How is Lord Brahma viewed in contemporary Hindu practice?

 "1. Lord Brahma holds a special place in contemporary Hindu practice as the symbol of creation. His role as the creator god is revered through prayers and religious texts, highlighting his significance in the cosmological framework of Hinduism."

"2. Despite his importance, there are limited temples dedicated exclusively to Lord Brahma. The Brahma Temple in Pushkar, Rajasthan, stands out as one of the few places where he is worshipped. Various myths and legends contribute to the lack of widespread worship of Brahma."

"3. Lord Brahma's philosophical influence is profound, with his role in the creation narrative being a key element in understanding Hindu philosophy. While he may not be as prominent in popular devotional practices, his presence in philosophical discussions remains strong."

"4. Although there are no major festivals solely dedicated to Lord Brahma, he is honored during specific ceremonies and rituals related to creation, knowledge, and the Vedas. His symbolic representation, including his attributes and consort Saraswati, signifies knowledge, learning, and the essence of the universe."

"5. Lord Brahma's influence extends to rituals and ceremonies, especially those related to education and the arts. Students and scholars often seek his blessings for wisdom and knowledge, highlighting his continued relevance in contemporary Hindu practices."

Why is Krishna called "Mohan"?

 

Krishna is called Mohana because he charms and attracts the hearts of everyone. All the worlds, sages and devas alike are enchanted by him.

Bhagavatam says

The Supreme Lord Krsna retired to his abode after captivating the eyes of persons with his superb personality which surpassed the world in beauty (and made people’s eyes unwilling to see anything else), and by his words he fascinated the hearts of those who remembered them, by his foot-prints he suspended the movements and actions of those who espied them (and had thus concentrically attracted to himself all the propensities of the people who saw him), and after having spread his glory all over the earth

• Chapter 1, 11th Skandha, Srimad Bhagavatam.

That's why Krishna is the Lord of sweetness

O Krishna! Your lips are sweet, Your face is sweet, Your eyes are sweet, Your smile is sweet, Your heart is sweet, Your gait is sweet. O Shree Krishna, the Lord of sweetness! Everything about You is sweet.

• Madhurashtakam of Sri Vallabhacharya.

Mohana is also one of the 1000 names of Vishnu mentioned in Skanda Purana

Marana (slayer), Mohana (enchanter), Mohin (deluder), Stambhoccatanakrt (one who paralyses and extirpates by magic),

• Chapter 63, Avantiksetra Mahatmya, Skanda Purana.

What galaxy do you think is the most interesting?

 These are galaxies that I think are the most interesting. I got them as background photos on my phone and computers. It’s best to view them by clicking on each image so that it’s zoomed. You can then see intricate and intriguing details that will make you fall in love with The Universe. The best parts are some shadows from dust that are visible best in the galaxies that are shown from the side like the last one.

The Black Eye Galaxy, 17 million light-years away, the Coma Berenices constellation:

The galaxy NGC 4526 with a supernova explosion at the bottom left corner, 55 million light-years away.

The galaxy NGC 4414, 62 million light-years away.

The galaxy NGC 4846, 65 million light-years away.

The galaxy NGC 7049, 150 000 light-years across, 100 million light-years from Earth.

The Lindsay-Shapley Ring, 300 million light-years away, 150 thousand across, constellation Volans:

Interacting with each other the Mice Galaxies, 290 million light-years away, constellation Berenices:

The Needle Galaxy, 30–50 million light-years away, Coma Berenices constellation:

The Pinwheel Galaxy, 21 million light-years away, Ursa Mayor constellation:

The Southern Pinwheel Galaxy, 15 million light-years away, constellation Hydra:

The Sculptor Galaxy, 90 000 light-years across, 11 million light-years away, the constellation Sculptor:

The Sunflower Galaxy, has about 400 billion stars, 30 million light-years away, the constellation Venatici:

The Tadpole Galaxy, 420 million light-years away, the constellation Draco:

The Backward Galaxy, 111 million light-years from us, the constellation Centaurus:

The Mayal Object, 500 million light-years away, the constellation Ursa Mayor:

The Eye of Sauron assembly of galaxies in the constellation Canes Venatici:

The Circinus Galaxy, 13 million light-years away in the constellation Circinus:

The Butterfly Galaxies, 60 million light-years away, in the constellation Virgo:

The Bode’s Galaxy, 12 million light-years away, 90 000 light-years across, in the constellation Ursa Mayor:

The Cartwheel Galaxy, 500 million light-years away, 150 thousand light-years across, the Sculptor constellation:

The Whirlpool Galaxy, 23 million light-years away, the constellation Canes Venatici:

The Antennae Galaxy, 45 million light-years from us, the Corvus constellation:

The Fireworks Galaxy, 25 million light-years away, the constellation Cygnus and Cepheus:

The Galaxy Arp 273 interacting galaxies, 300 million light-years away:

The Galaxy Arp 142 interacting galaxies, 326 million light-years away:

The Galaxy Messier 94, 16 million light-years away.

A really good image of the Andromeda Galaxy. 2.5 million light years away:

The Galaxy M87 with a quasar jet, 53 million light-years away.

My all-time favourite is the Sombrero Galaxy, 31 million light-years away, on the border of the Virgo and Corvus constellation:

All Images from Hubble Space Telescope, Wikipedia.

Will there still be any stars burning in a trillion years?

 Well let’s take a look at the types of stars we have. I’ll start with the largest, Super Giant Stars

These big balls of death consume themselves so quickly they only last a few million years before self-destructing as supernovae. The remaining core may form a black hole if the star was massive enough.

When these guys go supernovae they spread their gases throughout the universe and these gases coalesce to form more stars, such as several like our own. They could create other types of stars such as other super giants or the gases might float in the universe forever.

Next up, a neutron star:

The core of a giant star that, like the super giant, died several million years after its birth. Neutron stars are extremely dense and emit energy as they spin.

Eventually, after a very long time, they will ‘spin down’ and stop emitting energy. This may take billions or trillions of years (we’re not exactly sure) and the oldest known neutron stars are up to ten billion years old.

Next, Red Dwarf Stars

Little red, the runt of the cosmic litter.

The most common type of stars, they emit so little light you won’t see them with the naked eye at night.

Compared to larger stars such as the Sun, they can burn a larger proportion of their hydrogen before leaving the main sequence. They have estimated lifespans far longer than the present age of the universe. The lower the star’s mass the longer its lifespan.

From wikipedia:

It is believed that the lifespan of these stars exceeds the expected 10-billion-year lifespan of our Sun by the third or fourth power of the ratio of the solar mass to their masses; thus, a 0.1 M☉ red dwarf may continue burning for 10 trillion years.

Yikes!

When you consider that there’s going to be a lot of supernovae over the next few tens of billions of years, perhaps longer, the last surviving star in the universe may not actually be born yet.

In short, yes, there will be a healthy neighborhood of stars still burning 1 trillion years from now.

If the real Sita was never kidnapped, then why did Rama question her character?

 This question seems to be based on Adhyatma Ramayana.

Creation of Maya Sita

Lord Shiva said—'Oh Parvati! Here, becoming aware of all the conspiracies of Ravana, Sri Ram advised Sita when they were alone, 'Oh Sita! Listen to what I have to tell you. Oh the auspicious one! Ravana will come to you disguised as a mendicant. Hence, by my orders, you must enter the holy fire leaving behind your lookalike shadow in this hut, and stay there in the fire in an invisible form for one year. After that, after the killing of Ravana, you shall get back to me once again.’

Hearing these words of Sri Ram, Sita did as she was told. She became invisible in fire, leaving behind a shadowy Sita.

• Canto 7, Aranya Kanda, Adhyatma Ramayana.

It was this Maya Sita whom Ravana kidnapped.

After Ravana was killed, it was Maya Sita who did Agni pravesha, not real Sita. When Maya Sita entered the fire, she disappeared and the real Sita was brought out by Agni Deva

‘Oh Hari (Sri Ram)! You had created an illusionary/shadowy Sita for the express purpose of destroying (i.e., killing) Ravana along with his sons, kiths and kins and comrades etc. Oh Lord! By doing so, you have removed the burden of this earth.The illusionary/shadowy Sita who was like an image of her real self has vanished after having accomplished the task for which she was created.’ Hearing these words of the fire God, Sri Ram worshipped and honoured him with great delight and a joyful heart and then he gladly accepted Janki (Sita) who was most happy and cheerful (at this happy turn of events).

• Canto 13, Lanka kanda, Adhyatma Ramayana.

So Lord Rama never questioned Sita’s character in Adhyatma Ramayana. The fire ordeal was merely a way to switch back Maya Sita with the real Sita.

What is the most natural way to increase metabolism?

 If you're looking for ways to boost your body's metabolism naturally, concentrate on these major lifestyle habits:

• Stay Active – Engage in strength training and high-intensity exercises to improve metabolism.
• Eat Protein-Rich Foods – Protein increases the thermic effect of food (TEF), helping burn more calories.
• Stay Hydrated – Drinking adequate water can marginally elevate calorie burn.
• Get Enough Sleep – Insufficient sleep slows metabolism and affects hormone regulation.
• Drink Green Tea or Coffee – Both can enhance fat oxidation and metabolic rate.
• Try Pre-Meal Nutrition – Lightlife Pre-Meal Nutrition is a convenient mix designed to control cravings, boost metabolism, and support sustainable weight management, making it easier to maintain a healthy lifestyle.

By incorporating these sustainable habits and Lightlife products, you can naturally increase your body metabolism and enhance your overall well-being.

How tiny is the earth compared to other celestial objects in space?

 Solar system planets:

Now, if you add Sun:

And compare it to bigger stars:

And compare those stars to even bigger stars:

This would give you perspective and show how tiny the earth is in comparison to everything else.

Biggest Indian Scams Of All Times

For many years now, we all have witnessed huge political and financial scams/frauds in our country involving money which amounts to multi-million dollars. And these are just the ones which have been exposed, let’s not even get into those which are yet to be uncovered.

With so much capital in hand, one can’t help but wonder would India still have been a developing country had this money been used on what it was actually meant to be spent on.
Given below is the list of TOP 10 biggest scams which have plagued our country in the recent past.

1 – 2G SPECTRUM SCAM
What can be said that hasn’t been said before, this is THE mother of all scams. The Supreme Court recently said the spectrum scam has put ‘all other scams to shame’. The incident saw former telecom minister A Raja being forced to resign after the CAG indicted him in the 2G spectrum scam that resulted in a loss of about 176,000 core to the national exchequer. The scandal revolves around the alleged irregularities in allotting wireless radio spectrum and licences by the telecom ministry to private operators — some of whom were ineligible. Licences were given and spectrum allocation was done at an extremely low price (2001 prices in the year 2008) leading to a gargantuan loss to the national coffers.

2 – COMMONWEALTH GAMES SCAM
Yes, of course, how could the scamsters miss the much publicized and anticipated Common Wealth Games hosted by India in 2010. Even before the long awaited sporting bonanza could see the light of the day, the grand event was soaked in the allegations of corruption. Estimated to be involving money worth close to 35,000 crore, the scam included discrepancies like payment to non-existent parties, will-ful delays in execution of contracts, over-inflated price and bungling in purchase of equipment through tendering – and misappropriation of funds. The accused, former chairman of the Commonwealth Games Organising Committee, Suresh Kalmadi, was charged and jailed later by CBI in april 2011

3 - TELGI SCAM
Abdul Karim Telgi, the name is still etched boldly in the memory of the whole of India. The con artist, who shook the entire nation with his mastered art of forgery in printing duplicate stamp papers. The scam spanned across 12 states and estimated to the amount of 20,000 crore plus. With support from numerous Government Departments this scam one of the first few which brought to light the shameful corrupt practices of the politicians and the beaurocrats alike.

4 – SATYAM SCAM
Satyam scam is the biggest fraud in the Indian corporate industry till date, amounting to 14,000 crore. The disgraced former chairman, Ramalinga Raju is accused of fudging the books of accounts for several years and inflating revenues and profit figures of Satyam. His efforts to fill the “fictitious assets with real ones” through Maytas acquisition failed, after which he decided to confess the crime. India’s fourth largest IT company lost a staggering Rs 10,000 crore (Rs 100 billion) in market capitalisation as investors reacted sharply and dumped shares, pushing down the scrip by 78 per cent to Rs 39.95 on the Bombay Stock Exchange in a single day.

5 – IPL SCAM
Never before has a scam been enjoyed and celebrated by such a massive proportion of Indian people. A lot of the IPL activity has been alleged to be unethical, unlawful and sometimes illegal. Politicians and others are said to be laundering black money via Mauritius and other tax havens which hide investors’ identities through shell companies and false names. There are suggestions that matches and bids for team franchises have been fixed, and that there have been bribes, tax evasion, illegal betting, and breaches of foreign investment rules. At the centre of the growth, and the controversy, was Lalit Modi, creator and chairman of the IPL and former vice president of the highly politicised Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI).

6 – BOFORS SCAM
The Bofors scandal is known as the hallmark of Indian corruption. In the 1980s,the then PM Rajiv Gandhi and several others including a powerful NRI family named the Hindujas, were accused of receiving kickbacks from Bofors AB for winning a bid to supply India’s 155 mm field howitzer. The Swedish State Radio had broadcast a startling report about an undercover operation carried out by Bofors, Sweden’s biggest arms manufacturer, whereby $16 million were allegedly paid to members of PM Rajiv Gandhi’s Congress.

7 - HARSHAD MEHTA SCAM
Popularly known as the Big Bull, Harshad Mehta took advantages of the loopholes in the banking system and triggered a rise in the Bombay Stock Exchange in the year 1992 by trading in shares at a premium across many segments. He and his associates diverted funds to the tune of about Rs 5,000 crore (Rs 50 billion) from the banks to stockbrokers between April 1991 to May 1992. He was later charged with 72 criminal offences.

8 – COBBLER SCAM
In1995 another Scam of magnanimous proportions was exposed. Sohin Daya of Dawood Shoes, Rafique Tejani of Metro Shoes, and Kishore Signapurkar of Milano Shoes were arrested in this multi-crore shoes scam on the charges of availing loans of crores of rupees on behalf of fictitious leather co-operative societies and taking advantage of these through various schemes. Officials of various state banks were also charge sheeted.


9 – FODDER SCAM
More commonly known as the “Chara Ghotala”, this scam was worth a whooping 900 core and involved the infamous and forever popular Bihar politician Lalu Prasad Yadav. The scam involved fabrication of “vast herds of fictitious livestock” for which fodder, medicine and animal husbandry equipment was supposedly procured.


10 - HAWALA SCANDAL
Yet another widely publicized bribery scandal which came out in 1996. It involved payments to the tune of $18 milion received by Country’s leading politicians through hawala brokers. The list of accused included the then leader of the opposition Lal Krishna Advani. The masses were left shocked as all the major political players were being accused of having accepted bribes and also alleged connections about payments being channelled to Hizbul Mujahideen militants in Kashmir.

CONCLUSION
So this concludes the list of TOP 10 biggest Indian scams of all times. According to the compilation, the total amount of money involved in various scams over the last 12 years alone, since 1992, is estimated to be over Rs 80 lakh crore (Rs 80 trillion) or $1.80 trillion!
To many people abroad, India is seen sentimentally as Mahatma Gandhi’s country of khadi cloth, good ethics, and care for the poor. To some it is an economic miracle and a future super power, while to others it is an unkind cruel place of caste, ethnic and rich-poor divisions and violence. Above all however, and not far below the surface, India is a maze of unethical, unlawful and illegal swindles that link most politicians, many bureaucrats, and a large number of businessmen and others.

What are some mind blowing facts about Delhi?

 1. After Nairobi in Kenya, The Delhi ridge makes it the World’s Second most bird-rich Capital city

2. The wholesale market at Azadpur is Asia's largest fruit and vegetable market. Nearly 3,000 trucks bring in fruits and vegetables here daily for over 30,000 retail vendors.

3. One of the intersting fact about Delhi is that it has an International Toilet museum.

4. Originally, The walled city of Delhi had fourteen gates and now only 5 are standing. They are: Kashmiri Gate: Pointing North to Kashmir; Ajmeri Gate: Facing Ajmer in Rajasthan; Lahori Gate: Facing Lahore in Pakistan; Delhi Gate: Road to earlier cities of Delhi; Turkman Gate: Named after pious saint Hazrat Shah Turkam.

5. Khari Baoli, a street in Old Delhi, is the Asia's largest wholesale spice market.

6. Gandhi Nagar Market, is Asia’s biggest ready-made garments/textile market.

7. Delhi have a bird sanctuary(Okhla Bird Sanctuary) along with a wildlife sanctuary(Asola Bhatti Wildlife Sanctuary).

8.World’s tallest brick minaret the Qutub Minar is in Delhi-

Qutub Minar is a 73-meters (239.5 feet) tall tapering tower of five storeys, with a 14.3 meters (47 feet) base diameter, reducing to 2.7 meters (9 feet) at the top of the peak and forms the part of Qutub Complex,a world heritage site in Mehrauli

9. Jama Masjid built in 1656 by Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan is one of the largest mosques in India is in Delhi

10. The Delhi Metro, which covers a distance of nearly 330 km, is the world's 5th largest metro in the entire world. According to Delhi Metro’s official website, it has helped in removing around seven lakh vehicles from the streets of Delhi.

11. Completed in 1986, Lotus Temple in Delhi is the only place of worship of the Baha’i community in South Asia. The Lotus Temple is open to people of all faiths.

A 2001 CNN report referred to it as the most visited building in the world.The Lotus Temple has won numerous architectural awards and has been featured in many newspaper and magazine articles.

12. Delhi hosted first ever Asian Games in 1951

It held from 4 to 11 march 1951 and National Stadium was the venue for all events. Countries invited included almost all the independent Asian countries of the time except Soviet Union and Vietnam, due to the political structure of those nations.A total of 489 athletes representing 11 Asian NationalOlympic Committes (NOCs) participated in 57 events from eight Sports and Disciplines.

Delhi Again hosted Asian Games in 1982

Indian Athletes Marching into the stadium in 1951

13. Delhi's has one of Asia's largest Electronics market. The place is Nehru Place.

14.New Delhi dubbed as Lutyens Delhi

Large parts of New Delhi were planned by a British architect Edwin Lutyens and to honor his contribution in building the city it is also dubbed as Lutyens Delhi.

15. Akshardham is the largest Hindu Temple in the World.

On 17 December 2007, Michael Whitty, an official world record adjudicator for Guinness Book of World Record , travelled to Ahmedabad, India to present a new world record to Pramukh Swami Maharaj, the spiritual leader of BAPS Swaminarayan Sanstha, for the Akshardham complex.The record was presented for Akshardham as the World's Largest Comprehensive Hindu Temple.

The certificate states,”BAPS Swaminarayan Akshardham in New Delhi, India, is the world's largest comprehensive Hindu temple. It measures 356 ft (109 m). long, 316 ft (96 m). wide and 141 ft (43 m). high, covering an area of 86,342 sq ft (8,021.4 m2).

16. Delhi’s public transport the DTC or Delhi Transport Corporation runs one of the world’s largest fleet of environment-friendly CNG buses.

17. UN certified

In 2011, United Nations certified DMRC as the first metro and rail-based system that gets carbon credits for reducing greenhouse gas emissions. It helps in reducing 630,000 tonnes of city pollution level each year.

18. First extradossed bridge in India

The first extradosed bridge in our country was constructed by DMRC. It is between Pragati Maidan and Indraprastha station on the Blue Line.

19. Trams were used in Delhi too!

Trams in India Began operation ion 6th march 1908 in Chandni Chowk. It has 24 cars in 15 km of track.The system closed in 1963 due to urban congestion.

20. Oldest Cricket Stadium In India

After Eden Garden in Kolkata, Firoz Shah Kotla stadium is the second oldest stadium in India. It was built in 1883 and is still in use.