कांगड़े दा टीला ओ माता, गर्वे सिंघे घेरिया। अकबर कांगड़े चढ़ आया ओ मेरी माँ। सुत्ती ऐ की जाग दी तू, जाग अम्बे रानिये। गर्वे ने पाई लिया घेरा ओ मेरी माँ। A very famous bhajan from Kangra of Mata Bajreshwari Devi, remembered often across north-west India today, talks of the Kangre da Tilla or the Mound of Kangra, referring to the place where Bajreswari Devi is present. She is popularly also know as Kangra Mata, and the legend is that the place was set up by burying the kaan or ear of an asura who was killed by the Pandavas on the orders of the Devi. There are such bhajans for other major temples in the region as well, but as a history enthusiast, this one often draws my attention. The story of Kangra is as much the story of the civilizational wounds that the plains experienced; or perhaps it was worse, given how many times temple desecrations were made a conscious strategy. This song, at some level, seems to pass on the memory of one such gory experience that was witnessed by the peopl...
Kashmir 1931 - Finding the Truth (courtesy MediaVigil) Maharaja Hari Singh, as I pointed out in an earlier post, had committed to a formation of an independent India at the 1931 round table. Since then, every occasion was sought by the british to put him down. An occasion was created in 1931 which is often touted as Martyrs Day by Kashmiri Muslim separatists. However, a careful examination of the entire incident tells one that the 20 June incident was nothing but a fabrication. To this day, the incidents of Jammu can not be linked to the reason for the protests in Srinagar. Whatever fabrications the entire cabal may try, fact of the matter remains that Jammu saw its affairs entirely separately in matters of religion and had full faith in the Maharaja's Raj. The cases of Jammu Jail and Udhampur will case are entirely fabrications, references to which can still not be found in official records. If there were such cases, one wonders why there are no such records in the archi...