The Telegraph reports
The administration has told government-run temples not to celebrate the traditional Tamil New Year tomorrow, saying the year began three months ago. Angry priests said they had received an oral order banning the New Year rites — special pujas and readings from the Tamil almanac, Panchangam — on Sunday.
At the root of the interference into the practice at Hindu Temples is a law passed by the DMK last february.
The Tamil year has always begun with the month of Chittirai, in mid-April. But the DMK government got a law passed last February, advancing it to the first day of the month Thai in mid-January. This was done to pander to Tamil nationalists who claim that the mid-April New Year is a “Sanskritic impositionâ€.
The move has not been without political opposition.
Several Opposition leaders, led by Jayalalithaa and MDMK chief Vaiko, issued New Year’s Eve greetings to the public today, indicating they disagreed with the new calendar law.
There apparently is no limit to Karunanidhi’s bigotry.
It is no business of the Tamil Nadu Government to either alter the Calendar of religious and cultural significance. It also is no business of the DMK to dictate what rituals ought to be conducted in Temples.
Offstumped has in the past consistently denounced Government interference in religion. When the Communists attempted to intefere with Sabarimala Offstumped had roundly criticized the move. Offstumped had also spelled why State Control of Religion must be put to an end in its articulation of Flat World Hindutva.
Offstumped Bottomline: For a movement that swears by godless atheism Karunanidhi’s DMK Government stands guilty of undue interest and interference in the affairs of Hindu Temples. This assault on the New Year rirtuals in Tamil Nadu Temples is unacceptable. There can be no moral sanction for Government control of Temples. Will the Congress and the BJP show the courage and conviction to ammend the Constitution making it illegal for Governments to manage Temples.Â
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Offstumped is written by Yossarin from the Indian National Interest—–
9 users commented in " Tamil New Year Calendar Law – DMK’s Assault on Hindu Temples "
Follow-up comment rss or Leave a TrackbackThe most stupid activity by any Government so far. Any Government has no right to touch the religious, spiritual or cultural belief or activities. Will the DMK led Government dare to change Christmas, or any other celebration by a non-hindu religion? No wonder even if the stupid old man lost his minds and ethics towards the population.
Law is upheld by the people and by the government
voted by the people.
Rules, religious rights and beliefs are not
dictated by the temple or temple priest. It is
long held by the tamils that Thai is month
of significance for many hundreds of years
before the so called Hindu Calender came to
existence in Tamil Nadu.
I disagree with Senthil Natarajan.
Pongal is hardly Tamil. It is celebrated throughout India as Makara Sankranti. It is the biggest day in the Kumbh Mela every 12 years. And it is certainly not the New Year in the Tamil calendar.
The first of Chitterai i.e. April 13 is the New Year as dictated by Tamil tradition. This coincides with Baisakhi.
The DMK Government is resorting to a public stunt and gimmick by such silly moves.
If you cannot solve an issue – Divert to another issue – Thats what he is doing. We have hundreds of issues which need resolution. Instead he is trying to divert people from this and opening up a new unrelated – baseless topic. This is not a place where someone in such a honorable position should play pranks on the public. This totally irrational – illogical – useless – thought on our CM
Next what ? No priests can perform marriages ? No temple can do any pujas at all ? It is getting so much out of control, that I may be giving these politicians new ideas.. “Ellam ore kuttaiyil ooriya mattai’
when have parpanargal accepted anything fair unless it is benefitial to them and to them alone? In villages, people used to say that margazhi is a kazhividai month. kazhividai means residuary and last. Further, the saying pazhayana kazhidhalum, pudhiyana pugudhalum is used only in the context of thai. what more evidence does one require to conclude that thai is the first month of the tamil calendar? One can wake up the fellow who is sleeping but notthe one who feigns tobe sleeping. Let the caravan move on.
does anyone know why on tamil new year we need to keep three different fruits and wake up and see the fruits, Is there any significance for this ?
That anything Hindu is not Tamil is a stupid assumption. Tamil is an integral and often huge contributor to what we know as hindu traditions. Otherwise why would neighbouring AP, KN, MH etc celebrate new year on a different day? All over India there are only 3 festivals that are celebrated in unison: Pongal/ Sankaranthi, Vishu/Ugadi/Puthandu and Deepavali.
So will Tamil govt celebrate Deepavali in April then to prove that Tamils are not hindus?
Pongal is a very special day for a farming community like ours. By mixing politics and atheistic and pro-Christian thinking in it, MuKa has attacked Tamil culture again. It is not surprising that he does it, what is astonishing is how his followers are blindly abandoning age-old beliefs and traditions. Keep our tamil culture away from self-proclaimed custodians of culture. Tamil and Hindu culture are one and the same. Hindu culture would be not the same without Dravidian contributions- Tamils brought civilization to hinduism. Now it seems like the turn of some misguided Tamils to attack Hindu civilization- we are attacking ourselves.
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