Colonial Discourse and the Suffering of Indian American Children Book Cover.webp

In this book, we analyze the psycho-social consequences faced by Indian American children after exposure to the school textbook discourse on Hinduism and ancient India. We demonstrate that there is an intimate connection—an almost exact correspondence—between James Mill’s colonial-racist discourse (Mill was the head of the British East India Company) and the current school textbook discourse. This racist discourse, camouflaged under the cover of political correctness, produces the same psychological impacts on Indian American children that racism typically causes: shame, inferiority, embarrassment, identity confusion, assimilation, and a phenomenon akin to racelessness, where children dissociate from the traditions and culture of their ancestors.


This book is the result of four years of rigorous research and academic peer-review, reflecting our ongoing commitment at Hindupedia to challenge the representation of Hindu Dharma within academia.

Sree Stotram

From Hindupedia, the Hindu Encyclopedia

By Devendra
Translated by P. R. Ramachander

Rajalakshmi sthirathwaya yada indrena pura sriya,
Sthuthi krutha thadha rajan jayartham Sthuthimacharath., 1

Hey king, Please chant this stotra for achieving victory,
As Indra chanted it praising goddess Lakshmi,
For achieving stability of wealth of his kingdom.

Indra Uvacha:

Indra said:

Namosthu sarvva lokaanaam jananeem abdhi sambhavam,
Sriyamunnidhra padmakshim, Vishnu vaksha sthala sthithaam., 2

Salutations to the mother of all worlds,
Who was born out of an ocean,
Who has eyes like the just opened lotus flower,
And who occupies the chest of Lord Vishnu.

Thwam sidhi sthwam swadha sthwam swaha, sudhasthwam loka pavanee,
Sandhya rathri prabha moorthirmedha sradha saraswathi., 3

You are powers of occult, you are the manes,
You are the fire and you are the nectar,
Hey Goddess who purifies the world,
You are the dusk, the night, the shining one,
You are wisdom, you are concentration,
And you are Saraswathi, the goddess of learning.

Yagna vidhya, maha vidhya guhya vidhya cha shobhane,
Athma vidhya cha devi thwam vimukthi phala dhayini., 4

You are the knowledge of fire sacrifice, Oh shining one,
You are the greatest knowledge, you are the secret knowledge,
You are the knowledge of the soul and Oh holy goddess,
You are that which leads one to freedom from bondage.

Anweshikee thrayee vartha, danda neethi sthwameva cha,
Soumya soumyrjya jagat roopai thwaitha devi pooritham., 5

You are that knowledge of understanding by research,
You are the knowledge of the three Vedas,
You are that knowledge which leads to punishment,
And it is because of you this world is filled with,
Good and bad qualities, which go to make it.

Kaa thwanya thwamruthe devi sarva yagna mayam vapu,
Adhyasthe deva devasya yogi chinthyam gadhabrutha., 6

Hey holy goddess, It is only you who is capable,
Of living in the body of Lord Mahavishnu,
And who is being meditated upon always by yogis,
And who is of the form of all fire sacrifices.

Thwaya devi parithyaktham sakalam bhuvana thrayam,
Vinishta praya bhavath thwayadhaneem samedhitham., 7

Hey Goddess, all these three worlds,
When forsaken by you looked empty and worthless,
But now you have entered them and have given life to them.

Dhara puthrasthadagaram suhrudanyadanadhikam
Bhavathyonmahabhage nithyam thwadeekshan nrunaam., 8

Hey great one, It is by daily meditating on you,
That man gets wife, children, house, relations, money and grain.

Sarererarogya maiswaryam ari paksha kshaya sukham,
Devi twad drushti drustaanaam purushaanam na durlabham., 9

For those man, on whom your sight falls,
Health, wealth, destruction of enemies,
And pleasures are not things they do not have.

Thwam ambha sarva lokanam devadevo hari pitha,
Thwaithad vishnuna chamba jagadhyaptham chara charam., 10

You are the mother of the entire world,
And Hari, the god of gods is the father,
And lord Vishnu is spread among,
All moving and non moving things,
Only because of you, mother.

Manakosham thadha koshtam maa gruham maa parichadham,
Maa sareeram kalathram cha thyajedha, sarva pavani., 11

Oh mother who purifies everything,
Please do not forsake your interest in,
My treasure box, my fort, my house,
My servants, my body and my wife.

Maa puthraan ma suhrud vargaan ma pasun ma vibhooshanam,
Thyajedha mama devasya Vishnu vaksha sthalalaye., 12

Oh mother who lives in the chest of Vishnu,
Please do not forsake your interest in,
My sons, my company of friends,
My cattle and my ornaments.

Sathwena sathya souchabhyam thadha seeladhibhir gunai,
Thyajanthe they naraa sadhya sandhyaktha yea thwayamale., 13

Hey Mother who is the purest,
He in whom you are not interested,
Is bereft of truth, good qualities,
And the conduct which is righteous.

Sa slaghya sa gunee dhanya sa kuleena sa budhiman,
Sa soora sa cha vikrantho, yasthwaya devi veekshitha., 14

He who is seen by the holy mother,
Is talked about, of good character, rich,
Of good heritage, intelligent, heroic and
Blessed with lots of courage.

Thwayavalokitha sadhya seeladhai akhilair gunai,
Kulaiswaryascha yujyanthe purusha nirgunaa api., 15

He who is seen by you mother,
Even if he is bereft of all good qualities,
Would be blessed with all good qualities,
Family status and great wealth.

Sadhyo vai gunyamayanthi seeladhya sakala guna,
Parangmukhee Jagadhdathri, yaya thwam Vishnu vallabhe., 16

Oh Consort of Lord Vishnu and mother of all,
To the one who is not liked by you,
Even if he is blessed by good qualities,
All good qualities would become bad.

Na they varnayithum saktha gunaan jihwapi vedasa,
Praseedha devi padmakshi nasmamsthyakshi kadachana., 17

Even The toungue of Lord Brahma,
Is not capable to describe you fully,
Show your kindness, goddess,
Who has lotus like eyes and,
Never leave me any time ever.

Evam sthutha dadhou sreescha param indraya chepsitham,
Susthirathwam cha rajyasya samgrama vijayadhikam., 18

Thus prayed by Indra and Goddess Sri,
Gave all that he had asked,
Blessed him with Stability of his kingdom,
And blessed him with victory in future wars.

Sustotra pata sravanam karthrunaam bhukthi mukthidham,
Sree stotram sathatham thasmad padescha srunyan nara., 19

Since it is told that reading and hearing a good stotra,
Would bless one with devotion and at the end give him salvation,
This stotra of Sri should be read and heard by men daily.

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