Hindu Unity Day 2010 Newsletter

8/7/2019 Hindu Unity Day 2010 Newsletter

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NEWS LETTER

Issue 5 August 2010

INSIDEHindu Unity Day - 2010 1

Celebrating Hindu Unity 2Acharya Sabha message 3Program Schedule 3Why Hindu Unity Day ? 5Theme for 2010 7Update on WAVES Conference 10SDF Achivements 17Sanatana Dharma Foundation 19Krishna Janmastami Information 20

Published by :Sanatana Dharma Foundation

Dallas, Texashttp://www.sdfglobal.org

E-Mail : [email protected]

Wisdom to live by ...

The Spirit in Man has one aim

before it in all Mankind; butdifferent continents or peoplesapproach it from different sideswith different formulations andin a differing spirit. Not recogniz-ing the underlying Unity of theultimate divine motive, they givebattle to each other and claimthat theirs alone is the way formankind.

Spirituality is indeed the Master-Key of the Indian Mind; thesense of the innite is native toit - Sri Aurobindo

Day I - Saturday

Hindu Unity DaySeminar & Dinner

August 21st -2010 - 5 pm to 9 pm

at Plano Pavilion3415, 14th Street, Plano, TX 75074

Day II - Sunday

Hindu Unity DaySeminar & Panel Discussion

August 22nd - 10 am to 3 pm

at DFW Ekta Mandir1605 N Britain, Irving, TX 75061

The Hindu Unity Day of 2010 is being celebrated across 2 days,featuring two landmark events.


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This years Hindu Unity Day theme will focus on the extra-ordinary historic con-tinuity that the civilization based on Sanatana Dharma has exhibited, through

at least 7 millennia or more. No other civilization has exhibited this continuitythrough such a long period of time, through so many changes and transforma-tions. The Hindu Unity Day of 2010 will focus on various aspects of this continuityranging from the times of the Indus Valley Civilization, our understanding of vari-ous epochs of Indias history, as well as the challenges facing the transmission ofthe Dharma to future generations.

The Hindu Unity Day is being held across two days: Saturday, August 21st andSunday, august 22nd.


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August 21, 2010

The various Sampradayas (Spiritual Traditions)of Sanatana Dharma (Hinduism) have been

living in harmony for centuries without oneattempting to change the other. That comesfrom the religious and spiritual culture of HinduDharma, that accommodates different modesof prayer and worship.

On this Hindu Unity Day, this truth has to behighlighted more than any attempt to forgeunity.

Swamy Dayananda Saraswati,Convener, Hindu Dharma Acharya Sabha

Hindu Unity Day - Program Schedule

Seminar & Dinner - August 21st 2009 - 5 PM to 9 PM

Plano Pavilion 3415, 14th Street Plano, TX

Dr. S. Kalyanaraman Decoding the Indus Valley Script and what it reallymeans to the Hindu Civilization

Dr. Kosla Vepa Distortions in Indias History Causes, consequences andRemedies

Dr. Kusum Vyas Preserving and Protecting our Planets Ecosystem, the HinduWay

Presentation on Sanatana Dharma Foundation and its activities Presentation of Awards and Recognition of Donors and Well Wishers Buffet Style Dinner starting 8.30 PM

Seminar & Panel Discussion - August 22st 2009 - 10 AM to 3 PMDFW Hindu Temple, 1605 North Britain Road Irving Texas

Panel Discussion (10.00 AM 12.30 PM) - Preserving Sanatana Dharma Engag-ing the next generation: Challenges and Opportunities

Mahaprashad (12.30 pm 1.30 pm at the cultural Hall) Guest Lectures (1.30 3.30 PM)

Message On Hindu Dharma Acharya Sabha


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Ever since the Rig Veda said Ekam Sat Viprah Bahauda Vadanti, Sanatana Dharma has fos-tered a diversity of beliefs, systems, paths and practices. Even in the conception of the one Brah-man, being manifested as many Gods, i.e. many Devatas, this essentially pluralistic, liberal frameworkhas prevailed in our Bharatavarsha. Even as a spirit of Live and Let Live has informed and permeatedour civilization, it has progressively given rise to numerous sects, sub-sects and sub-identities, that

learnt to live together in harmony and without conict.

Today, with the long and hoary passage of time, Hindus generally have a stronger attachment to Sub-Identities, rather than their over-arching Hindu Identity. For example, Hindu people identify them-selves as linguistic groups such as Tamil, Gujarati, Marathi, Punjabi etc. Secondly, they also identifythemselves by caste - such as Brahmin, Bania, Reddy, Yadav, Jat, Kamma, Ezhava etc. Thirdly, theyare also divided by Sampradaya identities - such as Vaishnava., Shaiva, Kashmir Shaiva, Vedantin,Vishishtadvaitin, Gaudiya Vaishnava, etc. Fourthly, many Gurus and Acharyas, emphasize their ownspecic version or aspect of the Shastras, and create new Paramparas and followings. Thus we haveamongst us this abundance and diversity of expressions such as Ammachi followers, Sai Baba devoteesArt of Living group, Swaminarayan group, Hare Krishna group, Chinmayananda Group, Gayathri Pari-var and numerous other groupings today that constitute the vast family of Sanatana Dharma.

United we stand, divided we fall is an old adage,but never more true in a democratic society, where num-bers count in a fundamental way. We all know that it isvery easy to divide Hindus into various conicting groups,which dont agree with each other. Some of us are com-fortable being called Hindus And others are very muchill at ease with that term. If we start a conversation on thequestion of What is Hinduism, there will be so many viewsand perspectives, that we may never reach a consensus on

what it is.

This then is our civilizational weakness this inability tocome together and forge a sufcient consensus on somecommon issues, some common themes, some commonchallenges that we share with all fellow Hindus.

Hindu Unity Day then is an attempt to create an opportunity to come together at least forone day in a year, where we afrm our solidarity and belonging to that vast Eternal stream calledSanatana Dharma. While a rose and a daffodil, a jasmine and a lotus are very different owers

still they all belong to the same family of owers. Hindu Unity Day represents an opportunity for experiencing ourselves as part of a bouquet of owers, as being a stream in the larger ocean ofSanatana Dharma, a note in the majestic symphony of Hinduism or as a branch in that great eter-nal Tree. It is an opportunity for us to appreciate each ower for what it is, experience each fra-grance and color and variety for its own intrinsic uniqueness and not get caught up in a divisivethought such as my ower is better than your ower (which is the legacy of a competitive world).

And as we gather thus, we may in time to come even exercise the opportunity to discuss anddebate the common themes, problems, challenges that face our Dharma today. And who knows, wemay even embrace our collective responsibility to bring forth new leadership, create new initiativesand projects that will yet shape the emerging future of Sanatana Dharma.

Why Celebrate a Hindu Unity Day?

What is the point ? What possible value is there in creating such an occasion ?


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Theme of Hindu Unity Day 2010

Historic Continuity of Sanatana Dharma!

This years Hindu Unity Day theme will focus on the extra-ordinary historic continuity thatthe civilization based on Sanatana Dharma has exhibited, through at least 7 millennia or

more. No other civilization has exhibited this continuity through such a long period of time,through so many changes and transformations. The Hindu Unity Day of 2010 will focus onvarious aspects of this continuity, ranging from the times of the Indus Valley Civilization, ourunderstanding of various epochs of Indias history, as well as the challenges facing the trans-mission of the Dharma to future generations.

The Hindu Unity Day is being held across two days: Sat, August 21st and Sun, august 22nd.

The Ancient Past

Starting off the Hindu Unity Day, we will focus on the work of Dr. S. Kalyanaraman, on deci-phering the Indus Valley Script. The Indus Valley Seals which carry a kind of pictorial hiero-glyph has been largely deemed by scientists and archeologists around the world as a scriptthat has not been deciphered to date. Dr. S. Kalyanaraman, will explain his extraordinaryjourney of deciphering this Script, and what it really means for the Civilization of SanatanaDharma.

Dr. S. Kalyanaraman Decoding the Indus Valley Scriptand what it really means to the Hindu Civilization.

Dr. S. Kalyanaraman holds a PhD in Public Administration, University ofManila, and was a senior executive in the Asian Development Bank for 18years until 1995, and a Financial Advisor to the Indian Railways, for 17years. Today, he is the Director of the Sarasvati River Research Centre andhas done considerable research on the discovery of the courses of VedicRiver Sarasvati and the possibility of this river owing again as part of anational network of rivers, as well as decoding the Indus Valley Script. Heis also the President of the World Association of Vedic Studies in Bharat,as well as President, Rameswaram Ramasetu Protection Movement.

Our understanding of our history

Next we will focus on the work of Dr. Kosla Vepas, which explores various aspects of Indiashistory which have been either misrepresented or distorted deliberately or erroneously. Hewill share his journey on seeking a right understanding of Indias past and the ways in whichhe challenged long held assumptions regarding dates of various eras and ages. In particularhe will focus on the issue of Greek synchronism and the age of the Mahabharata.


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Dr. Kosla Vepa Distortions in Indias History Causes, con-sequences and Remedies

Dr. Kosla Vepas holds a PhD in the area of Engineering Mechanics, andhad a fullling career with IBM, Lawrence Livermore Laboratories, Gen-eral Atomics and Pratt and Whitney, before retiring and pursuing hisnew interests in the areas of Ancient Indian history, Vedas and Vedanta,Mathematical Sciences and Astronomy in India during antiquity, thegrowth and evolution of civilizations. He established The Indic StudiesFoundation, which seeks to propagate a more accurate and rational ap-proach to the study and dissemination of the Indian Civilizational ethosin the world.

A pressing contemporary issue

Rounding off the set of invited speakers will be Dr. Kusum Vyas who will focus our attention

on a very contemporary issue that of caring for our environment. She will share her effortsto create a set of Green Hindu Pilgrimage sites in India, by promoting their ecological sustain-ability, conservation and restoration which will be recognized by the UN.

Dr. Kusum Vyas Preserving and Protecting our Planets Eco-system, the Hindu Way

Dr. Kusum Vyas, who holds a PhD in Education, is founder of the Gulfof Mannar World Heritage Site campaign, created to protect the RamaSethu and its ecology. Dr. Kusum Vyas currently serves on the SteeringCommittee of the Green Pilgrim Cities Initiative facilitated by ARC inpartnership with ICLEI and supported by UNDP, an initiative which theUnited Nations described as potentially the worlds largest civil societymovement on climate change. She is currently working on the green-ing of Hindu pilgrimage places, promoting their ecological sustainabil-ity, conservation and restoration as well as their inclusion in an interna-tional network of Green Pilgrimage sites. Dr. Vyas is also the founder ofLiving Planet Foundation, based in Houston.

Maintaining the Dharma in the future

An invigorating panel discussion will complete the Hindu Unity day, by exploring the chal-lenges and opportunities facing the new generations, born and being raised in the USA, incontinuing and maintaining Sanatana Dharma in an environment, not particularly condu-cive to this continuity. The dialogue between generations will be an opportunity for all of usto share, listen and learn.


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With Best Compliments From


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World Association of Vedic Studies Conference 2010A Report

Mr. Malay Mishra announced that the Government of India is offering scholarships for studentsfrom Trinidad and Tobago for a ve and half year graduate degree in Ayurvedic Medicine in India.Discussions elaborated the prospects for promoting Wellness Tourism in TT and building up Ay-urvedic resorts and protection of a vast array of Herbal medicinal plants in the rainforests of the

twin islands of TT.

The proceedings of WAVES 2010 in the three tracks got off to a start with a Vedic invocation andperformance of Yajna in the premises of St. Augustine campus of the University of West Indies. TheYajna was a demonstration of the essential continuity of Vedic tradition as a living tradition for over5 millennia, and offering of prayers for the welfare of the global village that the globe has become.Over 100 scholars of Vedic studies and practicing Vedic scholars from countries such as India, US,Greece, Belarus, Canada and Trinidad and Tobago participated in the WAVES 2010 conference andcovered a variety of topics related to the evolution of languages and cultures since Vedic times, thevalidation of Vedic wisdom by a number of scientic disciplines such as genetics, biology, neurosci-ences and consciousness studies.

World Association for Vedic Studies (WAVES) held a successful Eighth International Confer-ence in Port of Spain, Trinidad-Tobago from August 4 to August 7, 2010, with the co-spon-sorship and support of a number of organizations in Trinidad-Tobago (TT), the Indian High Com-mission to Trinidad, Saraswati Mandiram of Trinidad, National Council for Indian Culture and theUniversity of West Indies. Working in close collaboration with WAVES 2010 was the First Interna-tional Conference on Ayurveda organized by the Indian High Commission, in coordination with the

Mahatma Gandhi Institute and the University of West Indies, Mt. Hope Campus.

The Ayurveda Conference had participation from experts from various parts of the world includ-ing India, and deliberated on Ayurveda as an Alternative Medicine System. Dr. Suruj Ratan Ram-bachan, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Trinidad & Tobago inaugurated the conference, while Mr. Ma-lay Mishra, Indian High Commissioner to Trindad and Tobago welcomed the scholars participatingin the Conference. Professor Clement Sankat, Principal of University of West Indies, through hisofce, welcomed the WAVES 2010 delegates at a banquet and offered his felicitations. Sashi Kejri-wal, President of WAVES, thanked the citizens of TT, the representatives of the TT Government andUniversity of West Indies for the hospitality and support extended to the Conference.

One of the many highlights of the WAVES conference - Ananimated Panel Discussion, conducted entirely in Sanskrit

A Section of the Audience, showing the 100s of Schol-ars who attended the WAVES conference from the USA,Greece, Canada, India, Belarus and Trinidad and Tobago


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The central theme of the conference was the signicance of Vedic knowledge for civilizational har-mony and continued relevance of Vedic traditions for present times. In several sessions the confer-ence addressed some of the major challenges facing the world today, such as the ongoing religiousand ethnic conicts, economic downturn, environmental degradation, violations of human rights andpresented the applicable Vedic principles to provide effective solutions to these problems.

One of the highlights of the conference was the tour of Trinidad and Tobago islands, organized by

the Ministry of tourism and the Trinidad and Tobago convention Bureau which exposed the WAVESdelegates to the cultural microcosm of Trinidad and Tobago. The tour took the delegates to variousspots of historical signicance to the Hindus of TT, who rst came to the island as indentured labor-ers, brought by British ships in the year 1845, to work in the Sugarcane elds and farms

A view of some of the delegates at the WAVES conference

Sanatana Dharma Foundation, Dallas, Texas in addition to contributing nancially to the success-ful conduct of the WAVES conference, also presented a paper entitled Varna and Jati A re-evaluation of Indias Caste system. While the paper was generally well received, the subject ofCaste and the need for a denitive Hindu position on Caste was debated by the Board of Directors ofWAVES.

As a result a special committee of WAVES Scholars has been formed to write a position paper on theCaste System. This committee will be headed by Professor Dr. R.N.Jha, Special Center for Sanskritstudies of Jawaharlal Nehru University, and will include as other members, Dr. Ved Nanda, RajivMalhotra, Dr. Subash Kak, Dr. David Frawley, Dr. S. Kalyanaraman, Dr. Bal Ram Singh, Dr. SantoshKumar Shukla, Kalyan Viswanathan of SDF and Vishal Aagarwal among others. It is hoped that theresulting position paper will be reviewed and validated by the Hindu Dharma Acharya Sabha and incourse of time become a standard to be used by all advocacy groups, and Hindu institutions and com-munities as a basic resource book on the Caste System.


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an exclusive Hindu Radio program on

Radio HOT PEPPER1220 AM DFW Metroplex

Every Saturday between 9:00 AM and 11:00 AM CST.

Listen to live radio over the web at

www.radio1220am.com

Listen to the archives on the web at

www.sdfglobal.org

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in 104.9 FM

Email: [email protected]


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SDF Achievements

An organization such as Sanatana Dharma Foundation can make a real impact, only with the supportof committed Hindus like you, who care about the importance of protecting our Dharma, and are will-ing to support initiatives and institutions which are sustainable, and are built to last, and make a readifference over time. We consider you not just a well-wisher but an important stakeholder in the development of this institution.

Here is a brief summary of some of our accomplishments in the last 3.5 years, and whywe require your support.1. In 2007, we hosted a premier Human Empowerment Conference (HEC) in Dallas, in which over 250Hindu Scholars and Activists attended.2. During this conference, we ran a parallel track on Hindu Dharma and the Media during this Conference which launched the Festivals Project - bearing fruit in the year 2010 through Hinduism TodayMagazines special efforts.

3. In the year 2009, we started an initiative called Vidya Daanam, an educational initiative throughwhich we have so far donated over $125,000 to support children.

4. We started and have been running a Hindu Radio program in Dallas, every week for 2 hours, forthe last 3.5 years it is currently airing on Radio Hot Pepper, AM 1220. This program has touchedhundreds of families through the childrens section and has aired hundreds of valuable and thoughtprovoking interviews with eminent Hindus.

5. We have created a Hindu Unity Day annual event in Dallas, which brings together numerous Hin-du organizations and is now entering its third year in 2010.

6. We have instituted the Hindu Dharma Rakshaka Kshatriya Award, for honoring Hindu Leaderswho are doing courageous work in supporting the cause of Dharma.

7. We started the web site for the Hindu Dharma Acharya Sabha, in January 2007, and have been continuing to keep it up to date. Please see www.acharyasabha.org

8. We have prepared a booklet called How to start a Hindu Radio program in your city and presentedit at the Hindu Mandir Executive Conference in Detroit, in 2008.

9. We have organized several educational seminars and workshops which are aimed at making Hindusaware of the issues and challenges that face them.

10. We have also presented papers at numerous conferences such as WAVES, HCI and HMEC, whichare intellectual in nature and address a contemporary subject.

We require your continued support in order to sustain the kind of impact that SDF can make. We needyour leadership, time and effort as well as your nancial contibution.


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The purpose and mission of the Sanathana Dharma Foundation is to strengthen Hindus,Hindu Communities, Hindu Culture, Institutions and Society in the US, India and theworld as a whole by :

1. Promoting Research, Education and Awareness of Hindu issues and concerns

2. Facilitating Harmony and Unity amongst Hindus and Hindu organizations, and enabling Collaborative Action

3. Clarifying, Preserving, Protecting and Strengthening the Hindu Identity, spanning its various Sampradayas (Ancient Traditions) represented by its Acharyas and Gurus (Hindu Saints deeply learned inthe Hindu Scriptures)

4. Sponsoring Strategic Initiatives that are aimed at Strengthening Hindu Society, Hindu Institutionand People, especially its vulnerable sections in India

5. Positioning issues and concerns of Hindus in the World bodies and World Media, in such a way tharepresentation of Hindu issues are fair, accurate credible and well informed

In the Bhagvad Gita, the principal Kshatriyaof that age Arjuna, argues with BhagvanShri Krishna that he would rather walk awayfrom the conict altogether or ratherdie without striking a blow.

Bhagvan Shri Krishna asks his protg Ar-juna to rise up resolved to do battle with theAdharmic forces of his time, and advises himthat even death in the cause of his Dharma is

a superior end.

He further asks him to act while being un-attached to the outcome, to discharge hisDharma, without regard to pleasure or pain

Sanatana Dharma Foundation has instituted an award called Hindu Dharma Rak-shaka Kshathriya Award. This annual award highlights and recognizes the con-tributions of people who have demonstrated courage in protecting and preservingSanatana Dharma. In 2010, we are honored to recognize Dr Kosla Vepa and Dr Ku-sum Vyas with this award.


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