Indian Newslink 15th Sept 2016 Digital Edition

SEPTEMBER 15, 2016
24 COMMUNITYLINK
Ganesha ‘At Home’ invokes piety and festive spirit
Venkat Raman
venkat@indiannewslink.co.nz
For millions of Hindus
all over the world, Lord
Ganesha is an epitome of
love, respect, friendship,
admiration and adoration. He is
an important member of every
family and is the first Lord of
Prayer.
Vedic scriptures describe Lord
Ganesha as the Most Merciful
of Gods and hence, prayers are
offered before the start of any
venture. Similarly, all prayers
– at home, at temples and at
other social and community
gatherings, begin with obeisance
to this God, the first son of Lord
Shiva and Goddess Parvathi.
Ganesh Chaturthi, marking
the Birthday of Lord Ganesha
is celebrated by Hindus everywhere.
This year’s celebration
was held on Monday, September
5, 2016.
While Temples and social
groups performed special
Poojas on that day, Ganesh
Chaturthi was also marked by
thousands of people in their
homes throughout New Zealand.
Each evening witnessed visits
by relatives and friends, which,
apart from the religious aspect,
also served to foster goodwill
and understanding.
The Pooja
Writing in Indian Newslink
September 15, 2015 issue, Sai
Bedekar, one of our photographers,
had said that Ganesh
Pooja involves the ‘Panchamrut’
Myopia can be seen as the root of delinquency
According to former Principal
Youth Court judge Andrew
Becroft, the top 20% of youth
offenders come from seriously
deprived backgrounds with
Priyanca Radhakrishnan
fathers who might be in prison
and mothers who have
trouble monitoring links with
education.
In the United Kingdom, 23%
to 32% of Youth Court attendees
have learning disabilities compared
to 2% to 4% of the general
population.
There is significant research
on the correlation between
learning disabilities and juvenile
delinquency.
There is evidence to suggest
that children with undiagnosed
vision problems are often mistakenly
branded as delinquents.
It may not then be a complete
leap of logic to wonder whether
undiagnosed vision problems
may lead to low educational
achievements, perceived delinquency
and sooner rather than
later, actual delinquency.
I
started wearing glasses at
the age of seven.
My first pair, lovingly
chosen by my mother, was
baby pink and incredibly thick.
I was delighted at the prospect
of wearing glasses – such a
grown-up thing to do.
My mother was significantly
less excited that her child was
so severely shortsighted at a
very young age.
She asked me why I had not
mentioned to her or to my
teacher that I was struggling
to see people and objects. I remember
telling her that I just
thought that vision loss was a
part of growing up; because, after
all, my parents and all my
grandparents wore glasses!
Although I had been struggling
to read what was on the
blackboard, it did not occur to
me to mention it to anyone or
ask for help.
It was only through the routine
school eye-screening programme
that everyone realised
that I was quite shortsighted.
Anecdotal evidence
Anecdotal evidence indicates
that there are a number of children
in New Zealand who are
possibly going through what I
did, and are not telling anyone
that they are struggling to see
or read.
Many are finding it hard to
achieve at school because they
have eyesight problems.
Lord Ganesha in
Temple Architecture
or ‘five nectars,’ including milk,
curd, ghee, honey and jaggery,
with which the idol is bathed. He
is then soiled with sandal paste
and cleaned with water.
“The Lord is then adorned by
a red cloth called, ‘Vastra’ and
the sacred thread. He is offered
red flowers, ‘durva’ (grass), red
hibiscus and food and smeared
with ‘kumkum.’ A lamp is lit and
Pooja bells ring while reciting
Aarti. The main sweet-dish presented
as ‘nevedya’ through this
period is Modakas (Modagams
in South India) and Karanjis. A
Modaka is like a dumpling made
from rice flour with a stuffing of
fresh coconut, jaggery and dry
fruits and is either steam-cooked
or fried. Karanjis are half-moon
shaped and taste like modakas.
On the last day, following the
Pooja, rice grains are placed on
the head of the idol.
At sunset, the idol is immersed
in a well or a river, with the
recitation of ‘Ganapati Bappa
Moraya, Pudchya Varshi Lawkar
Ya,’ inviting Him to return next
year.”
Auspicious Day
Ganesh Chaturthi is observed
Essilor Vision Foundation
The Essilor Vision Foundation
has been offering free vision
testing to children in low decile
schools for over a year.
Since the pilot programme at a
Hawke’s Bay decile one school
in 2015, the Foundation has
tested about 600 children from
low decile Auckland schools
and found that more than one
in seven need glasses.
The Foundation also offers
free testing and free glasses
for children under 16 years.
According to Kumuda Setty,
a Trustee of the Foundation,
these statistics are similar
to statistics in developing
countries.
This raises concerns that
thousands of other school children
could be living with undiagnosed
eyesight conditions.
It is a worry because there is
a clear link between vision and
academic achievement.
International research indicates
that about 80% of children’s
learning is visual.
On September 3, 2016, the
Foundation partnered with
the New Zealand Kannada
Koota (an association for people
from the South Indian State
Chinmay, Shekhar, Vidya and Shruti Teke at
their Home
on the fourth day of the bright
fortnight of Bhadrapada and is
observed by devoted Hindus all
over the world from two to 11
days.
Maharashtrians, like their
Hindu compatriots worldwide,
induct their children into
learning with ‘Om Sri Ganeshaya
Namaha.’
Several Names
Ganesha is known by a variety
of names including Aumkara,
Balachandra, Dhoomraketu, Ekadantha,
Gajakarnaka, Gajanana,
Heramba, Kapila, Lambodara,
Siddhivinayaka, Skandapurvaja,
Sumukha, Surpakarna, Vakratunda,
Vignaraja, Vigneshwara and
Vinayaka. He is also known by
many as Maha-Ganapathi.
There are also public celebrations
called ‘Sarvajanik Ganeshotsav’
of this festival in various
parts of cities, with the local
communities (mandals) with
contributions from residents. It is
common for groups to compete
in creating the biggest and best
idol and in presenting cultural
programmes after dusk.
Radical nationalist Bal Gangadhar
Tilak organised Ganesh
of Karnataka) to pilot a community
vision-screening programme.
Ninety Kannada Koota
members were screened in the
first screening offered to adult
migrants.
Strategic partnership
I attended this screening on
behalf of Louisa Wall, Labour
MP for Manurewa and Patron
of the Foundation. It was a
privilege to learn more about
the partnership between the
Foundation and Kannada
Koota, the support from optometrists
like Campbell
and Campbell and final year
Optometry students from
Auckland University who were
also supporting the initiative.
I learned about some of the
barriers to accessing eyesight
testing.
Cost is an obvious one, and
as income inequality increases,
parents are often forced to
work two or even three jobs
to make ends meet. There is
no time to take the children to
have their eyes tested!
Barriers to testing
Lack of awareness of the
need for vision screening is another
barrier.
Many migrants wait till their
Abhay and Varsha Dhoke marking Ganesh
Chaturthi in their new house in Melbourne
Utsav in 1893 and since then, the
festival is held throughout Maharashtra,
evincing widespread
community interest.
Shekhar & Vidya Teke
Popular musician, teacher and
performer Vidya Teke (who hails
from Maharashtra) celebrated
Ganesh Chaturthi this year with
a theme at her Mt Roskill home
in Auckland.
“Our emphasis this year was
‘Save the Environment and
Mother Earth.’ We had installed
an eco-friendly idol of Lord
Ganesha in our home. We do
not intend to immerse the idol
(‘Visarjan’ Ceremony) in the sea.
We will place the idol of our favourite
God in a pot full of water
in our home garden. Thereafter,
we will use that water to nourish
plants,” she said.
Abhay & Varsha Dhoke
Ganesh Chaturthi was ‘very
special’ for former New Zealanders
Abhay and Varsha Dhoke
(Maharashtrians) who now
reside in Melbourne, Australia.
They marked the Ceremony with
great piety on September 5 in
their new home.
“We feel extremely blessed to
annual visit back home to get
their eyes and teeth checked.
I relate to this because I fall
squarely into that category!
Quality of healthcare in
India can be compared to New
Zealand standards, and is much
cheaper. However, conditions
are very different between the
two countries, such that the
lenses you get there may not
protect your eyes from specific
New Zealand conditions. For
example, Ultraviolet intensities
in the New Zealand summer
are extreme on the international
UV Index scale.
So, while it is cheaper to buy
your glasses in India, you may
not be getting the protection
you need in New Zealand.
There was also talk of stigma
attached to wearing glasses
and parents not wanting to acknowledge
that their children
may be shortsighted.
Here’s the thing – it’s not optional.
If your child cannot see
properly, it is likely to affect his
or her educational achievement
and potentially, even impact later
in life.
Young Offenders
Let us consider the issue of
youth offending.
V S Srinivas and Chithkala in their Balmoral Home
have completed construction of
our new home according to our
requirements and perform the
‘Grahapravesh’ (Opening) Ceremony
three days earlier. Many
colleagues and friends visited
our home on Ganesh Chaturthi
and the following days,” Mr
Dhoke said.
V S Srinivas & Chithkala
It has been a significant year
for V S Srinivas and his wife
Chithkala, who hail from the
Princely city of Mysore, which
was once the capital of Karnataka.
While he pursues his career
as an Immigration Administrator
at a law firm, she is a software
specialist at a commercial
organisation.
They performed ‘Ganapathi
Pooja’ in the presence of a number
of colleagues and friends at
their Balmoral home on Monday,
September 5.
“It has been a special
experience. I learnt a lot about
the Hindu religion and the importance
of the Ganesh Festival,”
Aaron Martin, his colleague and
Immigration Law Practitioner
at Turner Hopkins Barristers,
Solicitors and Notary Public, said.
Priyanca Radhakrishnan is a
voracious reader, champions
social and community causes
and is a strong advocate of
ethnic and gender diversity in
corporate governance and in
public life. She is a Member of
the Labour Party Policy Council
and lives in Auckland.
If your community organisation
is doing something
interesting and you would
like her to visit, please write
to priyanca02@gmail.com