This article was originally published in "Gnanamani"- a Tamil monthly spiritual magazine, May 2001. Translated into English by Prof. V.K. Balasubramanian of Tiruppattur. Sri Siddharajan Swamiji of the Pambatti Siddhar Samadhi Peetam at Sankarankoil, Tirunelveli District, Tamil Nadu, South India is the blessed disciple and for many decades a close associate of Brahmasri Shiva Prabhakara Siddhayogi Paramahamsar. Present in this article are certain invaluable details obtained from Sri Siddharajan Swamiji.

Every one of us has the potential to realize God. We also have the potential to receive and transmit vital knowledge. We can attain the powers of seers. We can synthesize amirtam (elixir) in our body. All of us can hear the divine resonance Om and more, and see the divine in the form of brilliant light and see the vast luminescence space within us and in it everything.

Since the early Rigvedic stage, brahmans, undoubtedly, had already fixed ritual status: they were the priests, who had a wide circle of duties during soma sacrifices. They were also considered as the assistants of the demigods at creation of the world, as the duty of “delivery” of the living entity to the gods had been assigned to them.

All roads in Orissa lead to Srikshetra or Puri, the land of the Lord, one of the famous four dhamas of India. Like Ramnath of Rameswaram or Dwarakanath of Dwaraka or Badrinath of the Himalayan regions, Sri Jagannath is the presiding Deity of Puri. Together, they constitute the four pillars of dharma on which India stands.

Indian civilization has surprised academicians time and again with simple age old techniques for solving complex problems. Vedic Mathematics, derived from the Ganita Sutra in the Vedas is one such technique.Vedic Mathematics is the name given to the ancient system of Mathematics which was rediscovered from the Vedas between 1911 and 1918 by Sri Bharati Krsna Tirthaji (1884 - 1960).

In the philosophy of Vairagya, Gyana and Bhakti, the works of Adi Sankar particularly, Bhaja Govindam, Bhatruhari's Vairgaya Satakam, Vyasa's Srimad Bhagabatam, Mahabharat and Srimad Bhagabat Gita and Tulsi Das's Sri Ramacharita Manas have played an effective and tremendous role among the learned scholars, pundits and devotees.

It is a scene which has repeated itself every day for more than three thousand years in this holiest of India's cities - a place as ancient as Babylon or Thebes - which Hindus consider to be the beating heart of their religion. While modern India rushes headlong to embrace many of the material aspects of Western capitalism - even Varanasi has an outlet of McDonald's - standing on the 'ghats' of Varanasi at dawn, it seems as if time is standing still.

The origin and antiquity of Lord Jagannath is shrouded in mystery. It is difficult for historians to say exactly how and when the Deity has come to be worshipped and has become the most prominent Deity of in the state of Orissa. It is widely believed that Lord Jagannath was a tribal Deity and Hinduised/Sanskritised later on due to tribal/non-tribal interactions.

Under the Hindu kings, palm leaf manuscripts upon which sastra are recorded were recopied every 100 years or so to preserve them. Since British times this process has ceased and existing manuscripts, even in the best-preserved collections, are deteriorating, some already to the point of uselessness.

In the movement of the Bhakti cult in Utkal khand, many divine souls have glorified the Vaisnava religion and spread its tenets to different places by their deep devotion and supreme attachment to Lord Jagannatha. By displaying their unselfish divine love, they had never craved in their altruistic mission anything in life except His exalted grace.

The Padma Vesha of Lord Jagannatha is done on any Saturday or Wednesday between the new moon day of Magha and Basanta Panchami. Prior to the month of Magha, we have the winter season when the lotus disappears from the tanks and reservoirs. But from the month of Magha onwards, these flowers reappear. The lotus signifies 'health and wealth' at the same time.

Lord Jagannath of Puri occupies a significant position in the socio-cultural and religious history of not only Orissa, but also India. The early history of Lord Jagannath is very difficult to know because of non-availability of facts and recorded history. Therefore it is difficult to bring out the real picture of Sri Jagannath during the ancient period.

We have all heard how the Taj Mahal, which is considered one of the great seven wonders of the world was built as the preeminent expression of a man’s love for a wife. That it was built by Emperor Shah Jahan in commemoration of his wife Mumtaz.

The Ganga King ruled over Kalinga from the 6th Century to 11th Century A.D. At that time Kalinga was restricted by the river Rusikulya in the north and the Simhachal hills in the south. At the centre of Kalinga was the Mahendragiri range of hills. The Mathar Kings who ruled over Kalinga before the Gangas had Singhapur as their Capital.

Atop the magnificent twelfth century temple in Puri, which stands 214 ft. in height on the shore, there also stands the King of Wheels, Sudarshan. Sri Sudarshan is 14 ft. in diameter with a thickness of 2 inches, made of an amalgamation of eight metals. The base holding rod is 16 ft. deep into the 'Kalasa'. Long red and white banners furlor with sea breeze to herald the victory of the Lord of the Universe on this great wheel, 'Nilachakra'.

On the full-moon day in the month of Shrabana, the birth day of Balabhadra is celebrated by performing special Nitis. Lord Baladeva (Balabhadra) is the presiding Deity in the Baladeva Jew Temple at Kendrapara in the heart of Tulasi Kshetra, although the three Deities Balabhadra, Subhadra and Jagannath are enshrined there. The name of the temple is such given that the temple of Jagannatha at Puri is named after Lord Jagannath.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) has been promoting a movement for "Saving Plants for Saving Lives". This is because of the growing understanding of the pivotal role medicinal plants play in providing herbal remedies to health maladies. India is the home of several important traditional systems of health care like Ayurveda, Siddha and Unani.

The earliest records that speak about the existence and popularity of the Narayan Cult in Orissa during the 5th-6th century of the Christian era were issued by the Mathara dynasty, who began to rule after Maharaja Samudragupta's southern expedition.

The massive earthern mound contains cut stone blocks, round Amalaka in four pieces, broken Neel chakra in stone which once adorned the temple top and other sculptures of historical importance. These antiquities were unearthed from the mound by Trilochan Bhoi, a villager of Kondh origin, almost single-handed over a period of one year.

From an airplane approaching the airport in Mumbai (the mega-city once called Bombay), a massive slum spreads below like a sea of rusted metal whipped up by a steady, salty wind. But from a speeding car on the city's new highways, the slums where 60 percent of the city's 18 million people live often aren't visible.