Bips ke Tips

Some 1200 years ago, Adi Shankaracharya was born in India. He is claimed to be a reincarnation of Lord Narayana himself, who had taken birth to re establish the knowledge of Hinduism & the Vedas amongst the people.

From an early age, he started displaying signs of things to come & by the time he was just 12 years old, he had demonstrated command over the Shastras & ancient scriptures. His mother needed a lot of persuasion to allow him to become a Sanyasi. He is considered the propagator who consolidated the doctrines of Advaita Vedanta in India. He was responsible for re establishing the ageless teachings of the Vedas. By the time he was just 12 years of age, he had already created a huge following of disciples from all over the country.

It is said that in his efforts to establish the faith of the Hinduism across the country, he travelled for about 3-4 months through the jungles & mountains to reach Badrikshetra. After taking a dip in the Tapt Kund, he visited the temple to see that there was no idol & Lord Narayana was being worshipped on a Shaligram ( a black stone, considered to be sacred by Hindus). On enquiry, he was told that for fear of vandalism, the priests of the temple had hidden the sacred idol in the waters of Alaknanda.
Shankaracharya, as if guided by divine insight, went & took a dip in the Kund & came up with a four armed idol of Narayana. However, he found that the right hand’s fingers of the idol were broken. Since in Hindu tradition, there cannot be any deformity or limb broken of any object of prayer, he flowed that idol into Alaknanda & took a dip in the Kund again. Once again he came up with anidol & quite surprisingly, this also had a limb broken. He again put the idol in the waters of Alaknanda & took a third dip & came up with another idol, which also had a finger broken. It is said that, there was a divine voice from the sky saying, “ Hey Shankar, don’t be worried. You have got the right idol. Since it is Kali Yuga, it is ordained that the idol will be deformed. In Kaliyuga, only the broken idol would be worshipped. Go and establish this idol. People visiting the temple & worshipping this idol will get the same benefits as seeing Narayana in person. This place will become the holiest of all pilgrims.”

Hearing this, Shankaracharya, went to the temple & established the idol of Narayana. Since then the tradition of a Namboodari priest conducting the rituals of Badrinath has been established.
While, legend says that the temple was first made by Vishwakarma, the architect of the Gods, even before the Vedic age, at the behest of all the Gods, it was re established by Adi Shankaracharya in the 8th century. However, the temple had to undergo several renovations, due to damages by avalanches over the centuries.
The present temple, was built by the Garhwal Kings about 200 hundred years ago. It now has a Singh Dwar(Lion Gate or main entrance), & the temple is basically in three parts. The Garbha Griha(the sanctum sanctorum), where the various idols are housed along with the Narayana idol in the centre, Darshan Mandap(for Pujas) & the Shobha Mandap(where the devotees assemble).
Badrinath is considered to be the holiest of all the pilgrims in India. It is said that a visit to this place washes away all the sins.

Jai Badri Vishal…….. may there be peace & prosperity for all.

I remember, as a child, I would hear families speaking of owning a Bajaj Chetak Scooter with so much pride. It was like a status symbol. At marriages, it was one of the popular / credible gifts given as dowry. People would actually queue up to get one of those scooters & it needed serious clout & reference to get a delivery ahead of schedule. There was a huge premium attached. The sales people from Bajaj auto would be given princely status, everywhere they went. With demand : supply ratio, heavily skewed towards the supplier, the sales people & the showroom owners, were just raking in moolah along with other freebies.
The famous advt, would show people from various cross sections of the country, riding the scooter. From a lady trying to learn how to drive, to a milkman delivering milk, to a family of five riding, to two oversized men riding, to an executive on road, to a newly wedded couple, to an old couple, to a man cleaning the scooter himself, pride in the eyes, & a few more….it was like an inseparable identity with the common man of India.

In fact, even a second hand Bajaj scooter would fetch a premium. The closest competition was from LML NV, Lamberetta(the longest scooter ever, I guess), Vespa etc. For every 10 Bajaj Chetak on road, there would be maybe 3 LML, 2 Vespa & 1 Lamberretta. There would be endless discussions & debates over tea / coffee, on how the economy hinged on the success of these scooters & so on & so forth…….we as growing teenagers, would listen to such chattering with awe.

There was an uncle in our neighborhood, who would give us children a ride in the evening, if we finished our homework in time. We would do anything for him, including running errands, as that would stand a better chance for a ride on the scooter. Also a chance to hold the handle of the scooter, while it was stationary on its stand & pose for a picture in black & white, are one of the popular memories I still retain. Those were the days, indeed !!

As quoted by R Balki, chairman of Lowe India, the agency who had created the legendary advt in the 80s, “ There was a time for horse carriage & the scooters, now it is the time for the bikes. Today, the bike symbolizes the middle class of India. Bharat is changing, Bajaj is changing”, he said.

I would like to imagine some fifteen - twenty years into the future, A Vijay Mallaya or a Ness Wadia, or an Anil Ambani heralding a Vintage Scooter race of Hamara Bajaj(at least 70% of the scooters belonging to the ever popular Bajaj stable)......just imagine, people in all colours & sizes riding a Bajaj Scooter, with crowds pouring along the walkways, witness the "Two wheeler Prince of yester years on road", sputtering & humming......Hamara Kal, Hamara Aaj....Buland Bharat ki Buland Tasveer...Hamara Bajaj......

Yaad aa rahi hai….teri yaad aa rahi hai……. Hail ho : Hamara Bajaj. .......

So finally we have conquered the summit. MSD & his boys have finally achieved, what we all have been dreaming for years…… 77 years since India started her foray into cricket, we have accomplished the goal. India reigns the no 1 slot in test cricket, toppling the mighty Aussies & the ever daunting Proteas.

The midas touch of Dhoni continues to bring in laurels after laurels for Team India. With the Lankans biting dust, & India winning the test series 2-0, we have finally reached the top of the ICC test rankings.

A simple look at the team shows that it has been combining extremely well & the hunger to achieve has been palpable. In batting, right on top Sehwag has been murderous, scoring runs with elan & at a pace that puts even the one dayer records to the sword. Coming back from injury, he has just torn the Lankan attack to shreds, scoring at a strike rate of more than 100. Keeping him able company has been Gautam Gambhir, scoring runs at will. He has been the run machine, carving out centuries at will. Coming at one down, old war horse Rahul, seems to have regained his Wall status. Next in Tendulkar is only getting younger, with an unbelievable hunger to plunder centuries even at this age. With Laxman, Dhoni, Yuvi following next, the runs just keep piling on, relentlessly. In attack, Zaheer spearheading the opening bowling along with Sreshanth & Ishant, & Bhajji & Pragyan Ojha with the spin, the opposition has just no time to breathe. In short, Team India looked good throughout the series to capture the Numero Uno status.

The team that has a wonderful blend of youth & experience, however must owe it to the nucleus building that was done by Saurav Ganguly & John Wright, when they took up the reins in 1999-2000, at a time when the ghosts of match fixing scandals had taken the team spirit & performance to its nadir. They had scouted for talent & believed in the capabilities of the rookies who are now the mainstay of the team. Though the controversial stint of Chappel along with Rahul Dravid, in between, had taken the team performance to the pits, it came back strongly under Kumble & Kirtsen. Dhoni could not have asked for a better platform to take on the Captain’s responsibility, & has only gone from strength to strength.

Lets regale in glory, as a nation. We have finally fulfilled the dream …..No 1 team in the world.

Exactly one year has gone by……..26/11 simmers in the minds of the Mumbaikars as a traumatized nightmare. A city under siege for more than 72 hours, by a bunch of youngsters from Pakistan, creating mayhem…….firing mindlessly, leaving a trail of innocent deaths & a world stunned into silence & grief.

Exactly one year has gone by & Ajmal Kasab still continues to enjoy life in the confines of the Arthur Road Jail, while the justice struggles to find enough evidence to prove him guilty!!! Nothing could be more shameful, ironical & unreal. The morning news came up with the headline on the front page: “It has cost Rs 31 Crores to keep Kasab alive.” That’s what it has cost the Govt till date to keep the 21 year old terrorist from Faridkot safe & alive in jail. What kind of an example as a country are we setting ???
We still continue to be a soft target to the terrorist camps brewing on the other side of our Western borders. We still are not able to gather enough political & diplomatic clout from the rest of the world to isolate Pakistan as a terrorist state & force them to fight terrorism…..to eradicate the poison !!! We are a country, institutionalizing the famous Gandhian philosophy of “ if you slap me on one cheek, I put forward the other cheek to be slapped”………such insipid stands is only making the ever lurking terrorism smack its ugly lips in content. We seem to have lost the plot completely, as the Centre continues to take its usual inept “play safe” stance. It just seems to lack the teeth & bite. It has failed to send across a strong message. The trial on Kasab has become a laughing matter, as it keeps dragging on & on, despite all the evidences against him.
The police & the security forces continue to keep vigil, ill equipped & ill trained. The fire arms look ancient, vintage & rusty. The support systems look fragile & inadequate. The State & Centre trade words for words, without focusing on improvement. the All this becomes more shocking, when we come to know of the amount of money spent on keeping Kasab alive !!!!!

Mere lighting of candles, holding gatherings of solidarity, peace march, flying doves are not enough !!!

Wake up, Mumbaikars……wake up Indians…… we need to unite….we need to become aware….we need to take action…….

Jai Hind !!!

The Legend has it that, according to the Puranas, Lord Narayana was in Vaikunth, resting on Shesh Nag & Goddess Laxmi was attending to him, when Rishi Narada visited them. He did not like the lifestyle of the Lord & said, “You are the creator of this universe & whatever you do would set an example for the mortal beings. Your resting here like this will leave a wrong impression & therefore you need to renounce all of this & perform some Tapas for the benefit of the Universe & Creation.” Lord Narayana agreed to what Rishi Narada had to say & decided to comply with the wish. He sent Goddess Laxmi for some errand work with the Nag – Kanyas & himself left Vaikunth to travel to the Himalayas.

On reaching the snow capped mountains, He was mesmerized by the beauty of the place. However, Lord Narayana realized that Lord Shiva stayed here with Goddess Parvati & it was their abode. Narayana was now keen to get a place for himself here & being mischievous, he thought of a plan. He went to the doorsteps of where Lord Shiva was staying with his wife, Goddess Parvati & assuming the form of a small child, started wailing loudly. Lord Shiva & Goddess Parvati were at that moment about to leave for their bath at the Tapt Kund. Parvati was taken in by her motherly instincts & she took up the child in her lap lovingly. Lord Shiva, knew what was going on & persuaded Parvati to give up the child. “You don’t need to take up all this trouble. All these are various phases of this mortal world, where it is quite natural for someone to be happy or sad. Let the parents of this child take care of him. Let us go, as it is getting late for us.” Being a mother, Parvati however, could not sense the trick of Lord Narayana. She insisted on keeping the child. Shiva tried explaining again, “Don’t involve yourself with this child. He is very mischievous, & if you show mercy on him, he will take advantage & take away everything.” But Parvati would not listen & was firm on keeping the child. “No. Whatever happens, I shall provide him with shelter.” Lord Shiva knew that the matter was going out of hands & just smiled as the events unfolded. “You are the owner of your wish. You will have to live with the choices you make. You may give shelter to this child, but you will have to repent later.” Parvati, ignored the advice & took the child inside, consoled him & put him to sleep in her room.

When they went out for their bath, Narayana came into his own self & closed the door from inside. When Shiva & Parvati returned, they found they door locked from inside, and try as much they could not open it. Shiva now smiled at Parvati & said, “ I had warned you, but you would not listen. It was Narayana, who had taken the form of the child. He has now taken away the place & will stay here. We will have to find a new place for ourselves.” So Lord Shiva & Goddess Parvati then travelled some distance & on another mountain decided to build their new abode. This place came to be known as Kedarnath.

Narayana stayed at Badrikhestra & meditated for the welfare of the Universe. He came to be known as Badrinath.It is said that in Satya Yuga, Narayana lived in Badrikashram in visible form. In Treta Yuga, the saints saw Lord through the practice of Yoga. In Dwapar Yuga, Narayana came to Earth in the form of Krishna. When the saints & rishis asked him about Kali Yuga, Lord Narayana said, “ Kaliyuga would be full of sins & wickedness & hence I will not be visible. There would be an idol of mine under the Narad Shila in Alaknanda river. You may take that & establish it for the welfare of people. Whoever sees that idol, will get the same reward, as seeing me in visible form. So Vishwakarma (chief architect of the Gods) built a temple & the Gods and the saints took that idol & established it. They made Rishi Narada, the head priest & a rule was made that Lord Narayana in the form of Badrinath would be worshipped by human beings for six months & by Gods for the balance six months.

The rule is applicable even today, as the temple closes down for six months from November to April. It is said that when the temple doors are opened after six months by the priests, the oil lamps at the altar inside are still lit & inside looks completely fresh. As if someone has been keeping it clean every day.

to be continued...........