Celebrating 'Light'

                                 (bharani deepam in my puja room, courtesy my MIL)


Praying to god is a part of our culture and each one of us have our own special way of connecting with god. I am  not very ritualistic and conveniently tweak some of our traditions and rituals, but placing flowers to god and lighting the silver lamp in my pooja alcove has a meditative effect on me . The glowing golden filters  of the diya  further accentuated by the fragrance of the sambrani dhoop or incense sends me into a trance. Truly sublime!! 


If just one diya can give immense joy and peace, imagine the amount of joy and peace when rows of such lighted  agal vilakkus(terracotta lamps) can give.


This tamil month of Karthigai( mid nov- Mid Dec), Tamil homes celebrate Karthigai deepam on the full moon day, an ancient festival. It is also considered as the extension of  Deepavali and in some homes people double the number of lamps every day from the day of Deepavali and conclude with a number of lamps on the day of Karthigai Deepam. Rows of agal vilakku (clay diyas, not electric ones) arranged in the  pooja room, threshold of living room, kitchen, even wash rooms,  alcove, on the compound walls, on window sills is a sight to behold making the whole place dreamlike. It cannot get surreal than this.


Many legends are associated with this festival, which I have already written  in detail here and here.  


A scientific astrologer Dr. Pazhinathan stated  in TV, that in  ancient times, when there was no electricity and darkness fell early during the winter months, the  scholars had informed the people to light the lamps so that it would serve as street light  for way farers. But people being people did not heed to the scholars. They in turn told the King and he immediately proclaimed it as a festival and ordered all people to light diyas on their front yards and back yards.  This also doubled as a street light.


The clay diyas brought during this time also adds to the potters kitty, who do brisk business during the time of deepavali and now.

                        ( a pottery stall set up at a corporate campus as part of their celebration)


What ever be the reason - spiritual, mythological or scientific or the argument that it is not relevant for today's times, It does not deter me from holding on to such traditions and customs. If anything, it only anchors me from the rigours of life and helps me to pass on our cultural baton to the gen next. I enjoy those special days called festivals.

May their tribe increase!!!

There is a tribe which silently serves, champions and crusades for the children of the lesser god by  donating all their wealth, time and shower them with their unconditional love and care.  
They selflessly help the society by caring for the underprivileged  and their work definitely needs  help and a wider reach. Listing  two of them here which have had a great impact on me.
The first in the list is  Mr. Vidyakar  and his Udavum Karangal( helping hands) an NGO based out of chennai, whose advertisements seeking volunteers and donations have always caught my attention.


Udavum Karangal - Because everyone deserves a home!

Udavum Karangal (Helping Hands) is a registered, non-governmental, non-religious and non-profit social service organization, established in 1983, with the sole objective of serving people in need.Life surprises you when you are least prepared for it. For Mr.Vidyaakar who was running a small community centre in the slums of NSK Nagar, surprise came in a ragged bundle of clothes. Within it was a frail child crying his heart out and reaching out to him with his puny fingers. When he gave his hand for the little boy to hold, it was the beginning of an ardent journey. Udavum Karangal (Helping hands) was thus born to help anyone who needs a hand to stand and to this day, it continues to give hope where there exists none.

Udavum Karangal believes that everyone deserves to be loved. Till date, there have been around 2000 unfortunate brethren from new born babies to dying destitutes who have found a home here. The centre provides individualized services - treatment, care, rehabilitation and education.


Anything i write more about this would only be a repeat of their website so click on that to know more. courtesy: Udavum karangal

The second  NGO in  my list is  CNN hero Narayanan Krishnan and his Akshaya trust. I first heard and saw his interview on TV when he was shortlisted as one of the Top ten CNN heroes for world. His video clippings feeding the needy was all over the social networking sites and on national networks  and moved many to tears. 

In 2002, Narayanan Krishnan, a gifted young chef from Madurai, India, was working for an exclusive hotel group preparing haute cuisine for the ultra-rich. But when he went home to Madurai to visit his family, something he saw shocked him to his core.“I saw a very old man eating his own human waste for food,"

Krishnan knew he couldn’t go back to the gourmet restaurants he’d been working in when his own countrymen were starving to death. So he decided to stay in India and began fixing meals for that man, and for the countless others who could not care for themselves.

The following year, he founded the nonprofit group Akshaya Trust. The organization is named from the “Akshaya bowl” from Hindu mythology, a bottomless inexhaustible bowl that can feed the hungry forever—just as Krishnan hopes his group will do.

Each morning, Krishnan and his team rise at 4 AM, and seek out the homeless throughout a 123-mile radius, armed with packets of hot vegetarian meals that Krishnan has prepared by hand. He brings the meals to a crowd of about 400 regulars, and gives them free haircuts and beard trims when they need it. In the years since starting the nonprofit, he’s served over 1.2 million meals.

His recipients are nearly all mentally ill, and do not have the capacity to thank him. Nonetheless, Krishnan receives great pleasure from the work he does.

“I get this energy from the people,” he said. “The food which I cook ... the enjoyment which they get is the energy. I see the soul. I want to save my people.”


For more on him and his work check out their site akshaya.

And there are celebrities who care and have initiated  AGARAM and BEING HUMAN, the various corporates which serve as part of their corporate social responsiblity and schools which serve through the social service clubs, thus inculcating the value of compassion, share and care for the needy.


All these unsung heroes deserve space on our blog, newspapers and other media. Don't they?


                                             May their tribe increase!!!