By Seema Jain

“Choti Si Umar Parnai Re Babo Sa, Kario Tharoo Kain Main Kusoor.” These lines from a song sung during marriages put forth the agony of a child’s heart undergoing a marriage ceremony that as to why was she being married off at such a tender age. Child marriage is one of the worst forms of denials of child rights.
Child marriage, involves either one or both spouses being children. The problem of child marriage in Madhya Pradesh is a complex one because it is related with traditional and religious practices. Compared to boys, girls are severely affected due to this practice of child marriage, due to social & physiological factor.
Madhya Pradesh has large number of teen aged mothers who is suffering with unnameable miseries entailed by the customs of early marriage. This wicked practice of child marriage has destroyed the happiness of children’s life. Child marriages continue to be a fairly widespread social evil in Madhya Pradesh, despite a law banning it. The DLHS-3 recorded that 40.5% of boys are married below the age of 21 years and 29.2% of girls aged below 18 were married. The scenario of rural parts in the state is nastiest where about 58.5% women aged 20-24 years got married by the time they are 18 years old.

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Interview with Shahrukh Khan

You didn’t go to any of the solidarity rallies in Mumbai because people will say you’re doing it to promote your film?

Silly people will anyway say silly things, which is ok… I keep reading some idiotic writer somewhere writing **** about me. But I felt there was no need for me to go and create confusion, because, as much as I may like to just go there normally, it won’t be normal – there will be channels, and I will be saying the same stuff. I am also as angry and as upset, but I am a little older so maybe I’m a little more controlled… I didn’t want to just hang around there. If it’s about solidarity, I know we’re all together. If it’s about sadness, we’re all very sad. I think the youngsters who went there and made a statement, that was important. I stand by them, even if I wasn’t personally there. Also, I don’t usually go and speak in public. I only come out in public and chat about my work when my film is releasing. So I felt that even if I go out and attend an event, people will misconstrue it. In a serious thing like this, I felt we didn’t need diversions, like oh, why is this actor saying this, why has this director gone here?

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What’s behind Obama’s charm offensive towards the Muslim world
What’s behind Obama’s charm offensive towards the Muslim world
Last week President Obama introduced the new U.S. State Department, including two new special envoys – George Mitchell to the Middle East and Richard Holbrooke to Afghanistan/Pakistan. Early this week the President gave his first sit-in interview in power – to an Arab TV network. He has promised a new partnership with the Arab world based on mutual respect. As groundbreaking as this may seem – compared to the Bush administration’s approach – Pepe Escobar argues that the overall strategy may not be substantially different.
Bio
Pepe Escobar, born in Brazil is the roving correspondent for Asia Times and an analyst for The Real News Network. He’s been a foreign correspondent since 1985, based in London, Milan, Los Angeles, Paris, Singapore, and Bangkok. Since the late 1990s, he has specialized in covering the arc from the Middle East to Central Asia, including the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. He has made frequent visits to Iran and is the author of Globalistan and also Red Zone Blues: A Snapshot of Baghdad During the Surge both published by Nimble Books in 2007.
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Faiz Ahmed Faiz ghazal from film Janwar, filmed on Rajshree and Shammi Kapoor. Playback singers are Asha Bhosle and Mohammed Rafi, and music is by Shankar Jaikishan.

Watch it here
The translation of the first four lines by Sarvat Rahman will give the reader an idea of the depth and beauty of the ghazal.
Last night, your long-lost memory came back to me as though
Spring stealthily should come to a forsaken wilderness
A gentle breeze its fragrance over burning deserts blow
Or, all at once be soothed somehow the sick soul’s distress.
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Read the entire novel “Animal Farm” by George Orwell. It is written about the Soviet Union, especially Joseph Stalin’s period, nonetheless, it is equally applicable to many other countries, including the US.

The Freedom of the Press

This book was first thought of, so far as the central idea goes, in 1937, but was not written down until about the end of 1943. By the time when it came to be written it was obvious that there would be great difficulty in getting it published (in spite of the present book shortage which ensures that anything describable as a book will ‘sell’), and in the event it was refused by four publishers. Only one of these had any ideological motive. Two had been publishing anti-Russian books for years, and the other had no noticeable political colour. One publisher actually started by accepting the book, but after making the preliminary arrangements he decided to consult the Ministry of Information, who appear to have warned him, or at any rate strongly advised him, against publishing it. Here is an extract from his letter:
I mentioned the reaction I had had from an important official in the Ministry of Information with regard to Animal Farm. I must confess that this expression of opinion has given me seriously to think … I can see now that it might be regarded as something which it was highly ill-advised to publish at the present time. If the fable were addressed generally to dictators and dictatorships at large then publication would be all right, but the fable does follow, as I see now, so completely the progress of the Russian Soviets and their two dictators, that it can apply only to Russia, to the exclusion of the other dictatorships. Another thing: it would be less offensive if the predominant caste in the fable were not pigs. [It is not quite clear whether this suggested modification is Mr … ‘s own idea, or originated with the Ministry of Information; but it seems to have the official ring about it – Orwell’s Note] I think the choice of pigs as the ruling caste will no doubt give offence to many people, and particularly to anyone who is a bit touchy, as undoubtedly the Russians are.

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A galaxy of British actors and directors threatened to boycott the BBC if the world’s biggest broadcaster did not reverse its decision not to air an aid appeal for the homeless population of the bombed-out Gaza Strip.
“We will never work for the BBC again unless this disgraceful decision is reversed,” they wrote in an open letter to BBC’s director-general Mark Thompson cited by The Scotsman on Tuesday, January 27.
Last week, the BBC refused to air an aid appeal by Disasters Emergency Committee, a coalition of charities including Oxfam, British Red Cross and Islamic Aid, to raise funds for the people of Gaza.
More than 1,350 people, including 437 children, were killed and 5,450 wounded in 22 days of air, sea and land Israeli attacks.
The deadly onslaught left Gaza infrastructure in tatters, with 4,100 homes totally destroyed as well as 17,000 homes, 1,500 factories, 25 mosques, 31 government buildings and 10 water or sewage pipes damaged.
Thompson claims that airing the fund-raising appeal could compromise the BBC’s impartiality.
“I will never work for the BBC again unless they change their mind,” actor Samantha Morton, who initiated the boycott call, told a fund-raising event for the Medical Aid for Palestinians agency Monday.
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Forget what’s number one at the box office this week. The most exciting new film features the intricate workings of the body, filmed by scientists using ground-breaking technology.
For the first time in Australia, scientists at Sydney’s Centenary Institute have filmed an immune cell becoming infected by a parasite and followed the infection as it begins to spread throughout the body.
Professor Wolfgang Weninger, head of the Immune Imaging program at the Centenary Institute, says the discovery (published in PLoS Pathogens) was made possible using high powered multi-photon microscopy which allows real cells to be viewed in real time.
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By Heidi Ledford

Elderly people who cut calories performed better on memory tests.
Cutting calories by 30% for three months has boosted memory and reduced insulin concentrations in a group of healthy elderly people.
Previous research on the possible benefits of calorie restriction has yielded mixed results. Some studies have found no benefits. Others have found that calorie restriction protects rats and mice against age-related memory loss and some neurodegenerative diseases. In humans, cutting calories has been linked to prolonged health, but there have been no previous reports of an effect on memory.
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By B. R. Gowani

What is God?

Every human being has strong inner instinct on certain issues that compels her to act on it. Whether that urge is a Godly force, i.e. God speaking through that person, seems to depend on how much political, religious, or will power that person yields. In some cases, how strong or righteous (or both) that person feels about the issue is also taken into account. Those without clout must have the stamina to withstand ridicule and occasional stoning. In some instances, e.g., televangelists: shrewdness and cunningness are handy tools in the motive to empty the pockets of the gullible.

If Lord Krishna had failed to convince Arjuna (one of the five Pandava brothers) to fight his cousins, the Kauravas, on the battle ground of Kurukshetra, despite Arjuna’s reluctance to shed his cousins’ blood, the religious epic Mahabharata, as we know it, would not have existed.

If Jesus Christ would have answered, “I am,” and no more, when he was asked by the high priest, “Are you the Christ, the Son of the Blessed One?” the chances of a new religion emerging by the name of Christianity would have been minimal. Jesus strongly felt that he had a special relationship with the Almighty and so he added: “And you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of the Mighty One and coming on the clouds of heaven.’” (Bible, Mark 14:61-2.) With these words, Jesus’ fate was sealed. He was crucified and the rest is history. These last words had scared Jewish elders for their potential to provoke the Roman rulers and hence his fate.

Some 900 years later, a Persian Muslim Sufi called Mansur Al Hallaj (d. 922 CE) was to meet a similar fate. He would be crucified or beheaded for proclaiming Ana’l-haqq, that is, “I am the truth” or “I am God.”

“I am he whom I love, and he whom I love is I,
We are two spirits dwelling in one body.
If thou seest me, thou seest Him,
And if thou seest Him, thou seest us both.”

Quoted in Alfred Guillaume, Islam, (1986), p.146.

These were simple verses with a profound message to the religious establishment: God lives within me and so you get lost. Everywhere, the custody of God is in the hands of the religious and/or political establishments. It was no different here. The Abbasid caliph could not let him go so easily; Hallaj had to die. But before that he suffered a decade in a Baghdad prison.

When Prophet Muhammad (CE 770-632) first introduced the concept of one God in Mecca, a land of many goddesses and gods, he was ridiculed. He firmly believed in his mission and persisted with perseverance. Also, being a member of the respectable Banu Hashim family, he didn’t have to fear any physical harm.* He belonged to the Quraish tribe which was powerful and had control of the Kaaba.

One can only wonder what would have happened to Muhammad if he was one of the lower class Bedouins.

When Muhammad’s uncle Abu Talib died, the protection afforded to him was denied by the clan leader Abu Lahab, and in 622 CE Muhammad had to leave Mecca for Yathrib, later named Medina.

Enthusiasm and good battle strategies helped him to return to Mecca in 630, two years before his death. As a result, Islam gained the strength to branch out in different directions, making it one of the world religions.

In the present time former President George Bush had regular audiences with God in the White House premises, to know and carry out His mission, as is evident from his conversation in 2003, with Nabil Shaath:

“I’m driven with a mission from God. God would tell me, ‘George, go and fight those terrorists in Afghanistan.’ And I did, and then God would tell me, ‘George, go and end the tyranny in Iraq …’ And I did. And now, again, I feel God’s words coming to me, ‘Go get the Palestinians their state and get the Israelis their security, and get peace in the Middle East.’ And by God I’m gonna do it.”

(Prime Minister Mehmood Abbas was present at the meeting and recalled Bush’s words: “I have a moral and religious obligation. So I will get you a Palestinian state.” The then Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon wasn’t listening, of course.)

Such a humble and obedient servant of God! What more could God ask for?

(If God had a few more servants like Bush then surely, He would have been forced to terminate His sabbatical in order to re-create the world, because of high probability that His servants would have caused enough destruction to have left an entirely flat earth. In that case, one would have expected Him to devote more than six days to achieve a decent outcome of the re-creation effort.)

So this is the miracle of power. If we imagine George Bush as an ordinary six pack Joe, a construction worker, or a homeless person in Texas, would his claim that God told him to invade Iraq have had any effect at all? NO. Fellow workers would have laughed at him or his homeless buddies would have distanced themselves from him. Perhaps some mischief mongers would have harassed, taunted, or thrown stones at him. Bush’s claim that God told him to invade Iraq would have been empty, tossed off as mere rubbish, if it had lacked the force and power to carry it out.

Then there are those who have been beaten by the moola bug. They amass fortunes in the name of spirituality, and want to sting everyone else with the spirituality bug. Their argument is that spirituality cures many ills and without it life is worthless.

These entrepreneurial spiritualists gain riches and fame for themselves by selling spirituality rather then helping common people in any way. Those who are working to make ends meet have much to worry about in paying bills, getting the car repaired, taking care of a child beaten up by a bully, and tons of other problems; they don’t have time for this spiritual nonsense. This changes, of course, if you get a hold of them and create this “need” in their lives.

(Like businesses create a “demand” for their products by bombarding the viewers with their advertisements.)

Yes, there are people who, without commercial interest, genuinely feel that there is room for spirituality in their lives. This is fine. But others have different kinds of needs. They find solace, comfort, pleasure, and happiness (their spirituality) through other mediums. Some may enjoy reading a novel by Nawal El Saadawi, a poem by Pablo Neruda, watch a film by Mrinal Sen, or listen to a song by Joan Baez. Others may enjoy commercial cinema. Some may enjoy hiking or seating on the beach. Yet others may prefer ballet, Kathak, or theater. And so it is. There may be people who would prefer a combination of the above things. Others may like beautiful company of the opposite (or same) gender along with the philosophy of the South Asian film “Chameli’s” heroine: “Jo bhi ho, jaisa bhi ho, bus pyar hona chahiye.” (It doesn’t matter who the person is (male or female) or how that person looks, the most important thing is that there should be love.)

But How did God Come About?

Imagine yourself with no ceiling, no walls, and no shelter. No beds, no pillows, and no quilts. No clothes, no shoes, no caps—not even a shawl. No factories, no industries, and not even Gandhi’s spinning wheel. No electricity, no air conditioners, and no heaters. Fire has not been discovered yet. No farms, no agriculture, no grocery stores; no food except from the trees and plants and from the animals weaker than you, whom you can kill. No doctors, no surgeons, no quacks, no hospitals, no clinics, no pharmacies—and not even turmeric.

No transportation of any sort, not even a bike or a cart. The wheel, the mother of all transportation, has not yet been invented. No telephones, no faxes, and no computers. No technology of any type — period. You have no idea about the world or its vastness; forget about its flatness or roundness. And you have zero understanding of the natural phenomenas. You have wild and gentle animals, birds, and insects as your neighbors.

Furthermore, it is extremely cold and raining with thunderstorms and lightning. Or it’s hot and humid. Your whole being is enveloped in fear and fear of the unknown.

This then is the most fertile time of your life. You are in the ovulation period. Then comes pregnancy — not of a child, but a concept. And so during the labor pains and the fear, you give birth. What to? The God Almighty, of course, the Supreme Being.

He is not the Father God. You are the mother of God. You gave birth to God. She, he, I, they, we all are mothers of God. We gave, and give, birth to God in time of our needs.

God is not our Holy Father — we are God’s Needy Mothers.

We are all Mother Mary, Miriam, Maria, Mariam, Mapia, or Madonna. We are all Virgin Mary — nobody impregnates us and yet we conceive God.

This is how God becomes a vital part of our lives and takes on a real (not virtual) existence. “Hey Ram,” “Oh my God,” “Ya Khuda,” “Maula Bapa,” “Jesus,” “Ya Ali,” “Hey Bhagwan,” etc. becomes a part of our everyday vocabulary.

Knowing that I’m an atheist, people ask me, “So what do you say when you’re in pain or trouble?” “I say ‘Ba’ [Gujarati for mother]” is my reply. She is my creator. “Oh my Ba” and “Thank Ba” are some of the other variations.

By our giving birth to the Supreme Being there gradually evolved gods and goddesses for various natural phenomenas. Some saw gods and goddesses in the nature cycles and named them accordingly creating myths about the deities, to allay fears and awe. They also projected the gentleness, strength, wildness, or other attributes in birds, animals and nature onto their gods and goddesses. Subsequently, some inevitably put all the attributes in one entity and thus credited the creation of the entire universe to one God.

With the passage of time and the progress of infant technology, human beings (tiny minority) became more knowledgeable and articulate and the simple gods and goddesses took on a more intricate form with complicated philosophy and volumes of commentary and interpretations about what goddesses, God, and gods said or meant when revealing their messages through prophets and seers.

I suspect that the goddesses, God, and gods would be amazed at their apparent knowledge since their followers claim that every discovery, invention, or breakthrough the scientists make in medical, technology, astronomy, or other fields are already in their scriptures.

(It’s like the person in the court who started sobbing and wailing loudly when his lawyer presented the case in an exaggerated way. When the judge asked the reason for this, the person replied he had not known until then, that he had been beaten up so badly.)

Similarly, the divine is crying out at their ignorance of the extent of their own knowledge.

Yes. This is the Divine irony (nothing to do with Dante’s Divine Comedy.)

One can only be befuddled as to why these archeologists, anthropologists, physicists, evolutionists, biologists, and others are wasting their time in universities, fields, and labs. They should open up any scripture and find their information there. Libraries should only carry the scriptures and no other book.

B. R. Gowani can be reached at brgowani@hotmail.com

*(The idea that Muhammad had no fear of physical harm is taken from one of South Asian historian Irfan Habib’s books.)