A rare photograph taken in 1897 of Jamalpur workshop. Titled as ‘Native workmen leaving after the work’

thejamal — Tue, 09 Oct 2012 16:59:21 +0000

A house demolished by the 1934 earthquake on Queens Road, Jamalpur. Allegedly number 52.

thejamal — Tue, 09 Oct 2012 16:54:46 +0000

A house demolished by the 1934 earthquake on Queens Road, Jamalpur. Allegedly number 52.

British Indian Railway – On Tracks of Empire – Unite and Divide

thejamal — Thu, 04 Oct 2012 03:29:02 +0000

British India from the view point of John Sergeant (BBC). A must watch documentary for all Indians

John Sergeant embarks on a unique 3,000 mile journey through the history of the greatest legacy the British left to India – its rail network. The biggest in Asia, it runs on 40,000 miles of track and reaches every corner of the subcontinent. Proposed in 1853 by Governor General Lord Dalhousie, it would become the biggest engineering project of its time and instrumental in every chapter of India’s history.

Starting in Kolkata, Sergeant traverses India from east to west, travels through turbulent Bihar state, visits the Victorian railway town of Jamalpur, and discovers why the construction of the Dufferin Bridge at Varanasi resulted in Victorian technology and ingenuity clashing with ancient religion, before ending his journey at the border with Pakistan.

Even though Mahatma Gandhi denounced the railways as evil, Sergeant reveals how it became a civil engineering triumph that united the country and played a crucial role when India became independent in 1947

Golden Jubilee of Bihar School of Yoga & World Yoga Convention 2013

thejamal — Mon, 01 Oct 2012 04:32:37 +0000

The 50th anniversary of the Bihar School of Yoga will be commemorated in 2013, culminating with the celebration of the World Yoga Convention from 23rd to 27th October 2013 in Munger.

The World Yoga Convention will commemorate the achievements of the Bihar School of Yoga, from its inception in 1963 to the present day, in the propagation of the science of yoga for the welfare and upliftment of humanity.

During the convention, a vision of the next stage in the evolution of spiritual awareness will be brought forth.

“People living in today’s world, who have to step into new dimensions of consciousness and open new doors of perception to bring about a healthy atmosphere for humankind, need to practise yoga.”

Sri Swami Satyananda

Spiritual leaders, scientists, doctors, educators and eminent people from all walks of life will attend to share their knowledge and inspiration. This noble event will be guided by Swami Niranjan, the spiritual successor of Sri Swami Satyananda.

The program will include lectures, discussion groups, presentations, practice demonstrations and meetings to discuss yogic principles and techniques, and their influence on the individual and society.

An exposition of books on yoga and spiritual life will be featured during the Convention. Special texts will also be released as commemorative souvenirs, including Tantra Darshan, a classic work illuminating the prodigious science of tantra. Further, Swami Niranjan will give a detailed exposition of the kriya systems of yoga.

The World Yoga Convention 2013: Celebration of the Yoga Lifestyle

A World Yoga Convention has been held every twenty years since 1953, and each convention has ushered in a new phase of understanding of yoga and spiritual life which has been adopted by people across the world. The Convention in 2013 will bring forth a new level of understanding and application of yoga in people’s lives. The 2013 Convention will ignite, power and guide the future effort towards a global understanding and realization of spiritual life in its true sense.

Sincere seekers will be inspired and motivated to take further steps along the path of evolution of consciousness, and at the same time to assist others in their journey towards a better quality of life for all. Through the all-encompassing vision of Sri Swami Sivananda and the indomitable achievements of Sri Swami Satyananda, the practices and techniques of yoga have been accepted by people from all walks of life in all corners of the world. It is now time for yoga to be adopted as a way of life; it is time for yoga to be lived.

Yoga must become part of life. Only then can the process of transformation take place in deeper and more profound ways. The individual nature is gradually refined and purified, allowing a more natural, harmonious and creative expression in life. From a base of growing self-awareness and understanding, one becomes more attuned to the flow of life and to the needs of others. The actions of such a person become naturally beneficial and uplifting to the self, to others and to the whole of one’s environment. Through the living of yoga, moment to moment, breath to breath, a new cycle of positive transformation begins, the birth of yogic culture.

“Yoga is going to be the culture of the future. The world can never be saved unless a complete process of reorientation of the yogic culture is imparted to every man, woman and child. Yoga is a universal culture and represents the sentiments, aspirations and ideals, not only of one nation, but of the whole world.”

Sri Swami Satyananda

Source: http://yogavision.net/world-yoga-convention/about-wyc/golden-jubilee-and-wyc-2013/

http://mungerjamalpur.com/2012/10/01/golden-jubilee-of-bihar-school-of-yoga-world-yoga-convention-2013/

thejamal — Tue, 24 Jul 2012 08:36:11 +0000

Jamalpur workshop bags Rs 129-crore contract

thejamal — Sat, 28 Apr 2012 18:00:54 +0000

Jamalpur railway workshop, one of the oldest workshops of railways in the country, has bagged a prestigious contract worth Rs 129.13 crore from Container Corporation of India ( Concor) to manufacture 675 bogie low container (BLC)-type wagons.

According to chief workshop manager, Jamalpur Workshop, Anismesh Kumar Sinha, the BCL wagons are in demand for container services across the country.

These wagons are ideal for carrying freight safely from one place to another. These are being used for ‘international multimodal transport’ at dry ports like the one at Tughlaqabad near Delhi, he said, adding these wagons are a prerequisite for any dry port to transport any consignment through containers.

Sinha said that greatest advantage of these wagons is that they can run at 100km per hour on the existing tracks. “Jamalpur railway workshop has got this prestigious contract mainly due to its quality work as well as time-bound delivery of products ordered with it,” he said.

According to sources, the Jamalpur workshop has been manufacturing these wagons at a low cost compared to private manufacturers. It has been using sophisticated robotic and computerized machines for manufacturing the wagons, sources said, adding this is the biggest order ever bagged by the workshop for manufacturing BLC type wagons.

Source: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/patna/Jamalpur-workshop-bags-Rs-129-crore-contract/articleshow/12899239.cms

Jamalpur Hills

thejamal — Thu, 10 Nov 2011 15:50:03 +0000

For all that, however, Jamalpur (Jamal ..in urdu means beautiful) is an incredibly beautiful place – hills, lakes, water falls -all add to it’s picturesque beauty.

Famous throughout India is the ‘Sholay tunnel’ , a tunnel where , you guessed it, a scene in the megabuster SHOLAY was shot . Immortal also are actor Sanjeev Kumar’s words- “jab main Jamalpur main inspector tha…”.

The small city of Jamalpur in Munger District, Bihar is the birthplace of Baba

thejamal — Thu, 10 Nov 2011 15:28:39 +0000

Jamalpur

The small city of Jamalpur in Munger District, Bihar is the birthplace of Baba, the founder and Guru of Ananda Marga, It is therefore a place of is of great significance and joy to margiis. Being the home to the biggest railway workshop in South East Asia is Jamalpur’s other claim to fame.

For a spiritual practitioner this place is a wonderworld. In the field and hills above the city saints and developed yogis have performed meditation for hundreds and thousands of years. Hence Jamalpur is a highly vibrated place well suited for spiritual pursuits. If you don’t know what “a good place for meditation” means it could be likened to the difference bwetween ice cold water and nice warm water for swimmers, or a proper learning environment and a good teacher for education, etc. Anyone who performs sports, arts, etc., at higher levels knows the difference between highly conducive and less helpful environments, and so do those who perform spiritual meditation. Of course, as meditation is inner work it can be performed anywhere irrespective of the immediate surroundings in one’s daily life . Anyway, after coming here Erlend suggested we stay on for some days more so that we may properly enjoy the atmosphere as well as the company of the margiis here who had the privilege of knowing Baba intimately. We therefore abandoned our plans for the Rajgir arts festival in order to devote ourselves more to spiritual sightseeing and the company of devotees at Jamalpur.

It is the third time that Trond visits Jamalpur. One thing he noticed this time is how much damage to the environment the mining of the hills in the area have done. Much of the Death Valley and large chunks of the hills at the north end of the field including parts of the ascendence to Kali Pahar (Kali Hill) have been blowed away in recent months and years. Soon the whole landscape may be gone if this large-scale demolition is allowed to continue.

On Sunday October 25 we went into Death Valley as it is called owing to a story of a mass slaughter by one army of another a long time ago. The valley’s fearful atmosphere is famous and locals advise against entering the valley after dark — it is thought to be haunted by the souls of those who were closed in here to meet a cruel death once upon a time. Desolate Death Valley is therefore a favourite place for tantrikas who prefer to meditate in peace at night. We chose early morning as our time of entering and truly enjoyed our walk up through the valley in splendid solitude. Finally a lonely, most natural and unpolluted place in India, teeming with flowers, butterflies and sing-song birds! After first having passed the areas destroyed by mining we came into the other half of the valley, untouched and verdant. Midway we sat in the shade of a big tree for meditation. Out at the other end we were greeted with stunning views of undulating hills and vast agricultural fields to the north-east of Jamalpur, and, to the right of the rear of the valley, breathtaking view of Jamalpur city and its surroundings, much more impressive view than from Kali Pahar. It takes about 30 minutes to walk up Death Valley, an effort richly rewarded with deep silence, calm, natural beauty and the breathtaking view of the Gangetic plain around Jamalpur. Be sure to set aside a public holiday such as Sunday for coming here as weekdays are cordoned off — and there aren’t any street lights to brighten up the nights in this valley.

Atop Kali Pahar

At the mouth of Death Valley when entering from Jamalpur railwaybridge and the lake below Kali Pahar there is a large old tamarind tree that also attracts spiritual interest. It is another most wonderful spot to which we shall return for night meditation.

Under the tamarind tree

As you probably understand by now Jamalpur is something of a fairytale land for the spiritual thirsty. On Saturday we ascended the Kali Pahar for meditation at Baba’s spot there and enjoyed the grand views both over Jamalpur town and the interior jungle stretching far into the north. Earlier we had walked on the field beneath the hill where Baba used to go ever so often. Back then it was more of an outskirt, even wild terrain but these days most of the field with the Tiger’s Grave and other remarkable spots and tantra piithas has been turned into a golf course! It is surreal to sit down on the grave and on any other spot there to be surrounded by eager golfers who seem to be in dire need of a green card crash course most of them

Tiger’s Grave in the field above Jamalpur town

For those of you who have no idea of the “Tiger’s Grave” it harks back to the year 1864 when a tiger and an Englishman both died in their mutual clash as a result of their encounter there. The tiger’s grave was a favourite sitting place for Baba where he brought many disciples and performed various works. The Englishman’s grave is just a few meters away.

The Englishman’s grave

The inscription on the Englishman’s grave

Nothwithstanding the various encroachments upon the legacy of Baba and other spiritualists of the area, the sweet powerful vibrations of blessed Jamalpur remain very obious to visitors. The Ananda Marga jagrti must be one of the biggest in the world. The spacious meditation hall with its rich accoustics make Sunday Dharmacakra a great experience with around 60 local devotees in attendance. Baba’s small room on the original 1950s tiny establishment is the definite place for meditation where very little effort is needed other than closing the eyes.

Accross the street of the jagrti Ananda Marga runs a school with some 75 children.

Too late for admission here

The present principal is Acarya Mantracaetanyananda took very good care of us. We can only recommend margiis to come here regularly. Best times for visiting: September/October to February/March, as the summer months are very hot. When you have arrived be sure to arrange for a guided tour so that you can familiarize yourself with all significant places, like the ones we mentioned, Baba’s birthplace, the office where he worked, his living quarters after marriage, the interesting corridor from those quarters to the jagrti, etc., and then have ample time for yourself to enjoy your favourite spots for days and nights together!

Erlend and Acarya Mantracaetanyananda Avadhuta,
Principal of the Ananda Marga Primary School at Jamalpur

Tuesday night we will unfortunately leave Jamalpur for the great arts festival in Varanasi, Shiva’s city. So long.

Death Valley

thejamal — Thu, 10 Nov 2011 14:34:35 +0000

Dada Arddhvendu Maoli.

The Death Valley gets its name after a group of soldiers disappeared in the area. Nobody knows what happened to them.

Baba used to spend a lot of time here, particularly meditating under the Tamarind Tree.

The Humans Meditate on the Tiger’s Grave

thejamal — Thu, 10 Nov 2011 11:59:52 +0000

Tiger’s Grave, Jamalpur, India

In a lonely field on the outskirts of Jamalpur – a small town, insignificant but for the presence of its railway workshop – lies the Tiger’s Grave. A few feet away rests the grave of the Englishman – the soldier who shot the tiger and was, in turn, fatally injured by the beast.

The field was later cleared and prepared as a golf course, for the frivolities of the ruling British, but the project was abandoned and never completed.

In this lonely field, in the dead of night, Tiger’s Grave became the chosen spot for many sittings with spiritual master Prabhat Ranjan Sarkar (known also by the spiritual name, Shrii Shrii Anandamurti).

He gave lessons and demonstrations of mysticism and meditation to small groups of spiritual practitioners. He dictated many books and scriptures by the light of a lantern. Such seminal works as Ananda Sutram, Guide to Human Conduct and Elementary Philosophy were given here.

Spiritual aspirants still come from around the world to see and meditate on the grave – much to the bewilderment of many locals, who have but the slightest idea of the incredible spiritual heritage that was born in their homeland.

Jamalpur, Bihar state, India