Friday, April 26, 2013

Hinduism - Hope and Hindutva A Message of Peace And Humanity




From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia


Hinduism in India


Hinduism is a religion[1][2] of the Indian subcontinent of India, with 80.5% of the population identifying themselves as Hindu.[3] The vast majority of Hindus in India belong to Vaishnavite and Shaivite denominations.[4]
The Vedic culture originated in India between 2000 and 1500 BC.[5] As a consequence, Hinduism, considered to be the successor of Vedic religion,[6] has had a profound impact on India's history, culture and philosophy. The name India itself is derived from Greek Ἰνδία for Indus, which is derived from the Old Persian word Hindu, from Sanskrit Sindhu, the historic local appellation for the Indus River.[7] Another popular alternative name of India is Hindustān, meaning the "land of Hindus".[8] The Marathas of India are considered as champions of Hinduism.[9][10][11][12]

In response to the high rate of conversions during the Muslim Mughal and Christian British rule, Hinduism in India and abroad (like Guyana and Suriname) underwent a series of reforms, the spearheading organisations being Brahmo Samaj, Arya Samaj. Religious leaders like Swami Vivekananda, Dayanand Saraswati, Raja Ram Mohan Roy, Sri Aurobindo and political leaders like Gandhi called for reform and complete turnover of the social structuring. Tulsidas, Sant Kabeer Das, Raidas, Chaitanya Mahaprabhu etc. were pioneer of the bhakti movement for the social reformation.
India saw Muslim and later European rule; yet the country remains dominated by Hindus. Some account the strength of Hinduism for the sponge-like nature of the religion, in that to worship Jesus Christ or Allah does not necessarily contradict Hinduism. This religion has polytheistic tendencies, so considering another conception of God another form or avatar of the ultimate reality or creator is certainly possible. While most Hindus do not worship non Hindu God(s), it is possible in the explanation.
Another reason could be like Buddhism, Hinduism is an ancient religion with well established traditions that cut deeply into Indian daily life. Unlike indigenous American or African religions, which vary from tribe to tribe, these Indian religions spread across the vast entity that was the Indian subcontinent, generally accepted by a majority of Indian ethnic and tribal groups. Hindu civilization had a long history on its own, with well developed scriptures and traditions. It would be much more difficult to convert members of a religion that was accredited with defining a civilization than would be tribal peoples.
[edit]Hindu nationalism

Main article: Hindu nationalism
Hindu nationalism fueled Indian nationalism following partition. Hindu nationalism was aggressively promoted by right wing Hindus like:
Vinayak Damodar Savarkar - for the formation of Akhand Bharat
Purushottam Das Tandon - promoted Hindi as the Official language of India
Others include: Syama Prasad Mookerjee, K.B. Hedgewar.
The 1947 Partition of India gave rise to bloody rioting and indiscriminate inter-communal killing of Hindus, Muslims and Sikhs. Around 7.5 million Muslims were forced out and left for West Pakistan and East Pakistan (now known as Bangladesh) and 7.2 million Hindus moved to India. This was a major factor in fueling Hindu-Muslim animosity. What followed over the years was the laying of secular principles in the Indian Constitution. The last 60 years have been seemingly peaceful in most parts of the country except with the notable exception of communal riots in 1992 and 2002 and the wars fought against Pakistan.
Christian missionary groups from the West seek to convert the populace, Muslim, Sikh and Hindu, to Christianity, often using external aid, education and medical care as an inducement or bribe, and thus have been at loggerheads with right wing Hindu groups.
Kerala, Andhra, and the North East are some of the regions where conversion is prevalent.In Response to the activities of Christian Missonaries in India,the Hardline Hindu groups like Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) have agressively started reconversion of converted Christians as well as Muslims back to Hinduism. The Hindus still form the majority community in most regions of the country, except the Valley of Kashmir, Punjab and three states in the North-East - namely Mizoram, Nagaland and Meghalaya. However, when considered as a region the North-East still has a slight Hindu majority. There is even reason to believe that Hinduism is growing through the incorporation of tribal belief-systems in specific areas of the North-East. However, in the Kashmir valley the Hindu population has plummeted as an outcome of the civil unrest when more than 500,000 members of Kashmiri Pandits (Hindus) were forced to leave the valley by fanatic muslim terrorists. Pakistan sponsored terrorists attempt to liberate Kashmir from Indian rule in line with presumably the majority Muslim population's desire for independence, which was expressed at independence but overruled by the ruling Hindu Maharajah and the British during partition. In Punjab the Sikhs form the majority population.

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hinduism_in_India

Swami Avdheshanand Giriji Is Hope And Hindutva

By Krishna Maheshwari

Sri Avdheshanand Giri Maharaj, Acharya Mahamandaleshwar of the Juna Akhara, is a guru to thousands and an inspiration to millions. Swami Avdheshanand has initiated more than a hundred thousand sannyasins, transformed lives with his social activities, and leads the Juna Akhara[1] into the 21st century.


Swamiji was born in a respectable brahmin family. As an infant, he had no interest in playing with toys or making friends. He used to be lost in the memories of the events of his previous births and quite often used to share these with his family members. He was ordained to be a saint in this life, as he put it.
At the tender age of two and a half years, he displayed an interest in becoming a wandering monk. One day, he hung a small sling bag on his shoulders and, accompanied by stray dogs and pups, he left for the onward journey. However, the family members and neighbors, after looking for him in every nook and corner, were relieved to find him near a bus stand waiting to board a bus that would take him far away. After bringing him back, his parents got worried about his flings. It was advised that if he is put on a potter’s wheel (Chak of Kumhar) and churned anti-clockwise with force, he would forget his past. So this method was tried on him so that he might behave like other ordinary village children. However, the fire in him for knowing the truth could not be extinguished with these rituals. Rather, as Swamiji mentions, eventually his remembrances of the events of his previous births became more impressionable at this juncture. Swamiji’s first encounter of witnessing the accomplishment of a Sage in the field of Yoga was when he was in ninth grade of High School. During the summer that year, he visited an Ashram to spend some time practicing spiritual studies and Yoga. At this Ashram in the middle of one night, he watched a Yogi who was levitating in the air almost one foot above the ground. When the authorities of the Ashram came to know that this young boy had seen the sadhna, the yogi was admonished. However, the Yogi retorted “What is wrong with this child watching me? He is going to become a Sadhu anyway.”
College

While he was in the College, he actively participated in the debates, composing and recitation of poems and Prayers. After the morning assembly, he would give the current news on topics of interest to the masses. He was fond of organizing and participating in the relief camps for mitigating the hardship of flood and famine victims, people suffering from contagious diseases and other physical ailments. He was then staying as a paying guest at the house of a local priest who used to perform on occasions the necessary rituals and puja in reverence to the Gods. When the Priest had a busy schedule, he authorized him to perform the worship and retain the dakshina given to him. From the money so received, he could to a great extent meet his expenses for education as he always wished to be independent. Once, the Principal of the local college approached the local priest to conduct a worship ceremony at his home. However, the priest had a very tight schedule and recommended the boy for the ceremony.
When you develop a craving to know the Truth, the mountains and caves start attracting you and it happened to me in 1980.

—Swami Avdheshanand
The young boy performed the worship with such exactness, knowledge and command over the spirit of the rituals that the principal was overjoyed and offered him Dakshina. This was his first Dakshina and from that day on, he was the most sought after priest for performing the worship of the deities. However, this was only his formal recognition as a priest and not an end to his quest for self-realization. So one day, he quit his worldly life and quietly left for the Himalayas in search of Gyana and Satya.
Meeting his Guru

Wandering for months over the lower ranges of Himalayas, he realized that he needed a God-realized guru to guide him. The young man found his Guru, Swami Avdhoot Prakash Maharaj who was both self-realized and an expert in Yoga, and versatile in knowledge about the Veda and other scriptures.
Under the master’s direct guidance, he studied the Vedas and scriptures and cultivated his knowledge of Sanskrit. Eventually he received his first formal initiation (Diksha) by observing complete celibacy (Brahmacharya). Soon after his initiation, his Guru left the mortal body, leaving the young disciple to carry on his devotion to yoga and meditation on his own. In 1985, after intense Sadhana, a great Yogi emerged from the caves of the Himalayas. He contacted Swami Satyamittranandji, founder of Bharat Mata Temple, and soon after, received initiation to enter a true monastic life. He entered Junapeeth Akhara, one of the seven Akharas. The new name given to him was Swami Avdheshanand Giri.
Monastic Life

Until now he had been an inner explorer, free and detached from the external world. But after donning the ochre robes of a sannyasin, he learned how to make his life useful to others.
After spending some time teaching and getting involved in social work, he realized that he needed to become an instrument of social reform instead of remaining merely a medium of social help. This, he saw, had to be done through the transformation of individuals, based on the precepts and parameters laid down by the great Saints and Sages. This realization led the young Swami to become a preacher of the philosophy of Hindu religion. As the popularity of his oratory rose, so did his travel all over India and overseas. In a very short span of time, the whirlwind tours which Swamiji made earned him respect and love from seekers of truth all over the globe.
Visiting his Native Village

After an interval of over two decades of his departure from his native place, Swamiji was once addressing a congregation of aspirants in Northern India. One close relative of Swamiji who was attending the initiation ceremony spotted him. After Swamiji’s affirmation that he was indeed a child of the same family, the news of his elopement and turning into a great Sanyasi reached his village. Swamiji clearly mentioned that, being a wandering monk devoted to the monastic life as ordained by the wish of God, he had severed his past and family connections. Subject to this understanding, Swamiji agreed to a visit to his native village. When he reached his home, a large crowd with a big bandwagon accompanied him. There were high ranking government officers, ministers, and governors present. On meeting Swamiji, his father was startled to see that the little master had been truthful to his words and had mastered the art of self-realization, and had become instrumental in churning society into a new world order.
Master Orator



Swami Avdheshanand Giriji was recognized as a gifted speaker soon after he became a preacher of the ideology of Hindu religion. He was able to develop a rapport and an instant relationship with the devotees. A large number of people after listening to his lectures from the scriptures become his ardent disciples and devotees, seeking to get initiation from him. Swamiji has never discouraged anybody from following the path of self realization, though he maintains that it is a difficult path; but by practice and complete devotion one can achieve the goal. His lectures on various scriptures are given in India and abroad and are televised on many T.V. channels for humanity.
Acharya of the Juna Akhara

In 1998, the Juna Akhara, representing a clan of accredited saints, formally decided to make him the head acharya, or Mahamandalashewar. A formal ceremony with necessary rituals was held in which he was commemorated with the Pattabhishekam of Mahamandeleshwar. Some time after this ceremony he was chosen as the new acharya, a spiritual preceptor. This position is designated by the assigned saints after their own intense evaluation of the spiritual heights achieved by a saint engaged in the field of spirituality. No one can ask for it and no one from outside is appointed to such a distinguished position.
As an acharya, Swami Avdheshanand also became the preceptor for several sanyassins who had become part of the order and had decided to work closely with him The fellow sanyassins realized that it was the greatness of Acharya Sri that he had open heartedly accepted them into his team. They were grateful to him because after meeting him, their life was transformed. A number of sanyassins have been associated with him for over a decade. They feel whatever sankalpa they undertake for the welfare of the society and the people is fulfilled in no time, to their satisfaction.
The Acharya has assumed the mantle of a guru for the numerous devotees. No matter where he is in the world, his doors were always open to the devotees. Swamiji plans all his itineraries well in advance, with three to four flights a month, and on an average 20 days a month away from the Ashram. Everything is meticulously scheduled, even the time allocated between each meal. It is a demanding daily routine as strenuous, yet diversified, as of the Himalayan yogi of yesterday. According to Swamiji, it is the meditation which keeps him rejuvenated; which gives him energy, vitality, peace and bliss. There is nothing more powerful than meditation if one wants to realize one's goal. When you close your eyes and sit in a steady posture energy will rise and stir every cell of your body, mind and the system. Just close your eyes and start the meditation. Swamiji says that if there is anything difficult in the world, it is to start. Once you have taken off, you have nearly accomplished the task.
Swamiji has initiated about a million devotees and sanyassins during the last ten years or so. Swamiji will not say no to an aspirant who wants to engage himself in search of truth. As an Acharya, he is the guiding spirit behind all the activities of Juna Akhada and the Hindu Acharya Sabha. Harihar Ashram in Kankhal (Hardwar) is the main Ashram and seat of Acharya. In order to inculcate amongst his devotee followers the habit of service, self study and attending to religious congregations are also necessary for upliftment and self realization. Swamiji founded Prabhu Premi Sangh, a charitable body in 1991 which has about a million members as devotees. Prabhu Premi Sangh has its registered office and headquarters at Ambala Cantt. In this Ashram is conducted daily Hawan in the morning, satsang in the evening and an akhand naam sankirtan every day. It also has Akhand Jawala. The Ashram has also a pen for the herds of cows, the service of which is rendered by the devotees of the Ashram. Many hospitals, education centres & NGOs are serving the society under the divine guidance of Swamiji.
Religion & God

Swamiji has faith and respect for all religions. The universe is one family and God is one. Swamiji affirms and expresses his belief that there is only one God who controls the whole universe. All the creations in the universe are purely out of His will and wish. Further, all human beings are children of the same Almighty. We are just like waves in the ocean longing to merge with our source of origin, that is, God whose fraction we are. We take birth again and again to bear the fruits of Karma.
Swamiji has firm belief that all the religions of the world convey the same basic message of love, peace and brotherhood. However, the ways and means for achieving God may be different due to diverse climatic, cultural, ethnic, regional factors and compulsions; but the ultimate goal is that of God-realization. Swamiji keeps an interaction with the heads of all the religions throughout the world. He is strictly opposed to the confining of religious fervour and altruism to the precincts of any sect, area or region. The entire international community must be benefitted by a religion. Swamiji says that secularism means showing respect to all religions in words and deeds. He particularly mentions that removal of illiteracy, economic backwardness and inculcation of character-building measures endowed with the feeling of affinity for all the people and religions are necessary for the harmony and peace in the society.


www.hindupedia.com/en/Swami_Avdheshanand_Giri

The Naga Babas MahaKumbh

Baba Pan Masala

Son Carrying His Mother For The Holy Dip At Sangam

My Guru Shri Vijay Giri Maharaj Juna Akhada Sector 5 Maha Kumbh

The Naga Sadhu Who Lost All His Money At The Maha Kumbh



He is a disciple of my Naga Guru Shri Vijay Giri Maharaj, somebody stole his wallet , and he was without any money, he wanted to return to his village in Maharashtra due to some tragedy , so I gave him money for his return journey.. and that made him very happy.

The Nagas are very simple people , stay to themselves , but get angry if provoked .

They can be your best friends for life.

I have known Shri Vijay Giri Maharaj since the Nasik Kumbh..

The Naga Sadhu Who Lost All His Money At The Maha Kumbh



He is a disciple of my Naga Guru Shri Vijay Giri Maharaj, somebody stole his wallet , and he was without any money, he wanted to return to his village in Maharashtra due to some tragedy , so I gave him money for his return journey.. and that made him very happy.

The Nagas are very simple people , stay to themselves , but get angry if provoked .

They can be your best friends for life.

I have known Shri Vijay Giri Maharaj since the Nasik Kumbh..

Preparing For The Ling Kriya.. Shri Vijay Giri Maharaj Juna Akhada



My naga guru Shri Vijay Giri Maharaj , in whose tent I lived at Sector 5 Maha Kumbh, is an expert in penile yoga known as Ling Kriya .. I shot a series of his pictures performing the Ling Kriya .

Some Naga Sadhus substitute a sword instead of the stick.. wrapping the penis around it..

Naga Babas And His Car ..Maha Kumbh



He was one of the most famous babas at the junction of Sector 4 and Sector 5 .

Young versatile robust and athletic, most of the foreigners , photographers weed smokers hung around him , listening to his words through gestures.

He was cordial with me and offered me tea and I enjoyed shooting him , most of my Naga Baba pictures due to frontal nudity are restricted by Flickr set of rules regulations and can be viewed only if you are a Flickr member ..

I had one of the most memorable Maha Kumbh and I shot over 3500 pictures in all..

I shot Naked Nagas on the roads after the Shahi Snan to show their natural disposition and their unique compatibility with the surroundings.. you dont see naked naga sadhus walking on the streets of Mumbai.

moods of a sadhu

moods of a sadhu

sadhus of india maha kumbh

moods of a sadhu

moods of a sadhu

The Sadhus Of India Maha Kumbh

Swami Nityananda Akhada the Mhanirwani Mahamandleshwar



Swami Nithyananda (also known as Paramahamsa Nithyananda, born 1 January 1978) is a spiritual master, mystic[4] and the founder of Dhyanapeetam, a worldwide movement for meditation, based in Bengaluru, India.[5] He rose to fame after his series Kadavai Thira, Kattru Varattum (Open the door and let the breeze in)[6][7] was published in the widely circulated Tamil weekly, and due to the popularity of his spiritual healing processes. Nithyananda Swami has a huge following in southern India and his mission has branches in several countries, including the US and Europe.[8] His followers and acquaintances have included a number of high profile politicians such as Narendra Modi, the chief minister of Gujarat,[9] and B.S.Yeddyurappa, the former chief minister of Karnataka,[10] and famous actors from the Indian film industry such as Vivek Oberoi,[11] Juhi Chawla[12] and Ranjitha.[13] In April 2010, Nithyananda was arrested after failing to answer bail for criminal charges including rape, after an allegedly morphed video surfaced showing him in a compromising situation with a woman. In 2012, Swami Nithyananda was named by Watkins' Mind Body Spirit magazine as one of the 100 most spiritually influential living people in the world.[2] In Feb 2013, during the Maha Kumbh Mela, Swami Nithyananda was bestowed the title of Mahamandaleshwar by the Maha Nirvani Akhada one of the oldest Akhada or apex body of Hindu saints.[3]


Nithyananda was born as Rajasekaran in January 1978[14] in the spiritual town of Thiruvannamalai in Tamil Nadu. From an early age, he had experimented with Yoga, Vedanta, Siddha, Tantra and other eastern metaphysical concepts taught by his mentors Raghupati Yogi,[14] Kuppammal, Annamalai Swami and others.[1]
In 2003 he began an ashram or spiritual centre, Dhyanapeetam, in Bidadi near the city of Bengaluru in south India and the US branch named the Life Bliss Foundation, headquartered in Los Angeles.[9]
[edit]Teachings

Swami Nithyananda's teachings are aligned with the Advaitic school of thought of Sri Adi Shankara. He defines living enlightenment in terms of living a conflict-free life.[15] He is known for his spiritual discourses[10] and has given teachings on scriptures such as the Brahma Sutras, Patanjali's Yoga Sutras, Shiva Sutras, Jain Sutras and the Bhagavad Gita.
[edit]Life Bliss Foundation

Swami Nithyananda has developed a range of meditation courses, catering to a cross section of people,[9] which he teaches at his centres and in public programmes. He has followers across the world and runs a number of ashrams in India and abroad.[16] The mission claims to run more than 1000 spiritual centres and temples worldwide with the main ones being in Bidadi, Thiruvannamalai and Los Angeles. Since 2003, Nithyananda's following has grown rapidly, mainly in south India and the US.[8] At the time of his arrest, NDTV speculated that he had about two million followers worldwide,[17] while his website puts this number at ten million.[1]
[edit]Awards and honours



Swami Nityananda banner in Bangalore in 2008.
In 2007, he was elected chairman of the Hindu University of America, also known as the International Vedic Hindu University, an institution in the U.S. state of Florida.[18]
In 2012, Paramahamsa Nithyananda featured in the Watkins' list of the top 100 most spiritually influential living people in the world.[2]
In April 2012 appointed 293rd head of Madurai Adheenam. In October 2012 removed as head.
In Feb 2013 during the Maha Kumbh Mela, Swami Nithyananda was bestowed the title of Mahamandaleshwar by the Maha Nirvani Akhada one of the oldest Akhada or sect of holy renunciates and one of the main organizers of the Kumbh Mela. This exclusive tile is given to those saints who are believed to have attained godly qualities.[3]
[edit]Controversy


This article may require cleanup to meet Wikipedia's quality standards. The specific problem is: the section does not meet standards of objectivity, conciseness and encyclopedic style. Please help improve this article if you can. (April 2013)
A video that claimed to show Nithyananada hugging and kissing a sari-clad woman on his bed, allegedly Tamil film actress Ranjitha,[19] was broadcast on the Tamil television channel Sun News on 2 March 2010. This incident also resulted in protests outside the ashram during which a fire broke out. While the channels stand by their claim that the film clip is original, Nithyananda Dhyanapeetam's website insists that the videos are morphed and defamatory in nature. On March 4, Nithyananda made an application to a civil court in Chennai, seeking an injunction blocking further broadcasting of the video material.[20]
After evading summons for 49 days, Nithyananda was arrested on April 21, 2010 in Arki in Himachal Pradesh by Bangalore Police with the help of the police of Himachal[21] and the interrogation was done in Bangalore by the CID of the Bangalore Police.[22] On 11 June 2010 Nithyananda was granted bail, and was released from judicial custody after 52 days in Ramanagaram sub-jail. In October 2010, the releaser of the video who worked as Nithyananda's driver was charged by Bidadi police under several sections of the IPC with accusations of defaming Nithyananda through distributing the video.[23][24] Subsequently, in July 2011, Nithyananda's ashram filed a complaint against Sun TV Network, claiming they were the agents behind what the ashram alleged was a morphed video and the repeated telecasting of it.[25]
On 5 June 2012, an American NRI woman accused Nithyananda of sexual harassment.[26] The ashram held a press conference, and there was an attack on the ashram workers by the reporter of the media house Suvarna News. A few hours later there was an attack on the ashram by a local group. For reasons unclear, the Karnataka chief minister announced the cancellation of Nithyananda's bail and ordered the ashram sealed. On June 13, Nithyananda surrendered himself before a court in Ramanagaram. He was released on bail the next day and the ashram was unsealed a few days later.[26][27] On February 2013, the High Court of Karnataka squashed both FIRs against Nithyananda by the Police and by local group.[28]
After allegations were levied by a US-based male disciple of sodomy and homsexual acts, additional cases were registered against Nithyananda for unnatural sex acts (IPC section 377).[29] The same case in the US was, however, dismissed by the State of California as baseless. Moreover, the accuser himself was convicted in a separate case of three Felony counts of Child Molestation in the Second Degree and has been sentenced to 57 months imprisonment at the Washington State Correction Center .[30]
On October 12, 2012, Sri Arunagirinathar, the 292nd head of Madurai Adheenam, who had earlier anointed Nithyananda as his successor to the mutt[clarification needed] in April 2012, sacked him after pressure mounted from the state government and other Hindu religious and charitable organisations against his appointment. Following this decision, Sri Arunagirinathar sought police protection, citing threats to life from Nithyananda disciples.[31]


en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Swami_Nithyananda

The Naga Babas of India Maha Kumbh

The Naga Babas of India Maha Kumbh

One Hand Raised Naga Baba

Om Namo Narayan

In Our Country Only The Rich Are Protected ....By The Cops

The World Of Naga Babas Maha Kumbh

For The Foreigners The Maha Kumbh Is An Unforgettable Moment

Blessings Of The Naga Baba Maha Kumbh

I am on Flickr Instagram You Tube