varnam

Buddha in 500 BC:

I have found the root cause of all human suffering and a technique by which all human beings can attain salvation.

Javed Akhtar, Shabana Azmi's husband, in 2005:

"The gurus teach that come to me and I shall take you away from suffering. In truth, that can never be done, no one can take away the suffering of the world.

For Malayalis Kunhali Marakkar was the brave commander of the Zamorin's Navy, who fought against the Portuguese. The story is that the Muslim Marakkar dynasty fought against the Europeans for almost hundred years. But now there is new research suggesting that a) Marikkars were not of Arab descent, but instead were of Tamil origin b) he could be a myth

According to Dr. Ochanthuruth, "the traditional view of Kunhalis as patriots supporting feudal lords like the Zamorin needs to be corrected.

In the light of Kunhali Marikkar's own actions and Shayk Zaynuddin's statements, it is clear that they wanted an Islamic Principality in their own Malabar. (Shayk Zaynuddin was an Arab scholar who lived in Ponnani).

"After 1600 when the Kunhalis were almost silenced by the Zamorin through a political operation with the help of the Portuguese, the Muslim religious leaders in Malabar elevated Kunhali Marikkar as a cult figure for having attempted to unite the Muslims belonging to different ethnic groups and established their identity on the basis of an Islamic dream as visualised by Shayk Zaynuddin.

"This is the starting point of Muslim fundamentalism and communalism in South Malabar, later described by Ines and Evans as "fanatic zone," he says in his paper presented at an international seminar on `The Portuguese and Kunhali Marikkars - myth and reality'.

"My attempt in this paper is to trace the truth about the origins, growth and struggles of the Marikkar family. Most of the Portuguese sources treat the Marikkar as enemies. Shayk Zaynuddin, an Arab scholar of Ponnani, in his Tuhfat-ul Mujahidin, states that the Marikkars had turned against the Portuguese only by 1524.

According to Dr. Ochanthuruth there is a big gap in historiographical literature about Kunhali Marikkar from 16th to the present century. Till the publication of Malabar and the Portuguese in 1929 by Sardar K.M. Panikkar, there was no serious writing on the Kunhali Marikkars except a few ballads.

Dr. Ochanthuruth's views contradict the opinions of well-known and highly rated historians Sardar K.M. Panikkar, A.V. Krishna Ayyar and O.K. Nambiar.

He also questions claims that Marikkars were Mappila Muslims (Mappilas are children of Arabs married to Malabar women), and contends there is no evidence to support the belief that Marikkars lived in Pantalayani - Kollam, then in Tikkodi and then in Kottakkal, which was their last headquarters.

"Available evidence suggests Marikkars were of Tamil origin and many of them were Parathava converts from Coramandel," Dr. Ochanthuruth claimed. [Kunhali Marikkars: myth and reality]

Two of our prominent Communist leaders visited Pakistan recently and they asked the dictator there to release some Indian prisoners. According to the report in Dawn, the President gestured to one of the aides to set them free.

Such scenes were common in historical movies where the King would nod at one of the ministers and someone would die or be freed. Now we don't have to pay money to Netflix to watch such movies, a visit to Pakistan is sufficient. The report also says that the Communists were charmed by Musharraf and appreciated his sincerity and commmitment. They also indicated that Musharraf is the right man for the peace process.

Now here are two people from the largest democracy of the world, paying obeisance to a dictator, a man who was the architect of the Kargil war against India and a man who just recently called India his arch enemy. But these insults do not matter to us anyway since we are being magnanimous and signing off blank sheets of paper that Pakistan is placing in front of us.

Now at this point did the Communists ask Musharraf to a) restore democracy b) destroy his nuclear arsenal c) protect minorities ? During the meeting, Musharraf also demanded that India show more flexibility in Kashmir (read: Hand Kashmir over to Pakistan). Did the Communists ask Musharraf to end the a) atrocities in Balochistan b) stop sending terrorists to India. We don't know. But what we know is that they said that they don't want India to be a superpower.

Also Read: The Only Fatherland, Communist, We are anti-national as well

When Huen Tsang visited India in the 7th century, he wrote about a king in Maharashtra who was able to 'treat his neighbors with contempt'. He called the king 'Pu-lo-ki-she' aka Pulakesin II. According to Huen Tsang, even Harsha could not put a dent in his ambitions.

Pulakesin II belonged to the Chalukya dynasty which hailed from Karnataka and within a few generations had established a kingdom with its capital at Vatapi (now Badami). To celebrate their successes, they built a series of temples. One of the temples built at Aihole had the date equivalent to 636 AD, making it one of the oldest dated temples in India.
Another one, the Jogulamba Devi temple at Alampur was attacked by Muslims in 1390 AD. The local people put a good resistance, killed the invaders and moved the idol to a nearby temple, but the temple was razed to the ground. Now, after 615 years that temple has been reconstructed.

The Jogulamba temple was reconstructed at the same place where it stood. The temple was rebuilt in the same way it was described in the `Rasaratnakaram' of Nityanatha Sidha of 12th century AD. Sankaracharya was believed to have installed `Sri Chakra' at Jogulamba temple, which is not available now.

Since the Alampur temple complex was declared a heritage site, the supporters of Jogulamba temple had a difficult time to convince the Archaeological Survey of India and the State Government to revive the temple.

The temple was designed to match the Chalukyan architecture so that the new temple would fit into the group of temples.[Jogulamba Devi temple at Alampur rebuilt after 615 years via IndiaArchaeology]

Related Links: Pictures from Alampur

Few days back we reported on the attempts by Communists to get foothold into the Muslim community in Kerala. Now since Communists are the protectors of minorities around the world, you would think that Muslims would flock around the Communist leaders. But what really happened is hilarious. Pamphlets have surfaced a) banning members of Muslim community from marrying a Communist b) denying burrial of Communist Muslims in mosque premises.

The pamphlet titled `Malappurathinte Mannum Manassum' (The soil and soul of Malappuram) issued in connection with the IUML Karuvarakkundu Panchayat meet here, also directs the party workers that the body of a Muslim member, who dies as a communist, should not be allowed to be buried on the mosque premises.

It is mentioned in the pamphlet that both this warnings are based on a `fatwa' issued earlier by the Arabian Islamic scholar Dr. Yusuful Kardavi.

``Giving daughter's hand in marriage to a communist or giving the ancestral share of property to a communist follower in the family, cannot be justified according to the Islamic views,'' reads the pamphlets.

The pamphlet sarcastically points out that those who are out to paint the district red and propagate communism in the community, are unfortunately unaware of the grave religious implications of the issue. [IUML 'fatwa' forbids marriage with communists]

Looks like the photo of Yasser Arafat at the Communist meeting did not do any good.

Thieves in California now know what thieves in India knew all the time - the Gold obsession of Indians. Even the most secure places to hide gold, like the kitchen are no longer safe.

The burglars break into homes while families are out socializing on Friday and Saturday nights. They know where to look, and they waste little time: They grab the cash and the gold jewelry and split.

Some of the families were gone for only an hour, some for the evening.

Since December, the homes of at least 14 Indo-American families have been burglarized on weekend nights in Silicon Valley. The families fear they are being targeted because of their preference for 22- and 24-karat gold jewelry.

Police in some of the communities, including San Jose and Sunnyvale, said they have yet to see a trend of Indian homes being burglarized. But in interviews with the Mercury News, five of the victims said they are now so afraid, they don't want their names used. They all expressed concern that different burglars would come for what was left behind the first time: laptops, camcorders and digital cameras.

`They ransacked the master bedroom and found jewelry in every place in my house where I had it,'' said the man, a Santa Clara resident. ``It looks like they know where to look. There are some subcultures in India where it's pretty common to hide jewelry in the kitchen, and these burglars are also looking in kitchens.''[Burglaries raising fear]

When neocons suggested that the Middle East could use some democracy, this was dismissed as an impossible task by everyone. But here is what's happening

The most extraordinary event of all, of course, is Iraq's Jan. 30 election, when 8 million voters cast ballots despite insurgent bombs and bullets. Weeks earlier, Palestinian voters had trooped to the polls to elect a successor to Yasser Arafat. They chose Mahmoud Abbas, who proclaims his desire (sincerely or not) to end the armed struggle against Israel. Then, on Feb. 10, Saudi Arabia held its first-ever municipal elections. Only men could vote, but this was still a crack in the hitherto absolute authority of the royal family.

Now, in Egypt, Hosni Mubarak has suddenly pledged to hold a multi-candidate election for president this fall. Will he allow a genuine contest? That opposition leader Ayman Nour remains in jail is hardly encouraging. But something significant has happened when the pharaoh feels the need to proclaim, "Egypt needs more freedom and democracy." [Neocons May Get the Last Laugh]

Besides this people in Lebanon are now demanding that Syria withdraw immediately. Even the Arab media is reporting this as positive news

In a widely noticed interview, Walid Jumblatt, the leader of Lebanon�??s Druze, told the Washington Post that Iraq�??s election was the Arab equivalent of the fall of the Berlin wall. Hisham Kassem, a former publisher of the Cairo Times, called the elections the �??start of a ripple effect�?�. Khaled al-Meena, the editor of Saudi Arabia�??s Arab News, says that if elections can be held under foreign occupation in Iraq and Palestine, it should be much easier to hold them in Arab states said to be �??free�?�.[Something stirs]

When President Bush said in the SOTU that spreading freedom and democracy is his priority, he must not have guessed it would happen so fast. Fareed Zakaria puts it correctly when he says

Bush never accepted the view that Islamic terrorism had its roots in religion or culture or the Arab-Israeli conflict. Instead he veered toward the analysis that the region was breeding terror because it had developed deep dysfunctions caused by decades of repression and an almost total lack of political, economic and social modernization. The Arab world, in this analysis, was almost unique in that over the past three decades it had become increasingly unfree, even as the rest of the world was opening up. His solution, therefore, was to push for reform in these lands. [What Bush Got Right]

It's too early to claim victory, but definitely change is in the air.

Professor Zemaryali Tarzi has made it his life's mission to find the third reclining Buddha at Bamiyan. Information about this reclining Buddha comes from the notes of Huen Tsang, who traveled to India as well.

To some, the search is a quixotic one. If the ancient Chinese pilgrim is to be believed, the sleeping Buddha is almost as long as the Eiffel Tower is tall. How could such a monumental structure disappear underground, some ask, and how could it be salvageable if it still exists?

Tarzi has possible answers: The statue could have been deliberately buried centuries ago by devotees to protect it from invading Muslim armies, or it could have been covered after a major earthquake. But more important, his team has begun uncovering at the site clay figures and sophisticated structures that lend support to his grand theory.

Last summer, the dig uncovered a wall that Tarzi is convinced is part of the ancient monastery that housed the huge statue. Excavators have also discovered several dozen sculptures of Buddha heads and other statue fragments, some dating to as far back as the 3rd century -- when Bamian was growing as a Buddhist center. At the very end of the digging season, Tarzi found evidence as well of what he believes may be part of a huge statuary foot.

He is aware of the professional skepticism surrounding his quest -- some have said the reported size of the structure has been misunderstood, while others suggest that the reclining "statue" may have been an outcropping of rock that reminded the religious of a sleeping Buddha -- but he insists the evidence is clear. [Afghan Archaeologist Seeks Sleeping Buddha]

During the weekend, I met Nadia Tarzi, daughter of Zemaryali Tarzi, the archaeologist mentioned in the above story. She has now started the Association for the protection of Afghan Archaeology which aims to raise awareness of Afghan Culture.

I asked her if the only information for this Buddha was from Huen Tsang and she said that's the only one they know. Huen Tsang was very accurate in his descriptions about the standing Buddhas and their dimensions and hence they believe the reclining Buddha should exist as well. For example, here at Varnam we have reported about the findings at Sirpur which was described in the writings of Huen Tsang. But Nadia Tarzi would like to know if there are any other ancient works which mention this Buddha.

Related Links: Along Huen Tsang's path, Buddha's Foot

Subhash Kak has a new article in Rediff which, based on the findings of an Oxford University scholar Stephen Oppenheimer, says that

Oppenheimer concludes with two extraordinary conclusions: 'First, that the Europeans' genetic homeland was originally in South Asia in the Pakistan/Gulf region over 50,000 years ago; and second, that the Europeans' ancestors followed at least two widely separated routes to arrive, ultimately, in the same cold but rich garden. The earliest of these routes was the Fertile Crescent. The second early route from South Asia to Europe may have been up the Indus into Kashmir and on to Central Asia, where perhaps more than 40,000 years ago hunters first started bringing down game as large as mammoths.'

This synthesis of genetic evidence makes it possible to understand the divide between the north and the south Indian languages. It appears that the Dravidian languages are more ancient, and the Aryan languages evolved in India over thousands of years before migrations took them to central Asia and westward to Europe. The proto-Dravidian languages had also, through the ocean route, reached northeast Asia, explaining the connections between the Dravidian family and the Korean and the Japanese.

Perhaps this new understanding will encourage Indian politicians to get away from the polemics of who the original inhabitants of India are, since that should not matter one way or the other in the governance of the country. Indian politics has long been plagued by the Aryan invasion narrative, which was created by English scholars of the 19th century; it is fitting that another Englishman, Stephen Oppenheimer, should announce its demise. [The cradle that is India]

To see an animated version of human migration, visit the site of the Bradshaw Foundation. The theory that India was the cradle for all non-African people will be pretty hard to digest for many people.

Rajan R has images of two British newspapers, one when Bush was re-elected and one few days back. This is related to the war in Iraq which is now transforming the middle east.

Update: Women in Kuwait demand rights

Lahore, Pakistan, was founded by Loh (Lav), the son of Lord Rama and there is a temple in Lahore fort dedicated to him. After being closed for many years, the dungeons of Lahore fort and the temple are going to be opened for public.

The temple was named after Loh, a Hindu prince, the founder of Lahore and one of the two sons of Rama, the hero of Ramayana. Kush, Rama�??s second son, founded the town of Kasu (present day Kasur). The temple is located near the Alamgiri gate where the old jails of the Fort used to be. In Ziaul Haq�??s regime the temple was completely closed as the dungeons were being used by the police. From 1985 the temple was opened only for visits by the Fort officials or on request. [Lahore Fort dungeons to re-open after more than a century via India Archaeology]

In 2004, a Harappan site was found in the small town of Bagasara in Gujarat. This site which dates back to 2500 B.C was found to have a shell making workshop, fortifications, and knives with bone handles.

Shell bangles have been found before but not a workshop with a such a concentration of shells. The presence of the workshop reveals that the shells were cut and polished into fine bangles. Several heaps of sacred conch shells along with thousands of shell circles systematically cut from these shells have been discovered. Workshops of faience and lapidary stone beads have also been found.

The latest findings in an area of 120 meters by 120 meters in Bagasra, about 70 km away from Morbi, is the result of nine years of excavation by a team of 20 experts. The location close to the sea indicates that the people exported their wares somewhere. A six-meter thick fortification made out of mud, brick and stones enables one to reach the conclusion that the products made in the industry were well preserved. Outside the fortification were residential units.

While an entrance gate for communication between these two segments have been located at the southern wall of the fortification, another gate, maybe the one that led towards the sea, of the fortified area, is yet to be unearthed.

�??Deposits of six meters at the site indicate that urban life existed there for about 600 years. But what happened to them thereafter remains to be probed,�?� Dr Bhan says. Habitation at the site continued in the post-urban period too for about 200 years up to 1700 BC. The department will soon begin another round of excavation to get more answers to the unanswered questions and the findings will be known at an exhibition to be held sometime in April.

One of the seals discovered at the site has decorative linear patterns incised on three sides and a deep, scooped out rectangular socket-like cavity on the fourth side. This is in addition to the usual engraved inscription and the unicorn figure.

This is unique, Dr Bhan says, as these are in addition to the usual engraved inscription and the unicorn figure on the seal. The other seals are like the seals normally found at Harappan sites. The team has also found the stamped impression of such seals on clay and terracotta sealing. It is believed that the seals were used in trade and exchange transactions during the period. [Unicorn seals and conch shells]

Recently archaeologists excavated the entrance to what is known as the Gola Dhora mound and they are proposing a theory that the Harappan elite were serviced by such rural civilizations.

Among other things found here that lend credence to this thesis is a shell workshop, which experts say has no parallel in any other IVC city. ''We had been working here since 1995. The fortification was and other structures were there but the entrance was missing. We were moving around it but never reaching there. "This time it clicked. The city as we visualized it on excavation is complete now. The fortification acted as a link between the smaller rural centres and large Harappan towns, by providing an industrial and trade linkage ,'' said Dept head Professor K K Bhan.

A leather bag found from shell workshop has unfinished bangles, beads and pendants. ''The town seems to be a small settlement associated with craft activities. It seems people were exploiting available resources from neighbouring region, turning out finished products and sending them across to elite Harappan city homes,'' says Professor V H Sonavane. [Archaeologists hit paydirt in Gola Dhora]

Related Links: Gandi Umar Khan

Visiting Bali, Aneeta Sundararaj, a storyteller, discovered that Balinese people seem to be practicing the tenets of Hinduism properly.

�??Temples are presided over by a lay priest, called a pemangku. He or she is often of the lowest caste. A pemangku is not a holy person, but rather, one who is respected as one with spiritual influence. �?� They may be thought of in some respects as temple caretakers. They keep the place clean, decorate it when needed, furnish holy water to those who seek it, and are in charge of all ceremonies that occur within the temple. One of their important jobs is to prepare and provide holy water from the temple for those who seek it for various occasions.�?�

This is amazing for two reasons which touch on issues of gender and caste bias. In other parts of the world where Hinduism is practised, women are not allowed to take part in temple duties. Worse still is the scourge of the caste system that does not allow a low caste person to even enter the temple let alone provide holy water to people who seek it. The ability of the Balinese to treat their fellow man as human, if not equal, is like none other in this world. Nowhere else could it be possible for a low caste woman to keep the temple clean or decorate it and indeed be in charge of all ceremonies that occur within the temple. Indeed the Balinese must truly be liberated people. [Bali �?? Where the great stories of Hindu Mythology and Reality Meet]

I don't know much about temples in other states, but in Kerala, all the Naga temples are run by women and in normal temples women assume various duties like making garlands etc. On Nov 12, 1936, Sree Chithira Thirunal Maharaja of Travancore issued a proclamation opening all temples in Travancore to all Hindus irrespective of caste. Later Cochin and Malabar followed.

After India allowed the bus service between Srinagar and Muzafarabad, where terrorists can show some information scribbled on a napkin as travel documents, the General is not happy. He wants India to show more flexibility. The General has uttered the word, flexibility, atleast a dozen times now. If he utters it a few more times, we might even give up Kashmir entirely. But that can create more problems.

So the next best option would be to invite him to India and make him the Chief Guest at one of the cricket matches. It was only recently that he put the words arch enemy, while refering to India. He is also the architect of the Kargil war against India. But then if the dictator demands, flexibility, you got to give it to him, lest he sneak in more jihadis. There will be photo ops, with all the democratic leaders of India competing to shake his hands. The media will be reporting on what he ate for breakfast and supper.

"Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh told parliament he hoped the president and his family would enjoy their visit", according to the BBC. If Musharraf decides to visit Kochi for the one dayer, Malayalaees are only too happy about it. "It would be a great honour for Kerala to host him. I personally would do my best to ensure the general visits Kochi," Chief Minister Oomen Chandy told reporters. Heard of something called self-esteem ?

We have to deal with the leaders of every country, especially our neighbors. But that should be done based on what we stand for. A democratic India had dealt with dictators and mass murderers like Saddam Hussein and Nicolae Ceausescu. But that does not mean giving them an opportunity to hog the limelight. The best way to treat Musharraf is how Bill Clinton did on his visit to Pakistan after visiting India. There was no photo op, no public handshake, and instead Pakistanis got a lecture on democracy which was televised live. A good reference for the Indian administration is The Acorn's cheat sheet for leaders of the democratic world.

Now during his visit, if Musharraf asks as a joke that he be allowed to raise the Pakistani flag at Red Fort, we might even allow it - that's how flexible we are.

Related Links: Dialogue with terrorists, Did Nawaz Sharif Know ?

Based on the reports of Damis, a native of Mesopotamia, who was linguist and diarist, we have a detailed report of the life of Gondophares, an Indo-Parthian king in Taxila.

Damis' diary informs us that the court of Gondophares was remarkably simple. The Greek philosopher, a follower of Zeno, the founder of the Stoic school, was pleased no end with the lack of display, a pleasant contrast to the pomp he had seen in Babylon and Persia. Damis tells us that the palace showed no "extraordinary magnificence, and was just like the house of any citizen of the better class". There were no guards, a few servants and three or four persons waiting to speak with the king.

The guest waited as the king finished his business with the persons already in audience. Then sat down with the travellers and following the preliminaries Apollonius asked him about his "mode of life". The king explained that as a vegetarian and a keen gardener, he grew his own vegetables and fruit. Damis does not say so, but it seems as if the visitors were given a glimpse of the garden, which might have been right outside the audience hall. One wonders if the king also tried his hand at the now barely remembered sungtara orange that grows to this day in the last surviving sungtara orchards just a kilometre from the king's palace.

As for drinking, he drank most abstemiously. This temperance was an old Taxilian tradition for we hear from those who came here with Alexander that the people of Taxila frowned upon drunkenness. We are told that folks did appreciate a local rice wine, but were rarely found intoxicated. Taxilian society was evidently very cultured back then and we could surely learn a few things from it if we were to study it in any detail. But again I digress. [In the throne room of Gondophares via India Archaeology]

Gondophares, who ruled while Jesus Christ was alive, is also mentioned in early Christian texts, especially in connection with St. Thomas. Romila Thapar writes that, according to tradition, Thomas arrived at the court of Gondophares from eastern Mediterranean. John Keay notes that the word referred in the Acts of St Thomas was actually 'Gudnaphar' and it bears coincidental resemblance to Gondophares, the name found in the coins. John Keay also says that if this Thomas was really the Apostle or if he reached Punjab is really open to doubt.

References: Early India : From the Origins to AD 1300, India: A History

When India agreed to a Pakistani demand to allow people to travel to Kashmir based on some information scribbled on a napkin, the question we asked was "Can a PoK Kashmiri entering on this LoC Crossing Permit visit other parts of India?". Our concern was that Pakistanis would enter and disappear into India without a trace.

Now that there is peace in the region and we are bending backwards as much as possible to show flexibility, India allowed many Pakistanis to visit to see the cricket matches. Now it seems 34 of them have vanished. And these are people who traveled with passports and visas.

The Intelligence Bureau is yet to begin a probe into the "disappearance" of 34 Pakistani nationals who had come to Mohali to watch the India-Pakistan cricket match.

The IB says that a probe will be conducted by the local police. "We will only take note of the report and monitor the developments," an IB official said on Tuesday.

The immigration department located at the border has informed both the Punjab and the Central government that of the 2,754 Pakistani cricket fans who had come to Mohali, only 2,720 had returned back.

The MEA did not seem overly concerned about the matter either. The spokesman said the ministry was unaware of the disappearance of these Pakistani citizens. [Disappearance of Pak fans to be probed: IB]

I hope they keep an eye on Musharraf when he comes.

Many ancient civilizations have a flood story in their mythology. There is the story of Noah's Ark in Judeo-Christian countries and Sumerians have the Epic of Gilgamesh. In Hinduism we have the story of Manu.

It is amazing that countries spread so far apart have such similar stories and it does not end there. Another similarity is in the stories of children who were floated in baskets down rivers. Yocheved put her son Moses in a small ark and placed it on the river in which the Pharaoah's daughter bathed. In Mahabharata, Kunti did a similar thing and sent Karna floating down the river.

The book I am reading The Fourteen Dalai Lamas: A Sacred Legacy of Reincarnation has a similar story about King Nyatri Tsanpo, regarded as Tibet's first recorded monarch. King Tsanpo was Indian by birth, descended from a Licchavi king. When he was born, he had many unusual signs in his body and hence his father put him in a casket and sent him river rafting down the Ganges. The child was rescued by a farmer, and later when he came to know his trip down the river, he was overcome with grief and fled to the Himalayas. He arrived at the Yarlung valley in Tibet and later became the King.

�??This government must act to crush the Tigers, They are not the representatives of the Tamil people. The government must destroy the LTTE (Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam)�?�

The person telling this is Venerable Ellawala Medhananda, MP and head of the all-Buddhist monk National Heritage Party of Sri Lanka. One would think that being Buddhists they would preach peace and light candles like the secular types in India.

�??When the Pentagon was attacked, what did the Americans do? They went and bombed Iraq (sic), so our government must adopt a similar attitude when dealing with separatist movements,�?� Medhananda said in his native Sinhala.

�??If it means war, no one should have a problem with it,�?� he added. �??Affairs of the state and religion are two different things. Buddhism does not teach us to keep quiet and pretend to be blind to all the injustices in the world. It is not a philosophy that teaches us to be timid and scared.�?�

�??We follow the middle path, that�??s what the Buddha wanted us to do. We are not fundamentalists or extremists, we tread a path of non-violence,�?� said Medhananda. �??But that does not mean Buddhists can�??t act in self defence.�?�

�??If the peace talks are not yielding the desired results - and the next best thing to do is to go back to war�?� [Time to crush Sri Lankan rebels, say Buddhist monks]

Violence and Buddhism maybe something difficult to visualize together, but Tibet's largest prison sanctioned by the fifth Dalai Lama had instruments of torture.

It was King Songtsen Gampo who embraced Buddhism in Tibet and moved the capital of Tibet to Lhasa. When he inherited the throne, he increased his military forces and embarked on an empire expanding mission and according to The Fourteen Dalai Lamas: A Sacred Legacy of Reincarnation, he was a terror.

No takers for JNU even in Bangladesh

According to the Feb 7 issue of the Hindustan Times, there are no takers for the seats offered by the Marxist bastion, Jawaharlal Nehru University, even in backward countries like Bangladesh.

The university scrapped the Dhaka exam centre last year because there weren't many candidates.

This is not surprising, as JNU has never been known for academic excellence. Recently, JNU Teachers' Association opposed the Indian tradition of respecting education. In 1989-90, JNU Students Union demanded that the minimum eligibility criteria for the junior research fellowship/lectureship examinations should be lowered from 55 percent to a level that would accommodate their intelligence.

Lot more gems on Amartya Sen, Sonia Gandhi, and Communists in the March report.

India does not think Narendra Modi is a criminal, and hence he was eligible to contest the elections and become Chief Minister. But the fact that India is a democracy and has a judicial system does not really matter to United States. But in fact just last week, Condi Rice saw democracy in Pakistan.

If you look at this episode, hypocrisy is abound. Naredra Modi played the fiddle while Gujarat burned. He had the responsibility to protect both the Hindus and Muslims who were murdered in the riots and he failed. But then who could raise their voice in India? The Congress Party sat idle while Sikhs were murdered after Indira Gandhi's assasination. The Communists in various avatars as Naxalites, Maoists etc. murder people. But then does United States refuse visa to such people? No.

And then who gave United States the right to judge other countries? If they had standards like these no Chinese leader would be able to set foot here. How about Ariel Sharon or Yasser Arafat or Musharraf? Does United States refuse visa to such people? No.

So this is not about some high moral ground that United States is taking here. Someone exerted sufficient pressure to get this visa cancelled. This was a high profile game and some who selectively protest won. Will this means that criminals like Modi, from India and other countries be denied a US Visa in future. I don't think so.

But as The Acorn points out, India's issues are now globalized. For Kashmiri Pandits, this is an important lesson.

Update: The Indian Prime Minister's statement

"Our government has clearly pointed out our very deep concern and regret over the US decision to deny a visa to a constitutionally elected chief minister of a state of our union. We have observed that this uncalled for decision be traced to a lack of sensitivity and due courtesy to an elected authority.

"The US government has been clearly told of our concern at this development. We have also called for the urgent reconsideration of this decision by the US government. Mr. Chairman, Sir, the American Government has also been clearly informed that while we respect their sovereign right to grant or refuse visas to any person, we do not believe that it is appropriate to use allegations or anything less than due legal process to make a subjective judgement to question a constitutional authority in India. [Text of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's statement in Rajya Sabha]

Update: Few days back we blogged on the Indian flexibility while dealing with Musharraf. Even though he was responsible for the death of many Indians we treat him with respect. Ashish too points out the same and mentions that we should set our own house in order first.

Update: The denial of the visa was based on a report by the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC). But now they have come out with the statement that they never indicted Modi or his Govt.

The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC), whose findings the US claimed formed the basis for denying visa to Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi, today shot back at Washington, saying the Bush administration had blown its observations over the 2002 riots out of proportion.

''Our approach was mainly limited to the Best Bakery case...

there was no indictment in general of Mr Modi or his government,'' a top NHRC official told UNI.

He was reacting to the US remarks that it revoked Mr Modi's visa in response to ''a finding by the Indian National Human Rights Commission pointing to comprehensive failure on the part of the state government of Gujarat to control persistent violations of rights''.

The NHRC official, who requested not to be named, said the Commission did make ''certain observations'' about failure of criminal justice in riot-ravaged Gujarat, but ''not to the extent they appear to have been projected by Washington''. [NHRC says US exaggerated its Gujarat observations]

Even before Musharraf could finish uttering the word - flexibility, India displayed lot of it. The General is still not happy and keeps asking for more and more. But at the same time you would think that Pakistan would also reciprocrate in this flexibility contest. But it is not so.

Coming back to its oft-repeated harp on Kashmir, Pakistan Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz has said that Pakistan would never be flexible in its principled stand on the issue.

Talking to visting Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh, Aziz ruled out any normalisation in bilateral ties unless the Kashmir issue was resolved in tune with the aspirations of the Kashmiris.[Pak rules out any flexibility on Kashmir]

But I hope this does not stop us from displaying more generosity.

The gloves are off. Far from trying to pacify New Delhi, King Gynanendra seems to be going out of his way to infuriate it. After he refused to meet Indian envoy Shiv Shankar Mukherjee, his government has rubbed salt into the wounds by imposing fresh restrictions on an Indian business venture.

United Telecom Ltd, an Indo-Nepal joint venture, has been asked not to register any more subscribers. Some 80 per cent of the stake in the company is held by MTNL, VSNL and Telecommunications Consultants (India) Ltd. The remaining 20 per cent is held by Nepal Venture Pvt Ltd.

South Block is upset and India plans to take up the matter with Nepal at the earliest. [Indian venture gets a rude wake-up call from Kathmandu]

We should quit saying we are the future superpower etc. We barely have any influence over our own neighbors, forget rest of the world. India has become a country which a superpower and a tiny country can slap around.

What did the Indian Communists discuss with Musharraf other than their shared goal of not letting India become a superpower? A new proposal for solving the Kashmir problem was generally discussed between CPI (M) General Secretary Harkishan Singh Surjeet and General Musharraf. This proposal is called "China Formula" not because the Indian Communists open umbrellas when it rains in China, but since it is based on the formula followed by India and China to solve their border problems.

The �??China Formula�?� of the Indo-Pak Left parties includes three main points: to maintain the status quo and to �??freeze�?� the Kashmir dispute for a while, the condition of the Kashmir and �??cross-border terrorism�?� should be dropped, and. increase in the bilateral trade. According to reports, during his meeting with Gen Musharraf, Harkishan Singh Surjeet is believed to have said that Pakistan should drop the condition of �??Kashmir first,�?? and similarly India should drop the condition of �??end to cross-border terrorism first.�?? Musharraf was quoted as having told the delegates: �??I have asked my Ministers to say �??Yes�?? to all proposals from India. We want to settle the disputes because I do not want to go down in the history as a failed man. I will, Inshallah, resolve the issue during Comrade Surjeet�??s and mine lifetime.�?� Though Musharraf did not mention the �??China Formula,�?� the Left parties of India and Pakistan believe that he would consider the proposal given its �??viability�?� than other complex models on Kashmir put forward over the years. �??Musharraf is said to be considering it and may be ready to set aside the key Kashmir issue for a while on the lines of Indo-China negotiations,�?� reports added. [Now it�??s �??China formula�?? on Kashmir dispute]

Right now trade is being held hostage due to the Pakistani obsession with Kashmir. So when you evaluate the proposal in this context, this is a step forward. Putting Kashmir on the backburner would definitely bring in development in both countries and Pakistanis can even start thinking about the MFN status for India.

But read the fine print and you will see the catch. For all this generosity, India is to drop the condition that Pakistan end cross border terrorism. With this proposal Musharraf has the freedom to send in jihadis for shooting down Indians.

1. Embrace Market Economy.
2. Red Carpet welcome to foreign investors.
3. Large scale private participation
4. Promote IT and Biotechnology
5. Close all sick PSUs
6. Get aid from World Bank and ADB

If I said this was the plan of Communists, you may not believe it. And even more unbelievable is that it comes from the Communists in Kerala. After systematically preventing any progress in Kerala, the Communists in 2005 have realized that they need to make it a prosperous state.

The CPM leadership in the state believes that its primary duty is to make Kerala a prosperous state. The leadership is realistic enough to realise that this cannot be achieved unless Kerala attracts a remarkable amount of capital to the state.

``Earlier, the party had adopted a to-be-or-not-to-be-stand on foreign capital and the aid from foreign agencies like the World Bank and the ADB. Now there is no ambiguity regarding this. The document will come out with more clarity in support of seeking aid from them,'' the sources said. [CPM bid to do a Buddha in Kerala]

As the forces of globalization sweeps through commie land, how do the comrades explain this to their cadres who have been bought up on a diet of anti-globalization slogans ?

Related Links: The Marx Bros INC (Thanks Ravikiran)

Pakistani Govt is biased against minorities. We are not saying it, but the Pakistan National Commission for Justice and Peace.

The NCJP has said that the attack on minorities' places of worship, instances of forced conversions, discriminatory laws are being used as weapons for political leverage and evictions of minorities indicate the state's failure to ensure not only human rights but implement legislation for effective governance....[Pak commission says govt. biased against minorities via DhimmiWatch]

Since minorities are opressed in Pakistan, do you think anyone would refuse a visa to Musharraf ?

The Central Govt extended the term of the Liberman Commission inquiring into the demolition of disputed structure at Ayodhya, but at the same time it has denied extension to the Justice MK Mukherjee Commission investigating the disappearance of Subhash Chandra Bose. Subhash Bose, was believed to have died in a plane crash in Taipei, but recently it was discovered that there was no plane crash at that time. There are theories that he was in Soviet Union at that time and the Commision is not visiting Russia to examine the documents due to lack of time. Why is the Congress Govt. not interested in finding the truth ?

So we come to our favourite whipping boy, Jawaharlal Nehru, who had infact setup a commision to investigate Bose's disappearance.

Intriguingly enough (a fact glossed over nowadays), Nehru declared that the death of Netaji in Taihoku aircrash was a settled fact even before the committee could furnish its report. Its tenure was a mere four months and it dared not upset Nehru's "settled fact". So it recommended repatriating the ashes preserved in Japan's Renkoji temple, fabled to be of Netaji's, but is doubtful whether it is of any human being at all. The only accompanying "proof" was a death certificate in Japanese, which, when translated into English, turned out to be a Japanese soldier who had died of heart failure from exhaustion during World War II.

The opinion of other two members of the committee was at variance with that of Shah Nawaz but his (actually Nehru's version) prevailed. After all, this ex-INA Major General was deeply indebted to Nehru personally. In Independent India, former INA members were debarred from entering the Indian Armed forces or try their luck in politics. Nehru found INA-people "disloyal, uncouth, and unpatriotic" and it was not until Indira Gandhi's regime that they allowed pension. On the contrary, there was no such restriction in Pakistan as Taya Jenkin informs in her book, Reporting India.

Nehru was exceptional in patronising one ex-INA brass, Shah Nawaz Khan, who was recalled (virtually highjacked) from Pakistan where he had migrated after Partition, and was made a minister of state in Nehru's Ministry. Such was the private reason for Shah Nawaz's public statement endorsing Nehru's views on Netaji's "death". However, Nehru himself was not convinced of Netaji's death. Indians were given to believe as gospel what people like Shah Nawaz and Habibur Rehman, who had crossed over to Pakistan, said about Netaji's fate. A battered Nehru, sometime before his death in 1964, had engaged in correspondence with Netaji's elder brother Ashok Bose. Nehru therein had agreed that the truth behind Netaji's disappearance should be brought out. Nothing unsettled Nehru's "settled fact" like his own admission. [Netaji beyond Taihoku aircrash]

There are stories that Subhash Bose came later to India and lived as a monk in Uttar Pradesh. The present commision has investigated this monk and visited the places where he stayed and examined his belongings.

We may not know the whole truth, but some information will be available when the MK Mukherjee Commision submits its report soon.

There is also a new movie by Shyam Benegal titled Bose: The Forgotten Hero based on the last five years of Subhash Bose's life.

This denial of American visa story is getting very interesting. As you know Gujarat Chief Minister, Narendra Modi was denied a visa to enter the United States.

"The United States is sending a subtle message by cancelling the visa of Narendra Modi. The message is that the US does not approve of the sectarian strife and communal violence in India," Kalim Kawaja, a leader of the Indian Muslim Council-USA, said.

"Frankly we did not expect such a move from the State Department. It was quite a surprise for us too. We welcome it and we are happy that the US has taken a clear stand on the communal issue," he said. [Modi visa: Muslim bodies hail US move]

But before everyone could rejoice, Maulana Kalbe Sadiq, a senior Shia cleric and vice-president of the All India Muslim Personnel Law Board was detained at Chicago Airport, and later deported. According to the NDTV report,

The Section under, which the Shia cleric was deported is used on those who support terrorism.

It has probably been used since he is known to have organised a number of rallies criticizing America's attack on Iraq. [US denies entry to senior Shia cleric]

And then suddenly all the statements about America when visa was denied to Modi has become invalid.

Protests by the Lucknow Shias against the treatment meted out to Maulana Kalbe Sadiq by the US immigration authorities erupted on the streets when hundreds of Muslims raised anti-American slogans after the Friday prayers at Asafi Imambara.

The protests followed after Imam-e-Juma of the Asafi mosque, Maulana Kalbe Jawwad assailed the American government in the �??khutba�?? (sermon). Jawwad said that the denial of entry to Maulana Sadiq tantamounted to humiliating the entire Muslim community. [Shias protest US treatment to Sadiq]

We don't know if Kalim Kawaja welcomes this denial of the visa as well and thinks that the United States is sending the right signal by denying a visa to someone who hates America.

From varnam Archives: [March 26, 2003] Shahi Imam of Jama Masjid Syed Ahmed Bukhari's visa rejected by Kuwait

Saudi religious police have destroyed a clandestine makeshift Hindu temple in an old district of Riyadh and deported three worshippers found there, a newspaper reported today (March 26, 2005).

"They were surprised to find that one room had been converted into a Hindu temple," it said.

A caretaker who was found in the worshipping area ignored the religious police orders to stop performing his religious rituals, the paper added.

He was deported along with two other men who arrived on the scene to worship. [Makeshift Hindu temple razed; worshippers deported]

Question: Doesn't Saudi Arabia make noises about Muslim persecution in India ?
Answer: They do. But who said that they have to provide freedom to minorities in Saudi Arabia. Be happy those guys came back with all their body parts intact.

Question: Shouldn't India raise this issue with Saudi authorities ?
Answer: It might offend them. Also it might put a haddi in our secular kabab.

Question: Narendra Modi was denied a US visa because he was accused of persecuting minorities, so by the same game, shouldn't all Saudi Royals be denied American visa from now ?
Answer: Saudis have oil and they are no pushovers like India.