Raksha Bandhan or Rakhi Purnima

Raksha Bandhan or Rakhi Purnima is a festival of the Indian subcontinent that celebrates the bond between siblings - especially sisters and brothers.

Raksha Bandhan : Meaning

Raksha means Protection

and

Bandhan means Bond.

Raksha Bandhan means- the bond of protection, love and care.

Raksha Bandhan is celebrated on Rakhi Purnima.

Purnima means "full moon night".

Raksha Bandhan is celebrated on the tithi of the last day of the Hindu calendar month of Shravana- the full-moon of Shravana month.

It usually falls in the English calendar month of August. 

Save The Planet

Ever wonder how people suddenly suddenly wake up and become vocal for certain causes on particular days?

Many feel celebration of days like "World Environment Day", "Earth Day" etc. is such a waste!

However, would there have been an information-sharing, awareness or pleas for action but for such celebration of days?

Let us take Planet Earth for example.

As global citizens who have inherited our planet and who will be handing it over to the next generations, isn't it everyone's duty to take care of Planet Earth?

After all, it is the only planet we have as our home as of now.

Despite the vast advances in technology, we are yet to have a back-up planet.

Does this thought ever come to our minds- where to flee after the after-effects of our actions destroy our existing one?

What do we do? Continue our mindless actions with our devil-may-care attitude.

Will simply showing that we care and sharing the message- "Save The Planet", do the saving bit for us like the so-called eco-friendly environment-protector company in the Greentoon below?

How Do You Answer These Questions?

You are speaking to someone for the first time.

Then, they ask you- "Where are you from?"

What do you answer?

Of course, your answer will vary depending on your conversation and setting.

Here is what I have personally faced-

http://www.anitaexplorer.com/2016/07/where-are-you-from.html

Some great personalities have remarked and proved that it is not important from where you have come from- what matters is where you are going and how far you have reached.

That is one of the lessons from the Hindi movie- Bhaag Milka Bhaag- that has been based on the late runner Milkha Singh. 

You can read about the 25 lessons from the same movie here- 

http://www.anitaexplorer.com/2013/07/bhaag-milkha-bhaag-25-lessons.html

The Monkey And The Crocodile

We at India pride ourselves for "Unity in Diversity."

We world citizens take pride and are amazed at our diversity too.

Nature has gifted our world and there is amazing biodiversity. The world's biodiversity is truly mind-boggling.

As per the World Wildlife Fund (WWF):

Biodiversity is all the different kinds of life you'll find in one area—the variety of animals, plants, fungi, and even microorganisms like bacteria that make up our natural world. Each of these species and organisms work together in ecosystems, like an intricate web, to maintain balance and support life.

There are borders between nations, but all this is our collective wealth.

I thought of all this when I saw today's Greentoon by Team Economic Times.

Sambalpuri Din #SambalpuriDin

August 1st is celebrated as Sambalpuri Din.

As we cheer and wear Sambalpuri Bandha, time to ensure that we choose and promote original handlooms and support all our weavers.

Image Courtesy: Shri Papu Lenka, Facebook

In the above image, we can see some members of the Pahala Rasagola group- Pahala Rasagola Entrepreneurs and Manufacturers - wearing Sambalpuri Bandha shirts. It is a matter of great pride and happiness that they accepted this writer's suggestion and have been wearing handloom shirts for events.