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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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Saṅkalpa

From Hindupedia, the Hindu Encyclopedia

By Swami Harshananda

Saṅkalpa literally means ‘declaration’.

Every act or rite has to be preceded by a saṅkalpa. It is actually a declaratory formula giving not only the details of the day according to the pañcāṅga[1] but also the purpose behind the act.

A typical saṅkalpamantra should contain the names and other details like:

  1. Kalpa
  2. Manvantara
  3. Yuga
  4. Geographical position of the place of performance
  5. Year
  6. Solstice
  7. Month
  8. Fortnight
  9. Date and day of the week
  10. Name of the person performing
  11. Purpose

Any rite which is not preceded by such a saṅkalpa will become fruitless.


References[edit]

  1. ↑ Pañcāṅga means traditional calendar.
  • The Concise Encyclopedia of Hinduism, Swami Harshananda, Ram Krishna Math, Bangalore

Contributors to this article

Krishna Maheshwari, Deval Sancheti

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