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In this book, we analyze the psycho-social consequences faced by Indian American children after exposure to the school textbook discourse on Hinduism and ancient India. We demonstrate that there is an intimate connection—an almost exact correspondence—between James Mill’s colonial-racist discourse (Mill was the head of the British East India Company) and the current school textbook discourse. This racist discourse, camouflaged under the cover of political correctness, produces the same psychological impacts on Indian American children that racism typically causes: shame, inferiority, embarrassment, identity confusion, assimilation, and a phenomenon akin to racelessness, where children dissociate from the traditions and culture of their ancestors.


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Nigada

From Hindupedia, the Hindu Encyclopedia

By Swami Harshananda

Types of Vedic Mantras[edit]

The Vedic mantras used in yāgas or sacrifices are of four types:

  1. Ṛk - The ṛks are metrical compositions.
  2. Yajus - The yajus are complete sentences in prose.
  3. Sāman - The sāmans are set to music and sung.
  4. Nigada - The nigadas are also called as ‘praiṣas'.

Nigada Definition[edit]

Nigada are the words addressed by one priest, generally the adhvaryu, to another. It is called loudly by the former to the latter to do a certain thing. For example:

‘prokṣaṇīr āsādaya,’ ‘Approach the vessel containing the holy waters.’

On a second note, they are yajus but distinguished from them since they are uttered loudly whereas the yajus mantras are recited softly.

References[edit]

  • The Concise Encyclopedia of Hinduism, Swami Harshananda, Ram Krishna Math, Bangalore

Contributors to this article

Deval Sancheti

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