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This was the first recorded public version on the gramophone plate.
( By Max Muller) ...
This article is a fact which most of us do not know . Why do we have to wait for others to appreciate our History before we do ourselves?Ok hand sign
His Masters Voice (HMV) had once published a pamphlet giving the history of gramophone record. Gramophone was invented byThomas Alva Edison in the 19th century. Edison, who had invented many other gadgets like electric light and the motion picture camera, had become a legend even in his own time.
When he invented the gramophone record, which could record human voice for posterity, he wanted to record the voice of an eminent scholar on his first piece. For that he chose Prof. Max Muller of England, another great personality of the 19th century. He wrote to Max Muller saying, “I want to meet you and record your voice. When should I come?” Max Muller who had great respect for Edison asked him to come on a suitable time when most of the scholars of the Europe would be gathering in England .
Accordingly Edison took a ship and went to England. He was introduced to the audience. All cheered Edison’s presence. Later at the request of Edison, Max Muller came on the stage and spoke in front of the instrument. Then Edison went back to his laboratory and by afternoon came back with a disc. He played the gramophone disc from his instrument. The audience was thrilled to hear the voice of Max Muller from the instrument. They were glad that voices of great persons like Max Muller could be stored for the benefit of posterity.
After several rounds of applause and congratulations to Thomas Edison, Max Muller came to the stage and addressed the scholars and asked them, “You heard my original voice in the morning. Then you heard the same voice coming out from this instrument in the afternoon. Do you understand what I said in the morning or what you heard in the afternoon?”.
The audience fell silent because they could not understand the language in which Max Muller had spoken. It was ‘Greek and Latin’ to them as they say. But had it been Greek or Latin, they would have definitely understood because they were from various parts of Europe. It was in a language which the European scholars had never heard.
Max Muller then explained what he had spoken. He said that the language he spoke was Sanskrit and it was the first sloka of Rig Veda, which says “Agni Meele Purohitam”. This was the first recorded public version on the gramophone plate.
अग्निमीळे पुरोहितं यज्ञस्य देवं रत्वीजम |
होतारं रत्नधातमम || Rig Veda 1.001.01
aghnimīḷe purohitaṃ yajñasya devaṃ ṛtvījam |
hotāraṃ ratnadhātamam || Rig Veda 1.001.01
Why did Max Muller choose this? Addressing the audience he said, “Vedas are the oldest text of the human race. And “Agni Meele Purohitam” is the first verse of Rig Veda. In the most primordial time, when the people did not know how even to cover their bodies and lived by hunting and housed in caves, Indians had attained high civilization and they gave the world universal philosophies in the form of the Vedas”
When “Agni Meele Purohitam” was replayed the entire audience stood up in silence as a mark of respect for the ancient Hindu sages.
The verse means
“Oh Agni, You who gleam in the darkness, to You we come day by day, with devotion and bearing homage. So be of easy access to us, Agni, as a father to his son, abide with us for our well being. ”– World Hindu News, 29 April 2014.
Earlier in the year 2012 Mrs.Jayaraman had made a garland of sandalwood beads but of shorter length and the same was threaded into a garland in nylon thread which was not accepted by the temple authorities in Naganallur Chennai and the same was garlanded to a Photograph of Anjneya at the same temple. However she became more determined and started the present bead preparation and threaded the same in copper wire this has taken almost two years for her to prepare.The finished Garland of Sandal beads was ferried to Chennai by Ramkumar Nagarajan, the same was kept at one of the trustees's Anjneya temple Naganallur, however before the same was transported to the Padappai temple the same was kept at Mr. Balasubramaniam's home where he has a more than hundred year old Rama Pattabhishekam picture which is being worshiped till date.
On the 18th of September 2015 the same was transported by Sreedhar Kavita Self Vijaya Mohana Ganeshan Aruna Aditya and Shreyas to Mellapattu in Padapai. We did not know the location of the temple it was sheer coincidence that while on our way we checked at three points for the location of the temple and we had checked for the place at exact places where we were to take a turn and the Anjneya welcomed us as the gates of the temple just then opened.
The poojari was very cooperative and he summoned another person for his assistance and we could enjoy the Garlanding of the Sandal Beads mala to the huge idol of Hanuman 24 feet high, the garland had four rounds over the neck of the statue.
You can enjoy the picture of Hanuman with the Garland and also the Garland kept there in the basket.
The poojari gave a description of the place (Sthala Varalru) in which he described that the Hanuman temple is located in a place where RAMA and SEETA visited the place before their Vanavasam and the Hanuman is placed there and he is Meditating looking up at the Sky for his Lord.
JAYA HANUMAN
By Shashank Katti
Most of us go through various forms of devotion in some form or another regularly. Almost all of us who are devoted tell some prayer or the other. More often than not, at least in my case, these prayers were chanted mechanically without a real appreciation of what the prayer stood for. Many a times, some of us who claim to have learnt a bit of Sanskrit get the ego kick that we understand a prayer. However many of these prayers have a deeper meaning than what we can translate.
I am listing below some of my favorite prayers
1. An attitude of gratitude
One of the critical important paths on the spiritual quest is the Bhakti route. This is not the traditional way wherein we go to a temple, roll around the sanctum sanctorum or sing bhajans. Bhakti is an attitude of gratitude for what we are today. It is an acknowledgement of the role several people have played in bringing us to our current glory. It is a way to control over ego. A control over ego is the first step in achieving divinity. The prayer below covers this aspect of the spiritual journey.
Guru Brahma Gurur Vishnu Guru Devo Maheshwaraha
Guru Saakshat Para Brahma Tasmai Sree Gurave Namaha
Meaning: Guru is verily the representative of Brahma,
Vishnu and Shiva. He creates, sustains knowledge and destroys the weeds of
ignorance. I salute such a Guru.
Whatever we are today is because of a teacher. The teacher is not only the person in a classroom who taught us ABC. Obviously our teacher started off with the great prakriti who taught us the most natural act of crying as babies to get attention. Our parents are teachers who taught us to take the first step and eat the first morsel of food on our own. The list goes on and includes everything in nature from which we learn so much every day. Hence my first verse goes in humble obeisance to that multitude of teachers who made me what I am today.
2. A move to immortality and supreme bliss
Asato maa sadgamaya Tamaso maa jyotirgamaya
Mṛityor maa amṛitan gamaya Om shaanti shaanti shaanti
Meaning: “From the unreal, lead us to the Real; from darkness, lead us unto Light; from death, lead us to Immortality. Om peace, peace, peace.”
This is a fabulous prayer taking us to the roots of spirituality. This world is an illusion created by the power of Maya. The only reality is the supreme consciousness or Brahman. So the first two lines pray that we be freed from the unreal feeling of duality and consequent pain in this illusory world to the supreme peace of the only reality, which is Brahman. Since the only reality is Brahman and there is nothing else at all, there is nothing like life and death to an individual. This prayer gives us the phenomenal ability to realize that we are all immortal and do not need to fear the dark forebodings of death and mortality.
3. An appeal for liberation from bondage
OM Tryambakam Yajamahe Sugandhim Pushtivardhanam
Urvarukamiva Bandhanam Mrityor Mukshiya Mamritat
Meaning: We worship the three-eyed Lord (Siva) who is full of sweet fragrance and nourishes human beings. May he liberate me from bondage, even as the cucumber is severed from the vine. This is the Maha Mrityunjaya Mantra.
4. A total sense of surrender
Kayena vacha manasendriyenva Buddhayatmnava prakreetiswabhavat
Karomi yadhyat sakalam parasmai Narayanayeti samarpayami
Meaning: Whatever I do with my mind, body, speech or with other senses of my body, Or with my intellect or with my innate natural tendencies, I offer everything to the Lord!
Adi Sankara sought to relieve mankind from all the miseries that affect one and all. There are three kinds of miseries that human beings have to suffer in this world. In spiritual parlance these are described as Adyatmika, Adi Daivika and Adi Bhoutika. Adyatmika refers to the relation between the individual self and the Supreme Self. It is based on the truth that the individual self is a manifestation of the Supreme spirit. Adi Daivika refers to the miseries caused by fate and Adi Bhoutika to those sorrows caused by the material world and body. Adi Sankara’s effort is a cut above for, this acharya destroyed the rakshasa Avidya that is the root cause of all sorrow. Removal of ignorance results in self realisation which is the ultimate goal of the Jiva.
Who says commercial films starring superstars like Rajnikanth or Shahrukh Khan alone can have punch lines?
Sample this: “India is free, but are Indians free?”; “God is like the petrol in a car. Without the petrol, the car cannot run. But it is the driver who determines where the car goes.”; “Without the touch of life (read God), a sinner cannot sin neither can a monk meditate".
These are powerful words not penned by any scriptwriter but uttered by men of high knowledge and wisdom that appeal equally to the atheist and the divine. Many more such meaningful dialogues generated applauds, evoked emotions and accentuated the wow factor of ‘On a Quest’ -- a period film on Swami Chinmayananda’s journey from a freedom fighter and a non-believer to a teacher of Vedanta.
The two hour biopic in English was screened for the second time on popular demand in Madurai and the people who filled up the Mookambika theatre on Sunday morning got their money’s worth.
Made by the Chinmaya Mission to mark the birth centenary celebrations of Swami Chinmayananda, this is the first ever documentation of the fiery young revolutionary’s transformation into a missionary. It is a beautifully woven and enacted story which unlike the stories about most other gurus, does not push Swami Chinmayananda’s lectures, achievements or books to the forefront.
Rather, director R.S.Prasanna of “Kalyana Samayal Saadham" fame convincingly and touchingly tells the story of a man who never made claims of being a god or a godman and offered miracles. He simply interpreted the Bhagavad Gita for the masses. No matter, if there weren’t enough people to listen to him or even if the most educated came to him to understand the meaning of life. The multi-linguist Swami simply shared his knowledge without a fee and alluring promises.
Obviously Swami Chinmayananda is not his real name. He was born Balakrishna Menon in 1916 in Ernakulam. As a student of Lucknow University, he briefly joined the nationalist movement and was jailed by the British in 1941. When he is tortured and left to die by the British, he is nursed back to life from the throes of death by a friend’s family. But when the same friend dies unexpectedly in the prime of his youth, it sets Balan thinking about life, its meaning and uncertainties. He joins The National Herald as a reporter and in a short time establishes a fan following with his articles. The subjects he chooses and his style of writing sets the paper’s circulation to a new high.
But deep within Balan is unable to fathom many things that touch his life. If a cobbler’s life humbles him, he wonders why the rich argue with a poor rickshaw puller and pay him only 30 paise for a ride with no regard for his labour and with much ease offer a sadhu five rupees to seek his blessings.
He plans to expose what he calls the racket of religion and the myth of sadhus and goes off to Rishikesh to meet Swami Sivananda. He stays on for six months to see things firsthand at the ashram. While the rationalist in him refuses to believe in the existence of God, the journalist in him questions meaningless rituals and the seeker in him sets about experiencing everything.
Eventually he gives up his name and profession and gets his orange robe and the name of Chinmayananda. Then he goes further North and learns the Shastras for 10 years from the well know sage, Swami Tapovan. It is this ardent quest for the truth that sees Swami Chinmayananda reaching out to the world in a way it understands best. It is a spectacular transformation from an unconventional seeker to a revered master, who inspired the establishment of missions all over the world and embraced an ever-expanding network of devotees and students.
The film has created a lot of buzz with 75 plus screenings across the country. Except art director Thota Tharrani who plays the older Chinmayananda, all others on the screen are amateurs. Together with technicians from KSS, the film has succeeded in matching international quality because all the people who have been associated with the film in any which way have done it with the purity of their heart.
Madurai is the only city in Tamil Nadu to have screened the film twice and is planning a third one soon. “We have received good response from the people,” says Swami Sivayogananda, Acharya of Madurai Centre, “but want more children and youths to watch it for the inspirational and invaluable lessons that can be drawn from Guruji’s life”.
If you feel inclined to watch, don’t miss it the next time. It could make a difference to your lives. Or at least watch it for the effort that has gone into it.
Produced by the Chinmaya Mission (CM) to mark the birth centenary (2015-16) celebrations of Swami Chinmayananda, one of the foremost exponents of Vedanta, the film has been directed by R.S.Prasanna who made his Tamil debut with the critically acclaimed "Kalyana Samayal Saadham".
In the wildly inspirational and life-affirming biopic, all actors are CM members and the entire project has been coordinated by the monks. Sandeep, a real-life monk, plays the younger version while national award winning art director Thota Tharani has donned the greasepaint to play the Hindu spiritual leader in his later years when he inspired the formation of Chinmaya Mission. From the start to the finish, including the writing of the script, the entire project was led by Swami Mitrananda, Acharya of CM Chennai and Director of All India Chinmaya Yuva Kendra.
Says Swami Sivayogananda, Acharya of CM Madurai Centre, “Good citizenship is the need of the hour and this film will surely inspire individual transformation not only spiritually but at every level and in any field of life.”
He is happy with the interest generated among the city people about the film slated for screening at the Ambika multiplex Theatre in Anna Nagar tomorrow (Sunday, January 25). It will be run simultaneously in two theatres with a combined seating capacity of 1,060. The time of the show is 8.30 a.m. to 10.30 a.m.
“There are invaluable lessons to be learnt from the life of Swami Chinmayananda,” says the Madurai Acharya, “how as an individual and a non-believer he transformed himself into one of the most powerful orators of the teachings expounded in the Bhagavad Gita and the Upanishads and guided people to their own quest.”
Since ‘On A Quest’ aims to reach out to children and the youth in particular who have not had the privilege of meeting the Swami in person, more than half the tickets for the Sunday show have been sold to school and college students. With more requests and queries coming in, the CM Madurai Centre may plan another show next month depending on the availability of theatres.
The movie was first premiered in Chennai last month in the presence of Swami Tejomayananda, the Global Head of Chinmaya Mission, senior acharyas, young and old devotees from across the globe and the entire team behind the movie. Ever since, the biopic has been travelling all over the country and the world. Viewers have reviewed and described the film in superlative praise and especially appreciated director Prasanna’s succinct touch in showing the young atheist who was also a sceptical academician and an outspoken and witty journalist eventually turn into a seeker of Truth and finally becoming an enlightened visionary carrying the message of the rishis to the masses across the world in a language that they would all understand.
Since several inspiring biopics were made in the past on revolutionaries like Mangal Pandey, Bhagat Singh and saints like Adi Sankaracharya and Swami Vivekanada, the CM members felt the impact of a movie on Swami Chinmayananda, who was both a revolutionary and a saint, would be far more than the books written on him. Once decided, CM members all over the world donated their time, money, resources into making of this unique film, which instead of being preachy is a beautiful visual journey.
If you are looking for an inspiring transformational story, then don't miss it this Sunday!
By: Express News Service listing 10 of his best motivational quotes. Which one of your favourite? Tell us and share it with your friends.
1. You cannot believe in God until you believe in yourself.
- Swami Vivekananda
2. Arise! Awake! and stop not until the goal is reached.
- Swami Vivekananda
3. You have to grow from the inside out. None can teach you, none can make you spiritual. There is no other teacher but your own soul.
- Swami Vivekananda
4. “In a conflict between the heart and the brain, follow your heart.”
- Swami Vivekananda
5. “They alone live, who live for others.”
- Swami Vivekananda
6. “Neither seek nor avoid, take what comes.”
- Swami Vivekananda
7. “Comfort is no test of truth. Truth is often far from being comfortable.”
- Swami Vivekananda
8. “The fire that warms us can also consume us; it is not the fault of the fire.”
- Swami Vivekananda
9. “Ask nothing; want nothing in return. Give what you have to give; it will come back to you, but do not think of that now.”
- Swami Vivekananda
10. “Do one thing at a Time, and while doing it put your whole Soul into it to the exclusion of all else.”
- Swami Vivekananda
(Compiled and designed by Parmita Uniyal)
