Vol.20 No. 8 August - 2019 LAUNCH OF DIGITIZED VERSION OF BHAVAN’S JOURNAL - ARCHIVES 1954 - 2016 Dr. Pranab Mukherjee, former President of India being felicitated by Justice Dr. M.N. Venkatachalaiah, former Chief Justice of India while others from left : Shri. K.G. Raghavan, Vice Chairman, BVB, Shri H.N. Suresh, Director, BVB, Shri. N. Ramanuja, Chairman, BVB, Shri. A.V. Narasimhamurthy, Chairman, BVB, Mysuru, Shri Manandi N. Suresh, Hon. Secretary, BVB join. The much-respected and by none other than former popular Bhavan’s journal has President of India, Dr.Pranab assumed a new avatar now, as it Mukherjee. The event also has been digitized. had the additional distinction of the presence of the legal The digitized version was luminary, Justice Shri. launched on July 4, 2019, Dr. M. N. Venkatachalaiah, 1 [email protected] Dr. Pranab Mukherjee, former President of India (centre) and Justice Dr. M.N. Venkatachalaiah, former Chief Justice of India launching the digitized version of Bhavan’s Journal while others join. former Chief Justice of India on He also quoted Dr. Munshi the dais as the Guest of Honour. as saying, “India will once again The event was held at be acknowledged as the vishwa BharatiyaVidya Bhavan, guru – a super power that Bengaluru. embodies the ideals of vasudhaiva kutumbakam –the global family.” Speaking on the occasion, the former President praised The former President Kulapathi Dr.K.M.Munshi, the mentioned that Dr. Munshi founder of Bharatiya Vidya looked upon the Bhavan as an Bhavan saying, “Bharatiya Vidya “Adventure in Faith,” a faith in Bhavan was one of the pioneering India’s past, present and future, steps in a series of selfless efforts in India’s people who have a rich put in by Dr. K.M. Munshi in and unbroken cultural heritage. emancipating the people of this He added, “I firmly believe that nation from lack of education. revitalizing ancient values and The founding of the Bhavan reintegrating them to suit the echoed his deeply entrenched changing needs of modern times belief in the instrument of alone will give people the strength education, which he was to assimilate whatever is good in convinced could offer wings for the new, without being swept the growth and development of away from the traditional India.” moorings.” 2 platforms, which resulted in people reading less otherwise. Guest of Honour Former Chief Justice of India, M.N. Venkatachalaiah said that the collected digitised version of the Journal was a unique marvel made possible “by a felicitous confluence of two great civilisational streams – one of culture and the other of Dr. Pranab Mukherjee, former President of India Science and Technology.” addressing the gathering According to him, He said that he was not Bhavan’s Journal was a treasure- surprised at Bhavan’s growth, house of culture and the digitised blossoming into one of the largest presentation was a virtual NGOs in the country with more dictionary and compendium of than 126 Kendras including Indian culture. 6 abroad, 395 institutions with a student and staff strength of The former CJI also quoted more than 2.30 lakh and 15,000 from the late jurist, diplomat and respectively. Besides, its political leader M.C. Chagla’s publication division had so far autobiography, where Chagla published more than 2000 titles referred to K.M. Munshi as being with more than 32 million copies a most versatile man, and that he sold till date. was one of the greatest literary figures India had produced. Shri Pranab Mukherjee said Further, he said Dr.Munshi that the use of technology had pioneered the publication of the brought many benefits but rued precious treasure-house, namely, the fact that the habit of reading ‘The History and Culture of the had decreased. People spent Indian People,’ adding that we more time on social media must recall with reverence and 3 gratitude Dr.Munshi’s services Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan, to the nation. Bengaluru, as well as Bhavan’s He also went back in time Priyamvada Birla Institute of to throw light on another facet Management, Mysuru. of Dr. Munshi’s personality, Established in 1954, speaking about the famous Bhavan’s Journal, a fortnightly, Lakshmi Kanatam case and has a reach of 7,25,000, how Dr.Munshi, exhibiting focusing on life, literature and brilliant cross-examination culture. skills as a barrister, extracted a crucial admission. Such was The digitized version of his genius. Bhavan’s Journal contains The digitized version was 63 years of the journal’s the result of a labour of love publications (from 1954 to by Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan, 2017), 1551 issues, 32,293 Mysuru Kendra, in association articles, 4,465 authors and with M.P. Birla Institute of includes 1,68,217 pages Management, Associate, totally. For copies please contact : Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan Pustaka Bharati, Race Course Road, Bengaluru - 1 Ph : 22267421 / 22267303 4 NATIONAL CONFERENCE ON MESSAGE OF MAHABHARATA - 2019 Dr. S.L. Bhyrappa, Padmashree and Saraswathi Samman Awardee and Dr. Madhu Pandit Dasa, Padmashree Awardee and President ISKCON, Bengaluru lighting the lamp to inaugurate five days National Conference on Message of Mahabharata. Shri H.N. Suresh, Director, BVB is also seen in the picture Message of Mahabharata, offered a gamut of perspectives the seventh in the series of mega such as intellectual, spiritual, annual conference that Bharatiya emotional, and moral; and at the Vidya Bhavan held in association same time, offered much food for with ISKCON in Bengaluru from thought, reaching the expert and June 26 to June 30, promised to the layman, the artistically inclined be a five-day festival on the great and the aesthetically sensitive epic. But it truly transcended into alike. a unique event far beyond that, This it did with the enthralling audiences from across extraordinary range of subjects India and the world, and whetting that it spanned over five days: their appetite for more. such as character development, For not only was it a slavery, Mahabharata and its celebration of the epic impact on other literatures like which is so firmly embedded in Hindi, Kannada, Telugu, the psyche of India—but it also English and Malayalam, idioms 5 Releasing of the book ‘Beliefs and Beyond’ : The book on the papers presented at last year’s two days International Conference organised by BVB on the 50th coronation year of Shri Veerendra Heggade as Dharmadhikari of Srikshetra Dharmasthala used in the epic as also crime and interpreted the epic in and punishment, ecology, interesting ways through their eschatology, female characters, sessions, even as they quoted its oral versions, cow worship, Sanskrit verses from the its influence on the arts, films, Mahabharata effortlessly to Yakshagana, the aesthetics, substantiate their perspectives. sculpture and paintings, The youngest among them may management and legal ethics, have been in their early thirties, not to forget the pithy subhashitas while the senior-most were it employs.The speakers also in their late 80s. chose to explore characters in the Shatavadhani Dr. R.Ganesh Mahabharata such as Vidhura, delivered absorbing lectures each Bhishma Deva’s unique day on different aspects of the devotional service, and the Mahabharata, and his intellect devotion of Kunti, alongside combined with wit and delving deep into the epic’s remarkable communication skills multiple perspectives. were much acclaimed by the Over 40 scholars and audience. The examples from the experts in the Mahabharata Mahabharata which he elaborated from across India – Jammu to on were not only reflective of Kolkata, Pune to Chennai, those ancient times but also Varanasi to Gokarna, Lucknow relevant to our current times, thus to Hubli, Bangalore to Hampi— connecting the ancient with the expounded on the Mahabharata modern and contemporary 6 Dr. S.L. Bhyrappa after being felicitated pose with other dignitaries seamlessly through the timeless the children did the honours again epic. at the Valedictory Programme. The first day saw 108 Each day of the festival children of Sandipani Gurukula started befittingly with Gamaka chanting verses from “Values of Vachana from Rajasuya Yaga in Bhagavad Gita” under the Sabha Parva by various gamakis direction of Smt. Rohini from Karnataka Gamaka Kala Chakravarty. They were 3-12 Parishad and set the tone for the years old.So also, on the last day, day. Prof Prabhunath Dwivedi, from Varanasi being felicitated by Dr. Madhu Pandit Dasa and Shri N. Ramanuja 7 Dr. Saroja Bhate, from Pune being felicitated by Dr. Madhu Pandit Dasa, President, ISKCON, Bengaluru, while others join Likewise, every evening recital on Droupadi, and a was concluded with a cultural Carnatic classical vocal duet. performance in keeping with Dr. S. Ranganath, reputed Bhavan’s legacy of preserving Sanskrit scholar, as master of and propagating Indian culture ceremonies, introduced the and heritage. This year, speakers and summed up their it included a Yakshagana sessions with his remarkable performance, a Bharathanatyam Dr. Veni Madhava Shastry, from Dharwad being felicitated by Shri. Pathi Sridhara, Philanthropist while others join 8 Swami Japasiddhananda, from Kolkata being felicitated by Shri. H.N. Suresh, Director, BVB while others join depth of Sanskrit and knowledge at the Multi-vision theatre, of the Mahabharata. ISKCON temple. The venue chosen matched The event was free. However, the theme of Message of the event was also webcast by Mahabharata, located as it was shaale.com, besides the videos Ms. N. Sridevi, Philatelist explaining the postal stamps on Mahabharata after it was inaugurated by Dr. S.L. Bhyrappa. Also seen in the picture Dr. Madhu Pandit Dasa, President, ISKCON, Bengaluru, Shri H.N. Suresh, Director, BVB. 9 Shri Banwarilal Purohit, Governor of Tamil Nadu and Vice President BVB, Worldwide being felicitated by Shri K.G. Raghavan, Vice Chairman, BVB and Shri.