Martand - Centre of Sun
worship
Sarvadaman
The luminary star (Sun) has been
regarded as not only a source of light and
dispeller of darkness but also as a sustainer of
all life on earth. It was, therefore, natural
that due regard amounting to its worship was
paid. Sun worship was practiced in vedic times.
Though with the passage of time nature worship
was replaced by image worship where idols of star
deities were installed. Magnificent temples were
founded and dedicated to the Sun. There were many
famous shrines which were constructed for the
devotees to offer prayers. The famous temple of
Konark in Orissa prove the popularity of Sun
worship.
Like other parts of India, Sun-worship became
popular in Kashmir during early medieval period.
Local literary works also contain some references
which show that Sun was worshiped on certain
occasions even in ancient period. The
diety’s hold on population could be judged
by the construction of temple dedicated to Sun.
This temple was Martand. Though Kalhana, Kashmir
Historian, has given contradictory references
regarding the founder of Martand. For example at
one place, he has mentioned that King Randitya
founded Martand. And in another book he has
mentioned the name of famous warrior King Lalita
Ditya Mukta Pida. The construction of world
famous Martand is usually ascribed to Lalita
Ditya Mukta Pida. The kind appeared to be a
worshiper of Sun as all pervading phenomenon. He
also offered to the Diety “the territory of
Kanyakubja (Kanauj) together with the
villages.” The fact was that Kanauj King
Yasho Varman had suffered defeat at his hands and
this had made his task easier to march on upto
the bay of Bengal. Turning back, he passed
through Mysore and Konkan territory. He met with
least or no resistance. So his power and valour
naturally would have made him (Lalita Ditya Mukta
Pida) swell with pride. And he paid homage to the
fierce luminary by founding Martand (Sun Temple).
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Age is a
state of mind
Padma Purushotam
According to
fashion diva Diane Von Furstenberg, the
inventor of the seductive and ageless
wrap dress, "Being 40 today is what
30 used to be, and 50 is the new
40." Confused? Well, just take a
deep breath and look around you. Men in
their 40s are echoing a new lifestyle,
which comprises extended adolescence,
hedonism and manicured manners. And women
touching the big Four-O have never looked
sexier. Botox shots, slim waistlines and
haute lifestyles epitomise 40-somethings
today. The gym and spa have redefined
what these men and women look like. The
crunch line is: 40 is the new 30.
We're experiencing a moment when age is
being redefined. On his 42nd birthday
last month, the Czar of Bollywood, Shah
Rukh Khan, epitomised this new attitude,
which is reflected in the lives of a host
of international celebrities who
celebrated the same milestone this
year-Sarah Jessica Parker, Linda
Evangelista, Elizabeth Hurley, Brooke
Shields, Gong Li, and Diane Lane. This is
the new generation of role models, who
are redefining what used to be called
'middle age', earlier.
Everyone is echoing this belief. Take a
look at Desperate Housewives, which is
making all the 40-plus housewives in
India revolutionise the way they look,
feel and love at 40. Delhi-based
socialite Kalyani Chawla, who will hit
the two-score mark next year, agrees:
"The 40s aren't what they used to
be. Women take care of how they look and
what they eat. They work on themselves
constantly. My friends tell me I don't
look 39 at all. The 40s are just an
extension of the 30s.... .. ....more
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Adonis of Bollywood
Zeenat Zafar
 The legendary Kapoor clan
has given another star to the Bollywood. He is
Rishi Kapoor's son, Ranbir who has walked into
every woman's heart and fantasy with Saawariya.
Who wouldn't lust for this young Adonis so much
in love with life and himself?
What is interesting is the universality of his
appeal. Men, women, girls, boys-across all ages,
sexes and sexual preferences are drooling over
the guy unabashedly. In one go, he has
successfully inveigled himself into every woman's
heart, become an icon for young hopefuls and
established himself as an idol in the gay world
too! While some may be comparing the Ranbir
phenomenon to the high melodrama over Hrithik's
debut, fact is that the latter never had the
men's ungrudging vote as much as Ranbir does.
Probably because Hrithik with his machismo
challenged the men in a way Ranbir just doesn't.
Unlike Hrithik, whose machismo, histrionics and
dance technique seem a tad studied, Ranbir brings
with him a freshness and spontaneity that sweeps
the audience off its feet. He has his father's
innocence and vulnerability and the young Neetu's
exuberance and joi de vivre (sadly today Neetu
has metamorphosed into an unsmiling though svelte
older version).
Added to that, Ranbir has a style and confidence
all his own. Overtly confident with his body, he
displays it with a wicked sensuality that cannot
fail to appeal. Indeed, the popular Jab se . . ......more
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A Look Back &
Ahead
O P Sharma
Name of the Book:
Journalism in India: History, Growth and
Development
Author: K C Sharma,
Publisher: Regal Publications, Rajouri Gardens,
New Delhi; 2007,
Pages 367,
Price Rs 980.
 Journalism is a potent
instrument of socio-economic transformation and
the recent technological advances have made it
more powerful. The print media has retained its
supremacy despite the onslaught of electronic
media: Television, Radio and Internet across the
globe.
Journalism has contributed to spread of literacy
which in turn got strengthened with increasing
readership, viewership and circulation ofthe mass
media.
The history of Journalism, its growth and
development in India, over the years, is both
interesting and instructive. Despite its going
through phases of daunting challenges and acute
difficulties, it played its pivotal role in
creating awakening in the society. It galvanised
the Indian people and lent its solid support
during the freedom struggle in the
pre-Independence period and later in the
nation-building.
Basic Principles
During the freedom struggle, the press suffered a
lot but kept the torch of freedom struggle afloat
till India won freedom from foreign yoke.
The 367-page book has detailed history of press
in India and the author has made an objective
analysis of the newspapers, the personalities and
events over the years. It has deliberated upon
the criteria of good newspaper, what makes a good
journalist and journalism as a career.
The chapter on origin and development of Press in
India has been vividly put in new light.
Another feature of this book is its focus on the
“ American and British Journalism: Synoptic
View” spread over 30 pages to give its
parallel study of journalism in India.. ........more
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Invisible
Revolution
G V Joshi
 Ratan Tata of India
has made a very cheap car that
also happens to be very small and
called it "Tata Nano".
But Tata Nano is 3,100,000,000
nanometers (3.1 meters) long. One
nanometer (nm) is one billionth,
or 1 0 raised to the power of -9
of a metre.
For a while there were a few
things called 'mini' but now
'nano' has replaced 'mini'.
However, most of them have
nothing whatsoever to do with
nanotechnology as it is
understood by scientists. These
are only trade names.
Now imagine a world in which
microscopic sized robots are sent
into the human body with the
mission of detecting cancer
cells, disassembling them, and
sending them out into the
bloodstream as waste products.
'This is the world of
nanotechnology.
What exactly is a nano? The
Greeks used the word
"nanos" to mean
'dwarf'"... This term was
first used in science in the 20th
Century and in 1960 it was
recognised when the term
nanometre came into use. Crudely
put, it could be thought of as
about 10 atoms long.
There is not one event that alone
can take credit for originating
Nanotechnology.
India is rather late to enter the
field of nanotechnology. However,
isolated research work was going
on from 1970s at the Tata
Institute of Fundamental
Research, the Indian Institute of
Technology at Kharagpur and Delhi
University's Chemistry
Department.
Largely owing to the drive of Dr
C.N.R. Rao, the well-known
materials sciences expert at the
Jawaharlal Nehru Centre for
Advanced Scientific Research
(NCASR) in Bangalore and a
pioneer in . . ... ......more
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Kidney stones
Dr B L Fotedar
Our urine may look like a simple
fluid, but actually it is a complex liquid that
contains hundreds of chemicals, including many
minerals. Normally these minerals remain
dissolved, but sometimes these minerals
precipitate into crystals that grow into gravel
then stones thus producing a medical crisis.
Super saturation and stone formation occur when
excessive amounts of a mineral are excreted into
the urine or when volume of fluid is decreased by
dehydration. Vitamin A deficiency is one of the
most important causes of kidney stones.
Deficiency of this Vitamin causes damage to the
lining of urinary epithelium, decreased urinary
citrate, the free passage of urine, prolonged
immobilization as in paralysis of lower portion
(paraplegia), inadequate water in take over
functioning of the hormone of the parathyroid
gland (hyper Para thyroidism) are the causes of
the urinary stone formation.
In about 80 percent, the principal mineral in a
kidney stone is calcium, usually combined with
oxylate. Sometimes paired with phosphate or other
substances like uric acid.
According to Ayurvedic system of medicine,
urinary tract stones can be caused by any of the
doshas (biological humors). The main factors are
Kapha (phlegm or water humour) known as Kafaj
ashmari in Ayurveda, which accumulates in the
urinary tract. Vata (wind) dries it our creating
kidney stones. They are primarily related to
wrong diet but other factors come into play as
well. Kapha stones are mainly composed of
calcium. They are soft, smooth, oval in shape,
white in colour and pass out with severe pain.
This type of stone can also cause arthritis,
hardening of arteries and spurs. Vata stones
known as Vataj ashmari in Ayurveda are phosphate
stones, hard in texture, brown or black in
colour, irregular in shape and spiked with rough
surface. These cause severe pain thought the
lower abdomen and thights. Urination becomes
difficult, scanty and irregular. Repeated
colic’s by these stones can cause bleeding
into urine (haematuria) and urinary infection
etc. gradually damaging the kidney and ultimately
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Days to celebrate,
and to reflect
Presently, we see a surfeit of
'Days' to commemorate which have slipped into the
traditional Indian calendar. Are they worth
celebrating, or are they just new-fangled ways to
keep up with the Joneses?
Anju Munshi examines
Have you been receiving messages in your inbox
urging you to hug at least one person on one
particular day (4 December)? Or that eating a
burger or any fast food item is as healthy as a
good relationship ('Fast Food Day on 16
November)?
Well then, welcome to the world of new days and
new ways where you are part of a new global
phenomenon that unifies and bonds people with new
themes on certain days.
There are so many days to observe these days!
Valentine's Day on 14 February is, of course, old
hat now. Every young soul (and old?) including
the marketers, go on overdrive about it. But did
you know there is a day for getting health 'wise'
on 'World Obesity Day on 14 November and
'I-Hate-to-Cook' Day on 8 November?
The Indian calendar choc-a-bloc with many special
days for festivals now have added days 'to
remember' dedicated to mother, father, friends
etc, etc which are bound to put a strain on
memory power. But in a way, it also reflects the
changing times. Time was, when the calendar used
to be stagnant with events like birthdays, 'New
Year's, Christmas, Diwali, Id etc. The oft
repeated chants and rituals had become
predictable and dull. After all, sending birthday
cards to your friends and relatives, reaching out
to friends and colleagues when they are trying to
get over some personal loss, or words of comfort
and encouragement by sending 'best of luck' cards
before an examination has been there always. ......more
Concept of
Universalism
Ab. Gani Khan
Pantheism which is
other words means "Unity of
Being" is very old metaphysical
thought. Right from Plato to Neo-Platines
and Indian Vedantism this philosophical
concept has a long history.
Pantheism analysis in a systematical
manner the relationship of man with God
and Universe. According to Pantheism the
potential nature of man is God. God is
not separate from existence. On the
contrary God and existence are one and
existence is synanimous with God. The
world is the manifestation of God. The
Unity representing God and diversity
representing world are two aspects of
same reality. It is unity which manifests
itself through diversity.
God is not to be found somewhere in
forest, it is residing in the cavity of
human heart. The self of man is identical
with cosmic self. When an enlighted men
sees his own self in each and every being
and self of every being in his own self,
he transcends sarrow and attains that
stage where opposite cease. This stage is
called the self-realization by mystics.
Self realisation is the eventual goal of
mystic. The self is that which exists
within and without, that is birthless
without cause and effect, without any
inside or outside, full all-pervasive
like space. The self has been defined by
various names in various religions viz,
God, Allah, Oum, Satguru, Brahman, Tsuo
etc.
Monotheism or non-duality is ultimate
truth. The conception of non-duality has
been defined in all religions in various
ways. I may quote some instances here,
"As rivers, flowing down become
indistinguishable on reaching the sea by
giving up their names and forms so also
the illumined soul having become freed
from hame and form reaches the self-... .
...more
Virtual
Library
Neetu Andotra
Pradyot Gupta
Today's learner needs much
more than` the facts' or access to
documents and books.To cater their
growing needs, technology has enabled a
virtual library to deliver services like
interlibrary loan, reference, e-journals
and electronic reserves.
Interlibrary loan for distance learner
may be desktop delivery of articles,
delivery of books to distance learning
facilities and patron's homes, and
universal ILL partnerships between
consortium libraries (Fuller 2003).It has
an automated system to show video-tapes
or CDs to answer many questions. With the
help of web, questions from all corners
can be collected and deliver answers
anywhere any hour of day or night.
Personal answers can in the middle of the
night be provided from other time zone.
It can when necessary connect enquirers
to commercial services-such as the
Publisher's International Linking
Association or the ISI web of
science-where users can purchase papers
or books. Looney and Sheehan (2001)
predicted that university bookstores
would soon be marketing e-books which can
be connected to the internet for daily,
weekly or monthly corrections or
updating.
Through the use of e-journals, improved
knowledge from reputed universities,
research labs, Govt. labs and private
companies through out the world could be
used by the distance learner. Helller R.
Stephen outlined following fundamental
difference between e-journal and
traditional journal: (a) Information flow
is all electronic (b) Information is
delivered when available-no wait for a
bound issue to be printed (c) Information
is easier to correct. Errata are not
`lost' the way they are in print
publication (d)Reader and /or reviewer
comments can be appended to the published
information making the result potentially
more useful.(e) Newer data and . ........more
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