The Sunshine Within You

When you were a child and your parents told you stories about god, you listened to that with great curiosity and excitement, but as you grow older and started seeing everything with the rational eye of science, you realise that it was a lie, and so every religious event and ritual appears to you as an act of stupidity. Still, you keep worshipping the men or women whom you were told to worship as Gods. Why? Have you considered what is the significance of religion? Religion teaches us that God has created this universe and he is running it in his own way. The Sun, The Moon, Stars, Planets, Living creatures  — bacteria, viruses, plants, animals, humans are all the creation of God. We are just doing things ordained by him. It may appear that we are influencing things, but the reality is we, ourselves, are influenced by some heavenly forces. Indians, especially Hindus, are obsessed with rituals and other religious activities like holding fast and going to temple. Some of ...

Wherever there is Ravana  (the evil force), there must be a Rama (the divine force) to destroy the Ravana to overcome the influence of such evil forces and prevent to spread further. Rama, the seventh avatar of Lord Vishnu and a king of  Ayodhya , is referred as the perfect or ideal man popularly known as " Maryada Purushottama" . He was the eldest of the four sons of  Dasaratha, king of  Ayodhya , born to demolish the terror of  Ravana  who overpowered the  devas  and ruling the earth, the heaven and the netherworld, seeming almost invincible. Rama life's journey was to comply with the path of dharma  despite harsh tests and obstacles and pains of life. While staying with sage Vishwamitra in his ashram to learn astras , sastras (divine weapons) and way of life, Rama has initiated the work he was incarnated for i.e., to kill Rakshasha who had been harassing and terrorizing sages. Sage V...

Ravana has a very important place in Indian mythology.  Although he was a villain of Ramayana , he is worshipped either alone or with the Shiva-lingam (the symbol of Lord Shiva whom Ravana was a great devotee of) he had established in the past (as Temple claims) in many parts of India and some other Nations of Southeast Asia including Sri Lanka. Ravana himself is an ideology. He is an epitome of self-obsessed and greedy being full of nepotism who lost himself in the lust for power. Ravana was an exemplary scholar who mastered the Vedas, the holy books, and the arts and ways of Kshatriyas  (the warriors). He performed an intense penance to Lord Brahma, the creator of the Universe, that lasted several years as a result of which he was provided with a boon. Ravana asked for immortality, which Brahma refused to give, but gave him a celestial nectar of immortality stored under his navel saying that he could not be defeated for as long as it lasted. He also asked for absolute...