PALAK RAITA - BY SENIOR CHEF - Swathi Narayan

North Indian meal is incomplete without a serving of raita. So here we do Palak raita:

Ingredients for Palak Raita: 

     1-1/2 Cup – Curd

     1 Cup Spinach/ Palak (Steamed & chopped)

      ½ Tomato (Chopped)

      2 tbsp – Onions (Chopped)

      coriander Leaves (Chopped)

      1 tsp – Cumin Seeds Powder

      ½ tsp – Red Chilli Powder

      Black Salt to taste

             Method of Preparation for Palak Raita:

     In a bowl add curd, Palak, tomato, onions, coriander leaves mix it well.

       Cumin seeds powder, red chilli powder, black salt to taste.

       Give it a mix.

        Our Palak Raita is ready.                                                                            

                                                                                                                          

  

– Swathi Narayan  

Independent Senior Chef  - Editorial Team - Chathurya                                          

Yoga and its Benifits - Swetha Narayan

What is yoga?

Yoga is an ancient physical and spiritual discipline and branch of philosophy that originated in India reportedly more than 5,000 years ago. The word yoga comes from the Sanskrit word yuj, which means to yoke, join, or unite. The Iyengar School of yoga defines yuj as the "joining or integrating of all aspects of the individual - body with mind and mind with soul - to achieve a happy, balanced and useful life." The ultimate aim of yoga, they claim, is to reach kaivalya (emancipation or ultimate freedom).

The origins of Yoga dates back to pre-Vedic Indian traditions and it is mentioned in Rigveda, most likely developed around the fifth or sixth century BC. Yoga word derived from Sanskrit, Yoga means to yoke or join together. Thus, the purpose of Yoga is to unite body, mind and spirit.

‘Patanjali’ is considered as ‘Father of Yoga, because who only made it more accessible through Yoga Sutras. Also, Yoga is mentioned in Bhagavad gita and Mahabharata defines the purpose of Yoga as the experience of uniting the individual atman with universal Brahman that pervades all things.

Every year Yoga day is celebrated on June 20^th and other countries also follow the same, by this India has got the Vishwa Guru Status in the Worldwide.

-  Swetha Narayan - Author

Free Will - Sri Krishna

In our previous edition, we saw what the ‘Theory of Karma’ state. We also saw that the resultant fruit of good karma will always be good and vice versa. Now, if everything is dependent on karma, why do we need to do any work at all? Can we put the blame on karma or god for all the bad things we face?  What is our part to be played then?

Consider this, you are driving a car at 12.00 in the midnight and you reach a junction or cross roads, with the traffic lights showing red. You neither see anyone on the road nor any vehicles plying. What would you do? Will you jump the red or would you wait till the red turns green?

This is where you exercise what is called- “Free Will”. You are aware of the rules. Whether you jump the red or wait for the green is purely your “Wish” or “Free Will”. The decision taken by you will depend on your value system, nature of your thought process, the morals with which you are brought up and of course, your conscience. Similarly, in your life, when you face a situation where you have to decide between something good or bad, if you follow the rules laid down by Shastras, Shrutis, Smrutis and Puranas ,  then,  the decision would Never go wrong.  But, if you do not follow Dharma Shastras and decide to cross the line of Dharma, you will end up committing Paapa and you alone have to face the consequence.

Thus, you are the master of your mind, thoughts and decision. You are solely responsible for your thoughts, which lead to an action and that in turn leads to the fruit of the action. To conclude, if your thoughts and action are based on the lines of Dharma, you end up enjoying good fruits, ie., punya, but if your thoughts are bad and “Adharmic” you commit paapa and will ultimately suffer.

Follow Dharma, use your ‘” Free Will’” to lead a happy and good life.

G N Sri Krishna

Columnist

gnsk2008@gmail.com

ಪರಾಗ ಸ್ಪರ್ಶ - 1

'ಸಂಗೀತ ಎಂಬುದು ಸುರಗಂಗೆಯಂತೆ, ಸಂಗೀತ ಎಂಬುದು ರವಿಕಾಂತಿಯಂತೆ' ಎಂಬ ಸುಂದರ ಹಾಡಿನಂತೆ ಸಂಗೀತ ನಮ್ಮೆಲ್ಲರೊಂದಿಗಿರುವ ಸಂಗಾತಿ; ಖುಷಿಯಲ್ಲಿ, ದುಃಖದಲ್ಲಿ, ಪ್ರೀತಿಯಲ್ಲಿ, ಒಂಟಿತನದಲ್ಲಿ ಎಂದೆಂದೂ ಜೊತೆಗಿರುವ ಚಿರ ಸಂಗಾತಿ ಈ ಸಂಗೀತ.

ಬೆಳಗ್ಗೆ ಕಣ್ಣು ಬಿಡುವ ಮುನ್ನವೇ ಫೋನಿನಲ್ಲೋ ಅಥವಾ ಗಡಿಯಾರದಲ್ಲೋ ಕೇಳುವ 'ಅಲಾರಂನ' ಸಂಗೀತದಿಂದ ಶುರುವಾಗುವ ನಮ್ಮ ದಿನಚರಿ ಕೊನೆಯಾಗುವುದು ಕೂಡ ನಾವಿಷ್ಟ ಪಡುವ ಹಾಡುಗಳ ಮೂಲಕವೇ.

ತಾಯಿಯ ಗರ್ಭದಲ್ಲಿರುವ ಶಿಶು ಕೇಳುವ ಮೊದಲ ಶಬ್ದ ತನ್ನ ತಾಯಿಯ ಎದೆ ಬಡಿತದ್ದಾಗಿರುತ್ತದೆ. ಅದು ಕೂಡ ಸಂಗೀತವೇ! ಹೀಗೆ ಭೂಮಿಗಿಳಿಯುವ ಮೊದಲಿಂದಲೂ ಸಂಗೀತವು ನಮ್ಮ ಜೀವನದೊಂದಿಗೆ ಮುಖ್ಯ ಅಂಶವಾಗಿ ಬೆರೆತು ಹೋಗಿದೆ. 

ನಾವು ಕೇಳುವ ಹಾಡುಗಳು ನಮ್ಮ ಭಾವನೆಗಳ ಪ್ರತಿಬಿಂಬ. ಸಂಗೀತ ಒಂದು ವ್ಯಕ್ತಿಯನ್ನು, ಅವನ ವ್ಯಕ್ತಿತ್ವವನ್ನು ರೂಪಿಸುವುದರಲ್ಲಿ ಅತ್ಯಂತ ಪರಿಣಾಮಕಾರಿಯಾಗಿ ಕೆಲಸ ಮಾಡುತ್ತದೆ. ಇಷ್ಟೇ ಅಲ್ಲದೆ ಸಂಗೀತ ಹಲವಾರು ಮಾನಸಿಕ ಹಾಗು ದೈಹಿಕ ರೋಗಗಳನ್ನು ನಿವಾರಿಸುವಲ್ಲಿ ಸಹಾಯ ಮಾಡುತ್ತದೆ ಹಾಗು ಅದನ್ನು 'ಮ್ಯೂಸಿಕ್  ಥೆರಪಿ' ಎಂದು ಕರೆಯುತ್ತಾರೆ. ಸಂಗೀತಕ್ಕೆ ಆ ಮಾಂತ್ರಿಕ ಶಕ್ತಿ ಖಂಡಿತ ಇದೆ. ವಿದ್ಯಾರ್ಥಿ ಜೀವನದಲ್ಲಿ ಓದುವಾಗಲೆಲ್ಲ ನಾನು ಹಾಡುಗಳು ಕೇಳುವುದನ್ನು ರೂಢಿಸಿಕೊಂಡಿದ್ದೆ. ಇದಕ್ಕೆ ಕಾರಣ ನನ್ನ ಅಣ್ಣ ರ್ಯಾಂಕ್ ವಿದ್ಯಾರ್ತಿಯಾಗಿದ್ದ. ಅವನು ಓದುವಾಗಲೆಲ್ಲ ಹಾಡುಗಳು ಕೇಳುತ್ತಿದ್ದ. ಅದು ಅವನ ಏಕಾಗ್ರತೆಯನ್ನು ಹೆಚ್ಚಿಸುತ್ತಿತ್ತು ಮತ್ತು ಪರೀಕ್ಷೆಯ ಒತ್ತಡವನ್ನು ಕುಗ್ಗಿಸಿ ಮನಸ್ಸು ನಿರಾಳವಾಗುವಂತೆ ಮಾಡುತ್ತಿತ್ತು. ಇದು ನನಗೆ ಈಗಲೂ ಮುಖ್ಯವೆನಿಸಿತ್ತುದೆ, ಪರೀಕ್ಷೆಯ ಸಮಯದಲ್ಲಿ ಎಷ್ಟೋ ವಿದ್ಯಾರ್ಥಿಗಳು ಒತ್ತಡವನ್ನು ತಡೆಯಲಾಗದೆ ಖಿನ್ನತೆಗೆ ಒಳಗಾಗುವುದನ್ನು ನಾವು ನೋಡಿದ್ದೇವೆ. ಇಂಥ ಸಮಯದಲ್ಲಿ ಸಂಗೀತವೊಂದೇ ನಮಗೆ ನೆಮ್ಮದಿ ನೀಡಬಲ್ಲದು. ಹಾಗಾಗಿ ನಾವು ಸಂಗೀತ ಕೇಳುವುದನ್ನು ಚಿಕ್ಕ ವಯಸ್ಸಿನಿಂದಲೇ ಅಭ್ಯಾಸ ಮಾಡಿಕೊಳ್ಳುವುದು ಉತ್ತಮ. ಮೂಲತಃ ಗಾಯಕಿಯಾಗಿರುವ ನಾನು, ನನ್ನ ಅಂಕಣದಲ್ಲಿ ಪ್ರತಿ ಬಾರಿಯೂ ಒಂದೊಂದು ಹಾಡಿನ ಬಗ್ಗೆ ಬರೆಯೋಣವೆಂದುಕೊಂಡಿದ್ದೇನೆ. ಈ ಮೂಲಕ ಹಾಡಿನ ಬಗ್ಗೆ, ಅದನ್ನು ಬರೆದವರ ಬಗ್ಗೆ, ಸಂಗೀತ ಸಂಯೋಜಿಸಿದವರ ಬಗ್ಗೆ ತಿಳಿದುಕೊಳ್ಳಬಹುದು ಹಾಗು ಆ ಹಾಡು  ನಮಗೆ ಇನ್ನಷ್ಟು ಹತ್ತಿರವಾಗಬಹುದು.

ಇಂದಿನ ಹಾಡು : ಶ್ರೀ ಚಂದ್ರಶೇಖರ ಪಾಟೀಲರ 'ಶಾಲ್ಮಲಾ'

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                                            Sparsha R K - Columnist 

                                                                                                                    

Angkor Wat - Swaroopa and Shri Varsha

Did you know that the biggest Hindu temple complex in the world is in Cambodia? It is known as “Angkor Wat” which means “The City of Temples” or “Temple City”.  The original name of Angkor Wat is Vrah Visnuloka or Parama Visnuloka. Located in present day modern town of Siem Reap, the temple complex was built by kings of a powerful Hindu-Buddhist kingdom, “The Khmer Empire”. King Suryavarman II started the construction of the temple and was completed by Jayavarman VII.

Angkor Wat is designed to represent Mount Meru, the home of the gods or “Devas” according to Hinduism. The temple mountain has five towers or “Gopuras” at the centre symbolising the five peaks of Mount Meru and the surrounding walls and water channel symbolise the surrounding mountain ranges and ocean. Angkor Wat also has cosmological significance. The measurements of solar and lunar time cycles were built into the sacred space of the temple. Theories also suggest that Angkor Wat represents the constellation Draco.

When I first decided to go to Cambodia, I discussed with my friends and nobody knew that there is a history of Hinduism in the Far East. So how did I know about Angkor Wat? When I was in school my father bought me a video game disc named “Shadow Warrior” released by 3D Realms in 1997. The game’s entire graphical environment was designed based on the temples of Cambodia and I was astonished looking at those huge Buddha faces in the game. This lead to my research about the country and I wondered why such topics are not covered in our school textbooks. From then it was my dream to visit Cambodia and exactly after twenty years I got chance to travel and see Angkor in person. There are several other great temples in  Angkor area. The magnificent Bayon temple is one of a kind. It was created by the same Jayavarman VII.

Bayon

It was said that the temple has approximately two hundred smiling faces seeing all directions. The faces represent the Bodhisattva of compassion, Lokeswara. The temple is so huge that you easily lose track of where you are. The faces reminded me of the video game Shadow Warrior. Another temple that put modern Cambodia on the world map is ”Ta Prohm” which was used location in the Hollywood film Tomb Raider. ”Ta Prohm” means ”Ancestor Brahma” or ”Eye Of Brahma”. This one was also built by Jayavarman VII dedicated to his mother.  The temple has trees growing out of its walls which is a distinct feature. The temple conservation and restoration is done by Archeological Survey of India in partnership with APSARA (Authority for the Protection and Management of Angkor and the Region of Siem Reap). 

So, what does this all mean to us Indians as Hindus? Our culture and heritage have travelled way far than we can imagine and the sad story is that we are not aware of our own cultural history. The south east Asian kingdoms had strong ties with the kings of India. When a far east kingdom like The Khmer could build such a great empire, imagine what it was in mainland India. More research must be done by every Hindu at his own personal capacity and not wait for governments to educate us. I hated history as a subject in my school days and a video game had to spark interest in my cultural past. That's the reality of our country's educational system.  Why do we have to care for what happened in the past? Since the present and the future relies heavily on the past experiences, and for a country to project a strong image at the world stage, the realisation of its history is very important. If the present-day India can leverage this history and broaden her ties with countries of south-east Asia, we as citizens would have huge opportunities to play on a global scale.

                                                                                   

Swaroop and Shri Varsha

Trekkie

Swaroop and Shri Varsha

                                                                                           Trekkie

RTG - By Karthik Ramaswamy

This is a game. Whenever you find yourself with spare time, think of a word. Now, for that word, find a quote, state a fact, say a poem, ask a question, make a joke and tell a story.

Today’s word: “Effort”

1) Quotes: Effort is only effort when it begins to hurt.

2) Fact: Effort is the fuel for change.

3)Poem: Take this challenge, if you have the time;

 Does the word “Effort” have any rhyme?

4)Question: Is there any event worth to remember, if there were no effort involved?

5) Joke: So, how do I get rich, without putting any effort?

6) Plot: A man is lost in the desert, wandering, thirsty and tired. The Sun is upon him and there are no vegetation or habitats in sight for as far as his tired eyes could see. Every step he takes without knowing where he is heading, is one more step closer to his own doom, if he doesn’t find sustenance soon. When he could walk no more and it didn’t matter to him if the heat killed him or the thirst, hunger or fatigue, when he was about to give up, he hears the clucking sound of a bird. Suddenly, the man’s legs started taking him to the source of the sound... there he sees a one-legged hen pecking the ground furiously... Many thoughts run in his overworked and stressed out mind, about what he would do now. “Ask yourself what you would do in this situation” The man starts to dig where the hen was plucking at and his “efforts” were not in vain as he finds water.

Use the above game and pass time in a fruitful way.

-        Karthik Ramaswamy

Columnist 

fictionalcorrespondent@gmail.com