2024 / Articles
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Feet Of Fortune
After the devotee pays obeisance to the deity (darshan), the priest places a crown on his head. But it is not quite a crown. On top are the footprints of the deity.
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The Turtle In Shiva’s Temple
Between the Nandi Bull and the Shiva Linga is a turtle. No one quite knows the significance of this turtle, though many interpretations have been offered.
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Our Unique Culture
When one steps back and looks at large trends in human history, one can see that to the west and east of India are two very distinct ideas, neither of which inform Indian ways of thinking. In that regard, Indian…
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Shiva and Vishnu in My Son, Vietnam
If one travels to Da Nang in Vietnam, then takes an hour’s drive to the city of My Son, one finds a cluster of Hindu temples made of brick. They are dedicated to Hindu gods. One realises these were built…
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How Did Invasions Change Indian Culture?
The invader generally takes wealth away from a place. He also takes people as slaves. An invasion can take over the economic and political systems, changing the culture of the land over time.
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Life Of a Stupa
The Buddhist stupa originated as a very simple idea. After the Buddha was cremated, his bones were collected and placed in caskets, which were then covered with a mound.
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The Many Lives of the Buddha
There are many versions of the life of the Buddha, with people assuming the Pali version to be original and authentic.
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A Supper With Bacchus In India
Both Jesus and Bacchus have an Indian connection. Many argue that Jesus visited India, probably Kashmir, and learnt Buddhism here and the concept of Sangha (Church). Likewise, in Greek mythology, Dionysus, god of wine, known to Romans as Bacchus, came…
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When Inclusion Becomes Intrusion
The people who created the phrase “free speech” are the very same who have created “hate speech”. It took some time for those promoting “free speech” to realise that not all speech is good, decent and respectful.
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Month of Muharram
The month of Muharram marks the first of twelve months of the Islamic calendar, and it has very different meanings for the Shia and the Sunni communities.
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When Spitting on Someone Is Considered Good Luck
The idea that Muslims spit on food is now spreading virally across Indian social media. It is seen as some kind of Islamic practice to contaminate Hindu food, the claim is made by people with a long history of trying…
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Secularising Ramayana and Mahabharata
When we study Buddhist and Jain lore, we realise many stories there are quite similar to stories found in Ramayana and Mahabharata.
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Words of Savarkar
We are so spellbound by the Savarkar-Gandhi rivalry, the Veer-Mahatma competition, the violent/non-violent politics, we ignore the role played by Savarkar in creating new words for a new India, for he was part of the Hindi/Urdu debate, and he wanted…
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If You Are Truly Hindu, You Can’t Hate
Hatred is easy to justify, when you see yourself as the victim. But the idea of victimhood does not exist in Hinduism, from a structural point of view.
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Migration of Genes and Languages
In order to understand culture, we need to understand people. In order to understand India, we need to understand Indians. Where did Indians come from?
