Great Empires of India

It is often said that the British united India and shaped it into a country. But when we look at many of the great empires of India across history, we realize that India had been in integrated form for a long duration of time. Of course there have been smaller kingdoms and many kings controlling smaller states but it was just a matter of time before those were integrated into the form of a great empire; which often consisted of regions like Afghanistan too!

Maurya Empire

Look at the below map. This was the size of Maurya Empire around 250 years Before Christ! 

The Capital of Maurya Empire was Pataliputra i.e. modern Patna in Bihar. The Maurya Empire was one of the largest empires of the world in its time.

Gupta Empire

Below is the map of Gupta Empire (गुप्त साम्राज्य); the period during which is called Golden Age in Indian History. It existed from 320 to 550 AD. 

The Capital of Gupta Empire was Pataliputra i.e. modern Patna in Bihar. Samudragupta is called "Napoleon of India" for his great conquests. He conquered what is now Kashmir and Afghanistan. He was a devout Hindu and worshiped Lord Vishnu. 

Btw, the Gupt Kings were not Kshatriyas by birth but were Vaishya/Bania - the same Gupta Surname which many of our friends have.

Maratha Empire

Below is the map of the Great Maratha Empire, around 1758; in orange shade. It ruled over most of Indian subcontinent in 18th and early 19th century before the British East India Company took over. 

Marathas even defeated Tipu Sultan of Mysore. Peshwa Madhavrao-I defeated Hyder Ali, Tipu Sultan's father, twice in 1764 and 1767. In 1767 Peshwa Madhavrao defeated both Hyder Ali and Tipu Sultan and entered Srirangapatna, the capital of Mysore. Hyder Ali accepted the authority of Madhavrao who gave him the title of Nawab of Mysore. Tipu Sultan used to pay Rupees 1.2 million every year to Marathas who in return recognized the rule of Tipu in Mysore region. 

After Marathas defeated Nizam of Hyderabad, the Nizam stopped being a force in North Indian politics and got confined to Hyderabad. Even Mughals used to pay tax to Marathas. 

Marathas controlled present day Pakistan, Bangladesh as well as bordering Nepal and Afghanistan.

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These were some of the great empires of India. In terms of their sheer size, these have been mammoth, often one of the biggest at their time in this world. And then there have been so many other great kingdoms, which even though smaller in size, are still remembered and venerated for many good reasons. 

India has been a land of great people and great kings. A lot of people remember India only because of the spiritual light it provided to the world; and the religious tolerance Hindus practiced which was worth emulating all across the warring world. But even in terms of military might, India has not been without excellence. After all, it was India from which even the 'great' Alexander returned disappointed and empty handed! 

- Rahul Tiwary

Beautiful Orchha (Madhya Pradesh)

You must have seen this ad of 'Slice' (Pepsico's mango 'drink'; contains only 13% mango pulp) on TV; and did you notice some beautiful temples and buildings in the background? 

Wondered where these buildings are located at? This is at Orchha in Madhya Pradesh. The buildings in the above picture are beautiful Chhatris on the bank of Betwa River:

Orchha has a very old Chaturbhuj Temple where main deity is Lord Vishnu. Chaturbhuj Temple (Orchha) was constructed by the Bundela Rajputs of the Kingdom of Orchha. Its construction was started by Madhukar Shah Ju Dev (1554 to 1592) and completed by his son, Vir Singh Deo in the early 17th century: 

There is also a wonderful Lakshmi Temple at Orchha: 

Palace or Raj Mahal of Orchha itself is a huge attraction:

In below picture, Palace is seen along with Chaturbhuj Temple:

Orchha also has Ram Raja Temple. This is said to be the only temple where Lord Ram is worshiped as a King and that too in a palace. A Guard of Honour and Armed salutation is provided to Lord Ram every day. King Madhukar Shah Ju Dev brought the idol from Ayodhya.

Dahi Wale Kaka

Today I learnt two sentences in Marathi from our neighborhood kid.

A hawker selling curd visits our locality every morning (yes, we are still blessed with such old world charms) attracting his customers by shouting “Dahiiii…”. As he came visiting today, the kid went to his balcony (which is below one of our window’s) and called out, “दही वाले काका - थांबा! मम्मी आली!”. Now imagine if the kid had said the same thing in English. He would say, “Wait Curd Uncle (i.e. Uncle with curd), mom is coming!” Will it carry even an iota of the little kid’s cuteness and beauty?

Btw, we have seen this kid from his younger days – when he was so small that his grandma used to fill water in a wide-mouth bucket and keep him inside it to play and take bath! Before that, grandma would do massage (tel-malish) to him and he was too little even to speak. He is learning words and sentences, and sometimes he entertains his occasionally snooping neighbors like us without knowing.

Very soon, this little Govinda will be big enough to take a break with curd during “Dahi handi” festivals…

- Rahul Tiwary

Importance of Wearing Bindi

A 'bindi' or 'bindu' means drop or globule. In Indian/Hindu culture it is supposed to be a sacred symbol of the universe, depicted as a dot or the zero. Applied between the eyebrows, it is position of the sixth chakra, a place which is also the exit point of kundalini energy. Red bindu which women wear also symbolizes fire as per tantra. 

An author writes that while Muslim women in Pak/Bangladesh also wear bindi quite often it is comparatively rare in Indian Muslim women perhaps due to its religious significance. 

From health point of view, bindi is worn between the eyebrows where the pineal gland lies which is an important nerve center and applying sandalwood or ash keeps the nerves cool and conserves energy. But it helps in this aspect only if bindi is made of natural sources and not of plastic. 

The bindi also represents the third eye (of wisdom/enlightenment). The Nasadiya Sukta of the Rig Veda mentions the word vindu/bindu.

[Source: Books and online resources; Picture © Andre Susan]

How India Got Freedom at Midnight

All of us know that India got independence at midnight of 15 August 1947; but there are more interesting aspects to it.

The British Parliament had resolved to set India free on 15 August, which was the second anniversary of Japanese surrender leading to end of WW-II. But as per Indian astrologers, 15 August 1947 was an inauspicious (ashubh) day and a nation born on that day could face breaking-up and great hurdles. Astrologers said that 14th Aug'47 was auspicious but British were adamant about 15th Aug. (also because their authority had to be in Pakistan on 14th morning). So K.M. Panikkar, a historian and astrology expert finally came up with a solution - he suggested that the Constitution Assembly should meet and start the proceedings an hour before the midnight. Pt. Nehru's talk is mentioned as 14-15 August even in speech notes.

We know that as per Hindu Calendar, a date changes with sunrise and not at midnight and hence 00:00:00 of 15 August was actually 14 August by Hindu calendar! And it worked out well - a nation which Western experts claimed won't survive, continued to remain one and prospering...

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Thoughts

Colleagues Offering Paid Carpool Ride: It is Business!

Recently there was a discussion in office about the colleagues who offer paid carpool rides to and from office daily, to other colleagues. They pick up and drop colleagues who pay them anything from Rs 10 to 40 or 50 depending on distance. As per company policy, company does not allow commercial solicitations inside office and hence it becomes tricky affair since the car-owners post ads offering paid carpool rides in the company’s online message portal. The car owners definitely like to say that it is not a commercial activity and they are merely “sharing the fuel expense”. Is it really so simple? A lot of people don’t agree with it. At the same time many colleagues who take up this paid carpool ‘service’ complain that the car-owners are often rude towards them and never agree to slight requests for example of taking a slight different route.

I think the person charging money for a car ride essentially means he wants to “earn money”; something which car-owners don’t want to accept. Because from fuel expenses to insurance cost, total expense almost remains the same no matter if they pickup colleagues or not. Hence whatever they get out of colleagues’ pockets is their “income”. Fellow travelers don’t have a problem in paying; because in all alternative modes of transport they were to pay anyway. But it is the car-owners’ ‘inferiority complex’ at accepting the fact that they are taking ‘money’ which is revealed in lots of indirect manners and gestures. Sometimes it shows in the manner they try to “justify” why one doesn’t really take money while taking money; sometimes it shows in their rude manner and attitude towards fellow travelers, which in a way is exerting their right, in a way telling the other guy who is the boss who makes decisions here, and hence we have this scenario where fellow passengers sometimes feel that the car-owner is not civil enough.

If you are running a business by running a carpool; what is the shame in accepting the fact that you are earning money? The moment one is not ashamed of taking money; his/her ethics will follow; as one would accept the “rights” of the fellow travelers. If only we think that we are not really taking money; we would like to believe that the fellow traveler does not have any right to demand (e.g. change of route). So the bottom line is – car owners, don’t be ashamed of the fact that you are earning money; and behave accordingly.

As soon as someone mentions that car owns take money and hence should be a bit more polite; they become angry and refute strongly the fact that they are earning money and they try to taunt at the persons who question them by claiming that they want “free rides”. This annoyance at a mere mention of the monetary part is interesting. I don’t think anyone is asking for free rides. But the monetary part is mentioned to drive the idea that the occupant is not beyond his humor to ask for a bit of flexibility (e.g. by going via a different route) from the car-owner.

Coming back to the rude behavior of car owners; I think basic courtesy is much needed. Kindness is very much missing these days of inflated egos. People offer carpools to earn a few bucks – but when it comes to take a bit of trouble to help a fellow person – they act as if their royal ego is hurt if the person dared to make a request. It is easy to guess that they are driven by greed (money) and not by compassion or make-the-world-green kind of ideas which could do any greater good for the world.

Even if the occasional lift-givers who act out selflessly (without taking money) appear rude, if they would, it could be tolerated or ignored. But the professionals who I think are more likely to have learnt and perfected the tricks of the trade and having optimized their route, picking points and timing to start and drop they are less likely to be flexible when occasional customer makes a demand; also fearing that other participants may learn to ask and may start demanding stuff which would need frequent changes in plan. If it were a matter of one day or occasional days, they still may oblige but since this is their daily routine, they don’t feel encouraged to be flexible.

Someone asked what should be a fair price to ask so that the persons taking the carpool service find it not in excess. I think there are no calculators but one could use benchmarks to estimate. One figure is the public bus’ ticket rate; another shared-auto rate; so one could charge slightly higher than these two other options which occupants have.

Now I am going to make a few strong points:

1) Carpools are not eco-friendly. A lot of people can’t afford to come to office daily in their own cars; and they are coming only because they are “subsidized” by fellow occupants. If fellow colleagues stop taking their carpools, such guys will find it too costly to pay for fuel from their pocket alone, and hence will take up “buses”. So carpools are actually cannibalizing “bus” service and if we have to promote buses, we should discourage cars as well as carpools.

2) People who earn money from offering carpools are basically making “black money”; because otherwise they should be showing the income under “income from other sources” field while filing IT returns – and I guess none of them would be doing it…

3) It is still better to take Cab service than this paid-carpool from un-acknowledging colleagues, because – taxi services ultimately pay taxes to the govt and hence all their earnings help in our country’s economic growth. But our colleagues only earn black money and it does not help our nation. So I think it is better to take any Cab service than carpool.

Have you thought about this issue before? What is your opinion on this? Let me know what you think using the comment box. 

#Books: Why to Get Employment: The Sense and Sensibility Way

For long I have fantasized to be rich enough and reckless enough so as not to be 'working for money'. These days I am reading 'Sense and Sensibility' by Jane Austen. It is tempting to know that in those days in England (also) there were men who inherited fortunes and their estates granted them 'freedom' to remain idle. :) And the language in which Jane Austen writes about it, makes it so glorious. 

Mrs. Dashwood wants to tell Edward, who loved one of her daughters, that it was better if he was employed (perhaps that would be more comforting to her as a could-be mother-in-law). So how does she tell it? She says, "You would be a happier man if you had any profession to engage your time and give an interest to your plans and actions. Some inconvenience to your friends, indeed, might result from it - you would not be able to give them so much of your time. But you would know where to go when you left them."

So interesting! To be employed, so that "you would know where to go when you left a place"! :)

Edward replies including, "I always preferred the church, as I still do. But that was not smart enough for my family." (no one wants to give her daughter to a man who is rich enough to need to go only to a church). "They recommended the army. That was a great deal too smart for me". (they are fine sending sons to army than seeing them at at home!?) "The law was allowed to be genteel enough; but I had no inclination for the law." (What is the use of arguing for others when one can't for oneself?) "I was therefore entered at Oxford and have been properly idle ever since." (as always true - confused people go to college and return more confused).

Now Mrs. Dashwood says, "The consequence of which, I suppose, will be, that your sons will be brought up to as many pursuits, employments, professions, and trades as Columella's".

Edward says in a serious accent, "They will be brought up to be as unlike myself as is possible."

Now this proposition - to work and get employment - so that our kids can also get into same vocation and hence we could make sure they don't trade unseen waters, is so boring and yet interesting. Thanks to Jane Austen's classy humour...

- Rahul Tiwary

Dear Diary and Other Miscellaneous Stuff

For a change I am writing this post as a ‘dear diary’ format; something with which many of us had got initiated into the blogging world. In fact one of the first blogs which I had come across on internet; I think that was around year 2004-05 and hosted on rediff, were in the same ‘diary’ format. In fact I remember the first such blogger on rediff which had appealed to me and opened a new world to me – she was a girl from Delhi and in her blog she wrote about her days and what she did – especially I loved about her descriptions where she told about how she tutored some kids who came to her house for tuition. She was a student but used to teach kids simultaneously – and this was highly inspiring for a lazy person like me :) Anyways, I should move on to what I have planned for here. I am not really going to describe what comes my mind, but I am going to retrieve and recycle some of the thoughts which have gone through my mind in the last few days.

It should aptly or tragically start with politics; depending on whether you like or dislike political news and analysis. The biggest news recently has been the manner in which Delhi’s CM Arvind Kejriwal has been exposed; with explosive revelations coming out in the open about his real intentions after last elections and the manner in which he was ready to sell his soul to the devil to somehow get back his chair. Also, the manner in which Prashant Bhushan and Yogendra Yadav were ousted from their party, for their sin to having their own individual opinions which did not match with Kejriwal’s, was depressing. People’s biggest fear – that this party and its self-proclaimed honest leader will also become power craving monster after tasting power; has come true. I guess people in Delhi must be feeling hurt and cheated – and they should. Still there is hope at the end of the tunnel. If public can maintain these events in its memory and does not get swayed by some other Kejriwal’s gimmicks before next state assembly elections, next elections although too far from now should be the best way to teach lessons to the sinners. In democracy there is never a final victory or defeat and one pays for one’s karma if people are vigilant.

Now I would like to touch upon a book I have finished reading. It is “For God’s Sake” by Ambi Parameswaran. This is a wonderful take on how religions are impacting people and media of our country. I recommend this book highly if you are interested in this subject. 

Btw, it is troubling the manner in which Pakistani actors and artists have infiltrated Indian entertainment industry in particular and so frequently appear in our movies, TV shows, music albums, Ads, event hosting, etc. We can certainly wonder how they treat us "in return". Ambi Parameswaran, ED and former CEO of DraftFCB Ulka is an industry veteran and here is what he says in his book "For God's Sake":

"Pakistani television would discourage ads being made in India also because they did not want their marketers to route their advertising production money to India and to Indian models. Television authorities in Pakistan insisted that none of the actors were of Indian origin. When Indian agencies made ads for their Pakistani partners, they had to ensure the actors had non-Indian passports, copies of which had to be sent to Pakistan for approval."

Indians think that if they support Pakistani actors, it is because of our "big heart". I think it is because we have "small thinking". If I watch a Pakistani actor's movie/show; s/he will get more roles in India and earn Indian money; one, there is opportunity lost for one Indian actor/artist who could have got that role; two, the Pakistani artist goes back to Pak and spends his income there; part of income goes to Paki govt as taxes; Paki govt uses some of its tax money to fund terror against India; and hence we can't truly claim to be not funding terror in India indirectly by supporting Pakistani showmen!

Recently there was a huge buzz around the news that Maharashtra government has banned beef in the state. Mostly people applauded the decisions except a few who protested. Trivia: Do you know that "till 1947" cow-killing was punishable by death in Jammu & Kashmir? 

All of us know that India got independence at midnight of 15 August 1947; but there are more interesting aspects to it.

The British Parliament had resolved to set India free on 15 August, which was the second anniversary of Japanese surrender leading to end of WW-II. But as per Indian astrologers, 15 August 1947 was an inauspicious (ashubh) day and a nation born on that day could face breaking-up and great hurdles. Astrologers said that 14th Aug'47 was auspicious but British were adamant about 15th Aug. (also because their authority had to be in Pakistan on 14th morning). So K.M. Pannikar, a historian and astrology expert finally came up with a solution - he suggested that the Constitution Assembly should meet and start the proceedings an hour before the midnight. Pt. Nehru's talk is mentioned as 14-15 August even in speech notes.


We know that as per Hindu Calendar, a date changes with sunrise and not at midnight and hence 00:00:00 of 15 August was actually 14 August by Hindu calendar! And it worked out well - a nation which Western experts claimed won't survive, continued to remain one and prospering...

Another thing which has caught my attention is the interesting manner in which word-meanings change and sometimes it is sad; for the changes appear to be trivializing grave or touching moments. These days a Punjabi word "Siapa" or "Syapa" is gaining popularity in Films and TV. The word is being used to indicate any "trouble" or "problem". May be movies picked this meaning up from recent popular culture.

But the actual meaning of the word "siapa" is "Beating of breasts as a sign of mourning." When someone died in that region, it was a custom to conduct a siapa (mourning) ceremony; where women used to gather and weep, crying in grief. That was called "siapa".

In a way it is sad that the word has been turned into something different and trivial. But the custom of original "siapa" (mourning) ceremonies may themselves be extinct now; or getting extinct; and hence popular culture and cinema picked it up. Still, the manner in which they speak "siapa" at the drop of a hat on TV; many times in comedy shows; as if it is a funny word; does not appear right to me. One of my friends informed that the word has been used in trivial and funny sense for a long-long time. But that is the phrase "syapa padna" which means "rona cheekhna machaana"; the instances I mentioned from TV are not "syapa padna" but merely "syapa". Perhaps I should not expect such purity and care from TV and media. 

A lot has also been happening on international front. After Iraq, what has happened in Yemen is heartbreaking. ISIS is a great challenge to the civilized world and I think our world including its leader USA and President Obama are not doing enough. Also the manner in which Islamic terrorists attacked a university and killed more than a hundred students, shakes one’s faith in humanity. 

In this light, the below picture may not break the internet but it can break your heart:

Let us hope some sense returns to this world soon. I wish USA does more than it has done in some recent years to control such events. 

- Rahul

#Society: How Many Children Hindus Should Have?

Every now and then media catches some Hindu leader suggesting Hindus to have more kids so as not to get outnumbered by other religions and then hell breaks loose. (E.g. News1; News2) Getting carried away by the mainstream media (mainly TV news), people like us also criticize such persons on social media expressing disgust and the underlying basic principle is - "it is our personal choice to have as many kids as we want and any other person or organization does not have any right to suggest me or persuade me about it". Isn't it so?

First, if you follow news, such suggestions are made by leaders from all religions. A few days after last time media had made Sakshi Maharaj famous, Pope himself had made a very similar statement. But media does not criticize other religions for the same charge because Indian media's main audience are Hindus and Hindus would naturally find criticism of their own religion more "appealing" than of others - which helps channels's TRP. If I write a facebook post criticizing Hindus, I will get 30 'likes' but if I write one criticizing other religions, I would perhaps get only 3 - because my friends are majorly Hindus. Secondly, data tells that Muslims population is indeed growing faster than Hindus' and hence if some Hindu leaders are educated enough to make sense out of the data and the trend analysis, we should not get angry with them for it.

Lastly, do we really get so upset with anyone suggesting us about how many kids to have? Are not our Govts doing the same for decades - by asking us to breed only "2"? Slogans like "Ham do hamare do" were thrust into our ears for years; and our own (tax-payers') money was spent to teach us the benefits of "small family" - If your father has 100 acres of land and you are 2 kids, you get 50 acres each; but if you are 10 kids, you get only 10 acres each - hence by appealing to our "greed", Govt was able to convince Hindus and other liberal religions to have small families. On the other hand, govt is officially busy increasing the population of minority religions like Parsis by officially using tax payers' money; and inflating the budget of so called "Minority Affair Ministries" while there have been no "Majority Affairs Ministry".

When govt said, "have 2 kids or less", we found it "fine"; but when a Hindu leader says, "have more than 2 kids", why do we find it revolting while logically both are suggesting us to have a "right number of kids" according to their own "perspectives"? If you think rationally and logically, both statements - "have 2 kids or less" and "have 4 kids" are of same "kind" and "characteristic"! But thanks to the media which cares only about TRP and has thrown its brain down the drain; our "perception" is molded so that we find Govt's slogan fine while religious leaders' statement as bad.

- Rahul