NamaskAra
Finally, after 2 days of exile from the world of words, I am back again typing on my keyboard, writing this little article.Did someone ask- Exile?Well, kinda.
Its a part of the Navratri Vrata (Fast) when on the eighth day (DurgAshtami) all books belonging to a student are owed to Goddess Saraswati and placed as a collective Puja entity. Books signify the most important source of knowledge for a student (BrahmachAri), and owing it to the Devi herself is a way to pay tribute to Goddess of VidyA (Knowledge) and thus, seek her blessings.And on the tenth day, that is, on the Day of Vijayadashami, A ritual called VidyArambham is performed. An auspicious ceremony marked with Pooja of Hari, Ganapathy, Goddess Saraswati and the Kuladevata (Lord of the Clan).
VidyArambham is derived from the words VidyA and Aarambham that mean the Commencement of Knowledge.
The mantra - Aum HarisrI Ganapathaye namahA avighnamastu - is written on a plate of rice.
This is an initiation into the world of alphabets.'Hari' refers to the Lord, 'sri,' to prosperity. At first, the mantra would be written on sand or in a tray of rice grains. Then, the guru would write the mantra on the child's tongue with gold. Writing on sand denotes practice. Writing on grains denotes the acquisition of knowledge, which leads to prosperity. Writing on the tongue with gold invokes the grace of Devi Saraswathi, the Goddess of Learning, by which one attains the wealth of true knowledge. Another interpretation of the prayer is "Let us bow our head to the master of Hariganam and Sriganam" - Vowels and Consonants -sounds which make up the spoken language. I got this interpretation from another blog - RAJADHARMAM by Mr. RAja VenkatEswaran.
Well, This year's VidyArambham was special, as I wrote the AksharamAla of Kannada LipI for the first time in my life on the rice plate. What an auspicious day to begin!
Once, performed, one opens the bundle of books placed for Pooja two days and starts reading atleast a word from one of them.
Well, this is just a part of today's celebration. The real THING is yet to come in the evening, which is perhaps one of the most awaited events in the calendar.
BURNING OF Ravana!
Yes, ofcourse, today is Vijaydashami or should I say Dussehra. One and the same!
Dussehra marks the victory of Good over Evil, God over Devil.
All the mythical anecdotes propose and conclude the same idea - Ego leads to destruction.
Be it RAvana, Mahishasur or any other evil character from any culture. The one who is smitten by his Ego falls prey to his own trap. One should always try to learn from these stories rather than dismissing them as pure superstition or mythical MYTHS! Yes, Athiests are bound to feel aright, but let them feel so, I don't care. I neither have any objections nor do I bother about their beliefs.
According to me, there is nothing wrong in extracting the moral of a good story. Afterall, all these PurAna are stories (True or not, I am no one to comment, but I believe them to be true)written by Some great thinkers. Lets just move out of it.
Now, the good news about Dussehra is that the countdown to Diwali has begun.
20 days from now, it will be Diwali- The Festival of Lights and Homecoming!
Even though India lost its first match against Pakistan at Champions Trophy, I have hopes pinned again (as always and will always be) on today's game against Australia. Win today or get eliminated once again!
I am sure and quite positive that BhArat will not disappoint today. Afterall, today is the day when Victory of the Good prevails. India must be the better side today and keep in mind the importance of Vijayadashami's message.
Let Us just burn down our Ego before our Ego burns us"
All The Best to India(for their match), and everybody else for their life
Sources - wikipedia and rajavenkateswaran.blogspot.com
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