Current affairs, spirituality, heritage & lifestyle.
If we observe ourselves we can see that all day long there is background chatter in the mind. It may be the repetition of some song we have heard on the radio, it may be a rehashing of some experience we have just had, an insult or argument for example, or a consideration of what […]
It was earlier this month that Penguin India made the decision to stop publishing and recall copies of a book titled The Hindus: An Alternative History, by controversial American writer Wendy Doniger, in response to a petition lodged by a complainant in an Indian court. This is not a “banning” of the book in India […]
Note: this article was written in the context of Hindus living in the UK, although it has wide relevance to Hindus in all communities. As time goes by, we are seeing more mandirs being built in Britain. These tend to be larger, fancier and costlier than the earlier ones – reflecting increased affluence and resolve on the […]
Most Hindus living in a predominantly English speaking environment have an urge at one point in their lives to learn about Hinduism. Sometimes the curiosity arises from a genuine desire for guidance in life. In other cases the urge to look into Hinduism comes from a particular incident – for example being asked questions that […]
This article was originally published in the online journal ‘Sword of Truth’. Further information on the subject can be found in the author’s book, of the same title. Dr. N. S. Rajaram is an author and mathematician, based in the USA, where he formerly worked for the National Aeronautic and Space Administration (NASA), in the fields […]
The great Pandurang Shastri once said that that the most adharmic thing that anyone did in the entire Mahabharata was a message sent by King Dhritirashtra to Yudhisthir prior to the outbreak of the Great War. The message was along the lines of: “Dear Yudhisthir. You are righteous, but my sons are foolish and stubborn. You […]
With the recent commencement of the building of the “Statue of Unity”, a statue of Sardar Vallabhai Patel, which at a proposed height of 182m is set to be the largest statue in the world, the question is being debated over who is the best carrier of his legacy: The Congress or the BJP? The […]
My first recollections of Diwali in distant childhood are of immense joy: fireworks, diwas, nice food, presents, time-off school, spending time with friends and relatives, and a general feeling of happiness. How can anyone not grow up loving such a festival? This greatest of festivals is a time when we take a step back from […]
It is that time of the year where Hindus start preparations for celebrating Navaratri, the joyous festival of nine nights, which is dedicated to the Divine Mother Durga. Virtually every Hindu community in the world celebrates Navratri. The major story associated with Navratri is the battle between the great Goddess Durga and the demon Mahishasura, […]
Over a century ago, the great sage Sri Aurobindo wrote an article called “The UnHindu Spirit of Caste Rigidity” (available here). His ideas for striking at the very root of the caste problem are valid even today, and need to be taken up with more urgency that in the past. To secure its future, Hindu […]
It is very heartening to find Dalits becoming religiously self-sufficient within the Hindu fold, and developing learned priests within their own community.. But let us not be complacent. Let us destroy any vestige of birth based Varna, so that it is nothing more than a bad memory within 20 years. There is nowhere in the […]
Reflections on the conduct of the Pandavas during the Gambling Match I’ve often felt that while Draupadi was being humiliated by Duryodhana and assaulted by Dushashana in the court of Hustinapur; why did her mighty warrior husbands not get up there and then and then and fight? Also, while Yuddhistira was gambling away recklessly, why […]
I remember a talk by Shri Pandurang Shastri Athavale, in which he was simultaneously joking and lamenting the weak and selfish way that many people who should know better conduct their lives. One comment that really struck me is as follows: People sometimes ask me “When will Kali Yuga end?” I tell them “How can […]
In the second part of this series, Rajesh Vaghela recounts his experiences as a wayward young Hindu trying to grow up out of what he describes as ‘a life of vice’. Click here to access part-one. Most of the time, being drunk promotes stupid behaviour. But there are exceptions. Sometimes you end up having the deepest and […]
In the first of this three-part series, Rajesh Vaghela recounts his experiences as a wayward young Hindu growing up in the UK. His account describes a social and intellectual phenomenon in the life of young Hindus, which is shared by many. As such, his is an important story to tell. Word had got around that […]
In the concluding portion of this two-part series, a Hindu girl shares her true-life experiences of victimisation on a university campus, at the hands of a guy she met during freshers. The first part can be accessed by clicking here. It wasn’t too long before the Summer Vacation, and I was relieved to be able to […]
In the first of a two part series, a young lady shares her true-life experiences of victimisation on a university campus, at the hands of a guy she met during freshers. It is believed that this sort of victimisation and targeting is quite common, and yet there are extremely few first hand accounts from the perspective of […]
The post-World War II era saw the dramatic end of colonialism across the world. The first and most devastating blow to colonialism was the freedom of India. Overnight, the second most populous nation in the world, accounting for over 1/6th of the world’s population, achieved freedom. Despite the sad events that accompanied India’s Independence, the […]
Most of my early knowledge about Hinduism came through a movement called Swadhyaya. Although in the past few years I have ceased to be an active part of the movement, I am extremely grateful for having received an amazing and practical appreciation of my cultural and spiritual heritage. What I learnt at Swadhyaya was mostly […]
In childhood years, many Hindu children nowadays are introduced to Hindu sacred stories through the medium of comic books, such as Amar Chitra Katha. These provide a colourful, entertaining and valuable rendering of ancient stories from texts called the Puranas, and most kids read them with great enthusiasm, forming many people’s introduction to the world […]
Hindu Perspective 