Two things stand out from my visit to Bharat last week: lots of (sometimes too sweet) tea and a palpable sense of hope.
I managed to squeeze in four semi-public meetings during my 4-city trip, and several private conversations centred on political reforms and prospects for change in India..
The first of these meetings – in Bengaluru – was organised by Janaagraha on the topic of “New Age Political Movements” in India. I shared a panel with Dr Shankar Prasad who is contesting as a Loksatta candidate in the upcoming BBMP elections. …

The final part of  “What is Dharma” by Harapriya. Today, can one fight a dharma yudh against adharma?
*** What is “Dharma”? – Concluding Part by K Harapriya ***

Can one fight a dharma yudh against adharma?
The Mahabharata gives a pretty clear answer —-yes, we can fight a dharmic war mostly although some acts of adharma will be committed.
This will seem like equivocation to most people because we tend to believe two prevailing myths:   one, that dharmic people should be held to much higher standards than the totally adharmic;   and two,  that …

Continuing from Part-I that appeared earlier this week. Today, lessons from the MahaBharata.
*** What is “Dharma”? – Part II by K Harapriya ***

Lessons of the Mahabharata
One epic which still holds profound lessons for us,  is the Mahabharata.  Here is an epic where a central character, Duryodhana, is an ambitious king who seeks wealth and power.  These desires, in themselves,   are the hallmark of a kshatriya and therefore befitting a king.  He, as the first born son of the first born Dhritarashtra ,  considers himself the rightful heir to Hastinapura.  Leaving …

Dear All: It is my pleasure to publish this guest post on “Dharma” by K Harapriya. I will be posting this in three parts. At the outset, I am grateful to her for a very well articulated exposition of a difficult concept. Please read and share widely. Today, a definition of “Dharma” and the role of Itihaasa in the Hindu value system (formatting and emphasis is mine).
*** What is “Dharma”? by K Harapriya ***

In the last great battle of the Kurukshetra war, Bhima is engaged in a fight to death …

This post on Raj-Dharma should be read as a sequel to my recent post on Dharma. Like the previous one, this too is a collection of excerpts and notes on the subject from a variety of sources. I am currently reading a long and thought-provoking article on Raj-Dharma by Dr V Nagarajan. I will post excerpts from that too – perhaps as Part III.
My first note is from a site curiously called Indian Officer. The excerpt below is a precis of Chapter XIX, “The Duties of a King” in …

Enjoy excerpts from this stunning piece, courtesy Mises.org (emphasis mine).
*** Excerpts from The Trouble with Democracy: Maslow Meets Hoppe by Doug French ***
Chapter 24 from Property, Freedom, and Society: Essays in Honor of Hans-Hermann Hoppe.
H.L. Mencken described politicians as “men who, at some time or other, have compromised with their honour, either by swallowing their convictions or by whooping for what they believe to be untrue.“[1]
The Sage of Baltimore had it correct, that to be elected and stay elected in American politics to any full-time position requires the suspension of …

While clearing my (now very long) list of pending “To Dos”, I came across this report on the motion moved by Sharad Joshi to delete the word “socialist” from the Constitution as it was not part of its basic structure. This debate happened on 9th Dec ‘05 in the Rajya Sabha. Excerpts below from this very thought-provoking debate which includes statements made by Sh Ram Jethmalani and Sh Jairam Ramesh. Unfortunately the source link that I had to the article is not working anymore Link found/updated above.
*** Excerpts …

Dear All: I am opening this second thread to continue the discussion over from On Religious Freedoms and Secularism. I am reproducing the last few comments to maintain continuity in the discussion. I believe the comments have been reproduced accurately but if some of them look misplaced, pl. let me know.
Please continue to share your thoughts below.
Thank you.

Thoight-provoking excerpts from Arun Shourie’s We must have no price… (emphasis mine):
In one who will stand up to power…conduct and character are everything.
1. ..the first thing to do is to avoid: to avoid the activists’ virus — one that attacks newspapermen as much as activists. There is a real injustice, a real case of wrongdoing. The activist or newspaperman chances upon the evidence. He takes up the issue. As he succeeds, more and more persons reach out to him, and point him in the direction of other wrongs. More and …

To all my readers I owe a big apology. I have long been promising a definition of the word “Dharma” – a word that crops up every now and then in many discussions on this blog – and is also the part of my blog’s sub-title. But as I started to write this post, I realised that this should actually have been one of my first posts, if not the first. Anyways, better late than never.
As I began to do some background reading on this subject, I realised that it …

This post has been pending for a while. A few months ago, the Freedom Team of India (of which I am a member) released its draft policy on Religious Freedom and Tolerance for public comment. I was reminded of this when I read Atanu Dey’s recent article in Pragati. I believe this matter is worthy of serious debate and at the heart of some critical challenges that we face in our polity today.
I am therefore reproducing excerpts from the FTI policy and Atanu’s article below to prompt a discussion. Pl. …

In one of his recent essays, Prof. Art Carden mentions one of the main reasons why political leaders routinely dismiss capitalism:
Under capitalism, the common man does not need an intellectual vanguard or a group of virtuous surrogates to make his decisions for him or to defend him against the rapacity of his fellows. He can do just fine without our help, thank you very much, and would be much obliged if we would go back to our ivory towers and leave him alone.
The idea that great statesmen are not needed …

The July issue of “Towards a Great India” is now online.
It contains reports and first-hand impressions of the Indore outreach initiative, in addition to an article on School Vouchers by Sanjeev and another by LK on “Why are Capitalists a hated lot?”
Do read it and do consider joining the effort.
Related Posts:
Quick Notes from Indore – Part II
Changing India – Step III

Dear All, continuing the series of guest posts by Sanjeev Sabhlok, one of FTI’s founder members, this one deals with equal opportunity and its implications for governance and for society. Read on.
EQUAL OPPORTUNITY IN THE FREE SOCIETY
by Sanjeev Sabhlok
Everyone must be equally free. On that everyone is agreed. But the fact that this equality of freedom translates to equal opportunity (EO), a major plank of the liberal platform, is an area of considerable contention and calls for careful consideration.
The erstwhile Swatantra Party committed, as the first of its 21 …

Fascinating excerpts from “Dems, You Gotta Have Heart” by Drew Westen, written almost two years ago (emphasis mine):
*** Excerpts Begin ***
To understand why Democrats have had such a hard time winning the White House, consider two scenes from last week’s CNN/YouTube debate. First, Sen. Chris Dodd offered a highly precise response to a question about energy: “The 50-mile-per-gallon standard is something I’ve advocated by 2017.” Then former senator John Edwards told a moving story about a man who couldn’t speak for 50 years because of a severe cleft palate: “For …

Dear All: Over the next few weeks, I will be publishing excerpts from a new book by Dr Radha Rajan titled, “Eclipse of the Hindu Nation“.
The first excerpt from the Introduction, below:
*** Excerpt from “Eclipse of the Hindu Nation” – Introduction ***
Historically, the sense of nation and nationhood among Hindus has been cultural and civilisational. The culture and its unique value system, founded in an extraordinary concept of dharma, touched every aspect of individual and collective life. Politics, a means to protect and preserve dharma, was subordinate to dharma. Historically, …

Exactly a week from now, I will be leaving for Indore (in Madhya Pradesh) on one of the most unusual visits I have ever made.
Over a period of seven days (between 2nd ~ 7th Jul ‘09), I will be meeting a large number of people, from diverse backgrounds and varied affiliations…but sharing one thing in common – a dream for a better India.
This visit is part of an outreach effort to get more amongst us interested and involved in politics…but that is not what makes it unusual.
What makes it unusual …

On the cover of Sanjeev Sabhlok’s first book, “Breaking Free of Nehru” is a short quote by Gurcharan Das. He says: “It must be read by every Indian”.
I cannot agree more.
Whether or not you agree with the crisp, bordering on the combative, title of the book, I guarantee you will find it thought-provoking and disturbing.
“Breaking Free of Nehru” can best be summarised as an “Ode to Freedom”. The book is heavily influenced by the liberal philosophy of thought, by thinkers such as Ayn Rand and Milton Friedman and makes …

Start your weekend with this fascinating mea-culpa: “We are biased, admit the stars of BBC News“. Brief Excerpt:
…It was the day that a host of BBC executives and star presenters admitted what critics have been telling them for years: the BBC is dominated by trendy, Left-leaning liberals who are biased against Christianity and in favour of multiculturalism.
A leaked account of an ‘impartiality summit’ called by BBC chairman Michael Grade, is certain to lead to a new row about the BBC and its reporting on key issues, especially concerning Muslims and …

This post has been a long time coming. It was triggered by an article on Sanjeev’s blog lambasting the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS). Being familiar with Sanjeev’s writing and his capacity for research and analysis, I was looking for something thought-provoking.
I was not disappointed.
In his long critique of the Sangh, Sanjeev makes the case against RSS through a series of points. Last week, I finally managed to read the 20-pg document. This post is an attempt at responding to some of the criticisms levelled by Sanjeev against the Rashtriya …