Kumbha (Kumbh) Mela is a mass pilgrimage centered on the ritual of riverside bathing, it is variously called the the Great Indian Bathing Festival, the Urn Festival, the Pitcher Festival and so forth. It occurs four times every twelve years rotating between Allahabad/Prayaga at the confluence of the rivers Ganga (Ganges), Jamuna (Yamuna) and the concealed Saraswati, Haridwar (Hara Dwar) on the river Ganga (Ganges), Ujjain on the river Kshipra (Shipra), and Nasik on the river Godavari (Gomati)
Bathing in these rivers during the Kumbha (Kumbh) Mela is considered an endeavour of great merit, cleansing both body and spirit. The Allahabad and Haridwar (Hara Dwar) festivals are routinely attended by five million or more pilgrims; the Kumbha (Kumbh) Mela is the largest religious gathering in the world. It may also be the oldest
Two traditions are in circulation regarding the origin and timing of the festival: one that stems from ancient texts known as the Puranas, and the other that connects it with astrological considerations. According to the Puranic epic, the gods and demons had churned the milky ocean at the beginning of time in order to gather various divine treasures including a jar containing a potion of immortality - Ambrosia. As the jar emerged from the ocean the gods and demons began a terrific battle for its possession. During the battle, which according to one legend the gods won by trickery, four drops of the precious potion fell to earth, when Jayantha (Jayanth) the son of the chief deity Indra carried the jar (Kumbha/kumbh) that held the ambrosia in the form of a giant bird - these places became the sites of the four Kumbha (Kumbh) Mela festivals, according to another legend he ran away with the jar and hid them on twelve locations on earth where few drops of ambrosia fell, four of these places are known and identified as the four sites for the Kumbh (Kumbh) Mela, the other eight locations are being researched by our team
The astrological tradition (ascribed to a lost Puranic text and not traceable in extant editions) seems to stem from a very ancient festival called the Kumbha Parva, which occurred at Hardwar every twelfth year when Jupiter was in Aquarius (the Indian name being Kumbha/Kumbh) and the sun entered Aries
At some later time the term 'Kumbha (Kumbh)' was prefixed to the Melas held at Prayaga, Ujjain, and Nasik and these four sites became identified with the four mythical locations of the immortality potion - Ambrosia. In theory the Kumbha (Kumbh) Mela festivals are supposed to occur every three years, rotating between the four cities. In practice the four-city cycle may actually take eleven or thirteen years and this because of the difficulties and controversies in calculating the astrological conjunctions. Furthermore the interval between the Kumbha Mela at Nasik and that at Ujjain is not of three years; they are celebrated the same year or only a year apart. This deviation in practice is intriguing and cannot be fully explained by either astrological or mythological means.
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As most high school and college students are busy tackling tests or taking it easy during spring break, student teams from across the Americas are preparing for the ultimate extracurricular activity – designing, building, and testing a vehicle that travels the farthest distance using the least amount of energy. After months of coordinating designs and constructing vehicles, 43 student teams – among 9 high schools and 29 universities – are putting the finishing touches on their vehicles for the 2010 Shell Eco-marathon Americas energy challenge. These leaders of tomorrow, and their fuel-efficient creations, will soon take to the streets of downtown Houston, March 26-28 around Discovery Green Park. We’ll find out if these students can beat the 2,757.1 miles per gallon (1,172.2 kilometers per liter) achieved in 2009 by Laval University, but more than that, the students will grant us a glimpse into the fuels, technologies and transportation of tomorrow.
To view Multimedia News Release, go to http://multivu.prnewswire.com/mnr/shelloil/42793/
Kelley Blue Book www.kbb.com, the leading provider of new and used vehicle information, announces the all-new 2011 model-year vehicle winners of its annual Best Resale Value Awards, which recognize current and forthcoming vehicles for their projected retained value five years from now. Since depreciation (or loss of value) is typically a car-buyer’s primary expense during ownership, these awards, like all of kbb.com’s new- and used-vehicle information, are designed to help consumers make more informed car-buying decisions.
To view Multimedia News Release, go to http://multivu.prnewswire.com/mnr/kbb/46048/
Despite the economic crisis in the U.S. which has put many out of work and forced others to accept decreased benefits and pay, two in five Americans (41%) say this Thanksgiving they feel that they have more to be thankful for than a few years ago. Another two in five (41%) say they have about as much to be thankful for this Thanksgiving, compared to a few years ago and just over one in ten (13%) say they have less to be thankful for this year; 5% say they are not sure.
These are some of the results of The Harris Poll of 3,084 adults surveyed online between October 11 and 18, 2010 by Harris Interactive.
To view Multimedia News Release, go to http://multivu.prnewswire.com/mnr/harrisinteractive/44735/
Edwards Lifesciences Corporation (NYSE: EW), the global leader in the science of heart valves and haemodynamic monitoring, announced the results of a pivotal clinical study of high-risk surgical patients with severe aortic stenosis treated in Cohort A of The PARTNER Trial. These data demonstrate that the study achieved its primary endpoint at one year, concluding that survival of patients treated with the Edwards SAPIEN transcatheter aortic valve was equivalent to those treated with surgical aortic valve replacement. The data were presented at the American College of Cardiology’s (ACC) 60th Annual Scientific Session & Expo in New Orleans, LA, USA.
To view Multimedia News Release, go to http://multivu.prnewswire.com/mnr/prne/edwardslifesciences/48895/
Say hello to a new kind of breakfast in the U.S. – belVita Breakfast Biscuits – hitting shelves this month! New belVita Breakfast Biscuits are delicious, lightly sweet crunchy breakfast biscuits baked with whole grain, specially developed to provide nutritious sustained energy to fuel your body for the whole morning.
Rather than tell you about the belVita Breakfast lifestyle, we thought we’d show you! belVita Breakfast has partnered with cultural tastemakers from across the country who exemplify the belVita Breakfast lifestyle and champion sustained morning energy. These individuals, better known as “Power Up Pros,” are driven, optimistic and active – heralded for their creativity and entrepreneurialism.
To view Multimedia News Release, go to http://www.multivu.com/players/English/53560-belvita-breakfast-biscuits
Traditional Chinese folk dance and song have been passed down generation to generation for thousands of years. A unique opportunity to experience some of these cultural traditions was shared with audiences in Austin, Texas with Treasures of the Yunnan Province. This special one-time cultural exchange performance featuring dancers, singers, magicians and acrobats from the People’s Republic of China, occurred on January 12, 2011 at the historic Paramount Theatre in downtown Austin at 713 Congress Avenue.
To view Multimedia News Release, go to http://multivu.prnewswire.com/mnr/austinchamber/48079/
A statue is located along the park when a boy noticed that the statue is dancing. The boy laughs at the statue. The statue got angry and expresses his anger through his face. The boy freaked out and ran way. More of these clips in www.adasport.com. Come on and Vote! Vote for the clip that you like best!
http://blog.princetonreviewhk.com - Joan Yee, the Princeton Review Hong Kong’s Executive Director explains why further education is important during these difficult times. She describes why attaining a Master’s degree is the solution.
The bold and thrilling quest to finally understand the brain—and along with it our mental afflictions, from depression to autism—by a rising star in neuroscience
Sebastian Seung, a dynamic young professor at MIT, is at the forefront of a revolution in neuroscience. He believes that our identity lies not in our genes, but in the connections between our brain cells—our own particular wiring. Seung and a dedicated group of researchers are leading the effort to map these connections, neuron by neuron, synapse by synapse. It is a monumental effort—the scientific equivalent of climbing Mount Everest—but if they succeed, they will uncover the basis of personality, identity, intelligence, memory, and perhaps disorders such as autism and schizophrenia. Seung explains how this new map of a human “connectome” might even enable us to “upload” our brains into a computer, making us effectively immortal.
Connectome is a mind-bending adventure story, told with great passion and authority. It presents a daring scientific and technological vision for at last understanding what makes us who we are, both as individuals and as a species. Find out more here, http://bit.ly/yEBoyq Non-Fiction
http://freepeoplesearchengines.weebly.com presents Free People Search Engines - Are They Any Good? Get information on Zabasearch, Skipease and Social Networking sites. Find out how to use these sites and if they are any good.
