Rituals of Hindu Life Ritual is the colourful art of worshipping a deity. The tow most popular rituals are Pooja and Yajna. Pooja is the commonest form of ritual. The vedas do not speak about Pooja, which contains elaborate forms of worship for homes and temples. One of the main parts of this ritual is the offering of many articles called upacaras—(Offerings with honour) to the deity. The upacaras consist of...

India The Land of Pilgrimages India is covered with holy sites associated with the exploits of the gods, the waters of a sacred river, or the presence of holy men. The puranas (ancient lore in sanskrit) are the indispensable source of information about the sacred places of ancient India. Most of the important places of pilgrimage in India are located along the banks of the great rivers like the Ganges, Brahamputra,...

The Indian Way of Life India’s people inherited a great civilization that began more than 4,500 years ago, one that has proven record of absorbing and transforming the peoples and cultures that over the centuries have come to the subcontinent. India has long supported a large population of great diversity. The people in India’s intricate network of communities speak literally thousands of languages, practice all of the world’s great religions, and...

Red Fort Red Fort or Lal Qua as it is more popularly known is a masterpiece of architecture and one of the most haunting spots for tourists from both India and abroad. Before the mutiny of 1857, the fort presented an altogether different picture from what it presents today because only about one-fourth of the imposing structure is accessible to visitors with the rest of the area being under the control...

Shri Ram Krishna Paramhansa Hinduism is the relentless pursuit after truth. As such, it is religion forever. There is only one God and one truth. The Hindu Vedas proclaim, “Ekam Sat, Viprah Bahudha Vadanti” (There is one truth, only men describe it in different ways.) But the irony is that this very broadness is taken to mean backwardness of Hindu religious philosophy, faith, and practice. Unfortunately, we find that ‘universalization of...

The Origin of Indian Classical Music Music is a fact of life that we take for granted. A child starts crooning tunes long before learning to speak. From the beginning to the end of our life, we come across, appreciate and listen attentively to the form of music that appeals to us most. And unless one has an extremely inquisitive disposition, one naturally ignores investigation into something that permeates our daily...

India Needs a Strong and Impartial Civil Services  Before the country’s independence, Indian civil service [ICS] was the senior most amongst the services of British Crown in India. After independence the government of Free India also felt the need for the All India Service for maintaining the unity, integrity and stability of the nation. Accordingly a provision was made in Article 312 of the Constitution for creation of one or more...

Peace is a Precious Commodity  “Peace”, in Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru’s words “is a precious commodity, necessary for any progress”. It is very difficult to maintain peace in this troublesome world. Wars and rumours of wars have cast black shadows on the lives of twenty-first century men and women. If wars become a permanent feature of international life, if we are to live in this tense atmosphere of constant dread and preparedness,...