Hinduism
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Glamorising Violence, Gamifying Debate
For the past thirty years, that is what we have been consuming from Hollywood.
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Were Our Hindu Gods Meat-eaters?
Hinduism is a plural religion, an umbrella term for many jatis, sampradayas and paramparas, some of whom may be vegetarian some of the time, or not at all.
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How Hindu Temples Evolved
We assume that temples were always part of Hindu culture. But historians present a far more complex story.
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Sanatan Dharma and the Hierarchy of Purity
For the orthodox Hindu their faith is timeless i.e. sanatan. For the social activist, Hinduism is fundamentally about casteism, and casteism is about untouchability.
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Hindu Gods Are Singers, Dancers and Artists
But, in Hindu mythology, gods also sing, dance and make music and this is what makes Hinduism stand out from most other religions.
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Hinduism Across Telugu Lands
Telugu emerged from the larger Proto-Dravidian language over 2000 years ago, but was formalised only during the reign of the Kakatiyas about 1000 years ago, who carved out a Telugu speaking kingdom from the erstwhile Chalukyan empire.
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Hinduism in Maharashtra
Today, we see Maharashtra as a land defined by political boundaries. But traditionally it has been the land of the Marathi-speaking people, who speak a set of multiple dialects that emerged from Maharashtri Prakrit and was deeply influenced by Sanskrit…
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From Shiva’s Knot to Ram’s Chanda Mama – Our Stories of the Moon
As Chandrayaan-3 lands on the moon, it just so happens that the name of the current Chief Justice of India, D Y Chandrachud, means “on whose brow the moon takes refuge” – a title for Shiva.
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How Gujarat Got Temples That Are Upside-down Or Topped With Mountain Peaks
Internet alien hunters have concluded that in Gujarat there is an underground upside-down temple, despite the fact that the ‘upside-down’ temple has upright images of Vishnu and his avatars.
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Tales From the Land of Jagannatha
There are 30 short essays in this book. They were written by renowned mythologist Devdutt Pattanaik over a ten-year period and published in various publications.
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How the Worship of Radha, Krishna Spread, Amidst the Shadow of Islam.
Chaitanya, known to his followers as Mahaprabhu (great lord, incarnation of Krishna), popularised the worship of Krishna with Radha and the circular dance of Raas Leela in India.
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The Story of Stolen Gods
In the medieval times, Indian kings declared their victory by bringing back home images of gods that were worshipped in the land they conquered. These gods became minor deities in the victor’s temple, living in the shadow of the victor’s…
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Diversity and Inclusion is a radical idea in the West because of monotheism
In the USA, a section of activists prefer the word ‘birthing people’ to ‘mothers’. This is erasure of womanhood, say feminists. Such feminists are deemed TERF (trans exclusionary radical feminists). Inclusion of trans-women seems to demand rejection of traditional definitions…
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Ravana in Malaysia and Indonesia
The Ramayana has been retold by several communities and several people over a period of 2,000 years and over a region that spreads over 5,000 miles. Scholars have found the Ramayana retellings even in faraway places such as Thailand, Malaysia…
