CULTURAL QA01-2021-18

Being  a compilation there may  be errors 

Q1         What are the mysteries in real places that even sciencecannot yet 
explain?

A1          Gaurang Singh Rathore January 15-2021 B.Sc. in Life Sciences, 
University of Delhi(Graduated 2020)

Tanot Mata Temple — Jaisalmer

During the Indo-Pakistani War of 1965, Pakistani Army dropped over 3000bombs 
targeting the temple but not even one exploded. In 1971 again whenPakistan and 
India went to war this area was again targeted by the PakistaniTanks for 4 days 
but again all the tanks were stuck in the sand and the IndianAir Force picked 
them out easily by bombing them where they stood as they wereunable to move 
even one inch.

 This Temple has protected the area that is only 10 km fromthe border outpost 
and the faith is such that the army and BSF soldiers still stop at thistemple 
and apply the sand on their foreheads and also to their vehicles whichkeeps 
them safe and their journeys fruitful. The legend is since 1965 and 
wasre-affirmed in 1971 and itis a recorded fact that each and every enemy 
soldier who dared to attack thisarea was killed.

Snake Village — Maharashtra

Shetpal is a small sleepy village in Sholapur District of Maharashtra which is 
trulydifferent from any other village you’ll ever visit in the country. This 
region,being dry and in the plains, haslots of snakes of many varieties. But, 
the people here do not kill themnor do they live in fear. The snakes are like 
guests at this place! Doesn’tthis sound weird?MYSTERY:Despite the population of 
the deadliest of snakes, no snake bites have everbeen recorded.

My note- In Tamilnadu atNagerkovil, there is a Nagaraja temple. Surrounding 
areas no snake bite occurs . I was in Nagerkovil and visited the temple many 
times. KeralaNampoothiries officiates as priest in the temple . Prasadam is 
sand below theidol. The sanctum is covered with braided coconut leaves. 

500-year-old mummy of SanghaTenzin - Spiti, Himachal Pradesh

In a quaint little village of Spiti, lies an inexplicable mystery. A 
500-year-old mummy with itsskin, hair and teeth intact was discovered. This 
well-preserved mummy isbelieved to be of a Buddhist monk who probably started 
mummifying himself whilehe was alive

Q2         What are some unknown fact of Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose?

A2          Aashish Kumar Dimri 23-1-2021

Food : Neta ji loved to gorge on Dal(lentils) , Bhaat(rice), Puri (Indian 
bread), Dahi ( sweet curd)and Bananas daily. On specialoccasions; he enjoyed 
Khichuri and Moon Dal with Bhate Bhaat. He was generallya vegetarian; but an 
occasional fish eater.

Sweets : Netaji had a sweet tooth. He enjoyed Bengalisweets-preferably coconut 
sweets like Rasugulla, Chatur burfi, Chinirpuli,Tiler naru, Narikel naru, 
Rascara, Murir naru, Nioa, Khaichur, Tilerchakti, Sandesh and Manohara etc.[1]

Tea : Netaji was particular about his tea preferably in Kulhad (earthencup) 
along with Telebhaja (fritters). He used to drink many cups of tea [2]

Soft drink : Neta ji often consumed lime juice in goodmeasure. It saved him 
from upset stomach.

Smoking: Netaji was a heavy smoker. He used to smoke morethan 40 cigarettes' a 
day.

Music : Netaji adored music composed by Ram Singh Thakuriand promoted him as 
Captain . He famously composed -Kadam Kadam Badaye Ja.

Yoga: Netaji was particular about physical fitness.Everyday, he did yogic 
exercise and meditation. No wonder, he encouraged hisofficers and ranks to 
enjoy football..

Prayer: Netaji used to perform Chandipath (worship ofGoddess Durga) daily . 
But, he was a liberal person ;who admired all religiouspaths.

Conclusion : Netaji ruled Indian heart, mind and soul -living and dead[3]

Note : Today is Netaji’sbirthday ! Salutations to him ! JaiHind ! 

Q3         How did the Bengali surnames Banerjee, Mukherjee, andChatterjee 
originate?

A3          Shounak Banerjee 24-1-2021Lives in West Bengal, India

Banerjee, Mukherjee, andChatterjee are a group of Kulin Bengali Brahmins from 
the Rarh region. The wordKulin means noble.

Unlike what most people have answered here, Brahmins didn't migrate intoBengal 
during the rule of Maharaja Balalla Sena. Brahmins lived in small numbers 
before the Senas invadedBengal and toppled the declining Buddhist Pala Empire. 
The Senas were ofKannadiga origin.

Huen Tsang, the famous Chinesepilgrim had visited Bengal during the 7th century 
AD. He found both Brahmanismand Buddhism being practiced by people. In 
Pundravardhana, he found Jainism to be widely prevalent as well. ThePalas 
despite being devout Buddhists never discriminated against those whodidn't 
practice their religion. So the theory that Brahmins never lived in Bengal 
before Sena's reignisn't true.

Many Bengali Brahmin families have extensive genealogical records calledthe 
Kulagrantha or Kulapanjikas. Most of these documents, say that it wasAdisura, 
not Ballala Sena who initiated the process of social purification inBengal by 
inviting five ritually and spiritually purer Brahmins (that is, purerthan the 
Bengali Brahmins of the time who were believed to have suffered areduction in 
their spiritual/ritual prowess on account of exposure toundesirable influences, 
such as Buddhism, which had exerted a strong sway overBengal at a certain 
historical time) from Kanauj in northern India to migrateto Bengal and 
subsequently to settle there.

 

 

Ballala Sena, however, was thecreator of the system of Kulinism, which created 
a highly divided social hierarchy even among the Upper castes ofBengal. The 
Kulin system was an incredibly complicated system of keeping castenorms. It was 
a rigorous system where a litany of rules had to be followed tokeep that 
status. In a classic example of Sanskritization, the Kayasthas of Bengal who 
hadmigrated to Bengal along with the Brahmins also started following Kulin 
norms.

Brahmins who had the Kulinstatus were given materialhonours and entitlements by 
the ruling class. This system continued for a longtime even during the Muslim 
rule of Bengal and only slowed during the laterperiod of British rule. Many 
Brahmin groups had their Kulin status revokedoutright because of their close 
connection with the Turko-Persianate rulingclass. One such group werethe Pirali 
Brahmins. Rabindranath Tagore, the first Asian Nobel Laureate was aPirali 
Brahmin.

Finally, answering the etymological question,

Banerjee is the anglicized form of the Bengali word ‘Barujye' which comes 
fromthe Sanskrit word Bandopādhyāya which is a Sanskritized form of 'Banodha 
+upādhyāya', Banodha being the ancient name of Raebareli-Unnāva whence 
theirancestors had come from. Banerjeesare from the Shandilya gotra.

Raja Rammohan Roy, one of the greatest social reformers of India andFather of 
the Bengali renaissance. He too was a Kulin Banerjee just like me.

Mukherjee is the anglicized form of the Bengali word ‘Mukhujye' whichcomes from 
the Sanskrit word Mukhopādhyāya which means chief Vedic teacher. Mukherjees are 
from the Bharadhwajgotra.

Chatterjee is the anglicized form of the Bengali word‘Chaturjye' which comes 
from the Sanskrit word Chattopadhyay (compound ofvillage name "Chaṭṭa" and 
"upādhyāya" denoting "priest, teacher"originally granted with the village named 
Chaṭṭa). Chatterjeesare from the Kashyap gotra.

Sources:

Caste, culture and hegemony: Social dominance in colonial Bengal bySekhar 
Bandyopadhyay

Land of two rivers: A history of Bengal from Mahabharata to Mujib byNitish 
Sengupta

Communities, Kings and Chronicles: The Kulagranthas of Bengal - 
KumkumChatterjee, 2005

Q4         Ramayan- For how many years did Sita stay in Lanka?

A4          Bhanu Kiran January 20-2021-Admiresthe stories of Ramayana

Valmiki Ramayan and Padma Purana provides the answer to this question. 
According to Valmiki Ramayan,Sita lived in Lanka approximately for 12 months. 
Ravana gave awarning to Sita that he will give her 12 months period to accept 
him as herhusband otherwise hiscooks will kill her for the purpose of breakfast.

"Oh, angry lady Maithili, listen to my words. A period of twelvemonths is given 
to you. And oh, smiley smiler, if you do not come nigh of mewithin that period, 
then the cooks will slice you to pieces for the purpose ofa morning meal."[1]

When Hanuman met Sita in the Ashoka Vatika, Sita told Hanuman that out of the 
12 months periodgiven by Ravana, 10th month is running currently and only two 
months are leftout. Actual duration of the war is not mentioned explicitly 
inValmiki Ramayan. Rama and Sita left to Ayodhya very soon after the end of 
thewar. They reached Ayodhya exactly after completing 14 years of exile. So it 
can be concluded that Sitastayed in Lanka for 11-12 months.

"Till the current period of one year is not completed, that Rama isto be told 
to make haste to save me; since my life will be lasting till suchtime only."

"O Hanuma! Out of the time-limit given to me by the cruel Ravana formy 
survival, the tenth month is now running. Only two months are leftout."[2]

According to Padma Purana, Sita stayed in Lanka exactly for 11 months and14 
days.

Maithilī (i.e. Sītā) lived without Rāma in the house of Rāvaṇa for eleven 
months and fourteen days. Rāma ruled(i.e. was consecrated as the king) when he 
was forty-two years old. At thattime Sītā had completed thirty-three years. 
That lord Rāma being delightedentered the city Ayodhyā at the end of the 
fourteenth year and with hisbrothers ruled there.[3]

Footnotes

 [1] Valmiki Ramayana - AranyaKanda - Sarga 56 

[2] Valmiki Ramayana - Sundara Kanda - Sarga 37 

Q5         Can you tell something about the newVistadome coaches of Indian 
Railways ?

A5          Respected Piyush Goyal January10-2021-Minister of Railways and 
Commerce & Industry at Government of India

Indian Railways is always working towardsmaking train journeys more comfortable 
and memorable for the passengers.Vistadome Coaches, which were introduced a few 
years back, offer passengers apanoramic view of their surroundings, giving them 
a truly immersive travel experience.

Recently, Indian Railways has stepped up thegame by making advanced Vistadome 
Tourist Coaches with the following features:-

Bogies with Air-Spring suspension for betterride comfort

Large glass windows and glass roof that boastelectrically controlled opalescence

Transparent roof for the passengers to get apanoramic view of their journey

Observatory lounge with larger windows

Ergonomically designed ritzy reclining seats,rotatable up to 180 degrees, for 
the passengers to enjoy the mixture ofspectacular scenic views along the 
journey from all directions

Charging socket provided for each passengerbelow the seat armrest

Entertainment system integrated with Digitaldisplay screens and speakers for 
music lovers

“Content on Demand” facility provided onpersonal gadgets of passengers through 
WiFi

Wider entrance doors for Divyangjanpassengers with wheelchairs

Automatic sliding doors at the compartment’sentry on both sides

A plethora of other features include:-

GPS based Public address cum PassengerInformation system (PAPIS)

Sunk-in type LED destination board

Stainless Steel multi-tier luggage racksoutside the passenger area

Mini pantry to provide refreshments for thepassengers

Service area consisting of Hot case,Microwave Oven, Coffee Maker, Bottle 
Cooler, Refrigerator and washbasin

CCTV system for on board surveillance

Aesthetically designed Coach interiors andFiber Reinforced Plastic (FRP) 
panelling

FRP modular toilets with pressurised flushingsystem and bio tanks

Aspiration-type automatic Fire detection withan alarm system for safe travel

TheseVistadome Tourist Coaches will definitely make the scenic train journeys 
morememorable for the passengers. By enabling the passengers to soak in the 
aestheticlandscapes of the country, while enjoying comfortable facilities, 
IndianRailways wishes for an unforgettable travel experience for all.Jai Hind! 

Q6         What is the most mysterious monument inthe world that nobody has 
managed to explain yet?

A6   CormacLaffan 24-1-2021-B.Eng in Engineering & Manufacturing, Waterford 
Instituteof Technology (WIT) (Graduated 2014)

Thisplace, built around 3,200 BC. Newgrange was constructed 500 years before 
theGreat Pyramids of Giza and 1000 years before Stonehenge. It contains a 19m 
(62ft)passage to a chamber which is only illuminated at sunrise on the 
wintersolstice. Standing 13m (43ft) high with a diameter 0f 85m (279ft) the 
buildingcovers an acre and has two sister sites, Knowth and Dowth, nearby. Up 
to 34smaller mounds have been discovered locally.

Despitebeing rediscovered in 1699 very little is known about its builders, it 
sharesstructural similarities with Maeshowe (2800BC) in Scotland, Bryn Celli 
Ddu(3–2000BC) in Wales and Gavrinis (3500BC) in France.

Newgrange sits in County Meath in Ireland, amere 30 minute drive from Dublin 
Airport. How so few know about it is a mysteryin itself.

Being  a compilation there may  be errors 

All the above QA are based onQuora digest to me on 24-1-2021. Quora answers 
need not be 100% correct answers

Compiled and posted by R. Gopala krishnan on 25-1-2021 

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