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I am merely collecting the
following articles and sharing with you to understand the gamut of
the issue.
1. Ram Sethu row
2. Faith
upon the earth
3. A humorous version – just laugh it off.
4.
Controversy turns Ram Sethu into tourist attraction.
Ram Sethu row
Amulya Ganguli [IANS, 23 September 2007]
The Bharatiya Janata Party must have realised by now that the Ram
Sethu controversy will not be a rerun of the Ram temple issue of a
decade-and-a- half ago which propelled the party from the margins
of Indian politics to centre-stage.
The reason is that there is no anti-Muslim angle in the Sethu
dispute. As such, it will not be possible for the party to exploit
communal sentiments, as it did in the 1990s, to build up political
support.
In contrast, the BJP must have noted with dismay that there is a
distinct possibility of the Sethu affair leading to Hindu vs Hindu
clashes, as has already been evident in the attack on the
Bangalore house of the daughter of Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M.
Karunanidhi, following the latter's anti-Ram comments.
Any such development, reminiscent of caste conflicts, will be
hugely damaging to all the parties involved. In the present
instance, it is the BJP and the DMK, which have squared off for a
fight over what many people will consider an esoteric issue.
It is perhaps to avoid such clashes — which claimed two lives when
a bus from Tamil Nadu was set on fire probably by Vishwa Hindu
Parishad (VHP) activists near Bangalore — that the Rashtriya
Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) has intervened. The suggestion of this
paterfamilias of the saffron brotherhood is to set up a panel —
the Ramesswaram Ram Sethu Raksha Manch — to conduct a movement to
'save' the Sethu, thereby denying the BJP the leadership role.
The move is in tune with the earlier exhortations by the VHP to
the BJP not to politicise the dispute. In making this appeal, the
VHP may have had in mind the fate of the 'politicised' temple
agitation, which has faded out.
The decision of the RSS will partly check the BJP's attempts to
make political capital out of the issue — something which will not
please L.K. Advani, the party's senior leader, who was said to
have been contemplating embarking on yet another rath yatra
(chariot ride), recalling such a journey he made in 1990 to launch
the Ram temple agitation.
While the success of that movement made the BJP eager to seize on
the Ram Sethu dispute, its enthusiasm is not shared this time by
some of its allies. The Janata Dal-United (JD-U), for instance,
which is in power in Bihar along with the BJP, has dismissed the
subject as a non- issue, declaring that other matters, such as
poverty and unemployment, were more important.
This indifference of even the BJP's partners is probably due to
the perception that the repeated use of religious symbols to boost
political prospects can breed cynicism even among their
traditional supporters about their motives.
As is known, the BJP's Ayodhya agitation was based on the
propagation of the belief that the Mughal emperor, Babur, had
built the Babri masjid at the site where Lord Ram was born.
Similarly, the Ram Sethu issue is based on the conviction that
this 'natural formation' comprising coral reefs and sand banks,
which is also known as the Adam's bridge in the Palk Strait, is
the mythical bridge built by Ram's simian militia when the Hindu
deity went to Sri Lanka to rescue
his abducted wife, Sita, from the demon king, Ravan.
However, as the DMK's response has shown, there is also a
north-south divide on the subject, precluding the possibility of
the Hindutva camp building up a national movement. If sections in
the south are lukewarm about the issue, if not positively hostile,
the reason is the tradition of anti-brahmin and anti-north Indian
stance, which the Dravidian parties have adopted to consolidate
their mainly backward and lower caste support base.
The DMK and some of its allies also like to project the Ram-Ravan
war as a reflection of the Aryan vs Dravidian conflict following
the 'arrival' of the Aryans in North India around 1500 BC.
Although Jayalalithaa of the AIADMK is currently supportive of the
BJP, this attitude is typical of both the DMK and the AIADMK,
which are always in opposing camps, whatever the issue. Even then,
Jayalalithaa will be aware that she is going against the grain of
atheistic Dravidian politics, which can undermine her political
position.
Again, it is evidently to highlight his difference from the AIADMK
that the Tamil Nadu chief minister has been unusually aggressive
in his refusal to accept Ram as a historical figure.
It is a stance that will be endorsed by a wide section of
historians. For instance, in her book Early India , well-known
historian Romila Thapar says that "the conflict between Ram and
Ravan probably reflects an exaggerated version of local conflicts,
occurring between expanding kingdoms of the Ganges plain and the
less sedentary societies of the Vindhyan region ... the
transference of events to a more southerly location may have been
the work of editors (of the
Ramayana) of a later period, reflecting an expanded geography, as
was possibly also the case in the depiction of Lanka itself as a
city of immense wealth".
The Manmohan Singh government and the Congress have been caught
between the 'rationality' of the DMK and the Hindutva brigade's
emotive politics. They can neither be too critical of the DMK,
which is a constituent of the ruling coalition at the centre, nor
reject its contention for fear of offending Hindu sentiments.
The Congress also has to guard against such sentiments since its
president, Sonia Gandhi, is an Italian by birth. This issue is
also being cynically exploited by the BJP, as Gujarat Chief
Minister Narendra Modi's comment that the people have to choose
between Ram and Rome shows.
On the other hand, the Congress is also aware that the community
of scientists and historians will be outraged if the party
endorses the saffron brotherhood' s assertion that the 1.7
million-year- old 'bridge' is man-made — or monkey-made.
Religion and
ecology
Faith upon the earth
Sep 20th 2007 DELHI AND ILULISSAT, GREENLAND
From The Economist print edition
Daniel Heaf
In many parts of the world, religious groups and environmental
scientists are teaming up—albeit sometimes reluctantly
“THERE was a functioning bridge until 1470 AD,” says Praveen
Togadia, a Hindu fundamentalist, smoothing out his dhoti. “Due to
natural calamities, it was disturbed, and parts went into the
sea.” To modern, secular eyes, at least, the “bridge” is a 30-mile
(48km) chain of sandy shoals across the Palk Strait between India
and Sri Lanka. But millions of Hindus see the shoals as physical
proof of their beliefs. The Ramayana, a Hindu text, says a bridge
was built by monkeys at the behest of a Hindu god, Ram—who duly
crossed over to wrest his wife Sita from a Sri Lankan demon. The
shoals are known in India as “Ram Setu”, or “Ram's Bridge”.
Now take a deep breath and consider the conflict over a plan by
India's Congress-led government to dredge the strait for a
shipping canal. While Hindus loathe the project on spiritual
grounds, ecologists have different objections. At the junction of
the deep, cold Indian Ocean and the shallow, temperate Arabian
Sea, the strait is an ecological prize. So far, 377 endemic
species have been found in nearby waters.
On this issue at least, the devoutly religious and the greens are
on the same side. But the former, it seems, have more clout than
the latter. On September 12th the government told the Supreme
Court that the Ramayana was not proof of the existence of Lord
Ram; and that science suggested the shoals were made by
sedimentation, not monkeys. On the same day, the World Hindu
Council, headed by Dr Togadia, staged protests across the country.
On September 14th the government, at the behest of Sonia Gandhi,
the (Catholic) leader of Congress, put the canal plan on hold: a
setback for a government which wanted to save ships from a 24-hour
loop round Sri Lanka. With elections due next year, Congress
feared giving its Hindu foes in the Bharatiya Janata Party a new
slogan.
India's greens have little love for their accidental allies. “I'm
not protesting against this project for religious reasons but for
environmental ones,” says Kushal Pal Singh Yadav, of the Centre
for Science and the Environment, a Delhi think-tank.
In many other parts of the world, secular greens and religious
people find themselves on the same side of public debates:
sometimes hesitantly, sometimes tactically, and sometimes fired by
a sense that they have deep things in common.
One more case from India: ornithologists who want to save three
species of vulture (endangered because cattle carcasses are
tainted by chemicals) see their best ally as the Parsees, who on
religious grounds use vultures to dispose of human corpses. In
China, organised religion is much weaker and conservationists also
feel more lonely. But Pan Yue, the best-known advocate of green
concerns within the Chinese government, says ancient creeds, like
Taoism, offer the best hope of making people treat the earth more
kindly.
Other tie-ups between faith and ecology are less obvious. In
Sweden, the national Lutheran Church, working with Japanese
Shintos, recently held a multi-faith meeting on forestry. They
agreed to set a new standard for the care of forests owned or
managed by religious bodies—in other words, they said, 5% of the
world's woods.
This month, representatives of many faiths, including a local
Lutheran bishop and a shivering Buddhist monk (see above) gathered
in Greenland to talk to scientists and ecologists. Patriarch
Bartholomew, the senior bishop of the Orthodox Church, led his
impressively robed guests in a silent supplication for the planet.
The terms of the transaction between faith and ecology vary a lot.
In places like Scandinavia, where religion is weakish, a cleric
who “goes green” may reach a wider audience; in countries like
India, where faith is powerful, spiritual messages touch more
hearts than secular ones do. That doesn't stop some environmental
scientists from saying they are being hijacked by clerics in
search of relevance. But Mary Evelyn Tucker, of America's Yale
University, says secular greens badly need their spiritual allies:
“Religions provide a cultural integrity, a spiritual depth and
moral force which secular approaches lack.” Martin Palmer, of the
British-based Alliance of Religions and Conservation, says faiths
often have the clearest view of the social and economic aspects of
an environmental problem. In Newfoundland, he notes,
conservationists put curbs on cod fishing—and left the churches to
care for families whose living was ruined.
Still, one selling point often used by the religious in their
dialogue with science—the fact that faith encourages people to
think long-term—may be a mixed blessing. The most pessimistic
scientists say mankind has a decade at most to curb greenhouse
gases and fend off disastrous global warming; that doesn't leave
much time to settle the finer points of metaphysics.
TN bus torched in Bangalore , 2 killed
Note: The
Cheif Minister of Tamil Nadu said Lord Rama was mythological
figure, and some of the extremist Hindus in Bangalore torched the
bus heading to Tamil Nadu state. Such is the intolerance -burning
two people.
TN bus torched in Bangalore , 2 killed
September 19, 2007
Two people were charred to death after a Tamil Nadus SETC (State
Enterprise Transport Corporation) bus was torched near Bommahalli
on Hosur Road on Tuesday night.
The incident occurred at around 9.30 pm, when the TN registered
bus, with 26 passengers on board, bound to Chennai from Majestic (Kempegowda
Bus Station) was stopped at Bommanahalli junction near the Oxford
Dental College by four miscreants and torched.
Occurring within a span of two hours after the attack on the
residence of the daughter of Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Karunanidhi,
the incident sent shockwaves in the Bommanahalli area.
Madiwala police said eyewitness accounts mentioned that the
miscreants halted the bus that left Majestic at 8.30 pm, made the
commuters get down, poured petrol and torched it. Two passengers,
who were sleeping in the bus were charred to death.
The
driver of the bus Abdul Majeed and conductor Devadas immediately
alerted the SETC office and the Madiwala police.
The bodies of the passengers were shifted to Victoria Hospital
mortuary. Police added that their identity could not be
established as they were charred beyond recognition. Traffic
movement came to a stand-still on Hosur Road as the burning bus
had blocked the road, resulting in a massive traffic jam that led
to chaos.
Madiwala police said the identity of the miscreants was not known
and its relation to the attack on the residence of Karunanidihi’s
daughter could not be confirmed. Investigations are on to trace
the culprits and the organisation to which they belonged to.
Meanwhile, unconfirmed reports also said more than 20 miscreants
were involved in the incident. Some eyewitnesses said a
short-circuit could have caused the fire.
Sangh Parivar poured petrol and torched a train boggie in Gujarath
to ignite communal tension, which caused the death of eight
thousand.
MK DAUGHTER’S HOUSE ATTACKED
Bangalore , DHNS: Miscreants pelted
stones and glass bottles at the residence of the daughter of Tamil
Nadu Chief Minister M Karunanidhi at J P Nagar 9th Block near the
Ragigudda Temple Main Road on Tuesday evening.
The incident occurred at 8:30 pm at the residence of Selvi and
husband Murasoli Selvam. However, there were no inmates except the
watchman and a maid servant.
The attack comes in the wake of the controversial statements made
by the chief minister questioning whether Lord Ram was a civil
engineer to construct the Ramar Sethu. Deputy Commissioner of
Police (South) Alok Kumar who visited the area said the identity
of the miscreants was not known. “Two to three window panes were
broken. The watchman was injured. We have posted two constables at
the house after the incident,” he said. The watchman, an
eye-witness to the incident, said about 15 to 20 people aged
between 20-25 years came and shouted anti-Karunanidhi slogans and
handed over a letter/leaflet threatening that the Tamil Nadu chief
minister would face dire consequences and that Union Minister T R
Baalu should tender his resignation and be arrested
A BRIDGE TOO FAR – Humorous Version.
The Lord surveyed the Ram Setu and
said "Hanuman, how diligently and strenuously you and your vanara
sena had built this bridge several centuries back. It is
remarkable that it has withstood the ravages of the climatic and
geographical changes over centuries. It is indeed an amazing feat
especially considering the fact that a bridge at Hyderabad built
by Gammon using latest technology collapsed the other day even
before they could stick the posters on its pillars."
Hanuman with all humility spoke "Jai Sri Ram, it is all because of
your grace. We just scribbled your name on the bricks and threw
them in thesea and they held. No steel from TISCO or cement from
Ambuja or ACC was ever used. But Lord, why rake up the old issue
now."
Ram spoke "Well, Hanuman some people down there want to demolish
the bridge and construct a canal. The contract involves lot of
money and lot of money will be made. They will make money on
demolition and make more money on construction. "
Hanuman humbly bowed down and said "Why not we go down and present
our case ? "
Ram said "Times have changed since we were down there. They will
ask us to submit age proof and we don't have either a birth
certificate or school leaving certificate. We traveled mainly on
foot and some times in bullock carts and so we don't have a
driving license either. As far as the address proof is concerned
the fact that I was born at Ayodhya is itself under litigation for
over half a century, If I go in a traditional attire with bow and
arrow, the ordinary folks may recognize me but Arjun Singh may
take me to be some tribal and, at the most, offer a seat at IIT
under the reserved category. Also, a God cannot walk in dressed in
a three-piece suit and announce his arrival. It would make even
the devotees suspicious. So it is dilemma so to say."
"I can vouch for you by saying that I personally built the
bridge."
"My dear, Anjani putra, it will not work. They will ask you to
produce the lay-out plan, the project details, including financial
outlay and how the project cost was met and the completion
certificate. Nothing is accepted without documentary evidence in
India. You may cough but unless a doctor certifies it, you have no
cough. A pensioner may present himself personally but the
authorities do not take it as proof. He has to produce a
life-certificate to prove that he is alive. It is that
complicated."
"Lord can't understand these historians. Over the years you have
given darshan once every hundred years to saints like Surdas,
Tulsidas, Saint Thyagaraja, Jayadeva, Bhadrachala Ramdas and even
Sant Tukaram and still they disbelieve your existence and say
Ramayana is a myth. The only option, I see, is to re-enact
Ramayana on earth and set the government records straight once for
all."
Lord smiled "It isn't that easy today. Ravan is apprehensive that
he may look like a saint in front of Karunanidhi. I also spoke to
his mama Mareecha, who appeared as a golden deer to tempt Sita
maiyya when I was in the forest and he said that he won't take a
chance of stepping on earth as long as Salman Khan is around."
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Raging
controversy turns Rama Sethu into a tourist attraction
VIGIL: A marine commando of the Navy checking vehicles
carrying pilgrims at Dhanushkodi in Rameswaram island.
RAMANATHAPURAM: With the word Ramar Sethu hitting the national
headlines, Adam's Bridge, otherwise known as Ramar Sethu, has
become a must-see destination for pilgrims and tourists
visiting Rameswaram.
The
30-mile bridge, believed to be constructed by Lord Rama, is a
chain of limestone shoals between Dhanushkodi near the
Rameswaram island and Mannar in northern Sri Lanka.
No road link
From
Rameswaram tourists have to reach Dhanushkodi, which lost the
road connectivity after the 1964 cyclone that destroyed the
coastal town. From there they have to go to the chain of
unmanned sand dunes by hiring country boats.
Reaching Dhanushkodi is a laborious and expensive task.
Tourists and pilgrims have to hire four-wheel drive vehicles
from Muhuntharayar Chathiram, as normal vehicles cannot ply on
the seashore.
Due
to rising demand, vehicle operators have raised the cost of
the 10-km trip to Dhanushkodi from Rs.700 to Rs.1,000.
The
tourists, on reaching Dhanushkodi, have to furnish information
at the Forward Observation Point of the Indian Navy for going
further.
According to Commander S. Mukherji, Area Commander, South,
Naval Detachment, Rameswaram, there is no bar on visiting the
Adam's Bridge area. People can go up to the International
Maritime Boundary Line.
"We
apply some restrictions on pilgrims going beyond Dhanushkodi
as this is a sensitive area from the security point of view
because of arrival of refugees from Sri Lanka."
Hurdles no bar
With
the naked eye, pilgrims can see only the sand dunes in the
Ramar Bridge area. But, in spite of the hurdles, tourists and
journalists – national and international – are making a
beeline for the Ramar Bridge area.
"During the last few months, tourists, particularly from North
India, have been showing immense interest in the Ramar Bridge.
Though only a small number of pilgrims actually make it to the
area, the number of pilgrims going to Dhanushkodi has risen
drastically," says K. Muralidharan, a travel agent in
Rameswaram.
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