Religions
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Shiva’s Sexuality and Buddha’s Celibacy
While Buddha had promoted monasticism and celibacy, Shiva’s story celebrated sexuality. Vishnu balanced the two extreme views.
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Fight, Flight and Freeze Responses Of Faith
When a human being is confronted with a problem, we either flee, freeze or fight. This is a physiological stress response, seen even in animals when confronted with a threat. In humans, our imagination transforms this natural response into expressions…
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Speaking of Shiva
In the Hindu epic, Mahabharata, Bhisma tells Arjuna the story of the fight between Shiva and Daksha. Shiva destroys the yagna of Daksha as he refuses to invite him to partake in a share of the sacrifice. This event happens…
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Hinduism Beyond Caste
In Hindu stories, the divine is the embodiment of contentment, the opposite of craving, conflict, and competition.
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Tracking the Tale of Padmasambhava from Odisha to Tibet
mages of Padmasambhava are found across Tibet. He appears very Shiva-like, with a trident and a string of human heads, and is linked with powerful female figures said to have come from various parts of Tibet, Nepal, India, and China.
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When Was the Buddha Born?
In writings, people assume that the Buddha lived about 2,500 years ago. But is that really so? Is that fact or belief?
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How to Look At Manusmriti and the Caste System
Everybody talks about the Manusmriti nowadays and links it to the caste system. But what exactly is it? To understand this, we must understand a little bit of Indian history.
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The Significance of Vedas and Their Rituals
When we talk about the Veda, we have to differentiate between Vedic poetry, Vedic prose, and Vedic philosophy.
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The Elephant-Headed Buddha
When one travels to Thailand and Japan, one occasionally finds images of Ganesha. Most Indians get very excited as it reveals how Hinduism spread to Southeast Asia and even the Far East. However, on closer examination, one realises the answer is not that simple.…
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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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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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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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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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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.