RE: [iyer123] CULTURAL QA 02-2021-14

[Rajinder Sandhir]

Another useful source is GSI monographs and reports and Trans IIM.   Affectionately Rajinder Sandhir Delhi 110 076     Sent from Mail for Windows 10   From: Rajaram Krishnamurthy Sent: Friday, February 19, 2021 10:19 AM To: iyer Cc: Patty Thatha; Kerala Iyer; HAH-International; Rangarajan T.N.C.; APS Mani; Bala Aiyer; N. Sekar Subject: Re: [iyer123] CULTURAL QA 02-2021-14   Pranam Q6 and A6:  wrt the authors note and details :  From Dr. R K Dube, retired Professor and Head, Department of Material Science IIT Kanpur. Paper published in Financial Chronicle, Tuesday, April 21, 2015    Metallurgy       The two important sources for the History of Indian metallurgy are archaeological excavations and literary evidence.  Unique information related to metals and metallurgy is available in different Sanskrit texts beginning with Vedic texts to medieval and pre-modern texts.              The Rasaratnasamuchchaya described three types of ferrous materials, viz, munda, tiksnaand kanta.  When iron ore pieces are reduced by charcoal  in solid state, iron blocks containing  porosity results.  For this reason, the reduced iron blocks are also called sponge iron blocks.  Any useful products can only be obtained from this material after removing the residual porosity by hot forging.  The  hot forged sponge iron blocks are also termed as wrought iron.  Munda was wrought iron.  As the name suggests tiksna has superior hardness as compared to munda.  Tiksna represented crucible steel made by liquid metallurgy and also probably further carburised wrought iron.  Special  varieties of iron were called kanta.  An exciting example of wrought iron produced in ancient India is the World famous Delhi Iron Pillar.  It was erected in the present position in Delhi in the 5th Century AD by king Chandra Varman.  However, the engraved Sanskrit inscription suggests that it was probably brought here from elsewhere in the Gupta period.  The average composition (wt%) of the  wrought iron of the pillar is – Fe – 0.15 C – 0.05 Si – 0.05 Mn – 0.25 P – 0.005 Ni – 0.03 Cu – 0.02 N.  The most significant aspect of the pillar is that there is no sign of any corrosion, in spite of the fact that it has been exposed to the atmosphere for about 1,600 years. Another striking feature of the pillar is its manufacturing technology.  It was made by successive hot forging of directly reduced sponge iron blocks produced from the solid state reduction of iron ore by charcoal, in a die.  The joint lines that have not been completely removed by forging are clearly visible on the pillar.  This author discussed this aspect in detail and opined that this procedure is basically very similar to current metal powder forging techniques, with a difference that the latter is not usually used to make a long product by joining pieces together (Powder Metallurgy, 1990, 33 (2), 119).  In both the cases, hot forging in a die is done not only to give the required shape, but also to remove the residual porosity present in the starting material.         Indian crucible steel was a celebrated material worldwide.  It was usually produced by simultaneous carburisation and melting of wrought iron in closed crucibles.  Valmiki referred to it by the term “refined iron”.  Kautilya termed it vratta, because it was of circular shape.  Dr. Helenus Scott sent specimens of a variety of crucible steel, available in Mumbai area, to sir Joseph Banks, the then President of the Royal Society, London, for experimental investigation in 1794.  He referred to this steel as wootz in his letter.  Recent researches  by this author have revealed that the actual name of this steel was the Sanskrit utsa, which was erroneously transliterated in Roman Script as wootz by Scott.  James Stodart, fellow of the Royal Society, did extensive work on this steel and mastered its hot forging, Stodart was so overwhelmed with its quality that he mentioned this name utsa in Devanagari Script on his trade card, along with a note that it is to be preferred over the best steel in Europe.  It was named utsa because it had a characteristic of oozing out of low melting point liquid phase when heated to moderate temperatures.                   The Mahabharata and some Puranas have referred to ferrous arrowheads, which were subjected to ‘tailadhauta’ treatment.  Valmiki used this terminology in the context of battle axe.  Some of the commentaries of Ramayana have defined tailadhauta as the process used for hardening (of ferrous objects).  Clearly, this terminology was used in the sense of oil quench-hardening of ferrous materials.  This is reflected in a hymn of Atharvaveda, in which, karmar (ironsmith or metalsmith in general) has been called manishi, ये धीवा॑नो रथका॒राः क॒र्मारा॒ ये म॑नी॒षिणः॑ । उ॒प॒स्तीन् प॑र्ण॒ मह्यं॒ त्वं सर्वा॑न् कृण्व॒भितो॒ जना॑न्॥६॥  [Atharvaveda, 3.5.6]           The hoax of 1200 BCE is the false reference cited by the British copied by the ignorant.  There are erroneous factors provided by the author is not avoided by quoting even the false references. In Kalkandu, A KID MAGAZINE, 1950S, one Tamizhvanan had written KATTA BOMMAN KOLLAIKKARANA? (IS Kattabomman a thief); and concluded as positive. As a school student I was surprised; when I accompanied many times with Mr Sandilyan to Connemara Library, I got an idea to refer the Tamizhvannan citations and quotations; and again was surprised since WHAT ALL HE QUOTED WAS FROM THOSE REFERENCES LINES HAVING “NOT” ; AND HE OMITTED THE “NOT” AND QUOTED THE REST WHICH REVEALED THE POSITIVE TONE. So all references alone cannot justify an action. Evaluation is important. K R IRS 19221   On Thu, 18 Feb 2021 at 19:40, 'gopala krishnan' via iyer123 <iyer...@googlegroups.com> wrote: CULTURAL QA 02-2021-14 Being  a compilation there may  be errors Q1         Why is Garuda always shown on a higher position than Vishnu? A1         Santosh Singh January 6-2021-Mahabharata (Hindu epic) · I have studied the Critical Edition of Mahabharata This all happened because of a boon by Lord Vishnu to Garuda, Vinata’s son : Citation : ‘Then Vinata’s son encountered Vishnu in the sky. Narayana was pleased with him at his act of self-denial and told the bird, “I am the god who grants boons that don’t decay.” The bird said, “I always wish to remain above you.” He again told Narayana, “I wish to be immortal, free from the decay of age, without the amrita.” Having received these boons, Vinata’s son told Vishnu, “O illustrious one! I wish to grant you a boon too.” Krishna102 asked for the boon that the powerful one should always be his vehicle.103 The illustrious god Narayana placed the bird on his flagstaff and said, “Thus you will always be above me.” The bird agreed.  Reference : Adi Parva Section Five Astika Parva Chapter 29 Q2         What happens when water gets more dense? 2 Answers-Chandra Shekar, studied at VNR Vignana Jyothi Institute Of Engineering And Technology Generally it will increase its viscosity , and dielectric strength.. Then goes without saying….. Its gets solid if I'm not wrong. Subramani Thatha Gowder, B.Sc. Chemistry, University of Madras (1974) When you cool water, it gets more dense. That is the water you have in the fridge. Otherwise water cannot be compressed to make it more dense. Q3         What is the most Indian thing ever? A3          Prátikshyà Updated January 29-2021 Studied at The Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI) I was in Bengaluru International Airport’s washroom. I was comfortably peeing. I saw a splash of water coming from the adjacent washroom. Soon the maintenance staff knocked. Staff: What are you doing ? Lady (next washroom): washing my feet because it’s my habit and I have to wash my feet after I pee. Staff: This is not your home. Lady: Whatever. I need to wash. Ever since we were born we have washed our feet and hands after using the washroom. It ensures good hygiene and it’s Indian but this can create a mess in public places specially  when it’s corona around. Now Airports have turned to Railway Station. Q4         Why does Lord Jagannath have no hands? A4          Abhay Sarvaiye July 22, 2020 Former Senior Executive (2013–2019) According to stories heard from do long, the poet tuldidas once visited puri search lord Shreeram which his called jagannth. After completing his darshan of Lord Jagannath, he was extremely disappointed. He was so sad that he walked away. Tulsidas then reached a village called Malatipathpur. There he sat down under a tree and started to cry. A boy passing by came up to him and asked him the reason for his agony. The poet explained to the boy that his Raghunath, whom he loved so dearly, had actually eluded him at Puri and that he was non-existent in what he saw at the temple. The boy then explained Tulsidas that Raghunath as an offshoot of Param Bramha, who can move without feet, see without eyes and listen without ears,“Bina pada chance”, “Bina aankh dekhe”, “Bina Kaan suney”. It was then that Tulsidas realised his folly and rushed back to Puri to find his Raghunath. This explains why Jagannath has no ears, no hands and no feet. There is another story behind the idol not having ears, legs and hands According to people of old times, it is said that the temple was originally presided over by a Vishnu statue with four hands holding the signature shankha, chakra, gada, padma , conch, wheel, mace and the lotus made of blue sapphire Neelam, hence the name Neela Madhab. Jagannath is worshipped even today as Neela Madhab. This temple was attacked many times by the Mughal emperor, as also later on, by Kalapahar, the 16th-century marauder. The idol was badly damaged many times. The king of Puri then took a decision to replace it with something that can be recreated time and again, no matter how many times it gets destroyed. The new statue is an example of tribal art possibly borrowed from nearby villages. This art form has a strong Buddhist influence, as the time of the king’s decision was possibly around the 16th century. The temple was originally built in the 12th century, much after Ashoka’s Kalinga conquest. Jagannath, Balbhadra and Subhadra are Daru idols, or, made from Neem wood. The possible reason why neem was used could be its resistance to all kinds of decay. The idols are religiously embalmed with sandal paste. The medicinal properties of sandal fortify the idols against any fungal growth and also makes for a soothing aroma around the Garavaglia. Q5         Why did Lord Krishna disguise of Goddess Kali once? A5          Shraddha Singh February 11-2021 -Radha · Supreme mother radha Nice question 😀 So I will tell you the story I know 😃 Once when all the Gopis , radharani and krishna were having fun near the banks of Yamuna , Ayan , jatila and kutila (Radharani's so called 'husband’ , mother in law and sister in law ) saw Radharani doing raas with krishna . They straight went to Radharani's parents and krishna’s parents . A gopi saw that and warned radhakrishna about this . So quickly krishna turned himself into goddess Kali . Radharani started worshipping him . So when their parents came they saw Radharani doing prayers and worship . So they went back . Krishna came back to his original form and they both started raas again. Q6         Is everything made on Earth made up of things from Earth? A6          Robby Gottesman Updated April 21, 2019-Metallurgy · I've read a dozen books on metalworking history and practice Nope! There’s actually a really good historical example of this. Before humans knew how to extract iron from iron ore (which occurred around 1,200 BCE) a few groups of people were already using iron tools. Look at this example of iron fastened to the end of a harpoon [1,2] : How did they do this? King Tut was buried with an iron dagger even though no one knew how to smelt iron back when he was alive [3]: So where did this iron come from? There’s no natural iron just sitting around on the ground waiting for people to use it. smelting iron from iron ore is immensely difficult. However, there’s a huge amount of iron in space! These iron-rich meteorites would be found by ancient people and processed into useful tools. Nobody could heat a furnace to the required temperature to cast and forge iron, so these meteorites were “cold worked” (i.e. simply hammered into the required shape at room temperature). So there you go! Not everything made by humans is from stuff in the Earth’s crust. Edit: This answer has become somewhat popular, and a few people in the comments have rightly criticized my lack of references and detail in how these meteorites were worked. I’ve taken these suggestions to heart and added a sources section so you know I didn’t just make this up. It’s actually pretty amazing! Sources: ScienceDirect : On metal use in arctic cultures (behind a paywall, but the abstract is available) The Use of Meteoric Iron: A general overview of the finds of tools and artifacts made of meteoric iron Why did Tutankhamun have a dagger made from a meteorite? Q7         What are some facts about the goddess Saraswati? A7          Sahil Gaikwad August 13, 2020 Goddess Saraswati The name Saraswati came from "saras" (meaning "flow") and "wati" (meaning "she who has ..."), i.e. "she who has flow" or can mean sara meaning "essence" and swa meaning "self". So, Saraswati is symbol of knowledge; its flow (or growth) is like a river and knowledge is supremely alluring, like a beautiful woman. She is depicted as beautiful fair Goddess with Four arms, wearing spotless white saree and seated on white lotus. Goddess Saraswati knowledge In Hinduism Saraswati is the goddess of knowledge, music, arts and science. She is the consort of Brahma, also revered as His Shakti. Her figure is also popular in the Jain religion of west and central India. Saraswati known as Sraosha Saraswati, known as Sraosha in Zoroastrianism is the guardian of earth. Sraosha (“obedience”) is also the wife and messenger of Ahura Mazda, and her role as the "Teacher of Daena", Daena being the hypostasis of both "Conscience" and "Religion". She also guides the souls of the deceased to find their way to the afterlife. Her symbolic animal is the peacock Her symbolic animal is the peacock, whose crowing calls the pious to their religious duties. Goddess Saraswati Called as Durga also She is also called Druga for fighting off Drug (Drug, the name for female demon in ancient Veda, from the Sanskrit root druh "to be hostile"). The name Druga is made of Sanskrit dru or dur "with difficulty" and gā or jā ("come", "go"). Saraswati is known as a guardian deity Saraswati is known as a guardian deity in Buddhism who upholds the teachings of Gautama Buddha by offering protection and assistance to practitioners. Different name of Goddess Saraswati She is known in Burmese as Thurathadi (သူရဿတီ, pronounced [θùja̰ðədì ] or [θùɹa̰ðədì]) or Tipitaka Medaw (တိပိဋကမယ ;တော်, pronounced [tḭpḭtəka̰ mɛ̀dɔ̀]), Chinese as Biàncáitiān (辯才天), in Thai as Surasawadee (สุรัสวดี) and in Japanese as Benzaiten (弁才天/弁財天). Goddess Saraswati other Names In the East Indian states of Bihar, West Bengal, Orissa: Saraswati is considered to be a daughter of Durga along with her sister Lakshmi and her brothers Ganesha and Karthikeya. Saraswati is a river In the Rigveda, Saraswati is a river as well as its personification as a goddess. In the post-Vedic age, she began to lose her status as a river goddess and became increasingly associated with literature, arts, music, etc. In Hinduism, Saraswati represents intelligence, consciousness, cosmic knowledge, creativity, education, enlightenment, music, the arts, eloquence and power. Hindus worship her not only for "academic knowledge", but for "divine knowledge" essential to achieve moksha. In some Puranas, she is Sister of Shiva In some Puranas (like Skanda Purana) she is sister of Shiva (Shivanuja) and in some Tantras with Ganesha. However across India she is worshipped as the wife of Lord Brahma. In the Devi Mahatyam it mentions her as Brahmapatni. According to some sects Saraswati was born from the left body part of Vishnu when Vishnu was in his eternal sleep. Adi Shakti According to Vedanta she is considered to be the feminine energy and knowledge aspect (Shakti) of Brahma, as one of many aspects of Adi Shakti. Saraswati is in the trinity of Maha Kali In the Devi Mahatmya, Saraswati is in the trinity of Maha Kali, Maha Lakshmi and Maha Saraswati. She is depicted as eight-armed. Wielding in her lotus-hands the bell, trident, ploughshare, conch, pestle, discus, bow, and arrow, her lustre is like that of a moon shining in the autumn sky. She is born from the body of Gowri and is the sustaining base of the three worlds. That Mahasaraswati I worship here who destroyed Sumbha and other asuras. Goddess Saraswati in Color White The goddess Saraswati is often depicted as a beautiful woman dressed in pure white often seated on a white lotus, which symbolizes that she is founded in the experience of the Absolute Truth. Thus, she not only has the knowledge but also the experience of the Highest Reality. She is mainly associated with the color white, which signifies the purity of true knowledge. Goddess Saraswati shown to have four arms She is generally shown to have four arms, which represent the four aspects of human personality in learning: mind, intellect, alertness, and ego. Alternatively, these four arms also represent the 4 Vedas, the primary sacred books for Hindus. The Vedas, in turn, represent the 3 forms of literature: Poetry — the Rigveda contains hymns, representing poetry Prose — Yajurveda contains prose Music — Samaveda represents music. Goddess Saraswati The four hands also depict this thus — prose is represented by the book in one hand, poetry by the garland of crystal, music by the veena. The pot of sacred water represents purity in all of these three, or their power to purify human thought. Sacred Vedas She is shown to hold the following in her hands: A book, which is the sacred Vedas, representing the universal, divine, eternal, and true knowledge as well as her perfection of the sciences and the scriptures. The vina, a musical instrument that represents her perfection of all arts and sciences. Saraswati is also associated with anurāga, the love for and rhythm of music which represents all emotions and feelings expressed in speech or music. Saraswati hymn The beautiful human form of Saraswati comes to the fore in this English translation of the Saraswati hymn: "May Goddess Saraswati, who is fair like the jasmine-colored moon, and whose pure white garland is like frosty dew drops, who is adorned in radiant white attire, on whose beautiful arm rests the veena, and whose throne is a white lotus,who is surrounded and respected by the Gods, protect me.May you fully remove my lethargy, sluggishness, and ignorance." Hamsavahini A hamsa or goose is often located next to her feet. The sacred bird, if offered a mixture of milk and water, is said to be able to drink the milk alone. It thus symbolizes discrimination between the good and the bad or the eternal and the evanescent. Due to her association with the bird, Saraswati is also referred to as Hamsavahini, which means "she who has a hamsa as her vehicle". Meaning of Peacock She is usually depicted near a flowing river, which may be related to her early history as a river goddess. Sometimes a peacock is shown beside the goddess. The peacock represents arrogance and pride over its beauty, and by having a peacock as her mount, the Goddess teaches not to be concerned with external appearance and to be wise regarding the eternal truth. Goddess Saraswati In Hindu beliefs, great significance is attached to offering honey to this goddess, as honey is representative of perfect knowledge. Hymns dedicated to her include Saraswati Vandana Mantra. Goddess Saraswati Avahan Rules In Maharashtra and South India, Saraswati Puja starts with Saraswati Avahan on Maha Saptami and ends on Vijayadashami with Saraswati Udwasan or Visarjan. Saraswati Puja Calendar: Saraswati Puja Avahan – Maha Saptami – Triratra vratam starts in Andhra Pradesh Saraswati Puja (main puja) – Durgashtami Saraswati Uttara Puja – Mahanavami Sarasawati Visarjan or Udwasan – Vijaya Dashami. Saraswati Puja In the eastern part of India—Orissa, West Bengal, Bihār and Assam,—Saraswati Puja is celebrated in the Magha month (January–February). It coincides with Vasant Panchami or Shree Panchami i.e. the 5th day of the bright fortnight of the lunar month of Magha. People place books near the Goddess' statue or picture and worship the Goddess. Book reading is not allowed on this day. Saraswati Puja During Navratri In the southern states of India, Saraswati Puja is conducted during the Navaratri. Navaratri literally means “Nine Nights”. But the actual celebrations continue during the 10th day which is considered as Vijaya Dashami or the Victorious Tenth Day. Navaratri starts with the new moon day of the bright fortnight of the Sharad Ritu (Sharad Season of the six seasons of India) during September–October. All the above QA are based on Quora digest to me on 18-2-2021. Quora answers need not be 100% correct answers Compiled and posted by R. Gopala krishnan on 18-2-2021     -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "iyer123" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to iyer123+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/iyer123/210259867.2527332.1613657412294%40mail.yahoo.com. -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Thatha_Patty" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to thatha_patty+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/thatha_patty/CAL5XZoqpk9ORZPShtcv_Ud-xKb2JV7EypBTrjjtPdm5HoDwC7A%40mail.gmail.com.   -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Thatha_Patty" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to thatha_patty+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/thatha_patty/CD06928B-CDA0-4BD1-9D5A-41DB92200DDD%40hxcore.ol.