Ravi S. Iyer: Spiritual

This post is based on the content of my recent Facebook post:  https://www.facebook.com/ravi.s.iyer.7/posts/2637737186442842 . MUDDENAHALLI | Is Madhu a miracle man?, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6A6yUBHxMjQ , around 7 mins, published on 28th Oct. 2019, updated on 29th Oct. 2019. Thanks to Terry Reis Kennedy for sharing the video on Facebook which is how I came to know about it. Enjoyed it! Great work from our Russian Sathya Sai brothers and sisters to expose the fraudulent "miracles" of Madhusudan Naidu. I had tried to see the earlier Russian video but gave up after a few minutes as I could not follow it. This time around the English captions made all the difference. Madhusudan Naidu is just a cheap impersonator. Such videos demonstrate that so well. A video like this is worth a thousand text posts! Congratulations & Many Thanks to Russian Sai brothers & sisters for this great work.

When author of post or comment is not mentioned, it should be assumed that it is me (Ravi S. Iyer). To save time, I am usually not providing my FB post links but only contents. I am also not hyperlinking links. So readers will have to copy-paste links from this post onto a browser link box and then browse to that link. Andhra Pradesh serial killer? Person who gave coins & idols with claimed divine powers allegedly poisoned 8 persons to death over past few years Today's The Hindu print newspaper carried a shocking article: Eluru apartment watchman turns ‘serial killer’, https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/andhra-pradesh/eluru-apartment-watchman-turns-serial-killer/article29836208.ece. Here are other articles on the horror story: * Serial killer? Man held for eight murders in Andhra Pradesh, http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow/71811175.cms * From watchman to burglar, Eluru's serial killer came a long way!, http://www.newindianexpress.com/states/andhr

Minor update on 23rd Oct. 2019 This post follows up on my earlier post: Fascinating encounter between Lord Parashurama and Lord Rama in Valmiki Ramayana - Part 1 of 2, https://ravisiyer.blogspot.com/2019/10/fascinating-encounter-between-lord.html . [Note that the Valmiki Ramayan verses referenced in this chapter can be seen here: https://www.valmiki.iitk.ac.in/sloka?field_kanda_tid=1&language=dv&field_sarga_value=76 and https://www.valmikiramayan.net/utf8/baala/sarga76/bala_76_frame.htm ] Lord Rama responds to Lord  Parashurama: O Bhargava (Parashurama) I have heard of the work you have done to repay the debt to your father and appreciate it. [Verse 1-76-2] O Bhargava (Parashurama) you are belittling me as if I am without valour and ability to perform duties of a Kshatriya. Now see my power and valour! [Verse: 1-76-3] After saying this, the enraged Rama quickly seized the bow and arrow from the hands of Parashurama. [Verse: 1-76-4] Enraged Rama bent the bow, stre

India Today news report on Pope John Paul II's visit to India in 1986 titled: "Pope John Paul II visits India, imbues Indian Catholic church with a new sense of pride". The article says, "The multitudes thronged the roads, airports and public grounds as the Polish-born Pontiff zipped around 13 Indian cities, borne by Indian Air Force planes and the ubiquitous bullet-proof Popemobile." https://www.indiatoday.in/magazine/nation/story/19860228-pope-john-paul-ii-visits-india-imbues-indian-catholic-church-with-a-new-sense-of-pride-800606-1986-02-28 He was in India for 10 days in that visit! I recall that Pope John Paul II was quite popular in India with the Indian press usually giving good reports about him. It should also be mentioned that I read somewhere that there were protests against his visit too, on the conversion/evangelization issue but I think it was not too big. He visited India again in 1999 for 3 days, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_pa

Recently I read about the fascinating encounter between Lord Parashurama, regarded as the sixth Avatar of Vishnu, and Lord Rama, the seventh Avatar of Vishnu, in Kamala Subramaniam's Ramayana (Abridged English version). Lord Parushurama, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Parashurama , was born in a Brahmin (priestly) family of Rishi/Sage Jamadagni and Renuka, who lived in a hut (and so implies a simple rishi family life). But Parashurama is viewed as carrying traits of Kshatriya (warrior). A Kshatriya prince forcibly takes away a miraculous wish-fulfilling (Kamadhenu) cow (called Surabhi) from Sage Jamadagni at which time Parashurama is away. When Parashurama comes to know of it, he challenges the king to battle with an axe (Parashu word in Sanskrit seems to mean axe). The king is killed by Parashurama. Later other warriors of the Kshatriya class fight with Parashurama and all these warriors get killed by him. Sage Jamadagni reprimands Parashurama for these killings saying that

From https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shamanism : Shamanism is a practice that involves a practitioner reaching altered states of consciousness in order to perceive and interact with what they believe to be a spirit world and channel these transcendental energies into this world.[1 -  Singh, Manvir (2017). "The cultural evolution of shamanism". Behavioral and Brain Sciences. 41: e66: 1–61. doi:10.1017/S0140525X17001893. PMID 28679454.] --- end wiki extract --- "Shamans of the Himalayas" is a four episode series by Anu Malhotra covering shamans in Himachal Pradesh, North India. Anu Malhotra seems to be quite well known as she has a wiki page: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anu_Malhotra . Here's an article on her Shamans video series: A Himalayan mystery, https://www.thehindu.com/features/metroplus/A-Himalayan-mystery/article15680543.ece , October 2010 The article quotes Dr. Karan Singh, President, Indian Council of Cultural Relations (ICCR), as saying, “Wha

Last updated on 23rd Oct. 2019 The Mongol empire was founded by Genghiz Khan and lasted from 1206 to 1368 (13th and 14th century), https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mongol_Empire . While the Mongols were brutal against anybody (any city/kingdom) that dared to resist their conquest and which has been highlighted in Western accounts of them, what is not so well known is the religious tolerance that the Mongol empire largely had. In an age where religion and ruler were closely aligned and so there were religious wars like the Crusades between European Christians and Middle East Muslims (in 11th, 12th and 13th centuries), it is extraordinary and very praiseworthy that the Mongol empire was tolerant of different religions. I have given below the introduction section from the Religion in the Mongol Empire wiki page,  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Religion_in_the_Mongol_Empire  : The Mongols were highly tolerant of most religions during the early Mongol Empire, and typically sponsored sev

I find this video to capture an utterly fascinating piece of religious history of Christianity in India. The first pope (of Roman Catholic Church) to ever visit India (as per  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Holy_See%E2%80%93India_relations#Bilateral_visits ) was Pope Paul VI, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pope_Paul_VI , (previous name: Giovanni Battista Enrico Antonio Maria Montini), in December 1964. He was an Italian. Here's one of the archival videos of this visit: The Pope In India (1964), https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5Qn__9BqS7U , 6 min. 35 secs published by British Pathe. Pope Paul came to India on an Air India plane! As he came down the steps he did a Namaste gesture (folding palms) at the people gathered to see him! Pope Paul was received at Santa Cruz airport (then Bombay had only that airport) by then Prime Minister Lal Bahadur Shastri and other dignitaries including Smt. Indira Gandhi (who would have then been a Union (federal) minister), and Archbishop of Bomba

This post is based on my part of a mail conversation. The contents may be a bit disjointed. I request the kind indulgence of readers for that. I have been reading and viewing up on Genghiz Khan and the sacking of Baghdad by his grandson Hulagu Khan. Genghiz Khan followed shaman type religion (He worshipped Eternal Blue Sky God deity called Tengri). Genghiz Khan's son Tolui married Sorghaghtani Beki (1190-1252) (one of his wives one presumes) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sorghaghtani_Beki , who was a Nestorian Christian. An extract from her wiki page: Married to Tolui, Genghis' youngest son, Sorghaghtani Beki became one of the most powerful and competent people in the Mongol Empire. She made policy decisions at a pivotal moment that led to the transition of the Mongol Empire towards a more cosmopolitan and sophisticated style of administration. She raised her sons to be leaders, and maneuvered the family politics so that all four of her sons, Möngke Khan, Hulagu Khan, Ar