A TO Z INDIA November 2022

Guru Nanak (1469-1539 C.E.) was the founder of the religion of Sikhism and the first of the Sikh Gurus. His birth is celebrated worldwide on the day of Kartik Purnima as per Hindu lunar calendar. Guru Nanak, Gurpurab or Guru Nanak Jayanti celebrates the birth of the first Sikh Guru, Guru Nanak, who laid the foundation of Sikhism. It is one of the most important festivals for Sikhs and is celebrated all over the world. This year Gurpurab will take place on November 8. Celebrations go on for three days and devotees visit Gurdwaras, seeking the blessings of Guru Nanak, eat langar and decorate their homes with diyas and lights. The festival serves as a reminder to devotees to follow the teachings and serve people. Guru Nanak’s birth is celebrated on the…

Guru Nanak (1469-1539 C.E.) was the founder of the religion of Sikhism and the first of the Sikh Gurus. His birth is celebrated worldwide on the day of Kartik Purnima as per Hindu lunar calendar. Guru Nanak, Gurpurab or Guru Nanak Jayanti celebrates the birth of the first Sikh Guru, Guru Nanak, who laid the foundation of Sikhism. It is one of the most important festivals for Sikhs and is celebrated all over the world. This year Gurpurab will take place on November 8. Celebrations go on for three days and devotees visit Gurdwaras, seeking the blessings of Guru Nanak, eat langar and decorate their homes with diyas and lights. The festival serves as a reminder to devotees to follow the teachings and serve people. Guru Nanak’s birth is celebrated…

Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the first phase of the ‘Shri Mahakal Lok’ corridor in Madhya Pradesh’s Ujjain on Tuesday evening (October 11). After Vishwanath temple in Varanasi and the Kedarnath shrine in Uttarakhand, Mahakal temple is the third ‘jyotirlinga’ site to see a major upliftment exercise. The Rs 800-crore Mahakal corridor is four times the size of the Kashi Vishwanath corridor, which the PM had inaugurated late last year. Why does the Mahakal temple in Ujjain hold a high significance in Hinduism? Here I explain. Puranas say that Lord Shiva pierced the world as an endless pillar of light, called the jyotirlinga. There are 12 jyotirlinga sites in India, considered a manifestation of Shiva. Besides Mahakal, these include Somnath and Nageshwar in Gujarat, Mallikarjuna in Andhra Pradesh, Omkareshwar in Madhya Pradesh, Kedarnath…

Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the first phase of the ‘Shri Mahakal Lok’ corridor in Madhya Pradesh’s Ujjain on Tuesday evening (October 11). After Vishwanath temple in Varanasi and the Kedarnath shrine in Uttarakhand, Mahakal temple is the third ‘jyotirlinga’ site to see a major upliftment exercise. The Rs 800-crore Mahakal corridor is four times the size of the Kashi Vishwanath corridor, which the PM had inaugurated late last year. Why does the Mahakal temple in Ujjain hold a high significance in Hinduism? Here I explain. Puranas say that Lord Shiva pierced the world as an endless pillar of light, called the jyotirlinga. There are 12 jyotirlinga sites in India, considered a manifestation of Shiva. Besides Mahakal, these include Somnath and Nageshwar in Gujarat, Mallikarjuna in Andhra Pradesh, Omkareshwar in…

Nandi is a symbolism of eternal waiting, because waiting is considered the greatest virtue in Indian culture. One who knows how to simply sit and wait is naturally meditative. He is not expecting Shiva to come out tomorrow. He will wait forever. That quality is the essence of receptivity. Nandi is Shiva’s closest accomplice because he is the essence of receptivity. Before you go into a temple, you must have the quality of Nandi – to simply sit. You are not trying to go to heaven, you are not trying to get this or that – you go inside and simply sit. So, just by sitting here, he is telling you, “When you go in, don’t do your fanciful things. Don’t ask for this or that. Just go and sit…

Nandi is a symbolism of eternal waiting, because waiting is considered the greatest virtue in Indian culture. One who knows how to simply sit and wait is naturally meditative. He is not expecting Shiva to come out tomorrow. He will wait forever. That quality is the essence of receptivity. Nandi is Shiva’s closest accomplice because he is the essence of receptivity. Before you go into a temple, you must have the quality of Nandi – to simply sit. You are not trying to go to heaven, you are not trying to get this or that – you go inside and simply sit. So, just by sitting here, he is telling you, “When you go in, don’t do your fanciful things. Don’t ask for this or that. Just go and sit…