Sabarimala Ayyappa Temple: #RightToPray and #ReadyToWait

#RightToPray and #ReadyToWait

Sabarimala allows women. Millions of women visit Sabarimala every year. But, before the age of 10 and after the age of 50. And now it's an issue. Some say, it's an anti-ladies tradition and male chauvenism. They argue that its a distinction towards ladies and has come with #RightToPray campaign. And some people campaign that they are #ReadyToWait as they follow traditions.

Sabarimala doesn’t distinguish people on the base of religion unlike other religious centres in Kerala.

But, there is a restriction for ladies between the age of 10 and 50.
It is not related to menstruation. Because there are girls getting their first periods before the age of 10 and there are ladies (or most of them) who doesn't stop menstruating before the age of 50. So.. its not related to menstruation.

Sabarimala is not a 24 x 7 and 365 days temple. It has its own traditions and rituals. It is opened for a very few days only. And every devotee visiting Ayyappa shrine are called as Ayyappa himself and they all have to wear the same kind of clothing - Black/Blue dress. It talks loud on the Vedic Mahavakya - "Thathwamasi" or "Aham Brahmasmi" which can be translated in simple words as "You are a part of that Big Soul" or "You are God" !! All devotees should take a dip in the Holy river of Pamba before climbing the Sabarimala mountain. Everyone should have same kind of bag (its actually not a commercial bag that we see around - but a cloth bag ) and similar neck chain. And hence the rich, the poor, the middle class - everyone looks the same. No Savarna, No Avarna !! There is no fast lane or VIP darshan. No distinction at all..! This uniformity in devotees is a specialty of Sabarimala Ayyappa temple and no one questions it.

There is a ritual related to Sabarimala and Saramkuthi.

1.5 km before reaching Sabarimala shrine, there is a pilgrim spot with the name Saramkuthi. The legend says that, before coming to sit in the Ayyappa shrine, Ayyappa and his friends discarded their weapons at Saramkuthi. It symbolically shows that all lethal weapons are irrelevant in human society for a better civilization and advancement in life. Hence all first time visitors to Sabarimala who are called as "Kanni Ayyappans" are supposed to bring an Arrow (symbol of weapon) and discard it there. This act shows that violence is removed from their minds and they have refined themselves spiritually before entering the temple

Next to Sabarimala Ayyappa temple, there is another temple where the devotees go. Its the temple for a goddess - Malikappurathamma. Now, there is a love story in their life.

Malikappurathamma loved Ayyappan and wanted to marry him. But, Ayyappan said - "I have already decided to be a Naishtika brahmachaari. So I’ll not be able to marry you". But Malikappuraththamma's love was strong that Ayyappan could not deny it completely. So he made a point that "I'll marry you in that year when no 'Kanni Ayyappans' (First Time Sabarimala Visitors) are there to visit me at Sabarimala Ayyappa temple". She now sits and waits for him at a neighbouring shrine near the main temple.

As mentioned earlier, during the pilgrimage, devotees and Ayyappa are the same. They are one. Because of the love and care he had for Malikappurathamma, He/Tantri (the father of deity) has taken a decision that Ayyappa will not give darshan to young women (of marriageable age? though every age is marriageable according to me) and this tradition is carried out for long. May be he doesn't want young women to be called as Ayyappa himself and hurt his sentiments and the sentiments of Malikappurathamma. May be he is respecting their romance and love and has taken this decision...!

And now, there is another ritual carried out in Malikappuram temple. The deity of Malikappurathamma is taken from the temple to Saramkuthi in a music adorned pageant every year. Malikappurathamma checks if there are any new arrows in Saramkuthi to know whether any 'Kanni Ayyappans' have visited Sabarimala that year as well. After seeing thousands of new arrows at Saramkuthi, the same procession of Malikappurathamma returns silently to symbolise the grief of the goddess. And she waits till the next Makara Vilakk Festival.

Can't we just celebrate the love and romance of Ayyappan and Malikappurathamma than fighting on smaller issues?

If someone doesn't belive in the above story of Sabarimala, Ayyappa and Malikappurathamma, I hope they will not visit Sabarimala to "pray" too... :)..

Disclaimer: The story is related to Sabarimala. But dialogues are mine.

#Sabarimala #SabarimalaAyyappaTemple

Is Mahabharata and Ramayana only for the Indian Hindus ???

Very recent comments in social media made me think about this... How can it be so? 

As far as I know, we Indians can be majorly categorized into 2* (on the basis of the 'so-called' religion): 

1. Around 80% of Indians who did not convert to any religion.

2. Around 20% of Indians who converted to other 'so called religions' (originated in India or elsewhere) including Sikhism, Buddhism, Islam, Christianity, etc.

While categorizing on the basis of religions, this 80% were called to be belonging to Hindu Religion - where as "Hindu" is a term for all of us - Indians. (Even there is a Supreme Court Verdict regarding the same).

And all of us - the 80% and 20% belonged to a set of people who practiced Sanatana Dharma. So, the Indian History is for all of us. Here, I do not mean the History of the people who came and ruled us - like the Mughals, Portugese, English, etc. The Indian History means that + history before that - the history of Vedic Society, the History of MahaBharata, the History of Ramayana, The Upanishads, etc. 

So, Mahabharata and Ramayana are for us - Indians, right ???

It is not just for the 80%. It is for 80% and 20%. - Or, why should we call and divide us as 80% and 20% ? We, 100% of India are Indians.

Most of us know what is the history described in Mahabharata and Ramayana. And could you find anywhere, that you should only pray to 'so and so' only? 

No !!! 

Whoever thinks you need an idol, pray to that idol and your prayer reaches the ParaBrahma, the Supreme Power who has no figure and face. Whoever thinks you do not need an idol to pray, can directly pray to ParaBrahma.. Even if you do not pray, it is okay as far you do not hurt any one else. 

So our Sanatana Dharma accommodate (i) atheists who don't pray, (ii) those who likes idol based worship, (iii) who doesn't like idol based worship. 

And from last year, I have started reading Bhagavad Gita understanding it through different commentaries written by knowledgeable people. Till now, I could not find a word mentioning a particular 'Religion' in it. Till now, I could not find any verse telling you to preach your religion. Till now, I could find no verse imposing any particular statement on the readers. 

So, How can Bhagavad Gita be a book for Only Indian Hindus? 

It may be a Holy book for the converted Hindus from western society. But, for us, Indians, it is our History, and we should be proud of it.

So Dear "Hindu religion followers", please do not think that Mahabharata and Ramayana are the History of Hindu religion only. It doesn't speak of any particular religion. Its all our History. 

Dear "Non-Hindu religion followers in India", 

you may have different Holy books in your religion which might have mentioned that you should only pray to one particular God, or it may mention about different messengers... Good! 

Follow them! But, your History or roots belong to India. And be proud that we have 5000+ years of civilization History. We have Mahabharata and Ramayana in our History. We have Bhagavad Gita, the scripture which talks in a clear and knowledgeable way about Dharma, Deeds, Power of Knowledge, etc. We had people like Susrutha and Charaka who were the Surgeons of ancient India (who lived in 6 Century BC) who talked about every minute detail of a Human body when there were no modern medical equipments and scanning devices. They even talked about how a baby grows in a mother's womb with details of the growth in every month. We have a history of Ayurveda. We had the worlds' first University (Nalanda University in 5 century AD) where people from different regions came to seek knowledge. Nalanda University is not a part of 'Hindu religion' history. It is ours. And even the language 'Sanksrit' is ours. We should be proud of all these!

And both 80% and 20% ..... Also, in recent India (in AD), a few regions in India practiced the Social evil named Sati practice, (it was practiced by the non-converted Indians and the Sikhs and Indian Muslims as well) - It is not our culture - it is a social evil. And we Indians fought against that. 

In Vedic Society, we had "4 Varnas" according to the profession we take - But later, like any idealistic practice, malpractices creeped into it and this was converted to the current 'Caste System'. Every malpractice has to be fought from within, and we have done it and we Indians should be proud of it. Among the Kerala Brahmins, V.T. Bhattathirippad fought for the Namboothiri Women, Ayyankali fought against the caste system prevailed then. Likewise, we should unite and fight against all the malpractices and social evils in India. Just know that all these come under our Indian History. We belong to the same blood - both 80% and 20%.

So - Mahabharata (including Bhagavad Gita which is a part of the Mahabharata) and Ramayana are for Indian Muslims, Indian Christians, the Indian 'Hindu Religion followers', Sikhs, etc. 

You cannot deny that fact. 

It doesn't ask you to change your method of prayer or worship. It talks about knowledge only. And be proud of it. Be proud of your roots. 

Though we belong to different 'worshipping methods or religions', our History is the same - Sanatana Dharma.

According to the Sanatana Dharma, you can reach ParaBrahma, the Supreme Power, through different means. Which means, you can pray to Allah, Jesus or Krishna and reach ParaBrahma. And this is the reason why the earlier Indian Kings and Indian people allowed all other religions to preach in India. Any one converted were not killed or excluded from society. 

(*There is another set of minority who came to India as refugees and later become Indians - Including Iranians, Israelis, etc. They later merged in to Indian culture after getting married to Indians.)

Ajmal Kasab's death & 4 Questions Raised !!!

Ajmal Kasab is been given capital punishment. And in FB and newspapers, we can see a variety of comments.

Some people praise Indian Govt. and says, he deserved it"

And I could see that in websites, social sites and news pages, some people who consider themselves as humanitarians raised few funny questions on Kasab's death. These questions made me write the below blog. 

A few of the questions raised by them are numbered from 1 to 4. 

(1) "Now, we are following the policy, eye for eye. Is that good?"

So, what do you want? Keep him in prison for long? Or make him understand the terror he has done and wait for him to repent?

He has been quoted saying in the court "I have done right, I have no regrets".. If released, such a person would not mind training more people against India for attacks similar to Mumbai 26/11.

(2) "He is very young and has a lot of years before him. He should be given time to think about the crime and repent." 

If he is not hanged, then history will be repeated by another Indian Airlines Flight 814 (Kandahar). The release of Kasab will be asked against another hijack series claiming more innocent lives... Are you sure that such a thing will not happen??? 

(3) "There is no need to spend a lot for his security. He should be put in normal prison and allowed to suffer"

Kasab is trained so well that he and his friends could take 150+ innocent lives within few hours and they could terrorize India, one of the biggest nations in such a horrible way. If such a man was kept in a normal prison with others, then he would easily come out of it. And it is sure that still there are many people in India who support the Indian enemies and the so called "Jihad". He would obviously get those Jihadis' help.

Okay.. We spent a lot of money on his security. But know, the money has not gone out of the country. It was distributed in the country itself as staff salary, purchase of security measures, etc. Yes, it was a big amount and could have been saved. But, the entire trial proved Pakistan's involvement in the case. And we proved that our judiciary is one of the best in the world. 

And from a certain group of people, here is the best comment about Ajmal Kasab's death.

(4) "Why is Indian Government hanging Kasab when Narendra Modi is still alive? What happened in Gujarat?"

Ok.. Guys, We are talking about Ajmal Kasab. Not Modi. 

Next... What happened in Gujarat?

In 2002, two incidents happened in Gujarat. The second one was an after-effect of first one. 

1. Godhra Train Burning Incident:

Feb 27, 2002: About 60 Hindu Pilgrims returning from UP in the Sabarmati Express were burnt alive near Godhra Railway station. 

How? 

The train was stopped using emergency stop button and 2 compartments were locked from outside and the radical Islamist mob set fire on those compartments. 

The violent mob supported by Municipal Councilor Haji Bilal did not allow firefighters to save those lives. Justice Tewatia’s Inquiry Commission in April 2002 established that the attack on the Sabarmati Express was preplanned and premeditated.

2. The communal violence and Naroda Patya Massacre:

For every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction. And sometimes, the reaction is worse. The Godhra Train Burning incident triggered communal Hindu-Muslim riots in Gujarat. But, the violence was in big scale. 

Who were affected? About 1000 lives were taken. 

If you divide them as Hindus and Muslims, then, in the total incident, about 700+muslims and 250+ Hindus were killed. 200 people were reported as missing and thousands were injured.

And now, Modi is blamed for the incident... Yes, As a Chief Minister, he has the responsibility to take care of the security of his people. Modi's police made 21,563 preventive arrests. Army was called immediately. 

But other than that, How could they compare Modi to Ajmal Kasab, who terrorized the whole nation along with other terrorists? Kasab and other terrorists themselved fired 166 innocent lives. We have evidences, witnesses and video footage against Kasab.

If you do not have evidences against Modi, how can you say so?

So how did the blame on Modi started?

The citizens's panel who investigated the incident reported that one BJP Minister who testified about an evening meeting convened by Narendra Modi after Godhra train burning. At this meeting, officials were instructed not to obstruct the Hindu rage following the incident.

And Modi was criticized by the media in a large way. It was exaggerated as well. Even after all these criticisms, Modi won the 2007 election and continued his post as the Chief Minister Of Gujarat, he won with majority of votes of 122 seats out of 182 total assembly seats. Moreover, there have been no communal riots between Indian Muslims and Hindus since then in Gujarat. And Modi ruled the state from 2001 till 2012. 

And the recent report of Supreme Court appointed Special Investigation Team led by former CBI Chief R.K Raghavan gave clean chit to Gujarat government and noticed that Gujarat Police tried everything to prevent the riots.

So that means Modi is no longer to be blamed. But if you are not ready to accept what has happened, you continue blaming Modi though nothing is proved. 

Any kind of violence must be opposed, even if it is done in the name of religion. 

Here, the death of Muslims were considered as "genocide" where as no name was given to the death of Hindus. And Modi is blamed for Gujarat Incident. Worst is that he is compared to the demon Kasab. 

Anyways, leave all the madness, religious fanatic ideas... And put our country "India" before everything else..

JAI HIND!!!!!!