Wednesday, April 30, 2008

Quiz On Srimad Bhagavatham [ May]

Quiz On Srimad Bhagavatham[May]

Quiz on Srimad Bagavatham

Rules and Regulations:

1. The answers should be mailed within 25th of the month to annahariji@gmail.com

2. Points will be alloted for the First, second and Third prizes.First - 10 Second - 8 Third - 6

3. The points will be cumulated every month if you get first, second or third.

4. The participants with the maximum points will be awarded first, second and third prizes at the end of the year.

5. The prizes will be distributed by Hariji at a grand function held at the end of the year.

Questions:[First Canto First Chapter]

1. To Which state in
India does Naimisharanya belong?
2. What is the greatness of Naimisharanya?
3. How many MahaPuranas exist in our Religion?
4. What is the name of Sutha who preached Bhagavatham?
5. What is the name of the father of Sutha?

Answers for the mointh of April:

1. Who imparted the Vedas to Chaturmuka Bramha?
Sriman Narayanan
2. Define Maya.
To hide what is real and to expose the unreal as if real is Maya. The rope looks like a snake because of its curves. But what exists is only rope, not the snake. To show the non existent snake as if existent is Maya. So to say the world is seen in the Brahman. To cameflouge the existing Brahman and to show the non existing prapanjam as if existing is Maya.
3. Give one example for Maya from the first sloka of Bagavatham.
Mirage
4. What do the words Artheshvabignyaha and Swarat mean?
Artheshvabignyaha - All knowing - Omniscient
Swarat - Self ruler - independent
5. Nigamakalpataroho - What is the Kalpakavruksha mentioned here?
Veda

April Winners:
1. Sethuraman - First - 10points
2. AparnaGanesh[Srirangam] - Second - 8points
3. Lakshmi[Chennai] - Third - 6points




KSHETRA for this month[May 2008]

KSHETRA for this month[May 2008]Oppiliyappan[Thiruvinnagar]

Lord Srinivasa incarnated at Thirumala Tirupathi along with Padmavathy. Padmavathy Thayar the daughter of Akasharajan was none other than SriDevi herself. Bhoodevi now felt the pangs of seperation from the lord. She too decided to incarnate in the Bhooloka and marry the lord. Thus she chose sage Markandeya as her father. She grew up to be a beautiful girl with all good virtues. Sage Markandeya showered all parental affection on her. Bhoodevi regularly listened to the Bhagavath Guna lectures of her father. Thus her innate desire to marry the lord was kindled. Her father too prayed everyday that her desire be fulfilled.
One day an aged Vaidhika Brahmin visited thier house. The sage welcomed the aged brahmin and promised to give him anything that the brahmin asked for. Immediately that old man unhesitatingly asked his daughter's hands. Alas! The sage was`shocked beyond words. He was caught in a trap indeed. He replied with a voice choked with emotion -"My daughter is hardly five years old. You are an old man. How on earth will this marriage fit in? Last but not the least my daughter hardly knows to cook. She in fact does not know to prepare even salted food". The brahmin replied "Oh sage, I too know Dharma. It is not out of lust that I asked for your daughter. I'am an Agnihotri and it is to protect my Agni that I ask of her. I now promise that from this day I will forsake salt in my food. But I will not forsake your daughter. But if you refuse to give your daughter I will fast to death".
The sage shivered in fear - The fear of Brahmin's death and the fear of his promise. Meanwhile Bhoodevi on seeing her father's sad plight spoke as thus, "Father I shall accept this old man as my husband. It is my duty to make you an honest man. I shall serve this old man. Be it an old man, or a sick man or an unintelligent man or a poor man the husband is reverential for a wife.He is god to her. I shall serve him hence as I serve Hari. The sage Markandeya finally decided to give her in marriage to the old man. At the time of Panigrahana, during the marriage ceremony, at the junture when the sage gave his daughter to the old man, the old man vanished and the Lord appeared in His benevolent form with an ever smiling face, efflugent and blue in complexion, adorned with Shanka and Chakra, with Varadhahastha and showering his grace on all devotees. He himself married Bhoodevi to the sage's surprise. The sage immediately prayed that in this Kshetra the lord`should be ever present in His KalyanaKola[Marital form]. Those devotees who have His Dharshan will be bestowed with all prosperity. The unmarried will soon get suitable proposals on having SriOppiliyappan's Darshan. Oppiliyapan himself is a KalpakaVruksha. It is to be noted that even now salt is not included in the pooja of Oppiliyappan. The Azhwar concludes Oppiliyappan is not only Uppu illa Appan[Forsaking salt] but he is Oppu illa Appan[An Unparalled person]




Wednesday, April 2, 2008

Sloka for this Month [April]

Sloka for this Month
GururBramha GurrurVishnur Gururdevo Maheswaraha
Gurusakshath parabramha thasmai SriGurave namaha
Guru is Bramha. Guru is Vishnu himself. Guru is nevertheless Rudra too. The Guru is parabramhan. It is known to the world that Bramha creates, Vishnu protects, and Rudra destroys. The Guru bears similarity to all the three. He is the destructor of ignorance. The Guru thus imparts wisdom and to top it all he protects such wisdom. Hence he takes up the role of the creator, the protector and the destructor. This is the reason why the guru is extolled as Bramha, Vishnu and Rudhra.

Events of this month [April]

Vishaka's Programs:

Venue: SriRathnagiriswarar temple, Besant nagar, Chennai
Date: April 2nd
Topic: RamaJananam
Timing : 7.00 to 9.00P.M

HariAnna's Programs:
1.
Venue: SriRathnagiriswarar temple, Besant nagar, Chennai
Date: April 3rd to 11th
Topic: Srimad Ramayanam
Timing : 7.00 to 9.00P.M
2.
Venue: Subramaniya Swamy Temple, Cheddanagar, Chembur, Mumbai.
Date: April 16th to 24th
Topic: Srimad Ramayanam
Timing : 7.00 to 9.00P.M

Quiz on Srimad Bagavatham

Quiz on Srimad Bagavatham
Rules and Regulations:
1. The answers should be mailed within 25th of the month to annahariji@gmail.com
2. Points will be alloted for the First, second and Third prizes.First - 10 Second - 8 Third - 6
3. The points will be cumulated every month if you get first, second or third.
4. The participants with the maximum points will be awarded first, second and third prizes at the end of the year.
5. The prizes will be distributed by Hariji at a grand function held at the end of the year.
Questions: [First Canto First Chapter]
1. Who imparted the Vedas to Chaturmuka Bramha?
2. Define Maya.
3. Give one example for Maya from the first sloka of Bagavatham.
4. What do the words Artheshvabignyaha and Swarat mean?
5. Nigamakalpataroho - What is the Kalpakavruksha mentioned here?




Kshetra for this Month (April)

Srinivasa perumal installed by PeriyavachanPillai
Chenganoor or Thiruchanganallur is called Shankapuram in Sanskrit. It is a serene village near Kumbakonam on the banks of the river Manniar. It is known to the world because of Krishnasuri. Krishnasuri is none other than Periyavachanpillai, who has commented on 4,000 Divyaprabandhams and important verses of Srimad ValmikiRamayana. He was a highly intelligent person, extremely devoted to the lord. Incidentally Chenganoor is his birth place. Once he set on a pilgrimage to Tirupathi along with his wife. There he had the most beautiful Darshan of the loving Lord Srinivasa. He was encaptured by the lord's ecstatic beauty and was insatiated by it. Hence he wanted to have the lord's darshan everyday. He could not bear the pangs of seperation from the lord even for a single day. He decided thus to stay at Tirupathi.
One day the lord himself appeared as a VAISHNAVITE and handed him the Salagrama of the lord vishnu. He conveyed to him that his parents at Chenganoor were aggrieved at his seperation. He asked him hence to go over to Chenganoor, render services to his parents and carry on the pooja of the salagrama. Krishnasuri hence returned to chenaganoor with the salagramam to serve his parents. On his return he placed the salagramam safely on the banks of the river coleroon(North Cauvery) and took bath in the river.After his bath he came back to collect the salagramam to find it disappear. Nowhere could he find it. A desperate and broken Krishnasuri returned to his parents and narrated to them his entire tour. But being deeply afflicted by the pangs of seperation from Tirupathi Srinivasa, Krishnasuri forsake food and sleep. The lord appeared in his dream and informed him that he was present at the same place where he lost HIM - at the banks of cauvery. Krishnasuri atonce reached the place to astonishingly find lord Srinivasa emerge from the salagrama presenting HIMSELF in the ravishing beautiful form. Krishnasuri's joy knew no bounds. He then erected a temple for the Lord and installed Lord Srinivasa at the temple which stands even today as a testimony to Periyavachanpillai's devotion. This Periyavachanpillai is none other than the forefather of SriKrishnapremi swamigal fondly called Anna.
Incidentally Chenganoor is also a ShivaKshetra in that, it is the birth place of the famous Chandikeswarar. Right now the most famous temples at Chenganoor are Lord Srinivasa temple, the Shivan temple and a small Pandurangan temple(built by SriAnna)