Sripuram Golden Mahalaxmi Temple

Golden Temple - when uttered this word, immediately people thinks of Amritsar and the Highest Body of the Sikh's pride Golden Temple.

Thirmalai naiker mahal-MADURAI

The palace is situated 2kms south east of Meenakshi Temple. The palace was built in 1636 by Thirumalai Nayakar.

The Meenakshi temple complex

Madurai or "the city of nectar" is the oldest and second largest city of Tamil Nadu..

The big Waterfalls at Hogenakal

You get the feel of the river running nearby when you enter the sanctuary enclosing Hogenakal waterfall. Suddenly.

Dr. Avul Pakir Jainulabhudin Adbul Kalam

Adbul Kalam, was born on the 15th October, 1931, at Rameshwaram in TamilNadu. He did his B.Sc..

Saturday, June 22, 2013

Raja of Panagal-Panaganti Ramarayaningar

Sir Panaganti Ramarayaningar KCIE, (July 9, 1866 – December 16, 1928), also known as the Raja of Panagal, was a zamindar of Kalahasti, a Justice Party leader and the Chief Minister or Premier of Madras Presidency from July 11, 1921 to December 3, 1926. Ramarayaningar was born in Kalahasti on July 9, 1866. He did his schooling in Madras and obtained degrees in Sanskrit, law, philosophy and Dravidian languages before plunging into politics. He was one of the founder-members of the Justice Party and served as its President from 1925 to 1928. From December 17, 1920 to July 11, 1921, Ramarayaningar served as the Minister of Local Self-Government in the first Justice Party government led by A. Subbarayalu Reddiar. He served as the Chief Minister of Madras Presidency from July 11, 1921 to December 3, 1926. He introduced a number of reforms during his tenure. The Theagaroya Nagar locality in Chennai was developed during his Chief-Ministership. Ramarayaningar resigned as Chief Minister in 1926 when the Justice Party failed to obtain a majority in the 1926 elections to the Madras Legislative Council. He, however, continued to remain active in politics and served as the President of the Justice Party until his death on December 16, 1928. Ramarayaningar was regarded as an advocate of democracy and a staunch supporter of empowerment of the depressed classes. Historians generally attribute the decline of the Justice Party in the mid 1930s to the absence of charismatic leaders in the Justice Party following his death.  
Early life
Ramarayaningar was born in a family of landlords. He belonged to the Velama community that claims to be the earliest Kshatriyas to settle in the Telugu country. Ramarayaningar's family, in particular, patronised Brahmins and the Raja had his early education in the household of Calamur Sundara Sastri, the father-in-law of C. P. Ramaswami Iyer. He completed his schooling from Triplicane High School in 1886 and graduated in Sanskrit from the Presidency College in 1893 with Advanced Chemistry as his optional subject. He graduated in B.L. and M.A. (Philosophy and Dravidian Languages) in 1899. In 1919, he was appointed a fellow of the Presidency College.

Early political career
Ramarayaningar got his first taste of politics when he was appointed to the district board of North Arcot. In 1912, he was nominated to the Imperial Legislative Council of India and represented the landlords and zamindars of South India. He served as a legislator until 1915. During this period, Ramarayaningar earned the praise of the Viceroy, Lord Hardinge. He actively supported reforms in the Hindu society. In 1914, Ramarayaningar moved a legislation for the creation of separate Provincial departments for the welfare of depressed classes. In 1915, he was elected President of the Third Andhra Congress. In 1914, the Madras Dravidian Association was established by C. Natesa Mudaliar. Ramarayaningar was elected as the first President of the Association. On July 19, 1917, at a conference in Coimbatore presided over by the Ramarayaningar, the four different non-Brahmin associations got together to form the South Indian Liberal Federation, unofficially known as the Justice Party. In 1921, Ramarayaningar was sent along with Kurma Venkata Reddy Naidu and Koka Appa Rao Naidu to lobby on behalf of the Justice Party before the authorities in England. Ramarayaningar was also active in the All-India Non-Brahmin movement. He was a friend of Shahu Maharaj and was closely associated with the former's Satya Shodhak Samaj. He attended the All India Non-Brahmin Conference held at Belgaum on December 26, 1924 and presided over the Second All-India Non-Brahmin Conference held at Victoria Hall, Madras on May 25, 1925. When the Government of India Act was passed in 1919, provisions were made to hold elections in the Madras Presidency for the first time in history. The Justice Party unanimously decided to contest the elections and was elected to power in the province. A. Subbarayalu Reddiar became the first Chief Minister of the Madras Presidency. Ramarayaningar served as Minister of Local Self-Government in the Subbarayalu Reddiar Government.When Subbarayalu Reddiar resigned, citing health reasons, Ramarayaningar was appointed Chief Minister.

As Chief Minister of Madras
Ramarayaningar served as the Chief Minister of Madras from July 11, 1921 till December 3, 1926. A. P. Patro of Berhampur was appointed to fill the vacancy caused by Subbarayalu Reddiar's resignation, and he took the portfolio of education.

Thursday, June 20, 2013

Avvaiyyar

About Avvaiyyar
Avvaiyyar was a female poet of the ninth century, who lived in the southern parts of India. She is known, not only for her extraordinary poetry, but also, as a noble and revered saint. The term 'Avvaiyyar' means ' respected old woman' or 'Grandmother'. Even though her real name is not known, it doesn't make her or her literary works any less popular. The children learning Tamil language make use of one of her poems, which has been written especially for the purpose. As we move further in this article, we will come across the various stages in life history of Avvaiyar.

Early Life
As per the legends surrounding Avaiyyar Biography, she was born to a Brahman called Bhagavan and his untouchable wife called Adi. Since Bhagavan was on a spiritual journey at the time of her birth, both of them decided to abandon the child. A poet passing from there noticed the abandoned child and took her under his care. Right from childhood, Avvaiyyar showed a deep interest in poetry. At the tender age of four, she was able to complete a complicated verse that even the most distinguished poets of the land could not.

Devotion to Ganesha
Avvaiyar was extremely devoted to Lord Ganesha since childhood. She always asked Him for three gifts, the gifts of poetry, music and drama. As she grew, her talents also grew to the highest levels. At the same time, she also started getting marriage proposals. Fed up with the proposal and being constantly pressurized to get marries, Avaiyyar asked Lord Ganesha to remove her beauty and turn her into an old woman. The Lord obliged and in acknowledgment of His generosity, she sang a great paean of Praise for Him, regarded as the equivalent of the Vedas.

Her Spiritual Journey
After this incident, she began her journey as a wanderer. The life gave her the much desires education and inspiration and this social conscience started to reflect in her poetry also. The love Avvaiyar had for the common man, her contempt towards pretensions of the rich, etc, all were beautifully brought forward in her poems. During her lifetime, Avvaiyar also came across Skanda, brother of Ganesha. Her last public service was the prevention of the war between King Adiyaman and King Thondiaman.

The Spiritual Journey Ends
It is believed that Avvaiyyar did not die a normal death. Instead, she was transported bodily to Kailasha, the abode of Lord Shiva, by Lord Ganesha Himself.

Tuesday, June 18, 2013

Navanethem (Navi) Pillay


Navanethem (Navi) Pillay, the United Nations (UN) High Commissioner for Human Rights was born on 23 September 1941 in Clairwood, Durban. She went to the University of Natal where she graduated with BA in 1963 and with an LLB in 1965. It was at the University that she joined the Unity Movement.  After completing her degree she commenced her legal career by doing her articles in Durban under the guidance of Narainsamy Thumbi Naicker, a banned member of the African National Congress (ANC) who was also under house arrest. In 1967, Pillay became the first woman to open her own law practice in Natal. She provided legal defence for political activists from different political organizations detained by the apartheid government.
In her first case after starting her own legal practice, she represented Phyllis Naidoo who was charged for failing to report to the police station as a banned person. In 1971, she represented 10 members of the Unity Movement who were charged under the Terrorism Act.  Pillay also represented her husband Gaby Pillay who was detained by the Security Police under Terrorism Act. It was at this time that exposed the practice and effects of torture and solitary confinement on detainees held in police custody. In 1973, she fought and won the right for political prisoners to have access to legal counsel. In the mid 1970s, Pillay defended detained members of the Black Consciousness Movement (BCM) such as Saths Cooper and Strini Moodley. Pillay later became the first woman to open legal practice in Durban.
In 1982, she obtained a Master of Law and in 1988 a Doctor of Juridical Science from Harvard University. In 1995, Pillay joined the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda, and in 1999 she was elected as its Judge President for which she served two four-year terms. Since 2003, she has served as judge on the International Criminal Court.  Pillay is cofounder of the South African Advice Desk for Abused Women and was appointed the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights on 28 July 2008.

Nammalwar

About Nammalwar
Nammalwar was a Tamil Poet, regarded as one of the twelve Alwars in India. He is quite renowned for his beautiful hymns dedicated to Lord Vishnu. The main aim of Nammalwar's life was to serve the Lord, love Him, praise him and surrender to Him. Even though he was originally from southernmost part of India, he won the hearts of people throughout the country with his beautiful poems.

Early life
Nammalwar was born in Thirukkurugoor (near Thirunelveli) in the Pandaya dynasty of Tamil Nadu. There is a little disagreement as to his birth date. Tradition gives the date as 3102 B.C. (i.e., the beginning of the Kali Yuga), but scholars believe the date to be 880-930 A.D. It is said that as a child, Namalwar never cried, suckled or responded to external stimuli. After seeing this condition of their child, his parents left him at the feet of Lord Vishnu's statue. It is said that, he got up, sat in the lotus position and started to meditate. From then onwards, began the journey of Nammalwar on the path of spirituality.

The End of a Long Samadhi
Nammalwar remained in a meditative state for as long as 16 years. A Tamil poet and scholar, Maturakavi, managed to draw out Nammalwar from his Samadhi by asking him a question. Thereafter, he took Maturakavi as his first disciple. He taught him about the secret doctrines of Vaishnavism. Unable to resist the urge of praising God, he composed a thousand hymns admiring Lord Vishnu then and there only.

His Poems
The subject matter of all the poems written by Nammalwar is "the Lord, the soul, the means, the end, and the impediments to spirituality". The following poems of Nammalwar count amongst his most renowned ones…

Thiru-Viruttam
Thiru-Viruttam, a poem of stanzas, comes up as the essence of Rig Veda. It describes the event of 'falling in love with the Supreme being' and symbolizes 'Bridal Mysticism'.

Thiru-Asiriyam
Thiru-Asiriyam comprises of seven sections or seven poems, of unequal length, within itself. Made up of 71 lines, it describes the beauty of the lord with the help of the most beautiful words one can imagine.

Periya Thiruvandadi
Constituting the quintessence of Atharva Veda, Periya Thiruvandadi has 87 lyrical stanzas.

Thiruvaimozhi
Thiruvaimozhi literally means the 'Divine words'. Considered as the masterpiece of Nammalwar, it comprises of 1102 four lined verses.

Saturday, June 8, 2013

Thirukural in Paintings

R B Bhaskaran, the principal of Fine Arts College, had the difficult task of co-ordinating the artists and also painting one chapter. "The idea to have an ancient poet's view of the world through the eyes of contemporary artists is great. It really surprised me to see people queuing up in Kanyakumari to see the 133 paintings after the inauguration."
Adhimoolam, one of the most famous Tamil painters, illustrated the first chapter. His work is the most impressive of all. "As a Tamilian, I am familiar with Valluvar and his kurals. Valluvar did not talk about any particular race, religion, caste or creed...he talked only about human beings.''
He believes that the kurals have a broader appeal that transcends barriers of language, culture and community. ''There is a kind of universality in his writings. I had always felt that he belonged to the world and not to the Tamilians alone.''
Adhimoolam said it was quite a challenge to create something that would match Valluvar's work. ''He was such a great poet... it is very difficult to match his ideas with illustrations. His thoughts and words are beyond illustration. Yet, I have put my heart and mind to it. As I was given the first chapter, I was to paint his concept of God. He referred to God as Almighty like the first letter in the alphabet, Aah. As an artist who lives in the 21st century, I feel fortunate to have painted his ideas."
Achuthan Kudaloor, an abstract artist from Kerala, was assigned the second chapter -- Rain. Some time back, Achuthan had thought of illustrating the works of Malayalam poet, Kumaran Asan, but the idea was scoffed at by his fellow artistes. "See how effective these paintings on Thirukkural are. What I liked about Thiruvalluvar was that he stood for humanity and not for any race or religion. I feel happy that I, an abstract painter, could be a part of this venture."
S Dhanapal, although was familiar with Thirukkural, thought about the chapter he had to illustrate for two days. "One must know what each kural actually means because you can interpret each idea at various levels. If you have to go deep into it, you need deep knowledge. I feel images are very good tools to make ordinary people understand the meaning of Thiruvallular's ideas. After doing one painting, I feel like doing more on Thirukkural."
Ravi Shankar, who is trying to explore new vistas in painting with the help of computers, attempted a new experiment. "I did a computer drawing and then used acrylic emulsion in the printer and took a 4ft/3ft print. The only grievance I have is that I was not given adequate time to work. "
Sajitha decided to look at the meaning behind the kurals from a critic's point of view. "I was given the chapter on love. It is amazing that a man who lived thousands of years ago viewed love from such a radical angle. I feel I am fortunate to have got a chance to give expression to his ideas in colour."

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