Samarth Bharat Parva - 6

8 Indian Martial Art Forms

India has a long history of martial arts. Martial arts is a part of India's ancient culture and a traditional games. Originally a traditional form of martial art that started in South India, and now it has different names and different forms in the culture of the regions in India. Khusti The Indian Wrestling is also a part of Indian Martial arts found throughout the India. Indian martial arts has an important influence in the development of modern Asian martial arts. Nowadays a sense of self-defense and for fitness lots of people are opting for martial arts.Shaolin Kung Fu, a term that includes a large variety of Chinese martial arts, traces its lineage to Bodhidharma, the Indian monk who, according to popular legend, introduced Buddhism to China during the 6th century AD. Monks at the Shaolin Temple (located in Henan Province), still study a combination of martial arts and Buddhist teaching today.

1. Kalarippayattu

Often known as the 'Mother Of All Martial Arts', this 3000-year old art form originating from Kerala, draws inspiration from the raw power, swift movements and sinuous strength of majestic animals – the lion, tiger, elephant, wild boar, snake and crocodile. The term 'kalari' refers to the place where this combat style is taught while 'payattu' means to practise. This combat style has different levels through which one learns how to fight, with and without, hand-held weapons. It has lately emerged in a new avatar as a source of inspiration for self-expression in contemporary dance forms, theatre, fitness techniques and movies too! This legendary warrior art form most was recently popularised by 76-year-old Meenakshiamma's heroic exhibition of swordplay against a man half her age.

2. Thang Ta (Huyen Langlon)

Thang-Ta, which literally means 'sword and spear', is one aspect of Huyen Langlon (art of war or method of safe guarding), a traditional martial art from Manipur. Its other aspect is Sarit Sarak that involves unarmed combat.  This martial art form integrates various external weapons – the sword, spear and dagger- with the internal practice of physical control through soft movements coordinated with breathing rhythms. However, the heart of Thang-Ta is the sword. There are hundreds of different sword drills that teach the basic strokes and stepping patterns of this fighting style.

3. Silambam

Closely linked to Kerala's Kalaripayattu, Silambam is an ancient stick-martial art of Tamil Nadu. According to Sangam-era literature, there were a number of exercise centres called silambak-koodams all over the Dravida Nadu region, and the age-old art—patronized by the Chera, Chola and Pandya rulers—is recorded as one of the 64 art forms of ancient India. The word 'Silam' (in Tamil) stands for hills and 'Mambam' (the Marhat word for bamboo) stands for bamboo from the hills; these sticks are usually found on the hills in that particular region. This martial art's salient features are its well-structured techniques, fluid footwork, and smart fighting strategies.

4. Gatka (Shastar Vidya)

Originating from the state of Punjab, Gatka is believed to be a battle technique created by Sikh warriors during the martial period of great Sikh Gurus. A style of stick fighting between two or more practitioners, Gatka is a toned-down version of the deadlier Shastar Vidya, the fighting style of the fearsome Akali Nihangs, the blue-turbaned sect of Sikh fighters banned by the British after the Anglo-Sikh wars. The sharp swords of Shastar Vidya have been replaced by wooden sticks (soti) and shields (farri) in Gatka.

5. Sqay

Sqay is an ancient martial art traditionally practiced by the people of Kashmir. Armed sqay makes use of a curved single-edge sword paired with a shield, while unarmed techniques incorporate kicks, punches, locks and chops. Under the International Council Of Sqay's rules, the sword (tora or tura) is made of synthetic fibre covered in leather. The sword is paired with a shield (bargula) measuring 9-19 inches in diameter, also covered in leather. The official uniform is blue, sometimes with red or yellow piping, consisting of trousers and a cross-front jacket with a belt around the waist. Competitors are judged on stance, timing and perfection of form.

6. Mardaani Khel

Originally from Maharashtra, Mardani Khel is a weapon-based martial art form. It owes its development to the geographic conditions of the state (hills, caves and valleys). A very ancient form of art, it saw its emergence during the Maratha dynasty. Kolhapur used to be the centre of the Maratha kingdom and the villages around it had talims (training centres) where skilled elders prepared youngsters for war. After the revolt of 1857, the British banned the use of weapons and the talims were forced to turn mardani khel into a folk game to ensure its survival. The use of weapons such as swords, katyar (dagger), lathi-kathi (bamboo sticks), veeta (darts), bhala (javelin), dand and patta (long-bladed swords) continued but the moves were made more stylised and less lethal.

7. Kushti (Malla Yuddha)

A form of traditional wrestling, Kushti developed during the Mughal Empire by combining the native sport of malla-yuddha (combat wrestling) with influences from Persian varzesh-e bastani (warrior athletics). Interestingly, the words pehlwani and kushti derive from the Persian terms pahlavani and koshti respectively. Once a sport that used to hold great importance in Indian society, at present, Kushti is only practiced in a handful places around India. Kolhapur is one city where the time-tested sport is as popular as ever with rural families frequently sending boys to learn the art at Kolhapur's thalims or akharas – traditional wrestling schools.

8. Lathi

When moved back and forth like a sword and aimed at someone, it cuts through the air, lands with a thwacking sound, peels off a thin layer of skin and sends waves of numbing pain through the body, even as it splinters bone. One hard blow is numbing. This innocuous-looking weapon of destruction is the lathi, the Indian police's most used crowd control device! Traditionally practised in many parts of India, the lathi (usually a bamboo stick) can be wielded in many ways to give quick lethal blows to the opponent as well as in self-defence by using it as a shield.

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The main theme of my life is to take the message of Sanatana Dharma to every home and pave the way for launching, in a big way, the man-making programme preached and envisaged by great seers like Swami Vivekananda. - Mananeeya Eknathji

विवेकानन्द केन्द्र कन्याकुमारी (Vivekananda Kendra Kanyakumari) Vivekananda Rock Memorial & Vivekananda Kendra : http://www.vivekanandakendra.org Read Article, Magazine, Book @ http://eshop.vivekanandakendra.org/e-granthalaya Cell : +91-941-801-5995, Landline : +91-177-283-5995

. . . Are you Strong? Do you feel Strength? — for I know it is Truth alone that gives Strength. Strength is the medicine for the world's disease . . . This is the great fact: "Strength is LIFE; Weakness is Death."

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Samarth Bharat Parva - 5

In this Samarth Bharat Series, we try to look in various accepts. Here everything is for the worship of Iswara weather it is Art, Science or Social Work. Everything we offer to Iswara. Today we are going to get some brief idea about Carnatic Music

The origin of Carnatic music , or the South Indian classical music often called as karnataka sangitham can be traced back to the age of vedas . Bharata's Natya Sastra, from around the 5th century A.D., and Saranga Deva's Sangita Ratnakara, from the early 13th century A.D., are considered the to be the earliest recorded documents available on the theory and performance of Indian classical music, especially carnatic music (karnataka sangeetham). The history of Carnatic music or karnataka sangeetham is incomplete without stating about the contributions made by the saints Sri Purandharadasaru ( 15th century A.D.), Sri Thyagarajar, Sri Shyama Sastri ( all of 18th century A.D.), and left an enduring legacy of compositions. This tradition has a rich heritage and is carnatic music singer perfectly attuned with Indian culture and religion. Carnatic music is based on a 22 scale note (swaras) on contrary to the earlier 12 note scale that is used in the western classical music. But in all its practical aspects and puposes, not more than 16 notes are generally used. A unique combination of these notes, or swara as they are said to evolves separate ragas. The features and the constraints of a raga will be clearly defined in the arrangement of the notes in its arohanam ( ascending notes ) and avarohanam ( descending notes ). Thus, in Carnatic music, the raga connotes a mood or a route in which the music is supposed to travel. . Different combinations of the notes gives rise to different raga. Thus, there are thousands of unique raga as per theory though very few of them are being used for performances in the present day. gamaka and brighaa are the two most important features of the ragaa. The former refers to the modulation of the frequency of a particular swara and the latter refers to the speed with which the musician performs a set of swaras or notes. Both the gamaka and the brigha helps to improve the appeal of the composition that is rendered . Western music is often based on a pattern of flat notes, on the contrary, here, the swaras are performed using various modulations. The brigha could be often 8, 16 or so on. Another very important aspect of the Carnatic music or karnataka sangeetham is the thalam or the rhythm. The thalam is the rhythm of the piece that is being performed . Today, there exists more than hundred thalams, but here also, very few of them are in use. The most popular thalam have three, four, five, seven or eight beats in them.

The Melakarta Ragams in carnatic music
The Melakarta Ragams refers to the basic 72 Janaka (parent) ragams for all of the infinite number of other ragams in Carnatic Music. All of these ragams have seven notes saptaswaras, that is that they have all seven swaras which are- Sa, Ree, Ga, Ma, Pa, Da, Ni, and Sa. The system is further divided into two sets of 36 ragams each - The first set with the first Ma and the second with a sharper Ma. This is very similar to the Western concept of scales and the circle of flats.

Sapta Talas
This system of talams is the rythmic basis for Carnatic music. It is based on 7 core talas which use only 3 of the 6 possible components of an Indian talam - Anudrutam, Drutam, Laghu, Guru, Plutam, and Kakapadam. The Seven Talams are Dhruva, Matya, Rupaka, Jhampa, Triputa, Ata, and Eka Talams. Using these sapta talas all of the 150 Carnatic talams can be derived.

12 Chakras of music the mind, body and soul
Indian classical music, philosophy, yogic teachings - many of these are attributed to have its roots in the four vedas. In the human endeavour of our self-realization and awakening towards the oneness with the nature and the creator, classical music, philosophy and yogic teachings are all considered as the experiential tools. For centuries, we have excelled in exploring various aspects and are constantly redefining with every passing phase of time and years. But at the core of it are these ever so relevant well-defined principles and tenets – principles that provide the unity and the synergy of power. Be it in the form of millions of musical notes that cast a magic spell, or the control of our body and mind to lead us to greater heights. These do lead us to the path of happiness... utter bliss. These have no geographic barriers and transcend across all nations and culture. Larsen and Toubro Limited, India's largest engineering and construction major recognizes and cherishes these Tenets and Principles that live beyond time. Principles and Values that never change but get to redefine its relevance within modern times, thereby making it stay for ever - as a classic beyond time and ages.

Source : carnaticindia.com

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The main theme of my life is to take the message of Sanatana Dharma to every home and pave the way for launching, in a big way, the man-making programme preached and envisaged by great seers like Swami Vivekananda. - Mananeeya Eknathji

विवेकानन्द केन्द्र कन्याकुमारी (Vivekananda Kendra Kanyakumari) Vivekananda Rock Memorial & Vivekananda Kendra : http://www.vivekanandakendra.org Read Article, Magazine, Book @ http://eshop.vivekanandakendra.org/e-granthalaya Cell : +91-941-801-5995, Landline : +91-177-283-5995

. . . Are you Strong? Do you feel Strength? — for I know it is Truth alone that gives Strength. Strength is the medicine for the world's disease . . . This is the great fact: "Strength is LIFE; Weakness is Death."

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Samarth Bharat Parva - 4

Indian village where people speak in Sanskrit

A village in the southern state of Karnataka where most residents speak Sanskrit is in focus at a time when the Indian government's insistence on promoting the ancient language has sparked a debate over the role it plays in the lives of people in the country now. The BBC Hindi's Imran Qureshi reports from the village.

Mattur, in Shimoga district, about 300km (186 miles) from the state capital, Bangalore, appears quite oblivious of the raging debate in India over the recent government order to replace German with Sanskrit in central schools.

Here, ordinary shopkeepers and agricultural labourers speak in Sanskrit - or at least understand it. Most children too speak the language fluently.

The phrases most heard on the streets here are "katham aasthi" (Sanskrit for how are you?) and "aham gachchami" (I am going).

Professor MB Srinidhi, a resident of Mattur, says the current controversy is unnecessary.

"Just like the European languages are spoken in Europe, we also need to speak in Sanskrit. The interesting aspect is that Sanskrit is a language that will help in understanding not just Indian languages but also German or French," he told BBC Hindi.

Sanskrit belongs to the Indo-Aryan group of languages and is the root of many Indian languages.

In ancient India, it was the main language used by scholars and was sometimes referred to as devabhasha - the language of gods.

Today, it is spoken by less than 1% of Indians and is mostly used by Hindu priests during religious ceremonies.

Until the early 1980s, villagers in Mattur spoke the state's regional language, Kannada, as well as Tamil because of the large number of labourers who settled here centuries ago from the neighbouring state of Tamil Nadu.

"Then there was a movement in favour of Sanskrit. Sanskrit had been criticised as the language of the [upper caste] Brahmins and suddenly displaced from the pedestal with Kannada," said Prof Srinidhi.

"The priest of [the local religious centre] Pejawar Mutt gave a call to make Mattur a Sanskrit-speaking village. It took just two hours daily for 10 days for the entire village to start conversing in Sanskrit," he added.

Since then, Sanskrit is being spoken not just by the Sankethi Brahmins of the 3,500-strong village, but also by communities from the socially and economically underprivileged sections of society.

Sankethis are a small community of Brahmins who originally came from the neighbouring state of Kerala and settled down here centuries ago.

There are only around 35,000 Sankethis in India and their language - also called Sankethi - is a mix of Kannada, Tamil, Malayalam and some bits of Telugu.

Today, 150 of the 400 students in the local Sri Sharada Vilasa school study Sanskrit as the first language, with English as the second language and Kannada or Tamil or any other regional language as their third language.

The school's Sanskrit teacher, Ananthakrishna, asks one of his best students, Imran, a question in Sanskrit. "His interest in Sanskrit is amazing," he explains.

"It helps me understand Kannada better," says Imran.

The influence of Sanskrit is, indeed, strong in Mattur. For housewife Lakshmi Keshava, who normally speaks Sankethi at home, shifting automatically to Sanskrit when she gets angry with her son or family members is normal.

It's not very different for Tamil-speaking Chitra, an agricultural labour: "We understand Sanskrit. Some of us cannot speak it, but our children do speak the language."

"Sanskrit is a language that teaches you old traditions and values. It's a language of the heart and cannot die," says Sanskrit scholar Aswathanarayana Avadhani.

Many of Mattur's young have gone abroad to study engineering or medicine and I ask if Sanskrit helps in developing a mindset that aids understanding other languages, including those used in computer sciences.

Shashank, who runs an IT solutions company in Bangalore, says: "Yes, there is a connect if you delve deep into Sanskrit. Those who have gone into Vedic mathematics [which dates back to a time in ancient India when Sanskrit was the main language used by scholars] have certainly got a logical mindset that helps in information technology."

"I have learnt some Vedic maths that has helped me. Others use a calculator when I could just do all that without a calculator."

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The main theme of my life is to take the message of Sanatana Dharma to every home and pave the way for launching, in a big way, the man-making programme preached and envisaged by great seers like Swami Vivekananda. - Mananeeya Eknathji

विवेकानन्द केन्द्र कन्याकुमारी (Vivekananda Kendra Kanyakumari) Vivekananda Rock Memorial & Vivekananda Kendra : http://www.vivekanandakendra.org Read Article, Magazine, Book @ http://eshop.vivekanandakendra.org/e-granthalaya Cell : +91-941-801-5995, Landline : +91-177-283-5995

. . . Are you Strong? Do you feel Strength? — for I know it is Truth alone that gives Strength. Strength is the medicine for the world's disease . . . This is the great fact: "Strength is LIFE; Weakness is Death."

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Samarth Bharat Parva - 3

We have tradition of Brahmavadini. It is one of strong and strong and major aspect of our tradition. Here is a dialogue between Gargi And Yajnavalkya.

The  country  of  Videha  was  ruled  by  the  great  King  Janaka. Once he performed a sacrifice in which plenty of gifts were given away to scholars and pious men. Erudite Brahmins from Kuru and Panchala, the famous seats of learning, were assembled there either on invitation or as spectators.

At the sight of that large gathering of Vedic scholars, a desire arose  in  the  mind  of  King  Janaka  to  know  who  was  the  most erudite among them. He had a thousand young cows with horns adorned with gold brought near the place where the sacrifice was being  conducted.  Then,  addressing  the  assembly,  he  declared, 'Respected sires, let him, the greatest Vedic scholar among you, take away these cows home.' Silence prevailed for a time, for none dared to claim that supreme honour for himself.

Then Yajnavalkya rose and ordered his disciple to drive the cows to his home. But then a number of Brahmins sprang to their  feet  and  challenged  Yajnavalkya's  tacit  declaration of his own supremacy in scholarship. Volleys of questions were shot at him, to all of which he gave convincing replies. When one by one the  scholars  were  silenced,  there  rose  Gargi,  the  daughter  of Vachaknu, to engage Yajnavalkya in  a scholarly  dispute.  What followed is one of the most famous of upanishadic dialogues.

Gargi: 'If all that is composed of earth is pervaded within and without by water, what pervades water?'
Yajnavalkya: 'Air pervades water.'
Gargi: 'What pervades air?'
Yajnavalkya: 'Sky pervades air.'
Gargi: 'What pervades the sky?'
Yajnavalkya:   'The   worlds   of   the   Gandharvas   (celestial minstrels) pervade the sky'
Gargi: 'What pervades the worlds of the Gandharvas?
Yajnavalkya:  'The  worlds  of  the  sun  pervade  the  worlds  of  the Gandharvas.'
Gargi: 'What pervades the worlds of the sun?'
Yajnavalkya: 'The worlds of the moon pervade those of the sun.'
Gargi: 'What pervades the worlds of the moon.'
Yajnavalkya The worlds of the stars pervade those of the moon.'
Gargi: 'What pervades the worlds of the stars?'
Yajnavalkya 'The worlds of the Gods pervade those of the stars,'
Gargi: 'What pervades the worlds of the Gods?'
Yajnavalkya: 'The worlds of Indra pervade those of the Gods.'
Gargi: 'What pervades the worlds of Indra?'
Yajnavalkya: 'The worlds of Virat pervade those of Indra.'
Gargi: 'What pervades the worlds of Virat?'
Yajnavalkya: 'The worlds of Hiranyagarbha pervade those of Virat.'
Gargi: 'What pervades the worlds of Hiranyagarbha?'

At  this  stage  Yajnavalkya  realized  that  his  illustrious inter locutor was going too far.

The  Reality  which  is  beyond  Hiranyagarbha  or  the  Cosmic Mind  cannot  be  known  by  the  ordinary  mind,  much  less described in words. Mind and speech turn backwards unable to reach  the  Supreme  Reality  which  can  be  known  only  through direct  intuitive  experience. 

Therefore,  Yajnavalkya  told  Gargi, 'Do not, O Gargi, endeavour to go further in your attempt to know the Supreme Reality that pervades Hiranyagarbha and, for that matter,  pervades  all  the  worlds  previously  mentioned.If you persist, your head may fall off!' Thus admonished Gargi desisted from further questioning.

Then Uddalaka, the son of Aruna, rose and put a series of brilliant questions to which Yajnavalkya gave luminous answers. When Uddalaka sat down, Gargi again got up, this time with two more  questions  which  she  wanted  to  shoot,  like  arrows, at Yajnavalkya. But before asking those questions she asked for the permission of the erudite assembly. The consent was given and Gargi straightway held forth: Gargi:  'As  water  pervades  the  elemental  earth,  so  what pervades the Sutra which is above heaven and below the earth, which embraces heaven and earth as well as the region between them and which according to the scriptures is timeless?' Yaj: 'O Gargi, it is the unmanifested ether that pervades the Sutra thus and which is timeless.'

Gargi:  'Salutation  to  you,  Yajnavalkya. I am  satisfied  with your answer. But now, my second question.' Yajnavalkya: 'Ask, O Gargi.'
Gargi: 'What pervades the unmanifested ether?
Yajnavalkya: 'O Gargi, the knowers of Brahman describe It as undecaying and unchanging.They say Brahman has no dimensions nor has it any colour. It is utterly unlike earth, water, air, fire or ether.It is partless, is neither internal nor external. Unlike the body and mind It has no organs.' Thus indicating the attributeless  nature  of  Brahman,  Yajnavalkya  proceeded  to  say how it nevertheless is the support and substratum of the entire manifested universe.

Said he, 'By the supreme command of this imperishable Being the sun and the moon keep their courses, the earth and sky remain apart, the illusion of time in all its subtle divisions is experienced, the rivers maintain their courses and the mountains tower over everything  else. All beings, O  Gargi,  even  the  departed  souls, depend on Brahman for their sustenance.'

Yajnavalkya  then  exhorted  Gargi  to  know  the  truth  of Brahman  by  praising  it:  'O  Gargi,  all  the  merits  derived  by  the performance  of  sacrifice  are  evanescent,  Brahman  alone  is imperishable.  One  who  leaves  this  world  after  gaining  the knowledge of Brahman, he alone is a blessed soul, all the others are all miserable slaves.'

But the knowledge of Brahman cannot be gained for the asking. It is extremely subtle. To impress this fact on Gargi's mind, Yajnavalkya says next, 'O Gargi, this Immutable One is not the object of sight, of hearing, of the mind or of the intellect, It Itself is  the  Seer,  the  Hearer,  the  Thinker  and  the  Knower. It is Consciousness itself. It is all-pervading and sees through all eyes, hears through all ears, thinks through all minds, knows through all  intellects.  Indeed,  It  pervades  all elements  from  the  earth  to the unmanifested ether'. The above words so authoritatively spoken by the great sage had silenced all her doubts. And with that magnanimity that characterises  great  minds,  she  concluded  her  debate  with  the following words: 'Venerable Brahmanas, you should consider it a great thing if you can get away by saluting Yajnavalkya. I am convinced  that  he  stands  supreme  amongst  you  all  in  the knowledge  of  Brahman.'  So  saying  the  daughter  of  Vacaknu ceased talking.

Source:  Chapter  III,  sections  6  and  8  of  Brihadaranyaka Upanishad with translation.

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The main theme of my life is to take the message of Sanatana Dharma to every home and pave the way for launching, in a big way, the man-making programme preached and envisaged by great seers like Swami Vivekananda. - Mananeeya Eknathji

विवेकानन्द केन्द्र कन्याकुमारी (Vivekananda Kendra Kanyakumari) Vivekananda Rock Memorial & Vivekananda Kendra : http://www.vivekanandakendra.org Read Article, Magazine, Book @ http://eshop.vivekanandakendra.org/e-granthalaya Cell : +91-941-801-5995, Landline : +91-177-283-5995

. . . Are you Strong? Do you feel Strength? — for I know it is Truth alone that gives Strength. Strength is the medicine for the world's disease . . . This is the great fact: "Strength is LIFE; Weakness is Death."

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Samarth Bharat Parva - 2

Education in Pre-British India

Dharampal, the well known Gandhian and historian of Indian Science, has given a detailed accounts of the extensive indigenous system of education that was thriving in India before the British came in his famous book, The Beautiful Tree. We give below a brief summary of his report. Dharampal's account is based on the British Collector's reports when the came to India and were asked to report on sate of the indigenous education.

Indian historical knowledge has been derived from the writings and some other valuable accounts left by the foreigners. For example, the universities of Nalanda and Taxila have been better known as some Greek or Chinese travellers had written about them centuries ago, which had survived in the form of some journals. Thus these journals provide us very useful information about indigenous education.

The information about indigenous education, which is available today, whether published, or still in manuscript form in the government records, largely belongs to the 1820's and 1830's period. It is significant to emphasize that indigenous education was carried out through pathshalas, madrassahs and gurukulas. These three institutions were the source of traditional knowledge systems in India and played a very significant role in the Indian education. These institutions were in fact the watering holes of the culture of traditional communities. Therefore the term school is a weak translation of the roles these institutions really played in Indian society.

The most well-known and decisive point, which emerged from the educational surveys, lies in an examination made by William Adam. He, in his observations found that there existed about 1,00,000 village schools in Bengal and Bihar around the 1830s. Men like Thomas Munro, had observed that 'every village had a school'. Observations made by Dr. G.W.Leitner in 1882 show that the spread of education in the Punjab around 1850 was of a similar extent. At about the same time, England had very few schools for the children of ordinary people till about 1800, and many of the older grammar school were in poor shape. According to A.E. Dobbs, the University of Oxford might be described as the chief Charity School of the poor as well as the chief Grammar School in England. It was also one of the greatest places of the education for students of theology, law and medicine.

The men who wrote about India belonged to the late eighteenth and early nineteenth century of Great Britain. These surveys, based on hard data reveal a great deal about the nature of Indian education and detailed information on the background of those benefiting from these institutions.

According to this hard data, in terms of the content, the proportion of those attending institutional school education in India in 1800 is certainly not inferior to what obtained in England then; and in many respects Indian schooling seems to have been much more extensive. The content of studies was better in India than in England. The method of school teaching was superior in India at that time. The school attendance, especially in the district of Madras Presidency, even in the decayed state of the period 1822-25, was proportionately far higher than the numbers in all variety of schools in England in 1800. The only aspect in which India was behind was the education of girls. Girl schooling may have been proportionately more extensive in England in 1800.

However, the Madras Presidency and Bengal-Bihar data presents a kind of revelation. According to this data, the education of any sort in India, till very recant decades, was mostly limited to the twice born amongst the Hindus, and amongst the Muslims to those from the ruling elite.

Two of the collectors sent detailed information pertain-ing to those who were being educated at home, or in some other private manner. The collector of Malabar sent details of 1,594 scholars who were receiving education in Theology, Law, Astrono-my, Metaphysics, Ethics and Medical Science in his district from private tutors. The collector of Madras, on the other hand, report-ed in his letter of February 1826 that 26,963 school-level schol-ars were then receiving tuition at their homes in the area under his jurisdiction.

The government of Madras presidency completed a survey of Indian educational institutions in 1823-24. After that it came to be known that despite the poverty and disturbance, there were about 13,000 schools and 740 colleges under the presidency. According to this survey the original number of students in school and colleges were 1,88,650 out of which 42,502 were Brahmans and 85,400 were from the castes known as Shudras. The remaining were Vaishya, Mohammedan and from other Hindu castes. The numbers of girls were only 4540, but according to the report this lesser number of girls as alleged was mainly due to the prevalence of home education of girls. But the number of Mohammedan girl students in Malabar district was very large. The number of girl students there was 1,122 and for boy students 3196. How these institutions of education were destroyed is known to some extent by what Gandhiji said.

The Government of the Presidency of Madras on 10 March 1826 ultimately reviewed the reports of the collectors. The Governor, Sir Thomas Munro, was of the view that while the institutional education of females seemed negligible, that of the boys between the ages of 5 to 10 years appeared to be a 'little more than one-fourth' of the boys of that age in the Presidency as a whole. Taking into consideration those who were estimated as being taught at home, he was inclined 'to estimate the por-tion of the male population who receive school education to be nearer to one-third than one-fourth of the whole.

The caste-wise division of students provides the more interesting and historically more relevant information. This is true not only as regards boys, but also with respect to the rather small number of girls who, according to the survey, were receiving education in schools. Furthermore, the information be-comes all the more curious and pertinent when the data is grouped into the five main language areas -- Oriya, Telugu, Kannada. Malayalam and Tamil. These constituted the Presidency of Madras at this period, and throughout the nineteenth century.

In the Tamil speaking areas where the twice-born ranged between 13% in the south Arcot to some 23% in Madras, the Muslims were less than 3% in South Arcot and Chingleput to 10% in Salem, while the Soodras and the other castes ranged from about 70% in Salem and Tinnevelly, to over 84% in South Arcot.

In Malayalam-speaking Malabar, the proportion of the twice born was still below 20% of the total. Because of a larger Muslim population, however, the number of Muslim school stu-dents went up to nearly 27%, while the Soodras and the other castes accounted for some 54% of the school going students.

In the largely Kannada-speaking Bellary, the proportion of the twice-born (the Brahmins and the Vysees) went up to 33%, while the Soodras, and the other castes still accounted for some 63%.

The position in the Oriya-speaking Ganjam was similar: the twice-born accounting for some 35.6%, and the Soodras and other castes being around 63.5%.

It is only in the Telugu-speaking districts that the twice born formed the major proportion of the school going students. Here, the proportion of Brahmin boys varied from 24% in Cuddapah to 46% in Vizagapatam; of the Vysees from 10.5% in Vizagapatam to 29% in Cuddapah; of the Muslims from 1 % in Vizagapatam to 8% in Nellore; and of the Soodras and other castes from 35% in Guntoor to over 41% in Cuddapah and Vizagapatam.

The main subjects, which were reported to be taught in the schools of Bellary and also in Rajahmundry, were reading, writing and arithmetic. Ramayanum, Maha Bharata, Bhagvata, were some other books which were reported to be taught in these schools.

While several of the collectors observed that no institutions of higher learning were then known to exist in their districts, the rest reported a total of 1,094 such places. These were enumer-ated under the term 'colleges' (as mentioned in the prescribed form). The largest number of these, 279, were in the district of Rajahmundry with a total of 1.454 scholars; Coimbatore came next with 173 such places (724 scholars); Guntoor had 171 (with 939 scholars); Tanjore 109 (with 769 scholars); Nellore 107; North Arcot 69 (with 418 scholars); Salem 53 (with 324 scholars); Chingleput 51 (with 398 scholars); Masulipatarn 49 (with 199 scholers); Bellary 23; Trichnopoly (with 131 scholars) and Malabar with one old institution with 75 scholars.

The books used in these institutions probably were the Vedas, the various Sastras, the Purans, the more well known books on Ganeeta, and Jyotish-sastras and epic literature.

Several collectors, especially the collector of Canara, who did not send any statistical returns at all, mentioned the fact that many of the boys and especially the girls received education at home from their parents, or relatives, or from privately engaged tutors. The data from Madras regarding the number of boys and girls receiving tuition at their home is equally pertinent. In comparison to those being educated in schools in Madras, this number is 4.7 times.

The number of girls attending the school was very small. Leaving aside the districts of Malabar and the Jeypoor divison of Vizagapatam district, the girls from Brahmin, Chettri, and Vysee castes were practically non-existent in schools. However, there were some Muslim girls receiving school educations: 56 in Trichnopoly, and 27 in Salem.

Thirteen years later, a more limited semi-official survey of indigenous education was taken up in the Presidency of Bengal, which is known as the Adam's Reports. In spite of the controversies, Adam's Reports have mentioned that there were perhaps 1,00,000 village schools in Bengal and Bihar in some form till the 1830.

Adam divided the period spent in elementary schools into 4 stages, which were: The first stage was a period of about ten days, during which the young scholar was taught to form the letters of the alphabet; the second stage, extending two and a half to 4 years, was distinguished by the use of palm leaf as the material on which writing was performed and the scholar was taught to read and write and also learn the Cowrie table, the Numeration table, the katha table and the Ser table; the third stage extended from 2 to 3 years, which were employed in writing on the plantain leaf and addition, subtraction and other arithmetical operations were taught during this period; and finally in the fourth stage, which extended up to 2 years, the writing was done on the paper and the scholar was expected to read the Ramayana, Manas mangal etc.

About 45 years after Adam, Dr. G. W. Leitner prepared an even more voluminous survey of indigenous education. This survey was more direct and much less complementary to British rule. Leitner's researches showed that at the time of the annexation of the Punjab, the lowest computation gave 3,30,000 pupils in the schools of the various denominations who were acquainted with reading, writing and some methods of computation.

There is a sense of widespread neglect and decay in the field of indigenous education within a few decades after the onset of British rule. This is the major common impression, which emerges from the (1822-25) Madras Presidency data, the report of W. Adam on Bengal and Bihar (1835-38), and the Punjab survey by G.W. Leitner.

Gandhiji was very disappointed at the condition of Indian education during the British period. Gandhiji observed two main points in Indian education: (1) Today India is more illiterate than it was fifty or hundred years ago; and (2) the British administrators instead of looking after education and other matters which had existed, began to root them out.

Source:

Dharampal, 2000. Introduction in The Beautiful Tree, Volume III. Pp. 07-86. Mapusa: Other India Press.

Note: The archaic spellings have not been changed.

curtsey : www.infinityfoundation.com  

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The main theme of my life is to take the message of Sanatana Dharma to every home and pave the way for launching, in a big way, the man-making programme preached and envisaged by great seers like Swami Vivekananda. - Mananeeya Eknathji

विवेकानन्द केन्द्र कन्याकुमारी (Vivekananda Kendra Kanyakumari) Vivekananda Rock Memorial & Vivekananda Kendra : http://www.vivekanandakendra.org Read Article, Magazine, Book @ http://eshop.vivekanandakendra.org/e-granthalaya Cell : +91-941-801-5995, Landline : +91-177-283-5995

. . . Are you Strong? Do you feel Strength? — for I know it is Truth alone that gives Strength. Strength is the medicine for the world's disease . . . This is the great fact: "Strength is LIFE; Weakness is Death."

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Samarth Bharat Parva - 1

According to our History there were 12 Surya Mandir in India. According to ancient literature and scriptures, the Hindus refer to the Sun as the storehouse of unlimited energy. In our country, the Sun god is referred to as Aditya or Surya. Sun temples are basically buildings and structures which are used for spiritual and religious activities regarding the Sun god. Sacrifices intended to the Sun good are also practiced in these buildings. Apart from India, Sun temples are also located in Japan, China, Egypt, Peru, etc. In India, there are many ruins of such temples as well. Some of them were excavated later on and new temples were built on those locations. Sun God is typically depicted riding seven horses on a chariot, which represent the seven colors of a rainbow.

The earliest known Sun temples were in the caves, where murals of Sun were discovered on the walls. The most famous Sun temple in the world is Konark in Orissa, which is also a world heritage site. Some of these ancient temples were destroyed by the Islamic invasions, but their ruins continue to marvel the world with many secrets being uncovered each day.

1 : The Bhramanya Dev Temple At Unao:
This temple is located on a place called Unao in Madhya Pradesh. It gets visits form devoted worshipers all around India and the surrounding areas also act a famous tourist destination. This well-visited temple is well known for the recoveries people got from her. Some got themselves relieved from blindness, skin diseases, etc.The highlight of this temple is the deity which is placed on a brick platform and is wrapped up in black plates. The idol is engraved with twenty-one triangles, which represent the 21 phases of Sun.

2 : Sun Temple At Surya Prahar:
This Sun temple is located in Surya Prahar in Assam. The temple is situated on the hill and is a popular religious site for the local people. The main attraction of this temple is the circular tablet made of stone which displays a number of images of the Sun god. According to ancient Sanskrit literature, there are actually 12 different Aditya's or Sun gods.It is located near the banks of Brahma putra river and is one of the most famous sun god temple place in East India.

3 : Suryanar Temple Near Kumbakonam:
The Suryanaar temple is located near Kumbakonam in Tamil Nadu. This popular temple manifests the magnificent Surya god. The temple educates the visitors about the different celestial bodies in the universe. The temple was constructed in Dravidian style and is one of the most beautiful and well-constructed worship places in India.The idol of Suryanarayana is in a standing position and has his two wives – Usha and Chaya standing on either sides.

4 : Suryanarayana Swamy Temple In Arasavalli:
This Sun temple is located in Arasavilli in Andhra Pradesh and the Sun god in this temple is a well-maintained state. The temple was constructed during the 7th century by a Kalinga king. Inside the temple, there is an image on a tall black granite holding lotus buds which is the actual image of worship for the Sun god worshipers.As per legend, Sage Kashyap installed the idol of Surya Narayana in this temple. Every Sunday is an important day in Arasavilli Surya Devalayam and many devotees come to seek blessings.

5 : The Dakshinaarka Temple At Gaya:
In Gaya, Bihar there is a famous Surya Bhagavan temple in India which is known by the name of The Dakshinaarka temple. In this temple, worshipers make their offerings to their ancestors at the Dakshina Maanas tank which is situated in front of the temple. In this temple, you will find numerous old images of the Sun god which you will find nowhere else. The temple is also of high historical significance as it was constructed during the 13th century under the supervision of a king who was a devoted worshiper of the Sun god. This temple is also one of the oldest and most visited religious sites in Bihar.

6 : Surya Mandir Konark (Sun Temple Orissa):
The Sun temple located in Konark, Orissa is known as Konark Sun Temple. Konark Surya Mandir was constructed during the 13th century. People come to visit this temple from all over the globe to observe the magnificent architecture of the Konark Sun Temple. It is also known as Black Pagoda temple by the locals. As per Konark temple history, the current structure was built by Narasimhadeva I of the eastern Ganga dynasty and is one of the very few Indian temples whose plan and blue print written in Sanskrit is preserved till date.The entire temple was constructed to resemble a 100 feet Chariot, all carved from sandstone. The temple is now in ruins and is declared as UNESCO World Heritage site in the year 1984. Konark temple images are also the most widely downloaded pictures of an Indian temple in the world.

7 : Sun Temple At Modhera:
This Sun temple is satiated in Modhera, Gujrat and was built in 1026. The temple was designed in such a manner that the rays of the sun would enter the temple properly and would directly fall on the image of the Surya.The temple now has no worship and is a protected monument maintained by the Archeological Survey Of India. This temple has three main areas- The Gudhamandapa, the Sabhamandapa and the Kunda.Modhera sun temple is one of the prominent Surya mandir in India.

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The main theme of my life is to take the message of Sanatana Dharma to every home and pave the way for launching, in a big way, the man-making programme preached and envisaged by great seers like Swami Vivekananda. - Mananeeya Eknathji

विवेकानन्द केन्द्र कन्याकुमारी (Vivekananda Kendra Kanyakumari) Vivekananda Rock Memorial & Vivekananda Kendra : http://www.vivekanandakendra.org Read Article, Magazine, Book @ http://eshop.vivekanandakendra.org/e-granthalaya Cell : +91-941-801-5995, Landline : +91-177-283-5995

. . . Are you Strong? Do you feel Strength? — for I know it is Truth alone that gives Strength. Strength is the medicine for the world's disease . . . This is the great fact: "Strength is LIFE; Weakness is Death."

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Swadesh Mantra : स्वदेश मन्त्र

From Today Samarth Bharat Parva is starting. For daily usage/chanting, herewith sending Swadesh Mantra. Wish that everyone will chant this Mantra with deepest feeling for Bharat Mata.

हे भारत ! केवल दूसरों की हाँ में हाँ में हाँ मिलाकर, दूसरों की इस क्षूद्र नक़ल के द्वारा, दूसरों का ही मुँह ताकते रहकर........ क्या तू इसी पाथेय के सहारे, सभ्यता और महानता के चरम शिखर पर चढ़ सकेगा? क्या तू अपनी इस लज्जास्पद कायरता के द्वारा उस स्वाधीनता को प्राप्त कर सकेगा जिसे पाने के अधिकारी केवल साहसी और वीर है? हे भारत ! मत भूल, तेरे नारीत्व का आदर्श सीता, सावित्री और दमयन्ती है। मत भूल कि तेरे उपास्यदेव देवाधिदेव सर्वस्वत्यागी, उमापति शंकर है। मत भूल कि तेरा विवाह, तेरी धन-संपत्ति, तेरा जीवन केवल विषय- सुख के हेतु नहीं है, केवल तेरे व्यक्तिगत सुखोपभोग के लिए नहीं है। मत भूल कि तू माता के चरणों में बलि चढ़ने के लिए ही पैदा हुआ हैं। मत भूल कि तेरी समाज - व्यवस्था उस अनन्त जगज्जननी महामाया की छाया मात्र हैं। मत भूल कि नीच, अज्ञानी, दरिद्र, अनपढ़, चमार, मेहतर सब तेरे रक्त मांस के है, वे सब तेरे भाई है। ओ वीर पुरुष ! साहस बटोर, निर्भीक बन और गर्व कर कि तू भारतवासी है। गर्व से घोषणा कर कि "मैं भारतवासी हूँ, प्रत्येक भारतवासी मेरा भाई है। " मुख से बोल, "अज्ञानी भारतवासी, दरिद्र और पीड़ित भारतवासी, ब्राह्मण भारतवासी, चाण्डाल भारतवासी सभी मेरे भाई है।" तू भी एक चिथड़े से अपने तन की लज्जा को ढँक ले और गर्वपूर्वक उच्च-स्वर से उद्धोष कर, "प्रत्येक भारतवासी मेरा भाई है, भारतवासी मेरे प्राण हैं, भारत के देवी-देवता मेरे ईश्वर है। भारत का समाज मेरे बचपन का झूला, मेरे यौवन की फुलवारी और मेरे बुढ़ापे की काशी है।" मेरे भाई, कह : "भारत की मिटटी मेरा स्वर्ग है, भारत के कल्याण में ही मेरा कल्याण है।" अहोरात्र जपा कर, "हे गौरीनाथ ! हे जगदम्बे ! मुझे मनुष्यत्व दो। हे शक्तिमयी माँ ! मेरी दुर्बलता को हर लो; मेरी कापुरुषता को दूर भगा दो और मुझे मनुष्य बना दो, माँ !" ~ स्वामी विवेकानन्द

O India! With this mere echoing of others, with this base imitation of others, with this dependence on others, this slavish weakness, this vile detestable cruelty -- wouldst thou, with these provisions only, scale the highest pinnacle of civilisation and greatness? Wouldst thou attain, by means of thy disgraceful cowardice, that freedom deserved only by the brave and the heroic? O India! Forget not that the ideal of thy womanhood is Sita, Savitri, Damayanti; Forget not that the God thou worshippest is the great Ascetic of ascetics, the all-renouncing Shankara, the Lord of Uma; Forget not that thy marriage, thy wealth, thy life are not for sense-pleasure, are not for thy individual personal happiness; Forget not that thou art born as a sacrifice to the Mother's altar; Forget not that thy social order is but the reflex of the Infinite Universal Motherhood; Forget not that the lower classes, the ignorant, the poor, the illiterate, the cobbler, the sweeper, are thy flesh and blood, thy brothers. Thou brave one, be bold, take courage, be proud that thou art an Indian, and proudly proclaim, " I am an Indian, every Indian is my brother. " Say, " The ignorant Indian, the poor and destitute Indian, the Brahmin Indian, the Pariah Indian, is my brother. " Thou, too, clad with but a rag round thy loins proudly proclaim at the top of thy voice: " The Indian is my brother, the Indian is my life, India's gods and goddesses are my God. India's society is the cradle of my infancy, the pleasure-garden of my youth, the sacred heaven, the Varanasi of my old age. " Say, brother; " The soil of India is my highest heaven, the good of India is my good, " and repeat and pray day and night, " O Thou Lord of Gauri, O Thou Mother of the Universe, vouchsafe manliness unto me! O Thou Mother of Strength, take away my weakness, take away my unmanliness, and make me a Man! " -Swami Vivekananda

[ The Complete Works of Swami Vivekananda, Vol. 4 [Page:479], MODERN INDIA ]
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The main theme of my life is to take the message of Sanatana Dharma to every home and pave the way for launching, in a big way, the man-making programme preached and envisaged by great seers like Swami Vivekananda. - Mananeeya Eknathji

विवेकानन्द केन्द्र कन्याकुमारी (Vivekananda Kendra Kanyakumari) Vivekananda Rock Memorial & Vivekananda Kendra : http://www.vivekanandakendra.org Read Article, Magazine, Book @ http://eshop.vivekanandakendra.org/e-granthalaya Cell : +91-941-801-5995, Landline : +91-177-283-5995

. . . Are you Strong? Do you feel Strength? — for I know it is Truth alone that gives Strength. Strength is the medicine for the world's disease . . . This is the great fact: "Strength is LIFE; Weakness is Death."

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