Navratras
harbinger of festivities
Rajesh Gupta
 The festival of Navratri is
celebrated all over India with full devotion, joy
and passion. It is a festival which is celebrated
with pure happiness and is one of the most
auspicious occasions for Hindus. Navaratri is
celebrated twice a year- First in the month of
Chaitra (March- April) and secondly in the month
of Ashwani (September - October).
Chaitra Navratri commences with the start of the
Hindu New Year "VIKRAM SAMBAT" i.e the
1st day of the month of Chaitra.
Navratri continues for nine days. These nine days
are devoted to goddess Maa Durga, known as
Shakti. People worship her by referring as Mata
Sherawali as the first appearance of her sitting
on a tiger. It is believed that goddess Durga
exists in many forms and is worshipped during
this nine-day long festival. These various forms
of the Goddess are: Uma, Gauri, Parvati,
Jagatmata, Kali, Chandi, Bhairavi, Ambika etc.
For these nine days during Navratri people keep
fasts, go to temples, and sing devotional
prayers. The temples are beautifully decorated
with lights and flowers. In homes people place
the images of goddess Durga and worship her by
singing devotional songs and bhajans. Most of the
Hindus go to the temples to worship Devi Durga.
People also like to have jagran, chooki, in the
Navratri time. On the eighth and the ninth day
people like to end Navratri by calling small
girls to their home and giving them delicious
items to eat. This is also called as kanya
poojan.
According to legends, Navratri and Ram Navami are
celebrated for the birth of Lord Rama and his
victory over Ravana. As per the Hindu calendar,
the 9th tithi in Chaitra Sukla is observed as Ram
Navami . . .. .
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Are
mythological films passe now?
A C Tuli
 Why
is it that nowadays we rarely get to see
a mythological film in cinema halls? Has
the genre gone out of fashion? One film
centering round a character from the
Ramayana that recently hit the screen was
titled 'The Return of Hanuman'. It was an
animation film made, it would appear,
more for the sake of entertaining kids
with the superhuman exploits of Hanuman
than for the enlightenment of the
dedicated devotees of this deity.
Significantly, India's very first feature
film (silent) 'Raja Harishchandra', made
by Dadasaheb Phalke in 1913, was a
mythological. In fact, most of the films
made by Phalke after 'Raja Harishchandra'
were mythologicals, noteworthy among them
being the following ones - 'Mohini
Bhasmasur', 'Satyavan Savitri', 'Lanka
Dahan', 'Shri Krishan Janam', and 'Kalia
Madan'.
Such indeed was the popularity of
mythological films those days that people
all over the country flocked to cinema
halls to watch them. For them, it was a
novel and thrilling experience to see the
deities, whose idols they daily worshiped
in temples and shrines, moving about as
living beings on the screen. It is said
that people those days would enter cinema
halls barefoot, after removing their
shoes outside, just as devotees
invariably do before entering a temple.
Mythological film became all the more
popular with the advent of the talkies in
India. Filmmakers started engaging
writers who were well versed with our
scriptures and religious books. They
wanted them to pen pithy dialogues for
their mythological films. So, for the
cine-going masses of those days it was a
deeply moving experience to see their
gods and goddesses dressed in their
traditional apparel conversing in chaste
Sanskritized....
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Image matters
 Is your self image and
confidence directly proportional to the way you
look? Is it any yardstick to determine the person
you are? Whatever happened to the 'inner beauty
surpasses outer beauty' perspective? Swati R
Chaudhary tries to find out.
How often have you woken up to a lonesome morning
feeling disgruntled about the way you look? Do
you cringe every time you look in the mirror? Do
you end up squirming amid a bevy of beauties
around you?
Vying for those picture-perfect Aishwarya Rai
looks or dying to be amidst anorexic models
sashaying down the ramp? Just how desperate are
you to make heads turn in awe? Don't worry, you
are not alone. You will find echo of the same
unhappy thoughts in many others as well. "I
wish I were fairer", "I wish I had
poker straight hair", "I wish I had
Shilpa Shetty like abs," or "a shapely
Jennifer Lopez like derriere." The wish list
is endless. Whoever said looks are superficial
now needs to think again. Chances are, most of us
identify with such yearnings and it's only
natural. However, going into a frenzied overdrive
is another matter.
Says Richa Agrawal, a chartered accountant from
Mumbai, "I'm not really happy with the way I
look. I wish I could change my complexion to a
lighter skin tone. Good looking people definitely
receive preferential treatment" but she
agrees that just looks do not guarantee success.
"Eventually it's your talent that speaks for
you in the long run," she says. Today ,
there is no dearth of cosmetic ads proclaiming
how their products can change the way you look.
They promise to refurbish you in a
never-seen-before avatar. Cognitive and other
managerial skills apart, one can piggyback on
looks as far as corporate success goes, at least
in the beginning. A pretty woman inadvertently
brings with her a multitude of admirers willing
to bail her out from an awkward situation . ......more
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Emerging New Trends
in Media
O P Sharma
 Name of Book Journalism and
Electronic Media
Author S K Bansal
Publisher APH Publishing Corporation,
Ansari Marg, Darya Ganj,
New Delhi;
Year 2007,
Pages 256
Price Rs 595.
Technical advances and management methods have
enabled the media—print as well as
electronic- to scale new heights in quality,
speed, contents and reach out. In the recent past
revolutionary changes have been witnessed in the
radio, television, internet and even in the
newspapers and magazines.
Broadcasting, telecasting, almost instant
transmission of messages through satellite system
and high-speed, mass printing techniques have
made the flow of information and ideas. The media
has acted as a powerful instrument of social
change and ushered in a new era of instant and
vast information world-wide. This has really
turned the world now into a global village.
Yak Book Channel, a leading publishing house,
gave me this book which made an absorbing and
rewarding reading. It will be of interest for
professionals in media—print and electronic.
Deep Insight
This 256-page book on “ Journalism and
Electronic Media” has given a deep insight
into the medium as well as messages, functioning
of the press and electronic media, its role in
shaping the public opinion and securing
people’s active participation in democratic
system and also development process.
The author, S K Bansal is a veteran . ........more
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Rise in
insomnia
Sweta Patwardhan
In today's
fast-paced, hi-tech world,
getting a good night's sleep is
no easy task, though those
wide-awake at night may assume
that they are in good company.
Famous insomniacs include Winston
Churchill, Michael Madhusudan
Dutt, Vincent Van Gogh and even
Margaret Thatcher who had once
said, "Sleep is for
wimps." Their need for
little or no sleep has been
touted down the ages as a sign of
genius.
But doctors in India beg to
differ. Sleep disorders, the
experts stress, are the dark side
of a 24x7 society. The president
of Counsellors Association of
India, Mumbai-based psychiatrist
Harish Shetty, says that insomnia
ranks among the top disorders
affecting the urban population
today. "Our studies show one
in four is affected," he
says. Reports of yet another
national clinic-based study
conducted by postgraduate
students of the Central Institute
of Psychiatry in Ranchi seconds
Shetty's claim.
But what is of serious concern is
the alarming rate at which the
number of lifestyle-induced
insomniacs or people suffering
from sleep deprivation is going
up, avers Mumbai-based
neuro-psychiatrist Dr. Ashutosh
Kale. What makes it worse is that
it is tightening its grip over
the Indian youth.
Insomnia is being reported among
people in . ... ......more
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Stress Diabetes on
the rise
Dr. Jitendra Singh
Quite in keeping with this
columnist’s earlier postulations regarding
stress Diabetes among Kashmiri Pandit migrants,
there is now universally acknowledged scientific
evidence to show that “chronic persistent
stress” can cause Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus.
Ironically, Diabetes itself can in turn also lead
to considerable mental stress.
Towards the middle and end of 1990s, quite a lot
of scientific interest and amusement was
generated when this columnist for the first time
published findings regarding stress induced
Diabetes among the Internally displaced Kashmiri
Pandit (KP) migrants. Today, vindication comes in
the form of a worldwide unanimous acceptance of
stress as a crucial factor in Diabetes.
Quite in keeping with this columnist’s
earlier postulations regarding stress Diabetes
among Kashmiri Pandit migrants, there is now
universally acknowledged scientific evidence to
show that “chronic persistent stress”
can cause Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus. Ironically,
Diabetes itself can in turn also lead to
considerable mental stress.
Good Stress and Bad Stress
Stress by itself is not bad and to an extent it
is necessary for maintaining life. Infact, stress
can also be described as human body’s
defence against external threats, assaults or
pressures. In the human body, stress sets into
motion both central and peripheral responses.
Neural pathways get activated to induce arousal
alertness, vigilance and focussed attention.
These changes are certainly useful when
stress-inducing . ..........more
Sharks in Cosmetics
Maneka Gandhi
Environmental management does not
mean changing your light bulbs to use less
energy. It means looking at everything you use to
see what is being destroyed.
Have you ever looked at the ingredients in your
make up or lotions? Does your moisturizer or
lipstick carry the word squalene in the
ingredient list? If your answer is yes, then you
are partly responsible for destroying the oceans.
Squalene is oil derived from the liver of
deep-sea sharks. 270,000 sharks are killed every
day just for their fins and oil. The oil from
their livers goes to the cosmetic industry and
the fins go for soup. This enormous and mindless
genocide has made 307 species of sharks
endangered. In fact, the total number of sharks
left in the ocean is ten percent of what they
were in 1950
Deep-sea sharks (those living in ocean depths of
300 to 1500 metres) have especially large
reserves of squalene since their livers comprise
one-third of the weight of the entire animal. So,
most deep-sea sharks are caught only for their
oil. The excessive catching of these sharks has
caused the dramatic population declines of
certain species. Some repeatedly targeted shark
species are the Aizame shark(dog fish) Leafscale
Gulper Shark, and the Gulper, Kitefin and
Portuguese dogfish which live between 1300 –
1500 m below sea level.
Deep sea sharks grow very slowly, mature late in
life and have only a few young in their entire
lives. They take long breaks between reproductive
cycles, rendering them extremely vulnerable to
over-fishing. These sharks are a target species
in many industrial fisheries and are frequently
caught by fishermen targeting other species. As a
result deep . ......more
Sahasranama
literature
O. N Bhat Kuthari
 All the religious
practices aim at the liberation of the
soul from the bondage and sorrow. The
method of attaining this is known as
yoga. Japa Yoga, the chanting of the
divine name is one of the main types of
yoga system for the attainment of
liberation. Nama Japa can be in the form
of japa or stotra. Japa is a silent
repetition of a mantra while stotra is
uttered out loud. The Sahasranama Stotra
is perhaps the most of popular of all the
stotras. There are Sahasranama of most of
the deities of the Hindu Pantheon of
which two have attained great popularity.
These are the Bhawani Sahasranama in
praise of Divine Mother and Vishnu
Sahasranama in praise of Lord Vishnu.
There are so many Sahasranamas of Mother
Goddess of which the Bhawani Sahasranama,
the Lalita Sahasranama and the Uma
Sahasranama are the most popular and
important in the worship of the Divine
Supreme Goddess. Vishnu Sahasranama is a
part of the Shanti Parva of the
Mahabharata. Reciting the thousand names
in praise of Vishnu, Bishma tells
Yudhishtra that one can gain good and
attain salvation.
The recital of the Bhawani Sahasranamas
with faith and devotion, accompanied with
offerings is the best means for the
Sadhaka to attain all the value of life.
By the grace of Divine Mother the
recitation of the Sahasranama cleanses
the aspirant of all the sins and gives
protection from the enemies and all kinds
of dangers, cures serious ailments and
bestows prosperity and progeny. One who
recites it out of pure devotion without
any desire attains the eternal knowledge
of the self for salvation.
The Srichakra is a diagrammatic
representation of the Goddess and her
capital Sripura. Shri Chakra, which is
called the ...
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Upbhokta
Jago
S C Khanna
These days, assorted types
of days - VALENTINE, MOTHER'S, FATHER'S,
WOMEN, SISTER' S, LABOUR DAY are being
celebrated for fun and frolics. It is a
universal fact that all are consumers.
Every creature of the Nature that
consumes, any substance or gets any type
of service is a consumer. A producer,
builder, Government, public private
employee or an officer is a consumer even
the worthy President of India is a
consumer. Every day is a consumer day. It
is suggested that all the consumers
should celebrate the Cap Day of all the
above days i.e. National Consumer Day and
World Consumer Day every year. To get
educated, informative and acquainted with
the fundamentals of self as a consumer,
one must be an active participant of the
celebrations concerning mandatory
requirements. It is to remind ourselves
of our duties and rights. As consumerism
is on the rise in current era, a consumer
must be aware of his rights, obligations
and actions to be taken for the remedies.
It is the fundamental right of a consumer
that he should get the right value of the
price he pays for the commodity, capital
goods, luxury items and services in
particulars. One must be alert about the
quality and quantity of goods one
purchases. But it is a matter of distress
that the consumers are fleeced, cheated
and rendered inefficient and improper
services of the money they pay. We must
be aware that we are getting articles and
services worth the price we are paying,
in my personal survey and daily
experience, it is observed that about
ninety percent consumers do not care for
getting their purchases and services
according to the value they pay. Every
person might have heard the Bhakti Geet
"Jago Mohan Pyare jago, upwan ki sab
kaliyan jagi, jago re jago re jago re.
"So dear UPBHOKTA, Jago, be alert
and do shopping wisely and carefully. A
customer must Observe:- . ........more
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