Ahimsa Times 2009 03 SrNo 105

Author(s): Ahimsa Times
Publisher: Ahimsa Times

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AHIMSA TIMES - MARCH 2009 ISSUE - www.jainsamaj.org
sections could be deleted from the minority list and finally the entire list of minorities is deleted forever. He said the Supreme Court is also in favour of the creation of the society where the divisions of majority and minority become irrelevant. "This attitude of the Supreme Court should be acceptable to all of us and we should move in that direction only so that the unity and harmony continues between all sections of the society," he added.
He further said all these sections of the society existed even during the British regime and nobody was then divided on the basis of minority or majority. "Then why the unity of the nation is being dented in the name of cheaper issues. We have been living together for centuries and in future also we will live together. I wish to state in clear words that granting the status of minority to any section of the Hindu society anywhere in the country is wrong and illegal and should be rejected out rightly," he added.
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Swami Hansdas, General secretary of Akhil Bharatiya Sant Samiti, criticised the government move to divide the society on the basis of minority and majority. Dr Surendra Jain, national spokesperson of VHP, said the minoritysm is a curse for the integrity of the country and it would prove very costly to the country. Kalikapeethadhishwar Mahant Surendra Avadhoot and Swami Bhaktiswaroopanand also spoke at the Dharma Sabha. The meeting also adopted a unanimous resolution, which said the Jains are an integral part of Hindu society and granting them minority status will damage the unity of the Hindu society.
POSTAGE STAMP OF JAIN SAINT ACHARYA SHREE VIJAY VALLABH SURISHWAR JI On 21st February, 2009, a commemorative postage stamp of very progressive Jain Saint Acharya Shree Vijay Vallabh Surishwar Ji Maharaj (1870-1954) was released by the Hon. Shri A. Raja, Union Minister of Communication and Information at Chennai of the value of Rs.5 each along with First Day Covers and Brochures on Gurudev. Postage stamps and other paraphernalia worth about Rs.50 lacs have been printed and distributed by the Govt. through its various prestigious post offices throughout India. Source: Mr. Raj Kumar Jain, EMail: rkjain@enkayrub.com
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BRAIN SURGERY OF ACHARYA YASHOVIJAY SURI JI PERFOMED SUCCESSFULLY AT PITTSBURGH MEDICAL CENTER - In A six-hour brain surgery performed in Pittsburgh, University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, the surgeons restored sight to a man whose followers consider him to be a living god. Acharya Yashovijaysuri Ji Maharaj, aged 63 years, a great scholar of Jainism, one of the world's oldest religions, was later discharged.. Neurosurgeons removed a golf ball-sized tumor from deep in his brain by pulling it through his nose. After the operation, he felt comfortable and said, "my eye sight has progressed more than expected."
A REPORT FROM PITTSBURGH MEDICAL CENTER
Since age 11, Yashovijaysuri has devoted himself to the Jain religion, centered in India. Its basic tenets are nonviolence, open-mindedness and a lack of materialism. To avoid killing anything, Yashovijaysuri sweeps the ground before he steps, is vegetarian and doesn't wear clothing that is sewn because stitching could harm microorganisms. Several years ago, he lost sight in his left eye. He was beginning to lose vision in his right eye when Jain follower Dr. Dinesh Mehta, a retired oncologist in Antwerp, Belgium, learned about the problem from other followers. "He would never complain about it himself," Mehta said. "He doesn't care for his own life." Mehta persuaded Yashovijaysuri to get a brain scan, which showed a growing, noncancerous tumor pushing on his optic nerve. Doctors in India opened his skull but couldn't remove the tumor because it was deep, fibrous and fed by blood vessels. Mehta consulted medical colleagues who suggested a technique pioneered by UPMC neurosurgeon Dr. Amin Kassam. It allows surgeons to reach and remove a tumor through a patient's nostril and sinus cavity, using tiny knives, clamps and cameras.
Mehta and fellow Jain follower Shrikant Parikh of Houston researched the surgery. "I went to 15 doctors, and they all pointed us to Pittsburgh," said Parikh. One problem: Yashovijaysuri had never traveled by a method other than foot because he cannot clear the path before him of insects or micro-organisms if he rides by car, bicycle, train, plane or boat. Mehta and Parikh persuaded Yashovijaysuri's 1 million followers to grant the guru permission
http://jainsamaj.org/magazines/march-2009.htm
8/11/2009