bollywood-holywood: rec.arts.movies.local.indian - 14 new messages in 11 topics

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TOPIC: 7, INCLUDING CHRISTIAN PRIEST, ARRESTED FOR LOOTING ANTIQUES WORTH RS.
1 CRORE
http://groups.google.com/group/rec.arts.movies.local.indian/t/2d4a520a5120fb1b?hl=en
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== 1 of 1 ==
Date: Wed, Feb 3 2010 3:30 pm
From: usenet@mantra.com and/or www.mantra.com/jai (Dr. Jai Maharaj)

Forwarded message from S. Kalyanaraman

Monday, February 1, 2010

Re. 1 crore, looted antiques. Seven held including priest Immanuel

http://epaper.timesofindia.com/Repository/getimage.dll?path=TOICH/2010/02/02/1/Img/Pc0012200.jpg

Priceless Treasures: Jain idols and those of Hindu gods and
goddesses, said to be worth around Rs 1 crore, were recovered by the
idol wing of the CB-CID on Sunday. CB-CID additional director general
of police G Thilagavathy (in pic) said some of the idols were
recovered from the banks of the Viruthaseera river, where they had
been buried by the thieves. Seven persons, including a Christian
priest, were arrested for the crime.

7 held for stealing panchaloha idols Eleven Figurines Worth Rs 1 Cr Recovered

A Selvaraj, TNN

Chennai: Sleuths of the CBCID's idol wing on Sunday arrested seven
persons, including a Christian priest and three traders, for stealing
11 panchaloha idols said to be worth about Rs 1 crore from various
temples. While five idols were recovered from a river bed in Vellore
district, one was seized from a Chennai lodge and the other five from
a Puducherry shop. All the arrested were remanded in judicial custody
on Monday. Acting on a tip-off, the police raided a mansion in
Periamet, nabbed the priest, K Immanuel alias Sasikumar of Vellore, K
Madasamy of Tirunelveli and A Marichamy of Villupuram and recovered a
panchaloha idol of Lord Krishna.

Special teams then rushed to Pallur village near Arakkonam in
Vellore district and nabbed G Jagannathan alias Kithiyon and D Velu
of Pallur who said that five idols had been buried on the
Viruthaseera river bed. The police subsequently dug up the area on
the river bed where the idols were buried and recovered them.

"The two then said five Jain idols had also been stolen from a
Jain Temple in Easa Kolathur of Tiruvannamalai district and a team
raided Marichamy's handicrafts shop in Puducherry and recovered the
idols. Another team arrested ex-convict P Pitchaimani from his house
in Rajapalayam," CB-CID additional director-general of police
(Economic Offences Wing) G Thilagavathy said.

The stolen Jain idols, identified as those of the 23rd
Tirthankara by a member of the community present at a press
conference at the CBCID EOW office here, each weighed 23 kg.

"Marichamy set up a handicrafts shop in Puducherry while
Immanuel, who studied to become a priest, later founded a church in
Pallur," an idol wing officer said.

"After coming close to Madasamy and Pitchaimani, Immanuel
identified dilapidated old temples and informed his associates,"
another officer said.

"The idols were then stolen and handed over to Pitchaimani.
Madasamy and Siva, another accused who is missing, then started
stealing idols on their own and selling them to Marichamy," the
officer said.

The sleuths also arrested S Gangachalam of Udaiyarpalayam near
Ariyalur and launched a hunt for ex-convict Vaithi for stealing three
panchaloha idols from the Ariyalur Lakshmi Narayanan temple that were
among the five recovered from the river bed in Vellore district.

http://epaper.timesofindia.com/Repository/getimage.dll?path=TOICH/2010/02/02/3/Img/Pc0030800.jpg

http://epaper.timesofindia.com/Default/Scripting/ArticleWin.asp?From=Archive&Source=Page&Skin=TOINEW&BaseHref=TOICH/2010/02/02&PageLabel=1&EntityId=Pc00122&ViewMode=HTML&GZ=T

End of forwarded message from S. Kalyanaraman

Jai Maharaj, Jyotishi
Om Shanti

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TOPIC: ASTROLOGY: AN ABUSE OF ASTRONOMY
http://groups.google.com/group/rec.arts.movies.local.indian/t/279c80a2cca778e9?hl=en
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== 1 of 1 ==
Date: Sat, Jan 30 2010 1:43 pm
From: "P. Rajah"

Astrology: An Abuse Of Astronomy

The starry-eyed addicts of daily-horoscopes might take it lightly, but
the UGC policy of introducing astrology as a subject could do with an
informed perspective.

N. Rathnasree

In recent times the controversy over the nature of astrology, whether it
is a scientific theory or not, seems to be becoming more and more
acerbic. While the astrologers are freely indulging in making personal
attacks on scientists, the following pertinent criticism of the theory
and practice of astrology, is not in any way being answered by them.

To be called a scientific theory, any body of knowledge would have to
answer the question why at every level.

So what, ask the astrologers, if we cannot predict the future very
accurately, are scientists able to predict the weather or Earthquakes
accurately?

Put another way, there has to be some fundamental interaction of basic
elements of nature involved at the root of any phenomenon. Venus in some
position has a baneful influence, Jupiter in some other position is
beneficial, born at such and such time a person may grow up to be a
criminal or a politician – WHY? What is the basic cause behind such
statements?

When asked to pin down the fundamental interaction of the planets and
stars with us human beings which would give rise to such effects,
astrologers falter and mumble something about gravitation,
electromagnetic radiation or tidal effects.

Gravitation? The gravitational forces of the nursing home, gynecologist,
pediatrician and the anesthetist who may be around at the time of birth
of a human baby would be far greater than any gravitational force felt
from the planets, simply because they are so far away! Similarly, stray
electromagnetic radiations coming from your TV screen or sundry other
electrical appliances around the house will be far greater than any that
reaches us from distant planets, how can the latter affect incidences in
your life?

What say we of tides? A statement on an astrological website goes – 'If
the Sun and Moon can exert tidal forces on Earth, which is so huge, to
cause tides, can they not exert enormous tidal forces on us puny
beings?' … something like that. The suggestion being that we do not know
what forces could be the cause astrological influences, but maybe tides
have the answer for us?

The point here is that the tidal forces on Earth, by the Sun and Moon
are caused precisely because it is so huge.

Try imagining differences in gravitational forces of the distant
planets between the tummy and the behind of a baby just born or maybe
the head and the toes? Laughable.

Where do tidal forces originate from? It is not a new or different kind
of force – it simply arises from differences in gravitational force felt
by the extremities of an extended object – the gravitational force of
the Sun or the Moon is larger on that part of Earth that is facing them
and smaller on the opposite side. As simple as that. Now try imagining
differences in gravitational forces of the distant planets between the
tummy and the behind of a baby just born or maybe the head and the toes?
Laughable. Tides do not have the answer that astrologers need.

It is true that there are number of physical interactions that have not
yet been fully understood from a very basic standpoint – the nature of
the nuclear forces, for instance. At the level of complex interactions
and chaotic phenomena there are a number of examples where a full
scientific understanding and predictability through underlying physical
laws is as yet incomplete. All these are rich areas in science where a
lot of progress has taken place and there exists room for a lot more work.

However, at some level or the other these unsolved problems touch upon
known and experimentally verified nature's laws. It is this that is
lacking in astrology. The astrologers say – so what if we cannot predict
the future very accurately, are scientists able to predict the weather
or Earthquakes accurately? The difference here comes in our basic
understanding of these phenomena, scientists have plenty of experimental
verification for the basic interactions they think underlie weather or
Earthquakes or any such phenomenon that is not yet understood in its
full complexity.

A person needs to be completely shameless to make such tall claims
after the event – making moolah out of vague statements and large scale
real suffering of people!

Does astrology have any such basic grounding? No!

So, we do not have a fundamental interaction or force that could explain
benign or malignant influences of the planets on our life. But, may be,
the cancer of astrology has a way out … empirical evidence? Lacking a
fundamental understanding of certain natural phenomenon, we may yet find
out some partial truth about it by experimentally studying various
aspects of it.

Most of the astrological predictions are worded in a deliberately vague
manner. It is this inherent vagueness that turns out to be the biggest
strength of astrologers since it defies experimental verification, a
basic requirement for any science.

Anyway, let us try our hands at generating statistics to critically
examine astrological conclusions. Positions of planets, Sun and the Moon
against the backdrop of the Zodiacal constellations at the time of the
birth of a person is supposed to determine their destiny, right? Listed
below are the birthdates of a number of Nobel Laureates who have
received the peace prize. Astrologically speaking, we should expect to
see some correlation in the planetary positions on these dates, which we
do not see:

Positions of Sun, Moon and Planets among the Zodiacal constellations
during the birth dates of some Nobel Laureates for Peace.

This exercise can be endless. Try it for any such list of people and you
are sure to see that no patterns exist in the planetary positions, if
the birthdates are unbiased.

(By the way, it is a a very simple matter to find out the planetary
positions for dates in history. There exist a number of planetarium
software, made freely available by dedicated astronomers and educators,
which do this job for you. There is a wonderful shareware called
skyglobe, produced by KlassM Software, a demo version of which can be
downloaded.

Using such software, you can look at the planetary, or stellar,
positions in the sky in history, as well as a few thousand years in
future. All this is astronomy, or rather, celestial mechanics, nothing
to do with astrology.

Anyway, trying to look at possible patterns emerging during birth-dates
of famous people could be an interesting senior school statistics
project to do and could quickly demonstrate the falsehood of astrology.
Students who may be thinking of enrolling for astrological courses,
particularly, may do well to look at such simple statistics before
making a tricky career decision.

Several astrologers make claims that they have predicted events that
have happened.

No pattern exists in planetary positions on the dates of earthquakes in
India's recent history.

Lets' go through a sample - several astrologers are thumping their
chests saying that they had predicted the Gujarat quake – what have
these predictions been?

Take a sample – 'The nation may face a national calamity in the first
weeks of January', 'Inspite of many security arrangements the government
may be taken by surprise on the republic day', and so on. These are
statements taken from claims being made on the net by astrologers saying
that they had predicted the quake.

If the quake had not taken place, these predictions, however vague,
would never have been seen in limelight again, the case with innumerable
other predictions these same astrologers would be making day in and day
out, and which do not come out as predicted.

And then again, the predictions themselves are so vague, as can be seen
from the motley sample above, that a person needs to be completely
shameless to make such tall claims after the event – making moolah out
of vague statements and large scale real suffering of people!

Read full article:
http://www.outlookindia.com/article.aspx?212155

"Based on one of mankind's most time-tested sciences, Jyotish,
(_no experimentation here_!) the India-Pakistan reunification
should occur on our about July 26, 2000 (the date of the final
signing of the pact.)"
From: Jai Maharaj (cy717@cleveland.Freenet.Edu)
Subject: India-Pakistan Unification
Newsgroups: soc.culture.indian
Date: 1993-04-18 13:24:50 PST

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TOPIC: DIOCESE WILL PAY $9.8 MILLION TO SEX CRIME VICTIMS OF CHRISTIAN PRIESTS
http://groups.google.com/group/rec.arts.movies.local.indian/t/6e9798e049b96cfe?hl=en
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== 1 of 1 ==
Date: Thurs, Feb 4 2010 4:09 pm
From: usenet@mantra.com and/or www.mantra.com/jai (Dr. Jai Maharaj)

Diocese will pay $9.8 million to Alaska abuse victims

By Lisa Demer
Anchorage Daily News
January 26, 2010

The Catholic Diocese of Fairbanks is emerging from bankruptcy under a
plan that will provide nearly $10 million -- and maybe much more --
to sexual abuse victims, send the bishop traveling to parishes where
abuse occurred, and put names of suspected abusers on the diocese Web
site.

Under the plan for reorganization, $9.8 million will go into a fund
for close to 300 victims. Another $2.5 million is going to lawyers,
accountants and other professionals. Payments to individuals will be
decided case-by-case by a mediator, depending on a variety of factors
including the nature and severity of abuse, the age of the victim at
the time it started, and whether the perpetrator was in a position of
trust.

U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Donald MacDonald approved the plan at a hearing
Monday morning in Anchorage.

"I've never had a case like this in my nearly 20 years on the bench,"
the judge told the lawyers and Catholic church leaders gathered in
court. The sexual abuse claims made this bankruptcy especially
challenging, he said.

The diocese filed for reorganization in March 2008 in the wake of
more than 100 state-court lawsuits accusing priests and volunteers of
sexual abuse. After the bankruptcy case was filed, the claims grew.
Many arise from abuse decades ago.

Most creditors supported the plan, including 256 out of 258 clergy
sexual abuse victims who voted on it.

Exhibits filed in Bankruptcy Court name the suspected perpetrators,
most from the Jesuit order. Under the settlement, for the next 10
years the diocese must post on its home page a link to the names of
the suspected abusers "and any other known perpetrators (admitted,
proven or credibly accused), including deceased perpetrators."

One list filed in court names those whom multiple people accused of
sexual abuse: 15 priests, a deacon, two brothers, two nuns, and two
volunteers. They include the late church volunteer Joseph Lundowski,
accused of molesting dozens of children in Western Alaska villages in
the 1960s and 1970s. A second list names those accused by one person:
11 priests, five nuns, a deacon, a brother and three volunteers.

Bishop Donald Kettler, who sat in at the hearing, said afterward that
what happened to people victimized by priests and lay volunteers was
tragic. He said the diocese has tried to start the process of healing
but that he couldn't do much when the case was in court. Now, he can
reach out, and in fact must do so, under the reorganization plan.

He said he would try to connect with every victim and will travel to
every place where the abuse occurred.

"I will be visiting their villages. I will invite them to come see me
one-on-one. I will invite them to come to some church and community
healing services. And I will have listening sessions with them and
then the whole community," Kettler said.

Under the plan, he also must read a statement of apology from the
pulpit in every affected parish.

The diocese pieced together money for the settlement mainly from the
sale of properties to its own endowment. The diocese will still be
able to use those properties, which include Catholic schools, the
diocese offices, and the Kobuk Center, where the bishop lives. In
addition, parishes are paying $650,000 and Alaska National Insurance
Co. $1.4 million.

Kettler said operations of the vast diocese have been affected by the
lawsuits and the bankruptcy. The diocese has cut subsidies to
parishes for training, fuel oil and other basics, he said. The
diocese staff has been reduced by 25 percent, and those left have
taken pay cuts and unpaid furloughs. The bishops' pay is now just
$1,400 a month, plus room and board, said Susan Boswell, the Tucson,
Ariz.-based lead bankruptcy attorney for the diocese.

The victims also will pursue claims against two insurance companies
that didn't pay into the settlement, Travelers Casualty and Surety
Co. and Catholic Mutual Relief Society of America. Ken Roosa, an
Anchorage lawyer who has represented dozens of abuse victims in state
lawsuits, said the size of the fund for victims could grow
substantially.

"We're not done," he said.

More at:
http://www.adn.com/news/alaska/rural/story/1109902.html

Jai Maharaj, Jyotishi
Om Shanti

Since newsgroup posts are being removed
by forgery by one or more net terrorists,
this post may be reposted several times.

==============================================================================
TOPIC: 1.7 MILLION THRONG HINDU SHRINE IN MALAYSIA
http://groups.google.com/group/rec.arts.movies.local.indian/t/74951b988510bc2b?hl=en
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== 1 of 4 ==
Date: Thurs, Feb 4 2010 4:18 pm
From: usenet@mantra.com and/or www.mantra.com/jai (Dr. Jai Maharaj)

1.7 million throng Hindu shrine in Malaysia

IANS
The Times of India
Monday, February 1, 2010

Kuala Lumpur - Over 1.7 million Hindu devotees on Monday thronged
Lord Subramaniam's temple at the Batu Caves near the national capital
to celebrate the annual Thaipusam festival.

Crowds of devotees and tourists swelled through the night even as the
deity's silver chariot left Batu Caves at 4 p.m. on Sunday for the
Sri Maha Mariamman temple here to mark the end of the festival.

About 10,000 devotees followed the chariot back on foot, New Straits
Times said.

Sri Maha Mariamman Devasthanam works committee chief N. Sivakumar
said the Thaipusam celebration last year lasted for a week, and this
year the temple management was ready to maintain the carnival
atmosphere beyond Monday if necessary.

Going by the enthusiasm of the festival crowd this year, it would not
be a surprise if the number of visitors to the Batu Caves temple
surpassed two million, he added.

Multi-ethnic Malaysia is home to about 1.9 million Indians who
settled here during the British era. A bulk of them are Tamil Hindus,
while there are settlers from other regions and practitioners of
Christianity and Sikhism as well.

Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak with his wife and leading members of
his cabinet were among the visitors this year. He underscored the
need for accommodating the festivals and citizens of different
faiths, although a majority of Malaysians practice Islam.

More at:
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/indians-abroad/17-million-throng-Hindu-shrine-in-Malaysia/articleshow/5522906.cms

Jai Maharaj, Jyotishi
Om Shanti

Since newsgroup posts are being removed
by forgery by one or more net terrorists,
this post may be reposted several times.

== 2 of 4 ==
Date: Thurs, Feb 4 2010 8:30 pm
From: nur

Idol Worship, the Unforgivable Sin

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n0_xrdfjGPQ

What is the meaning of idol worship?

A simple definition of idol worship is to believe that anything beside
God can help us, or to hold something as more important to us than
God. Thus if we hold our property (for example) as more important than
God /or give our jobs more time and attention than God - we are
committing idol worship. Unfortunately, the majority of people who
believe in God commit this gross offense without even realizing it. If
you ask them, "Who is your god?", they will be outraged to hear this
question. "What do you mean, `Who is your god?' they will ask, `My god
is the Creator of the heavens and the earth.' " And most of these
people will be shocked to find out that their proclamation that their
god is the Creator of the heavens and the earth is no more than lip
service, and that they are in fact destined for Hell (12:106). Idol
worship is a gross injustice, the violation of the first commandment
in all the scriptures of God, and is an unforgivable sin if maintained
until death.

[31:13] Recall that Luqmaan said to his son, as he enlightened him, "O
my son, do not set up any idols beside GOD; idolatry is a gross
injustice."*

Footnote: *31:13 How will you feel if you take care of a child, give
him the best education, and prepare him for life, only to see him
thank someone else? Thus is idolatry; injustice.

[12:106] The majority of those who believe in GOD do not do so without
committing idol worship.

(sub-title) The Unforgivable Sin

[4:48] GOD does not forgive idolatry,* but He forgives lesser offenses
for whomever He wills. Anyone who sets up idols beside GOD, has forged
a horrendous offense.

Footnote: *4:48 Idol worship is not forgivable, if maintained until
death. One can always repent from any offense, including idolatry,
before death comes (see 4:18 & 40:66).

(sub-title) The Unforgivable Sin

[4:116] GOD does not forgive idol worship (if maintained until
death),* and He forgives lesser offenses for whomever He wills. Anyone
who idolizes any idol beside GOD has strayed far astray.

God tells us that idol worship nullifies all work

Any work we do, if not devoted absolutely to God, does not serve to
grow our souls. On the day of Resurrection, if our souls have not
grown strong enough to withstand the presence of God - we will have to
forsake God's kingdom on our own volition. Everything we have done in
this world will be nullified.

[39:65] It has been revealed to you, and to those before you that if
you ever commit idol worship, all your works will be nullified, and
you will be with the losers.

The natural instinct of monotheism that God has placed in us ( 30:30;
to make it easier for us to choose the right path) commands us to
dedicate our worship to God Alone, and not associate anything with
God. All places of worship should be dedicated to God Alone. Belief in
God includes the understanding that He alone is worthy of worship.

[72:18] The places of worship belong to GOD; do not call on anyone
else beside GOD.

Many so-called Muslims commit mistake by associating Muhammad with God
at the places of worship, and by upholding Hadith and Sunna falsely
attributed to prophet Muhammad. For example, mentioning the names of
Abraham, Muhammad, and/or Ali in the Azan and/or the Salat prayers
violates God's commandments in 2:136, 2:285, 3:84, & 72:18.
Unfortunately, this is a common idolatrous practice throughout the
corrupted Muslim world. Many Christians commit this same mistake by
exalting Jesus to the same level as God, or sometimes by even calling
him God. This is idol worship. In Matthew 7:21-23: Jesus clearly
disowns those who call him "Lord."

Types of Idols

Idol worship is not just restricted to worship of any statues or
picture frames, etc. The Quran cites many forms of idol worship.
1. Calf, statues as idols.

[2:51] Yet, when we summoned Moses for forty nights, you worshiped the
calf in his absence, and turned wicked.*

[21:51-53] Before that, we granted Abraham his guidance and
understanding, for we were fully aware of him.* He said to his father
and his people, "What are these statues to which you are devoting
yourselves?" They said, "We found our parents worshiping them."
2. Worshipping other gods (is worshipping the devil).

[4:117] They even worship female gods besides Him; as a matter of
fact, they only worship a rebellious devil.
3. Jesus as idol.

[5:72] Pagans indeed are those who say that GOD is the Messiah, son of
Mary. The Messiah himself said, "O Children of Israel, you shall
worship GOD; my Lord* and your Lord." Anyone who sets up any idol
beside GOD, GOD has forbidden Paradise for him, and his destiny is
Hell. The wicked have no helpers.
4. Jinns as idols.

[6:100] Yet, they set up beside GOD idols from among the jinns, though
He is the One who created them. They even attribute to Him sons and
daughters, without any knowledge. Be He glorified. He is the Most
High, far above their claims.
5. Children as idols.

[7:190] But when He gives them a good baby, they turn His gift into an
idol that rivals Him. GOD be exalted, far above any partnership.
6. Humans as idols.

[7:194] The idols you invoke besides GOD are creatures like you. Go
ahead and call upon them; let them respond to you, if you are right.
7. "Intercessors" as Idols. From the Quran, it is obvious - there is
no intercession by anyone on the Day of Judgment.

[10:18] They worship beside GOD idols that possess no power to harm
them or benefit them, and they say, "These are our intercessors at
GOD!" Say, "Are you informing GOD of something He does not know in the
heavens or the earth?" Be He glorified. He is the Most High; far above
needing partners.
8. Satan as an idol.

[14:22] And the devil will say, after the judgment had been issued,
"GOD has promised you the truthful promise, and I promised you, but I
broke my promise. I had no power over you; I simply invited you, and
you accepted my invitation. Therefore, do not blame me, and blame only
yourselves. My complaining cannot help you, nor can your complaining
help me. I have disbelieved in your idolizing me. The transgressors
have incurred a painful retribution."
9. Property as an idol.

[18:32-36] Cite for them the example of two men: we gave one of them
two gardens of grapes, surrounded by date palms, and placed other
crops between them. Both gardens produced their crops on time, and
generously, for we caused a river to run through them. Once, after
harvesting, he boastfully told his friend: "I am far more prosperous
than you, and I command more respect from the people." When he entered
his garden, he wronged his soul by saying, "I do not think that this
will ever end. "Moreover, I think this is it; I do not think that the
Hour (the Hereafter) will ever come to pass. Even if I am returned to
my Lord, I will (be clever enough to) possess an even better one over
there."

[18:42] Indeed, his crops were wiped out, and he ended up sorrowful,
lamenting what he had spent on it in vain, as his property lay barren.
He finally said, "I wish I never set up my property as a god beside my
Lord."
10. The dead prophets, messengers and saints as idols.

[16:20-21] As for the idols they set up beside GOD, they do not create
anything; they themselves were created. They are dead, not alive, and
they have no idea how or when they will be resurrected.

[3:79] Never would a human being whom GOD blessed with the scripture
and prophethood say to the people, "Idolize me beside GOD." Instead,
(he would say), "Devote yourselves absolutely to your Lord alone,"
according to the scripture you preach and the teachings you learn.
11. God's servants as idols.

[18:102] Do those who disbelieve think that they can get away with
setting up My servants as gods beside Me? We have prepared for the
disbelievers Hell as an eternal abode.

The idol need not be an image in front of you.
12. Ego as an idol.

This is a common form of idolatry. Most humans, because of their ego
cannot bring themselves to worship God, nor can they make their
opinion subordinate to God's opinion spelled out in the Quran because
of their ego. If we disobey God and His messenger, we are committing
idol worship even though there is no image in front of us. This is
because we would be giving our opinion more importance than God's
words.

[25:43] Have you seen the one whose god is his own ego? Will you be
his advocate?

[45:23] Have you noted the one whose god is his ego? Consequently, GOD
sends him astray, despite his knowledge, seals his hearing and his
mind, and places a veil on his eyes. Who then can guide him, after
such a decision by GOD? Would you not take heed?
13. Upholding religious Sources other than God's words, as an idol

As a Submitter (Muslim) if we follow a source other than Quran for
religious guidance it would be idolatry. The following verse makes it
clear that the Quran is God's Testimony. Following any other source is
defined as idolatry. Worshipping God is to obey His words only (Quran)
and not the words of humans (scholars, religious leaders, mullahs,
etc.).

[6:19] Say, "Whose testimony is the greatest?" Say, "GOD's. He is the
witness between me and you that this Quran* has been inspired to me,
to preach it to you and whomever it reaches. Indeed, you bear witness
that there are other gods* beside GOD." Say, "I do not testify as you
do; there is only one god, and I disown your idolatry."

Footnote: *6:19 This verse proclaims the Quran as the only source of
religious guidance. Those who uphold additional sources, such as
Hadith & Sunna (lies attributed to the Prophet), are defined as
idolaters.
14. Religious leaders and scholars as idols.

(sub-title) Upholding the Teachings of Religious Leaders, Instead of
God's Teachings

[9:31] They have set up their religious leaders and scholars as
lords,* instead of GOD. Others deified the Messiah, son of Mary. They
were all commanded to worship only one god. There is no god except He.
Be He glorified, high above having any partners.

Footnote: *9:31 If you consult the "Muslim scholars" about worshiping
God alone, and upholding the word of God alone, as taught in this
proven scripture, they will advise you against it. If you consult the
Pope about the identity of Jesus, he will advise you to uphold a
trinity. If you obey the "Muslim scholars" whose advice is contrary to
God's teachings, or if you take the Pope's advice instead of God's,
you have set up these religious leaders as gods instead of God.
15. Creating sects in religion is idol worship.

The Quran forbids dividing ourselves into sects. Those who divide into
sects are termed as idol worshippers.

[30:31-32] You shall submit to Him, reverence Him, observe the Contact
Prayers (Salat), and - whatever you do - do not ever fall into idol
worship. (Do not fall in idol worship,) like those who divide their
religion into sects; each party rejoicing with what they have.
16. Dividing believers and providing comfort to those who oppose God
and His messengers is practicing idol worship.

[9:107] There are those who abuse the masjid by practicing idol
worship, dividing the believers, and providing comfort to those who
oppose GOD and His messenger. They solemnly swear: "Our intentions are
honorable!" GOD bears witness that they are liars.

Footnote: *9:107 Any masjid where the practices are not devoted
absolutely to God ALONE belongs to Satan, not God. For example,
mentioning the names of Abraham, Muhammad, and/or Ali in the Azan and/
or the Salat prayers violates God's commandments in 2:136, 2:285,
3:84, & 72:18. Unfortunately, this is a common idolatrous practice
throughout the corrupted Muslim world.

We learn from the Quran that idols cannot judge (40:20), idols cannot
create anything and are powerless (13:16, 46:4) and idols do not bring
us closer to God (39:3). We learn that idolaters follow conjecture
(6:148) and that idolaters deny idol worship - now & on the Day of
Judgment (6:22-24).

God grants perfect security and happiness for believers who are
devoted to Him alone without committing idol worship.

[6:82] Those who believe, and do not pollute their belief with idol
worship, have deserved the perfect security, and they are truly
guided.

[39:17] As for those who discard the worship of all idols, and devote
themselves totally to GOD alone, they have deserved happiness. Give
good news to My servants.

May God protect us from worshiping idols.

[14:35] Recall that Abraham said, "My Lord, …. protect me and my
children from worshiping idols.

[6:162-164] Say, "My Contact Prayers (Salat), my worship practices, my
life and my death, are all devoted absolutely to GOD alone, the Lord
of the universe.He has no partner. This is what I am commanded to
believe, and I am the first to submit." Say, "Shall I seek other than
GOD as a lord, when He is the Lord of all things? No soul benefits
except from its own works, and none bears the burden of another.
Ultimately, you return to your Lord, then He informs you regarding all
your disputes."

On Feb 5, 8:18 am, use...@mantra.com and/or www.mantra.com/jai (Dr.
Jai Maharaj) wrote:
> 1.7 million throng Hindu shrine in Malaysia
>
> IANS
> The Times of India
> Monday, February 1, 2010
>
> Kuala Lumpur - Over 1.7 million Hindu devotees on Monday thronged
> Lord Subramaniam's temple at the Batu Caves near the national capital
> to celebrate the annual Thaipusam festival.
>
> Crowds of devotees and tourists swelled through the night even as the
> deity's silver chariot left Batu Caves at 4 p.m. on Sunday for the
> Sri Maha Mariamman temple here to mark the end of the festival.
>
> About 10,000 devotees followed the chariot back on foot, New Straits
> Times said.
>
> Sri Maha Mariamman Devasthanam works committee chief N. Sivakumar
> said the Thaipusam celebration last year lasted for a week, and this
> year the temple management was ready to maintain the carnival
> atmosphere beyond Monday if necessary.
>
> Going by the enthusiasm of the festival crowd this year, it would not
> be a surprise if the number of visitors to the Batu Caves temple
> surpassed two million, he added.
>
> Multi-ethnic Malaysia is home to about 1.9 million Indians who
> settled here during the British era. A bulk of them are Tamil Hindus,
> while there are settlers from other regions and practitioners of
> Christianity and Sikhism as well.
>
> Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak with his wife and leading members of
> his cabinet were among the visitors this year. He underscored the
> need for accommodating the festivals and citizens of different
> faiths, although a majority of Malaysians practice Islam.
>
> More at:http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/indians-abroad/17-million-th...
>
> Jai Maharaj, Jyotishi
> Om Shanti
>
> o Not for commercial use. Solely to be fairly used for the educational
> purposes of research and open discussion. The contents of this post may not
> have been authored by, and do not necessarily represent the opinion of the
> poster. The contents are protected by copyright law and the exemption for
> fair use of copyrighted works.
> o If you send private e-mail to me, it will likely not be read,
> considered or answered if it does not contain your full legal name, current
> e-mail and postal addresses, and live-voice telephone number.
> o Posted for information and discussion. Views expressed by others are
> not necessarily those of the poster who may or may not have read the article.
>
> FAIR USE NOTICE: This article may contain copyrighted material the use of
> which may or may not have been specifically authorized by the copyright
> owner. This material is being made available in efforts to advance the
> understanding of environmental, political, human rights, economic,
> democratic, scientific, social, and cultural, etc., issues. It is believed
> that this constitutes a 'fair use' of any such copyrighted material as
> provided for in section 107 of the US Copyright Law. In accordance with Title
> 17 U.S.C. Section 107, the material on this site is distributed without
> profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included
> information for research, comment, discussion and educational purposes by
> subscribing to USENET newsgroups or visiting web sites. For more information
> go to: http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.shtml
> If you wish to use copyrighted material from this article for purposes of
> your own that go beyond 'fair use', you must obtain permission from the
> copyright owner.
>
> Since newsgroup posts are being removed
> by forgery by one or more net terrorists,
> this post may be reposted several times.

== 3 of 4 ==
Date: Thurs, Feb 4 2010 8:54 pm
From: usenet@mantra.com and/or www.mantra.com/jai (Dr. Jai Maharaj)

In article <a11ec231-79c7-4ae2-8d12-9ac41d5a6170@p13g2000pre.googlegroups.com>,
nur <arah1958@gmail.com> posted:
>
> Idol Worship, the Unforgivable Sin
>> [...]

-Subject: SUPERSTITIONS AND IDOL WORSHIP OR MOORTI POOJA
-From: Dr. Jai Maharaj
-Date: Thu, 14 Feb 2008

Forwarded message from V. S. S.

SUPERSTITIONS AND IDOL WORSHIP OR MOORTIPOOJA

By V. S. S,
Tuesday, February 12, 2008

Is it not surprising that idol worship or moortipooja which
is going on in Sanatana Dharm or Hinduism for ages
together from time immemorial all over India and abroad is
being criticized and objected to not only by Christians and
Muslims whose religions do not believe in and oppose idol
worship, but by our own brothers, who call themselves as
Hindus, the Aryasamajis, on the ground that it is
superstitious to worship idols preached by wrong
interpretation of Dharm forgetting the very purpose of
Dharm or religion? They speak as if to worship idols is
against logic and reasons saying that if you cannot think
with logic and reasoning you cannot defend your belief and
then the only way you can spread your massage is by
violence like others whom you criticize.

Regarding logic and reasoning, I remember of a court story.
There was a very intelligent lawyer having roaring
practice. Once while arguing a case in the court by
mistake, he started arguing the case of the other side and
he could realize his mistake only at the end before
concluding when his junior could bring it to his notice. He
however without showing any embarrassment told the court
that what he has argued is what the other side will say and
argue and stated that now he will show how it is wrong and
again successfully demolished his earlier arguments and won
the case.

These Aryasamajis forget that the ultimate truth is beyond
(not against) logic and reasoning and cannot be known
through logical arguments and reasoning. In Zen Buddhism
there are what is called 'koans' where illogical problems
are given to the aspirants to solve. The disciple tries to
solve the problem by logical arguments and reasoning but
the Master rejects them all. Ultimately he gets mentally so
much tired that he gives up and at that moment
intuitionally he gets the answer, which is not logical.

It should be noted that unlike the other two dogmatic
religions, viz. Christianity and Islam, Sanatana Dharm or
Hinduism is not based only on faith and belief, but also on
experience and convictions. The Hindu teachers tell their
students not to accept anything even if told by Brahma
Himself, unless they are convinced and experience the truth
in the teachings.

While castigating the Idol Worshipers Hindus, for
worshiping God with form, the Aryasamajis appear to have
forgotten the purpose of Hindu religion. It is to realize
the Self. How it is to be realized is not so important as
realization of self, the Satchidanand Swarup. The ultimate
end of our religion is not to go to Paradise or Heaven.
There is no fixed method prescribed for realizing the Self.
Ramana Maharshi realized the Self without reading Vedas or
any other religious books or following any method like
doing Yog and Pranayyam.

As regards the argument that we should give up Moortipooja
because Hindus throughout the world are known as 'Idol
Worshipers', which simply means ignorant and not
understanding the God, I don't think there is any merit in
the argument. Let us see the definition of God. It is the
supreme or ultimate reality. Ii means beyond duality. It
cannot be bound by duality. As such it can be both with as
well as without form. One cannot say that it is only
without form leaving out the other part of duality. When
Ramana Maharshi was asked whether there is God or not, he
replied that so long as you (the questioner) is there, God
is there for the questioner. If the questioner goes God
also will disappear. That means so long as one considers
oneself as a separate entity (ego), one cannot say God is
not there. God will disappear with Ahankar (ego). In other
words there is no separate God for self-realized. To say
that we cannot get the Vedas point of view across if we
support Idol worship is made out of ignorance about Vedas,
which preaches Tatwa-Ma-Si, Aham-Brahmasi.

As regards the argument that Vedas never ever talk about
Idol worship, it should be noted that it has also never
prohibited Idol worship. As regards Ramayana and
Mahabharata have no mention of Idol worship, I think it is
mentioned in Ramayana that after killing Ravana who was a
Brahmin, Shri Ram prayed and worshiped Shiva by
establishing a Linga (which is also a form of Moorti or
Idol) at Rameshwar to get rid of the sin. In Mahabharata
there is a mention of Arjuna going to Tirtha-yatra.

Before concluding let me say a few words about Yogiraj Shri
Krishna who is described as Bhogiraj. Mahamahopadya
Balashastri Hardas in his book Shri Krishna (in Marathi)
narrates an incident from Mahabharat. He says that after
the end of Mahabharat war, the Pandava and their wife
Draupadi were sitting under a mango tree and talking. They
have rather become egoistic. At that time a ripe mango felt
down. In order to teach them a lesson, Shri Krishna said
each one of them should try to fix back the fruit to the
tree. Each one tried. Yadushtir said that if he has never
spoken a lie and always spoke truth, the fruit will stuck
back to the tree. The fruit went up but did not touch the
tree because he has said half-truth to Dronacharya about
the death of his son Ashvathamma. Draupadi, who was proud
of being Pativrata, said that if she is a Pativrata the
fruit would stick back to the tree. Still even though it
went near it did not stuck, as when she came to know that
Karn was the sixth Pandava for a moment a thought came to
her that he would have been her sixth husband had he been
with Pandavs. Then Shri Krishna said that if he is really
a Bal-Brahmachari (every body knows about his wives), if he
has never shown his back in the war (he is also known as
Ranchoddas because of his running away from the war) and in
spite of this the fruit the fruit stuck. Shri Hardas then
showed how what Shri Krishna said was true.

V. S. S.

End of forwarded message from V. S. S.

Jai Maharaj, Jyotishi
Om Shanti

Since newsgroup posts are being removed
by forgery by one or more net terrorists,
this post may be reposted several times.

== 4 of 4 ==
Date: Thurs, Feb 4 2010 10:20 pm
From: "Ong Teck Seng"

Are you trying to stir up the Muslims to go a rampage to stop all these idol
worshippers?
<usenet@mantra.com and/or www.mantra.com/jai (Dr. Jai Maharaj)> wrote in
message news:20100204GzA7xS04jVAPdH49Y6MU1xM@R2I12...
> In article
> <a11ec231-79c7-4ae2-8d12-9ac41d5a6170@p13g2000pre.googlegroups.com>,
> nur <arah1958@gmail.com> posted:
>>
>> Idol Worship, the Unforgivable Sin
>>> [...]
>
> -Subject: SUPERSTITIONS AND IDOL WORSHIP OR MOORTI POOJA
> -From: Dr. Jai Maharaj
> -Date: Thu, 14 Feb 2008
>
> Forwarded message from V. S. S.
>
> SUPERSTITIONS AND IDOL WORSHIP OR MOORTIPOOJA
>
> By V. S. S,
> Tuesday, February 12, 2008
>
> Is it not surprising that idol worship or moortipooja which
> is going on in Sanatana Dharm or Hinduism for ages
> together from time immemorial all over India and abroad is
> being criticized and objected to not only by Christians and
> Muslims whose religions do not believe in and oppose idol
> worship, but by our own brothers, who call themselves as
> Hindus, the Aryasamajis, on the ground that it is
> superstitious to worship idols preached by wrong
> interpretation of Dharm forgetting the very purpose of
> Dharm or religion? They speak as if to worship idols is
> against logic and reasons saying that if you cannot think
> with logic and reasoning you cannot defend your belief and
> then the only way you can spread your massage is by
> violence like others whom you criticize.
>
> Regarding logic and reasoning, I remember of a court story.
> There was a very intelligent lawyer having roaring
> practice. Once while arguing a case in the court by
> mistake, he started arguing the case of the other side and
> he could realize his mistake only at the end before
> concluding when his junior could bring it to his notice. He
> however without showing any embarrassment told the court
> that what he has argued is what the other side will say and
> argue and stated that now he will show how it is wrong and
> again successfully demolished his earlier arguments and won
> the case.
>
> These Aryasamajis forget that the ultimate truth is beyond
> (not against) logic and reasoning and cannot be known
> through logical arguments and reasoning. In Zen Buddhism
> there are what is called 'koans' where illogical problems
> are given to the aspirants to solve. The disciple tries to
> solve the problem by logical arguments and reasoning but
> the Master rejects them all. Ultimately he gets mentally so
> much tired that he gives up and at that moment
> intuitionally he gets the answer, which is not logical.
>
> It should be noted that unlike the other two dogmatic
> religions, viz. Christianity and Islam, Sanatana Dharm or
> Hinduism is not based only on faith and belief, but also on
> experience and convictions. The Hindu teachers tell their
> students not to accept anything even if told by Brahma
> Himself, unless they are convinced and experience the truth
> in the teachings.
>
> While castigating the Idol Worshipers Hindus, for
> worshiping God with form, the Aryasamajis appear to have
> forgotten the purpose of Hindu religion. It is to realize
> the Self. How it is to be realized is not so important as
> realization of self, the Satchidanand Swarup. The ultimate
> end of our religion is not to go to Paradise or Heaven.
> There is no fixed method prescribed for realizing the Self.
> Ramana Maharshi realized the Self without reading Vedas or
> any other religious books or following any method like
> doing Yog and Pranayyam.
>
> As regards the argument that we should give up Moortipooja
> because Hindus throughout the world are known as 'Idol
> Worshipers', which simply means ignorant and not
> understanding the God, I don't think there is any merit in
> the argument. Let us see the definition of God. It is the
> supreme or ultimate reality. Ii means beyond duality. It
> cannot be bound by duality. As such it can be both with as
> well as without form. One cannot say that it is only
> without form leaving out the other part of duality. When
> Ramana Maharshi was asked whether there is God or not, he
> replied that so long as you (the questioner) is there, God
> is there for the questioner. If the questioner goes God
> also will disappear. That means so long as one considers
> oneself as a separate entity (ego), one cannot say God is
> not there. God will disappear with Ahankar (ego). In other
> words there is no separate God for self-realized. To say
> that we cannot get the Vedas point of view across if we
> support Idol worship is made out of ignorance about Vedas,
> which preaches Tatwa-Ma-Si, Aham-Brahmasi.
>
> As regards the argument that Vedas never ever talk about
> Idol worship, it should be noted that it has also never
> prohibited Idol worship. As regards Ramayana and
> Mahabharata have no mention of Idol worship, I think it is
> mentioned in Ramayana that after killing Ravana who was a
> Brahmin, Shri Ram prayed and worshiped Shiva by
> establishing a Linga (which is also a form of Moorti or
> Idol) at Rameshwar to get rid of the sin. In Mahabharata
> there is a mention of Arjuna going to Tirtha-yatra.
>
> Before concluding let me say a few words about Yogiraj Shri
> Krishna who is described as Bhogiraj. Mahamahopadya
> Balashastri Hardas in his book Shri Krishna (in Marathi)
> narrates an incident from Mahabharat. He says that after
> the end of Mahabharat war, the Pandava and their wife
> Draupadi were sitting under a mango tree and talking. They
> have rather become egoistic. At that time a ripe mango felt
> down. In order to teach them a lesson, Shri Krishna said
> each one of them should try to fix back the fruit to the
> tree. Each one tried. Yadushtir said that if he has never
> spoken a lie and always spoke truth, the fruit will stuck
> back to the tree. The fruit went up but did not touch the
> tree because he has said half-truth to Dronacharya about
> the death of his son Ashvathamma. Draupadi, who was proud
> of being Pativrata, said that if she is a Pativrata the
> fruit would stick back to the tree. Still even though it
> went near it did not stuck, as when she came to know that
> Karn was the sixth Pandava for a moment a thought came to
> her that he would have been her sixth husband had he been
> with Pandavs. Then Shri Krishna said that if he is really
> a Bal-Brahmachari (every body knows about his wives), if he
> has never shown his back in the war (he is also known as
> Ranchoddas because of his running away from the war) and in
> spite of this the fruit the fruit stuck. Shri Hardas then
> showed how what Shri Krishna said was true.
>
> V. S. S.
>
> End of forwarded message from V. S. S.
>
> Jai Maharaj, Jyotishi
> Om Shanti
>
> o Not for commercial use. Solely to be fairly used for the
> educational
> purposes of research and open discussion. The contents of this post may
> not
> have been authored by, and do not necessarily represent the opinion of the
> poster. The contents are protected by copyright law and the exemption for
> fair use of copyrighted works.
> o If you send private e-mail to me, it will likely not be read,
> considered or answered if it does not contain your full legal name,
> current
> e-mail and postal addresses, and live-voice telephone number.
> o Posted for information and discussion. Views expressed by others
> are
> not necessarily those of the poster who may or may not have read the
> article.
>
> FAIR USE NOTICE: This article may contain copyrighted material the use of
> which may or may not have been specifically authorized by the copyright
> owner. This material is being made available in efforts to advance the
> understanding of environmental, political, human rights, economic,
> democratic, scientific, social, and cultural, etc., issues. It is believed
> that this constitutes a 'fair use' of any such copyrighted material as
> provided for in section 107 of the US Copyright Law. In accordance with
> Title
> 17 U.S.C. Section 107, the material on this site is distributed without
> profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the
> included
> information for research, comment, discussion and educational purposes by
> subscribing to USENET newsgroups or visiting web sites. For more
> information
> go to: http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.shtml
> If you wish to use copyrighted material from this article for purposes of
> your own that go beyond 'fair use', you must obtain permission from the
> copyright owner.
>
> Since newsgroup posts are being removed
> by forgery by one or more net terrorists,
> this post may be reposted several times.

==============================================================================
TOPIC: LAST SPEAKER OF ANCIENT LANGUAGE OF BO DIES IN ANDAMAN ISLANDS
http://groups.google.com/group/rec.arts.movies.local.indian/t/b6084fefcf0e030e?hl=en
==============================================================================

== 1 of 1 ==
Date: Thurs, Feb 4 2010 4:24 pm
From: usenet@mantra.com and/or www.mantra.com/jai (Dr. Jai Maharaj)

Last speaker of ancient language of Bo dies in India

By Alastair Lawson
BBC News
Thursday, February 4, 2010

The last speaker of an ancient language in India's Andaman Islands
has died at the age of about 85, a leading linguist has told the BBC.

Professor Anvita Abbi said that the death of Boa Sr was highly
significant because one of the world's oldest languages -- Bo -- had
come to an end.

She said that India had lost an irreplaceable part of its heritage.

Languages in the Andamans are thought to originate from Africa. Some
may be 70,000 years old.

The islands are often called an "anthropologist's dream" and are one
of the most linguistically diverse areas of the world.

'Infectious'

Professor Abbi -- who runs the Vanishing Voices of the Great
Andamanese (Voga) website -- explained: "After the death of her
parents, Boa was the last Bo speaker for 30 to 40 years.

"She was often very lonely and had to learn an Adamanese version of
Hindi in order to communicate with people.

"But throughout her life she had a very good sense of humour and her
smile and full-throated laughter were infectious."

She said that Boa Sr's death was a loss for intellectuals wanting to
study more about the origins of ancient languages, because they had
lost "a vital piece of the jigsaw".

"It is generally believed that all Andamanese languages might be the
last representatives of those languages which go back to pre-
Neolithic times," Professor Abbi said.

"The Andamanese are believed to be among our earliest ancestors."

Boa Sr's case has also been highlighted by the Survival International
(SI) campaign group.

"The extinction of the Bo language means that a unique part of human
society is now just a memory," SI Director Stephen Corry said.

'Imported illnesses'

She said that two languages in the Andamans had now died out over the
last three months and that this was a major cause for concern.

Academics have divided Andamanese tribes into four major groups, the
Great Andamanese, the Jarawa, the Onge and the Sentinelese.

Professor Abbi says that all apart from the Sentinelese have come
into contact with "mainlanders" from India and have suffered from
"imported illnesses".

She says that the Great Andamanese are about 50 in number -- mostly
children -- and live in Strait Island, near the capital Port Blair.

Boa Sr was part of this community, which is made up of 10 "sub-
tribes" speaking at least four different languages.

The Jarawa have about 250 members and live in the thick forests of
the Middle Andaman. The Onge community is also believed to number
only a few hundred.

"No human contact has been established with the Sentinelese and so
far they resist all outside intervention," Professor Abbi said.

It is the fate of the Great Andamanese which most worries academics,
because they depend largely on the Indian government for food and
shelter -- and abuse of alcohol is rife.

More at:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/8498534.stm

Jai Maharaj, Jyotishi
Om Shanti

Since newsgroup posts are being removed
by forgery by one or more net terrorists,
this post may be reposted several times.

==============================================================================
TOPIC: WHO SAVED THE SONIA GOVERNMENT?
http://groups.google.com/group/rec.arts.movies.local.indian/t/115f287703e7037c?hl=en
==============================================================================

== 1 of 1 ==
Date: Thurs, Feb 4 2010 5:12 pm
From: usenet@mantra.com and/or www.mantra.com/jai (Dr. Jai Maharaj)

Forwarded message from S. Kalyanaraman

Who saved Sonia Govt?

Tuesday, February 2, 2010

This is about the untold story of why Sonia Govt. was saved during
the nuke vote

This is about the nuke deal and the contracts waiting to be signed as
part of the deal after the MPs sold themselves. What price is aatman
in the service of the nation?

I asked two questions on thakuramarsingh blog and no answers have
been forthcoming so far:

1. Who donated to Clinton Foundation on behalf of Amar Singh?

2. Why did SP vote to ditch their partner CPM and to save Sonia
Gandhi's Govt. during the nuke deal scam of cash for vote by MP's?

We are dealing with the darkest moment of democracy in Hindusthan
when MPs discarded all sense of shame and allowed themselves to be
bought at the rate of Rs. 25 crores per vote, as alleged by CPI
Bardhan.

Now that Amar Singh will lose his Rajya Sabha membership and is no
longer a member of SP, will he come clean on what happened prior to
the nuke vote to save Sonia?

It is irrelevant whether there is future for Amar Singh in Congress
party. It is relevant if there is future for Indian democracy with
the type of activities indulged in leading to the darkest moment of
the nation?

Should this not be a subject for suo moto inquiry by the Hon'ble
Supreme Court?

http://www.clintonfoundation.org/contributors/pages/page_2.html

This is the page on which Amar Singh figures (together with Lakshmi
N. Mittal) in the $1,000,001 to $5m donor list. The 3205 pages of
contributor info. (now 2009 list has come out; those with * are 2009
contributors) is a revelation of the way it works to get deals
struck. Ultimate suckers are the US tax-payers and the poor people of
the rest of the world.

S. Kalyanaraman

Amar, Jaya expelled from SP

Agencies, 2 February 2010, 01:08pm IST

Lukhnow: The Samajwadi Party (SP) on Tuesday expelled rebel leaders
Amar Singh and Jaya Prada and four Uttar Pradesh legislators for
criticizing the party leadership publicly.

The newly-appointed general secretary Mohan Singh told reporters here
that they were trying to split the party.

Meanwhile, a senior Congress spokesperson said in Delhi that Amar
Singh has no political future. The statement is significant given the
fact that there was speculation about Singh joining Congress.

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Amar-Jaya-expelled-from-SP/articleshow/5527183.cms

Amar Singh is in the news these days. A news report of 19 Dec. 2008
together with a video news clip will be of interest to define the
importance of Amar Singh for Congress. When Congress needed to
survive during the vote for the nuke deal with America, defeating the
CPI-M was made possible by switching SP votes to Congress. The role
played by him in the cash for vote scam (at the alleged rate of Rs.
25 crores per vote -- alleged by CPI Bardhan -- which translates to
about Rs. 750 crores for SP votes alone) is yet to be unraveled by
investigative journalists of Hindusthan.

One thing is clear from the 19 Dec. 2008 report. Someone had paid
Clinton Foundation a large sum of greenbacks. Amar Singh claimed that
the payment could have been made by someone on his behalf.

Who could this be who acted on behalf of Amar Singh? Surely, someone
who had access to lots of greenbacks?

On whose behalf was Amar Singh lobbying in USA for getting the nuke
deal through?

I hope this will not become a mystery footnote in the dirty politics
of Hindusthan during the 21st century for an event claimed by Anil
Kakodkar to be a high-point of his atomic career.

S. Kalyanaraman

Amar Singh makes huge donation to Clinton Foundation

TNN, 19 December 2008, 02:15am IST

New Delhi: SP general secretary Amar Singh seems to dote on the
Clintons, one of the most influential political families of the US.
(Watch)

The Samajwadi Party leader donated a huge chunk of his assets to the
Clinton Foundation -- a charity floated by former US president
BillClinton which, while engaged in noble causes ranging from
battling climate change to AIDS prevention, has raised eyebrows for
tapping unorthodox sources.

Singh figures among those who made donations worth anywhere between
Rs 4.6 crore to Rs 23 crore. Assuming that the SP general secretary
just about made the grade, he would have parted with at least 20% of
his declared assets to the Clinton Foundation.

In his affidavit to the Election Commission, Singh, a member of Rajya
Sabha, put the total value of his assets at Rs 37 crore.

When asked about the huge donation, a seemingly unperturbed Singh
told reporters, "I have nothing to say. I won't deny anything."

He, however, also said that the "payment could have been made by
someone else on his behalf". He refused to be drawn out on the
remark, saying that he did not wish to become another Margaret Alva -
- an allusion to the former Congress general secretary who lost her
job and quite a deal of prominence after alleging that Congress
tickets for this year's Karnataka elections were sold.

But the disclosure has set tongues wagging, and not just in India.
US's influential daily The New York Times raised the issue of
potential conflict of interest by citing Amar Singh's generosity
towards the Clinton Foundation. "The potential for appearances of
conflict was illustrated by Amar Singh, a politician in India who
gave $1 million to $5 million. Mr Singh visited the US in September
to lobby for a deal allowing India to obtain civil nuclear technology
even though it never signed the NPT. He met with Mrs Clinton who he
said assured him that Democrats would not block the deal. Congress
approved it weeks later," the paper said.

The disclosure, prompted by US President-elect Barack Obama's
insistence that his secretary of state pick Hillary Clinton must come
clean on all her connections, show that the trend of flow of money
from West to India may have finally been reversed.

Besides Amar Singh, the other donors to Clinton include Lakshmi
Mittal and Tulsi Tanti. The exact amount donated has not been
disclosed and instead all of them have been categorised as per the
range of payment made. All three of them, according to
thefoundation's website, paid in the region of $1-5 million.

Industry pressure group, Confederation of Indian Industry, too is
named in the list as having paid between $500,000 to $1 million.

Fund manager Dave Katragadda, who has interests in entertainment,
technology and healthcare, and Ajit Gulabchand, the Hindustan
Construction chief, are two other Indians among major donors listed
on the foundation's website.

While the linkage sought to be established by NY Times
betweenClinton's support for the deal and the generous contribution
from Amar Singh could help the SP leader argue that he was acting in
national interest, Americans seemed worried that Clintons' penchant
for donations could make them vulnerable to lobbying by vested
foreign interests. "Such contributions could provoke suspicion at
home and abroad among those wondering about any effect on
administration policy," the influential daily said in a report on
Thursday in what marked a role reversal from the days when CIA was
accused of using dirty tricks to promote US's foreign interests.

Islamabad, which nurses a grudge against Bill Clinton whose
presidency saw the beginning of the end of hyphenation in US's
dealings with India and Pakistan, also seemed troubled. A report in
Pakistani media has suggested that Hillary, because of her husband's
proximity to Indians, may not be neutral in her dealings with India
and Pakistan.

Clinton's proximity to Singh, however, is not new. Eyebrows were
first raised when Clinton first visited Lucknow in September 2005
apparently to inaugurate a rural health scheme. SP chief Mulayam
Singh Yadav was the chief minister then. Clinton was accompanied by
US hotel baron Sant Singh Chatwal during the visit.

Meanwhile, the India Today group has denied that it made any donation
to the Clinton Foundation as reported by a news agency. It clarified
that it only paid a fee to the Speaker Agency -- M/s Harry Walker USA
-- for Bill Clinton's satellite address at the India Today conclave.

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow/msid-3864349,prtpage-1.cms

http://kalyan97.amplify.com/2010/02/02/who-saved-sonia-govt/

End of forwarded message from S. Kalyanaraman

Jai Maharaj, Jyotishi
Om Shanti

Since newsgroup posts are being removed
by forgery by one or more net terrorists,
this post may be reposted several times.

==============================================================================
TOPIC: COMMEMORATING SWAMI VIVEKANAND
http://groups.google.com/group/rec.arts.movies.local.indian/t/855f468571f4bca7?hl=en
==============================================================================

== 1 of 1 ==
Date: Thurs, Feb 4 2010 5:19 pm
From: usenet@mantra.com and/or www.mantra.com/jai (Dr. Jai Maharaj)

Commemorating Vivekanand

http://www.scribd.com/doc/26380123/Commemorating-Vivekananda

Jai Maharaj, Jyotishi
Om Shanti

==============================================================================
TOPIC: MOVIE "AVATAR" AND SPIRITUALITY
http://groups.google.com/group/rec.arts.movies.local.indian/t/7a16b54e8efdfc17?hl=en
==============================================================================

== 1 of 1 ==
Date: Thurs, Feb 4 2010 6:41 pm
From: usenet@mantra.com and/or www.mantra.com/jai (Dr. Jai Maharaj)

MOVIE "AVATAR" AND SPIRITUALITY

Four articles:

Forwarded message from A. C.

Thursday, February 4, 2010

Avatar Leads The Pack In Web Site's Most Spiritual Movies

Religion News Service

U.S., January 22, 2010: Movies about aliens, air travel, cooking, and
the war in Iraq were all among the most "spiritually literate" films
of 2009, according to the Web site SpiritualityandPractice.com. Chief
among them is "Avatar," a movie where the Hindu concept of the same
name is loosely used.

Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat, the Web site's founders, say the 10
top spiritual movies all "raise our consciousness to a fuller
engagement with our world" by depicting characters searching for
meaning and applying moral values to daily life.

James Cameron's blockbuster "Avatar," which pits avaricious humans
against pantheistic aliens, was "the spiritual surprise of the year,"
said Mary Ann Brussat, for creating an alternate world where the
"interconnectedness of all beings" is celebrated, and the natural
habitat is revered. The nine other films on the list are available on
their website.

End of forwarded message from A. C.

* * *

Avatar's reversal of fortune

By Maxim Osipov
The Sydney Morning Herald
Monday, January 4, 2010

Avatar box office tops $1bn

James Cameron's 'Avatar' shoots past one billion dollars worldwide,
only the fifth movie to hit that mark.

[Watch video]

With the dazzling 3D-vortex of colours, actions and emotions, James
Cameron's Avatar seems to have given everyone something to rave
about.

But let's get it straight -- Avatar is a downright misnomer for this
latest new blockbuster.

No, not because, sadly for Hare Krishna moviegoers, the film's got
nothing to do with Hinduism except its Sanskrit name. And some Hindu
activists who habitually frisk all new releases for concealed
sacrileges also needn't worry -- there are none in Avatar, or at
least not more that in those little digital icons they hide
themselves behind on their own e-chats.

[Caption] The path taken by Sam Worthington's character in James
Cameron's Avatar reverses the meaning of the Sanskrit word.

It's because the movie reverses the very concept that the term
"avatar" is based on.

Leave aside the fact that Hindu theology reserves the use of
"avatar", which in Sanskrit literally means "descent", almost
exclusively for appearances of Vishnu on Earth. The key point here is
that an avatar always descends from a higher realm into the lower,
restores prosperity, wisdom, and happiness -- and moves on unchanged
after the mission is accomplished.

However, the "avatar" Jake Sully -- and we the viewers along with him
-- shortly after his descent into the world of Na'vis sees the
"higher" realm of earthlings rapidly grow pallid and repulsive in
comparison to the pristine world of supposed savages. The "civilised
humans" turn out as primitive, jaded and increasingly greedy,
cynical, and brutal -- traits only amplified by their machinery --
while the "monkey aliens" emerge as noble, kind, wise, sensitive, and
humane.

We, along with the "Avatara" hero, are now faced with an
uncomfortable yet irresistible choice between the two races and the
two worldviews. And invariably, along with him we cannot help but
lean toward the far more civilised insides within the long-tailed,
blue-skinned, and technologically infantile exterior.

So much for a descending "avatar". Jake soon admits to himself in his
videolog: "I realised that I had it backwards, I wasn't sure what was
the dream and what was real." Having regained through the avatar body
not just his legs, but his dignity, his freedom, and his brethren
whose love and trust he struggles to earn, the rescuer becomes the
rescued, the benefactor becomes the benefitted. The "avatar" becomes
. . well . . . a refugee among the aborigines so content inwardly
that they wouldn't trade their tree for whatever the savvy "sky
people" gods have to offer! Contrary to The Matrix's Neo, Jake plugs
into a supposedly illusory world to discover it to be much more
tangible, wholesome and true than his own -- and wants to stay in.

This makes us ask the question: Why? And what on Earth (or on
Pandora) do "culture", "civilisation", and "human" stand for?

Not succumbing to the stock trifle of sci-fi genre, James Cameron
makes this question the fourth dimension of his movie -- and answers
it most convincingly: It's the qualities of kindness, gratitude,
regard for the elderly, self-sacrifice, respect for all life and
ultimately humble dependence on a higher intelligence behind nature
that qualify one as cultured, civilised, and human.

The other alternative is summed up by Jake Sully: "This is how it's
done. When people are sitting on something that you want, you make
them your enemy so that you can drive them out." And "They have
already killed their mother". Here you have it, the savage -- give or
take his spaceship, touch-screen and a rifle.

And getting back to the Hindu theology, Bhagavad-gita (16.1-4) echoes
this distinction: "Fearlessness; cultivation of wisdom; charity;
self-control; austerity; simplicity; refrain from unnecessary
violence; truthfulness; freedom from hatred; renunciation;
tranquility; aversion to fault-finding; compassion for all living
entities; freedom from covetousness; gentleness; modesty; steady
determination; vigour; forgiveness; fortitude; cleanliness; and
freedom from envy and from the passion for honour -- these are
qualities befitting real civilised humans.

"Pride, arrogance, conceit, anger, harshness and ignorance are
qualities of barbarians."

In order to descend -- that is, to be an avatar -- one first ought to
be above. Unfortunately for our civilisation, epitomised by the human
conquistadors on Pandora, from the place where we are happily getting
ourselves into, we can only climb.

Maxim Osipov is a student of Sanskrit and Indian philosophy and a
follower of the Hare Krishna movement since 1991. Mukunda Goswami
contributed to this article.

http://www.smh.com.au/opinion/society-and-culture/avatars-reversal-of-fortune-20100104-lpod.html

Comments:

19 comments

Lovely article Maxim, do us a favour and email it to Miranda
Devine would you? Last week, in a spectacularly Freudian failure, she
claimed that the hallmarks of capitalism are expansionist imperialism
fueled by the "qualities" you've listed above and that the right to
own property and sell at a time of your own choosing was some kind of
subversive "Leftie" ideology.

- Sean og O'Coinne - Dapto - January 5, 2010, 11:01AM

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Yes, sci-fi flicks about other worlds abound with ficticious
mining corporations. And corruption is usually the enemy force
provided in the plot. Cameron's anti-imperialism thread is obvious.
But remember The Adventures of the Incredible Hulk? THe army was the
enemy to the Hulk and that emotional device proved popular in a
society that was free to question authority.

Ms Devine's assertion that Leftie ideology was evident was based
on the fact that the Church of Climatology is an alarmist left-wing
movement and Cameron champions this cause in the plot. He also quite
obviouslyderides the US forces no matter what anyone says. We can
only assume he does all this for dramatical purposes (It worked in
The Hulk). Yet it does lead us to ask questions about it's message.

The message is clear: Teach our kids that climate change is a
real problem as Gore said it was and that US forces are bad. That is
inescapable.

I still enjoyed the movie as I am 3D fan but Beowolf was better.

- edhan - Sydney - January 5, 2010, 2:47PM

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Fabulous entertainment. Don't know and don't care what Cameron's
motives are (providing art and getting paid for it???). No one is
really going to change their mind on the the problems of the world by
watching a film. You have to get off your arse, not sit on it, to do
that.

- Roger Fedyk - Melbourne - January 5, 2010, 3:08PM

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I agree with Sean. It was a nice article. Avatar conversations I
have heard generally talk about how much money it has made, or how
great the special effects are. Nice that someone illuminated the
movie's simple, yet poignant, message.

- walter - January 5, 2010, 3:19PM

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It's my thinking that the title of the movie takes a more modern
definition of the word Avatar, which is: "A temporary manifestation
or aspect of a continuing entity" rather than the strict Hindu
definition. Obviously there's a lot in this movie you can relate to
in the real world, but in the case of the title Occam's Razor
applies.

- NJC - Melbourne - January 5, 2010, 3:31PM

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Welcome to the 21st century Maxim, where the term "avatar" is now
used to describe an electronic image that represents you in a digital
world. The movie obviously extended that modern definition to mean a
fake alien that represents a human in an alien world.

Language evolves and is defined by its actual usage, try and keep
up.

And for a laugh, check how close Avatar is to Pocahontas:

http://i.imgur.com/3UDYP.jpg

- Gerald - January 5, 2010, 3:36PM

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Yes, Gerald, let's tell someone off for not getting with the
program because they're referring to how a word's been used for a few
thousand years rather than for a mere decade. Read, little digiphile,
and you might learn something.

- Graham - January 5, 2010, 3:56PM

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Context, Graham: Cameron's Avatar is a 21st century movie using a
word for its 21st century meaning. Maxim is talking about an homonym
that has little to do with the movie author's chosen meaning, and
complains that they don't match. :-)

It's as if I used "The Godfather" as an excuse to talk about
bringing up children in the Christian faith (and how the movie
doesn't match this expectation), where obviously that movie is about
a mafia boss.

- Gerald - January 5, 2010, 4:57PM

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I'm afraid I must add my voice to the chorus - the word "avatar"
as employed in the film clearly has nothing to do with religion and
everything to do with the high technology concept of an
artificial/computerised representation of oneself. No doubt
liguistically this is related to the Hindu concept, but as a matter
of meaning it is today entirely divorced from it. Cameron plainly did
not intend any such religious subtext. That said, your article was
still an interesting read!

- Patrick Bateman - Adelaide - January 5, 2010, 5:27PM

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Those arguing here that the movie's concept doesn't have anything
to do with Hinduism and is a computer-based idea will be surprised to
read this:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Avatar_(2009_film)#Themes_and_inspirations

"In a 2007 interview with Time magazine, Cameron addressed the
meaning of the film's title, answering the question "What is an
avatar, anyway?" Cameron stated, "It's an incarnation of one of the
Hindu gods taking a flesh form." He said that "[i]n this film what
that means is that the human technology in the future is capable of
injecting a human's intelligence into a remotely located body, a
biological body". Cameron stated, "It's not an avatar in the sense of
just existing as ones and zeroes in cyberspace. It's actually a
physical body."

- Mark - NSW - January 5, 2010, 6:08PM

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Miranda is right. This film is definitely subversive. If Philip
Ruddock were still Minister for Injustice he would have banned it for
encouraging insurrection and being mean to mining companies and
military contractors.

- Alex - January 5, 2010, 5:55PM

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So those accusing the author of, basically, ignorance of modern
contexts, word usages, and Cameron's intentions owe him (and Cameron)
an apology here.

Here is the Time Magazine link:

http://www.time.com/time/arts/article/0,8599,1576622,00.html#ixzz0a69HUhNB

- Mark - NSW - January 5, 2010, 6:54PM

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Mark-

Cameron here seems to be giving both descriptions of 'avatar',
and as I read it he explains that in the film it's basically the
second description (modern, technological one) which is relevant, the
only difference being that the avatar is of flesh and blood rather
than ones and zeros. I certainly didn't see any direct references to
Hindu gods in the movie.

That said, there is a definite spritual theme to Avatar, but
again I'm not sure how much it has to do with Hinduism. Probably more
of garden of Eden/biblical fall from grace type deal.

- Stu - Melbourne - January 5, 2010, 8:19PM

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Also (to Alex) I wouldn't say that the movie is actually
subversive in any real way. Rather it's almost a totally of the
moment expression of the current political correctness. The basic
plot is quite boring and has been done countless times elsewhere- see
Fern Gully (The Last Rainforest), Dances with Wolves, even District 9
covers very similar territory.

Technically great, storywise, not so much.

- Stu - Melbourne - January 5, 2010, 8:33PM

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I for sure am sooooo glad that it wasn't another 'hey world,
watch the Middle Eastern Terrorists with their weapons of mass
destruction lose against the mighty USA 911 role reversal/Aliens from
outer space against the mighty USA/One man to kill them all
films...oh and flash boobs here and here and here...oops forgot the
obligatory sex scene so we still have your attention and you are
still watching this boring drivel we're making you pay for
and...kazaam...another set of boobs here, here and here and OMG not
another terrorist. It's ok hand me the hand grenade. We can't say
this word in reality coz we'll get done over for racial
discrimination so we'll sneak it in this movie and oh crap, we forgot
to have the leading lady raped/brutalized so she can become a one
woman combat unit dressed like a prostitute who can single handedly
take out the entire worlds SAS and Special Forces units if she so
desired..but she'd rather sleep with them (flash back to sex scene,
lol). And while we're at it, we'll rate it PG13+: Parental Guidance
Recommended.

I am still waiting for a rating of SATATM+: See A Therapist After
This Movie, lol

Hereth I cometh to spreadeth my lunacy to amuseth the internet
commenters for the day.

Now where were we? Oh yeah Avatar. Great film :)

- avatar - Qld - January 06, 2010, 1:34AM

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I think the movie itself held some notable contradictions like
the blatant sponsorship slug by McDonalds which I got to experience
in 3-d. Ummmmm ... I know the movie was expensive to make and all,
but doesn't taking handouts from McDs dilute the attempted ethical
message of the film?

I found the movie worth seeing just for the entertainment value.
Yeah it tries to make a point, and sure, there may be people out
there it stimulated to think about cultural/environmental
extermination. Still, I think the merit of the film lies in the
visuals.

- Dashoshmi - Byron - January 06, 2010, 7:15AM

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Stu-

Thanks for your reply.

From what I have learned about Hindu mythology, many of their
deities are depicted as tall, blue-complexioned, wearing triangular
marks on their foreheads, having matted black hair (sometimes in
braids), and riding various beasts. Their chief god Vishnu usually
flies on a gigantic bird called Garuda. Hindus also believe that
every living creature has the same soul as we do, and that violence
against and killing of even an animal or a tree without a solid
excuse and an apology afterwards is a grave sin. They also believe in
reincarnation and in the ability of their deceased forefathers to
stay around and help, if they are remembered and respected well. They
also call Nature "Mother". These are some analogies between Avatar
and Hinduism and counting. Mere coincidences? Hmmm....

- Mark - NSW - January 06, 2010, 2:57PM

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Mark- you've made some good connections which I hadn't thought
of, and a couple of which I weren't aware of. Thanks.

The film certainly is a mish mash of various cultural/spiritual
references. I do think Maxim makes a good point about the the avatar
as ascending rather than decending, though as the audience we already
knew or suspected that this was what was going to take place (as I
say, we've seen this movie in different iterations before). Perhaps
that is why I didn't really give the Hindu connection that much
thought. But it makes sense. Cameron is definitely making the point
that technological humanity (as a group/stereotype) regards itself as
superior (ascended) over the indigenous Nabi, while it is the
opposite which is actually true.

There's another interesting reversal in the film seen in the end
battle, if you compare to Cameron's previous film, Aliens. In Aliens,
the human in the exosuit is the hero (also a reversal on the popular
Hollywood notion of two men fighting it out in the last scene, here
it is two women). In Avatar the exosuited, technological human is the
villian, while the alien is now the hero. Working as it does as an
anti-technological film, this brings the message home rather well.
(though the medium itself works to betray the message)

- Stu - Melbourne - January 06, 2010, 4:21PM

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Stu-

Thank you for your observations. The point about the reversal of
the combat scene in Aliens is smart. I especially liked your last
point about the medium that betrays the anti-technological tenor of
the film, was excellent -- as is what Dashoshmi wrote above about the
movie's sponsorship by McDonalds.

- Mark - NSW - January 06, 2010, 5:58PM

Comments are now closed

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End of forwarded article from:

http://www.smh.com.au/opinion/society-and-culture/avatars-reversal-of-fortune-20100104-lpod.html

* * *

Hindus ask for a disclaimer with James Cameron's 'Avatar'

By ANI
November 9, 2009

Nevada (U.S.) - Hindus have urged James Cameron to attach a
disclaimer in the starting and end of his upcoming film 'Avatar'
explaining that it has no relationship with Hinduism or its concepts.

Hindu statesman Rajan Zed, in a statement in Nevada (USA) today, said
that "avatar" was one of the central themes of Hinduism and
insensitive handling of faith traditions sometimes resulted in
pillaging serious spiritual doctrines and revered symbols and hurting
the devotees.

Zed, who is president of Universal Society of Hinduism, explains that
"Avatar", a Sanskrit term, means descent or incarnation.

Hinduism is shaped by its traditional belief in the incarnation of
Vishnu (the Preserver in Hindu trinity) into ten forms to establish
dharma (divine law), which include Matsya, Kurma, Varaha, Narasimha,
Vamana, Parasurama, Rama, Krishna, Buddha, Kalki (believed to come at
the end of present Kaliyuga).

Hindus believe that without such intervention, the entire created
universe would have gone into decline. Many devotees also regard
their respective Gurus as incarnations of the Divine.

Budgeted around 230 million dollars, 'Avatar', an upcoming digital 3-
D science fiction feature film, is directed and written by Canada
born three Oscars winning James Francis Cameron, 55, of highest-
grossing and 11 Oscars carrying 'Titanic' fame.

In it, a band of humans, two centuries in the future, are pitted in a
heroic battle against a distant planet's indigenous population.

It is due to be released in France-Egypt-Belgium on December 16 and
USA on December 18 next. (ANI)

End of forwarded article from:

http://blog.taragana.com/e/2009/11/09/hindus-ask-for-a-disclaimer-with-james-camerons-avatar-58594/

* * *

Q&A with James Cameron

By Rebecca Winters Keegan
Time Magazine
Thursday, Janusary 11, 2007

[Caption] Oscar-winning director James Cameron, 2006.
Ethan Miller / Getty

In April, nearly 10 years after Titanic made its box-office splash,
director James Cameron starts filming his next feature, the sci-fi
film Avatar. He spoke to TIME's Rebecca Winters Keegan.

Time: You wouldn't think the guy with the highest-grossing film of
all time would take 10 years to get his next green light.

Cameron: It's always a miracle when a film gets made. We started
designing the creatures 18 months ago, creating the world, the
plants, the animals; we started working on the performance capture
technology. I couldn't make this when I wrote it, which was before
Titanic. It wasn't technically possible. At a certain point I said,
the technology may not be 100% mature, but it's time.

Time: Avatar will be in 3-D. Why did you choose that format?

Cameron: It's immersive. It wraps the movie around you. It's not
necessarily just for kids' films either. It works in a dramatic sense
because it gives you a heightened sense of reality. Whatever you're
watching has a kind of a turbo-charged level of audience involvement.
In a science fiction film like this one, you'll be able to inhabit
that world, not just watch it but be in it. I think people want that.
If people are going to get out of their homes and go to the cinema,
the cinema better show them something it hasn't in the past.

Time: Will audiences be able to watch this at a regular multiplex?

Cameron: Yes, but people will have to seek out the theaters that
have 3-D. Right now there are about 300 3-D theaters. By the time the
film's out [summer of 2008], there are projected to be more than
1,000.

Time: What is an avatar, anyway?

Cameron: It's an incarnation of one of the Hindu gods taking a flesh
form. In this film what that means is that the human technology in
the future is capable of injecting a human's intelligence into a
remotely located body, a biological body. It's not an avatar in the
sense of just existing as ones and zeroes in cyberspace. It's
actually a physical body. The lead character, Jake, who is played by
Sam Worthington, has his human existence and his avatar existence.
He'll be shown using live-action photography in 3-D and computer-
generated imagery.

Time: Are you happy to be returning to sci-fi?

Cameron: I am. Science fiction's very good at taking something
timely that maybe you can't look straight at. That's its true role,
making us think about the consequences of our actions now. Avatar is
an adventure about how we as humans deal with nature. I'll probably
get a reputation as a tree-hugging hippie.

Time: Do you feel pressure to duplicate Titanic's success?

Cameron: I've been off doing documentaries, and now I'm back to play
in the league I left years ago, so there's gonna be expectation --
can he still make a movie? I don't think I'll beat Titanic's record,
and I don't think anyone else will for a while. I'll be happy if this
film makes money relative to its budget.

Time: How did you cast your lead?

Cameron: In the age group I was looking for, early 20s, there
weren't any obvious guys. The character is a former Marine who's a
paraplegic and has just been kind of thrown away. The actor Sam is
one of these young Australian guys who's gonna be the next Mel Gibson
or Russell Crowe. They grow 'em different down there, you know? In
Gladiator, you understood why those guys stood behind Crowe. I needed
to find a guy in his 20s who had that quality. And it's not an easy
thing. It was about being able to stand up and lead men in battle. A
lot of these up-and-coming guys don't have that strength.

Time: Is this a political film?

Cameron: War and the consequences to the soldier is a theme in my
movies. Terminator has a scarred soldier character. We have to face
the consequences of setting our people off to do our bidding in a
foreign land. But it's not a major undercurrent of the story. I'm not
trying to make some anti-Bush statement.

Time: Did you vote for the Governator, Arnold Schwarzenegger?

Cameron: I'm Canadian, so I can't vote here, but I did support him.
He's only a Republican in California. In Oklahoma, he'd be seen as a
pinko.

Time: Did you have fun playing yourself on Entourage?

Cameron: It's fun watching another director sweat.

Time: Do you still feel like King of the World?

Cameron: I've got five kids. I feel like King of the World in my
house.

End of forwarded article from:

http://www.time.com/time/arts/article/0,8599,1576622,00.html

Jai Maharaj, Jyotishi
Om Shanti

Since newsgroup posts are being removed
by forgery by one or more net terrorists,
this post may be reposted several times.

==============================================================================
TOPIC: 'AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A YOGI' BY PARAMHANSA YOGANANDA - Free eBook
http://groups.google.com/group/rec.arts.movies.local.indian/t/129998644226101c?hl=en
==============================================================================

== 1 of 1 ==
Date: Thurs, Feb 4 2010 7:09 pm
From: usenet@mantra.com and/or www.mantra.com/jai (Dr. Jai Maharaj)

Autobiography of a Yogi by Paramhansa Yogananda - Free eBook

http://manybooks.net/titles/paramhanetext05ayogi10.html

Jai Maharaj, Jyotishi
Om Shanti

==============================================================================
TOPIC: SPLASHES FROM HINDU MAHASAGAR 6 - Fascinating Hindu History by Chand K
Sharma *** Jai Maharaj posts
http://groups.google.com/group/rec.arts.movies.local.indian/t/e7a47601e8f18786?hl=en
==============================================================================

== 1 of 1 ==
Date: Thurs, Feb 4 2010 7:15 pm
From: usenet@mantra.com and/or www.mantra.com/jai (Dr. Jai Maharaj)

Forwarded message from Chand K Sharma

Splashes from Hindu Mahasagar -- 6 - Fascinating Hindu History

Splashes from Hindu Mahasagar -- 6

Facinating Hindu History

Pagan religions all over the world have used icons or symbols to
represent abstract and intangible objects. The fanciful gallery of
mythological deities in Biblical stories, Arabian Nights, and The
Canterbury Tales are collections of human imagination. Blowing of
strong wind would normally be indicated through waving trees, flying
of lighter objects and rising of dust. Similarly super human power of
gods and goddesses has been suggested through four arms, heads, and
other such embellishments. In this connection Hindu history has much
more to offer to the world as a piece of art and literature.

One of the most remarkable features of Hindu history is that unlike
other faiths, it is not confined to any area and time, but historical
characters have imprints left over the entire universe. There are
several descriptions related to inter-planetary movements of not only
of gods and goddesses, but also of sages and mortal beings. The gods,
goddesses and many of the sages are timeless and ever lasting. They
appear and disappear, are clad in glittering costumes, are powerful
and resourceful to grant boons and can inflict destruction through
curse as well. Every God possesses weapons to destroy the evil, as
well as flowers to shower blessings.

Hindus laid greater importance on the preservation of environment
also. Animals and useful plants such as Peepal, Beil, Tulsi, and
Banyan were associated with various gods and goddesses; to be loved,
nurtured, and even worshiped. Sources of water, mountains and other
elements of nature are also respected as gods and goddesses. Animals
were also included in history thereby recognizing their right to co-
exist with others. Even Pig and snakes, hated in other faiths find a
respectable place in Hindu history, since no one is under rated. Many
animals are associated with Gods as carriers. Some animals were given
the status of Gods and goddesses to impress that Omnipresence of the
Almighty.

Every religion has drawn its own concept of heaven and hell that are
comparable to the prevailing of the religion originated. Islamic
Heaven is cool, shady and has plenty of water sources fruit grow and
nymphs are on duty to serve the believers. There Hell is always
burning hot with lot many apparatus of torture in motion to punish
the non believers and worshipers of idols. On the contrary Biblical
Heaven has Sun shine, and their hell is full of Ice. All the
religions have placed heaven above and Hell below. The administration
of heavenly sites is in the hands of Devas, Angles, Nymphs, Hoors and
Apasras who are well versed in the art of dressing up, dancing and
music. Like wise in Hinduism pious people reside in Swarga and
sinners in Narka irresective of their being believers or non-
believers. The only difference is that Narka residents have chances
of relocating themselves in Swarga with good deeds done when they are
reborn. Propagators of religion not believing in re-birth have no
option of relocating even if they atoned later and desired to do some
good.

Though Hindus believe in one God, but view the same God in three
different modes while in action and that is known as the Trinity of
Supreme God:

Brahm is the Creator God. He is traditionally depicted with four
heads, faces and arms. Each head recites one of the four Vedas. The
hands hold a water-pot used in creating life, a string of rosary
beads used to keep track of the Universe's time, the text of the
Vedas, and a lotus flower. He is the husband of goddess Saraswati.
His mount is Hamsa (Swan). Brahm only occasionally interferes in the
affairs of the gods, and even more rarely in mortal affairs. He is
generally painted old, probably to signify that creativity, wisdom,
and experience without resources and power is like an old and
helpless person.

Vishnu is known as preserver. He is usually depicted as a four-armed
humanoid with blue skin, often sitting or resting on a lotus flower
or relaxing on Sheshnag bed with Lakshami (goddess of wealth) in
attendance, indicating a person possessing everything of ultimate
luxury. His mount is Garuda. He is identified with his Avatars
(Incarnations) to re-establish orderliness in the World.

Shiv is the destroyer. Shiv is represented as immersed in deep
meditation, on Mount Kailash. However, even though he represents
destruction, he is viewed as a positive force, the Destroyer of Evil.
His vahan (mount) is 'Nandi', the Bull. He is usually represented by
the symbol of Shiv ling. His consort is 'Parvati', a goddess who
comes in many different forms, one of whom is Kaali, the goddess of
death. As Nataraj Shiv is the Lord of the Dance, and also symbolizes
the dance of the Universe, with all its delicately balanced heavenly
bodies and natural laws which complement and balance each other. He
is also symbolized as doing his great dance of destruction, called
Taandava signifying praleya -- the doom's day, implying total
dissolution of the universe.

All the three reflections are in fact one God performing three
different functions of creation, preservation and finally destruction
same way as a human can be son to the parents, husband to the wife,
and parent of his children. All the three separate functions are
performed by the same person but the person is viewed differently by
his parents, wife and children. The concept of Trinity wraps in
itself the 'Theory of division of power' that was propounded by
Montesquieu of France, much later. Supreme God is personified into
the Trinity of Brahm Vishnu and Shiv. While Brahm, Vishnu and Shiv
function within their respective areas of creativity, preservation,
and destruction respectively and do not trespass or interfere in to
the field of each other's. They consult each other whenever there is
any crisis in the universe. Thus 'Government of the Universe'
reflects 'division of power' as well as 'interdependence' that
Montesquieu preached to the political thinkers of the west in
ninteenth century.

Hindu supreme Gods are not confined to any geopgraphical place and
period. They neither have any beginning or any ending. They are
universal.

Chand K Sharma

End of forwarded message from Chand K Sharma

Jai Maharaj, Jyotishi
Om Shanti

Since newsgroup posts are being removed
by forgery by one or more net terrorists,
this post may be reposted several times.

==============================================================================
TOPIC: sociopath Jai Maharaj (again)
http://groups.google.com/group/rec.arts.movies.local.indian/t/3897db98b99a798e?hl=en
==============================================================================

== 1 of 1 ==
Date: Thurs, Feb 4 2010 11:14 pm
From: Franz Gnaedinger

I will repeat my messages as long as the new attack
is going on.

> A sociopath fools people about his intentions. That
> particular sociopath who calls himself Dr. Jai Maharaj,
> using a false name and adorning it with a false title,
> pretends to defend the cause of the Hindu community
> while just boosting his astrological business, fishing
> for clients among the Hindus he apparently considers
> an especially superstitious bunch of people. That
> sociopath should not be encouraged by another -path,
> namely my longtime stalker of the many aliases,
> Panu Petteri Höglund alias John Bulkington alias
> Patrick Karl alias craoibhin66 alias he himself as his
> own good friend and pupil Sean Connor soconn1
> alias he himself as his own brother in arms and
> stalking aide John Hobart Kyle jhobartkyle johnk
> alias he himself as his own bride Annina Kaartinen
> alias a Rumanian professor who claims to have
> discovered the origin of language alias he himself
> as his own bride Maria Kupari.
>
> > > That false doctor who calls himself Jai Maharaj is again
> > > trying to suffocate sci.lang. Is it a coincidence that he began
> > > his new campaign of massive abusement of our scientific group
> > > around New Year, in sight of 2012 ? year of the alleged end of
> > > the Mayan calendar, in reality a false claim based on a wrong
> > > calculation, and even if the long calendar cycle of the Maya
> > > ended in 2012 it would not mean the end of the world, just
> > > a new calendar cycle. The year 2012 makes astrologers
> > > creep out of their holes, they can frighten people again and
> > > sell them their horoscopes. That false doctor Jai Maharaj
> > > sells horoscopes and abuses our forum for making propaganda
> > > for his astrological firm, pretending that he posts in favor of
> > > the Hindu community, while in fact seeing his marekting niche
> > > among those people he apparently believes are especially
> > > prone to superstition, and therefroe the right and yielding
> > > target of his astrological enterprise.
>
> > On and on that false doctor of the false name goes
> > abusing sci.lang, spammiing our scientific forum,
> > often with messages on child abuse by Christian
> > missionaries. This has nothing to do with linguistics,
> > and reveals a cynic calculation. Who can say anything
> > against a protest against child abuse? If you protest
> > against his spamming you are revealed as someone
> > who secretly supports child abuse, and so, he hopes,
> > nobody will speak up against his abuse of sci.lang,
> > instead, belonging to the accused western world,
> > we are supposed to crumble away in shame and
> > allow him to go on with his massive attack on our
> > forum. But he didn't count with me. I raise my voice
> > against every religious propaganda in here, also
> > Christian one, I spoke against missioning all my life,
> > quoting Matthew 7:16: "Ye shall recognize them
> > by their fruits" - what counts are not words but what
> > people do, how they live, what example they give.
> > And most of all I write against child abuse and child
> > pornography especially in the web, my reasoning
> > based on my theory of the two pillars of the law.
> > A couple of years ago I sent a paper of mine to the
> > top chief of the Zurich police. A minor chief told me
> > that my letters contain useful ideas. I am active in
> > these fields, I don't crumble away before the implicit
> > accusations of that false doctor of the false name
> > and his cynic calculation that he can make money
> > out of child abuse, pretending to care for the Hindu
> > community while all he has in mind is to catch
> > new customers for his astrological enteprise.

==============================================================================

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Friday, February 5, 2010

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