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Monday, August 30, 2021

NATIONAL FRIENDSHIP DAY

 

NATIONAL FRIENDSHIP DAY – First Sunday in August

NATIONAL FRIENDSHIP DAY

On the first Sunday in August, National Friendship Day encourages people across the country and world to connect with friends. Make a new friend or reconnect with an old one. 

Friendships come in many forms, and we begin developing them when we’re very young. Throughout our lives, friendships and their meanings evolve. Our classmates and neighborhood pals explored the world with us. Together we shared experiences and made plans for the future. Eventually, paths diverge and new friends find a place in our social experience. Our world expands and our culture changes. 

Monday, August 23, 2021

BONDERAM – THE FLAG FESTIVAL OF DIVAR ISLAND, GOA

 BONDERAM – THE FLAG FESTIVAL OF DIVAR ISLAND, GOA

With the objective of seeing more of Goa than the usual sun, sand and surf, we set out one Saturday afternoon to the quaint island of Divar in the Mandovi River. Divar Island, which hosts the colourful festival of Bonderam, is situated roughly 12 Kms north-east of Panjim, the state capital. It is reached by ferry from Old Goa as well as Ribandar.

Friday, August 20, 2021

Madras Week

 Madras Week


A city deserves to celebrate its birthday.
And Madras, that is Chennai certainly deserves it.

Sunday, August 15, 2021

Hariyali Teej 2021: Fasting Date, Time

 

Hariyali Teej 2021: Fasting Date, Time

 

Hariyali Teej 2021 will be observed on Wednesday, August 11, 2021. Hariyali Teej is mostly celebrated in the northern part of the country, especially in Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Bihar and Jharkhand. There are three famous teej - Hariyali Teej, Kajari Teej, and Hartalika Teej, celebrated by women during Sawan and Bhadrapada months.

Saturday, August 14, 2021

Eid al-Adha

 

Eid al-Adha (Arabicعید الأضحى‎, romanized: ʿĪd al-ʾAḍḥā, lit. 'Festival of the Sacrifice') is the latter of the two official holidays celebrated within Islam (the other being Eid al-Fitr). 

Nag Panchami 2021

 

Nag Panchami 2021


Nag Panchami is an important traditional festival celebrated in the diverse land of India with great fervour. Nag Panchami falls in the auspicious month of Shravan, and undoubtedly, this is a unique festival. As per the Hindu calendar, the auspicious Nag Panchami falls on the Panchami Tithi (5th day) of the Shukla Paksha during Shravan. According to the Gregorian calendar, this coincides with the months July and August. Nag Panchami 2021 will fall on 13th August 2021. 

Wednesday, August 11, 2021

ATHACHAMAYAM

 

ATHACHAMAYAM

Place: Tripunithura, Ernakulam district, Kerala

Time : August

Significance : Onam festivities in the district begin with the ceremonial parade of Athachamayam

Tuesday, August 10, 2021

NEHRU TROPHY BOAT RACE

 

NEHRU TROPHY BOAT RACE

INTRODUCTION

The Nehru Trophy Boat Race on the Punnamda Lake, near Alappuzha, held on the second Saturday of August every year, is the most competitive and popular of the boat races. On the day of this fiercely fought boat race, the tranquil lake front is transformed into a sea of humanity with an estimated two lakh people, including tourists from abroad, coming to watch the event. For the people of each village in Kuttanad, a victory at this race for their village boat is something to be celebrated for months to come.

Monday, August 9, 2021

Best Festivals In August In India

 

Best Festivals In August In India

With so many things to do and places to visit, there are plenty of experiences that India has on board for all tourists. Check out this list to make sure you don’t miss out on any of the top festivals in India in August 2020!

Sunday, August 8, 2021

Rakhi

 

Rakhi is basically a sacred thread of Rakhi is basically a sacred thread of protection embellished with the love and affection of a sister for her brother. This day is also known as Raksha Bandhan and celebrated on the full moon day of the Hindu month of Shravana in India. This frail of thread of Rakhi is considered as stronger than iron chains as it binds the most beautiful relationship in an inseparable bond of love and trust. Rakhi festival also has a social significance because it underlines the notion that everybody should live in harmonious coexistence with each other.

15th August-independence Day

 

What is the significance of 15th August in India



The republic of India gained its independence from the rule of the British on 15 August 1947. Since then every year, 15th August is celebrated as the Independence Day in India to commemorate its freedom from the 200-year-old British government.

Wednesday, July 14, 2021

Eid al-Adha 2021 date: All you need to know about the Bakrid festival

 

Eid al-Adha 2021 date: All you need to know about the Bakrid festival



Bakrid date changes every year as per the Gregorian calendar. Like Eid al-Fitr, the Eid al-Adha is also determined on the sighting of the crescent moon. Read on to know the date of celebrations of Eid in India.



Why do we celebrate Guru Purnima?What should we do on Guru Purnima?Which date is Purnima in this month?

 Why do we celebrate Guru Purnima?


According to the Hindu calendar of India, the festival is celebrated on the full moon day (Purnima) in the Hindu month of Ashadha. The festival was revived by Mahatma Gandhi to pay tribute to his spiritual guru Shrimad Rajchandra. On this day, devotees worship their spiritual gurus and visit temples to seek blessings.

Guru Purnima: What is the festival about?

 

Guru Purnima: What is the festival about?

Guru Purnima is celebrated on the full moon day of Asadha. The festival is observed by Hindus, Buddhists, and Jains. It is dedicated to spiritual and academic teachers of every field to celebrate and revere their teachings and achievements. Let's take a look at the history of Guru Purnima and some other interesting facts about the festival.

GURU PURNIMA 2021

 


The day of full moon, Purnima, in the month of Ashadh is traditionally celebrated as Guru Purnima by Hindus. Also known as Vyas Purnima, the day is celebrated in remembrance and veneration to sage Ved Vyas. He is the Adi (original) Guru of the Hindu Dharma, who classified the Vedas, wrote the eighteen Puranas and the Mahabharat. On this day, the Guru is offered Pujan (worship)by the disciples. First we shall consider the role of a Guru in life. 
 


The Need of a Guru
The Sanskrit root "Gu" means darkness or ignorance. "Ru" denotes the remover of that darkness. Therefore one who removes darkness of our ignorance is a Guru. Only he who removes our ultimate darkness, known as Maya, and who inspires and guides us on to the path of God-realization is the true Guru. Students also refer to their school teacher or college lecturer as guru. The connotation of the word guru in this case is one who imparts temporal knowledge (Apara Vidya) and is thus accordingly offered respect.

A spiritual aspirant, no matter how brilliant, can never attain such knowledge by his own endeavor. This is stipulated in the Shrimad Bhagwatam in which Jadbharat reveals to king Rahugan:
"O Rahugan! One cannot attain knowledge of Atma and Paramatma by performing penance, sacrifices, renunciation, Vedic study or worshipping deities of water, fire or the sun. But when the dust from the feet of a satpurush (God-realized Guru) sprinkles on our heads, then we can surely attain this knowledge."

In essence, one can only attain salvation by serving the satpurush. Treading the path to God-realization by one's own efforts is likened by the Katha Upanishad as walking on a razor's edge. Adi Shankaracharya echoes a similar injunction: "If a person, despite possessing: a handsome, disease-free body, fame, a mountain of wealth, and even if he has studied the Vedas and all other scriptures, and has himself composed many scriptures, but has not surrendered himself at the feet of a Guru, then he has achieved nothing, nothing, nothing, nothing."

The Guru plays a vital role in boosting the aspirant frequently, when he loses track, becomes despondent or simply runs out of steam. The aspirant is thus better able to obey the Guru if he understands the Guru's glory.

Glory of the Guru

The Hindu shastras have hailed such a Guru immeasurably:

Skanda Purana - Guru Gita

A famous verse known by heart by all Hindu children glorifies the Guru:

Gurubrahma Guruvishnu Gururdevo Maheshwaraha |
Guruhu sakshaat Parambrahman tasmai Shrigurave namaha ||

"The guru is Brahma, Vishnu and Mahesh (Shiva), veneration to the Guru who is Parabrahman manifest."
The second line of the couplet does not literally mean that the Guru becomes Parabrahman - God, rather he is venerated as if God is manifesting through him.

This is subtly illustrated by another famous verse known to all Hindus:

Guru Govind donu khade, kisko laagu paay,
Balihari Gurudevaki jinhe Govind diyo bataay.

The Guru and Govind -God, are present before me, to whom shall I bow down first? Glory to the Guru since he showed me Govind.

Apart from guiding the aspirant on the path to God-realization, the Guru throws light on the profound meanings of the vast array of scriptural knowledge. Hence the Mundaka Upanishad calls such a Guru "Shrotriya" - knower of the true meanings of the scriptures. Adi Shankaracharya forbids an aspirant in endeavoring to decipher the meanings without a Guru. In his commentary on a Mantra (1/2/13) of the Mundaka Upanishad, he says: "Even if one possesses knowledge of the scriptures, he should not attempt to delve into their meanings by himself. He should obtain the knowledge of Brahman only through the Guru."

In their treatises, other Acharyas, such as Ramanuj and Nimbark have considered the Guru mandatory in God-realization.

The Guru in the Swaminarayan Sampradaya
In accordance with the injunctions from shastras of Hindu Dharma cited above, Bhagwan Swaminarayan too considers the Guru as foremost; to be venerated as one venerates God. In His Vachanamrutam He uses the terms Sadhu and Satpurush synonymously for the true Guru.

Gadhada III.27:
"The scriptures advocate five attributes of: Nishkam, Nirlobh, Nirman, Niswad and Nisneha for a sadhu. The sadhu in whom one observes such attributes has a constant rapport with God. Therefore one should have immutable faith in his words, and by his words should realize the knowledge of God."

Gadhada III.26:
"The sadhu who lives in a way in which he subdues his indriyas and antahkaran, but is not subdued by them, who engages in God-related activities only, strictly observes the Panch Vartamans, believes himself as being Brahman and worships Lord Purushottam, can be known neither as a human being nor a deva, since neither man nor deva possess such attributes. Therefore such a sadhu, though a human being, deserves to be worshipped at par with God."

Finally, how should an aspirant serve such a Guru?

Serving the Guru
Again the scriptures guide the aspirant:

(1) Shvetashvatara Upanishad (6/23) :
Advocates worship to the Guru in the same manner as the deity - God, to attain all there is to attain on the path of God-realization:

Yasya deve para bhaktir yatha deve tatha gurau |
Tasyaite kathitaa hi arthaaha prakashante mahatmanaha ||

(2) Bhagavad Gita (4/34) :
The disciple should humbly pose questions to the Guru and please him by serving him. He will then impart the knowledge of God, so ordain the wise sages.

(3) Shrimad Bhagvatam :
Bhagwan Rushabhdeva advocates his sons: Obeying the Anuvrutti - unvoiced wishes - of God and Guru is devotion.

(4 ) Vachanamrutam (Vadtal 5) :
The aspirant should offer equal and intensely loving service to God and His sadhu. Then, despite being the lowest type of devotee who is destined to become a great-devotee after either two births or four births or ten births or even a hundred births, he can become a great devotee in this birth. Such is the fruit of serving God and His sadhu equally."

The phrase "great devotee" signifies moksha-salvation.

Therefore on the day of Guru Purnima, disciples introspect, and resolve to offer pujan and reverence to the Guru in mind, action and speech; implicitly obey his unvoiced wishes, commands, serving him as one would God and lauding his glory and redemptive attributes.

Every year, the Guru Purnima Festival, in the presence of Pramukh Swami Maharaj is celebrated with devotion and enthusiasm at Bochasan Mandir. An assembly from 8.30 am to 12.00 noon is held wherein bhajans and discourses by senior sadhus emphasize and sing the glory of the Guru. The festival is finally crowned with Swamishri's blessings and darshan - where thousands offer their reverence by filing past Swamishri.

MAY 2023 FESTIVALS LIST/MAY 2023 ME KYA ESTIVAL H

  May month me kai festivals hote hai, kuch famous festivals niche diye gaye hai: Labor Day (International Workers' Day) - 1st May, 2023...