Current affairs, spirituality, heritage & lifestyle.
Monotheism or Polytheism (One God or many Gods) Is Sanatan Dharma a Monotheist (believes in only one god) or a Polytheist (believes in many Gods) philosophy? This a common question/confusion regarding Sanatan Dharma, however the answer is: Sanatan Dharma is neither a monotheist philosophy nor a polytheist philosophy, it a is a MONIST Philosophy. Monism Monism […]
Karma is a key Hindu concept not always easily explained. Comparing it with the gravity, however, helps to illustrate how it works. Obviously, the law of gravitation existed before Newton discovered it. Similarly, the law of karma was actively at work long before some ancient sage first consciously came to understand it. Both these laws […]
Religious tradition has often been a negative factor in the world. It sets up various authorities and conditioning patterns that stifle individual intelligence and creativity. It establishes vested interests who war with one other to control the minds of people. It appears that we would be better off without it. However, if we look deeply, […]
Linda Johnsen 128 pages Yes International Publishers (Minnesota, USA) “India has produced more saints per capita than any other culture in history, but why aren’t there any Indian women saints?” ‘Daughters of the Goddess’ begins with the author recounting this question, which she posed to a Pandit in India many years ago. The Pandit was […]
Whilst the topic of “Women Priests and Spiritual Leaders” remains controversial in many religions, such as Catholicism, Hinduism from ancient times has boasted a number of remarkable female spiritual leaders. The Rig Veda, the most ancient Hindu sacred text, cites more than 30 women sages. However, in medieval times, a period of intense conflict and […]
Author: Rahul Roushan Source: http://www.rahulroushan.com/2014/09/love-jihad-lets-not-love-this-jihad/ Find out more about the author, here. Much has been written and spoken about “Love Jihad” in the political and media circus, I mean, circles, so I thought one more by me won’t be such a bad idea. Out of dozens of articles there, including a ridiculous “data backed” NDTV report, […]
Everybody loves Raksha Bandhan – the festival celebrating the relationship between brother and sister. When we are young, it is a fun day in the summer on which everybody gets dressed up; gifts are given and nice food eaten. Girls tie rakhis on the wrists of their brothers, cousins, and sometimes close friends. At the […]
Main Raksha Bandhan article: Raksha Bandhan – A wish of protection There are records in Hindu sacred literature, the Puranas and the Mahabharata, of the practice of the tying of a rakhi by a sister on her brother, but there is no clear account of its origin. Several legends are thought to mark the origins […]
*** Click here to sign petition *** Gaurav Sawant (right), a deputy editor for Headlines Today (part of the India Today group) is being threatened with dismissal.The reason for this, is that he has dared to question (on Twitter) the way that the mainstream media fails to highlight or report accurately incidents of violence or religious intolerance in […]
A personal & historical look at Hindu – Jewish relationship, beyond contemporary politics & mutually shared interests. A large number of Hindus admire Israel for its ability to defend itself forthrightly in its neighbourhood, despite being a much smaller country in terms of population and land than its neighbours; it is no secret that the […]
When I used to study for exams at university I sometimes kept a copy of the Gita on the table with me. I’d read a page or two now and again, for example during breaks. Straight away I would begin to feel more focused and positive. The Gita certainly was an important companion for me […]
As per my typical “modern-Hindu” upbringing – I was taught to see all other religions in the best possible light, on par with my own. “All religions are a path to the same God” was an often repeated phrase when talking about religion. I remember a member of my family speaking in praise of Prophet […]
There have been numerous reports in the Indian media regarding Narendra Modi that “those who once refused him a visa” are now busy courting him now that he is Prime Minister. Some of Modi’s close aides have been acting triumphantly, implying that now Modi is PM the Western nations are coming to him with their […]
Having had a friend of my family who went to Saudi Arabia to work as a medical doctor, I’ve heard first hand accounts of how difficult life is for the several thousand Hindus who live in Saudi Arabia. Not only were him and his family not allowed to openly practice Hinduism, they were not allowed […]
When an individual sets out to do something for a worthwhile cause, there is usually at the beginning a genuine idealism. Most people do not set out with the aim of impressing others and attracting praise; but it is inevitable that over time sincere efforts start attracting attention, praise and adulation. Different people react to […]
New Delhi: The United States’ spying of the Bharatiya Janata Party in 2010 when it was in the opposition provokes contrary reactions. The first, naturally and predictably, is outrage. This outrage is proximately shared by Angela Merkel of Germany whose cellphone was tapped by the United States’ National Security Agency which also spied on the […]
If anybody had wondered, like I have done, about whether the works of Rajiv Malhotra (a highly influential Hindu thinker and writer of today) took inspiration or influence from the illustrious Sita Ram Goel (1921 – 2003) and Ram Swarup (1920 – 1998), I recently mailed him this question and the following was the response […]
In 1905 Einstein published a paper about the “Photoelectric Effect” which showed that electromagnetic radiation can behave as particles rather than waves in some experiments. It was for this work that he later won the Nobel prize for Physics even though he is more famous for his work on Relativity (with its famous equation E=mc2). […]
Unlike the Abrahamic faiths, Hindu tradition does not have a canon or canonical laws. It is an inclusive tradition. Nothing is banned outright, though some practice(s) are not approved and are sometimes even punished. Hindu tradition has recognised the wide range of human sexual diversity and banned none, though non-mainstream versions have always been relegated […]
The religious culture which now goes by the name of Hinduism … gave itself no name, because it set itself no sectarian limits; it claimed no universal adhesion, asserted no sole infallible dogma, set up no single narrow path or gate of salvation; it was less a creed or cult than a continuously enlarging tradition […]
Hindu Perspective 