Roots and Reflections - Exploring Ideas, Experiences and Wisdom

Background and Introduction of Mata Kulwagishuri Temple:  (Sacred Pond/Nag/Chashma)                        (Entrance of temple) Whole Jammu and Kashmir has been a pious land of temples, shrines, saints, seers and faquirs'. So kulgam is no exception to this truth. The Kulwagishori temple/shrine is a very famous and sacred shrine in south Kashmir. It is situated in the Bongam area of Kulgam and in the vicinity of the river Kawl and historic Vishaw. It is located at the most scenic natural beauty. There is a stone statue of Mata Kulwagishori in the temple building and devotees used to visit this shrine from far and wide of Kulgam before militancy and migration. Kashmiri Pandits have much faith and belief in Mata Kulwagishori shrine. It is historically, culturally and religiously very famous so much so that it is believed that Kulgam had derived its name from Kulwagiswari  and it is rightly so and thus both Indus and Musl...

Pt. Prem Nath Dogra is a famous political and social leader of Jammu and Kashmir. Dogra Shaib was a true nationalist and a great patriot and his contribution in founding and launching the agitation under the banner of Prja Parshad cannot be exaggerated. This movement was the apt reply to the forces inimical to the countries unity, integrity and above all nationalism. Prem Nath Dogra had a humble beginning and he was born in a humble family of Brahmins in village Smailpur some twenty kms from Jammu. He was born on 24th October 1884. Panditjee completed his basic education in his village and passed matriculation in 1904 from Lahore. He also did graduation and was appointed as Tehsildar at Akhnoor by the then British government. In 1910 Pt. Jee was posted at Udhampur as Assistant settlement officer. Later on he was deputed to Jammu with the powers of Munsiff. In 1931 Pandit jee was appointed as Wazir Wazar-e-Wazarat at Muzafarabad, where he became very popular among the people. Due to the...

Introduction:  Kashmir has given birth to a number of Sages, seers, Rish’s and Sufi’s in both the forms of male and females. It has seen lean periods of economics, social and spiritual downfalls but nature has not failed to throw up at times one great personality of Godhead to take the fallen humanity back from the abyss of degradation and misery. His Holiness Swami Kral Babji Maharaj was born in 1928 on Phagun Purnima in a very humble agriculture family at Kralgund village in tehsil Handwara J&K. The name Kralbub was assigned to him by his Guru Maharaj Nand lal ji (Kaul). His parental name was Sh Bhagwan Dass ji. The name of his parents was Sh. Samsar Chand and Kudmali.From his childhood days he had a penchant for Godhead. While others of his age used to play with toys, he would make toys with ashes,cow dung and smear such dirt on his body.  Early Childhood Days: From his childhood it was seen that he was not interested in materialistic things. As a child he was always in...

Gulchain Singh Charak was a reputed Dogra leader, politician, social worker, philanthropist and above all a good and gentle human being who was always fighting for the cause of the people of Jammu and Kashmir in general and Dogra community in particular. He was a former minister and president of Dogra Sadhar Sabha and throughout his long life he worked for the Dogra and Dogra cause and he was proud of belonging to Dogra community and served the community till his last breath. Charak, was associated with the Congress party for a long time and was a cabinet minister in the Congress-PDP coalition headed by G.N Azad. Charak Sahib was a household name in the Jammu region and he was a respectable leader and politician and his honesty, selfless service and contribution to society cannot be exaggerated. He always cared and fought for the rights of the poor people and Dogra community.  Gulchain Charak was the chairman of Dogra Group of Educational Institutions such as Dogra Bed Collage, Dog...

  Dr. Ved Kumari Gai was a scholar, professor, intellectual, social activist and was held in high esteem in Jammu. She was a reputed Sanskrit professor and great scholar. She was also well versed in Hindi as well as Dogri languages. Ved Kumari Gai was a literary figure of Jammu and Kashmir & his contribution to Sanskrit language, literature and society was well recognised. Ghai was born on 16th December 1931, in Partap Garh Mohallah, Jammu. She completed her school education in Jammu and passed Masters degree in Sanskrit from Punjab university in 1953 and MA in Ancient History and Culture in 1958 & then PhD in Sanskrit from Banaras Hindu University (BHU) in 1960.  Dr. Ved Kumari Gai was an acclaimed professor and scholar of Sanskrit and she had the distinction of having been the privilege of presiding the literary, social and religious functions. She was involved in literary and social services throughout his life. Basically she was appointed as a professor of Sanskrit...

  Raksha Bandhan is a popular and traditionally Hindu annual rite or ceremony that is central to a festival of the same name celebrated in South Asia. It is also celebrated in other parts of the world significantly influenced by Hindu culture. It is one of the important festival of Hindus and in Santan Dharma its significance cannot be exaggerated. On this day, sisters of all ages tie a talisman or amulet called Rakhi around the wrists of their brothers. They symbolically protect them, receive a gift in return and traditionally invest the brothers with a share of the responsibility of their potential care. Raksha Bandhan is observed on the last day of the Hindu lunar calendar month of Shraavana, which typically falls in August. The expression Raksha Bandhan (Sanskrit, literally ‘the bond of protection, obligation and care) is now principally applied to this ritual. So this festival is the bond of love, affection and protection between the brothers and sisters and has an important p...

                 (Image Courtesy: Internet) Kashmir is the land of saints, seers, faquirs, godly men and has been the place where there are shrines, mosques, temples and Gurudwras in plenitude. It has been a place where religion and spirituality flourished from time to time. The people of Kashmir are mostly of religious bent of mind and there have been the shrines housing saints and Faquirs. One of the reputed and famous shrines is Syed Simaan in Kulgam and it is said that the name Kulgam has been invented and given by Syed Simnan and before this name Kulgam was known as Shampora. Syed Simnani came from place known as Simnan in Iran and Syed Simnan came to Kashmir along with many Syeds who came with the arrival of world famous saint Shah Hamdan who is credited with the spread of Islam in Kashmir. Syed Simnan was an 6th century sufi saint who blended Islamic tenets with, sufi traditions and it was he who emphasized the unity of man and gave st...

           " Yus Kari Gangul suy Kari Kraav" By Gangul is meant traditional /conventional Kashmiri agricultural practice as well as celebration that is the beginning of cropping season. It symbolizes hope, expectation and commencement of sowing and is associated with agricultural farming. It is somewhat disappearing from the rural farming practices but efforts are a foot to revive this traditional agriculture practice. In the context of rural farming Gangul can be put forth as it signifies start of the sowing season. Traditionally it marks the start of the farming season, when farmers begin tilling the land and sowing seeds. It symbolises and reflects hope forb a bountiful harvest and community unity and respect for the rhythms of nature. A ritual connected with gangul is the distribution of walnuts to children which signifies abundance and prosperity. The essence of Gangul is totally reflected in the couplet of Hazrat Alamdar-e-Kashmir "Yus Kari Gangul, Su...

  Vijayendra Nath Kaul, former Comptroller and Auditor General of India, emerged from one of the most intellectually resilient communities of the subcontinent - the Kashmiri Pandits. His life reflects a civilizational continuity: from the scholastic traditions of the Valley to the institutional architecture of modern India. In the 19th and 20th centuries, as education shifted toward English and modern bureaucracy expanded, Kashmiri Pandits transitioned seamlessly into the emerging civil services of British India and later the Republic. It was within this long administrative tradition that V. N. Kaul was shaped. Educated at St. Stephen’s College and inducted into the Indian Administrative Service in 1965, Kaul carried forward a legacy that prized institutional integrity and scholarship. When he became the 10th Comptroller and Auditor General of India, he did not merely occupy a constitutional office-he represented a lineage historically intertwined with governance and fiscal steward...

                                                                                          In Sanatan Dharma,the various forms of nature are revered and even worshipped. From times immemorial Hindu’s have remained lovers of nature and in fact were nature conscious and in fact environment conscious and friendly so there is no surprise that Hindu’s in the present times also worship nature in its various forms and manifestations. Nag Panchami is a Hindu festival of reverence for serpents and nature. So ,we can say that Nag Panchami is one of the important festivals of the Hindu religious calendar ,dedicated to the worship and reverence of Nagas-the serpent deities. However ,it cannot be overlooked that this once important festivals of Sanatan Dharma is declining i...

                                                                India’s Independence turned into 80th year and Kashmiri Pandits entered into 37th year of their exile, displacement and uprooted life from their ancestral native soil of Kashmir. India and Indians are proudly celebrating the 80th  year of independence. These 80 years are eventful and full of progress and achievements in various walks of life but at the same time one has on hesitation in saying and it is hundred percent true that all these 79 plus years were not free from shortcoming and pitfall. Radicalism, indoctrination, extremism, separatism, militancy, terrorism, adulteration, unemployment, rising prices of goods and services of daily use, reservations, several other problems and above all displacement of Kashmiri Pandits are the black spots on the face of f...

  India’s independence journey is 80 years old and in these eventful year’s country saw turns, trials, tribulations as well as glorious years. India has got its freedom yes political freedom on August 15,1947 from the British colonial yoke. But we, are yet to have educational, economic and cultural freedom as our education system is still based on Macaulayan cunning methods which has no correlation with Indian conditions and circumstances with the result we fail to produce honest, hardworking, patriotic and nation conscious citizenry despite 80 years of country’s freedom.  India has failed to have man making and character making education. We, have made our citizens machines like and we are doing only mechanical works and are lacking to use our thinking and originality instead depend on machines and we are working mostly like machines.   We have excelled in many walks of life and have produced scientists, engineers, technocrats, doctors, judges, professors, scholars ...

Wular lake, also known as Wolar in Kashmiri is the largest freshwater lake in India and the second largest in Asia, situated on the foothills of Haramukh Mountain. This lake is located in Bandipora district (between towns of Sopore and Bandipora) of Jammu and Kashmir, north of Srinagar. This expansive body of water is renowned not just for its overwhelming beauty, but also for its remarkable ability to transform with the seasons. Golden rays of the setting sun on the vast sheet of water present a most fascinating scene. The lake is irregular in shape and shallow on the sides but sufficiently broad and wide. The lake is a popular tourist destination known for its serene view and various activities viz., boating etc. The lake size varies seasonally from 30 to 189 square kilometers covering almost 16 km in length while its width is 9.6 km. The surface area of the lake is 1580 metre (5180 ft) and maximum depth is 14 metre (46 feet). The Jhelum river flows into it and emerges through the to...