Vol.19 No. 3. March

Vol.19 No. 3. March - 2018 1 bhavanblrhns50@gmail.com

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INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON BELIEFS AND BEYOND Beliefs are convictions that we generally accept to be true based on our experience. These are basically assumptions that we often make about ourselves, others in the world and our expectation of things to be. Beliefs emerge from what we see, hear, experience, read and think. They form the basis of the concept of religion, commonly centred around superior or supernatural powers that are beyond the human sphere of comprehension. Beliefs stem from purely experiential occurrences that manifest in the person; they are generally strongly entrenched emotionally and influence our thoughts and behaviour. 3 Beliefs form the basis of the value system that exists in society. Despite differences, undoubtedly the concept of religion contributes to social integration in a community. Religious thoughts and beliefs have given birth to various rituals and practices like jyotisha, vastu, et al, which have been in vogue over centuries. Since times immemorial, we have seen the argument that knowledge must be based on empirical evidence; evidence that is observable facts and not on mere beliefs and rituals. Besides Indian thinkers, Western thinkers too have opined that religion is a Western concept; Indian concept has always been beyond beliefs and is neither religion nor any ism. It is Vedic Dharma or Sanatana Dharma, the eternal law of the universe, which cannot be encased in any rigid set of tenets or frame work. The fact that there is no single teacher, single book or a set of rules for observance gives credence to this idea. An intense discussion on this aspect in ancient India saw the emergence of the Upanishads with innumerable commentaries

over the centuries, besides giving birth to religions like Jainism, Buddhism, Sikhism. Need for Colloquium and theme It is also important to note that society has another set of beliefs that are centred around a place of worship, a saint or any object which is beyond the precincts of religion and, which have attracted people from different religious groups. These beliefs have evolved their own ritualistic practices. Nevertheless, voices questioning the belief system in society world over has got louder currently, attracting attention both in India and overseas. Hence a brainstorming discussion on the nuances of religious thoughts, beliefs, rituals and their positiveimpact on society and value systems has become more relevant today than ever. Besides, to analyse the rationale behind these practices, an International Colloquium of Occult Sciences; 4 Beliefs and Beyond is being organised by Dharmasthala Sri Manjunatha Swamy Temple, Dharmasthala under the divine leadership of Dr. Veerendra Heggade ji Dharmadhikari of Dharmasthala Sri Manjunatha Swamy Temple with Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan, Bengaluru Kendra as event coordinators on March 8 and 9, 2018. Topics for discussions The conference will feature scholarly presentations from erudite scholars, social scientists, in India and also overseas who will cover the following subthemes not limited to: Importance of beliefs in religion, Nature of beliefs and impact on society, Beliefs in different countries, Social impact of beliefs, Beliefs and occult practices, Beliefs, culture and values, Vastu, Jyotisha and others, Science behind the beliefs, Ayurveda, Yoga and other Medical Practices including Pranic Healing. The conference will present a wide range of evidence based discussions by eminent scholars and practitioners which will enrich researchers, scholars, social thinkers, scientists, students, law makers and general public.

CALENDAR OF EVENTS INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE : 5

INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE : CALENDAR OF EVENTS 6

CALENDAR OF EVENTS INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE : 7

EXCERPTS FROM THE INTERVIEW OF DR. VEERENDRA HEGGADE, DHARMADHIKARI, SHRI KSHETRA DHARMASTHALA, ON THE BACKDROP OF INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON BELIEFS AND BEYOND. Dharmasthala, the temple town of South Kanara has a history of over 600 years. This holy town is renowned as the abode of Justice, Charity and Religion. The Heggade family are custodians of the Dharmasthala Manjunathaswamy temple; Heggade is a title conferred on its senior most member as an honour of divine benediction. The patriarch of the family is reverentially referred to as Dharmadhikari the bestower of Dharma or Justice. Lord Manjunatha, in the form of Shivalinga is the main Dr Veerendra Heggade 8 deity in Dharmasthala. Dharma Devathas or Shiva ganas in the form of spirits are worshipped in coastal Karnataka, Kerala and Goa. Spirits, according to age-old beliefs of this region, are of two types; the Daivas and the Bhootas. Daivas are of higher stature, they are revered and worshipped. Bhootas are ferocious and feared. Both the Daivas and the Bhootas express through a medium or a representative person and communicate in the form of oracles. Every household in the region, irrespective of caste and creed has a home deity where the spirit or the deity is worshipped. The four Dharma Daivas of Dharmasthala - Kalarahu, Kalarkai, Kumaraswamy and Kanyakumari have been the guiding spirits of the Heggades (Dharmadhikaris ) for over six centuries. Devotees of Lord Manjunathaswamy are spread across the world;

they revere and fear the Dharma Devatas and Bhootas (divine spirits). It is this devotion and fear that guide these devotees to lead a life of righteousness and virtue. People throng his holy shrine with prayers for their welfare, seeking success in endeavours including collective well being of society; whether it is good rains, relief from drought or good yield in agriculture. It is common practice for devotees to submit their grievances to Lord Manjunatha; they place at the threshold of the deity their agony, pain, fear, family issues, property disputes and such other problems. Several devotional practices are also followed in Dharmasthala like Oath taking, swearing or making a promise in the name of the Lord, Huyilu (plea), curse, and pardoning. Devotees take oath or promise in the name of Lord Manjunatha stating that they will abide by the words they have given to someone or their family and live up to their promise. This promise becomes binding on the person and people do not dare to break promises made in this holy town. Thus the oath taking before the lord serves as a submission and holds the sanctity of a court verdict. 9

10 Huyilu or genuine cry for justice of devotees is answered here and people from all walks of life submit their Huyilus before the Lord. Devotees throng the shrine with offerings as thanksgiving when their prayers are answered. It is believed that an angered or humiliated person uttering profanities or cursing a person who has meant ill to them will augur ill luck and bring doom to such a cursed person. There are instances where the aged or destitute in a family are ill treated or humiliated by members of the family. The pain and agony of people who have suffered thus, will by itself manifest as a curse on the person responsible for such wrongdoing. Ramifications of such curse and the fear of its ill-effects drive people to live righteously. Lord Manjunatha has this god-fearing effect on people. It is popularly believed that Lord Manjunatha is also very quick to forgive. If a person who has committed ill genuinely submits before the lord, he is pardoned or absolved of his wrong doing. These practices of oath taking, swearing, huyilus, cursing and pardoning are observed with austere reverence and sanctity in Dharmasthala. These faiths prevalent here are experienced and expressed by thousands of devotees who visit the temple every day.

These are my personal beliefs too. I intensely believe that Lord Manjunatha, the Dharma Devatas and the Spirits are the guiding source of light in every endeavour of mine. It is this firm belief in Spirits that upholds the sanctity Dharmasthala, making it a benevolent place of worship and faith. In the modern world and in the traditional world there was and there is belief, misbelief and disbelief. While belief is strong faith in something, misbelief is the lack of faith. It is important to winnow the chaff, weed out misbeliefs and superstitions, and strengthen the faiths, because faith and true beliefs guide a person in the path of righteous living. A person anchored to good faith and belief will not deviate or 11 commit ill. So, for good living, society should be progressive in its thoughts yet have faith in the power of good and guide individuals and groups to stay away from wrong beliefs or misbeliefs. In my 50 years as the Dharmadhikari, I have seen several thousand people come to Dharmasthala pleading for justice, property, better relationships, peace etc. The problems and challenges faced by people are myriad depending on their horoscopic position and other socioeconomic or emotional issues. Once they submit their woes before us, the matter is examined in a holistic perspective based on socio, economic and cultural background of the individual. The guidelines or parihaara (relief) are suggested keeping this in mind. The sanctity of the shrine, the Devathas and the Spirits always uphold the judgment

and help resolve the issues and disputes people bring before us. Dharmasthala is revered for this strong belief and practice and it is our humble submission that several thousands of cases of disputes and issues ranging from domestic, interpersonal, property related and many other are resolved amicably at this holy shrine. The years of experience and the life lessons learnt, further guide me to help people and solve their issues. The long history of truth and faith prevailing over other things has made me ponder over these traditional beliefs. These intangible issues open up more questions and debates in the modern world. A time has now come when we need to move ahead with faith and belief, weeding out superstitions and misbeliefs. We need to focus on scientific truth, yet be open minded to embrace realities that are beyond, and that which is seen or felt by the five senses. 12 Hence, this conference is to uphold the faith, examine the misbeliefs and discard superstitions with evidence based presentations. The conference hosts scholars and experts in the field of mysterious healing powers, yoga, role of Faith and Belief in Medical Science, impact of Vedic mantras, vastu, astrology, numerology, religion and other disciplines. As a global message I wish to invite people to ponder over, rethink, go Beyond Beliefs and Faith and bridge the gaps of knowledge. Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan has a long standing history of promoting Indian art and culture and has earned the reputation for its noble work. It is a joy and pride to host this conference Beliefs and Beyond in association with Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan.This conference is a conglomeration of thinkers, spiritual seekers, medical practitioners, scientists and pragmatists. Let it pave the way to see things unseen and see things in the new light of science, spirituality, Belief and Faith. Let us grow in our quest for knowledge!

INTERNATIONAL SPEAKERS / DELEGATES Nairobi, Africa Sri Salaton Ole Ntutu Virginia, USA Dr. Andrew Foss Tokyo, Japan Sri Rae Chandran Croatia, Europe Ms. Zeljka Ciganovic Ms. B.Kristina Afghanistan Mr. Mohammad Saber Mr. Noorgul Shirzoy Mr. Ali Shah Basharpal Mr. Rahmatullah Hamidi Mr. Habibullah Dadmehr Mr. Basira Yousufi Mr. Gulrangghulami Bangladesh Mr. Porag Sarker Utswa Ms. Shaiya Binte Mahbub Mr. Riyad Ahmed Mr.Shaiya Binte Mahbub Ivory Coast, West Africa Mr. Lionel Emmanuel Thes Indonesia Sri Ananda Swamy U.K. Sri Subhanu Saxena Kenya, Africa Mr. Issac Biwott Samoei Tanzania, Africa Mr. Francis Daudi Mlacha South Sudan, Africa Mr. Jacob Baptist Amanu Sudan, N. Africa Mr. Mobarak Abdalla Garehnabi Sudan, N. Africa Mr. Montaser Mohamden Adam Abdullah South Sudan, N. Africa Mr. Mayenkuol Mayen Mr. Nelson Gabriel Janabio Legge Mali, West Africa Mr. Fatoumata Diabate 13

Sri Lanka Smt. Balakrishnan Arunarasi Iran Mr. Hassan Alibalaei Iraq Mr. Ahmed Ali Khalaf Nepal Mr. Santosh Chaubey Mr. Shisir Pandit Mr. Bibek Giri Mr. Rajiv Shah Mauritius Mr. Bibi Mehreen Mandary Dr Congo, Central Africa Mr. Yaba Mayembe Pascal Saudi Arabia Mr. Alsaiari Abdullah Mohammed Bali, Indonesia Ms. Maya Safira Muchtar Ms. Liny Tjeris Ms. Kurnia Diah Setiati Mr. Iwan Sambodo Institutions Indian Council for Cultural Relations, (ICCR) Sri Ramakrishna Mission, Bangalore Sri Chinmaya Mission, Bangalore JSS Mahavidyapethe Mysore In collaboration with Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan Race Course Road, Bengaluru - 560 001 Ph : 22267421 / 22267303 Email : bhavanblrhns50@gmail.com Watch LIVE webcast on shaale.com 14

Fri 6.30 p.m. - Khincha Hall 02. Kuchipudi Dance : Ms. Priyanka R. Thu-Fri 9.00 a.m. - Khincha Hall 08-09. International Conference on Beliefs & Beyond (for more details pl see page no. 5-7) Fri 6.30 p.m. - Khincha Hall 16. Bharatanatya Dance : Ms. Haripriya C. Fri 6.30 p.m. - Khincha Hall 23. Bharatanatya Dance : Mr. Rajesh T.K. PROGRAMME : MARCH - 2018 Sun 6.00 p.m. 25. BVB -Infosys Foundation Outreach programme : Kathakkali Dance Recital : Kalamandalam Smt. Usha Datar Venue : Sevasadana, Malleswaram, Bengaluru. Fri 6.30 p.m. - KRG Hall 30. Odissi Dance : Ms. Sahana R. Maiya 15

BOOK POST March - 2018 16 AND ASSISTANT EDITOR : DR. SHOBHA. G