South India
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Bhairava’s Truth In the Light Of the Funeral Pyre
Published on 17th May, 2021, in Scroll.in . Hindutva is a 19th-century political ideology that proclaims itself to be the defender of Hinduism. Yet it is terrified of truth. The truth of death – of hundreds of bodies floating down…
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To Burn or Bury.
Published on 21st March, 2021, in Mid-day. Hindus are constantly reminded of the cycle of life, in ritual after ritual. In Vedic times, 3,000 years ago, bricks would be gathered to build a fire altar where the gods would be…
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Fluid Marriage Rites
Published on 7th March, 2021, in Mid-day. Suriya, the daughter of the sun-god, marries the twin-gods, the Ashwins, and rides with them on their chariot. So says the Rig Veda. Later, we are told, that the Ashwins do not actually…
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The Rajput’s Umbrella
Published on 21st February, 2021, in Mid-day. When a Rajput king dies, his bones are collected after cremation and cast into the river, as is common practice amongst many Hindus. Additionally, the spot where he is cremated is marked by…
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Did Karuppu Swami Live 12,000 Years Ago?
Published on 27th September, 2020, in Mid-day. So, the government has appointed a committee to delve into the “true” history of India, starting from 12,000 years ago, since the Ice Age, which Hindutva historians assume is the “pralaya” of the…
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Was The Buddha Nepalese?
Published on 13th September, 2020, in Mid-day. Sundar Pichai is the CEO of Alphabet and its subsidiary Google, and has achieved great global success. We, Indians, want to identify him as Indian, although his entire achievement has been in America.…
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What They Don’t Tell You About Advaita
Who is a Hindu? What they don’t tell you about Advaita Published on 30th August, 2020, in Mumbai Mirror. Advaita Vedanta is the de facto philosophy followed by Hindutva. The reason for this is not spiritual. It is political. Advaita…
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How Hindutva Threatens the History of Hindus
Who is a Hindu? How Hindutva threatens the history of Hindus Published on 5th July, 2020, in Mumbai Mirror. Hindutva history makes the history of Hindus fragile — people whose temples were destroyed by Muslims and who need Hindutva politicians…
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Mythology As Politics
Published on 22nd March, 2020, in Mid-day As a child in Mumbai, I watched Rajan Uncle perform Chakyar Kootu. My parents were economic migrants from Odisha. My neighbours were from Maharashtra, Kerala and Tamil Nadu. And we got to see…
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One Idea, Many Expressions
Published on 15th March, 2020, in Mid-day In a typical Hindu temple, we do not find just one image. We find multiple images. For many people, unfamiliar with Hindu tradition, this looks like polytheism. But for Hindus, these are various…
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How To Transform an Object Of Art Into One Of Worship
Published on 16th February, 2020, in Mumbai Mirror Objects of art are part of our day-to-day lives. Displayed in showcases, they lend beauty to the places we live in. Objects of worship are different: they are channels to access the…
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Muslim Guardians Of Hindu Shrines
Published on 16th February, 2020, in Mid-day Nowadays, there is a lot of talk about Muslim immigrants not being welcomed in India. But, when one reads folklore of South India, one finds many places where Muslims saints and warriors are…
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A Family In a Temple
Published on 2nd February, 2020, in Mid-day In a typical Hindu temple, we do not find just one image. We find multiple images. For many people, unfamiliar with Hindu tradition, this looks like polytheism. But for Hindus, these are various…
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Is Ganesha married?
In much of the North Indian traditions, Ganesha has two wives: Riddhi and Siddhi. Riddhi is associated with material growth, and Siddhi with intellectual or spiritual growth
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Who is a Hindu? North’s Kanwariya and South’s Kavadi
A selective understanding of the faith by those who control social discourse is the tragedy of Hinduism.
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Vedanta and LGBTIQ
A selective understanding of the faith by those who control social discourse is the tragedy of Hinduism