The Ekadashi for liberation: Yogini Ekadashi

Yogini Ekadashi falls in the Krishna paksha of Asaramas. Today, an idol of Lord Narayan is installed by fasting, and is revered. Offering vog means offering food, fruits, Naivedh, etc. It is the broad spectrum of living; Sanatan people consider the idol as a living god and treats it with grain, devotion, and other offerings. People donate to needy people under the grace of that idol, they lighten the incense sticks and also perform Aaratis.

Worshiping Peepal tree on this Ekadashi destroys all sins and attains paradise after death.  Peepal is the fairest plant, with its root reaching far, people won't prefer to plant it nearby houses, everyone worships the giant Peepal tree; however, no one fights for its fruit as Peepal fruit is not edible for human. Peepal's wood is not for household purpose, so Peepal brings lesser community greed and quarrel and more communal worship and gatherings underneath.

From the day of Dashmi, any tamasic food, including barley, wheat, or mung bean, is avoided. Apart from that, salt consumption refrained from fasting and one day in advance. Salt consumption accelerates the wandering characteristics of our mind, avoiding salt consumption means stabilizing the mind and bringing peace within.

In the kingdom of Alkapuri, Shivaji's supreme devotee Kuber Raja's kingdom, he used flowers in worship. Thus, a gardener named Hemmali used to bring flowers for the worship of the king. One day, Hemamali forgets to bring the daily worship flowers as he was having fun with his wife in Mansarovar.

Angered by the delay in worshiping his beloved Lord Shiva for not bringing flowers on time, King Kuber angrily curses Hemmali for the deprivation of a woman and for being sick. Due to his devotion to Shiva, Hemmali did not lose his conscience. His pursuit is to liberate from the curse and gets advice from a Rishi/ sage.

The same sage tells Hemmali about the vow of Yogini Ekadashi, and Hemmali returns to her old life under the influence of this Ekadashi vow. This Ekadashi gives healthy life to Hemmali; we all need a normal life after this lockdown, don't we?
Let's do well, think well, speak well, and reserve good feelings in our hearts. Best wishes.

World day to combat desertification and draught


One thing is bright! Nature does not follow us, and we must follow nature. The World Community has been celebrating World day to combat desertification and drought every year since 1995 to raise awareness and solidarity in the world community against increasing desertification and drought.

From food security to environmental issues, land conservation and other issues, this special day has been working to shed light on the world community. Draught has also been interpreted to some extent as a natural effect where the local climate changes drastically, and the productive lands gradually become unproductive as the productive capacity of the lands decreases. Similarly, desertification is the worst-case scenario where most areas are barren. Land-dependent human communities, agriculture, animal farming and, most importantly, declining food production, drought and desertification ultimately increase poverty.

With the increase in the human population, land distribution, division, and use in the last century have been truly tragic. Almost all the countries on the world map are at risk of drought and desertification sooner or later.

In Nepal, there is a growing desire to build a real forest rather than a fertile field. We acknowledge the victory in settling a house by unsettling a filed, but we also should understand that the farm and its productivity light a fire in our kitchen and satisfy our hunger.
The real use of land is agriculture. However, with the rise of land mafia and real estate trade on the world map, unfortunately, land use is being misinterpreted.

This may be the reason why 810 million people around the world are affected by the food crisis today. Laboratories/ factories that can make big aeroplanes, computers and machines have not been able to make a single pinch of soil by themselves. Have you heard of a soil factory? Remember that the rarest and vital things in the world are soil, water, sky, fire and air. As the five elements, Vedic Sanatan Samskara has called for the protection of these things. This balance between land, home and the future is our co-existence with nature.

The world has also seen a lot of people moving from one place to another as the productivity of land has decreased. If we can love the earth, the area loves us, let's enjoy the tree and pay attention to the conservation of the soil.

Let the clouds carry water and spray the land, let the greenery not leave behind and let there be ample growth of green fields instead of concrete houses. There is a loving relationship between clouds and streams of water. Where there are clouds, streams of water will flow, and where there are streams of water, greenery will not leave. There is greenery in the soil and life in the greenery. Hail!

Suyog Dhakal