scholarly journals Mānasa Bhajare: A Commentary on Sathya Sai Baba’s First Public Discourse

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Antonio Rigopoulos
Keyword(s):  
Andhra Pradesh ◽  
Public Discourse ◽  
Teaching Activity ◽  
The Village ◽  
Scholarly Attention

Ratnākaram Sathyanārāyaṇa Rāju alias Sathya Sai Baba (1926-2011), from the village of Puttaparthi in the Anantapur district of Andhra Pradesh, has been one of the most popular Indian gurus. Scholarly attention has focused on his charismatic figure, purported powers and transnational movement but very little on his teaching activity, though the guru considered it to be an essential part of his mission as an avatāra. Indeed he constantly engaged in teaching (upadeśa), both through his discourses and his writings. This article offers a commentary to his first public discourse, which he delivered in his ashram of Prasanthi Nilayam on 17 October 1953, on the final day of the Dasara festival.

scholarly journals Kaama-taguste udmurtide sügispalvus: rituaali etnograafiline kirjeldus välitööde põhjal

2018 ◽  
pp. 102-115
Author(s):  
Eva Toulouze
Keyword(s):  
19Th Century ◽  
Religious Practice ◽  
The Core ◽  
The Family ◽  
Family Level ◽  
Close Range ◽  
The Dead ◽  
The 19Th Century ◽  
The Village ◽  
Scholarly Attention

Eastern Udmurt autumn rituals: An ethnographic description based on fieldwork There is a good amount of literature about Eastern Udmurt religious practice, particularly under its collective form of village rituals, as the Eastern Udmurt have retained much of their ethnic religion: their ancestors left their villages in the core Udmurt territory, now Udmurtia, as they wanted to go on living according to their customs, threatened by forceful Evangelisation. While many spectacular features such as the village ceremonies have drawn scholarly attention since the 19th century, the Eastern Udmurt religious practice encompasses also more modest rituals at the family level, as for example commemorations of the dead, Spring and Autumn ceremonies. Literature about the latter is quite reduced, as is it merely mentioned both in older and more recent works. This article is based on the author's fieldwork in 2017 and presents the ceremonies in three different families living in different villages of the Tatyshly district of Bashkortostan. It allows us to compare them and to understand the core of the ritual: it is implemented in the family circle, with the participation of a close range of kin, and encompasses both porridge eating and praying. It can at least give an idea of the living practice of this ritual in today's Eastern Udmurt villages. This depends widely on the age of the main organisers, on their occupations: older retired people will organise more traditional rituals than younger, employed Udmurts. Further research will ascertain how much of this tradition is still alive in other districts and in other places.

Reform through Books

2020 ◽  
pp. 147-171
Author(s):  
Ahmed El Shamsy
Keyword(s):  
Public Discourse ◽  
Arabic Language ◽  
Life Goals ◽  
Diverse Range ◽  
Sociocultural Change ◽  
Religious Reform ◽  
Language Reform ◽  
European Languages ◽  
Growing Body ◽  
Scholarly Attention

This chapter focuses on two reformers, the Egyptian Muḥammad ʿAbduh (1849–1905) and the Syrian Ṭāhir al-Jazāʾirī (1852–1920). As a reformer, ʿAbduh in particular as received a significant amount of scholarly attention. However, his contributions to the development of Islamic book culture in the service of language reform—the second of his self-identified life goals alongside religious reform—remain little known, as do those made by al-Jazāʾirī. Confronted with a growing body of printed literature, including books translated from European languages as well as an increasingly diverse range of Arabic works, some scholars recognized the powerful potential of print to serve their objective of broad, indigenously rooted sociocultural change. Driven by lofty goals such as the renewal of the Arabic language, elevation of public discourse, and cultivation of ethical sentiments in society, these religious reformers excavated the classical tradition for forgotten books that could be harnessed as exemplars and disseminated across society thanks to print.

scholarly journals Large Scale Mobile Medical Service Programme: Data Insights for strengthening local surveillance

2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Vishal Dogra ◽  
Shailendra Hegde ◽  
Nitin Rathnam ◽  
Sridhar Emmadi ◽  
Vishal Phanse
Keyword(s):  
Primary Care ◽  
Disease Surveillance ◽  
Andhra Pradesh ◽  
Medical Service ◽  
Communicable Disease ◽  
Disease Diagnosis ◽  
Local Health ◽  
Health Events ◽  
Health Authorities ◽  
The Village

ObjectiveWe report the findings of Andhra Pradesh state’s mobile medical service programme and how It is currently used to strengthen the disease surveillance mechanisms at the village level.IntroductionIndia has an Integrated Disease Surveillance project that reports key communicable and infectious diseases at the district and sub-district level. However, recent reviews suggest structural and functional deficiencies resulting in poor data quality (1). Hence evidence-based actions are often delayed. Piramal Swasthya in collaboration with Government of Andhra Pradesh launched a mobile medical unit (MMU) programme in 2016. This Mobile medical service delivers primary care services to rural population besides reporting and alerting unusual health events to district and state health authorities for timely and appropriate action.The MMU service in the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh is one of the oldest and largest public-private initiatives in India. Two hundred and ninety-two MMUs provide fixed-day services to nearly 20,000 patients a day across 14,000 villages in rural Andhra Pradesh. Every day an MMU equipped with medical ( a doctor) and non-medical (1 nurse, 1 registration officer, 1 driver, 1 pharmacist, 1 lab technician, 1 driver) staff visit 2 service points (villages) as per prefixed route map. Each MMU also has its own mobile tablet operated by registration officer for capturing patient details. The core services delivered through MMUs are the diagnosis, treatment, counseling, and free drug distribution to the beneficiaries suffering from common ailments ranging from seasonal diseases to acute communicable and common chronic non-communicable diseases. The routinely collected patient data is daily synchronized on a centrally managed data servers.MethodsFor this analysis, we used aggregated and pooled data that were routinely collected from August 2016-March 2018. Patient details such as socio-demographic variables (age, sex etc.) medical history and key vitals (random blood sugar, blood pressure, pulse rate etc.) and disease diagnosis variables were analyzed. Besides, communication and action taken reports shared with Government of Andhra Pradesh were also analyzed. We report the findings of the programme with reference to strengthing the village level communicable disease surveillance. Unusual health events were defined as more than 3 patients reporting the epidemiologically linked and similar conditions clustered in the same village.ResultsWe observed 4,352,859 unique beneficiaries registrations and 9,122,349 patient visits. Of all unique beneficiaries, 79.3% had complete diagnosis details (53% non-communicable disease, 39% communicable and 8% others conditions). A total of 7 unusual health events related to specific and suspected conditions (3 vector-borne diseases related, 4 diarrhea-related) were reported to district health authorities, of which 3 were confirmed outbreaks (1 dengue, 1 malaria, and 1 typhoid) as investigated by local health authorities.ConclusionsMobile medical services are useful to detect unusual health events in areas with limited resources. It increases accountability and response from the Government authorities if the timely information is shared with competent health authorities. Careful evaluation of the mobile health interventions is needed before scaling-up such services in other remote rural areas.References1. Kumar A, Goel MK, Jain RB, Khanna P. Tracking the Implementation to identify gaps in Integrated Disease Surveillance Program in a Block of District Jhajjar (Haryana). Journal of Family Medicine and Primary Care. 2014;3(3):213-215.2. Raut D, Bhola A. Integrated disease surveillance in India: Way forward. Global Journal of Medicine and Public Health.2014;3(4):1-10

Kiriath-jearim: In Judah or in Benjamin?

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (2) ◽  
pp. 143-168
Author(s):  
Yigal Levin
Keyword(s):  
Iron Age ◽  
Geographical Location ◽  
Iron Age Ii ◽  
Biblical Texts ◽  
The Village ◽  
The Town ◽  
Ark Narrative ◽  
Scholarly Attention

The town of Kiriath-jearim, identified at Deir el-ʿAzar above the village of Abu-Ghosh, has come to scholarly attention recently, due to the renewed excavations led by Israel Finkelstein and Thomas Römer. Based on their preliminary finds and on their reading of the biblical texts, they have interpreted the Iron Age II B-C fortified compound that they have begun to expose on the summit of the site as a northern Israelite fortified compound, “aimed at dominating the vassal kingdom of Judah”. This paper reexamines the position of Kiriath-jearim on the border between Judah and Benjamin according to both the biblical texts and the site’s geographical location, within the context of the ongoing discussions on the biblical tribal territories, that of Benjamin in particular, the “ark narrative” and other texts that mention Kiriath-jearim, and challenges the excavators’ interpretation of the character and purpose of the site during the Iron Age II.

scholarly journals Oral Testimonies on Sai Baba As Gathered During a Field Research in Shirdi and Other Locales in October-November 1985

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Antonio Rigopoulos
Keyword(s):  
Andhra Pradesh ◽  
Field Research ◽  
Primary Sources ◽  
Audio Recordings ◽  
Old Men ◽  
The Village

The interviews and audio recordings comprised in this volume are the outcome of a field research to Maharashtra and Andhra Pradesh which took place in October-November 1985 for the preparation of the Author’s BA thesis on the life and teachings of the Indian saint Sai Baba of Shirdi (d. 1918), discussed at the Ca’ Foscari University of Venice in June 1987 (Un maestro dell’India moderna: il Sāī Bābā di Śirḍī. L’uomo, l’ambiente, gli insegnamenti). The conversations of each day are preceded by excerpts from the Authorʼs diary. These testimonies record the words of various people in the village of Shirdi and other locales, among whom are the last old men who knew Sai Baba: Balaji Pilaji Gurav, Bappaji Lakshman Ratna Parke, Martanda Mhalsapati, Pandharinath Bhagavant Gonkar, Tukaram Raghujiv Borawke, and Uddhavrao Madhavrao Deshpande. While in Shirdi the Author was also able to interview Uttamrao Patil, son of Tatya Kote Patil, and in Mumbai he had the privilege of meeting Swami Ram Baba, who first met the saint in 1914. Taken altogether, these conversations are primary sources for the study of Sai Baba and may help to contextualize Shirdi as a pilgrimage place in the mid-1980s.

scholarly journals Constraints faced by Progressive Farmers for Effective Utilization of Information through ICT and Suggestions for Better ICT Services in Kurnool District of Andhra Pradesh

2021 ◽  
Vol 8 (8) ◽  
pp. 134-146
Author(s):  
Lingam Orpha Vijaya Sunanda ◽  
Syed H. Mazhar ◽  
Jahanara Jahanara
Keyword(s):  
Andhra Pradesh ◽  
Relevant Information ◽  
Structured Interview ◽  
Interview Schedule ◽  
Effective Utilization ◽  
Ict Use ◽  
Information And Communication ◽  
Ict Tools ◽  
Ict Service ◽  
The Village

Information and Communication Technology (ICT) is an important source for sharing and receiving of agricultural information. The present study explored the constraints faced by farmers and suggestions for effective utilization of ICT services for agricultural information. The study was conducted in all villages of Nandyal Mandal of Kurnool District of Andhra Pradesh. 2021. Responses from the 120 farmers were collected through well-structured interview schedule. It was revealed that that lack of knowledge about ICT tools, poor condition of equipment, relevant information not received in time and awareness of new ICT service among farmers about the use of ICTs for the educational and agricultural purpose were the major constraints in ICT use. All these constraints can be overcome by implementing suggestions by farmers like; proper and improved infrastructural facilities at the village level, providing relevant information at a time and skill development updating with training, creating awareness regarding use of ICTs for educational and agricultural purpose. The data collected were analyzed using descriptive statistics and regression analysis in finding relationships between variables. The findings show that most of the farmers in Nandyal Mandal that use ICTs as a source of agricultural information.

Married to God- the Jogin System in India

2018 ◽  
Vol 25 (2) ◽  
pp. 19-35
Author(s):  
Rekha Pande
Keyword(s):  
Child Welfare ◽  
Andhra Pradesh ◽  
Poverty Line ◽  
Policy Makers ◽  
Number Of Children ◽  
Women And Girls ◽  
Lower Castes ◽  
The Village ◽  
The Temple ◽  
Modern Form

 This paper uses the material from a Project of the Ministry of Women and Child Welfare, which we undertook in 1991-92, related to the study, rehabilitation and organizing of Jogins in Andhra Pradesh in India. As researchers, we faced a lot of dilemma while making the research design and evolving a methodology for the study. Jogins are the modern form of the traditional Devadasi system, which existed in India from the 10th century. Dedicated to the temple to carry out various temple-related duties, these girls were married to an immortal God, and since they could never become widows, they were regarded as auspicious ones. Centuries later, by the time India was colonized, all these girls were practicing prostitution. The system was finally abolished in 1947 by law. In spite of this, a large number of women and girls, especially from the lower castes, continue to be dedicated to God in different regions of southern India, especially in Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka. These girls become the keep of the village headman through whom they have a number of children. Since the whole system is institutionalized under the wraps and cover of religion, the exploitive aspect of the institution is often missed. As most of these women are from marginalized sections of society and are also employed as wage labourers and live below the poverty line, they are merely seen as labourers. Their main identity gets subsumed under this category, but here too they are invisible and are marginalized and often missed by policy makers and researchers. This paper documents the experiences of these marginalised and often forgotten women.

scholarly journals Athletes, Citizenships and Hellenic Identity during the Imperial Period

Klio ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 103 (2) ◽  
pp. 675-703
Author(s):  
Georgios E. Mouratidis
Keyword(s):  
Public Discourse ◽  
The Other ◽  
Third Century ◽  
The Public ◽  
The Third ◽  
Imperial Period ◽  
Central Tenet ◽  
Two Factors ◽  
Scholarly Attention

Summary During the Hellenistic and Imperial periods, Greek populations coexisted with several other cultures, which were very often more multitudinous. Those ‘Hellenes’, however, came together in big Panhellenic and smaller, local festivals to honour their gods and celebrate their common Hellenic culture. As a result, numerous new festivals and contests were founded (and older ones grew bigger or were even re-founded) after the third century BC, gradually forming a large festival network. Even though this festival network has repeatedly been at the centre of scholarly attention – and still is – the rhetoric of athletic inscriptions, i.e. how athletic Panhellenism is demonstrated and what it is prompted by still remains largely unexplored. The main contribution of this paper is to demonstrate how the accumulation of citizenships by athletes contributes to Panhellenic self-representation, by showing another way that this association with Hellenic culture was communicated and negotiated in the public discourse. The portrayal of citizenships by an array of ethnic names along with the name of the honoree, presented the athlete as a larger-than-city figure and an essential part of that Hellenic community. One of the other aims of this paper is to suggest two factors in the development of these conventions of athletic representation, whose significance has not been understood in full: the athletic synod and the formation of Panhellenion. It is a central tenet of this paper that the study of citizenship in athletic inscriptions cannot only help us reveal more ways that Hellenicity was projected, but also better understand how all these different textual images helped shape views about what Hellas was.

Community managed services for persons with intellectual disability: Andhra Pradesh experience

2017 ◽  
Vol 21 (3) ◽  
pp. 248-258 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jayanthi Narayan ◽  
Raja Pratapkumar ◽  
Sudhakara P Reddy
Keyword(s):  
Intellectual Disabilities ◽  
Andhra Pradesh ◽  
Information Dissemination ◽  
Community Based ◽  
Self Help ◽  
Comprehensive Service ◽  
Hands On ◽  
Managed Services ◽  
People With Intellectual Disabilities ◽  
The Village

In resource poor settings innovative and bottom-up approaches are required to provide services to people with with disabilities. In this context, the present paper explains a community-based model of manpower development and coordination of services for people with intellectual disabilities in unified state of Andhra Pradesh in India. Women with disabilities from the village were identified, and those willing to be trained to work as community resource persons (CRPs) were selected and given hands-on training in a phased manner. A total of 130 women were trained in five groups of 25–30 per group and were deployed in the community to screen, identify and refer children with intellectual disabilities. The training content included basic stimulation and interface with functionaries of other government departments of health, education and welfare to ensure comprehensive service delivery. Neighbourhood centres (NHCs) were established where the CRPs could meet with families collectively. The results indicated that the CRPs were welcomed by the families. The NHCs established primarily as recreation centres, promoted inclusion and functioned as information dissemination centre. The services provided by the CRPs were owned and monitored by the Women’s self-help group and the disability groups thus ensuring sustainability of the model.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document