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Congratulations to Minister Ramjattan for his Diwali date stance

Oct 30, 2015 Letters

Dear Editor,
Please permit me space in your newspaper to congratulate Swami Aksharananda for his succinct and cogent articulation of the 2014 Diwali celebration in Guyana that seems to have the Hindu populace in a tizzy. His letter was published in another newspaper on 10/28/2015. I perused many writers’ postulations/ lamentations in the various media outlets, attempting to validate the 10th or 11th as the correct date and decrying the one they think not. Most of the arguments they used to advance their position can easily be Googled so that was a “no brainer”. Some even made the situation even cloudier with their invalidated opinions, thereby exasperating the public even further.  In New York, the Hindus are in a similar conundrum whereby religious calendars are hastily printed in November of any given year-to be given as gifts for, ironically, the Christmas Season – to clients of businesses. This is advertisement for the businesses. They are also replicated en masse, by numerous religious organizations, with scant attention to legitimize the dates involved- just so that they can sell them first to the Mandir worshippers.
Swami Aksharananda’s comprehensive diagnostic of this Hindu festival, as celebrated in India,(including the time difference) and the historical relevance as to how it arrived at the shores of Guyana and how and when it was/ supposed to be celebrated in Guyana (including the time difference) – with pellucid corroboration of the date(s) involved – must be greeted with a sigh of relief and deep gratitude. His revelation that Minister Ramjattan was instrumental in defining the date of November 10th as Diwali, by consulting with various religious bodies and luminaries must be lauded. There should never be a monopolistic dictate as consensus is optimal, especially when action by a nation’s population hinges on the proclamation.  So thank you, thank you, Swamiji for your erudite dispensation and kudos to you, Honorable Minister Ramjattan, for standing up for what is right, and, not necessarily immediately popular. On another tenor, personally, I endorse the proposal of Swami Aksharananda, for the government  to set up religious bodies (Hindus, Muslims ,Christians) to discuss important issues likened to the current experience, even if only to avoid arbitration and deteriorating sanctity thereof.
 Jonathan Subrian

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