Happy Onam :)

Onam is one of the most popular festivals of India, celebrated by the people of Kerala the southern most state in India. The lovely mythology associated with Onam goes like this:

Mahabali the King of Demons was an unbiased and popular king who was ruling the southern region. He was respected by his subjects and was considered to be very intelligent, well judged and extremely charitable minded and his term is said to be the Golden Era. Everyone is happy in his kingdom. There was no discrimination, no crime, no poverty and the rich and poor are treated equally and lived happily.

This Demon king’s popularity among other worlds spread and with the fame of King Mahabali soaring high, Gods became extremely concerned and jealous and became more conscious and started worrying of getting dethroned.

The Gods chalked out a plan to hold back the emerging Mahabali. Aditi, the mother of Gods became worried for her sons and seeked help of Lord Vishnu (the preserver in the Hindu trinity) whom Mahabali worshiped.

As broadminded and charitable, Mahabali always grants anything and everything whenever someone approaches him for help. Knowing this Lord Vishu, disguised himself as a dwarf poor Brahmin reached the kingdom, just after Mahabali performed his morning prayers and was preparing to grant boons to Brahmins.

Lord Vishnu pleaded; he is a poor Brahmin and likes to get a piece of land from the King and the king replied he can have as much as he wanted. The Brahmin said that he just wanted as much land as could be covered by his three steps. The King was surprised to hear but agreed.

Mahabali’s shrewd advisor Shukracharaya sensed that the Brahmin is not an ordinary man and warned the king not to promise any land. The King being truthful and generous said it would be a sin for a king to back on his words and assured the Brahmin the land he requested.

As king granted, the Brahmin began to expand and grow to the size of cosmic proportions.

With his first step he covered the whole of earth
With the other step he covered the whole of skies
And asked the king where the space for him to keep his third foot

The King realised that he was no ordinary Brahmin

Mahabali with folded hands bowed before the Lord and asked him to place his last step on his head so that he could keep the promise. The Brahmin placed his foot on the head of the King, which pushed him to patala, the nether world.

There the King requested the Brahmin to reveal his true identity. Lord Vishnu then appeared before the King in his person. The Lord told the King that he came to test him and the King won the test. King Mahabali was pleased to see his lord. Lord Vishnu also granted a boon to the King.

The King was so much attached with his Kingdom and people that he requested that he be allowed to visit Kerala once in a year. Lord Vishnu was moved by the Kings nobility and was pleased to grant the wish. He also blessed the King and said even after losing all his worldly possessions, the King would always be loved by Lord Vishnu and his people.

And thus the beloved King Mahabali's visit to see his people every year on this particular day is celebrated as Onam

Wishing you all a wonderful and grand Onam this year :)



A 'Pookkalam' (designing and decorating with flowers) in front of Vadakkunnathan Temple in kerala. It is reported that 500 Kg flowers were used to decorate this.

One of the oldest Shiva temples of south India, Vadakkunnathan Temple stands tall in the back drop with its brilliant architecture and loftiness

(the second image taken from net)*

Happy Independence Day to you all

A beautiful and inspiring VDO

Written by Gulzar Saab
Music - Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy
Singer - Shankar Mahadevan.

The theme is - "Have a pride in your existence and your actions. Nothing is "big" enough for you."
This was an initiative by TIMES OF INDIA


Translation:

"Hold the sky to stand, and walk with the wind in your hands, Be the front-runner;because when you walk, Hindustan (India) walks with you.Lend your hand to pull out the Sun in the morning, Fill your hands with sunlight, and throw it around, Keep you legs on the horizon, and walk with pride, Hold the sky to stand, and walk with the wind in your hands, Be the front-runner; because when you walk, Hindustan (India) walks with you."

(please note this translation is from net and as you all know, when something is translated from the original, it may not bring or reflect the same feel or essence)

Wishing you all again a Happy Independence Day
Jai Hind!

(vdo and info from net)*

Indian natural herb Tulsi (basil leaves) to fight back swine flu

Ayurveda, the traditional 'science of life', has a remedy for diseases when every other stream of medicine fails. Now, at a time when swine flu is spreading like wildfire across the world, Ayurveda has the remedy in the form of the miraculous herb, the basil leaves commonly known as Tulsi.

Tulsi, the purest and most sublime plant, has been known and worshipped in India for more than five millennia for its remarkable healing properties. Considered as an 'Elixir of Life', this wonder herb has now been claimed to keep the deadly swine flu at bay and help fast recovery in afflicted persons.

"The anti-flu property of Tulsi has been discovered by medical experts across the world quite recently. Tulsi improves the body's overall defence mechanism including its ability to fight viral diseases. It was successfully used in combating Japanese Encephalitis and the same theory applies to swine flu," Dr U K Tiwari, a herbal medicine practitioner says.

Apart from acting as a preventive medicine in case of swine flu, Tulsi can help the patient recover faster.
"Even when a person has already contracted swine flu, Tulsi can help in speeding up the recovery process and also help in strengthening the immune system of the body," he claims.
Dr Bhupesh Patel, a lecturer at Gujarat Ayurved University, Jamnagar is also of the view that Tulsi can play an important role in controlling swine flu.

"Tulsi can control swine flu and it should be taken in fresh form. Juice or paste of at least 20-25 medium sized leaves should be consumed twice a day on an empty stomach." This increases the resistance of the body and, thereby, reduces the chances of inviting swine flu," believes Patel.
As its name suggests, Tulsi has again proved to be the 'the incomparable' medicine - this time, in the prevention and cure of swine flu.

The symptoms of the H1N1 flu virus in people are similar to the symptoms of seasonal flu and include fever, cough, sore throat, runny or stuffy nose, body aches, headache, chills and fatigue. A significant number of people who have been infected with novel H1N1 flu virus also have reported diarrhea and vomiting. The high risk groups for novel H1N1 flu are not known at this time, but it's possible that they may be the same as for seasonal influenza. However, Please consult a practitioner in case of any such symptoms. Doctors have strictly advised against self medication

(Input and Pic from net)*

Outstanding cricketing wonder Krishna Narayan

Have a look at this 4 year old wonder kid, Krishna Narayan playing awesome shots just like a trained cricketer. He plays each and every shot with great style and elagance. And yes; too perfect for his age. The senior Indian cricket team can watch this VDO before taking their opponents.

Hope he will be representing the nation the earliest

God Bless!

Street Cricket

Weekend street cricket with cousins

The sport reached the masses only a couple of decades back. Prior to that, Cricket was a game of the Royals.


Cricket is not just a sport in India, but a religion! And yes, like Marx said, it obviously opiates the masses here in India (In terms of cricket and its craziness ;-))


Many cricketing stars of today started and honed their skills through street cricket in their initial stages


In 2001 Lagaan was released. A movie based on a real story set in the second half of 1800’s under the Victorian British Empire in India. The Peasants were heavily taxed by the British. The Farmers attempted to convince the difficulties in paying heavy taxes. A senior officer came up with an idea; a cricket match between the British and the Peasants. If farmers can win, they will get evaded from taxes for three years.


The best part of movie is the arduous task of learning the game and the captain of the team motivating his players, taking tips from other local sports and so on. The Farmers start learning, practicing and playing for a result that will change their village's destiny. The British Captain's sister helps the farmers secretly and teaches them the basics of the game.


Lagaan received critical acclaim and numerous awards at various international film festivals, as well as many Indian film awards. It also became the third Hindi-language film to be nominated for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film after Mother India and Salaam Bombay


Have a Break ;-)