Mucuna pruriens

Mucuna pruriens 

Common name: 

Velvet bean, 

Cowitch, 

Cowhage, 

Kapikachu, 

Nescafe,

 Sea bean, 

 Kiwach

 Fabaceae,

 an important medicinal plant of Ayurveda.

 Across different languages, many names for this plant refer to the velvet coating of hairs that cover its seedpods and that, if touched, can cause severe itching and irritation of the skin. Seeds are used as tonic, aphrodisiac and the in treatment of Parkinson's disease. 

The decoction of the seeds is used in rheumatic ailments. 

Surendra Parihar 

Asparagus racemosus

Asparagus racemosus commonly known as 

Satawar, 

Satamuli, 

Satavari 

Liliaceae,

 found throughout India and a quite common spiny climber of lower Himalayan region also. 

An important medicinal plant and the dried roots of the plant are used extensively as drug for various treatments.

 It flowers during monsoon and fruits / seeds mature during winter. 

The spiny climber is seen here leafless with green fruits.

Surendra Parihar 

Calotropis procera

Calotropis procera

 common names: 

apple of sodom, 

calotrope, 

giant milkweed, 

Indian milkweed, 

wild cotton,

 rubber tree, 

ushar, etc.

 Apocynaceae,

 is a soft-wooded, 

perennial shrub, 

generally found in arid and semi-arid habitats. 

It has been widely used in traditional medicinal systems in North Africa, Middle East Asia, South Asia, and South-East Asia. It has also been reported as an invasive weed of wastelands, overgrazed pastures, and poorly managed agricultural fields in several regions. 

Surendra Parihar 

Oldenlandia corymbosa Syn

Oldenlandia corymbosa Syn Hedyotis corymbosa 

Common name: 

Diamond Flower, 

corymbose hedyotis, 

flat-top mille graines, 

old world diamond-flower, 

wild chayroot

 Rubiaceae, 

a widespread polymorphic weed with a pantropical distribution. 

A common medicinal herb across tropical Asia. 

Surendra Parihar 

Ipomoea carnea

Ipomoea carnea 

Common name: 

Bush Morning Glory, 

Morning Glory Tree , 

Besharam ,

 Behaya 

Convolvulaceae, 

a shrub native to tropical America, naturalized widely. 

The hindi/marathi names besharam/behaya, meaning shameless, referes to its rampant spreading. 

As the name suggests, the blooms fade as the sun warms them, just like morning glories - but they are impressive while they last, blooming in large clusters at the ends of the tall branches. 

Attractive to butterflies and hummingbirds. 

A very common plant along highways of S. India. 

Surendra Parihar 

Butea monosperma Syn

Butea monosperma Syn.: 

Butea frondosa 

common names: 

Flame of the Forest,

 bastard teak, 

battle of Plassey tree,

 Bengal kino,

 palas tree, 

parrot tree etc.

Fabaceae ,

 an MPTS (multipurpose tree species) native to India. 

The leaves are pinnate, with three leaflets. 

The hindi phrase ढाक के तीन पात ("Dhaak ke teen paat") comes from the prominent three leaflets of this tree.

 In olden days, the flowers of Tesu were used to make color for the festival of Holi. 

A traditional medicinal plant also yield gum.

 Leaves are ideal fodder. 

A postal stamp was issued by the Indian Postal Department to commemorate this flower. 

Surendra Parihar 

Nelumbo nucifera

Nelumbo nucifera

common Names:

 lotus 

Padam ;

 Komol, 

Padma ; 

Suriyakamal ; 

Kamal

 Nelumbonaceae. 

National Flower of India. 

An aquatic perennial herb found in a range of shallow wetland habitats, including fresh water ponds, lakes, marshes, swamps and the backwaters of reservoirs.

 Leaves are used for wrapping food and as plate. 

Flower is used as the source of lotus perfume. 

Dried flowers are used in preparation of fragrant herbal tea. 

Young leaves, petioles and flowers are eaten as vegetables. Tender seeds are edible. 

The plant has numerous medicinal properties. 

Surendra Parihar 

Ravenala madagascariensis

Ravenala madagascariensis

 traveler’s tree or

 traveler’s palm

 - Strelitziaceae, 

a native to Madagascar and cultivated around the world. 

It’s so named (traveler’s tree) because it accumulates water in its leaf bases which has been used in emergencies for drinking. 

The fan of leaves also tends to grow roughly on an east-west line, 

providing a crude compass for travelers.

Surendra Parihar 

Potentilla indica Syn

Potentilla indica Syn

 Duchesnea indica, 

Fragaria indica

 common names: 

Indian Strawberry, 

Mock strawberry, 

Bhu Hisalu, 

Ghunkafal etc.

Rosaceae , 

a perennial herb and a very common wildflower found throughout the Himalayas, characterized by a strawberry like fruit, and yellow flowers. Fruit is like a small round strawberry, fleshy, red, up to 2.0 cm in diameter.

 Fruits are sweet and edible as children collect it from field bunds and share it. 

Surendra Parihar 

Portulaca oleracea

Portulaca oleracea

 commonly known as 

Purslane, 

pigweed, 

little hogweed,

 Kulfa etc.

 Portulacaceae, 

a common weed distributed in many countries, especially in tropical and subtropical areas. An edible plant used as green leafy vegetable, in salad and soups and also as a potherb in different countries. 

The herb is also in ancient medicine as diuretic, febrifuge, antiseptic, antispasmodic, and antihelminthic.

Surendra Parihar 

Katcheri

Katcheri

Did you know that the modern format for the Katcheri, conceived by Ariyakudi Ramanuja Iyengar in the 1930s, incorporated traditional Carnatic music rendered by the Trinity of Carnatic music?

A kacheri is an assembly of musicians and audience in the context of Carnatic music or Karnatak music. It is presented in the concert format. The music fraternity of connoisseurs and common people assemble at the katcheri venues to listen to classical music concerts of vidwans. Vocalist Ariyakudi Ramanuja Iyengar (1890–1967) established the modern kacheri (concert) traditions in Carnatic music. Among the women artists, M. S. Subbulakshmi, M. L. Vasanthakumari, and D.K. Pattammal who pioneered the promotion of kutcheri culture are popularly referred to as the female trinity of Carnatic Music. 

Etymologically the word "katcheri", derived from Urdu language and in Hindi to mean a court of law, was used in the context of Karnatik music concert during the Maratha rule (1670–1800) in Tanjavur of present-day Tamil Nadu; it was the durbar of the king.This, over the last centuries, has not only literally known to represent a venue but also signifies a select gathering connoting the cultural significance of Karnatik music. This is the origin of concept of musical concerts which has dominated the music scenario of southern India.

The modern format for the katcheri conceived by Ariyakudi Ramanuja Iyengar in the 1930s with a rich blend of traditional Carnatic music rendered by the past masters, particularly the Trinity of Carnatic music of Tyagaraja, Muthuswami Dikshitar and Syama Sastri, was best suited to the wide and varied gamut of audience tastes; the aim was to make it just long enough to sustain the interest of the public in Carnatic Music. The repertoire was conceived taking into view the musical adaptations in theater and drama. The choice of the vocalist with a pliant voice and repertoire of songs that would attract the attention of the audience for long hours of the concert was considered essential. The katcheri also catered to the need of commercial entertainment and aesthetics.

The duration of katcheri was prescribed by the Musical Academy of Madras to 3 hours. The concert starts with a varnam, a form perfected by musicians of yore as it created a relaxed atmosphere to the vocalist leading to a wide spectrum of musical compositions. This is followed by many kritis (musical compositions) and ragas (melodies). This sequence riveted the mood of the audience and enabled the performer to go through the performance with elan. The classical songs are preambled by an extended elaboration of melody called the alapana with balanced rhythm topped by pallavi (thematic lines of the song). The concert is concluded with rendering of padam (a musical composition), javali, and songs with national themes which would hold the attention and appreciation of the audience.

The ambiance at a katcheri is "restrained and dignified" whereas in the case of the "mehfil" which represents concert format of the Hindustani music there is "characteristic abandon". 

In this format the katcheris have attracted highly talented musicians in recent times and involved hundreds of musicians in the genre of vocal music, vainikas, instrumentalists playing violin, flute and so forth.

Also, during the katcheris, a game known as "kanakari" is played in which challenges are posed to the audience with a clue to decipher an item concealed within a song. Another challenge posed is by rendering ten ragas or melodies symbolizing the ten directions which the audience are asked to identify and state which raga represents which direction. This highlights the musical skill of the musician and for this he is rewarded. 

Source: Extracts from article in Wikipedia with my inputs posted in February 2016.

Narasipur Char 

Vishishtadvaita - Part 1, History

Vishishtadvaita - Part 1, History

Did you know that Vishishtadvaita is a primary qualified non-dualism philosophy which defines 3 entities - God, living and non-living things; the goal of the jivas (living) is to merge with the Creator (Parabrahman), primarily through the path of Bhakti (devotion)?

Did you know that Ramanujacharya developed the philosophy of Visishtadvaita, and he is described as "the founding interpreter of Sri Vaisnavite scriptures?

The history of Viśiṣṭadvaita started initially as a Bhakthi movement of the Srivaishnavas, the dedicated worshippers of Lord Vishnu, the Hindu preserver deity, by the renowned 12 Alvar poet- saints of South India who lived between the 6th and 9th centuries (orthodoxy posits the Alvars to a much older period between 4200 BCE and 2700 BCE). 

The Alvar saints composed a large body of hymns in Tamil Language and sang them as songs of Bhakthi movement of longing, ecstasy, and service and their followers to this day are the Srivaishnavites of Vaishnavism who regard Vishnu also known as Perumal, or Tirumal, as the Ultimate Reality. The 4,000 Tamil devotional verses (called Pasurams in Tamil) are independent of a knowledge of Sanskrit. The Alvars praised the Divya Desams, the 108 divine realms of deities affiliated to Vaishnavism. As a part of the legacy of the Alvars, five Vaishnavite philosophical traditions (sampradayas) developed over a period of time.

Nathamuni (823 CE – 951 CE), also known as Sri Ranganathamuni, was the first Sri Vaishnava acharya, a theologian and a head priest of the temple at Srirangam (in Tamil Nadu state), who is traditionally believed to have collected the 4,000 works of Alvars, called them as Nalayara Divyaprabhandam and introduced them as devotional hymns of worship, a canonical text called the Tamil Veda or Dravida Veda. The songs of the Prabandam are regularly sung in various Vishnu temples of South India, daily, and also during festivals.

Then Yamunacharya, also known as Alavandar, the grandson of Nathamuni, established the Sri Vaishnava sampradaya as an established organization. It is said that it was Yamunacharya who first introduced the concept of Visiṣṭadvaita of qualified non-duality, in contrast to Advaita. It may be noted that the name Viśiṣṭādvaita is a compound word of 'viśiṣṭa' meaning “distinct and particular to” and ‘advaita’ meaning “not-dual”. 

The Ramanujacharya (1017-1137 AD) came on the scene of theology in the 11th-12th century. According to a legend, the deity Ranganatha of Srirangam directed Alavandar to invite Ramanuja, who was at Kanchipuram to Srirangam with clear direction to write a commentary on Upanishads, Vedanta Sutras, and Bhagavad Gita, and also compose a commentary on Tiruvaymoli of Nammalvar, the most prolific of the Alvars. Soon Ramanujacharya made his presence in Srirangam temple and became the principal amongst religious leaders who formalized the efforts of Nathamuni and Yamuncharya as a theology. Ramanuja developed the philosophy of Visishtadvaita, and he is described as "the founding interpreter of Sri Vaisnavite scriptures".

Ramanujacharya was the first of the Vedanta thinkers to make the cornerstone of his system the identification of a personal God with the brahman, or Absolute Reality, of the Upanishads and the Vedanta-sutras. As a personal God, Brahman possesses all the good qualities in a perfect degree, and Ramanuja does not tire of mentioning them. For him the relation between the infinite and the finite is like that between the soul and the body. Hence, non-duality is maintained, while differences can still be stated. Soul and matter are totally dependent on God for their existence, as is the body on the soul. A commentator on Ramanuja’s work says that he was a collator and interpreter rather than an original thinker; although showing originality in his method of synthesizing the Tamil and Sanskrit sources. 

As the founding interpreter of Sri Vaisnavite scriptures Ramanujacharya is thus hailed as "Sri Vaishnava Siddhanta Nirdhaarana Saarva bouma". Vishishtadvaita is thus an ‘acharya’ (guru) oriented philosophy unlike the scriptures’ specific philosophy of Advaita propagated by Adi Shankara. 

The first notable work in English titled “ Vishishtadvaita Vedanta” based on extensive research of all related scriptures in Sanskrit and Tamil, was written by late Dr. S.M.S. Chari for which the foreword was written by philosopher statesman and second President of Republic of India Dr. S Radhakrishnan. Dr. Rahakrishnan wrote in his foreword that the two schools of philosophy -Vishishtadvaita and Advita are not rival creeds but are recognised as fully orthodox. 

In particular, Srivaishnavites, or Iyengars as they are popularly known as, are the followers of Ramanuja and Vishishtadvaita as their primary philosophy. For the Iyengars, the acharyas often rank even higher than gods. 

Note: To be continued in part 2 - Schisms

Source: This is a collation of texts in English from various sources. Facebook friends are welcome to offer suggestions, as my knowledge of Hindu philosophy is a drop in the ocean.

Narasipur Char 

Vishishtadvaita - Part 2, Srivaishnavite Schisms

Vishishtadvaita - Part 2, Srivaishnavite Schisms

Did you know that nearly two centuries after Ramanujacharya popularised the Vishishtadvaita philosophy, in early 14 th Century there was a serious brake up among the followers of Srivaishnava Siddhnatha - the Iyengars - in two bitterly opposing groups called the Vadakalai and Thenkalai sects, with Astadasa-Bhedas, or the Eighteen Points of Doctrinal Differences?

Doctrinal principle of Srivaishnavism developed under the Vishishtadvaita ("qualified non-dualism") Vedanta sub-school of Hindu philosophy, and the followers of this doctrinal principle are popualrly known as Iyengars. This tradition was founded by Nathamuni in the 10th century, furthered by Yamunacharya, and finally evolved and propogated as 'non-dual philospohy', widely attributed to Ramanujacharya in the 11-12th century. However, this tradition split into two denominations in the 14th century - The Vadakalai sect and the Thenkalai sect - though their primary reverence is rooted in Narayana or Vishnu alone. However, they evolved into in two bitterly opposing groups with Astadasa-Bhedas, or the "Eighteen Points of Doctrinal Differences". The perceived prominence given by the sects is to the terse style of Sanskrit traditions by the Vadakalai sect and the lyrical Tamil Prabhandams of the Thenkalai sect. But both follow the philosophy that enunciates 3 entities - God, living and nonliving things; broadly defined as Vishishtadvaita (qualified non-dualism) in Vedanta. 

The northern sect, known as the Vadakalai, (attributed as Srivaishnavas purported to be those acharyas originally living in northern part of the city of Kanchipuram) follow Saint Vedanta Desika (1268-1369 A.D.), a great poet and dramatist in addition to being a great philosopher and theologian, as one of the key guiding paths. The Srivaishnavas living in the southern part of Kanchipuram were known initially as the southern sect or Thenkalai sect who were followers of Ramya-jāmātṛ-muni, Pillai Lokacharya (1205–1311 CE), and finally and emphatically by saint Manavala Mamunigal (1370–1450) also known by the given name Alagiya Manavalan, as a guiding spirit. Manavalan was a major proponent of the Sri Vaishnavism tradition who with his eight disciples, established places of learning to teach the Vishishtadvaita philosophy in Tamilakam.

Apart from the defined 18 esoteric differeences (based on the difference between the path Bhakti (devotion) versus the path of Jnana (knowledge), the two sects exhbit on their forehead Urdvapundram (Namam) in slightly different ways which clearly identify their sect to the common man. The southern culture school or the Thenkalais display on their forehead the thiruman with two white lines and a central srichranam in Kumkum colour and with an extension of white line on the nose, which gives the tiruman a V shape. The central line is called the Sricharanam representing Goddess Lakshmi. The northern culture school, the Vadakalai sect's urdvapundram is a U shape without extension on the nose. But the central sricharanam on the forehead is drawn with yellow turmeric powder. Urdvapundram is clear exhibition of the philosophical belief of a person. Both sects are known by the title "Iyengars". 

However, a principal difference between the two sects is their views on the nature of divine grace - while the Thenkalai holds that devotion is all that is necessary and that god will on his own initiative carry the devotee to salvation, like a cat carrying a kitten, the Vadakalai holds that man has to win god's grace through his efforts and he has to cling on to god, like an infant monkey clinging on to its mother. Another naming convention for the two sects, being the "monkey school" (like baby clinging to the mother) and the "cat school" (purely left to the mercy of the mother who carries its kitten by the mouth). Unlike the Vadakalai, the Tenkalai Iyengar sect reject the Varna or caste system. 

The purported difference of Sricharanam on the forehead seems to be on interpretation of the colour of Lakshmi. Vedas (Sri Suktam) declare her as containing golden complexion (Hiranyavarnam Harinim) that the Vadakalais use literally, while Thenkalais use the symbolic representation with red.

Note: 1. As the Ashtadass Bedha or 18 bedhas or differences between the Thengalai and Vadagalai sects is too elaborate, I am providing the google Url which explains the differences

 <https://ramanujacharya.files.wordpress.com/2015/01/astadasa_bhedas.pdf>

2. Tamialkam as an ancient name for Tamil Nadu is in the News these days

Source: Extracts from various texts related to this subject in English.

Narasipur Char