Kartheeka is an auspicious month in the Hindu calendar meant for nurturing spiritual thought and conducting various religious events. The rituals have a scientific bearing too, as the lighting of ‘Kartheeka deepams’ all over is meant to keep us warm and ward off creatures, as the advent of winter makes the days cooler and darker.
Noted Vedic scholar and spiritual orator Chaganti Koteswara Rao gave a three-day spiritual discourse at Mahati auditorium in Tirupati last weekend, conducted as part of the ‘Mana Gudi’ programme by Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD). He made a series of serious observations on the importance of Kartheeka month. “The lighting of a series of oil wick lamps with cow ghee signifies enhancing internal wisdom by destroying ego. According to Greek scientists, the Sun, which bestows life and health, stays away from the Earth during this period, giving scope for diseases to prevail. It was the ancient wisdom of Indian sages to advocate lighting of lamps with cow ghee, which wards off evil creatures and negative forces”, he explained.
The Karthika month signifies the moon coming in conjunction with the constellation ‘Kritthika’ (Pleiades), which appears as a group of six stars in the firmament in the shape of a pendant from the ear. He called upon elders to make the children write ‘Rama koti’ for an hour every day.
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On the ‘Mana Gudi’ programme meant to highlight the importance of temples in the shaping of a better society, Koteswara Rao appealed to the TTD to maintain it as a regular event. He also urged the denizens to volunteer to clean and beautify the temples in their vicinity with a ‘sense of belonging’.
The series of lectures was well received as the auditorium remained packed on all the three days. Executive Officer M.G. Gopal, joint executive officer P. Bhaskar, Hindu Dharma Prachara Parishat special officer B.Raghunath took part.