Shiv Bhagwan

Lord Shiva

The God Shiva or Lord Shiva is the other great figure in the modern pantheon. In contrast to the regal attributes of Vishnu, Shiva is a figure of renunciation. A favorite image portrays him as an ascetic, performing meditation alone in the fastness of the Himalayas. There he sits on a tiger skin, clad only in a loincloth, covered with sacred ash that gives his skin a gray color. His trident is stuck into the ground next to him. Around his neck is a snake. From his matted hair, tied in a topknot, the river Ganga (Ganges) descends to the earth. His neck is blue, a reminder of the time he drank the poison that emerged while gods and demons competed to churn the milk ocean. Shiva often appears in this image as an antisocial being, who once burned up Kama, the god of love, with a glance.
But behind this image is the cosmic lord who, through the very power of his meditating consciousness, expands the entire universe and all beings in it. Although he appears to be hard to attain, in reality Shiva is a loving deity who saves those devotees who are wholeheartedly dedicated to him.
The bhakti literature of South India, where Shiva has long been important, describes the numerous instances of pure-hearted devotion to the beautiful lord and the final revelation of himself as Shiva after testing his devotees. Shiva often appears on earth in disguise, perhaps as a wandering Brahman priest, to challenge the charity or belief of a suffering servant, only to appear eventually in his true nature. Many of these divine plays are connected directly with specific people and specific sites, and almost every ancient Shiva temple can claim a famous poem or a famous miracle in its history. The hundreds of medieval temples in Tamil Nadu, almost all dedicated to Shiva, contain sculptured panels depicting the god in a variety of guises: Bhikshatana, the begging lord; Bhairava, a horrible, destructive image; or Nataraja, the lord of the dance, beating a drum that keeps time while he manifests the universe.
Because he withholds his sexual urges and controls them, Shiva is able to transmute sexual energy into creative power, by generating intense heat. It is, in fact, the heat generated from discipline and austerity (tapas ) that is seen as the source for the generative power of all renunciants, and in this sense Shiva is often connected with wandering orders of monks in modern India. For the average worshiper, the sexual power of Shiva is seen in the most common image that represents him, the lingam. This is typically a cylindrical stone several feet tall, with a rounded top, standing in a circular base. On one level, this is the most basic image of divinity, providing a focus for worship with a minimum of artistic embellishment, attempting to represent the infinite. The addition of carved anatomical details on many lingams, however, leaves no doubt for the worshiper that this is an erect male sexual organ, showing the procreative power of God at the origin of all things. The concept of reality as the complex interplay of opposite principles, male and female, thus finds its highest form in the mythology of Shiva and his consort Parvati (also known as Shakti, Kali, or Durga), the daughter of the mountains. This most controlled deity, the meditating Shiva, then has still another form, as the erotic lover of Parvati, embracing her passionately.
Shiva and Parvati have two sons, who have entire cycles of myths and legends and bhakti cults in their own right. One son is called variously Karttikeya (identified with the planet Mars) or Skanda (the god of war or Subrahmanya). He is extremely handsome, carries a spear, and rides a peacock. According to some traditions, he emerged motherless from Shiva when the gods needed a great warrior to conquer an indestructible demon. In southern India, where he is called Murugan, he is a lord of mountain places and a great friend of those who dedicate themselves to him. Some devotees vow to carry on their shoulders specially carved objects of wood for a determined number of weeks, never putting them down during that time. Others may go further, and insert knives or long pins into their bodies for extended periods.
Another son of Shiva and Parvati is Ganesh, or Ganapati, the Lord of the Ganas (the hosts of Shiva), who has a male human's body with four arms and the head of an elephant. One myth claims that he originated directly from Parvati's body and entered into a quarrel with Shiva, who cut off his human head and replaced it later with the head of the first animal he found, which happened to be an elephant. For most worshipers, Ganesh is the first deity invoked during any ceremony because he is the god of wisdom and remover of obstacles. People worship Ganesh when beginning anything, for example, at the start of a trip or the first day of the new school year. He is often pictured next to his mount, the rat, symbol of the ability to get in anywhere. Ganesh is therefore a clever figure, a trickster in many stories, who presents a benevolent and friendly image to those worshipers who placate him. His image is perhaps the most widespread and public in India, visible in streets and transportation terminals everywhere. The antics of Ganesh and Karttikeya and the interactions of Shiva and Parvati have generated a series of entertaining myths of Shiva as a henpecked husband, who would prefer to keep meditating but instead is drawn into family problems, providing a series of morality tales in households throughout India.

Sunset

 Sunset is the daily disappearance of the sun below the horizon as a result of the Earth's rotation.

The atmospheric conditions created by the setting of the sun, occurring before and after it disappears below the horizon, are also commonly referred to as "sunset". In astronomy the time of sunset is defined as the moment the trailing edge of the sun's disk disappears below the horizon in the west. Due to refraction of light in the atmosphere, the ray path of the setting sun is highly distorted near the horizon making the apparent astronomical sunset occur when the sun’s disk is already about one diameter below the horizon. Sunset should not be confused with dusk, which is the moment at which darkness falls, when the sun is about eighteen degrees below the horizon. The period between the astronomical sunset and dusk is called twilight.

The timing of sunset varies with the time of year and the latitude of the location from which it is viewed. The precise local time of sunset also depends upon each location's precise longitude within a given time zone. Small daily changes and noticeable semi-annual changes in timing of sunset are driven by the axial tilt of Earth, the spherical shape of the Earth, and the planet's movement in its annual orbit around the sun. Some apparent anomalies exist however, the main one caused by the Earth's axial tilt and the Earth's elliptical orbit. In the Northern Hemisphere, the earliest sunset does not fall on the winter solstice around December 21, but instead it occurs earlier in December. Likewise, the latest sunset does not fall on the summer solstice around June 21, but instead it happens later in June or in early July, depending on one's latitude. The same phenomenon exists in the Southern Hemisphere except with the respective dates being some time before June 21 in winter and some time after December 21 in summer, possibly in January of the following year. For one or two weeks surrounding both solstices, both sunrise and sunset get slightly later or earlier each day. Even on the equator, sunrise and sunset shift several minutes back and forth through the year, along with solar noon. This effect is plotted by an analemma.

Due to Earth's axial tilt, whenever and wherever sunset occurs, sunset is always to the northwest from the March equinox to the September equinox, and to the southwest from the September equinox to the March equinox. Sunsets occur precisely due west on the equinoxes, and the duration of day and night are approximately equal on the equinoxes for all viewers on Earth (precisely 12 hours if measured from the geometric (unrefracted) centre of the sun).

As sunrise and sunset are calculated from the leading and trailing edges of the sun, and not the centre, the duration of "day" is slightly longer than "night". Further, because the light from the sun is bent by the atmospheric refraction, the sun is still visible after it is geometrically below the horizon. The sun also appears larger on the horizon, which is another optical illusion, similar to the moon illusion.

The intense red and orange hues of the sky at sunrise and sunset are mainly caused by scattering of sunlight by dust particles, soot particles, other solid aerosols, and liquid aerosols in the Earth's atmosphere. These enhanced red and orange colors at sunrise and sunset are mathematically explained by the Mie theory or the discrete dipole approximation. When there are no particulates in the troposphere, such as after a big rain storm, then the remaining less intense reds are explained by Rayleigh Scattering of sunlight by air molecules. Sunset colors are typically more brilliant and more intense than sunrise colors, since there are generally more particles and aerosols in the evening air than in the morning air. Nighttime air is usually cooler and less windy, which allows dust and soot particles to settle out of the atmosphere, reducing the amount of Mie Scattering at sunrise. The reduced Mie Scattering correspondingly reduces the amount of red and orange scattered light at sunrise. Sunrise color intensities can however exceed sunset's intensities when there are nighttime fires, volcanic eruptions or emissions, or dust storms to the east of the viewer. A number of eruptions in recent times, such as those of Mount Pinatubo in 1991 and Krakatoa in 1883, have been sufficiently large to produce remarkable sunsets and sunrises all over the world.

While ash and soot from volcanic eruptions tends to mute sunset colors when trapped within the troposphere, when lofted into the stratosphere, thin clouds of tiny sulfuric acid droplets from volcanoes can yield beautiful post-sunset colors called afterglows. A number of eruptions, including those of Mount Pinatubo in 1991 and Krakatoa in 1883, have produced sufficiently high stratospheric sulfuric acid clouds to yield remarkable sunset afterglows (and pre-sunrise glows) around the world. The high altitude clouds serve to reflect strongly-reddened sunlight still striking the stratosphere after sunset, down to the surface.

Sunsets on other planets appear different because of the differences in the distance from the planet to the sun and in different atmospheric compositions.

Slow Water Flow

Water Flow

Low water pressure in faucets and showers has become a daily routine nowadays. There's nothing more annoying than spending twice the usual time washing dishes, especially in this fast-paced life where consumers want one-click solution for most of the things. But what's more interesting is that many households bear with this nuisance for long as they are unaware how to fix this simple plumbing problem; and it might not be feasible for many to hire quality plumbers as the charges would obviously be on the high end.
Most how-to guides to solve this water flow problem focus on dealing with the faucet and internal pipes. However, the approach this article takes is quite different as we seek to find the root of the problem rather than making a temporary fix. First thing you need to do is confirm that yours is the only house affected by this issue. You can ask a few guys in the neighborhood for this. If you live in an apartment, it would be better to ask those living on top of you if they are having a similar problem in the same bathroom/kitchen where your problem exists. If someone else shares this problem with you, then you know the problem lies somewhere outside and I would strongly recommend you call find a plumber as this is a matter of the whole neighborhood. In some cases, it might even be outside the control of a plumber as the flow may get disturbed on municipal levels.
Also go outside and see if the water pressure at the hose bib is satisfactory or not. If you observe that the pressure level there is almost perfect, then you need to locate the problem inside your house. In case you are experiencing slow water flow just on sink faucets, try to open them up a bit and see if the screens have anything clogged inside that may be hindering the flow of water. But if you face the low water pressure problem in all taps, the problem may be located elsewhere. Go check if the shut-off valve is fully opened or not; sometimes, we do open these valves but forget to open them to the full. The system installed near the shut-off valve can vary from one household to another. So whatever system you have, just ensure it is operating as it is meant to operate.
One more thing to note is that water lines coming from the municipal supply are larger and have a greater diameter. Lines that go from your house to the main municipal lines have smaller diameters. When water travels through all these lines, it experiences a lot of friction from the walls of the pipes. It can be that a very short pipe installed just from your house to the next line is causing too much friction and slowing the water flow. It can also be that all lines inside your house have a very small diameter, which would automatically lessen the water pressure. And even if something small in size gets trapped inside one of those lines, it's going to virtually put an end to the water supply. While these would be an expert plumber's job, you can take note of this if you ever design a house or make a new house. Always take care that you use ¾-inch pipes rather than ½-inch ones. And if you are choosing a new house to shift into, then take care to check the water flow in the lines before you make the decision.

Ram

 Ram is the 7th incarnation of Vishnu and the central figure of the Ramayana epic. The Ramayan is the very soul of India. It is a complete guide to God-realization, the path to which lies in righteousness. The ideals of man are beautifully portrayed in it. Everyone should emulate those ideals and grow into ideal human beings and ideal citizens.

Ram took birth to free the earth from the cruelty and sins of the demon King Ravana (Ravan). Ravana had practiced austerities in order to propitiate Shiva and Brahma, who had granted him immunity from being killed by gods, gandharvas or demons. One of the gods had to take on a human form in order to be able to defeat Ravana. Ram was born as the first son of Dasharatha, king of Ayodhya. Ram's mother was Kausilya. Ram had three brothers : Bharata (Bharat) born from the second wife Kaikeyi, and Lakshmana (Lakshman) and Shatrughna born from the third wife Sumitra. 

One day Saint Vishwamitra visited Ayodhya and asked Dashratha to send Ram and Lakshmana with him because the Yakshini (demon) Tarka - with her two sons Mareech and Subahu - were terrifying him and the other saints at his ashram. They were not letting them worship and meditate. Ram went with Lakshmana and Vishwamitra to kill Tarka. On the way to Saint Vishwamitra's ashram there was a dense forest. When they entered the forest Tarka came to kill them but Ram killed her and her son Subahu with a weapon given to him by Vishwamitra. Ram also shot an arrow at Mareech and threw him 100 yojan far away.

Later Ram went with Saint Vishwamitr to Mithila where the wise King Janak ruled. King Janak had organized a svayamvaraa (an acient custom wherein the bride chose her husband of her own accord from amongst a number of suitors). It was announced that whosoever will bend the bow of Lord Shiva will marry King Janak's daughter Sita. Sita was an incarnation of Lakshmi, the consort of Lord Vishnu. But none of the suitors was able to lift Lord Shiva's bow, except Ram. Ram lifted the bow with his one hand and bended it so hard that it even broke.

So Ram got married to Sita, and his brothers got happily married to Sita's sisters. After returning and living happily in Ayodhya the old King Dashrath decided that it was time to give his kingdom to his beloved son Ram. There Kaikeyi, the third and youngest wife of the King, claimed the throne for her son Bharat. A long time before the young Queen had saved the King's life and he had promised to fulfill her two wishes. Manthara, the crooked and evil-minded maid-servant of Kaikeyi influenced the queen to claim her wishes now in favor of her son and to request Dashrath to banish Ram from the kingdom for fourteen years, and to install Bharat on the throne instead. The King was shocked, his heart was broken, but he knew that truth is the highest Dharm, and that he had to fulfill his promise to his wife. So Ram went to exile happily, knowing that to obey and serve his father was the highest duty of a son.
After Ram left to the forest, Dashrath died from the pangs of separation from his beloved son Ram. Bharat went to the forest to meet his brother Ram and to request him to come back to Ayodhya. When Ram refused to return, in honor of the promise to his father, Bharat took Ram's "khadau" (wooden sandals) and placed them symbolically on Ayodhya's throne. Until his brother returned from the exile Bharat served the kingdom as a true and honest caretaker of Ram.

Once Surpnakha, the sister of Ravana, passed by the place where Ram was living. She saw Ram and became impressed by his beauty. She transformed herself into a beautiful lady and went to Ram and asked him to marry her. When Ram refused and told her he is already married to Sita, she became angry. Coming back to her original form she ran towards Sita to kill her. When Lakshman saw that he cut her nose and one ear. Surpnakha then send her brother Khardushan with fourteen thousand rakshasas to avenge her. But all were killed by Ram.

Surpnakha now sought vengeance through her older brother Ravana, but only got his interest by pointing out that the beautiful Sita would be a fitting wife for him. Ravana lured Ram and Lakshman away from Sita by sending an enchanted deer of extreme beauty and then took Sita to his kingdom of Lanka. On the way, Jatayu, a vulture bird and old friend of Ram's father Dashrath, fought Ravan but was fatally wounded. He lived only long enough to tell Ram what had happened upon his return.

In Lanka, Ravana tried to threathen Sita into marrying him, but was rejected again and again. Meanwhile, Ram made an alliance with the monkey King Sugreeva, who had been exiled from his kingdom by his brother Bali. Ram helped Sugreeva to regain his kingdom and in return Sugreeva raised an army of monkeys and bears, led by Hanuman. When they reached the sea, Hanuman flew across. On the way he had many adventures, which can be found on the Hanuman page.

In Lanka, Hanuman promised Sita that help would come soon. When he was then captured by the rakshasas, Ravana ordered them to set fire to Hanuman's tail, wrapping it with oily rags. But Hanuman increased the length of his tail so much that there seemed no end to it. He escaped and used his burning tail to set fire to all of Lanka.

Meanwhile, Ram's army had build a huge bridge between Lanka and the mainland. They crossed the ocean and attacked Ravana's army. During the battle, Lakshmana was heavily wounded, but he was cured by a magic herb which Hanuman flew all the way to the Himalayas to obtain. Not finding the herb at first, Hanuman brought the entire mountain just to be sure. Finally, all rakshasa generals were killed and the battle become a single combat between Ravana and Ram. Finally, Ram killed Ravana with a special weapon given to him by saint Agastya.

This was a moment of great rejoicing. Ram and Sita were finally crowned King and Queen of Ayodhya, though people were doubting that Sita had preserved her virtue while being Ravana's captive, which is another story in itself.

Seventh avatar (incarnation) of Vishnu, whose purpose was to ensure that justice and peace (dharma) ruled. He is the hero of the epic Ramayana, and he is regarded as an example of morality and virtue.

Rama is shown with a bow in his hand, symbolizing his strength, because he won the hand of his wife, Sita, using a bow in a contest. He is usually depicted with his brother Lakshmana, his wife Sita, and Hanuman, the monkey king who helped Rama to rescue Sita from the wicked demon Ravana.

The Ramayana tells of the couple's exile from their rightful kingdom, Sita's faithfulness and obedience, Rama's overcoming of Ravana, the ingenious help of Hanuman, Lakshmana's loyalty, and their joyful return to their kingdom. Their adventures are retold and celebrated in different ways at Diwali and Navaratri. The heroes and heroines of the Ramayana are used as role models, who demonstrate the type of behaviour to which Hindus should aspire. Vaishnavis (worshippers of Vishnu) celebrate Rama's birthday at the festival of Rama Navami.

Shravan Mahina

Shravan Mahina is the tenth month in a traditional Gujarati Calendar. 

Sawan Month is a highly auspicious month and is dedicated to Lord Shiva. Numerous Vrats are observed in Shravan Maas. Some of the important auspicious days and festivals include Raksha Bandhan and Sri Krishna Jayanti. Shravan Mahina 2009 in Gujarati Calendar begins on July 22 and ends on August 20.It is highly auspicious to perform Shiva puja on Shravan Mondays. Some people observe Jara Jivantika Puja on Fridays. Brihaspati Puja is held on Thursday and Budh Puja is held on Wednesday in Sawan Month. Shrawan Shukla Paksha (waxing phase of moon) is from July 22 to August 6. Shrawan Krishna Paksha (waning phase of moon) is from August 7 to August 20. There is a Purna Surya Grahan on July 22.

Hindu women observe Swarna Gouri Vrata for the well-being of their husbands and for a peaceful and prosperous life. Unmarried women observe if for getting a good husband. Swarna means ‘gold’ and in the ritual a golden image of Goddess Parvati is worshipped along with Shivling. In many regions a clay idols of Goddess Gowri and Lord Ganesha is worshipped on this day. It is later immersed in a pond. It is believed that Goddess Parvati comes to earth to answer the prayers of married and unmarried women during Swarna Gauri Vratam. Gowri Vrat day is followed by the Ganesh Chaturthi day. Hindus believe that Lord Shiva sends Ganesha to fetch his mother from earth. Pavitra Ekadasi (This Ekadasi is known as Putrada in some regions)
Pradosh Puja, Raksha Bandan. Narali Purnima, Jhulan Yatra ends, Avani Aittam (Yajur Upakarmam), Gayathri Japam. Rig Upakarma, Purnima, Chandra Grahan, Bhadrapad month begins in North Indian calendar, Kajari Teej, Sankashti Chaturthi Vrat, Sri Krishna Jayanti, Sri Krishna Janmashtami, Goga Navami, Gopalakala, Aja Ekadasi, Aavani month begins in Tamil Nadu, Chinga Masam begins in Kerala, Bhadra Month begins in Bengali calendar, Pradosha, Amavasi, Rishi Panchami.

Diamond Necklaces

 JEWELRY : 
Jewelry is made of specific metals such as gold, platinum, silver, copper, brass, gun-metal and some inorganic materials like wood, plastic, glass, shells, corals, (for costume jewelry) etc. Since ancient times, jewelry has been worn on various parts of the body .

Rain seasons 2009, AHMEDABAD

 Ahmedabad Rain 2009 :
Comparatively a newly developed zone, the never-ending construction and lack of proper town planning has led to a number of problems. There have even been instances of sewage water mixing with drinking water pipelines. During monsoon it gets worse as the whole area is cut off due to waterlogged streets. Bad roads and stagnant rainwater are major problems, followed by non-existent traffic signals and dug-up roads. If the whole city seems to be waiting for the monsoon. The day it rained just for an hour, was enough to have knee-deep water all around. Here, dug-up roads, lack of parking facilities for in shopping complexes and left-over construction material on roads top the list. As of now we haven't got any information about water-logging in our area. But this season we have laid down enough pipelines and there won't be any problem. Also all roads have been cleared and there is no problem of garbage disposal.

Morning picture

Whater flow

Lack

Whater and trees

Pigeon

These are beautiful and clever birds. Both the ancient Egyptians and Romans apparently used pigeons to carry messages. Pigeons kept in captivity can live up to 15-20 years. These birds mate for life and rear their broods together. Taking bird pigeon pictures and photos of other birds is hobby for many people.

Friendship Belt

Friends Ship

Friendship is considered one of the main human experiences, and has been sanctified by most major religions. The Epic of Gilgamesh, a Babylonian poem that is among the earliest known literary works in history, chronicles in great depth the friendship between Gilgamesh and Enkidu. The Greco-Roman had, as paramount examples, the friendship of Orestes and Pylades, and, in Virgil's Aeneid, the friendship of Euryalus and Nisus, and lastly Robert and Aimee. The Abrahamic faiths have the story of David and Jonathan.

Friendship played an important role in German Romanticism. A good example for this is Schiller's Die Bürgschaft. The Christian Gospels state that Jesus Christ declared, "Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends. Ye are my friends, if ye do whatsoever I command you."(John 15:13-14). In philosophy, Aristotle is known for his discussion (in the Nicomachean Ethics) of philia, which is usually (somewhat misleadingly) translated as "friendship," and certainly includes friendship, though is a much broader concept.
Aristotle's conception of friendship conceived of three distinct categories or 'tiers' thereof. As
Professor Bill Mullen (of Bard College) lectured: "first, there are your 'business partners,' those who benefit financially from their 'friends' (contemporary theorists and poets reject this definition (c.f. Paul Shepard, who dismisses this relationship as "worship of Mammon.) second, there are your 'drinking-buddies' – people you have fun with. And, third, people with whom you pursue virtue, or arete."Friendship can be different depending on where the people come from, gender, and how strong the friendship.

Islamabad

Islamabad

Islamabad is located at 33.43°N 73.04°E at the edge of the Pothohar Plateau on the foot of the Margalla Hills in Islamabad Capital Territory. It is situated at an elevation of 507 metres (1,660 ft). The modern capital and the ancient Gakhar city of Rawalpindi stand side by side and are therefore commonly referred to as the Twin Cities. On the east of the city lies Murree and Kotli Sattian. On the north lies the Haripur District of North-West Frontier Province. Kahuta lies on the northeast, Taxila, Wah Cantt, and Attock District on the northwest, Gujar Khan, Kallar Syedian, Rawat, and Mandrah on the northeast, Rawalpindi on the southwest. Islamabad is located 120 km (75 miles) SSW of Muzaffarabad, 185 km (115 miles) east of Peshawar, 295 km (183 miles) NNE of Lahore and 300 km (186 miles) WSW of Srinagar, the capital of Indian Kashmir.The capital area of the Islamabad city is 906 square kilometres (350 sq mi). A further 2,717 square kilometres (1,049 sq mi) area is known as the Specified Area, with the Margala Hills in the north and northeast. The southern portion of the city is an undulating plain. It is drained by the Kurang River, on which the Rawal Dam is located.

Islamabad's micro-climate is regulated by three artificial reservoirs; Rawal, Simli, and Khanpur Dam. Khanpur Dam is located on the Haro River near the town of Khanpur (NWFP), about 40 kilometres (25 mi) from Islamabad. Simli Dam is located around 30 kilometres (19 mi)) north of Islamabad. 220 acres (89 ha) of the city is covered with Margalla Hill National Park. Along the Islamabad Highway, Loi Bher Forest is situated, covering an area of 1,087 acres (440 ha).

Sparow

Eurasian Tree Sparrow (Passer montanus) is a widespread resident in Himalayas and north-east India. Size: 14 cm
Small, seed-eating bird with thick, conical bill and pink legs. Sexes similar. Brown crown. Black spot on ear coverts. White on face and neck. Black chin and eye patch. Grayish-white underparts. Brown and black upperparts. White wing bars. The adult male House Sparrow might be confused with the Eurasian Tree Sparrow. The Eurasian Tree Sparrow has a black spot on the ear coverts and an entirely brown crown.

The flight call of the Chipping Sparrow is heard year-round. Its flight call is piercing and pure-tone, lasting about 50 milliseconds. The flight call may be transliterated as 'seen?' Chipping Sparrows migrate by night, and their flight calls are a characteristic sound of the night sky in spring and fall in the United States. In the southern Rockies and eastern Great Plains, the Chipping Sparrow appears to be the most common nocturnal migrant, judged by the number of flight calls detected per hour.