[IMC-Editorial] [India Thinkers Net] Christmas in India

[India Thinkers Net at Zinester.com]

A Hindu temple joins Christmas celebrations 

Rohit Ghosh (IANS)
Bhopal, December 23 

A Hindu temple in Madhya Pradesh, is gearing up to join 
churches across the State in celebrating Christmas this 
year, with a tableau depicting Jesus Christ's birth joining 
its idols of gods and goddesses.

The grand temple dedicated to Balaji, an incarnation of 
Krishna, Hinduism's most revered god, has been decorated 
with the tableau and a big Christmas tree, festooned with 
balloons, ribbons and toys.

With Christmas only two days away, many of the temple's 
priests have given up their saffron robes to dress as Santa 
Claus as they perform religious ceremonies.

The tableau, placed in front of the temple's huge edifice 
with the idols of Hindu gods and goddesses inside, has 
become the talk of the town in Betul.

"The number of people visiting the temple has increased 
since the tableau and the tree were set up," said a temple 
official.

None other than the temple's priests toiled day and night 
to decorate the Christmas tree. Till a few days back, one 
could see the saffron-clad priests busy hanging balloons 
and ribbons on the tree.

Apart from Hindu devotional songs, one can hear Christmas 
carols at the temple. On Tuesday, a priest dressed as Santa 
Claus was seen distributing toffees and small gifts to 
children visiting the temple.

This is the first time that Christmas is being celebrated in 
the Balaji temple. The temple's owner Sam Verma, a famous 
industrialist and aviator of Madhya Pradesh, mooted the 
idea for the celebration.

"In the present times, when society is being divided on 
communal lines, we are trying to set an example for unity 
and harmony," said Anil Mishra, the temple's manager.

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TODAYS EDITORIAL
Meri Christmas

[ THURSDAY, DECEMBER 25, 2003 12:00:24 AM ]
 
Xmas becomes part of the ongoing celebration that is India 

  

"Deck the malls with boughs of holly,/ 'Tis the season to 
make lolly./ Tra la la la,/ La la la!" This post-modern 
pastiche of the traditional Christmas carol will be seized 
upon by critics who deplore the commercialisation of the 
Yuletide season. 

True, the jingle bells associated with Xmas are increasingly 
associated with the chimes of cash registers ringing up 
sales, as Santa goes laughing 'Ho, ho, ho' all the way to 
the bank. 


Like Diwali, Holi, Id and other festivals, Christmas has 
become a money-spinning industry, thanks to greeting 
cards, gifts, get-togethers and the other bells and whistles 
of celebration. But is that something to decry or delight in? 


Must the profit motive necessarily be a profane travesty 
of the spiritual? In the larger Indic ethos, our religious 
festivals have always had social and secular connotations. 

  

For example, the day before Diwali, devotees observe 
'Dhan Teras' by buying gold ornaments. On Diwali itself, 
Lakshmi the goddess of wealth is customarily wooed by 
celebrants playing flush and other card games. 

  

Similarly, Bengal 's joyous Durga Puja embraces all 
irrespective of creed. Indeed, Durga herself has often 
been imaged from time to time as an Indira Gandhi, 
a Mother Teresa or more recently as the Indian-born 
American astronaut Kalpana Chawla. 

 
In a sense all our festivities are a spontaneous 
expression of Bhakti, a celebration both of the spiritual 
and the material. For true Bhakti knows that the 
supposed distinction between the two is really illusory. 


And if today Iftar parties are deemed to be not just 
politically correct but indeed mandatory among our 
netas, why not extend the celebrations to Christmas as well? 

After all, the central message of Christmas — peace 
on earth and goodwill to all — has never been more 
relevant or more necessary than in today's contentious 
climate. And in that sense the appeal of Christmas is 
truly universal. 



Making Christmas a red letter day on our calendar 
enlarges and underscores the multicultural plurality 
that we have always gloried in. 


Christmas in India has long come in many flavours and 
textures, from the Syrian Christian mass sung in Kerala 
to the Bengali Bhadralok's end-of-the-year 'baro din' with 
the savour of plum cake and mince pies. 


In Goa , Christmas is the forerunner of the festive Carnival 
while the streets of Mumbai glow with the stars of wonder, 
stars of light that mark the Yuletide season. 


Christmas is a time of many gifts. And the greatest of 
these gifts is Christmas itself which brings us all together 
to rejoice in our common joys and cares. 
 
 
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow/381460.cms


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