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Showing posts from March 10, 2015


Pushpaka Vimana – Origin of the Flying Machine of Ravana

Pushpaka Vimana is the legendary flying machine of Ravana mentioned in the Ramayana. Ravana had carried away Sita in the Pushpaka Vimana. Origin of Pushpaka Vimanam as per Vishnu Purana is associated with Surya, the Sun God. It is believed that Pushpaka Vimana was carved out using matter from Sun. Legend has that Surya married Samjna, the daughter of Vishwakarma. But Samjna was unhappy with her married life due to the unbearable heat of Surya. She complained to Vishwakarma, who agreed to solve the problem. It is said that Vishwakarma requested Surya to reduce his heat and he reduced 1/8th of his heat. The flying machine was produced using the reduced heat of Sun. Another legend has that to reduce the heat of Surya, Vishwakarma removed a part of the burning matter from Surya – it said that Surya was grounded on a grinding machine for the purpose. The matter that was removed from Surya fell on earth and from it was created the Pushpaka Vimanam – the flying machine.

Devarshi – Who Are The Devarishis In Hinduism?

Devarshi is a term frequently used in Hindu scriptures especially the Puranas, Mahabharata and Ramayana. But who are the Devarishis? Saints (Rishis) who had attained self realization no longer belong to the earthly plain. They now live among the celestial beings or devas. The rishis that reside in the celestial world is referred as devarishis. There is no known criterion as to what distinguishes a Rishi from a Devarishi. A Devarishi could visit the celestial world and return back to earth and reside among human beings. The most popular Devarishis are: Narada Asita Bhur Bhuva Brihaspati Kashyapa Lomasha Parvata Tanu Shukracharya Vasishta The term Devarishi is widely used to refer to Narada. This is because he had access to all the worlds including Kailash and Vaikuntha.

Book – Butterflies, Parottas and the Bhagavad Gita

The book titled “Butterflies, Parottas and the Bhagavad Gita” is written by Hari Haran M.D. For some the title may be, funny for some and intriguing for others. Let the reader decided the value of the title. The book is a genuine attempt to unravel the holy book Bhagavad Gita through everyday happenings. The first chapter of the book is spent on creating the problem. The solution to the problem is found in the Bhagavad Gita. The first chapter is titled “World”. Everyday we all face numerous problems and silent suffer without realizing that solutions are there to all problems. We only need to make the effort. The book titled “Butterflies, Parottas and the Bhagavad Gita” is this effort to find solutions to problems and not to suffer and burn in them. Important teachings from the Bhagavad Gita are quoted and then a real life situation is created to explain the point. The language used is simple and it is a very good read especially for all those who are prejudiced that s