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Want to know the history

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Just a small change. What has become history (Rajiv Gandhi's death) is getting connected to what is making news.

[FONT=Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif]RTI query: Did Priyanka meet Rajiv's assassin last month?[/FONT]

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Did_Priyanka_meet_Rajivs_assassin/articleshow/2951405.cms

[FONT=Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif] CHENNAI: Did Priyanka Vadra recently meet Nalini Sriharan, one of those involved in the assassination of her father Rajiv Gandhi?

A city lawyer filed an application under the Right to Information Act (RTI) last week seeking information on a purported meeting on March 19 between Priyanka and Nalini at the special prison for women in Vellore. On March 19, Priyanka was, indeed, in Vellore to pay obeisance at the Sripuram temple there.

The RTI applicant, D Raj Kumar, has sought the prison superintendent’s response to a number of queries: Under which legal provision was Priyanka permitted to meet Nalini, who accompanied her, how long did the meeting last, and what did they talk about?

Nalini, who is 43 now, was given the death sentence by a special court for being involved in Rajiv Gandhi's assassination on May 21, 1991, in Sriperumbudur.

She was 26 at the time of his death and 33 when sentenced.

The sentence was later commuted to life imprisonment after Sonia Gandhi pleaded for clemency for the sake of Nalini’s five-year-old daughter.

Priyanka's purported meeting now would add another chapter to an amazing story of how the Gandhi family has tried so bravely to come to terms with the tragedy of Rajiv's death.

In itself, an RTI application is no proof of such a meeting having taken place. The Times of India , therefore, sought to verify it and reached the superintendent of the special jail where Nalini is lodged. The official refused to discuss the matter. However, Nalini's mother, who is now in Coimbatore, confirmed the meeting.

So did Nalini's two lawyers, S Duraisamy and Elangovan, who claimed that Nalini has briefed them extensively on the meeting.

They described the meeting as "very cordial" and spoke well of Priyanka's genuine desire to know why her father, a "good person", was killed.

The lawyers claimed that the meeting lasted for about an hour. They said Priyanka's visit to the prison coincided with her visit to the temple. Preparations for getting the two together had started long before the purported meeting, they added.

They said on March 11 a central intelligence official met Nalini, ostensibly in connection with her pending representations for an early release.

However, during the meeting, the official showed Nalini a photograph of Priyanka and said, "She wants to meet you. Are you willing?" Nalini said yes. On March 18, another officer, who identified himself as Pankaj Kumar, met Nalini and told her that Priyanka would meet her the next day.

Nalini appeared excited about the meeting. She had brought with her some South Indian sweets that she had prepared in prison for Priyanka. She was, however, denied permission to take the sweets inside the interview room where Priyanka was already waiting.

Once Nalini entered the room, Pankaj Kumar was asked to leave the two alone.

According to what Nalini told her lawyers, a visibly emotional Priyanka made Nalini sit next to her and asked several short questions related to the assassination. Why had it happened? For what purpose? What was Nalini's involvement?

Nalini replied, "I didn't know anything till the end. But it is true that I went to the spot." Nalini is the sole survivor of the five-member assassination squad.

Priyanka is quoted by the lawyers as saying, "My father was a good person. It could have been resolved through talks. Had you known about my father's good nature, you would not have done this." Nalini apparently kept quiet. Then Priyanka asked, "When did you see my father last?" Nalini said, "When he got out of his car."

Who masterminded Rajiv's killing? asked Priyanka

Priyanka wanted to know if Nalini had seen her father when the blast took place, to which Nalini answered in the negative. Nalini explained that she was standing a long distance away and there was a big crowd obstructing her vision.

Priyanka then put a direct question to Nalini: who was behind the blast? Nalini said Dhanu, the human bomb who killed Rajiv, was the only person who would have known about the mastermind behind the blast. "Was the LTTE involved in it?" asked Priyanka. Nalini said she wasn't sure. Only Dhanu knew. Nalini said she still does not know from whom Dhanu took orders.

So, why did she get involved with the killers, Priyanka is said to have asked Nalini. Nalini said she had a neglected childhood. Her family didn't care for her. She apparently told Priyanka, "I would be attracted to those who showed me affection. I didn't know what was good and what was bad. Sivarasan and the others would come to my house during weekends. That was how I got close to Murugan (one of those sentenced to death in the assassination case)."

Priyanka wanted to know whether Murugan was a member of the LTTE. Nalini insisted that Murugan was similarly in the dark. "He did not know that Sivarasan, Dhanu and Subha would be involved in the assassination plan," she is said to have told Priyanka.

So, why did Priyanka want to meet Nalini? Priyanka clarified to Nalini that she was not sent by anyone, and that the decision to meet Nalini was her own.

Nalini believes that her regular letters to Sonia - wishing her a quick recovery when she was in hospital, for instance - may have generated some goodwill for her among the Gandhi family.

Nalini claimed that Priyanka inquired about her daughter, mother and brother. She also claimed that Priyanka told her about her own family and her children. She apparently mentioned to Nalini that she preferred to personally take her children to school every day.

Nalini has told her lawyers that Priyanka came in a green sari, and she was "very simple and loveable". "Both of us were happy about the meeting," she told her lawyers.
--------
Dr.Kalyanaraman adds: [/FONT]
"A. Subramani, the journalist, failed to do one more thing: explore the link between Narayani Amma (Rs. 300 crore gold temple) and LTTE and the reason for Priyanka's visit to this temple instead of visiting the age-old Jalakanteeshwarar temple nearby. Did P meet Mr. Narayani Amma?"
 
Ramma
Thanks,I am wondering about this post

Just a small change. What has become history (Rajiv Gandhi's death) is getting connected to what is making news.

[FONT=Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif]RTI query: Did Priyanka meet Rajiv's assassin last month?[/FONT]

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Did_Priyanka_meet_Rajivs_assassin/articleshow/2951405.cms

[FONT=Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif]CHENNAI: Did Priyanka Vadra recently meet Nalini Sriharan, one of those involved in the assassination of her father Rajiv Gandhi? [/FONT]

[FONT=Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif]A city lawyer filed an application under the Right to Information Act (RTI) last week seeking information on a purported meeting on March 19 between Priyanka and Nalini at the special prison for women in Vellore. On March 19, Priyanka was, indeed, in Vellore to pay obeisance at the Sripuram temple there. [/FONT]

[FONT=Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif]The RTI applicant, D Raj Kumar, has sought the prison superintendent’s response to a number of queries: Under which legal provision was Priyanka permitted to meet Nalini, who accompanied her, how long did the meeting last, and what did they talk about? [/FONT]

[FONT=Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif]Nalini, who is 43 now, was given the death sentence by a special court for being involved in Rajiv Gandhi's assassination on May 21, 1991, in Sriperumbudur. [/FONT]

[FONT=Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif]She was 26 at the time of his death and 33 when sentenced. [/FONT]

[FONT=Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif]The sentence was later commuted to life imprisonment after Sonia Gandhi pleaded for clemency for the sake of Nalini’s five-year-old daughter. [/FONT]

[FONT=Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif]Priyanka's purported meeting now would add another chapter to an amazing story of how the Gandhi family has tried so bravely to come to terms with the tragedy of Rajiv's death. [/FONT]

[FONT=Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif]In itself, an RTI application is no proof of such a meeting having taken place. The Times of India , therefore, sought to verify it and reached the superintendent of the special jail where Nalini is lodged. The official refused to discuss the matter. However, Nalini's mother, who is now in Coimbatore, confirmed the meeting. [/FONT]

[FONT=Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif]So did Nalini's two lawyers, S Duraisamy and Elangovan, who claimed that Nalini has briefed them extensively on the meeting. [/FONT]

[FONT=Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif]They described the meeting as "very cordial" and spoke well of Priyanka's genuine desire to know why her father, a "good person", was killed. [/FONT]

[FONT=Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif]The lawyers claimed that the meeting lasted for about an hour. They said Priyanka's visit to the prison coincided with her visit to the temple. Preparations for getting the two together had started long before the purported meeting, they added. [/FONT]

[FONT=Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif]They said on March 11 a central intelligence official met Nalini, ostensibly in connection with her pending representations for an early release. [/FONT]

[FONT=Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif]However, during the meeting, the official showed Nalini a photograph of Priyanka and said, "She wants to meet you. Are you willing?" Nalini said yes. On March 18, another officer, who identified himself as Pankaj Kumar, met Nalini and told her that Priyanka would meet her the next day. [/FONT]

[FONT=Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif]Nalini appeared excited about the meeting. She had brought with her some South Indian sweets that she had prepared in prison for Priyanka. She was, however, denied permission to take the sweets inside the interview room where Priyanka was already waiting. [/FONT]

[FONT=Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif]Once Nalini entered the room, Pankaj Kumar was asked to leave the two alone. [/FONT]

[FONT=Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif]According to what Nalini told her lawyers, a visibly emotional Priyanka made Nalini sit next to her and asked several short questions related to the assassination. Why had it happened? For what purpose? What was Nalini's involvement? [/FONT]

[FONT=Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif]Nalini replied, "I didn't know anything till the end. But it is true that I went to the spot." Nalini is the sole survivor of the five-member assassination squad. [/FONT]

[FONT=Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif]Priyanka is quoted by the lawyers as saying, "My father was a good person. It could have been resolved through talks. Had you known about my father's good nature, you would not have done this." Nalini apparently kept quiet. Then Priyanka asked, "When did you see my father last?" Nalini said, "When he got out of his car." [/FONT]

[FONT=Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif]Who masterminded Rajiv's killing? asked Priyanka [/FONT]

[FONT=Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif]Priyanka wanted to know if Nalini had seen her father when the blast took place, to which Nalini answered in the negative. Nalini explained that she was standing a long distance away and there was a big crowd obstructing her vision. [/FONT]

[FONT=Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif]Priyanka then put a direct question to Nalini: who was behind the blast? Nalini said Dhanu, the human bomb who killed Rajiv, was the only person who would have known about the mastermind behind the blast. "Was the LTTE involved in it?" asked Priyanka. Nalini said she wasn't sure. Only Dhanu knew. Nalini said she still does not know from whom Dhanu took orders. [/FONT]

[FONT=Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif]So, why did she get involved with the killers, Priyanka is said to have asked Nalini. Nalini said she had a neglected childhood. Her family didn't care for her. She apparently told Priyanka, "I would be attracted to those who showed me affection. I didn't know what was good and what was bad. Sivarasan and the others would come to my house during weekends. That was how I got close to Murugan (one of those sentenced to death in the assassination case)." [/FONT]

[FONT=Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif]Priyanka wanted to know whether Murugan was a member of the LTTE. Nalini insisted that Murugan was similarly in the dark. "He did not know that Sivarasan, Dhanu and Subha would be involved in the assassination plan," she is said to have told Priyanka. [/FONT]

[FONT=Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif]So, why did Priyanka want to meet Nalini? Priyanka clarified to Nalini that she was not sent by anyone, and that the decision to meet Nalini was her own. [/FONT]

[FONT=Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif]Nalini believes that her regular letters to Sonia - wishing her a quick recovery when she was in hospital, for instance - may have generated some goodwill for her among the Gandhi family. [/FONT]

[FONT=Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif]Nalini claimed that Priyanka inquired about her daughter, mother and brother. She also claimed that Priyanka told her about her own family and her children. She apparently mentioned to Nalini that she preferred to personally take her children to school every day. [/FONT]

[FONT=Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif]Nalini has told her lawyers that Priyanka came in a green sari, and she was "very simple and loveable". "Both of us were happy about the meeting," she told her lawyers.[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif]--------[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif]Dr.Kalyanaraman adds: [/FONT]"A. Subramani, the journalist, failed to do one more thing: explore the link between Narayani Amma (Rs. 300 crore gold temple) and LTTE and the reason for Priyanka's visit to this temple instead of visiting the age-old Jalakanteeshwarar temple nearby. Did P meet Mr. Narayani Amma?"
 
Why so much effort?

Simple questions....She would have got answers from coalition partners or its supporting organizations through a phone call. Anyway this Govt cannot hang the killers of former Indian PM.Vote speaks.It speaks louder than anything else.Even at the controversy of Afzal no one wanted to raise the question of what happened to Rajiv Gandhi's judgement.

How Nalini's sentence was reduced to life? Were all other victim's families gave their consent for this?Or is it a misuse of political power of Sonia and the Govts?

Can she go to Srilanka and ask reasons? Can she meet other criminals and terrorists like this?Why not Dawood ?

I guess India is blindly following the western concepts when it comes to judicial system , criminal justice in particular. Which one will be good to people?Do anyone have statistics?

Soft rules - No lethal punishment like many western countries
Mediocre states -Like US (normal laws,Good implementation (i hope so))
tough rules - Like Saudi,China and many Islamic countries

I donno where to place India in it because i dont believe in its implementation side. I am very skeptical about criminal justice system in India. I guess the victims who are common man cannot find justice but to make a compromise like what she has done (though she has powers to find justice).
 
Very strange posting about Priyanka

All,

I think that Rajiv Gandhi's assassination is history.

I do not think what his daughter is doing in her private capacity is part of history.

As usual, from the Indian journalism standards, the story has third person accounts and no first hand account. Why are we reading this trash?

I do not agree with many of Congress/UPI policies. I do not like many of BJP/NDA policies. But this story gets in to the personal life of a person not yet in politics.

We are dealing with a daughter here; can we not allow her some privacy?

I find this story appalling. Is it just me?

Just my two cents.

Pranams,
KRS
 
Priyanka is no private person like you and me.

That she met with the Murderess of an Indian Prime Minister in our own backyard is not something that one should consider as out of bounds!

It was kept so secret that there is no record of her meeting in the jail register!!

Can you and I as private citizens enjoy such privilege??

Yet the vigilence and persistence of some reporters has brought it out that she herself could not deny. But she puts out a story of what she discussed. Believe it if you want. But others can have their own reservations.

No jail records of Priyanka’s visit
http://www.hindu.com/2008/04/16/stories/2008041658150100.htm

S. Vijay Kumar She did not seek an interview with Nalini: official VELLORE: In a secretive visit to the Vellore Central Prison on March 19, Priyanka Vadra met Nalini, one of the convicts in the Rajiv Gandhi assassination case, at the special prison for women. The issue has kicked up a controversy as doubts have been raised about the legality of her meeting with the convict.
Though Ms Vadra has confirmed her meeting with Nalini, officials at the Prison Department in Tamil Nadu maintained that prison records had no entry about the visit. “She did not apply for an interview with Nalini and there is no entry in the visitors’ register on March 19. Since there was no petition, the question of the Jail Superintendent permitting her to meet the convict does not arise,” a highly placed police source told The Hindu on Tuesday.
Nalini was Accused No. 1 in the Rajiv Gandhi assassination case. She was sentenced to death by the designated court and the Supreme Court upheld the sentence. In its 1999 judgment, the Supreme Court held that Nalini’s confession, corroborated by other material particulars, established her pivotal role in the Rajiv Gandhi assassination. The court found that on May 19, 1991, two days before the assassination, she got a “strong feeling” that Rajiv Gandhi was the target and on May 21 she “agreed to associate herself with the killing.”
Ms Vadra’s visit to Vellore was kept highly confidential till the last minute. While the State police were asked to stay away, the Special Protection Group (SPG) and Intelligence Bureau (IB) sleuths managed her security and schedules. On March 19, the VVIP got into a bullet-proof car positioned on the tarmac of the Chennai airport and proceeded to Sriperumbudur. After paying homage at the Rajiv Gandhi memorial, she went to Vellore to meet Ms Nalini in the prison. “On that day, 31 visitors met remand prisoners and one met a convict. But that was not Priyanka according to records,” a prison official said.
There was a lot of activity in the prison that day. This included the release of 33 prisoners on bail, the entry of 18 suspects into the prison and the remand extension of 33 inmates through video-conferencing. A team of doctors attended on 21 prisoners who took ill. “There was adequate security outside the prison as 12 prisoners were taken to court for remand extension. Nobody saw Priyanka,” he added.
However, sources in the intelligence agencies said advance security liaison was done by the SPG and IB with a top intelligence official, who alone was informed of Ms Vadra’s visit. Senior officials in the Prison Department, including the Superintendent of the special prison for women, Vellore, were not informed about the VVIP’s programme.
“Her meeting might have been facilitated as a special case in a separate room, probably the chamber of the Jail Superintendent. The application for the interview could have been taken in some other name.
“But audience is usually given only to the applicant. However, considering the high level of threat faced by the VVIP, exceptions could have been made,” the source added.
---------

Remember there were reports that Quattorocchi and the LTTE met in a Paris hotel to hatch the conspiracy to murder and the French police even video taped it without their knowledge?? Who knows the truth?


Truth is always hidden just as Priyanka's meeting with Nalini. Take her (or those behind her) explanation with a pinch of salt.

Truth will come out. Lord Vishnu was the witness to the murder and he would not side with those who want to hide the conspiracy.

No one need to prompt us to be sulkers.
 
Last edited:
Dear Sri Ramaa

Pl review the following excerpts from your post:

Dr.Kalyanaraman adds: "A. Subramani, the journalist, failed to do one more thing: explore the link between Narayani Amma (Rs. 300 crore gold temple) and LTTE and the reason for Priyanka's visit to this temple instead of visiting the age-old Jalakanteeshwarar temple nearby. Did P meet Mr. Narayani Amma?"

Can we not avoid issues of this kind? It is alright for hindutva and political organisations to take positions on such matters. But we are a young forum still wanting to form an organisation to find ways and means of support to the community. For us the economic and social support to the community shall be the primary objective. While so, can we, as a community, be seen entertaining comments on such sensitive matters involving two nations and a third claiming to be nation but banned in our country? And a comment on a temple with perceptions and presumptions as the basis?

Regards

Appaiah
 
Dear Appaiahji,

I agree with you.

Moderator! Please remove that portion of my posting'

Thanks,
Ramaa
 
Puranas are our history books. Purana itself means ancient. It is Saritha (a Sanskrit word from which the tamil word சரித்திரம came). Saras means lake and Saritha is therefore the river that flows. As the river gushes into the ocean it branches off into many rivers and rivulets. That is why we say sarithas sahasraha meaning the rivers (histories) are thousands. Thus there are always variation beween renditions.

People who view history from the present standpoint cannot understand and appreciate the flow. The 'present' is therefore a blinder!

I was always asking if there is a way to overcome the 'myopia' that the 'present' imposes on the people. Here is what my friend Sriram has to say on this.

"This is the question that bothers me also.

My son who is 6 years old asks me why Lord Venkateswara had 2 wives instead of 1. Now, at that age, I cannot explain vedic secret that Lord is Paramapurusha is the Supreme Consciousness that bestows the liberation through Sridevi and material prosperity through Bhudevi. That Lord is Sushumna Nadi that leads to Sahasrara and Sridevi and Bhudevi are Ida & Pingala nadis.

When I explain Ramayana to him, he asks why Ravana had 10 heads. To him who is a child and since Ramayana is a historical fact, he is under the impression that Ravana is physically deformed. Now, I can’t explain that Ramayana is a wonderful epic poem with all the 9 rasas with wonderful allegories and alankara shastra which make it Maha Kavya; that Ravana is Ego Personified that takes control of 10 facets of individual ie., 5 jnanendriyas and 5 karmendriyas.

He asks me why in puranas, Indra is portrayed as a womanizer and commits adultery. I can’t explain to him that Indra is the Lord of Indriyas (senses) and when this comes under the influence of lust, commits such things. Whether the Indra or Rig Veda and this lusty Indra of Puranas are identical or not is a debatable question.

Now, the so-called rationalists and modern thinkers who claim to be agnostics and atheists are like my 6-year old son. They have neither scriptural background nor are matured enough to absorb the sublime ideals of our culture.

Kavyakanta Ganapati Muni, a great Vedic scholar who had mastered entire Rig Veda, Puranas, Alankara Shastra, Tantra, Kavya, Nataka, Mimamsa had made certain efforts to bring about the Vedas, History, Puranas, Tantra under common platform and deduced the common principle behind these. Sri Aurobindo Ghosh also tried to make certain efforts in correlating Veda, Purana, Itihasa.

Now, the problem with us is that we are “modern-educated” with little knowledge of Vedas, Puranas, our civilization, culture etc. and do not know how to correlate these two and arrive at a same underlying principle.

Basically our Hindu Religion has three parts, viz., philosophy, mythology and ritual. Philosophy is the essence of religion. It sets forth its basic principles or fundamental doctrines or tenets, the goal and the means of attaining it. Mythology explains and illustrates philosophy by means of legendary lives of great men or of supernatural beings. Ritual gives a still more concrete form to philosophy so that everyone may understand it. Ritual consists of forms, ceremonies, etc.

So is the case with sthala puranas. The sthala puranas are the short puranas pertaining to particular places that are authentic facts.

To put in the words of Sri Chandrasekhara Saraswathi of Kamakoti Pita:

"Sthala Puranas not only enable us to have an insight into history but also enrich our knowledge of local culture and local customs. It seems to me that if they are read together in a connected manner, they may throw more light on our history than even the 18 Puranas and Upa-puranas. In fact they fill the gaps in the major Puranas."

Kanchi Mahaperivaal says the all our puranas, upa-puranas, sthala puranas are TURE to the core and they magnify the secret and subtle aspects that are not explained in Vedas.

In school, we study geography through maps. Though there is no real country or town in a map, we are able to arrive at conclusions about the route map of different countries. Similarly, the puranas and myths are the roadmap to arrive at a conclusion. One can grasp the subtle philosophical truths through the myths

The sthala puranas are certain facts based on the ethos, civilization, behavioral aspects, cultural heritage, mental & intellectual maturity of the people residing at that particular place. Nevertheless, there are certain cock and bull stories that have been incorporated in the mythology during the course of time and generation. For example, Kavyakanta Ganapati Muni denies the fact that Renuka -the mother of Parasurama which is adored as Mother Yellamma in most of the villages is the same mother Chinnamasta, the Great Goddess of Dasa Mahavidya. Ganapati Muni says that Renuka Yellamma – the mother of Parasurama and Chinnamasta of Dasa Mahavidya are not identical and the story of Parasurama cutting asunder the head of Renuka and this Renuka being the same as Chinnamasta - a cock and bull story that has been incorporated in the Purana.

In certain sthala puranas, very pious personalities who lead virtuous lives are deified as gods after their passing away. For example, sammakka and sarakka in Telangana Region were the freedom fighters who fought against the Nizam tyranny and became deified as twin goddess in Telangana Region. Even Kannagi, a tamil character in an epic, is worshipped as local goddess.

So, considering these facts, probably, certain heroes, vira naris, heroes in the wars and battlefield were associated with certain temples that have become the sthala puranas in due course of time."
 
Sri Lankan MP enthused by Priyanka-Nalini Meeting
Wednesday April 16 2008 15:36 IST
http://www.newindpress.com/NewsItem...ge=L&Title=B+R+E+A+K+I+N+G++++N+E+W+S&Topic=0

P K Balachandran

COLOMBO: The cordial meeting between Priyanka Vadra, daughter of the slain former Indian Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi, and Nalini Sriharan, one of the convicted conspirators in the assassination case, may help rapprochement between India and the Sri Lankan Tamils, says a pro-Tamil Tiger political leader.

'I am very happy, because the meeting could lead to a closer relationship between India and the Sri Lankan Tamils,' said S. Kajendran of the Tamil National Alliance (TNA), which is a proxy of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE).

Indian courts have held the LTTE responsible for assassinating Gandhi, using a female suicide bomber at an election rally in Sriperumbudur in Tamil Nadu on May 21, 1991.

The meeting between Vadra and Sriharan took place on March 19 in Vellore jail, where Sriharan is serving a life sentence for her role in the assassination of Gandhi.

'India and the Sri Lankan Tamils have of late been coming closer step by step. We expect the gap to be closed before long. The Priyanka-Nalini meeting has occurred at the right time,' Kajendran, an MP from Jaffna district, told this website's News Paper on Wednesday.

(This is completely different from the story put out earlier by Priyanka)


'We acknowledge that undesirable events had taken place in the past, but we wish to tell Indian officials that it is time the past was buried and a new relationship built,' he said.

(Note no remorse even remotely mentioned!)


'We wish to point out that while the other communities in Sri Lanka may change their stance on India and become hostile to it, when it suits them, the Sri Lankan Tamils will always stand by India's national interests,' he added.

(OH! Yea! After killing 1000 Indian Soldiers!)

Kajendran discounted the possibility that the LTTE had a hand in arranging the meeting between Sriharan and Vadra. His party colleague and fellow MP from Jaffna, Suresh Premachandran, said he saw no political motive behind the meeting or sense a political fallout.

'Priyanka may well be speaking the truth when she said that she just wanted to know who killed her father and also to show that she harboured no anger against the killers,' said Premachandran who, as a leader of the Eelam Peoples' Revolutionary Liberation Front (EPRLF), earlier had close links with India.

'There is no possibility of the meeting representing a rapprochement between India and the LTTE as India's position on the LTTE is clear,' he added.

Several others drew different conclusions.

Kanamayilnathan, editor of the Jaffna-based Tamil daily 'Uthayan,' said the meeting could not have been arranged by the LTTE. 'I do not think that they have the ability to go as far up as Sonia Gandhi and Priyanka,' he said.

(Why? What about you know who in Tamilnadu?)

'Priyanka would have wanted to get the fury out of her system. I also do not see the hand of the LTTE in it,' said Dr. John Gunaratne, an ambassador turned academic.

'Wanting to meet a murderess is appalling, but then women are different!' said K. Godage, former Associate Foreign Secretary.

'The visit could not be that innocent. It might have had a link with the coming elections in India wherein the Congress Party could be angling for the Tamil nationalist vote,' said Prabhath Sahabandu, editor of The Island daily. 'But I don't believe India will ever change its policy on the Tamil question. It is irreversible.'
 
She dont want to ask nalini, she can read the CBI comment on the killers.. atl

Sri Lankan MP enthused by Priyanka-Nalini Meeting
Wednesday April 16 2008 15:36 IST
http://www.newindpress.com/NewsItem...ge=L&Title=B+R+E+A+K+I+N+G++++N+E+W+S&Topic=0

P K Balachandran

COLOMBO: The cordial meeting between Priyanka Vadra, daughter of the slain former Indian Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi, and Nalini Sriharan, one of the convicted conspirators in the assassination case, may help rapprochement between India and the Sri Lankan Tamils, says a pro-Tamil Tiger political leader.

'I am very happy, because the meeting could lead to a closer relationship between India and the Sri Lankan Tamils,' said S. Kajendran of the Tamil National Alliance (TNA), which is a proxy of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE).

Indian courts have held the LTTE responsible for assassinating Gandhi, using a female suicide bomber at an election rally in Sriperumbudur in Tamil Nadu on May 21, 1991.

The meeting between Vadra and Sriharan took place on March 19 in Vellore jail, where Sriharan is serving a life sentence for her role in the assassination of Gandhi.

'India and the Sri Lankan Tamils have of late been coming closer step by step. We expect the gap to be closed before long. The Priyanka-Nalini meeting has occurred at the right time,' Kajendran, an MP from Jaffna district, told this website's News Paper on Wednesday.

(This is completely different from the story put out earlier by Priyanka)

'We acknowledge that undesirable events had taken place in the past, but we wish to tell Indian officials that it is time the past was buried and a new relationship built,' he said.

(Note no remorse even remotely mentioned!)

'We wish to point out that while the other communities in Sri Lanka may change their stance on India and become hostile to it, when it suits them, the Sri Lankan Tamils will always stand by India's national interests,' he added.

(OH! Yea! After killing 1000 Indian Soldiers!)

Kajendran discounted the possibility that the LTTE had a hand in arranging the meeting between Sriharan and Vadra. His party colleague and fellow MP from Jaffna, Suresh Premachandran, said he saw no political motive behind the meeting or sense a political fallout.

'Priyanka may well be speaking the truth when she said that she just wanted to know who killed her father and also to show that she harboured no anger against the killers,' said Premachandran who, as a leader of the Eelam Peoples' Revolutionary Liberation Front (EPRLF), earlier had close links with India.

'There is no possibility of the meeting representing a rapprochement between India and the LTTE as India's position on the LTTE is clear,' he added.

Several others drew different conclusions.

Kanamayilnathan, editor of the Jaffna-based Tamil daily 'Uthayan,' said the meeting could not have been arranged by the LTTE. 'I do not think that they have the ability to go as far up as Sonia Gandhi and Priyanka,' he said.

(Why? What about you know who in Tamilnadu?)

'Priyanka would have wanted to get the fury out of her system. I also do not see the hand of the LTTE in it,' said Dr. John Gunaratne, an ambassador turned academic.

'Wanting to meet a murderess is appalling, but then women are different!' said K. Godage, former Associate Foreign Secretary.

'The visit could not be that innocent. It might have had a link with the coming elections in India wherein the Congress Party could be angling for the Tamil nationalist vote,' said Prabhath Sahabandu, editor of The Island daily. 'But I don't believe India will ever change its policy on the Tamil question. It is irreversible.'
 
DMK's bogus Tamil New Year
(April 17, 2007)

http://www.dailypioneer.com/columni...umnist&file_name=jain/jain139.txt&writer=jain

Tamil Nadu's DMK regime could easily win the prize for the most original intellectual initiatives in the country. First it rewrote the history of Indian civilisation. Sri Rama is a figment of the imagination of Aryan Hindus, superimposed upon the Dravidian culture of Tamil Nadu. He never built the Setu erroneously named after him; it is a sandbar created by nature so that cronies of the current regime can make a fortune dredging it.
Tamil Hindus have lived with so much humiliation since the tirades of EV Ramaswamy Naicker that they don't know how to combat continuing insults to ancient reverences and traditions. The arrest of the Kanchi Acharyas on trumped up charges was the most frontal attack on Hindu civilisation since the assassination of Guru Tegh Bahadur four centuries ago.
Now a more insidious assault has begun to break the unity and continuity of Hindu tradition by vivisecting its civilisational concord. Hindus celebrating Baisakhi this year will be astonished to find their Tamil brethren culturally marooned as Chief Minister M Karunanidhi has decreed that the State will no longer observe Baisakhi as the Hindu New Year. Seventy million Tamils in India and Sri Lanka are afflicted by this move, as the forces behind the Indian innovation are trying to scuttle the Tamil New Year holiday in Sri Lanka as well.
Kalaignar was inaugurating a cultural festival organised by his daughter, Rajya Sabha MP Kanimozhi, on January 10, 2008 when he unilaterally announced that the Tamil New Year would henceforth be celebrated on the first day of the Tamil month Thai (Pongal, Makar Sankranti) instead of the first day of the month Chithirai. In a pre-planned move, he piloted a Bill on January 29, 2008 changing the Tamil New Year from April 14 to Pongal (14 January), and had it passed on February 1, 2008.
Baisakhi is observed as the Hindu New Year in Haryana, Punjab, Assam, Tripura, Manipur, West Bengal, Orissa, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Myanmar, Kampuchea, Nepal, Sri Lanka and Thailand. It marks the first day in the Hindu solar calendar dating back to Aryabhatta and the Surya Siddhanta (fourth century CE). Hindu seers calculated the earth's distance to the moon, sun and other planets at a time when most of the world was unaware of the value of the integer zero; an atheist politician has no locus standi to tamper with tradition. Kalaignar claims to have consulted Tamil scholars and cultural experts before ordering the switch; this suggests a conspiracy against the Tamil-Hindu ethos. The academic credentials of these scholars must be revealed immediately.
Tamils say the 'Karunanidhi New Year' coincides with January 1 in the Julian calendar (January 14 of the Gregorian), and the whole exercise may be an attempt to move closer to the church year. Kalaignar reportedly also proposes to change the names of the Tamil months and weekdays to remove pan-Indic terms; a so-called Tiruvalluvar era commencing in 31 BC has already been introduced.

A word on Tiruvalluvar is in order. Jains have contributed vastly to the shaping of Tamil history and culture, especially Tamil literature and its most important ethical text, Tirukkural of Tiruvalluvar. The Jain poet-monk Ilankovatikal wrote the classic Silappatikaram (fifth century); the Sivakacintamani was written by Digambara Muni Tiruttakkatevar (ninth century). Important Tamil grammars, dictionaries and technical treatises were written by Jains, such as Pavananti's Nannul (12th century), the standard Tamil grammar; these were all appreciated by Saiv and Vaisnav scholars.
I say this to emphasise the shared nature of our civilisation and reject the new sectarian-racism being injected into the country from various quarters. Regarding the Tiruvalluvar era, there is no evidence he was born in 31 BC. V Pillai (History of Tamil Language and Literature, 1956) felt the internal evidence of Tirukkural suggested Tiruvalluvar lived around 600 AD.
As for the new Tamil month-names, they are simply the signs of the zodiac in Tamil (Capricorn, Aquarius, Aries, etc). But each month of the Indic solar calendar, Aadi (Ashaada), Purataadi (Bhadrapada), Markazhi (Margasirsha) has special rituals and fasts attached to it. Hence people perceive an attempt to erase the entire underpinnings of Hindu observances in rural Tamil Nadu.
A private news channel has reported that the HR&CE department has issued instructions to all temples to prohibit the sacred 'Panchangam Reading' ritual and other New Year celebrations on Baisakhi. This atheist offensive to diminish a living civilisation is consistent with what has long been happening in Tamil Nadu. Temple land and funds are routinely appropriated by the state with impunity; if Hindu society hopes to recover autonomy and self-esteem, it must begin by fighting for the rights and inalienable dignity of the temples. Hindu dharma has survived centuries of iconoclasm only because Hindu warriors and civilians did not shirk encounters, but rushed in thousands to defend their gods and temples to the last drop of blood. Come to north India and count the graves of sadhus at contested religious spaces.
Yet the civilisational challenge remains equally grim in the north. In 1999, Sikhs were asked to disown the ancient Hindu lunar calendar for a new Nanakshahi (crypto-Gregorian) calendar invented in Canada by one Pal Singh Purewal. Traditionally, the Sikh New Year falls on Baisakhi, when Guru Gobind Singh created the Khalsa. Purewal's calendar incorporates Gregorian features such as 365 days, five hours, 48 minutes and 45 seconds with a leap year every four years! It aims at detaching Sikh identity from its pan-Indic roots, a move already quite advanced given Sikh infatuation with minority status.
The Shiromani Gurdwara Prabandhak Committee accepted the Nanakshahi calendar in 2003, but the Akal Takht refused, upset at the arbitrary fixing of birth and death anniversaries of the Gurus. There is no historic evidence that Guru Gobind Singh was born on January 5; likewise with other Gurpurabs. Under a compromise formula, Baisakhi, Diwali, Guru Nanak's Birthday, Holi and Lohri (Makara Sankranti, Pongal) continue according to the Hindu calendar; events like Guru Arjun Singh's birth anniversary and the martyrdom of Guru Tegh Bahadur and Guru Gobind Singh are fixed according to the Nanakshahi calendar. A casual walk through Sikh mohallas shows the growing presence of evangelical churches. Custodians of the Sikh faith must wake up to the reality that loss of Hindu moorings may capsize the tradition itself.
 
In general after going through this thread one thing is very clear

1. LTTE killed Rajiv with the help of DMK and the Karunanidhi. Nowing these facts at that time Sonia can't help much, but now she joined hands with MK because she needs vote bank from the so called Dravidian state TN.
2. She has turned herself in to a perfect political women who wants to earn sympathy with her husbands name and gain vote.
3. She is not ready to join hands with JJ and punish MK.... I don know why she is not taking steps for this.
4. TN congress is hopeless and thats why she has to go with either MK or JJ. If she have opted for JJ then she has to support Hindutva which will empty the vote bank. Thats why she joined MK even though he killed her husband.
5. I want congress to punish MK at any cost. but i don think that will happen as congress is hopeless as ususal and wont take any bold decisions like BJP.
 
Dear rprasad79,

Thats why she joined MK even though he killed her husband.
Sir, you have to word these things differently. There is no proof MK killed. But there are serious pointers that the DMK could have helped the killers.

There is another aspect of your statement that should not be glossed over. Please tell me which Hindu woman would join with the killer of her husband even if the whole world be the reward?

When those Christians say that they don't hold grudge we should not be carried away by the great 'humanity' of that statement. There is the dark most asuric and unethical object!

Do you see any difference between a man who would prostitute his wife and this?
 
Puranas, the source of ancient Indian history - I

By: V SUNDARAM
http://newstodaynet.com/col.php?section=20&catid=33

Thursday, 24 April, 2008 , 03:39 PM​
. The real history of a country is not the history of wars and battles, invasions and conquests, not even the record of the rise and fall of dynasties, but it is the history of the evolution of its inner national life in all its dimensions and aspects. In studying the History of Bharatvarsha, more particularly the history of ancient Bharatvarsha, most of the historians and scholars more often than not, fail to find out the real soul of India. Our present knowledge and history of ancient Bharatvarsha is derived from and mostly based on the work and writings of western historians and indologists during the last 300 years. Most of these western scholars, armed with passages from Hindu and Buddhist Scriptures, often taken out of their context and whose symbolic significance they could not understand (much less appreciate!), have helped to propagate the fallacy that the history of ancient Bharatvarsha is lost in the mists of unknown and unknowable antiquity and that it is very difficult to reconstruct the history of ancient India on the basis of our Vedas, ancient epics like the Ramayana and the Mahabharatha and the eighteen (18) Puranas.
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. Increasingly the World of Science is taking recourse to the language of metaphysics and philosophy. Eminent Scientists all over the World seem to be of the view that they are not yet in contact with Ultimate Reality. Giants in the World of Quantum Physics, have written essays with titles like `The Mysterious Vision' [Sir James Jeans(1877-1946)] and `The Mystic Vision' [Erwin Schrodinger (1887-1961)]. For example, Sir James Jeans has said: "The stream of knowledge is heading towards a non-mechanical reality; the universe begins to look more like a great thought than like a machine. Mind no longer appears to be an accidental intruder into the realm of matter...we ought rather hail it as the creator and governor of the realm of matter.......Everything that has been said, and every conclusion that has been tentatively put forward, is quite frankly speculative and uncertain. We have tried to discuss whether present-day science has anything to say on certain difficult questions, which are perhaps set for ever beyond the reach of human understanding. We cannot claim to have discerned more than a very faint glimmer of light at the best; perhaps it was wholly illusory, for certainly we had to strain our eyes very hard to see anything at all. So that our main contention can hardly be that the science of to-day has a pronouncement to make, perhaps it ought rather to be that science should leave off making pronouncements: the river of knowledge has too often turned back on itself. (the closing sentences in page 188 of The Mysterious Universe, 1938 Pelican Books reprint of 1931 Second Edition).
The same view was also expressed by Thomas Kuhn (1922-1996) in his path breaking book `The Structure of Scientific Revolutions': "Scientists cannot make any further headway, even given adequate resources. I am of the view that reality is ultimately unknowable and that any attempt to describe it obscures as much as it illuminates."
Today, human beings have to quietly accept the fact that we have reached a dead end in our quest to discover the ultimate reality of our existence. We have reached a stalemate because the vast potential for discerning profound truths hidden in the forgotten labyrinth of wisdom tradition of ancient Bharatvarsha History has remained untapped. These include enquiries into the mysteries of nature and the processes and forces that create, sustain and ultimately subsume us. These secrets were unravelled and some of the eternal laws of nature discovered several thousands of years ago by our Vedic Seers and Sages and handed down to us generation after generation for the well-being of all. Great minds in ancient Bharatvarsha devoted themselves to the pursuit of knowledge, particularly in regard to fundamental questions about the origin of the Universe and the Laws and Forces governing it. They were honoured as `Seers' because their vision and discernment enabled them to `See' the reality of the workings of the cosmos. These Seer-Scientists bequeathed to posterity an invaluable heritage of knowledge and insights, blending theory with carefully devised practices. This precious legacy was unfortunately later lost to us.
It is painful to observe that no organised and coordinated effort has been made to present the ancient history of Bharatvarsha against the background of authentic and trustworthy references and records made available by our Vedas, the Agamas, the Epics and the Puranas, Ancient Bharatvarsha Literature in Sanskrit and several other languages, Tamil Sangam Literature, Shilpa Shastras and other related treatises. No scientific methodology has so far been evolved by Indian Historians to analyze, interpret and present ancient history of Bharatvarsha in the light of detailed examinations, study, correlation, collation and interpretation of the records and resources made available by our Vedic Heritage going back to the dawn of history.
Purana (Sanskrit: purana), meaning "belonging to ancient or olden times", is the name of an ancient Indian genre (or a group of related genres) of Hindu or Jain literature (as distinct from oral tradition). They primarily are post-Vedic texts containing a narrative of the history of the Universe, from creation to destruction, genealogies of the kings, heroes and demigods, and descriptions of Hindu cosmology, philosophy and geography. Puranas are called the Friendly Treatises or Suhrit-Sammitas, and are usually written in the form of stories related by one person to another. Vyasa Rishi is considered to be the compiler of the Puranas. As Dr Radhakrishnan beautifully puts it `The Spiritual motive dominates life in India. Indian Philosophy has its interest in the haunts of the men, and not in supra-lunar solitudes. It takes its origin in life, and enters back into life after passing through the schools. The Gita and the Upanishads are not remote from popular belief. They are the great literature of the country, and at the same time vehicles of great systems of thought. THE PURANAS CONTAIN THE TRUTH DRESSED UP IN MYTHS AND STORIES, TO SUIT THE WEAK UNDERSTANDING OF THE MAJORITY. THE HARD TASK OF INTERESTING THE MULTITUDE IN METAPHYSICS IS ACHIEVED IN India'.
The shortcomings, deficiencies, inaccuracies and the deliberate distortions in the approaches to the investigations and study of our timeless heritage by western scholars have been clearly explained and brought out by several Indian Scholars of great erudition such as Shri V.G.Ramachandran, Professor K. Srinivasaraghavan and Shri G.S.Sampath Ayyangar in their great book titled `Ancient India' published by the International Society for the Investigation of Ancient Civilization in 1998.
The continued negligence of the study of 18-Puranas simply on the wrong ground that they are dealing only with mythical events and unbelievable stories, and not the historical events should by all means be completely avoided. The systematic study of these Puranas should be encouraged and supported by all the Indian Universities.

(contd.)
 
(contd..)

Dr. Mahalingam, Chairman Sakthi Group of Companies, in a brilliant article titled `Puranas-A Source of Information for Historical Research', published in 1997 said that the Puranas hold an eminent rank in the religion and literature of ancient Bharatvarsha. Like the Vedas, they too possess the credit of divine origin and are no less important than the Vedas in terms of either their sanctity or moral or practical influence upon ancient Indian Society. He concluded `I have a feeling that the narratives recorded in the Puranas can be easily well sifted out and authentic and credible facts can be collected from them. That is why at various Conferences and Seminars on ancient history of Bharatvarsha, I have been emphasising the need for considering our Puranas as important sources of information on Bharatvarsha's historic past. It is necessary for the History Departments of our Universities to concentrate on searches and researches into our Puranas. When that is done, much light will be thrown on the Island Continent of Kumari'.
F.E.Pargiter (1852-1947) was an ICS Officer of British India. He was one of the pioneers who categorically said that our knowledge of the most ancient times in Bharatvarsha rests mainly on tradition. He was able to obtain correct and lasting results from a very detailed and critical examination of Puranic and Epic traditions as well as of the Rig Veda and Vedic Literature. He published his findings based on his detailed study of the 18-Puranas and the great Epics in his landmark book titled `Ancient Indian Historical Tradition' in March 1922. In his preface to this book, Pargiter stated `Nothing herein has been the outcome of preconceived ideas, speculation or haste. It began with a study of the Epics and Puranas for geographical information about ancient India 30 years ago, during the translation of the `Markandeya Purana', in order to study its geographical chapters. Geography included political divisions, and led to an examination of ancient kingdoms and so on to their dynastic genealogies and traditions—subjects that were generally regarded as of little or no historical value and were practically neglected'.
(To be contd...)
 
Puranas, the source of ancient Indian history - II.
by V.Sundaram

In his remarkable and primordial source book on ancient Indian historical tradition, in the very first Chapter relating to a general survey of that glorious tradition, F E Pargiter quotes the following verse in Sanskrit which occurs in Vayu Purana,Padma Purana, Siva Purana, and Mahabharatha:

.
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The above Sanskrit verse gives this message: ‘The Brahmin, who may not know the four Vedas with the Angas and Upanishads, should not really be regarded as having attained proficiency, if he should not (does not) thoroughly know the PURANA. He should reinforce the VEDA with the ITHIHASA and PURANA. The Veda is afraid of him who is deficient in tradition, (thinking) ‘he will do me hurt’.

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Most pseudo-secular Marxist and anti-Hindu (and of course anti-national) historians from Jawaharlal Nehru University and Aligarh University takes special delight in running down the sources of ancient historical tradition of Bharatvarsha. For them Karl Marx, Lenin, Stalin and Mao Tse Tung are the real sons of the Indian soil; Swami Vivekananda, Sri Aurobindo, Bipin Chandra Pal, Lala Lajput Rai and other great nationalist leaders who pleaded for time-honoured Hinduism Sanatana Dharma do not belong to India. No wonder the traitors of the Communist Party of India fully cooperate with the repressive British Government in India during the stirring days of Quit India Movement in August 1942. In any other civilised country, such traitors would have been executed without much ado soon after Independence. Lenin, Stalin and Mao Tse Tung are no longer relevant in their respective countries. But to the Communist traitors of India today, they continue to be their working Gods!
Pargiter clearly states that our knowledge of the most ancient times in India rests mainly on tradition. Let me sum up his views in this regard as follows: The Puranas, the Mahabharatha and in a minor degree the Ramayana profess to give accounts from tradition about earliest occurrences. The Vedas, the Brahmanas and other Brahmanic Literature supply detailed and exact information also. The oldest of these, the Rig Veda, contains historic allusions, of which some record contemporary events, but more refer to bygone times and persons and are wholly based on inherited tradition. Almost all the information about ancient India therefore comes from tradition. Statements of an historical kind in the Vedic Literature become serviceable, if they can be linked up with other statements from elsewhere, and that can be only from tradition. It is tradition that gives many of them a chronological position; hence the soundness and force of the Counsel given in the verse to above are manifest.
To quote the beautiful words of F.E.Pargiter ‘Tradition therefore becomes all important. It is the only source, since historical works are wanting, and is not an unworthy guide. In ancient times men knew perfectly well the difference between truth and falsehood, as abundant proverbs and sayings show. It was natural therefore that they should discriminate what was true and preserve it; and Indian historical tradition must be considered in this light’.

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In ancient Bharatvarsha political supremacy fostered religious ascendancy, and Rishis and Munis, protected and favoured by royal power and prestige, spread and propagated their doctrines and observances, not only in the countries conquered, but also in the regions beyond their actual sway. Kings and Rishis therefore were the prominent figures, and it is mainly with them that ancient traditions deal.
Though historical works about ancient India are wanting, yet tradition has handed down fairly copious genealogies of the ancient dynasties. The Puranas consist largely of the Royal Genealogies and Kshtriyas Ballads and Tales. Dynastic accounts and heroic tales were the principal subjects of the Kshtriya record. These state the succession of Kings, and in that way are historical. According to Pargiter, they are almost the only historical data found in Sanskrit books as regards ancient political development; and the list of teachers in professed chronological order set out in some brahmanical books supply evidence as regards brahmanical succession. The genealogies form the basis by which the investigation of tradition for historical ends in ancient Bharatvarsha may be tested. To quote Pargiter once again: ‘They supply the best chronological clue’.
F.E.Pargiter gives a general survey of the genealogies in the Puranas and comes to many meaningful conclusions relating to the politics, culture, religion and society of ancient Bharatvarsha. Famous Kings in the Epics and Puranas were Mandhatr, Harishchandra, Sagara, Bhageeratha, Dasaratha and Rama of Ayodhya; Sasabindhu and Arjuna Karthavirya among Yadavas; Dushyanta, Bharatha, Ajamidha, Kuru and Santanu among Pauravas; Jahnu and Gadhi of Kanyakubja; Divodasa and Pratardana of Kasi; Vasu Caidya of Cedi and Magadha; Marutta Aviksita and Trnabindu of the Vaisala Kingdom; Usinara and Sibi of the Panjab Anavas. All were great monarchs, some of them were great conquerors, and many it is said were great sacrificers. All these great Kings had the moral and spiritual support and benediction of great Rishis of ancient Bharatvarsha. Let me give a few examples in this context. The Vasishtas were hereditary priests of Ayodhya, and various members of their family are mentioned in close connection with Harishchandra, Sagara and Dasaratha. Arjuna Karthavirya was favoured by Rishi Datta Atreya. Marutta Aviksita had Samvarta Angirasa for his priest.
The Vayu Purana, Bramanda Purana and Vishnu Purana give an account of how the original Purana came into existence. These three Puranas say that Krishna Dvaipayana divided the single Veda into four and arranged them, and so came to be called VYASA. He entrusted them to his four disciples, one to each, namely Paila, Vaisampayana, Jaimini and Sumantu. Then with tales, anectodes, songs and lore that had come down from the ages he compiled a Purana and taught it and the Itihasa to his fifth disciple, the Suta Romaharsana or Lomaharsana. After that SAGE VYASA composed the Mahabharatha. The Epic itself implies that the Purana preceded it. It says that Vyasa, just after he had composed it, declared that he had already made the Itihasas and Puranas manifest.

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Pargiter makes this simple point clear. The Sutas had from remote times preserved the genealogies of Gods, Rishis and Kings, and traditions and Ballads about celebrated men, that is, exactly the material—tales, songs and ancient lore – out of which the Purana was constructed. Whether or not Vyasa composed the original Purana or superintended its completion, is immaterial for the purpose of understanding of ancient Bharatvarsha. What is important to note is that there was abundant tradition of various kinds, which could and would naturally have been used for its construction, and of the very kinds that went into its construction. The ancient tales were topics of real interest to Kings, people and Rishis, as both the Epics and Puranas by their very structure proclaim, and they were also matters to which men of intelligence gave their attention. Allusions in the Veda itself show the same. Therefore it is quite natural that, after the religious hymns were formed into the Veda, the ancient secular tales and lore should have been collected in a Purana.

(contd.)
 
contd..

Apart from producing his seminal work ‘Ancient Indian Historical Tradition’, Pargiter also translated the MARKANDEYA PURANA into English with detailed notes. This is a remarkable work on the society and geography of ancient Bharatvarsha. This Purana has a character different from that of the others. It is nothing of sectarial spirit. It deals little in precepts, ceremonial or moral. Its leading feature is narrative; and it presents and uninterrupted succession of legends. With regard to the question of the place of its origin, this Purana seems to have emanated from Western India, especially from the region near the mouths of the Rivers Narmada and Tapti. Markandeya says positively that Cyavana was the Rishi who first declared it. Cyavana obtained it from Bhrgu and declared it to all the Rishis and they in turn repeated it to Daksha and Markandeya learnt it from Daksha. The most important part of this Purana relates to Devi Mahatmya (popularly known as Durga Saptasathi), in which the real speaker is a Rishi named Medhas, and which is only repeated by Markandeya.

Pargiter says in his introduction that the geographical chapters in the Markandeya Purana are comprehensive with enumeration of several countries, races and tribes till then known, whether ancient or mediaeval.
Pargiter has suggested the considerations that should guide us about the way in which the Historical tradition of ancient Bharatvarsha should be treated. He says that we should not put it aside as wholly unworthy of our attention, nor should we try to explain them in a summary manner by prima facie comments. As he puts it succinctly ‘The former course is not criticism but is mere pre-judging the matter, and the latter is superficial observation.... All human testimony is liable to error, and tradition is human testimony concerning the long past: hence it is not to be discarded simply because it contains discrepancies. Ancient Indian Historical tradition must be examined and weighed with the aid of all information available and of experience and common sense.’
(To be contd...)
 
Dear Sri Ramaa!

This is very informative, keep it going.

Regards,
 
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