 About
Us &
Visitor Comments
From: V.Selvaratnam, Sri Lanka, 3 October 2009
Will you please let me know whether I can buy the book
" Thirukkural in Thamil with English Translation by Kaviyoki Maharishi
Suddhananda Bharathiyar " in Colombo. If so the the name and address of the
Book Shop.
Response by tamilnation.org
Regretfully we do not have the information that you requested. However, you
may download the book in pdf format from our Thirukural page at
http://www.tamilnation.org/literature/kural/kaviyogi/tksindex.htm
From: Sundaravadivel, USA, 30 August 2009
Vanakkam! I am from Charleston, South Carolina, USA. Our Tamil
Sangam (known as Panainilam Tamil Sangam) has produced a musical CD
containing all 1330 Thirukkurals in one MP3 CD. This is an attempt to spread
Thirukkural in musical format. This has created a lot of interest among
several Tamil enthusiasts in US and abroad. Recently at the FeTNA convention
(Federation of Tamil Sangams of North America; held in Atlanta), we were
able to give this for a small charge to all the registrants. This CD is
available for sale either through contacting us by email or by online.
Please read about this project at:
http://panainilam.blogspot.com/2009/02/1330.html We will greatly
appreciate if you could add this link to the tamilnation website since
tamilnation.org is one of the prominent Tamil sites recording our
history genuinely.
Response by tamilnation.org We
have included your project in our Kural
CDs page. We wish you well with your efforts.
From: Joy Elliott, United Kingdom, 31
August 2009
Dear Tamil Nation, I am a PhD student in International Relations,
conducting research regarding the significance of global politics to
organizations seeking change within a national region. I am specifically
interested in groups who support nationalism for people in conflicted areas.
I would be grateful if anyone from your organization would be available to
discuss with me the Tamil national cause and the activities you undertake to
raise awareness of your issues as well as seek change, outside of Sri Lanka.
I am contacting your organization as you specifically operate outside Sri
Lanka and I hope you will be able to provide a greater understanding for me
of the aims of your organization and the activities you undertake. Best
Regards,
Response by tamilnation.org
We thank you for your email and for your interest.
Regretfully our remit does not extend to arranging interviews/discussions.
We wish you well with your research - and hopefully you may find the
contents at this site of some small help.
From: Balaji, Tamil Nadu, 27 July 2009
அன்புள்ள தமிழ் இனைய நண்பர்களே,
இந்த இணையம் தமிழர்களுக்காக உருவாக்கப்பட்டுள்ளது(TamilNation.org) என்பதில்
பெரிதும் மகிழ்கிறேன் .தமிழனுக்காக ஒரு நாடு உருவாக வேண்டும் , அதற்கு உலகில்
பறந்து விரிந்துள்ள தமிழ் சமுகத்தில் உள்ள ஒவ்வொரு தமிழனும் உழைக்க வேண்டும்
என்று தமிழ் அன்னையின் சார்பில் கேட்டுகொள்கிறேன். தமிழன் இல்லாத நாடில்லை -
தமிழனுக் கென்று ஒரு நாடில்லை. ழ்க தமிழ் ! வளர்க தமிழ் ஈழம்!
From: Varman, United Kingdom, 24 June
2009
Dear Tamilnation: I was so very delighted to read the
exquisite writing in Tamil by Shan Tavarasa. (O, how I wish I could type in
Tamil!!) Tavarasa also quotes Sitthar
Yogasamy. I wish to know, if at all possible, if there are any
first-hand research done on Sitthar both in India and in Eelam. The
Poets of the Powers by Zvelebil is
an excellent book on the subject. But it would be helpful to read any
research material available. I have searched various university libraries
and yet to find any thing of substance. One of the key challenges one might
encounter in such research project is that a true Sitthar will be hesitant
or will hardly ever talk about matters spiritual. Tavarasa also writes about
the demise of Eelam leadership. I mourn the fact that we Tamils didn't have
an ounce of decency to publicly pay homage to
our fallen leaders. On the contrary, with the aiding and abetting of
some websites the diaspora has been spin-doctored to an
eschatological
numbness. One US based Tamil affairs Website has posted some of the
disgusting and derogatory things said about Prabaharan in its discussion
slot. Is this how we "manage" to honour the fallen? Nandri, Vannakam.
From:
MakizhNan.P, Madison, USA, 22 June 2009
தங்களுடைய தமிழர்களுக்கான இணையம்
அருமையாக உள்ளது. தற்செயலாக
சாதி பற்றி தேடிய பொழுது
இவ் இணையத்தை
படிக்க
நேர்ந்தாலும், அருமையான
விடயங்களை தவறவிட்டு விட்டோம் என்ற எண்ணம் மேலோங்கியது.
ஈழத்தின் திறவுகோல் தமிழகத்தின்
கையில் உள்ளது, ஆனால் தமிழகமோ சாதிப் பிடியில் உள்ளது.
முயன்றால் முடியும்.
அன்புடன்
From: Orruvan, United Kingdom, 20 June
2009
I am so glad tamilnation.org
is back in orbit. It is sad that V Prabaharan's death has become a bone of
contention. The Tamil Diaspora did not rise up to honour and mourn the death
of the Tiger leadership. I'm beginning to wonder whether the Diaspora lacks
independent thinking. As the good Book says, all have been led astray like
sheep. What does this sheepish behaviour tell us? Have we forgotten the
basic etiquette of our culture that we often boast of and have become just
political pawns lacking in integrity and gratitude? I however find solace in
the song sung by the great Santhirababu:
http://www.tamilnation.org/asx/onnumaepuriyale.asx . Mikka Nandri.
From: Shan Sendhil Velan, USA, 18 June
2009
Added to the misery of
having lost our Brother, not able to access
tamilnation.org was heart wrenching to put it mildly.
Really good
to see you back online. Thanks.
From: Sujananth Thiru, 18 May 2009
I am so glad that tamilnation.org
is back online. While this website was down, my brother and friends were
disappointed as they spend many hours devouring its valuable contents. I was
devastated and worried that the materials were all lost as the construction
notice was sudden. We shall not cry for a man
who has wined and dined with death like many of our liberation fighters.
The only payment and respect we can give him is the freedom of our people
for his outstanding service to all of us.
From: Nadarajah Thirugnanasothy, United
Kingdom, 18 May 2009
I am very very pleased to see tamilnation.org back.
I missed it very badly
From: V. Indran, United Kingdom, 18 May
2009
I am pleased that tamilnation.org is
back on line. Yes, me too - I have never
met or ever spoken to Velupillai Prabhakaran. Yet, when he died on 17
May 2009, I felt a deep sense of personal loss. He is only few years older
to me and to see a young life perish in front of us is unbearable. In life
all us make mistakes and reflect on them, but �Thalaivar� always reminds me
of the words of Martin Luther King, Jr - "Our lives begin to end the
day we become silent about things that matter."
From: J.Morley, Canada, 18 May 2009
Thank the Lord, you are back. I was sad that this wonderful site had
disappeared. Keep the flame alive and keep the "Utaya Sooriyan" flying. I
kept checking the book mark every day and today you are up and running. A
great gift to us all.
About
Us - 18 June 2009
 tamilnation.org
was closed one month ago - on the day following the death of
Velupillai Prabhakaran on 17 May 2009 and remained closed for
30 days. It was a period of mourning for a national
hero who will live
in the hearts and minds of generations of Tamils yet
unborn as an undying and heroic symbol of Tamil
resistance to alien rule. Periods of mourning are
not only for grieving - they are also
for reflection. Unsurprisingly, the past 30 days
of mourning
was also a period of reflection for
tamilnation.org
and for many millions of Tamils living in many lands - and that reflection
will continue in the months ahead. [see also
Confronting the Death of
Velupillai Prabhakaran - Nadesan Satyendra] It was Ernest Renan who said
more than 125 years ago -
"Where national memories are concerned, griefs are of more value than
triumphs, for they impose duties, and require a common effort. A nation is
therefore a large-scale solidarity, constituted by the feeling of the
sacrifices that one has made in the past and of those that one is
prepared to make in the future. " On the 31st day of the death of Velupillai
Prabhakaran, on 18 June 2009,
tamilnation.org
reopens its pages - and at the same time reaffirms
its
mission
statement...
From: Kumuthan Kulasothy, Australia,
16 June 2009
You are probably getting 1000's of emails asking you why your website is
still down... so I assume I'll get your standard reply. I am worried that
your website is still down. If it was your decision to close down / remove
all content off your site then can you PLEASE put it back on. Your website
was invaluable to all of us Tamils. PLEASE bring it back online. I have an
idea of why it is offline but I don't want to say anything in email (which
is not secure). I hope Mr Satyendra gets to read this. If someone is
filtering these emails, I'd appreciate it if u could get him to read this. I
am a big fan of your website. Yours is my favourite website, (on equal fav
with TamilNet) :-) Nunri, Vanakkam.
From: Tim Piegat, Texas, USA, 11 June
2009
Dear Webmaster at
tamilnation.org
The website has been down for some time. I find this distressing. I am
not a wealthy man, but I would like to help if I can. If it is a matter of
servers and server space, or if it is a matter of hosting that is causing
the site to not be up, Perhaps I can help. If nothing else, I have a
broadband connection and maybe could host it from a home PC -- in this case,
a dynamic DNS could be used to point to a home PC. This would not have the
reliability of a commercial host, but it would at least get the site back up
and make it accessible again.
There is too much valuable information on
tamilnation.org
for it to be missing. I would like to help if I can. I understand that this
is a sensitive issue for you, but I feel that I must do something and stand
up for the right regarding what is going on. Thank you.
From: Arun Rayan, Hongkong, 5 June
2009
வணக்கம்.
தமிழ்நேசன் வலைத்தளத்தை
அனுக முடியாமல் உள்ளது. தமிழரின் வரலாற்று ஆவனங்களை பேணிப்பாதுகாக்கும் ஒரு
நூலகமாகவே நாம் அதனை பார்த்துவருகின்றோம்.
தயவுசெய்து என்ன
காரணம்
என்று அறியத்தாருங்கள்.
நன்றி,
அன்புடன் அருண்
From: Ganesan Amirthalingam, United
Kingdom, 25 May 2009
Dear Sir, I have been trying to access your website for
sometime and I understand that it is under construction. Could you please
let me know when it will be back on the web. Thank you
From: Ranew Mohydin, Sweden, 18 May 2009
Regards from Stockholm. As a Kurd, I feel the pain the Tamils feel. I
wish the best of luck for Tamils and the LTTE. Biji Tamil Ealam, Biji
Kurdistan.
From: S.Kothandaraman, Tamil Nadu, 12 May
2009
வணக்கம். தங்கள் இணைய தளத்தில்
6ஆம் திருமுறையில்- யுனிகோட்-முதல் தொகுதியின் தலைப்பில்
1 முதல் 508 பாடல்கள்
இருப்பதாகக் குறிப்பிடப்பட்டுள்ளது. ஆனால் 409 பாடல்களே காணப்படுகின்றன.இரண்டாம்
தொகுதியில் 509 முதல் காணப்படுகின்றது. அருள் கூர்ந்து விடுபட்டவற்றை நிரப்ப
வேண்டுகிறேன்.
Response by
tamilnation.org
Many thanks for pointing out the error.
This has now been
corrected. Mikka Nanri.
From: Shan Balasubramaniam, Toronto
Canada, 4 May 2009
I accidentally came across this site while searching the
history of the two nations
which existed in Sri Lanka before British rule and what a fantastic rich
Tamil site I found in
tamilnation.org. I admire the great and detailed tough
work of yours to give the world an awareness of about Tamil's history in Ceylon, now so
called Sri Lanka.
I wish you also focus on all the massacre, carnage, and genocidal photos and
videos of Tamils in your special archive in chronological order as much as
you could gather so when "Thamil EELAM" is born we can show the world
the true face of blood thirsty Sinhala regimes and we can educate our
future Thamil generation by creating a world Thamil Holocust Museum of
the 21st
century and show the world that even at this time period of the millenium such a
brutal genocidal regimes exist(ed). Atleast by then the world would have
come to understand the Thamil's struggle. Great work, very informative with
history
From: Dinesh, Chennai, 4 April 2009
Hats off to the site. I am a Telugu , born and brought up from Hyderabad.
My parents belong to Theni district of Tamilnadu. I am really interested
in Tamil language and want to know about Tamil people who are our neighbours
and also a part of South Indian Dravidan culture. I am fond of
Thiruvilayadal puranam, Pura naanuru, AAthichoodi(Yes I know to write Tamil
and read also !). I want to make a small correction about
Dr Rajkumar's father. Dr
Rajkumar's father was born in Singanallur near kollegal taluk , which
belonged to Coimbatore district some 55 years back. It is not the
Singanallur near Coimbatore City.
From: R.Vishnu, Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu,
22 March 2009
I am proud to be a Tamilan. I am doing a masters in Civil
Engineering in Coimbatore. I am very happy to see all of you via the web
from my hometown. Hats off for your effort for the
Tamil Eelam people and our culture. Best
Wishes
From: Sivap. Satkurunathan, 20 March 2009
 வணக்கம்,
இந்த
இணைய தளம் உண்மையிலேயே மிகவும் பயனுள்ளதாக உள்ளது.இது போலவே
மேலும் பல் பயனுள்ள விடயங்களை இது வழங்க எல்லாம் வல்ல அந்த இறைவனின் ஆசி
கிட்டுவதாக.
மேலும்,
இதில் இடம்பெற்றுள்ள எழுத்து வடிவ திருமுறைகளில் ஒருசில எழுத்துப்பிழைகள்
ஏற்ற்பட்டுள்ளன.அதை அன்புடன் சுட்டிக்காட்ட என்னை அனுமதிப்பீர்கள் என்று
நினைக்கிறேன்.தயவுசெய்து அதைத்திருத்திவிடவும்.
Response by
tamilnation.org
Many thanks for your comments and for having taken the trouble to point out
the spelling/typos in our Thirumurai
page. We have now made the corrections. We thank you for your blessings.
From:
பெ.கண்ணன்.
P.Kannan, Tamil Nadu, 13 March 2009
tamilnation.org
is a great source of information about our language. It is a website
dedicated for our culture &
language. I refer this site to my non
Tamil friends. I tell them about what is going on in our Thamil Eelam. This
website is of great help. I like to share my view and thank for your
dedication. It will definitely help our Tamil people to understand the
greatness of our language.
நன்றி! Thanks!
Response by
tamilnation.org
We are grateful for your comments - and we are grateful for
the opportunity that we have had to give expression to our own
exploration of our Tamil identity.
".. It is the fight for national
existence which sets culture moving and opens to it the doors of
creation...
It is at the heart of national consciousness that international
consciousness lives and grows. And this two-fold emerging is ultimately
the source of all culture..."
Frantz Fanon at the
Congress of Black African Writers, 1959
From: Mike Johnson
[ [email protected] ],
10 March 2009
Hi, It is pity that you guys are still dreaming about a
Tamil Nation. Please look at
this article and tell me why you send these
innocent kids to a war for the sake of your "F***ing" day dream? These kids
do not deserve to die. Why not you idiots leave the countries you are living
and go to the battle field? You people are living in luxury and day dreaming
about a Tamil Nation and let these kids die. Damn you!
Mike
Response by
tamilnation.org
It appears that even with the
genocidal blood letting in the Vanni, Sinhala
chauvinism has a continuing need to resort to vulgar abuse. But for those
Tamils who have lived through
1956,
1958,
1961,
1977
and 1983; for those
Tamils who have witnessed Sinhala mobs with raised sarongs setting fire
to Tamil dwellings and to Tamils in vans on the roads of Colombo; and for those Tamils
who have survived to live as refugees, asylum seekers and
wandering nomads in
foreign lands, such Sinhala abuse will not come as a surprise.
Sinhala chauvinism's concern for innocent Tamil kids
butchered by
President Rajapaksa's genocidal regime, will ofcourse touch the hearts
of more than 70 million Tamils living in Tamil Nadu and in many lands - including the tens of thousands who attended the funerals
of Muthukumar,
Ravichandran,
Thamil Venthan,
Sivaprakasam and
Murugathasan.
The jibe that expatriate Tamils, in comfortable middle
class homes in US, UK, Canada, Australia and elsewhere, support and thereby encourage a
war at the cost of sacrificing the lives of young Tamil children and causing untold
suffering to the Tamils in Tamil Eelam is not a new one. It was a jibe that was often made
long years ago by ex
Oxford Union President and Sri Lanka National Security Minister, Lalith
Athulathmudali. And it appears that others too have not been able to resist its seductive
appeal.
But, what then should the Tamil expatriate do? Stay silent and let the Sinhala army
occupy and rule the Tamil homeland? Stay silent and condemn the same young 'Tamil
kids'
to a life under oppressive alien Sinhala rule? Plead with the Sinhala government, as the
Tamils did for thirty years from 1948, to 'rule' the Tamils
fairly and justly? Petition the Sinhala rulers to be benevolent and generous?
Encourage peaceful protest, so that Tamils in Eelam may be attacked
again like they were in
1956,
1958 and
1961
(long before the birth of the armed resistance movement) ?
Or should the Tamil
expatriate encourage
young 'Tamil kids' in Eelam to become quislings and collaborators and beg for crumbs from their master's
table? And in that way put 'development aid' to good use. Or perhaps the
Tamil expatriate should encourage young 'Tamil kids' in Eelam to take an even more transcendental stand and decry national divisions and espouse the
concept of the 'one world'
- 'one
world' for the Tamils but 'our
nation' (with a Sinhala Lion flag,
an unrepealed Sinhala Only Act,
Buddhism as the state religion
and a Sinhala Sri Lanka name) for the Sinhalas? Should the Tamil expatriate then
transport himself to a rarefied 'stratosphere', close his eyes to the ground reality
of a world of nation states and continue to live comfortably and safely
in his middle class home?
It is true that hypocrisy in politics
must be decried. But, is it hypocrisy to support a
struggle for freedom from alien rule, because you
yourself have not taken up arms or because your children have not taken up arms? Does that mean that the thousands, in many parts of the world, who supported Vietnam's
struggle against foreign occupation, were hypocrites? Or does that mean that they should
have stayed silent whilst the Vietnam war and the carpet bombing by the US killed
thousands of young Vietnamese and devastated acres of agricultural land - because their
support may have prolonged Vietnamese resistance?
Or to take a more recent example, does it mean that the millions who supported the
struggle of Nelson Mandela against a racist regime in South Africa should have stayed
silent unless they were willing to send their children to
fight in South Africa together with the
Umkhonto we Sizwe
?
Said all that, we do detect beneath Mike Johnson's vulgar bluster, an
underlying fear. After all, it is those who are afraid who find the need to bluster and abuse. Sinhala chauvinism
is rooted in fear. Sinhala chauvinism is rooted in the 'minority complex'
that is etched in the Sinhala psyche - a minority complex which springs
from the
knowledge that though the Sinhala people
are a majority in the island of Sri Lanka they are a minority in the
region.
"With their
books and
culture and
the
will and strength
characteristic of their race, the Tamils (if
parity were granted) would soon rise to exert their dominant
power over us” S.W.R.D.Bandaranaike, Sri Lanka
Daily News 8 November 1955 quoted in
Ana Pararajasingham, Required: Paradigm Shifts,
11 December 2005
And, by its
cumulative actions during the past several decades, Sinhala chauvinism is
making its fears come true.
The Sinhala ethno nation
which dare not speak its name is right to be afraid that President Rajapaksa's
genocidal onslaught on Tamil Eelam will strengthen
the determination of more than 70 million Tamils living in many lands
and bring closer the emergence of an independent Tamil state.
It was Sri
Aurobindo from Bengal (the land from which the Sinhala Vijaya supposedly
came), who declared over a hundred
years ago -
"The mistake which despots, benevolent or malevolent, have
been making ever since organised states came into existence and which, it seems,
they will go on making to the end of the chapter, is that they
overestimate
their coercive power, which is physical and material and therefore palpable, and
underestimate the power and vitality of ideas and sentiments. A feeling or a thought,
the
aspiration towards liberty, cannot be estimated in the terms of concrete power,
in so many fighting men, so many armed police, so many guns, so many prisons,
such and such laws, ukases, and executive powers. But such feelings and
thoughts are more powerful than fighting men and guns and prisons
and laws and ukases. Their beginnings are feeble, their end is
mighty. But of despotic repression the beginnings are mighty, the
end is feeble... But the despot will not recognise this superiority,
the teachings of history have no
meaning for him. ..He is deceived also by the temporary triumph of his
repressive measures.. and thinks,
“Oh, the circumstances in my case are quite different, I
am a different thing from any yet recorded in history, stronger, more virtuous
and moral, better organised. I am God’s favourite and can never come to
harm.”
And so the old drama is staged again and acted till it
reaches the old catastrophe..."
And so the old drama is staged again and acted till it reaches the old
catastrophe.
Mike Johnson is
right to fear 'day dreams' that are rooted in aspirations for liberty. We would end by repeating something that another visitor to
tamilnation.org
said some 9 months ago in June
2008 -
Dear Sinhalese:
 I understand that you are upset by us. Indeed, it appears that you
are quite upset, even angry. Today, it is the "barbarism of LTTE terrorism",
yesterday it was the Federal party, before that it was the
"favouritism of the British". It appears that Tamils, who could
achieve equality and who, therefore, could live, upset you. Indeed, every few years you seem to become upset by us. You were
upset in 1956,
in
1958,
in 1961 and
in
1977 and
went on acts of arson, rape, pillage, murder and plain barbarity and
we were
scornfully asked to go to the Federal party for help.
Of course, dear Sinhalese, long before there was a
Tamil tiger, we
the Tamil people - upset you. And we go back a long way in the
history of Sinhala upset. We upset the "Great" Sinhala King
Dutugemunu and
you
still use his "history" to teach your young ones to be more upset by
us.
 Reds are upset and monks are upset. The radical Sinhalese are upset
and the gentle "Sinhalese moderates" are upset. We upset the
Sinhala Hamudawa who massacred tens of thousands of us; we upset the
Sinhala police who,
collaborated with rioters and killed, burnt and slaughtered
untold numbers of us. And it is because we became so upset over upsetting you, dear
Sinhalese, that
we
decided to leave you - in a manner of speaking - and establish a
Tamil state. The reasoning was that living in close contact with
you, as resident-strangers, we upset you, irritate you and disturb
you. What better notion, then, than to leave you (and thus love you)
- and have you love us and so, we decided to come home - home to the
same land
we were
driven to in 1983.
Having left you and your pogroms and riots, having taken our
leave from you to live alone in our own little state of Tamil Eelam, we continue to
upset you.
Well, dear Sinhalese, consider the reaction of a normal Tamil from
Tamil Eelam:
In
1956 and
1958 and
1961 and
1977,
there was no "Tamil terrorism" to impede peace between Tamils and
Sinhalese. Indeed, there was no Kotias (Tigers) to upset anybody.
Nevertheless, the same Sinhalese slaughtered thousands of Tamils in
Hingurakgoda, Polonnaruwa, Minneriya and Colombo. Indeed,
in 1958
so many Tamil men, women and children were mercilessly hunted down
in Polonaruwa Sugar plantation.
Dear Sinhalese, why did you massacre hundreds of Tamils in one day
in 1958? Why did you
carry out
the1977 pogrom and made 75,000 refugees.
Could it have been your anger over Tiger terrorism in 2007? And why
were thousands of Tamil men, women and children slaughtered in
pogroms between 1956-83? Was it because Sinhalese were upset over
Tiger terrorism in 1996?
The same twisted faces, the same hate, the same cry of "para demala"
(foreign Tamils!) that we hear and see today, were seen and heard
then. The same people, the same dream -
Sinhala Buddhism only.
What you failed to do yesterday, you dream of today.
Dear Sinhalese, you stood by and cheered on when the Sinhala police
burnt down our beloved Jaffna
library.
You stood by when
Sinhala
police massacred attendees at an International Tamil Cultural event
in Jaffna.
You contributed and
stood by in 1983 genocide, wildly cheered by wild mobs in every
Sinhala town and city in your land.
You drove millions of Tamils to the North-East, thus suggesting
Tamil Eelam
is our only Homeland. When we come here to establish Tamil Eelam, alas
that upsets you again. It appears that you are hard to please.
And since we know that the Sinhalese dream daily of our extinction,
we will do everything possible to remain alive in our own homeland.
If that bothers you, dear Sinhalese, well ? - think of how many
times in the past you bothered us.
In any event, dear Sinhalese, if you are bothered by us, here is one
Tamil who could not care less and, frankly doesn't give a
damn !
From: Sasikumar, USA 4 March 2009
Obama said “Walk Taller” and I did
An engineer by profession, Sasikumar holds double masters degree in
Engineering from Annamalai University (India) and Business
Administration from the University of Phoenix (USA). He writes to
transform the Indian politics into an issue based one.
Towards the end of the presidential election season in the USA, President
Mr. Obama (then Democratic presidential candidate) requested all Americans
to go to the polling booth early to avoid last minute mishap and fulfill
their right to vote and walk taller. Although I have been a staunch
supporter of Mr. Obama, being an immigrant, I was unable to fulfill his
request since I was only a permanent resident and not a citizen yet. Even
though Mr. Obama was addressing the entire nation, I felt as if he was
talking to me directly. However, I wondered how I can walk taller.
I have been living in the USA – the land of opportunities, for ten years now
and my roots stretch to India. I grew up in Chennai, a city in the southern
state of Tamil Nadu which is in very close proximity to Sri Lanka – the
South Asian island nation that has appeared in international headlines
recently more than ever before due to the civil war and the civilian
casualties. Right from my childhood I have been aware of the Sri Lankan
crisis and the discrimination faced by the ethnic minority Tamils of that
nation. However I have never had an opportunity to participate in any
rallies or meetings that were organized on the Sri Lankan crisis either back
in India or here in the USA.
But two weeks ago when I received an email from my friend to participate in
the “Stop the Genocide in Sri Lanka” rally in front of the White House at
Washington DC, I decided immediately that I should participate.
Soon, I was thinking about how to make sign hoardings and placards (This
being the first rally in my entire life). I used to think that it is always
difficult to make hoardings by putting right words and perfect pictures to
get attention from the authorities and others. But when I browsed a few web
sites, I found lot of pictures of corpses of children, women and elders -
all civilian casualties (real disturbing images – depicting the cruelty of
war crimes committed by the Sri Lankan army). I downloaded few of those
pictures in to my flash drive and went to the nearest FedEx-Kinkos store.
A lady staff was helping me at the Kinkos store to organize the pictures and
phrases in to the hoardings. Before showing the images, I gave her the due
warning that some of the pictures are very disturbing. Seeing all those
pictures, she chose two of the less disturbing ones to use in the hoarding
and said “let us not use other pictures because I don’t want you and others
who will be standing near by in the rally to get sick by seeing those
pictures continuously”. I agreed and we completed the hoardings with those
subtle pictures and the following phrases – “Sri Lanka - Stop Genocide, Stop
the War, President Obama –
Please help Tamils defend their nation, Tamils need Freedom, Recognize Tamil
Eelam” etc.
When I returned home from the Kinkos store, I was thinking about the lady
staff’s statement “get sick by seeing those pictures continuously”, I was
wondering about the psychological stress of the people living in the war
zone who are seeing these images live.
On the chilly Friday morning my self and my 5 year old son got up early,
refreshed quickly and collected our sign boards. My house is located at 3
hours driving distance from the venue where the rally was being organized.
We left our house at 7.30 am so that we will be able to attend the rally in
time. When we reached the front of the White House at 10.30 am, we saw lot
of enthusiastic Sri Lankan Tamils walking towards the venue carrying
banners, placards and the red flags of Tamil Eelam (Tamil Eelam is the name
given to the North Eastern region of Sri Lanka, that the ethnic minority
Tamils of Sri Lanka call their home and are seeking independence for).
I was delighted to see a large number of people (about 10,000) – men, women
and children gathered during a work day to express their grief against the
genocide of Tamils in Sri Lanka. Though the temperature in Washington DC was
cold and the weather windy we did not really feel much of it since we all
had lots of heat in our hearts.
I saw Tamil Americans, Tamil Canadians, Tamil Indians and Tamils of
different countries, but their aim was same. They carried different national
flags – USA, Canada, England, France, Germany and also that of Tamil Eelam,
However their aim was same. There were kids, adults, girls, boys, men &
women but their aim was same.
They all wanted to stop the killing of Tamils in Sri Lanka, save innocent
civilians from the Sri Lankan forces, expose the oppressive Sri Lankan
government’s ethnic cleansing tactics and free the Tamil Eelam nation.
All of us were chanting in front of the world’s highest office. I was doing
my part chanting along (my 5 year old son too)
”What do we want – Justice”
“When do we want – Right now”
“Sri Lanka - Stop Genocide”
“President Obama - help Tamils defend their nation”
At the end of the rally, representatives of the organizing group “Tamils
against genocide” spoke about the various forms of Sri Lankan genocide and
the ways to expose and protect the innocent Tamils from the hands of the Sri
Lankan army.
After the rally when I returned to my car, I had a feeling that today, I
walked taller (As our President Mr. Obama requested). For the first time in
my life I have spent my day for a cause that might stop the killing of
innocent people in Sri Lanka. I also exercised my freedom of speech and
expressions in front of the world’s greatest leader Mr. President Barack
Obama.
With the belief that one day Hope will win over Fear and CHANGE will knock
the doors of the Tamil Eelam people and a free nation will rise from the
ashes, I went to bed peacefully.
From: Rajaratnam Chandrasegaran [
[email protected] ], 11 February 2009
You are being influenced by the Hawaii Adheenam in advocating monotheism.
Its interpretation from Thirumanthiram right through the thevarams and
puranas are biased towards monotheism (non-duality) of Realty. This is
reflected in your interpretation of auvayar's
Vinayaga Argaval, which though
it is ok from the view-point of sadhana (worship) is false in the concept of
the reality of the ontology (ie.being) as promoted by Saivism. Give right
credit to Siva worship.
It stops short of Meykandar's and its siddhiars
dissertation, explaining Saivism as methatheism i.e. the eternal reality of
God, souls and Darkness as separate entities. It misinterprets the path to
the Supreme Reality in worship (sadhana) as oneness to mean the reality of
the ontology (i.e Being) as only One.
This is a subtle area to elucidate right Understanding.
If God is One and only reality, then why this unnecessary play? Logical
reasoning should give at least the benefit of the doubt to The Perfect One
in line with His Absolute Perfection that it is indeed to enlighten the
reality of another entity called soul which is primordially embedded in yet
another reality of an entity called darkness aka malam.
In the sadhana of non-differentiation practice, the
soul should persist as such if it has to attain and remain in moksha
(eternal liberation). It does not necessarily mean that the soul is back to
Godhead from which it emerged. If so, why did it emerge in the first place?
Please enlighten the world tamilians on the right path
by considering the tenets of the Sivagnana Botham and its siddihars which
are part of the holy books of Saivism as well.
Saivism is unique to all other monotheistic faiths and auvayar and even
prior to auvayar since the Sumerian sulgi (as per Dr. Loganathan proto tamil
beginnings), through Thirumular, Nayanmars and till today is metatheistic.
Do not promote the slanted view of the monotheistic semitic originated so
called guru of the Hawaii Adheenam. Semitic influence made mainstream
Hinduism, monotheistic too.
Response by
tamilnation.org
The interpretation of auvayar's
Vinayaga Argaval,
which you refer to is the presumably the commentary found in "auvaiyAr aruLicceita vinAyakar
akaval, kukasrI racapati uraiyuTan" which was published by Project Madurai. They
do not necessarily represent our own views.
Said that, we believe that we have some understanding of the point that
you make that 'the path to the Supreme Reality in worship (sadhana) as
oneness' does not mean the same as 'the reality of the ontology (i.e Being) as only
One'. We agree that the relationship between methodology and ontology is
dialectical.
We also believe that we have some understanding of what you seek to
convey when you say 'this is a subtle area to elucidate right
Understanding'. The words of
Joachim Israel in
the Language of Dialectics and the Dialectics of Language
come to mind -
"Knowledge of language is knowledge of reality.
Language itself is part of reality. ... When trying to specify the basic categories of dialectical
reasoning we face a dilemma. By talking about dialectics we
may understand what dialectical reasoning is. But we not only want
to talk about dialectics, we also want to use dialectical reasoning
in our account in order to grasp it. Hence, in order to grasp dialectics, we must understand what we mean when we talk
about it. But in order to understand what we mean, we must grasp it by using it. It is therefore obvious, that the concept
of "
praxis " has a central role to play... "
That is why we believe that intellectual
discourse in the 'spiritual' area is limited by the instrument that we use
- our intellect. We have sought to collate some of the matters that has
helped us to further our own understanding in our webpage titled
From Matter to Life to Mind: An
Unfolding Consciousness. We have found that a couple of matters
which Sri Aurobindo said many years ago related to our own
experience -
"The capital period
of my intellectual development was when I could see
clearly that what the intellect said might be correct and not correct,
that what the intellect justified was true and its opposite was also
true....
..When reason applies itself to life and action it becomes partial and passionate and
the servant of other forces than the pure truth. Why does man have faith in reason? Because reason has a legitimate function to
fulfil, for which it is perfectly
adapted; and this is to justify and illumine for man his various experiences and to give
him faith and conviction in holding on to the enlarging of his consciousness. But reason cannot arrive at any
final truth because it can neither get to the root
of things nor embrace their totality. It deals with the finite, the separate and has no
measure for the all and the infinite..."
It may be that Mao Tse Tung did not say
anything very different -
"Without life, there would be no
death; without death there would be no life. Without above,
there would be no below; without below there would be no above.
Without misfortune, there would be no good fortune; without good
fortune, there would be no misfortune. Without facility there
would be no difficulty; without difficulty, there would be no
facility. Without landlords there would be no tenant — peasants;
without tenant-peasants, there would be no landlords. Without
the bourgeoisie, there would be no proletariat; without
proletariat, there would be no bourgeoisie."
Mao Tse-tung
And it is all this which led us
to say many years ago -
"
It is said that in the area of religion that which is the truth defies description and
that which is described is never the truth: or as the saying goes in Tamil - Kandavan
Vindilan, Vindavan Kandilan.
There is a story that is related of Bodhirama that he had once gathered his disciples
about him to test their perception. One of the pupils said, 'In my opinion truth is beyond
affirmation or negation.'. Bodhirama replied 'You have my skin'. Another disciple said,
'In my view it is like Ananda's sight of the Buddha - seen once and forever', and
Bodhirama said, 'You have my flesh'. And, then as the story goes, the third disciple came
before Bodhirama and was silent, and Bodhirama said, 'You have my marrow.'
Discussion and dialogue in the area of religion are but parts of skin and flesh - not
the marrow - a marrow which is never found in words."
Reflections on the Gita -
Nadesan Satyendra, 1981
Finally may we say that for us, the Tamil Nation is a broad church
and consists not only of
Saivaites
but also those who may regard themselves as
Vaishanavaites,
Christians, Buddhists
and indeed aetheists - and that
is not to deny the contributions made by the
Thirumurai and the
63 Nayanmars to
Tamil togetherness. It was after all a Christian priest
Rev.Father Thaninayagam
(whose contributions to Tamil research and Tamil studies are monumental)
who commenced his introductory speech at the
First International
Tamil Research Conference in Kuala Lumpur in 1996 with the words
from
Thirumular's Thirumanthiram -
'என்னை நன்றாக இறைவன் படைத்தனன்
தன்னை நன்றாகத் தமிழ்செய்யு மாறே'
From: Anirban Ganguly, India 7 February 2009
I am extremely overwhelmed by the comments in your website. I am a Bengali
but I wholeheartedly support the movement for an independent Tamil state and
I hope that all the other non-Hindian nations including mine in India will
rise up one day following your way. But I disagree on a certain point raised
by V.Shrinivas on 27th October 2008. From his comments
it looks like India
favoured Bengalis on the Bangladesh issue. It's quite tragic that people
are remain unaware of Urdu and Hindi speakers' continuing effort to suppress
Bengali unity since the time of independence.
Bengali Hindus and Bengali Muslims share a common language, Bengali. Bengali
Muslims also boast of their mother tongue. Bangladesh's national
poet is Rabindranath Tagore and the official language is Bengali. But the fatal
influence of Urdu speaking North Indians influenced Bengali Muslims and the
same influence of Hindi-speaking North Indians influenced Bengali Hindus to
form two separate states, one went to Pakistan , got renamed as East
Pakistan another came to India in the name of West Bengal. Thus, the North
Indian influence separated two brothers.
But the people from East Pakistan
(or East Bengal) were all Bengalis irrespective of their religion. So, when
Urdu speakers of Pakistan tried to make Urdu as the national language of
Pakistan ignoring the Bengalis who were the major percentage of the
population,a ll the Bengalis, be they Hindus or Muslims fought against that
oppression against their mother-tongue, sacrificed their lives to get
freedom that gave birth to a new nation "Bangladesh" that means "Land of Bengalis".
Yes, India's help expedited the birth of this new nation. But
Indira Gandhi did it to achieve a special goal that is to weaken Pakistan.
But yes, India wouldn't have helped if Bangladesh was a part of Sri Lanka
because India wouldn't have to achieve any political goal.
Now, in West Bengal, for the last couple of years we have been trying to
make Bengali as the official language of our state. But the Indian government never wants us to achieve it and political leaders, as you know, are slaves
of this Hindian masters. There are many other things, political and economic,
that prove the ixistence of Hindian oppression In West Bengal. I can't cover all of then
in a single mail.
India's reactions on the the recent incidents in Sri Lanka actually proves
that Hindians never care about the feelings of other nations in India. Since
at the time of independence all the Hindians secured their homelands inside
India , they expect that we , the other nations, shouldn't give a second
thought about our own nationalities if oppressed outside India. They expect
us to be speaking Hindi , forget our own culture and language and mingle into
the Hindi-stream which they consider as mainstream of India. How much percentage
of the money they spend for the propagation of Hindi , do they spend for the
development of our language and culture? We need to rise up against this
perpetual oppression. But one thing my friend, Hindians are very cunning.
They won't do anything like what Pakistanis did in Bangladesh . They have a
long-term plan. Not only through the official plans , but through
media, through songs, through movies - they have been trying to brain-wash the
other nations of India. Punjabis once tried to fight but not sure what they
are doing now.Anyways keep the good things up. I
have been truly inspired by your website, I hope you get a great success in
the form of liberation and enlighten the other nations of India which are
sleeping now.
Response by
tamilnation.org
Many
thanks for your comments. It was a Bengali writer Pramatha Chauduri who said
it with such great eloquence more than 80 years ago -
"..You have accused me of "Bengali patriotism". I feel bound to reply. If it is
a crime for a Bengali to harbour and encourage Bengali patriotism in his mind, then I am
guilty. But I ask you: what other patriotism do you expect from a Bengali writer?
...At the root of Bengali patriotism is the sense of distinctiveness of the Bengali
people. According to the doctrine of self determination of nations, Bengali patriotism has
a special significance. We are, first, a special nation and we are also a small nation so
the enemy of our self determination is Indian imperialism - It is not a bad thing to try and weld many into one but to jumble them
all up is dangerous, because the only way we can do that is by force. If you say that this
does not apply to India, the reply is that if self determination is not suited to us, then
it is not suited at all to Europe. No people in Europe are as different, one from another,
as our people. There is not that much difference between England and Holland as there
is between Madras and Bengal. Even France and Germany are not that far apart..."
From: Varan
Sureshan, Australia, 7 February 2009
Please see
ABC (Australia) Interviews of Prof.Jayasuria - 'a thinking person's
interview'
From:
முனைவர்
நா.
மால்முருகன்,
சிங்கப்பூர்
7 February
2009
பரம்பொருளுக்கு என்னுடைய வேண்டுதல் ...
நான்
நாத்தழும்பு ஏறிய
நாத்திக வாதியல்ல ...
உன்னையே நம்பும் ஆத்திகன் ....
எல்லாவற்றையும் பார்த்துக் கொண்டிருக்கும் என் கடவுளே
ஏன்
ஏன் இனிய ஈழ மக்களுக்கு இந்த துயரம்?
இந்துக்கள் நம்பும் ஏகன் அநேகனான ஆதி பரம்பொருளே
கிறித்துவர்கள் நம்பும் கர்த்தரே
இசுலாமியர்கள்
நம்பும் அல்லாவே
மற்ற
அனைத்து மதங்களும் குறிக்கும் நம்பும் ஏன் தெய்வமே
ஏன்
ஏன் இனிய ஈழ மக்களுக்கு இந்த துயரம்?
ஈழ
மக்கள் மீது உனக்கு கோபம் இருந்தாலும்
ஈழ
மக்கள் உன் குழந்தைகள் அல்லவா?
அவர்கள் சார்பாக நான் மன்றாடுகிறேன்
அவர்களை காப்பற்ற வேண்டும் பரம்பொருளே !
எத்தனையோ முறை அவர்கள் அழுதாகி விட்டது
எத்தனையோ முறை அவர்கள் சொந்தங்களை இழந்தாகி
விட்டது
எத்தனையோ முறை அவர்கள்
உன்னிடம் முறையிட்டாகி விட்டது
எத்தனையோ முறை அவர்கள் சாக முடியும்?
அவர்கள் சார்பாக நான் மன்றாடுகிறேன்
அவர்களை காப்பற்ற வேண்டும் பரம்பொருளே !
தமிழ் ஜீவ மொழியல்லவா
?
தமிழர் உன்
சொந்தமன்றோ
?
தமிழுக்காக சங்க புலவராய் வந்தது நீயலையோ
?
தமிழுக்காக தமிழருக்காக ஓடி வரவேண்டும்
-
ஈழ
தமிழருக்கு ஒரு தனி நாடு தர வேண்டும் !
நீ
ஒன்றும் ஓட்டு
பிச்சைஎடுக்கும்
எங்கள் ஊர் அரசியல்வாதி இல்லையே
இரத்தம் குடிக்கும் சிங்கள ஓநாய்களிடம் இருந்து
எங்கள் தமிழ் ஜாதியை காப்பாற்று
தமிழனாய்ப் பிறந்து தமிழையே பேசி தமிழாலே பிழைப்பும் நடத்தி
ஈழத்
தமிழரின் துயரை இழிவாக பேசும் தமிழனாய் இல்லாமல்
உண்மை தமிழனாய் இருந்து மன்றாடுகிறேன்
அவர்களை காப்பற்ற வேண்டும் பரம்பொருளே
!
அவர்கள் யாருக்கும் எதிரானவர்கள் இல்லை
அவர்கள் கோரிக்கை நியாயம் என்று உனக்கு தெறியும்
அவர்கள் நலமாய் வாழ;
உலகெங்கும் சிதறியுள்ள
அவர்கள் ஒன்றிணைய ஈழம் மலர ஆசியுங்கள் கடவுளே!
நீங்கள் பொறுமையாய்
இருந்து
தமிழ் சாதி அழியா வேண்டாம் இறைவனே
எனக்கென்ன என் குடும்பம் என்
பிழைப்பு என் வேலை
என்றிருக்க என்னால் முடியாது இறைவனே
ஈழ
தமிழர்கள்
நலமாய்
வாழ;
உலகெங்கும் சிதறியுள்ள
ஈழ
தமிழர்கள்
ஒன்றிணைய;
ஈழம்
மலர ஆசியுங்கள் கடவுளே!
கருணையின் பிறப்பிடமே அன்பின் உருவமே
புத்தனை
மறந்து
போன
இடத்தில் அன்பை மீண்டும் விதையுங்கள் !
உயிர்பலியை நிறுத்துங்கள் !
ஈழம்
மலர வழி செய்யுங்கள் !
பரம்பொருளே நீங்கள் தான் அவர்களை காக்க வேண்டும் !
அனைத்து மதங்களும் குறிக்கும் நம்பும் ஏன் தெய்வமே
ஏன்
ஏன் இனிய ஈழ
மக்களுக்கு இந்த துயரம்?
அவர்கள் சார்பாக நான் மன்றாடுகிறேன்
அவர்களை காப்பற்ற வேண்டும் பரம்பொருளே !
From:Re
Malarvannan, 8 January 2009 This is a great site providing a
great point of entry for Tamil language and Tamil language users. I think,
having mixed language content has its own advantages, though I prefer a
monolingual site. But, why limit it to English language only? Can all
English language content be translated to other MAJOR languages used by
Tamil language speakers? I understand about the economic
constraints, but, with today's web technology , it is possible to do this in
an easy manner. Without any major redevelopment of your current website,
contents could be provided in different languages(slowly). Ofcourse, the
ease of user interaction should not be compromised. I am thinking like
Tamil+French, Tamil+Malayalam, Tamil+Hindi, etc., just like your current
Tamil+English site. (Could be achieved very easily with a translator and the
webmaster.) I see wealth of resources here! Let this content reach all. It
will help all. It will educate all. Nothing should be wasted, or
under-utilized. அறிவு அற்றங்காக்கும் கருவி
செறுவார்க்கும் உள்ளழிக்கல் ஆகா அரண்.
Thirukkural
Response by
tamilnation.org
Many thanks for your
comments. Whilst todays web technology does help the translation
process, the result tends to be 'mechanical' and often needs editing by
competent human sources. Unfortunately, at the present time, we ourselves do
not have the resources to undertake the translations that you have in mind.
 [see
also Visitor Comments:2008]
|
rating
to the tamilnation website. [A well organised, and extensively annotated guide to Tamil-related
resources - ed.] Research usefulness [essential
- v.useful - useful - interesting - marginal]: Essential