Day of retirement for him not to her?

Day  of retirement for him not to her?

By

P.R.Ramachander

One  day  he came back  from office ,

With a useless  flower bouquet,

And  equally   useless  painting  ,

And told , I have retired from service”

That night  he called all his family members,

And told  “I have been working hard   for  the sake of all of you,

All these   years   from   ten am   to five pm,

And from now  on “I  am not going   to do anything”

Next day , he woke  up to find    that,

His entire  home was dark  with no activity,

To prepare filter  coffee  in the kitchen,

And he turned  to see his wife   sleeping

He shouted  at her   to get  up  and,

His wife replied “all these   years ,

I too have been working ,all   through ,

The day   and night   without any rest.

For you to go   to office at  nine am,

I used to get  up   at four in the morning.

To prepare  your food  and   make   ready,

All  our children   to go to school,

After  ten, I should  go and buy.

Groceries   and vegetables  ,

Go to the bank to draw  money,

And to pay several bills which are due.

Then  by the time  , I take  my lunch at ,

Three in the afternoon, children ,

Would return  from school   and I should ,

Work hard  to prepare modern dishes they like

By that time  it would   be  five in the evening ,

And I would   rush   to my room   to become.

A presentable   beauty, when I open the door,

For you   to see and be happy  when I open the door.

Then from then on , I would    spin like   a top,

To give you all  good food that you like  ,

Clean the vessels. Clean the house  and so on,

When you would be taking rest  for the work that you  have done.

Then after   every work is over   and I join  you,

In our sleeping room, you well know how much   I took rest ,

Yesterday  you retired   and I also   have decided,

To retire  completely    from today onwards

I know   that  you will not   welcome   the idea,

Nor give me a useless bouquet and a garland ,

But you will start  shouting  , so that  every one hears,

“There  is no retirement or pension for the wife.”

Dwara Palakas of Hindu Gods

Dwara  Palakas   of Hindu  Gods

Written based  on a  Malayalam write up,

By

P.R.Ramachander

   Whenever   we visit any the sanctum sanctorum(Garbha Graham)  Hindu temple   we see  two statues  on both side of the doors .These  are  the   gate keepers of the concerned God  and are called  his/her dwara  palakas.

   Whenever   the priests  want to  open the  doors of the Garbha Graha  , he tolls the bell and  seeks the permission of   these  gurads   to enter in to the temple. They  then salute the DWara  Palakas and enter the temple,

A list of Dwara palakas  of different Gods  is given below.This  has been taken from a Malayalam write up    and so  it may be  applicable to only  Kerala. The first dwarapalaka   is on the left and second one on the right’

1.Temples   of Lord  Krishna

a.By side of the   sanctum sanctorum  - Chanda   and Prachanda

b. The gate previous   to the sanctum -  Sankhata  and Chakrota

c,  The two gates   previous to sanctum- Jaya    and Vijaya

d. Three  gates  previous to sanctum –Bhadraya and Subhadraya

e.The  first   entrance to temple –Dhathri-  Vidathri

2. Temples  of Lord Shiva

  The  dwara  palakas  are  Vimala   and  Subahu

3. Godess  Parvathi/Lalitha

   The dwara  Palakas are  Sankha nidhi and Pama Nidhi

4.Lord  Ganesa

   The  Dwara Palakas are   Vikata   and Bhima

5.LordSubrahmanya

1.Before   the sanctum-Jaya and Vijaya

2.Previous door   -Sudeha and  Sumuha

6.Lord  Ayyappa

   The Dwara palakas   are  KOchu Kadutha swami   and  Valiya  Kadutha Swami

My mother land is greater than Heaven to me

My mother  land is greater than Heaven to me

By

P.R.Ramachander

Here  are  two great sayings  ,supposed   from  Valmiki Ramayana( It does not appear  in  the version I have  translated)

Sage  BHaradwaja   tells

मित्राणि धन धान्यानि प्रजानां सम्मतानिव |

जननी जन्म भूमिश्च स्वर्गादपि गरीयसी ||

Mithrani Dhana  Dhaanyaani  prajaanaam sammathaniva,

Janani   Janma  Bhoomischa   swargadhapi   Gariyasi

Though   friends ,wealth and grains are  greatly  honoured by people,

Mother  and mother land    are  greater  than  even heaven

Lord  Rama   tells  to Lakshmana

अपि स्वर्णमयी लङ्का न मे लक्ष्मण रोचते |

जननी जन्मभूमिश्च स्वर्गादपि गरीयसी ||

Api swargamayi   Lankaa  na may  Lakshmana  Rochathe,

Janani  Janma  bhoomischa   Swargadhapi  Gareeyasi

Even  the lanka   filled    with gold    does not appeal to me

Mother  and mother land    are  greater  than  even heaven

   I am 100%  in agreement with these  .I did not  find any appeal  in “Golden  America” and to me  my motherland  is greater than heaven

Ten commandments of Maha Periyava

Ten commandments  of Maha Periyava

Translated by

P.R.Ramachander

(Read in tamil the meaningful commandments  of Maha Periyava  and made  an attempt  to translate it)

1.As soon  as you wake up,  pray God for  at least  for 2 minutes

2.Pray that  the day  should be good-- for you and  for every one

3.Think about  our  sacred rivers,  mother cow,  Chiranjeevis,  Saptha  kanyakas  etc

4.Every week  visit  the nearest temple and pray  to God  there

5.Love  your  friends and relatives and also  every one

6. Daily  set apart some food for animals  and birds  before  you eat.

7.Daily  give  in charity to others as  much as possible to you

8.Daily wear  on your forehead the religious marks like  Vibhoothi, Namam , gopi , kumkumam etc

9.Before retiring   to bed make a self audit  of the good and bad that  you  have done that day

10.Before you sleep chant   the name of God 108 times

Ten important things when you cross Sixty years of age

Ten important things when you cross Sixty years of age

Based  on what I read somewhere

By

P.R.Ramachander

(Though I am advicing   you not to lecture , I am only doing that.Please pardon me)

1.Use the railing. The consequences of a fall are worse as you age and your balance isn't as good.

2,Don't lecture about your health, at least not in any detail. If you must, keep it brief

3.Make sure there is someone to look after your better half  if something happens to you.

4.Ask for, and give, gifts that can be eaten, used up, or experienced. 

5.Work to keep friends and make new friends. It is easier when you are retired and old

6,Spend time doing what you like but reserve  some  time to talk to your  life partner

7,Don't advice and preach. 

8.Don't lecture. Listen. At least some of the time. You will learn fascinating things.

9.Do not get  angry,It will reduce your life span.

10.Keep your sense of humor alive. It makes the good things better, and the bad things more bearable.

The first person from India to visit USA was from Madras in 1790

The  first person from India to visit USA was from Madras in  1790

By

P.R.Ramachander

   I read  in many  places  that the first Indian to have  visited USA from India  was from Madras  and he visited  Massachusetts. After a  long research I found out   that the particulars  about  that man is  mentioned  in a book called

Counseling Asian Indian Immigrant Families: A Pastoral Psychotherapeutic Model

By Varughese Jacob

Here is a  photo  of the information  given about  him  in that book. WE understand  that he was sailor from Madras.

Mini Punjab in USA

Mini Punjab in USA

Mini Punjab in USA

Compiled  by

P.R.Ramachander

   Many of   you would  be as surprised  as me to know   that  the earliest  Indians  to settle  down in USA  were  Sikhs . They were  brought as agricultural labourers  in USA,The place  they settled down  is Sutter  country of Yuba   city of California   which is  near  San Francisco. There   was  a time  when most of them were  sent back but as of now  10% of the population  of that place   are Sikhs . In Yuba-Sutter County, Punjabi farmers grow about 95% of the peach crop, 60% of prunes and 20% almonds & walnuts.

“Yuba City is literally a mini Punjab in the USA with three Gurdwaras and a temple. “Sat Sri Akal” is the preferred form of greeting; speaking in Punjabi is not considered “foreign” and Punjabi is officially taught in public schools. A radio program in Punjabi is regularly on the air. The Punjabi American Festival (Baisakhi) is organized every year in May by the Punjabi American Heritage Society which was founded by Dr. Jasbir Singh Kang in 1993 to help the younger generation get connected to their roots. The annual event features some internationally acclaimed artists and hundreds of local artists, including students from California schools, colleges and universities, who perform traditional Punjabi dances such as Bhangra, Giddha, Jhumar, and other ethnic dances. The ticketed event attracts over 12,000 people and is aimed at promoting a better understanding of the Punjabi community, its culture, and the many contributions they make to the region. Many business owners rent display booths to put themselves in front of the prospective customers.” ( from  http://www.indiaempire.com/article/331/yuba_citythe_mini_punjab_in_usa  )