While the Hindu scriptures have given vivid and moving description of
the construction of the Rama Sethu, it's existence has now been
confirmed by two scientific sources.
If Rama Sethu can be preserved and the SSCP implemented, no one will
object. This is precisely the stand of K.T. Thomas, retired Judge of
the Supreme Court who opined recently that "It is my definite opinion
that Rama Sethu must not be broken". Another retired Judge of the
Supreme Court, Krishna Iyer wrote to the PM calling the SSCP "an
action hostile to the nation and its swaraj".
The Dravid-ian Kazhagam leader, K. Veeramani, has recently threatened
to burn the Ramayana in a public protest against "Aryan Supremacy".
Hence, his idiom is outdated. `Aryan' incidentally is a word
popularised by Adolf Hitler, which word has no equivalent in Sanskrit
vocabulary. The closest is the word `arya', which is no racial
connotation. The Tamil equivalent of `arya' is `aiya'. The linguistic
root of the word is thus the same-meaning a cultured or noble person,
and not a race.
Veeramani's earlier adulation of Ravana in his anti-Brahmin tirade had
to come to an embarrassing end because he discovered that the Ravana
was actually a Brahmin[`Aryan' ] scholar of the Sama Veda who had
meditated in Kailash to get a boon.
The Aryan-Dravidian racial divide theory, is a mischievous construct
of the British Imperialists and their tutees like Romilla Thapar.
Modern research and DNA analysis have now decisively debunked any such
racial dichotomy in the Indian profile of ancestry. Time has come
therefore to purge the theory from text books.
The Dravida Movement which includes DMK, MDMK, PMK, and DK parties,
has turned it's ire on Bhagwan Shri Ram, the King of Ayodhya, and want
the Rama Sethu to be demolished because it is a symbol of "North
Indian" domination. Also, the demolition would facilitate the LTTE
brigand boats to move quicker from Tuticorin to Chennai on the Palk
Strait, and on international waters. At present, the Rama Sethu stands
in the way. Hence their vociferous support for the Sethu Samundram
Ship Canal Project [SSCP]. Hence the project in the present form must
resolutely opposed.
To begin with, Shri Rama really emerged in national perception as a
Maryada Purushottam divinity as distinct from a young dutiful prince
of Ayodhya only after his sojourn to South India. In her S.C.Misra
Memorial Lecture, Professor Suvira Jaiswal
[www.thehindu. com/2007/ 03/12/stories] , who has become the President of
the Indian History Congress recently, states that King Rama of Ayodhya
was transformed into Bhagwan Shri Rama of the whole nation, i.e., as a
re-incarnation of Vishnu because of the Tamil Vaishnava saints, Alwars
who sang praises of the qualities of Shri Rama. She also states that
Chola and Pandya Kings despite being Shaivites, built the first
temples for Rama as a deity. Thus, while Raja Ram may be regarded as a
`northerner' from Ayodhya by the DK, nevertheless Bhagwan Shri Rama as
a divine incarnation is the revelation of Tamil saints to the Hindu
religion nationally. Shri Rama is a symbol of our nation oneness.
Alwars and Nayanmar saints also propagated what the Dravidian Movement
needs to learn fast: God is universally accessible, and grants
salvation irrespective of caste to all those who worship him with
complete devotion. God is not pro-any caste or where one is born. If
such is the faith, who is the government to question it? As the
Punjab&Haryana High Court division bench opined in 1993 in the
Brahmasaravor case, even a stone in an ancient national monument if
the people have faith in it.
While the Hindu scriptures have given vivid and moving description of
the construction of the Rama Sethu, it's existence has now been
confirmed by two scientific sources. In the first, the present
configuration of the Rama Sethu has been photographed by US National
Aeronautics and Space Agency [NASA] by their satellites, and colour
photos of the same published in these columns earlier. These photos
establish the Sethu's existence as a chain of shoal stones. The
Department of Earth Science, of the government of India have in a
report to the President of India have stated that shoal stones
placement make out that they were "deliberately placed there". That
is, as if it was constructed in the manner described in the Valmiki,
Kamban, and Tulsidas, saints who authored the Ramayana Epic. NASA also
establishes the age of the shoal stone formation as 1, 750,000 years
ago. The bridge formation by placing these stones one by one,
according to the Earth Science Department is not less than 9000 years.
Such independent corroboration therefore cannot be dismissed as mere
coincidence and not worthy of notice as the DMK nominee in the Union
Ministry of Shipping Shri T.R. Baalu has been saying. At the very
minimum it requires a full inquiry as to whether or not the said Rama
Sethu is a Hindu heritage site. Millions believe it to be so, and
hence the government cannot take a narrow cynical view of such faith.
The objective of the Rs. 2427 crore SSCP nevertheless could be a
worthy one, and for the national good. At present cargo and passenger
ships have to go around the island of Sri Lanka to reach Tuticorin
from Chennai or vice versa. If SSCP is implemented, the present
sailing time on this route would be reduced up to 36 hours because of
a shorter distance of up to 424 nautical miles. Cost saving of nearly
Rs.1000 crores annually could thereby be effected, making the project
cost-effective and viable financially. But the cost saved is all that
much that Rama Sethu has to be demolished. Hence, if Shri Rama Sethu
can be preserved and the SSCP implemented, no one will object. This is
precisely the stand of K.T. Thomas, retired Judge of the Supreme Court
who opined recently that "It is my definite opinion that Rama Sethu
must not be broken". Another retired Judge of the Supreme Court,
Krishna Iyer wrote to the PM calling the SSCP "an action hostile to
the nation and its swaraj".
That is, while no rational opinion is against the project per se what
is however sought is a feasible amendment of the SSCP, to avoid
vandalising the Rama Sethu and destructing it, thereby hurting the
religious sentiment of millions of Hindus. The objective of SSCP can
be achieved by digging through the 15 kilometer mainland stretch
between Pamban and Dhanushkodi, adjacent to the Rama Sethu thereby
leaving hoary Sethu intact. This approach of seeking of an alternative
was followed by the Delhi Metro when it's underground route digging
came too close to the Qutub Minar.
Moreover, retention of the Rama Sethu as it is, will ensure as it did
in the past the minimisation of the damage from the Tsunami disaster
when the spread of the massive displacement of sea water caused plate
tectonic earthquake in Aceh reached the shores of India. The Rama
sethu acted as a wave and speed-breaker, thus saving enormous number
of lives and damage to property.
I would therefore suggest that the SSCP be put on hold, and the
alternative canal route be researched by a committee of experts and an
amended project report be prepared. This is incidentally the opinion
of a very wise Sub-Judge Mohammed Asif of the Ramanathapuram
Subordinate Court. On February 23, 2007 while ruling on a petition
challenging the SSCP he stated: "Imperatives of development and our
commitment to protect heritage are two ends. A careful, intelligent
balance should be struck between the two. Final opinion could be
pronounced on issues raised by the petitioners only after subjecting
their documents to thorough scrutiny with opinion of experts in the
field".
The President of India Dr. Abdul Kalam, also from Ramanathapuram,
should heed the sage advice of the Sub-Judge, and thus forward the
petition of 5 million signatures submitted to him on September 27,
2006 by the Hindu Munnani to the Supreme Court, and seek an opinion
under Article 143 of the Constitution on the economics, environment
and archeology of the project, and for protecting the Rama Setu. The
Apex Court then could set up a committee of experts to help form an
opinion of the Court. That is the most amicable way to resolve the issue.
The Rama Sethu is a living miracle, and therefore the Government of
India ought to approach the UNESCO to get it declared as the 28th
World Heritage Site. The Tourism Ministry should also develop the area
to vest it with the essential infrastructure so that pilgrims can come
from far and wide.
05-20-2007, 05:24 PM (This post was last modified: 05-20-2007, 05:26 PM by Husky.)
Apparently I am the only one bothered with a paragraph pasted in the previous post. It's this bit:
<!--QuoteBegin-k.ram+May 20 2007, 04:53 AM-->QUOTE(k.ram @ May 20 2007, 04:53 AM)<!--QuoteEBegin--><b>Defend Rama Sethu</b>
By Subramanian Swamy
[...]
To begin with, Shri Rama really emerged in national perception as a Maryada Purushottam divinity as distinct from a young dutiful prince of Ayodhya only after his sojourn to South India. In her S.C.Misra Memorial Lecture, Professor Suvira Jaiswal [www.thehindu. com/2007/ 03/12/stories], who has become the President of the Indian History Congress recently, states that King Rama of Ayodhya was transformed into Bhagwan Shri Rama of the whole nation, i.e., as a re-incarnation of Vishnu because of the Tamil Vaishnava saints, Alwars who sang praises of the qualities of Shri Rama. She also states that Chola and Pandya Kings despite being Shaivites, built the first temples for Rama as a deity. Thus, while Raja Ram may be regarded as a `northerner' from Ayodhya by the DK, nevertheless Bhagwan Shri Rama as a divine incarnation is the revelation of Tamil saints to the Hindu religion nationally. Shri Rama is a symbol of our nation oneness.[right][snapback]69051[/snapback][/right]<!--QuoteEnd--><!--QuoteEEnd-->Seems I'm permanently stuck in the twilight zone.
Why is Subramaniam Swamy referring to a communist's recent thesis (that of Misra)? Ideas which are by the way nowhere attested among Hindus or Hindu literature, and have completely emerged from the communist mind? See post 92 of Politics of Indian History 2 thread for where Misra's ideas were first introduced - it was also posted by K.Ram and he described the contents with the words "commie alert". (Sorry K.Ram, I'm assuming you're male. Not trying to be sexist here.)
Misra says that Rama was basically invented by writers. And after naming something the 'Rama cult' he says that this was invented quite late. His theory talks of some inane concept called 'ramology', by the way. Cute. This theory was invented about two months ago. Is 2 months all it takes now to utterly rewrite thousands of years of Hinduism?
Instead of taking offense at these latest lies and the associated denial of all Hindu traditions and experiences relating to Rama to date, Subramaniam Swamy chooses to endorse those views. Why did he blindly except these modern notions that seek to rewrite a major part of Hinduism? He should have checked what he gave his approval too. He can't afford to make blunders.
Why are Hindus so naive? Why so quick to sell out everything they learnt from childhood in order to replace it with the latest theory by communists - and one that's in utter conflict with all of Hindu experience too?
Does Subramaniam Swamy know of a single Hindu who has learnt from their parents/grandparents/great-grandparents those ideas that Misra has only recently manufactured? Then why thoughtlessly cite an unfounded, meaningless and unbaked theory?
As someone who has been given the opportunity to speak and say something that will influence his Hindu audience I think Swamy has made a huge mistake. *Very huge*. Can anyone here contact him to tell him to cut out that lame paragraph where he endorses the latest communist rewrite of Hinduism?
It's bad enough communists are allowed to write our history books. Now they are allowed to dictate what is and is not Hinduism too? No one would have accepted Misra's make-believe. Except that Swamy has now basically unwittingly given his stamp of approval to it. <!--emo&:angry:--><img src='style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/mad.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='mad.gif' /><!--endemo-->
Swamy is wasting his time trying to appeal to the DMK and will instead disappoint (if not lose the confidence of) many people whose Isthadevam is Ramar, by his apparent agreement with Misra on 'ramology'.
It's all we need, more Hindus denying other Hindus' (especially the older generations') experiences and long-held knowledge.
Swamy should try to retain the people already on his side, instead of alienating them. The DMK is beyond winning over, they <i>like</i> to believe in nonexistent Dravidioids and Oryans. So there's no need to insult his own supporters in order to attract the disinterested opposition.
05-21-2007, 06:38 AM (This post was last modified: 05-21-2007, 06:48 AM by Husky.)
Chandramoulee, you're right it's not Misra but Jaiswal. That's my mistake (also Jaiswal is a she... another mistake.)
So if you mentally replace all occurrences of my use of Misra in that post with Jaiswal then the post still stands and I don't retract my complaint contained therein.
<!--QuoteBegin-->QUOTE<!--QuoteEBegin-->I request Husky to read once again Dr Swamy's words.<!--QuoteEnd--><!--QuoteEEnd-->I did after your suggestion.
I like all the other writings of S Swamy's that I've read at IF, as well as most of that article of his posted above. I only have a problem with his easy acceptance and endorsement of this new theory, a theory which suggests things heretofore unknown to many of the Hindu population.
This is the bit about the DMK (and similar) that I referred to:
<!--QuoteBegin-->QUOTE<!--QuoteEBegin-->The Dravida Movement which includes DMK, MDMK, PMK, and DK parties,
has turned it's ire on Bhagwan Shri Ram, the King of Ayodhya, and want
the Rama Sethu to be demolished because it is a symbol of "North
Indian" domination. ...<!--QuoteEnd--><!--QuoteEEnd-->After this comes the paragraph where the writer tries to explain how DMK et al are in error as it has nothing to do with 'North Indian domination' (which is right); but S Swamy needlessly refers to Jaiswal's new theory to do so. Rama has nothing to do with N Indian domination, but why resort to accepting that "King Rama of Ayodhya was transformed into Bhagwan Shri Rama of the whole nation, i.e., as a re-incarnation of Vishnu because of the Tamil Vaishnava saints"? Note, I'm not denying their contribution in making Ramar popular - which is apparently significant - I'm only contesting that until then he was never seen as Vishnu and that he was not worshipped as divinity.
Correct me if I'm wrong, every time I've ever heard the Ramayanam narrated, Shabari was a devotee of Rama. How can that be unless she did regard him as divine? Same goes for Hanuman, Jambhavan and others.
I know modern-day Hindus are only willing to accept characters as historical - if even that - if they can re-explain long-held perceptions about these characters' divinity via apotheosis (Rama, Krishna). As I've probably said several times in that previous post, this has nothing to do with the Hinduism of older generations.
This rewriting thing is not unique to the Indian situation. People today in general like to forcefit all non-Abrahamic religions into either the mythology category <i>or</i> history but where the latter is denuded of all significance.
I'd rather not have any historical Rama and Krishna if it can mean that certain old relatives of mine get to keep their traditional Isthadevas intact as described in the Puranas (Ramayanam and Mahabharatam in this case). Historicity doesn't interest me, no old family member ever dated Rama or Krishna or other deities ever anyway. It was always "a long time ago when King X ruled in Y".
Shiva, Uma, Kamis and the Great Spirit cannot be shown as historic either, but that does not detract from the value they have long had and meaning they've given for people in India, Japan and N America respectively. It is in this respect that these Gods can continue to work their inspirational magic on people.
When communists do choose to accept a historic Rama of Ayodhya, they invariably want to turn him into a random king devoid of anything useful or meaningful or having anything in common with the Rama old-generation Hindus and their ancestors grew up with. This is just another angle of attack, the previous one was labelling all our Gods with small g and calling our stuff 'mythology' whereas biblical stories plagiarised from older civilisations' stories is called History. Even meaningful mythology is better than a useless rewrite of 'history'.
In Jaiswal's case, Rama is not historical:
<!--QuoteBegin-->QUOTE<!--QuoteEBegin-->Ayodhya of Rama was originally mythical ( link )<!--QuoteEnd--><!--QuoteEEnd-->but she goes one further: even traditional Hindu 'mythology' related to Rama is not allowed to be traditional, and Hindus for generations apparently have been deluding themselves into thinking they've been understanding Rama the same way their ancestors did at the time of Valmiki's Ramayana composition.
Accepting a retelling of our own religion that is inconsistent with Hindu traditions thus far will only be to the further detriment of our traditions. My opinion of course.
This is all the point I was trying to make (unfortunately, the verbosity to explain it could not be helped). My problem was not with Jaiswal inventing stuff - such people do it all the time - my problem was with someone as respectable and trustworthy as Subramaniam Swamy referring to that as if it were reliable.
Oh, another aspect of my problem, which naturally follows, is that I don't really understand what many Hindus of today mean when they say they want to 'preserve' Sanatana Dharma. Does that mean, for example, that they want to preserve the narration and understanding of Puranas as has been done for ages, or does it mean we just keep rewriting it as communists, and others inimical to our religion, dictate? <!--emo&:blink:--><img src='style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/blink.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='blink.gif' /><!--endemo--> I suppose my thinking that Hinduism being labelled 'mythology' is the lesser of the two evils (that we were better off when we were still allowed to have 'mythology' at least) makes clear where I stand on this last.
Tangentially related, but a must-read for the above discussion.
<!--QuoteBegin-->QUOTE<!--QuoteEBegin-->Conclusion: The critical study of the origins of the Greeks, their language, Homer, âHomeric questionâ, the evolution of Iliad and Odyssey and related topics prove the following facts:
1. First, the scholars up to 18th-19th centuries traced the origins of the Greeks to India. Then, they changed the stand and started propagating the idea that Indians derived everything from the Greeks, particularly, after the âAlexanderâs invasionâ.
2. However, the more and more the archaeological evidences are studied critically, the depictions of human figures, gods and goddess, flora and fauna etc., point to India and living Indian tradition, as no other western country or even for that matter, Greece preserves and protects such living tradition, culture and tradition exhibited through material evidences.
3. As the origins of the Greek people (.c.1000 BCE), their language (c.800 BCE), âHomerâ (c.800 BCE), the works attributed to him (c.400 BCE), their presentation (c.200 BCE), development in stages (up to first centuries of CE), committed to writing in Greek (may be after c.400 BCE) after the development of Greek script from the Phoenician (10th-9th cent.BCE) etc., have been uncertain but a lot of assumptions have been made, their origins have to be decided.
6. The arguments put forward that at the Greeks themselves utterly forgotten by their descendants, and therefore we are unable to fix the date, the old home of the invaders is supposed to have lain in the north-west regions of the Balkan peninsula, the Greeks of history who had completely forgotten this far-distant past were not exclusively the descendants of these Greek invaders read with other views recorded subscribing to the Indian origin, make to think that scholars have changed their stand for the best reasons only known to them.
7. However, the forceful Greek origin for every Indian arts and sciences makes one to analyze the truth, as the evidences make the bubble burst.
8. As the Ramayanic incidences had happened long back, it is evident that such happenings had been recorded in different civilizations variously, but preserving the core story. However, in Indian (and Southeast Asian and other) tradition, it has been preserved and protected to greater extent and followed and practiced even today in social, cultural, religious and inter-related forms.
9. The scholars who dub Ramayana as myth have evidently not gone into all details, as they have been experts in their respective fields. Therefore, multi-disciplinary approach should be adapted and adopted to analyze literary evidences, scrutinize the fanciful / strange descriptions presented, verify with material evidences, sift, corroborate and correlate such evidences and then come to conclusions without any bias of any kind.
10. Research without Professional bias, Social prejudice, political dominance, pre-determined disposition and religious indoctrination also makes scholars spiritual, in the sense to attain Professional Spirituality. Finding truth is always hall mark of spirituality in any field.
Swamy challenges Baalu to debate on Ram Setu issue
PTI | May 22, 2007 | 16:11 IST
Challenging Union Shipping Minister T R Baalu to a debate on the Ram Setu issue, Janata Party president Dr Subramanian Swamy on Tuesday demanded the issue of a White Paper by the Centre on surveys and other matters pertaining to the multi-crore Sethusamudaram Canal Project.
"Let him (Baalu) come out with a white paper on surveys undertaken," Swamy demanded at a press conference in Chennai, and said he would seek details under the Right to Information Act.
Swamy said he would not hesitate to lodge a complaint under the IPC if Baalu continued his constant remarks about Ram Setu 'that it is imaginary.'
The Janata Party chief claimed that even the Earth Science Department had concluded that 'it was not a natural deposit, but had been placed there.'
He said he was ready to enter into a public debate with Baalu on the issue. Swamy also wanted to know why the alternate route-four, which, according to him, was more feasible, was not being considered instead of route-six in which path the monument stood.
<b>Stating that he was going to internationalise the issue,</b> Swamy said the <b>Sri Lankan government had, in reply to his letter, said it would take up the matter soon with India about Ram Setu being a heritage monument of the island nation</b>.
Sure! Ravana strolled along that, dragging Seeta. And Sirmavo Soorpanaka Bandaravananaike walked along that to go see Rama, which is what made much of the Sethu go down 10 feet. Kumbakarna snored there on his beachmat. <!--emo&:whistle--><img src='style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/whistle.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='whistle.gif' /><!--endemo-->
<b>He said he would also be writing to the Chinese president about it being associated with Chinese cultural heritage.</b>Â <!--emo&:guitar--><img src='style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/guitar.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='guitar.gif' /><!--endemo-->
(That's because it is actually called "MAO Sethu". Mao se Dung walked along this on the Long March, and it is an extension of the Great Wall of China. )
<!--QuoteEnd--><!--QuoteEEnd-->
If it is called "Adam's Bridge" I wonder if it is not also Israeli Heritage. Maybe the term "Ram Sethu" comes from "Ramon Steinbrenner"? Just curious.
It would be good to have the People's Sethu Liberation Navy and the Israeli Navy "protecting" the Palk Strait for Admiral Swamy and the Ram (madhav) Sethu Sena, from the evil Indian Navy, no?
It's always good to get see Hindu "netas" get "phoren collaborashun" to intervene in Indian internal squabbles. Worked so beautifully since 1495, and even better since 1600.
<!--QuoteBegin-Viren+May 29 2007, 08:56 PM-->QUOTE(Viren @ May 29 2007, 08:56 PM)<!--QuoteEBegin-->These UPA guys are absolutely brilliant... Rama destroyed a bridge that he did NOT build!!!!!!!! Rama Sethu: UPA's U turn
[right][snapback]69492[/snapback][/right]
<!--QuoteEnd--><!--QuoteEEnd-->
06-03-2007, 09:53 AM (This post was last modified: 06-03-2007, 09:55 AM by Bodhi.)
<!--QuoteBegin-->QUOTE<!--QuoteEBegin--><span style='color:red'>Sethu samples for independent tests </span>
New Delhi, Jun 2: Centre today made an open offer to provide rock and soil samples from the Adam's Bridge region of the controversial Sethusamdram project for carrying out scientific tests.
"There is an open offer. We will provide samples collected from the area to persons wanting to carry out tests independently," Minister of Earth Sciences Kapil Sibal told reporters.
Sibal said the present alignment of the Sethusamudram project has been arrived at after detailed scientific and environmental tests.
"The present alignment is the best we can have," he said.
Sibal said utmost care has been taken to in the planning and execution of the project to ensure the least impact on the coasts of India and Sri Lanka.
"The Sethusamudram Ship Channel is located at a distance of more than 20 Km from Shingle Island of Gulf of Mannar near Dhanuskodi," N K Raghupathy, Chairman and Managing Director of Sethusamudram Corporation Limited said making a presentation on the project here.
The total length of the channel is 167 km, 12m deep and 300 meters wide at the bottom.
Raghupathy, who also heads the Tuticorin Port Trust, said the project managers <b>will not use blasting technology for dredging activity</b> along the entire length of the project.
He said there will be a restriction on the size of ships passing through the channel. (Agencies)
1. Test of what, Mr. Sibal?
2. Adam's Bridge, not Setu. So, when the insignia of ASI reads 'Aasetu Himaachal', what exactly does it mean by 'Setu' there, Mr. Sibal?
Amazon mentions a translation in English: http://www.amazon.com/Kamba-Ramayanam-Engl...g/dp/8172760477
No book search available <i>I think</i> - but it's released by Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan (780 pages, so it's unlikely to gloss over events).
06-03-2007, 09:56 PM (This post was last modified: 06-03-2007, 10:11 PM by Husky.)
(Removed earlier post referring to Rajaji's retelling in English of Ramayanam with <i>just bits</i> of Kambar Ramayanam - sorry for that error)
<!--QuoteBegin-->QUOTE<!--QuoteEBegin-->Amazon mentions a translation in English:
it's released by <b>Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan</b> (780 pages, so it's unlikely to gloss over events).<!--QuoteEnd--><!--QuoteEEnd-->
Title: <b>Kamba Ramayanam: An English prose rendering</b>
by H. V Hande (Author)
<b>Contact details for BV Bhavan in USA:</b> http://www.bhavanus.com/
Welcome to Bhavan,USA ⢠305 7th Avenue, 17th Floor, New York, NY 10001 ⢠Tel: (212)989 8383
<b>July 22 deadline</b>
<b>Hindu leaders' ultimatum to UPA on Ram Sethu</b>
By Pramod Kumar
Organiser
June 10, 2007
Giving an ultimatum to the UPA government, the saints have warned the government
to stop destruction of Ram Sethu forthwith. They set July 22 as deadline for the
government and made it clear that if it did not take any decision before the
deadline, they would be compelled to take a strong decision. âThere will be a
Dharma Sansad in Delhi on July 22 and the saints from all parts of the country
will participate in it. If the government fails to take a concrete decision
before that, the saints will be forced to take any strong decision to save the
Ram Sethu,â declared VHP president Shri Ashok Singhal while addressing a
gathering of more than 25,000 people at Ramlila Grounds in Delhi on May 27. The
rally was organised by Shri Ram Sethu Raksha Manch, Delhi. Before the rally, the
saints addressed more than 150 public meetings across Delhi to expose the
conspiracy on the part of UPA government to demolish the Ram Sethu.
âThe political leaders could be coward, but the people of this country are not
coward or weak. When the structure at Ayodhya was demolished, they did not
bother about their lives. Now too they are ready for any sacrifice,â added Shri
Singhal. The people participating in the rally responded in affirmation to this
call of Shri Singhal by shouting the slogan of Jai Shri Ram. Shri Singhal
warned the government not to play with the sentiments of Hindus and also do not
test their patience.
Explaining the conspiracy behind the demolition of Ram Sethu, he said the people
of Europe do not recognise the history and culture of Bharat and they want to
destroy it. That is why they call Shri Ram and Shri Krishna the mythological
characters. The British did not accept this fact and now Smt. Sonia Gandhi too
does not accept it. They do not recognise the Indian history prior to the
Buddhist era. They feel if the historiy of Sethu is accepted, then the
historicity of Shri Ram will continue to be proved. That is why Smt Gandhi went
to inaugurate the project on July 2, 2005, he added. Shri Singhal again made it
clear that the saints are not against the Sethusamudaram Project. âThe
government is bent upon spending Rs 2400 crore on the project by dredging the
Ram Sethu. If it adopts the alternate route and dig a canal in the barren land
the project will cost only Rs 1200 crore,â he said.
VHP general secretary Dr Pravin Togadia said if it were Ali Sethu the Manmohan
Singh government would not have dared to touch it. Besides preserving it, the
government would also have declared subsidy for Muslims to visit it. âRam Sethu
is a teerth for us and we will not allow anyone to destroy it at any cost,â he
said adding that the government is making all efforts to destroy the identity
and culture of Hindus. He said the governments of Egypt and China are spending
crores of rupees to preserve their ancient sites but our government is spending
cores of rupees to destroy our ancient sites, which are internationally
important.
Senior BJP leader Dr Murli Manohar Joshi gave a detailed account of his visit to
the site and also the scientific facts about the Sethu. He said those who claim
that it is not Ram Sethu are the biggest liars. Even the government documents
prove that it is Ram Sethu and there are also evidences that it is man made. It
is a unique example of our ancient glorious know-how. It is the only man made
bridge in the world,â he said.
Janata Party president Dr Subramanian Swamy called upon the people to be ready
for a bigger battle. He said the main battle is between âOmâ and âRomeâ and
âOmâ would defeat âRomeâ. Ramjanmabhoomi Trust president Mahant Nritya Gopal
Das warned those who think that the Hindu society is coward and weak. He said
if the government does not stop the dredging work, the saints would take a
tough decision on July 22. Dr Bajranglal Gupt, Kshetra Sanghachalak of RSS,
said the Hindu society needs to adopt the same way, which was adopted by Shri
Ram when the sea did not give Him way to reach Lanka.
Shankaracharya Vasudeva-nanda Saraswati said those who feel that only the saints
of North India are fighting for the Sethu, should see that a prominent saint
from the South, Pejawar Swami, is presiding over this rally in Delhi. Swami
Parmatmanand said the saints presented all kinds of evidences to the government
proving that it is Ram Sethu. But it is not ready to accept the truth. Presiding
over the rally, Pejawar Swami Shri Vishveshteerth appealed to the people to
stand unitedly as they had stood unitedly during the Banga-bhanga movement,
which forced the British government to cancel the Partition of Bengal. He said
the Hindu should be ready for big satyagraha.
Swami Sureshananda, a close associate of Sant Asaram Bapu, said those who are
trying to demolish the Ram Sethu are bhagwatdrohi and the God would definitely
punish them. He said the demolition of Ram Sethu is not good with regard to the
security of the country. Swami Narendranand Maharaj said talking in peaceful
manner must not be taken as cowardness. âShri Ram had also sent various
proposals of peace to Ravana, but he did not accept them. And what happened
later, is known to everyone,â he added. Dr Ramvilas Das Vedanti, Mahant
Sudhirdas, Swami Vishwadevananda Maharaj, Shri Naval Kishor Das and various
other saints also spoke on the occasion. Convener of Shri Ram Sethu Raksha
Manch, Delhi, Shri B.L. Sharma âPremâ proposed a vote of thanks.
Ram Sethu is world heritage
Well-known writer Padamshri Dr Shyam Singh âShashiâ, on the basis of his
anthropological studies, has said that Ram Sethu from Rameshwaram to Sri Lanka
was constructed by Lord Rama with the help of south Indian tribes. In this
regard, on behalf of the Research Foundation International and other
organisations, he has written to the Presidents of India and Sri Lanka, Prime
Minister of India, Chief Ministers of Tamil Nadu and Kerala and UNO to save the
Ram Sethu from demolition and declare the same the international heritage. He
said there might be Hanuman temple, Ram Darbar and Ravanaâs yajna type of
picnic spots for attracting the tourists from all over the world. Dr Shashi
expressed the need for international dialogue on the subject among the
Indologists, archeologists, anthropologists, historians and geologists. (FOC)
Akhand Kirtan at Jantar Mantar to save Ram Sethu
The entire Hindu society is agitated over the efforts of the Government of India
to demolish the Ram Sethu. A telling evidence of this agitation was the
collective kirtan performed by hundreds of women belonging to Akhand Hindusthan
Morcha at Jantar- Mantar in New Delhi on May 17. Performing the kirtan the women
prayed to the God to cleanse the mind of the rulers. Smt. Suman, convener of
Akhand Hindusthan Mahila Sankirtan Mandal, Dr Annapoorna Mishra, Smt. Laxmi
Dhasmana and Smt Nisha gave detailed information about the reprehensible
efforts of the UPA government to demolish the Ram Sethu under foreign diktat.
They said it is not only the question of the cultural heritage of the country
but also of the beliefs of the entire Hindu world. Protection of this ancient
heritage is the duty of the entire mankind. (FOC)
1. An official of the Prime Minister's office told me last night that the Union Cabinet had asked the Union Minister for Parliamentary Affairs Mr.Suresh Pachouri to fly by special plane to Jhoteshwar, Madhya Pradesh to meet Swami Swaroopanand Saraswati, one of the Jagadguru Shankaracharyas at his Ashram. <b>Mr.Suresh Pachouri, also a long-term devotee of the Shankaracharya, met him yesterday afternoon to seek the Acharya's help in containing the growing VHP-led agitation for protecting the Rama Setu</b>.
2. Mr.Pachauri told the Acharya, according to PMO source, that the Centre has decided to abandon the plan to breach the Rama Setu for the Setu Samudrum Canal Project, and seek "an amicable way out". <b>The Prime Minister has also told the DMK nominee as Union Shipping Minister, T.R.Baalu "not to touch the Rama Setu".</b>
<b>However, Ms.Sonia Gandhi is reportedly keen that the "credit" for abandoning the project's plan to destruct the Rama Setu does not go to the VHP and RSS. </b>
Hence the brief given to Mr.Pachauri was to involve Swami Swaroopanand whose pro-Congress credentials are well known, to "negotiate" with the Union Government and reach a settlement.
3.In a massive rally organized by the VHP on May 27th at New Delhi's Ramlila Maidan at which I was also a speaker, the venerated sadhus from all over India resolved under the chairmanship of Pejawar Mutt Swamiji, to give an ultimatum to the Union Government to stop the attempted destruction of the Rama Setu, built by Lord Rama's Vanar Sena as a causeway to enable the Lord's army to cross into Sri Lanka where Sita Devi was kept prisoner by Ravana.
4.The Madras High Court has admitted the three Writ Petitions filed on this issue by the Hindu Munnani and myself on May 15, 2007. The matter for stay of the project will be heard by the Court on June 14th.
