When Dr Srinivasan first mentioned the title of his recent book “Hinduism for Dummies” to me, I must admit I was somewhat skeptical. Being a student of “Hindu” culture, religion and history for the last several years, I was not at all sure that a such a vast and complex belief system as “Hinduism” can really be explained in the simple “… For Dummies” format.
I was wrong. Make it “very wrong”.

Because Dr Amrutur Srinivasan has achieved something remarkable in these 300-odd pages; something that I have not come …

At least some of you must have read an extraordinary piece in the New York Times earlier this week provocatively titled, Yoga and Sex Scandals: No Surprise Here. In that piece, William Broad made a number of assertions – some misleading, some just plain wrong including the remarkable assertion that “(Yoga) began as a sex cult“(sic)!  Thankfully, rebuttals were quick and fast in coming..Most of them highlighted Mr Broad’s false premise and his apparent ignorance about the origins of Yoga, its spiritual aspects as well as the tradition of Tantra. …

This post has been some time in coming – and I am penning my thoughts on something controversial after a long time. It was prompted by the recent decision of government of MP to increase the punishment for cow slaughter. As many of you would know, the issue of cow-slaughter is not a new one.  In fact, the demand for a ban on slaughter of cows is more than a century old – and was first raised in modern times by Swami Dayanand Saraswati and the Arya Samaj. It has …

Dear All: This post was triggered by RealityCheck’s response to Praveen Swami’s remarks on the MahaKumbh. In discussions of Haj subsidy, many of you must have heard arguments along the lines of “..but the government subsidises Kumbh Mela too“. Although demonstrably false, this argument continues to be rehashed – sometimes even by well-known columnists. The latest to join this group is Praveen Swami. Below, excerpts from a brilliantly written counter-piece by RealityCheck on the specious logic of Praveen Swami:
Praveen Swami after a flying recap of the Salman Rushdie affair, lands …

Thanks to Dr Kalyanaraman-ji for alerting me to this article: “How ancient India upheld democracy, kept corruption at bay“, by Brij Khandelwal, published in DNA. Excerpts below (emphasis mine):
Aligarh Muslim University historian S Chandni Bi, who has specialised in epigraphy, the study of inscriptions, says around 1,000 years ago there was zero tolerance towards financial bungling. According to him, inscriptions in the southern state of Tamil Nadu clearly indicate how intolerant civil society was against corrupt practices and the violators of ethical framework.
Chandni told IANS in an interview: “A well-evolved …

Excerpts from an essay by Swami Chinmayananda on non-violence and righteous violence titled, DHARMA HIMSA TATHAIVA CA (emphasis added):

Personally, I am no advocate of violence. But violence, too, has its rightful place in life, life does not preclude death. The average Indian has been moulded into a particular national mentality of quixotic tolerance. His attitude is shaped into its distinct pattern by the ideologies and moralities preached in our national literature. And no single work in our classics has gained such a wide influence on our people as the Bhagawad …

Dear Friends: This is a short and hurried post to trigger a discussion on the treasures that have been discovered in the vaults of the Sree PadmanabhaSwamy temple in Thiruvananthapuram…It is mainly a compilation of comments and some thought-provoking(I hope) questions…Please do share your thoughts and contribute.
Will the counsel for petitioner who insisted temple was “public property” please clarify their stance on Waqf land – large enough to make it the 3rd largest land-holder in India and Church estates – which constitute the largest ownership of non-agricultural land in India?
In response …

Dear All: It is my pleasure to publish this guest post by KV Sarma J on “Athirathram” – one of the most ancient and sacred ritual associates with Vedic Dharma.  I should confess that if you had mentioned the word “Athirathram” to me before April, I would have drawn a blank on it. Now, I know better – in large part due to the efforts of bloggers like KV and others. Below is a condensed version of the full series that appeared on KV Sarma J’s blog…Please read, share and …

Did you know that the term “Secularism” – forced into the Preamble of the Constitution by Indira Gandhi during the dark days of Emergency – has not been defined in the Constitution?
The reason?
…presumably because it is a very elastic term not capable of a precise definition and perhaps best left undefined.

These are the words of Justice P Sathasivan quoted in a recent HT news-report. Lack of definition does not prevent anyone from “interpreting” what it means…and so we have Justice Sathasivan saying:
…in Indian context secularism meant “Sarva Dharma Sambhav” …

Thanks to Parthasarathy-ji for alerting me to this recent interview of Jeffrey Armstrong. I found it fascinating for the breadth of subjects it covered and the insights it offered. Some excerpts below (emphasis added). As some of you may know,
Jeffrey Armstrong is an award-winning author of numerous books on Vedic knowledge..He is a philosopher, practitioner and teacher of the Vedas for the past 40 years. He has degrees in Psychology, History & Comparative Religions, and Literature and had a successful career as an executive in Silicon Valley before turning to …