J. Jayalalithaa 24-February

Jayalalithaa Jayaram (born 24 February 1948, and commonly referred to as J. Jayalalitha), is



 

the Chief Minister of the state of Tamil Nadu, India. She was a popular film star in Indian cinema before her entry into politics, having appeared in many Tamil and Telugu films, as well as several produced in Hindi and Kannada. She is the incumbent general secretary of All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam(AIADMK). She is called Amma ('Mother') and Puratchi Thalaivi ('Revolutionary Leader') by her followers.

Although there have been claims that Jayalalithaa was introduced to politics by Ramachandran, she has denied this. She was a member of the Rajya Sabha elected from Tamil Nadu during the period of 1984–89. Soon after the death of Ramachandran, Jayalalithaa proclaimed herself as his political heir.^[2][3] She is the first elected female Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu.

Jayalalithaa was born into a Tamil Iyengar family on 24 February 1948 at Melukote, in Pandavapura taluk of Mandya district, Karnataka. In accordance with Iyengar custom^{[citation needed]} she was given two names, thus her other name is Komalavalli. Her grandfather was in the service of the then Mysore kingdom as a surgeon, and the prefix Jaya (the victorious) was added to the names of various of her family members to reflect their association with Maharaja Jayachamarajendra Wodeyar of Mysore.

Jayalalithaa’s father died at her age of two. Her mother then moved to Bangalore, where her parents lived, with Jayalalithaa. Her mother eventually began to work as an actress in Tamil cinema, based in Chennai, having taken the screen name of Sandhya. While in Bangalore, Jayalalithaa attended Bishop Cotton Girls' High School. She completed her childhood education at Sacred Heart Matriculation School (popularly known as Church Park Presentation Convent or Presentation Church Park Convent) in Chennai. She excelled at school and was offered a government scholarship to pursue further education. She appears not to have accepted the admission offered to her at Stella Maris College, Chennai.

Bhaagyashree 23-February

Bhagysshree was born in a royal, though very conservative Marathi-speaking, Patwardhan family on February 23, 1969. Her father is the former Maharaja of Sangli, whose qualifications include MBA and LLB. Since her childhood she was taught Sanskrit, as her dad recites Slokas.

She was contemplating going overseas to pursue her studies in Management, when Sheela, the former wife of actor/film-maker, Amol Palekar, approached her to act in a television serial 'Kaachi Dhoop', which she accepted. The TV serial proved to be very popular, and as a result she also ended up appearing in 'Honi Anhonee', and 'Kisse Miya Biwi Ke'.

The popularity of this charming, beautiful Piscean with an innocent fresh face got her the lead in Sooraj Barjatya's 'Maine Pyar Kiya', opposite Salman Khan, which went on to be a blockbuster. She also ended up starring in a total of 6 movies: 2 from Bangladesh, 2 in Kannada, and 2 in Telugu. The change in language did not prove to be a challenge as languages in India are based in Sanskrit and this is where her childhood education came to her aid.

'Maine Pyar Kiya' could have been an ideal step to popularity, but shortly after its release, Bhagyashree decided to get married to her boyfriend, Himalay Dassani.

She conditionally offered to act in movies provided a lead role was provided to Himalay. She did star with him in three movies 'Qaid Main Hai Bulbul', 'Tyaagi', and 'Paayal', but all three failed at the box office.

She then turned her attention to her family, and soon became the mother of two children. She gives priority to her family and will only work 15 days a month.

She did a come-back to the small screen with with a TV serial in which she played the role of a mature politician. She also appeared in a TV commercial for Parag Sarees.

She made a special appearance in 'Humko Deewana Kar Gaye', and 'Janani'.

This suave and gentle young woman is also involved in 'Kagaz Ki Kashti' which is being produced by her husband for the small screen, and is to be aired on Sahara One.

Sooraj R. Barjatya 22-February

Barjatya was born in Mumbai. He attended The Scindia School in Gwalior. Encouraged by his paternal grandfather Tarachand Barjatya, he directed his first film Maine Pyar Kiya for Rajshri at the young age of 24. He is married to Vineeta. He has three children Devaansh, Avnish and Eesha.
He made his directorial debut with Maine Pyar Kiya (1989) starring Salman Khan which was a huge box office hit and launched both his and Salman's careers. He teamed up with Salman again for Hum Aapke Hain Kaun (1994) which became one of the highest all-time blockbusters and Hum Saath-Saath Hain: We Stand United (1999) which was a huge hit as well.

His fourth film, Main Prem Ki Diwani Hoon starring Hrithik Roshan, Kareena Kapoor, and Abhishek Bachchan, was the first film directed by him to fail at the box office. He bounced back with his latest film Vivah (2006) starring Shahid Kapoor and Amrita Rao, which has proved to be one of the biggest blockbusters in his career. He has named the lead actor of all his movies 'Prem'.

He is a trendsetter and ushered in an era of family based themes in Indian Cinema. Many successful young directors incorporated aspects from his vision into their films. At a time when video piracy and satellite TV channels threatened the survival of the Indian film industry, his films instilled a new lease of life by bringing viewers back to cinema halls.

Maine Pyar Kiya and Hum Aapke Hain Koun, Sooraj Barjatya's two consecutive blockbusters are still placed among the top ten most successful films of the last 80 years.

Vivah, Sooraj Barjatya's latest film proved to be one of the biggest grossers of 2006, having celebrated a silver jubilee run at 25 centers across the country. The film was nominated for more than 15 awards.

 

Maha Shivratri 20-February

Mahashivratri (also known as Shivaratri) is a Hindu festival dedicated to Shiva, who destroys the universe, one of the deities of the Hindu Trinity.

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Night and day

While most Hindu festivals are celebrated during the day, Mahashivratri is celebrated during the night and day that come just before the new moon.

Each new moon is dedicated to Shiva, but Mahashivratri is especially important because it is the night when he danced the 'Tandav', his cosmic dance.

It also celebrates the wedding of Shiva and Sati, the mother divine. Night represents evil, injustice, ignorance, sin, violence, and misfortune.

Tradition says that Shiva, like his symbol the new moon, appeared in order to save the world from darkness and ignorance, before the world entered complete darkness.

The festival

Devotees of Shiva observe a fast during Mahashivratri and stay up all night at a place of worship.

Shiva is offered special food made from the fruits of the season, root vegetables, and coconuts, during ritual worship.

Those who observe the Mahashivratri fast only break their fast the next morning, and eat the prasad (food offerings) offered to Shiva.

Devotees at the temple©

Young girls observe the fast and worship Shiva so that he may bless them with good husbands. They sing devotional songs in praise of the lord, and holy texts are chanted throughout the night.

The pandits in the temples perform thepuja (religious worship) according to the scriptures. This is done four times during the night.

In temples, Shiva linga - the phallic symbol of Lord Shiva - is worshipped. Devotees flock to the temples to perform the ritual of bathing the Shiva linga.

It is bathed with milk, water and honey, and then anointed with sandalwood paste, and decorated with flowers and garlands.

The legend of Lubdhaka

The legend surrounding the festival of Mahashivratri says that Lubdhaka, a poor tribal man and a devotee of Shiva, once went into the deep forests to collect firewood.

At nightfall, he became lost and could not find his way home.

Shiva ©

In the darkness, Lubdhaka climbed a bel tree, and sought safety and shelter in its branches until dawn.

All night, he could hear the growls of tigers and wild animals, and was too frightened to leave the tree.

In order to keep himself awake, he plucked one leaf at a time from the tree and then dropped it, while chanting the name of Shiva.

By sunrise, he had dropped thousands of leaves on to a Shiva lingam, which he had not seen in the darkness. Lubdhaka's all-night worship pleased Shiva.

By the grace of Shiva the tigers and wild animals went away, and Lubdhaka not only survived but was rewarded with 'divine bliss'.

Shivaji Jayanti 19-February

Shivaji Jayanti or the birthday of Shivaji Maharaj is celebrated on a majestic scale in Maharashtra. Shivaji was born on 19th February, 1627. His parents Jijabai and Shahaji Bhonsle named him Shivaji after local Goddess Shivai. Shivaji was the creator of the Maratha nation. He was instrumental in uniting the Maratha chiefs of Mayal, Konkan and Desh regions. His military and civil administration was of greatest importance. He was successful in carving out a small kingdom by defeating the alien powers.

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Chatrapati Shivaji is a hero not only for the people of Maharashtra but for those of India as well.
On the occasion of Shivaji Jayanti several processions are taken out and people dress up like Shivaji and his associates. The birthday is celebrated on a huge scale and various programmes remembering the achievements of the great ruler are organized.

History of Shivaji

Early days

Shivaji was born on 19th Februray, 1627, in Shivneri Fort, 60 kms north of Pune. He was named after the local Goddess Shivai, to whom his mother prayed for a son. His father Shahaji Bhosle was the chief of the kingdom of Bijapur. He was however, not allowed to take charge of any fort. His mother had a great influence on him as he was introduced to Indian epics of Mahabharata, Ramayana and other holy books by her. Shivaji also gained a lot of knowledge from his father’s unsuccessful attempts to gain power. He was inspired by his father military tactics, peacetime diplomacy and also possessed knowledge of Sanskrit and Hindu scriptures.



His administration

Shivaji grew into a fearless military leader with trainings from commanders like Gomaji Naik and Baji Pasalkar. Young Shivaji was motivated, enthusiastic and energetic. In his early days he was successful in inspiring local youths to follow his idealistic pursuits.  At the age of 17, he attacked and captured Torna Fort of Bijapur and by 1647 he took control of Kondana and Raigad Forts. The Western Ghats along the Konkan Coast were also under his control by 1654.

His achievements

In order to sabotage Shivaji’s rise to power, Adilshah arrested Shahji, his father by deceitful means and had armies sent against Shivaji and his elder brother Sambaji. To suppress Shivaji’s control of the Bijapur kingdom, Afzal Khan was sent to destroy Shivaji.  However, with his cunning means, Shivaji successfully stabbed Afzal Khan. Eventually Bijapur’s armies were routed in the famous Battle of Pratapgarh in 1659 and Shivaji turned into a hero of the Marathas. Now, under the confident leadership of Shivaji, the Marthas successfully pushed back the Mughals and the Sultanate kingdowms from his homeland.

The Mughals also fought against Shivaji led by Shaista Khan under Aurangazeb. However, Shivaji lost many men against a well trained and disciplined Mughal army.  Shivaji felt the need of finance to maintain an army and decided to loot the Mughal city of Surat. The Mughal emperor then sent Jai Singh to defeat Shivaji. After a few skirmishes, he thought it wise to accept the emperor’s soverignity. But he was soon placed under house arrest in Agra. Using tact and intelligence, Shivaji successfully escaped from Agra and hid in his homeland and kept a low profile for some time. Shivaji gradually rebuild his empire and within six months was able to recover much of his lost ground.

Shivaji extended his empire further south to Tamil Nadu and Karnataka. In order to regain one of his forts, Kondana, he appointed his most trusted general Tanaji Malusare. The battle that followed between the Marathas and the Mughals came to be known as the Maratha war of Independence where the Marathas were successful in regaining the control of the fort.

Chatrapati Shivaji

Shivaji was formally coronated Chatrapati in 1674 in Raigad fort and henceforth came to be known as Chatrapati Shivaji. Shivaji died in 1680 but not before leaving an indelible mark on the history pages. He laid the foundation of a Hindu empire which lasted for over two centuries. Shivaji has been a source of inspiration and pride for generations for his courage and military acumen.

Sri Ramakrishna 18-February

 Sri Ramakrishna, who was born in 1836 and passed away in 1886, represents the very core of the spiritual realizations of the seers and sages of India. His whole life was literally an uninterrupted contemplation of God. He reached a depth of God-consciousness that transcends all time and place and has a universal appeal.

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Seekers of God of all religions feel irresistibly drawn to his life and teachings. Sri Ramakrishna, as a silent force, influences the spiritual thought currents of our time. He is a figure of recent history and his life and teachings have not yet been obscured by loving legends and doubtful myths. Through his God-intoxicated life Sri Ramakrishna proved that the revelation of God takes place at all times and that God-realization is not the monopoly of any particular age, country, or people. In him, deepest spirituality and broadest catholicity stood side by side. The God-man of nineteenth-century India did not found any cult, nor did he show a new path to salvation. His message was his God-consciousness. When God-consciousness falls short, traditions become dogmatic and oppressive and religious teachings lose their transforming power. At a time when the very foundation of religion, faith in God, was crumbling under the relentless blows of materialism and skepticism, Sri Ramakrishna, through his burning spiritual realizations, demonstrated beyond doubt the reality of God and the validity of the time-honored teachings of all the prophets and saviors of the past, and thus restored the falling edifice of religion on a secure foundation. Drawn by the magnetism of Sri Ramakrishna's divine personality, people flocked to him from far and near -- men and women, young and old, philosophers and theologians, philanthropists and humanists, atheists and agnostics, Hindus and Brahmos, Christians and Muslims, seekers of truth of all races, creeds and castes. His small room in the Dakshineswar temple garden on the outskirts of the city of Calcutta became a veritable parliament of religions. Everyone who came to him felt uplifted by his profound God-consciousness, boundless love, and universal outlook. Each seeker saw in him the highest manifestation of his own ideal. By coming near him the impure became pure, the pure became purer, and the sinner was transformed into a saint. The greatest contribution of Sri Ramakrishna to the modern world is his message of the harmony of religions. To Sri Ramakrishna all religions are the revelation of God in His diverse aspects to satisfy the manifold demands of human minds. Like different photographs of a building taken from different angles, different religions give us the pictures of one truth from different standpoints. They are not contradictory but complementary. Sri Ramakrishna faithfully practiced the spiritual disciplines of different religions and came to the realization that all of them lead to the same goal. Thus he declared, "As many faiths, so many paths." The paths vary, but the goal remains the same. Harmony of religions is not uniformity; it is unity in diversity. It is not a fusion of religions, but a fellowship of religions based on their common goal -- communion with God. This harmony is to be realized by deepening our individual God-consciousness. In the present-day world, threatened by nuclear war and torn by religious intolerance, Sri Ramakrishna's message of harmony gives us hope and shows the way. May his life and teachings ever inspire us.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Swami Adiswarananda

 

Ramakrishna-Vivekananda Center of New York

Vasudev Balwant Phadke 17-February

Vasudev Balwant Phadke is a personality whose name struck fear in the hearts of the British as well as unfair moneylenders at the beginning of the 19th century. As a leading revolutionary, he led the raid on the houses of the moneylenders who grabbed the hard earned meagre earnings of the poor during the famine, and utilised the loot in shaping an armed revolution.

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He was the grandson of Anant Ramchandra Phadke, a sentinel of the Karnala Fort in Shirdhon. In the absence of schooling facilities in Shirdhon at that time, Vasudevrao completed his schooling in Kalyan and later came to Mumbai and Pune for his higher studies. Here, he achieved a command over the English language. But since he wasn’t interested in working, he left high school without appearing for the final examination. Around this time, the mutiny of 1857 began. A number of incidents of this period were to influence Vasudevrao deeply.

Vasudevrao was married in February 1860. He was forced to work due to adverse financial circumstances. He first worked in the Military Accounts department, and later in Grant Medical College. He fell ill during this period and was notified by the doctor that the weather in Mumbai did not suit his constitution. He thus shifted to Pune for work. While here, on learning of his mother’s illness, he applied for leave to visit his mother. In spite of the refusal, he left Pune to visit his mother in Shirdhon only to find that she had passed away. This was the first flint of dissatisfaction that was etched in his mind. The next year too, his leave application to visit his village for his mother’s Shraddha, was refused. Morosely, he decided to seek retribution.

Speeches by Justice Ranade on Swadeshi made a lasting impression on Vasudevrao, kindling the flames of patriotism even more in him. He began travelling to give speeches to promote theSwadeshi movement. At around the same time he also started his spiritual practice. He had the good fortune to be amidst Akalkot Swami for a while.

After realizing that mere speeches were not sufficient media for achieving freedom and that it was necessary to influence students from a tender age, he established the Pune Native Institute in 1874. Later he established the Bhave School in Pune through this and thus set the foundation for the nation’s education.

Meanwhile, famine had struck Maharashtra. All water sources had dried up; villages emptied out; carcasses were simply left behind for the dogs and the vultures for there was no money for the final rites of the dead. To add to this natural calamity was an epidemic of small pox and an endless harassment by the British. All this made Vasudevrao resolve to fight against the existing British government. During the period, he picked up skills like Danpatta, use of arms, wrestling and horse riding from Lahuji Vastad.

He brought together the Ramoshi community around this time. The community was mostly in charge of guarding the forts. But since the British had destroyed the forts, this community had become nomadic. By organising the Ramoshi and the Bhil community (another tribe), he began preparing for an armed assault. He would raid the houses of the moneylenders who became rich by fleecing the poor. As a source of funds for the freedom movement, he would initially request them for the money, promising to return it; but on being refused, he would just loot them. On this basis he unfurled the flag of his crusade for the first time on 23 February 1879, in the village of Dhamari. He continued his crusade systematically for the next four-five years mostly in the districts of Pune and Satara. This crusade made Phadke notorious in London too. During this crusade he also published an anti-British manifesto.

The British Government appointed Major Daniel to handle him. The Major traversed almost half of Maharashtra in his attempt to capture Phadke. Later, he went underground for sometime in the village Ganagapur and worked under the alias KashikarBua. He had continued his spiritual practice. Here he brought together the Rohila tribe, and using their leased army, he tried to continue his fight against the British. The British made many attempts to capture Phadke using every means at hand, taking the help of betrayers or the local police at times. He was finally captured in Kadalgi, between Belgaum and Kolhapur. He was imprisoned in Eden in January 1880 for life.

While in prison, he was given water in a leather container. He raised his voice against this too, as his religion prohibited him to consume anything associated with animals. As punishment, he was given the hard work of pushing the oil mill to filter out 25 pounds of oil. Even in all of this, he attempted to escape. On 12 October 1880, he managed to break free and escape, only to be caught again soon. He was now sent into solitary confinement. Here, he was ravaged by tuberculosis, which finally took his life.

Through the means of armed revolution, and by bringing the social masses together, taking the fight to the British, Vasudevrao’s feats in the freedom struggle seemed almost akin to those ofChhatrapati Shivaji. Innumerable revolutionaries and freedom fighters, inspired by his work and sacrifice, took the freedom struggle ahead in their own right.