Keshara

Saffron has always held a very special place in our Indian rituals,ceremonies and food. It is applied as tilak on the forehead. It has also been documented to have been used as a versatile medicine since ancient times. In 2004 researchers studying 3,500 year old frescoes at Thera, a Greek island in the Aegean, found depictions of a goddess presiding over the collection of saffron. Perhaps even more amazing is the fact that 50,000 year-old depictions of prehistoric places in northwest Iran contained saffron-based pigments, indicating the human relationship with saffron is as old as time itself. It is called Keshara in Sanskrit. 

Saffron is the most expensive spice in the world. One gram of pure saffron can cost between Rs 350 to Rs 550 ! So what makes it so expensive ?

Well, saffron is derived from a flower called Crocus Sativas. It has been estimated that when approximately one acek of purple crocuse are harvested, it will yield approximately one kilogram of saffron. This is because each crocus flower only produces 3 threads of saffron. About 14,000 threads (actually the dried stigmas of the crocus flower) equals to about 28 grams of saffron.So you can imagine the labor intensive process that goes into harvesting saffron threads. In India,saffron is mainly grown in Kashmir. Though saffron is produced in many countries of the world like Iran,Greece,Spain etc but the saffron grown in Kashmir, India is the most superior and expensive.

The skin benefits of saffron are well known for ages. But it has several other health benefits as well :

Improves Memory: Crocin and crocetin are powerful antioxidants found in saffron which help in improving memory of a person. Diseases like Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s can be kept away by its intake. 

Saffron acts as an Antidepressant: Saffron contains 5-hydroxytryptophan which helps in the production of serotonin which helps in elevating the mood. It helps in receiving blood into the brain and helps in reducing depression and apprehension.

Saffron Prevents Cancer: Crocin and Safranal in saffron inhibit the growth of tumor in the body. The Carotenoids in saffron possess chemo preventive properties. It has been found to help protect against colon, liver and ovarian cancer. 

Skin Benefits: Saffron has anti-bacterial properties and can is very beneficial in reducing acne. it can be directly applied on the affected area. It acts as a natural scrub and aids in removing dead cells. Saffron can also be applied along with milk to lighten the skin and remove pigments.

Optimum health: The overall mineral content including calcium, vitamins, folic acid, riboflavin, niacin, vitamin-C, proteins etc present in Saffron ensure the maintenance of optimum health.

Cold remedy: Saffron has been found to be beneficial against flu and cold. Glass of warm milk along with saffron is recommended

while sick.

Healthy Kidneys: It helps in protecting kidney related diseases and reduces kidney stress. 

New studies are being conducted worldwide to understand the true potencial of saffron in medicine.It is found to be helpful in preventing and fighting cancer.

So lets add a little bit of saffron spice to our life !

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/08/110822091617.htm
https://www.sciencenews.org/article/saffron-takes-cancer

Poonam Patil Kalra

ANNAPOORNA

Growing up, whenever me or my brother made a face while eating or generally did anything disrespectful towards food, our mother would scream - " Dont do that, its goddess Annaporna "

This is how much we respect food in India ! 

Stories of the Goddess are narrated right from childhood and children are taught the value of food and the perils of wasting food. My grandparents would always recite a few mantras and say a little prayer before eating.People hardly do that anymore.

It is believed,that when the Goddess is pleased,we are blessed with nourishing, healthy and tasty food. She also gives us wisdom and renunciation. In our Indian culture, we lay a lot of importance to food and eating habits.

The Goddess of food and nourishment is Annapoorna Devi with ‘Anna’ meaning ‘food or grain’ and ‘Poorna’ meaning one who is whole, complete or perfect. She is said to be an incarnation of Goddess Parvati, the wife of Lord Shiva and one of the numerous forms of Shakti. Annapoorna Mata is shown having two hands holding a bowl in one hand and a spoon in the other. She is either depicted standing on a lotus or sitting on a throne. How the goddess came into being, is a very interesting story.

Once there was a discussion between Lord Mahadev and Devi Parvati, wherein Lord Mahadev said that the world was an illusion(Maya) and everything was temporal and illusory, including the food that is eaten. But Parvati disagreed as she was the provider 

of food and argued that the world could not survive without her. To prove her point she disappeared and nature came to a standstill. There were no seasons and everything became barren. This led to severe drought and famine as there was a shortage of food and water. Lord Shiva soon realised his mistake as he was incomplete without Shakti. Meanwhile Parvati could not bear to see her children suffering and began to distribute food in Kashi (Varanasi).Lord Shiva then went with a bowl and humbly took alms from her.He realized his foolishness. Parvati fed him with her own hands. And from then on, Parvati is worshiped as Annapurna, the Goddess of nourishment.

In the spring season in Varanasi (Kashi), there is an Annakuta festival, which is celebrated every year after Diwali. During the festival, Goddess Annapoorna's temple is decorated with rice sprouts. In the winter, she is celebrated in a grand manner as the sustainer of life. 

Our relation to food is an indicator of your relation to other aspects of our life. What we put in our body has a direct effect not only on our body, but also on our mind and soul — on how we lead our lives. If our food is full of Prana (life force ) it will give us the ability to live our life to its fullest potential. Food that is pure, full of Prana and prepared with love and positive feelings, gives us much more than just the feeling of satisfaction to the taste buds. It nourishes your body, mind, senses and soul, while increasing physical energy, positive thinking, creativity, longevity and heightened awareness of life in all its beauty. It brings us closer to the divine state. 

Shankhnaad

' Shri Krishna blew his conch-shell and

all the three worlds trembled in fear '

When a conch is blown, the primordial sound of OM emanates. Before the worlds were created, there was only a word - OM. It was chanted by the lord before he created the world.It represents the world, the eternal truth, Bhramha, Vishnu and Mahesh and the three Vedas. 

As the story goes, the demon Shankhaasura defeated the devas, stole the Vedas and went to the bottom of the ocean. The devas appealed to Lord Vishnu for help. He incarnated as Matsya Avataara – the “fish incarnation” and killed Shankhasura.The Lord blew the conch-shaped bone of his ear and head. The Om sound emanated, from which emerged the Vedas. All knowledge of the Vedas is an elaboration of Om. The conch therefore is known as shankh after Shankasura. The conch blown by the Lord Vishnu is called Paanchajanya. He carries it at all times in one of his four hands.It represents dharma or righteousness that is one of the four goals (purushaarthas) of life. The sound of the conch is thus also the victory call of good over evil. The warriors of ancient India blew conch shells to announce battle, as is described in the beginning of the war of Kurukshetra, in the Mahabharat.

Shankhs are blown during artis and important festivals in temples to serve as a reminder to those villagers or citizens who had missed the worship. The sound of the conch helps people to make their minds concentrate on God while praying and drive away other stray thoughts. The conch is placed in temples and even in homes as a symbol of the sound of Om, the Vedas, dharm, victory and auspiciousness. It is also at times used to give tirth water (holy water) to devotees in a temple.

Not just for religion, blowing shankh has scientific and ayurvedic benefits also. Some of the benefits of blowing the shankh :

- According to Vedic science, it destroys the harmful micro bacteria from the atmosphere or at least makes them unconscious. 

(Modern science and scientists also accepted the fact)

- It is traditionally believed that shankh's sound destroys the negative energy from the atmosphere.

- Playing Shankh regularly is beneficial in respiratory diseases like asthma and lever problems.

- Playing shankh is equal to doing pranayam that saves us from the most deadly diseases like heart attack, high blood pressure, respiratory diseases,lever related problems etc.

- Offering water to sun by the Dakshinavarti Shankha can protect us from the eye disorders.

- Playing the shankh regularly removes deafness and impediments.

- A shankh contains plenty of calcium, brimstone and phosphorous in it, and when we put water in a shankh for a while, the water becomes fragrant and sterile. That’s why this water is used in religious rituals, prayers and also sprinkled over the people. Shankh water that is sprinkled over the people protect them from skin diseases.It is believed that if you Ganga jal in Shankh for the whole night and next day in the morning give it to heart patients and diabetics, it would be beneficial for them.

Nobel prize winner Indian scientist, Shri Jagadish Chandra Bose did a lot of experiments on Shankh and its sound. He finally reached the conclusion that the shankh's sound is special, through his experiments he proved many scientific and medical importance of the shankh.

Pandits playing the shankh during Ganga arti, Varanasi

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XQ5aOtEbQd8

Shriphal - God's Fruit

We Maharashtrians love coconut. We put khobra ( dry grated coconut ) in our curries and chutneys.The coconut barfis and ladoos are just awesome !! In many parts of south India esp Kerala, entire cooking in done in coconut oil. As a child, for any cuts, burns, rashes etc my grandmother only applied coconut oil. And it worked like magic.

Coconut has a special significance in Indian culture and traditions.The coconut tree is called a ' Kalpavrush'. Which means, the wishing tree in Sanskrit. Every inch of the coconut tree is useful to us and hence the name. Coconut has a significant place in all the Indian festivals & rituals. It is considered as a complete fruit (all parts of coconut as a fruit are very useful).Anything offered to god should be complete (Purna) & the best, that’s why we use coconut in almost every ritual. Coconut is so beneficial that it is called SHRIPHAL, which means god's fruit. It is considered as a symbol of prosperity and happiness. In fact ,we honor elderly people by giving coconut and there is a reason behind it – Coconut tree gives “Niswarth-seva” which means selfless service, helping/providing everything to others without expecting anything in return.

Coconut has always been used in traditional Indian medicine to treat a wide variety of health problems including the following: abscesses, asthma, baldness, bronchitis,bruises, burns, colds, constipation, cough, dropsy, dysentery, earache, fever, flu, gingivitis, gonorrhea, irregular or painful menstruation, jaundice, kidney stones, lice, malnutrition, nausea, rash, scabies, scurvy, skin infections, sore throat, swelling, syphilis, toothache, tuberculosis, tumors, typhoid, ulcers, upset stomach, weakness, and wounds. However, modern medical science is now confirming the use of coconut in treating many of the above conditions. Published studies in medical

journals show that coconut, in one form or another, may provide a wide range of health benefits.

http://www.bioriginal.com/page-articles/the-science-behind-coconut-oil/

http://wakeup-world.com/2012/03/02/160-uses-for-coconut-oil/

http://www.coconutresearchcenter.org/

'

So if coconut oil is all that great, why are more people not using it ? Well, most of the coconut of the world is grown in 'poor third world' countries like India, Indonesia and Philippines, who do not really have the resources to promote it worldwide. The western world has been largely undermining coconut oil and its health benefits.India’s overall edible oil import is likely to stand at 11.8 million tonnes (mt) this year, against 10.7 mt in the previous year. The edible oil import bill may exceed the benchmark Rs 60,000-crore mark; last year, it stood at Rs 57,500 crore. These figures should be enough for us to understand how big a market India is and why olive/soy/canola oils are promoted so aggressively in India by the western countries.

http://www.business-standard.com/article/markets/indias-dependence-on-imported-edible-oil-to-hit-new-record-114041900395_1.html

So what is really good for us, is something we all should think about.