDA, SVETASVATARA UPANISHAD 3.20
Perishable is matter. Immortal, imperishable the Lord, who,
the One, controls the perishable and also the soul. Meditat-
ing on Him, uniting with Him, becoming more and more
like Him, one is &eed at the last from the world's illusion.
KR ISH NA YAJUR VEDA. SVETilSVATAllil UPANISHAD l.l0
12 HINDUISM TODA'I' JUf- Y , 1997
That which is neither conscious nor unconscious, which is We offer a wide selection of Roy Eugene Davis,
invisible, impalpable, indefinable, unthinkable, unname- Sri Chinmoy's inspirational a widely-traveled teacher,
able, whose very essence consists of the experience of its and instructional written author and direct disciple of
own self, which absorbs all diversity, is tranquil and be- works, including essays, Paramahansa Yogananda,
nign, without a second, which is what they call the fourth poetry, plays and extensive " has taught in the kriya yoga
state-that is the at·man. This it is which shou1d be known. answers to questions asked tradition for more than four
ATHAllVA VEDA, MANDUKYA UPANISHAD 7 by seekers. decades.
He is the Supreme Brahman, the Self of all, the chieffoun- Music includes soul-stirr,ing Request information about
dation of this world, subtler than the subtle, eternal. That audio and video perform- his books and classes in the
thou art; thou art That. ances by Sri Chinmoy and his USA, India, Europe and
ATHkRVA VEDA, KAIVALYA UPANISHAD 16 students on instruments from other countries.
allover the world.
He should be known as one liberated while alive. He is Center for Spiritual Awareness
blessed and is of fulfilled duties. After giving up the state Just published- p.o. Box 7-H
of being liberated while alive, when the time arrives for his Sri Chinmoy's long-awaited Lakemont, Georgia
quitting the body, he enters on the state of disembodied trilogy, Commentaries on the Vedas, the Upanishads and the 30552-0007 USA
liberation, even as the air attains the state of nonmovement. Bhagavad Gita: The Three Branches of India's Life-Tree
SHUKL~ YAJUR VEDA, PAINGALA. UPANISHAD 3.5 and a 4-CD set of selections from Sri Chinmoy's fifty Peace Tel: 706-782~4723 • Fax 706-782-4560
Concerts offered in honor of the 50th anniversary of the http://www. csa-davis.org • E-mail csainc@stc.net
The one who has not turned away from wickedness, who has United Nations.
no peace, who is not concentrated, whose mind is restless- In India:
he cannot realize the atman, who is known by wisdom. Call or write for our free catalog! A Master Guide to Meditation (Rs. 55)
KRISHNA YAJU1\ VEDA, KATHA UPANISHAD 2.24 The Book of Life (Rs. 65) by Mr. Davis.
Heart-Light Distributors Motilal Banarsidass
Verses are drawn from varjous sources. Those taken from The Vedic PO Box 85464-H 41 U.A. , Bungalow Road
Experience by Prof Raimon Panikkar are available at www.Hin- Seattle, WA 98145-1464 USA Jawahar Nagar, Delhi 110 007
duismToday.kauai.hi. usiashramlDir-New.html#VedExp.html
• Offices and stores also in Patna, Bangalore, Madras,
Tel: 800-739-2885 or 1-206-527-2099 Varanasi, Calcutta and Pune.
Fax: 1-206-527-2099 If by mail, add Rs. 15 each book for postage.
CLOCKWISE FROM TOP: C. SUNDARAVAQIVEL U
SRI LANKAN GOVERNMENT STAMP, PAINTING BY S. RAJ A1f
 A New Incarnation of the Bita's Truths
LETTERS Books by Swami Shankar Paramahansa Yogananda penetrates to
Impacting India tional orgaruzation. I myself, as a twenty-two There are only a few details of worship Purushottam Tirtha: the Bhagavad Gita's psychological
THE PUBLISHER'S DESK ARTICLES ARE FAN- year member of the society, struggled with an.sJ. practice that we share with Pashupatas, and metaphysical depths, revealing its
taj>tic. Gurudeva is really bringing forward many of ISKCON's shortcomings. Like most Kalamukhas and Lingayats. This influence Yoga Vani innermost essence. Many long-lost
the pure teachings of Saivis£ In India, members, I chose to continue to work with is only upon the external ritual worship. The Instructions for the attain- truths come to life in his new transla-
child beating, child labor and child abuse Prabhupada's society to advance the high original esoteric teachings of this sampra- ment of Siddhayoga during tion and commentary, illuminating the
are so common. Gurudeva is ~ rare soul who ideals he taught us, while overcoming the im- daya, which are obviously more Kaula Shak- sadhana. eternal questions found in every heart.
really upholds dharma. We hope religious pediments we faced. Despite all obstacles, ta than Saivite, remain strong and distinct postpaid: US$13.50 (USA) God Talks With Arjuna:
institutions will read the article "Bad Money, ISKCON continues to grow and have a posi- Unlike Virasaivas, our followers recognize $16.50 (Canada) The Bhagavad Gita
Good Money" (May '97) and cllange their tive impact on the lives of our cdf).gregation the Vedas and other brahmanic Hindu 1,224 pgs, two vols. w/slipcase, US$42.
approach when collecting donations from and society at large. Last year, ISKCON cel- scriptures. , But we recognize the Tantras Guru Bani Self-Realization Fellowship
the public. Such articles will have a good im- ebrated its 30th anniversary with events at [Shakta and SaivaAgamasJ as more author- 100 ways to attain inner 213-342-0247 USA (9-5 PacifIc)
pact on the Hindus in India. 400 temples worldwide. Each Janmastami, itative than Vedic scriptures. Thus, purely peace. How to live a spiritual
TNA RAJASHANKAR millions flock to ISKCON temples for dnr- tantric ideas and practices predominate rp. life-for monks and families.
BANGAWRE, INDIA shan. 1997 will mark the opening of major tills tradition, which is both Shakta (tantric) postpaid: US$9.50 (USA)
" temple complexes in Delhi and Bangalore, and Saivite. ·' , $12.50 (Canada)
and the world's fIrst Hare Krishna Hospital The erroneous statements about Tantra The Divine Vision of Radha Krishn
Jai, Gurumayi! in Mumbai. Our Food for Life project has Sangha were the result of HINDUISM To- Ayurvedic Products Distributors-wholesale or retail
catalog: $1.00 (free via e-mail) • Consultations • 2-year by H.D. Swami Prakashanand
I HAVE BEEN READING YOUR MAGAZINE FOR fed 85 million meals to the needy in 70 coun- DAY'S editors misunderstanding our original
Ayurveda CertifIcation Courses in person or by correspon- Saraswati, is a practical guide to
some time now. It surely has been an en- tries. Reporting from Chechnya about information given to them because of incor-
ric;:hing medium in my life. Often I have felt ISKCON's work during the war, fIle New rect translation and differences in language. dence (either by post or via e-mail). experience the loving Bliss of Radha
Krishn or any other form of God
that HINDUISM TODAY has been a kind of York Times stated, "Here they have a reputa- STANISLAV A.GOROKHOV
Ayurveda Holistic Center explained in our scriptures. It gives a
torch-bearer for me, shedding light on the tion like the one Mother Theresa has in Cal- TANTRA SANGHA, MOSCOW, RUSSIA
aspects of my oym being which I did not cutta." This April in South Africa, ISKCON ": ....tantra@online.ru clo Swami Narayan Tirtha Math crystal-clear view of the path to
82A-H Bayville Ave • Bayville, NY 11709-1671 USA supreme God. (US$30, 462 pgs.)
know existed within me. I have read quite a organized and catered a one-day event for
Tel/fax: 1-516-628-8200 • Ask for Swami Sada Shiva Tirtha International Society of Divine Love
bit of the writings of the great Indian saint 40,000 school children to promote cultural Actively Engaged .
Swami Muktananda. Thereafter I was eager diversity and tolerance. President Nelson , IN YOUR ARTICLE ("MANJUL BHARGAVA: E-mail: mail@ayurvedahc.com Barsana Dham • 400 Barsana Rd
to read and learn more about his successor, Mandela gave-the keynote address. The list Chalks up the Morgan Prize," MATH-A-MA- Austin, TX, 78737-9075 USA
Web: httpllwww.ayurvedahc.com Tel: 512-288-7180, Fax: 512-288-0447
Gurumayi Swami Chidvilasana,nda. The ar- goes on and on. Despite the protests of a few GICIAN, May '97), it was erroneously print-
tide by her ("Ministers Message," April '97) detracters, Srila Prabhupada's movement ed, "His grandfather Dr. Purushottam Lal (Free interactive dosha self-test and articles) http://www.isdLorg
came as a wonderful surprise. Her article should be judged by its honest accomplish- Bhargava was a renowned scholar of San-
turned out to be like a revelation for me. Her ments, and the millions of people whose lives skrit." which gives the impression that he is
message is like a key which unlocked for me it helped change for the better. currently inactive in his fIeld. We would like
the deeper meaning of Swami Muktananda's ANNUTAMA DASA to emphasize the fact that Dr. P.L. Bhargava .
teachings, the most central teaching of NATIONAL DIRECTOR OF COMMUNICATION, ISKCON is actively engaged in writing books on In- Chinmaya Family Talks and Camps
which is, "God dwells within You as You." POTOMAC,MARYLAND,USA dology and delivering lectures.
She has so beautifully expounded further on MRs. MIRA BHARGAVA One week of discourses on By Swami Tejomayananda.
the same. I have savored every bit of her ex- Correct Russian Lineage NEW YORK,USA the Shrimad Bhagavat by An optimum blend of spirit-
tremely profound, yet amazingly simple THE ARTICLE ON THE TANTRA SANGHA OF ....matmzb@vaxc.hofstra.edu Swami Tejomayananda of ual, cultural and personal
message. I am so deeply convinced that Russia ("Tantra Worship Catches The in-Rus- Chinmaya Mission. experience. Experienced
even if I were to hold on to a tiny bit of her sia," RUSSIAN REVIVAL, April '97) inaccurately Peace's Prayer August 10-18, 1997 teachers offer the essence of
teachings and ponder over it constantly, her described the Sangha's tradition and prac- I REALLY FELT HURT FOR MY FELLOW TA- San Francisco State University Hindu scripture at all levels:
teachings would open up a whole new per- tices. We are not in any way Pashupatas or milians after reading the article ("Sri Lan- adult, youth, and children.
spective of looking at and living life more Virasaivas, nor Kalamukhas [various Saivite kan Tamils Tell Tales of a Desperate Dias- • Shrimad Bhagavat • Bhagavad Gita
purposefully. I want to thank you most sin- lineages]. Unlike the Virasaivas, we do not pora," COVER STORY, April '97). If all the discourses by Swami .Shrimad Bhagavat
cer~ly for introducing your readers' to Swa- perfgrm pujas to personal Sivalingams. We people are killed and the land destroyed, , Tejomayananda. .Other texts • Meditation
mi <%idvilasananda and look forward to carry them around the neck only as a symbol, what will both parties have to rule? They • The Essentials of • Interactive groups
more in the future. not as an object of worship. We are Tantrikas ; have lost everything. Then there'll be no use Self-Realization-3 talks • Drama; cultural programs
NUTANGUPTA beionging to the Vatulanatha Parampara of of crying over spilled ~. I hope and pray to by Swami Chidananda. • Arts and crafts
MUMBAI, INDIA the Rahasya Kaula Sampradnya, a branch of Lord Ganesha that bo.th parties will sit down • Art, crafts, bhajans, • Recreation, and more...
the Shakta -oriented upasampradaya [sub lin- for peace talks, for the sake of the people. prayers and recreation
Hare Krishna is Alive and Well eage1also known as the Kali Kula Krama sys- MURUGAPPAN for children. Family Camps: .
DESPITE THE INACCURATE CLAIMS OF A tem in Kashmir Tantric Saivism. MALAYSIA • Morning and evening arati. July 18-25 Washington, DC 301-384-5009
paid advertisement in HINDUISM TODAY The Rahasya Sampradnya, (secret tradi- ....u03134@kdupg.edu.my • Interactive group discussions. July 27-Aug 3 Allendale, Michigan 810-732-4255
("Betrayal of the Spirit," page 46, May '97), tion), teaches three ways (fIrst, middle and • Evening Cultural Programs: Stage productions of Sri Aug 4-10 Vancouver, Canada 604-433-3441
the Hare Krishna movement is alive and highest levels of the same Tantric Path) to Letters with writers n~e, address and daytime Rama Janma, Sri Krishna Janma and Krishna-Rukmini Aug 10-17 San Francisco, CA 408-998-2793
well. When our founder-acarya, His Divine God: t he path of Pashu (easy, not esoteric, phone number, should be sent to: Vivaha.
Grace A.G Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupa- Hindu tradition), also known as the "right- Letters, HINDUISM TODAY • Recreational activities. Vedanta for spiritual growth • Values for lasting happiness.
da, passed away in 1977, ISKCON faced se- handed path;" the path ofVira, or heroic es- 107 Kaholalele Road
rious challenges. Most disciples were young oteric tantric '1eft-handed path;' and the KAPAA, HI, 96746-9304 USA Chinmaya Family Spiritual Camps impart the essence of TalkslJnana Yagnas:
or faxed to: (808) 822-4351 Hindu philosophy and heritage to adults, youth, and children. July 7-11 Buffalo, NY 716-633-1633
converts and the institution was barely 11 path of Divya, path of highest level of or e-mailed to:
years old. Mistakes were made, and unfortu- Tantric sadhana. As tantrikas, S\vami Sada- Chinmaya Mission San Jose July 12-18 Toronto, Canada 416-663-6553
letters@HinduismToday_k~uai.hi.us
nately, some leaders went astray and caused shivacharya and his disciples follow and Letters qay be edited for space and clarity and may 1050 Park Avenue, San Jose, CA 95126-3036 USA Chinmaya Mission West • Krishnalaya
the society much pain and embarrassment. teach this tlrree-fold Tantric Path of Kula, appear in electronic versions of HINDUISM TODAY. Tel: 408-998-2793, 415-493-9020, Fax: 408-998-2952 PO Box 129, Piercy, CA 95587-0129 USA
This is not unexpected for a large interna- not the path of Pashu alone. .... INDICATES LEITERS RECEIVED VIA E-MAIL E-mail: bhagavat@Chinmaya.org Tel: 707-247-3488 • Fax: 707-247-3422
http://www.chinmaya.org!events
14 H"'INDUISM TODAY JULY , 1997 15

,
Teachings of Paramahansa Yogananda ,
The bliss of Dr. Vasant Lad, Ayurvedic knowledge the Judeo-Christian
God-awareness is Physician and Director of the God," not the gods of other
not an exclusive Institute, with visiting faculty, faiths, Moore said. "We are not a
possession of offer the Ayurvedic Studies nation founded upon the Hindu
saints and yogis, Program, seminars and pri- god or Buddha." Only Christians
but belongs to you vate consultations. have been invited to lead the
as well. "Self-real- prayers, but the judge's clerk,
ization," explained founDED In mo Yearly Curriculum: Scott Barnett, said he did try to
Paramahansa DH contact a local rabbi but couldn't
• I: Introduction to philosophy,
Yogananda, "is the pnRnmnHnnSn theory and systems (Fall). reach him. While Moore would
knowing-in body, IIOGnnnnOn • II: Introduction to Ayurvedic
not invite representatives of oth-
mind, and soul- assessment (Winter). er (eligions, he would not stop
them. "That's their right," Moore
that we are one with the omnipresence of God; that we do • III: Intra. to management of
imbalances (Spring). said.
not have to pray that it come to us, that we are not merely
Some of the judge's supporters ".
near it at all times, but that God's omnipresence is our
were troubled that Moore was in-
omnipresence; that we are just as much a part of Him now as • Correspondence Course by
sisting on his own religious free~
we ever will be. All we have to do is improve our knowing." Dr. Robert Svoboda, Ayurvedic Physician
dom but limiting its practice to
Through a series of printed Lessons for home study, you • Weekend and Intensive Seminars: Ayurvedic Cooking, Psy-
one faith only. "My personal view
can receive Paramahansa Yogananda's complete and accu- chology, Herbology, Pulse Reading, Sanskrit, Jyotish, etc.
is that our founding fathers
rate instruction in the Self-Realization techniques of medita- • Panchakarma-purification and rejuvenation by licensed staff:
would have permitted prayer
tion, concentration, and pranayama. This in-depth program oil massage, herbal steam, cleansing diet, herbal therapy, etc.
from other denominations," said
explains practical "how-to-live" principles for harmonizing • Ayur-yoga-integrating Ayurveda and Yoga for the purpose
former U.S. Sen. Jeremiah Den-
body, mind, and soul and is offered on a subscription basis of returning each person to his or her balanced state.
ton, who lead the Pledge of Alle-
for a nominal fee to help cover printing and handling. • Ayurvedic and Western herbs, extracts, oils, books, audio
giance at the Aprn 12 rally
For a free catalog of books and recordings, or further and video tapes and a quarterly journal.
information, please contact our international headquarters at: GoY. Fob James, who has
vowed to callout National Guard
Self-Realization Fellowship • 3880 San Rafael. Dept. 7HTG Write/call for our mail order catalog and information:
troops to defend Moore's beliefs if
Los Angeles, CA 90065-3298 USA The Ayuvedic Institute • PO Box 23445
Albuquerque, NM 87192-1445 USA necessary, said he doesn't think
Tel: 213-225-2471 (9-5 Pacific) • 24-hr fax: 213-225-5088
In my God I trust: The Ten Commandments are displayed behind Ju dge Moore.in his j,.labama court Moore is being intolerant of non-
Visit us on t~e Web: http://www.yogananda-srforg Tel: 505-291-9698. Fax: 505-294-7572
Christians by refusing to invite
~~~
? =
. ---" CHURCH AND STATE them to pray in his court. "I think that's his
call," said James, a rally speaker. "You might
o=-.........c~-'"'-'_

That Old-Time Religion ;

ask Congress how many Hindu or Muslim
leaders they have had to lead prayers." The
U.S. House of Representatives' chaplain,
who invites about one pastor a week during
Spiritual experiences of Swami
Shri Anandi Ma-Master in
the tradition of Kundalini Sivananda Radha
Judge posts Ten Commandments in courtroom; sessions to give the opening prayer, said
Tuesday in Washingtqn that he recalled a
Maha Yoga, will be offering by Julie McKay .. Hindus ~~not
inv_ited" to pray; before his sessions Muslim giving it at the request of a con-
public meditation programs in: , gressman. Imam Siraj Wahaj was invited by
Through the stories of Radha
Rep. Nick Rahall, a West Virginia Democrat,
• New York, NY: June 27 & 28 and Krishna, the author relates UDCE ROY MOORE DISPLAYS A PLAQUE the right to practice Christianity in his and gave the prayer in 1991. "There's no ex-
Tel: 212-877-7339 the story of Swami Radha's
of the Christian Ten Commandments in Etowah County Circuit courtroom. clusion that I know of," said the Rev. James
• Portland, ME: July 11 & 12 love affair with the Divine. Even the US. Congress passed a resolution Ford, a Lutheran who has been House. chap-
his courtroom and opens sessions with
Tel: 207-799-4449 By bringing these two realities prayer. And the judge, a Baptist whose in support of the judge (House Concurrent lain for 18 years.
• Antioch, CA: August 1 & 2 together, she allows us to see fight to J.ceep religion in his courtroom has in- Resolution 31) on March 6 stating "the sense The Anti-Defamation League of B'nai
Tel: 510-649-3005 the potential for each person spired a national rally, invites others to pray of the Congress is that the Ten Command- Brith, which has filed a brief opposing
• Cleveland, OH: Aug. 15 & 16 with a desire to focus on . with him-as long as they're 'not Muslims, ments are a declaration of fundamental Maore's side in the lawsuit, is concerned that .
Tel: 216-261-8498 hislher spiritual path. This Hindus or Buddhists. "They do not acknowlc principles that are the cornerstones of a fair the'judge appears to be Ep1dorsing a sRecific
book confirms that this edge the God of the holy Bible on which this and just society and the public display, in- religion to the exclusion 'Of others, s~d Jay
search is not in vain. Julie country was founded," Moore says. cluding display in government offices and Kaiman of the ADLS Southeast regional of-
Shaktipat initiation will be McKay, a student of Swami
Tens of thousands attended a rally at the courthouses should be permitted.' Repre- fice in Atlanta. "If I had a problem ... and I
offered by appointment each weekend. "With Shaktipat, the Radha since 1979, worked closely with her for seven years Alabama Capitol on April 12 to show their sentative Scott of Virginia complained that was in front of Judge Moore-and he knew
student is saturated with Divine Energy. After Shaktipat, the until Swami Radha's death in November, 1995. It was this inti- support for Moore, including national con- "the courtroom loses its neutrality when it what I did for a living and he knew my
Kundalini is permanently awakened and, like a mother, con- mate contact that allowed her to write this very personal story servative leaders like Ralph Reed of the endorses as pecific religious doctrine, and faith-I would feel tha; would bias his atti-
stantly cares for and nourishes her infant. One may be of Christian Coalition and the Rev. Don Wild- one Federal court has already decided that tude," said Kaiman, who is Jewish.
any religion, caste, or creed to benefit; for all persons, the "This is a charming, stirring and elevating love song within a mon of the American Famiiy Association. . the posting of the Ten Commandments in a Other critics noter;!. that Muslims worship
field of inner joy is the same. After Shaktipat, the Shakti will love song... a modern Gita Govinda."-Georg Feuerstein, PhD, The judge has won wide suppor~ from con- courtroom is unconstitutional." Others com- the same God as Jews and Christians, just in
take the student to the ultimate goal, without doubt." author of Structures of Consciousness . servaMve groups, as well a's Alabama politi- plained legal rulings were driving all s~s of a different way "With all due respect to the
cians and congressional leaders, as he ap- any religion from public view: . good judge, he is clearly wrong," said Leon J.
For general information about Shri Anandi Ma, Kundalini Limited edition: cloth, ribbon bookmark, photos, US$35.00. peals orders for him to stop opening court Not all of Moore's supporters are aware Weinberger, a JudaiC studies professor at the
Maha Yoga or Shaktipat contact: Write/call to order or for a free catalog: sessions with pr~er and to remove or alter that he draws a firm line against' inviting University of Alabama. "The Muslim Allah
Dhyanyoga Centers • PO Box 3194 Timeless Books the wooden plaque of the Ten Command- anyone' outside the Judeo-Christian tradi- is the same as the JeWish 'EI). found through-
Antioch, CA 94531-3194 USA. Tel: 510-757-9361 PO Box 3543, Spokane, WA 99220-3543 USA ments that hangs behind his bench. Moore tion to conduct the prayers in his courtroom. out the Bible."
http://www:dyc.org! Tel: 800-251-9273 • Tel/fax: 509-838-6652 contends the First Amendment gives him "My duty under the Constitution is to ac- By JESSICA SAUN DERS, Associated Press
E-mail: info@timeless.org
JULY , 1997 HINDUISM TODAY 11
South Asia Books One Man's Quest for the Self
Your path to India for 28 years. New selection of books, gifts, The story of one man's quest for the The highest teachings of the Vedas
4,000 titles in active stock. music and videos on: pure Self within. Relive with him his simplified for the modern age by
years with Paramhansa Yogananda, Pragya Avatar Pandit Shree Ram
Newest titles in stock • Meditation his incredible visions and encounters Sharma Acharya. Edited by Pdt.
(Prices net and include shipping) • Yoga with beings of other dimensions. Lilapat Sharma. Inspires love of
• Alternative healing The Christ Consciousness dharma. Infuses spiritual, mental
• Mahadevan. Hymns of Sankara. rep. us$ 7.50 • Vegetarian cooking Paper, 496 pg., illustrated and physical vitality. US$10.00 plus
• Griffith. Hymns of the Rigveda. 28.00 • Flower essences US$25 including postage postage. Available in Hindi, Gujarati,
• Pandey. Hindu Samskaras. 8.00 • Yoga philosophy Builders Publishing Company English editions and audio cassette.
• Hiriyanna. Essentials of Indian Philosophy. 12.00 1305 North H SUA-289-T Gayatri Yug Literature Ctr., 8413 W.
• Monier Williams. Sanskrit-English Dictionary 40.00 Also: Lompoc, CA 93436-3335 USA North Terrace, Niles, IL 60714-2329
• Singh. Siva Sutras. 9.00 Fax: 805-686-1254 USA. Tel/fax: 847-692-7712.
• MacDonell. Vedic Grammar for Students. 9.00 • Mystical music
• Miller. Hindu Monastic Life. revised edition 24.00 • Books-on-tape
• Wade. Music in India, Classical Traditions. 16.00 • Spoken audio
• Whitney. Atharva Veda Samhita. 2 vol. 54.00 • Mantra music
• w.J. Wilkins. Hindu Mythology. pa. rep. 9.00 • Chanting tapes Divine-Love-Consciousness Intensive Sri Ramana Maharshi
• Books by Yogananda, Kriyananda and more
Also: 3,000 titles on our new web site. July 4-6, 1997, in the serene environ- The Society of Abidance in Truth
For the new illustrated Motilal1996 catalogue containing 350 For a free catalog, call now: ment of beautiful Barsana Dham offers hard-to-find books on
items, or for lists of books on yoga or ayurveda, novels, chil- 800-424-1055 toll free in US, or 916-478-7600. Ashram-residential course which Advaita Vedanta and Sri Ramana
dren's books, write or call: includes inspirational talks, guided Maharishi through Perennial
Crystal Clarity Publishers chanting meditation, yoga asanas Wisdom Books. Send US$2 for
South Asia Books • PO Box 502 14618 Tyler Foote Rd. and deep relaxation. Brochure wholesale or retail catalog:
Columbia, MO 65205-0502 USA Nevada City, CA 95959-9316 USA available.
Tel: 573-474-0116 • Fax 573-474-8124 International Society of Divine Love SAT, 1834 Ocean St, Santa Cruz, CA
E-mail: sab@socketis.net Fax: 916-478-7610 Barsana Dham • 400 Barsana Rd 95060-1700 USA • Tel: 408-458-9654
Website: http://members.socketis.neU-sab/sahhtml http://www.consciousnet.com/CrystalClarity Austin, TX, 78737-9075 USA Tel/fax 408-425-0407
E-mail: cclarity@aol.com Tel: 512-288-7180 • Fax: 512-288-0447 E-mail: ramana@cruzio.com
http://www.isdl.org Web: http:/www.SATRamana.org

A Comprehensive Approach to Yoga... AMERICAN INSTITUTE

.
... based on the teachings of In keeping with
Paramhansa Yogananda the timelessness OF VEDIC STUDIES
(author of Autobiography
ofa Yogi ). ~A of the medium
and the message, Correspondence Courses On:
Third Stone
• Yoga and Meditation is pleased to present Ayurvedic Medicine
Retreat. am Stones,
• Yoga teacher training. carved riverstones Vedic Astrology
• Spiritual communities. with a raised OM,
• Catalog of books, the Universal
music and videos.
• Ananda's home-study
Syllable. , For information
course in yoga and Smooth, pocket-sized (1-2 inches, 2.5-5 cm), am stones are on Vedic Sciences
meditation. intended to be carried and used as a focus for subconscious
meditation in our daily routine. and latest
For a free cassette on Mystical Music and Talks Third Stone also offers other images and symbols that repre- Vedic Research
call or write:
Ananda
sent the highest ideals and lasting values of humankind. •. Send SASE to:
14618 Tyler Foote Rd To order am Stones, send US$4.95 and $1.50 shipping.
The Oracle of Ramo The Tibetan
Nevada City, CA 95959-8599 USA Additional $1.50 shipping for every five stones ordered. David FI'OOey India's Renowned Oracle Book of Healing
(lkrnodello Shastro). DirectOf
Tel: 916-478-7560 Extension 7025
by David Frawley by Dr Lopsang Rapgay
Third Stone,
915 Garden St. $12.95 208 pages, illustrated $12.95208 pages, illustrated
Ananda Home Page: http://www.ananda.org Santa Barbara, CA 93101-1414 USA
American Institute of Vedic Studies ISBN 1-878423-1 9~3 ISBN 1-878423-21-5
E-mail: Ananda@oro.net Tel: 805-963-1168, fax: 805-964-7670. P.O. BOX 8357
Internet: httpllwww.stone3.com To order: add $3.50 shipping and contact:
Ananda, founded in 1968 by Swami Kriyananda, a Saote Fe, NM 847504-8357 PASSAGE PRESS 8188 So. Highland Dr., 0-5, Sandy, UT 84093
direct disciple of Paramhansa Yogananda, is not Write or phone for a brochure of other designs and sizes. USA
affiliated with Self-Realization Fellowship. Wholesale inquiries are welcomed.
(801) 942-1440; FAX (801) 943-7268
To order with Visa, Mastercard, American Express call 1-800-873-0075
~~~~~~,,~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
C

I
H.J!. SHANKARACHARYA Jayendra Saraswati,
Peethadiswar of the Kanchi Kartiakoti I
Peetham, visited Nepal "to offer his bless-
ings to King Bireridra on the ~ccasion of
His Majesty's silver jubilee accession to the
throne and to the people of the only Hindu
nation of the world," writes The~thman­
dy, Post. On the issue of unlawful prosely-
tizing, the Shankaracharya sard, "If these
people are involved with social services,
then they should stick to it and refrain from
attempting to convert people's beliefs; there
is no room for that in our society."
NEPAL WANTS MORE TOURISTS-half-a-million
in 199B-and to reach its goal it's now mar-
keting itself to Hindus as the world's only
Hindu kingdom, h0ping its t;housands of
Hindu sacred sites, such as Pashupa.tinath
and its over
1,000 Buddhist
monasteries, will
lure more than
just mountain-
eers to the Hi-
malayas. IndiaI!
nationaJs com-
prised one-third
of the 363,000
tourists who vis-
ited in 1995. Nepal sacred sites
I I
THE POETIC VOICE ofl5th-century Saivite
Saint Arunagirinathar now speaks in both
Tamil an!i English in Songs of Divine G-lo-
ry. As editor-translator S.M. Ponniah (My ,
Turn, March 1997) prefaces, "This Book of
Prayer consists of fifty devotional songs in
adoration of Lord Murugan," and is intend-
ed to assist devotees in worship and to
"rekindle interest in Tamil language, the
root language and source of Tamil Saivism." next hundred years?" New demographic
HIS '"PERSONAL ASTROLOGERS uniformly pre-
dicted a long term in office' for now ex-
Prime Minister .H.D. Iileve Gowda. But 'one
Bangalore astrologer, Ranganatha Desika,
made a very contrary and uncannily accu-
rate prediction published in India Today
(March 31st edition) that the PM would
exit office on April 27. He was just a few . universally disseminated. Fertility in China
days off
INDIA'S FUTURE MAY INCLUQE ASEAT on the
United Nations Security Council under a
new proposal ad.ding five permanent and
four non-petmanent members to the 15-
seat Council. Economically-thriving Japan
and Germany are considered frontrunners
for permanent seats; the remaining three
would include one nation each from Asia
I )
20 R INDU1SM TODAY J1:J LY, 1997
(possibly India, the world's most populous
democracy), Africa and Latin America.
The four nonpermanent seats woula be
chosen from those three plus one from
Eastern Europe. None of the new seats
would have veto power.
CHIDAMBARAM, Lord
Siva's glorious ancient
temple complex
(whose title deeds are
held in the name of
--: Lord Nataraja), re-
mains targeted for
takeover by Tamil Golden hall
Nadu governments
Hindu Religfous & Charitable Endowments
Board. The hereditary Podu Dikshithars, or
temple priests, won a March 12 interim stay
in Madras High COliFt, temporarily halting
government appointment of an Executive
Officer, but the stay was issued on the con-
dition that an accounting of temple offerings
be submitted with~n 45 days.
AYURVEDA HAS OFFICIALLY ARPIVED i¥ Ameri-
ca. The' California College of, Ayurveda
Center for Optimal Health is the first such
college to win state approval to operate in
the United States. "This is a momentous
time in history," says founder Dr. Marc
Halpern, "It marks fhe beginning of'the
formation of the profession of ayurveda in \
the U.S." Contact: 1117 A East Main Street,
Grass Valley, California, 95945, USA.
./
THE POPULATION IMPLOSION is being ignored,
says Ben Wattenberg, producer of the Pub-
lic Television production "Think Tank."
Why? "What government chooses to admit
it's going to, lose half its population in the
ferti~ty studies show a downward trend in
world population, in many cases to below
the replacement rate (the rate at which .--time ofhirth can, in fact, be a big mistake
p~pulation remains stable). "Birth rates are
declining in f.,sia, South America and in
third-world mitions," says Wattenberg. "I
think this is the biggest news ofthe centu-
ry. I'm baffled that the story hasn't been .
and IndIa is coming down rapidly. At this
rate, they will be below the replacement
rate in an9ther decade or two."
"RELIGIOUS FERVOR OR NOISE POLLUTION?" So
asks the Associated Press over Cal~utta's ef-
forts to curb the often full-blast aural ema-
nal'tons from Hindu temples and Muslim
mosques. Current unenforced federal
guidelines limit the azan; or Muslim call to
CLOCKWISE FROM TOP: ELEGANT PHOTOGRAPHERS , VEDIC ASTROLOGY, COREL
Among Vidyal, I'OOaI are supreme,
In ~, Rudram is supreme.
Sringeri Vtdya Bharati Foundation Inc. USA • Sringeri Sadhana Center invites you to the
In Rudram, the Panchakshari
"Nam~vaya" is supreme.
",.
And in i~ the I'Ml syllables
"Siva" are supreme. Athi Rudra Maha yagnam
prayer and Hindu chants broadcast over Conducted for the first time outside India
loudspeakers to 55-65 decibels, slightly
louder than a noisy office. Hindus say they
can accept the n.oise abatement law if pro-
visions are made for special festivals, such , Sponsorship Schedule
as the lO-day, all-night Durga Puja. Items 1-4 are both Individual and COIporate Sponso"hips
. U.S.$ Indian Rupees
THE POWER ,OF PRAYER and its effect on heart Grand Patron
Patron: Entire Yagnam
......... 50,001 15lakhs Sringeri Sadhana Center
patients will be scientifically studied at & Associated Events .... ........ 10,001 3.01akhs RD 8, Box 8116, Stroudsburg, PA 18360 USA · Tel: 717-629-7881, 1-800-45HINDU
three American hospitals thanks to a grant Grand Sponsor: 11 day
Rudra ]apam, Abhishekam Dr. s. Yegna Subramanian 609-530-0299, or Dr. S. S. Iyer 908-238-1119
from the John Templeton Foundation, '"
&:Homams .............................. 5,001 1.5lakhs
which funds the annual Templeton Prize Sponsor: One Priest from Contributions in US dollars may be made
for contributions to religion. The two-ye'ar India :..,... .. .............. ... ......... 3,001 1.0lakhs
Final Day Rudra Iapam, ,
payable to SVBF - Athi Rudram Account.
.study of 600 people awaiting heart surgery Please mail checks to our registered office:
Abhishekam & Homam ........ 1,001 30,001
is merely "to find out what happens." Veda Parayanam (all 4 Vedas) Sringeri Vidya Bharati Foundation
& other Parayanams . 501 10,001 Silverline Corp. Plaza, 53 Knightsbridge Rd.
Vedic Astrology, the new, Delhi-based, bi- Rudra Homam ..................... 251 7,001
Piscataway, NJ 08854, USA
Swama (gold) Sambhavana
monthly publication, subtitles its~lf "Devot- to One Priest... 151 5,001
ed tq Vedic Concepts of Astrology and Cul- Vastram, Ganapati Homam, Donativns in Indian rupees will be
ture." "Indian astrology has always been an Navagraha Homam, Avahanti
accepted and usedfor priest expenses and
inseparable limb of --: Homam, Mrityunjaya
Homam, Lalita Homam, sambhavanas and fhepurchase ofpuja
Vedic culture. It has ,---.-----.-------, Sri Sukta Homam .. 51 1,001 items from India. Please mail your checks
been labeled as the Contributions to SVBF are tax-deductible or bank drafts, payable to:
'eye' of the Vedas, in the USA. Sri Sharada Peetham, Sringerl
the repository of Prasadam will be mailed within two weeks Sri V. R. Gowrishankar,
knowledge," writes after the conclusion of the yagnam for Administrator, Sringeri SharaiJa Peetbam
sponsors who cannot attend the yagnam.
editor Dr. K.S. Sringeri - 577 139, Karnataka, INDIA
Charak. Contact:
Systems Vision, A- Magazine's logo.
199 Okhla Ind. Area-
l , New Delhi, 110-020 India. E-mail: rjhan-
ji@giasdlOl.vsnl.net.in.
BIRTH TIMING IS CRUCIAL in astrology, which
is why more and more women,are opting
for "elective caesa!ean," consulting as-
trologers for an auspicious moment and
then delivering the baby by C-section. "If
instead of being born in the morning, a
child is delivered in the afternoon, the
planetary positions change. His fate alters
accordingly," says New Delhi astrologer
Ajay Bhambi. Astrologer Chakrapani Ullal
was more 'cautious, "Purposely choosing a
beca,:!se there are no many really}ood as-
trologers who can take into account all the
different aspects of astrology to make the
best decision. Also, there is no really good
time, because all time has a good part and
a bad part." HINDUISM TODAY columnist Dr.
Devananda Tandav911 says if the C-section
is medically required, then "a propitious
time could be elE,cted... " but he otherwise
decries the use of surgery or drugs simply
to choose a childs lagna.
BRIEFLY is compiled from press, TV and
UJire-service reports and, edited by RAVI
PERUMAN, award-winning radio journalist
at KGG in San Francisco.
 Comet Express: (jar left) The Heaven's Gate iveb page as it was lasPupdat-
ed. Everythose close to the grotfp did not realize this I'Red Alert" (a '17attle
stat-ions"'command from the Star Trek TV series) meant they would com-
mit su..icide the next day. (above left) Depict-ion of the benevolent aliens
they expected to join on the spaceship. ~bove right) The supposed com-
panion to Hale- Bopp appears to the right of the comet in this amateur pho-
/
tograph. The Saturn-like rings are likely an artifact of the telescope's op-
tics. (right) Shroud-coverfJd Heaven's Gate members dead in their beds at
the San Diego mansion. Visible are their identical black pants, new Nike
shoes and neatly packed suitcases and 3-foot purple tria:ngular cloths cov-
. eringJtheir faces.
• .J
CULTS Bonnie Lu Trusdale Nettles, a nurse he met group to b~lieve they were destined for res- a theory might in the past not get much
while undergoing treatment at a mental in- cue from planet Earth by aliens. However, publicity in the mass meclia, but the Inter-

The ·Spaceship Suicide stitution. She left her family behind to join earlier groups who announced exactly when net is a method of communication that PFQ-
Applewhite in a nomadic ex;i~tence, camping and where it would happen have been em- v.ides equal access to the legitimate and the
their way across America. Together they barrassingly stood up as the promised flying far-fetched, to the responsible report and the
concluded they were the two witnesses saucer failed to arrive. -Applewhite initially outright fraud. The website which advocates
mentioned in the Christitm Bible's "Book of believed that a real flying saucer would land the existence of this accompanying object
Revelations." They slowly collected followers to pick them up-armoupcing so in 1975. (and a coverup by world governments) is
Eastern Faiths falsely implicated as 39 members of a radical Christian by holding meetings where they frankly de- That never happened, and he too was derid- just as available on the Internet as is that of
, clareB. that they and whoever choose to fol- ed. Uter his belief change(i to one of shed- NASA or any of the irorlds observatories.
UFO cult die in hopes of joining an alien craft following comet IJale-Bopp low them would be picked up-by spaceships 'ding the "vehicle," the body, to allow tran~ But what was a harmless argument over
and taken to heaven. They went by the port of the soul to a new physical body some photos-all of which were explained or
name "The Two" or "The UFO Two" and by aboard a spacecraft crewed by ET-like dismissed as hoaxes-became something
N MARCH 23, 1997, THE FIRST man" and join him on a, spaceship a variety of nicknames, lastly "Ti and Do," ali~ns. Though'he and his followers clid not very different when Applewhite decided the
members of Heaven's Gate, following Comet Hale-Bopp. after the musical notes in the Western scale. know when thi§ might occur, they were con- object was indeed Ti's spacecraft and initI-
a . self-described "cult of Even as refrigerated coroner's vans "Unidentified Flying Object" (UFO) has tinuously on alert for departure. Apparently ated earnest preparations for the group's sui-
cults," mixed phenobarbital removed decomposing bodies from come to name an entire movement of people they awaited fulfillment of the prophecy of cide. In January, Applewhite posted a four- ,.
sweet pudding, washed the hous~, Eastern faiths, the New who beheve alien spacecraft are visiting the Revelation 11.12: 'f\nd t.hey heard a great page message on the Web and 95
it down with vodka, covered Age and the Jillternet became theI Earth. voice from heaven saying Ul).to them, 'Come newsgroups entitled "Undercover Jesus Sur-
their heads with plastic bags and suffo- scapegoats in a desperate search for Bonnie-Ti-dieQ. of cajlcer in 1985, ~d up hither.' And they ascended up to heaven faces Before Departure." He wrote, "I am
cated to death. Fifteen more took their some kind of rational explanation oJ after that Applewhite-Do-continued the in a cloud; and their enemies beheld them." about to ' return to my 'Father'S Kin-gdom.
own lives the next day in the swank, this bizarre incident-the largest organization, claiming that Ti was now in When Cemet 'Hale-Bopp appeared, Ap- This return requires that I prepare to lay
$1.6 million rented mansion pear San " mass suicide in US history. Parallels heaven waiting for the others. He insisted plewhite-now openly saying he vias Jesus down my berrowed human body ... as I did
DIego, California. On the third day, the were drawn with the People's Temple his followers regard their physical bodies as retumed-took this to be a sign that the end . approximately 2,000 years ago as Jesus."
remaining nine died. When disCQvered suicide of 900 persons in Guyana in "vehicles" and forbade sex among mem- had come. Earth was about to be "recycled, Members went to Mexico to buy the lethal
the next morning by a former member, the 1970s, the Branch Davidians bers-even to the point of castration for sev- , spaded un<ffir." Ti-whom Applewhite said drugs. Those in San I}iego bought a tele-
each body was neatly laid out on a cot deaths in Waco, Texas, in 1993 aneY eral of the men, including Applewhite him- was really the "Holy Father," as in "Our Fa- scope to check on the supposed spaceship
or bed, dressed identically in black ~ the Solar Temple suicides in Europe self. Everyone wore black and kept their .ther WhO art in heaven ... "-was piloting a trailing the comet, but returned it a week
pants and brand new black Nike sneak- Applewhite: Group's leader on their farewell video tape and Canada in '94 and '95. These hair trimmed short. The group s upported spacecraft, follOWing in the wake of :tIale- later when they wer'e unable to locate any
ers, partly covered with a purple I groups' obvious common denomina- .themselves by odd jobs as they wandered Bopp which had come. to transport them- such object. Nevertheless, preparations pro-
shroud, identification in one pocket, a five- turned to Earth. Tragically, this charismatic tor~Christianity-was unwanted knowledge about the United States, and fmally by de- the ascent into heaven, w hich they Veld to ceeded apace, and the day after Hale-Bopps
dollar bill and some coins in another. A former opera singer and son of a Presby.ter- for Americans, and the media was loathe to signing Internet Web pages frSlm their San be a physical place. closest approach to Earth on March 22nd,
packed suitcase sat nearby. ian Christian minister had convinced 21 fe- mention it is as they recounted the strange Diego mansion. They were proficien:t prs- an
These b~liefs were reinforced by inter- the suicides began.
Their leader, Marshall Herff Applewhite, male and '17 male wetl-educated, middle- history and theology of Heaven's Gate. grammers and counted among their clients net-wide debate over whether an unidenti- Searching for Blame: HINDUISM TODAY'S
died.with them, shortly after proclaiming on class Amerioans, ages 26 to 72, to kill Applewhite had been assembling his cho- many local businesses. _ fied object was indeed accompanying Hale- analysis of media reports suggests that bias
the Internet that he was Jesus Christ re- themselves, attain the "Level Beyond Hu- sen group since the 1970s, initially with Heaven's Gate was not the first Ameri'can Bopp, as, three photographs suggested. Such in wording and emphasis repeatedly shifted
I
22 HINDUISM TOD A.Y J LY, 1997 JULY , 1997 HINDUI SM TODAY 23
the blame apd "responsibility as far East as spawned from corrupted truths." A word is already something wrong, something Swamis contacted wanted circumstances is a poor I choice to
possible, and J?!ayed down or covered up the count on the 470-page book published on twisted'about Eastern beliefs. It is a subtle by tIINDmSM TODAY make. The soul is left in a ·state of limbo,
Christian baSIS of Applewhite's pltiloSQphy. thOO website found Jesus 331 times, Bible bias, one which obscufes the very real judged the Heaven's earthbound, aimlessly floating on the astral
A few publications did nor do this. For ex- 41, but guru only 3, and no mention at all of Christian basis of Applewhite's philosophy Gate group misguid-· planey,where it remains untiJ-the time death
ample, The Washington Post, citing experts Vedas, dharma or mqksha. . and tries again to shift the blame to the East. ed, and their goal of would have occurred naturally Then it rapid-
su~h as Jim Lewis (whq had actually known In analyzing Applewhite's pltilosophy, Protest can change detrimental de scrip- reaching a spaceship ly r~incamates into exactly the same unwant-
the group, unlike most other 8!Cperts sound- most publications would cite "Christianity" tions. In a March 28th Reuter's wire service impossible, but were ed karmic situation it sought to escape.
ing forth ·on Heaven's ~te) said, 'l\pple- and "Eastern beliefs," as dual sources. Each report titled "Ma~s suicide shows no sign of sympathetic to their The issue for Hindus is not so much that
white never strayed entirely from hi~ Chris- time Christianity was mentioned, it would shaking U.S. cults," a swiftly-issued correc~ .sincerity and disci- of suicide, but the continuing media slant
tian upbrInging, and to the end his theology be carefully qualified. For example, tion replaced "Church of Scientology, a pline in searching for which attributes the Heaven's Gate incident
was bas~d on the Book of Revelation." Like- . Newsweek called his philosophy a "strange movement that has been accused of driving a higher mea1'iing to to some cornJ.pting Eastern influence. As
wise, the Sacramento Bee quoted University brew of twisted Christian theology." Th~n members to suicide and bankruptcy" with life. From the Hindu was found rec~ntly with an offensive music
of California professor of sociology Dr. John they said it also contailled, "~lements of "Church of Scientology, a U.S.-based inter- point of view, suicide album cover [see page 47] and by the
R. Hall that "all kinds of' Applewhite's views Eastern religions." Not "twisted elements," national religion"-obviously a result of pro- committed as a means change the Scientologists finessed in their
~J:·u:s:t~"~el~e:m:e:n:ts~.':'~T~
h e~im
:p~li~c:a:ti:o~
n ? ~T~
ha:t:th~e:r:e~~t:es:t:s!fr:o:m~th~e::o~ffi:e:n~d~e~d~s~c~ie:n:t:ol~o!g;iS:ts~."_"l:IIIIIIaJ~~~I~~~~~
y of escape from un- case, protests can and do work. ,.1 ,.,
were "long-standing beliefs in Chriss1t:ian
: i:t :::'
Elsewhere, a: single, loaded _
word-guru- was sufficie~t to
skew, the facts. NewsweeK re- and misrepresented. Whereas sires and the intention of the
port~d, "The most . important
cause of death may have been
the cult's guru." Yet, according
Suicide: Upside/Downside Padmani and the others surely
rose to a higher level of being-
because they died to pleserve
person, he may be reborn in a
miserable state in a human
form, or he may enter into low-
to that magazine's own four- their honor, not just to satisfy
page analysis of Applewhite's Flve swamis critique media, spaceships and suicide their cm;iosity. To grasp the j
philosophy, its single, tenuous Truth, one has to let go of one's
connection with Hinduism was own ego and misconceptions.
his "vision of time as cyc1i<;al." Swami Atmarupananda is philosophically free to do. It beliefs or Hinduism. It is pure- One is not enlightened
ti!me magazinel too, wrote, "the (Vedanta Society of Southern was, I think, a mistake to fol- ly a Western or American phe- overnight, nor is one enlight-
future-guru ... " Now, in the West, California, San Diego): I am in low someone with a promise nomenon. Almost all of these ened by chasing after a comet,
guru has come. to be .~ common the area where the suicides that had no verification outside tragedies have occurred in or jumping on the bandwagon
word, used for media guru, stock ' happened. In reporting on the of his own words. That's the Christian groups. It is the re- of some cult. We need to still
mp,rket guru, software ·guru, Heaven's Gate suicide, the me- value of a tradition, it is time- Swami Chetanandanda (Head, case). In these situations sui- our own mind and become
more or less, as in ,India guru dia showed more restraint than tested in the experience of Hltyananda Institute, Oregon): cide leads to a higher reincar- humble, responsible and re-
means any kind of teacher. But usual: with some exceptions, many, and that's the value of From the Hindu perspective, nation. In other cases, such as sourceful human beings. If we
when it comes to religion, guru, they didrit rush to demonize scriptures, which are the the idea that going fwm one attempting to escape difficult want to leave our mark on the
means just one thing: Hinduism. the participants as they often recoJ"ded experiences of oth- place in a physical universe to circumstances, suicide might er species. There is a defInite
There are no Ciitholic gurus, u.o ers. Perhaps the participants another place in a physical uni- be an unfortunate decision. rule in the universe. One can-
PJiotestant gurus, no Muslim gu- had a personality flaw which verse is an advancement is Suicide simply would be an ex- not escape it. Whatever a per-
rus, no Buddhist gurus. Apple- made them susceptible to the ridiculous. Because the soul is tension of the unfortunate cir- sons' mind is before death, agi-
white- wh.o did call himself'Fa- influence of one man's strange eternal and one, suicide is not cumstances-circumstances tated, envious, worldly,
ther John Do- was not labeled promise. But the followers of considered such a terrible thing that one will inevitably face non-Godly, etc., in a similar
minister, priest, imp,m, roshi, Heaven's Gate also showed re- under certain circumstances. It countless times until they are state is he reborn in this very
... is not terrible when suicide surmounted. world. Thinking of going into a
lama, pastor or chaplain in the markable -sincerity, singleness '"
of purpose, discipline, purity, ::; takes place under conditions by spaceship by committing sui-
media, but guru, and not to QL-____________________
"' Swami Bua Mahar~ (lndo-
~

mean "remover of darkness,"
the word's real and literal sense,
but -Row as . "cause of death."
The term for Hinduisms highest
religious guides, souls often of
immense personal attainment,
had been su~oned to imply
sinister legdership. . once again this strange and to-
Applewhite did not call him-
self a guru, and he did not fql-
low Hindu teachings. In fact, he
stated, "One of the major tools '
of Lucifer i:s the New Age move-
ment- Theosophy, Ascended
Masters, channeli:Q.g, Eastern re-
ligions, mysticism, yoga, Christ
cOJ;lsciousness within, and the ,
'~ are God' concept. All are a.
fantasy and a .trap. " He 'else-
where wrote ''karma is a coun-
terfeit," "reincarnation at birth
no matter how mistaken they
were in their basic premise.
Such good qualities never go to
waste. No genuine sacrifice,
even if misguided, goes to
do with strange religious phe- waste. To believe that people
nomena. However there was that are sincerely motivated
and good-hearted but mistak-
tally unfair association of the en in the obj~ct of their moti-
Heaven's Gate with Eastern re- vation will, because of that
ligion. Just as Jews, Christians mistake, be in any sense com-
and Muslims have voices to re- pletely lost is a hellish doctrine, acceptable and have their own
spond to unfair treatment in and contrary to the Hindu tra-
the media, so Hindus need the dition which recognizes good-
same: not a fanatical voice that ness-and the triumphant
imagines insult at every turn, power of goodness-wherever
but a reasoned and balanced it is found.
voice that responds to genuine
prejudicial treatment. I think Prabhushrl Swami Amar Jyotl
the act of the Heaven's Gate (Founder, Desert Ashram, Ari-
members was a mistake, but I zona, USA): It is unfair to asso-
cide is the product of a sick
sult of failure of the modern American yoga-Vedanta Soci- mind. The public must be
Western culture and religion. ety, Hew York): In the wake of aware of such cults and not fall
The media portrayal of such this' suicide, some persons have for them. There are three main
incidents is very unfair, trying tried to compare this abhorrent indications of such cults: A)
to "pass the buck" as well as act to Hindu beliefs and pmc- They do not worship an om-
place the blame "at the door of tices. Some cite Gandhi's will- wor1d, then let it not be written nipresent personal form of God
Eastern beliefs." In principle, I ingness to "fast to death" or the in blood and tears, But in the as prescribed in our main scrip-
do not support suicide-it is self-im.molation of Padmani sweet sweat of our own unno- tures; B) Their way of worship
not right-but in practice there (and all women of the Jaipur ticed and unselfish service. is more or less secretive; it is not
are exceptions which can be palace) during the terror of the open to the public, and they
Moguls in the 16th century. H.D. Swami Praushanand like to remain aloof from the
use/need. [The threat to fast to There is no comparison what- Saraswatl (Founder, Barsana general society; C) They be-
death] as in the case of Mahat- soever between the Heaven's Dham, Texas, USA): Intention or lieve in the supernatural power
ma Gandhi, whose method which you are preserving your Gate deaths and the countless action of committing suicide is or existence which they may
was nonviolent and selfless, own personal integrity or con- Hindus who have embraced sin according to Hindu religion. call as God and talk of joining
was alright and even laudable. serving limited resources used death rather than compromise Human life is a gift of God to with that, but they don't believe
But the same can and has been better by others (self-sacrifice). their honor. The Heavens Gate receive His love and vision; it is in the gracious kindness, love
explOited by some others for It is not terrible to sacrifice members have not risel). to a not for destrOying willfully. The and the vision of Supreme God.
the wrong purposes, stubborn- oneself for the real possibility higher level, but have sunken to consequence is always a down- 4
}o ULL TEXT OF SWAMI'S COMr-.!ENTS AVAlI'..-
ly, as brats would do selfishly to of advancing important human- a lower one. Like many other fall of the soul. Depending ABLE AT: 'H1NDUlSMTODAY.KAUAI.HI .'u slRE·

is a completely inaccurate con- also see much good, as a Hindu ciate these things with Eastern get their own way. itarian ideas (as in Gandhi's lost sows, they were misguided upon the non-Godly beliefs, de- SOUROEsis UICIDElLEJillERSVIEWS.liTML

cept," and "mantras ... are

I
.\
24 HINDUISM TODA.Y Jl\,LY, 1997 JULY, 1997 HI'NDUISM TODAY 25
 Saraswati Devi: A Remarkable CD Marriage Rites and Rituals of Hindus
Enjoy 75 min. of Sanskrit and Hindu Marriage Samskara by
Hindi songs composed and
performed in a North Indian
Dr. Prem Sahai. HINI911
classical style by Aditya Ver- This book is a guide and MARRH\6E
ma, a dynamic young artist
whose musical lineage draws
practical manual for under-
standing, conducting and
SAlttSKARA
MARRIAGE RITES AND RlTUA LS Of HINDUS

from the greatest teachers and recording the marriage

performers of Indian music, experience. Dr. Sahai gives
Pundit Ravi Shankar and step-by-step procedure in a
Ustad Aashish Khan. clear and organized but not
overly complicated manner.
A musical tribute to the By studying this book, a
Goddess of inspiration and couple can deeply appreciate
beauty. Saraswati Devi the profound step they are
celebrates classical Indian taking in their lives, and PREMSAHAI

music and the ancient tradi- consciously embrace with joy

tion of Mantra. "This album is an auspicious beginning for the fullnes of this noble rite of passage. It is designed not
me," says Aditya Verma who sees his music as the means to merely to inform, but also to become a lifelong part of the
share Indian culture. family archives.
-Composer: Aditya Verma - Vocals: Kala Ramnath Ettumanoor Siva Temple: The conically roofed sanctum sanctorum is surrounded by auxiliary buildings in this typical K.emla temple
-Tabla: Narendra Verma -Narration: G.S. Birla "Highly recommended. A must to go back to our ancient tra-
ditions" - Hinduism Today - 150 pg. Hard bound. us$15.00
US$15 CD & $10 Cassette, $4 shipping and handling.
HERITAGE /
Overseas, add an additional $4. Available through
Other mantra recordings available. Ask for free catalogue:
Galaxy Publications & Recordings - 351 Victoria Ave.
Westmount, Quebec H3Z 2Nl Canada
Tel: 1-800-307-2292 or 514-484-8090 - Fax: 1-514-488-3822
E-mail: mailbox@palmistry.com
www.palmistry.comlGalaxy.html
Himalayan Academy Publications
107 Kaholalele Road
Kapaa, Hawaii 96746-9304 USA
Phone: 1-800-890-1008 ext 238 - within USA
Phone: 808-822-3152 ext 238 - for overseas
Fax: 1-808-822-4351- 24 hours
erala Siva Temples
India's southern state is blessed by a unique
Now Introdu cing:
tradi tion of ornate wooden temples
By VRINDAVANAM S.GOPALAKRISHNAN high point is the hour-long divine kudamat-
WO THOUSAND AND MORE TIMBER torn, a competition wherein mahouts upon
temples dot Kerala's verdant landscape. two rows of fifteen cap,arisoned mighty
Devotee's devotion have created them in tuskers face each other offering a rapid
BAZAAR OF INDIA IMPORTS is proud to equal numbers to Lord Siva, Lord Vish- changing of fans, umbrellas and other deco-
announce a new line of hair and nu and the Goddess. Yet somehow this is es- rations from atop their elephants.
body-care oils which are all natural, pecially Siva's land. Among His temples fa- But festivals are grand only while they last;
free from animal-based products, mous and popular are the Mahadeva temples for inspiration and solutions to the mundane
at Chengannur. (Alappuzha), Ettumanoor, problems of life, devotees seek Si,Ja's help
and never tested on animals. Kaduthuruthy and Vaikom (Kottayam), Er- .closer to home. Consider the plight of an un-
nakulam in Kochi City and Vadakkumna- named socialist-minded professor at a major
Ayurvedic Bring-Raj Hair Oil-Traditionally used in India for hair growth and than (Mahadevar) in Thrissur. Whether by college in Kochi City. Despite his best ef-
rejuvenation . • Sesame Seed Oil, Ayurvedic Eclipta alba, Sid a cordifolia, Withania daily puja or elaborate rituals and festivals, forts, no suitable marriage. alliance had beer)
somnifera, natural fragrance. these temples are the mainstay of religious founc;l. for his daughter, who was fast ap-
Ayurvedic Amla Hair Oil-Women in India use this cooling formula to keep their life for twenty million Keralite Hindus. proaching thirty. Ignoring the father's pro-
long hair healthy and beautiful. Maintains and nourishes hair. • Sesame Seed Oil , Jas- When it comes to festivals, nothing sur- tests about "superstitious ritual worship," her
mine, Ayurvedic Emblica offidnaiis, Piper longum, linospora cordifolia, natural fragrance. passes Porram, one of India's most spectac- mother, also a senior college teacher, took her
Ayurvedic Brahmi-Amla Oil-Amla conditions and nourishes your hair while ular. It is held every April befOl;:e the abode to the monthly Mangala Gauri Puja (photo,
Brahmi (also known as Gotu kola) strengthens and adds body to it. • Sesame Seed of Lord Siva at Thrissur. A hundre4 thou- page 28) conducted at the Pavakulam Siva
of the body for a complete healing massage. Good for skin con-
Oil, Sida Cordifolia, Emblica officinalis, Plumbago zeylanica, natural fragrance. sand people attend the non-stop, thirty-hour Temple in Ernakulam. The goal? A very
ditions caused by Vata or Kapha imbalances. • Sesame Seed Oil,
Ayurvedic Maha-Narayan Oil-With 11 ingredients, it is one of India's most Ayurvedic dashmool, Trianthema monobyna, Vitex negundo, celebration featuring '6ne-hundred gold-ca- unsocialist plea for divine intercession.
ancient massage oils. Its heat-producing effects provide pain relief and is especially Glycyrrhiza glabra, Myrica nagi, natural Fragrance. parisoned elephants and concluded with Mangala Gauri Puja offers three results:
beneficial for elderly people, athletes or anyone suffering from sore muscles or arthri- fireworks costing US$150,000. On this day finding a husband, bearing a child and hav-
Ayurvedic Guduchi Oil-Excellent for massage to pacify
tis . • Sesame Seed Oil, Withania somifera, Aegle marmelos, Salanum indicum, Sida
cordiolia, Trianthema monogyna, Paederia foetida, Asparagus racemosus, Crocus
Vata and Pitta conditions. Traditionally used to relieve headaches all the Deities of ten neighboring temples- ing' a long marriage. As in many of Kerala's
and other heat-related symptoms . • Sesame Seed Oil , Tinospo- mostly of the Goddess-visit Lord Siva, temples, it incorporates vaidhyavidhi, ayur-
sativus, Moschus ~oschiferus , Piper nigrum, Nardostachys jatamansi, and more.
ra cordifolia, Glycyrrhiza glabra, Rubia cordifolia, Nargostachuys, Vadakkumnathan, ("North-facing Lord"), vedic preparation of medicated and sancti-
Ayurvedic Dash-Mool Oil-A blend of 10 herbs can be applied to various parts Prunus cerasoides, Nelumbo nucifera.
each upon ~er or His own elephant. The fied ghee given as prasadam (sanctified of-
ferings). For three days preceding the puja,
Free information available by mail, or view our complete catalog on line . Fast and reliable service. We ship anywhere in the world. All aboard: Caparisoned tusker at women observe a strict vegetarian diet, re-
BAZAAR OF INDIA IMPORTS . Dept . HT . 1810 University Ave . Berkeley, CA 94703-1516 USA Vadakkumnathan Porram f estival cite '~um Nama Sivaya" 108 times morning
Tel: 1-800-261-7662 or 510-549-9986 • Fax: 1-510 548-1115 • [-mail: boii@boiLcom • Web: www.boiLcom
26 JULY , 1997 HINDUISM TODAY 27

and evening.after lighting a lamp and avoid
all wrong thoughts. At least ten ladies were
recently blessed with marriage after attend-
ing just three pujas, the events organizing
secretary reports. And what about the social-
ist professor's daughter? "In a fortnight, to
our surprise, a suitable proposal came up,
and both the families have accepted it," re-
ports a family member. This teplple also con-
ducts a monthly abheeshta bhala siddhi yag-
nam (roughly, "ritual resulting in.,fulfilling of
ambition"). Begun just last year, it now at-
tracts so many devotees-more than ten
thousand-that closed-circuit TV was set up
to broadcast the ceremony to crowds gath-
ered in and around the temple. '
Xerala has some 700 Siva temples, spread
from Shucheendram, now in Tamil Nadu's
Kanyakumari Clistrict, to Kasargode in the
North bordering Karnataka. Most are built
of WGod in the unique Kerala style. Sixty are
classified as major temples and occupy a
28 HIND U ISM TOD A,Y J l\LY , 1997
Busy tempi": (clockwise from top left) Women pray
for suitable husbands, children or long niarriage at
Emakulam. Drummers and hom players at Por-
ram festival. Yagna fire worship at Emakulam.
Ayyapan devotees at Kaduthuruthy temple.
large area w~th compound walls surround-
ing the chuttambalam (building constructed
around the sanqtum sanctorum). The roofs
are made of treated hardwood (teak and
rosewood) and covered with copper sheets.
Up to 100,000 deepa (oil) lamps are perma-
nently mounted on the compound walls.
Kerala's temples are uniquely warm, friendly
and accessible. One feels the presence of the
Deity immediately upon dr~wing near, un-
like the experience of approachirJ;g some of
the great stone temples of Tamil Nadu.
Krishnam Embranthin, a temple head
priest, says, 'i\ll of these temples were rich
until 80 years ago, but now 80% cannot meet
day-to-day expenses." When the temples
were built by the rulers of various small
princely kingdoms, adequate cultivable land
was alloc~t~d fer meeting expenses. But
since the arrival of the British and the sub-
sequent creation of secular India, 90% of the
temples have lost their wealth, according to
, attack of this disease. My family
Jagatguru Sathyananda Saraswati. He is Ma-
dadhipathi (head) of the Sree Rama Dasa
Madom, near Thirvananthapuram and also
chairman of Hinp.u Ikyavedi (United Hindu
Forum) which seeks to{ransfer control o£ ilie
teplples from the government to Hindus.
The 'temple's lands were encroached upoU
by neighbors, and then legally transfe, red to
the encroachers as part of 1960 government
land refonfts. Thus, explained Swami Sath-
yananda, many temples have no property
except the acre of land upon' which they sit.
All these temples are now controlled and ad.!
ministered by Devaswom Boards, statutory
bodies constituted by the government for
fhis purpose-as is the case in ail other In-
dian states. Only Hindu temples are so con-
tro1led; oilier religions manage their proper-
ty and affairs without government oversight.
Swami Sathyananda said the temple revenue
collected by the boards goes to the govern-
ment treasury and is utilized for purposes
/ ,
other than thos,e of the Hindus"-one main
reason, he believes, behind ilie poor mainte-
nance of most temples. Also trade I.JniQllS
formed among temple staff have resulted in
~ significant number of communists work-
.ing in the temples and a cpnsequent loss of
sanctity, accorp.ing to Swami.
The Hindu Ikyavedi has .Qow created a
"Kerala Devaswom Board" administrated by
Hindus whjch seeks 'first t~ oversee all the
private temples left in the state (about ,300
small rural sanctuaries), and then to take
over ilie rest-at least 2,000-from the gov-
ernment. But given ilie trend in india,
where major temples such as Tirupati have.
just come under complete·government man~
agement, such transfer is unlikely. Some
devotees don't wait for administrative re-
forms. 1'he Kaduthuruthy Sivan temple was
in a neglected state but wiili the concerted
efforts' of a few devotees, is being-renovated
at a cost of US$35,000. "The money just . 1
pours in from the devotees. It is the grace of I
Lord Siva," says Mr. Kaimal, president of ilie
renovation committee.
It is espeCially auspicious to-visit ilie three
Siva-'sanctmiries of Ettumanoor, Kaduthu-
ruthy and Vaikom all in one day. Ettuma- Procession: Kathakali dancers and drummers leading the temple elephants '1
noor, in particular~ is f~ous for I
the miraculous cure of epileptic
I
fits and stomach ailments. "Lerd
Siva saved my Vfe," says Pi.Ira-
mattom Mani. He suf.fered fits
after contracting cerebral malar-
The Lord's Wooden Wonders ,
ia in 1973. "Even after undergo-
,ing ayurvedic aria allopathic Princess Aswathi ThirunalGouri on Keralas Temples
treatl{lents for years, there was
no cure, and the frequenoy of fits ERALA TEMPLES are a complementary contrast beams and painted along the
increased. I even considered sui~ evolved from the resi- to the lush rainbow back- walls in a runnipg canvas of
cide. Then I took refuge in the dential form, this ground nature has provided multiple scenes.
Ettumanoor temple in 1})78 and " metamorphosis from for this enchanting land. Its In keeping witl(the funda-
in a couple of weeks I $ cured. house to temple being unique conical roof with copper or mental simplicity 'of concept
Ever since then I never had any tt) Kerala and not seen any- clay tiles crowning the central of ilie Malayalee mind, the
where else. These temples, sanctum has a ~enerous slope, outer entrance had padipi
and I are fully indebted to the lo- hence, were brought puras, simple single
tus feet ~f Lord Siva," said Mani. wiiliin human,scale or double-storied
The princes of erstwhile Tra- and endowed with vi- stylized, tiled wood-
vancore and Cochin states built sual modesty. The con- ~n structures instead
Siva, Vishnu and ~akti templ~s centric development of • of th~ ornate, impos-
throughout their kipgdoms. With Kerala temples with ing rajagopurams
proper maintenance, these the Sreekovil (sanc- (entry towers) fa-
, wooden structures last easily 300 tum) in the middle of vored in the other ,
years. The challenge now for the I the central open C01>l.rt- South 'Indian states.
Hinc'fu. community is to continue YaI'd surrounded by a The most important
to invigorate and care for ilie , row of built-up spaces auxiliary buildings,
temples, and - erect new ones. is identical to the tradi- especially since the
Preferably iliese will be in the tional nalukettu, the 15th century, are the
traditIonal wood styl", .although Malayalee-home. In- beautifully worked
concrete (oheap and fireproof) is I stead of the vertical ex- Intricate: Interior ofVadakkumnathan temple koothambalam, halls
I
gaining ground. The.true miracle , pansion favored else- for dance and music.
is that even after centuries of where ill India, these temples, for Kerala is the delight of the Her Royal Highness is a -
Christian and Musli:m incursions, as,do the homes, favor axial or rain god. "' member of the royal family of
and 'decades of c6mmunist rule, ' circumferential expansion. Ornate figures, .themes and Travancore--one of the great
Hinduism in Kerala has not only 'f-he temple's simplicity of patterns are intricately carved builders and benefactors of
remained strong but is actually' style and subdued coloFin~ in ilie wooden ceilings and" Kerala's Hindu temples.
in resurgence. _
JULY , 1997 HINDUISM T O DAY 29

A basic blueprint to guide the passing of dharma to the next generation
E THEY IN INDIA OR TRANSPORTED TQ OTHER CULTURES
of the wotld, today\; Hindu youth are routinely tempted by
ways and tested by other religions. 'Ji'hey often face
a crisis of fait1\. when confronted with such typical questions
as, "What does it mean to be a Hindu? Why do Hindus wor-
ship cows? What do you believe?" They toG frequently dis-
cover they do not know the answers, and they turn t@their parents,
bewildered. Consequently, loving fIindu parents worldwide have
called for a common religious code to teach their sons and daughters.
They have asked, "What is the minimum I must do to dispatch my
duty to my religion ana my children?" The World Hindu Federation
of Nepal discussed this need at its international conference in Bali in
late 1992. In response, the publisheF of H1NDUISM TODAY, a member
of the WHF advisory board, told the Bali Mahasangha that he would
work with his research staff to prepare the minimal duties for parents
to pass on the Sanatana Dharma to the next generation. The fifteen
30 H~NDurSM TODAY JULY , 1 997
slokas on the following three pages are the result.
On the right are the Five Parenting Guidelines, developed with
the understanding tB.at children are constantly learning, and that
their learning must be guided carefully. Parents provide a good ex-
ample to their children, being certain that, they are taught the Hin-
du religious heritage and €ulture along with: ]lious values, ethics,
strength of character and discipline. Their religious education is al-
most always in the hands of the mother and father. Children need
and seek guidance, and only the parents ean truly provide it.
On pages 32 and 33, the five precepts constitute the essential
Hindu beliefs, and the five practices are the corresponding obser-
vances performed in expression of these beliefs. The modern Hin-
du child raised up with these precepts and praetices will soon be-
come a fully functioning hUman being, one who is tolerant,
devotional, fair, fearless, obedient, secure, happy, selfless, detached
and traditiona1.
Five Parenting Guidelines
Paneha Kutumba Sadhana
q~q:;e~ ~
"-!N>
1. Good Conduct-Dharmachara ~q+Jt 1'(
Loving fathers and mothers, knowing they are the greatest
influence in a child's life; behave the way their dear children
should when aduits. They never anger or argue before young
ones. Father in a dhoti, mother in a sari at home, all sing
to God, Gods and guru.
2. Home Worship-Dharma Svagriha ~q~ ~ .
Loving fathers and mothers establish a separate shrine room
in the home for God, Gods and guardian devas of the family.
Ideally it should be large enough for all the dear children.
It is a sacred place for scriptural study, a refuge from the
karmic storms of life.
3. Talking about Religion-Dharma Sambhashana ~q~Cl:tI~~
Loving fathers and mothers speak Vedic precepts while
driving, eating and playing. This helps dear children
understand experiences in right perspective. Parents know
many worldly voices are blaring, and their dharmic voice
must be stronger.
4. Continuing Self.-Study-Dharma Svadhyaya ~
Loving fathers and mothers keep informed by studying the.
Vedas, Agamas and sacred literature, listening to swamis and
panditas. Youth face a world they will one day own, thus
parents prepare their dear children to guide their own
future progeny.
5. Joining a Fellowship-Dharma Sanga ~4~"1
Loving fatheF~ and mothers cho0se a preceptoF, a traditional
satguru, and line.age to follow. They support their lineage
with all their heart, energy and service. He in turn provides
them clear guidance for a successful life, material
and religious.
JUL Y, 1997 HINDUISM TODAY 31
 Five Precepts. Paneha Shraddha • q%{~
THESE FIVE SLOKAS OONSTITUTE THE MINIMAL HINDU
BELIEFS. BY TEACHING THESE TO SONS AND DAUGHTERS,
PARENTS WORLDWIDE PASS ON THE SANATANA DHARMA
TO THEIR CHILDREN.
1. God is All in all-Sarva Brahma ~ ~
The dear children are taught of one Supreme Being, all-
pervasive, transcendent, creator, preserver, destroyer, mani-
festing·in various forms, worshiped in all religions by many
names, the immortal Self in all. They learn to be tolerant,
knowing the souls divinity and the unity ot all mankind.
2. Holy Temples-Mandira qPe:'(
The dear children are taught that God, other divine beings
and highly evolved souls exist in unseen worlds. They learn
to be devoted, knowing that temple worship, fITe-ceremonies,
sacraments and devotionals open channels for loving
blessings, help and guidance from these beings.
3. Cosmic Justice-Karma ~ 3. Virtuous Living-Dharma ~
The dear children are taught of karma, the divine law of
cause and effect by which every thought, word and deed
justly returns to them in this or a future life. They learn to be
compassionate, knowing that each experience, good or bad,
is the self-created reward of prior expressions of free will.
4. Uberation-Samsara-Moksha ~ft 14: -qrar
The dear children are taught that souls experience righteous-
ness, wealth and pleasure in many births, while maturing
spiritually. They learn to be fearless, knowing that all souls,
without exception, will ultimately attain Self Realization,
liberation from rebirth and union with God.
5. Veda, Guru: Scripture, Preceptor ~ ~
The dear children are taught that God revealed the Vedas
and Agamas, which contain the eternal truths. They learn to
be obedient, following the precepts of these sacred scriptures
and awakened satgurus, whose guidance is absolutely
essential for spiritual progress and enlightenment.
Five Practices. Paneha Kriya • q%i bf;'l11
THESE FI'V E SLOKAS OUTLINE THE MINIMAL HINDU
PRACTICES THAT PARENTS TEACH THEIR CHILDREN IN
ORDER TO NURTURE FUTURE CITIZENS WHO ARE STRONG,
SECURE, RESPONSIBLE, 'FOr.iERANT AND T ADITIONAL.
. .
1. Worship-Upasana \3qlft~1
The dear children are taught daily wOFship in the family
shrine room-rituals, disoiplines, chants, yogas and religious
study. They learn to be secure through devotion in home
and temple, wearing traditional dress, bringing forth lov~ of
the Divine and preparing the mind for serene meditation.
2. Holy Days-Utsava \3ct'iq
The dear children are taught to participate in Hindu festivals
and holy days in the home and temple. They learn to be
happy through sweet oommunion with God at such aus-
pieious celebFations. Utsava includes fastiing and atten:ding
the temple on Monday or Friday and other holy days.
The dear children are taught to live a life of duty aI'ld gQod
conduct. They learn to be selfless by thinking of others first,
being Fespectful of pareRts, elders and swamis, following
divine law, especially ahimsa, mental, emotional and physical
noninjury to all beings. Thus they resolve karmas.
4. Pilgrim age- Tirthayatra (ft~l{ 1S11
The dear children are taught the value of pilgrimage and are
taken at least once a year for darshana of holy pers~ms,
temples and places, near or far. They learn to be detached by
setting aside wor~dly affairs and making God, Gods and
gurus life's singular focus during these journeys.
5. Rites of Passage-Samskara ~W;I '(
The crear children are taught to observe the many
sacraments which mark and sandify their passages through
life. They learn to be traditional by celebrating the rites of
birth, name-giving, head-shaving, first feeding, ear-piercing,
first learning, coming of age, marriage and death.

By LILADHARJ . BHARADIA, KENYA
ITH GARLANDS IN HAND, HINDUS
and non-Hindus, VI,Ps and well-
wishers gathered on January 10,
1997 at Nairobi's airport tb welcome
Prof. Rajendra Singh, 75, head of India's
Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh. The beloved
leader had come to inaugurate celebrations
marking 50 years of service by the RSS in
Kenya (known locally as the "Bharatiya
Swayamsevak Sangh," or BSS).
Seven thousand Hindus from over 32 in-
stitutions from all across Kenya joined to-
gether in the "Virat Hindu Sangam" to hon-
or Prof. Singh. Processions, bagpipers and
marching bands were all part of the spec-
34
HINDUISM TOD A.Y Jl\LY , 1997
tacular afternoon. Unlike in India where the
RSS is constantly defending itself against ac-
cusations from so-called secular Hindus of
being too radical, in Kenya the organization
has unquestionably been a stabQizing and
unifying force.
During his stay, Shri Rajju, as he is affec-
tionately known, undertook a whirlwind
tour of BSS projects in Kenya. At the Deen
Dayal Bhavan he presented fifteen am-
putees with "Jaipur feet"-artificiallegs in-
vented in Jaipur, India, and gave wheel
chairs to the handicapped and sewing ma-
chines to Individuals, all part of a program
to promote self-employment. In keeping
with RSS tradition, all gifts were a result of
Happy 50th: Prof Singh lights a
lamp to commemorate the Jubilee
I
donations from the local Hindu pop-
ulation. He handed over a check for
Shs. 82,260 (us$l,443), collected by
the Sthanakvasi Jain Sangh, to the
headmast'er of Jamhuri High School
to meet the tuitions of deserving
students. DUring a meeting with the
President of Kenya, H. E. Daniel
Arap Moi, he gave Shs. 300,000
(US$5,263) for the president's Moi
Street Children Charitable Founda-
tion on behalLof the Hindu Council
of Kenya.
Singh, an ex-professor of nuclear
physics at Allahabad University,
spoke to a receptive audience of
mostly African students at Nairobi
University, saying," "The modern
age has seen a conflict between sci-
ence and religion. Einstein says 'Sci-
ence without spirituality is blind
and religion without science is lame.'
In our ancient literature science is
called aVidya and spiritual knowl-
edge is called vidya. The necessity
of using both has been beautifully
expressed in one of the slokas of
Isopanishad. 'With the help of sci-
ence conquer death, and with the
help of spirituality attain bliss.' This
is what is needed today.:'
At every stop and turn, Shri Rajju
was _ bombarded with questions
about the RSS, Hinduism and life in
general, especially by young people.
Asked how to ,inspire youth to be-
come future leaders, he replied,
"We consider youth the most impor-
tant part of our organization. We
make them think, 'This country and
society have given us I so much.
What have we done in return?' "
Several youth told Shri Rajju they
felt the RSS-style shakha (one-hour
training llleetings) with their para-
military-style - organization were
outdated-they could not attract the
youth in Kenya where there is a tremendo~
influence of Western culture. Shri R~jju ad-
vised, "In India it is also the case. Material-
ism is nilin"g. The West is economically well
off. But it is riddled with many problems,
such as alcoholism, drugs and violence. Our
people are aping the West and forgetting'
that ours is the world's oldest civilization. It
is not a question of attraction but of under-
standing Hindu thought and the p}lrpose of
life, Shakha activities are not old-fashioned.
Sometimes they are just not appreciated and
given due credit. A society becomes great
by molding its youth, bringing unity among
all sections of the society and inculcating a
sense of patriotism and discipline among its
.\
Team spirit: Members practice drills at a
training session, called Shakha (above).
B SS donates wheelchairs to handicapped
I yn.u tns..in..the.pr.e.s.ence..oj.Pr.ai-.Singh ............. .
/
members. Rendering service to the society
is not,only helpful to the society but also el-
evating to the doer." /
Some youths complaip.ed the khaki shorts,
part of the uniform of the BSS, are a source
of ridicule, and youths are repelled from
shakha because of this dress. Shri Rajju
replied, "We have that problem in Bharat,
too. But the outfits are more comfortable for
. games and other ?-ctivities. And when we
march in uniform it makes a great impact
and a sense of pride. If you are proud of it,
it will be all right."
One evening Prof. Singh spoke to Sangh
members gathered from allover Kenya:
"There are 30,000 Hindus in Nairobi, in
about 6,000 families. We'have in our contact
about 4,000 swayamsevaks (religious work-
ers), probably from 400 families. There
•. should not be any Hindu family which had thousands of temples, what good will one between Asians and Africans."
not come into our contact." Prof. Singh'is in- more do. Prof. Singh replied, "There aFe In Mombasa, Prof. Singh visited the
sistent that the entire family participate in three temples sacred and most revered by Swaminarayan temple and the famous Jain
Sangh activities. He remarked, "Sometimes Hindus among thousands of temples demol- Mandir on Langoni Road. At the Patel Samaj
I hear people remarking that the children of ished by Muslim rulers. Hindus want to re- he spoke about the sad state of corruption in
very good swayamsevaks do no.t come to build them. The mosques at these sites are India's political life. "This is a ~ad and
shakha. This should not happen." not holy for Muslims like Mecca, Medina or shameful matter. Why have we come to this
Some/ ladies in Kenya complained their Jerusale;p.. Now lakhs of Hindu pilgrims are stage? For· us it is very simple. We have not
husbands were neglecting their families and visiting these places. They return with a paid attention to morality in life, to dharma
spending too much time in daily sha~ha, hurt feeling and ill-will towards Muslims. If ane! to propagation of moral values."
camps and other activities. Shri Rajju re- these 'three places are restored to the charge The RSS was founded jn India in 1925 by
sponded, "The wives, sisters and mothers in of Hindus and g~and temples are built there, Dr. K.B. Hedgewar as a voluntary organiza-
our families must be given an understanding Hindus will forget the historical wrongs tion of Hindus, initially to aid India's inde-
of our work. They should have more associ- done to them, and there will-be goodwill be- pendence movement. Today its aims are pri-
ation with our work and evince enthusiasm tween Hindus and Muslims. So this is not a marily to uplift Hindus worldwide by
it it. Swayamsevaks stand in front of the question of one more temple, but of restor- inculcating in its members-two million
Bhagwa Dhwaj (the RSS flag) and take a ing goodwill. Muslims have to hand over worldwide-a spirit of..service and self-sac-
vow to make the sarnaj strong. A number of these places to Hindus to win their confi- rifice. It is active in religious education, so-
mothers and sisters are prese:nt here. When . dence, with whom they have to live." cial s'ervice and nota.bly effective at disaster
swayamsevaks from their families spend When asked about the misconceptions relief in time of earthquakes, cyclones and
. time in Sangh work, they should understand and misunderstandings among the African other calamities.
that their menfolk do not waste their time people toward Asians in Kenya, Shr( -Rajju Prior to his departure to South Africa
on idle pursuits." said, "The service activities undertaken by (and later Mauritius), Prof. Singh told mem-
Concern was expressed by several that the BSS-HCK such as medical camps, help- bers of the Sangh: "The Ken{'a BSS has com-
the Sangh's wisK to build a temple at Shri ing the' disabled and helping educational in- pleted 50 years. At the same time, we have
Rama Janmabhoomi is drawing criticism in stitutions and I?oor students create goodwill not completed our chosen mission. This feel-
Kenya from many 'who argue that amongst among Africans. This will bridge the gap ing prompts us to hasten the work." ...,./
JULY , 1997 HINDUISM TODAY 35
AS ·TROLOGY
Stars of Suicide
Born just days apart, Rev. Jim Jones and Marshall
Applewhite led their followers to identical fates '
B }" CHAKRAPANI ULLAL ,
Los ANGELES
HE EXTINCTION OF THE
Heaven's Gate group at the
urging of Marshall Apple-
white was riot the fIrst time
our society was shocked by a
mass suicide [see article, .page
22]. At least in America, minds
immediately recalled the tragedy
of.the People's Temple in Guyana,
impelled by the infamous Rev.
Jim Jones. With unCqmly accura-
cy, Vedic astrology could have
foretold of the delusional behav-
ior and dangerous magnetic ap-
peal of these prophets of death.
"In looking at the birth charts
of Applewhite SUld Jones (born
three ~ys apart), we fmd chill-
ing similarities in the planetary
dispositions, signs and' the influ-
ence of constellations. Jones'
chart indicates a more powerful
personality due to a strong rising
sign, many planets in abgle-hous-
es and an exalted Venus in an
angle-house. Rut they both
sfurred a common mental orien-
tation-a rich fantasy life and an
orbit of creative imagination
which tended to overwhelm
their grasp of reality. This confu-
sion of fantasy and reality was Presaged
created by a predominance of
plan~ts in watery signs, planets in Mercurial
constellations, and afflictions to Mercury
and Moon. ' .
This flood o£ water,}, influences also ef-
fected a certain amount of charisma,
warmth and persuasiveness. Compounding
this was a powerful Jupiter (more so in the
case of Jim Jones) which resulted in their re-
markable leadership qualities. Jupiter is con-
sidered 'the grandest teacher. And here we
fInd individuals whose essential role in cre-
ating their cults was thaf of the ultimate
convincing mentor who had ,the power to
impose fantastic paran6id beliefs with utter
conviction.
Another common trait relates to their 5th
house, which $overns the intellect, discrim-
ination and pu.roa punya, merits and demer-
its of the last life. Both Jones and Applewhite
had their 5th heuse i~uenced by Mars.
36 HINDUISM TODAY JULY , 1997
rity in relation to the world. Mars and Sat-
urn give malefIc results when they have no Nutrition, Sexual Energy and Sept. 25, 26, and 27, 1998
benefIc association or aspects, which they
di~ not in these cases.
Looking to the charts, Applewhite has
Healing by Dr. Vinod Verma
A practical guide for using
Ayurvedic concepts to nour-
Miami, Florida USA
"The Integration of Yoga and
Science in the 21st Century"
You will learn and practice
pisces rising (a water sign) with. malefIc
ish the body, refine ones the simple and easy aspects
Rahu (node of the Moon) occupying the ris-
ing sign in the constellation of malefIc Mer- sexuality, and balance the of Yoga according to your
cury, aspected by malefIc Saturn. Mars was. body and mind for healing. needs, nature and personality.
Practical and theoretical ses-
placed in the 5th house, Cancer (a water
sign), in a debilitated condition. • Dr. Verma shows how sions with yoga teachers and
,Mars also occupied the constel- nutrition, the bodys life force masters, medical doctors,
lation of malefIc Mercury, hav- and healing are inextricably scientists and Yoga therapists
ing a mutual aspect by a malef- linked-a facet of Ayurveda from Europe, USA and India.
ic Saturn. Moon and Mars he~ largely ignored in the many • Practical workshops on yoga
exohange signs (trade places) books now available on techniques for elevation of
ther-eby supporting each other's Ayurvedic nutrition. human consciousness and
quali1:ies, and increasing the awakening of the primal energy.
malefIc impact of these planets. • Verma discusses food products that are commonly available • Medical, clinical research on Yoga techniques.
The Moon, even though seen to the Westerner and how these food products can be used • Improving and awakening mental and psychic faculties.
to be benefIcial to Pisces rising, to enhance vital energies and solve sexual problems. • Theory and study of improving behavior and personality.
became malefIc beduse it was • Ways to minimize stress in contemporary lifestyles.
only hOl!rs away from the New • She shows us how to manage our mental, spiritual, and • Practical application of yoga techniques for increased con-
Moon, thus becoming so weak physical energies for optimum wellness and healing. centration and relaxation in learning situations.
as to have lost: all benefIc influ-
ence. The Moon is also conjunct Illustrated with 40 black & white drawings. Paper, US$14.95. You can attend, volunteer to help, or sponsor activities.
Mercury arid Venus, both malef- Call or write:
ic and marakas (killers) for We encourage you to order this book from your local Swami Brahmavidyananda Saraswati (pictured)
Pisces rising. The only positive bookseller. If you are unable to do so, please contact us: Institute of Holistic Yoga, Satyananda Ashram
planet placement is of Jupiter, Samuel Weiser, Inc. • Tel: 800-423-7087 or 207-363-4393 3800 SW 89th Ave, Miami, FL 33165-5428 USA.
ruler of his rising sign, placed in Fax: 207-363-5799 (USA) Tel: 305-225-3876 • Fax: 305-229-0400
the powerful angle of the 4th
house. This inspired him to-
wards education and a desire to
teach. .
At the time of the Heaven's
Gate suicide, the Saturn major
dasha and Sun sub dasha were
active, accentuatiJ;lg the inimi-
cal incifcations of Applewhite's
Saturn and Sun. FUrthermore,
the suicide took place exactly
when the Sun, Saturn and
malefIc Mercury were conjunct
by the planets: Charismatic Rev. Jim Jones in 1977 in Applewhite's rlsing 'sign,
Pisces, with the Moon hours
Mar~)tself was placed in a debilitated con- away from eclipse. Thus, all the malefIc ,
dition in a watery sign in the constellation of forces conjOined on the rising sign, which
ME(rcury. The combination of Mercury, .-culminated in activating the best of tll.e
which is ephemeral and flighty, and Moon, worst of his characte~
which is wate.ry and emotional, resulted in a Jones had a strong 'and fIery Sagittarius
passionate, volatile and unstable mind. rising, ruled by Jupiter, which resulted in a
In Vedic astrology, the Moon t considered certain amount of idealism and passion. His
the most important indication of one's mind Pisces 4th house was occupied by Venus,
. and emotions. Thus, we can gain important Rahu and Moon, all in the constellation of
insight iIl.to the nature of these individuals malefIc Mercury. ~e 5th house ruler was
by looking to their Moon. Here, the Moon's Mars, placed in the 8th 'house, house of vio:
own watery nature and the added Mercurial lent death. So we: see a powerfully persua-
Sacred Malus
influences created a temperament of pas- sive personality with a convergence of that help Rromote
sion and instability. FUrthermore, the ad- malefIc forces affecting the mind and asso- harmony ~ prosperity. Call today to receive your
verse relationship between the Moon and ciated with death. At the time of the People's
Mercury resulted in psychosis and paranoia, Temple suicide, Jones was passing through a FREE Book on the history and
wh~h was an obvious aspect of their de- major cycle of the Moon, sub-cycle of Rahu.
~t olfeenadewelers
mentia. Magnifying this, the mutual aspect Thus the inherent tend~ncies of both men efficacy of the sacred Rudraksha.
of Mars and Saturn in inimical constella- c.ould have been anticipated. Would it have
tions.in both charts created fear and insecu- made a difference had we known? .,.;
Phone: (773) 973-0505 Fax: (773) 973-0561

Classified ads are US$25 for 20 words, $1/word
for each additional word, payable in advance
• Hinduism Today, 107 Kaholalele Rd, Kapaa,
Hawaii, 96746-9304 USA. Tel: 800-850-1008 or
808-823-9620 • Fax: 808-822-4351,
E-mail: ads@hinduismtoday.kauai.hi.us
Appeals
Swami Balagangadharanatha's Blind School
in Karnataka, India, needs your help (160
pupils). USA volunteers have already sent
4,000 braille books, 6,000 audio tapes, various
braille items, clothing and more. Need
US$5,OOO for equipment to produce needed
braille lessons in Hinduism. Resources are
already strained; please help. (We've also
helped blind schools in other countries).
Intn'l agreements make shipments to blind
institutions free, so your gift goes a long way.
D. Shanmugan. Tel: 1-619-466-9497. Fax: 619-
565-1547. E-mail: 0005ll2751@mcimail.com.
Ayurvedic/Health
Panchakarma retreat. Medically supervised
one-week complete detoxification program
with Scott Gerson, MD, recognized authority.
Authentic and economical. Tel: 212-505-8971
(USA). DrGerson@worldnet.att.net.
Recipe of the Sages. Classical ayurvedic
remedies prepared strictly, following ancient
texts (Ashtanga Hydriya, Sahasrayoga, etc.).
Just arrived from India: massage oils, head oils,
ashwangadadi, lehyam, agasthyarasayanam,
chavanaprash, dasamoolaristhan, draksharish-
tam, and more. Call/write for catalog & price
list. Tel: 800-455-0770. Tri-health Inc., PO Box
340, Anahola, HI 96703-0340 USA.
Meat sUbstitutes: Textured Vegetable Protein
and Instant Seitan. Fat-free, quick-cooking.
Free catalog: 800-695-2241. PO Box 180-HT,
Summertown, TN 38483-0180.
Ayurvedic tours in India. Panchakarma,
massage, herb gardens, lectures, secrets.
Also arrange Sanskrit-learning retreats.
Beginners and advanced. Health Tours.
Tel: 1-505-323-7233 (USA).
Free 32-page booklet on ayurvedic gems. Help
overcome your negative karma. Personalized
planetary gem analysis, US$20. Specializing in
affordable Navaratnas (nine-gem upper arm
bangles). VA.J., ll06 2nd St #101, Encinitas,
CA 92024-5008 USA. Tel: 619-753-6071. Fax:
619-753-3355.
Computer
The best software for Hindi, Sanskrit, Gujarati,
Punjabi, Bengali with diacritical marks.
The Hindi Word Processor for Windows
from Krishna Software. US$109.00 + US$10.00
shipping. MasterC·ard/M.O. Tel: 416-315-3186.
PO Box 86065, Oakville, ON L6H 5V6,
Canada. Email: dsharma@worldchat.com.
Distributorship available.
Quality Indian clipart software for Mac or PC.
KalashKala: more than 100 color and b&w
images for all Indian occasions. Reviewed by
Hinduism Today - Feb. 97. us $39.99 plus $4
shippingl$8 international shipping. Contact:
Prium Graphics, llO Standish Road, Needham,
MA 02192-ll18 USA. Tel: 617-444-4103.
E-mail: prium@aol.com
Devotional Supplies
Ganges clayfired statues for puja, meditation.
Sixty beautiful handpainted images including
hard-to-find Narasimha, Kalki, Jagannatha,
Chaitanya, Shankaracharya, Dhanvantari. Color
catalog, US$2. JBL, Box 163 H, Crozet, VA
22932-0163 USA.
Quality Incense
from India. Golden Rose.
Neel Kamal. Pure Sandal-
wood cones, and more.
Tel: 970-949-6329 USA
Email: vel@vail.net
Education
Hindu University of America summer intensive
courses, Florida campus. Hinduism, Sankhya
Yoga, Raja Yoga, Sanskrit, meditation, music,
Hindu psychology, etc. Hindu University of
America, 8610 Vesta Terrace, Orlando, FL
32825-7934 USA. Tel/fax: 407-277-5959.
E-mail: 103655.2733@compuserve.com
Excellent correspondence course on Vedic
Astrology by Jyotish Krishnan, recipient of
several awards including the recent award of
Jyotish Vachaspathi by leas, India. His book
entitled Ashtaka Varga Made Simple for the
Western Astrologer is available for sale by the
author. Tel/fax: 972-783-1242 or write PO Box
852892, Richardson TX 75085-2892 USA.
Free Products and Services
Free educational flow charts on all aspects of
Hinduism. Write to Viswanath. Am I a Hindu ?
[ISBN 1-879904-06-3] Box 56697, New Or-
leans, LA 70156-6697 USA.
Shri Shivabalayogi Maharaj meditation
blessings. Peace, bliss and Self-Realization at-
tained through meditation. Included are pho-
to of Shri Shivabalayogi Maharaj, holy ash and
meditation instructions. No charge. Send
name, address and phone number to Dhyana
Center of Roanoke, 833 Woods End Lane,
SW, Roanoke, VA 24014-1423 USA
For inspiration, calI808-822-SIVAI7482 day or
night for a recorded sermonette by Satguru
Sivaya Subramuniyaswami. A total of sixty
different upadeshes are changed daily, Each
one is from 10 to 18 minutes-covering topics
such chakras, handling karma, fear and other
states of externalized consciousness, affirma-
tions, putting teachings into practice, color
meditations, and many more.
Canada Immigration
Complete preparation of application
package for US$l,OOO only. Leading team
of immigration lawyers and consultants.
Contact Surya Consulting, Inc.
Tel: 709-747-4709 • Fax: 800-330-3670.
Jewelry
Affordable jyotish gems/jewelry. Vedic
astrological prescriptions filled. Paramahansa
Yogananda bangles. Meditation beads. Free
information. Satisfaction Guaranteed. Order
by mail from King Enterprises, 1305 N.
H StlA-289-T, Lompoc, CA 93436-3335 USA.
CalI1-805-693-09ll (business hours).
Music and Art
Heart-melting Deity miniatUre paintings
from India at website: http://www.lakshmi.
com. Catalog: Lakshmi International, 4ll
Madison St, Boonton, NJ 07005-2051 USA.
Devotional sculptUre: Classic stone-cast
murthies of Hindu deities for your home or
temple. Ganesh, Shiva, Laxmi, Sarasvati, Durga.
Ht: 2 ft. (61 cm) or 4-5 ft. (1.2-1.5 m ). Com-
missions available. Catalog, tel: 800-608-8632 ,
515-472-8ll5. Vedic Sculpture Studio, 607 W
Broadway #144, Fairfield, IA 52556-3200 USA.
Exquisite Vedic paintings done to order at very
reasonable prices. Art book, Windows to the
Spiritual World , containing over 108 color
prints (14 double-page) 8.5 x II inches, hard-
bound, dustjacket: US$45. Contact for free flyer:
Pushkar, PO Box 1094, Alachua, FL 32615
USA. Tel: 904-462-0144. Fax: 904-462-7893.
East Indian instruments and gift items. Giant
selection of instruments: harmoniums, tabla,
daggas, kirtan instruments, audio/video tapes.
Also incense, spiritual books, etc. For a beau-
tiful catalog, send US$l to Encinitas Imports,
PO Box 230419-H, Encinitas, CA 92023-0419
USA. Tel: 619-436-9589.
Products/Stores
Jay Store: Houston's oldest Indian grocery
store. Over 5,000 items- pooja articles and
much more. UPS daily. lOAM-8PM every day.
Tel: 713-783-0032 (USA).
Purity Farms organic traditional ghee. 100%
pure, from cows raised completely.free of hor-
mones, chemicals or pesticides. A delight to cook
with! Wholesale/retail. Call 303-647-2368
Evolution'· vegetarian health food for dogs,
cats and ferrets. No slaughter-house waste
as found in all meat-based pet foods. All-
vegetarian; contains more essential and extra
nutrients than any other brand. Five to ten
extra healthy years for your companion
guaranteed. Brochures and discounts available.
287 E 6th St #270, St. Paul, MN 55101-1926
USA. Tel: 612-228-0632, 612-227-2414.
Professional Services
Worldwide construction in masonry and con-
crete. Will travel anywhere. 25 years experi-
ence. Ref available. For free estimates: Sankara
and Sons, 6136D Kala Kea, Kapaa, HI 96746-
8642 USA. Tel/fax: 1-808-823-6698. Mobile
tel: 808-639-2809. E-mail: Sankara@aloha.net
Publications
Amar Chitra Katha for children. Illustrated
colorful tales on Hindu mythology. Discounts
to schools and distributors. ACK Agency,
2653 Grande Vista Ave, Oakland, CA
94601-1317 USA. Tel/fax: 510-532-2505. Web:
http://www.ackagency.com
Sri Aurobindo books: Complete works of Sri
Aurobindo, the Mother, Shri Madhav Pandit.
Additional titles on Yoga, Philosophy, Ayurve-
da and Alternate Health. Exclusive distributors
for Samata Books Classical Spiritual Texts.
Free Catalog: Lotus Light, Box 325HT, Twin
Lakes, WI 53181-0325 USA.
Behold the invisible power like a meteor from
heaven. For the first time, you can explore The
Secrets of Aum and Gayatri, a book by Pandit
Tripathi that reveals the mystical principles be-
hind the greatest of mantras. A must for Hin-
du and non-Hindu homes. 184 pp. Hardcover.
Published USA. US$19.98 p.paid. Panditji, 7206
Burnway Dr., Orlando FL 32819-5051 USA.
The Major Distributor of
books from India.
A sampling from our catalog:
• Ganesha: The Auspicious ...
The Beginning. Shakunthala
Jagannathan. pap. US$17.00
• Hinduism: An Introduction.
Shakunthala Jagannathan.
Pap. $12.95
• Introduction to the Puranas.
Pushpendra Shastri. $12.00
• Iswara Darshan. Sri Swami
Tapovan Maharaj. pap. $8.95
• Gita Rahasya. B.G. Tilak.
$25.00
• Meditation. Narayan Dutt Shrimali. $25.00
• What Becomes of the Soul After Death. Sivananda. pap. $8.00
• Prana Pranaya'fl1A! Prana Vidya . Swami Niranjananda
Saraswati. pap. $12.95
• Hatha Yoga Pradipika: Light on Hatha Yoga. Swami
Muktibodhananda Saraswati. pap. $14.95
• Third Ey e & Kundalini. B.S. GoeL $22.00
• Chanakya's Neeti Scripture. R.K. Sharma. pap. $14.95
Visa/MC accepted.
Nataraj Books
7073 Brookfield Plaza • Springfield, VA 22150-2915 USA
Tel: 1-703-455-4996 • Fax: 1-703-912-9052
email: nataraj@mail.erols.com • Please ask for our free catalog
Palani Pan chang 1997. Trivedi's American Tel: 800 545-9ll8 or 619-471-5ll6. Fax:
Panchang available in English or Gujarati. 619-471-0337. E-mail: mail@innerdir.tom
US$9 (+US$2 slh). In 3 versions for NY, Chica-
go, San Francisco times. 510-490-1533. De-
vendra Trivedi, 4831 Piper St, Fremont, CA
AVideo Pilgrimage
94538-2525 USA. 60 rarely-filmed sites. Lofty,
inspiring. US$39.95. M. Cian-
AUromere: Sri Aurobindo books, classical spir- ciara, 2000 N. Ivar Ave #7
itual texts, ayurveda books, children's books Hollywood, CA 90068-3960
from India, ayurvedic products, incense, and
much more. Free catalog: 1-800-735-4691 (USA).
Acclaimed spiritual videos: Sadhana-
For latest Indian magazines/newspapers- India's holy men, see the Kumbha Mela.
subscriptions available. Also available: Hindi, 60 min. US$33.95 pstpd (ck). Pal and Catalog
Gujarati magazines and much more. Call available. Penny Price Media. 355C Lake
Emkay Advertising. Tel: 281-933-4005. Pleasant Dr. Staatsburg, NY 12580 USA.
Fax: 281-498-6286 (USA). Tel: 914-876-0239, fax 914-876-02.60.
Vacation/Retreat Yoga
Beautiful rooms by the ocean. Ayurvedic
meals. One hour north of San Francisco. Yoga in Daily Life
Brighton Beach HAUS. Tel: 415-868-9778. Yoga classes, guest lecturers, satsang.
Yoga related items, books, audio and video
Videos tapes and more.
1310 Mt. Vernon, Alexandria, VA 22301 USA
Rall1ana Maharshi Video. Just released! Nar- Tel: 703-299-8946 • Fax: 703-299-9051
rated by Ram Dass, Abide As the Self presents
the essential teachings of Ramana Maharshi.
Includes comprehensive live footage, rare Yoga at home video series, alllevels,wlRamesh
photographs, and interviews with H .W.L. Yogi, Indian guru, 25 years experience. US$25,
Poonja, Douglas Harding, Allan Anderson incl. postage. Yoga Center, PO Box 36-D-67,
and others. Inner Directions, PO Box Los Angeles, CA 90036 USA Tel: 213-876-9970.
231486H, Encinitas, CA 92023-1486 USA. http://www.indolink.comigloballyogaCntr:html
Sri Chinmoy Ayurvedic Institute
The Sri Chinmoy Institute of Ayurvedic Sciences offers
authentic training in the ancient traditions of Ayurvedic
Medicine. Comprehensive programs taught in all areas:
nutrition, pulse diagnoses, Ayurvedic skin care, massage,
Panch Karma (cleansing and rejuvenation), and herbal
medicine. Taught by Vrrender Sodhi, MD. (Ayurved), N.D. and
N.D. staff Now enrolling evening and weekend seminars.
Sri Chinmoy Institute of Ayurvedic Sciences
2115112th Ave NE, Bellevue, WA 98004-2946 USA.
Tel: 1-425-453-8022 • Fax: 1-425-451-2670
e-mail: Ayurveda@Ayush.com. http/www.ayush.com
Learn at Home by Mail
Self study courses:
• Hindi in 2 months • Sanskrit in 6 months
• Speak Hindi in 2 weeks
Other Vedic University Publications:
• How to befriend God • Win the battle of life • Happy
Home • Valmiki Ramayana • Unknown facts revealed
Call or send us an e-mail for a free catalog:
Vedic University of America, 10509 Caminito Basswood
San Diego, CA 92131-1704 USA· Tel: 1-619-578-7790
Fax: 1-619-578-8293 • E-mail: VedicU@cris.com

Do you love Nepal?
Help to preserve one of
its most venerable treasures
in a rapidly changing world.
Your gifts to the Nepal Kumari
Goddess Education Fund
will provide a stipend for the
education and adjustment of
future Kumaris as they re-enter
the world after their time of
sacred service to the Gods.
1-800-890-1008 Ext. 235
1-808-822-3152 Ext. 235
http://www. HinduismToday.
kauai. hi. us/ashram/
HHE.html
ENDOWMENTS
HINDU HERITAGE ENDOWMENT
107 KAHOLALELE ROAD
KAPAA. HI 96746-9304 USA
INVESTING IN THE FUTURE OF HINDUISM
PARENTING
To Beat or Not to Beat?
How spanking children leads to adult problems
E CALLS IT THE CON-
spiracy of silence: the
universal and chronic
use of corporal punish-
ment in America. Prof. Mur-
ray A. Straus, founder and
co-director of the Family Re-
search Lab at the University
of New Hamshire, says it is
one of America's best-kept se-
crets. Straus spent two
decades researching the ex-
tent of spanking, hitting and
slapping and the effects such
punishment has on children
when they grow older. The re-
sults of studying over nine-
thousand families were
published in a 1994 sociology
textbook, Beating the Devil
Out of Them, a scholarly, sta-
tistical expose authored by
Straus ,with contributions by
Denise A. Donnelly and over
50 other scholars.
The book derives its name
frorp the Christian idea of original sin and American public, even the thought of no
being possessed by the devil. Now many physical discipline is ludicrous. Will there
parents believe in a modern version- the ever be a time when parents will not feel the
stubborn or willful child. Straus calls it "vir- necessity to spank? Straus says yes, but it
tuous violence" because few books or agen- will happen slowly. Like smoking, which
cies on child rearing advise
against hitting a child. He
states that this reflects an al-
most overwhelming approval
of corporal punishment by
the American public.
Few parents realize the
damage they may be causing
thei; children, who learn that
love and violence go hand in
h~d. Employing graphs and
bar charts throughout the "'
book, Straus presents statistics ~
which indicate that corporal ~
punishment leads to delin- ~
quency as a child and crime ~
as an adult. Problems such as ~
depression, suicide, drinking, ~
wife ' or husband beating,
masochistic sex and lowered earnings are in a community-wide project to become a
shown to be likely results. Straus feels that "no-hitter community." The program is de-
by putting an end to corporal punishment, signed to reach parents directly and is based
many other kinds of violence in the world on the idea that parents need support from
can. be prevented.
What is most alarming is the near-total re- change hurtful attitudes.
sistance Straus receives to the idea of com-
plete abstinence from hitting. To the
Ayurvedic Massage
. Hari sh Johari • ISBN 0-89281-489-6 • $19 .95 illustrated pb
J2tyurvedic
Trained in India 's ancient healing art, author Harish Johari introduces Ayurvedic massage,
a gentle bodywork therapy that promotes well-being on both the physical and mental levels.
~assage
The Healing Cuisine
India's Art ofAyurvedic Cooking
Harish Johari • ISB N 0-89281-382-2 • $16.95 pb
Harish Johari is an inspired cook who shares his culinary
wisdom in this treasury of vegetarian cooking based upon
ancient Ayurvedic principles of healing.
The Heart of Yoga
Developing a Personal Practice
T.K.V Desikac har • 8 x 10,272 pages, 96 illustrations· ISBN 0-89281-533-7 • $19.95 pb
"Highly recommended. Its great gift lies not simply in the depth of Desikachar's learning, but in
the compassion, gentleness, practicality, and down-to-earth spirit that permeate the book"
Yoga JournaJ
Awakening Kundalini for Health, Energy, and Consciousness
Chris Kilham • ISB N 0-89281-602-3 • $10.95 one 60-minute audiocassette
This audiocassette leads you through easy-to-follow breathing exercises, kundalini meditation techniques,
and yogic practices to tap into the kundalini energy that is the wellspring of Vitality.
Available at bookstores, or order from Inner Trad itions, Dept. H, P.O. Box 388, Rochester, VT 05767
1-800-246-8648 Please add $3.00 for the first book, $1 each add itional, for shipping Visit our Web Site at http://www.goto it. com
Hands off: Prof Straus lambastes the lash
The Fifth 0
ctober 1
International
No!el Mar 1-1iI;7, 1997
Svmposium
San Dieg On Hotel
was condoned a genera- -:::--:::--:::::-:=_""""::-......._"""":__~____-=J;....-.::...__________-=~;ys;~~o*' Cqlifornia
tion ago and condemned
today, hitting will eventu-
ally emerge as an anti-so-
A ST R 0 L 0 G Y .
FEATURED SPEAKERS FROM INDIA
BErlN BEHARI, author, lecturer, from Deihl, India,
IS acknowleded as one of the foremost Vedic astrologers.
Vedic Astrology was developed by the ancient NIRANJ~N BABU, Vedic scholar from Bangalore, India, is an expert
cial act with serious costs FACULTY In the field of Va stu Shastra (similar to Feng Shui).
sages of India over 5,000 years ago . Called Jyotlsha,
to public health. the Science of Light. It Is renowned for its spiritual depth
In 1979, Sweden became Bangalore Sureshwara Dennis Flaherty R.G. Krishnan
and accuracy In predicting future events. Keven Barrett Andrew Foss Drew Lawrence
the first country to make Marc Boney Dr. David Frawley William Levacy
spanking illegal, followed This Symposium will introduce Vedic Astrology Kenneth Bowser Hank Freidman Ann Muldoon
to the general public and provide a forum for:
by Norway, Finland, Den- Kathleen Burt Dennis M. Harness, rhO Alex Nagel
mark and Austria. This
was one of the frrst indica- * The education of the general public in the
principles of Vedic Astrology
free
James Butler
Rob Calef
Dr. K.S. Charak
Edith Hathaway
Richard Houck
Nallnl Kanta Das
T.R. Raghunath, rhO
George Roman
Dr. Dlnesh Sharma
tions that the idea of rais-
ing children without hitting * The eXChange and discussion of Ideas
and techniques in Vedic Astrology Christina Collins
Hart de Fouw
Linda Johnsen
James Kelleher
rrlnce Hlrlndra Singh
Atreya SmIth
was taking hold outside
academic life. •.
* The presentation of modern research findings
validating ancient astrological principles Ronnie Gale Dreyer
Brendan Feeley
Sat Sin Kaur Khalsa
Robert Koch
Dr. Robert Svoboda
Chakrapanl Ullal
I!!!!!!!!II_".
Straus is now involved in
an experiment in which
* The promotion of professional standards in the
training and practice of Vedic Astrology .-------------------------------------------------------
o Please register me for attendance at the International SymposIum --, I
I
on Vedic Astrology, October 2-7, 1997, at the Del Mar Hilton Hotel, I
I
,one small city is engaging Substantial Savings for early registration! Del Mar, CA. Endosed Is payment of $_ _ for _ _ Registration fee(s) I
I
o
RegIstration fees
for main symposIum: Pleas< mall this reglstraHon form with
*
Send more Information on the Symposium and hotel accommodations
Optional pre-conference Introductory classes and post-conference
I
I
I
I
I
Intensives will also be offered. I
$195 by June 30, 1997 payment by check, money order or I
$245 after June 30, 1997 credit card to the Institute address 1----. Name _______________________________________ I
I
below. Registrations paid by credit I
($25 Discount for ACVA Members) Address ___________________________________ I
' their relatives, neighbors and friends to card may also be faxed or phoned In. I
I
S City, State, Zip ______________________________ I
I
INSTITUTE. OF VEDIC ASTROLOGY I
I
TO ORDER WRITE TO: LEXINGTON BOOKS Telephone (day/night) _____________________________
r.o. BOX 2t49· SEDONA, AZ 86339 I
I
866 THIRD AVENUE, NEW YORK, N. Y. 10022, USA
rhone (520) 282-6595 • fAX (520) 282-6097 I
I VISA/Mel - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -_________ Exp.Date----1__ I
I
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ,
I
: ,41
~f'~~~~~~~"~~~=-,=~" ~~~~~=~ r~
Ayurvedic Herbal Products
Combining 5,000 years of
wisdom with state-of-the-art
technology.
• All products grown naturally
in their pristine Himalayan
habitat.
• Free of pesticides,
, insecticides, heavy metals
and chemical fertilizers.
• Standardized to ensure con-
sistent high quality & potency.
Products include:
• AmlaPlex • AP Mag
• Bio-Gymnema • Carditone
• Tylophora Plus • Macuna Plus
• Pippli • Therapeutic Herbal Oils
• Rentone • Trifal • Neem Plus
• Specially formulated for women:
Eleg Fern, Young Fern, Shitawari
• For liver support: Livit-1, Livit-2
• Herbal anti-arthritic treatments:
Ashwagandha, Boswellia Plus
• Cholesterol control: Guggalip
Ayush Herbs, Inc.
2115112th Ave NE, Bellevue, WA 98004-2946 USA.
Tel: 800-925-1371 or 425-637-1400 • Fax: 425-451-2670
E-mail: Ayurveda@Ayush.com. http/www.ayush.com
673 Eighth Avenue - Val Morin Quebec - Canada JOT 2RO
1-8 19 - 32 2 - 32 2 6 1-8 19 - 322 - 13 79 Fax: 1- 8 19 - 3_22 - 5 8 76 . i tL:, ' \
Sunday JunelOth-29th
Mariamman Temple
1st Anniversary Celebrations
The first anniversary of the
Mariamman installation will be
celebrated with special ten-day
pujas, each sponsored by a different
family. The tenth day will conclude
the series of pujas with a grand
pongala festival.
SundaYI June 29th
PONGALA
Our 6th annual !bngala celebra-
tions will commence with a special
Homa for Devi from 6-9am, after
which fire from the Homa pit will
be taken to start the cooking fires.
Atraditional Tamil festival
especially for women for women,
for the well of all.
Custom Tours to India
Kali Travel is uniquely qualified to
organize custom-made tours to satis-
fy the needs of any type of group,
organization or individual and to
structure an itinerary appropriate to
their specific needs and interests.
For more information, contact:
Kali Travel Ltd.
169-12 Hillside Ave,
Jamaica, NY 11432-4498 USA
Tel: 1-718-29l-9292
God,God,God
A rare opportunity offered to my brothers and sisters allover
the world.
"What right has a man to say he has a soul if he does not feel
it, or that there is a God if he does not see Him?"
Anyone with a burning desire to truly and honestly see, feel,
hear and talk to God, contact:
Dr. Aruna • 183 Jalan Besar, Bukit Tengah
154000 Bukit Mertajam
Penang, West Malaysia
SrVANANDA ASHRAM
~~.a//I~ 7emfde
~ English-speaking Hindus, yoga enthusiasts, and anyone interested in Sanskrit lit-
July 1st-9th
Chandika Homa
I especially thank those who worked so hard to
Vars
Com ratete
SubramanyalAyyappa Temple's
third anniversary with the ;
conclusion of speciaI9-da"
Chandika Homa in the momjf1g
followed by the evening Sa,~§w:a
Kalashabhishekam and SaRasia
Sankabhishekam.
An Ancient God's Visible Grace
It began on September 21,1995, when an image of Ganesa in a New Delhi temple be-
gan sipping milk. Then, this modern miracle took on global dimensions as, over sever-
al months, it was witnessed by millions, in temples, shrines and homes worldwide .
How timely that, only days before, Satguru Sivaya Subramuniyaswami had finished his
illustrated resource book, Loving Ganesa-800 pages of insights into this great God!
Loving Ganesa is at once simple, deep and practical, and teaches ever so many ways
that Ganesa's grace can be attained through sincere devotion, song, prayer and medita-
tion, to bring greater harmony, contentment and spirituality into our daily life.
Imagine yourself sitting crosslegged under a shady tree, the hum of insects and a
gentle breeze coloring the background as you absorb the words of an important
teacher. Only a handful of religious texts have been able to convey such an overwhelm-
ing presence; this is one.-Napra Review
It is an important text for English-speaking readers and should remain as an all-
you-wanted-to-know-but-were afraid-to-ask book about Ganesa, the divine and
much-loved remover of obstacles.-Publishers Weekly
A majestic book of love, peace and happiness depicting Ganesa as a friend and pro-
tector, generously accessible to young and old, expressed in intriguing mysticism for
the world's oldest living religion.-Book Reader
800 pages • $19.95 paper. lavishly illustrated. ISBN 0-945497 -64-4
Exceptional Answers to
Eternal Questions
Every spiritually-inclined human being will be enriched by the path re-vealed in
this 1,008-page volume. India's vision of the Divine is depicted in all of its infinte
variety here: meditative, devotional, philosophical, scriptural and yogic, answering
the vital questions: What are life's ultimate goals? How can I achieve them? How
do Hindus view family, sex, sin, worship, death and nonviolence? What are the
foremost schools of Hindu thought, and what do they teach? Dancing with Siva is
the masterful work of Sivaya Subramuniyaswami, a traditional satguru immersed,
Swami Vishnu-
for half a century, in an ongoing global Hindu renaissance.
devananda
1927-199)
Thanks and Appreciation
erature and culture will be overjoyed by this remarkable refere'nce work of Hindu
We wish to thank all the devotees who helped
to make last year's program so successful. We
belief and culture .... Quite simply-the best English overview of Hinduism avail-
able today.-Napra Review
install the Mariamman and Navagraha statues
in their new shrines. Special thanks to those The swami concisely answers 155 key questions, ranging from "What is the ulti-
who built thebeautiful 18 foot tall Chariot for mate goal of earthly life?" to "How are Hindu marriages arranged?"
the Kaavadi festival. ... a 40-page timeline, a 200-page lexicon of Hindu terms, a comparative guide to
major religious traditions, and a primer for teaching religious principles to chil-
Some of the wonderful projects planned for
next Summer include the completion of an dren ... enriched by extensive scriptural quotations and reproductions of Rajput
outdoor kitchen and dining hall. These will be art.- Yoga Journal
used for feasts and celebrations. We plan to
construct 18 steps for Lord Ayyappa , as at 1,008 p .• $19.95 paper. lavishly illustrated. ISBN 0-945497-47-4
Sabarimalai, and continue the steps to the
HIMALAYAN Shipping: to USA, add 10%, to other countries, add 20%
bottom of the hill.
ACADEMY
Ofcour;e, theTemple requires funds for the These two titles are also available in:. Australia: Yoga in Daily Life Tel: 02 9518 7788, Fax: 02
PUBLICATIONS 95187799. Canada: Int' Yoga in Daily Life: 604 524 2942 Fax: 604 524 1395. Europe: Om
completion of all these works. All donations
in time and/or money are very much Vishwa Guru Deep Hindu Mandir PH/Fax 3611143504 email: ervin@mail.matav.hu • India: Munshiram
Manoharlal Publishers Delhi: PH: 11-777-1668 Fax:11-751-2745 • Bangalore: Jiva Rajasankara Fax:
appreciated. Checks and money order; 107 Kaholalele Rd
should be drawn in favourof ' Sivananda
91-80-839-7119 email: jiva@giasbg01.vsnl.net.in. Malaysia: Hinduism Today / Sanatana Dharma Publi-
Kapaa, Hawaii 96746-9304 USA cations: PH: 03 331 9242. Mauritius: Saiva Siddhanta Church PH : 412-7682 Fax: 412-7177. New
Ashram Temple: Contact the Temple manager Zealand: India Emporium Tel: 09 3773733 Fax: 09 3733300 • Russia: (Russian Language edition of
if you desire a receipt fortax deduction. Be Tel: 1-800-890-1008,ex.238 Dancing with Siva) Centre of Tantra Sangha Tel: 70 95 465 0339 Fax: 70 95 972 0230 email: tantra @
sure to send your full postal address and 1-808-822-3152,ex.238 online.ru • Singapore: Hinduism Today / Sanatana Dharma Publications: Tel: 957 66 012. South Africa:
phone number along with your donation. Fax: 1-808-822-4351 Wizard's Warehouse Tel : 021 461 9719 Fax: 021 45 1417 • Trinidad: Aswinee & Narendra Persad
Tel: 809 662 8741 Fax: 809 662 3351 • UK: Hinduism Today Tel: 0171 9379163 Fax: 0171 460 1819
e-mail: letters@HinduismToday.kauai.hi.us E-mail : easan1@aol.com
http//www.HinduismToday.kauai.hi.us/ashram/ • Also available from India Ink on the Internet at: www.pacific-basin.com/indiainklindiaink.html

HEALING
Ayurvedic Principles
For Pubescence
Hatha yoga, exercise and a pitta-reducIng diet:
prerequisites for boys and girls during puber~y
""
BY DEVANANDA TANDAVAN, M . D.
E HAVE EMPHASIZED
that exercise is very
important for boys and
girls going throl!gh pu-
berty. Exercise is one of the
main activities that stimulate the
body to work normally and stay
in good health, and is of tWQ
types. Hatha yoga, an organized
form of asanas, or physical pos-
tures, will maintain healthy
functioping of the muscles through stretch-
ing and contracting. Minimal asanas to
perform daily are called Surya Namaskar.
Done slowly,' they exercise every muscle in
the body and aid in proper respiration.
The second form of exercise is called
aerobics. Aerobics will raise the heart and
respiratory rates, resulting in an increase in
metabolism. Some of the best aerobic exer-
cises are walking, jogging, swimming, run-
ning, calisthenics and team sports. -T he .
heart rate should be raised to 60% to 80%
of its maximum (270 minus age) and main- ,
tained for about 15 to 30 minutes. After
exercising there should be a cooling-off
period to allow the heart and respiratory
rate~ to return to normal. During puberty,
team' sports are beneficial for boys, helping
them get through this period without ex-
cessive wet dreams anel will help them to
harness sexual fantasy and avoid carnal
temptations.
Acne can be a problem, due to a high
pitta, or a fire humor condition. There are
no good creams or other applications that
can help, except for very advanced cases in
which an antibiotic cream can be used.
Keeping the skin very. cleq.n is important, .
and light exposure to sunlight'is acceptable
if a screening agent is applied to prevent
burning. Still, most creams are nostrums.
A pitta pacifying diet is necessary to
overcome the excessive pitta influence.
Acceptable f~ds are too numerous to men-
tion but a list of foods to avoid is given
44 a JNDUISM TODAY JULY, 1997
below as a guide. The emphasis-
during the years of puberty
should be on bitter, swe~t and
astringent tasting foods. The
time of the year, the freshness
and variety of foods and how
they are prepared may alter the
effects of the diet. While
preparing food, mothers should .
also keep in mind the health
requirements of.other :glembers
of the family. This may require making
separate dishes for the various doshas, or
individual bodily constitutions, and the
different age groups within the home. Few
fats or oils should be used for cooking, and
should not be reuseCl.. Use heat-producing
spices and vegetables very sparingly.
Pitta-aggravating vegetables to avoid
include beets, raw carrots, chilies, daikon,
eggplant, olives, onions, peanuts, pumpkins,
radishes, spaghetti squash, spinach and,
tomatoes. All fruits should be ripe and
sweet. Avoid apricots, bananas, berries,
cranberries, green grapes, grapefruit, kiwi,
lemon, lime, papaya, peaches, rhubarb and
strawberries. Grains to avoid are brown
rice, buckwheat, corn, millet, dry oats, rye
and guinoa. Stay completely away from
lentils, brown sugar, molasses and old hon-
ey~ Other foods to steer clear of, especially
if acne is present, are alcohol, chocolate,
coffee, ketchup, mayonnaise, mustard, pick-
les, salt, tea and vinegar.' -I
Parents can help guide their growing -
. sons and daughters into a happy, healthy,
successfYl young adult life by keeping
themselves informed and talking regularly
and ffankJ.y with their youngsters about the
natural, wonderful process called puberty.
DR. TANDAVAN, 77, retired nuclea( physi-
cian and hospital staff president, lives in
Chi'cago, where he specializes in alternative
healiJ1.g arts. Visit his home page at the
HINDUISM TODAY ·Website.
Hindu Students Council Celebrates
EVOLUTIONS
AWARDED: Dr. Purushottamlal Bhargava
Freedom Festival 1997!
by Indian President Shankar Dayal
Sharma, for his eminence in Sanskrit
scholarship and pro-
Freedom Festi~al 1997 Committee Invites you to Participate in and Actively
Support the Activities to Commemorate the Momentous Golden Jubilee of India's Independence.
ficiency in Shastras.
Formerly Professor Freedom Festival '97 is a series ofl year-long activities to be held throughout the USA and Canada.
of Sanskrit at Ra-
jasthan University, Conferences: Regional coh~ rences will proviCte great opportunities for all of us learn more about the achievements,
India, and Professor
of Religion at Mc- trials and tribulations of tne people of India and define the future role of Indian people the world over. Guest
Master University, speakers and upcoming conferences are shown below (these are subject to change).
Canada, Dr. Bhar-
gava is the author of
numerous research Region Venue Date / Contact
papers and books on Indology. He is
currently engaged in producing new Southeast Georgia Tech, Atlanta May 30-June 1 Dinesh Harursampath dinesh@cad.gatech.edu 404-885-9412
editions of his celebrated books Midwest Univ. of Michigan ·Sep.19-21 Jwalant Lakhia jlakhia@umich.edu 810-926-15-1'3
Founders of India's Civilization and New E",glar:lEl.J MIT at Cambridge, MA Sep.26-28 Chandran Bandhopadhya cDall'do@ynx.ne ,.ef u 617-227-3023
India in the Vedic Age. /
Wasli. DC TBD Oct. 3-5 Vin'Od~Nair-.mnair@welchli J k.W~410-666-0755
CONVERTED: From Christianity to Hin- Can a a Univ. of Toronto Oct. 17-19 Paresh Trive i'"Paresh Trivedi@utoronto.ca 905-607-2897
duism. Mr. P Paul Edwin, a scientist Southwest Houston Jan. 2-4 '98 Sandeep Gupta san deep @~ndUrfct.org 281-499-9624
and researcher, became a Hindu in a
r
West Coast TBD TBD Ajay Shah ajay@mercury.aichcm.a izona.ed 619-484-4564
simple ceremony by the Arya Samaj in
New Delhi. A Tamil, his forefathers be-
came Christian under the British Raj.
On another occasion, Philip Charles, a
British man who reins as the World TBD: To B8 Decided
Karate Champion, embraced Hinduism
and now uses the name Chinmaya. Seminars: Day-long seminars on more than 50 campuses throughout North Americ~ wl ~1 explore Indian tlistory and
~e. Prese I tations by scholars and students, discussions, exhibits and shows.; 0 drganize a semirtJr in your
REVIVED: From a near-death experi- region, call Jwafant Lakhia Jlkhia@umich.edu 810-926-1513 Study Centers: Re€lt1la s udy centers are being held
ence, Shrimati Capideo, 75, was said to
thro ghout Nbrt America to learn about subjects ranging from Indian history to ( hilosophy to current society. To start
be clinically dead for 17 seconds by
doctors following her collapse in a Siva a study center, c II Rashmi Gupta, rgupta@neucom .edu 330-869-2197.
temple on the island of Trinidad. A yo-
gini for the last 36 years, Ma said that
while doctors tried to restore her pulse
India Darshan: rt exhibitions and multimedia presentations on Indian,~y, culture, arts of India.
she saw Lord Siva come towards her
with His arms open. "I went into the Golbal Freedo Prayer Meet: On August 15, 1997, midnight (India.?time) , prayer meets will be held throughout the
Lords arms as a child longing for her world to salute Mother India and party for the freedom, peac,..?and prosperity of India and the world. Request your
parent's love." She continues to visit the
temple every day.
city/town to obsenve this event. For details call Arvind Sant,(asant@erols.com 718-979-6144.
.-.-/
DISCOVERED: At least on paper, a new Essay & Art Competition: Focus on Indian histor , Hindu culture & heritage. $4,000 in awards for different age
sub-atomic particle by nine-year-old groups. Contact Priy,a Pandit, rpandit@luc.edu 708-386-7826.
Tathagat Avtar Thlsi of New Delhi. The
boy-genius plans to test his theory of
the particle's existence, dubbed the
"Thlitron," in a particle accelerator. His For more information or to send your suggestions or to sponsor these programs, please contact our main office
mother says she first realized her son
was special when he corrected her in- at: Freedom Festival 1997, P.O. Box 9185, Boston, MA 02114. Phone: 617-742-7193 Fax: 444-8725
come tax ac- E-mail: ff97@freeindia.org web:www.freeindia.org
counts at age
three. At age six
he calculated This great evenf\wlll not be successful without your support. Please donate
the value of pi
to seven deci- your time, money or other resources for this once-in-a-lifetime event.
mal places. His
latest ambition FF97 programs are cosponsored\ by: Friends of India Society International (FISI), Hindu Swyamsevak Sangh (HSS), USA & Canada,
is to win a India He ritage and Research Foundation (IHRF), India Quality Group (IQG) India Development and Relief Fund (IDRF),
Nobel Prize. Math prodigy National Federation of India American Associations (NFIA), the official agent appointed by Indian embassy.
Vishwa Hindu Parishad of America and may other organizations.
 Dha7~; Graphics CD For the Mac. Reg. $249. Special offer for HT readers, only
~500+imalesrenec~nl
India's rich traditions
and spiritual culture
Patterns & Borders
othing lends a sense of Indian-ness to a design
N better than traditional borders and patterns. Clip~rt
There are hundreds to choose from on this creative
CD. Fall in love with the visual magic of Bharat and
enhance your personal or institutional image.
M ganized in
themes, like nature,
Macintosh format only. No PC version available.
$199
SACRILEGE
.
Hindu Protest Fo·rces,
So~r tQ Re~ake CD
Here it is-the Hindu art CD
of the decade. Trek into the
heart of mystic India with
this spectacular collection of
New anti-Hindu defamation coalition gets results
imagery drawn from the
treasurehouse of Hindu spiri- EROSMITH'S LATEST CD, "NINE LIVES"
went straight to the top of the pop
tuality. This CD contains a charts whenjt was released March
wealth of clip art, Aums, pat- 18th. It also' went straight to number
terns, textures, sacred sym- one on the hit-list of the American Hindu
Anti-Defamation CoalitiOI1 (AHADC) re-
bols, borders, finished cently ~nvened by the Vishwa Hindu Pari-
graphics and some rare Raj- shad of America. The reason? The CD's sac-
put scans. Great graphics for an ashram bulletin, a rilegious cover. What at first glance looks
like the classic image of Lord Krishna danc-
yoga book, Web page or multimedia presentation. ing upon and subduing the multi-headed
serpent Kaliya has been digitally trans-
Aums formed into a creature with a cat's head and
· a women's torS0. According to -Luke Burland,
& Illustrations . spokesperson for Aerosmith, the band was
unaware of the image's source or significance.
But not for long. The AHADC launched
an all-out offensive against the CD, mostly
throllgh a World Wide Web site (hindunet.
orglanti_defamation/sony/). 'Within weeks it
was visited by 10,000 people, 1,400 of whom
signed on-line protests to Sony and its sub-
sidiary Columbia (producer and distributor
· of the album), Aerl:lsmith and several major
chaiFl, stores. These companies were bom-
barded with e-mail, faxes and phone calls,
conveying everything from riglfteous indig-
nation and threats of boycotts to promises to
interfere with Sony's la,rge India business
and even violent retaliation.
Sony and Aerosmith got the message. In
an April 16 call, Joseph Salvo, senior lawyer
for Sony, told Chetan P Tanna, attorney for
AHAD~, that an apology would be issued
and the offensive cover withdrawn. On
April 18, Aerosmith, through their New York
public relations firm, Kathryn Schenker As-
sociates, issued an 'apology and stated their
any images are or-
"deep concern and dismay at the notion of
having offended any religious group. At no
· point did the band intend to haqn or show
disrespect to the Hindu community, nor.did
Deities, people, borders, they intend to denigrate any religio~ image.
symbols, etc. Use the The image will be replaced in all future runs
Fetch browser to get a with a completely different image."
quick overview, then And so 'it might have ended, except the is-
sue had nines live, too. First, contrary to
double clic on a page for Sony'sJawyers first representation (that they '
a detailed preview. will a"ttempt to recall CDs on the market al-
ready), Aerosmith was only promising to re-
make the cover for any new ones. And with
four million already produced, that could
amounUo none, pointed out AHADC attor-
ney Tanna. In the first week, the CD sold
140,000 copies. At that rate, it wquld take
more than 30 weeks to sell out. This is not ac-
ceptable, Tanna ·said. "Why should we have
to continue to walk into Tower Records and
see a two by three foot display of this cover?"
The AHADC considers the matter far from
settled, and intends to pursue the recall of
the already-issued CDs and will continue to
protest to Sony, Columbia and individual
stores. HINDUISM TODAY has added its com-
plaints about the obscene depiction of Lord
Ganesha which appears on the CD itself,
and the denigfating lyrics Of one song which
say, "I wanna be·a Hare Krishna, I'm gonna
tattoo a dot on my forehead, ha ha ha ha
ha."-both unnoticed by the AHADC.
Then there is Aerosmith's unexpected ex-
planation about the image's s1:>urce. The orig-
inal picture was taken without permission
from a book by His Divine Grace A. C.
Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, founder
of ISKCON, and published by the Bhaktive-
danta Book Trust International (BBTI). Ac-
cording to Aerosmith, "Upon being informed
0f the origin of this image, the band went
through all of the pIOper channels to obtain
licensing approvals for its use from this Trust.
Having obtained this permission, Aerosmith
believed that no further issues existed."
The BBTI is the official repositor,l and
copyright holder of all'Srila Prabhlllpada's
wr..ttings, as well as paintings done by many .
ISKCON artists. According to their state-
ment of April 28 to HINDUISM TODAY, they
did not learn of the use of the im-
age until "after the cover was pro-
duced" (but before it went on
sale). Determining that they could
not risk losing a copyright in-
/
fringement lawsuit against giant
Sony (wherein the loser might
have to pay''aIl the winner's legal
fees-perhaps more than a million
dollars), they opted for a financial
settlement. "Our rationale was: If
we couldn't ~top them, at least we
should make it hurt," said BBTI
president Madhava Puri das.
Terms of the settlement are a se-
cret, but Tanna was informed it
was "well in excess of a hundred
thou~and dollars." The BBTI says
the money will go toward "the
building of the, new temple and
city project in Mayapur, India,
and to fight future infringements."
But Tanna queries>" Do we really
want to use this tainted money to
build a temple?' is the ~uestion
Hindus really want to ask. '
On April 26, in response to
HINDUISM TODAY'S request for a
statement Annuttama Dasa, Di-
rector 0f Communications of
ISKCON of North America, is-
sued a rare rebuke to their affili-
ated organization. "The BJ3TI
made a big mistake to not just
fight this all the way. Frankly, no
one in ISKCON was consulted
about the decision. to negotiate
with Sony. Many members are ex-
tremely angry about the album
and incensed to know the BBTI decided not
to fight. Sadly, the BBTI did not consult Sri-
la Pralilhupada's followers and thus failed to
upholCl that heritage." .-
ADDRESSES: DON JENNER, PRESIDENT, COLUMBl'A REcoRDS,
550 MADISON AVENUE , NEW YORK, NEW YORK, 10022-3211
USA. BHArI'IVEDANATA Boo:.: TRUST, FARBORET 101, S-242
97 HOBBY, SWEDEN. AEROSMTI'H BAND, KSA, 1776 BROAD-
WAY, NEW YORK, NEW YORK 1001 9 , USA. ARAnC, P.O. Box
44'505, HOUSTON, TEXAS , 77244- 1505, USA.
JULY , 1997 HINDUISM TODAY 41

Surrounding Iraivan Temple is an
extraordinary botanical garden
paradise, providing an area of
contemplative, natural beauty.
Pilgrims enjoy groves of plumeria,
konra;' hibiscus, heliconia, native
Hawaiian plant species and more.
At the entrance to the 5 I-acre
sanctuary is a forest of healing
rudraksha trees. Send US$ 12 to
purchase a single-bead necklace of
a sacred rudraksha, receive as our
gift another bead to plant and sup-
port the Iraivan Temple project.
1-808-639-8886
http://www.HinduismToday.
Kauai.hi.us/ashram/lraivan.html
RUDRAKSHA
FOREST
SAN MARGA IRAJVAN TEMPLE
107 KAHOlAlELE ROAD
KAPAA. HI 96746-9304 USA
A TEMPLE BUILT TO LAST 1.000 YEARS
Solution in hand: Kumar Balani and his puzzling computer produce one-of-a-kind pesers
I
ENTERTAINMENT
Dharma's PUlzzle Pioneer
There are no cross words in his brain-teasers
F YOU FIND IT DIFFICULT TO SOLVE
the special crossword puzzle on the
right, consider yourself fortunate that .
you didn't have to create it. This first-of-
its-kind puzzle contains 68 words out of 80
that pe1tain to Hinduism and India. That is
85%. And, as brain-teaser builder Kumar
Balani affirmed, it was not alt fun and
games, even with the help of his intrepid
computer. "It was an arduous task, involving
a time-consuming multi-stage process. But
the result is well worth it. I learned that if
one perseveres, ~uccess is inevitable."
Admit it. We take the dilemmas of puzzle-
making for granted. But aft~r hearing Bal,ani
detail how he solved this puzzle's creation co-
nundrum, you just might take your puzzles
more seriously. Balani explained, "First, I
manually keyed in over 1,200.words from the
lexicon of Dancing with Siva, J;tinduism's
Contemporary Catechism. But 1,200 words
resulted in only about eight words from the
lexicon getting into the puzzle. So I manually
inputted another 1,400 words from the index
of the book, plus anpther 500 words from a
list I had previously developed on Hinduism.
Armed with 3,100 words, I was finally able to
create a 15 x 15 square puzzle containing 32
words relating to Hindui'sm-forty-percent of
the total 80 words. That was only after going
through some 20 trial puzzles!"
-'
Instead of.being deterred, the word-wield-
ing Balani became determined-even ob-
sessed. "I was still not satisfied, so I worked
the puzzle over and over until I came up with ·
a puzzle containing 68 ';"ords that were either
from the book, related to Hinduism and India
or words on which clues could be written to
relate them to Hindu concepts. I am pleased
with the result, and I must than~ HINDUISM
TODAY for the request for a puzzle with near-
ly all Hindu words-it was a real challenge!"
Balani was born in Poona, spent most of
,his early years ill India and migrated to the
Philippines in 1960. .-!Ie started dabbling
w,ith puzzle creation in 1965, during his first
year of high school at San Sebastian Colle~,
Manila. He used class newsletters ~d the
school newspaper, The Sebastinian (of
which he was editor), as his outlets. Now,
Balani's occupation is his export business,
Asia Connection Ltd., in East Brunswick,
New Jersey. His family and business keep'
him fully occupied, but he still publishes a
plethora of puzzles. "My primary concern is
that the readers enjoy my puzzles," Balani
stresses. But he also strives not to make the
puz zles too easy, being aware that the av.er-
age Indian immigrant is well-edncated.
Try it. But don't strain your brain! .,..;
PUZZLEMANI A INC ., 6 STERLI NG COURT, EAST BRUNSWICK,
NEW J ERSEY 0 8816 USA. E-MAIL: KB ALANI @ASIACONNEC-
TION.COM . WEBSITE: WWW.PUZZLE-MAN IA.COM
ACROSS:
1 Latin religious song: Vies ... .. .
5 A guFUS disciple: a shishya (synonym)
10 Pseudo yegetaFians eat this seafood '
14 tn 15 across, Hindus ...... small strips
of wood . 46
15 Fire pit in Hindu puja ceremonies
16 Hindu sacred order, cosmic law, truth
17 The soul under Siva's foot of obscuring
grace, as seen in icons
20 Hindu denomiNation of Devi wor-
shigers
21 An. : ... . goal, e.g., no more rebirths
a
22 At Karnavedha Samskara, baby's ears
...... pierced . / the 1500s
23 Hindu hierarchical social system based
on occupations
26 Most subtle of the five elements
29 Tamil for bindu, source of creation
30 100 ergs of energy per gram of material
33 Indiana city near Lake Michigan
34 Hindu sacred text or a Hindu teaching
35 Hindu priests ... ... first ::(fter pujas, in
olden days
. 36 B0dy of listeners, (abbt. )
37 Partner of vigor and vitality
38 Some Hindus remember G.od only
when they .. '.. .. ' 1
39 Chinese propounder of an 'ism' incom-
patible with Hinduism
40 Unethical acts can ... ... one's karma
12 13 4 "Standing inside oneself:"
English for samadhi
5 Brahmacharis may sometimes have to
• • ;..> • • away sensuous thoughts
6 Jains say: " .... .. no creature on earth."
7 ,Mrs. Peron of Argentina
8 In the ..... . of luxury; materially secure
9 Sanskrit prefix meaning "after," "near
to" or "under"
Early civilization in India was far from
· .... . say historians
Akbar's rute hastened the ...... of the
Moghul Empire
12 Introductory word in Vedas meaning
"now then" ..-
13 !ill early God of the Semitic people
18 Vaishnava Rajput princess (with ''bai'') ,
19 \Agamas detail tllis aspect of Hindu life
23 Reciprocal of sectant (trig.)
·24 Sher Shah's 1540 ...... drove away Hu-
mayun
25 These are found on crystals
26 An ~normous collection of Sanskrit
scriptures
/
27 The garden island, homeof HINDUISM
TODAY
28 ...... Darsana, a December-January
festival in India
29 Argentina's grassy plains
30 Indian physicist who won a Nobel Prize
31 First of seven hellish regions of con-
sciousness (hips)
32 Hindi film actors Bobby and Sunny
34 Skilled sculptor qualified to work in
Siva temples
41 Domesticated South American llama 37 Subconscious inclination (driving force)
43 Temerity, impudence, perhaps audacity in Sanskrit
44 An org. of Indian-Americans 42 Hindu· ascetics may vow to keep an
45 Six ...... s from Siva's eye created Lord · ..... aloft for years
Ifurtikkeya 43 " ... ... Mantra:" us~d in puja .and in
In Sanskrit, the instinctive mind chanting
47 Belief in Satya Sai Baba's teachings 46 Sanskrit prefix meaning "great"
48 Humanitarians ..... ., "Serve your fel- 47 The manipura chakra signifies the
lowman." .. .... of sight
49 God's purpose is seen in nature, said 48 A fellowship of Hindu devotees .
this Greek 49 " ...... of Four" (associated with widow
52 ..... . lekhana sadhana: writing an affir- of 39 Across)
matGm 1,008 times 50 South Asia: ...... with largest popula-
56 South Indian Saivite poet who lived in ....tions of Hindus
51 ' Sannyasins never imj,ulge in this desire
60 Suffix after "one:" unity of human soul 52 Origin of most devotees of Dada (ashan
with God Vaswani
61 A ... ... soul has gone through dnly a 53 " .... .. Darsana:" one of six Hindu
few rebirths philosophies
62 World-famous Sitarist: .... .. Shankar 54 Some Hindus ... . . , about their particu-
63 India. :::... , a well-known lar sect ..-
Delhi attraction 55 A Lincoln Center show item
·64
65
One Of Squmba's generals (Mahabharata)
Reincarnation is a new .. .... to some
57 Where hatha yoga may be practiced
58 Asteya restrains Hindus from debt, or
Westerners having an .. ....
59 Hinduism tells a person to find, not
DOWN: · ..... from oneself
NBA Coach Hank , .. ... and family
2 ".. ..... tattv a," an assudha tattva, repre-
\
senting form The solution will be published next rrwnth.
3 Formerly Sultanabad, in western Iran
JULY , 1997 H1NDUISM TODAY 49

MINISTER'S MESSAGE
Puj8: With Honor,
Offer ~verythin8 , -
Puja worship rites awaken bhakti-intense
loving devotion that leads to transformation
, depth of worship, all your feverishness will
BY SRI SRI RAV! SH-ANKAR
ONORING IS A SIGN OF DIVINE LOVE. THAT HONOR-
ing is called puja. The ceremony of puja imitates
what nature is already doing for you. The Divine
worships you in so many foFms. In puja, you offer
• everything back to the Divine.
Flowers are offered in puja. The flower is a symbol of love. ~
The Divine has come .to you in love through so many forms: ~
mother, father, wife, husband, children, friends. The same love "
comes to you in the form of the Master to elevate YQU to the ~
level of divine love, which is also your own nature. Recogniz-- ::;
ing this floweriI}g of love from all sides of life, we offer flowers. ~
Fruit~ are offered, because the Divine offers you fruits in ~
due season. You offer grain, because nature provides you
food. A candle light and a cool camphor light are offered; in the
same way nature continually revolves the sun and moon around
you. Incense is offered for.fragrance. All the five senses are used in ering. Devotion starts from where you are, whereas a charm is
puja, and it is performed with deep feeling. Through puja, we say
to God, "Oh, whatevcl- you give to me, I give back to you." Puja is
honor·and gratefulness.
,Have you seen children? They have small little pots and dishes.
They sometimes pretend that they make toast or/tea. They come to there is longing, know that the~e is also lov~. They ar~ two sides of
the mom and say, "Now, please have some tea." They serve you.
There will be nothing in the cup; it is all in their imagination.
They play with you. Whatever you do to them, they also do. They
put the doll to sleep. They feed it and bathe it. In the same way,
puja is an expression of what the Divine is doing for you. Puja is a
mixture of imitation, honor, playfulness and love. It is all these
things together, made
. into a soup. . ,
When you are In deep love, you naturally want to offer some-
thing. Somebody from California sen.t a big parce~ to me. It was
filled with candies anc:i' candles. Now, the person who sent it
knows that candies and candles can be got here, too. And th.e cost
of the airmail is much more than the candles and candies. But in
love, you want to offer something anyway.
Usually when you love something, you want to possess it. And in
the process of possessing, you make the beautiful thing ugly. Puja
is contrary to that. Puja means honor and worship, offeting one's
self You appreciate, you adore, you recognize beauty. Worship is
just the opposite of wantitig to possess. Usually our relati9nships do
not flower 1:0 this extent. Instead we start demanding. Husband and
wife, master and servant, there is a demand. "I have done so much.
for you. Now you must do this thing for me." Demanding is con-
trary to honoring. The way to preserve a relationship is to honor.
Honor the ereation. Look at a tree With honor. Feel grateful for
its being here.It purifies the poison that we breathe out. It makes
the air fresh. Have you ever thought, "These trees are mine. The
50 a rNDursM T ODAY JUL Y, 1997
sun, the moon, the air, the water- every-
thing belongs to me. All these stars are
mine. The people are mine."? When you
ho~or the creation, you will feel this.
Honor your own body. Remember that
'{'hen you eat, you are offering food to the
Divine that resides inside this body. When
people are agitated, they eat more. Take your
food, not in a hurry, not with violence, but ,
with a sense of offering. This also is puja.
Have you ever looked at your breath with
honor? Hav~ you ever thought, "This breath
is so beautitUl, moving in and out; without
it, my body would be thrown away." With
honor, look into your breath. With this
be transformed ,into love.
Honoring leads to devotion. Surrender
happens. Surrender to the Divine brings
total rest from all anxieties, from all want-
ings. Life has burned down with so many
various wants. In every direction,' life is
~ foune! to be weary. Devotion brings that
~ total rest- a healing touch to the life which
has been moving in so many directions.
The mind always looks for charms, mira-
d es, events, excitements. Yet once it goes
, there, the charm ceases to exist. The charm
of the mind is a continuous mirage; it is
always farther, it is always somewhere else.
When the flame of devotion is lit, the crav-
""--'""--'----~ ing mind melts away like wax. As the mind
melts, the flame of devotion becomes more alive and intense.. ,
Charm is always an outside influence. Devotion is an inner flow-
something that pulls you away from your Self The charm never
lasts for long. Unless you are lit in devotion to the Divine, your life
will remain restless. In devotion, in that process of burning, long-
ing will arise in you. With love, there is bound to be longing. If
the same coin; they cannot be separated. Usually when longing
arises, we are in a hurry to finish it off But this longing is fortu-
nate and very beautiful. It will transform your mind so totally.
Devotion is your nature. When you rest in your own nature,
there is no conflict. But usually we feel a conflict. We fEtel bad
about a negative quality we have or something that we did. A Mas-
ter is one who lifts these burdens from you that you yourself can-
not carry- and kindles in you devotional love. Offer everything to
the Master: your anger()'our frustration, all your bad feelings and·
good feelings. Your negativity pulls you doW!). Your positive quali-
ties bring pride and arrogance in you. Your whole life beC'Qmes a
big weight. When you offer it all, you become free. You become
light like' a flower. You can again smile and rejoice in the moment.
What remains in you is pure love.
~ (t •
~ rJ f -
.~ . '(,J /~
~
\ Tel: 1-800-890- 1008, ext. 238Fax: 1-808-822-4351
" ~" . E-mail: sadhaka_haranandinatha@hinduismtoday.kauai.hi.us • Web: httpllwww.HinduismToday.kauai.hi.us/ashram/
SRI SRI RAVI SHANKAR, 41, founckd the worldwicf:e Art of Living .
Foundation, Healing Breath Workshops, and Sanaj Samadhi medi-
tation programs. He shows peoPle how to regain their smile.
125th Jayanti Celebrations
and World Tour of the PanchaJoka Murti of His Holiness
Sri Sri Siva Yogaswaml
Canada 1997
Toronto
August 7- 14
Ottawa
August 16
Cornwall
August 15
Montreal
August 16-17
--: International Seminar on Saiva Siddhanta, attended by scholars from India, Sri
Lanka and the world Children's compet itions in speech , essay, hymns, etc.
Publication of a souvenir on Saiva Siddhanta Exhibition of works of His Holiness
SATGURU SIVA Y OGASWAMI, 1872-1964 Sri Siva Yogaswami and more.
Wodd Tour of the Murtt In celebration of the 125th anniversary year of his birth, a small gold-plated, five-
metal stat~e of Sri Lanka's great spiritual leader, Satguru Yogaswami , begins a w orld tour to join devotees at the many Siva-
thondan Nllayams and more than 35 Tamil temples and communities. As he travels, celebrations and satsangs will be held in
Canada, USA, Europe, Africa, Australia, New Zealand, M alaysia, Singapore, Mauritius, Seychelles and finally Jaffna, Sri Lanka,
where the statue will be permanently installed.
Anyone wishing to attend, contribute scholarly m aterial or lend support in any way, please contact:
SRI SRI SIVA YOGASWAMY's SIVATHONDAN C ENTRE, CANA D A PO Box 73008, Westford Plaza RPO, 2131 Lawrence Ave East,
Scarborough, Ontario M1R-5G5 TORONTO: Sivanesan, 4 16-293-4697' Thirunadarajah, 416-266-435 , fax: 416-499-9382
• Satkunendran, 416-422-5069 • MONTREAL: Murugan Temple, 5 14-683-8044 OrrAWA: P.A. Moorthy: 613- 737-9809
Sponsored in Canada by the Sri Sivay ogaswami's Sivathondan Centre Co~sponsored by the Hindu Temples &. Hindu Religious SOCieties of Canada
The M aster Course, Level One By Satguru Sivaya Subramuniyaswami
An illu.strated children's course in seven books, teaching love and worship of
God Siva. Based on the holy Vedas, and p resented in the con text of tradi-
Sail1ite Hindu (J(eligifm
<NQI ~ mJIIU~ ~ ~ lUf
1
tional Hindu philosophy, culture, family life and values. Excellent resource
for parents and teachers. Subjects include God and Gods, our soul, the world,
right conduct, karma, dharma and reincarnation, each presented in simple
language. The course has been adopted by the Fiji school system, and it is
used extensively in numerous other countries- Malaysia, Singapore and
Mauritius among others. Each book is presented in three or more languages.
Prominent swamis, pundits, scholars and lay persons of all sects have given
enthusiastic endorsements.
Paperback, beautifully illustrated, 8%'; x 5Y2". Each book, approx. 150 pg.
English-Hindi-Tamil version: US$ 15 (USA or Canada), $20 (world) ship- ,..iUuatnllttd~"~t..w.. I_ioftud.
_ofGod$j,.InIfi<_of ..........
ping included. Available from: HIodopll~..k_.,.t...... t.miIyUr.
HIMA~AYAN ACADEMY PUB~ICATIONS
107 Kaholalele Rd· Kapaa, Hawaii 96746-9304 USA
Also available ' ENCUSH-HINDI-TAMIL VERSION: UK: Hinduism Today, tel: 0171 9379163, fax: 0171 460 1819 email:
easanl @aol.com. Fiji: Then India Sanmarga Ikya Sangam, Mr. N. K. Naidu: tel: 679 660199, fax: 679 660 761 ' ENCUSH-
MALAy-TAMIL VERSION: Malaysia: Uma Publications, tel: 603 441 1617, fax: 603 441 9395 ' Sanatana Dharma Publications
tel: 0333 1 9242 ' Singapore: Sanatana Dharma Publications, tel: 95766012 • ENGLISH-F RENCH-TAMIL VERSION: Mauri- '
tius: Saiva Siddhanta Church, tel: 230 412-7682, fax: 230-412-7177 • Denmark: Abhirami Amman Temple c/o Mrs. V. Sri
Pal an, tel/fax: (French or Tamil spoken) 45 9718 0192.
51
 .
LIFESTYLE .
Reborn
"
as
An ,A rtist
After facing his
mortali ty, Satish Gupta
now celebrates life
By LAVINA MELWANI, N.EW YORK
au CAN CALL IT HIS BRUSH WITH
death. Three years ago, noted Delhi
artist Satish Gupta discovered he had a
brain tumor. The chances of survival
were fifty-fifty. He recalls, "Before the
surgery, I was almost suicidal. I had no will
to live." The tumor was removed successful-
ly, and his surgeon told him, "It's really a re-
birth. Don't waste this life~" ' D.,elhi's College of Art, he earned a scholar- scrolls, paints'on them with water-proof inks,
. Three years have passed, and Gupta has
remembered those words every day, almost
like a prayer. He affirms, "Now I feel each
day is so precious. We waste so much time,
so much energy over trivial things, but life is
so grand. W~en you come so close to losing
it, life becomes very, very special."
Gupta's close encounter with death has im-
pacted his work. He observes, "It gives you a
deeper understanding, a deepe.r perspective.
I.can empathize much more with people. I
can almost get into their soul and paint
them." The artist is the son 'of the late free-
dom fighter Deshbandu Gupta, and as a child
was profoundly infll\enced by the untimely
52 HINDUISM TODAY J 1\LY , 1997
\fu;jn V,al~~av,a h0L~ ~aees tfu0 gh
this magnificent 800 page volume.
This hand-made hard bound
11" x 14" volume with its 249 pages
death of his father in a plane crash. He with- been working on a series called Poems to the ......IIiII!""""!~~!!!!_=~...iI' of color photos will take you and
drew into his own world, creating a perfect Sea, painting as many oceans and seas of the your family on a wonder of discovery.
world with paints and paper. After attending world as he can. He takes 30-foot-Iong
SEE OUR ELEVEN PAGE ADVERTISEMENT ON THE INTERNET
ship to Paris at the Ecole des Beaux Arts. sometimes writes a poem on them and sub-
Visitors to Delhi may encounter Gupta's merges them into the water. He's done this in
work as soon as they step onto Indian soil. A the Mediterranean, Pacific, Atlantic, North
massive 260-foot-Io!1g mural of Indian life by Sea, English Channel and the Caribbean
him graces the arrival lounge. Rebirth seems Sea. Once immersed, the work gets worked
http://www.vedic.net
to have inspired him to create as much beau- over by the waves and water, but that's part OR FAX INQUIRIES To: 310-837-0243 (USA)
ty as he can. Besides his desert and of the process. Later the art is dried, ana the
seascap,es, he is working on sculpture. Cur- impressions of the water world remain.
rently -ae's doing a significant piece for an Gupta is a Hindu but is open to all faiths.
atrium in a corporate building in Delhi. The He says, "I think religion can be very beau-
24-foot-high sculpture depicts the deities of tiful, and it can be very ugly, too. Unfortu-
the 'five elements-Agni, Prithivi, Vayu, ' nately, the ugly part of religion-the com-
Vishnu and Brahma-in five columns, each munalism and orthodoJCy-takes over, and it
made of a different metal and weighing sev- can be used by a handful of people to really
eral tons. For the past two years, be's also control the masses. It can'be a-power thing.
But if you go deeper into it, it can be so
nourishing." He adds, "What's beautiful
about Hinduism is that it's all-pmbracing.
When I painted the priest at Pushkar, there
were Muslims coming in and praying. They
were fed like all the other worshipers."
I Gupta's first night in Pushkar was unfor-
gettable. He reoalls, "It, was a dark night/and
tl}.e hills were silhouetted against the moon.
There was this white temple which wci.s
bluish-indigo in the moonlight. The y.ntique
door was open and through it I saw the priest
playing his harmonium at midnight. There
was no one else there, and he was singing
bhajans all by himself I stood iliere, outside
in the dark, for about 45 minutes, listening to'
him. He wasn't aware of me at all. I was so
taken up with the id.ea that this man would
just sing to the Gods, not for an audience, not
for,any thing. I've painted him twice, and it
was a wonderful experience." ..,.;
Doleful and dour: Two of the suqects cap-
tured on canvas by Satish Gupta: Meena
(left) and the courageous Kasim.
 PROTECTION
-ll11l DDARHA
Web , .
Police
THE WORLD WIDE
I Web's doors have
been wide open to any-
one, including children,
who want to play violent
shoot'em-up games or
sneak-a-peak at XXX
adults-only websi.tes.
But not anymore. Oyber
Patrol is the Internets
latest version of an elec-
tronic nanny. The soft-
ware is designed to
block access to websites,
partioularly those which
promote violence, porn-
ography, gambling or ex-
tremist politics. !Installed
on a personal computer
Or an Internet server, it
manages Internet access,
provides ChatGard®
which prevents children
from divulging
-g personal
3 informa-
~ tion on-
~ line and has an option
.. to limit the total time
"~ spent on the Web. Some
~ US libraries have begun
DATA
WebStats
THE PEOPLE AT WEB-
I side Story are now
offering a free web page
statistics service that
provides a simple, easy
way to monitor the out-
reaCh of your website.
Here you can view
"We are always livin8 at His feet. WhQm shall we wQrship
Qther than kJim? And we have every right tQ worship Wim.
kJe is Qur "life Qflife and the Eye Qfthe eye."
TRUTH
instqlling Cyber Patrol
(www.cyber.patrol.com!)
after receiving reports of Cyber
patrons using library
computers to view sexu- A-shram
ally explicit, graphical
material on the Web. OME ONE FOOT TO-
Cyber Patrol maintains
two databases: a Cy-
C wards me. I 'Will
come a thousand feet to-
berYes list of 40,000 re- ward~ yoa" beokons Sri
searched sites contain- Karunamayis new home
ing only appropriate page. A lew minutes. at
material for children, Aroma's web-ashram im-
and the Cyber Not list of mediately transports you
nine categories of 15,000 into a mood of cyber-pil-
websites deemed by its grimage as you follow
review committee to Intel chief Dr. Craig Barrett at PC school opening her blograprucal history
have potentially offen- BUSINESS of intense sadhana and
sive material. One cate- service. Sri Karunamayi
gory-Satanic/Cults-
unfortunately includes India's Cyberskools is truly one of Hin-
duisms Web mission-
websites of recognized aries. fIer site is a virtu-
religions and legitimate N CONJUNCTION WITH THE NATIONAL COUN- al mini-catechism with
(but non-Christian) al-
ternative spiritual com-
munities. Appeals are
possible, and one such
banned group, Avatar-
I cil of Science Museums, Intel established in
1996 two state-of-the-art multimedia labs
called Intel Cyberskool in New Delhi and
Mumbai. The labs give school children, teachers
and parents easy access to Pentium-processor
inspired talks on chaFac-
ter building, meditation
and the do's and: do.p.'ts of
Hinduism. Anunas quo-
tations are some of the
Search (AvatarSearoh.- based multimedia computers, educational soft- Web's best, and Gl~votees
com), has devel- ware and the Internet. The Intel Cyberskool at can subscribe to·her
• oped the the National Science Centre, New Delhi, has pro- quarterly magazine and
AvatarPa- vided over 25,000 students with hands-on expo- download her photos.
trol soft- sure to multimedia computers. Intel is also work- Back in the real world,
ware which checks if ing with the JIVA Institute, ERNET (Education follow Anima on her
your URL has been mis- Research Netware) and other organizations to world tours using online
takenly banned by Cy- help schools purchase total computing solutions calendars and maps. -
ber Patrols censors. at subsidized prices. (globeworks.comlkaruna
mayilkaruna2.htm)
to be the top 1,000, added HINDUISM To-
hourly, daily and weekly
visitor statistics on yours doesn't Tepresent the DAY to the list, and sev-
and over 8,900 website world's major religions. eral days later HT was
links in thir- Ohristian sites ranking near the top,
ty-eight cat- are predomi- #20 in the average num-
egories, nant, and a ber of daily visitors-
ranging ~~~~P" Hindu pres- just one above
from adver- ence is conspic- Vatican.org. Have your
tising to Web uously absent. Among Hindu webs1,te counted
resources. We were sur- the 252 home pages not among religions best at
prised to find that the one Hindu website was wss5. websidestory. com!
religion section, touted -, listed. Undaunted, we world.html
KENA UPANISHAID 1.2