ON THE EVE OF  "PITR SHRADH PAKHSH ";COMMENCING WITH EFFECT FROM 19TH SEPTEMBER 2013 !
To the Brahmans as well as Hindu's having profound faith in Shradh ritual,the rhythmical and 'melodious' chanting s of Shradh mantras  that day during the 'offerings' of oblations in the sacrificial fire,have a special religious appeal,notwithstanding the fact that they and officiating priest [except in rare cases] are equally ignorant of their meanings and implications.The ignorant and credulous householder often believes that the verses he repeats after the priest convey very pious wishes and sentiments.In this background ,it is a great disappointment to know that the six principal mantra's contained in the mantra path,prescribed for recitation on that occasion by sages like Apastambha,Bodhyana,Hiranyakesin and others give expression to ideas and sentiments which no decent person can approve in the present times. In any view,they are most repugnant and inappropriate to the time and occasion.
So for as formalism and mechanical ritualism is concerned,there is probably none in this wide world to beat gullible followers and believers.On such occasion,most followers go through the motions of a religious ceremony ,spread over hours either at 'sacred' places like Hardiwar or at home,without having the ghost of an idea of what is being done. Supposedly revered Brahman ask believer to dip a finger in the water and he most obediently does so,He has to wait till he directs him where to place the drop so collected on the finger-usually on donated articles or on his forehead. At the same time,it is beyond any logic or comprehension that why alone ancestors of Hindu's are in dire need of prescribed articles in supposed other world,during 'pitra pakhsha [fortnight] and that too exclusive courtesy of Brahmans .

Technological Onslaught
The information age is not free from its
perils. This may sound like an
oxymoron. But there is a growing body
of evidence that clearly raise serious
concerns of increasing influence of
technology in our daily lives. We are
constantly bombarded by an enormous
amount of information flowing from the
Internet, television and other forms of
mass media. Our brains are not tuned to
process a message – dense and often
conflicting stream of information.
Whatever we see, read or hear could be
skewed in one way or another.
Sometimes it is hard to discern relevant
from frivolous, good from bad and
desirable from deceitful. For lack of better skills, we fail to make an independent and critical
evaluation of what we see, what we read and what we hear. The problem worsens when the
information is deliberately distorted to mislead the recipient in some predetermined way. The
dividing line between useful and useless, genuine and fraudulent, just and wrongful, factual and
fictitious, true and false, thus becomes blurred. This is where someone else can take control over our
critical faculties. The lack of critical and independent thinking, for example, makes people extremely
vulnerable. It compels them to seek guidance and personal cure from sources that are hardly benign
and authentic.
At another level, irrational faith can become a breeding ground for collective indoctrination, forcing
absolute compliance to supremacist authority of one kind or another. Uncritical acceptance of claims
results in convoluted thinking and wrong reasoning. Despotic leaders, popular cult figures, religious
heads and soothsayers, for example, often take advantage of basic human psychology and the veil of
ignorance. They appeal to people's deepest fears and irrational hopes before taking control of their
lives.
In recent years, the celebration of religious festivals, superstitions and rituals have become regular
practices in many research and educational institutes in India. The case of the Indian Space and
Research Organization (ISRO) is particularly appalling. The achievements of India's space
programme are commendable, but when it comes to the responsibility of developing scientific
outlook and rational thinking to fight the social ills, the organization perhaps did not quite live up to
the desired standard. Instead of spearheading a campaign (by virtue of its privileged position and
wider resources) to eradicate superstitions and illiteracy, ISRO officials often hit the headlines for
wrong reasons

ELECTRONIC  MEDIA AND SUPERSTITIONS !

The increasing number of 24x7 TV channels are willing to cater to any thing that will amuse people to death. The lucrative entertainment industry thrives on sensational soaps,family dramas, teleshopping, paid news,advertisement, dooms day theories, reality shows,fear mongering,superstitious themes,faith preaching ,

 dedicated timing for slots for highly profitable astrology,  on spot instant counseling  for Vastu shastra,

 feng-shui,  and yoga experts. In particular, the live telecast of religious festivals (e.g. Kumbha 

Mela, Ganesh Chaturthi and Navratri etc), and big sporting events has been shown to boost the TRPs. 

Serious issues, no doubt, fail to touch the conscience of the nation. Otherwise, a country that is 

constantly struggling to meet its fuel and energy demand would not have chosen to disgrace itself by 

burning a whopping 2-lakhs liter of petrol to host a rather infamous Formula-1 racing event (Indian 

Express, October 24, 2011). The dazzling show was endorsed by most famous sports personalities, 

business tycoons and cinema stars. Our national media, especially the English TV channels, who 

otherwise never shy away from pontificating to bureaucrats and politicians, colluded in this show-biz 

propaganda in an almost hysterical manner. Most 'prime time shows' were virtually transformed to 

high-pitch 'sale time shows' with a singular agenda to impress upon viewers that pride, prestige and 

prosperity of India was solely hinging on this one mega event!

There are many other examples how technology is used to (mis)educate and enslave people. These 

techno-hyper challenges pose a greater threat to the advancement of scientific temper and critical 

thinking among people. Someone seriously engaged in spreading science education, rational inquiry 

and developing scientific temper should also be prepared to deal with such pressing issues. We 

cannot stop propaganda, but we can certainly take some discrete steps to stay immune to it. The goal 

is not to spot other people’s weakness and follies and laugh at it. The efforts should be directed, as 

Baruch Spinoza has famously said, " ... not to ridicule, not to bewail, not to scorn human actions, but 

to understand them." First thing we can do is to learn how to identify various forms and means of 

propaganda and understand how human thinking can go wrong.

[Myth,superstitions and propaganda in scientific age ]. 

MYTHS AND SUPERSTITIONS IN 21ST CENTURY !
From prehistoric times, humans have evolved as pattern seeking and storytelling species. While the
capacity to find patterns and infer meanings had obvious advantages for survival, the brain is not always
successful in distinguishing meaningful and meaningless patterns. In fact, "pattern finding" and "order
seeking" mechanisms form the basis for nearly all existing myths, superstitions, cultural taboos and ritual
practices all over the world. The same mechanism also makes us extremely vulnerable to all kinds of
deceptions and manipulative techniques that impair our critical faculties. We may imagine things that
don’t exist, make false judgments, accept uncritical claims, misinterpret facts and arrive at conclusions
that are completely at odds with reality. The scientific age is riddled with intriguing contradictions and
man-made follies. The technology-driven consumer culture and entertainment industry has fueled the
growth of primitive superstitions, myths and new age beliefs. The need to promote a rational discussion
on science, technology and equitable social development has never been so pressing. The first thing to
guard against such trends is to be aware of the subtle persuasive techniques, marketing strategies and
advertisement gimmicks that make us increasingly helpless consumers in the scientific age. Conveying
the excitement of science and scientific discovery is no doubt an essential part of science education and
public outreach activities. But equally important is to learn to draw the distinction between
unsubstantiated claims and factual findings based on sound reasoning and evidence. Discerning magical
thinking and vague ideas from the realm of possibilities that lie within limits of physical laws is therefore
important to inculcate scientific temper.

"Religion is not only good for business,it is the best business of all;start up costs are low,there are never any problems with supply or inventory and one receives tangible goods for intangible one."[Lise McKeen].
NO BUSINESS LIKE GOD BUSINESS :INDIAN GOD MEN FIND SPIRITUALITY TO BE PROFITABLE [DNA] !
BREATHE EASY :-
The success story of Sri Sri Ravi Shankar’s Art of Living (AOL), headquartered in Bangalore, is no less fascinating. The organisation’s crowning glory is its international appeal. Founded in 1981 by the soft-spoken guru, AOL has become an educational and humanitarian movement across 150 countries claiming to have touched 370 million lives, with its stress management and other spiritual initiatives.

Like all good things in life, the healing and rejuvenation process comes for a price. A three-day course in Sudarshan Kriya, its most popular programme, in the ashram costs more than Rs 3,000 for an individual, with accommodation and food.

Other AOL programmes, which include Youth Empowerment & Skills (YES) workshop — a life-skills programme for those aged between 18 and 30 — the Sahaj Samadhi Meditation, described as a natural, effortless system of meditation; and the Sri Sri Yoga courses designed by the spiritual leader himself to nurture the body, mind and spirit, too command a range of fees between Rs 3,000 and Rs 6,000.

One has to admire the efficient business model of the AOL. When a person is interested in joining a course or a programme, the AOL website guides him/her to a name and a number of a teacher who would be conducting the programme. If you are interested, you click on ‘interested’ and the website then asks you for your personal details (name, phone number, email ID).

Within minutes a person calls you with all the information you need. The payment is made on the spot via cheque or cash, or online if the programme is at the ashram. The money collected by the teachers goes to the ashram funds, which is sent in by the teachers who are basically volunteers working part-time.

Thousands of people daily take the courses.

There are other spiritual gurus not so famous as the ones above.

The chances are that most of them are waiting for the right moment. The moment when fame acquires critical mass and translates into money. Inside every successful godman lurks a suited CEO with a power point presentation at hand.

RASHTRIYA SWYAM SEVAK SANGH'S BLUE PRINT FOR HINDU RASHTRA !
Since finally BJP has itself rediscovered and reactivated as Bhartiya Jansangh in practice and perception [though with different nomenclature] and accordingly Modi's coronation has been orchestrated with clear cut agenda and design,it will be most pertinent to present here inspirational and ideological blue print of 'Hindutav' oriented Hindu rashtra.
The RSS vision of a Hindu rashtra was articulated in a chilling treatise by its Sarsanghchalak or supreme leader Madhav Sadashiv Golwalkar titled "We or Our Nationhood Defined" written in 1938, first published in 1939 and later in 1947 after independence. There he states in unambiguous terms
"...The conclusion is unquestionably forced upon us that... in Hindusthan exists and must needs exist the ancient Hindu nation and nought else but the Hindu Nation. All those not belonging to the national i.e. Hindu Race, Religion, Culture and Language naturally fall out of the pale of real `National' life."
"We repeat; in Hindusthan, the land of the Hindus, lives and should live the Hindu Nation - satisfying all the five essential requirements of the scientific nation concept of the modern world. Consequently only those movements are truly `National' as aim at re-building, re-vitalizing and emancipating from its present stupor, the Hindu Nation. Those only are nationalist patriots, who, with the aspiration to glorify the Hindu race and nation next to their heart, are prompted into activity and strive to achieve that goal. All others are either traitors and enemies to the National cause, or, to take a charitable view, idiots" (page 43 & 44). And then continues "...we must bear in mind that so far as `nation' is concerned, all those, who fall outside the five-fold limits of that idea, can have no place in the national life, unless they abandon their differences, adopt the religion, culture and language of the nation and completely merge themselves in the National Race. So long, however, as they maintain their racial, religious and cultural differences, they cannot but be only foreigners" (page 45).
And further: "There are only two courses open to the foreign elements, either to merge themselves in the national race and adopt its culture, or to live at its mercy so long as the national race may allow them to do so and to quit the country at the sweet will of the national race. ..... From this standpoint, sanctioned by the experience of shrewd old nations, the foreign races in Hindusthan must either adopt the Hindu culture and language, must learn to respect and hold in reverence Hindu religion, must entertain no idea but those of the glorification of the Hindu race and culture, i.e., of the Hindu nation and must lose their separate existence to merge in the Hindu race, or may stay in the country, wholly subordinated to the Hindu Nation, claiming nothing, deserving no privileges, far less any preferential treatment - not even citizen's rights. There is at least should be, no other course for them to adopt. We are an old nation; let us deal, as old nations ought to and do deal, with the foreign races, who have chosen to live in our country" (Golwalkar, 1939, pp 47-48).
Notwithstanding all the subterfuge that the leaders of the Saffron Brigade indulge in today to state that this book had been subsequently withdrawn there is no official testimony to it. In fact in a sympathetic account of the RSS, (JA. Curran Militant Hinduism in Indian Politics -- a study of the RSS) states "The genuine ideology of the Sangh is based upon principles formulated by its founder Dr. Hegdewar. These principles have been consolidated and amplified by the present leader in a small book called "We Or Our Nationhood Defined" written in 1938. `We' can be described as the RSS `bible'. It is the basic primer in the indoctrination of Sangh volunteers." (This was written in 1979)
Golwalkar's abiding influence has been in providing the saffron brigade with an ideological formation not merely in terms of ideas and principles but also in terms of establishing an organisational structure to achieve the aim of a Hindu Rashtra.
How this agenda is different than 'Islamic agenda' of Jehadee's ,who too preach intolerance,hatred,prejudice and discrimination against non believers [infidels],on identical terms ?

MYTHOLOGICAL FANTASY :HOW GANESHA GOT HIS ELEPHANT HEAD ?
According to a Puranic tale, once Parvati was alone in the houseand wanted to take bath. So taking the dirt from her body she created a boy and ordered him. "To keep a watch at the door, and don't allow anybody to enter the palace without my permission. Thus instructing the boy. Mother Parvati went in to take her bath. Meanwhile Lord Shiva too arrived at the scene. He saw a boy sitting at the doorway, but ignoring him he proceded to enter the palace. At that the boy stood up and stopped Lord Shiva and Said, "My mother has instructed me not to allow anybody to enter the palace without her permission. Hence, I will not let you enter the palace. First tell me who are you? Instead of answering, Lor Shiva asked, who are you? Who is your Mother? As no one was eager to answer first so the dispute grew to the point of a fierce battle. Ultimately cutting the head of the boy, Lord Shiva entered the palace. Seeing Him, Parvati asked surprisingly! "How did you enter? Has nobody stopped you?" At that Lord Shiva asked, "Who was that boy? I have cut his head.

Hearing this, mother Parvati began to cry and said, "He was my own son. Now you give him a new lease of life" Lord Shiva then ordered his Ganas to go out and bring the head of any creature they saw first. It was an elephant that the Ganas found first. So they cut its head and brought it to Lord Shiva. Putting the elephant head at the boy's torso, Lord Shiva infused a new lease of life in him. Thus, Ganesha got the head of an elephant and came to be known as Gajanana Ganesha one with an elephant head.
Extraordinary "surgical excellence" unmatched even today !