BOOKS
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Panchatantra for the Young
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PART 1
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Part One of Volume One of
Vedic Heritage Teaching Programme comprises
of selections from Panchatantra. These short
stories having animals as the main characters are unique in their
ability to catch the attention of young children and educate them in
dharma - adharma. Young children have a
special fascination for symbolism and the use of symbolic language.
They are also endowed with the capacity of a rather vivid imagination.
They have not yet learnt to think multi-dimensionally i.e. to look at a
particular issue from different angles. Neither is their mind fully
capable of indulging in abstract reasoning. All these factors make the
tales from Panchatantra particularly
attractive to them at their age. Their vivid imagination enables them
to easily impute human emotions and thoughts to animals and the stories
provide varieties of characters and themes. They are not constrained by
adult logic such as, “Do animals have emotions? How can animals
be foolish or wise?”.
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Puranic Tales for the Young
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PART 2
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Part Two of Volume I
comprises a selections of stories from the Puranas.
Some of the stories are quite well known throughout India. They are stories of the Lord in His
manifold divine expressions. Deities such as Ganesa,
Shiva, Hanuman, Parvati and celestials such
as Naradha are well known by everyone who
belongs to the Vedic Culture. Several of the stories are of the divinities
in their form as children and are particularly appealing to the young
as they can easily identify with the characters. The simple stories are
easy to remember and carry profound messages. By listening to them
young children develop a reverential attitude for our religious
traditions and learn universal values.
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Ramayana
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PART 3
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The topic covered in Part
Three is the itihasa (historical epic)
Ramayana. Both the itihasas Ramayana and
Mahabharata depict the lives of kings and the people of their times.
They are highly inspiring and pervade the length and breadth of the
land and culture of India.
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Bhagavata Purana
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PART 4
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Part Four is made up of
stories of the ten avataras of Lord Vishnu
and other selected stories. All these stories highlight the necessity
and outcome of living a life of dharma and give an insight into the
nature of devotion to the Lord. Such understanding strengthens
one’s faith in living a life of values.
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Mahabharata
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PART 5
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The topic covered in Part
Five is the itihasa (historical epic)
Mahabharata. Both the Itihasas R¡mayana and Mahabharata depict the lives of kings
and the people of their times. They are highly inspiring and pervade
the length and breadth of the land and culture of India.
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Values
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PART 6
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Part Six deals with the
subject of Values. While it is easy for an adult to tell a child what
to do and what not to do, it is not easy to explain the why’s of do’s and don’ts. When a child is young telling them to do / not to do seems
adequate. Due to a natural need to please an adult they tend to
comply - generally willingly, and at times unwillingly. As they get
older they seek to understand the reasoning that guides our judgement of right and wrong. It is necessary and
important for them to do so as dharma / adharma
often become an issue for interpretation.
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Isvara & Religious Disciplines
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PART 7
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The subject matter of
Part Seven is Ìsvara and Religious
Disciplines. This can be an intimidating subject to teach students. Not
being faith based Ìsvara is not looked upon
as merely a matter for belief but as something to be understood and
contemplated upon. Teachers will find this profound subject dealt with
in a simple language that they can easily understand and communicate to
the students.
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Religious Culture
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PART 8
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Part Eight deals with the
religious culture of India. Throughout history our land and its
people have been a source of inspiration to people all over the world.
This is because our way of life is highly spiritual and guided by
humanistic principles that are truly universal. The principles that
form the basis of our way of life are expounded in the Vedas and other
religious literature. The cultural forms express the profound truths of
the beliefs and understanding that underlie our spiritual wisdom.
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Sanatana Dharma
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PART 9
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This part covers the
significant topic of Hindu Samskaras
(sacraments) and Sanatana Dharma. Their
positive psychological impact in a human mind and development is also
explained. Certain unique aspects of Vedic dharma such as karma, avatara, varas and other
topics are discussed. The first prayer in this part is a contemplation
which is recited in the morning. This prayer is followed by Vedic
mantras, called Shanti-mantras, which invoke
the blessings of the Lord. This part gives an overview of the Vedic
scriptures. These scriptures give a meaning and support to those who
live the Vedic way of life. They also reveal and unfold the knowledge
of the self, ¡tm¡, providing a means for the human being to gain moksha, freedom from sorrow.
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Human Development and Spiritual Growth
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PART 10
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Part Ten addresses the
subject matter concerned with human growth. The Vedic culture has
recognized for thousands of years that the growth of a human being is
multifaceted. A person grows not only physically but also matures
emotionally; and the potential for his or her emotional growth is
immense. Even though a human being appears bound by numerous
limitations, in the Vedic vision, every individual has the capacity to
discover his essential nature as being limitless.
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Vedic Knowledge
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PART 11
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Part Eleven deals with
Vedic thought and literature and some salient features of Hinduism.
Various disciplines of knowledge, as diverse as architecture,
sculpture, warfare, medicine, poetry and music, were all dealt with in
astounding detail by the people of the Vedic society. The topics
covered in this section are by no means exhaustive; they provide only a
survey of certain significant subjects dealt with in the vast Vedic
literature.
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Introduction to Bhagavad
Gita
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PART 12
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Part Twelve contains an
introduction to the Bhagavad Gita and a comprehensive analysis of chapter two,
which encapsulates the subject matter contained in the remaining
sixteen chapters of the G¢t¡. The material presented in this section are abridged
portions of the Gita Home Study Programme by Swami Dayananda
Saraswati. This home study programme is based on class material presented by
Swami Dayananda to resident students who
attended a course in Vedanta and Sanskrit at Saylorsburg, P.A. (USA).
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