Another ceasefire violation along LoC, another terrorist attack, another dialogue with a great neighbour…and another peace initiative…As I read the news this morning, something triggered an urge to read Raashtrakavi Ramdhari SIngh “Dinkar”.

I was not disappointed. Courtesy Geeta-Kavita, “here is a great lesson in diplomacy and human relations from Ramdhari Singh Dinkar. Forgiveness of a weakling does not count. First have the power and capability to defeat the enemy, then only your offer of peace would carry weight. Virtues of forgiveness, kindness and tolerance are appreciated in society only if …

I am writing this at midnight from Bengaluru.  Thanks to a hectic schedule and travel, I have slept for just about 13hrs since Thursday morning…yet I am finding it hard to sleep.
What happened in Pune is tragic but neither surprising nor unexpected. Pune was very much on the “list”. It was only a matter of time.
Some reports have linked the timing of the blast to the killing of Shahid Azmi, who was defending Fahim Ansari (26/11 accused).

Others have suggested that the heavy police bandobast for MNIK may have distracted the …

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 …

…unfortunately not on the rail-road
Travelling over the next 10 days. Please expect some delay in responding to (and moderating) comments.

I will be posting excerpts from various articles during this period and hope to find time to write at least a couple of blog posts…So keep visiting!
Those of you who are reading this from Bengaluru, please try and see if you can make it to a panel discussion that I will be participating in on the 15th Feb (Mon). More details on the Facebook page.
Jai Hind, Jai Bharat!

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 …

This is…

and this…

and this…

and this…

I don’t think any comment is necessary.
I would simply like to reproduce two tweets from Kanchan Gupta and Atanu Dey respectively:
KanchanGupta: Folks it’s amazing, the manner in which the avalanche story is being downplayed to promote SRK interview! Sad. Very sad.
AtanuDey: My heart goes out to those soldiers and their families. They died to protect a callous Bollywood/Cricket crazed public.
P.S. The sites/publications that redeemed themselves: Indian Express, Pioneer and Hindustan Times
Related Post: The great joke that is Indian media – Part XIII (posted just …