20 February - Shabari Jayanti

 

Shabari Jayanti is a Hindu festival that celebrates the devotion and unwavering faith of Shabari, a prominent character in the Indian epic Ramayana. Shabari is revered as a symbol of pure devotion (bhakti) and is particularly celebrated in parts of South India, especially in Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, and Maharashtra.

Significance of Shabari:

Shabari was a devoted disciple of the sage Matanga and a fervent devotee of Lord Rama. According to the Ramayana, she spent years in asceticism, waiting for Lord Rama to visit her hermitage. When Lord Rama finally arrived, she offered him berries that she had first tasted to ensure they were sweet, an act that symbolized her selfless love and devotion. Despite being of a humble background and from a tribal community, Shabari's devotion was so pure that she was blessed by Lord Rama himself.

Observance of Shabari Jayanti:

• Date: Shabari Jayanti is celebrated on the Saptami (7th day) of the Krishna Paksha (waning phase of the moon) in the month of Phalguna, which usually falls in February or March according to the Gregorian calendar.

• Rituals and Traditions: On this day, devotees remember and honor Shabari's devotion by reading and reciting her story from the Ramayana. Special prayers, bhajans (devotional songs), and rituals are performed in temples, especially in those dedicated to Lord Rama. In some regions, people visit temples and participate in communal prayers to celebrate Shabari’s unyielding devotion.

• Cultural Importance: Shabari Jayanti is not just a celebration of a mythological figure but also a reminder of the spiritual teachings of the Ramayana, emphasizing that devotion and purity of heart transcend caste, creed, and social status. Shabari's story is often used to highlight the idea that true devotion is the path to attaining the grace of the divine.

Shabari Jayanti is thus a day to reflect on the values of humility, devotion, and the belief that divine grace can be attained by anyone who possesses a pure heart and sincere faith.

20 February - Maria Goeppert Mayer birth anniversary

 

Maria Goeppert Mayer (1906–1972) was a German-American physicist who won the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1963 for her work on the nuclear shell structure. She was born on June 28, 1906, in Kattowitz, Germany (now Katowice, Poland), and later became a naturalized American citizen.

Mayer earned her Ph.D. in theoretical physics from the University of Göttingen in 1930. She faced challenges in her early career due to gender discrimination, but she continued her scientific pursuits. During World War II, she worked on the Manhattan Project, contributing to the development of the atomic bomb.

Her groundbreaking work, for which she was awarded the Nobel Prize, focused on the development of the nuclear shell model. Mayer, along with J. Hans D. Jensen and Eugene Paul Wigner, made significant contributions to understanding the structure of atomic nuclei. They proposed a model that explained the arrangement of protons and neutrons in atomic nuclei in a way that resembled the structure of electron shells in atoms. This work laid the foundation for the understanding of the nuclear structure and was essential in advancing nuclear physics.

Maria Goeppert Mayer was the second woman to receive the Nobel Prize in Physics, following Madame Curie, and her contributions have had a lasting impact on the field of nuclear physics. She passed away on February 20, 1972.

20 February - World Anthropology Day

 

Every year on the third Thursday of February, World Anthropology Day is observed. And it occurs on February 20 this year. The day is designated to honour the untapped area and educate the general public about anthropology. However, let's first define anthropology before moving on to the history and significance of World Anthropology Day.

The scientific study of humanity is known as anthropology. It investigates the beginnings and progression of human societies and cultures. Different scientific methodologies are used to examine traits in historical and contemporary communities. The study also aids in our understanding of how the world functions, the reasons behind our behavior, and how our environments are influenced by us.

image from Postbleed.com