04/09/98 - 1735

Dharma Journal 4-12-98

USA (VNN) - The Electronic Newsletter of the Sanatana Dharma Student Association
(The Hindu student and faculty organization of the University of Wisconsin)


The Self, which is free from evil,
ageless, deathless,sorrowless, hungerless, thirstless,
whose desire is the Real,
whose conception is the Real - He should be searched out.
Him one should desire to understand.
He obtains all worlds and all desires who has found out
and who understands the Self. - So spoke Prajapati.

(Candogya Upanisad 7.26.1)



Announcements

1) Movie Night. On Satuday, April 18th, from 6:30 - 10:30 p.m., the SDSA will be having its end of the semester party. We'll celebrate by watching "The Mission", a fantastic movie staring Robert DeNiro. The room will be in Memorial Union. Look on the TITU board for the exact room #. Call Frank (608) 288-0266.

2) India Night. The Indian Students Association will be celebrating "India Night", on Friday, May 1st, 6:00 p.m. Come to this night of good Indian food, entertainment and celebrating. For tickets, call Sumit (608) 264-0379.

3) A happy Easter to all of our many Christian friends; and a happy Passover to our many Jewish friends!!


Book Review

"India Unveiled"
By Robert Arnett

reviewed by Laura Morales
lmorales@scls.lib.wi.us

Every day when I come home from work I bring home a bag full of books. This is probably inevitable because I work in a library. Whenever a book of interest to me comes across the desk, into my bag it goes. So when I saw the cover of the oversized "India Unveiled", with its picture of a 1000-year old Hindu temple in the shadows with the glorious sunset behind it, the book's new home for the next four weeks was quickly determined.

I bring home many books on India, but when I finally took a good look at "India Unveiled," it was apparent that this book was different than the usual pictorial guides to India. Instead of pages full of naked yogis and other "curiosities," the pages were graced with pictures of temples and mosques, deities and people from the whole of India. Instead of lamenting the "backwardness" of Indian villages, this author celebrated the traditional Indian culture that has God (in all of His/Her/Its forms) as its center. He explained many cultural differences in a way that showed true understanding and appreciation of India, not simply dismissing them as interesting, but misinformed, ideas. To give an example of Mr. Arnett's topics of choice, the sub-headings in his introduction were: "cultural diversity", "languages", "religion", "devotion", "righteous action (dharma)", "the guest is god", and "India's gift to the world".

After I read the author's notes and acknowledgements, it became clear to me why this book is so unique. Mr. Arnett was not simply another tourist going to India on a photographer's safari, he was a pilgrim. He is a practitioner of Kriya Yoga and he journeyed to India by himself three times, each trip lasting six months, more for personal reasons. If you are interested in India, I would definitely recommend checking "India Unveiled" out from your local library! ****



Cool Web Sites

Srividya Peetam. The Peetam follows the Dattatreya Parampara of Sri Vidya, and believes that the worship of the Divine Mother encompasses all faiths and religions without distinction. Over the years Shri Chaitanyananda and others at the Peetam have evolved a unique style of worship that employs a mixture of rituals, Vedic incantations, ancient Tamil literary works, classical and folk music from India and bhajans from different traditions.

http://www.srividya.org


Hinduism Today. The coolest and most informative Hindu periodical in the world! In addition to finding out more about the magazine, this site provides an index to articles and features from past issues, and lots more information. Check it out!

http://www.hinduismtoday.kauai.hi.us


Ayurvedic Foundations. Created by Dr. Sunil Joshi. This site contains information about Ayurveda, training courses and the Ayurvedic Health Center in New Mexico.

http://www.ayur.com/


Ayurvedic Holistic Center. Founded by Swami Shiva Tirtha, the center offers Ayurvedic products, consultations and a two year certification program. This site also contains information on Jyotish astrology and Vastu Shastra, Vedic architecture.

http://ayurvedahc.com/indexayl.htm


Sushakti. Connected to Dr. Robert Svoboda and Dr. Vasant Lad, two of the leading Ayurvedic practitioners in America. This site sells a wide range of Ayurvedic products, herbal supplements, natural skin care products and books on Ayurveda. There is also a very informative self-evaluation chart.

http://www.ayurveda-sushakti.com/



Information

For further information on the Sanatana Dharma Student Association of U.W.-Madison, or to offer suggestions for our newsletter, articles or reviews connected to Sanatana Dharma (Hinduism), or questions about Sanatana Dharma , please feel free to contact us at:

fmorale1@students.wisc.edu
(608) 288-0266



Frank Morales - Editor/Advisor