Thus Spake the Divine - Temple And Divine Arts

Thus Spake the Divine

Temple And Divine Arts

Megasthenes, who visited India 2000 years ago, has mentioned in his works the characteristics of Indians; that they were highly virtuous, they never knew to tell lies and they would never wish to appropriate other people’s properties. I wish our people had remained the same as they were 2000 years ago!

What is the reason for virtuous nature of people in those days as compared to these days? It is all because of the environment in which people then lived. In ancient times, people used to visit temples regularly. There, they listened to religious discourses on different subjects, including Mahabharata. Kingdoms of those times provided subsidies for such discourses. People followed the Varna Dharma and other related Shastras. Therefore, they remained virtuous.

In this modern era, there are many distractions that draw people towards immorality. There are in circulation a lot of visuals and books, which are contrary to Dharma. While people are struggling to protect themselves from such distractions, there are different political parties ruining the peace of people. There is anxiety, discontentment, immorality and corruption everywhere.

During the ancient period, religious discourses flourished for generations together. Now, professionals are delivering discourses and they do not hand them over to their next generation. Same is the case with priests of temples too. There were scholars of Shastras, Sculptors and Architects, who cherished their profession and prospered for generations. But today, the scenario is different. The divine folk arts and culture, which were as old as thousands of years, are almost extinct. Similar is the case with renditions of Mahabharata, Harishchandra etc. by pujaris while playing the small drums (damaru) in temples of the village deity, Grama Devata (Presiding deity or guardian deity in Hindu village.)

Megasthenes had certified Indians when all arts and culture were at their highest points of prosperity. Today, we can with our own eyes see the pathetic state of people and the country with regard to arts and culture.

The only solution now is to convert temples into the central point of social life like in the ancient days. We should nurture ancient arts and culture associated with the divine. We must protect our places of worship as per Mantras and Rules prescribed in the ancient scriptures. Divine activities, such as renovation of temples etc. should be carried out by architects and sculptors well conversant with the rules of scriptures (Aagama Vidhi). There should be discourses on Mahabharata, Ramayana and other important epics on a regular basis.

If we focus our attention on all these matters, not only these professions but the entire country will prosper and flourish. If our country prospers, the entire world will prosper too!

This article is a snippet from the Book Thus Spake the Divine, is available online at www.giri.in and across Giri Trading Agency Private Limited, A chain of Speciality Stores dealing in all kinds of products needed in Indian Culture and Tradition.