Of the many bizarre and strange customs and festivals observed in India, the Koothandavar festival of Koovagam is one among them. The very basis of the festival, its associated rituals and the people involved make it the weirdest possible celebration on earth. A celebration of love and death, of sacrifice and life.

 

The small hamlet of Koovagam is present in the Vizhuppuram district of Tamil Nadu, making it virtually a ‘nothing’. However, once a year this tiny village turns into the biggest camp for transgenders from all over the country. They gather in flocks to take part in the rituals of the festival which lasts for 18 days, culminating on chitra pournami (april-may).

 

Story behind this

A festival which has its base rooted into the depths of the Mahabharatha war, Krishna’s cunningness and the noble nature of a very valiant young man.

 

War between the Pandavas and Kauravas was imminent. There was no way that a war could be averted, thus saving millions of innocent human lives. Krishna, as the protector of the universe was worried about the outcome of the war. It was true that he could intervene with his divine powers and avert catastrophe, but humans are required to decide their own fates. That’s what the vedas and shastras say. But still, he wanted the Pandavas to win the war, for he was on their side and their doings were just and moral. This would be the ultimate “Good wins over Bad” story if it went along as he desired.

 

Having no choice, he goes to Sahadeva who is blessed with the talent of accurately forecasting the future and reading horoscopes, Sahadeva rolled his Shozhi (shells used to help in prediction) and after several calculations looked up and said “To attain victory in the upcoming war, you need to sacrifice a man filled with all the good qualities of Valor, strength, bravery, beauty and such, to the goddess of war, Kali. He who first performs this sacrifice will gain the blessings of Kali and win the war”,

 

All along his way back his mind was filled with a single thought, “Is there anyone… Anyone else, other than Arjuna who can match the requirements of sacrifice? Anyone at all?” He pleaded, only to be met by a stunning silence. Krishna’s heart shattered at the thought of losing a dear friend. He felt light headed and started to sway with dizziness, when a voice cut through his haziness.

“Am I eligible to be sacrificed?” the voice asked. Looking for the source of the voice, Krishna’s eyes land on a very handsome man, dressed as a warrior and bearing resemblances to Arjuna. “Who are you, may I know?” questioned Krishna, as hope revived in his heart.

 

“I am Aravaan, the son of Arjuna, born to the Naaga princess Chithrangadha, through an illicit wedlock. I have come here to help bring victory to my father and his brothers. And if I can indeed help them win by sacrificing myself, then I am ready to die.” he proclaimed.

 

Krishna is flooded with relief. Using his divine powers, he comes to know that Aravaan is indeed a warrior par excellence, full of good qualities and excellent character. “He would make the perfect sacrifice to Kali”, Krishna thought and he beckoned Aravaan to come with him. He introduced Aravaan to the Pandavas including to Arjuna, his father (what weirdness!!!) and praised the sacrificial qualities of Aravaan. “So you will be sacrificed to the Goddess at the dawn of war, tomorrow. Purify yourself mentally and physically and prepare for the day. Long live your sacrifice”, Krishna told Aravaan and turned to leave.

 

“One moment my lord, I have but a few wishes to be granted before I die. Will you grant them?” Aravaan asked Krishna. “Why don’t you try me?” Krishna winked mischievously at Aravaan.” My lord”, began Aravaan,” I have had the good fortune to enjoy much in life, but before I die, I would like to enjoy the heat of a woman. I wish to die a married man, my lord.” Krishna is stunned. Which woman would marry a man who is going to the sacrificial altar the very next day? Probably none. No woman is crazy to throw her life away.”We will manage that”, he assured Aravaan, “Anything else?”.”Yes my lord, I would like to witness the entire war unfold, in my physical body and I would also like to fight on the Pandava side for a minimum of three weeks. Is that agreeable?”

It was here that the jealousy of Krishna kicked in. He knew that Aravaan was an excellent warrior and if he was allowed to fight there would be no need of any of the Pandavas or Krishna himself. “ParthaPuthra, what is ‘three weeks’ to a man like you? You can probably crush the entire enemy forces in three and a two third minutes. You will be able to fight on the Pandava side for those three and a two third minutes.” Aravaan agreed, charmed by Krishna’s flattery and speech. “If that is all, you can follow me to meet your bride, who will be your wife tonight and your widow in some days.” Krishna commanded.

 

Aravaan followed Krishna to the interiors of the palace. There, in the presence of the Pandavas and a few close friends, Krishna did the unbelievable. He transformed himself into Mohini, a form so beautiful that even Shiva had fallen for it, and in the presence of the elders, married Aravaan. That night Aravaan got his first wish fulfilled. Mohini seduced him with all her sexuality. All through the night, Aravaan was confused if he was with a man or woman. The smell of butter and milk reminded him of Krishna, but at the same time he couldn’t come out of Mohini’s clutches. The night passed and the day of the war dawned.

 

Aravaan was taken to the battle field and was made to stand at the center. There he tore off his skin from his arms and offered them to Kali. Kali, ever thirsty for blood, pounced on it and gave her blessings to Pandavas. The war began. Over the course of the 18 days, Aravaan kept Kali satisfied, stripping pieces from his body and offering it to her. On the final day when his allotted 3 and a two-third minutes of time came up, he realised that he had been tricked. He just had his head and his skeleton intact. A fat lot of use they would come to.

 

Conetemplating, he assumed his Vishwaroopa form and with his head as a large stone, he rolled over the enemy forces killing millions and badly hurting himself. The war was over. The Pandavas had won and the cause for it all, Aravaan, was lying, all alone on the Kurukshetra field. During his final moments on earth, when his life was ebbing away, he heard the high pitched wail of a woman. Turning towards the source of the wail, he sees Krishna, as Mohini, beating her breasts and wailing, the very picture of a widowed woman grieving her husband. With that final sight, his spirit soared heaven-wards and joined the other immortal heroes in warrior heavens, forever shining upon the brave warriors of yore. Aravaan had passed on, a happy man.

 

This chapter in the Mahabharatha forms the central theme of the 18 day festival at Koovagam. The small shrine at Koovagam is dedicated to none other than Aravaan himself and he is worshipped as Koothandavar. The 18 day festival celebrates the final days of Aravaan’s life, right up to his brave sacrifice on the 18th day. The highlight of the festival happens to be the marriage of Aravaan. The transgenders who gather here are the self-proclaimed brides of Aravaan. They claim themselves to be incarnations of Krishna, who was a man trapped inside a woman’s body, when he seduced Aravaan, just like the transgenders themselves. The first 15 days of the festival pass in dancing, singing and merrymaking, the transgenders putting up colourful and lively performances. All through the 18 days, a gigantic head of Aravaan is made and painted with the greatest care within the temple precincts

 

On the 17th day, the priest does special poojas to the idol of Aravaan and bringing upon the power of Aravaan on himself, he ties the mangalsutra (the sacred marital thread) around the neck of all the transgenders present there. They are now the wives of Aravaan, just for the night. A gala feast is organised which is followed by a night full of merrymaking, laughter and dance. The gigantic head of Aravaan is mounted on a chariot and taken around the village.

 

At the dawn of the 18th day, the air is ripped by sharp wails, as Aravaan is beheaded, widowing all his one-day-old wives. Following the traditions, the widows of Aravaan rip the Mangalsutraa from their necks, tear flowers out of their hair, throw away ornaments, and remove all cosmetics from their faces, wailing loudly, beating their chests, just like Krishna mourned for Aravaan long, long ago. They did a holy dip and wear a white saree (widow costume). And till that day arrives, they have to rely on the grace of Aravaan to take them through the rough times to come.

   

Sailboat Specifications

 

Hull Type: Keel/Cbrd.

Rigging Type: Gaffhead Sloop

Length overall: 22’6″ 6.858m

Length over deck: 19’3” 5.867m

Length of waterline: 17’7″ 5.334m

Beam: 7’2” 2.184m

Draught:1’6” – 4’0”0.457m – 1.219m

Displacement:2350lb1065kg

Ballast: 700 lb / 318 kg

Sail area:194ft218.02m2

Approx towing weight:3300lb1500kg

RCD categoryC

S.A./Disp.: 17.60

Bal./Disp.: 29.79

Disp./Len.: 195.75

Construction: GRP

Designer: Roger Dongray

First Built: 1979

# Built: 1000

 

Builder

 

Cornish Crabbers LLP

Unit 5, Bess Park Road

Wadebridge

Cornwall

PL27 6HB

Telephone: +44 (0)1208 862 666

Email: info@cornishcrabbers.co.uk

  

Auxiliary Power/Tanks (orig. equip.)

Make: Yanmar (opt.)

Model: Yanmar 1GM10 9hp

Type: Diesel

 

Sailboat Calculations

 

S.A./Disp.: 17.60

Bal./Disp.: 29.79

Disp./Len.: 195.75

Comfort Ratio: 14.60

Capsize Screening Formula: 2.16

 

Shrimper 19 standard sail away specification

Hull Construction: Hand laid solid GRP hull with no foam core. Integral centerplate case laminated as part of the complete hull structure. Internal bunk and

forepeak moulding bonded into hull with internal structural bulkheads bonded to both hull and deck mouldings. Standard colours are off white, dark blue

or dark green. The hull and deck joint is by way of an overlap or ‘Biscuit Tin Lid’ with GRP bonding.

Rudder: The rudder is transom hung on two stainless steel hangings bolted through the transom with Hardwood backing pads. The rudder is constructed

from laminated plywood with a stainless steel lifting drop plate.

Engine Beds: Engine beds are incorporated in the GRP bunk moulding with mild steel mounts bonded into the bed design which incorporates an oil drip

tray.

Ballast: Ballast is by way of iron punchings encapsulated in resin inside the hull keel moulding. A galvanised steel centerplate forms part of the ballast

with a stainless steel lifting wire leading to a winch lifting system operated from the cockpit.

Boot Top: A single boot top moulded in gel coat located above antifouling level. Colour in contrast to main hull and normally matching the deck.

Deck Construction: Hand laid GRP with Balsa core in way of horizontal load areas. Hard wood pads under deck fittings and stress points.

Cockpit : Cockpit locker lids are hand laid with Balsa core. There is integrated non slip on horizontal surfaces with an optional two tone colour. A cockpit

drain is located in the center of the main foot well with additional drainage from the seats. A central watertight locker offers general storage or houses the

diesel engine when fitted.

Deck Fittings: Bespoke deck fittings including bowsprit, tabernacle and chain plates are made from stainless steel. 4 aluminium deck cleats are positioned

aft & amidships with two fairleads feeding a teak Sampson post forward. All sail controls are led aft to rope clutches / jammers with a single halyard

winch to starboard. Adjustable jib & mainsheet cars. Access below is via a teak lined sliding companionway hatch and split plywood / Perspex washboards.

Extra ventilation provided by an aluminium forward hatch.

Ports: 2 aluminium fixed ports are fitted one each in the hull topsides.

Chain plates: Chain plates are in stainless steel and through bolted on the hull sides.

Vents: Ventilation is via a washboard vent and opening forward hatch.

Miscellaneous Equipment: Fuel filler &tank vent.(Inboard version only), Life harness attachment point by the companionway, Rope tidies for halyards.

Cockpit Lockers: Two main watertight lockers with latches and padlocks are provided. A padlock is also provided for the companionway hatch.

Mainmast: Laminated in Sitka Spruce and treated with Sikkens Cetol including a stainless steel mast band to take Cap shrouds, jib and mainsail halyards.

All deck mounted on a substantial stainless steel tabernacle.

Main Boom: Laminated in Sitka Spruce and treated with Sikkens Cetol including a Stainless steel gooseneck fitting, kicker and mainsheet bands and all

associated reefing line leads / terminals.

Bowsprit: Laminated in Sitka Spruce and treated with Sikkens Cetol including a Stainless steel pivot fitting, end plate and bobstay take off points.

Gaff: Laminated in Sitka Spruce and treated with Sikkens Cetol including a Stainless steel gaff collar with rubber protection on bearing surface. Wire hoist

span and block.

Standing Rigging: Cap shrouds, lower shrouds & forestay in 4mm 1 x 19 stainless steel wire with swagged ends. Chromed rigging screws. Jib mounted on

reefing spar and controls led aft to cockpit.

Running Rigging: Main throat / peak halyards – 6mm braid. Jib &Staysail halyards – 6mm braid. Main topping lift – 6mm braid. Mainsail reefing lines –

6mm braid. Mainsail outhaul – 6mm braid. Mainsheet & Jib sheets – 10mm sheet rope. All associated blocks for purchase tackles.

Mainsail: Dacron in tan or cream. 2 reef points with tie in lacing. Luff and gaff lacing as required.

Jib: Dacron in tan or cream with wire luff and tell tails.

Boom Cover: In maroon, or cream acrylic. Fixings to allow for topping lift and mainsheet take off. All sails supplied with, sail numbers, logo and ties.

Engineering

Outboard Version

Outboard well: A teak engine mounting with stainless brackets. Engine well hull blank. GRP moulded fuel tank stowage and fuel lead splitter through aft

locker compartment. (fuel lead not supplied as standard)

Inboard Version

Stern Gear: A 1” stainless steel shaft is fitted, connected to the engine via a coupling and fitted with a Tides Marine ‘lip seal’ gland. The shaft drives a fixed

2-bladed propeller.

Engine: Yanmar 1GM10 9hp marine diesel engine. A 55 amp (12V) alternator is fitted to the engine.

Engine Instruments and Controls: The engine instruments are located at the rear of the cockpit coaming and are recessed with a clear cover. Instruments

include audible alarm, alternator warning light, start switch and stop control. A single lever engine control is supplied and fitted in the cockpit well.

Engine Cooling: The engine is directly salt water cooled. A 1/2″ diameter pipe leads from the main seawater inlet through a strainer to the engine and

discharges overboard through the exhaust.

Engine Exhaust: A flexible exhaust hose connects the exhaust via a swan neck with water trap to the outlet fitting through the transom.

Fuel System: A plastic diesel tank with a capacity of approximately 18 litres, breather and integrated fuel gauge. The tank is fitted with flow and return

lines, the flow line having a manual shut off valve.

Plumbing

Bilge System: 1 x Manual bilge pump operated from the cockpit with a handle stored in the aft locker.

Fresh Water Tanks: 2 x 10ltr plastic jerry cans with manual hand pump. Also a bucket / sink.

Soil System: When fitted the heads discharge directly to sea via a vent loop and skin fitting.

Inlet / Outlet Fittings: Engine: In through a single skin fitting with a valve and strainer, out via the exhaust system.

Gas System: There is a double burner hob cooker attached to a separately stored gas bottle.

12 volt DC system

Batteries: Engine – one 12 volt 55 amp/hour. (Optional on outboard version)

Charging: Via main engine – a 35 amp (at 12 volt) alternator.

Switchboard: An optional switch panel is fitted to boats that have additional electronics fitted.

Miscellaneous Standard Equipment

Deck: 1 x winch handle. 1 x bilge pump handle. Stowed in aft cockpit locker. 1 x fire extinguisher – situated down below.

Joinery: The interior joinery is constructed from high quality materials and in accordance with good yacht practice. Bulkheads and side back linings are

from plywood.

Finish: All cabin woodwork is finished in a mix of painted bulkheads and varnished trim.

Soles: Rubber textured sole throughout.

Upholstery: A choice of soft or wipe down plastic upholstery is available.

I started experimenting with some older pictures and this is what happened

Il campanile della chiesa di Ficarolo (Ro) ha una peculiarità: è minacciosamente inclinato verso ovest! La sua altezza di ben 72m rende questa inclinazione ancora più spettacolare.

Il problema in realtà risale già al momento della costruzione, nel 1777: poco dopo averne iniziato l’edificazione ed essere arrivati all’altezza di circa 50m, la torre si inclinò verso ovest a causa di un cedimento strutturale del terreno, probabilmente dovuto al fatto che nelle vicinanze , nel sottosuolo, passava un canale fognario che poi sfociava nel Po.

Dopo 10 anni di sosta, i tecnici di allora ritennero che il cedimento fosse ormai definitivo, e ripreso i lavori che giunsero al termine nel settembre del 1790.

La sporgenza rispetto all'asse perpendicolare, alla fine del XVIII secolo, era di 1,36 metri, oggigiorno è di ben 3,40 metri.

E’ previsto in futuro un intervento di consolidamento con la costruzione di un anello di calcestruzzo alla base del campanile cui fissare dei tiranti d'acciaio, i quali non solo impediranno la caduta della torre, ma col tempo, ne favoriranno il raddrizzamento.

 

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The bell tower in the village of Ficarolo (Northern Italy, near the town named Rovigo) is very inclined toward west.

This problem dates back to the 1777, when the tower was built and immediately inclined due to a structural sinking in the ground.

After 10 years of standby, the building of the tower started again as the technicians evaluated that the sinking was yet definitive, the works ended in 1790.

Just to give some numbers, the tower has an height of 72 mt: the inclination in comparison to the vertical was 1,2m at the end of XVIII cent. and it is 3,4m today.

It is foresseen for the future a restoration intervention.

 

SHODASI : SECRETS OF THE RAMAYANA

Kundalini Yoga & Gayathri Mantra in Valmiki Ramayana

ENGLISH HINDI AND TELUGU ORIGINAL

AUTHOR : SESHENDRA SHARMA

Seshendra : Visionary Poet of the Millennium

seshendrasharma.weebly.com

seshen.tributes.in/

REVIEWS :

www.facebook.com/shodasi/

Books :

kinige.com/author/Gunturu+Seshendra+Sharma

Valmiki , The Sage of 5th century B.C wrote The Ramayana not to narrate the story of Rama in an absorbing style. Though the epic poem presents Rama’s Journey of life in enchanting poetry , the story and the enchanting poetry are sugar coating or honey to the organic medicine called Kundalini Yoga. Maharshi Valmiki wrote the Ramayana to spread / propagate Kundalini Yoga among the masses. Thus the soul of The Ramayana is Kundalini Yoga / Sri Vidya. Valmiki embedded Kundalini Yoga in the Chapter titled “ Sundara Kanda” . Hanuman and Ravana are Kundalini Yogis of Samaya and Kaula Paths.

And in Sundara Kanda , he inserted “ Trijata Swapna “ , dream sequence of a demon and in it embedded the Gayathri Mantra. The concepts of Vishnu and Avatar (reincarnation) were nonexistent during the Ramayana Period.

Seshendra Sharma , Scholar - Poet in his Magnum Opus of Research “ Shodasi : Secrets of The Ramayana “ reveals these secrets lying hidden for thousands of years .

 

* * * * *

How old is Valmiki Ramayana? One Calculation says 8 lacks 70 thousand Years. Going by the Christian calendar dating to approximately the 5th to 4th century BC. According to Indian classification of time Ramayana belongs to the Treta Yuga and today we are in the Kali Yuga. All these millions of years the human civilisation the world over, recognised it as the first poetry and in this part of the world i.e. the Indian Subcontinent the central character of the epic is present as an idol of worship in thousands of temples and in every household of believers.

But here is a research work which says Ramayana is merely poetry to the naked eye whereas it is an ensemble of invisible secrets which have been lying unnoticed all these ages.

What could have been the Valmiki Maharshi’s vision which made him chisel an epic poem which is pregnant with startling secrets?

Shodasi : Secrets of the Ramayana , a Magnum Opus comprising both revelations and research findings written in Telugu 47 Years ago is translated into English by Dr. G.S.Murthy , a 86 year old physicist (Retrd) from BARC. Dr. Murthy observes about Shodasi that “the approach adopted by Seshendra Sharma is unprecedented. .. His conclusion that Ramayana is closer to Sruthi than any other scripture is very significant and is based on the intrinsic evidence in the Ramayana itself.... it is a revolt against the customary methods followed to understand the status of Ramayana in the Sanskrit Literature.”

 

The fulcrum of Shodasi is that poetry in Ramayana is a supplement to the bitter medicine called “Kundalini Yoga” and Ramayana is divine Ambrosia for all mundane afflictions and problems that beset the human kind.

Seshendra reveals that Sundara Kanda is the heart of Ramayana and it is nothing but Kundalini Yoga . And the heart of Sundara Kanda is Trijata ‘s Dream , which is nothing but Gayatri Mantra.

Kundalini Yoga which is also known as Sri Vidya is awakening of inner powers dormant in humans through meditation. The very 1st Shloka of Sundara Kanda is analysed and explained exhaustively by the author from several angles. “Chaarana Charithe pathi..(Sky-Path) “is , according to the author the Sushumna in Humans. Lanka Dahana ( Reducing Ravana’s Empire Lanka to ashes ) is the climax of the Kundalini Yoga which is Sahasrara Bhedana. The author analyses citing evidence from the Ramayana original text , that both Paths of Kundalini Yoga , Samaya and Kaula ways are shown in the epic.

What is of paramount importance in this work is that each exposition refers to a cluster of references germane to the main discussion. Hence it is obvious that this work is a scholastic paradise to people who are conversant with Sanskrit literature and other ancient scriptures. A pedestrian reader cannot even peep into Shodasi . Seshendra’s introduction “One word to begin with “sets the tone and tenor of the work. He dilates at length how Sanskrit language is moulded by Valmiki on the lines of Sruthi and Veda to envelop his central theme in suggestive and oblique style.

It is said Valmiki wrote Ramayana in 24 thousand Shlokas taking each syllable of Gayatri Mantra, which has 24 syllables. Seshendra Shows convincingly, where the Gayathri Mantra itself is located in Ramayana. He says “ Sundara Kanda “ is the heart of Ramayana and Trijata ‘s Dream is Sundara Kanda’s heart. “ Maharshi created an apparent episode of “Trijata Swapna “ and through this he embedded Gayathri Mantra in it. “

This book is replete with several such revelations and unnerving observations. The chapters on “ Relationship between Ramayanayana and Megha Sangesham “ “Indra supreme deity “ compel the reader to stop and think at the turn of every observation. This reviewer does not like to “spill all the beans “.

Dr. Murthy, the translator, aptly observes “ It needs a very attentive mind and adequate patience to follow author’s arguments “. Seshendra Sharma( seshendrasharma.weebly.com ) , winner of Sahitya Akademi Award for his “Kaala Rekha “( Arc of Blood ) a collection of essays in comparative literature , a fellow of the Akademi During his life time whose Long Poem “ My Country – My People – Modern Indian Epic “was nominated for Nobel in 2004 is scholar –poet of our times . His Kavisena Manifesto (Modern Indian Poetics), Kaala Rekha( Essays in Comparative Literature)are monuments of contemporary Indian Literature , unsurpassed to this day. His prose works prove that he is Albert Einstein of Indian Literature.

After completing the first round of reading the reader would certainly agree with Vishwanatha Satyanarayana ,Telugu poet of romantic era , recipient of Gyanpith Award for his “Ramayan Kalp Vriksh” who wrote preface to this book “ Every one , not only the telugu – speaking people all Indians must be grateful to him for writing this book”.

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Ramayana, a replica of Vedas

S. VARADARAJAN

There are several versions of the Sri Ramayana, one of the two greatest epics. Following Sri Valmiki Ramayana several editions have been published in various languages, besides scores of commentaries written across centuries. Late.GunturuSeshendra Sharma, scholar poet of 20th Century unearthed secrets of the Ramayana through his popular Telugu book “Shodasi”.

The novelty of nomenclature Shodasi , called Sri Vidya is reflected , in the 16th Chapter . Sharma’s intellectual depth comes forth in analyzingSundara Kanda specially through KundaliniYoga . The author highlights hidden truth in Valmiki’s thought that is similar to Vedas and says that Trijata’s dream in Sundara Kanda reflects Gayatri Mantra of 32 Syllabi in 4 lines. Sharma pays rich encomiums in the description of Lanka surrounded by three impregnable borders. He compares these three borders with Trikuta viz... Shakti ,Kaamaraaja , VagbhavaKutas with those of Sri Vidya in Kundalini . A staunch believer of Vedas, the author feels that Ramayana is a replica of Vedas and oriented towards the character of Indra . He concludes that in Ramayana the mentioning of the supreme God is Indra and not Vishnu, as the presiding deity of valour in Vedas. Utterances of the word Vishnu were considered to be imaginary overstatements in the author’s view.

This book lends a new perspective to the Ramayana by adding the dimension of KundaliniYoga .

The foreword by VishwanathaSatyanarayana adds credibility to the book. The current work is an English translation of the original by GurujadaSuryanarayanaMurthy , a scientist by profession . His proficiency in the subject is evident in the translation throughout that doesn’t swerve from the original’s purport.

The Hindu

(Friday Review: 2nd October 2015)

A Resplendent Icon of all Arts

 

This is an exemplary book which elevated the status of Indian Literary Criticism to the peaks of the world literature. Shodasi is a name associated with a great hymn. The title suggests that it’s a book on spiritual discourse. A reading of this book suggests that the spirit of scientific temper is critical to comprehend Valmiki’sSrimad Ramayana. Besides this, command on Vedic or Scriptural knowledge is essential. What does a layman has to say when a towering personality like ViswanathaSatyanarayana himself extolled the critical acumen and serious scholarship of Seshendra Sharma.

 

Sharma has made it crystal clear that unless one has an apparent understanding of the plot’s context, psyche of the characters, and the milieu of the bygone days supplemented by extraordinary scholarship, sound knowledge of phonetics and awareness on contemporary issues; one cannot easily comprehend the poetic diction of Valmiki. The debate on the phrase “Netraturaha” is a fitting example. The uniqueness of the title, Sundarakanda, Kundalini Yoga, Gayatri Mantra secretly hidden in Trijata’s dream sequence, considering The Bharatha as an image of The Ramayana.... this book is a repository of many such critical discourses. It is replete with inconceivable and unfathomable issues. This magnum opus is an invaluable gift to the Telugu literature.

 

- VIPULA, Viswa Katha Vedika: May 2014

(An exclusive Telugu Monthly Magazine for stories)

 

* * *

 

Valmiki Ramayana – Greatest Medicine for Mankind

 

The story of Ramayana is prescribed as textbook for students. Sita and Rama are worshiped as prime couple. No need to mention about reciting it. Whether Valmiki was satisfied with simple narration of the story? Seshendra Sharma denies it.

 

He analyzed it mentioning that to understand the inner meanings of Valmiki Ramayana, the scientific knowledge is essential.

 

The underlying secret of the sage’s mind will be known through the knowledge of science.

 

It is the firm opinion of Seshendra that the argument that “the sciences are for scholars only” is a conspiracy hatched by Selfish scholars and lazy uneducated persons.

 

Seshendra who has democratic ideology and conviction on science and literature informs the public about the secrets of Ramayana expounded by Valmiki. He explains that Valmiki dedicated ambrosia (The Greatest Medicine) named “Kundalini Yoga” to the mankind. The poetry in the metre of AnushtupSloka is the honey coating to the medicine. It was explained with great introspection and exemplary scholarship. He concludes that the Ramayana is older than the MahaBharatha and it is another form of Veda. Valmiki introduced the system of meditation in Ramayana. The Introspection and research bent of mind of Seshendra are spread over in the book in two streams. The exuberant fragrance of scholarship is experienced throughout the book.

 

The present generation can understand the scholarship of Seshendra in Vedas and Mantra Sastra. Seshendra is a poet who has composed unique RuthuGhosha (Cry of the Seasons: Metrical Poetry) and revolutionary free verse –MandeSuryudu (The Burning Sun).

 

- Andhra Prabha (Telugu Daily), 24th August 2014.

 

* * *

 

Two Great Peaks in the world literary criticism and research

 

Shodasi: Secrets of The Ramayana and SwarnahamsaHarshanaishada from the mighty pen of the great Telugu poet, GunturuSeshendra Sharma are considered to be the two great peaks in the world literary criticism and research. This is a truth most contemporary Telugu writers and readers aren’t aware of. The way Seshendra could discover Kundalini Yoga, Gayathri Mantra in Shodasi, he could discern the treasure trove of mantra yoga, Sri Mahatripurasundari, Chintamani mantra in Swarnahamsa.

 

At a time when our universities which are mere Degrees production Units, churn out “solid waste” in the name of research; Seshendra even while attending to his job as a Municipal Commissioner created research oriented critical volumes like a sage.

 

Though Shodasi was published in 1967 and Swarnahamsa in 1968; Swarnahamsa was created by him much before Shodasi was conceived. The concepts that Srinatha, Nannayya and Mallanatha, the Telugu Classical poets couldn’t decipher,

Seshendra could. He humbly submits that he is most fortunate that the triumvirate had left behind some pertinent concepts only to be discovered by him at a later stage.

 

These two great kavyas were serialised under the editorship of late NeelamrajuVenkataSeshaiah in Andhra Prabha Daily, Sunday Literary Supplements from 1963 to 1967 and Seshendra’s poems and non-fiction were published in the book forms (6) only after they appeared in serial form in Andhra Prabha.

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GunturuSeshendraSarma, the well-known poet, critic and scholar of unfathomable depth, has to his credit quite a number of books in Telugu as well as English. A keen intellect and a lucid exponent of the intricacies in Samskrit literature, the author brought out a treatise on Ramayana. The book also reveals the symbolism in our epics and shows the spirit behind.

 

According to the author, Sage Valmiki has observed Ramayana as though it is a story of a dynasty in its outward appearance. But when the story part is kept aside, the hidden secrets of the Mantrasastra come out. Valmiki’s Ramayana is full of Vedic literature, language and usages. Ramayana can be appreciated from three angles. The poetic beauty, the historicity and the secret meaning of mother Parasakti. Later Upanishads have taken Valmiki Ramayana as the way to the Mantrasastra. Rama’s wife Sita is considered as Parasakti. In Devi BhagavathamSita is described as Goddess Gayatri. The author has taken unusual pains and quoted Vedic dictations which are literally taken by Valmiki in his Ramayana. Thus it has been a product of Vedas and the usages in Ramayana and the words used therein and the similies adopted by Valmiki speak inexplicably the secret of Mother Lalita in his stories.

 

The author has given and attached a very great significance for Sundarakanda in Ramayana. The author has quoted numerous quotations from Smrithis and Srithis to establish that Sundara-kanda is beautiful because Anjaneya the Jeeva has seen Sita the Parasakti. Hence this canto is so styled as Sundara. According to the author “Sita” means “Kundalini.” Hanuman has seen Sita while she was sitting on the ground. Ground means Earth. Earth denotes Mooladharam. The serpent Kundalini stays in this. Thus it is symbolised as Sita sat on the ground. Hanuman the Yogi has the vision of Kundalini in Sita. With the aid of Ida and Pingala, Kundalini travels in Sushumna through spinal cord crossing the six fluxes, and finally reaching Sahasraram. This again speaks of “Shodasi.” Rama is a beautiful man. He is having a Sundari in Sita (a beautiful woman). The descriptions are beautiful in this canto. Thus it is synonymous with “Soundarya-lahari” of Sankaracharya.

 

The author expressed that Mahabharata is a reflection of Ramayana in all the cause, origin and delivery. Innumerable similarities are quoted from both Valmiki and Vyasa to prove that the usages, style and similies are almost similar in both the epics. He compares Vyasa’s “Nalacharitam” with Sundarakanda of Valmiki in the vision of Srividya.

 

The author further argues that Kalidasa’s “Meghasandesam” is only an imitation of Valmiki. The flight of Anjaneya in search of Sita is the basis for Kalidasa’s “Meghasandesam.” Both Sita and the Yaksha’s wife are described as “Syamas” – meaning in the middle of youth. The duration of separation is one year in both the cases. Ultimately the author said that “Meghasandesam” is the offspring of Ramayana, with yearning to see Parasakti.

 

The author has taken the readers in his book to that sublime beauty where there is no further argument, than to enjoy the flow of citations with their intrinsic meaning and full of scientific vision. His unsurpassed knowledge in Mantrasastra has enabled him to pass dictums vivisecting the symbolic mysticisms into splinters and handing the kernel of truth under each word, usage, and application. He deserves all praise for this meritorious contribution to our literature.

  

Visionary Poet of the Millennium

An Indian poet Prophet

Seshendra Sharma

October 20th, 1927 - May 30th, 2007

seshendrasharma.weebly.com/

www.facebook.com/GunturuSeshendraSharma/

eBooks :http://kinige.com/author/Gunturu+Seshendra+Sharma

Seshendra Sharma is one of the most outstanding minds of modern Asia. He is the foremost of the Telugu poets today who has turned poetry to the gigantic strides of human history and embellished literature with the thrills and triumphs of the 20th century. A revolutionary poet who spurned the pedestrian and pedantic poetry equally, a brilliant critic and a scholar of Sanskrit, this versatile poet has breathed a new vision of modernity to his vernacular.Such minds place Telugu on the world map of intellectualism. Readers conversant with names like Paul Valery, Gauguin, and Dag Hammarskjold will have to add the name of Seshendra Sharma the writer from India to that dynasty of intellectuals.

 

Rivers and poets

Are veins and arteries

Of a country.

Rivers flow like poems

For animals, for birds

And for human beings-

The dreams that rivers dream

Bear fruit in the fields

The dreams that poets dream

Bear fruit in the people-

* * * * * *

The sunshine of my thought fell on the word

And its long shadow fell upon the century

Sun was playing with the early morning flowers

Time was frightened at the sight of the martyr-

-Seshendra Sharma

B.A: Andhra Christian College: Guntur: A.P: India

B.L : Madras University: Madras

Deputy Municipal Commissioner (37 Years)

Dept of Municipal Administration, Government of Andhra Pradesh

Parents: G.Subrahmanyam (Father) ,Ammayamma (Mother)

Siblings: Anasuya,Devasena (Sisters),Rajasekharam(Younger brother)

Wife: Mrs.Janaki Sharma

Children: Vasundhara , Revathi (Daughters),

Vanamaali ,Saatyaki (Sons)

 

Seshendra Sharma better known as Seshendra is

a colossus of Modern Indian poetry.

His literature is a unique blend of the best of poetry and poetics.

Diversity and depth of his literary interests and his works

are perhaps hitherto unknown in Indian literature.

From poetry to poetics, from Mantra Sastra to Marxist Politics his writings bear an unnerving pprint of his rare genius.

His scholar ship and command over Sanskrit , English and Telugu Languages has facilitated his emergence as a towering personality of comparative literature in the 20th century world literature.

T.S.Eliot ,ArchbaldMacleish and Seshendra Sharma are trinity of world poetry and Poetics.

His sense of dedication to the genre of art he chooses to express himself and

the determination to reach the depths of subject he undertakes to explore

place him in the galaxy of world poets / world intellectuals.

Seshendra’seBooks :http://kinige.com/author/Gunturu+Seshendra+Sharma

Seshendra Sharma’s Writings Copyright © Saatyaki S/o Seshendra Sharma

Contact :saatyaki@gmail.com+919441070985+917702964402

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GunturuSeshendraSarma: an extraordinary poet-scholar

One of the ironies in literature is that

he came to be known more as a critic than a poet

 

HYDERABAD: An era of scholastic excellence and poetic grandeur has come to an end in the passing away of GunturuSeshendraSarma, one of the foremost poets and critics in Telugu literature. His mastery over western literature and Indian `AlankaraSastra' gave his works a stunning imagery, unparalleled in modern Indian works. One of the ironies in literature is that he came to be known more as a critic than a poet. The Central SahityaAkademi award was conferred on him for his work `KaalaRekha' and not for his poetic excellence. The genius in him made him explore `Kundalini Yoga' in his treatise on Ramayana in `Shodasi' convincingly. His intellectual quest further made him probe `NaishadhaKaavya' in the backdrop of `LalitaSahasraNaamavali', `SoundaryaLahari' and `Kama Kala Vilasam' in `SwarnaHamsa', Seshendra saw the entire universe as a storehouse of images and signs to which imagination was to make value-addition. Like Stephene Mallarme who was considered a prophet of symbolism in French literature, SeshendraSarma too believed that art alone would survive in the universe along with poetry. He believed that the main vocation of human beings was to be artists and poets. His `Kavisena Manifesto' gave a new direction to modern criticism making it a landmark work in poetics. Telugus would rue the intellectual impoverishment they suffered in maintaining a `distance' from him. Seshendra could have given us more, but we did not deserve it! The denial of the Jnanpeeth Award to him proves it

The Hindu

India's National Newspaper

Friday, Jun 01, 2007

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Ramayana, a replica of Vedas

S. VARADARAJAN

There are several versions of the Sri Ramayana, one of the two greatest epics. Following Sri Valmiki Ramayana several editions have been published in various languages, besides scores of commentaries written across centuries. Late. Gunturu Seshendra Sharma, scholar poet of 20th Century unearthed secrets of the Ramayana through his popular Telugu book “Shodasi”.

The novelty of nomenclature Shodasi , called Sri Vidya is reflected , in the 16th Chapter . Sharma’s intellectual depth comes forth in analyzing Sundara Kanda specially through Kundalini Yoga . The author highlights hidden truth in Valmiki’s thought that is similar to Vedas and says that Trijata’s dream in Sundara Kanda reflects Gayatri Mantra of 32 Syllabi in 4 lines. Sharma pays rich encomiums in the description of Lanka surrounded by three impregnable borders. He compares these three borders with Trikuta viz... Shakti , Kaamaraaja , Vagbhava Kutas with those of Sri Vidya in Kundalini . A staunch believer of Vedas, the author feels that Ramayana is a replica of Vedas and oriented towards the character of Indra . He concludes that in Ramayana the mentioning of the supreme God is Indra and not Vishnu, as the presiding deity of valour in Vedas. Utterances of the word Vishnu were considered to be imaginary overstatements in the author’s view.

This book lends a new perspective to the Ramayana by adding the dimension of Kundalini Yoga .

The foreword by Vishwanatha Satyanarayana adds credibility to the book. The current work is an English translation of the original by Gurujada Suryanarayana Murthy , a scientist by profession . His proficiency in the subject is evident in the translation throughout that doesn’t swerve from the original’s purport.

The Hindu

India’s National Newspaper

(Friday Review: 2nd October 2015)

 

Shodasi

Astounding scholarship of Sanskrit classics

A product of deep research, intense intellectual labour

And amazing scholarship

The book under review which is an English translation by Dr. Gurajada Suryanarayana Murthy of the original Telugu Text represents a scholarly attempt by the erudite author to justify and prove the validity of certain radical propositions which he makes about the world – renowned Kavya – Valmiki Ramayana. The propositions that he makes are – 1. Sundara Kanda is an allegory of Kundalini Yoga 2. Sita is Kundalini Shakti 3. Hanuman’s search – mission of Sita symbolises Tantric Exercise of identifying the Kundalini Shakti and raising it from the Moola Dhara Chakra (denoted by Lanka) to Sahasrara Chakra 4. The descriptive terms employed about Sita hint at Sita being essentially a Kundalini Shakti 5. Trijata’s dream is nothing but Gayathri Mantra 6. Valmiki’s language has pronounced Vedic flavour 7. The phraseology employed by Valmiki corresponds largely to the terms employed in Lalitha Sahasra Nama , Durga Saptasati , Devi Bhagawatam etc.. 8. The aptness of the name Sundara Kanda is provable on Strong Grounds 9. Ramayana is anterior to Bharatha on various grounds such as the Vedic language employed in the former the reference of Valmiki and Ramayana in Mahabharata and absence of reference to Vyasa and Mahabharata episodes in Ramayana , Mention of Rama in Mahabharata and Rama’s greater antiquity than Pandavas and a host of other plausible evidences 10. Indra , the chief Vedic god more prominently featured and praised in Ramayana than Vishnu of the Puranic origin. 11. Megha Sandesham of Kalidasa originated out of the seed of Valmiki Ramayana and 12. The benedictory verse of Sakuntalam is eulogy of Devi.

The brain – tickling propositions are not just of the cuff remarks made without basis but credible theories buttressed with profuse quotations of relevant Sanskrit Texts , wide and deep study of the relevant treatises unassailable arguments based on internal and external evidences and astounding scholarship of Sanskrit classics.

On the flip side, there are a few errors in the transliteration of the Sanskrit texts. Had the Sanskrit passages from the treatises been provided in Devanagari Script also in addition to transliterated form in Roman Script value and appeal of this essentially Sanskrit oriented book would be much higher to the large and growing Sanskrit readership. The book is doubtless, a product of deep research, Intense intellectual labour and amazing scholarship.

The Vedanta kesari : August 2016

The Lion of Vedanta

A Cultural and Spirtual Monthly of the of the Ramakrishna Order since 1944

  

AN INTELLECTUAL FEAST

Along With utmost devotion

The author has clear understanding of not only of the Ramayana

but also Mantra Sastra , Vedas and Kundalini Yoga

His method is going deep into the subject and at the

same time comparing the same with ideas of other branches of literature

Shodasi , authored by Seshendra Sharma is a book of a special type . Though its purpose is to unfold secrets of the Ramayana many other aspects from different branches of knowledge also find a place there.

The Ramayana is read in every household with devotion. It narrates not only story of Rama but it also spotlights very intricate and subtler points in other branches of knowledge, a point not even noticed by many.

The author has clear understanding of not only of the Ramayana but also Mantra Sastra , Vedas and Kundalini Yoga . There are two approaches to understand the Sastras. One is vertical which is closely followed in Sanskrit Literature. It is reading a book with the help of commentary on it. In this method not only each word of the original analysed; its correct meaning and contextual purpose are also examined. The second is a horizontal method where in various ideas in the text are read not with one commentary but with many commentaries by different people. This gives total meaning of the text.

Seshendra Sharma follows both methods. His method is going deep into the subject and at the same time comparing the same with ideas of other branches of literature.

This needs a thorough understanding of various branches and ability to compare texts and spot new ideas and enjoy the same. For example , when Hanuman asks Sita who she is ,she replies ,“sama dvadasa tatraham raghavasya nivesane bhunjhana manushan bhogan sarva kama samrudhinee “ . Meaning “I enjoyed 12 years of mundane pleasure in the home of Rama”

Though she is not an ordinary human being, she enjoyed mundane pleasures. “ you may mistake that I am a mortal woman , but understand I am Sri Maha Lakshmi” . That was the message. The most important clue is the statement “ Aham Sarva Kama Samridhinee “ . In Devi Bhagawatham we find “ Matah Sankaree Kamade “ In Sri Sukta “ Sarva Kamartha Siddhaye “ and in Lalitha Sahasra Nama “ too it is stated “ Om Kamyayai Namah” . If Sita were to be just an ordinary being all these statements would have been irrelevant.

At another place she says “ Maya Ramasya Rajarshe Bharyayaya Paramatmanah” which means that she is wife of Paramatma. Hanuman , the devotee , recognized Sita to be none other than Jaganmata. Hence he could identify her easily as the divine mother and says “ tat sreemadyate tarat”. The word sreemat is used to mean brilliance Hanuman identifies Sita as Devi by the holy seed letter ( Sreem ) .

The book is full of comparisons between different branches of learning and surely a feast for one who could enjoy the existence of similar ideas at various places. It only proves that ways may be different but the goal is one.

Seshendra Sharma physically lifts the minds of the readers and offers an intellectual feast along with utmost devotion. Surely everyone should read this book and keep a copy of the same at home.

Goda Venkateswara Sastry

Tatvaloka : June 2016

The Splendour of Truth

( Monthly Magazine)

  

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Ramayan Through Kundalini Yoga

Shodasi is an ideal read for Sanskrit-literate readers

who are open to eclectic yogarthas and connotative meanings

--------

So you thought Vyasa was before Valmiki, Mahabharat was before Ramayan, Rama a Vishnu avatar, and tantrism distinct from vedism? Think again. In Shodasi: Secrets of the Ramayana, Telugu poet Seshendra Sharma re-reads the Ramayan to come up with a number of new conclusions.

Much of the book sets out to prove that Ramayan was written before the Mahabharat. Sharma discusses how Indra is cited more often than Vishnu, thus placing the context of the Ramayan closer to Vedic than Puranic thought. He quotes from the Mahabharat to show how it follows descriptions of hills, rivers from the Ramayan. The Mahabharat has some prose, and therefore, it must have been composed after Ramayan, which is entirely in poetry. These are only some of the numerous reasons that Sharma offers to suggest a new sequence of our itihasas.

Sharma’s book is also an experimental reading of the Ramayan through the interpretive lens of what he calls Kundalini yoga. Hanuman’s flight to Sri Lanka gets a new interpretation. “Charana Charite Pathi” is interpreted as the path of Kundalini, and the first verse of the Sundara Kanda “Tatho Ravana Nithayah” is interpreted by Sharma to refer to Hanuman traversing the sushumna nadi of the Kundalini.

Trijata’s dream becomes the Gayatri mantra through an imaginative recasting of words as numbers. Gaja (elephant) means eight, danta (teeth) means thirty-two, and maha-gaja-chaturdantam somehow also adds up to 32 syllables, which is the number of syllables in the Gayatri mantra. That Trijata’s dream is halfway through the Ramayan also becomes significant for Sharma, he calls it the ‘central bead’ in the Ramayan garland of 24,000 beads. Identifying 32-syllables as the Gayatri follows a convention, for mantras are referenced by the number of syllables; however, it is the “secret” yogartha—or mystical, anagogical translations—derived by Sharma that becomes problematic, unless he is considered an authority in his own right.

conclude that the name Sundarakand is unrelated to any descriptions of beauty of any of the main characters in the Ramayan. However, Soundarya and Tripura-Sundari are well-known conventions in the tantric tradition and hence, Sharma concludes that Sundarakand derives its name from Shakti’s beauty, and “Sundara-Hanuman” means “Hanuman who is a devotee of Devi” (117).

A coda in this book is about the benedictory verse in Kalidasa’s Sakuntalam which has traditionally been understood to refer to Ishwara. Sharma re-interprets this verse highlighting the “eight forms” of the last line as the eight forms of Devi that please Ishwara.

This book is suitable for a reader who is Sanskrit-literate and open to eclectic yogarthas and connotative meanings. Sharma cites substantially from the Ramayan in roman but without diacritics, this is difficult to follow; and he does not always include translation. Sharma often cites commentators without citing names and sources. It is not clear why the book is called Shodasi—readers may note, this book is not about the Srividya tradition. Even if the reader is unconvinced by Sharma’s reasoning or methodology, the free flow of references may prove absorbing for a reader interested in the subject.

This could also be an eclectic reference for a scholar researching tantric elements in the Ramayan.

- Mani Rao

 

The Sunday Standard Magazine

The New Indian Express

29th November 2015

 

---------------------------

Scholarly and deeply researched monograph

Pearls of insightful ideas and truths

Most of the ancient treatises like the Valmiki Ramayana and Bhagavatha lend themselves to allegorical interpretations. The book under review is scholarly and deeply researched monograph that formulates the startling theory that the immortal epic Valmiki Ramayana, particularly, Sundara Kanda, is nothing but the enunciation of the doctrine of Kundalini Shakthi Yoga. The very title of the book is bound to make the scholarly fraternity and even the common readership sit up and take notice. The radical propositions that the erudite author advances are on the basis of relentless logic and a mass of internal and external evidences are: Ramayana is rooted in Vedas, both in terms of ideas it disseminates and its verbal garb in those it is clothed. Many of the similes that Valmiki employs are inspired by vedic poetry and literature. Many of the expressions employed in the Valmiki Ramayana bear close resemblance to phraseology found in texts like Devi Bhagavatham, and Soundarya Lahari. Sita is none other than Divine Mother and Gayathri. As borne out by an analysis of similarity of names and words used in Valmiki Ramayana and Sri Vidya Literature. Sundara Kanda is nothing but delineation Kundalini Yoga. Hanuman’s aerial voyage in search of Sita represents allegorically the devi worshipper’s exercise in Kundalini Yoga. Sita is Kundalini Shakti. The episodes of mainaka, surasa and Simhika – representing satwa, rajas, tamas respectively –represent piercing of the triple knots by the spiritual aspirant. The Sanskrit phrase “Charana Charithe pathi” that occurs at the opening Canto of Sundara Kanda clearly implies Hanuman’s movement through the path of Sushumna. Lanka is the Mula Dhara Chakra, the seat of Kundalini implied in Valmiki’s graphic description of Lanka, the place of incarceration of Sita. Lanka is Muladhara also from the point of view of Yoga and it is Sri Chakra from the point of view of Spiritual practice. The burning of Lanka symbolises awakening of Swadhishthana. The aptness of name Sundara Kanda is explicable in the light of various evidences embedded in the epic. Trijata’s dream is nothing but the Gayathri Mantra as can be inferred from certain Sanskrit terms representing their numerical equivalents employed to describe dream – scenes of Trijata and also from Dramatis Personae appearing in her dream. Mahabharata is an image of Ramayana and many striking similarities may be found between Valmiki and Vyasa in their style of narrative. Valmiki’s Ramayana is the seed of Meghadootha and Valmiki reincarnates, as it were, as Kalidasa. The vedic god Indra , as the supreme deity dominates epic as a benchmark for all comparisons with Rama and dwarfs Vishnu, the Puranik God, in importance. Ramayana is anterior to Mahabharata. There are 2 annexures at the end of the book “benedictory verse of Sakunthalam is nothing but eulogy of Devi “and “All Humans have same destination” . Coming from the pen of the Telugu poet proficient in several languages, who was active in various disciplines ranging from Sanskrit studies to Cultural activism and who was given the Sahitya Akademi Award, this book is definitely of exceptional merit as the ingenious interpretations of various verses of the epic and also of allied hymnal literature to establish the novel but plausible propositions, come as a refreshing revelations. The book unmistakably bears imprints of an amazingly analytical, deeply erudite and marvellously nimble mind that effortlessly plumbs the oceanic epic and picks up and presents to the community of discerning readers pearls of insightful ideas and truths. One glaring drawback of this essentially Sanskrit-oriented book is the absence of Sanskrit quotations in Devanagari script as transliterations in roman script that are given are poor substitute sonorous Sanskrit words clothed in Devanagari script. The merits mentioned in a short review of this book packed with quaint and profound ideas constitute merely the proverbial tip of an iceberg. A fund of fruitful and lofty ideas awaits those who venture dive deep into this great book. In short this book is a riveting read for scholars and a strong stimulant for the general readers. –

N. Hariharan

Madurai

Prabuddha Bharata

March 2016

A monthly journal of the Ramakrishna Order

started by Swami Vivekananda in 1893

 

Unearthing secrets of Ramayana Ramayana

A sea-bed of secrets

A great boon to Devi Upasakas and Practioners of Sri Vidya

The Ramayana popular as the Adi Kavya (first work of poetry) the world over is not just beautiful poetry . It is a sea bed of secrets – containing the methods of Kundalini yoga and mantra sastra . This is the heart of Shodasi : Secrets of the Ramayana authored by Seshendra Sharma , one of the towering personalities of Telugu Poetry . This book, a collection 16 articles with one article added on from this edition appeared in Telugu Original in 1967. Mr. N.Ramesan IAS , the then Principal Secretary to Education Dept , the then AP Govt observed feelingly in his preface , that this work is a boon for Devi Upasakas and merits to be translated into English and other Indian Languages. This advice has fructified after 48 Years. Dr. Suryanarayana Murthy , a physicist (retired : Baba Atomic Research Centre ) has translated Shodasi into English with commendable clarity of grasp over the subject and felicity of thought process and flow of reading. The story of Rama narrated in enchanting poetry, according to Seshendra is a honey supplement to the bitter medicine called Kundalini Yoga. Valmiki Maharshi chose the Story of Rama to propagate Kundalini Yoga and systems of meditation in the society, among the masses of his era. This is the fulcrum of this Research work. What is of significance is that the author , in order to buttress his analysis and arguments cites extensively and conclusively from the Original Text of Ramayana itself. This Translation introduces this seminal work to wider sections of readers in other parts of our multilingual nation and to scholars engaged in research in Indian scriptures in the west. As the reader goes through the pages of Shodasi it gradually becomes clear that , the story that Valmiki was a Hunter , after viewing the pair of birds dying for each other renounced hunting and became a Rishi is an episode woven around him to make him and his epic the Ramayana popular and that Valmiki belongs to the pantheon of Vedic Rishis . Seshendra at every point of analysis cites from the Vedas and sruthis. His own introduction to this work “one word to begin with “ he discusses elaborately on the significance of Valmiki’s Style of expression of phrases . This chapter is the gateway to the entire work. While analysing one stanza of he touches upon a simile Which compares moon in the night sky wit vrishabham in Goshtam (cowshed). Seshendra goes deeper into shruthi and Vedas and concludes that go means in Sanskrit speech and “goshte vrishabham mattamiva bhramantam “ implies that like Omkara moves at the throat the divine personality of moon is moving in the sky. That intricate and deep is the analysis of the author. Seshendra , then discusses why sundara kanda was chosen as the name of a chapter . He observes incisively and proves conclusively that Sita is the main character of this Kanda and Sita is none other than Adi Shakti ( The Divine Mother ) Sri Maha Tripura Sundari.This is the reason why Maharshi named it Sundara Kanda. Sundara Kanda is the heart of the Ramayana and Trijata Swapna (Demoness Trijata’s Dream) is its heart. Sundara Kanda is nothing but Kundalini Yoga . Right from the 1st stanza of the chapter Maharshi starts unfolding the path of Kundalini Yoga in a suggestive manner garbed in enchanting poetry teaming with breath taking similes. Hanuman is SriVidyopasaka. The author discusses the 1st stanza “Chaaranaa Charithe pathi “ with intrinsic evidence from the Ramayana itself. Charanas are Divine Singers and their path is the sky . In other words in Kundalini Yoga “Sushumna “. The entire chapter elaborates each stanza in a captivating tone and concludes with Lanka Dahana ( Burning of Lanka ) as piercing of the Sahasrara seated in the head. First hand reading alone will give the unnerving feel of this chapter. Another important chapter is “ Trijata’s dream is nothing but Gayathri mantra “. In this , Seshendra views Trijata’s Dream, one of the demonesses guarding Sita in Ashoka Vana as Gayathri mantra. He dwelves deep into each Sloka of this episode and proves convincingly that Valmiki created this episode in order to embed the mantra in Ramayana. Till this point this book is a cluster of revelations. “The later part is both revelation and research. Seshendra in the chapter “ Indra is the Supreme Deity of Ramayana “ discusses each stanza of the Ramayana and goes on to reveal that at the time when Valmiki was writing the Ramayana the concepts of Vishnu and incarnation (Avatar ) were non– existent . Indra is the supreme deity of the Ramayana. In other 2 chapters the author‘s exhaustive study and Incisive analysis are all pervasive. Seshendra explodes the myth sought to be propagated by some of the Western Scholars that the Bharatha precedes the Ramayana . Shodasi , as rightly pointed out in one preface, is a great boon to Devi Upasakas and Practioners of Sri Vidya. All these ages this Adi Kavya is seen only as the Story of Rama. Here is a path breaking work which reveals the hidden treasure of spiritual secrets which Valmiki Maharshi embedded them in his epic.

Insight ( Sunday Magazine )

The Hitavada ( English Daily ) 1st November 2015

 

It's taken me 2 years of graduate school and dissertation on it, but I think I've finally figured it out:

 

Sun + raindrops on plants = bokeh

 

And thank you to soup & sunday for sharing some of her beautiful post-processing tips with me; I attempted them here. :) You have to check out her stream -- 'tis nothing short of amazing.

 

Sage has no problem with performing extremely large calculations.

IR HDR. Pikes Peak in the background. IR converted Canon Rebel XTi. AEB +/-2 total of 3 exposures processed with Photomatix.

 

High Dynamic Range (HDR)

 

High-dynamic-range imaging (HDRI) is a high dynamic range (HDR) technique used in imaging and photography to reproduce a greater dynamic range of luminosity than is possible with standard digital imaging or photographic techniques. The aim is to present a similar range of luminance to that experienced through the human visual system. The human eye, through adaptation of the iris and other methods, adjusts constantly to adapt to a broad range of luminance present in the environment. The brain continuously interprets this information so that a viewer can see in a wide range of light conditions.

 

HDR images can represent a greater range of luminance levels than can be achieved using more 'traditional' methods, such as many real-world scenes containing very bright, direct sunlight to extreme shade, or very faint nebulae. This is often achieved by capturing and then combining several different, narrower range, exposures of the same subject matter. Non-HDR cameras take photographs with a limited exposure range, referred to as LDR, resulting in the loss of detail in highlights or shadows.

 

The two primary types of HDR images are computer renderings and images resulting from merging multiple low-dynamic-range (LDR) or standard-dynamic-range (SDR) photographs. HDR images can also be acquired using special image sensors, such as an oversampled binary image sensor.

 

Due to the limitations of printing and display contrast, the extended luminosity range of an HDR image has to be compressed to be made visible. The method of rendering an HDR image to a standard monitor or printing device is called tone mapping. This method reduces the overall contrast of an HDR image to facilitate display on devices or printouts with lower dynamic range, and can be applied to produce images with preserved local contrast (or exaggerated for artistic effect).

 

In photography, dynamic range is measured in exposure value (EV) differences (known as stops). An increase of one EV, or 'one stop', represents a doubling of the amount of light. Conversely, a decrease of one EV represents a halving of the amount of light. Therefore, revealing detail in the darkest of shadows requires high exposures, while preserving detail in very bright situations requires very low exposures. Most cameras cannot provide this range of exposure values within a single exposure, due to their low dynamic range. High-dynamic-range photographs are generally achieved by capturing multiple standard-exposure images, often using exposure bracketing, and then later merging them into a single HDR image, usually within a photo manipulation program). Digital images are often encoded in a camera's raw image format, because 8-bit JPEG encoding does not offer a wide enough range of values to allow fine transitions (and regarding HDR, later introduces undesirable effects due to lossy compression).

 

Any camera that allows manual exposure control can make images for HDR work, although one equipped with auto exposure bracketing (AEB) is far better suited. Images from film cameras are less suitable as they often must first be digitized, so that they can later be processed using software HDR methods.

 

In most imaging devices, the degree of exposure to light applied to the active element (be it film or CCD) can be altered in one of two ways: by either increasing/decreasing the size of the aperture or by increasing/decreasing the time of each exposure. Exposure variation in an HDR set is only done by altering the exposure time and not the aperture size; this is because altering the aperture size also affects the depth of field and so the resultant multiple images would be quite different, preventing their final combination into a single HDR image.

 

An important limitation for HDR photography is that any movement between successive images will impede or prevent success in combining them afterwards. Also, as one must create several images (often three or five and sometimes more) to obtain the desired luminance range, such a full 'set' of images takes extra time. HDR photographers have developed calculation methods and techniques to partially overcome these problems, but the use of a sturdy tripod is, at least, advised.

 

Some cameras have an auto exposure bracketing (AEB) feature with a far greater dynamic range than others, from the 3 EV of the Canon EOS 40D, to the 18 EV of the Canon EOS-1D Mark II. As the popularity of this imaging method grows, several camera manufactures are now offering built-in HDR features. For example, the Pentax K-7 DSLR has an HDR mode that captures an HDR image and outputs (only) a tone mapped JPEG file. The Canon PowerShot G12, Canon PowerShot S95 and Canon PowerShot S100 offer similar features in a smaller format.. Nikon's approach is called 'Active D-Lighting' which applies exposure compensation and tone mapping to the image as it comes from the sensor, with the accent being on retaing a realistic effect . Some smartphones provide HDR modes, and most mobile platforms have apps that provide HDR picture taking.

 

Camera characteristics such as gamma curves, sensor resolution, noise, photometric calibration and color calibration affect resulting high-dynamic-range images.

 

Color film negatives and slides consist of multiple film layers that respond to light differently. As a consequence, transparent originals (especially positive slides) feature a very high dynamic range

 

Tone mapping

Tone mapping reduces the dynamic range, or contrast ratio, of an entire image while retaining localized contrast. Although it is a distinct operation, tone mapping is often applied to HDRI files by the same software package.

 

Several software applications are available on the PC, Mac and Linux platforms for producing HDR files and tone mapped images. Notable titles include

 

Adobe Photoshop

Aurora HDR

Dynamic Photo HDR

HDR Efex Pro

HDR PhotoStudio

Luminance HDR

MagicRaw

Oloneo PhotoEngine

Photomatix Pro

PTGui

 

Information stored in high-dynamic-range images typically corresponds to the physical values of luminance or radiance that can be observed in the real world. This is different from traditional digital images, which represent colors as they should appear on a monitor or a paper print. Therefore, HDR image formats are often called scene-referred, in contrast to traditional digital images, which are device-referred or output-referred. Furthermore, traditional images are usually encoded for the human visual system (maximizing the visual information stored in the fixed number of bits), which is usually called gamma encoding or gamma correction. The values stored for HDR images are often gamma compressed (power law) or logarithmically encoded, or floating-point linear values, since fixed-point linear encodings are increasingly inefficient over higher dynamic ranges.

 

HDR images often don't use fixed ranges per color channel—other than traditional images—to represent many more colors over a much wider dynamic range. For that purpose, they don't use integer values to represent the single color channels (e.g., 0-255 in an 8 bit per pixel interval for red, green and blue) but instead use a floating point representation. Common are 16-bit (half precision) or 32-bit floating point numbers to represent HDR pixels. However, when the appropriate transfer function is used, HDR pixels for some applications can be represented with a color depth that has as few as 10–12 bits for luminance and 8 bits for chrominance without introducing any visible quantization artifacts.

 

History of HDR photography

The idea of using several exposures to adequately reproduce a too-extreme range of luminance was pioneered as early as the 1850s by Gustave Le Gray to render seascapes showing both the sky and the sea. Such rendering was impossible at the time using standard methods, as the luminosity range was too extreme. Le Gray used one negative for the sky, and another one with a longer exposure for the sea, and combined the two into one picture in positive.

 

Mid 20th century

Manual tone mapping was accomplished by dodging and burning – selectively increasing or decreasing the exposure of regions of the photograph to yield better tonality reproduction. This was effective because the dynamic range of the negative is significantly higher than would be available on the finished positive paper print when that is exposed via the negative in a uniform manner. An excellent example is the photograph Schweitzer at the Lamp by W. Eugene Smith, from his 1954 photo essay A Man of Mercy on Dr. Albert Schweitzer and his humanitarian work in French Equatorial Africa. The image took 5 days to reproduce the tonal range of the scene, which ranges from a bright lamp (relative to the scene) to a dark shadow.

 

Ansel Adams elevated dodging and burning to an art form. Many of his famous prints were manipulated in the darkroom with these two methods. Adams wrote a comprehensive book on producing prints called The Print, which prominently features dodging and burning, in the context of his Zone System.

 

With the advent of color photography, tone mapping in the darkroom was no longer possible due to the specific timing needed during the developing process of color film. Photographers looked to film manufacturers to design new film stocks with improved response, or continued to shoot in black and white to use tone mapping methods.

 

Color film capable of directly recording high-dynamic-range images was developed by Charles Wyckoff and EG&G "in the course of a contract with the Department of the Air Force". This XR film had three emulsion layers, an upper layer having an ASA speed rating of 400, a middle layer with an intermediate rating, and a lower layer with an ASA rating of 0.004. The film was processed in a manner similar to color films, and each layer produced a different color. The dynamic range of this extended range film has been estimated as 1:108. It has been used to photograph nuclear explosions, for astronomical photography, for spectrographic research, and for medical imaging. Wyckoff's detailed pictures of nuclear explosions appeared on the cover of Life magazine in the mid-1950s.

 

Late 20th century

Georges Cornuéjols and licensees of his patents (Brdi, Hymatom) introduced the principle of HDR video image, in 1986, by interposing a matricial LCD screen in front of the camera's image sensor, increasing the sensors dynamic by five stops. The concept of neighborhood tone mapping was applied to video cameras by a group from the Technion in Israel led by Dr. Oliver Hilsenrath and Prof. Y.Y.Zeevi who filed for a patent on this concept in 1988.

 

In February and April 1990, Georges Cornuéjols introduced the first real-time HDR camera that combined two images captured by a sensor3435 or simultaneously3637 by two sensors of the camera. This process is known as bracketing used for a video stream.

 

In 1991, the first commercial video camera was introduced that performed real-time capturing of multiple images with different exposures, and producing an HDR video image, by Hymatom, licensee of Georges Cornuéjols.

 

Also in 1991, Georges Cornuéjols introduced the HDR+ image principle by non-linear accumulation of images to increase the sensitivity of the camera: for low-light environments, several successive images are accumulated, thus increasing the signal to noise ratio.

 

In 1993, another commercial medical camera producing an HDR video image, by the Technion.

 

Modern HDR imaging uses a completely different approach, based on making a high-dynamic-range luminance or light map using only global image operations (across the entire image), and then tone mapping the result. Global HDR was first introduced in 19931 resulting in a mathematical theory of differently exposed pictures of the same subject matter that was published in 1995 by Steve Mann and Rosalind Picard.

 

On October 28, 1998, Ben Sarao created one of the first nighttime HDR+G (High Dynamic Range + Graphic image)of STS-95 on the launch pad at NASA's Kennedy Space Center. It consisted of four film images of the shuttle at night that were digitally composited with additional digital graphic elements. The image was first exhibited at NASA Headquarters Great Hall, Washington DC in 1999 and then published in Hasselblad Forum, Issue 3 1993, Volume 35 ISSN 0282-5449.

 

The advent of consumer digital cameras produced a new demand for HDR imaging to improve the light response of digital camera sensors, which had a much smaller dynamic range than film. Steve Mann developed and patented the global-HDR method for producing digital images having extended dynamic range at the MIT Media Laboratory. Mann's method involved a two-step procedure: (1) generate one floating point image array by global-only image operations (operations that affect all pixels identically, without regard to their local neighborhoods); and then (2) convert this image array, using local neighborhood processing (tone-remapping, etc.), into an HDR image. The image array generated by the first step of Mann's process is called a lightspace image, lightspace picture, or radiance map. Another benefit of global-HDR imaging is that it provides access to the intermediate light or radiance map, which has been used for computer vision, and other image processing operations.

 

21st century

In 2005, Adobe Systems introduced several new features in Photoshop CS2 including Merge to HDR, 32 bit floating point image support, and HDR tone mapping.

 

On June 30, 2016, Microsoft added support for the digital compositing of HDR images to Windows 10 using the Universal Windows Platform.

 

HDR sensors

Modern CMOS image sensors can often capture a high dynamic range from a single exposure. The wide dynamic range of the captured image is non-linearly compressed into a smaller dynamic range electronic representation. However, with proper processing, the information from a single exposure can be used to create an HDR image.

 

Such HDR imaging is used in extreme dynamic range applications like welding or automotive work. Some other cameras designed for use in security applications can automatically provide two or more images for each frame, with changing exposure. For example, a sensor for 30fps video will give out 60fps with the odd frames at a short exposure time and the even frames at a longer exposure time. Some of the sensor may even combine the two images on-chip so that a wider dynamic range without in-pixel compression is directly available to the user for display or processing.

 

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/High-dynamic-range_imaging

 

Infrared Photography

 

In infrared photography, the film or image sensor used is sensitive to infrared light. The part of the spectrum used is referred to as near-infrared to distinguish it from far-infrared, which is the domain of thermal imaging. Wavelengths used for photography range from about 700 nm to about 900 nm. Film is usually sensitive to visible light too, so an infrared-passing filter is used; this lets infrared (IR) light pass through to the camera, but blocks all or most of the visible light spectrum (the filter thus looks black or deep red). ("Infrared filter" may refer either to this type of filter or to one that blocks infrared but passes other wavelengths.)

 

When these filters are used together with infrared-sensitive film or sensors, "in-camera effects" can be obtained; false-color or black-and-white images with a dreamlike or sometimes lurid appearance known as the "Wood Effect," an effect mainly caused by foliage (such as tree leaves and grass) strongly reflecting in the same way visible light is reflected from snow. There is a small contribution from chlorophyll fluorescence, but this is marginal and is not the real cause of the brightness seen in infrared photographs. The effect is named after the infrared photography pioneer Robert W. Wood, and not after the material wood, which does not strongly reflect infrared.

 

The other attributes of infrared photographs include very dark skies and penetration of atmospheric haze, caused by reduced Rayleigh scattering and Mie scattering, respectively, compared to visible light. The dark skies, in turn, result in less infrared light in shadows and dark reflections of those skies from water, and clouds will stand out strongly. These wavelengths also penetrate a few millimeters into skin and give a milky look to portraits, although eyes often look black.

 

Until the early 20th century, infrared photography was not possible because silver halide emulsions are not sensitive to longer wavelengths than that of blue light (and to a lesser extent, green light) without the addition of a dye to act as a color sensitizer. The first infrared photographs (as distinct from spectrographs) to be published appeared in the February 1910 edition of The Century Magazine and in the October 1910 edition of the Royal Photographic Society Journal to illustrate papers by Robert W. Wood, who discovered the unusual effects that now bear his name. The RPS co-ordinated events to celebrate the centenary of this event in 2010. Wood's photographs were taken on experimental film that required very long exposures; thus, most of his work focused on landscapes. A further set of infrared landscapes taken by Wood in Italy in 1911 used plates provided for him by CEK Mees at Wratten & Wainwright. Mees also took a few infrared photographs in Portugal in 1910, which are now in the Kodak archives.

 

Infrared-sensitive photographic plates were developed in the United States during World War I for spectroscopic analysis, and infrared sensitizing dyes were investigated for improved haze penetration in aerial photography. After 1930, new emulsions from Kodak and other manufacturers became useful to infrared astronomy.

 

Infrared photography became popular with photography enthusiasts in the 1930s when suitable film was introduced commercially. The Times regularly published landscape and aerial photographs taken by their staff photographers using Ilford infrared film. By 1937 33 kinds of infrared film were available from five manufacturers including Agfa, Kodak and Ilford. Infrared movie film was also available and was used to create day-for-night effects in motion pictures, a notable example being the pseudo-night aerial sequences in the James Cagney/Bette Davis movie The Bride Came COD.

 

False-color infrared photography became widely practiced with the introduction of Kodak Ektachrome Infrared Aero Film and Ektachrome Infrared EIR. The first version of this, known as Kodacolor Aero-Reversal-Film, was developed by Clark and others at the Kodak for camouflage detection in the 1940s. The film became more widely available in 35mm form in the 1960s but KODAK AEROCHROME III Infrared Film 1443 has been discontinued.

 

Infrared photography became popular with a number of 1960s recording artists, because of the unusual results; Jimi Hendrix, Donovan, Frank and a slow shutter speed without focus compensation, however wider apertures like f/2.0 can produce sharp photos only if the lens is meticulously refocused to the infrared index mark, and only if this index mark is the correct one for the filter and film in use. However, it should be noted that diffraction effects inside a camera are greater at infrared wavelengths so that stopping down the lens too far may actually reduce sharpness.

 

Most apochromatic ('APO') lenses do not have an Infrared index mark and do not need to be refocused for the infrared spectrum because they are already optically corrected into the near-infrared spectrum. Catadioptric lenses do not often require this adjustment because their mirror containing elements do not suffer from chromatic aberration and so the overall aberration is comparably less. Catadioptric lenses do, of course, still contain lenses, and these lenses do still have a dispersive property.

 

Infrared black-and-white films require special development times but development is usually achieved with standard black-and-white film developers and chemicals (like D-76). Kodak HIE film has a polyester film base that is very stable but extremely easy to scratch, therefore special care must be used in the handling of Kodak HIE throughout the development and printing/scanning process to avoid damage to the film. The Kodak HIE film was sensitive to 900 nm.

 

As of November 2, 2007, "KODAK is preannouncing the discontinuance" of HIE Infrared 35 mm film stating the reasons that, "Demand for these products has been declining significantly in recent years, and it is no longer practical to continue to manufacture given the low volume, the age of the product formulations and the complexity of the processes involved." At the time of this notice, HIE Infrared 135-36 was available at a street price of around $12.00 a roll at US mail order outlets.

 

Arguably the greatest obstacle to infrared film photography has been the increasing difficulty of obtaining infrared-sensitive film. However, despite the discontinuance of HIE, other newer infrared sensitive emulsions from EFKE, ROLLEI, and ILFORD are still available, but these formulations have differing sensitivity and specifications from the venerable KODAK HIE that has been around for at least two decades. Some of these infrared films are available in 120 and larger formats as well as 35 mm, which adds flexibility to their application. With the discontinuance of Kodak HIE, Efke's IR820 film has become the only IR film on the marketneeds update with good sensitivity beyond 750 nm, the Rollei film does extend beyond 750 nm but IR sensitivity falls off very rapidly.

  

Color infrared transparency films have three sensitized layers that, because of the way the dyes are coupled to these layers, reproduce infrared as red, red as green, and green as blue. All three layers are sensitive to blue so the film must be used with a yellow filter, since this will block blue light but allow the remaining colors to reach the film. The health of foliage can be determined from the relative strengths of green and infrared light reflected; this shows in color infrared as a shift from red (healthy) towards magenta (unhealthy). Early color infrared films were developed in the older E-4 process, but Kodak later manufactured a color transparency film that could be developed in standard E-6 chemistry, although more accurate results were obtained by developing using the AR-5 process. In general, color infrared does not need to be refocused to the infrared index mark on the lens.

 

In 2007 Kodak announced that production of the 35 mm version of their color infrared film (Ektachrome Professional Infrared/EIR) would cease as there was insufficient demand. Since 2011, all formats of color infrared film have been discontinued. Specifically, Aerochrome 1443 and SO-734.

 

There is no currently available digital camera that will produce the same results as Kodak color infrared film although the equivalent images can be produced by taking two exposures, one infrared and the other full-color, and combining in post-production. The color images produced by digital still cameras using infrared-pass filters are not equivalent to those produced on color infrared film. The colors result from varying amounts of infrared passing through the color filters on the photo sites, further amended by the Bayer filtering. While this makes such images unsuitable for the kind of applications for which the film was used, such as remote sensing of plant health, the resulting color tonality has proved popular artistically.

 

Color digital infrared, as part of full spectrum photography is gaining popularity. The ease of creating a softly colored photo with infrared characteristics has found interest among hobbyists and professionals.

 

In 2008, Los Angeles photographer, Dean Bennici started cutting and hand rolling Aerochrome color Infrared film. All Aerochrome medium and large format which exists today came directly from his lab. The trend in infrared photography continues to gain momentum with the success of photographer Richard Mosse and multiple users all around the world.

 

Digital camera sensors are inherently sensitive to infrared light, which would interfere with the normal photography by confusing the autofocus calculations or softening the image (because infrared light is focused differently from visible light), or oversaturating the red channel. Also, some clothing is transparent in the infrared, leading to unintended (at least to the manufacturer) uses of video cameras. Thus, to improve image quality and protect privacy, many digital cameras employ infrared blockers. Depending on the subject matter, infrared photography may not be practical with these cameras because the exposure times become overly long, often in the range of 30 seconds, creating noise and motion blur in the final image. However, for some subject matter the long exposure does not matter or the motion blur effects actually add to the image. Some lenses will also show a 'hot spot' in the centre of the image as their coatings are optimised for visible light and not for IR.

 

An alternative method of DSLR infrared photography is to remove the infrared blocker in front of the sensor and replace it with a filter that removes visible light. This filter is behind the mirror, so the camera can be used normally - handheld, normal shutter speeds, normal composition through the viewfinder, and focus, all work like a normal camera. Metering works but is not always accurate because of the difference between visible and infrared refraction. When the IR blocker is removed, many lenses which did display a hotspot cease to do so, and become perfectly usable for infrared photography. Additionally, because the red, green and blue micro-filters remain and have transmissions not only in their respective color but also in the infrared, enhanced infrared color may be recorded.

 

Since the Bayer filters in most digital cameras absorb a significant fraction of the infrared light, these cameras are sometimes not very sensitive as infrared cameras and can sometimes produce false colors in the images. An alternative approach is to use a Foveon X3 sensor, which does not have absorptive filters on it; the Sigma SD10 DSLR has a removable IR blocking filter and dust protector, which can be simply omitted or replaced by a deep red or complete visible light blocking filter. The Sigma SD14 has an IR/UV blocking filter that can be removed/installed without tools. The result is a very sensitive digital IR camera.

 

While it is common to use a filter that blocks almost all visible light, the wavelength sensitivity of a digital camera without internal infrared blocking is such that a variety of artistic results can be obtained with more conventional filtration. For example, a very dark neutral density filter can be used (such as the Hoya ND400) which passes a very small amount of visible light compared to the near-infrared it allows through. Wider filtration permits an SLR viewfinder to be used and also passes more varied color information to the sensor without necessarily reducing the Wood effect. Wider filtration is however likely to reduce other infrared artefacts such as haze penetration and darkened skies. This technique mirrors the methods used by infrared film photographers where black-and-white infrared film was often used with a deep red filter rather than a visually opaque one.

 

Another common technique with near-infrared filters is to swap blue and red channels in software (e.g. photoshop) which retains much of the characteristic 'white foliage' while rendering skies a glorious blue.

 

Several Sony cameras had the so-called Night Shot facility, which physically moves the blocking filter away from the light path, which makes the cameras very sensitive to infrared light. Soon after its development, this facility was 'restricted' by Sony to make it difficult for people to take photos that saw through clothing. To do this the iris is opened fully and exposure duration is limited to long times of more than 1/30 second or so. It is possible to shoot infrared but neutral density filters must be used to reduce the camera's sensitivity and the long exposure times mean that care must be taken to avoid camera-shake artifacts.

 

Fuji have produced digital cameras for use in forensic criminology and medicine which have no infrared blocking filter. The first camera, designated the S3 PRO UVIR, also had extended ultraviolet sensitivity (digital sensors are usually less sensitive to UV than to IR). Optimum UV sensitivity requires special lenses, but ordinary lenses usually work well for IR. In 2007, FujiFilm introduced a new version of this camera, based on the Nikon D200/ FujiFilm S5 called the IS Pro, also able to take Nikon lenses. Fuji had earlier introduced a non-SLR infrared camera, the IS-1, a modified version of the FujiFilm FinePix S9100. Unlike the S3 PRO UVIR, the IS-1 does not offer UV sensitivity. FujiFilm restricts the sale of these cameras to professional users with their EULA specifically prohibiting "unethical photographic conduct".

 

Phase One digital camera backs can be ordered in an infrared modified form.

 

Remote sensing and thermographic cameras are sensitive to longer wavelengths of infrared (see Infrared spectrum#Commonly used sub-division scheme). They may be multispectral and use a variety of technologies which may not resemble common camera or filter designs. Cameras sensitive to longer infrared wavelengths including those used in infrared astronomy often require cooling to reduce thermally induced dark currents in the sensor (see Dark current (physics)). Lower cost uncooled thermographic digital cameras operate in the Long Wave infrared band (see Thermographic camera#Uncooled infrared detectors). These cameras are generally used for building inspection or preventative maintenance but can be used for artistic pursuits as well.

 

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Infrared_photography

 

Sage supports differentiation and the calculation of the Taylor series.

The Idols in my Heart

 

The beauty, zeenat, of the heart comes from Tauheed (the

One-ness of God)

ikhlas (sincerity),

trusting Allah,

it comes from His Remembrance

and in forgetting others.

Ghaus Pak (ra)

 

Writing truthfully comes naturally to me. Writing about my dark side, easily. I can see it in the light of others, the contrast striking. I can see it in their darkness, we are always only shades apart. My esteemed Spiritual Master Babu ji (ra) says countless times in Musafir Chand Roza; “Think of yourself as the worst. Think of everyone else as better than you.”

 

I was never able to do that, think of myself as the worst. And it was without discussing those who made everyone feel they were better than them. After all, some souls had made no promises. They had not reached out and been embraced. Hence, they were yoked, captive themselves. If they behaved badly it was not surprising. But I hailed myself as a keeper of promises. Regressing once in a while was one thing. Breaking a foundational rule, entirely another.

 

So over four weeks on a summer holiday I finally came to reach the point of honestly thinking I was undoubtedly the worst. This is that story that in fact should not be told. And if it is, I have wondered while writing it, can it ever be told truthfully?

 

Begin.

 

When you have one person left that is family that person is important. You have seen good times and bad together. Each of you has changed in their own ways, marking their footsteps with imprints, scars and wounds to show for their paths on their spiritual journey. You part ways often but you will always meet again. If not joy, life and if not pain, death creates reunion forever.

 

In the interim sometimes one sinks in mistrust wondering, are they sincere to me? The dimmest of light in the heart dying to be heard screams yes. The darkness simply whispers no. Yet prevails.

 

This summer after two years I returned to what was my home for years. Simply because it was my brother’s home. Portland, Oregon. A city that felt divine because of its beauty and its food, both simple yet overwhelming, in a good way. My cousin happened to be there too. That was a stroke of luck. He is gentle and calm, chilled. The opposite of me even though we were both born on the same day four years apart. I was glad he was there. I had really gotten to know him only on a trip once years ago because he was outside of Lahore. In the city we both lived in, he was usually depressed, languishing in fantasies that would never come true.

 

My niece was now ten. She was and always will be my heart’s greatest delight. The second person I loved without expectation, negotiation, calculation. I recently added a third and fourth to that list. I hope it grows. I feel it so starkly now what Maulana Shams Tabrez (ra) means when he says that love with those three aspects in it is hell. And without it, heaven. It was so strange to realize in all my interactions of love once the 40’s began, all of which I felt so intensely, bliss had always been absent.

 

Even now when I regress, say something, do something and think of how or whether it might be reciprocated, I feel that fire of hell and wonder; how did I burn in it for these last 10 years? Burn…in...it...

 

I was prepared for the trip in advance. As in spiritually trained for it in Lahore. By my Masters from the Realm of the Unseen and my friends on this Earth. There were two simple rule to follow; first, exercise silence. And two, understand and accept that nothing you want will happen.

 

Both rules were next to impossible for me to execute without lapse for the former and reaction to the latter. Still I buckled down and took a deep breath. I joked with a cousin of mine before leaving; If I can pull it off Cuz, I’m coming back with a halo around my head!

 

Day 15 was when I faced my failure dead in the face. My tongue finally lashed out. My temper raged. My brother reacted somewhat calmly because he always says the same thing; drink a glass of cold water. He must have read it somewhere in tips for anger management. Of course that was infuriating. I left the room in a huff and the sick part was as I entered mine, where my niece was brushing her teeth, I felt elated.

 

A volcano had finally burst so pressure was released. A molten lava erupted leaving me unscathed. A few minutes later I re-entered his room sickened by my pleasure at taking someone out. I apologized. He kept saying he didn’t understand why I reacted the way I did. I had no answer to that because I felt he should have known it was coming. But I gave no explanation because every single one I had would have only served to provoke him and hence me. I apologized again. He accepted it gracefully.

 

That afternoon I chose to stay behind while the three of them went shopping to the city. We were spending most of the five weeks in a beach town on the coast. I grabbed my book & drove to a restaurant where I loved the food. I stared out the window at dense fog, and then found a beach to walk on.

 

I saw a few cars parked on the side of a road. I could see the sand from where I stopped so I knew it wasn’t going to be far. I put on my headphone and the track that was my summer pick – Sultan + Shepherd, Run to you – grabbed my camera and made my way down. The beach was lovely. It was a cliff on one side that was laid on a bed of rocks. I decided to climb over them and walk to the edge so I could sit right near the water.

 

It was around 4 that I realized I hadn’t prayed Zuhr. I would not get back into town in time to say it so I decided to pray on the rocks. During the prayer I thought about the moment I had experienced with my brother that morning. The moment I had successfully avoided for 15 days. The moment that had made me feel victorious when it was really nothing but defeat. Nonetheless it was also a moment which allowed me to see him for where he was standing in his life.

 

Overtly he appeared strong, financially independent, capable, seemingly in no need of anything, emotional or otherwise. But it was a false bravado. Because bravado is always false. His aggression, which seemed to manifest itself instantly, was in fact just the opposite. It was intense fragility. As if a shattering was just a hair’s breadth away and he was skirting it every single moment all the time.

 

There was in fact no confidence. There was never any confidence. My father had never allowed it. Its false appearance was a mask that over time had become worn out so now it kept peeling off. That part he was aware of. It was what caused the tension inside him to repeat one exercise in repeat; plastering that mask back on again and again. That is why seclusion was preferred. Everything else must have felt taxing.

 

I replayed the morning’s incident in my mind over and over. I wanted to see my role in it. I had not even really lost my temper. I had just expressed irritation. At being slighted. At being ignored. At being out of bounds really as far as any consideration or sensitivity was concerned. I had been annoyed at best. I had expressed it by being dismissive and condescending. That was the trigger!

 

It was my making him feel insignificant, the hinting that his behaviour was abnormal. It was me being my father! The truth was that he was also being my father. As far as triggering me was concerned. But there was a big difference. I knew what was happening. I could exercise control over my reaction. All I had to do was be quiet.

 

He didn’t know anything. He was getting through life hour by hour, minute by minute, hoping his world didn’t crash, hoping he didn’t crash. And not even for his own sake. For his daughter’s. Who already knows what he’s like. Like all children learn their parent’s flaws at the youngest age. And love them anyway. Ignore them anyway.

 

During my prayer I thought about how I was one of those ordinary people who learnt only through failure. Who always had to be bad in order to be good. And I thought of my beloved Nabi Kareem (saw) who was only and always good. Kind. Gentle. Soft. I had read a new story recently where he was walking and some man came up behind him and pulled him back by his shirt so roughly that he tore it.

 

“Give me something,” he demanded.

 

A war had been won. The spoils were being distributed.

 

Nabi Kareem (saw) simply turned around and smiled.

 

“Give him what he wants,” he said.

 

Just like that!

 

But I was never good. To be good I had to always first face my evil. I hated that so much. It disappointed me so deeply I would just cry. That day sitting on the rocks I wept and asked my Lord for the first time, Ya Rabbi! When will I just be good? Would it ever happen? Could it even happen? I heard the waves crash on the rocks around me and waited for an answer. It didn’t come.

 

The wind blew hard carrying birds I had never seen before gliding away in lines. I packed my stuff and headed back towards the car. For 14 days I had been praying fervently, ardently, eagerly, passionately, fanatically. How can I express love to someone, I would ask Allah, who has an impenetrable barrier around them? A new barrier that I had never seen before, that I was not used to. And then I knew.

 

Perhaps there was no way around it. Maybe I was not going to be able to go through it and find myself on the inside. Ever! If the shield made another feel safe, then it was not for me to undo that for them. The only thing I could do was express my love. Which I had not been doing with my brother. In practicing my muteness, I had not said anything kind to him either. I had just been mirroring him, the only difference between us being my silence.

 

On good days I had felt hopeful. On bad, I felt like I visited someone who had jailed themselves. I sat across a glass door. I picked up a phone. I waited for a Hello! If I was lucky, we spoke. Otherwise he disappeared leaving me, the one who is “free” bound, wondering if the next interaction would be better. It made me realize he wasn't the only person in my life like that.

 

In the first few days when I couldn’t figure anything out I called Qari Sahib just to say hello. He gave me a prayer to say. Since I have never uttered verses before in certain number to bring about change in another person, I was dejected by his advice. But then the Surah turned out to one of my favourites, Al-Nasr, so I started saying it. I recited it a lot anyway.

 

I even set up a time to understand the tafseer of it by Ghaus Pak (ra).

 

إِذَا جَآءَ نَصْرُ ٱللَّهِ وَٱلْفَتْحُ

وَرَأَيْتَ ٱلنَّاسَ يَدْخُلُونَ فِى دِينِ ٱللَّهِ أَفْوَاجًا

فَسَبِّحْ بِحَمْدِ رَبِّكَ وَٱسْتَغْفِرْهُ ۚ إِنَّهُۥ كَانَ تَوَّابًۢا

 

When comes the Help of Allah and the Victory,

and you see the people entering into the religion of Allah in multitudes.

Then glorify with the praises of your Lord and ask His Forgiveness.

Indeed, He is Oft-Returning

Surah Al-Fath, Verses 1-3

 

Tafseer e Jilani:

 

Ida ja’a nasurallah: When it will come to you, O Messenger who completes Prophethood (peace be upon you), the Promise of Allah which He promised you, that He will help you against all your enemies. And make your religion dominate all other religions…

 

Wal fath: …which Allah already informed you of with his verse

“Inna fathana laka fath han mubeenan - ‏إِنَّا فَتَحْنَا لَكَ فَتْحًۭا مُّبِينًۭا ‎- Indeed, We have given victory, to you a victory clear. 48/1”

 

Wa: Now it has come; that victory and the help that you were promised, completing your control and overcoming all your enemies and dominating your religion over all other religions…

 

Rait an Naas a yadkhulna fi deen Allah I afwaja: …troop by troop and group by group, after which they will come individual by individual.

 

Fa sabbih bi hamdi Rabbika: O Messenger who completes Prophethood (peace be upon you)! Be thankful that He has granted you all that He promised you. And He gave you victory upon all the Universe. And perfected your excellence in manner and honorable etiquette by raising you, then unveiling your appearance for all people.

 

Wa astahfir-hu: So ask Him to let go of everything and forgive from His Majesty, for the benefit of your person and your transgressions (in love).

 

Inna hu kana Tawwaba: He forgives all who ask for forgiveness from Him and also accepts the repentance of those who turn towards Him again. If those feelings come dipped in sincerity.

 

It was the last line that resonated for me the most. I turned in repentance again and again. But it also made me wonder about the last line. Were my feelings always dipped in sincerity?

 

I even studied what is the Khatim as Surah, a note at the end of each Surah, concluding it, that Ghaus Pak (ra) writes for the reader:

 

O You who seeks success on the Last Day and is interested in the spiritual blessings from Allah Himself which have been promised that come from asking forgiveness from Him! And in focusing your attention towards Him in all your states all the time and entrusting your matters in their entirety to Him! And making Him your Disposer of Affairs! And making Him the One who takes care of you and becomes your Guarantor!

 

For you the duty is to be steadfast in obedience and worship. And stay away from that which has been made forbidden and evil for you. May Allah protect you from sins and bring you to the place of culminating your purpose by His Bounty (Fazl) and His Kindness (Lutf).

 

In saying the Surah by count for the first time, I realized that prayers that are supposedly to alter another’s heart are amazing because whether they impact the other person or not, they definitely alter one’s own. It’s the Quran after all. Ease of the heart is promised.

 

ٱلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُوا۟ وَتَطْمَئِنُّ قُلُوبُهُم بِذِكْرِ ٱللَّهِ ۗ أَلَا بِذِكْرِ ٱللَّهِ تَطْمَئِنُّ ٱلْقُلُوبُ

 

Those who believed and whose hearts find comfort in the remembrance of Allah.

No doubt, in the remembrance of Allah do hearts find their rest.

Surah Ar-Rad, Verse 28

 

But it was early days. Half the trip remained. I felt ease because I was successful in exercising silence but I was seriously lacking something which I had taken for granted on my end; the entrusting of matters in their entirety to Him, and making Him the only Disposer of Affairs, and making Him the

One who takes care of me and thus becoming my Guarantor!

 

In Lahore, I always felt my reliance singularly, doubtlessly because I was alone. There was no one except God for me there. When I made mistakes, erring constantly, they had to do with my own person. The regret came naturally and the repentance was doused in sincerity.

 

Patterns were recognized and broken quickly. Here I was repeating the mistake without recognizing it and therefore without addressing it. I noted the difference was coming from the relationship that was woven into my life inextricably. The others I could walk away from. This I could not escape.

 

I knew that because the whole trip had got me thinking about friends of mine who had spouses who were difficult. Who can fly off the handle without provocation. Be verbally abusive or just distant, indifferent. Then cycle to some sweetness and become hard again. Endlessly. For decades. I often tried to share with them what I learnt but I was not married and I have never had experience, long-term living in the same space with someone who was like that. I shared what worked for me in difficulty of shaking off looping thoughts. That was about it. I didn’t have to face the people creating those thoughts all day long.

 

I had found my brother to be was more closed off than usual. Perhaps it was because his marriage was on fragile grounds. Maybe it was from living alone for the last two years. Then my father had died only a few months before. He was always veiled anyway but the veils seemed thicker.

 

Day in and day out I wondered how to reach him. I felt like it was an exercise in vain like scaling walls put up by the other only to reach the top and find, the walls were in fact higher. The rope wasn’t enough. You could only stay suspended.

 

On one of my alone days while reading Al-Fath Ar-Rabbani, I finally understood why Ghaus Pak (ra) defined the last and highest state of sabr, patience, to be that which is not waited for to be over. It was something that had always truly perplexed me. Why wouldn’t someone want a trial of difficulty to end?

 

“Once I was faced with a trial and it left me in a state of pain for a few days. I requested Allah to make it end. And He intensified my pain through another trial. In that moment, I was left mutahayyar, bewildered.

 

Then I heard a voice from the Unseen, ‘Did you not in your initial stages say that, in all my states, I surrender to my Lord?’

 

Thus I was taught adab regard, and I became still.”

 

I loved that last line. How the extraordinary were taught something through a single line and in a single moment becoming “still” for eternity!

 

I already knew that what lay at the heart of badly broken people; shame and abandonment. It’s what lay behind the dysfunction we all have. But theirs seemed to be different. I recently discovered the major one to be that a time comes when they cannot take any chances.

 

They refuse to put themselves in a position of vulnerability. Not with any relation. Not for any reason. They seem to be minimizing risk of hurt and disappointment to zero but in that singular pursuit they don’t see that they will have to reject all love.

 

All of it!

 

How barren would life be then?

 

It made me sigh deeper than usual.

 

On day 21, my trip was coming to a close in two weeks. My cousin was leaving in one. In that moment when the end appeared on the horizon, clarity came with it. What I have not mentioned thus far, primarily out of disappointment and embarrassment, was my financial dependence on my brother. He had given me his credit card. He had done that many times before. But this time he seemed to do it, not begrudgingly, but not quite as generously either.

 

I had brought a substantial amount of money to cover my expenses but I had spent it all on my ticket, renting weekend apartments and hiring cars over the 6 weeks. I expected him to cover the cost of my being there otherwise. And it was again during my prayers that I was made to see myself relying on him when my pockets were not empty. I just didn’t want to spend my money on incidentals because I thought I shouldn’t have to. But I ignored those revelations that came. That was a colossal mistake!

 

Day after day my prayers were distracted from morning till night. I would hear a voice inside my heart saying words like ghair mukhlis, insincere, munafiq, hypocrite. I listened to the words over and over feeling my chest tighten and yet, I didn’t change anything. Till the end appeared.

 

The tragic fact was I was not even buying anything I really wanted on his card. He was not going to end up spending half as much money on me than I would spend on myself. Still I felt entitled to it and instead, I ignored my soul that was burning. And I let it burn.

 

Then on another day while I was reading Ghaus Pak (ra) spoke to me;

 

“O you who seeks ilm, knowledge! Without amal, deed, there is no trust upon your knowledge and without ikhlaas, sincerity, there is no trust upon your deed. For it is like a body without a soul.

 

The symbol of your sincerity is that you don’t turn your attention towards people when they praise you nor when they are critical of you and – this was the line especially for me – the symbol of your sincerity is that you don’t turn your attention towards people or the wealth that is in their hands.”

 

The symbol of your sincerity!

 

Then he continued, “For how will you deliver on your promises to Allah that (1) only He is your Lord (2) you were created to gain His Recognition and (3) make your deeds to please the Giver of all Blessings instead of the overt giver of it who is just the medium.”

 

Whilst translating the text with Qari Sahib he told me the verses Ghaus Pak (ra) was referring to in the Quran. That is when I knew, I was amongst those who said, “Bala! Indeed, You are.”

 

وَإِذْ أَخَذَ رَبُّكَ مِنۢ بَنِىٓ ءَادَمَ مِن ظُهُورِهِمْ ذُرِّيَّتَهُمْ وَأَشْهَدَهُمْ عَلَىٰٓ أَنفُسِهِمْ أَلَسْتُ بِرَبِّكُمْ ۖ

قَالُوا۟ بَلَىٰ ۛ شَهِدْنَآ ۛ أَن تَقُولُوا۟ يَوْمَ ٱلْقِيَـٰمَةِ إِنَّا كُنَّا عَنْ هَـٰذَا غَـٰفِلِينَ

 

And recall when Your Lord summoned the offspring of the children of Adam from their loins and made them testify about themselves, “Am I not your Lord?”

They said, “Yes, we do testify.”

Thus you cannot say on the Day of Resurrection, “We were oblivious of this.”

Surah Al Araaf, Verse 172

 

Also reminding me that according to Ghaus Pak (ra) worshipping Allah is in fact gaining His Recognition:

 

‏وَمَا خَلَقْتُ ٱلْجِنَّ وَٱلْإِنسَ إِلَّا لِيَعْبُدُونِ ‎

 

And not I have created the jinn and the mankind except that they worship Me.

Surah Ad-Dhariyat, Verse 56

 

But it was the third promise I had forgotten; Make your deeds to please the Giver of all Blessings instead of the overt giver of it, for they are just the medium.

 

Then Ghaus Pak (ra) explained why the medium didn’t matter;

“What people have is the shell, the marrow only lies with God. Thus only when your faith in God and your sincerity towards Him will you become what He expects from you, will you stand before Him forever mindful.

 

Then He will bestow upon you His Recognition and you will come to know the marrow of The Marrow and the inner of The Inner and the meaning of The Meaning.

 

So eat from the left-overs of the Friends of God and drink from what they leave behind for they are fed spirituality and meaning as a reward of their obedience to His Beloved (peace be upon him).”

 

The realization of my insincerity blew a hole in my heart. I walked around in a daze for a few days at what I had done, how I had ignored it. I had transported myself to the darkest of darkness and then planted myself there while seeing the light at the edges of my surrounding. And for what? I shudder typing the word as to what a ghatiya person (lowlife) it made me; money. But at least finally the spell was broken.

 

In those same days while driving around for long periods of time, something I never do in Lahore, I heard a lecture by Uzair from years ago. Perhaps it was when he first started speaking at Hast o Neest. In it he mentioned something Sheikh ul Akbar, Hazrat Mohyuddin Ibn e Arabi (ra), Ghaus Pak’s (ra) son by spiritual lineage, said about Tauheed, the One-ness of God. And he spoke of it in the context of the first line of the Quran;

 

الْحَمْدُ لِلَّهِ رَبِّ الْعَالَمِينَ

 

Alhamdolillah e Rab il Alameen!

 

All praise is due to God alone, the Sustainer of all the worlds.

Surah Fateha, Verse 1

 

Uzair: “All praise is Allah’s alone, who is the Lord of all the worlds. I would like to explain why in the Arabic language, the word alimeen is used here, as opposed to alimoon, both being plural. The difference in which word is to be used is a function of the context. If it is being used for beings that have the ability to reflect, aaqil, the word alimeen is used. If it is being used for the non-thinking, ghair aaqil, then alimoon is used.

 

But if we ponder on the split between reflecting and non-reflecting matter in the Universe, there is much more of the latter. For instance, most of the world, our world, is made of water. There are more plants and there are more animals than there are human beings. And of them, how many reflect? (Uzair smiles). But Allah still is using the word alimeen because of those few thinking ones, so why does He do that?

 

Here Sheikh ul Akbar (ra) says; ‘Look at the line before Alhamdolillah e Rabil Alimeen. The line is Bismillah Ar Rahman Ar Rahim. Allah is showing the epitome of the Magnificence of His Mercy by using the two Names, Rahman and Rahim together. So what Allah is saying here is that He loves those who reflect, even if they are just a handful, the tiniest number, He loves them so much that for their sake, He is raising the status of the rest, the non-reflecting human beings, and the rest of creation whatever it is, by calling them as being of the alimeen.

 

So don’t miss the lesson here by the Sheikh which is, connect yourself, join yourself with the good, the truthful, the sincere, the ones chosen by Allah as His Friends, as His Favourites. For no matter how base you think you are and how imperfect, it is Allah’s Sunnah, as I have just described above, that for the sake of just a few, when He is making all the worlds and all the Universe alimeen, He will give you what you need and much more to elevate you from your state to an entirely different state. A higher state of prosperity, both spiritual and worldly. More than you expected, more than you thought you deserved.”

 

Subhan Allah!

 

Then he came to the part that struck my heart.

 

“So Sheikh ul Akbar (ra) says make the standard of your life Tauheed. Which by the way is not ‘being one’ as people all assume. It is to make something one or say that something is one. So how does one do that, make the standard of one’s life purely Allah? Sheikh (ra) says that unless your belief, aqeeda, does not exhibit itself in deed, your amal, it is not a part of your imaan, faith.

 

He is saying that if you want to understand yourself, which is the only way you will understand God, given the hadith

 

مَن عَرَفَ نَفسَہُ فَقَد عَرَفَ رَبَۤہُ

 

The one who knows himself is verily the one who knows his Lord God.

then you have to understand the Kalima Tayyaba that you recite.

 

La ilaha Illa Allah – (translated as There is no god but Allah)

 

Four words!

 

But the words have to permeate your being, in your breath, in your standing and sitting, in your speech, your character and your morality, your essence. So how does the kalima enter my life like that, in every single thing I experience? Here the Sufis give the answer very simply for everyone.

 

They say the Universe is made for a reason so understand that reason. They say that every experience and every situation that we face comes under one of Allah’s Names. Find that Name in the Quran, for they are pearls strewn before you and string it in your Kalima. Replace the “ila” with the Divine Attribute and replace the word “Allah” with His Name which is the Divine Attribute.

 

For example, when you see something beautiful like some calligraphy and you admire it, direct yourself to saying La Khaaliq Illa al Khaaliq – There is no creator except Allah is The Creator. When you meet someone rich and you think, ‘O so and so is so wealthy, direct yourself to the Kalima and say.’La Ghani illa al Ghani – There is no generous one other than Allah is The Generous One. This is what will bring you closer to Tauheed, connect you with it. When you see someone beautiful and you are drawn to them and you think, ‘so and so is so beautiful’ bring yourself to the Kalima and say, ‘la jameel illah al Jameel – There is no beautiful one other than Allah is The Beautiful One.’

 

Then you will never fixate on anything or anyone. You will always be directed to God. And that is how you will know why the world came into being. Why was it created at all. Then you will understand the Hadith Qudsi

 

كُنتُ كنزاً مَخفياً فأحببتُ أن أُعْرَف فخَلَقتُ الخَلْقَ لكي أُعرف

 

I, Allah, was a Treasure Hidden so I loved to be known

Therefore I created Creation so that I will be known.

 

Ahbabtu – “Loved” to be known, not wanted to be known!

 

This is why the Sufis say love was the first movement.”

 

I sighed. Love was the first movement!

 

While listening to the lecture, I wondered for a second about the moments we experience that are not beautiful. That are difficult or unpleasant, destructive. But then I knew my answer all too well already.

 

‏مَّآ أَصَابَكَ مِنْ حَسَنَةٍۢ فَمِنَ ٱللَّهِ ۖ وَمَآ أَصَابَكَ مِن سَيِّئَةٍۢ فَمِن نَّفْسِكَ ۚ

وَأَرْسَلْنَكَ لِلنَّاسِ رَسُولًۭا ۚ

وَكَفَىٰ بِٱللَّهِ شَهِيدًۭا

 

Whatever befalls you that is good comes from Allah,

and whatever befalls you of evil is from yourself.

And We have sent you for all people as a Messenger,

and sufficient is Allah as a Witness.

Surah An-Nisa, Verse 79

 

Again an-naas, for Mankind, humanity, everyone, as a Messenger!

 

To this day I don’t know why or even how I ignored those voices for three weeks living in my body without a soul. Why? I know one reason was that I was repeating a pattern I had with someone else in the family which was automatically being triggered. That part happened subconsciously.

 

During those same days, the surahs I recited the most in my prayers, where surahs are interchanged with Ikhlaas, were Al-Falaq and An-Naas. They were amongst my favourites and even though I had been told to read others as well, as Allah does not like the same Surahs being repeated over and over, for some reason I recited these the most.

 

In Lahore on random days before our class, I had once asked Qari Sahib what he was studying with other groups of his Quran class. One day he told me about one of them that especially intrigued me.

 

“I spoke to my class about Surah Al-Falaq and Surah An-Naas.”

 

Both are also two of the four Surah that are called the “Quls” because they start with that word, “Qul - Say, O Beloved (peace be upon you),…”

 

“Oh, I love reciting both Surahs Sir. Please tell me as well,” I requested.

 

“Ok,” said Qari Sahib, “Let’s take a deeper look at the structure of Surah Al-Falaq;

 

قُلْ أَعُوذُ بِرَبِّ ٱلْفَلَقِ

مِن شَرِّ مَا خَلَقَ

وَمِن شَرِّ غَاسِقٍ إِذَا وَقَبَ

وَمِن شَرِّ ٱلنَّفَّـٰثَـٰتِ فِى ٱلْعُقَدِ

وَمِن شَرِّ حَاسِدٍ إِذَا حَسَدَ

 

Say, O Beloved (peace be upon you),

“I seek refuge in the Lord of the rising dawn,

From the evil of what He has created,

And the evil of darkness when it spreads,

And the evil from the blowers on the knots (black magic),

And from the evil of the envier when he envies.”

Surah Al-Falaq, Verses 1-5

 

So if you look at the design of the Surah, Allah asks us to

seek refuge from Him once, I seek refuge from the Lord of the rising dawn. But the prayer of refuge is from four evils; the evil of creation, the evil of darkness, the evil of black magic and the evil of envy.

 

Now let’s look at Surah An-Naas;

 

قُلْ أَعُوذُ بِرَبِّ النَّاسِ

مَلِكِ النَّاسِ

إِلَٰهِ النَّاسِ

مِن شَرِّ الْوَسْوَاسِ الْخَنَّاسِ

الَّذِي يُوَسْوِسُ فِي صُدُورِ النَّاسِ

مِنَ الْجِنَّةِ وَالنَّاسِ

 

Say (O Beloved (peace be upon you)),

“I seek refuge in the Lord of Mankind,

The King of Mankind,

The God of Mankind,

from the evil of The Whisperer, the one who withdraws (after his whisper),

who whispers in the hearts of Mankind,

from the Jinn and Mankind.”

Surah An-Nas, Verses 1-6

 

In contrast in this Surah, Allah asks Nabi Kareem (peace be upon him) to seek refuge invoking Allah’s Name three time; Rab-in Naas, Malik-in Naas, Ilahi-in Naas, the Lord of Mankind, the King of Mankind, The God of Mankind. And from what? From the evil of The Whisperer, the one who withdraws (after his whisper). One thing; Iblis. Three invocations to safeguard ourselves from one being. Do you notice the difference?

So why is that?

 

It is so we understand that Iblis has the strongest hold over us, the greatest power to propel us towards misguidance, towards our destruction. Our nafs listens to him constantly, is influenced by him constantly, is obedient to him constantly.

In order to protect ourselves from this evil, we have to turn towards Allah as our Rab, the one who raises us from when we are small, to our Malik, The One who teaches us how to be when we are mid-life and our Ilahi, who is The One we worship with increased intensity when we are old. Meaning that throughout our existence, we cannot be safe from Iblis for even a single moment, without invoking Allah’s Help and Mercy upon us.”

 

I felt blown away.

 

On that day in Portland I remembered Qari Sahib’s words. It was so clear and disturbing to realize how Iblis had attacked so silently and I had let him ravage me. I thought hard about it, my behaviour, specifically why I took money from someone when I had my own. Why did I think it was owed to me? Was it my ujrat, price, for the silence? I never quite reached an answer but at least I knew now it was wrong. In that silence, I had not even said anything to my brother regarding other people in Lahore who were relying on him.

 

Finally I broke the silence and wrote him a letter.

 

In it I said everything I wanted to say on Day One. But I said it kindly, not condescendingly, not authoritatively. I said it gently, not harshly. I said it humbly because I had been no different from him. I could not get over that for the life of me. He had been tense so I had been tense. He had been curt so I had been cold. He had been tightly wound so I had not relaxed. And almost all of the trip was over.

 

Then something happened that broke the spell. Everything shattered because by chance he felt a moment of happiness.

It was a regular morning. I was hanging out with my niece in our room. Suddenly he walked in beaming. It was something work related, I didn’t even ask what. He just announced that something “great” happened and then he hugged me. He had only done that at the airport when he seemed genuinely happy to see me.

 

I had not been able to get a second hug in on my own. I would think about it all the time, every single day in fact but it just didn’t happen. I literally couldn’t get physically close to him. He didn’t allow it. When I went to his room hoping to hang out, he always said he had a call to make or shower or change. He always wanted other people around.

 

But the real shift that came to me, for me, that was the sign that I was under someone’s nazar, eye, that someone on the other side knew I was struggling and wanted to be forgiven, came from the skies. And it came in the shape of a moon.

 

The first moon and not just any first moon either. It was the moon of the first of Muharram, the new year, the one that comes marking pain and sadness.

 

I had been on the patio trying to catch the color of the skies after the sunset which I almost always missed because it set after 9. I was always home by then. Then my eyes wandered and I saw it. I almost didn’t believe my eyes. That perfect sliver, bright, low, staring at me like it waited for me. I never catch the first moon in Lahore no matter how long I spend driving around looking for it.

 

That night at Isha’ I was euphoric. And then I saw even more clearly what I had been doing wrong.

 

فَإِذَا قَرَأْتَ ٱلْقُرْءَانَ فَٱسْتَعِذْ بِٱللَّهِ مِنَ ٱلشَّيْطَـٰنِ ٱلرَّجِيمِ

إِنَّهُۥ لَيْسَ لَهُۥ سُلْطَـٰنٌ عَلَى ٱلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُوا۟ وَعَلَىٰ رَبِّهِمْ يَتَوَكَّلُونَ

إِنَّمَا سُلْطَـٰنُهُۥ عَلَى ٱلَّذِينَ يَتَوَلَّوْنَهُۥ وَٱلَّذِينَ هُم بِهِۦ مُشْرِكُونَ

 

So when you recite the Quran, seek refuge in Allah from the Shaitaan, the accursed.

Indeed not for him is any authority over those who attain to faith

and upon their Lord they put their trust.

He has power only over those who ally themselves with him following him.

And those who because of him associate others with God.

Surah An Nahl, Verse 98-100

 

I was checking the list on everything wrong. I was not relying on God and Iblis was dancing all over my heart like it was a grave. The grave of my soul because it was dead and I had killed it! But now finally I relaxed. I accepted my reprieve with joy and I shed my sin. I didn’t know the next few days I would be made to learn only more about it so it would be ingrained in me what I had done wrong so perhaps I would not repeat the mistake again.

 

Muharram began and I tried to listen to Uzair’s lectures which were happening on a daily basis. In one of them, he recited the following verse;

 

يَـٰٓأَيُّهَا ٱلنَّاسُ

قَدْ جَآءَتْكُم مَّوْعِظَةٌ مِّن رَّبِّكُمْ وَشِفَآءٌ لِّمَا فِى ٱلصُّدُور

وَهُدًى وَرَحْمَةٌ لِّلْمُؤْمِنِينَ

 

O Mankind!

 

Verily has come to you an instruction from your Lord, and a healing for what (ill) is in your breasts, and guidance and mercy for the believers.

Surah Yunus, Verse 57

 

I called Qari Sahib from the States to understand the verse. How could I not? The verse was not for me, it was for all of Mankind. And the shifa’, cure, I needed to know what the effect of it was because it was promised.

 

Every word spoke to me. I was the one who had forgotten, was asleep, unaware!

 

Ya Ayyuhan Naas: O you who have forgotten your original purpose and your true abode i.e. Heaven.

 

Qad Ja’akum: the Quran has come to awaken you and make you aware

 

Muwaddatun: and admonish you

 

Min Rabbikum wa shifa ul lima fi sadoor: and cure you of your grudges and heal you of your unhealthy thoughts that are resident in your hearts.

 

Wa huda-n: And it guides even those who are of exalted status and have arrived before Tauheed.

 

Wa Rahmatun: And it consists of abundance of mercy which includes specifically

 

Lil Momineen: the people who are righteous and mindful. So it is upon you to take warning and obey its commands. And ponder upon its secrets and its signs and deeply consider its keys and how it dawns upon you, until you unveil from it according to your capacity and capability to explore it. And Allah is The True Guide towards His Essence for whom He wills from His Servants. He prevails over everything and He is Dominant and Wise.

 

From the beginning of my arrival, I was trying to get my niece to read some books I had brought on different prophets written especially for children. They focused on their stories as specifically mentioned in the Quran.

 

Sometimes I would sit with her and other times, I would read my own book and have her read out loud. One day when she was reading the story about Hazrat Musa (as), she came to a part of Pharoah which I knew nothing about; his background. Everyone I knew only spoke of his days as King of Egypt. But who was he before that?

 

“Pharoah was a poor, jobless and unsuccessful individual living in the city of Isphan in Iran. He had borrowed a lot of money from different people and was unable to pay his debt. The money lenders would demand payment but he had nothing to give them. Thus he was living a miserable life.”

 

OMG!

 

“Pharaoh had a keen interest in palmistry and astrology and would often consult about his fate and future. One of the astrologers advised him to migrate to Egypt as it would bring him honour, luck and fortune. He decided to follow the advice with the meager amount he had. He found that the people of Egypt loved melons.

 

From a village he bought some melons to start a profitable business. As he entered Egypt, he was confronted by corrupt officials who demanded illegal taxes on the melons. Pharoah had no money to pay the taxes so all the melons were confiscated. He submitted a complaint to the Emperor’s court but it was not forwarded.

 

At that time a deadly plague broke out in the city resulting in many deaths. Pharoah chalked out a plan. He reached the graveyard and demanded tax of the dead bodies. Thinking it to be official, people paid the tax as corruption was rampant in the country. As luck would have it, one of the bodies was that of a relative of a high official in the court.

 

Pharoah was taken to the King’s court for demanding illegal taxes. He informed the King about the corrupt practices in his kingdom. The King punished the officials and appointed Pharoah as a courtier. Pharoah’s treatment of the people was exemplary and with his intellect, he rose to the highest position. Soon he became all powerful and proclaimed himself king and insisted that the people prostrate before him.”

 

The ego is the python that can even swallow itself whole! And this is exactly where I was at;

 

لَهُم مِّن جَهَنَّمَ مِهَادٌ وَمِن فَوْقِهِمْ غَوَاشٍ ۚ

وَكَذَٰلِكَ نَجْزِى ٱلظَّـٰلِمِينَ

 

Hell will be their resting place and their covering as well.

And this is how we recompense the wrong doers.

Surah Al-Araaf, Ayaat 41

 

And of course the hell was right here in this world!

 

Tafseer e Jilani:

 

Lahum min jahannama: Hell is the torture of Imkaan, possibility which is doubt

 

Mihaad: and they will burn in these fires of their false desires.

 

Wa min fauqihim ghiwash: They will be covered with the fires of their power and wealth and claims of being great and possessing abundance.

 

Wa ka daalika najzi ad-dualimeen: And the zalimeen, the ones who transgress the boundaries of Allah due to their nafs, who are unjust, will drown in the addiction of their senses, their paranoia and their delusion.

 

All that time I ignored my heart’s call, I had turned away from love from my soul. It answered my question of how others turn their backs to love? Those wonderings I used to have; do they even feel badly about it? In those thoughts I was judging them and so I had been made to stand exactly where they stood. It definitely ended the inquisitiveness that seemed so natural. My nafs was no different from their nafs in being punishing. My torture no different from theirs when it created doubt.

 

I thought about the moon and why it I saw its shortest of appearance marking the start of the most honored of months. There was a prayer I had started saying recently in Lahore after every Namaz. Three times! I had read that a Companion used to recite it three times after every prayer and Nabi Kareem (peace be upon him) liked that so much, he kissed him on his forehead.

 

I had even studied it with Qari Sahib before leaving just to understand it more deeply. It began to dawn on me, it was this prayer that I never stopped uttering throughout my debacle, that had come to save me.

 

لَقَدْ جَآءَكُمْ رَسُولٌ مِّنْ أَنفُسِكُمْ

عَزِيزٌ عَلَيْهِ مَا عَنِتُّمْ حَرِيصٌ عَلَيْكُم بِٱلْمُؤْمِنِينَ رَءُوفٌ رَّحِيمٌ

فَإِن تَوَلَّوْا۟ فَقُلْ حَسْبِىَ ٱللَّهُ لَآ إِلَـٰهَ إِلَّا هُوَ ۖ

عَلَيْهِ تَوَكَّلْتُ ۖ

وَهُوَ رَبُّ ٱلْعَرْشِ ٱلْعَظِيمِ

 

Certainly, has come to you a Messenger from yourselves.

Grievous to him is what you suffer,

he is concerned over you,

to the believers he is kind and merciful.

Surah At-Tauba – Verse 128

 

Tafseer e Jilani:

 

Laqad Ja’akum: O bedouins!

 

Rasoolun: the Messenger has come with miracles open and signs clear, that will be created.

 

Min An fusakum: Raised from amongst you is he who has intense love and mercy for you.

 

Aziz-un: Heavy is the burden

 

Alyihi: upon him (peace be upon him)

 

Ma annit-tum: of that which pains you and brings you suffering.

 

And when you come across that which he did not find favourable for you because it was from the signs of kufr, ingratitude

 

and shirk, fears and hopes associated with others.

 

And the absence of obedience and the absence of submission to the Commands of Allah and that which was forbidden to you.

 

Despite this;

 

Harsees un: Surely he is eager for your faith and submission and correction of your state because he is

 

Bil Momineen: with the the ones with certainty, the ones who believe in the One-ness of Allah and the ones who are sincere,

 

Rauf-un: Most kind and full of affection,

 

Raheem-un: he feels mercy for them and is well pleased with them due to their coming out from the darkness of the denial of Truth and ingratitude towards the light of faith and submission.

 

I read the translation of one word over and over;

 

Ma annit-tum: of that which pains you and brings you suffering.

 

And when you come across that which he did not find favourable for you because it was from the signs of kufr, ingratitude

 

and shirk, fears and hopes associated with others.

And the absence of obedience and the absence of submission to the Commands of Allah and that which was forbidden to you.

 

On one of my last days on the coast when I was by myself, I went to the beach and just sat on a rock in the sand. I dug my heels into it and stretched and then picking up a pebble, I wrote the words; “Please forget I did it all, Ya Rabbi!”

 

It made me think of the movie Hollywood made in 2004 about the erasing of disturbing memories; Eternal sunshine of the spotless mind. It was prophetic of course. The idea of erasing that which is regretful is now a scientific possibility, yet another to perverse the nature of things. Mistakes are made and can be forgotten but not erased by like they never happened except by God who changes them to good deeds for whom He wills. Without the acknowledgment on our end, there is no reformation, only a repeat of patterns.

 

Still, on that day, in the sand, I wished for things to be erased.

 

Starting at zero is not a problem in spirituality. Hitting the reset button as many times as possible is actually a good thing. It’s not a moment of despair. It’s not a moment of jubilance either but it still marks movement and the trajectory slopes upwards.

 

But sometimes the acts are disappointing to one’s own self because the consequences of it were seen. They were known. They were told. When despite that, the step is taken, the disobedience marked with such terrible willfulness, that there is a deepness of regret and disappointment that cannot be fathomed.

 

And still, the Mercy of Allah and His Friends is deeper so that even such a dark moment is pierced by light.

 

‘So Iblis said to God Almighty, “Oh my Lord, you wrote in my destiny that I not prostrate and now you order me to do so.”

 

And he was told, “When did you know that I didn’t want you to bow down, after I ordered it or before?

 

For if it was before My Command then even your refusal will not harm you but if it was after, then you and an animal are one and the same.”

 

…The whole span of the soul’s spiritual itinerary is contained within this exchange...’

 

And one sentence let me unhook myself from a place where I wanted to be castigated to no end.

 

For if it was before My Command then even your refusal will not harm you…for I knew what I was doing wrong before I was doing it!

 

Then my trip got delayed. It was a blessing in disguise. I was left alone for a week and I got a chance to write this piece which I otherwise might have never written. I was so ashamed. I was alone for all of seven days. I read. I discovered a river. I took in the sun, dipped my feet in water and stared at rocks beneath it.

 

There was a homeless guy living there that I had met already in town. That was surprising, to run into him there. It gave me the chance to take him fresh food a few times. His name was Sam. Which is short for my niece’s name Sameena and the name I use when waiting in line for something. He was the third homeless man we had met that summer whose name was Sam. My niece was counting.

 

We had met one of them, a young man in his 20s, at a pizza joint in the Pearl. It was a sure spot to find someone to feed. On one such day when we got there I saw a man standing next to a cart the homeless use for their stuff.

 

He was in a lousy mood. He looked surly and kept shouting at this woman with him. She had a cart too. I was a little hesitant to approach him in case he yelled at me too but then walked up to him.

 

“Hey man,” I said softly. “Can I get you something to eat? From this pizza joint?”

 

He paused for a second then said, “Sure.”

 

“What would you like?” I asked, relieved.

 

It’s always pepperoni which always makes me wince but then he wasn’t Muslim. I asked him if the woman who was now on the other side of the street might want something too. She said yes.

 

My niece and I got the food and some drinks and took them over. He smiled and thanked me. He seemed calmer. He gave the other box to the woman even speaking to her nicely. As my niece and I walked away, I said to her, “See Lou, sometimes people just need a break from their hard lives. And when someone is kind to them, they soften just like the man did. In an instant. He was even nice to his friend.”

 

She listened seriously and nodded. I love that about her. I can’t get her to listen to me when I want her to open a book or sleep but when I speak to her about other people and she sees them up close, their reactions, she observes them keenly. I know she observes me keenly.

 

A few times while we were on the coast and in the city, I would tell her to come with me while I looked for someone to give food to. She always said yes. A few times in a row, as I pulled up towards a homeless person I would have to give money to because there was no food around, I would say out loud whilst thinking to myself, “Oh man, I hope they won’t use it for drugs.”

 

On every occasion that I did that, it must have happened at least four times, the person was stone cold sober and super nice. Friendly, grateful, gracious, almost innocent.

 

After the third time she said to me with a chiding tone, “Mony, you keep thinking bad things about the people and they’re always not like that.”

 

I smiled embarrassed, actually glad that she called me out on it.

 

“I know,” I said looking at her in the rear view mirror. “I know Lulu. It’s not nice of me to do that. I don’t even know why I’m doing it.”

 

Then I turned around and with a huge grin on my finger pointing at my skull, I said, “Actually, I do know. I’m sick in the head!”

 

She burst out laughing.

 

Almost always I try to have her carry the food and give it. Take the money from my hand and place it in theirs. I want her to hear the way they express such deep gratitude for the tiniest act. How they always bless us. How they always invoke God. How they never want anything specific. How they never ask for more than is offered. How they express such surprise the offer is made at all. These will be the reasons she will do it all her life when she is older. If there ever was something that will bring her God’s Pleasure at the earliest age possible, it will be this act; pleasing a needy person.

 

In that last week of solitude, I had left my Ipod in Portland in a jacket so I was without music. That meant for drives, I listened to Uzair’s lectures. In one of them he spoke about how no one knew the essence of Nabi Kareem (peace be upon him) except Allah Alone. It was expressed in a hadith to Hazrat Abu Bakr Siddique (ratu).

 

لم یعلمنی حقیقۃ غیر ربی

 

There is no one who knows my reality except my Lord.

 

Like Allah, he too was a secret that only love for him could unveil.

 

In the lecture, Uzair said that the Companions would eagerly await the Sharia’. They wanted to know what the rules and laws were going to be so they could follow them and become maqbool, those accepted by Allah. But the Sufis say that it was the Sharia’ that waited for Akmal Ar-Rasool, the Prophet who completed Prophet-hood (peace be upon him), to do something so that the act would allow it to take form.

 

Subhan Allah!

 

In those days, I read in Al-Fath Ar Rabbani that there are two types of Masters; the Masters of Jurisprudence (Mashaikh e Sharia’) and the Masters of Recognition of God (Mashakih e Marifat).

 

“The first will bring you to the door of Creation. The second will show you the way towards Allah. You will need to enter both doors; the door of Creation and the door of The Creator. Without going through the first one, you will not even see the second.

 

Take the world out of your heart so entry into the Afterlife is bestowed to you. These are ranks one after the other and they are diametrically opposite to each other. Dependence on creation is the opposite of Recognition of God. They will never co-exist and you will get neither. Unless the heart is empty of all, you are leaving an idol in it. Break the idols, purify the heart and then you will see that which you have never seen.”

 

Uzair explained the exact same thing in a lecture in a single sentence by Imam Malik, one of the four Masters of Jurisprudence, Fiqh which is “the science of understanding and ascertaining the precise terms and practices of the Sharia’ in Islam.”

 

من تفقه ولم يتصوف فقد تفسق

ومن تصوف ولم يتفقه فقد تزندق

ومن جمع بينهما فقد تحقق

 

The one who follows Fiqh, Islamic Jurisprudence, but does not purify the heart,

so indeed he becomes of the defiantly disobedient.

The one who purifies the heart and ignores the laws of Jurisprudence,

he becomes a disbeliever.

And the one who gathers them both, indeed he attains certainty and arrives at the truth.

 

As someone who knows little about Islamic Jurisprudence and only hears negative things about it in Pakistan because they are all not do-able for the mod squad, I was amazed at the words the Imam used. Without Sharia’, I would become a heretic? It was stunning. And the one who thought they were following every law to the tee but left tasawuff, spirituality as taught by the Sufis who taught one how to purify the heart, out was in fact the one who would become disobedient. A fasiq, like Iblis!

 

The curve balls that life throws at you will never end. I guess if they did then where would the growth come from. Only in my regression do I remember how deeply imperfect I am. Otherwise to be honest, my life in Lahore, is like I live in a cave. I wish it was a cave. And I was like the Ashab e Kahf.

 

“Make yourself like a corpse before your Lord,” Ghaus Pak (ra) says. “Like a corpse is in the hands of the one who bathes it.

Turns it left and turns it right. Without existence, without planning, without choice. Stand with faith and certainty before that which comes to you from Him. The only thing that remains in the face of taqdeer, that which has been ordained for you, is Imaan, faith.

 

Close the doors of asking people and open the door of only asking God. Remember that if Allah wants creation to being harm upon you, they will bring you harm. And if He wants them to bring you benefit, only then will they benefit you. For their hearts are working according to His Will and He will make them hard or soft. He gives life and gives death. He gives or not gives. He grants you respect and He gives to you humiliation. He gives you illness and He gives you health. He gives you nourishment and He leaves you to be hungry. He is The First and The Last and The Overt and The Hidden!”

 

Nabi Kareem (peace be upon him) says that there is a way to everything and the way to Paradise is ilm, knowledge. The Sufis say that the only Paradise is proximity to his person. It is what every single thing in creation asked for of him when they had the opportunity to present that ask; mountains, trees, animals (of this realm and the others), humans. And when it comes to the pursuit of knowledge, in the Quran lie the keys that Allah refers to in the verse;

 

يَـٰٓأَيُّهَا ٱلنَّاسُ

قَدْ جَآءَتْكُم مَّوْعِظَةٌ مِّن رَّبِّكُمْ وَشِفَآءٌ لِّمَا فِى ٱلصُّدُور

وَهُدًى وَرَحْمَةٌ لِّلْمُؤْمِنِينَ

 

O Mankind!

Verily has come to you an instruction from your Lord, and a healing for what (ill) is in your breasts, and guidance and mercy for the believers.

Surah Yunus, Verse 57

 

“So it is upon you to take warning and obey its commands. And ponder upon its secrets and its signs and deeply consider its keys and how it dawns upon you, until you unveil from it according to your capacity and capability to explore it.”

 

Nabi Pak (peace be upon him) said in the most well known hadith;

 

اَنَا مَدِيْنَةُ الْعِلْمِ وَ عَلِيٌ بَابُهَا

فَمَنْ اَرَادَ الْعِلْمَ فَلْیَاْتِهَا مِنْ بَابِهَا

 

“I am the city of knowledge and Ali is the door to enter it

so the one who desires knowledge should come through this door.”

 

The Imam is the door that all Spiritual Masters and spirituality stands at the foot of!

 

In that last week, I went to the river I had found again and again. The second time I went, even Sam wasn’t there. I had seen him cycling into town on the highway and turned the car around to get to the other side to say hi. I had gotten him a sandwich and it was meat so if I hadn’t seen him, it would have gone to waste. Or at least eaten cold by someone hours later.

 

On the way to the river, I saw a man with an extremely old truck pulled over on the side of the one lane highway that went towards Portland. He had jumper cables in his hand so clearly his battery was dead. As I zipped passed him I wondered if someone would actually stop to help him. It was a sunny Sunday. People were either coming to the coast in droves or leaving to get back to the city early.

 

I turned the car around and went back to where he was. I brought the car to face him so my engine was in front of his.

 

Stepping out of the car I said, “Hey man! I don’t know anything about how to do it but if you want to use my battery,” and I opened the hood, “here it is.”

 

He lifted it but neither of us could find the lever that would hold the bonnet up. He asked me to start his car while he fiddled with something in his engine but it didn’t start. There was a little dog running around and the truck was filled with bags. It looked like he was living in it.

 

“It’s ok,” he said finally giving up and instead asked, “Can you give me a lift to my camp site?”

 

“Ummmm,” the usual thought emerged from my mental head, my germophobe OCD kicking in. I just stared him for long enough that he said, not begrudgingly at all. “It’s alright.

Someone else will come along.”

 

“Will they?” my heart asked me. It was like I froze and just stood there.

 

“I got the shot,” he said possibly thinking my hesitation was rooted in being scared because of COVID.

 

“Shot?” I echoed, then thought Oh, Pfizer!

 

“Yeah,” I remarked. “I don’t really care about that man.”

It was true. I was still sailing on the “jiss to hona hai uss to hona hai” boat because that’s exactly how I was seeing it play out. Totally randomly! Plus he seemed more concerned about my well-being than some of my friends who were vaccinated & had clearly lost their minds living in seclusion for too many months in their homes.

 

I went and sat in my car but didn’t turn the engine on to leave. After a couple of minutes of working my way through my paranoia, knowing I was being an ass, I spoke.

 

“You know what,” finally the words came out, “I’ll drop you at your site. Where did you say it was again?”

 

“Four miles down the road,” he said. “I just have my bags and food and ice-box,” he said walking to the back of his truck.

 

I piled his stuff in the trunk of the jeep. The man got into the car and we started speaking. He told me he lived in South East Portland but was thinking of coming to the coast. He camped there every summer for a couple of months. It wasn’t the first time he had car trouble.

 

Then for some reason he mentioned he had been in and out of jail his whole life.

 

“Oh,” I said with deep sympathy. “Why?”

 

“DUIs,” he said. And I realized he was a little inebriated even now.

 

Exactly four miles out came his spot. He got out and I helped him with the bags. I even offered to take them to the site but he declined. He was probably in his 50s. My age. But he looked older as poor people do.

 

I went back to the river and walked over to where Sam lived. There was a campfire, a sleeping bag, a log that served as a pillow and to lean his back on. There was a jar of coffee, some cocoa, some other bag that looked like it had ziplocks in it. That’s it.

 

The log that was the pillow reminded me of Nabi Kareem (peace be upon him). He had a rock that was a pillow. He chose to rest his head on it.

 

On the coast the day could be very sunny but the nights were always cold. And it was still August. What did Sam do in the winter, I thought? What did any homeless person do?

 

The whole thing reminded me of Huzoor Nizam Pak (ra) again, who was bestowed the title Mehbooh e Ilahi, the one beloved to God. I had quoted the story often in my writings. His not eating any delicious and being asked about it.

 

Mehboob e Ilahi (ra) had softly replied, “I do and I know I can whenever I want. But then when such food is placed before me, I can’t stop thinking about the ones who roam the Earth hungry and homeless, forgotten by the world and I can’t bring myself to swallow a single bite.”

 

Luckily I was able to see Sam one more time. I got everything I could think he might need and brought my niece. She had met him once and loved talking to him. He was so gentle.

 

That last afternoon we sat and talked a lot together. He told us he liked drawing the pictures he saw in stars. One of them he called The King of Angels.

 

"Maybe its Gabriel (as)," I said.

 

He nodded. "Maybe it is."

 

Then he told us how he had been picking nails and pointy stones off roads so that they would not hurt anyone.

 

"I think I got lucky because of that," he said thoughtfully looking at the ground. "Cause I have been eating some good food lately."

 

I was dying to tell him of the hadith of Nabi Kareem (saw) about the exact act - “While a man was walking in the road, he found a thorny branch in the road and he moved it aside. Allah appreciated his deed and forgave him” - but just looked at him. Then when we got up to leave, he got up too and hugged us both.

 

"Thank you for being my friends," he said.

 

As I turned away, i started crying. I was so sad to say bye. My niece followed me. Seeing my wipe my eyes, she placed her little hand softly on my shoulder, "It's ok Mony," she said her eyes wet. "Maybe you'll see him again soon."

 

We waded in the water some more then went home. That was how the coast trip ended.

 

In the end I left my brother with nothing really changed between us but on the last day he was soft too. But I already knew, the ordinary never really change anyone anyway, except perhaps momentarily. What they do is make an offering of love. If accepted it is light that penetrates darkness for as long as the other wants it to. That’s about it. But love is the only opening. That opening came for me this summer in a verse, in my silence, in some tears and in the moon.

 

The truth is it comes for anyone who longs for it. All kinds of prayers can be denied or remain unanswered, almost always because, for some reason or another, they’re the wrong ask anyway, but I have found that love from those connected to God is an absolute sure thing. They never abandon you.

 

I will be ending the trip without that halo on my head, that’s for sure. Instead I leave reaching a different goal that my ego never even imagined; being the worst of all. It doesn’t sound like something to be happy about per se but it is. For it ensures one thing; the silence that was so hard for me to practice might become easier. On the Day of Judgment, all the Prophets will decline the people’s requests to intercede for them before Allah because of a single mistake they made in a lifetime. And they didn’t even have free will!

 

I didn’t know I had idols in my heart in Lahore. I had to come to another country to see them. As disturbing as that vision was, it presented an opportunity for me to shatter them. With them, I had to shatter too. Deeds will have to begin from zero again. And who knows maybe this time round, they will finally be soaked in sincerity.

 

“Strive to attain certainty for verily you have attained to faith,

repent and express that you are sorry and regret,

and weep tears that stream down your cheeks,

for this crying in the fear of disappointing Allah douses the fires of your sins

and extinguishes His Wrath.

When your heart truly atones, then without doubt,

the nur, light, of the sincere repentance will appear upon your face

making it lit!

Ghaus Pak

Vintage calculation on the shed interior plank.

227,980 items / 1,907,574 views

 

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

 

Easter (Old English: Ēostre; Greek: Πάσχα, Paskha; Aramaic: פֶּסחא‎ Pasḥa; from Hebrew: פֶּסַח‎ Pesaḥ) is the central feast in the Christian liturgical year.[1] According to the Canonical gospels, Jesus rose from the dead on the third day after his crucifixion. His resurrection is celebrated on Easter Day or Easter Sunday[2] (also Resurrection Day or Resurrection Sunday). The chronology of his death and resurrection is variously interpreted to have occurred between AD 26 and 36.

Easter marks the end of Lent, a forty-day period of fasting, prayer, and penance. The last week of the Lent is called Holy Week, and it contains Good Friday, commemorating the crucifixion and death of Jesus. Easter is followed by a fifty-day period called Eastertide or the Easter Season, ending with Pentecost Sunday.

Easter is a moveable feast, meaning it is not fixed in relation to the civil calendar. The First Council of Nicaea (325) established the date of Easter as the first Sunday after the full moon (the Paschal Full Moon) following the northern hemisphere's vernal equinox.[3] Ecclesiastically, the equinox is reckoned to be on March 21 (even though the equinox occurs, astronomically speaking, on March 20 in most years), and the "Full Moon" is not necessarily the astronomically correct date. The date of Easter therefore varies between March 22 and April 25. Eastern Christianity bases its calculations on the Julian Calendar whose March 21 corresponds, during the 21st century, to April 3 in the Gregorian Calendar, in which calendar their celebration of Easter therefore varies between April 4 and May 8.

Easter is linked to the Jewish Passover by much of its symbolism, as well as by its position in the calendar. In many languages, the words for "Easter" and "Passover" are etymologically related or homonymous.[4]

Easter customs vary across the Christian world, but decorating Easter eggs is a common motif. In the Western world, customs such as egg hunting and the Easter Bunny extend from the domain of church, and often have a secular character.

 

English and German

Main article: Ēostre

  

Ostara (1884) by Johannes Gehrts

The modern English term Easter developed from the Old English word Ēastre or Ēostre (IPA: [ˈæːɑstre, ˈeːostre]), which itself developed prior to 899. The name refers to Eostur-monath (Old English "Ēostre month"), a month of the Germanic calendar attested by Bede, who writes that the month is named after the goddess Ēostre of Anglo-Saxon paganism.[5] Bede notes that Ēostur-monath was the equivalent to the month of April, yet that feasts held in her honor during Ēostur-monath had gone out of use by the time of his writing and had been replaced with the Christian custom of the "Paschal season".

Using comparative linguistic evidence from continental Germanic sources, the 19th century scholar Jacob Grimm proposed the existence of a cognate form of Ēostre among the pre-Christian beliefs of the continental Germanic peoples, whose name he reconstructed as *Ostara.

Since Grimm's time, linguists have identified the goddess as a Germanic form of the reconstructed Proto-Indo-European goddess of the dawn, *Hausos and theories connecting Ēostre with records of Germanic Easter customs (including hares and eggs) have been proposed.

Modern German features the cognate term Ostern, but otherwise, Germanic languages generally use the non-native term pascha for the event (see below).

Semitic, Romance, Celtic and other Germanic languages

This section contains Ethiopic text. Without proper rendering support, you may see question marks, boxes, or other symbols instead of Ethiopic characters.

The Greek word Πάσχα and hence the Latin form Pascha is derived from Hebrew Pesach (פֶּסַח) meaning the festival of Passover. In Greek the word Ἀνάστασις Anástasis (upstanding, up-rising, resurrection) is used also as an alternative.

Christians speaking Arabic or other Semitic languages generally use names cognate to Pesaḥ. For instance, the second word of the Arabic name of the festival عيد الفصح ʿĪd al-Fiṣḥ, [ʕiːd ælfisˤħ] has the root F-Ṣ-Ḥ, which given the sound laws applicable to Arabic is cognate to Hebrew P-S-Ḥ, with "Ḥ" realized as /x/ in Modern Hebrew and /ħ/ in Arabic. Arabic also uses the term عيد القيامة ʿĪd al-Qiyāmah, [ʕiːd ælqiyæːmæh], meaning "festival of the resurrection", but this term is less common. In Maltese the word is L-Għid, where "Għ" stands for the common Semitic consonant Ayin, and is directly derived from Arabic ʿĪd, which in both cases means "festival". In Ge'ez and the modern Ethiosemitic languages of Ethiopia and Eritrea, two forms exist: ፋሲካ ("Fasika", fāsīkā) from Greek Pascha, and ትንሣኤ ("Tensae", tinśā'ē), the latter from the Semitic root N-Ś-', meaning "to rise" (cf. Arabic nasha'a—ś merged with "sh" in Arabic and most non-South Semitic languages).

  

Isenheim Altarpiece: The Resurrection by Matthias Grünewald, completed 1515

In all Romance languages, the name of the Easter festival is derived from the Latin Pascha. In Spanish, Easter is Pascua, in Italian and Catalan Pasqua, in Portuguese Páscoa and in Romanian Paşti. In French, the name of Easter Pâques also derives from the Latin word but the s following the a has been lost and the two letters have been transformed into a â with a circumflex accent by elision. Additionally in Romanian, the only Romance language of an Eastern church, the word Înviere (resurrection, cf. Greek Ἀνάστασις, [anástasis]) is also used.

In all modern Celtic languages the term for Easter is derived from Latin. In Brythonic languages this has yielded Welsh Pasg, Cornish and Breton Pask. In Goidelic languages the word was borrowed before these languages had re-developed the /p/ sound and as a result the initial /p/ was replaced with /k/. This yielded Irish Cáisc, Gaelic Càisg and Manx Caisht. These terms are normally used with the definite article in Goidelic languages, causing lenition in all cases: An Cháisc, A' Chàisg and Y Chaisht.

In Dutch, Easter is known as Pasen and in the Scandinavian languages Easter is known as påske (Danish and Norwegian), påsk (Swedish), páskar (Icelandic) and páskir (Faeroese). The name is derived directly from Hebrew Pesach.[6] The letter å is pronounced /oː/, derived from an older aa, and an alternate spelling is paaske or paask.

Slavic languages

In most Slavic languages, the name for Easter either means "Great Day" or "Great Night". For example, Wielkanoc, Veľká noc, Velika noč and Velikonoce mean "Great Night" or "Great Nights" in Polish, Slovak, Slovenian and Czech, respectively. Велигден (Veligden), Великдень (Velykden), Великден (Velikden), and Вялікдзень (Vyalikdzyen') mean "The Great Day" in Macedonian, Ukrainian, Bulgarian, and Belarusian, respectively.

In Croatian, however, the day's name reflects a particular theological connection: it is called Uskrs, meaning "Resurrection". It is also called Vazam (Vzem or Vuzem in Old Croatian), which is a noun that originated from the Old Church Slavonic verb vzeti (now uzeti in Croatian, meaning "to take"). In Serbian Easter is called Vaskrs, a liturgical form inherited from the Serbian recension of Church Slavonic, corresponding to Croatian Uskrs. The archaic term Velja noć (velmi: Old Slavic for "great"; noć: "night") was used in Croatian while the term Velikden ("Great Day") was used in Serbian. It should be noted that in these languages the prefix Velik (Great) is used in the names of the Holy Week and the three feast days preceding Easter.

Another exception is Russian, in which the name of the feast, Пасха (Paskha), is a borrowing of the Greek form via Old Church Slavonic.[7]

Finno-Ugric languages

In Finnish the name for Easter pääsiäinen, traces back to the verb pääse- meaning to be released, as does the Sámi word Beassážat[citation needed]. The Estonian name lihavõtted and the Hungarian húsvét, however, literally mean the taking of the meat, relating to the end of the Great Lent fasting period.

Theological significance

  

Orthodox icon of the Resurrection of Jesus.

The New Testament teaches that the resurrection of Jesus, which Easter celebrates, is a foundation of the Christian faith.[8] The resurrection established Jesus as the powerful Son of God[9] and is cited as proof that God will judge the world in righteousness.[10] God has given Christians "a new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead".[11] Christians, through faith in the working of God[12] are spiritually resurrected with Jesus so that they may walk in a new way of life.[13]

Easter is linked to the Passover and Exodus from Egypt recorded in the Old Testament through the Last Supper and crucifixion that preceded the resurrection. According to the New Testament, Jesus gave the Passover meal a new meaning, as he prepared himself and his disciples for his death in the upper room during the Last Supper. He identified the loaf of bread and cup of wine as his body soon to be sacrificed and his blood soon to be shed. Paul states, "Get rid of the old yeast that you may be a new batch without yeast—as you really are. For Christ, our Passover lamb, has been sacrificed";[14] this refers to the Passover requirement to have no yeast in the house and to the allegory of Jesus as the Paschal lamb.

One interpretation of the Gospel of John is that Jesus, as the Passover lamb, was crucified at roughly the same time as the Passover lambs were being slain in the temple, on the afternoon of Nisan 14.[15] The scriptural instructions specify that the lamb is to be slain "between the two evenings", that is, at twilight. By the Roman period, however, the sacrifices were performed in the mid-afternoon. Josephus, Jewish War 6.10.1/423 ("They sacrifice from the ninth to the eleventh hour"). Philo, Special Laws 2.27/145 ("Many myriads of victims from noon till eventide are offered by the whole people"). This interpretation, however, is inconsistent with the chronology in the Synoptic Gospels. It assumes that text literally translated "the preparation of the passover" in John 19:14 refers to Nisan 14 (Preparation Day for the Passover) and not necessarily to Yom Shishi (Friday, Preparation Day for Sabbath)[16][17][18][19] and that the priests' desire to be ritually pure in order to "eat the passover"[20] refers to eating the Passover lamb, not to the public offerings made during the days of Unleavened Bread.[21]

In the early Church

  

Reenacting the Stations of the Cross in Jerusalem on the Via Dolorosa from the Lions' Gate to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre.

The first Christians, Jewish and Gentile, were certainly aware of the Hebrew calendar (Acts 2:1; 12:3; 20:6; 27:9; 1 Cor 16:8), but there is no direct evidence that they celebrated any specifically Christian annual festivals. Direct evidence for the Easter festival begins to appear in the mid-2nd century. Perhaps the earliest extant primary source referencing Easter is a mid-2nd century Paschal homily attributed to Melito of Sardis, which characterizes the celebration as a well-established one.[22] Evidence for another kind of annual Christian festival, the commemoration of martyrs, begins to appear at about the same time as evidence for the celebration of Easter.[23] But while martyrs' days (usually the individual dates of martyrdom) were celebrated on fixed dates in the local solar calendar, the date of Easter was fixed by means of the local Jewish lunisolar calendar. This is consistent with the celebration of Easter having entered Christianity during its earliest, Jewish period, but does not leave the question free of doubt.[24]

The ecclesiastical historian Socrates Scholasticus (b. 380) attributes the observance of Easter by the church to the perpetuation of its custom, "just as many other customs have been established," stating that neither Jesus nor his Apostles enjoined the keeping of this or any other festival. Although he describes the details of the Easter celebration as deriving from local custom, he insists the feast itself is universally observed.[25]

Second-century controversy

For more details on this topic, see Quartodecimanism.

See also: Easter controversy and Passover (Christian holiday)

By the later 2nd century, it was accepted that the celebration of Pascha (Easter) was a practice of the disciples and an undisputed tradition. The Quartodeciman controversy, the first of several Paschal/Easter controversies, then arose concerning the date on which Pascha should be celebrated.

The term "Quartodeciman" refers to the practice of celebrating Pascha or Easter on Nisan 14 of the Hebrew calendar, "the LORD's passover" (Leviticus 23:5). According to the church historian Eusebius, the Quartodeciman Polycarp (bishop of Smyrna, by tradition a disciple of John the Evangelist) debated the question with Anicetus (bishop of Rome). The Roman province of Asia was Quartodeciman, while the Roman and Alexandrian churches continued the fast until the Sunday following, wishing to associate Easter with Sunday. Neither Polycarp nor Anicetus persuaded the other, but they did not consider the matter schismatic either, parting in peace and leaving the question unsettled.

Controversy arose when Victor, bishop of Rome a generation after Anicetus, attempted to excommunicate Polycrates of Ephesus and all other bishops of Asia for their Quartodecimanism. According to Eusebius, a number of synods were convened to deal with the controversy, which he regarded as all ruling in support of Easter on Sunday.[26] Polycrates (c. 190), however wrote to Victor defending the antiquity of Asian Quartodecimanism. Victor's attempted excommunication was apparently rescinded and the two sides reconciled upon the intervention of bishop Irenaeus and others, who reminded Victor of the tolerant precedent of Anicetus.

Quartodecimanism seems to have lingered into the 4th century, when Socrates of Constantinople recorded that some Quartodecimans were deprived of their churches by John Chrysostom[27] and that some were harassed by Nestorius.[28]

Third/fourth-century controversy and Council

It is not known how long the Nisan 14 practice continued. But both those who followed the Nisan 14 custom, and those who set Easter to the following Sunday (the Sunday of Unleavened Bread) had in common the custom of consulting their Jewish neighbors to learn when the month of Nisan would fall, and setting their festival accordingly. By the later 3rd century, however, some Christians began to express dissatisfaction with the custom of relying on the Jewish community to determine the date of Easter. The chief complaint was that the Jewish communities sometimes erred in setting Passover to fall before the northern hemisphere spring equinox. Anatolius of Laodicea in the later 3rd century wrote:

Those who place [the first lunar month of the year] in [the twelfth zodiacal sign before the spring equinox] and fix the Paschal fourteenth day accordingly, make a great and indeed an extraordinary mistake[29]

Peter, bishop of Alexandria (died 312), had a similar complaint

On the fourteenth day of [the month], being accurately observed after the equinox, the ancients celebrated the Passover, according to the divine command. Whereas the men of the present day now celebrate it before the equinox, and that altogether through negligence and error.[30]

The Sardica paschal table[31] confirms these complaints, for it indicates that the Jews of some eastern Mediterranean city (possibly Antioch) fixed Nisan 14 on March 11 (Julian) in AD 328, on March 5 in AD 334, on March 2 in AD 337, and on March 10 in AD 339, all well before the spring equinox.[32]

Because of this dissatisfaction with reliance on the Jewish calendar, some Christians began to experiment with independent computations.[33] Others, however, felt that the customary practice of consulting Jews should continue, even if the Jewish computations were in error. A version of the Apostolic Constitutions used by the sect of the Audiani advised:

Do not do your own computations, but instead observe Passover when your brethren from the circumcision do. If they err [in the computation], it is no matter to you....[34]

Two other objections that some Christians may have had to maintaining the custom of consulting the Jewish community in order to determine Easter are implied in Constantine's letter from the Council of Nicea to the absent bishops:

It appeared an unworthy thing that in the celebration of this most holy feast we should follow the practice of the Jews...For we have it in our power, if we abandon their custom, to prolong the due observance of this ordinance to future ages by a truer order...For their boast is absurd indeed, that it is not in our power without instruction from them to observe these things....Being altogether ignorant of the true adjustment of this question, they sometimes celebrate Passover twice in the same year.[35]

The reference to Passover twice in the same year might refer to the geographical diversity that existed at that time in the Jewish calendar, due in large measure to the breakdown of communications in the Empire. Jews in one city might determine Passover differently from Jews in another city.[36] The reference to the Jewish "boast", and, indeed, the strident anti-Jewish tone of the whole passage, suggests another issue: some Christians thought that it was undignified for Christians to depend on Jews to set the date of a Christian festival.

This controversy between those who advocated independent computations, and those who wished to continue the custom of relying on the Jewish calendar, was formally resolved by the First Council of Nicaea in 325 (see below), which endorsed the move to independent computations, effectively requiring the abandonment of the old custom of consulting the Jewish community in those places where it was still used. That the older custom (called "protopaschite" by historians) did not at once die out, but persisted for a time, is indicated by the existence of canons[37] and sermons[38] against it.

Some historians have argued that mid-4th century Roman authorities, in an attempt to enforce the Nicene decision on Easter, attempted to interfere with the Jewish calendar. This theory was developed by S. Liebermann,[39] and is repeated by S. Safrai in the Ben-Sasson History of the Jewish People.[40] This view receives no support, however, in surviving mid-4th century Roman legislation on Jewish matters.[41] The Historian Procopius, in his Secret History,[42] claims that the emperor Justinian attempted to interfere with the Jewish calendar in the 6th century, and a modern writer has suggested[43] that this measure may have been directed against the protopaschites. However, none of Justinian's surviving edicts dealing with Jewish matters is explicitly directed against the Jewish calendar,[44] making the interpretation of Procopius's statement a complex matter.

Date

 

Easter and the holidays that are related to it are moveable feasts, in that they do not fall on a fixed date in the Gregorian or Julian calendars (both of which follow the cycle of the sun and the seasons). Instead, the date for Easter is determined on a lunisolar calendar similar to the Hebrew calendar. The First Council of Nicaea (325) established the date of Easter as the first Sunday after the full moon (the Paschal Full Moon) following the northern hemisphere's vernal equinox.[3] Ecclesiastically, the equinox is reckoned to be on March 21 (even though the equinox occurs, astronomically speaking, on March 20 in most years), and the "Full Moon" is not necessarily the astronomically correct date.

In Western Christianity, using the Gregorian calendar, Easter always falls on a Sunday between March 22 and April 25, inclusively.[45] The following day, Easter Monday, is a legal holiday in many countries with predominantly Christian traditions.

Eastern Christianity bases its calculations on the Julian Calendar. Due to the 13 day difference between the calendars between 1900 and 2099, March 21 corresponds, during the 21st century, to April 3 in the Gregorian Calendar. Easter therefore varies between April 4 and May 8 on the Gregorian calendar (the Julian calendar is no longer used as the civil calendar of the countries where Eastern Christian traditions predominate). Among the Oriental Orthodox some churches have changed from the Julian to the Gregorian calendar and the date for Easter as for other fixed and moveable feasts is the same as in the Western church.[46]

The precise date of Easter has at times been a matter for contention. At the First Council of Nicaea in 325 it was decided that all Christian churches would celebrate Easter on the same day, which would be computed independently of any Jewish calculations to determine the date of Passover. It is however probable (though no contemporary account of the Council's decisions has survived) that no method of determining the date was specified by the Council. Epiphanius of Salamis wrote in the mid-4th century:

...the emperor...convened a council of 318 bishops...in the city of Nicea...They passed certain ecclesiastical canons at the council besides, and at the same time decreed in regard to the Passover that there must be one unanimous concord on the celebration of God's holy and supremely excellent day. For it was variously observed by people....[47]

In the years following the council, the computational system that was worked out by the church of Alexandria came to be normative. It took a while for the Alexandrian rules to be adopted throughout Christian Europe, however. The Church of Rome continued to use an 84-year lunisolar calendar cycle from the late 3rd century until 457. It then switched to an adaptation by Victorius of the Alexandrian rules. This table was so inaccurate that the Alexandrian rules were adopted in their entirety in the following century. From this time, therefore, all disputes between Alexandria and Rome as to the correct date for Easter cease, as both churches were using identical tables.

Early Christians in Britain and Ireland also used a late 3rd century Roman 84-year cycle. They were suspected of being Quartodecimans, unjustly because they always kept Easter on a Sunday, although that Sunday could be as early as the fourteenth day of the lunar month. This was replaced by the Alexandrian method in the course of the 7th and 8th centuries. Churches in western continental Europe used a late Roman method until the late 8th century during the reign of Charlemagne, when they finally adopted the Alexandrian method. Since 1582, when the Catholic Church adopted the Gregorian calendar while the Eastern Orthodox and most Oriental Orthodox Churches retained the Julian calendar, the date on which Easter is celebrated has again differed.

Computations

Main article: Computus

In 725, Bede succinctly wrote, "The Sunday following the full Moon which falls on or after the equinox will give the lawful Easter."[48] However, this does not reflect the actual ecclesiastical rules precisely. One reason for this is that the full moon involved (called the Paschal full moon) is not an astronomical full moon, but the 14th day of a calendar lunar month. Another difference is that the astronomical vernal equinox is a natural astronomical phenomenon, which can fall on March 19, 20, or 21, while the ecclesiastical date is fixed by convention on March 21.[49]

In applying the ecclesiastical rules, Christian churches use March 21 as the starting point in determining the date of Easter, from which they find the next full moon, etc. The Eastern Orthodox and Oriental Orthodox Churches continue to use the Julian calendar. Their starting point in determining the date of Orthodox Easter is also March 21, but according to the Julian reckoning, which corresponds to April 3 in the Gregorian calendar. In addition, the lunar tables of the Julian calendar are four days (sometimes five days) behind those of the Gregorian calendar. The 14th day of the lunar month according to the Gregorian system is only the 9th or 10th day according to the Julian. The result of this combination of solar and lunar discrepancies is divergence in the date of Easter in most years (see table).

Easter is determined on the basis of lunisolar cycles. The lunar year consists of 30-day and 29-day lunar months, generally alternating, with an embolismic month added periodically to bring the lunar cycle into line with the solar cycle. In each solar year (January 1 to December 31 inclusive), the lunar month beginning with an ecclesiastical new moon falling in the 29-day period from March 8 to April 5 inclusive is designated as the paschal lunar month for that year. Easter is the third Sunday in the paschal lunar month, or, in other words, the Sunday after the paschal lunar month's 14th day. The 14th of the paschal lunar month is designated by convention as the Paschal full moon, although the 14th of the lunar month may differ from the date of the astronomical full moon by up to two days.[50] Since the ecclesiastical new moon falls on a date from March 8 to April 5 inclusive, the paschal full moon (the 14th of that lunar month) must fall on a date from March 21 to April 18 inclusive.

Accordingly, Gregorian Easter can fall on 35 possible dates—between March 22 and April 25 inclusive.[51] It last fell on March 22 in 1818, and will not do so again until 2285. It fell on March 23 in 2008, but will not do so again until 2160. Easter last fell on the latest possible date, April 25, in 1943 and will next fall on that date in 2038. However, it fell on April 24, just one day before this latest possible date, in 2011 and will not do so again until 2095. The cycle of Easter dates repeats after exactly 5,700,000 years, with April 19 being the most common date, happening 220,400 times or 3.9%, compared to the median for all dates of 189,525 times or 3.3%.

The Gregorian calculation of Easter was based on a method devised by the Calabrian doctor Aloysius Lilius (or Lilio) for adjusting the epacts of the moon,[52] and has been adopted by almost all Western Christians and by Western countries who celebrate national holidays at Easter. For the British Empire and colonies, a determination of the date of Easter Sunday using Golden Numbers and Sunday letters was defined by the Calendar (New Style) Act 1750 with its Annexe. This was designed to exactly match the Gregorian calculation.

Relationship to date of Passover

In determining the date of the Gregorian and Julian Easter a lunisolar cycle is followed. In determining the date of the Jewish Passover a lunisolar calendar is also used, and because Easter always falls on a Sunday it usually falls up to a week after the first day of Passover (Nisan 15 in the Hebrew calendar). However, the differences in the rules between the Hebrew and Gregorian cycles results in Passover falling about a month after Easter in three years of the 19-year cycle. These occur in years 3, 11, and 14 of the Gregorian 19-year cycle (corresponding respectively to years 19, 8, and 11 of the Jewish 19-year cycle).

The reason for the difference is the different scheduling of embolismic months in the two cycles.

Further information: computus

In addition, without changes to either calendar, the frequency of monthly divergence between the two festivals will increase over time as a result of the differences in the implicit solar years: the implicit mean solar year of the Hebrew calendar is 365.2468 days while that of the Gregorian calendar is 365.2425 days. In years 2200–2299, for example, the start of Passover will be about a month later than Gregorian Easter in four years out of nineteen.

Since in the modern Hebrew calendar Nisan 15 can never fall on Monday, Wednesday, or Friday, the seder of Nisan 15 never falls on the night of Maundy Thursday. The second seder, observed in some Jewish communities on the second night of Passover can, however, occur on Thursday night.[citation needed]

Because the Julian calendar's implicit solar year has drifted further over the centuries than those of the Gregorian or Hebrew calendars, Julian Easter is a lunation later than Gregorian Easter in five years out of nineteen, namely years 3, 8, 11, 14, and 19 of the Christian cycle. This means that it is a lunation later than Jewish Passover in two years out of nineteen, years 8 and 19 of the Christian cycle. Furthermore, because the Julian calendar's lunar age is now about four to five days behind the mean lunations, Julian Easter always follows the start of Passover. This cumulative effect of the errors in the Julian calendar's solar year and lunar age has led to the often-repeated, but false, belief that the Julian cycle includes an explicit rule requiring Easter always to follow Jewish Passover.[53][54] The supposed "after Passover" rule is called the Zonaras proviso, after Joannes Zonaras, the Byzantine canon lawyer who may have been the first to formulate it.[55][56]

Reform of the date

See also: Reform of the date of Easter

  

The congregation lighting their candles from the new flame, just as the priest has retrieved it from the altar—note that the picture is flash-illuminated; all electric lighting is off, and only the oil lamps in front of the Iconostasis remain lit. (St. George Greek Orthodox Church, Adelaide)

An Orthodox congress of Eastern Orthodox bishops met in Istanbul in 1923 under the presidency of Patriarch Meletios IV, where the bishops agreed to the Revised Julian calendar. This congress did not have representatives from the remaining Orthodox members of the original Pentarchy (the Patriarchates of Jerusalem, Antioch, and Alexandria) or from the largest Orthodox church, the Russian Orthodox Church, then under persecution from the Bolsheviks, but only effective representation from the Patriarch of Constantinople and the Patriarch of Serbia.[57] The original form of this calendar would have determined Easter using precise astronomical calculations based on the meridian of Jerusalem.[58][59] However, all the Eastern Orthodox countries that subsequently adopted the Revised Julian calendar adopted only that part of the revised calendar that applied to festivals falling on fixed dates in the Julian calendar. The revised Easter computation that had been part of the original 1923 agreement was never permanently implemented in any Orthodox diocese.

At a summit in Aleppo, Syria, in 1997, the World Council of Churches (WCC) proposed a reform in the calculation of Easter which would have replaced the present divergent practices of calculating Easter with modern scientific knowledge taking into account actual astronomical instances of the spring equinox and full moon based on the meridian of Jerusalem, while also following the Council of Nicea position of Easter being on the Sunday following the full moon.[60] The WCC presented comparative data of the relationships:

SHODASI : SECRETS OF THE RAMAYANA

Kundalini Yoga & Gayathri Mantra in Valmiki Ramayana

ENGLISH HINDI AND TELUGU ORIGINAL

AUTHOR : SESHENDRA SHARMA

Seshendra : Visionary Poet of the Millennium

seshendrasharma.weebly.com

seshen.tributes.in/

REVIEWS :

www.facebook.com/shodasi/

Books :

kinige.com/author/Gunturu+Seshendra+Sharma

Valmiki , The Sage of 5th century B.C wrote The Ramayana not to narrate the story of Rama in an absorbing style. Though the epic poem presents Rama’s Journey of life in enchanting poetry , the story and the enchanting poetry are sugar coating or honey to the organic medicine called Kundalini Yoga. Maharshi Valmiki wrote the Ramayana to spread / propagate Kundalini Yoga among the masses. Thus the soul of The Ramayana is Kundalini Yoga / Sri Vidya. Valmiki embedded Kundalini Yoga in the Chapter titled “ Sundara Kanda” . Hanuman and Ravana are Kundalini Yogis of Samaya and Kaula Paths.

And in Sundara Kanda , he inserted “ Trijata Swapna “ , dream sequence of a demon and in it embedded the Gayathri Mantra. The concepts of Vishnu and Avatar (reincarnation) were nonexistent during the Ramayana Period.

Seshendra Sharma , Scholar - Poet in his Magnum Opus of Research “ Shodasi : Secrets of The Ramayana “ reveals these secrets lying hidden for thousands of years .

 

* * * * *

How old is Valmiki Ramayana? One Calculation says 8 lacks 70 thousand Years. Going by the Christian calendar dating to approximately the 5th to 4th century BC. According to Indian classification of time Ramayana belongs to the Treta Yuga and today we are in the Kali Yuga. All these millions of years the human civilisation the world over, recognised it as the first poetry and in this part of the world i.e. the Indian Subcontinent the central character of the epic is present as an idol of worship in thousands of temples and in every household of believers.

But here is a research work which says Ramayana is merely poetry to the naked eye whereas it is an ensemble of invisible secrets which have been lying unnoticed all these ages.

What could have been the Valmiki Maharshi’s vision which made him chisel an epic poem which is pregnant with startling secrets?

Shodasi : Secrets of the Ramayana , a Magnum Opus comprising both revelations and research findings written in Telugu 47 Years ago is translated into English by Dr. G.S.Murthy , a 86 year old physicist (Retrd) from BARC. Dr. Murthy observes about Shodasi that “the approach adopted by Seshendra Sharma is unprecedented. .. His conclusion that Ramayana is closer to Sruthi than any other scripture is very significant and is based on the intrinsic evidence in the Ramayana itself.... it is a revolt against the customary methods followed to understand the status of Ramayana in the Sanskrit Literature.”

 

The fulcrum of Shodasi is that poetry in Ramayana is a supplement to the bitter medicine called “Kundalini Yoga” and Ramayana is divine Ambrosia for all mundane afflictions and problems that beset the human kind.

Seshendra reveals that Sundara Kanda is the heart of Ramayana and it is nothing but Kundalini Yoga . And the heart of Sundara Kanda is Trijata ‘s Dream , which is nothing but Gayatri Mantra.

Kundalini Yoga which is also known as Sri Vidya is awakening of inner powers dormant in humans through meditation. The very 1st Shloka of Sundara Kanda is analysed and explained exhaustively by the author from several angles. “Chaarana Charithe pathi..(Sky-Path) “is , according to the author the Sushumna in Humans. Lanka Dahana ( Reducing Ravana’s Empire Lanka to ashes ) is the climax of the Kundalini Yoga which is Sahasrara Bhedana. The author analyses citing evidence from the Ramayana original text , that both Paths of Kundalini Yoga , Samaya and Kaula ways are shown in the epic.

What is of paramount importance in this work is that each exposition refers to a cluster of references germane to the main discussion. Hence it is obvious that this work is a scholastic paradise to people who are conversant with Sanskrit literature and other ancient scriptures. A pedestrian reader cannot even peep into Shodasi . Seshendra’s introduction “One word to begin with “sets the tone and tenor of the work. He dilates at length how Sanskrit language is moulded by Valmiki on the lines of Sruthi and Veda to envelop his central theme in suggestive and oblique style.

It is said Valmiki wrote Ramayana in 24 thousand Shlokas taking each syllable of Gayatri Mantra, which has 24 syllables. Seshendra Shows convincingly, where the Gayathri Mantra itself is located in Ramayana. He says “ Sundara Kanda “ is the heart of Ramayana and Trijata ‘s Dream is Sundara Kanda’s heart. “ Maharshi created an apparent episode of “Trijata Swapna “ and through this he embedded Gayathri Mantra in it. “

This book is replete with several such revelations and unnerving observations. The chapters on “ Relationship between Ramayanayana and Megha Sangesham “ “Indra supreme deity “ compel the reader to stop and think at the turn of every observation. This reviewer does not like to “spill all the beans “.

Dr. Murthy, the translator, aptly observes “ It needs a very attentive mind and adequate patience to follow author’s arguments “. Seshendra Sharma( seshendrasharma.weebly.com ) , winner of Sahitya Akademi Award for his “Kaala Rekha “( Arc of Blood ) a collection of essays in comparative literature , a fellow of the Akademi During his life time whose Long Poem “ My Country – My People – Modern Indian Epic “was nominated for Nobel in 2004 is scholar –poet of our times . His Kavisena Manifesto (Modern Indian Poetics), Kaala Rekha( Essays in Comparative Literature)are monuments of contemporary Indian Literature , unsurpassed to this day. His prose works prove that he is Albert Einstein of Indian Literature.

After completing the first round of reading the reader would certainly agree with Vishwanatha Satyanarayana ,Telugu poet of romantic era , recipient of Gyanpith Award for his “Ramayan Kalp Vriksh” who wrote preface to this book “ Every one , not only the telugu – speaking people all Indians must be grateful to him for writing this book”.

--------

Ramayana, a replica of Vedas

S. VARADARAJAN

There are several versions of the Sri Ramayana, one of the two greatest epics. Following Sri Valmiki Ramayana several editions have been published in various languages, besides scores of commentaries written across centuries. Late.GunturuSeshendra Sharma, scholar poet of 20th Century unearthed secrets of the Ramayana through his popular Telugu book “Shodasi”.

The novelty of nomenclature Shodasi , called Sri Vidya is reflected , in the 16th Chapter . Sharma’s intellectual depth comes forth in analyzingSundara Kanda specially through KundaliniYoga . The author highlights hidden truth in Valmiki’s thought that is similar to Vedas and says that Trijata’s dream in Sundara Kanda reflects Gayatri Mantra of 32 Syllabi in 4 lines. Sharma pays rich encomiums in the description of Lanka surrounded by three impregnable borders. He compares these three borders with Trikuta viz... Shakti ,Kaamaraaja , VagbhavaKutas with those of Sri Vidya in Kundalini . A staunch believer of Vedas, the author feels that Ramayana is a replica of Vedas and oriented towards the character of Indra . He concludes that in Ramayana the mentioning of the supreme God is Indra and not Vishnu, as the presiding deity of valour in Vedas. Utterances of the word Vishnu were considered to be imaginary overstatements in the author’s view.

This book lends a new perspective to the Ramayana by adding the dimension of KundaliniYoga .

The foreword by VishwanathaSatyanarayana adds credibility to the book. The current work is an English translation of the original by GurujadaSuryanarayanaMurthy , a scientist by profession . His proficiency in the subject is evident in the translation throughout that doesn’t swerve from the original’s purport.

The Hindu

(Friday Review: 2nd October 2015)

A Resplendent Icon of all Arts

 

This is an exemplary book which elevated the status of Indian Literary Criticism to the peaks of the world literature. Shodasi is a name associated with a great hymn. The title suggests that it’s a book on spiritual discourse. A reading of this book suggests that the spirit of scientific temper is critical to comprehend Valmiki’sSrimad Ramayana. Besides this, command on Vedic or Scriptural knowledge is essential. What does a layman has to say when a towering personality like ViswanathaSatyanarayana himself extolled the critical acumen and serious scholarship of Seshendra Sharma.

 

Sharma has made it crystal clear that unless one has an apparent understanding of the plot’s context, psyche of the characters, and the milieu of the bygone days supplemented by extraordinary scholarship, sound knowledge of phonetics and awareness on contemporary issues; one cannot easily comprehend the poetic diction of Valmiki. The debate on the phrase “Netraturaha” is a fitting example. The uniqueness of the title, Sundarakanda, Kundalini Yoga, Gayatri Mantra secretly hidden in Trijata’s dream sequence, considering The Bharatha as an image of The Ramayana.... this book is a repository of many such critical discourses. It is replete with inconceivable and unfathomable issues. This magnum opus is an invaluable gift to the Telugu literature.

 

- VIPULA, Viswa Katha Vedika: May 2014

(An exclusive Telugu Monthly Magazine for stories)

 

* * *

 

Valmiki Ramayana – Greatest Medicine for Mankind

 

The story of Ramayana is prescribed as textbook for students. Sita and Rama are worshiped as prime couple. No need to mention about reciting it. Whether Valmiki was satisfied with simple narration of the story? Seshendra Sharma denies it.

 

He analyzed it mentioning that to understand the inner meanings of Valmiki Ramayana, the scientific knowledge is essential.

 

The underlying secret of the sage’s mind will be known through the knowledge of science.

 

It is the firm opinion of Seshendra that the argument that “the sciences are for scholars only” is a conspiracy hatched by Selfish scholars and lazy uneducated persons.

 

Seshendra who has democratic ideology and conviction on science and literature informs the public about the secrets of Ramayana expounded by Valmiki. He explains that Valmiki dedicated ambrosia (The Greatest Medicine) named “Kundalini Yoga” to the mankind. The poetry in the metre of AnushtupSloka is the honey coating to the medicine. It was explained with great introspection and exemplary scholarship. He concludes that the Ramayana is older than the MahaBharatha and it is another form of Veda. Valmiki introduced the system of meditation in Ramayana. The Introspection and research bent of mind of Seshendra are spread over in the book in two streams. The exuberant fragrance of scholarship is experienced throughout the book.

 

The present generation can understand the scholarship of Seshendra in Vedas and Mantra Sastra. Seshendra is a poet who has composed unique RuthuGhosha (Cry of the Seasons: Metrical Poetry) and revolutionary free verse –MandeSuryudu (The Burning Sun).

 

- Andhra Prabha (Telugu Daily), 24th August 2014.

 

* * *

 

Two Great Peaks in the world literary criticism and research

 

Shodasi: Secrets of The Ramayana and SwarnahamsaHarshanaishada from the mighty pen of the great Telugu poet, GunturuSeshendra Sharma are considered to be the two great peaks in the world literary criticism and research. This is a truth most contemporary Telugu writers and readers aren’t aware of. The way Seshendra could discover Kundalini Yoga, Gayathri Mantra in Shodasi, he could discern the treasure trove of mantra yoga, Sri Mahatripurasundari, Chintamani mantra in Swarnahamsa.

 

At a time when our universities which are mere Degrees production Units, churn out “solid waste” in the name of research; Seshendra even while attending to his job as a Municipal Commissioner created research oriented critical volumes like a sage.

 

Though Shodasi was published in 1967 and Swarnahamsa in 1968; Swarnahamsa was created by him much before Shodasi was conceived. The concepts that Srinatha, Nannayya and Mallanatha, the Telugu Classical poets couldn’t decipher,

Seshendra could. He humbly submits that he is most fortunate that the triumvirate had left behind some pertinent concepts only to be discovered by him at a later stage.

 

These two great kavyas were serialised under the editorship of late NeelamrajuVenkataSeshaiah in Andhra Prabha Daily, Sunday Literary Supplements from 1963 to 1967 and Seshendra’s poems and non-fiction were published in the book forms (6) only after they appeared in serial form in Andhra Prabha.

-----------------

GunturuSeshendraSarma, the well-known poet, critic and scholar of unfathomable depth, has to his credit quite a number of books in Telugu as well as English. A keen intellect and a lucid exponent of the intricacies in Samskrit literature, the author brought out a treatise on Ramayana. The book also reveals the symbolism in our epics and shows the spirit behind.

 

According to the author, Sage Valmiki has observed Ramayana as though it is a story of a dynasty in its outward appearance. But when the story part is kept aside, the hidden secrets of the Mantrasastra come out. Valmiki’s Ramayana is full of Vedic literature, language and usages. Ramayana can be appreciated from three angles. The poetic beauty, the historicity and the secret meaning of mother Parasakti. Later Upanishads have taken Valmiki Ramayana as the way to the Mantrasastra. Rama’s wife Sita is considered as Parasakti. In Devi BhagavathamSita is described as Goddess Gayatri. The author has taken unusual pains and quoted Vedic dictations which are literally taken by Valmiki in his Ramayana. Thus it has been a product of Vedas and the usages in Ramayana and the words used therein and the similies adopted by Valmiki speak inexplicably the secret of Mother Lalita in his stories.

 

The author has given and attached a very great significance for Sundarakanda in Ramayana. The author has quoted numerous quotations from Smrithis and Srithis to establish that Sundara-kanda is beautiful because Anjaneya the Jeeva has seen Sita the Parasakti. Hence this canto is so styled as Sundara. According to the author “Sita” means “Kundalini.” Hanuman has seen Sita while she was sitting on the ground. Ground means Earth. Earth denotes Mooladharam. The serpent Kundalini stays in this. Thus it is symbolised as Sita sat on the ground. Hanuman the Yogi has the vision of Kundalini in Sita. With the aid of Ida and Pingala, Kundalini travels in Sushumna through spinal cord crossing the six fluxes, and finally reaching Sahasraram. This again speaks of “Shodasi.” Rama is a beautiful man. He is having a Sundari in Sita (a beautiful woman). The descriptions are beautiful in this canto. Thus it is synonymous with “Soundarya-lahari” of Sankaracharya.

 

The author expressed that Mahabharata is a reflection of Ramayana in all the cause, origin and delivery. Innumerable similarities are quoted from both Valmiki and Vyasa to prove that the usages, style and similies are almost similar in both the epics. He compares Vyasa’s “Nalacharitam” with Sundarakanda of Valmiki in the vision of Srividya.

 

The author further argues that Kalidasa’s “Meghasandesam” is only an imitation of Valmiki. The flight of Anjaneya in search of Sita is the basis for Kalidasa’s “Meghasandesam.” Both Sita and the Yaksha’s wife are described as “Syamas” – meaning in the middle of youth. The duration of separation is one year in both the cases. Ultimately the author said that “Meghasandesam” is the offspring of Ramayana, with yearning to see Parasakti.

 

The author has taken the readers in his book to that sublime beauty where there is no further argument, than to enjoy the flow of citations with their intrinsic meaning and full of scientific vision. His unsurpassed knowledge in Mantrasastra has enabled him to pass dictums vivisecting the symbolic mysticisms into splinters and handing the kernel of truth under each word, usage, and application. He deserves all praise for this meritorious contribution to our literature.

  

Visionary Poet of the Millennium

An Indian poet Prophet

Seshendra Sharma

October 20th, 1927 - May 30th, 2007

seshendrasharma.weebly.com/

www.facebook.com/GunturuSeshendraSharma/

eBooks :http://kinige.com/author/Gunturu+Seshendra+Sharma

Seshendra Sharma is one of the most outstanding minds of modern Asia. He is the foremost of the Telugu poets today who has turned poetry to the gigantic strides of human history and embellished literature with the thrills and triumphs of the 20th century. A revolutionary poet who spurned the pedestrian and pedantic poetry equally, a brilliant critic and a scholar of Sanskrit, this versatile poet has breathed a new vision of modernity to his vernacular.Such minds place Telugu on the world map of intellectualism. Readers conversant with names like Paul Valery, Gauguin, and Dag Hammarskjold will have to add the name of Seshendra Sharma the writer from India to that dynasty of intellectuals.

 

Rivers and poets

Are veins and arteries

Of a country.

Rivers flow like poems

For animals, for birds

And for human beings-

The dreams that rivers dream

Bear fruit in the fields

The dreams that poets dream

Bear fruit in the people-

* * * * * *

The sunshine of my thought fell on the word

And its long shadow fell upon the century

Sun was playing with the early morning flowers

Time was frightened at the sight of the martyr-

-Seshendra Sharma

B.A: Andhra Christian College: Guntur: A.P: India

B.L : Madras University: Madras

Deputy Municipal Commissioner (37 Years)

Dept of Municipal Administration, Government of Andhra Pradesh

Parents: G.Subrahmanyam (Father) ,Ammayamma (Mother)

Siblings: Anasuya,Devasena (Sisters),Rajasekharam(Younger brother)

Wife: Mrs.Janaki Sharma

Children: Vasundhara , Revathi (Daughters),

Vanamaali ,Saatyaki (Sons)

 

Seshendra Sharma better known as Seshendra is

a colossus of Modern Indian poetry.

His literature is a unique blend of the best of poetry and poetics.

Diversity and depth of his literary interests and his works

are perhaps hitherto unknown in Indian literature.

From poetry to poetics, from Mantra Sastra to Marxist Politics his writings bear an unnerving pprint of his rare genius.

His scholar ship and command over Sanskrit , English and Telugu Languages has facilitated his emergence as a towering personality of comparative literature in the 20th century world literature.

T.S.Eliot ,ArchbaldMacleish and Seshendra Sharma are trinity of world poetry and Poetics.

His sense of dedication to the genre of art he chooses to express himself and

the determination to reach the depths of subject he undertakes to explore

place him in the galaxy of world poets / world intellectuals.

Seshendra’seBooks :http://kinige.com/author/Gunturu+Seshendra+Sharma

Seshendra Sharma’s Writings Copyright © Saatyaki S/o Seshendra Sharma

Contact :saatyaki@gmail.com+919441070985+917702964402

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GunturuSeshendraSarma: an extraordinary poet-scholar

One of the ironies in literature is that

he came to be known more as a critic than a poet

 

HYDERABAD: An era of scholastic excellence and poetic grandeur has come to an end in the passing away of GunturuSeshendraSarma, one of the foremost poets and critics in Telugu literature. His mastery over western literature and Indian `AlankaraSastra' gave his works a stunning imagery, unparalleled in modern Indian works. One of the ironies in literature is that he came to be known more as a critic than a poet. The Central SahityaAkademi award was conferred on him for his work `KaalaRekha' and not for his poetic excellence. The genius in him made him explore `Kundalini Yoga' in his treatise on Ramayana in `Shodasi' convincingly. His intellectual quest further made him probe `NaishadhaKaavya' in the backdrop of `LalitaSahasraNaamavali', `SoundaryaLahari' and `Kama Kala Vilasam' in `SwarnaHamsa', Seshendra saw the entire universe as a storehouse of images and signs to which imagination was to make value-addition. Like Stephene Mallarme who was considered a prophet of symbolism in French literature, SeshendraSarma too believed that art alone would survive in the universe along with poetry. He believed that the main vocation of human beings was to be artists and poets. His `Kavisena Manifesto' gave a new direction to modern criticism making it a landmark work in poetics. Telugus would rue the intellectual impoverishment they suffered in maintaining a `distance' from him. Seshendra could have given us more, but we did not deserve it! The denial of the Jnanpeeth Award to him proves it

The Hindu

India's National Newspaper

Friday, Jun 01, 2007

------

Ramayana, a replica of Vedas

S. VARADARAJAN

There are several versions of the Sri Ramayana, one of the two greatest epics. Following Sri Valmiki Ramayana several editions have been published in various languages, besides scores of commentaries written across centuries. Late. Gunturu Seshendra Sharma, scholar poet of 20th Century unearthed secrets of the Ramayana through his popular Telugu book “Shodasi”.

The novelty of nomenclature Shodasi , called Sri Vidya is reflected , in the 16th Chapter . Sharma’s intellectual depth comes forth in analyzing Sundara Kanda specially through Kundalini Yoga . The author highlights hidden truth in Valmiki’s thought that is similar to Vedas and says that Trijata’s dream in Sundara Kanda reflects Gayatri Mantra of 32 Syllabi in 4 lines. Sharma pays rich encomiums in the description of Lanka surrounded by three impregnable borders. He compares these three borders with Trikuta viz... Shakti , Kaamaraaja , Vagbhava Kutas with those of Sri Vidya in Kundalini . A staunch believer of Vedas, the author feels that Ramayana is a replica of Vedas and oriented towards the character of Indra . He concludes that in Ramayana the mentioning of the supreme God is Indra and not Vishnu, as the presiding deity of valour in Vedas. Utterances of the word Vishnu were considered to be imaginary overstatements in the author’s view.

This book lends a new perspective to the Ramayana by adding the dimension of Kundalini Yoga .

The foreword by Vishwanatha Satyanarayana adds credibility to the book. The current work is an English translation of the original by Gurujada Suryanarayana Murthy , a scientist by profession . His proficiency in the subject is evident in the translation throughout that doesn’t swerve from the original’s purport.

The Hindu

India’s National Newspaper

(Friday Review: 2nd October 2015)

 

Shodasi

Astounding scholarship of Sanskrit classics

A product of deep research, intense intellectual labour

And amazing scholarship

The book under review which is an English translation by Dr. Gurajada Suryanarayana Murthy of the original Telugu Text represents a scholarly attempt by the erudite author to justify and prove the validity of certain radical propositions which he makes about the world – renowned Kavya – Valmiki Ramayana. The propositions that he makes are – 1. Sundara Kanda is an allegory of Kundalini Yoga 2. Sita is Kundalini Shakti 3. Hanuman’s search – mission of Sita symbolises Tantric Exercise of identifying the Kundalini Shakti and raising it from the Moola Dhara Chakra (denoted by Lanka) to Sahasrara Chakra 4. The descriptive terms employed about Sita hint at Sita being essentially a Kundalini Shakti 5. Trijata’s dream is nothing but Gayathri Mantra 6. Valmiki’s language has pronounced Vedic flavour 7. The phraseology employed by Valmiki corresponds largely to the terms employed in Lalitha Sahasra Nama , Durga Saptasati , Devi Bhagawatam etc.. 8. The aptness of the name Sundara Kanda is provable on Strong Grounds 9. Ramayana is anterior to Bharatha on various grounds such as the Vedic language employed in the former the reference of Valmiki and Ramayana in Mahabharata and absence of reference to Vyasa and Mahabharata episodes in Ramayana , Mention of Rama in Mahabharata and Rama’s greater antiquity than Pandavas and a host of other plausible evidences 10. Indra , the chief Vedic god more prominently featured and praised in Ramayana than Vishnu of the Puranic origin. 11. Megha Sandesham of Kalidasa originated out of the seed of Valmiki Ramayana and 12. The benedictory verse of Sakuntalam is eulogy of Devi.

The brain – tickling propositions are not just of the cuff remarks made without basis but credible theories buttressed with profuse quotations of relevant Sanskrit Texts , wide and deep study of the relevant treatises unassailable arguments based on internal and external evidences and astounding scholarship of Sanskrit classics.

On the flip side, there are a few errors in the transliteration of the Sanskrit texts. Had the Sanskrit passages from the treatises been provided in Devanagari Script also in addition to transliterated form in Roman Script value and appeal of this essentially Sanskrit oriented book would be much higher to the large and growing Sanskrit readership. The book is doubtless, a product of deep research, Intense intellectual labour and amazing scholarship.

The Vedanta kesari : August 2016

The Lion of Vedanta

A Cultural and Spirtual Monthly of the of the Ramakrishna Order since 1944

  

AN INTELLECTUAL FEAST

Along With utmost devotion

The author has clear understanding of not only of the Ramayana

but also Mantra Sastra , Vedas and Kundalini Yoga

His method is going deep into the subject and at the

same time comparing the same with ideas of other branches of literature

Shodasi , authored by Seshendra Sharma is a book of a special type . Though its purpose is to unfold secrets of the Ramayana many other aspects from different branches of knowledge also find a place there.

The Ramayana is read in every household with devotion. It narrates not only story of Rama but it also spotlights very intricate and subtler points in other branches of knowledge, a point not even noticed by many.

The author has clear understanding of not only of the Ramayana but also Mantra Sastra , Vedas and Kundalini Yoga . There are two approaches to understand the Sastras. One is vertical which is closely followed in Sanskrit Literature. It is reading a book with the help of commentary on it. In this method not only each word of the original analysed; its correct meaning and contextual purpose are also examined. The second is a horizontal method where in various ideas in the text are read not with one commentary but with many commentaries by different people. This gives total meaning of the text.

Seshendra Sharma follows both methods. His method is going deep into the subject and at the same time comparing the same with ideas of other branches of literature.

This needs a thorough understanding of various branches and ability to compare texts and spot new ideas and enjoy the same. For example , when Hanuman asks Sita who she is ,she replies ,“sama dvadasa tatraham raghavasya nivesane bhunjhana manushan bhogan sarva kama samrudhinee “ . Meaning “I enjoyed 12 years of mundane pleasure in the home of Rama”

Though she is not an ordinary human being, she enjoyed mundane pleasures. “ you may mistake that I am a mortal woman , but understand I am Sri Maha Lakshmi” . That was the message. The most important clue is the statement “ Aham Sarva Kama Samridhinee “ . In Devi Bhagawatham we find “ Matah Sankaree Kamade “ In Sri Sukta “ Sarva Kamartha Siddhaye “ and in Lalitha Sahasra Nama “ too it is stated “ Om Kamyayai Namah” . If Sita were to be just an ordinary being all these statements would have been irrelevant.

At another place she says “ Maya Ramasya Rajarshe Bharyayaya Paramatmanah” which means that she is wife of Paramatma. Hanuman , the devotee , recognized Sita to be none other than Jaganmata. Hence he could identify her easily as the divine mother and says “ tat sreemadyate tarat”. The word sreemat is used to mean brilliance Hanuman identifies Sita as Devi by the holy seed letter ( Sreem ) .

The book is full of comparisons between different branches of learning and surely a feast for one who could enjoy the existence of similar ideas at various places. It only proves that ways may be different but the goal is one.

Seshendra Sharma physically lifts the minds of the readers and offers an intellectual feast along with utmost devotion. Surely everyone should read this book and keep a copy of the same at home.

Goda Venkateswara Sastry

Tatvaloka : June 2016

The Splendour of Truth

( Monthly Magazine)

  

------------

Ramayan Through Kundalini Yoga

Shodasi is an ideal read for Sanskrit-literate readers

who are open to eclectic yogarthas and connotative meanings

--------

So you thought Vyasa was before Valmiki, Mahabharat was before Ramayan, Rama a Vishnu avatar, and tantrism distinct from vedism? Think again. In Shodasi: Secrets of the Ramayana, Telugu poet Seshendra Sharma re-reads the Ramayan to come up with a number of new conclusions.

Much of the book sets out to prove that Ramayan was written before the Mahabharat. Sharma discusses how Indra is cited more often than Vishnu, thus placing the context of the Ramayan closer to Vedic than Puranic thought. He quotes from the Mahabharat to show how it follows descriptions of hills, rivers from the Ramayan. The Mahabharat has some prose, and therefore, it must have been composed after Ramayan, which is entirely in poetry. These are only some of the numerous reasons that Sharma offers to suggest a new sequence of our itihasas.

Sharma’s book is also an experimental reading of the Ramayan through the interpretive lens of what he calls Kundalini yoga. Hanuman’s flight to Sri Lanka gets a new interpretation. “Charana Charite Pathi” is interpreted as the path of Kundalini, and the first verse of the Sundara Kanda “Tatho Ravana Nithayah” is interpreted by Sharma to refer to Hanuman traversing the sushumna nadi of the Kundalini.

Trijata’s dream becomes the Gayatri mantra through an imaginative recasting of words as numbers. Gaja (elephant) means eight, danta (teeth) means thirty-two, and maha-gaja-chaturdantam somehow also adds up to 32 syllables, which is the number of syllables in the Gayatri mantra. That Trijata’s dream is halfway through the Ramayan also becomes significant for Sharma, he calls it the ‘central bead’ in the Ramayan garland of 24,000 beads. Identifying 32-syllables as the Gayatri follows a convention, for mantras are referenced by the number of syllables; however, it is the “secret” yogartha—or mystical, anagogical translations—derived by Sharma that becomes problematic, unless he is considered an authority in his own right.

conclude that the name Sundarakand is unrelated to any descriptions of beauty of any of the main characters in the Ramayan. However, Soundarya and Tripura-Sundari are well-known conventions in the tantric tradition and hence, Sharma concludes that Sundarakand derives its name from Shakti’s beauty, and “Sundara-Hanuman” means “Hanuman who is a devotee of Devi” (117).

A coda in this book is about the benedictory verse in Kalidasa’s Sakuntalam which has traditionally been understood to refer to Ishwara. Sharma re-interprets this verse highlighting the “eight forms” of the last line as the eight forms of Devi that please Ishwara.

This book is suitable for a reader who is Sanskrit-literate and open to eclectic yogarthas and connotative meanings. Sharma cites substantially from the Ramayan in roman but without diacritics, this is difficult to follow; and he does not always include translation. Sharma often cites commentators without citing names and sources. It is not clear why the book is called Shodasi—readers may note, this book is not about the Srividya tradition. Even if the reader is unconvinced by Sharma’s reasoning or methodology, the free flow of references may prove absorbing for a reader interested in the subject.

This could also be an eclectic reference for a scholar researching tantric elements in the Ramayan.

- Mani Rao

 

The Sunday Standard Magazine

The New Indian Express

29th November 2015

 

---------------------------

Scholarly and deeply researched monograph

Pearls of insightful ideas and truths

Most of the ancient treatises like the Valmiki Ramayana and Bhagavatha lend themselves to allegorical interpretations. The book under review is scholarly and deeply researched monograph that formulates the startling theory that the immortal epic Valmiki Ramayana, particularly, Sundara Kanda, is nothing but the enunciation of the doctrine of Kundalini Shakthi Yoga. The very title of the book is bound to make the scholarly fraternity and even the common readership sit up and take notice. The radical propositions that the erudite author advances are on the basis of relentless logic and a mass of internal and external evidences are: Ramayana is rooted in Vedas, both in terms of ideas it disseminates and its verbal garb in those it is clothed. Many of the similes that Valmiki employs are inspired by vedic poetry and literature. Many of the expressions employed in the Valmiki Ramayana bear close resemblance to phraseology found in texts like Devi Bhagavatham, and Soundarya Lahari. Sita is none other than Divine Mother and Gayathri. As borne out by an analysis of similarity of names and words used in Valmiki Ramayana and Sri Vidya Literature. Sundara Kanda is nothing but delineation Kundalini Yoga. Hanuman’s aerial voyage in search of Sita represents allegorically the devi worshipper’s exercise in Kundalini Yoga. Sita is Kundalini Shakti. The episodes of mainaka, surasa and Simhika – representing satwa, rajas, tamas respectively –represent piercing of the triple knots by the spiritual aspirant. The Sanskrit phrase “Charana Charithe pathi” that occurs at the opening Canto of Sundara Kanda clearly implies Hanuman’s movement through the path of Sushumna. Lanka is the Mula Dhara Chakra, the seat of Kundalini implied in Valmiki’s graphic description of Lanka, the place of incarceration of Sita. Lanka is Muladhara also from the point of view of Yoga and it is Sri Chakra from the point of view of Spiritual practice. The burning of Lanka symbolises awakening of Swadhishthana. The aptness of name Sundara Kanda is explicable in the light of various evidences embedded in the epic. Trijata’s dream is nothing but the Gayathri Mantra as can be inferred from certain Sanskrit terms representing their numerical equivalents employed to describe dream – scenes of Trijata and also from Dramatis Personae appearing in her dream. Mahabharata is an image of Ramayana and many striking similarities may be found between Valmiki and Vyasa in their style of narrative. Valmiki’s Ramayana is the seed of Meghadootha and Valmiki reincarnates, as it were, as Kalidasa. The vedic god Indra , as the supreme deity dominates epic as a benchmark for all comparisons with Rama and dwarfs Vishnu, the Puranik God, in importance. Ramayana is anterior to Mahabharata. There are 2 annexures at the end of the book “benedictory verse of Sakunthalam is nothing but eulogy of Devi “and “All Humans have same destination” . Coming from the pen of the Telugu poet proficient in several languages, who was active in various disciplines ranging from Sanskrit studies to Cultural activism and who was given the Sahitya Akademi Award, this book is definitely of exceptional merit as the ingenious interpretations of various verses of the epic and also of allied hymnal literature to establish the novel but plausible propositions, come as a refreshing revelations. The book unmistakably bears imprints of an amazingly analytical, deeply erudite and marvellously nimble mind that effortlessly plumbs the oceanic epic and picks up and presents to the community of discerning readers pearls of insightful ideas and truths. One glaring drawback of this essentially Sanskrit-oriented book is the absence of Sanskrit quotations in Devanagari script as transliterations in roman script that are given are poor substitute sonorous Sanskrit words clothed in Devanagari script. The merits mentioned in a short review of this book packed with quaint and profound ideas constitute merely the proverbial tip of an iceberg. A fund of fruitful and lofty ideas awaits those who venture dive deep into this great book. In short this book is a riveting read for scholars and a strong stimulant for the general readers. –

N. Hariharan

Madurai

Prabuddha Bharata

March 2016

A monthly journal of the Ramakrishna Order

started by Swami Vivekananda in 1893

 

Unearthing secrets of Ramayana Ramayana

A sea-bed of secrets

A great boon to Devi Upasakas and Practioners of Sri Vidya

The Ramayana popular as the Adi Kavya (first work of poetry) the world over is not just beautiful poetry . It is a sea bed of secrets – containing the methods of Kundalini yoga and mantra sastra . This is the heart of Shodasi : Secrets of the Ramayana authored by Seshendra Sharma , one of the towering personalities of Telugu Poetry . This book, a collection 16 articles with one article added on from this edition appeared in Telugu Original in 1967. Mr. N.Ramesan IAS , the then Principal Secretary to Education Dept , the then AP Govt observed feelingly in his preface , that this work is a boon for Devi Upasakas and merits to be translated into English and other Indian Languages. This advice has fructified after 48 Years. Dr. Suryanarayana Murthy , a physicist (retired : Baba Atomic Research Centre ) has translated Shodasi into English with commendable clarity of grasp over the subject and felicity of thought process and flow of reading. The story of Rama narrated in enchanting poetry, according to Seshendra is a honey supplement to the bitter medicine called Kundalini Yoga. Valmiki Maharshi chose the Story of Rama to propagate Kundalini Yoga and systems of meditation in the society, among the masses of his era. This is the fulcrum of this Research work. What is of significance is that the author , in order to buttress his analysis and arguments cites extensively and conclusively from the Original Text of Ramayana itself. This Translation introduces this seminal work to wider sections of readers in other parts of our multilingual nation and to scholars engaged in research in Indian scriptures in the west. As the reader goes through the pages of Shodasi it gradually becomes clear that , the story that Valmiki was a Hunter , after viewing the pair of birds dying for each other renounced hunting and became a Rishi is an episode woven around him to make him and his epic the Ramayana popular and that Valmiki belongs to the pantheon of Vedic Rishis . Seshendra at every point of analysis cites from the Vedas and sruthis. His own introduction to this work “one word to begin with “ he discusses elaborately on the significance of Valmiki’s Style of expression of phrases . This chapter is the gateway to the entire work. While analysing one stanza of he touches upon a simile Which compares moon in the night sky wit vrishabham in Goshtam (cowshed). Seshendra goes deeper into shruthi and Vedas and concludes that go means in Sanskrit speech and “goshte vrishabham mattamiva bhramantam “ implies that like Omkara moves at the throat the divine personality of moon is moving in the sky. That intricate and deep is the analysis of the author. Seshendra , then discusses why sundara kanda was chosen as the name of a chapter . He observes incisively and proves conclusively that Sita is the main character of this Kanda and Sita is none other than Adi Shakti ( The Divine Mother ) Sri Maha Tripura Sundari.This is the reason why Maharshi named it Sundara Kanda. Sundara Kanda is the heart of the Ramayana and Trijata Swapna (Demoness Trijata’s Dream) is its heart. Sundara Kanda is nothing but Kundalini Yoga . Right from the 1st stanza of the chapter Maharshi starts unfolding the path of Kundalini Yoga in a suggestive manner garbed in enchanting poetry teaming with breath taking similes. Hanuman is SriVidyopasaka. The author discusses the 1st stanza “Chaaranaa Charithe pathi “ with intrinsic evidence from the Ramayana itself. Charanas are Divine Singers and their path is the sky . In other words in Kundalini Yoga “Sushumna “. The entire chapter elaborates each stanza in a captivating tone and concludes with Lanka Dahana ( Burning of Lanka ) as piercing of the Sahasrara seated in the head. First hand reading alone will give the unnerving feel of this chapter. Another important chapter is “ Trijata’s dream is nothing but Gayathri mantra “. In this , Seshendra views Trijata’s Dream, one of the demonesses guarding Sita in Ashoka Vana as Gayathri mantra. He dwelves deep into each Sloka of this episode and proves convincingly that Valmiki created this episode in order to embed the mantra in Ramayana. Till this point this book is a cluster of revelations. “The later part is both revelation and research. Seshendra in the chapter “ Indra is the Supreme Deity of Ramayana “ discusses each stanza of the Ramayana and goes on to reveal that at the time when Valmiki was writing the Ramayana the concepts of Vishnu and incarnation (Avatar ) were non– existent . Indra is the supreme deity of the Ramayana. In other 2 chapters the author‘s exhaustive study and Incisive analysis are all pervasive. Seshendra explodes the myth sought to be propagated by some of the Western Scholars that the Bharatha precedes the Ramayana . Shodasi , as rightly pointed out in one preface, is a great boon to Devi Upasakas and Practioners of Sri Vidya. All these ages this Adi Kavya is seen only as the Story of Rama. Here is a path breaking work which reveals the hidden treasure of spiritual secrets which Valmiki Maharshi embedded them in his epic.

Insight ( Sunday Magazine )

The Hitavada ( English Daily ) 1st November 2015

 

SHODASI : SECRETS OF THE RAMAYANA

Kundalini Yoga & Gayathri Mantra in Valmiki Ramayana

ENGLISH HINDI AND TELUGU ORIGINAL

AUTHOR : SESHENDRA SHARMA

Seshendra : Visionary Poet of the Millennium

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Valmiki , The Sage of 5th century B.C wrote The Ramayana not to narrate the story of Rama in an absorbing style. Though the epic poem presents Rama’s Journey of life in enchanting poetry , the story and the enchanting poetry are sugar coating or honey to the organic medicine called Kundalini Yoga. Maharshi Valmiki wrote the Ramayana to spread / propagate Kundalini Yoga among the masses. Thus the soul of The Ramayana is Kundalini Yoga / Sri Vidya. Valmiki embedded Kundalini Yoga in the Chapter titled “ Sundara Kanda” . Hanuman and Ravana are Kundalini Yogis of Samaya and Kaula Paths.

And in Sundara Kanda , he inserted “ Trijata Swapna “ , dream sequence of a demon and in it embedded the Gayathri Mantra. The concepts of Vishnu and Avatar (reincarnation) were nonexistent during the Ramayana Period.

Seshendra Sharma , Scholar - Poet in his Magnum Opus of Research “ Shodasi : Secrets of The Ramayana “ reveals these secrets lying hidden for thousands of years .

 

* * * * *

How old is Valmiki Ramayana? One Calculation says 8 lacks 70 thousand Years. Going by the Christian calendar dating to approximately the 5th to 4th century BC. According to Indian classification of time Ramayana belongs to the Treta Yuga and today we are in the Kali Yuga. All these millions of years the human civilisation the world over, recognised it as the first poetry and in this part of the world i.e. the Indian Subcontinent the central character of the epic is present as an idol of worship in thousands of temples and in every household of believers.

But here is a research work which says Ramayana is merely poetry to the naked eye whereas it is an ensemble of invisible secrets which have been lying unnoticed all these ages.

What could have been the Valmiki Maharshi’s vision which made him chisel an epic poem which is pregnant with startling secrets?

Shodasi : Secrets of the Ramayana , a Magnum Opus comprising both revelations and research findings written in Telugu 47 Years ago is translated into English by Dr. G.S.Murthy , a 86 year old physicist (Retrd) from BARC. Dr. Murthy observes about Shodasi that “the approach adopted by Seshendra Sharma is unprecedented. .. His conclusion that Ramayana is closer to Sruthi than any other scripture is very significant and is based on the intrinsic evidence in the Ramayana itself.... it is a revolt against the customary methods followed to understand the status of Ramayana in the Sanskrit Literature.”

 

The fulcrum of Shodasi is that poetry in Ramayana is a supplement to the bitter medicine called “Kundalini Yoga” and Ramayana is divine Ambrosia for all mundane afflictions and problems that beset the human kind.

Seshendra reveals that Sundara Kanda is the heart of Ramayana and it is nothing but Kundalini Yoga . And the heart of Sundara Kanda is Trijata ‘s Dream , which is nothing but Gayatri Mantra.

Kundalini Yoga which is also known as Sri Vidya is awakening of inner powers dormant in humans through meditation. The very 1st Shloka of Sundara Kanda is analysed and explained exhaustively by the author from several angles. “Chaarana Charithe pathi..(Sky-Path) “is , according to the author the Sushumna in Humans. Lanka Dahana ( Reducing Ravana’s Empire Lanka to ashes ) is the climax of the Kundalini Yoga which is Sahasrara Bhedana. The author analyses citing evidence from the Ramayana original text , that both Paths of Kundalini Yoga , Samaya and Kaula ways are shown in the epic.

What is of paramount importance in this work is that each exposition refers to a cluster of references germane to the main discussion. Hence it is obvious that this work is a scholastic paradise to people who are conversant with Sanskrit literature and other ancient scriptures. A pedestrian reader cannot even peep into Shodasi . Seshendra’s introduction “One word to begin with “sets the tone and tenor of the work. He dilates at length how Sanskrit language is moulded by Valmiki on the lines of Sruthi and Veda to envelop his central theme in suggestive and oblique style.

It is said Valmiki wrote Ramayana in 24 thousand Shlokas taking each syllable of Gayatri Mantra, which has 24 syllables. Seshendra Shows convincingly, where the Gayathri Mantra itself is located in Ramayana. He says “ Sundara Kanda “ is the heart of Ramayana and Trijata ‘s Dream is Sundara Kanda’s heart. “ Maharshi created an apparent episode of “Trijata Swapna “ and through this he embedded Gayathri Mantra in it. “

This book is replete with several such revelations and unnerving observations. The chapters on “ Relationship between Ramayanayana and Megha Sangesham “ “Indra supreme deity “ compel the reader to stop and think at the turn of every observation. This reviewer does not like to “spill all the beans “.

Dr. Murthy, the translator, aptly observes “ It needs a very attentive mind and adequate patience to follow author’s arguments “. Seshendra Sharma( seshendrasharma.weebly.com ) , winner of Sahitya Akademi Award for his “Kaala Rekha “( Arc of Blood ) a collection of essays in comparative literature , a fellow of the Akademi During his life time whose Long Poem “ My Country – My People – Modern Indian Epic “was nominated for Nobel in 2004 is scholar –poet of our times . His Kavisena Manifesto (Modern Indian Poetics), Kaala Rekha( Essays in Comparative Literature)are monuments of contemporary Indian Literature , unsurpassed to this day. His prose works prove that he is Albert Einstein of Indian Literature.

After completing the first round of reading the reader would certainly agree with Vishwanatha Satyanarayana ,Telugu poet of romantic era , recipient of Gyanpith Award for his “Ramayan Kalp Vriksh” who wrote preface to this book “ Every one , not only the telugu – speaking people all Indians must be grateful to him for writing this book”.

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Ramayana, a replica of Vedas

S. VARADARAJAN

There are several versions of the Sri Ramayana, one of the two greatest epics. Following Sri Valmiki Ramayana several editions have been published in various languages, besides scores of commentaries written across centuries. Late.GunturuSeshendra Sharma, scholar poet of 20th Century unearthed secrets of the Ramayana through his popular Telugu book “Shodasi”.

The novelty of nomenclature Shodasi , called Sri Vidya is reflected , in the 16th Chapter . Sharma’s intellectual depth comes forth in analyzingSundara Kanda specially through KundaliniYoga . The author highlights hidden truth in Valmiki’s thought that is similar to Vedas and says that Trijata’s dream in Sundara Kanda reflects Gayatri Mantra of 32 Syllabi in 4 lines. Sharma pays rich encomiums in the description of Lanka surrounded by three impregnable borders. He compares these three borders with Trikuta viz... Shakti ,Kaamaraaja , VagbhavaKutas with those of Sri Vidya in Kundalini . A staunch believer of Vedas, the author feels that Ramayana is a replica of Vedas and oriented towards the character of Indra . He concludes that in Ramayana the mentioning of the supreme God is Indra and not Vishnu, as the presiding deity of valour in Vedas. Utterances of the word Vishnu were considered to be imaginary overstatements in the author’s view.

This book lends a new perspective to the Ramayana by adding the dimension of KundaliniYoga .

The foreword by VishwanathaSatyanarayana adds credibility to the book. The current work is an English translation of the original by GurujadaSuryanarayanaMurthy , a scientist by profession . His proficiency in the subject is evident in the translation throughout that doesn’t swerve from the original’s purport.

The Hindu

(Friday Review: 2nd October 2015)

A Resplendent Icon of all Arts

 

This is an exemplary book which elevated the status of Indian Literary Criticism to the peaks of the world literature. Shodasi is a name associated with a great hymn. The title suggests that it’s a book on spiritual discourse. A reading of this book suggests that the spirit of scientific temper is critical to comprehend Valmiki’sSrimad Ramayana. Besides this, command on Vedic or Scriptural knowledge is essential. What does a layman has to say when a towering personality like ViswanathaSatyanarayana himself extolled the critical acumen and serious scholarship of Seshendra Sharma.

 

Sharma has made it crystal clear that unless one has an apparent understanding of the plot’s context, psyche of the characters, and the milieu of the bygone days supplemented by extraordinary scholarship, sound knowledge of phonetics and awareness on contemporary issues; one cannot easily comprehend the poetic diction of Valmiki. The debate on the phrase “Netraturaha” is a fitting example. The uniqueness of the title, Sundarakanda, Kundalini Yoga, Gayatri Mantra secretly hidden in Trijata’s dream sequence, considering The Bharatha as an image of The Ramayana.... this book is a repository of many such critical discourses. It is replete with inconceivable and unfathomable issues. This magnum opus is an invaluable gift to the Telugu literature.

 

- VIPULA, Viswa Katha Vedika: May 2014

(An exclusive Telugu Monthly Magazine for stories)

 

* * *

 

Valmiki Ramayana – Greatest Medicine for Mankind

 

The story of Ramayana is prescribed as textbook for students. Sita and Rama are worshiped as prime couple. No need to mention about reciting it. Whether Valmiki was satisfied with simple narration of the story? Seshendra Sharma denies it.

 

He analyzed it mentioning that to understand the inner meanings of Valmiki Ramayana, the scientific knowledge is essential.

 

The underlying secret of the sage’s mind will be known through the knowledge of science.

 

It is the firm opinion of Seshendra that the argument that “the sciences are for scholars only” is a conspiracy hatched by Selfish scholars and lazy uneducated persons.

 

Seshendra who has democratic ideology and conviction on science and literature informs the public about the secrets of Ramayana expounded by Valmiki. He explains that Valmiki dedicated ambrosia (The Greatest Medicine) named “Kundalini Yoga” to the mankind. The poetry in the metre of AnushtupSloka is the honey coating to the medicine. It was explained with great introspection and exemplary scholarship. He concludes that the Ramayana is older than the MahaBharatha and it is another form of Veda. Valmiki introduced the system of meditation in Ramayana. The Introspection and research bent of mind of Seshendra are spread over in the book in two streams. The exuberant fragrance of scholarship is experienced throughout the book.

 

The present generation can understand the scholarship of Seshendra in Vedas and Mantra Sastra. Seshendra is a poet who has composed unique RuthuGhosha (Cry of the Seasons: Metrical Poetry) and revolutionary free verse –MandeSuryudu (The Burning Sun).

 

- Andhra Prabha (Telugu Daily), 24th August 2014.

 

* * *

 

Two Great Peaks in the world literary criticism and research

 

Shodasi: Secrets of The Ramayana and SwarnahamsaHarshanaishada from the mighty pen of the great Telugu poet, GunturuSeshendra Sharma are considered to be the two great peaks in the world literary criticism and research. This is a truth most contemporary Telugu writers and readers aren’t aware of. The way Seshendra could discover Kundalini Yoga, Gayathri Mantra in Shodasi, he could discern the treasure trove of mantra yoga, Sri Mahatripurasundari, Chintamani mantra in Swarnahamsa.

 

At a time when our universities which are mere Degrees production Units, churn out “solid waste” in the name of research; Seshendra even while attending to his job as a Municipal Commissioner created research oriented critical volumes like a sage.

 

Though Shodasi was published in 1967 and Swarnahamsa in 1968; Swarnahamsa was created by him much before Shodasi was conceived. The concepts that Srinatha, Nannayya and Mallanatha, the Telugu Classical poets couldn’t decipher,

Seshendra could. He humbly submits that he is most fortunate that the triumvirate had left behind some pertinent concepts only to be discovered by him at a later stage.

 

These two great kavyas were serialised under the editorship of late NeelamrajuVenkataSeshaiah in Andhra Prabha Daily, Sunday Literary Supplements from 1963 to 1967 and Seshendra’s poems and non-fiction were published in the book forms (6) only after they appeared in serial form in Andhra Prabha.

-----------------

GunturuSeshendraSarma, the well-known poet, critic and scholar of unfathomable depth, has to his credit quite a number of books in Telugu as well as English. A keen intellect and a lucid exponent of the intricacies in Samskrit literature, the author brought out a treatise on Ramayana. The book also reveals the symbolism in our epics and shows the spirit behind.

 

According to the author, Sage Valmiki has observed Ramayana as though it is a story of a dynasty in its outward appearance. But when the story part is kept aside, the hidden secrets of the Mantrasastra come out. Valmiki’s Ramayana is full of Vedic literature, language and usages. Ramayana can be appreciated from three angles. The poetic beauty, the historicity and the secret meaning of mother Parasakti. Later Upanishads have taken Valmiki Ramayana as the way to the Mantrasastra. Rama’s wife Sita is considered as Parasakti. In Devi BhagavathamSita is described as Goddess Gayatri. The author has taken unusual pains and quoted Vedic dictations which are literally taken by Valmiki in his Ramayana. Thus it has been a product of Vedas and the usages in Ramayana and the words used therein and the similies adopted by Valmiki speak inexplicably the secret of Mother Lalita in his stories.

 

The author has given and attached a very great significance for Sundarakanda in Ramayana. The author has quoted numerous quotations from Smrithis and Srithis to establish that Sundara-kanda is beautiful because Anjaneya the Jeeva has seen Sita the Parasakti. Hence this canto is so styled as Sundara. According to the author “Sita” means “Kundalini.” Hanuman has seen Sita while she was sitting on the ground. Ground means Earth. Earth denotes Mooladharam. The serpent Kundalini stays in this. Thus it is symbolised as Sita sat on the ground. Hanuman the Yogi has the vision of Kundalini in Sita. With the aid of Ida and Pingala, Kundalini travels in Sushumna through spinal cord crossing the six fluxes, and finally reaching Sahasraram. This again speaks of “Shodasi.” Rama is a beautiful man. He is having a Sundari in Sita (a beautiful woman). The descriptions are beautiful in this canto. Thus it is synonymous with “Soundarya-lahari” of Sankaracharya.

 

The author expressed that Mahabharata is a reflection of Ramayana in all the cause, origin and delivery. Innumerable similarities are quoted from both Valmiki and Vyasa to prove that the usages, style and similies are almost similar in both the epics. He compares Vyasa’s “Nalacharitam” with Sundarakanda of Valmiki in the vision of Srividya.

 

The author further argues that Kalidasa’s “Meghasandesam” is only an imitation of Valmiki. The flight of Anjaneya in search of Sita is the basis for Kalidasa’s “Meghasandesam.” Both Sita and the Yaksha’s wife are described as “Syamas” – meaning in the middle of youth. The duration of separation is one year in both the cases. Ultimately the author said that “Meghasandesam” is the offspring of Ramayana, with yearning to see Parasakti.

 

The author has taken the readers in his book to that sublime beauty where there is no further argument, than to enjoy the flow of citations with their intrinsic meaning and full of scientific vision. His unsurpassed knowledge in Mantrasastra has enabled him to pass dictums vivisecting the symbolic mysticisms into splinters and handing the kernel of truth under each word, usage, and application. He deserves all praise for this meritorious contribution to our literature.

  

Visionary Poet of the Millennium

An Indian poet Prophet

Seshendra Sharma

October 20th, 1927 - May 30th, 2007

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Seshendra Sharma is one of the most outstanding minds of modern Asia. He is the foremost of the Telugu poets today who has turned poetry to the gigantic strides of human history and embellished literature with the thrills and triumphs of the 20th century. A revolutionary poet who spurned the pedestrian and pedantic poetry equally, a brilliant critic and a scholar of Sanskrit, this versatile poet has breathed a new vision of modernity to his vernacular.Such minds place Telugu on the world map of intellectualism. Readers conversant with names like Paul Valery, Gauguin, and Dag Hammarskjold will have to add the name of Seshendra Sharma the writer from India to that dynasty of intellectuals.

 

Rivers and poets

Are veins and arteries

Of a country.

Rivers flow like poems

For animals, for birds

And for human beings-

The dreams that rivers dream

Bear fruit in the fields

The dreams that poets dream

Bear fruit in the people-

* * * * * *

The sunshine of my thought fell on the word

And its long shadow fell upon the century

Sun was playing with the early morning flowers

Time was frightened at the sight of the martyr-

-Seshendra Sharma

B.A: Andhra Christian College: Guntur: A.P: India

B.L : Madras University: Madras

Deputy Municipal Commissioner (37 Years)

Dept of Municipal Administration, Government of Andhra Pradesh

Parents: G.Subrahmanyam (Father) ,Ammayamma (Mother)

Siblings: Anasuya,Devasena (Sisters),Rajasekharam(Younger brother)

Wife: Mrs.Janaki Sharma

Children: Vasundhara , Revathi (Daughters),

Vanamaali ,Saatyaki (Sons)

 

Seshendra Sharma better known as Seshendra is

a colossus of Modern Indian poetry.

His literature is a unique blend of the best of poetry and poetics.

Diversity and depth of his literary interests and his works

are perhaps hitherto unknown in Indian literature.

From poetry to poetics, from Mantra Sastra to Marxist Politics his writings bear an unnerving pprint of his rare genius.

His scholar ship and command over Sanskrit , English and Telugu Languages has facilitated his emergence as a towering personality of comparative literature in the 20th century world literature.

T.S.Eliot ,ArchbaldMacleish and Seshendra Sharma are trinity of world poetry and Poetics.

His sense of dedication to the genre of art he chooses to express himself and

the determination to reach the depths of subject he undertakes to explore

place him in the galaxy of world poets / world intellectuals.

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Seshendra Sharma’s Writings Copyright © Saatyaki S/o Seshendra Sharma

Contact :saatyaki@gmail.com+919441070985+917702964402

------------------------

GunturuSeshendraSarma: an extraordinary poet-scholar

One of the ironies in literature is that

he came to be known more as a critic than a poet

 

HYDERABAD: An era of scholastic excellence and poetic grandeur has come to an end in the passing away of GunturuSeshendraSarma, one of the foremost poets and critics in Telugu literature. His mastery over western literature and Indian `AlankaraSastra' gave his works a stunning imagery, unparalleled in modern Indian works. One of the ironies in literature is that he came to be known more as a critic than a poet. The Central SahityaAkademi award was conferred on him for his work `KaalaRekha' and not for his poetic excellence. The genius in him made him explore `Kundalini Yoga' in his treatise on Ramayana in `Shodasi' convincingly. His intellectual quest further made him probe `NaishadhaKaavya' in the backdrop of `LalitaSahasraNaamavali', `SoundaryaLahari' and `Kama Kala Vilasam' in `SwarnaHamsa', Seshendra saw the entire universe as a storehouse of images and signs to which imagination was to make value-addition. Like Stephene Mallarme who was considered a prophet of symbolism in French literature, SeshendraSarma too believed that art alone would survive in the universe along with poetry. He believed that the main vocation of human beings was to be artists and poets. His `Kavisena Manifesto' gave a new direction to modern criticism making it a landmark work in poetics. Telugus would rue the intellectual impoverishment they suffered in maintaining a `distance' from him. Seshendra could have given us more, but we did not deserve it! The denial of the Jnanpeeth Award to him proves it

The Hindu

India's National Newspaper

Friday, Jun 01, 2007

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Ramayana, a replica of Vedas

S. VARADARAJAN

There are several versions of the Sri Ramayana, one of the two greatest epics. Following Sri Valmiki Ramayana several editions have been published in various languages, besides scores of commentaries written across centuries. Late. Gunturu Seshendra Sharma, scholar poet of 20th Century unearthed secrets of the Ramayana through his popular Telugu book “Shodasi”.

The novelty of nomenclature Shodasi , called Sri Vidya is reflected , in the 16th Chapter . Sharma’s intellectual depth comes forth in analyzing Sundara Kanda specially through Kundalini Yoga . The author highlights hidden truth in Valmiki’s thought that is similar to Vedas and says that Trijata’s dream in Sundara Kanda reflects Gayatri Mantra of 32 Syllabi in 4 lines. Sharma pays rich encomiums in the description of Lanka surrounded by three impregnable borders. He compares these three borders with Trikuta viz... Shakti , Kaamaraaja , Vagbhava Kutas with those of Sri Vidya in Kundalini . A staunch believer of Vedas, the author feels that Ramayana is a replica of Vedas and oriented towards the character of Indra . He concludes that in Ramayana the mentioning of the supreme God is Indra and not Vishnu, as the presiding deity of valour in Vedas. Utterances of the word Vishnu were considered to be imaginary overstatements in the author’s view.

This book lends a new perspective to the Ramayana by adding the dimension of Kundalini Yoga .

The foreword by Vishwanatha Satyanarayana adds credibility to the book. The current work is an English translation of the original by Gurujada Suryanarayana Murthy , a scientist by profession . His proficiency in the subject is evident in the translation throughout that doesn’t swerve from the original’s purport.

The Hindu

India’s National Newspaper

(Friday Review: 2nd October 2015)

 

Shodasi

Astounding scholarship of Sanskrit classics

A product of deep research, intense intellectual labour

And amazing scholarship

The book under review which is an English translation by Dr. Gurajada Suryanarayana Murthy of the original Telugu Text represents a scholarly attempt by the erudite author to justify and prove the validity of certain radical propositions which he makes about the world – renowned Kavya – Valmiki Ramayana. The propositions that he makes are – 1. Sundara Kanda is an allegory of Kundalini Yoga 2. Sita is Kundalini Shakti 3. Hanuman’s search – mission of Sita symbolises Tantric Exercise of identifying the Kundalini Shakti and raising it from the Moola Dhara Chakra (denoted by Lanka) to Sahasrara Chakra 4. The descriptive terms employed about Sita hint at Sita being essentially a Kundalini Shakti 5. Trijata’s dream is nothing but Gayathri Mantra 6. Valmiki’s language has pronounced Vedic flavour 7. The phraseology employed by Valmiki corresponds largely to the terms employed in Lalitha Sahasra Nama , Durga Saptasati , Devi Bhagawatam etc.. 8. The aptness of the name Sundara Kanda is provable on Strong Grounds 9. Ramayana is anterior to Bharatha on various grounds such as the Vedic language employed in the former the reference of Valmiki and Ramayana in Mahabharata and absence of reference to Vyasa and Mahabharata episodes in Ramayana , Mention of Rama in Mahabharata and Rama’s greater antiquity than Pandavas and a host of other plausible evidences 10. Indra , the chief Vedic god more prominently featured and praised in Ramayana than Vishnu of the Puranic origin. 11. Megha Sandesham of Kalidasa originated out of the seed of Valmiki Ramayana and 12. The benedictory verse of Sakuntalam is eulogy of Devi.

The brain – tickling propositions are not just of the cuff remarks made without basis but credible theories buttressed with profuse quotations of relevant Sanskrit Texts , wide and deep study of the relevant treatises unassailable arguments based on internal and external evidences and astounding scholarship of Sanskrit classics.

On the flip side, there are a few errors in the transliteration of the Sanskrit texts. Had the Sanskrit passages from the treatises been provided in Devanagari Script also in addition to transliterated form in Roman Script value and appeal of this essentially Sanskrit oriented book would be much higher to the large and growing Sanskrit readership. The book is doubtless, a product of deep research, Intense intellectual labour and amazing scholarship.

The Vedanta kesari : August 2016

The Lion of Vedanta

A Cultural and Spirtual Monthly of the of the Ramakrishna Order since 1944

  

AN INTELLECTUAL FEAST

Along With utmost devotion

The author has clear understanding of not only of the Ramayana

but also Mantra Sastra , Vedas and Kundalini Yoga

His method is going deep into the subject and at the

same time comparing the same with ideas of other branches of literature

Shodasi , authored by Seshendra Sharma is a book of a special type . Though its purpose is to unfold secrets of the Ramayana many other aspects from different branches of knowledge also find a place there.

The Ramayana is read in every household with devotion. It narrates not only story of Rama but it also spotlights very intricate and subtler points in other branches of knowledge, a point not even noticed by many.

The author has clear understanding of not only of the Ramayana but also Mantra Sastra , Vedas and Kundalini Yoga . There are two approaches to understand the Sastras. One is vertical which is closely followed in Sanskrit Literature. It is reading a book with the help of commentary on it. In this method not only each word of the original analysed; its correct meaning and contextual purpose are also examined. The second is a horizontal method where in various ideas in the text are read not with one commentary but with many commentaries by different people. This gives total meaning of the text.

Seshendra Sharma follows both methods. His method is going deep into the subject and at the same time comparing the same with ideas of other branches of literature.

This needs a thorough understanding of various branches and ability to compare texts and spot new ideas and enjoy the same. For example , when Hanuman asks Sita who she is ,she replies ,“sama dvadasa tatraham raghavasya nivesane bhunjhana manushan bhogan sarva kama samrudhinee “ . Meaning “I enjoyed 12 years of mundane pleasure in the home of Rama”

Though she is not an ordinary human being, she enjoyed mundane pleasures. “ you may mistake that I am a mortal woman , but understand I am Sri Maha Lakshmi” . That was the message. The most important clue is the statement “ Aham Sarva Kama Samridhinee “ . In Devi Bhagawatham we find “ Matah Sankaree Kamade “ In Sri Sukta “ Sarva Kamartha Siddhaye “ and in Lalitha Sahasra Nama “ too it is stated “ Om Kamyayai Namah” . If Sita were to be just an ordinary being all these statements would have been irrelevant.

At another place she says “ Maya Ramasya Rajarshe Bharyayaya Paramatmanah” which means that she is wife of Paramatma. Hanuman , the devotee , recognized Sita to be none other than Jaganmata. Hence he could identify her easily as the divine mother and says “ tat sreemadyate tarat”. The word sreemat is used to mean brilliance Hanuman identifies Sita as Devi by the holy seed letter ( Sreem ) .

The book is full of comparisons between different branches of learning and surely a feast for one who could enjoy the existence of similar ideas at various places. It only proves that ways may be different but the goal is one.

Seshendra Sharma physically lifts the minds of the readers and offers an intellectual feast along with utmost devotion. Surely everyone should read this book and keep a copy of the same at home.

Goda Venkateswara Sastry

Tatvaloka : June 2016

The Splendour of Truth

( Monthly Magazine)

  

------------

Ramayan Through Kundalini Yoga

Shodasi is an ideal read for Sanskrit-literate readers

who are open to eclectic yogarthas and connotative meanings

--------

So you thought Vyasa was before Valmiki, Mahabharat was before Ramayan, Rama a Vishnu avatar, and tantrism distinct from vedism? Think again. In Shodasi: Secrets of the Ramayana, Telugu poet Seshendra Sharma re-reads the Ramayan to come up with a number of new conclusions.

Much of the book sets out to prove that Ramayan was written before the Mahabharat. Sharma discusses how Indra is cited more often than Vishnu, thus placing the context of the Ramayan closer to Vedic than Puranic thought. He quotes from the Mahabharat to show how it follows descriptions of hills, rivers from the Ramayan. The Mahabharat has some prose, and therefore, it must have been composed after Ramayan, which is entirely in poetry. These are only some of the numerous reasons that Sharma offers to suggest a new sequence of our itihasas.

Sharma’s book is also an experimental reading of the Ramayan through the interpretive lens of what he calls Kundalini yoga. Hanuman’s flight to Sri Lanka gets a new interpretation. “Charana Charite Pathi” is interpreted as the path of Kundalini, and the first verse of the Sundara Kanda “Tatho Ravana Nithayah” is interpreted by Sharma to refer to Hanuman traversing the sushumna nadi of the Kundalini.

Trijata’s dream becomes the Gayatri mantra through an imaginative recasting of words as numbers. Gaja (elephant) means eight, danta (teeth) means thirty-two, and maha-gaja-chaturdantam somehow also adds up to 32 syllables, which is the number of syllables in the Gayatri mantra. That Trijata’s dream is halfway through the Ramayan also becomes significant for Sharma, he calls it the ‘central bead’ in the Ramayan garland of 24,000 beads. Identifying 32-syllables as the Gayatri follows a convention, for mantras are referenced by the number of syllables; however, it is the “secret” yogartha—or mystical, anagogical translations—derived by Sharma that becomes problematic, unless he is considered an authority in his own right.

conclude that the name Sundarakand is unrelated to any descriptions of beauty of any of the main characters in the Ramayan. However, Soundarya and Tripura-Sundari are well-known conventions in the tantric tradition and hence, Sharma concludes that Sundarakand derives its name from Shakti’s beauty, and “Sundara-Hanuman” means “Hanuman who is a devotee of Devi” (117).

A coda in this book is about the benedictory verse in Kalidasa’s Sakuntalam which has traditionally been understood to refer to Ishwara. Sharma re-interprets this verse highlighting the “eight forms” of the last line as the eight forms of Devi that please Ishwara.

This book is suitable for a reader who is Sanskrit-literate and open to eclectic yogarthas and connotative meanings. Sharma cites substantially from the Ramayan in roman but without diacritics, this is difficult to follow; and he does not always include translation. Sharma often cites commentators without citing names and sources. It is not clear why the book is called Shodasi—readers may note, this book is not about the Srividya tradition. Even if the reader is unconvinced by Sharma’s reasoning or methodology, the free flow of references may prove absorbing for a reader interested in the subject.

This could also be an eclectic reference for a scholar researching tantric elements in the Ramayan.

- Mani Rao

 

The Sunday Standard Magazine

The New Indian Express

29th November 2015

 

---------------------------

Scholarly and deeply researched monograph

Pearls of insightful ideas and truths

Most of the ancient treatises like the Valmiki Ramayana and Bhagavatha lend themselves to allegorical interpretations. The book under review is scholarly and deeply researched monograph that formulates the startling theory that the immortal epic Valmiki Ramayana, particularly, Sundara Kanda, is nothing but the enunciation of the doctrine of Kundalini Shakthi Yoga. The very title of the book is bound to make the scholarly fraternity and even the common readership sit up and take notice. The radical propositions that the erudite author advances are on the basis of relentless logic and a mass of internal and external evidences are: Ramayana is rooted in Vedas, both in terms of ideas it disseminates and its verbal garb in those it is clothed. Many of the similes that Valmiki employs are inspired by vedic poetry and literature. Many of the expressions employed in the Valmiki Ramayana bear close resemblance to phraseology found in texts like Devi Bhagavatham, and Soundarya Lahari. Sita is none other than Divine Mother and Gayathri. As borne out by an analysis of similarity of names and words used in Valmiki Ramayana and Sri Vidya Literature. Sundara Kanda is nothing but delineation Kundalini Yoga. Hanuman’s aerial voyage in search of Sita represents allegorically the devi worshipper’s exercise in Kundalini Yoga. Sita is Kundalini Shakti. The episodes of mainaka, surasa and Simhika – representing satwa, rajas, tamas respectively –represent piercing of the triple knots by the spiritual aspirant. The Sanskrit phrase “Charana Charithe pathi” that occurs at the opening Canto of Sundara Kanda clearly implies Hanuman’s movement through the path of Sushumna. Lanka is the Mula Dhara Chakra, the seat of Kundalini implied in Valmiki’s graphic description of Lanka, the place of incarceration of Sita. Lanka is Muladhara also from the point of view of Yoga and it is Sri Chakra from the point of view of Spiritual practice. The burning of Lanka symbolises awakening of Swadhishthana. The aptness of name Sundara Kanda is explicable in the light of various evidences embedded in the epic. Trijata’s dream is nothing but the Gayathri Mantra as can be inferred from certain Sanskrit terms representing their numerical equivalents employed to describe dream – scenes of Trijata and also from Dramatis Personae appearing in her dream. Mahabharata is an image of Ramayana and many striking similarities may be found between Valmiki and Vyasa in their style of narrative. Valmiki’s Ramayana is the seed of Meghadootha and Valmiki reincarnates, as it were, as Kalidasa. The vedic god Indra , as the supreme deity dominates epic as a benchmark for all comparisons with Rama and dwarfs Vishnu, the Puranik God, in importance. Ramayana is anterior to Mahabharata. There are 2 annexures at the end of the book “benedictory verse of Sakunthalam is nothing but eulogy of Devi “and “All Humans have same destination” . Coming from the pen of the Telugu poet proficient in several languages, who was active in various disciplines ranging from Sanskrit studies to Cultural activism and who was given the Sahitya Akademi Award, this book is definitely of exceptional merit as the ingenious interpretations of various verses of the epic and also of allied hymnal literature to establish the novel but plausible propositions, come as a refreshing revelations. The book unmistakably bears imprints of an amazingly analytical, deeply erudite and marvellously nimble mind that effortlessly plumbs the oceanic epic and picks up and presents to the community of discerning readers pearls of insightful ideas and truths. One glaring drawback of this essentially Sanskrit-oriented book is the absence of Sanskrit quotations in Devanagari script as transliterations in roman script that are given are poor substitute sonorous Sanskrit words clothed in Devanagari script. The merits mentioned in a short review of this book packed with quaint and profound ideas constitute merely the proverbial tip of an iceberg. A fund of fruitful and lofty ideas awaits those who venture dive deep into this great book. In short this book is a riveting read for scholars and a strong stimulant for the general readers. –

N. Hariharan

Madurai

Prabuddha Bharata

March 2016

A monthly journal of the Ramakrishna Order

started by Swami Vivekananda in 1893

 

Unearthing secrets of Ramayana Ramayana

A sea-bed of secrets

A great boon to Devi Upasakas and Practioners of Sri Vidya

The Ramayana popular as the Adi Kavya (first work of poetry) the world over is not just beautiful poetry . It is a sea bed of secrets – containing the methods of Kundalini yoga and mantra sastra . This is the heart of Shodasi : Secrets of the Ramayana authored by Seshendra Sharma , one of the towering personalities of Telugu Poetry . This book, a collection 16 articles with one article added on from this edition appeared in Telugu Original in 1967. Mr. N.Ramesan IAS , the then Principal Secretary to Education Dept , the then AP Govt observed feelingly in his preface , that this work is a boon for Devi Upasakas and merits to be translated into English and other Indian Languages. This advice has fructified after 48 Years. Dr. Suryanarayana Murthy , a physicist (retired : Baba Atomic Research Centre ) has translated Shodasi into English with commendable clarity of grasp over the subject and felicity of thought process and flow of reading. The story of Rama narrated in enchanting poetry, according to Seshendra is a honey supplement to the bitter medicine called Kundalini Yoga. Valmiki Maharshi chose the Story of Rama to propagate Kundalini Yoga and systems of meditation in the society, among the masses of his era. This is the fulcrum of this Research work. What is of significance is that the author , in order to buttress his analysis and arguments cites extensively and conclusively from the Original Text of Ramayana itself. This Translation introduces this seminal work to wider sections of readers in other parts of our multilingual nation and to scholars engaged in research in Indian scriptures in the west. As the reader goes through the pages of Shodasi it gradually becomes clear that , the story that Valmiki was a Hunter , after viewing the pair of birds dying for each other renounced hunting and became a Rishi is an episode woven around him to make him and his epic the Ramayana popular and that Valmiki belongs to the pantheon of Vedic Rishis . Seshendra at every point of analysis cites from the Vedas and sruthis. His own introduction to this work “one word to begin with “ he discusses elaborately on the significance of Valmiki’s Style of expression of phrases . This chapter is the gateway to the entire work. While analysing one stanza of he touches upon a simile Which compares moon in the night sky wit vrishabham in Goshtam (cowshed). Seshendra goes deeper into shruthi and Vedas and concludes that go means in Sanskrit speech and “goshte vrishabham mattamiva bhramantam “ implies that like Omkara moves at the throat the divine personality of moon is moving in the sky. That intricate and deep is the analysis of the author. Seshendra , then discusses why sundara kanda was chosen as the name of a chapter . He observes incisively and proves conclusively that Sita is the main character of this Kanda and Sita is none other than Adi Shakti ( The Divine Mother ) Sri Maha Tripura Sundari.This is the reason why Maharshi named it Sundara Kanda. Sundara Kanda is the heart of the Ramayana and Trijata Swapna (Demoness Trijata’s Dream) is its heart. Sundara Kanda is nothing but Kundalini Yoga . Right from the 1st stanza of the chapter Maharshi starts unfolding the path of Kundalini Yoga in a suggestive manner garbed in enchanting poetry teaming with breath taking similes. Hanuman is SriVidyopasaka. The author discusses the 1st stanza “Chaaranaa Charithe pathi “ with intrinsic evidence from the Ramayana itself. Charanas are Divine Singers and their path is the sky . In other words in Kundalini Yoga “Sushumna “. The entire chapter elaborates each stanza in a captivating tone and concludes with Lanka Dahana ( Burning of Lanka ) as piercing of the Sahasrara seated in the head. First hand reading alone will give the unnerving feel of this chapter. Another important chapter is “ Trijata’s dream is nothing but Gayathri mantra “. In this , Seshendra views Trijata’s Dream, one of the demonesses guarding Sita in Ashoka Vana as Gayathri mantra. He dwelves deep into each Sloka of this episode and proves convincingly that Valmiki created this episode in order to embed the mantra in Ramayana. Till this point this book is a cluster of revelations. “The later part is both revelation and research. Seshendra in the chapter “ Indra is the Supreme Deity of Ramayana “ discusses each stanza of the Ramayana and goes on to reveal that at the time when Valmiki was writing the Ramayana the concepts of Vishnu and incarnation (Avatar ) were non– existent . Indra is the supreme deity of the Ramayana. In other 2 chapters the author‘s exhaustive study and Incisive analysis are all pervasive. Seshendra explodes the myth sought to be propagated by some of the Western Scholars that the Bharatha precedes the Ramayana . Shodasi , as rightly pointed out in one preface, is a great boon to Devi Upasakas and Practioners of Sri Vidya. All these ages this Adi Kavya is seen only as the Story of Rama. Here is a path breaking work which reveals the hidden treasure of spiritual secrets which Valmiki Maharshi embedded them in his epic.

Insight ( Sunday Magazine )

The Hitavada ( English Daily ) 1st November 2015

 

SHODASI : SECRETS OF THE RAMAYANA

Kundalini Yoga & Gayathri Mantra in Valmiki Ramayana

ENGLISH HINDI AND TELUGU ORIGINAL

AUTHOR : SESHENDRA SHARMA

Seshendra : Visionary Poet of the Millennium

seshendrasharma.weebly.com

seshen.tributes.in/

REVIEWS :

www.facebook.com/shodasi/

Books :

kinige.com/author/Gunturu+Seshendra+Sharma

Valmiki , The Sage of 5th century B.C wrote The Ramayana not to narrate the story of Rama in an absorbing style. Though the epic poem presents Rama’s Journey of life in enchanting poetry , the story and the enchanting poetry are sugar coating or honey to the organic medicine called Kundalini Yoga. Maharshi Valmiki wrote the Ramayana to spread / propagate Kundalini Yoga among the masses. Thus the soul of The Ramayana is Kundalini Yoga / Sri Vidya. Valmiki embedded Kundalini Yoga in the Chapter titled “ Sundara Kanda” . Hanuman and Ravana are Kundalini Yogis of Samaya and Kaula Paths.

And in Sundara Kanda , he inserted “ Trijata Swapna “ , dream sequence of a demon and in it embedded the Gayathri Mantra. The concepts of Vishnu and Avatar (reincarnation) were nonexistent during the Ramayana Period.

Seshendra Sharma , Scholar - Poet in his Magnum Opus of Research “ Shodasi : Secrets of The Ramayana “ reveals these secrets lying hidden for thousands of years .

 

* * * * *

How old is Valmiki Ramayana? One Calculation says 8 lacks 70 thousand Years. Going by the Christian calendar dating to approximately the 5th to 4th century BC. According to Indian classification of time Ramayana belongs to the Treta Yuga and today we are in the Kali Yuga. All these millions of years the human civilisation the world over, recognised it as the first poetry and in this part of the world i.e. the Indian Subcontinent the central character of the epic is present as an idol of worship in thousands of temples and in every household of believers.

But here is a research work which says Ramayana is merely poetry to the naked eye whereas it is an ensemble of invisible secrets which have been lying unnoticed all these ages.

What could have been the Valmiki Maharshi’s vision which made him chisel an epic poem which is pregnant with startling secrets?

Shodasi : Secrets of the Ramayana , a Magnum Opus comprising both revelations and research findings written in Telugu 47 Years ago is translated into English by Dr. G.S.Murthy , a 86 year old physicist (Retrd) from BARC. Dr. Murthy observes about Shodasi that “the approach adopted by Seshendra Sharma is unprecedented. .. His conclusion that Ramayana is closer to Sruthi than any other scripture is very significant and is based on the intrinsic evidence in the Ramayana itself.... it is a revolt against the customary methods followed to understand the status of Ramayana in the Sanskrit Literature.”

 

The fulcrum of Shodasi is that poetry in Ramayana is a supplement to the bitter medicine called “Kundalini Yoga” and Ramayana is divine Ambrosia for all mundane afflictions and problems that beset the human kind.

Seshendra reveals that Sundara Kanda is the heart of Ramayana and it is nothing but Kundalini Yoga . And the heart of Sundara Kanda is Trijata ‘s Dream , which is nothing but Gayatri Mantra.

Kundalini Yoga which is also known as Sri Vidya is awakening of inner powers dormant in humans through meditation. The very 1st Shloka of Sundara Kanda is analysed and explained exhaustively by the author from several angles. “Chaarana Charithe pathi..(Sky-Path) “is , according to the author the Sushumna in Humans. Lanka Dahana ( Reducing Ravana’s Empire Lanka to ashes ) is the climax of the Kundalini Yoga which is Sahasrara Bhedana. The author analyses citing evidence from the Ramayana original text , that both Paths of Kundalini Yoga , Samaya and Kaula ways are shown in the epic.

What is of paramount importance in this work is that each exposition refers to a cluster of references germane to the main discussion. Hence it is obvious that this work is a scholastic paradise to people who are conversant with Sanskrit literature and other ancient scriptures. A pedestrian reader cannot even peep into Shodasi . Seshendra’s introduction “One word to begin with “sets the tone and tenor of the work. He dilates at length how Sanskrit language is moulded by Valmiki on the lines of Sruthi and Veda to envelop his central theme in suggestive and oblique style.

It is said Valmiki wrote Ramayana in 24 thousand Shlokas taking each syllable of Gayatri Mantra, which has 24 syllables. Seshendra Shows convincingly, where the Gayathri Mantra itself is located in Ramayana. He says “ Sundara Kanda “ is the heart of Ramayana and Trijata ‘s Dream is Sundara Kanda’s heart. “ Maharshi created an apparent episode of “Trijata Swapna “ and through this he embedded Gayathri Mantra in it. “

This book is replete with several such revelations and unnerving observations. The chapters on “ Relationship between Ramayanayana and Megha Sangesham “ “Indra supreme deity “ compel the reader to stop and think at the turn of every observation. This reviewer does not like to “spill all the beans “.

Dr. Murthy, the translator, aptly observes “ It needs a very attentive mind and adequate patience to follow author’s arguments “. Seshendra Sharma( seshendrasharma.weebly.com ) , winner of Sahitya Akademi Award for his “Kaala Rekha “( Arc of Blood ) a collection of essays in comparative literature , a fellow of the Akademi During his life time whose Long Poem “ My Country – My People – Modern Indian Epic “was nominated for Nobel in 2004 is scholar –poet of our times . His Kavisena Manifesto (Modern Indian Poetics), Kaala Rekha( Essays in Comparative Literature)are monuments of contemporary Indian Literature , unsurpassed to this day. His prose works prove that he is Albert Einstein of Indian Literature.

After completing the first round of reading the reader would certainly agree with Vishwanatha Satyanarayana ,Telugu poet of romantic era , recipient of Gyanpith Award for his “Ramayan Kalp Vriksh” who wrote preface to this book “ Every one , not only the telugu – speaking people all Indians must be grateful to him for writing this book”.

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Ramayana, a replica of Vedas

S. VARADARAJAN

There are several versions of the Sri Ramayana, one of the two greatest epics. Following Sri Valmiki Ramayana several editions have been published in various languages, besides scores of commentaries written across centuries. Late.GunturuSeshendra Sharma, scholar poet of 20th Century unearthed secrets of the Ramayana through his popular Telugu book “Shodasi”.

The novelty of nomenclature Shodasi , called Sri Vidya is reflected , in the 16th Chapter . Sharma’s intellectual depth comes forth in analyzingSundara Kanda specially through KundaliniYoga . The author highlights hidden truth in Valmiki’s thought that is similar to Vedas and says that Trijata’s dream in Sundara Kanda reflects Gayatri Mantra of 32 Syllabi in 4 lines. Sharma pays rich encomiums in the description of Lanka surrounded by three impregnable borders. He compares these three borders with Trikuta viz... Shakti ,Kaamaraaja , VagbhavaKutas with those of Sri Vidya in Kundalini . A staunch believer of Vedas, the author feels that Ramayana is a replica of Vedas and oriented towards the character of Indra . He concludes that in Ramayana the mentioning of the supreme God is Indra and not Vishnu, as the presiding deity of valour in Vedas. Utterances of the word Vishnu were considered to be imaginary overstatements in the author’s view.

This book lends a new perspective to the Ramayana by adding the dimension of KundaliniYoga .

The foreword by VishwanathaSatyanarayana adds credibility to the book. The current work is an English translation of the original by GurujadaSuryanarayanaMurthy , a scientist by profession . His proficiency in the subject is evident in the translation throughout that doesn’t swerve from the original’s purport.

The Hindu

(Friday Review: 2nd October 2015)

A Resplendent Icon of all Arts

 

This is an exemplary book which elevated the status of Indian Literary Criticism to the peaks of the world literature. Shodasi is a name associated with a great hymn. The title suggests that it’s a book on spiritual discourse. A reading of this book suggests that the spirit of scientific temper is critical to comprehend Valmiki’sSrimad Ramayana. Besides this, command on Vedic or Scriptural knowledge is essential. What does a layman has to say when a towering personality like ViswanathaSatyanarayana himself extolled the critical acumen and serious scholarship of Seshendra Sharma.

 

Sharma has made it crystal clear that unless one has an apparent understanding of the plot’s context, psyche of the characters, and the milieu of the bygone days supplemented by extraordinary scholarship, sound knowledge of phonetics and awareness on contemporary issues; one cannot easily comprehend the poetic diction of Valmiki. The debate on the phrase “Netraturaha” is a fitting example. The uniqueness of the title, Sundarakanda, Kundalini Yoga, Gayatri Mantra secretly hidden in Trijata’s dream sequence, considering The Bharatha as an image of The Ramayana.... this book is a repository of many such critical discourses. It is replete with inconceivable and unfathomable issues. This magnum opus is an invaluable gift to the Telugu literature.

 

- VIPULA, Viswa Katha Vedika: May 2014

(An exclusive Telugu Monthly Magazine for stories)

 

* * *

 

Valmiki Ramayana – Greatest Medicine for Mankind

 

The story of Ramayana is prescribed as textbook for students. Sita and Rama are worshiped as prime couple. No need to mention about reciting it. Whether Valmiki was satisfied with simple narration of the story? Seshendra Sharma denies it.

 

He analyzed it mentioning that to understand the inner meanings of Valmiki Ramayana, the scientific knowledge is essential.

 

The underlying secret of the sage’s mind will be known through the knowledge of science.

 

It is the firm opinion of Seshendra that the argument that “the sciences are for scholars only” is a conspiracy hatched by Selfish scholars and lazy uneducated persons.

 

Seshendra who has democratic ideology and conviction on science and literature informs the public about the secrets of Ramayana expounded by Valmiki. He explains that Valmiki dedicated ambrosia (The Greatest Medicine) named “Kundalini Yoga” to the mankind. The poetry in the metre of AnushtupSloka is the honey coating to the medicine. It was explained with great introspection and exemplary scholarship. He concludes that the Ramayana is older than the MahaBharatha and it is another form of Veda. Valmiki introduced the system of meditation in Ramayana. The Introspection and research bent of mind of Seshendra are spread over in the book in two streams. The exuberant fragrance of scholarship is experienced throughout the book.

 

The present generation can understand the scholarship of Seshendra in Vedas and Mantra Sastra. Seshendra is a poet who has composed unique RuthuGhosha (Cry of the Seasons: Metrical Poetry) and revolutionary free verse –MandeSuryudu (The Burning Sun).

 

- Andhra Prabha (Telugu Daily), 24th August 2014.

 

* * *

 

Two Great Peaks in the world literary criticism and research

 

Shodasi: Secrets of The Ramayana and SwarnahamsaHarshanaishada from the mighty pen of the great Telugu poet, GunturuSeshendra Sharma are considered to be the two great peaks in the world literary criticism and research. This is a truth most contemporary Telugu writers and readers aren’t aware of. The way Seshendra could discover Kundalini Yoga, Gayathri Mantra in Shodasi, he could discern the treasure trove of mantra yoga, Sri Mahatripurasundari, Chintamani mantra in Swarnahamsa.

 

At a time when our universities which are mere Degrees production Units, churn out “solid waste” in the name of research; Seshendra even while attending to his job as a Municipal Commissioner created research oriented critical volumes like a sage.

 

Though Shodasi was published in 1967 and Swarnahamsa in 1968; Swarnahamsa was created by him much before Shodasi was conceived. The concepts that Srinatha, Nannayya and Mallanatha, the Telugu Classical poets couldn’t decipher,

Seshendra could. He humbly submits that he is most fortunate that the triumvirate had left behind some pertinent concepts only to be discovered by him at a later stage.

 

These two great kavyas were serialised under the editorship of late NeelamrajuVenkataSeshaiah in Andhra Prabha Daily, Sunday Literary Supplements from 1963 to 1967 and Seshendra’s poems and non-fiction were published in the book forms (6) only after they appeared in serial form in Andhra Prabha.

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GunturuSeshendraSarma, the well-known poet, critic and scholar of unfathomable depth, has to his credit quite a number of books in Telugu as well as English. A keen intellect and a lucid exponent of the intricacies in Samskrit literature, the author brought out a treatise on Ramayana. The book also reveals the symbolism in our epics and shows the spirit behind.

 

According to the author, Sage Valmiki has observed Ramayana as though it is a story of a dynasty in its outward appearance. But when the story part is kept aside, the hidden secrets of the Mantrasastra come out. Valmiki’s Ramayana is full of Vedic literature, language and usages. Ramayana can be appreciated from three angles. The poetic beauty, the historicity and the secret meaning of mother Parasakti. Later Upanishads have taken Valmiki Ramayana as the way to the Mantrasastra. Rama’s wife Sita is considered as Parasakti. In Devi BhagavathamSita is described as Goddess Gayatri. The author has taken unusual pains and quoted Vedic dictations which are literally taken by Valmiki in his Ramayana. Thus it has been a product of Vedas and the usages in Ramayana and the words used therein and the similies adopted by Valmiki speak inexplicably the secret of Mother Lalita in his stories.

 

The author has given and attached a very great significance for Sundarakanda in Ramayana. The author has quoted numerous quotations from Smrithis and Srithis to establish that Sundara-kanda is beautiful because Anjaneya the Jeeva has seen Sita the Parasakti. Hence this canto is so styled as Sundara. According to the author “Sita” means “Kundalini.” Hanuman has seen Sita while she was sitting on the ground. Ground means Earth. Earth denotes Mooladharam. The serpent Kundalini stays in this. Thus it is symbolised as Sita sat on the ground. Hanuman the Yogi has the vision of Kundalini in Sita. With the aid of Ida and Pingala, Kundalini travels in Sushumna through spinal cord crossing the six fluxes, and finally reaching Sahasraram. This again speaks of “Shodasi.” Rama is a beautiful man. He is having a Sundari in Sita (a beautiful woman). The descriptions are beautiful in this canto. Thus it is synonymous with “Soundarya-lahari” of Sankaracharya.

 

The author expressed that Mahabharata is a reflection of Ramayana in all the cause, origin and delivery. Innumerable similarities are quoted from both Valmiki and Vyasa to prove that the usages, style and similies are almost similar in both the epics. He compares Vyasa’s “Nalacharitam” with Sundarakanda of Valmiki in the vision of Srividya.

 

The author further argues that Kalidasa’s “Meghasandesam” is only an imitation of Valmiki. The flight of Anjaneya in search of Sita is the basis for Kalidasa’s “Meghasandesam.” Both Sita and the Yaksha’s wife are described as “Syamas” – meaning in the middle of youth. The duration of separation is one year in both the cases. Ultimately the author said that “Meghasandesam” is the offspring of Ramayana, with yearning to see Parasakti.

 

The author has taken the readers in his book to that sublime beauty where there is no further argument, than to enjoy the flow of citations with their intrinsic meaning and full of scientific vision. His unsurpassed knowledge in Mantrasastra has enabled him to pass dictums vivisecting the symbolic mysticisms into splinters and handing the kernel of truth under each word, usage, and application. He deserves all praise for this meritorious contribution to our literature.

  

Visionary Poet of the Millennium

An Indian poet Prophet

Seshendra Sharma

October 20th, 1927 - May 30th, 2007

seshendrasharma.weebly.com/

www.facebook.com/GunturuSeshendraSharma/

eBooks :http://kinige.com/author/Gunturu+Seshendra+Sharma

Seshendra Sharma is one of the most outstanding minds of modern Asia. He is the foremost of the Telugu poets today who has turned poetry to the gigantic strides of human history and embellished literature with the thrills and triumphs of the 20th century. A revolutionary poet who spurned the pedestrian and pedantic poetry equally, a brilliant critic and a scholar of Sanskrit, this versatile poet has breathed a new vision of modernity to his vernacular.Such minds place Telugu on the world map of intellectualism. Readers conversant with names like Paul Valery, Gauguin, and Dag Hammarskjold will have to add the name of Seshendra Sharma the writer from India to that dynasty of intellectuals.

 

Rivers and poets

Are veins and arteries

Of a country.

Rivers flow like poems

For animals, for birds

And for human beings-

The dreams that rivers dream

Bear fruit in the fields

The dreams that poets dream

Bear fruit in the people-

* * * * * *

The sunshine of my thought fell on the word

And its long shadow fell upon the century

Sun was playing with the early morning flowers

Time was frightened at the sight of the martyr-

-Seshendra Sharma

B.A: Andhra Christian College: Guntur: A.P: India

B.L : Madras University: Madras

Deputy Municipal Commissioner (37 Years)

Dept of Municipal Administration, Government of Andhra Pradesh

Parents: G.Subrahmanyam (Father) ,Ammayamma (Mother)

Siblings: Anasuya,Devasena (Sisters),Rajasekharam(Younger brother)

Wife: Mrs.Janaki Sharma

Children: Vasundhara , Revathi (Daughters),

Vanamaali ,Saatyaki (Sons)

 

Seshendra Sharma better known as Seshendra is

a colossus of Modern Indian poetry.

His literature is a unique blend of the best of poetry and poetics.

Diversity and depth of his literary interests and his works

are perhaps hitherto unknown in Indian literature.

From poetry to poetics, from Mantra Sastra to Marxist Politics his writings bear an unnerving pprint of his rare genius.

His scholar ship and command over Sanskrit , English and Telugu Languages has facilitated his emergence as a towering personality of comparative literature in the 20th century world literature.

T.S.Eliot ,ArchbaldMacleish and Seshendra Sharma are trinity of world poetry and Poetics.

His sense of dedication to the genre of art he chooses to express himself and

the determination to reach the depths of subject he undertakes to explore

place him in the galaxy of world poets / world intellectuals.

Seshendra’seBooks :http://kinige.com/author/Gunturu+Seshendra+Sharma

Seshendra Sharma’s Writings Copyright © Saatyaki S/o Seshendra Sharma

Contact :saatyaki@gmail.com+919441070985+917702964402

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GunturuSeshendraSarma: an extraordinary poet-scholar

One of the ironies in literature is that

he came to be known more as a critic than a poet

 

HYDERABAD: An era of scholastic excellence and poetic grandeur has come to an end in the passing away of GunturuSeshendraSarma, one of the foremost poets and critics in Telugu literature. His mastery over western literature and Indian `AlankaraSastra' gave his works a stunning imagery, unparalleled in modern Indian works. One of the ironies in literature is that he came to be known more as a critic than a poet. The Central SahityaAkademi award was conferred on him for his work `KaalaRekha' and not for his poetic excellence. The genius in him made him explore `Kundalini Yoga' in his treatise on Ramayana in `Shodasi' convincingly. His intellectual quest further made him probe `NaishadhaKaavya' in the backdrop of `LalitaSahasraNaamavali', `SoundaryaLahari' and `Kama Kala Vilasam' in `SwarnaHamsa', Seshendra saw the entire universe as a storehouse of images and signs to which imagination was to make value-addition. Like Stephene Mallarme who was considered a prophet of symbolism in French literature, SeshendraSarma too believed that art alone would survive in the universe along with poetry. He believed that the main vocation of human beings was to be artists and poets. His `Kavisena Manifesto' gave a new direction to modern criticism making it a landmark work in poetics. Telugus would rue the intellectual impoverishment they suffered in maintaining a `distance' from him. Seshendra could have given us more, but we did not deserve it! The denial of the Jnanpeeth Award to him proves it

The Hindu

India's National Newspaper

Friday, Jun 01, 2007

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Ramayana, a replica of Vedas

S. VARADARAJAN

There are several versions of the Sri Ramayana, one of the two greatest epics. Following Sri Valmiki Ramayana several editions have been published in various languages, besides scores of commentaries written across centuries. Late. Gunturu Seshendra Sharma, scholar poet of 20th Century unearthed secrets of the Ramayana through his popular Telugu book “Shodasi”.

The novelty of nomenclature Shodasi , called Sri Vidya is reflected , in the 16th Chapter . Sharma’s intellectual depth comes forth in analyzing Sundara Kanda specially through Kundalini Yoga . The author highlights hidden truth in Valmiki’s thought that is similar to Vedas and says that Trijata’s dream in Sundara Kanda reflects Gayatri Mantra of 32 Syllabi in 4 lines. Sharma pays rich encomiums in the description of Lanka surrounded by three impregnable borders. He compares these three borders with Trikuta viz... Shakti , Kaamaraaja , Vagbhava Kutas with those of Sri Vidya in Kundalini . A staunch believer of Vedas, the author feels that Ramayana is a replica of Vedas and oriented towards the character of Indra . He concludes that in Ramayana the mentioning of the supreme God is Indra and not Vishnu, as the presiding deity of valour in Vedas. Utterances of the word Vishnu were considered to be imaginary overstatements in the author’s view.

This book lends a new perspective to the Ramayana by adding the dimension of Kundalini Yoga .

The foreword by Vishwanatha Satyanarayana adds credibility to the book. The current work is an English translation of the original by Gurujada Suryanarayana Murthy , a scientist by profession . His proficiency in the subject is evident in the translation throughout that doesn’t swerve from the original’s purport.

The Hindu

India’s National Newspaper

(Friday Review: 2nd October 2015)

 

Shodasi

Astounding scholarship of Sanskrit classics

A product of deep research, intense intellectual labour

And amazing scholarship

The book under review which is an English translation by Dr. Gurajada Suryanarayana Murthy of the original Telugu Text represents a scholarly attempt by the erudite author to justify and prove the validity of certain radical propositions which he makes about the world – renowned Kavya – Valmiki Ramayana. The propositions that he makes are – 1. Sundara Kanda is an allegory of Kundalini Yoga 2. Sita is Kundalini Shakti 3. Hanuman’s search – mission of Sita symbolises Tantric Exercise of identifying the Kundalini Shakti and raising it from the Moola Dhara Chakra (denoted by Lanka) to Sahasrara Chakra 4. The descriptive terms employed about Sita hint at Sita being essentially a Kundalini Shakti 5. Trijata’s dream is nothing but Gayathri Mantra 6. Valmiki’s language has pronounced Vedic flavour 7. The phraseology employed by Valmiki corresponds largely to the terms employed in Lalitha Sahasra Nama , Durga Saptasati , Devi Bhagawatam etc.. 8. The aptness of the name Sundara Kanda is provable on Strong Grounds 9. Ramayana is anterior to Bharatha on various grounds such as the Vedic language employed in the former the reference of Valmiki and Ramayana in Mahabharata and absence of reference to Vyasa and Mahabharata episodes in Ramayana , Mention of Rama in Mahabharata and Rama’s greater antiquity than Pandavas and a host of other plausible evidences 10. Indra , the chief Vedic god more prominently featured and praised in Ramayana than Vishnu of the Puranic origin. 11. Megha Sandesham of Kalidasa originated out of the seed of Valmiki Ramayana and 12. The benedictory verse of Sakuntalam is eulogy of Devi.

The brain – tickling propositions are not just of the cuff remarks made without basis but credible theories buttressed with profuse quotations of relevant Sanskrit Texts , wide and deep study of the relevant treatises unassailable arguments based on internal and external evidences and astounding scholarship of Sanskrit classics.

On the flip side, there are a few errors in the transliteration of the Sanskrit texts. Had the Sanskrit passages from the treatises been provided in Devanagari Script also in addition to transliterated form in Roman Script value and appeal of this essentially Sanskrit oriented book would be much higher to the large and growing Sanskrit readership. The book is doubtless, a product of deep research, Intense intellectual labour and amazing scholarship.

The Vedanta kesari : August 2016

The Lion of Vedanta

A Cultural and Spirtual Monthly of the of the Ramakrishna Order since 1944

  

AN INTELLECTUAL FEAST

Along With utmost devotion

The author has clear understanding of not only of the Ramayana

but also Mantra Sastra , Vedas and Kundalini Yoga

His method is going deep into the subject and at the

same time comparing the same with ideas of other branches of literature

Shodasi , authored by Seshendra Sharma is a book of a special type . Though its purpose is to unfold secrets of the Ramayana many other aspects from different branches of knowledge also find a place there.

The Ramayana is read in every household with devotion. It narrates not only story of Rama but it also spotlights very intricate and subtler points in other branches of knowledge, a point not even noticed by many.

The author has clear understanding of not only of the Ramayana but also Mantra Sastra , Vedas and Kundalini Yoga . There are two approaches to understand the Sastras. One is vertical which is closely followed in Sanskrit Literature. It is reading a book with the help of commentary on it. In this method not only each word of the original analysed; its correct meaning and contextual purpose are also examined. The second is a horizontal method where in various ideas in the text are read not with one commentary but with many commentaries by different people. This gives total meaning of the text.

Seshendra Sharma follows both methods. His method is going deep into the subject and at the same time comparing the same with ideas of other branches of literature.

This needs a thorough understanding of various branches and ability to compare texts and spot new ideas and enjoy the same. For example , when Hanuman asks Sita who she is ,she replies ,“sama dvadasa tatraham raghavasya nivesane bhunjhana manushan bhogan sarva kama samrudhinee “ . Meaning “I enjoyed 12 years of mundane pleasure in the home of Rama”

Though she is not an ordinary human being, she enjoyed mundane pleasures. “ you may mistake that I am a mortal woman , but understand I am Sri Maha Lakshmi” . That was the message. The most important clue is the statement “ Aham Sarva Kama Samridhinee “ . In Devi Bhagawatham we find “ Matah Sankaree Kamade “ In Sri Sukta “ Sarva Kamartha Siddhaye “ and in Lalitha Sahasra Nama “ too it is stated “ Om Kamyayai Namah” . If Sita were to be just an ordinary being all these statements would have been irrelevant.

At another place she says “ Maya Ramasya Rajarshe Bharyayaya Paramatmanah” which means that she is wife of Paramatma. Hanuman , the devotee , recognized Sita to be none other than Jaganmata. Hence he could identify her easily as the divine mother and says “ tat sreemadyate tarat”. The word sreemat is used to mean brilliance Hanuman identifies Sita as Devi by the holy seed letter ( Sreem ) .

The book is full of comparisons between different branches of learning and surely a feast for one who could enjoy the existence of similar ideas at various places. It only proves that ways may be different but the goal is one.

Seshendra Sharma physically lifts the minds of the readers and offers an intellectual feast along with utmost devotion. Surely everyone should read this book and keep a copy of the same at home.

Goda Venkateswara Sastry

Tatvaloka : June 2016

The Splendour of Truth

( Monthly Magazine)

  

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Ramayan Through Kundalini Yoga

Shodasi is an ideal read for Sanskrit-literate readers

who are open to eclectic yogarthas and connotative meanings

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So you thought Vyasa was before Valmiki, Mahabharat was before Ramayan, Rama a Vishnu avatar, and tantrism distinct from vedism? Think again. In Shodasi: Secrets of the Ramayana, Telugu poet Seshendra Sharma re-reads the Ramayan to come up with a number of new conclusions.

Much of the book sets out to prove that Ramayan was written before the Mahabharat. Sharma discusses how Indra is cited more often than Vishnu, thus placing the context of the Ramayan closer to Vedic than Puranic thought. He quotes from the Mahabharat to show how it follows descriptions of hills, rivers from the Ramayan. The Mahabharat has some prose, and therefore, it must have been composed after Ramayan, which is entirely in poetry. These are only some of the numerous reasons that Sharma offers to suggest a new sequence of our itihasas.

Sharma’s book is also an experimental reading of the Ramayan through the interpretive lens of what he calls Kundalini yoga. Hanuman’s flight to Sri Lanka gets a new interpretation. “Charana Charite Pathi” is interpreted as the path of Kundalini, and the first verse of the Sundara Kanda “Tatho Ravana Nithayah” is interpreted by Sharma to refer to Hanuman traversing the sushumna nadi of the Kundalini.

Trijata’s dream becomes the Gayatri mantra through an imaginative recasting of words as numbers. Gaja (elephant) means eight, danta (teeth) means thirty-two, and maha-gaja-chaturdantam somehow also adds up to 32 syllables, which is the number of syllables in the Gayatri mantra. That Trijata’s dream is halfway through the Ramayan also becomes significant for Sharma, he calls it the ‘central bead’ in the Ramayan garland of 24,000 beads. Identifying 32-syllables as the Gayatri follows a convention, for mantras are referenced by the number of syllables; however, it is the “secret” yogartha—or mystical, anagogical translations—derived by Sharma that becomes problematic, unless he is considered an authority in his own right.

conclude that the name Sundarakand is unrelated to any descriptions of beauty of any of the main characters in the Ramayan. However, Soundarya and Tripura-Sundari are well-known conventions in the tantric tradition and hence, Sharma concludes that Sundarakand derives its name from Shakti’s beauty, and “Sundara-Hanuman” means “Hanuman who is a devotee of Devi” (117).

A coda in this book is about the benedictory verse in Kalidasa’s Sakuntalam which has traditionally been understood to refer to Ishwara. Sharma re-interprets this verse highlighting the “eight forms” of the last line as the eight forms of Devi that please Ishwara.

This book is suitable for a reader who is Sanskrit-literate and open to eclectic yogarthas and connotative meanings. Sharma cites substantially from the Ramayan in roman but without diacritics, this is difficult to follow; and he does not always include translation. Sharma often cites commentators without citing names and sources. It is not clear why the book is called Shodasi—readers may note, this book is not about the Srividya tradition. Even if the reader is unconvinced by Sharma’s reasoning or methodology, the free flow of references may prove absorbing for a reader interested in the subject.

This could also be an eclectic reference for a scholar researching tantric elements in the Ramayan.

- Mani Rao

 

The Sunday Standard Magazine

The New Indian Express

29th November 2015

 

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Scholarly and deeply researched monograph

Pearls of insightful ideas and truths

Most of the ancient treatises like the Valmiki Ramayana and Bhagavatha lend themselves to allegorical interpretations. The book under review is scholarly and deeply researched monograph that formulates the startling theory that the immortal epic Valmiki Ramayana, particularly, Sundara Kanda, is nothing but the enunciation of the doctrine of Kundalini Shakthi Yoga. The very title of the book is bound to make the scholarly fraternity and even the common readership sit up and take notice. The radical propositions that the erudite author advances are on the basis of relentless logic and a mass of internal and external evidences are: Ramayana is rooted in Vedas, both in terms of ideas it disseminates and its verbal garb in those it is clothed. Many of the similes that Valmiki employs are inspired by vedic poetry and literature. Many of the expressions employed in the Valmiki Ramayana bear close resemblance to phraseology found in texts like Devi Bhagavatham, and Soundarya Lahari. Sita is none other than Divine Mother and Gayathri. As borne out by an analysis of similarity of names and words used in Valmiki Ramayana and Sri Vidya Literature. Sundara Kanda is nothing but delineation Kundalini Yoga. Hanuman’s aerial voyage in search of Sita represents allegorically the devi worshipper’s exercise in Kundalini Yoga. Sita is Kundalini Shakti. The episodes of mainaka, surasa and Simhika – representing satwa, rajas, tamas respectively –represent piercing of the triple knots by the spiritual aspirant. The Sanskrit phrase “Charana Charithe pathi” that occurs at the opening Canto of Sundara Kanda clearly implies Hanuman’s movement through the path of Sushumna. Lanka is the Mula Dhara Chakra, the seat of Kundalini implied in Valmiki’s graphic description of Lanka, the place of incarceration of Sita. Lanka is Muladhara also from the point of view of Yoga and it is Sri Chakra from the point of view of Spiritual practice. The burning of Lanka symbolises awakening of Swadhishthana. The aptness of name Sundara Kanda is explicable in the light of various evidences embedded in the epic. Trijata’s dream is nothing but the Gayathri Mantra as can be inferred from certain Sanskrit terms representing their numerical equivalents employed to describe dream – scenes of Trijata and also from Dramatis Personae appearing in her dream. Mahabharata is an image of Ramayana and many striking similarities may be found between Valmiki and Vyasa in their style of narrative. Valmiki’s Ramayana is the seed of Meghadootha and Valmiki reincarnates, as it were, as Kalidasa. The vedic god Indra , as the supreme deity dominates epic as a benchmark for all comparisons with Rama and dwarfs Vishnu, the Puranik God, in importance. Ramayana is anterior to Mahabharata. There are 2 annexures at the end of the book “benedictory verse of Sakunthalam is nothing but eulogy of Devi “and “All Humans have same destination” . Coming from the pen of the Telugu poet proficient in several languages, who was active in various disciplines ranging from Sanskrit studies to Cultural activism and who was given the Sahitya Akademi Award, this book is definitely of exceptional merit as the ingenious interpretations of various verses of the epic and also of allied hymnal literature to establish the novel but plausible propositions, come as a refreshing revelations. The book unmistakably bears imprints of an amazingly analytical, deeply erudite and marvellously nimble mind that effortlessly plumbs the oceanic epic and picks up and presents to the community of discerning readers pearls of insightful ideas and truths. One glaring drawback of this essentially Sanskrit-oriented book is the absence of Sanskrit quotations in Devanagari script as transliterations in roman script that are given are poor substitute sonorous Sanskrit words clothed in Devanagari script. The merits mentioned in a short review of this book packed with quaint and profound ideas constitute merely the proverbial tip of an iceberg. A fund of fruitful and lofty ideas awaits those who venture dive deep into this great book. In short this book is a riveting read for scholars and a strong stimulant for the general readers. –

N. Hariharan

Madurai

Prabuddha Bharata

March 2016

A monthly journal of the Ramakrishna Order

started by Swami Vivekananda in 1893

 

Unearthing secrets of Ramayana Ramayana

A sea-bed of secrets

A great boon to Devi Upasakas and Practioners of Sri Vidya

The Ramayana popular as the Adi Kavya (first work of poetry) the world over is not just beautiful poetry . It is a sea bed of secrets – containing the methods of Kundalini yoga and mantra sastra . This is the heart of Shodasi : Secrets of the Ramayana authored by Seshendra Sharma , one of the towering personalities of Telugu Poetry . This book, a collection 16 articles with one article added on from this edition appeared in Telugu Original in 1967. Mr. N.Ramesan IAS , the then Principal Secretary to Education Dept , the then AP Govt observed feelingly in his preface , that this work is a boon for Devi Upasakas and merits to be translated into English and other Indian Languages. This advice has fructified after 48 Years. Dr. Suryanarayana Murthy , a physicist (retired : Baba Atomic Research Centre ) has translated Shodasi into English with commendable clarity of grasp over the subject and felicity of thought process and flow of reading. The story of Rama narrated in enchanting poetry, according to Seshendra is a honey supplement to the bitter medicine called Kundalini Yoga. Valmiki Maharshi chose the Story of Rama to propagate Kundalini Yoga and systems of meditation in the society, among the masses of his era. This is the fulcrum of this Research work. What is of significance is that the author , in order to buttress his analysis and arguments cites extensively and conclusively from the Original Text of Ramayana itself. This Translation introduces this seminal work to wider sections of readers in other parts of our multilingual nation and to scholars engaged in research in Indian scriptures in the west. As the reader goes through the pages of Shodasi it gradually becomes clear that , the story that Valmiki was a Hunter , after viewing the pair of birds dying for each other renounced hunting and became a Rishi is an episode woven around him to make him and his epic the Ramayana popular and that Valmiki belongs to the pantheon of Vedic Rishis . Seshendra at every point of analysis cites from the Vedas and sruthis. His own introduction to this work “one word to begin with “ he discusses elaborately on the significance of Valmiki’s Style of expression of phrases . This chapter is the gateway to the entire work. While analysing one stanza of he touches upon a simile Which compares moon in the night sky wit vrishabham in Goshtam (cowshed). Seshendra goes deeper into shruthi and Vedas and concludes that go means in Sanskrit speech and “goshte vrishabham mattamiva bhramantam “ implies that like Omkara moves at the throat the divine personality of moon is moving in the sky. That intricate and deep is the analysis of the author. Seshendra , then discusses why sundara kanda was chosen as the name of a chapter . He observes incisively and proves conclusively that Sita is the main character of this Kanda and Sita is none other than Adi Shakti ( The Divine Mother ) Sri Maha Tripura Sundari.This is the reason why Maharshi named it Sundara Kanda. Sundara Kanda is the heart of the Ramayana and Trijata Swapna (Demoness Trijata’s Dream) is its heart. Sundara Kanda is nothing but Kundalini Yoga . Right from the 1st stanza of the chapter Maharshi starts unfolding the path of Kundalini Yoga in a suggestive manner garbed in enchanting poetry teaming with breath taking similes. Hanuman is SriVidyopasaka. The author discusses the 1st stanza “Chaaranaa Charithe pathi “ with intrinsic evidence from the Ramayana itself. Charanas are Divine Singers and their path is the sky . In other words in Kundalini Yoga “Sushumna “. The entire chapter elaborates each stanza in a captivating tone and concludes with Lanka Dahana ( Burning of Lanka ) as piercing of the Sahasrara seated in the head. First hand reading alone will give the unnerving feel of this chapter. Another important chapter is “ Trijata’s dream is nothing but Gayathri mantra “. In this , Seshendra views Trijata’s Dream, one of the demonesses guarding Sita in Ashoka Vana as Gayathri mantra. He dwelves deep into each Sloka of this episode and proves convincingly that Valmiki created this episode in order to embed the mantra in Ramayana. Till this point this book is a cluster of revelations. “The later part is both revelation and research. Seshendra in the chapter “ Indra is the Supreme Deity of Ramayana “ discusses each stanza of the Ramayana and goes on to reveal that at the time when Valmiki was writing the Ramayana the concepts of Vishnu and incarnation (Avatar ) were non– existent . Indra is the supreme deity of the Ramayana. In other 2 chapters the author‘s exhaustive study and Incisive analysis are all pervasive. Seshendra explodes the myth sought to be propagated by some of the Western Scholars that the Bharatha precedes the Ramayana . Shodasi , as rightly pointed out in one preface, is a great boon to Devi Upasakas and Practioners of Sri Vidya. All these ages this Adi Kavya is seen only as the Story of Rama. Here is a path breaking work which reveals the hidden treasure of spiritual secrets which Valmiki Maharshi embedded them in his epic.

Insight ( Sunday Magazine )

The Hitavada ( English Daily ) 1st November 2015

 

Given my ever growing collection of bottle caps it should be of no surprise that one of the first things I picked up to photograph with a macro lens was a cap. Of the ones I had with me I liked the design of this Arrogant Bastard Ale best and chose it.

But what if I decided to photograph every one of my caps at this size, and then wanted a print??

Well, here is where the math gets fun.

All calculations were made while assuming 1600 unique caps in my collection at the moment.

If I were to photograph them as I did this one, I could print each out at 8 x 12 while still remaining above 300+ dpi. When combined together they would cover an area of over 1000 square feet (approximately 100 square meters).

As for the computer file, if each one is 4060 x 2707 pixels, that would give us an image size of a little over 17.5 gigapixels

"The general who wins the battle makes many calculations in his temple before the battle is fought. The general who loses makes but few calculations beforehand." Sun Tzu

 

I was messing around with some chess pieces, trying out some DOF techniques (I'm a bit of a newbie!) and it set me off thinking about battles. It's amazing what your imagination can do with a few bits of varnished wood! HMM :)

 

On another note, this was taken with a Canon because my friend let me play with his brand new DSLR. I think I'm in love ♥

Inspector Matt Bailey-Smith and the pint that could cost £50,000.

 

Car wreckage and a £50,000 pint come to Manchester

 

People in Manchester were be exposed to two very different consequences of drink driving by Greater Manchester Police this week. The wreckage of a car whose owner was killed in drink driving crash went on display at the University of Manchester, alongside a pint worth £50,000 – the personal financial cost of a conviction.

 

The £50,000 pint, displayed behind velvet ropes and housed in a protective glass case, represents the personal financial cost of drink-driving, calculated for the first time by the Institute of Advanced Motorists. The calculation reflects the fines, legal costs, rise in insurance premiums and possible job losses faced by those who are convicted.

 

The wreckage, known as the Think! Car, was owned by a 21-year-old man who lost control of his car on his way home and hit a tree, sadly killing him.

 

The activity was part of the University ‘Wellbeing Week’ and involved police conducting on the spot breathalyser tests and handing out free ‘scratchcards’, as well as activity highlighting the dangers posed to cyclists and bikers straying into the blind spots of HGVs and buses.

 

Inspector Matt Bailey-Smith from Greater Manchester Police said: "Drink driving ruins lives. It can cost motorists their family, job and worse still their life or that of somebody else.

 

"Many people do not think of the consequences of driving under the influence of alcohol until it is too late and police are committed to tackling this issue so that we can make the roads of Greater Manchester a safer place to be.

 

"If you are planning on driving then the safest choice you can make is to avoid alcohol all together, and if you see somebody else attempting to drink and drive then make sure you stop them. It could be the difference between life and death."

 

Road Safety Minister Stephen Hammond said:

 

“It might only look like a humble pint of beer, but it could end up costing much more than a few quid – in fact it comes with an eye-watering hidden cost if it pushes you over the limit.

 

“Most people know not to drink and drive but a small number still do, which is why we are highlighting the consequences of a drink drive conviction through our THINK! campaign.

 

“Anyone thinking of drinking and driving should be without any doubt – if you are caught driving over the limit you will face a heavy court fine and lose your licence – you could even go to prison.”

 

To find out more about Greater Manchester Police please visit our website.

www.gmp.police.uk

 

You should call 101, the new national non-emergency number, to report crime and other concerns that do not require an emergency response.

 

Always call 999 in an emergency, such as when a crime is in progress, violence is being used or threatened or where there is danger to life.

 

You can also call anonymously with information about crime to Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111. Crimestoppers is an independent charity who will not want your name, just your information. Your call will not be traced or recorded and you do not have to go to court or give a statement.

  

SHODASI : SECRETS OF THE RAMAYANA

Kundalini Yoga & Gayathri Mantra in Valmiki Ramayana

ENGLISH HINDI AND TELUGU ORIGINAL

AUTHOR : SESHENDRA SHARMA

Seshendra : Visionary Poet of the Millennium

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REVIEWS :

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Valmiki , The Sage of 5th century B.C wrote The Ramayana not to narrate the story of Rama in an absorbing style. Though the epic poem presents Rama’s Journey of life in enchanting poetry , the story and the enchanting poetry are sugar coating or honey to the organic medicine called Kundalini Yoga. Maharshi Valmiki wrote the Ramayana to spread / propagate Kundalini Yoga among the masses. Thus the soul of The Ramayana is Kundalini Yoga / Sri Vidya. Valmiki embedded Kundalini Yoga in the Chapter titled “ Sundara Kanda” . Hanuman and Ravana are Kundalini Yogis of Samaya and Kaula Paths.

And in Sundara Kanda , he inserted “ Trijata Swapna “ , dream sequence of a demon and in it embedded the Gayathri Mantra. The concepts of Vishnu and Avatar (reincarnation) were nonexistent during the Ramayana Period.

Seshendra Sharma , Scholar - Poet in his Magnum Opus of Research “ Shodasi : Secrets of The Ramayana “ reveals these secrets lying hidden for thousands of years .

 

* * * * *

How old is Valmiki Ramayana? One Calculation says 8 lacks 70 thousand Years. Going by the Christian calendar dating to approximately the 5th to 4th century BC. According to Indian classification of time Ramayana belongs to the Treta Yuga and today we are in the Kali Yuga. All these millions of years the human civilisation the world over, recognised it as the first poetry and in this part of the world i.e. the Indian Subcontinent the central character of the epic is present as an idol of worship in thousands of temples and in every household of believers.

But here is a research work which says Ramayana is merely poetry to the naked eye whereas it is an ensemble of invisible secrets which have been lying unnoticed all these ages.

What could have been the Valmiki Maharshi’s vision which made him chisel an epic poem which is pregnant with startling secrets?

Shodasi : Secrets of the Ramayana , a Magnum Opus comprising both revelations and research findings written in Telugu 47 Years ago is translated into English by Dr. G.S.Murthy , a 86 year old physicist (Retrd) from BARC. Dr. Murthy observes about Shodasi that “the approach adopted by Seshendra Sharma is unprecedented. .. His conclusion that Ramayana is closer to Sruthi than any other scripture is very significant and is based on the intrinsic evidence in the Ramayana itself.... it is a revolt against the customary methods followed to understand the status of Ramayana in the Sanskrit Literature.”

 

The fulcrum of Shodasi is that poetry in Ramayana is a supplement to the bitter medicine called “Kundalini Yoga” and Ramayana is divine Ambrosia for all mundane afflictions and problems that beset the human kind.

Seshendra reveals that Sundara Kanda is the heart of Ramayana and it is nothing but Kundalini Yoga . And the heart of Sundara Kanda is Trijata ‘s Dream , which is nothing but Gayatri Mantra.

Kundalini Yoga which is also known as Sri Vidya is awakening of inner powers dormant in humans through meditation. The very 1st Shloka of Sundara Kanda is analysed and explained exhaustively by the author from several angles. “Chaarana Charithe pathi..(Sky-Path) “is , according to the author the Sushumna in Humans. Lanka Dahana ( Reducing Ravana’s Empire Lanka to ashes ) is the climax of the Kundalini Yoga which is Sahasrara Bhedana. The author analyses citing evidence from the Ramayana original text , that both Paths of Kundalini Yoga , Samaya and Kaula ways are shown in the epic.

What is of paramount importance in this work is that each exposition refers to a cluster of references germane to the main discussion. Hence it is obvious that this work is a scholastic paradise to people who are conversant with Sanskrit literature and other ancient scriptures. A pedestrian reader cannot even peep into Shodasi . Seshendra’s introduction “One word to begin with “sets the tone and tenor of the work. He dilates at length how Sanskrit language is moulded by Valmiki on the lines of Sruthi and Veda to envelop his central theme in suggestive and oblique style.

It is said Valmiki wrote Ramayana in 24 thousand Shlokas taking each syllable of Gayatri Mantra, which has 24 syllables. Seshendra Shows convincingly, where the Gayathri Mantra itself is located in Ramayana. He says “ Sundara Kanda “ is the heart of Ramayana and Trijata ‘s Dream is Sundara Kanda’s heart. “ Maharshi created an apparent episode of “Trijata Swapna “ and through this he embedded Gayathri Mantra in it. “

This book is replete with several such revelations and unnerving observations. The chapters on “ Relationship between Ramayanayana and Megha Sangesham “ “Indra supreme deity “ compel the reader to stop and think at the turn of every observation. This reviewer does not like to “spill all the beans “.

Dr. Murthy, the translator, aptly observes “ It needs a very attentive mind and adequate patience to follow author’s arguments “. Seshendra Sharma( seshendrasharma.weebly.com ) , winner of Sahitya Akademi Award for his “Kaala Rekha “( Arc of Blood ) a collection of essays in comparative literature , a fellow of the Akademi During his life time whose Long Poem “ My Country – My People – Modern Indian Epic “was nominated for Nobel in 2004 is scholar –poet of our times . His Kavisena Manifesto (Modern Indian Poetics), Kaala Rekha( Essays in Comparative Literature)are monuments of contemporary Indian Literature , unsurpassed to this day. His prose works prove that he is Albert Einstein of Indian Literature.

After completing the first round of reading the reader would certainly agree with Vishwanatha Satyanarayana ,Telugu poet of romantic era , recipient of Gyanpith Award for his “Ramayan Kalp Vriksh” who wrote preface to this book “ Every one , not only the telugu – speaking people all Indians must be grateful to him for writing this book”.

--------

Ramayana, a replica of Vedas

S. VARADARAJAN

There are several versions of the Sri Ramayana, one of the two greatest epics. Following Sri Valmiki Ramayana several editions have been published in various languages, besides scores of commentaries written across centuries. Late.GunturuSeshendra Sharma, scholar poet of 20th Century unearthed secrets of the Ramayana through his popular Telugu book “Shodasi”.

The novelty of nomenclature Shodasi , called Sri Vidya is reflected , in the 16th Chapter . Sharma’s intellectual depth comes forth in analyzingSundara Kanda specially through KundaliniYoga . The author highlights hidden truth in Valmiki’s thought that is similar to Vedas and says that Trijata’s dream in Sundara Kanda reflects Gayatri Mantra of 32 Syllabi in 4 lines. Sharma pays rich encomiums in the description of Lanka surrounded by three impregnable borders. He compares these three borders with Trikuta viz... Shakti ,Kaamaraaja , VagbhavaKutas with those of Sri Vidya in Kundalini . A staunch believer of Vedas, the author feels that Ramayana is a replica of Vedas and oriented towards the character of Indra . He concludes that in Ramayana the mentioning of the supreme God is Indra and not Vishnu, as the presiding deity of valour in Vedas. Utterances of the word Vishnu were considered to be imaginary overstatements in the author’s view.

This book lends a new perspective to the Ramayana by adding the dimension of KundaliniYoga .

The foreword by VishwanathaSatyanarayana adds credibility to the book. The current work is an English translation of the original by GurujadaSuryanarayanaMurthy , a scientist by profession . His proficiency in the subject is evident in the translation throughout that doesn’t swerve from the original’s purport.

The Hindu

(Friday Review: 2nd October 2015)

A Resplendent Icon of all Arts

 

This is an exemplary book which elevated the status of Indian Literary Criticism to the peaks of the world literature. Shodasi is a name associated with a great hymn. The title suggests that it’s a book on spiritual discourse. A reading of this book suggests that the spirit of scientific temper is critical to comprehend Valmiki’sSrimad Ramayana. Besides this, command on Vedic or Scriptural knowledge is essential. What does a layman has to say when a towering personality like ViswanathaSatyanarayana himself extolled the critical acumen and serious scholarship of Seshendra Sharma.

 

Sharma has made it crystal clear that unless one has an apparent understanding of the plot’s context, psyche of the characters, and the milieu of the bygone days supplemented by extraordinary scholarship, sound knowledge of phonetics and awareness on contemporary issues; one cannot easily comprehend the poetic diction of Valmiki. The debate on the phrase “Netraturaha” is a fitting example. The uniqueness of the title, Sundarakanda, Kundalini Yoga, Gayatri Mantra secretly hidden in Trijata’s dream sequence, considering The Bharatha as an image of The Ramayana.... this book is a repository of many such critical discourses. It is replete with inconceivable and unfathomable issues. This magnum opus is an invaluable gift to the Telugu literature.

 

- VIPULA, Viswa Katha Vedika: May 2014

(An exclusive Telugu Monthly Magazine for stories)

 

* * *

 

Valmiki Ramayana – Greatest Medicine for Mankind

 

The story of Ramayana is prescribed as textbook for students. Sita and Rama are worshiped as prime couple. No need to mention about reciting it. Whether Valmiki was satisfied with simple narration of the story? Seshendra Sharma denies it.

 

He analyzed it mentioning that to understand the inner meanings of Valmiki Ramayana, the scientific knowledge is essential.

 

The underlying secret of the sage’s mind will be known through the knowledge of science.

 

It is the firm opinion of Seshendra that the argument that “the sciences are for scholars only” is a conspiracy hatched by Selfish scholars and lazy uneducated persons.

 

Seshendra who has democratic ideology and conviction on science and literature informs the public about the secrets of Ramayana expounded by Valmiki. He explains that Valmiki dedicated ambrosia (The Greatest Medicine) named “Kundalini Yoga” to the mankind. The poetry in the metre of AnushtupSloka is the honey coating to the medicine. It was explained with great introspection and exemplary scholarship. He concludes that the Ramayana is older than the MahaBharatha and it is another form of Veda. Valmiki introduced the system of meditation in Ramayana. The Introspection and research bent of mind of Seshendra are spread over in the book in two streams. The exuberant fragrance of scholarship is experienced throughout the book.

 

The present generation can understand the scholarship of Seshendra in Vedas and Mantra Sastra. Seshendra is a poet who has composed unique RuthuGhosha (Cry of the Seasons: Metrical Poetry) and revolutionary free verse –MandeSuryudu (The Burning Sun).

 

- Andhra Prabha (Telugu Daily), 24th August 2014.

 

* * *

 

Two Great Peaks in the world literary criticism and research

 

Shodasi: Secrets of The Ramayana and SwarnahamsaHarshanaishada from the mighty pen of the great Telugu poet, GunturuSeshendra Sharma are considered to be the two great peaks in the world literary criticism and research. This is a truth most contemporary Telugu writers and readers aren’t aware of. The way Seshendra could discover Kundalini Yoga, Gayathri Mantra in Shodasi, he could discern the treasure trove of mantra yoga, Sri Mahatripurasundari, Chintamani mantra in Swarnahamsa.

 

At a time when our universities which are mere Degrees production Units, churn out “solid waste” in the name of research; Seshendra even while attending to his job as a Municipal Commissioner created research oriented critical volumes like a sage.

 

Though Shodasi was published in 1967 and Swarnahamsa in 1968; Swarnahamsa was created by him much before Shodasi was conceived. The concepts that Srinatha, Nannayya and Mallanatha, the Telugu Classical poets couldn’t decipher,

Seshendra could. He humbly submits that he is most fortunate that the triumvirate had left behind some pertinent concepts only to be discovered by him at a later stage.

 

These two great kavyas were serialised under the editorship of late NeelamrajuVenkataSeshaiah in Andhra Prabha Daily, Sunday Literary Supplements from 1963 to 1967 and Seshendra’s poems and non-fiction were published in the book forms (6) only after they appeared in serial form in Andhra Prabha.

-----------------

GunturuSeshendraSarma, the well-known poet, critic and scholar of unfathomable depth, has to his credit quite a number of books in Telugu as well as English. A keen intellect and a lucid exponent of the intricacies in Samskrit literature, the author brought out a treatise on Ramayana. The book also reveals the symbolism in our epics and shows the spirit behind.

 

According to the author, Sage Valmiki has observed Ramayana as though it is a story of a dynasty in its outward appearance. But when the story part is kept aside, the hidden secrets of the Mantrasastra come out. Valmiki’s Ramayana is full of Vedic literature, language and usages. Ramayana can be appreciated from three angles. The poetic beauty, the historicity and the secret meaning of mother Parasakti. Later Upanishads have taken Valmiki Ramayana as the way to the Mantrasastra. Rama’s wife Sita is considered as Parasakti. In Devi BhagavathamSita is described as Goddess Gayatri. The author has taken unusual pains and quoted Vedic dictations which are literally taken by Valmiki in his Ramayana. Thus it has been a product of Vedas and the usages in Ramayana and the words used therein and the similies adopted by Valmiki speak inexplicably the secret of Mother Lalita in his stories.

 

The author has given and attached a very great significance for Sundarakanda in Ramayana. The author has quoted numerous quotations from Smrithis and Srithis to establish that Sundara-kanda is beautiful because Anjaneya the Jeeva has seen Sita the Parasakti. Hence this canto is so styled as Sundara. According to the author “Sita” means “Kundalini.” Hanuman has seen Sita while she was sitting on the ground. Ground means Earth. Earth denotes Mooladharam. The serpent Kundalini stays in this. Thus it is symbolised as Sita sat on the ground. Hanuman the Yogi has the vision of Kundalini in Sita. With the aid of Ida and Pingala, Kundalini travels in Sushumna through spinal cord crossing the six fluxes, and finally reaching Sahasraram. This again speaks of “Shodasi.” Rama is a beautiful man. He is having a Sundari in Sita (a beautiful woman). The descriptions are beautiful in this canto. Thus it is synonymous with “Soundarya-lahari” of Sankaracharya.

 

The author expressed that Mahabharata is a reflection of Ramayana in all the cause, origin and delivery. Innumerable similarities are quoted from both Valmiki and Vyasa to prove that the usages, style and similies are almost similar in both the epics. He compares Vyasa’s “Nalacharitam” with Sundarakanda of Valmiki in the vision of Srividya.

 

The author further argues that Kalidasa’s “Meghasandesam” is only an imitation of Valmiki. The flight of Anjaneya in search of Sita is the basis for Kalidasa’s “Meghasandesam.” Both Sita and the Yaksha’s wife are described as “Syamas” – meaning in the middle of youth. The duration of separation is one year in both the cases. Ultimately the author said that “Meghasandesam” is the offspring of Ramayana, with yearning to see Parasakti.

 

The author has taken the readers in his book to that sublime beauty where there is no further argument, than to enjoy the flow of citations with their intrinsic meaning and full of scientific vision. His unsurpassed knowledge in Mantrasastra has enabled him to pass dictums vivisecting the symbolic mysticisms into splinters and handing the kernel of truth under each word, usage, and application. He deserves all praise for this meritorious contribution to our literature.

  

Visionary Poet of the Millennium

An Indian poet Prophet

Seshendra Sharma

October 20th, 1927 - May 30th, 2007

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www.facebook.com/GunturuSeshendraSharma/

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Seshendra Sharma is one of the most outstanding minds of modern Asia. He is the foremost of the Telugu poets today who has turned poetry to the gigantic strides of human history and embellished literature with the thrills and triumphs of the 20th century. A revolutionary poet who spurned the pedestrian and pedantic poetry equally, a brilliant critic and a scholar of Sanskrit, this versatile poet has breathed a new vision of modernity to his vernacular.Such minds place Telugu on the world map of intellectualism. Readers conversant with names like Paul Valery, Gauguin, and Dag Hammarskjold will have to add the name of Seshendra Sharma the writer from India to that dynasty of intellectuals.

 

Rivers and poets

Are veins and arteries

Of a country.

Rivers flow like poems

For animals, for birds

And for human beings-

The dreams that rivers dream

Bear fruit in the fields

The dreams that poets dream

Bear fruit in the people-

* * * * * *

The sunshine of my thought fell on the word

And its long shadow fell upon the century

Sun was playing with the early morning flowers

Time was frightened at the sight of the martyr-

-Seshendra Sharma

B.A: Andhra Christian College: Guntur: A.P: India

B.L : Madras University: Madras

Deputy Municipal Commissioner (37 Years)

Dept of Municipal Administration, Government of Andhra Pradesh

Parents: G.Subrahmanyam (Father) ,Ammayamma (Mother)

Siblings: Anasuya,Devasena (Sisters),Rajasekharam(Younger brother)

Wife: Mrs.Janaki Sharma

Children: Vasundhara , Revathi (Daughters),

Vanamaali ,Saatyaki (Sons)

 

Seshendra Sharma better known as Seshendra is

a colossus of Modern Indian poetry.

His literature is a unique blend of the best of poetry and poetics.

Diversity and depth of his literary interests and his works

are perhaps hitherto unknown in Indian literature.

From poetry to poetics, from Mantra Sastra to Marxist Politics his writings bear an unnerving pprint of his rare genius.

His scholar ship and command over Sanskrit , English and Telugu Languages has facilitated his emergence as a towering personality of comparative literature in the 20th century world literature.

T.S.Eliot ,ArchbaldMacleish and Seshendra Sharma are trinity of world poetry and Poetics.

His sense of dedication to the genre of art he chooses to express himself and

the determination to reach the depths of subject he undertakes to explore

place him in the galaxy of world poets / world intellectuals.

Seshendra’seBooks :http://kinige.com/author/Gunturu+Seshendra+Sharma

Seshendra Sharma’s Writings Copyright © Saatyaki S/o Seshendra Sharma

Contact :saatyaki@gmail.com+919441070985+917702964402

------------------------

GunturuSeshendraSarma: an extraordinary poet-scholar

One of the ironies in literature is that

he came to be known more as a critic than a poet

 

HYDERABAD: An era of scholastic excellence and poetic grandeur has come to an end in the passing away of GunturuSeshendraSarma, one of the foremost poets and critics in Telugu literature. His mastery over western literature and Indian `AlankaraSastra' gave his works a stunning imagery, unparalleled in modern Indian works. One of the ironies in literature is that he came to be known more as a critic than a poet. The Central SahityaAkademi award was conferred on him for his work `KaalaRekha' and not for his poetic excellence. The genius in him made him explore `Kundalini Yoga' in his treatise on Ramayana in `Shodasi' convincingly. His intellectual quest further made him probe `NaishadhaKaavya' in the backdrop of `LalitaSahasraNaamavali', `SoundaryaLahari' and `Kama Kala Vilasam' in `SwarnaHamsa', Seshendra saw the entire universe as a storehouse of images and signs to which imagination was to make value-addition. Like Stephene Mallarme who was considered a prophet of symbolism in French literature, SeshendraSarma too believed that art alone would survive in the universe along with poetry. He believed that the main vocation of human beings was to be artists and poets. His `Kavisena Manifesto' gave a new direction to modern criticism making it a landmark work in poetics. Telugus would rue the intellectual impoverishment they suffered in maintaining a `distance' from him. Seshendra could have given us more, but we did not deserve it! The denial of the Jnanpeeth Award to him proves it

The Hindu

India's National Newspaper

Friday, Jun 01, 2007

------

Ramayana, a replica of Vedas

S. VARADARAJAN

There are several versions of the Sri Ramayana, one of the two greatest epics. Following Sri Valmiki Ramayana several editions have been published in various languages, besides scores of commentaries written across centuries. Late. Gunturu Seshendra Sharma, scholar poet of 20th Century unearthed secrets of the Ramayana through his popular Telugu book “Shodasi”.

The novelty of nomenclature Shodasi , called Sri Vidya is reflected , in the 16th Chapter . Sharma’s intellectual depth comes forth in analyzing Sundara Kanda specially through Kundalini Yoga . The author highlights hidden truth in Valmiki’s thought that is similar to Vedas and says that Trijata’s dream in Sundara Kanda reflects Gayatri Mantra of 32 Syllabi in 4 lines. Sharma pays rich encomiums in the description of Lanka surrounded by three impregnable borders. He compares these three borders with Trikuta viz... Shakti , Kaamaraaja , Vagbhava Kutas with those of Sri Vidya in Kundalini . A staunch believer of Vedas, the author feels that Ramayana is a replica of Vedas and oriented towards the character of Indra . He concludes that in Ramayana the mentioning of the supreme God is Indra and not Vishnu, as the presiding deity of valour in Vedas. Utterances of the word Vishnu were considered to be imaginary overstatements in the author’s view.

This book lends a new perspective to the Ramayana by adding the dimension of Kundalini Yoga .

The foreword by Vishwanatha Satyanarayana adds credibility to the book. The current work is an English translation of the original by Gurujada Suryanarayana Murthy , a scientist by profession . His proficiency in the subject is evident in the translation throughout that doesn’t swerve from the original’s purport.

The Hindu

India’s National Newspaper

(Friday Review: 2nd October 2015)

 

Shodasi

Astounding scholarship of Sanskrit classics

A product of deep research, intense intellectual labour

And amazing scholarship

The book under review which is an English translation by Dr. Gurajada Suryanarayana Murthy of the original Telugu Text represents a scholarly attempt by the erudite author to justify and prove the validity of certain radical propositions which he makes about the world – renowned Kavya – Valmiki Ramayana. The propositions that he makes are – 1. Sundara Kanda is an allegory of Kundalini Yoga 2. Sita is Kundalini Shakti 3. Hanuman’s search – mission of Sita symbolises Tantric Exercise of identifying the Kundalini Shakti and raising it from the Moola Dhara Chakra (denoted by Lanka) to Sahasrara Chakra 4. The descriptive terms employed about Sita hint at Sita being essentially a Kundalini Shakti 5. Trijata’s dream is nothing but Gayathri Mantra 6. Valmiki’s language has pronounced Vedic flavour 7. The phraseology employed by Valmiki corresponds largely to the terms employed in Lalitha Sahasra Nama , Durga Saptasati , Devi Bhagawatam etc.. 8. The aptness of the name Sundara Kanda is provable on Strong Grounds 9. Ramayana is anterior to Bharatha on various grounds such as the Vedic language employed in the former the reference of Valmiki and Ramayana in Mahabharata and absence of reference to Vyasa and Mahabharata episodes in Ramayana , Mention of Rama in Mahabharata and Rama’s greater antiquity than Pandavas and a host of other plausible evidences 10. Indra , the chief Vedic god more prominently featured and praised in Ramayana than Vishnu of the Puranic origin. 11. Megha Sandesham of Kalidasa originated out of the seed of Valmiki Ramayana and 12. The benedictory verse of Sakuntalam is eulogy of Devi.

The brain – tickling propositions are not just of the cuff remarks made without basis but credible theories buttressed with profuse quotations of relevant Sanskrit Texts , wide and deep study of the relevant treatises unassailable arguments based on internal and external evidences and astounding scholarship of Sanskrit classics.

On the flip side, there are a few errors in the transliteration of the Sanskrit texts. Had the Sanskrit passages from the treatises been provided in Devanagari Script also in addition to transliterated form in Roman Script value and appeal of this essentially Sanskrit oriented book would be much higher to the large and growing Sanskrit readership. The book is doubtless, a product of deep research, Intense intellectual labour and amazing scholarship.

The Vedanta kesari : August 2016

The Lion of Vedanta

A Cultural and Spirtual Monthly of the of the Ramakrishna Order since 1944

  

AN INTELLECTUAL FEAST

Along With utmost devotion

The author has clear understanding of not only of the Ramayana

but also Mantra Sastra , Vedas and Kundalini Yoga

His method is going deep into the subject and at the

same time comparing the same with ideas of other branches of literature

Shodasi , authored by Seshendra Sharma is a book of a special type . Though its purpose is to unfold secrets of the Ramayana many other aspects from different branches of knowledge also find a place there.

The Ramayana is read in every household with devotion. It narrates not only story of Rama but it also spotlights very intricate and subtler points in other branches of knowledge, a point not even noticed by many.

The author has clear understanding of not only of the Ramayana but also Mantra Sastra , Vedas and Kundalini Yoga . There are two approaches to understand the Sastras. One is vertical which is closely followed in Sanskrit Literature. It is reading a book with the help of commentary on it. In this method not only each word of the original analysed; its correct meaning and contextual purpose are also examined. The second is a horizontal method where in various ideas in the text are read not with one commentary but with many commentaries by different people. This gives total meaning of the text.

Seshendra Sharma follows both methods. His method is going deep into the subject and at the same time comparing the same with ideas of other branches of literature.

This needs a thorough understanding of various branches and ability to compare texts and spot new ideas and enjoy the same. For example , when Hanuman asks Sita who she is ,she replies ,“sama dvadasa tatraham raghavasya nivesane bhunjhana manushan bhogan sarva kama samrudhinee “ . Meaning “I enjoyed 12 years of mundane pleasure in the home of Rama”

Though she is not an ordinary human being, she enjoyed mundane pleasures. “ you may mistake that I am a mortal woman , but understand I am Sri Maha Lakshmi” . That was the message. The most important clue is the statement “ Aham Sarva Kama Samridhinee “ . In Devi Bhagawatham we find “ Matah Sankaree Kamade “ In Sri Sukta “ Sarva Kamartha Siddhaye “ and in Lalitha Sahasra Nama “ too it is stated “ Om Kamyayai Namah” . If Sita were to be just an ordinary being all these statements would have been irrelevant.

At another place she says “ Maya Ramasya Rajarshe Bharyayaya Paramatmanah” which means that she is wife of Paramatma. Hanuman , the devotee , recognized Sita to be none other than Jaganmata. Hence he could identify her easily as the divine mother and says “ tat sreemadyate tarat”. The word sreemat is used to mean brilliance Hanuman identifies Sita as Devi by the holy seed letter ( Sreem ) .

The book is full of comparisons between different branches of learning and surely a feast for one who could enjoy the existence of similar ideas at various places. It only proves that ways may be different but the goal is one.

Seshendra Sharma physically lifts the minds of the readers and offers an intellectual feast along with utmost devotion. Surely everyone should read this book and keep a copy of the same at home.

Goda Venkateswara Sastry

Tatvaloka : June 2016

The Splendour of Truth

( Monthly Magazine)

  

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Ramayan Through Kundalini Yoga

Shodasi is an ideal read for Sanskrit-literate readers

who are open to eclectic yogarthas and connotative meanings

--------

So you thought Vyasa was before Valmiki, Mahabharat was before Ramayan, Rama a Vishnu avatar, and tantrism distinct from vedism? Think again. In Shodasi: Secrets of the Ramayana, Telugu poet Seshendra Sharma re-reads the Ramayan to come up with a number of new conclusions.

Much of the book sets out to prove that Ramayan was written before the Mahabharat. Sharma discusses how Indra is cited more often than Vishnu, thus placing the context of the Ramayan closer to Vedic than Puranic thought. He quotes from the Mahabharat to show how it follows descriptions of hills, rivers from the Ramayan. The Mahabharat has some prose, and therefore, it must have been composed after Ramayan, which is entirely in poetry. These are only some of the numerous reasons that Sharma offers to suggest a new sequence of our itihasas.

Sharma’s book is also an experimental reading of the Ramayan through the interpretive lens of what he calls Kundalini yoga. Hanuman’s flight to Sri Lanka gets a new interpretation. “Charana Charite Pathi” is interpreted as the path of Kundalini, and the first verse of the Sundara Kanda “Tatho Ravana Nithayah” is interpreted by Sharma to refer to Hanuman traversing the sushumna nadi of the Kundalini.

Trijata’s dream becomes the Gayatri mantra through an imaginative recasting of words as numbers. Gaja (elephant) means eight, danta (teeth) means thirty-two, and maha-gaja-chaturdantam somehow also adds up to 32 syllables, which is the number of syllables in the Gayatri mantra. That Trijata’s dream is halfway through the Ramayan also becomes significant for Sharma, he calls it the ‘central bead’ in the Ramayan garland of 24,000 beads. Identifying 32-syllables as the Gayatri follows a convention, for mantras are referenced by the number of syllables; however, it is the “secret” yogartha—or mystical, anagogical translations—derived by Sharma that becomes problematic, unless he is considered an authority in his own right.

conclude that the name Sundarakand is unrelated to any descriptions of beauty of any of the main characters in the Ramayan. However, Soundarya and Tripura-Sundari are well-known conventions in the tantric tradition and hence, Sharma concludes that Sundarakand derives its name from Shakti’s beauty, and “Sundara-Hanuman” means “Hanuman who is a devotee of Devi” (117).

A coda in this book is about the benedictory verse in Kalidasa’s Sakuntalam which has traditionally been understood to refer to Ishwara. Sharma re-interprets this verse highlighting the “eight forms” of the last line as the eight forms of Devi that please Ishwara.

This book is suitable for a reader who is Sanskrit-literate and open to eclectic yogarthas and connotative meanings. Sharma cites substantially from the Ramayan in roman but without diacritics, this is difficult to follow; and he does not always include translation. Sharma often cites commentators without citing names and sources. It is not clear why the book is called Shodasi—readers may note, this book is not about the Srividya tradition. Even if the reader is unconvinced by Sharma’s reasoning or methodology, the free flow of references may prove absorbing for a reader interested in the subject.

This could also be an eclectic reference for a scholar researching tantric elements in the Ramayan.

- Mani Rao

 

The Sunday Standard Magazine

The New Indian Express

29th November 2015

 

---------------------------

Scholarly and deeply researched monograph

Pearls of insightful ideas and truths

Most of the ancient treatises like the Valmiki Ramayana and Bhagavatha lend themselves to allegorical interpretations. The book under review is scholarly and deeply researched monograph that formulates the startling theory that the immortal epic Valmiki Ramayana, particularly, Sundara Kanda, is nothing but the enunciation of the doctrine of Kundalini Shakthi Yoga. The very title of the book is bound to make the scholarly fraternity and even the common readership sit up and take notice. The radical propositions that the erudite author advances are on the basis of relentless logic and a mass of internal and external evidences are: Ramayana is rooted in Vedas, both in terms of ideas it disseminates and its verbal garb in those it is clothed. Many of the similes that Valmiki employs are inspired by vedic poetry and literature. Many of the expressions employed in the Valmiki Ramayana bear close resemblance to phraseology found in texts like Devi Bhagavatham, and Soundarya Lahari. Sita is none other than Divine Mother and Gayathri. As borne out by an analysis of similarity of names and words used in Valmiki Ramayana and Sri Vidya Literature. Sundara Kanda is nothing but delineation Kundalini Yoga. Hanuman’s aerial voyage in search of Sita represents allegorically the devi worshipper’s exercise in Kundalini Yoga. Sita is Kundalini Shakti. The episodes of mainaka, surasa and Simhika – representing satwa, rajas, tamas respectively –represent piercing of the triple knots by the spiritual aspirant. The Sanskrit phrase “Charana Charithe pathi” that occurs at the opening Canto of Sundara Kanda clearly implies Hanuman’s movement through the path of Sushumna. Lanka is the Mula Dhara Chakra, the seat of Kundalini implied in Valmiki’s graphic description of Lanka, the place of incarceration of Sita. Lanka is Muladhara also from the point of view of Yoga and it is Sri Chakra from the point of view of Spiritual practice. The burning of Lanka symbolises awakening of Swadhishthana. The aptness of name Sundara Kanda is explicable in the light of various evidences embedded in the epic. Trijata’s dream is nothing but the Gayathri Mantra as can be inferred from certain Sanskrit terms representing their numerical equivalents employed to describe dream – scenes of Trijata and also from Dramatis Personae appearing in her dream. Mahabharata is an image of Ramayana and many striking similarities may be found between Valmiki and Vyasa in their style of narrative. Valmiki’s Ramayana is the seed of Meghadootha and Valmiki reincarnates, as it were, as Kalidasa. The vedic god Indra , as the supreme deity dominates epic as a benchmark for all comparisons with Rama and dwarfs Vishnu, the Puranik God, in importance. Ramayana is anterior to Mahabharata. There are 2 annexures at the end of the book “benedictory verse of Sakunthalam is nothing but eulogy of Devi “and “All Humans have same destination” . Coming from the pen of the Telugu poet proficient in several languages, who was active in various disciplines ranging from Sanskrit studies to Cultural activism and who was given the Sahitya Akademi Award, this book is definitely of exceptional merit as the ingenious interpretations of various verses of the epic and also of allied hymnal literature to establish the novel but plausible propositions, come as a refreshing revelations. The book unmistakably bears imprints of an amazingly analytical, deeply erudite and marvellously nimble mind that effortlessly plumbs the oceanic epic and picks up and presents to the community of discerning readers pearls of insightful ideas and truths. One glaring drawback of this essentially Sanskrit-oriented book is the absence of Sanskrit quotations in Devanagari script as transliterations in roman script that are given are poor substitute sonorous Sanskrit words clothed in Devanagari script. The merits mentioned in a short review of this book packed with quaint and profound ideas constitute merely the proverbial tip of an iceberg. A fund of fruitful and lofty ideas awaits those who venture dive deep into this great book. In short this book is a riveting read for scholars and a strong stimulant for the general readers. –

N. Hariharan

Madurai

Prabuddha Bharata

March 2016

A monthly journal of the Ramakrishna Order

started by Swami Vivekananda in 1893

 

Unearthing secrets of Ramayana Ramayana

A sea-bed of secrets

A great boon to Devi Upasakas and Practioners of Sri Vidya

The Ramayana popular as the Adi Kavya (first work of poetry) the world over is not just beautiful poetry . It is a sea bed of secrets – containing the methods of Kundalini yoga and mantra sastra . This is the heart of Shodasi : Secrets of the Ramayana authored by Seshendra Sharma , one of the towering personalities of Telugu Poetry . This book, a collection 16 articles with one article added on from this edition appeared in Telugu Original in 1967. Mr. N.Ramesan IAS , the then Principal Secretary to Education Dept , the then AP Govt observed feelingly in his preface , that this work is a boon for Devi Upasakas and merits to be translated into English and other Indian Languages. This advice has fructified after 48 Years. Dr. Suryanarayana Murthy , a physicist (retired : Baba Atomic Research Centre ) has translated Shodasi into English with commendable clarity of grasp over the subject and felicity of thought process and flow of reading. The story of Rama narrated in enchanting poetry, according to Seshendra is a honey supplement to the bitter medicine called Kundalini Yoga. Valmiki Maharshi chose the Story of Rama to propagate Kundalini Yoga and systems of meditation in the society, among the masses of his era. This is the fulcrum of this Research work. What is of significance is that the author , in order to buttress his analysis and arguments cites extensively and conclusively from the Original Text of Ramayana itself. This Translation introduces this seminal work to wider sections of readers in other parts of our multilingual nation and to scholars engaged in research in Indian scriptures in the west. As the reader goes through the pages of Shodasi it gradually becomes clear that , the story that Valmiki was a Hunter , after viewing the pair of birds dying for each other renounced hunting and became a Rishi is an episode woven around him to make him and his epic the Ramayana popular and that Valmiki belongs to the pantheon of Vedic Rishis . Seshendra at every point of analysis cites from the Vedas and sruthis. His own introduction to this work “one word to begin with “ he discusses elaborately on the significance of Valmiki’s Style of expression of phrases . This chapter is the gateway to the entire work. While analysing one stanza of he touches upon a simile Which compares moon in the night sky wit vrishabham in Goshtam (cowshed). Seshendra goes deeper into shruthi and Vedas and concludes that go means in Sanskrit speech and “goshte vrishabham mattamiva bhramantam “ implies that like Omkara moves at the throat the divine personality of moon is moving in the sky. That intricate and deep is the analysis of the author. Seshendra , then discusses why sundara kanda was chosen as the name of a chapter . He observes incisively and proves conclusively that Sita is the main character of this Kanda and Sita is none other than Adi Shakti ( The Divine Mother ) Sri Maha Tripura Sundari.This is the reason why Maharshi named it Sundara Kanda. Sundara Kanda is the heart of the Ramayana and Trijata Swapna (Demoness Trijata’s Dream) is its heart. Sundara Kanda is nothing but Kundalini Yoga . Right from the 1st stanza of the chapter Maharshi starts unfolding the path of Kundalini Yoga in a suggestive manner garbed in enchanting poetry teaming with breath taking similes. Hanuman is SriVidyopasaka. The author discusses the 1st stanza “Chaaranaa Charithe pathi “ with intrinsic evidence from the Ramayana itself. Charanas are Divine Singers and their path is the sky . In other words in Kundalini Yoga “Sushumna “. The entire chapter elaborates each stanza in a captivating tone and concludes with Lanka Dahana ( Burning of Lanka ) as piercing of the Sahasrara seated in the head. First hand reading alone will give the unnerving feel of this chapter. Another important chapter is “ Trijata’s dream is nothing but Gayathri mantra “. In this , Seshendra views Trijata’s Dream, one of the demonesses guarding Sita in Ashoka Vana as Gayathri mantra. He dwelves deep into each Sloka of this episode and proves convincingly that Valmiki created this episode in order to embed the mantra in Ramayana. Till this point this book is a cluster of revelations. “The later part is both revelation and research. Seshendra in the chapter “ Indra is the Supreme Deity of Ramayana “ discusses each stanza of the Ramayana and goes on to reveal that at the time when Valmiki was writing the Ramayana the concepts of Vishnu and incarnation (Avatar ) were non– existent . Indra is the supreme deity of the Ramayana. In other 2 chapters the author‘s exhaustive study and Incisive analysis are all pervasive. Seshendra explodes the myth sought to be propagated by some of the Western Scholars that the Bharatha precedes the Ramayana . Shodasi , as rightly pointed out in one preface, is a great boon to Devi Upasakas and Practioners of Sri Vidya. All these ages this Adi Kavya is seen only as the Story of Rama. Here is a path breaking work which reveals the hidden treasure of spiritual secrets which Valmiki Maharshi embedded them in his epic.

Insight ( Sunday Magazine )

The Hitavada ( English Daily ) 1st November 2015

 

An astronomical instrument at Jantar Mantar observatory, Delhi, India

hard light study 1

 

Nikon D80

ISO100

Aperturef/1.8

Exposure 1/125

50mm AF nikkor 1:1.8D

TT520 speedlite, naked, camera right

Yongnuo RF-603N remote triggers

LIghtroom 3

 

899

Ramadan (Arabic : رمضان‎ Ramaḍān, Arabic pronunciation: [rɑmɑˈdˤɑːn] ) (also Ramadhan, Ramadaan, Ramazan) is the ninth month of the Islamic calendar , which lasts 29 to 30 days. It is the Islamic month of fasting , in which participating Muslims refrain from eating and drinking [1] and is intended to teach Muslims about patience, humility, and spirituality. Muslims fast for the sake of God (Arabic : الله‎, trans: Allah ) and to offer more prayer than usual. Compared to the solar calendar , the dates of Ramadan vary, moving backwards by about eleven days each year depending on the moon ; thus, a person will have fasted every day of the calendar year in 34 years' time. Muslims believe Ramadan to be an auspicious month for the revelations of God to humankind, being the month in which the first verses of the Qur'an were revealed to the Islamic prophet , Muhammad .

 

Contents

 

[hide ]

 

· 1 Origins of Ramadan

 

· 2 The Beginning of Ramadan

 

· 3 Practices during Ramadan

 

o 3.1 Fasting

 

o 3.2 Prayer and reading of the Qur'an

 

o 3.3 Iftar

 

o 3.4 Charity

 

o 3.5 Laylat al-Qadr

 

· 4 Eid ul-Fitr

 

· 5 Cultural aspects

 

o 5.1 Decorations

 

· 6 Economic aspects

 

· 7 See also

 

· 8 References

 

· 9 External links

 

[edit ] Origins of Ramadan

 

The word Ramadan is derived from an Arabic root rmḍ, as in words like "ramiḍa" or "ar-ramaḍ" denoting intense heat,[2] scorched ground and shortness of rations. Ramadan, as a name for the month, is of Islamic origin. Prior to Islam and the exclusion of intercalary days from the Islamic calendar, the name of the month was Natiq and the month fell in the warm season.[3] The word was thus chosen as it well represented the original climate of the month and the physiological conditions precipitated from fasting. In the Qur'an, God proclaims that "fasting has been written down (as obligatory) upon you, as it was upon those before you". According to a hadith , it might refer to the Jewish practice of fasting on Yom Kippur .[4] [5]

 

[edit ] The Beginning of Ramadan

 

Hilāl (the crescent ) is typically a day (or more) after the astronomical new moon. Since the new moon indicates the beginning of the new month, Muslims can usually safely estimate the beginning of Ramadan.[6]

 

There are many disagreements each year however, on when Ramadan starts. This stems from the tradition to sight the moon with the naked eye and as such there are differences for countries on opposite sides of the globe.[7] More recently however, some Muslims are leaning towards using astronomical calculations to avoid this confusion.

 

For the year of 1432 Hijri , the first day of Ramadan was determined to be August 1, 2011.

 

[edit ] Practices during Ramadan

 

[edit ] Fasting

 

Main article: Sawm

   

During the month of Ramadan, Muslims fast from dawn to dusk.

 

The month of Ramadan is the one in which the Qur'an was sent down - right Guidance to mankind, and clear signs of Guidance and Distinction of truth from falsehood. Those among you who witness it, let him fast therein. Whoever is sick or on a journey, then a number of other days. God desires ease for you, and desires not hardship. Thus may you fulfil the number of days assigned, magnify God for having guided you, and perhaps you will be thankful.

 

Ayah 185, Sura 2 (Al-Baqara ), translation by Tarif Khalidi see:[2] [8]

 

Ramadan is a time of reflecting, believing and worshiping God. Muslims are expected to put more effort into following the teachings of Islam and to avoid obscene and irreligious sights and sounds. Sexual intercourse among spouse is allowed after one has ended the fast. During fasting intercourse is prohibited as well as eating and drinking, one is also encouraged to resist all temptations while you are fasting. Purity of both thoughts and actions is important. The act of fasting is said to redirect the heart away from worldly activities, its purpose being to cleanse the inner soul and free it from harm. It also teaches Muslims to practice self-discipline, self-control,[9] sacrifice, and empathy for those who are less fortunate; thus encouraging actions of generosity and charity (Zakat ).[10]

 

Muslims should start observing the fasting ritual upon reaching the age of puberty , so long as they are healthy, sane and have no disabilities or illnesses. The elderly, the chronically ill, and the mentally ill are exempt from fasting, although the first two groups must endeavor to feed the poor in place of their missed fasting. Also exempt are pregnant women if they believe it would be harmful to them or the unborn baby, women during the period of their menstruation, and women nursing their newborns. A difference of opinion exists among Islamic scholars as to whether this last group must make up the days they miss at a later date, or feed poor people as a recompense for days missed.[11] While fasting is not considered compulsory in childhood , many children endeavour to complete as many fasts as possible as practice for later life. Lastly, those traveling (musaafir) are exempt, but must make up the days they miss.[12] More specifically, Twelver Shī‘ah define those who travel more than 14 mi (23 km) in a day as exempt.[10]

 

[edit ] Prayer and reading of the Qur'an

 

In addition to fasting, Muslims are encouraged to read the entire Qur'an. Some Muslims perform the recitation of the entire Qur'an by means of special prayers, called Tarawih , which are held in the mosques every night of the month, during which a whole section of the Qur'an (Juz' , which is 1/30 of the Qur'an) is recited. Therefore the entire Qur'an would be completed at the end of the month.

 

Ramadan is also a time when Muslims are to slow down from worldly affairs and focus on self-reformation, spiritual cleansing and enlightenment; this is to establish a link between themselves and God through prayer, supplication, charity, good deeds, kindness and helping others. Since it is a festival of giving and sharing, Muslims prepare special foods and buy gifts for their family and friends and for giving to the poor and needy who cannot afford it; this can involve buying new clothes, shoes and other items of need. There is also a social aspect involving the preparation of special foods and inviting people for Iftar .

 

[edit ] Iftar

 

Main article: Iftar

 

Iftar in Sultan Ahmed Mosque in Is Istanbul ,Turkey

 

Muslims all around the world will abstain from food and drink, through fasting, from dawn to sunset. At sunset, the family will gather the fast-breaking meal known as Iftar . The meal starts with the eating of a date — just as Prophet Muhammad used to do. Then it's time for the Maghrib prayer, which is the fourth of the five daily prayers, after which the main meal is served. [13]

 

Over time, Iftar has grown into banquet festivals. This is a time of fellowship with families, friends and surrounding communities, but may also occupy larger spaces at mosques or banquet halls, where a hundred or more may gather at a time.[14]

 

Most markets close down during evening prayers and the Iftar meal, but then re-open and stay open for a good part of the night. Muslims can be seen shopping, eating, spending time with their friends and family during the evening hours. In many Muslim countries, this can last late into the evening, to early morning. However, if they try to attend to business as usual, it can become a time of personal trials, fasting without coffee or water.

 

[edit ] Charity

 

Charity is very important in Islam, and even more so during Ramadhan. According to tradition, Ramadhan is a particularly blessed time to give in charity, as the reward is 700 times greater than any other time of the year. For that reason, Muslims will spend more in charity (sadaqa), and many will pay their zakat during Ramadhan, to receive the blessings (reward). In many Muslim countries, it is not uncommon to see people giving food to the poor and the homeless, and to even see large public areas for the poor to come and break their fast. It is said that if a person helps a fasting person to break their fast, then they receive a reward for that fast, without diminishing the reward that the fasting person got for their fast.

 

[edit ] Laylat al-Qadr

 

Main article: Laylat al-Qadr

 

Sometimes referred to as "the night of decree or measures", Laylat al-Qadr is considered the most holy night of the year.[15] Muslims believe that Laylat al-Qadr is the night in which the Qur'an was first revealed to the Prophet Muhammad . Also, it is believed to have occurred on an odd-numbered night during the last 10 days of Ramadan, either the night of the 21st, 23rd, 25th, 27th or 29th. Shiites also commemorate the attack on Imam `Ali ibn Abi Talib and his subsequent martyrdom every year on the 19th, 21st and 23rd of Ramadan.

 

[edit ] Eid ul-Fitr

 

Main article: Eid ul-Fitr

 

The holiday of Eid ul-Fitr (Arabic : عيد الفطر‎) marks the end of the fasting period of Ramadan and the first day of the following month, after another new moon has been sighted. The Eid falls after 29 or 30 days of fasting, per the lunar sighting. Eid ul-Fitr means the back to the fitrah ; usually a special celebration is made. Food is donated to the poor (Zakat al-fitr ); everyone puts on their best, usually new, clothes; and communal prayers are held in the early morning, followed by feasting and visiting relatives and friends. The prayer is two Raka'ah only, and it is sunnah muakkad [16] as opposed to the compulsory (Fard) five daily prayers. Muslims are expected to do this as an act of worship, and to thank God.

 

[edit ] Cultural aspects

 

[edit ] Decorations

 

Ramadan is met with various decorations throughout the streets. In Egypt , lanterns are known to be a symbol of Ramadan. They are hung across the cities of Egypt, part of an 800 year old tradition, the origin of which is said to lie in the Fatimid era where the Caliph Al-Muizz Lideenillah was greeted by people holding lanterns to celebrate his ruling. From that time lanterns were used to light mosques and houses throughout the city.

 

In other Muslim countries, lights are strung up in public squares, and across city streets, to add to the festivities of the month. In the West, many Muslim households have taken to decorating the inside of their homes to make Ramadhan a more special time for their children.

 

[edit ] Economic aspects

 

In Egypt, national statistics have pointed to substantial increase in consumption of food, electricity, and medications related to digestive disorders during the month of Ramadan as compared with the monthly average in the rest of the year.[17]

SHODASI : SECRETS OF THE RAMAYANA

Kundalini Yoga & Gayathri Mantra in Valmiki Ramayana

ENGLISH HINDI AND TELUGU ORIGINAL

AUTHOR : SESHENDRA SHARMA

Seshendra : Visionary Poet of the Millennium

seshendrasharma.weebly.com

seshen.tributes.in/

REVIEWS :

www.facebook.com/shodasi/

Books :

kinige.com/author/Gunturu+Seshendra+Sharma

Valmiki , The Sage of 5th century B.C wrote The Ramayana not to narrate the story of Rama in an absorbing style. Though the epic poem presents Rama’s Journey of life in enchanting poetry , the story and the enchanting poetry are sugar coating or honey to the organic medicine called Kundalini Yoga. Maharshi Valmiki wrote the Ramayana to spread / propagate Kundalini Yoga among the masses. Thus the soul of The Ramayana is Kundalini Yoga / Sri Vidya. Valmiki embedded Kundalini Yoga in the Chapter titled “ Sundara Kanda” . Hanuman and Ravana are Kundalini Yogis of Samaya and Kaula Paths.

And in Sundara Kanda , he inserted “ Trijata Swapna “ , dream sequence of a demon and in it embedded the Gayathri Mantra. The concepts of Vishnu and Avatar (reincarnation) were nonexistent during the Ramayana Period.

Seshendra Sharma , Scholar - Poet in his Magnum Opus of Research “ Shodasi : Secrets of The Ramayana “ reveals these secrets lying hidden for thousands of years .

 

* * * * *

How old is Valmiki Ramayana? One Calculation says 8 lacks 70 thousand Years. Going by the Christian calendar dating to approximately the 5th to 4th century BC. According to Indian classification of time Ramayana belongs to the Treta Yuga and today we are in the Kali Yuga. All these millions of years the human civilisation the world over, recognised it as the first poetry and in this part of the world i.e. the Indian Subcontinent the central character of the epic is present as an idol of worship in thousands of temples and in every household of believers.

But here is a research work which says Ramayana is merely poetry to the naked eye whereas it is an ensemble of invisible secrets which have been lying unnoticed all these ages.

What could have been the Valmiki Maharshi’s vision which made him chisel an epic poem which is pregnant with startling secrets?

Shodasi : Secrets of the Ramayana , a Magnum Opus comprising both revelations and research findings written in Telugu 47 Years ago is translated into English by Dr. G.S.Murthy , a 86 year old physicist (Retrd) from BARC. Dr. Murthy observes about Shodasi that “the approach adopted by Seshendra Sharma is unprecedented. .. His conclusion that Ramayana is closer to Sruthi than any other scripture is very significant and is based on the intrinsic evidence in the Ramayana itself.... it is a revolt against the customary methods followed to understand the status of Ramayana in the Sanskrit Literature.”

 

The fulcrum of Shodasi is that poetry in Ramayana is a supplement to the bitter medicine called “Kundalini Yoga” and Ramayana is divine Ambrosia for all mundane afflictions and problems that beset the human kind.

Seshendra reveals that Sundara Kanda is the heart of Ramayana and it is nothing but Kundalini Yoga . And the heart of Sundara Kanda is Trijata ‘s Dream , which is nothing but Gayatri Mantra.

Kundalini Yoga which is also known as Sri Vidya is awakening of inner powers dormant in humans through meditation. The very 1st Shloka of Sundara Kanda is analysed and explained exhaustively by the author from several angles. “Chaarana Charithe pathi..(Sky-Path) “is , according to the author the Sushumna in Humans. Lanka Dahana ( Reducing Ravana’s Empire Lanka to ashes ) is the climax of the Kundalini Yoga which is Sahasrara Bhedana. The author analyses citing evidence from the Ramayana original text , that both Paths of Kundalini Yoga , Samaya and Kaula ways are shown in the epic.

What is of paramount importance in this work is that each exposition refers to a cluster of references germane to the main discussion. Hence it is obvious that this work is a scholastic paradise to people who are conversant with Sanskrit literature and other ancient scriptures. A pedestrian reader cannot even peep into Shodasi . Seshendra’s introduction “One word to begin with “sets the tone and tenor of the work. He dilates at length how Sanskrit language is moulded by Valmiki on the lines of Sruthi and Veda to envelop his central theme in suggestive and oblique style.

It is said Valmiki wrote Ramayana in 24 thousand Shlokas taking each syllable of Gayatri Mantra, which has 24 syllables. Seshendra Shows convincingly, where the Gayathri Mantra itself is located in Ramayana. He says “ Sundara Kanda “ is the heart of Ramayana and Trijata ‘s Dream is Sundara Kanda’s heart. “ Maharshi created an apparent episode of “Trijata Swapna “ and through this he embedded Gayathri Mantra in it. “

This book is replete with several such revelations and unnerving observations. The chapters on “ Relationship between Ramayanayana and Megha Sangesham “ “Indra supreme deity “ compel the reader to stop and think at the turn of every observation. This reviewer does not like to “spill all the beans “.

Dr. Murthy, the translator, aptly observes “ It needs a very attentive mind and adequate patience to follow author’s arguments “. Seshendra Sharma( seshendrasharma.weebly.com ) , winner of Sahitya Akademi Award for his “Kaala Rekha “( Arc of Blood ) a collection of essays in comparative literature , a fellow of the Akademi During his life time whose Long Poem “ My Country – My People – Modern Indian Epic “was nominated for Nobel in 2004 is scholar –poet of our times . His Kavisena Manifesto (Modern Indian Poetics), Kaala Rekha( Essays in Comparative Literature)are monuments of contemporary Indian Literature , unsurpassed to this day. His prose works prove that he is Albert Einstein of Indian Literature.

After completing the first round of reading the reader would certainly agree with Vishwanatha Satyanarayana ,Telugu poet of romantic era , recipient of Gyanpith Award for his “Ramayan Kalp Vriksh” who wrote preface to this book “ Every one , not only the telugu – speaking people all Indians must be grateful to him for writing this book”.

--------

Ramayana, a replica of Vedas

S. VARADARAJAN

There are several versions of the Sri Ramayana, one of the two greatest epics. Following Sri Valmiki Ramayana several editions have been published in various languages, besides scores of commentaries written across centuries. Late.GunturuSeshendra Sharma, scholar poet of 20th Century unearthed secrets of the Ramayana through his popular Telugu book “Shodasi”.

The novelty of nomenclature Shodasi , called Sri Vidya is reflected , in the 16th Chapter . Sharma’s intellectual depth comes forth in analyzingSundara Kanda specially through KundaliniYoga . The author highlights hidden truth in Valmiki’s thought that is similar to Vedas and says that Trijata’s dream in Sundara Kanda reflects Gayatri Mantra of 32 Syllabi in 4 lines. Sharma pays rich encomiums in the description of Lanka surrounded by three impregnable borders. He compares these three borders with Trikuta viz... Shakti ,Kaamaraaja , VagbhavaKutas with those of Sri Vidya in Kundalini . A staunch believer of Vedas, the author feels that Ramayana is a replica of Vedas and oriented towards the character of Indra . He concludes that in Ramayana the mentioning of the supreme God is Indra and not Vishnu, as the presiding deity of valour in Vedas. Utterances of the word Vishnu were considered to be imaginary overstatements in the author’s view.

This book lends a new perspective to the Ramayana by adding the dimension of KundaliniYoga .

The foreword by VishwanathaSatyanarayana adds credibility to the book. The current work is an English translation of the original by GurujadaSuryanarayanaMurthy , a scientist by profession . His proficiency in the subject is evident in the translation throughout that doesn’t swerve from the original’s purport.

The Hindu

(Friday Review: 2nd October 2015)

A Resplendent Icon of all Arts

 

This is an exemplary book which elevated the status of Indian Literary Criticism to the peaks of the world literature. Shodasi is a name associated with a great hymn. The title suggests that it’s a book on spiritual discourse. A reading of this book suggests that the spirit of scientific temper is critical to comprehend Valmiki’sSrimad Ramayana. Besides this, command on Vedic or Scriptural knowledge is essential. What does a layman has to say when a towering personality like ViswanathaSatyanarayana himself extolled the critical acumen and serious scholarship of Seshendra Sharma.

 

Sharma has made it crystal clear that unless one has an apparent understanding of the plot’s context, psyche of the characters, and the milieu of the bygone days supplemented by extraordinary scholarship, sound knowledge of phonetics and awareness on contemporary issues; one cannot easily comprehend the poetic diction of Valmiki. The debate on the phrase “Netraturaha” is a fitting example. The uniqueness of the title, Sundarakanda, Kundalini Yoga, Gayatri Mantra secretly hidden in Trijata’s dream sequence, considering The Bharatha as an image of The Ramayana.... this book is a repository of many such critical discourses. It is replete with inconceivable and unfathomable issues. This magnum opus is an invaluable gift to the Telugu literature.

 

- VIPULA, Viswa Katha Vedika: May 2014

(An exclusive Telugu Monthly Magazine for stories)

 

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Valmiki Ramayana – Greatest Medicine for Mankind

 

The story of Ramayana is prescribed as textbook for students. Sita and Rama are worshiped as prime couple. No need to mention about reciting it. Whether Valmiki was satisfied with simple narration of the story? Seshendra Sharma denies it.

 

He analyzed it mentioning that to understand the inner meanings of Valmiki Ramayana, the scientific knowledge is essential.

 

The underlying secret of the sage’s mind will be known through the knowledge of science.

 

It is the firm opinion of Seshendra that the argument that “the sciences are for scholars only” is a conspiracy hatched by Selfish scholars and lazy uneducated persons.

 

Seshendra who has democratic ideology and conviction on science and literature informs the public about the secrets of Ramayana expounded by Valmiki. He explains that Valmiki dedicated ambrosia (The Greatest Medicine) named “Kundalini Yoga” to the mankind. The poetry in the metre of AnushtupSloka is the honey coating to the medicine. It was explained with great introspection and exemplary scholarship. He concludes that the Ramayana is older than the MahaBharatha and it is another form of Veda. Valmiki introduced the system of meditation in Ramayana. The Introspection and research bent of mind of Seshendra are spread over in the book in two streams. The exuberant fragrance of scholarship is experienced throughout the book.

 

The present generation can understand the scholarship of Seshendra in Vedas and Mantra Sastra. Seshendra is a poet who has composed unique RuthuGhosha (Cry of the Seasons: Metrical Poetry) and revolutionary free verse –MandeSuryudu (The Burning Sun).

 

- Andhra Prabha (Telugu Daily), 24th August 2014.

 

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Two Great Peaks in the world literary criticism and research

 

Shodasi: Secrets of The Ramayana and SwarnahamsaHarshanaishada from the mighty pen of the great Telugu poet, GunturuSeshendra Sharma are considered to be the two great peaks in the world literary criticism and research. This is a truth most contemporary Telugu writers and readers aren’t aware of. The way Seshendra could discover Kundalini Yoga, Gayathri Mantra in Shodasi, he could discern the treasure trove of mantra yoga, Sri Mahatripurasundari, Chintamani mantra in Swarnahamsa.

 

At a time when our universities which are mere Degrees production Units, churn out “solid waste” in the name of research; Seshendra even while attending to his job as a Municipal Commissioner created research oriented critical volumes like a sage.

 

Though Shodasi was published in 1967 and Swarnahamsa in 1968; Swarnahamsa was created by him much before Shodasi was conceived. The concepts that Srinatha, Nannayya and Mallanatha, the Telugu Classical poets couldn’t decipher,

Seshendra could. He humbly submits that he is most fortunate that the triumvirate had left behind some pertinent concepts only to be discovered by him at a later stage.

 

These two great kavyas were serialised under the editorship of late NeelamrajuVenkataSeshaiah in Andhra Prabha Daily, Sunday Literary Supplements from 1963 to 1967 and Seshendra’s poems and non-fiction were published in the book forms (6) only after they appeared in serial form in Andhra Prabha.

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GunturuSeshendraSarma, the well-known poet, critic and scholar of unfathomable depth, has to his credit quite a number of books in Telugu as well as English. A keen intellect and a lucid exponent of the intricacies in Samskrit literature, the author brought out a treatise on Ramayana. The book also reveals the symbolism in our epics and shows the spirit behind.

 

According to the author, Sage Valmiki has observed Ramayana as though it is a story of a dynasty in its outward appearance. But when the story part is kept aside, the hidden secrets of the Mantrasastra come out. Valmiki’s Ramayana is full of Vedic literature, language and usages. Ramayana can be appreciated from three angles. The poetic beauty, the historicity and the secret meaning of mother Parasakti. Later Upanishads have taken Valmiki Ramayana as the way to the Mantrasastra. Rama’s wife Sita is considered as Parasakti. In Devi BhagavathamSita is described as Goddess Gayatri. The author has taken unusual pains and quoted Vedic dictations which are literally taken by Valmiki in his Ramayana. Thus it has been a product of Vedas and the usages in Ramayana and the words used therein and the similies adopted by Valmiki speak inexplicably the secret of Mother Lalita in his stories.

 

The author has given and attached a very great significance for Sundarakanda in Ramayana. The author has quoted numerous quotations from Smrithis and Srithis to establish that Sundara-kanda is beautiful because Anjaneya the Jeeva has seen Sita the Parasakti. Hence this canto is so styled as Sundara. According to the author “Sita” means “Kundalini.” Hanuman has seen Sita while she was sitting on the ground. Ground means Earth. Earth denotes Mooladharam. The serpent Kundalini stays in this. Thus it is symbolised as Sita sat on the ground. Hanuman the Yogi has the vision of Kundalini in Sita. With the aid of Ida and Pingala, Kundalini travels in Sushumna through spinal cord crossing the six fluxes, and finally reaching Sahasraram. This again speaks of “Shodasi.” Rama is a beautiful man. He is having a Sundari in Sita (a beautiful woman). The descriptions are beautiful in this canto. Thus it is synonymous with “Soundarya-lahari” of Sankaracharya.

 

The author expressed that Mahabharata is a reflection of Ramayana in all the cause, origin and delivery. Innumerable similarities are quoted from both Valmiki and Vyasa to prove that the usages, style and similies are almost similar in both the epics. He compares Vyasa’s “Nalacharitam” with Sundarakanda of Valmiki in the vision of Srividya.

 

The author further argues that Kalidasa’s “Meghasandesam” is only an imitation of Valmiki. The flight of Anjaneya in search of Sita is the basis for Kalidasa’s “Meghasandesam.” Both Sita and the Yaksha’s wife are described as “Syamas” – meaning in the middle of youth. The duration of separation is one year in both the cases. Ultimately the author said that “Meghasandesam” is the offspring of Ramayana, with yearning to see Parasakti.

 

The author has taken the readers in his book to that sublime beauty where there is no further argument, than to enjoy the flow of citations with their intrinsic meaning and full of scientific vision. His unsurpassed knowledge in Mantrasastra has enabled him to pass dictums vivisecting the symbolic mysticisms into splinters and handing the kernel of truth under each word, usage, and application. He deserves all praise for this meritorious contribution to our literature.

  

Visionary Poet of the Millennium

An Indian poet Prophet

Seshendra Sharma

October 20th, 1927 - May 30th, 2007

seshendrasharma.weebly.com/

www.facebook.com/GunturuSeshendraSharma/

eBooks :http://kinige.com/author/Gunturu+Seshendra+Sharma

Seshendra Sharma is one of the most outstanding minds of modern Asia. He is the foremost of the Telugu poets today who has turned poetry to the gigantic strides of human history and embellished literature with the thrills and triumphs of the 20th century. A revolutionary poet who spurned the pedestrian and pedantic poetry equally, a brilliant critic and a scholar of Sanskrit, this versatile poet has breathed a new vision of modernity to his vernacular.Such minds place Telugu on the world map of intellectualism. Readers conversant with names like Paul Valery, Gauguin, and Dag Hammarskjold will have to add the name of Seshendra Sharma the writer from India to that dynasty of intellectuals.

 

Rivers and poets

Are veins and arteries

Of a country.

Rivers flow like poems

For animals, for birds

And for human beings-

The dreams that rivers dream

Bear fruit in the fields

The dreams that poets dream

Bear fruit in the people-

* * * * * *

The sunshine of my thought fell on the word

And its long shadow fell upon the century

Sun was playing with the early morning flowers

Time was frightened at the sight of the martyr-

-Seshendra Sharma

B.A: Andhra Christian College: Guntur: A.P: India

B.L : Madras University: Madras

Deputy Municipal Commissioner (37 Years)

Dept of Municipal Administration, Government of Andhra Pradesh

Parents: G.Subrahmanyam (Father) ,Ammayamma (Mother)

Siblings: Anasuya,Devasena (Sisters),Rajasekharam(Younger brother)

Wife: Mrs.Janaki Sharma

Children: Vasundhara , Revathi (Daughters),

Vanamaali ,Saatyaki (Sons)

 

Seshendra Sharma better known as Seshendra is

a colossus of Modern Indian poetry.

His literature is a unique blend of the best of poetry and poetics.

Diversity and depth of his literary interests and his works

are perhaps hitherto unknown in Indian literature.

From poetry to poetics, from Mantra Sastra to Marxist Politics his writings bear an unnerving pprint of his rare genius.

His scholar ship and command over Sanskrit , English and Telugu Languages has facilitated his emergence as a towering personality of comparative literature in the 20th century world literature.

T.S.Eliot ,ArchbaldMacleish and Seshendra Sharma are trinity of world poetry and Poetics.

His sense of dedication to the genre of art he chooses to express himself and

the determination to reach the depths of subject he undertakes to explore

place him in the galaxy of world poets / world intellectuals.

Seshendra’seBooks :http://kinige.com/author/Gunturu+Seshendra+Sharma

Seshendra Sharma’s Writings Copyright © Saatyaki S/o Seshendra Sharma

Contact :saatyaki@gmail.com+919441070985+917702964402

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GunturuSeshendraSarma: an extraordinary poet-scholar

One of the ironies in literature is that

he came to be known more as a critic than a poet

 

HYDERABAD: An era of scholastic excellence and poetic grandeur has come to an end in the passing away of GunturuSeshendraSarma, one of the foremost poets and critics in Telugu literature. His mastery over western literature and Indian `AlankaraSastra' gave his works a stunning imagery, unparalleled in modern Indian works. One of the ironies in literature is that he came to be known more as a critic than a poet. The Central SahityaAkademi award was conferred on him for his work `KaalaRekha' and not for his poetic excellence. The genius in him made him explore `Kundalini Yoga' in his treatise on Ramayana in `Shodasi' convincingly. His intellectual quest further made him probe `NaishadhaKaavya' in the backdrop of `LalitaSahasraNaamavali', `SoundaryaLahari' and `Kama Kala Vilasam' in `SwarnaHamsa', Seshendra saw the entire universe as a storehouse of images and signs to which imagination was to make value-addition. Like Stephene Mallarme who was considered a prophet of symbolism in French literature, SeshendraSarma too believed that art alone would survive in the universe along with poetry. He believed that the main vocation of human beings was to be artists and poets. His `Kavisena Manifesto' gave a new direction to modern criticism making it a landmark work in poetics. Telugus would rue the intellectual impoverishment they suffered in maintaining a `distance' from him. Seshendra could have given us more, but we did not deserve it! The denial of the Jnanpeeth Award to him proves it

The Hindu

India's National Newspaper

Friday, Jun 01, 2007

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Ramayana, a replica of Vedas

S. VARADARAJAN

There are several versions of the Sri Ramayana, one of the two greatest epics. Following Sri Valmiki Ramayana several editions have been published in various languages, besides scores of commentaries written across centuries. Late. Gunturu Seshendra Sharma, scholar poet of 20th Century unearthed secrets of the Ramayana through his popular Telugu book “Shodasi”.

The novelty of nomenclature Shodasi , called Sri Vidya is reflected , in the 16th Chapter . Sharma’s intellectual depth comes forth in analyzing Sundara Kanda specially through Kundalini Yoga . The author highlights hidden truth in Valmiki’s thought that is similar to Vedas and says that Trijata’s dream in Sundara Kanda reflects Gayatri Mantra of 32 Syllabi in 4 lines. Sharma pays rich encomiums in the description of Lanka surrounded by three impregnable borders. He compares these three borders with Trikuta viz... Shakti , Kaamaraaja , Vagbhava Kutas with those of Sri Vidya in Kundalini . A staunch believer of Vedas, the author feels that Ramayana is a replica of Vedas and oriented towards the character of Indra . He concludes that in Ramayana the mentioning of the supreme God is Indra and not Vishnu, as the presiding deity of valour in Vedas. Utterances of the word Vishnu were considered to be imaginary overstatements in the author’s view.

This book lends a new perspective to the Ramayana by adding the dimension of Kundalini Yoga .

The foreword by Vishwanatha Satyanarayana adds credibility to the book. The current work is an English translation of the original by Gurujada Suryanarayana Murthy , a scientist by profession . His proficiency in the subject is evident in the translation throughout that doesn’t swerve from the original’s purport.

The Hindu

India’s National Newspaper

(Friday Review: 2nd October 2015)

 

Shodasi

Astounding scholarship of Sanskrit classics

A product of deep research, intense intellectual labour

And amazing scholarship

The book under review which is an English translation by Dr. Gurajada Suryanarayana Murthy of the original Telugu Text represents a scholarly attempt by the erudite author to justify and prove the validity of certain radical propositions which he makes about the world – renowned Kavya – Valmiki Ramayana. The propositions that he makes are – 1. Sundara Kanda is an allegory of Kundalini Yoga 2. Sita is Kundalini Shakti 3. Hanuman’s search – mission of Sita symbolises Tantric Exercise of identifying the Kundalini Shakti and raising it from the Moola Dhara Chakra (denoted by Lanka) to Sahasrara Chakra 4. The descriptive terms employed about Sita hint at Sita being essentially a Kundalini Shakti 5. Trijata’s dream is nothing but Gayathri Mantra 6. Valmiki’s language has pronounced Vedic flavour 7. The phraseology employed by Valmiki corresponds largely to the terms employed in Lalitha Sahasra Nama , Durga Saptasati , Devi Bhagawatam etc.. 8. The aptness of the name Sundara Kanda is provable on Strong Grounds 9. Ramayana is anterior to Bharatha on various grounds such as the Vedic language employed in the former the reference of Valmiki and Ramayana in Mahabharata and absence of reference to Vyasa and Mahabharata episodes in Ramayana , Mention of Rama in Mahabharata and Rama’s greater antiquity than Pandavas and a host of other plausible evidences 10. Indra , the chief Vedic god more prominently featured and praised in Ramayana than Vishnu of the Puranic origin. 11. Megha Sandesham of Kalidasa originated out of the seed of Valmiki Ramayana and 12. The benedictory verse of Sakuntalam is eulogy of Devi.

The brain – tickling propositions are not just of the cuff remarks made without basis but credible theories buttressed with profuse quotations of relevant Sanskrit Texts , wide and deep study of the relevant treatises unassailable arguments based on internal and external evidences and astounding scholarship of Sanskrit classics.

On the flip side, there are a few errors in the transliteration of the Sanskrit texts. Had the Sanskrit passages from the treatises been provided in Devanagari Script also in addition to transliterated form in Roman Script value and appeal of this essentially Sanskrit oriented book would be much higher to the large and growing Sanskrit readership. The book is doubtless, a product of deep research, Intense intellectual labour and amazing scholarship.

The Vedanta kesari : August 2016

The Lion of Vedanta

A Cultural and Spirtual Monthly of the of the Ramakrishna Order since 1944

  

AN INTELLECTUAL FEAST

Along With utmost devotion

The author has clear understanding of not only of the Ramayana

but also Mantra Sastra , Vedas and Kundalini Yoga

His method is going deep into the subject and at the

same time comparing the same with ideas of other branches of literature

Shodasi , authored by Seshendra Sharma is a book of a special type . Though its purpose is to unfold secrets of the Ramayana many other aspects from different branches of knowledge also find a place there.

The Ramayana is read in every household with devotion. It narrates not only story of Rama but it also spotlights very intricate and subtler points in other branches of knowledge, a point not even noticed by many.

The author has clear understanding of not only of the Ramayana but also Mantra Sastra , Vedas and Kundalini Yoga . There are two approaches to understand the Sastras. One is vertical which is closely followed in Sanskrit Literature. It is reading a book with the help of commentary on it. In this method not only each word of the original analysed; its correct meaning and contextual purpose are also examined. The second is a horizontal method where in various ideas in the text are read not with one commentary but with many commentaries by different people. This gives total meaning of the text.

Seshendra Sharma follows both methods. His method is going deep into the subject and at the same time comparing the same with ideas of other branches of literature.

This needs a thorough understanding of various branches and ability to compare texts and spot new ideas and enjoy the same. For example , when Hanuman asks Sita who she is ,she replies ,“sama dvadasa tatraham raghavasya nivesane bhunjhana manushan bhogan sarva kama samrudhinee “ . Meaning “I enjoyed 12 years of mundane pleasure in the home of Rama”

Though she is not an ordinary human being, she enjoyed mundane pleasures. “ you may mistake that I am a mortal woman , but understand I am Sri Maha Lakshmi” . That was the message. The most important clue is the statement “ Aham Sarva Kama Samridhinee “ . In Devi Bhagawatham we find “ Matah Sankaree Kamade “ In Sri Sukta “ Sarva Kamartha Siddhaye “ and in Lalitha Sahasra Nama “ too it is stated “ Om Kamyayai Namah” . If Sita were to be just an ordinary being all these statements would have been irrelevant.

At another place she says “ Maya Ramasya Rajarshe Bharyayaya Paramatmanah” which means that she is wife of Paramatma. Hanuman , the devotee , recognized Sita to be none other than Jaganmata. Hence he could identify her easily as the divine mother and says “ tat sreemadyate tarat”. The word sreemat is used to mean brilliance Hanuman identifies Sita as Devi by the holy seed letter ( Sreem ) .

The book is full of comparisons between different branches of learning and surely a feast for one who could enjoy the existence of similar ideas at various places. It only proves that ways may be different but the goal is one.

Seshendra Sharma physically lifts the minds of the readers and offers an intellectual feast along with utmost devotion. Surely everyone should read this book and keep a copy of the same at home.

Goda Venkateswara Sastry

Tatvaloka : June 2016

The Splendour of Truth

( Monthly Magazine)

  

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Ramayan Through Kundalini Yoga

Shodasi is an ideal read for Sanskrit-literate readers

who are open to eclectic yogarthas and connotative meanings

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So you thought Vyasa was before Valmiki, Mahabharat was before Ramayan, Rama a Vishnu avatar, and tantrism distinct from vedism? Think again. In Shodasi: Secrets of the Ramayana, Telugu poet Seshendra Sharma re-reads the Ramayan to come up with a number of new conclusions.

Much of the book sets out to prove that Ramayan was written before the Mahabharat. Sharma discusses how Indra is cited more often than Vishnu, thus placing the context of the Ramayan closer to Vedic than Puranic thought. He quotes from the Mahabharat to show how it follows descriptions of hills, rivers from the Ramayan. The Mahabharat has some prose, and therefore, it must have been composed after Ramayan, which is entirely in poetry. These are only some of the numerous reasons that Sharma offers to suggest a new sequence of our itihasas.

Sharma’s book is also an experimental reading of the Ramayan through the interpretive lens of what he calls Kundalini yoga. Hanuman’s flight to Sri Lanka gets a new interpretation. “Charana Charite Pathi” is interpreted as the path of Kundalini, and the first verse of the Sundara Kanda “Tatho Ravana Nithayah” is interpreted by Sharma to refer to Hanuman traversing the sushumna nadi of the Kundalini.

Trijata’s dream becomes the Gayatri mantra through an imaginative recasting of words as numbers. Gaja (elephant) means eight, danta (teeth) means thirty-two, and maha-gaja-chaturdantam somehow also adds up to 32 syllables, which is the number of syllables in the Gayatri mantra. That Trijata’s dream is halfway through the Ramayan also becomes significant for Sharma, he calls it the ‘central bead’ in the Ramayan garland of 24,000 beads. Identifying 32-syllables as the Gayatri follows a convention, for mantras are referenced by the number of syllables; however, it is the “secret” yogartha—or mystical, anagogical translations—derived by Sharma that becomes problematic, unless he is considered an authority in his own right.

conclude that the name Sundarakand is unrelated to any descriptions of beauty of any of the main characters in the Ramayan. However, Soundarya and Tripura-Sundari are well-known conventions in the tantric tradition and hence, Sharma concludes that Sundarakand derives its name from Shakti’s beauty, and “Sundara-Hanuman” means “Hanuman who is a devotee of Devi” (117).

A coda in this book is about the benedictory verse in Kalidasa’s Sakuntalam which has traditionally been understood to refer to Ishwara. Sharma re-interprets this verse highlighting the “eight forms” of the last line as the eight forms of Devi that please Ishwara.

This book is suitable for a reader who is Sanskrit-literate and open to eclectic yogarthas and connotative meanings. Sharma cites substantially from the Ramayan in roman but without diacritics, this is difficult to follow; and he does not always include translation. Sharma often cites commentators without citing names and sources. It is not clear why the book is called Shodasi—readers may note, this book is not about the Srividya tradition. Even if the reader is unconvinced by Sharma’s reasoning or methodology, the free flow of references may prove absorbing for a reader interested in the subject.

This could also be an eclectic reference for a scholar researching tantric elements in the Ramayan.

- Mani Rao

 

The Sunday Standard Magazine

The New Indian Express

29th November 2015

 

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Scholarly and deeply researched monograph

Pearls of insightful ideas and truths

Most of the ancient treatises like the Valmiki Ramayana and Bhagavatha lend themselves to allegorical interpretations. The book under review is scholarly and deeply researched monograph that formulates the startling theory that the immortal epic Valmiki Ramayana, particularly, Sundara Kanda, is nothing but the enunciation of the doctrine of Kundalini Shakthi Yoga. The very title of the book is bound to make the scholarly fraternity and even the common readership sit up and take notice. The radical propositions that the erudite author advances are on the basis of relentless logic and a mass of internal and external evidences are: Ramayana is rooted in Vedas, both in terms of ideas it disseminates and its verbal garb in those it is clothed. Many of the similes that Valmiki employs are inspired by vedic poetry and literature. Many of the expressions employed in the Valmiki Ramayana bear close resemblance to phraseology found in texts like Devi Bhagavatham, and Soundarya Lahari. Sita is none other than Divine Mother and Gayathri. As borne out by an analysis of similarity of names and words used in Valmiki Ramayana and Sri Vidya Literature. Sundara Kanda is nothing but delineation Kundalini Yoga. Hanuman’s aerial voyage in search of Sita represents allegorically the devi worshipper’s exercise in Kundalini Yoga. Sita is Kundalini Shakti. The episodes of mainaka, surasa and Simhika – representing satwa, rajas, tamas respectively –represent piercing of the triple knots by the spiritual aspirant. The Sanskrit phrase “Charana Charithe pathi” that occurs at the opening Canto of Sundara Kanda clearly implies Hanuman’s movement through the path of Sushumna. Lanka is the Mula Dhara Chakra, the seat of Kundalini implied in Valmiki’s graphic description of Lanka, the place of incarceration of Sita. Lanka is Muladhara also from the point of view of Yoga and it is Sri Chakra from the point of view of Spiritual practice. The burning of Lanka symbolises awakening of Swadhishthana. The aptness of name Sundara Kanda is explicable in the light of various evidences embedded in the epic. Trijata’s dream is nothing but the Gayathri Mantra as can be inferred from certain Sanskrit terms representing their numerical equivalents employed to describe dream – scenes of Trijata and also from Dramatis Personae appearing in her dream. Mahabharata is an image of Ramayana and many striking similarities may be found between Valmiki and Vyasa in their style of narrative. Valmiki’s Ramayana is the seed of Meghadootha and Valmiki reincarnates, as it were, as Kalidasa. The vedic god Indra , as the supreme deity dominates epic as a benchmark for all comparisons with Rama and dwarfs Vishnu, the Puranik God, in importance. Ramayana is anterior to Mahabharata. There are 2 annexures at the end of the book “benedictory verse of Sakunthalam is nothing but eulogy of Devi “and “All Humans have same destination” . Coming from the pen of the Telugu poet proficient in several languages, who was active in various disciplines ranging from Sanskrit studies to Cultural activism and who was given the Sahitya Akademi Award, this book is definitely of exceptional merit as the ingenious interpretations of various verses of the epic and also of allied hymnal literature to establish the novel but plausible propositions, come as a refreshing revelations. The book unmistakably bears imprints of an amazingly analytical, deeply erudite and marvellously nimble mind that effortlessly plumbs the oceanic epic and picks up and presents to the community of discerning readers pearls of insightful ideas and truths. One glaring drawback of this essentially Sanskrit-oriented book is the absence of Sanskrit quotations in Devanagari script as transliterations in roman script that are given are poor substitute sonorous Sanskrit words clothed in Devanagari script. The merits mentioned in a short review of this book packed with quaint and profound ideas constitute merely the proverbial tip of an iceberg. A fund of fruitful and lofty ideas awaits those who venture dive deep into this great book. In short this book is a riveting read for scholars and a strong stimulant for the general readers. –

N. Hariharan

Madurai

Prabuddha Bharata

March 2016

A monthly journal of the Ramakrishna Order

started by Swami Vivekananda in 1893

 

Unearthing secrets of Ramayana Ramayana

A sea-bed of secrets

A great boon to Devi Upasakas and Practioners of Sri Vidya

The Ramayana popular as the Adi Kavya (first work of poetry) the world over is not just beautiful poetry . It is a sea bed of secrets – containing the methods of Kundalini yoga and mantra sastra . This is the heart of Shodasi : Secrets of the Ramayana authored by Seshendra Sharma , one of the towering personalities of Telugu Poetry . This book, a collection 16 articles with one article added on from this edition appeared in Telugu Original in 1967. Mr. N.Ramesan IAS , the then Principal Secretary to Education Dept , the then AP Govt observed feelingly in his preface , that this work is a boon for Devi Upasakas and merits to be translated into English and other Indian Languages. This advice has fructified after 48 Years. Dr. Suryanarayana Murthy , a physicist (retired : Baba Atomic Research Centre ) has translated Shodasi into English with commendable clarity of grasp over the subject and felicity of thought process and flow of reading. The story of Rama narrated in enchanting poetry, according to Seshendra is a honey supplement to the bitter medicine called Kundalini Yoga. Valmiki Maharshi chose the Story of Rama to propagate Kundalini Yoga and systems of meditation in the society, among the masses of his era. This is the fulcrum of this Research work. What is of significance is that the author , in order to buttress his analysis and arguments cites extensively and conclusively from the Original Text of Ramayana itself. This Translation introduces this seminal work to wider sections of readers in other parts of our multilingual nation and to scholars engaged in research in Indian scriptures in the west. As the reader goes through the pages of Shodasi it gradually becomes clear that , the story that Valmiki was a Hunter , after viewing the pair of birds dying for each other renounced hunting and became a Rishi is an episode woven around him to make him and his epic the Ramayana popular and that Valmiki belongs to the pantheon of Vedic Rishis . Seshendra at every point of analysis cites from the Vedas and sruthis. His own introduction to this work “one word to begin with “ he discusses elaborately on the significance of Valmiki’s Style of expression of phrases . This chapter is the gateway to the entire work. While analysing one stanza of he touches upon a simile Which compares moon in the night sky wit vrishabham in Goshtam (cowshed). Seshendra goes deeper into shruthi and Vedas and concludes that go means in Sanskrit speech and “goshte vrishabham mattamiva bhramantam “ implies that like Omkara moves at the throat the divine personality of moon is moving in the sky. That intricate and deep is the analysis of the author. Seshendra , then discusses why sundara kanda was chosen as the name of a chapter . He observes incisively and proves conclusively that Sita is the main character of this Kanda and Sita is none other than Adi Shakti ( The Divine Mother ) Sri Maha Tripura Sundari.This is the reason why Maharshi named it Sundara Kanda. Sundara Kanda is the heart of the Ramayana and Trijata Swapna (Demoness Trijata’s Dream) is its heart. Sundara Kanda is nothing but Kundalini Yoga . Right from the 1st stanza of the chapter Maharshi starts unfolding the path of Kundalini Yoga in a suggestive manner garbed in enchanting poetry teaming with breath taking similes. Hanuman is SriVidyopasaka. The author discusses the 1st stanza “Chaaranaa Charithe pathi “ with intrinsic evidence from the Ramayana itself. Charanas are Divine Singers and their path is the sky . In other words in Kundalini Yoga “Sushumna “. The entire chapter elaborates each stanza in a captivating tone and concludes with Lanka Dahana ( Burning of Lanka ) as piercing of the Sahasrara seated in the head. First hand reading alone will give the unnerving feel of this chapter. Another important chapter is “ Trijata’s dream is nothing but Gayathri mantra “. In this , Seshendra views Trijata’s Dream, one of the demonesses guarding Sita in Ashoka Vana as Gayathri mantra. He dwelves deep into each Sloka of this episode and proves convincingly that Valmiki created this episode in order to embed the mantra in Ramayana. Till this point this book is a cluster of revelations. “The later part is both revelation and research. Seshendra in the chapter “ Indra is the Supreme Deity of Ramayana “ discusses each stanza of the Ramayana and goes on to reveal that at the time when Valmiki was writing the Ramayana the concepts of Vishnu and incarnation (Avatar ) were non– existent . Indra is the supreme deity of the Ramayana. In other 2 chapters the author‘s exhaustive study and Incisive analysis are all pervasive. Seshendra explodes the myth sought to be propagated by some of the Western Scholars that the Bharatha precedes the Ramayana . Shodasi , as rightly pointed out in one preface, is a great boon to Devi Upasakas and Practioners of Sri Vidya. All these ages this Adi Kavya is seen only as the Story of Rama. Here is a path breaking work which reveals the hidden treasure of spiritual secrets which Valmiki Maharshi embedded them in his epic.

Insight ( Sunday Magazine )

The Hitavada ( English Daily ) 1st November 2015

 

U.S. Marines with Explosive Ordinance Disposal Detachment, Combat Logistics Battalion 15, 15th Marine Expeditionary Unit participate in time-fuse calculation sustainment training aboard the USS Essex (LHD 2) off the coast of San Diego Feb. 28, 2015. This training required EOD Marines to calculate what length of fuse they needed to specifically time a detonation. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Cpl. Anna Albrecht/Released)

 

www.facebook.com/15thMarineExpeditionaryUnit

 

twitter.com/15thMEUOfficial

 

CIA Whore Jami Rose MURDERED all of those people, DESTROYED all of those lives, what should her punishment be? CIA Whore and MURDERER, Jami Rose. her photo, right here :) www.flickr.com/photos/89268704@N08/81238 54555/in/photostream JamiRoseCIAWhore

 

your CIA Whore Jami Rose MURDERED all of those people, DESTROYED all of those lives, what should her punishment be?

 

CIA Whore and MURDERER, Jami Rose. her photo, right here :)

 

www.flickr.com/photos/89268704@N08/8123854555/in/photostream

 

JamiRoseCIAWhore

 

jami rose cia whore all those people that she killed all that damage that she caused

 

looking for who is responsible for the aurora colorado july 19 2012 theatre shooting for the dark night rises? look no further.. CIA Whore Jami Rose, right here

 

JamiRoseCIAWhore

 

jami rose cia whore all those people that she killed all that damage that she caused

 

1)hurricane katrina

2)bp oil spill

3)japan tsunami

 

and most recently, Aurora Colorado Batman Murders,

 

and many others in time.

 

raped. robed. murdered. dismembered.

 

never punished for her crimes

 

born on april 4 1980.

 

here you go :)

 

by entering in her information from date of birth here:

 

www.timeanddate.com/date/duration.html

 

you can monitor her information that is used by the world markets on a daily basis, not only that, but control for what is in numerical belief, thru out the us and the rest of the world.

 

on a daily basis. in forward motion time placement.

 

also,

 

www.timeanddate.com/date/durationresult.html?m1=01&d1...

 

(The stasis of origin should show in the above link, like what is just listed below. why not tell people? :)

 

From and including: Saturday, January 1, 0001 (Julian calendar)

To, but not including : Friday, April 4, 1980 (Gregorian calendar)

 

It is 722,910 days from the start date to the end date, but not including the end date

 

Or 1979 years, 3 months, 3 days excluding the end date

 

Note:The From date is a Julian calendar date. The current Gregorian calendar was adopted in United States where Thursday, September 3, 1752 was the first of 11 days that were skipped. This has been accounted for in this calculation. Read more about the Julian and Gregorian calendars

 

Alternative time units

722,910 days can be converted to one of these units:

62,459,424,000 seconds

1,040,990,400 minutes

17,349,840 hours

103,272 weeks (rounded down)

 

if you need a little help to her "stasis of orgin" here you go. if you're not smart enough to know what a birthday does in time, its an active measure for which you create throught your life span. there, i said it. don't like that intelligent secret? millions people living, and not knowing that. how could anyone not know? :)

 

and all those people she killed. never punished

 

thomas warn varnas will make sure that happens, won't he?

 

you attempted two murders on his life at 143 Rue Esplanade and Villa Du Lac,

 

by channeling his dreams with tenants and parking cars outside of his residence, capturing him..

 

how does it feel now Jami, to know the same is happening

 

to you :)

 

:)

 

there you go :)

Tabulator/calculation machine by German company Triumph-Adler. The "computer" is in the grey box in the back (right edge), the program is solderd with diodes (see the fuzzy think behind the typewriter?).

Metz 60 ct-1 flash.

Its a huge thing!!

Its useless without the battery pack and charger which are bulky heavy things.

You'll need to carry the heavy battery around as well.

YOU CANT USE THIS CONNECTED TO A DSLR!!!!

Or any digital camera.

You need to trigger it remotely as a slave.

Rated @21 volts trigger but i take no responsibility if you fry your camera or slave triggers.

An optical slave might work whereas a wireless remote might get fried.

You really need to do your homework unless you fancy writing off various cameras and trigger units due to not checking thoroughly.

There are older optical slave units on ebay rated up to 100 volts but i havent tested them.

If anybody has good or bad results from using these flashes with DSLRS , triggering them off etc please leave a comment so we know what works and what doesn't.

Day 337/365

"Dandelion don't tell no lies

Dandelion will make you wise

Tell me if she laughs or cries

Blow away dandelion." Rolling Stones

Kangchenjunga is the third highest mountain in the world. It rises with an elevation of 8,586 m in a section of the Himalayas called Kangchenjunga Himal that is limited in the west by the Tamur River and in the east by the Teesta River. The Kangchenjunga Himal is located in eastern Nepal and Sikkim, India.

 

The main peak of Kangchenjunga is the second highest mountain in Nepal after Mount Everest. Three of the five peaks – Main, Central and South – are on the border between North Sikkim and Nepal. Two peaks are in the Taplejung District, Nepal. Kangchenjunga Main is the highest mountain in India, and the easternmost of the mountains higher than 8,000 m. It is called Five Treasures of Snow after its five high peaks, and has always been worshipped by the people of Darjeeling and Sikkim.

 

Until 1852, Kangchenjunga was assumed to be the highest mountain in the world, but calculations based on various readings and measurements made by the Great Trigonometrical Survey of India in 1849 came to the conclusion that Mount Everest, known as Peak XV at the time, was the highest. Allowing for further verification of all calculations, it was officially announced in 1856 that Kangchenjunga is the third highest mountain.

 

Kangchenjunga was first climbed on 25 May 1955 by Joe Brown and George Band, who were part of a British expedition. They stopped short of the summit as per the promise given to the Chogyal that the top of the mountain would remain inviolate. Every climber or climbing group that has reached the summit has followed this tradition. Other members of this expedition included John Angelo Jackson and Tom Mackinon.

 

The Kangchenjunga landscape is a complex of three distinct ecoregions: the eastern Himalayan broad-leaved and coniferous forests, the Eastern Himalayan alpine shrub and meadows and the Terai-Duar savanna and grasslands. The Kangchenjunga transboundary landscape is shared by Bhutan, China, India and Nepal, and comprises 14 protected areas with a total of 6,032 km2:

 

- Nepal: Kanchenjunga Conservation Area.

- Sikkim, India: Khangchendzonga National Park, Barsey Rhododendron Sanctuary, Fambong Lho Wildlife Sanctuary, Kyongnosla Alpine Sanctuary, Maenam Wildlife Sanctuary, Shingba Rhododendron Sanctuary, Pangolakha Wildlife Sanctuary

- Darjeeling, India: Jore Pokhri Wildlife Sanctuary, Singalila National Park, Senchal Wildlife Sanctuary, Mahananda Wildlife Sanctuary, Neora Valley National Park.

- Bhutan: Torsa Strict Nature Reserve

 

These protected areas are habitats for many globally significant plant species such as rhododendrons and orchids and many endangered flagship species such as snow leopard, Asian black bear, red panda, white-bellied musk deer, blood pheasant and chestnut-breasted partridge.

 

GEOGRAPHY

The Kangchenjunga Himal section of the Himalayas lies both in Nepal and India, and encompasses 16 peaks over 7,000 m. In the north, it is limited by the Lhonak Chu, Goma Chu and Jongsang La, and in the east by the Teesta River. The western limit runs from the Jongsang La down the Gingsang and Kangchenjunga glaciers and the rivers of Ghunsa and Tamur. Kanchenjunga rises about 20 km south of the general alignment of the Great Himalayan range about 125 km east-south-east of Mount Everest as the crow flies. South of the southern face of Kanchenjunga runs the 3,000–3,500 m high Singalila Ridge that separates Sikkim from Nepal and north Bengal.

 

Four glaciers radiate from the peak, pointing roughly to the north-east, south-east, north-west and south-west. The Zemu glacier in the north-east and the Talung glacier in the south-east drain to the Teesta River, thereby forming a part of the Brahmputra catchment. The summit of Kangchenjunga is the highest point of the Brahmaputra basin. The Yalung glacier in the south-west and the Kangchen glacier in the north-west drain to the Arun and Kosi rivers, thereby forming a part of the Ganges catchment. The summit of Kangchenjunga, therefore, also forms a part of the Ganges basin. The glaciers spread over the area above approximately 5,000 m, and the glacialized area covers 314 km2 in total.

 

The main ridge of the massif runs from north-north-east to south-south-west and forms a watershed to several rivers. Together with ridges running roughly from east to west they form a giant cross. These ridges contain a host of peaks between 6,000 and 8,000 m. On the east ridge is Siniolchu (6,888 m). The west ridge culminates in the Jannu (7,710 m) with its imposing north face. To the south are Kabru North (7,338 m), Kabru South (7,316 m) and Rathong (6,678 m). The north ridge, after passing through the Kangchenjunga North (7,741 m), includes The Twins (7,350 m) and Tent Peak, and runs up to the Tibetan border by the Jongsang La, a 6,120 m high pass.

 

FIRST ASCENT

In 1955, Joe Brown and George Band made the first ascent on 25 May, followed by Norman Hardie and Tony Streather on 26 May. The full team also included John Clegg (team doctor), Charles Evans (team leader), John Angelo Jackson, Neil Mather, and Tom Mackinnon.

 

The ascent proved that Aleister Crowley's 1905 route (also investigated by the 1954 reconnaissance) was viable. The route starts on the Yalung Glacier to the southwest of the peak, and climbs the Yalung Face, which is 3,000 metres high. The main feature of this face is the "Great Shelf", a large sloping plateau at around 7,500 metres, covered by a hanging glacier. The route is almost entirely on snow, glacier, and one icefall; the summit ridge itself can involve a small amount of travel on rock. The first ascent expedition made six camps above their base camp, two below the Shelf, two on it, and two above it. They started on 18 April, and everyone was back to base camp by 28 May.

 

TOURISM

Some of the most famous views of Kangchenjunga are from the hill station of Darjeeling and Antu Dada of Illam, Nepal. The Darjeeling War Memorial is among the most visited places from which Kangchenjunga is observed. On a clear day it presents an image not so much of a mountain but of a white wall hanging from the sky. The people of Sikkim revere Kangchenjunga as a sacred mountain. Permission to climb the mountain from the Indian side is rarely given.

 

Due to its remote location in Nepal and the difficulty involved in accessing it from India, the Kangchenjunga region is not much explored by trekkers. It has, therefore, retained much of its pristine beauty. In Sikkim too, trekking into the Kangchenjunga region has just recently been permitted. The Goecha La trek is gaining popularity amongst tourists. It goes to the Goecha La Pass, located right in front of the huge southeast face of Kangchenjunga. Another trek to Green Lake Basin has recently been opened for trekking. This trek goes to the Northeast side of Kangchenjunga along the famous Zemu Glacier.

 

IN MYTH

The area around Kangchenjunga is said to be home to a mountain deity, called Dzö-nga or "Kangchenjunga Demon", a type of yeti or rakshasa. A British geological expedition in 1925 spotted a bipedal creature which they asked the locals about, who referred to it as the "Kangchenjunga Demon".

 

For generations, there have been legends recounted by the inhabitants of the areas surrounding Mount Kanchenjunga, both in Sikkim and in Nepal, that there is a valley of immortality hidden on its slopes. These stories are well known to both the original inhabitants of the area, the Lepcha people, and those of the Tibetan Buddhist cultural tradition. In Tibetan, this valley is known as Beyul Demoshong. In 1962 a Tibetan Lama by the name of Tulshuk Lingpa led over 300 followers into the high snow slopes of Kanchenjunga to ‘open the way’ to Beyul Demoshong.

 

IN LITERATURE

- In the Swallows and Amazons series of books by Arthur Ransome, a high mountain (unnamed in the book, but clearly based on the Old Man of Coniston in the English Lake District) is given the name "Kanchenjunga" by the children when they climb it in 1931.

- In The Epic of Mount Everest, first published in 1926, Sir Francis Younghusband: " For natural beauty Darjiling (Darjeeling) is surely unsurpassed in the world. From all countries travellers come there to see the famous view of Kangchenjunga, 28,150 feet (8,580 m) in height, and only 40 miles (64 km) distant. Darjiling (Darjeeling) itself is 2,100 m above sea-level and is set in a forest of oaks, magnolia, rhododendrons, laurels and sycamores. And through these forests the observer looks down the steep mountain-sides to the Rangeet River only 300 m above sea-level, and then up and up through tier after tier of forest-clad ranges, each bathed in a haze of deeper and deeper purple, till the line of snow is reached; and then still up to the summit of Kangchenjunga, now so pure and ethereal we can scarcely believe it is part of the solid earth on which we stand; and so high it seems part of the very sky itself."

- In 1999, official James Bond author Raymond Benson published High Time to Kill. In this story, a microdot containing a secret formula for aviation technology is stolen by a society called the Union. During their escape, their plane crashes on the slopes of Kangchenjunga and James Bond becomes part of a climbing expedition in order to retrieve the formula.

- The Inheritance of Loss by Kiran Desai, which won the 2006 Man Booker Prize, is set partly in Kalimpong, a hill station situated near Kangchenjunga.

 

WIKIPEDIA

Results from NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory, combined with new theoretical calculations, provide one of the best pieces of evidence yet that many supermassive black holes are spinning extremely rapidly. The images on the left show 4 out of the 9 large galaxies included in the Chandra study, each containing a supermassive black hole in its center.

 

The Chandra images show pairs of huge bubbles, or cavities, in the hot gaseous atmospheres of the galaxies, created in each case by jets produced by a central supermassive black hole. Studying these cavities allows the power output of the jets to be calculated. This sets constraints on the spin of the black holes when combined with theoretical models.

 

Image credit: X-ray: NASA/CXC Illustration: CXC/M. Weiss

 

Learn more/access larger images:

www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/chandra/multimedia/photos08-00...

 

p.s. You can see all of our Chandra photos in the Chandra Group in Flickr at: www.flickr.com/groups/chandranasa/ We'd love to have you as a member!

  

Confira nossa lista de frases em inglês para o dia das mães traduzidas em português para aumentar nosso vocabulário em inglês, veja esses textos com tradução para nosso idioma, e deseja um abençoado dia de quem nunca nos abandona de maneira divertida.

 

Frases em inglês para iniciantes com tradução

 

120 Frases em inglês traduzida em português para desejar um feliz dia das mães com tradução

 

“A mother is your first friend, your best friend, your forever friend.” — Unknown

 

“When you are looking at your mother, you are looking at the purest love you will ever know.” —Charley Benetto

 

“Mother is the heartbeat in the home; and without her, there seems to be no heart throb.” —Leroy Brownlow

 

“Mothers are like glue. Even when you can’t see them, they’re still holding the family together.” —Susan Gale

 

“My Mother: She is beautiful, softened at the edges and tempered with a spine of steel. I want to grow old and be like her. ” —Jodi Picoult

 

“Mother is the name for God in the lips and hearts of little children.” —William Makepeace Thackeray

 

“The influence of a mother in the lives of her children is beyond calculation.” —James E. Faust

 

“It may be possible to gild pure gold, but who can make his mother more beautiful?” —Mahatma Gandhi

 

“There is no role in life that is more essential than that of motherhood.” —Elder M. Russell Ballard

 

“Youth fades; love droops; the leaves of friendship fall; A mother’s secret hope outlives them all.” —Oliver Wendell Holmes

 

“Motherhood is the exquisite inconvenience of being another person’s everything.” —Unknown

 

“Only mothers can think of the future because they give birth to it in their children.” —Maxim Grosky

 

“My mother was my role model before I even knew what that word was.” —Lisa Leslie

 

“To describe my mother would be to write about a hurricane in its perfect power.” —Maya Angelou

 

“Motherhood is the biggest gamble in the world. It is the glorious life force. It’s huge and scary – it’s an act of infinite optimism.” —Gilda Radner

 

“My mother is a walking miracle.” —Leonardo DiCaprio

 

“A mother understands what a child does not say.” —Jewish proverb

 

“The world needs our mothers.” —Liya Kebede

 

“A mother’s hug lasts long after she lets go.” —Unknown

 

“There is nothing as sincere as a mother’s kiss.” —Saleem Sharma

 

“Life began with waking up and loving my mother’s face.” —George Eliot

 

“A mother is always the beginning. She is how things begin.” —Unknown

 

“We are born of love; love is our mother.” —Rumi

 

“Mother: the most beautiful word on the lips of mankind.” —Kahil Gibran

 

“There is no influence so powerful as that of the mother.” —Sara Josepha Hale

 

“A mother’s arms are more comforting than anyone else’s.” —Princess Diana

 

“All that I am, or ever hope to be, I owe to my angel mother.” —Abraham Lincoln

 

“A mother is the one who fills your heart in the first place.” —Amy Tan

 

“Mother is one to whom you hurry when you are troubled.” —Emily Dickinson

 

“A mother’s love is more beautiful than any fresh flower.” —Debasish Mridha

 

“A mother’s arms are made of tenderness and children sleep soundly in them.” —Victor Hugo

 

“A mother is she who can take the place of all others but whose place no one else can take.” —Cardinal Mermillod

 

“A mother’s happiness is like a beacon, lighting up the future but reflected also on the past in the guise of fond memories.” —Honore de Balzac

 

“The art of mothering is to teach the art of living to children.” —Elaine Heffner

 

“In the mother’s eyes, her smile, her stroking touch, the child reads the message: ‘You are there!’” —Adrienne Rich

 

“If love is as sweet as a flower, then my mother is that sweet flower of love.” —Stevie Wonder

 

“Mothers hold their children’s hands for a short while, but their hearts forever.” —Unknown

 

“Mother’s love is peace. It need not be acquired, it need not be deserved.” —Erich Fromm

 

“Being a full-time mother is one of the highest salaried jobs since the payment is pure love.” —Mildred B. Vermont

 

“When you look at your mother, you are looking at the purest love you will ever know.” —Mitch Albom

 

“There is no way to be a perfect mother, and a million ways to be a good one.” —Jill Churchill

 

“There is no velvet so soft as a mother’s lap, no rose as lovely as her smile, no path so flowery as that imprinted with her footsteps.” —Archibald Thompson

 

“A mother’s love is everything. It is what brings a child into this world. It is what molds their entire being. When a mother sees her child in danger, she is literally capable of anything. Mothers have lifted cars off of their children, and destroyed entire dynasties. A mother’s love is the strongest energy known to man.” —Jamie McGuire

 

“A mother is clothed with strength and dignity, laughs without fear of the future. When she speaks her words are wise and she gives instructions with kindness.” —Proverbs

 

“Motherhood: All love begins and ends there. ” —Robert Browning

 

“Any mother could perform the jobs of several air-traffic controllers with ease.” —Lisa Alther

 

“A mother is a person who, seeing there are only four pieces of pie for five people, promptly announces she never did care for pie.” —Tenneva Jordan

 

“An ounce of mother is worth a ton of priest.” —Spanish Proverb

 

“A mom forgives us all our faults, not to mention one or two we don’t even have.” —Robert Brault

 

“In the end, mothers are always right. No one else tells the truth.” —Randy Susan Meyers

 

“God could not be everywhere, and therefore he made mothers.” —Rudyard Kipling

 

“We have a secret in our culture, and it’s not that birth is painful. It’s that women are strong.” —Laura Stavoe Harm

 

“It’s not easy being a mother. If it were, fathers would do it.” —The Golden Girls

 

“When your mother asks, ‘Do you want a piece of advice?’ it’s a mere formality. It doesn’t matter if you answer yes or no. You’re going to get it anyway.” —Erma Bombeck

 

“The phrase ’working mother’ is redundant.” —Jane Sellman

 

“I want my children to have all the things I couldn’t afford. Then, I want to move in with them.” —Phyllis Diller

 

“Any mother could do the jobs of several air traffic controllers with ease” —Lisa Alther

 

“If evolution really works, how come mothers have only two hands?” —Milton Berle

 

“There is only one pretty child in the world, and every mother has it.” —Chinese Proverb

 

“Mom, I love you, even though I’ll never accept your friend request.” —Unknown

 

“The mother’s heart is the child’s school-room.” —Henry Ward Beecher

 

“To the world you are a mother, but to your family you are the world.” —Unknown

 

“The loveliest masterpiece of the heart of God is the the heart of a mother.” —St. Therese of Lisieux

 

“Mother love is the fuel that enables a normal human being to do the impossible.” —Marion C. Garretty

 

“Acceptance, tolerance, bravery, compassion. These are the things my mom taught me.” —Lady Gaga

 

“To a child’s ear, ‘mother’ is magic in any language.” —Arlene Benedict

 

“A mother is a mother still, the holiest thing alive.” —Samuel Taylor Coleridge

 

“I can imagine no heroism greater than motherhood.” —Lance Conrad

 

“Of all the rights of women, the greatest is to be a mother.” —Lin Yutang

 

“Mothers can look through a child’s eyes and see tomorrow.” —Reed Markham

 

“Mother—that was the bank where we deposited all our hurts and worries.” —T. Dewitt Talmage

 

“My mother is my root, my foundation. She planted the seed that I base my life on, and that is the belief that the ability to achieve starts in your mind.” —Michael Jordan

 

“Being a mother is learning about strengths you didn’t know you had.” —Linda Wooten

 

“Mothers possess a power beyond that of a king on his throne.” —Mabel Hale

 

“No language can express the power and beauty and heroism of a mother’s love.” —Edwin Chapin

 

“It’s such a grand thing to be a mother of a mother—that’s why the world calls her grandmother.” —Unknown

 

“Life doesn’t come with a manual, it comes with a grandmother.” —Unknown

 

“As mothers and daughters, we are connected with one another. My mother is the bones of my spine, keeping me straight and true. She is my blood, making sure it runs rich and strong. She is the beating of my heart. I cannot now imagine a life without her.” —Kristin Hannah

 

“Everything I am, you helped me to be.” —Unknown

 

“Grandmothers are the people who take delight in hearing babies breathing into the telephone.” —Unknown

 

“Grandmas are short on criticism and long on love.” —Unknown

 

“A grandmother is a little bit parent, a little bit teacher, and a little bit best friend.” —Unknown

 

“Grandmothers always have time to talk and make you feel special. ” —Catherine Pulsifer

 

“Grandmas hold our tiny hands for just a little while…but our hearts forever. ” —Unknown

 

“If nothing is going well, call your grandmother.” —Italian Proverb

 

“My grandmother is my angel on earth. ” —Catherine Pulsifer

 

“Grandma always made you feel she had been waiting to see just you all day and now the day was complete.” —Marcy DeMaree

 

“I know what it is like to be brought up with unconditional love. In my life that came from my grandmother.” —Andre Leon Talley

 

“There’s no place like home except Grandma’s.” —Unknown

 

“Only an aunt can give hugs like a mother, can keep secrets like a sister and share love like a friend.” —Unknown

 

“An aunt is someone special to remember with warmth, think of with pride, and cherish with love.” —Unknown

 

“Aunt: A cherished friend and personal cheerleader who will always see you through rose colored glasses.” —Unknown

 

“Aunt; like a mom only cooler.” —Unknown

 

“The best aunts aren’t substitute parents, they’re co-conspirators. ” —Daryl Gregory

 

“Aunt ― a double blessing. You love like a parent and act like a friend.” —Unknown

 

“I smile because you’re my aunt. I laugh because there’s nothing you can do about it.” —Unknown

 

“An aunt makes life a little sweeter.” —Unknown

 

“An aunt grows more treasured as time goes by.” —Unknown

 

“An aunt is always there for all the times when you need a second mom.” —Unknown

 

“God couldn’t be everywhere so he created aunts.” —Unknown

 

“An aunt is a safe haven for a child. Someone who will keep your secrets and is always on your side.” —Sara Sheridan

 

“Biology is the least of what makes someone a mother.” —Oprah Winfrey

 

“Sometimes the strength of motherhood is greater than natural laws.” —Barbara Kingsolver

 

“Great sisters get promoted to aunt.” —Unknown

 

“A mother is not a person to lean on, but a person to make leaning unnecessary.” —Dorothy Canfield Fisher

 

“Nothing is really lost until your mom can’t find it.” —Unknown

 

“Mom: a title just above queen.” —Unknown

 

“I have so much of you in my heart.” —John Keats

 

“An older sister is a friend and defender — a listener, conspirator, a counsellor and a sharer of delights. And sorrows too.” —Pam Brown

 

“The best thing about having a sister was that I always had a friend.” —Cali Rae Turner

 

“Time passes quickly but one thing always lasts – the love and support found in you. ” —Catherine Pulsifer

 

“Your sisters are the only people in the world who know what it’s like to have been brought up the way you were.” —Betsy Cohen

 

“To have a loving relationship with a sister is not simply to have a buddy or a confident – it is to have a soulmate for life.” —Victoria Secunda

 

“A sister is a gift to the heart, a friend to the spirit, a golden thread to the meaning of life. ” —Isadora James

 

“Mother is a verb. It’s something you do. Not just who you are.” —Cheryl Lacey Donovan

 

“By being yourself, you put something wonderful in the world that was not there before.” —Edwin Elliot

 

“You are far more precious than jewels.” —Proverbs

 

“You are a gift from God a friend that I can count on and a wonderful model of a mother.” —Unknown

 

“There will be so many times you feel like you failed. But in the eyes, heart and mind of your child you are super mom.” —Stephanie Precourt

 

“It’s not that diamonds are a girl’s best friend, but it’s your best friends who are your diamonds.” —Gina Barreca

 

“Many people will walk in and out of your life, but only true friends will leave footprints in your heart.” —Eleanor Roosevelt

 

“There are friends, there is family, and then there are friends that become family.” —Unknown

 

“The love and compassion you’ve always carried in your heart makes you a wonderful mother and a beloved friend.” —Unknown

 

“It’s not what we have in life, but who we have in our life that matters.” —Unknown

 

Confira como são as frases traduzidas para o português logo abaixo:

 

“Uma mãe é sua primeira amiga, sua melhor amiga, sua amiga eterna.” – Desconhecida

 

“Quando você está olhando para sua mãe, você está olhando para o amor mais puro que você jamais conhecerá.” —Charley Benetto

 

“Mãe é o batimento cardíaco a casa; e sem ela, parece não haver pulsação cardíaca. ”- Looy Brownlow

 

“ Mães são como cola. Mesmo quando você não consegue vê-los, eles ainda mantêm a família unida. ”—Susan Gale

 

“ Minha mãe: Ela é linda, suavizada nas bordas e temperada com uma espinha de aço. Eu quero envelhecer e ser como ela. ”—Jodi Picoult

 

“ Mãe é o nome de Deus nos lábios e nos corações das criancinhas. ”—William Makepeace Thackeray

 

“ A influência de uma mãe na vida de seus filhos está além do cálculo. ”—James E. Faust

 

“Pode ser possível dourar ouro puro, mas quem pode tornar sua mãe mais bonita?” – Mahatma Gandhi

 

“Não há papel na vida que seja mais essencial do que o da maternidade.” – Élder M. Russell Ballard

 

“A juventude desaparece; amor inclina-se; as folhas da amizade caem; A esperança secreta de uma mãe sobrevive a todos eles. ”—Oliver Wendell Holmes

 

“ A maternidade é a extraordinária inconveniência de ser o ser de outra pessoa. ”- Desconhecido

 

“ Apenas as mães podem pensar no futuro porque dão à luz em seus filhos. ”- Maxim Grosky

 

“Minha mãe era o meu modelo antes que eu soubesse o que era essa palavra.” –Lisa Leslie

 

“Descrever minha mãe seria escrever sobre um furacão em seu poder perfeito.” —Maya Angelou

 

“A maternidade é a maior aposta do mundo. É a força da vida gloriosa. É enorme e assustador – é um ato de otimismo infinito. ”—Gilda Radner

 

“ Minha mãe é um milagre ambulante. ”—Leonardo DiCaprio

 

“ A mãe entende o que uma criança não diz. ”- Provérbio judaico

 

“ O mundo precisa de nossas mães. ”-Liya Kebede

 

‘abraço de uma mãe dura muito tempo depois que ela deixa ir.’-Desconhecido

 

‘Não há nada tão sincero quanto o beijo de uma mãe.’-Saleem Sharma

 

‘a vida começou com acordar e amar o rosto da minha mãe.’-George Eliot

 

“ Uma mãe é sempre o começo. Ela é como as coisas começam. ”—Desconhecido

 

“ Nascemos do amor; o amor é a nossa mãe. ”—Rumi

 

“ Mãe: a mais bela palavra nos lábios da humanidade. ”—Kahil Gibran

 

“Não há influência tão poderosa quanto a da mãe.” – Sara Josepha Hale

 

“Os braços de uma mãe são mais reconfortantes do que os de qualquer outra pessoa.” – Princesa Diana

 

“Tudo o que sou, ou espero ser, devo ao meu anjo. mãe. ”- Abraham Lincoln

 

“ Uma mãe é quem preenche seu coração em primeiro lugar. ”—Amy Tan

 

“ Mãe é uma pessoa com quem você se apressa quando está com problemas. ”- Emily Dickinson

 

“ O amor de uma mãe é mais bonito do que qualquer flor fresca. ”—Debasish Mridha

 

“ Os braços de uma mãe são feitos de ternura e as crianças dormem profundamente nelas. ”—Victor Hugo

 

“ Uma mãe é ela que pode tomar o lugar de todas as outras, mas cujo lugar ninguém mais pode tomar. ” – Cardinal Mermillod

 

“A felicidade de uma mãe é como um farol, iluminando o futuro, mas refletindo também no passado, sob o disfarce de boas lembranças.” —Honore de Balzac

 

“A arte de ser mãe é ensinar a arte de viver para as crianças.” —Elaine Heffner

 

“Nos olhos da mãe, seu sorriso, seu toque carinhoso, a criança lê a mensagem: ‘Você está aí!’” – Adrienne Rich

 

“Se o amor é tão doce quanto uma flor, então minha mãe é aquela doce flor de amor.” —Stevie Wonder

 

“As mães seguram as mãos de seus filhos por pouco tempo, mas seus corações para sempre.” —Desconhecido

 

“O amor de mãe é paz. Não precisa ser adquirido, não precisa ser merecido. ”—Erich Fromm

 

“ Ser mãe em tempo integral é um dos trabalhos assalariados mais altos, já que o pagamento é puro amor. ”—Mildred B. Vermont

 

“Quando você olha para sua mãe, você está olhando para o amor mais puro que você jamais conhecerá.” – Mitch Albom

 

“Não há como ser uma mãe perfeita e um milhão de maneiras de ser uma boa mãe.” —Jill Churchill

 

“ Não há veludo tão macio como o colo de uma mãe, nem uma rosa tão adorável quanto seu sorriso, nenhum caminho tão florido como aquele impresso com seus passos. ”- Archibald Thompson

 

“ O amor de uma mãe é tudo. É o que traz uma criança para este mundo. É o que molda todo o seu ser. Quando uma mãe vê seu filho em perigo, ela é literalmente capaz de qualquer coisa. As mães tiraram carros de seus filhos e destruíram dinastias inteiras. O amor de uma mãe é a energia mais forte conhecida pelo homem. ”—Jamie McGuire

 

“A mãe é revestida de força e dignidade, ri sem medo do futuro. Quando ela fala, suas palavras são sábias e ela dá instruções com bondade. ”- Provérbios

 

“ Maternidade: Todo amor começa e termina aí. ”—Robert Browning

 

“ Qualquer mãe poderia realizar os trabalhos de vários controladores de tráfego aéreo com facilidade. ”—Lisa Alther

 

“ Uma mãe é uma pessoa que, vendo que há apenas quatro pedaços de torta para cinco pessoas, prontamente anuncia que nunca se importou. para torta. ”—Tenneva Jordan

 

“ Uma onça de mãe vale uma tonelada de padre. ”- Provérbio espanhol

 

“ Uma mãe nos perdoa todas as nossas falhas, sem mencionar uma ou duas que nem sequer temos. ”—Robert Brault

 

“ No final, as mães estão sempre certas. Ninguém mais diz a verdade. ”- Randy Susan Meyers

 

“Deus não poderia estar em toda parte e, portanto, ele fez as mães.” – Rudyard Kipling

 

“Temos um segredo em nossa cultura, e não é que o parto seja doloroso. É que as mulheres são fortes. ”—Laura Stavoe Harm

 

“ Não é fácil ser mãe. Se fosse, os pais fariam isso. ”- The Golden Girls

 

“ Quando sua mãe pergunta: ‘Você quer um conselho?’ é uma mera formalidade. Não importa se você responde sim ou não. Você vai conseguir de qualquer maneira. ”- Erma Bombeck

 

“ A expressão ‘mãe que trabalha’ é redundante. ”—Jane Sellman

 

“ Eu quero que meus filhos tenham todas as coisas que eu não poderia pagar. Então, quero morar com eles. ”—Phyllis Diller

 

“ Qualquer mãe poderia fazer os trabalhos de vários controladores de tráfego aéreo com facilidade ”- Lisa Alther

 

“Se a evolução realmente funciona, por que as mães têm apenas duas mãos?” – Milton Berle

 

“Há apenas uma criança bonita no mundo, e toda mãe tem isso.” – Provérbio Chinês

 

“Mãe, eu te amo, mesmo que eu” Nunca aceitará seu pedido de amizade. ”—Desconhecido

 

“ O coração da mãe é o quarto da escola da criança. ”—Henry Ward Beecher

 

“ Para o mundo você é uma mãe, mas para sua família você é o mundo. ”—Desconhecido

 

“ O mais adorável obra-prima do coração de Deus é o coração de uma mãe. ”—St. Therese de Lisieux

 

“O amor materno é o combustível que permite que um ser humano normal faça o impossível.” – Marion C. Garretty

 

“Aceitação, tolerância, bravura, compaixão. Estas são as coisas que minha mãe me ensinou. ”—Lady Gaga

 

“Para o ouvido de uma criança, ‘mãe’ é magia em qualquer língua.” – Arlene Benedict

 

“Uma mãe ainda é uma mãe, a coisa mais sagrada viva.” – Samuel Taylor Coleridge

 

“Não consigo imaginar um heroísmo maior que a maternidade”. Conrad

 

“De todos os direitos das mulheres, o maior é ser mãe.” —Lin Yutang

 

“As mães podem olhar nos olhos de uma criança e ver o amanhã.” —Reed Markham

 

“Mãe — esse foi o banco onde depositamos todas as nossas dores e preocupações. ”—T. Dewitt Talmage

 

“Minha mãe é minha raiz, minha fundação. Ela plantou a semente na qual baseio minha vida, e essa é a crença de que a capacidade de alcançar começa em sua mente. ”—Michael Jordan

 

“ Ser mãe é aprender sobre pontos fortes que você não sabia que tinha. ”—Linda Wooten

 

“As mães possuem um poder além do de um rei em seu trono.” —Mabel Hale

 

“Nenhuma língua pode expressar o poder, a beleza e o heroísmo do amor de uma mãe.” —Edwin Chapin

 

“É uma coisa tão grandiosa ser mãe de um mãe – é por isso que o mundo chama a avó dela. ”—Desconhecido

 

“ A vida não vem com um manual, ele vem com uma avó. ”—Desconhecido

 

“ Como mães e filhas, estamos conectados uns com os outros. Minha mãe é os ossos da minha coluna, mantendo-me em linha reta e verdadeira. Ela é meu sangue, certificando-se de que ele seja rico e forte. Ela é a batida do meu coração. Não posso agora imaginar uma vida sem ela. ”—Kristin Hannah

 

“ Tudo o que sou, você me ajudou a ser. ”—Desconhecido

 

“ As avós são as pessoas que se deleitam em ouvir os bebês respirando ao telefone. ”- Desconhecido

 

“As avós têm poucas críticas e muito amor.” —Desconhecido

 

“Uma avó é um pouco pai, um professor e um pouco melhor amigo.” —Desconhecido

 

“As avós sempre têm tempo para conversar e fazer você se sentir especial . ”—Catherine Pulsifer

 

“ Vovós seguram nossas mãozinhas por apenas um pouquinho… mas nossos corações para sempre. ”—Desconhecido

 

“ Se nada estiver indo bem, ligue para sua avó. ”- Provérbio Italiano

 

“ Minha avó é meu anjo na terra. ”—Catherine Pulsifer

 

“ A avó sempre fazia você sentir que estava esperando para vê-la o dia todo e agora o dia estava completo. ”- Marcy DeMaree

 

“ Eu sei o que é ser educado com amor incondicional. Na minha vida que veio da minha avó. ”—Andre Leon Talley

 

“Não há lugar como o lar, exceto o da vovó.” – Desconhecido

 

“Apenas uma tia pode dar abraços como uma mãe, pode guardar segredos como uma irmã e compartilhar o amor como um amigo.” —Desconhecido

 

“Uma tia é alguém especial para se lembrar com calor. pense com orgulho e aprecie com amor. ”—Desconhecido

 

“ Tia: Uma amiga querida e uma animadora de torcida pessoal que sempre te verá por entre óculos cor-de-rosa. ”—Desconhecido

 

“ Tia; como uma mãe apenas mais legal. ”—Desconhecido

 

“ As melhores tias não são pais substitutos, são co-conspiradores. ”—Daryl Gregory

 

“ Tia – uma bênção dupla. Você ama como um pai e age como um amigo. ”—Desconhecido

 

“ Eu sorrio porque você é minha tia. Eu rio porque não há nada que você possa fazer sobre isso. ”—Desconhecido

 

“ Uma tia torna a vida um pouco mais doce. ”—Desconhecido

 

“Uma tia cresce mais valorizada com o passar do tempo.” —Desconhecido

 

“Uma tia está sempre presente para todas as vezes em que você precisa de uma segunda mãe.” —Desconhecido

 

“Deus não podia estar em todos os lugares, então criou tias.” —Desconhecido

 

“ Uma tia é um refúgio seguro para uma criança. Alguém que manterá seus segredos e está sempre do seu lado. ”—Sara Sheridan

 

“ A biologia é o menor do que faz de alguém uma mãe. ”—Oprah Winfrey

 

“ Às vezes, a força da maternidade é maior que as leis naturais. ”Barbara Kingsolver

 

“ Grandes irmãs são promovidas a tia. ”—Desconhecido

 

“ Uma mãe não é uma pessoa para se apoiar, mas uma pessoa para tornar a inclinação desnecessária. ”—Dorothy Canfield Fisher

 

“ Nada está realmente perdido até que sua mãe não consiga encontrá-la. ”- Desconhecido

 

“Mãe: um título logo acima da rainha”.

 

“Eu tenho muito de você em meu coração.” – John Keats

 

“Uma irmã mais velha é amiga e defensora – ouvinte, conspiradora, conselheira e compartilha de prazeres. E tristezas também. ”—Pam Brown

 

“ A melhor coisa sobre ter uma irmã é que sempre tive um amigo. ”—Cali Rae Turner

 

“ O tempo passa rapidamente, mas sempre dura uma coisa – o amor e o apoio encontrados em você. ”—Catherine Pulsifer

 

“ Suas irmãs são as únicas pessoas no mundo que sabem o que é ter sido criado do jeito que você era. ”- Betsey Cohen

 

“ Ter um relacionamento amoroso com uma irmã não é simplesmente ter um amigo ou um confiante – é ter uma alma gêmea para a vida. ”—Victoria Secunda

 

“ Uma irmã é um presente para o coração, um amigo para o espírito, um fio de ouro para o significado da vida. ”- Isadora James

 

“Mãe é um verbo. É algo que você faz. Não apenas quem você é. ”—Cheryl Lacey Donovan

 

“ Por ser você mesmo, você coloca algo maravilhoso no mundo que não existia antes. ”—Edwin Elliot

 

“ Você é muito mais precioso do que jóias. ”- Provérbios

 

“ Você é um presente de Deus um amigo com quem posso contar e um maravilhoso modelo de mãe. ”—Desconhecido

 

“ Haverá tantas vezes que você sente que falhou. Mas nos olhos, coração e mente do seu filho você é super mãe. ”—Stephanie Precourt

 

“ Não é que os diamantes sejam os melhores amigos de uma menina, mas são seus melhores amigos que são seus diamantes. ”—Gina Barreca

 

“ Muitas pessoas vão andar Dentro e fora de sua vida, mas apenas amigos verdadeiros deixarão pegadas em seu coração. ”—Eleanor Roosevelt

 

“Há amigos, há família e há amigos que se tornam família.” —Desconhecido

 

“O amor e a compaixão que você sempre carregou em seu coração fazem de você uma mãe maravilhosa e uma amiga querida.” —Desconhecido

 

“Não é o que temos na vida, mas quem nós temos na vida que importa”—Desconhecido

 

Então gostaram das frases? Coloque uma frase que representa a sua mãe nos comentários.

 

O post 120 Frases em Inglês para o Dia das Mães com Tradução apareceu primeiro em PALAVRAS EM INGLÊS BR.

 

- Fonte: ift.tt/4b6vofh

+++ DISCLAIMER +++

Nothing you see here is real, even though the conversion or the presented background story might be based historical facts. BEWARE!

  

Some background:

The Sondergerät SG104 "Münchhausen" was a German airborne recoillless 355.6 mm (14-inch) caliber gun, intended to engage even the roughest enemy battleships, primarily those of the Royal Navy. The design of this unusual and massive weapon began in 1939. The rationale behind it was that a battleship’s most vulnerable part was the deck – a flat surface, with relatively thin armor (as typical hits were expected on the flanks) and ideally with vital targets underneath, so that a single, good hit would cripple of even destroy a ship. The purpose of such a high angle of attack was likely to allow the projectile to penetrate the target ship's deck, where the ship's armor, if there was any, would have been much thinner than the armor on its sidesHowever, hitting the deck properly with another ship’s main gun was not easy, since it could only be affected through indirect hits and the typical angle of the attack from aballistic shot would not necessarily be ideal for deep penetration, esp. at long range.

The solution to this problem: ensure that the heavy projectile would hit its target directly from above, ideally at a very steep angle. To achieve this, the gun with battleship caliber was “relocated” from a carrier ship or a coastal battery onto an aircraft – specifically to a type that was capable of dive-bombing, a feature that almost any German bomber model of the time offered.

 

Firing such a heavy weapon caused a lot fo problems, which were severe even if the gun was mounted on a ship or on land. To compensate for such a large-caliber gun’s recoil and to make firing a 14 in shell (which alone weighed around almost 700 kg/1.550 lb, plus the charge) from a relatively light airframe feasible, the respective gun had to be as light as possible and avoid any recoil, which would easily tear an aircraft – even a bomber – apart upon firing. Therefore, the Gerät 104 was designed as a recoilless cannon. Its firing system involved venting the same amount of the weapon's propellant gas for its round to the rear of the launch tube (which was open at both ends), in the same fashion as a rocket launcher. This created a forward directed momentum which was nearly equal to the rearward momentum (recoil) imparted to the system by accelerating the projectile itself. The balance thus created did not leave much net momentum to be imparted to the weapon's mounting or the carrying airframe in the form of felt recoil. A further share of the recoil induced by the moving round itself could be compensated by a muzzle brake which re-directed a part of the firing gases backwards. Since recoil had been mostly negated, a heavy and complex recoil damping mechanism was not necessary – even though the weapon itself was huge and heavy.

 

Work on the "Münchhausen" device (a secret project handle after a fictional German nobleman created by the German writer Rudolf Erich Raspe in the late 18th century who reputedly had ridden on a cannonball between enemy frontlines), was done by Rheinmetall-Borsig and lasted until 1941. The first test of a prototype weapon was conducted on 9th of September 1940 in Unterlüss with a satisfactory result, even though the weapon was only mounted onto an open rack and not integrated into an airframe yet. At that time, potential carriers were the Ju 88, the Dornier Do 217 and the new Junkers Ju 288. Even though the system’s efficacy was doubted, the prospect of delivering a single, fatal blow to an important , armored arget superseded any doubts at the RLM, and the project was greenlit in early 1942 for the next stage: the integration of the Sondergerät 104 into an existing airframe. The Ju 88 and its successor, the Ju 188, turned out to be too light and lacked carrying capacity for the complete, loaded weapon, and the favored Ju 288 was never produced, so that only the Dornier Do 217 or the bigger He 177 remained as a suitable carriers. The Do 217 was eventually chosen because it had the biggest payload and the airframe was proven and readily available.

 

After calculations had verified that the designed 14 in rifle would have effectively no recoil, preliminary tests with dumm airframes were carried out. After ground trials with a Do 217 E day bomber to check recoil and blast effects on the airframe, the development and production of a limited Nullserie (pre-production series) of the dedicated Do 217 F variant for field tests and eventual operational use against British sea and land targets was ordered in April 1942.

 

The resulting Do 217 F-0 was based on the late “E” bomber variant and powered by a pair of BMW 801 radial engines. It was, however, heavily modified for its unique weapon and the highly specialized mission profile: upon arriving at the zone of operation at high altitude, the aircraft would initiate a dive with an angle of attack between 50° and 80° from the horizontal, firing the SG 104 at an altitude between 6,000 and 2,000 meters. The flight time of the projectile could range from 16.0 seconds for a shot from an altitude of 6,000 meters at a 50° angle to just 4.4 seconds for a shot from 2.000 meters at an almost vertical 80° angle. Muzzle velocity of the SG 104 was only 300 m/s, but, prior to impact, the effective velocity of the projectile was projected to range between 449 and 468 m/s (1,616 to 1,674 km/h). Together with the round's weight of roughly 700 kg (1.550 lb) and a hardened tip, this would still ensure a high penetration potential.

 

The operational Sondergerät 104 had an empty mass of 2.780 kg (6,123 lb) and its complete 14 inch double cartridge weighed around 1.600 kg (3,525 lb). The loaded mass of the weapon was 4,237 kg, stretching the limits of the Do 217’s load capacity to the maximum, so that some armor and less vital pieces of equipment were deleted. Crew and defensive armament were reduced to a minimum.

Even though there had been plans to integrate the wepaon into the airframe (on the Ju 288), the Gerät 104 was on the Do 217 F-0 mounted externally and occupied the whole space under the aircraft, precluding any use of the bomb bay. The latter was occupied by the Gerät 104’s complex mount, which extended to the outside under a streamlined fairing and held the weapon at a distance from the airframe. Between the mount’s struts inside of the fuselage, an additional fuel tank for balance reasons was added, too.

The gun’s center, where the heavy round was carried, was positioned under the aircraft’s center of gravity, so that the gun barrel markedly protruded from under the aircraft’s nose. To make enough space, the Do 217 Es bomb aimer’s ventral gondola and his rearward-facing defensive position under the cockpit were omitted and faired over. The nose section was also totally different: the original extensive glazing (the so-called “Kampfkopf”) was replaced by a smaller, conventional canopy, similar to the later Do 217 J and N night fighter versions, together with a solid nose - the original glass panels would have easily shattered upon firing the gun, esp. in a steep high-speed dive. A "Lotfernrohr" bomb aiming device was still installed in a streamlined and protected fairing, though, so that the navigator could guide the pilot during the approach to the target and during the attack run.

To stabilize the heavy aircraft during its attack and to time- and safely pull out of the dive, a massive mechanical dive brake was mounted at the extended tail tip, which unfolded with four "petals". A charecteristic stabilizing dorsal strake was added between the twin fins, too.

 

The ventral area behind the gun’s rear-facing muzzle received additional metal plating and blast guiding vanes, after trials in late 1940 had revealed that firing the SG 104 could easily damage the Do 217’s tail structure, esp. all of the tail surfaces’ rudders and the fins’ lower ends in particular. Due to all this extra weight, the Do 217 F-0’s defensive armament consisted only of a single 13 mm MG 131 machine gun in a manually operated dorsal position behind the cockpit cabin, which offered space for a crew of three. A fixed 15 mm MG 151 autocannon was mounted in the nose, too, a weapon with a long barrel for extended range and accuracy. It was not an offensive weapon, though, rather intended as an aiming aid for the SG 104 because it was loaded with tracer bullets: during the final phase of the attack dive, the pilot kept firing the MG 151, and the bullet trail showed if he was on target to fire the SG 104 when the right altitude/range had been reached.

 

The first Do 217 F-0 was flown and tested in late 1943, and after some detail changes the type was cleared for a limited production run of ten aircraft in January 1944. The first operational machine was delivered to a dedicated testing commando, the Erprobungskommando 104 “Münchhausen”, also known as “Sonderkommando Münchhausen” or simply “E-Staffel 104”. The unit was based at Bordeaux/Merignac and directly attached to the KG 40's as a staff flight. At that time, KG 40 operated Do 217 and He 177 bombers and frequently flew reconnaissance and anti-shipping missions over the Atlantic west of France, up to the British west and southern coast, equipped with experimental Henschel Hs 293 glide bombs.

 

Initial flights confirmed that the Do 217 airframe was burdened with the SG 104 to its limits, the already rather sluggish aircraft (the Do 217 had generally a high wing loading and was not easy to fly) lost anything that was left of what could be called agility. It needed an experienced pilot to handle it safely, esp. during start and landing. It is no wonder that two Do 217 F-0s suffered ground accidents during the first two weeks of operations, but the machines could be repaired, resume the test program and carry out attack missions.

However, during one of the first test shots with the weapon, one Do 217 F-0 lost its complete tail section though the gun blast, and the aircraft crashed into the Bay of Biscay, killing the complete crew.

 

On 4th or April 1944 the first "hot" attack against an enemy ship was executed in the Celtic Sea off of Brest, against a convoy of 20 ships homeward bound from Gibraltar. The attack was not successful, though, the shot missing its target, and the German bomber was attacked and heavily damaged by British Bristol Beaufighters that had been deployed to protect the ships. The Do 217F-0 eventually crashed and sank into the Atlantic before it could reach land again.

 

A couple of days later, on 10th of April, the first attempt to attack and destroy a land target was undertaken: two Do 217 F-0s took off to attack Bouldnor Battery, an armored British artillery position located on the Isle of Wight. One machine had to abort the attack due to oil leakages, the second Do 217 F-0 eventually reached its target and made a shallow attack run, but heavy fog obscured the location and the otherwise successful shot missed the fortification. Upon return to its home base the aircraft was intercepted by RAF fighters over the Channel and heavily damaged, even though German fighters deployed from France came to the rescue, fought the British attackers off and escorted the limping Do 217 F-0 back to its home base.

 

These events revealed that the overall SG 104 concept was generally feasible, but also showed that the Do 217 F-0 was very vulnerable without air superiority or a suitable escort, so that new tactics had to be developed. One consequence was that further Do 217 F-0 deployments were now supported by V/KG 40, the Luftwaffe's only long range maritime fighter unit. These escorts consisted of Junkers Ju 88C-6s, which were capable of keeping up with the Do 217 F-0 and fend of intercepting RAF Coastal Command’s Beaufighters and later also Mosquitos.

 

In the meantime, tests with the SG 104 progressed and several modifications were tested on different EKdo 104's Do 217 F-0s. One major upgrade was a further strengthening of the tail section, which added another 200 kg (440 lb) to the aircraft's dry weight. Furthermore, at least three aircraft were outfitted with additional dive brakes under the outer wings, so that the dive could be better controlled and intercepted. these aircraft, however, lost their plumbed underwing hardpoints, but these were only ever used for drop tanks during transfer flights - a loaded SG 104 precluded any other ordnance. On two other aircraft the SG 104 was modified to test different muzzle brakes and deflectors for the rear-facing opening, so that the gun blast was more effectively guided away from the airframe to prevent instability and structural damage. For instance, one machine was equipped with a bifurcated blast deflector that directed the rearward gasses partly sideways, away from the fuselage.

 

These tests did not last long, though. During the Allied Normandy landings in June 1944 E-Staffel 104 was hastily thrown into action and made several poorly-prepared attack runs against Allied support ships. The biggest success was a full hit and the resulting sinking of the Norwegian destroyer HNoMS Svenner (G03) by "1A+BA" at dawn on 6th of June, off Sword, one of the Allied landing zones. Other targets were engaged, too, but only with little effect. This involvement, however, led to the loss of three Do 217 F-0s within just two days and four more heavily damaged aircraft – leaving only two of EKdo 104's Do 217 F-0s operational.

 

With the Allied invasion of France and a worsening war condition, the SG 104 program was stopped in August 1944 and the idea of an airborne anti-ship gun axed in favor of more flexible guided weapons like the Hs 293 missile and the Fritz-X glide bomb. Plans for a further developed weapon with a three-round drum magazine were immediately stopped, also because there was no carrier aircraft in sight that could carry and deploy this complex 6.5 tons weapon. However, work on the SG 104 and the experience gained from EKdo 104's field tests were not in vain. The knowledge gathered from the Münchhausen program was directly used for the design of a wide range of other, smaller recoilless aircraft weapons, including the magnetically-triggered SG 113 "Förstersonde" anti-tank weapon or the lightweight SG 118 "Rohrblock" unguided air-to-air missile battery for the Heinkel He 162 "Volksjäger".

  

General characteristics:

Crew: 3 (pilot, navigator, radio operator/gunner)

Length: 20,73 m (67 ft 11 in) overall

18,93 m (62 ft 3/4 in) hull only

Wingspan: 19 m (62 ft 4 in)

Height: 4.97 m (16 ft 4 in)

Wing area: 57 m² (610 sq ft)

Empty weight: 9,065 kg (19,985 lb)

Empty equipped weight:10,950 kg (24,140 lb)

Max takeoff weight: 16,700 kg (36,817 lb)

Fuel capacity: 2,960 l (780 US gal; 650 imp gal) in fuselage tank and four wing tanks

 

Powerplant:

2× BMW 801D-2 14-cylinder air-cooled radial piston engines, delivering

1,300 kW (1,700 hp) each for take-off and 1,070 kW (1,440 hp) at 5,700 m (18,700 ft),

driving 3-bladed VDM constant-speed propellers

 

Performance:

Maximum speed: 475 km/h (295 mph, 256 kn) at sea level

560 km/h (350 mph; 300 kn) at 5,700 m (18,700 ft)

Cruise speed: 400 km/h (250 mph, 220 kn) with loaded Gerät 104 at optimum altitude

Range: 2,180 km (1,350 mi, 1,180 nmi) with maximum internal fuel

Ferry range: 2,500 km (1,600 mi, 1,300 nmi); unarmed, with auxiliary fuel tanks

Service ceiling: 7,370 m (24,180 ft) with loaded Gerät 104,

9,500 m (31,200 ft) after firing

Rate of climb: 3.5 m/s (690 ft/min)

Time to altitude: 1,000 m (3,300 ft) in 4 minutes 10 seconds

2,000 m (6,600 ft) in 8 minutes 20 seconds

6,100 m (20,000 ft) in 24 minutes 40 seconds

 

Armament:

1x 355.6 mm (14-inch) Sondergerät 104 recoilless gun with a single round in ventral position

1x 15 mm (0.787 in) MG 151 machine cannon with 200 rounds, fixed in the nose

1x 13 mm (0.512 in) MG 131 machine gun with 500 rounds, movable in dorsal position

Two underwing hardpoints for a 900 l drop tank each, but only used during unarmed ferry flights

  

The kit and its assembly:

This was another submission to the "Gunships" group build at whatifmodellers.com in late 2021, and inspiration struck when I realized that I had two Italeri Do 217 in The Stash - a bomber and a night fighter - that could be combined into a suitable (fictional) carrier for a Sondergerät 104. This mighty weapon actually existed and even reached the hardware/test stage - but it was never integrated into an airframe and tested in flight. But that's what this model is supposed to depict.

 

On the Do 217, the Sg 104 would have been carried externally under the fuselage, even though there had been plans to integrate this recoilless rifle into airframes, esp. into the Ju 288. Since the latter never made it into production, the Do 217 would have been the most logical alternative, also because it had the highest payload of all German bombers during WWII and probably the only aircraft capable of carrying and deploying the Münchhausen device, as the SG 104 was also known.

 

The fictional Do 217 F-0 is a kitbashing, using a Do 217 N fuselage, combined with the wings from a Do 217 K bomber, plus some modifications. What initially sounded like a simple plan soon turned into a improvisation mess: it took some time to realize that I had already donated the Do 217 K's BMW 801 engines to another project, an upgraded He 115... I did not want to use the nightfighter's more powerful DB 603s, and I was lucky to have an Italeri Ju 188 kit at hand which comes with optional BMW 801s and Jumo 211s. Transplanting these engines onto the Do 217's wings took some tailoring of the adapter plates, but was feasible. However, the BMW 801s from the Ju 188 kit have a flaw: they lack the engine's characteristic cooling fans... Another lucky find: I found two such parts in the scrap box, even though from different kits - one left over from another Italeri Do 217 K, the other one from what I assume is/was an Italeri 1:72 Fw 190 A/F. To make matters worse, one propeller from the Ju 188 kit was missing, so that I had to find a(nother) replacement. :-/

I eventually used something that looked like an 1:72 F6F Hellcat propeller, but I an not certain about this because I have never built this model...? With some trimming on the blades' trailing edges and other mods, the donor's overall look could be adapted to the Ju 188 benchmark. Both propellers were mounted on metal axis' so that they could also carry the cooling fans. Lots of work, but the result looks quite good.

 

The Do 217 N's hull lost the lower rear gunner position and its ventral gondola, which was faired over with a piece of styrene sheet. The pilot was taken OOB, the gunner in the rear position was replaced by a more blob-like crew member from the scrap box. The plan to add a navigator in the seat to the lower right of the pilot did not work out due to space shortage, but this figure would probably have been invisble, anyway.

All gun openings in the nose were filled and PSRed away, and a fairing for a bomb aiming device and a single gun (the barrel is a hollow steel needle) were added.

 

The SG 104 was scratched. Starting point was a white metal replacement barrel for an 1:35 ISU-152 SPG with a brass muzzle brake. However, after dry-fitting the barrel under the hull the barrel turned out to be much too wide, so that only the muzzal brake survived and the rest of the weapon was created from a buddy refueling pod (from an Italeri 1:72 Luftwaffe Tornado, because of its two conical ends) and protective plastic caps from medical canulas. To attach this creation to the hull I abused a conformal belly tank from a Matchbox Gloster Meteor night fighter and tailored it into a streamlined fairing. While this quite a Frankenstein creation, the overall dimensions match the real SG 104 prototype and its look well.

 

Other cosmetic modifications include a pair of underwing dive brakes, translanted from an Italeri 1:72 Ju 88 A-4 kit, an extended (scratched) tail "stinger" which resembles the real dive brake arrangement that was installed on some Do 217 E bombers, and I added blast deflector vanes and a dorsal stabilizer fin.

In order to provide the aircraft with enough ground clearance, the tail wheel was slightly extended. Thanks to the long tail stinger, this is not blatantly obvious.

  

Painting and markings:

This was not an easy choice, but as a kind of prototype I decided that the paint scheme should be rather conservative. However, German aircraft operating over the Atlantic tended to carry rather pale schemes, so that the standard pattern of RLM 70/71/65 (Dunkelgrün, Schwarzgrün and Hellblau) with a low waterline - typical for experimental types - would hardly be appropriate.

I eventually found a compromise on a He 177 bomber (coded 6N+BN) from 1944 that was operated by KG 100: this particular aircraft had a lightened upper camouflage - still a standard splinter scheme but consisting of RLM 71 and 02 (Dunkelgrün and Grau; I used Modelmaster 2081 and Humbrol 240), a combination that had been used on German fighters during the Battle of Britain when the standard colors turned out to be too dark for operations over the Channel. The aircraft also carried standard RLM 65 (or maybe the new RLM76) underneath (Humbrol 65) and on the fin, but with a very high and slightly wavy waterline. As a rather unusual feature, no typical camouflage mottles were carried on the flanks or the fin, giving the aircraft a very bleak and simple look.

 

Despite my fears that this might look rather boring I adapted this scheme for the Do 217 F-0, and once basic painting was completed I was rather pleased by the aircraft's look! As an aircraft operated at the Western front, no additional markings like fuselage bands were carried.

To set the SG 104 apart from the airframe, I painted the weapon's visible parts in RLM 66 (Schwarzgrau, Humbrol 67), because this tone was frequently used for machinery (including the interior surfaces of aircraft towards 1945).

RLM 02 was also used for the interior surfaces and the landing gear, even though I used a slightly different, lighter shade in form of Revell 45 (Helloliv).

 

A light black ink washing was applied and post-shading to emphasize panel lines. Most markings/decals came from a Begemot 1:72 He 11 sheet, including the unusual green tactical code - it belongs to a staff unit, a suitable marking for such an experimental aircraft. The green (Humbrol 2) was carried over to the tips of the propeller spinners. The unit's code "1A" is fictional, AFAIK this combination had never been used by the Luftwaffe.

The small unit badge was alucky find: it actually depicts the fictional Baron von Münchhausen riding on a cannonball, and it comes from an Academy 1:72 Me 163 kit and its respective sheet. The mission markings underneath, depicting two anti-ship missions plus a successful sinking, came from a TL Modellbau 1:72 scale sheet with generic German WWII victory markings.

 

After some soot stains around the engine exhaust and weapon muzzles had been added with graphite, the model was sealed with matt acrylic varnish and final details like position lights and wire antennae (from heated black plastic sprue material) were added.

  

Well, what started as a combination of two kits of the same kind with a simple huge pipe underneath turned out to be more demanding than expected. The (incomplete) replacement engines were quite a challenge, and body work on the hull (tail stinger, fairing for the SG 104 as well as the weapon itself) turned out to be more complex and extensive than initially thought of. The result looks quite convincing, also supported by the rather simple paint scheme which IMHO just "looks right" and very convincing. And the whole thing is probably the most direct representation of the inspiring "Gunship" theme!

 

After spending hours working on his blackboard, his calculations are ready

For Transmission Line Calculations

Lego Dimensions: Back to the Future, Level Pack 71201

INFO from Encyclopedia Astronautica (www.astronautix.com/lvs/vonn1952.htm#more ) -German winged orbital launch vehicle. Von Braun's 1952 design for a reusable space launcher used the same mass and performance calculations done in 1948. However the large parachute cannisters were replaced by deployable drag skirts. This allowed the design to be substantially less squat and more elegant than the 1948 version -- but still fatter than the sleek paintings that appeared in print!

For the drawings and paintings to illustrate the 1952 Colliers series and subsequent books, the 1948 version was found to be too dumpy and squat to inspire. Therefore, Von Braun, in collaboration with artist Rolf Klep, sketched a much more elegant tapered launch vehicle design. The still somewhat-squat official version became even more stretched and elegant looking in the artist's renderings. This can be contrasted with Von Braun's Redstone, then already in design, which used the uninspiring but efficient cylindrical body that would be the basis of his later Jupiter and Saturn rockets. One can only conclude that Von Braun went along with the artist's desires for a more glamorous-looking rocket ship.

The base diameter of the first stage remained the same, but those of the upper stages were drastically reduced. To make more room for engines in the base, the parachute package was changed from a centrally-located canister to a steel-mesh circular drag brake, stored along the outer fuselage. The engine concept was now changed from an annular nozzle to separate conventional bell-nozzle engines. Since the first stage diameter was the same, and the parachute canister that took up half its diameter was deleted, there was enough room in the first stage for 52 such engines. However there were real problems in using the 1948 calculations for the upper stages.

The second stage diameter was reduced from 20 m to 13.5 m. There was simply not enough base area for the total nozzle area indicated in Von Braun's original calculations. This could have been remedied if the chamber pressure was increased, as was clearly possible by 1952. However that should have resulted in a higher specific impulse, but the 1948 calculations were used 'as-is'. Klep's illustrations showed Redstone-type low-expansion ratio engines, inconsistent with the area ratio calculated in 1948 and needed for the high engine performance.

Similarly, the third stage diameter was reduced from 9.8 m to 5.8 m, with the same logical problem, since in the original calculation the nozzle occupied the entire base of the third stage.

LEO Payload: 25,000 kg (55,000 lb) to a 1,730 km orbit at 23.50 degrees.

Stage Data - Von Braun 1952

Stage 1. 1 x Von Braun 1952-1. Gross Mass: 5,500,000 kg (12,100,000 lb). Empty Mass: 700,000 kg (1,540,000 lb). Thrust (vac): 141,286.300 kN (31,762,424 lbf). Isp: 257 sec. Burn time: 84 sec. Isp(sl): 217 sec. Diameter: 20.00 m (65.00 ft). Span: 37.00 m (121.00 ft). Length: 36.50 m (119.70 ft). Propellants: Nitric acid/Hydrazine. No Engines: 51. Status: Study 1952.

Stage 2. 1 x Von Braun 1952-2. Gross Mass: 770,000 kg (1,690,000 lb). Empty Mass: 70,000 kg (154,000 lb). Thrust (vac): 16,271.100 kN (3,657,889 lbf). Isp: 298 sec. Burn time: 124 sec. Diameter: 13.50 m (44.20 ft). Span: 13.50 m (44.20 ft). Length: 20.70 m (67.90 ft). Propellants: Nitric acid/Hydrazine. No Engines: 34. Status: Study 1952.

Stage 3. 1 x Von Braun 1952-3. Gross Mass: 105,000 kg (231,000 lb). Empty Mass: 22,000 kg (48,000 lb). Thrust (vac): 2,033.800 kN (457,216 lbf). Isp: 296 sec. Burn time: 105 sec. Diameter: 5.80 m (19.00 ft). Span: 48.00 m (157.00 ft). Length: 23.40 m (76.70 ft). Propellants: Nitric acid/Hydrazine. No Engines: 5. Status: Study 1952.

AKA: A12.

Status: Study 1952.

Gross mass: 6,400,000 kg (14,100,000 lb).

Payload: 25,000 kg (55,000 lb).

Height: 97.00 m (318.00 ft).

Diameter: 20.00 m (65.00 ft).

Thrust: 119,300.00 kN (26,819,700 lbf).

Apogee: 1,730 km (1,070 mi).

 

Collier's March 22, 1952 "Man Will Conquer Space Soon" PDF: www.rmastri.it/u.php?e

AND www.unz.org/Pub/Colliers-1952mar22

According to my rough calculations, the angular view of the iPhone 5’s camera is somewhere around 59.5° × 46.5°.

 

Based on this, at the full iPhone 5s photo resolution of 3264 × 2448 pixels, that means there are about 54.9 pixels per degree.

 

Estimates made using the Size Calculator tool:

 

sizecalc.com/#distance=24inches&physical-size=27.51in...

 

sizecalc.com/#distance=24inches&physical-size=20.64in...

Sailboat Specifications

 

Hull Type: Lifting Keel

Rigging Type: Fractional Sloop

LOA: 8.51 m

LWL: 7.47 m

Beam: 2.82 m

S.A. (reported): 35.30 m2

Draft (max): 1.52 m

Draft (min): 0.38 m

Displacement: 2,495 kg

Ballast: 930 kg

S.A./Disp.: 19.57

Bal./Disp.: 37.27

Disp./Len.: 166.96

Construction: GRP

First Built: 1989

Builder: Parker Yachts (UK)

Designer: Ron Holland

 

Auxiliary Power/Tanks (orig. equip.)

Make: Yanmar

Model: 1GM

Type: Diesel

Fuel: 45 L

 

Sailboat Calculations

 

S.A./Disp.: 19.57

Bal./Disp.: 37.27

Disp./Len.: 166.96

Comfort Ratio: 17.20

Capsize Screening Formula: 2.10

S#: 3.14

 

Rig and Sail Particulars

 

I: 9.75 m

J: 3.20 m

P: 9.53 m

E: 3.20 m

S.A. Fore: 15.61 m2

S.A. Main: 15.24 m2 S.A. Total (100% Fore + Main Triangles) 30.85 m2

S.A./Disp. (calc.): 17.10

Est. Forestay Len.: 10.27 m

Mast Height from DWL: 12.34 m

 

Accommodations

Water: 76 L

 

Sailboat Links

Ron Holland

www.ronhollanddesign.com

 

My first design, the 26 ft. sloop 'White Rabbit' was created in 1966 during the 3 year period I attended my boat building apprenticeship in Auckland, New Zealand. Six years later, while working in the engineering department of production yacht builder, Morgan Yachts in St. Petersburg, Florida, I designed a 24 ft. racer, 'Eygthene', to the IOR Quarter Ton Rule. This yacht won the 1973 Quarter Ton Championships in Torbay, England, and enabled me to secure the design commission for 'Golden Apple' from Irish yachtsman, the late Hugh Coveney. The success of this yacht was the foundation of my Irish based yacht design business.

 

These small racing yachts formed the backbone of the Ron Holland organisation for several years, with a string of successes in level rating world championships and Admiral's Cup events. Racing at the highest level of international competition.

 

Based on the racing success of the Admiral's Cup yachts came commissions for maxi racers, the largest yachts competing internationally. In 1980, 'Kialoa' and 'Condor' established the Ron Holland design philosophy in this area of the business and lead to commissions for larger, performance oriented cruising yachts.

 

'Whirlwind XII", my first design over 100 ft. in length, was launched from the Royal Huisman Shipyard in 1986 and paved the way for a wide variety of design commissions from clients who demanded beautiful, safe, comfortable cruising yachts, capable of worldwide voyaging. The common denominator is these were all performance oriented cruising yachts, the benchmark of the Ron Holland Design philosophy still in force with today's design commissions.

 

1999 has seen important new projects that included my first interior design commission, as well as my first motor yacht design work. New areas of activity that I have found stimulating and a logical extension of a lifetime's work in the marine design field.

 

Reviewing the presented Ron Holland designs will show the variety of design approaches that have been taken, specifically to ensure my clients achieve a yacht that fulfils their personal requirements. My organisation prides itself with interpreting the client's goals and integrating these with aesthetically correct and performance oriented design solutions.

January 2.

Returned to work at Mark's studio. I had been dreading the reunion for a while. Things with him are fine, but of course, once your projections collapse about how magnificent a certain situation is going to be, you are left with reality. And surprise, surprise, he and I have some personality differences.

 

At any rate, we wore our jackets and scarves in the studio all day. It was cold outside, and cold inside. I looked at the weather for St. Paul and Chicago and thought sadly of my friends there. 3º F! 8º F! It was enough to keep me cold all day.

 

Mark spent most of the day creating an elaborate spreadsheet that compared print prices from different vendors. Yesterday I finally figured out why he does this kind of thing: because he likes to do it! He was a mechanical engineer before he picked him a camera in his late 20s. He enjoys solving complicated problems -- I think it exercises a part of his brain that usually goes quiet when he is behind a camera.

Before the digital age, mathematical calculations for commerce and industry were performed on manual, gear driven, table top calculator machines as showcased on this Sumlock badge. The 'comptometer' calculator shown above is in all probability a 912/S British model (9 rows,12 columns, S for sterling, hence the 912/S). Sumlock comptometers were made by the Bell Punch Company and distributed by Sumlock Comptometer Ltd. The model shown here was active in the 1950s and up to the mid-1960s. Trained operators would have received a badge similar to the one shown here; working hours were long and repetitive pressure on the keys required considerable stamina and focus.

 

The majority of operators were women and training, at various centres in Britain and across the globe, was rigorous. The Sumlock training school moto was 'Accuracy First, Speed Later'' and a British trained operator on a 912/S machine would have memorised, for example, every decimal in 16ths, 12ths, 8ths and 6ths. Operators were taught subtraction, multiplication and square roots as well as receiving a thorough understanding of the various calculations used by various companies and specialist industries.

 

However, with the dawn of the digital age taking a grip, Sumlock Comptometer machines became redundant and eventually superseded by digital computer technology.

 

Photography, layout and design: Argy58

 

(This image also exists as a high resolution jpeg and tiff - ideal for a

variety of print sizes e.g. A4, A3, A2 and A1. The current uploaded

format is for screen based viewing only: 72pi)

The Anemometer reads 12.4 m/s through a 4" duct for our old fume-extraction unit.

 

That's 2441 ft/min * (0.08727 ft^2) = 213 cubic feet per minute for our little Epilog Helix. Not bad, but certainly not great. It's plenty for the small, well-focused volumes in this little laser, but nowhere enough volume to filter out the new large 4'x3' laser!