OBSCURANTISM VS SCIENTIFIC TEMPER;
IS INDIA BECOMING ANTI SCIENCE ?

Is there nothing in this country of substance beyond Bollywood, cricket and politicians?

The country is reeling under a power crisis. Villages go without electricity for long hours. Yet, there is opposition to nuclear power and all the explanations of expert scientists do not seem to carry conviction. Even if a disaster like Fukushima were to happen, would it not be insignificant compared to the huge loss in terms of men and material, which the country is suffering due to a lack of adequate power generation? What is the difficulty in accepting all power generation strategies, from windmill to nuclear?

Grain production is stagnating at 200+million tonnes, while China is at 500+million tonnes. We will soon exceed China's population. Millions of children are dying of mal/under-nutrition. All the traditional practices and resources have not mitigated the tragedy. But the country will oppose GM technology, which has the potential to increase productivity and the nutritive quality of grain.

There is strident activism against GM technology in the name of environment and biodiversity. There is a constant vertical and horizontal transfer of genes in evolution. How did the 2,000 varieties of brinjal evolve, if it is not through gene changes? What does it matter, if a couple of transgenes (e.g. Bt gene) are transferred to unintended targets? Experience for over a decade has shown that Bt gene is benign and Bt corn and Bt cotton have not caused authenticated damage to individuals or environment. Even so, activists have succeeded in demonizing the Bt with highly exaggerated negative claims.

Cultivation of Bt cotton has changed the face of India from an importing destination to an exporting country. If Bt rice with balanced protein and micro nutrients were to be available, it would revolutionalise the health of millions of children in the mid-day meal programme. Why cannot organic farming, traditional practices, marker-assisted breeding and GM crops co-exist?

Even if there is one vaccine-related death, for no fault of the vaccine itself, the media would write the epitaph on the product. There are activists preaching against vaccines, a weapon for mass protection over centuries. Ayurveda is projected as a great traditional wisdom, which is true. But it need not be pitted against modern medical science. Even spiritual yoga gurus, who deride modern medicine, rush to allopathy in emergency. Is it not true that Ayurveda has been corrupted by quacks and lack of scientific validation? How can anecdotal experience make it internationally acceptable? How is it that experts abound in astrology, numerology, etc., dominating TV shows and finding solutions for every ailment?
OBSCURANTISM VS SCIENTIFIC TEMPER;
IS INDIA BECOMING ANTI SCIENCE ?
G.Padmanaban.
Is there nothing in this country of substance beyond Bollywood, cricket and politicians?

The country is reeling under a power crisis. Villages go without electricity for long hours. Yet, there is opposition to nuclear power and all the explanations of expert scientists do not seem to carry conviction. Even if a disaster like Fukushima were to happen, would it not be insignificant compared to the huge loss in terms of men and material, which the country is suffering due to a lack of adequate power generation? What is the difficulty in accepting all power generation strategies, from windmill to nuclear?

Grain production is stagnating at 200+million tonnes, while China is at 500+million tonnes. We will soon exceed China's population. Millions of children are dying of mal/under-nutrition. All the traditional practices and resources have not mitigated the tragedy. But the country will oppose GM technology, which has the potential to increase productivity and the nutritive quality of grain.

There is strident activism against GM technology in the name of environment and biodiversity. There is a constant vertical and horizontal transfer of genes in evolution. How did the 2,000 varieties of brinjal evolve, if it is not through gene changes? What does it matter, if a couple of transgenes (e.g. Bt gene) are transferred to unintended targets? Experience for over a decade has shown that Bt gene is benign and Bt corn and Bt cotton have not caused authenticated damage to individuals or environment. Even so, activists have succeeded in demonizing the Bt with highly exaggerated negative claims.

Cultivation of Bt cotton has changed the face of India from an importing destination to an exporting country. If Bt rice with balanced protein and micro nutrients were to be available, it would revolutionalise the health of millions of children in the mid-day meal programme. Why cannot organic farming, traditional practices, marker-assisted breeding and GM crops co-exist?

Even if there is one vaccine-related death, for no fault of the vaccine itself, the media would write the epitaph on the product. There are activists preaching against vaccines, a weapon for mass protection over centuries. Ayurveda is projected as a great traditional wisdom, which is true. But it need not be pitted against modern medical science. Even spiritual yoga gurus, who deride modern medicine, rush to allopathy in emergency. Is it not true that Ayurveda has been corrupted by quacks and lack of scientific validation? How can anecdotal experience make it internationally acceptable? How is it that experts abound in astrology, numerology, etc., dominating TV shows and finding solutions for every ailment?

If scientists speak up, they are labelled as arrogant or consigned to the pay books of multinationals. It is true that there is opposition among scientists themselves on some of these issues. Each area has become much specialized and older generations, barring some, are not in touch with the developments. But they would not hesitate to make sweeping generalizations.

Differences in opinion are exploited by vested interests to derail technology rather than to find ways to objectively deal with the differences and get the best out of technology. The only science the country seems to appreciate is the satellite launch shown on TV channels. I have hardly seen any scientist figuring in “Indian of the year” or “heroes of the year” shows of popular TV channels, which seem to set the agenda for the country. Scientists may say that they do not care (they do care!).

Is there nothing in this country of substance beyond Bollywood, cricket and politicians? But more seriously, if young minds do not opt for science, where are the role models? Several scientists quietly work day and night, unseen and unsung. The Nobel Prize will not descend from the heaven, unless an appropriate environment is created and the role of scientists is appreciated. No technology comes without a risk and any one technology will not solve all our problems. But unbridled activism against science and scientists will only lead us to miss out on technology options. We need to give S&T a chance to deliver. I am sure, eventually, nuclear power can take care of at least 25 per cent of India's requirements. GM technology can increase food productivity and improve nutritive quality. We cannot cut off our nose to spite our face or throw the baby out with the bathwater.
If scientists speak up, they are labelled as arrogant or consigned to the pay books of multinationals. It is true that there is opposition among scientists themselves on some of these issues. Each area has become much specialized and older generations, barring some, are not in touch with the developments. But they would not hesitate to make sweeping generalizations.

Differences in opinion are exploited by vested interests to derail technology rather than to find ways to objectively deal with the differences and get the best out of technology. The only science the country seems to appreciate is the satellite launch shown on TV channels. I have hardly seen any scientist figuring in “Indian of the year” or “heroes of the year” shows of popular TV channels, which seem to set the agenda for the country. Scientists may say that they do not care (they do care!).

Is there nothing in this country of substance beyond Bollywood, cricket and politicians? But more seriously, if young minds do not opt for science, where are the role models? Several scientists quietly work day and night, unseen and unsung. The Nobel Prize will not descend from the heaven, unless an appropriate environment is created and the role of scientists is appreciated. No technology comes without a risk and any one technology will not solve all our problems. But unbridled activism against science and scientists will only lead us to miss out on technology options. We need to give S&T a chance to deliver. I am sure, eventually, nuclear power can take care of at least 25 per cent of India's requirements. GM technology can increase food productivity and improve nutritive quality. We cannot cut off our nose to spite our face or throw the baby out with the bathwater.

SCIENTIFIC PARADOX;
LACK OF SCIENTIFIC TEMPER AMONG INDIAN SCIENTISTS !
There is a report of a survey on Indian Scientists which says 29 percent of them believe in 'karma'; 26 in life after death and seven percent of them even believe in ghosts. 

No wonder it will take a millennium to get the requite scientific temper. Even if we get all the positions in the Forbes top ten rich men we are not li

kely to get even two Nobel Laureates in Sciences in the same year any time in foreseeable future.

New Delhi: One in four Indian scientists believe in God and many more accept existence of a "higher power", says a survey conducted across the country.

A survey of 1,100 scientists across 130 universities and research institutes across the country threw up interesting results as 29 per cent believed in the philosophy of 'karma', 26 per cent accepted the principle of life after death and seven per cent researchers gave credence to existence of ghosts.

A survey, by the Institute for the Study of Secularism in Society and Culture of Trinity College, Hartford, Connecticut and Hyderabad-based Center for Inquiry, found that religion and faith had deep roots in the minds of Indian scientists.

As many as 64 per cent scientists said they would refuse to design biological weapons because of their moral and religious beliefs, while 54 per cent said they will not work on nuclear weapons for the same reasons.

As many as 93 per cent researchers defined secularism as tolerance for various religions and philosophies, while only a minority of scientists said it meant atheism.

As many as 33 per cent scientists strongly disapproved of space scientists seeking the blessings of Lord Venkateswara in Tirupati before launching a rocket in 2005. Only 14 per cent strongly approved of the action.

Most scientists (44 per cent) were willing to criticise and confront religions where they think they contradict accepted scientific theories but a sizeable minority (23 per cent) is opposed to it.

The scientists are most likely to regard their personal outlook as "secular" (59 per cent) or "somewhat secular" (16 per cent). Secularism, according to a majority of them, is tolerance for various religions and philosophies.

One fourth of the total scientists surveyed were firm believers while another fourth took an atheist or agnostic position about belief in the divine.

Twenty-six per cent scientists said they believed God exists and they had no doubts about it. As many as 30 per cent scientists did not believe in a personal God but in a higher power.

Twelve per cent scientists said they did not believe in God while another 13 per cent said they neither knew about the existence of God nor did they believed there was any way to find it out.

A majority of scientists thought of themselves as being spiritual, which according to two thirds of them is either "commitment to higher human ideals, such as peace, harmony or well being" (34 per cent), or "a higher level of human consciousness or awareness" (31 per cent).

A majority of the Indian scientists were Hindus (66 per cent) and 10 per cent identified themselves as atheists or having no religion.

Muslims and Christians formed three per cent each of the scientists surveyed; four per cent were Sikhs, Buddhists and other religions while 14 per cent did not report their religion.

SHRIMADBAGHWAT GEETA-CLASSICAL CASE OF HYPERBOLIC SELF GLORIFICATION !
There are as many as 620 out of total 700 verses ,which are directly related with Krishna.It will be relevant to point out here that in his narration,he has used expression 'i' as many as 375 times,one way or other.Some details are as under:-
*aham [i] 77 times.*maam [to me] 76 times.*may [mine or for me] 43 times.*mum [mine] 1

9 times.*mya [i did] 12 times.*mye [in me] 18 times.
There are 33 verses in chapter 10,in which expression 'i' has been used as many as 96 times.It will be very much relevant here to quote translation of 20 related verses of the said chapter :-
20. I am the Self, O Gudâkesha, existent in the heart of all beings; I am the

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beginning, the middle, and also the end of all beings. 20

21. Of the Adityas, I am Vishnu; of luminaries, the radiant Sun; of the winds, I am Marichi; of the asterisms, the Moon.

22. I am the Sâma-Veda of the Vedas, and Vâsava (Indra) of the gods; of the senses I am Manas, and intelligence in living beings am I.

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23. And of the Rudras I am Sankara, of the Yakshas and Râkshasas the Lord of wealth (Kuvera), of the Vasus I am Pâvaka, and of mountains, Meru am I.

24. And of priests, O son of Prithâ, know Me the chief, Brihaspati; of generals, I am Skanda; of bodies of water, I am the ocean.

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25. Of the great Rishis I am Bhrigu; of words I am the one syllable "Om"; of Yajnas I am the Yajna of Japa (silent repetition); of immovable things the Himâlaya. 25

26. Of all trees (I am) the Ashvattha, and Nârada of Deva-Rishis; Chitraratha of Gandharvas am I, and the Muni Kapila of the perfected ones.

p. 233

27. Know Me among horses as Uchchaisshravas, Amrita-born; of lordly elephants Airâvata, and of men the king. 27

28. Of weapons I am the thunderbolt, of cows I am Kâmadhuk; I am the Kandarpa, the cause of offspring; of serpents I am Vâsuki.

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29. And Ananta of snakes I am, I am Varuna of water-beings; and Aryaman of Pitris I am, I am Yama of controllers.

30. And Prahlâda am I of Diti's progeny, of measure-rs I am Time; and of beasts I am the lord of beasts, and Garuda of birds.

31. Of purifiers I am the wind, Râma

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of warriors am I; of fishes I am the shark, of streams I am Jâhnavi (the Ganges).

32. Of manifestations I, am the beginning, the middle and also the end; of all knowledge's I am the knowledge of the Self, and Vâda of disputants. 32

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33. Of letters the letter A am I, and Dvandva of all compounds; I alone am the inexhaustible Time, I the Sustain-er (by dispensing fruits of actions) All-formed. 33

34. And I am the all-seizing Death, and the prosperity of those who are to be prosperous; of the feminine qualities (I am) Fame, Prosperity (or beauty), Inspiration, Memory, Intelligence, Constancy and Forbearance.

p. 237

35. Of Sâmas also I am the Brihat-Sâma, of metres Gâyatri am I; of months I am Mârgashirsha, of seasons the flowery season. 35

36. I am the gambling of the fraudulent, I am the power of the powerful; I am victory, I am effort, I am Sattva of the Sâttvika. 36

p. 238

37. Of the Vrishnis I am Vâsudeva; of the Pândavas, Dhananjaya; and also of the Munis I am Vyâsa; of the sages, Ushanas the sage.

38. Of punishers I am the sceptre; of those who seek to conquer, I am statesmanship; and also of things secret I am silence, and the knowledge of knowers am I.
[Ibid,chapter 10,verse 20-38].

BEYOND THE ART OF LIVING;
THE MANY FACES OF SRI SRI RAVI SHANKER !
Spirituality and enlightenment apart, common sense we know, is a virtue ravi shankar prizes.
Thus it was common sense to then sport a beard, wear white garb, flash a million dollar smile and put out stories of, advanced science degrees at age 17, of having mastered the Gita at age 4, of being an enlighten

ed being,to a society that was economically ascendent and and on the lookout for relief from the stresses and insecurities of material life.

Thus the economic ascendency ensured the competency of society to pay for his courses while at the same time the increasing materialism with its usual side effects of mental unease, ensured that he would remain in business, what with his SKY being touted as a cure all and he himself an incarnation of krishna and jesus all rolled into one.

Thus it also was common sense to portray himself and his teachings and his kriyas, as being spiritual as opposed to being religious, as being beyond religion, as being scientific even, when he toured the west and then cosying up to the hindu right when back in his home country to let them know that he was actually in their camp and was willing to act as a softer alternative/conduit for their brand of Hindutva especially in the west. Thus his “scientific” spirituality wins him devotees in the west while his religiosity and indulgence in Hindu rituals, and the validation of the Hindu scriptures through his own enlightenment, wins him devotees back home even as his supposed charitable works gets his organization an NGO status and his books and magazines where he tells the world how similar Islam and Christianity are to Hinduism, keeps his secular credentials intact. An whats more, by giving each one in the organization the unique identity of being an AOL member, he ensured that his identity is kept unique and distinct from other similar organizations and spiritual leaders in society.After all this it was surely common sense to proclaim than the concepts of ownership of wealth and creation of wealth were not anathema to spiritual growth and that wealth creation walked hand in hand with spirituality.So that put to rest any unease, a by now besotted devotee may have had over the widely proclaimed inverse relationship between wealth and spirituality. Thus wealth was not bad as long as you gave charity to the point that it hurt. And who better to give it to, than an NGO who was engaged in creating a divine society.

Thus by merely applying his commonsense ravi shankar made sure that it appeared, that he had something to could give to everyone in society i.e the stressed in search of relief, the seekers looking for spiritual growth, the dispossessed and oppressed in need for material succor, the militant right wingers seeking support for their religious identity,the orthodox seeking validation of their scriptures,the skeptics looking for truths beyond the material world etc. etc. etc. etc. You name the pie and be sure ravi Shankars got his fingers in it.

If anything the whole AOL structure and the whole business of these new age gurus by extension is nothing but a validation of how far applying common sense can take you.Thus we now have a multifaceted individual who is spiritual,scientific, religious, compassionate, knowledgeable, all inclusive and yet does not shy away from materialism, orthodoxy and traditionalism.[BY STUPID SEEKER].

RELIGION IS CONTRARY TO REASON;

Most religious teachings are contrary to reason. We are told to believe that a god who must look like a man, because a man was made in his image, made the world in six days. This god took some clay in his hand, molded it, blew on it, and a man was formed.

Science teaches that the world was formed as an offshoot from the sun,

over a period of millions of years, and that man evolved through the ages from lower forms of life.

Religion tells us that Christ was born from a virgin. Reason teaches that this is impossible. The Bible says Christ made wine out of water. Reason denies such a thing is possible.

The Bible says Joshua made the sun stand still. Science and reason could not countenance for a moment such a fabrication. The Bible says that God of the Jews cut the Red Sea in half and let the Jews escaping from Egypt, walk between two walls of water. Science denies such a possibility.

There are hundreds of "miracles" reported in the Bible and thousands in the traditions and writings of all religious works. All these miracles purport to set aside natural laws. The miracles are supposed to be phenomena which men are unable to do but which gods and supernatural beings can do. Any modern magician can perform any number of tricks which people do not understand. By relating these miracles, listeners are supposed to be convinced that the people who tell them are correct in their religious belief or propaganda. No miracles in Christianity of any consequence have been reported during the last 1900 years. The farther away, and the longer time back in history, miracles are reported, the less they are subject to investigation.

"Miracles" are for the purpose of "selling" the prospective convert the religion the "promoter" has to offer. It is a method of getting the "prospect" to sign up and join the religion. Those who head the religion or church usually are well paid for their work. After a few years an organization is built up which tends to be self-perpetuating. All the "promoters" have to do is to keep talking. They toil not, neither do they spin. Their "gift of gab" keeps them on the payroll.

Their arguments are, of course, always contrary to reason. The miracles they tell about are contrary to reason. The philosophy they propagate is not originated on a basis of common sense, practical benefit to people, and the production of happiness. On the contrary, the following of religious philosophies often is the greatest cause of unhappiness in a whole nation. [The case against religion].

We have many anti-secular laws in our books. So India is at best a pseudo-secular state: 1. We have caste/religion based quota (which is dividing, degrading, destroying, suffocating and poisoning India). 2) Hindu temples under Govt control; why do you need a secular Govt to patronize any religious institution. It just needs to police.3)Taking Baabri Masjid dispute to court instead of restoring the wrongly brought down structure (did not we agree in 1947 that status quo remains)? 4)Hajj subsidy; Koran never calls for Muslims to take that pilgrimage, if they cannot afford it. Koran is not idiotic like many insipid Hindu scriptures such as Garuda Puranam which demand the impossible from the dumbest/best of us.5)Stop Govt sponsor of any religious nonsense may it be shumbha mela or kumbha mela or iftar or Christmas or hajj or amaranth yatra etc. Govt. should only ensure law and order for those perversions!6)Abolish all religious holidays and replace with personal holidays. I don’t need holiday for Ganesha chaturthi and Kasim saabi does not need it for Gokulashtami!7)State funeral for a missionary (accorded by Vajpayee's Govt). 8)Pope was a state guest, when he greeted us on festival of lights and said India is ready for harvest (again NDA doing; recall, China said Pope can go to Hong Kong as Tom, Dick and Harry- they have their own Pope!).9)Ban from media caste and religion references. Just like our rectum and kidney, it is a personal affair. Let all religions, caste , sub-caste, sub-sub caste thrive with no privilege from Govt. Shift it to need based with no caste reference. 10) Our PM said "India's national wealth first belong to her minorities"? Was he speaking for himself? Certainly, we have accomplished a lot, compared to any other country in the Indian sub-continent. We certainly can take pride in it, but ask for ourselves can we make it better. Only when we define a problem well, we can address it better. If we ignore the elephant in the room, we dance on dung!

YOUNG GIRLS ARE 'MARRIED OFF' TO OLDER MEN ON THE OCCASION OF DEV UTHANI EKADASHI !
Prabhodhini Ekadashi, also known as Dev Uthani Ekadashi, Utthana Ekadashi, Bodhini Ekadashi and Dev Utthana Ekadashi, is observed in the month of Kartik in the traditional Hindu lunar calendar. The vrat is observed on the 11th day during the waxing phase of the moon, or Shukla Paksha. The gullible an

d credulous Hindu devotees believe that Lord Vishnu woke up from his Yoga Nidra (cosmic sleep) on this day, thereby marking the end of the Chaturmaas vrat. Prabhodhini Ekadashi corresponds in the month of October or November as per the Gregorian calendar. The Pandarpur Yatra is performed in Lord Vithal Temple in Pandarpur on this day. People also observe a vrat in order to be" relieved "from the various sins and evil actions committed.
While people across the country buy gold and silver to celebrate Diwali and Dhanteras,in Rajasthan's Mewat region,girls are "purchased" to mark the occasion.It is the grim reality of rampant human trafficking in the region,consisting of Alwar,Bharatpur and Dholpur districts.Women/girls bought before Diwali are "married off" on the occasion of said Dev Uthani Ekadashi,considered Auspicious day-this year it falls on November 24.