SANDESH. A Newsletter of East Indian Cultural Association. November 2015

Transcription

1 SANDESH A Newsletter of East Indian Cultural Association November 2015 Executives Dr. Kartar Lal President Desh Mittra Vice-president Shaminder Minhas Ad-hoc Vice-president Neelam Advani Secretary Umed Singh Rawat Treasurer Giandeep Khepar Program Coordinator Amandeep Cheema Ad-hoc Program Coordinator Newsletter Committee Meera Mittra Avinash Sinha Raja Advani Aditya Sharma Programming Committee Sandeep Singh Sukhi Garcha President s message Hindu Society of the Peace Region entered in its seventh year. Last year had been a year of re-thinking and re-visiting our goals. We felt that lots of people of the East Indian Community in the Peace region desperately needed a single platform where they can do cultural, educational and social activities together. Recognizing this need, HSPR took the leadership and adopted an operational name -- EAST INDIAN CULTURAL ASSOCIATION (EICA). Under the banner of EICA, the HSPR invited all the community members to participate in the Annual Picnic and AGM at the Saskatoon Park. This was a big success as large number of community came and accepted the membership of the Society. I would like to welcome Mrs. Shaminder Minhas and Mr. Amanpreet Cheema as board members. EICA is committed to organize various cultural festivals like Diwali, Vaisakhi, Holi etc.; run language and computer classes; and participate in charitable activities here and abroad. We are also planning to develop an old age center for the seniors. Editor s Note We are pleased to present this newsletter to you with a new look. Now our newsletter has a name -- SANDESH which means message. The main goal of our Society is to bring whole community together and our chosen name enforces the same. Also we have started two new columns this time. A while ago I was talking to one of the kid in our community and was little hurt to find out that he/she knew lot more about Greek gods and history and had no idea about the rich heritage of India. That gave me incentive and we have started a column about the history of India. Our aim is not to have a history book but little of each era of our history. Also there are many celebrities in the world who are Indian and we should be proud of their accomplishments. So we are starting a column about them. We will love to hear about your thoughts. Please give us your feedback. Meera Mittra

2 Our Past Indus Valley Civilization By Rishi Singhal Indian civilization is one of the most ancient civilization of the world. While Egyptian and Mesopotamian civilizations were flourishing in other parts of the world, Indus Valley civilization was fully flourished in India and was probably the most widespread among them. Unfortunately while the world knew about other two civilizations for a very long time; the existence of Indus Valley civilization was not discovered till middle of the nineteenth century. It was in 1856 British railroad engineers were working in Sindh province (now in Pakistan) that they uncovered an ancient and advanced civilization. Since this was developed by the river Indus, the archeologists called it Indus Valley civilization. So far more than 1500 settlements along the banks of the Indus River have been discovered. The two largest settlements of this civilization are Harappa and Mohenjodaro. That s why this civilization is also called Harappan civilization. It is believed that this civilization was primarily Bronze Age civilization ( BCE); but we have evidences of pre-harappan cultures starting c.7500 BCE, which is long before Egyptian and Mesopotamian civilizations. Indus Valley civilization developed about 3000 BCE and flourished for about 1500 years. By 2600 BCE, the Early Harappan communities turned into large urban centre. It may have been home to more than five million people before it mysteriously declined by 1700 BCE and was abandoned by about 1500 BCE. Archaeologists have many ideas from the clues left behind, but definite answer is still elusive. Excavation at Harappa and Mohenjodaro displays that they were expertly planned cities built with a grid pattern of wide, straight streets like modern days. There were many sturdy brick houses that had as many as three floors. The bricks even those used in different cities are the same size. Some houses had bathrooms and toilets that were connected to the town sewer system, arguably the world s first sewer system. The economy must be very good as a big granary with air ducts is found in Mohanjodaro. An irrigation system of canals provided a reliable source of water for growing wheat and barley is also excavated. The elaborate architectural planning suggests they had highly advanced knowledge of mathematics and a sophisticated system of weights and measures. The identical city layouts of all Indus sites and beautiful seals found by the archeologists suggest that there was some kind of central political or administration but the extent and functioning of an administrative center remains unclear. Similarly we do not know much about their religious believes and social structure. Some people must have had practicing knowledge of some form of dentistry as archaeologists found a gravesite with the remains of people whose teeth had been drilled. Archaeologists have also found evidence of musical instruments, toys and games, and pottery. Jewelry made in Harappa has been found as far away as Mesopotamia suggesting that they traded with distant foreign cultures too. Thousands of clay tablets found in excavation indicate that they had a developed writing system. This could be even older than Sumerian writings. Unfortunately this writing has not been deciphered yet. Archaeologists have excavated only a fraction of the many cities and settlements of the Indus River Valley civilization, so our understanding of the region is still evolving. Perhaps one day with more excavations and knowledge of their writings we can learn how these ancient cities developed, how their citizens learned to create an advanced civilization, and why these cities were eventually abandoned. References : Dowling, Mike. "Harappa and Mohenjo-Daro - mrdowling.com". Updated July 15, Web. Date of Access. < by Jonathan Mark Kenoyer University of Wisconsin, Madison For detailed study:

3 Prayer -- an integral part of me By Sandeep Sharma All religious epics and literature depicts that praying is an important part of our life which helps us to connect to the God almighty or the Supreme Power. A thought comes to my mind that if God knows everything then why we should pray. If whatever is going to happen, will happen then what is the meaning of praying? I thought about my doubts and the answer I got is that asking forgiveness for your mistakes, offering thankfulness for what you got, and requesting for what you desire to attain in life and beyond are the main reasons for which we should pray. The relationship between you and the Supreme Power gets strengthened when you pray. When prayer is done in a proper way, it leads you towards your ultimate goal. Question is what is the proper way? To understand this following are some of the readings from different epics: Gospel says : "The Lord is near to all who call on him, to all who call on him in truth." Psalm 145:18 Rig Veda says : God makes the rivers to flow. They tire not, nor do they cease from flowing. May the river of my life flow into the sea of love that is the Lord. Islam says : Before initiating the salat, it is important that your intention be known and understood. Not necessarily aloud, but from within. Shri Guru Granth Sahib says : Whatever one asks from the Highest may be received, says slave Nanak. Those connected with the Highest can manifest what they utter. Dhanasaree Mehala 5 So my thoughts of praying are, wherever you can create sound of joy, truthfulness, gratitude and honesty within your heart and mind, then that is the best way to pray. I will end my words with my favorite quote from Ralph Waldo Emerson. I give Thanks, For each new morning with its light, For rest and shelter of the night, For health and food, For love and friends, For everything Thy goodness sends. Programming Committee Report HSPR is very excited to welcome two new members, Mrs. Sukhi Garcha & Mr. Sandeep Singh in the programming committee. With new members we anticipate to have many more programs in the coming year. The Society has been doing many activities abroad. In our last newsletter Khwahish Society reported its achievements. After that we donated 56 classroom desks, one water cooler and one smart classroom to encourage interactive and collaborative learning in various schools. Education minister of Punjab Dr. Daljit Singh Cheema inaugurated the smart classroom. At local level we had a very successful and enjoyable picnic in the month of August at the Saskatoon Lake. We are very happy to say that large number of people attended. We had good food and variety of games for all ages. We would like to thank all the volunteers for their contribution. Diwali Fair is our next event, which will be celebrated on 7 November This is our first effort to bring forward individuals and groups with their talents.

4 Kid s Corner Pride of India - Sundar Pichai By Aditya Sharma (Grade 12) Img source: google.com Sundar Pichai is one of those Indians who made history. We all use Google everyday but most of us do not know that Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Google is one of us. Sundar Pichai was born on 12 July 1972 in Chennai. He lived in a two-bedroom apartment with his father, mother and younger brother for most of his childhood. His father was an electrical engineer and managed a factory that made electrical components. That is how Sundar got his first knack at technology. After finishing his degree in metallurgical engineering at IIT Kharagpur, he did master s in material engineering from Stanford and an MBA from Wharton School of Business. Pichai started his career at McKinsey and Company working in product management. In 2004 he joined Google, where he was instrumental in the projects of Google Chrome, Chrome OS and Google Drive, all common household names now. He was fully involved in the development of various apps such as Gmail and Google Maps. Sundar s contribution at Google s various search products helped general public by far. In March 2013 Pichai added Android to the list of Google products. His highest achievement came on August 10, 2015, when he was announced as the next CEO of Google. The outgoing CEO Larry Page wrote in his press release, I feel very fortunate to have someone as talented as he is to run the slightly slimmed down Google and this frees up time for me to continue to scale our aspirations. He has made all Indians very proud and continues to be an advocate of education. He has shown through his relentless work ethic that hard work pays off. His passion for technology is what drives him every day. He continues to be a perfect example of how dedication bears fruits. By Mohit Dhir (Grade 11) By Ajmer Poonia (Grade 1)

5 Food Corner Gujiya By Monika Sinha Diwali is coming and we all love food especially sweets at this time. It is a tradition to make Gujiya at this time in Uttar Pradesh. Let s make ourselves and enjoy. Ingredients: 1 cup All Purpose flour 2 tbsp -- Ghee or unsalted butter 1 tbsp Wheatlet (Suji) 1/3 cup Chopped nuts of your choice (almonds, cashews, walnuts, pistachios) 1 cup -- Grated khoya 1 tsp -- Cardamom powder 1/3 cup -- Sugar Oil for deep frying Mix first two ingredients together and then add water slowly to make dough. The dough should neither be too soft nor too hard. Cover with damp cloth and keep aside Roast wheatlet in pan without oil till light brown Mix nuts, khoya, cardamom powder and sugar in wheatlet. Mix well and keep aside. Divide the dough into small balls. dust the rolling board lightly with some flour. Roll each ball with the rolling pin to a small circle having 4 to 5 inches diameter. With your fingertip, apply water all over the circumference edge. Add 1-2 tsp of filling on one side of the circle keeping the edges empty. Carefully bring empty side over other side and gently press the edges to seal together. This will give half- moon shape to the Gujiya. Do not add too much of filling otherwise it will not seal properly and may leak while frying. You may get creative and cut the edges in zig zag shape or braid them. Repeat with all the balls. Keep these under damp cloth. Heat up oil for deep frying. When it is ready, add few Gujiya and fry on med heat till golden color on both sides. Makes Gujiya. Achievements: Neelam Advani has successfully completed CA and now is manager at MNP. Avni Khepar acheieved First Class Honours in Grade 2 Piano We welcome Raja Advani as a new doctor in our community. We regretfully announce that due to the recent sacrilegious incidents regarding the Shri Guru Granth Sahib that have been taking place in Punjab, India, our executive decided to cancel Diwali function this year.