HINDU Terminal...!

Why I am a Hindu...  An American girl was sitting on the right side, near window seat. It indeed was a long journey – it would take nearly seven hours! I was surprised to see the young girl reading a Bible – unusual of young Americans! (Later I came to know that September 11 has changed mind-set of lot of US citizens. They suddenly turned religious, it seemed.) After some time she smiled and we had few acquaintances talk. I told her that I am from India. Then suddenly the girl asked: “What’s your faith?” “What?” I didn’t understand the question. “I mean, what’s your religion? Are you a Christian? Or a Muslim?” “No!” I replied, “I am neither Christian nor Muslim”. Apparently she appeared shocked to listen to that. “Then who are you…?” “I am a Hindu”, I said. She looked at me as if she is seeing a caged animal. She could not understand what I was talking about. A common man in Europe or US know about Christianity and Islam, as they are the leading religions of the world...

“All men dream,” said T. E. Lawrence, “but not equally.” Artistic, introspective and questioning, even as a child it was clear to those around me that I was, in Lawrence’s terminology, a “dreamer of the day.” I disliked what I regarded as the shallow materialism and trivial ways people interacted in the West. But above everything else, I deplored groupthink. It was the unknown, new ideas, different notions about how to live that attracted me. Already , at sixteen, I had become a vegetarian. I loathed the idea of eating animals, though it also enabled me to avoid the worst if British cuisine. I was also interested in spirituality, though I knew little about it. I meditated (or tried to, at least) for the first time at the age of fifteen. At seventeen  I started making a more serious study of spirituality, mysticism, the esoteric and religion, with my reading mixing serious and scholarly books with more popular and no doubt somewhat superficial books on these subjects. I al...

SWASTIKA EXPLAINED:  The Swastika is a holy sign and symbol from thousands of years ago. Practically, the only symbol that is more important in the Vedic tradition is the Sanskrit Om Symbol. It is an ancient symbol and has been found on sculptures from the early excavations of Mohenjo-Daro. "Beyond its certain presence in the "proto-writing" symbol systems emerging in the Neolithic period (9500 BC), nothing certain is known about the symbol's origin." Some historians also be lieve that ancient forts were built in the shape that closely resembled the Swastika for reasons of defense because it would be difficult for an enemy to invade all parts of a fort in this shape. Unfortunately, in the West, it has a negative connotation because of its use by the Nazis from 1935. At that time it was seen as a black cross on a white circle, and now, amongst some sections of society, it is viewed as a symbol that represents a radical perspective. But the real meaning of th...

More than a week ago when the nation was celebrating the success of the Mangalayan project, senior journalist Nikhil Wagle tweeted thus: The most obvious first question: Is it a crime for scientists to visit temples and to practice their faith?  Is bestowing honors to Balaji before Mangalyaan’s success equal to scoffing at rational enquiry which is the edifice of science research?  I don’t remember any ISRO scientist claiming that it was Balaji who put the space project to action so why the gibe? The point made by Wagle and many self-proclaimed rationalists and progressives is that Indians should not stick to their past heritage. This scientific temper business was initiated by the pioneer of Indian secularism, Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru as claimed in this piece . It is a known fact that Nehru was hugely influenced by ‘Fabian Socialism’ and intellectuals from the erstwhile Union of Socialist Soviet Republic. Following Mangalyaan’s success, many self-proclaime...

Goddess Durga is the mother of the universe and believed to be the power behind the work of creation, preservation, and destruction of the world. Since time immemorial she has been worshipped as the supreme power of the Supreme Being and has been mentioned in many scriptures – Yajur Veda, Vajasaneyi Samhita and Taittareya Brahman. The Meaning of “Durga” The word “Durga” in Sanskrit means a fort, or a place which is difficult to overrun. Another meaning of “Durga” is “Durgatinashini,” which literally translates into “the one who eliminates sufferings.” Thus, Hindus believe that goddess Durga protects her devotees from the evils of the world and at the same time removes their miseries. The Many Forms of Durga There are many incarnations of Durga: Kali, Bhagvati, Bhavani, Ambika, Lalita, Gauri, Kandalini, Java, Rajeswari, et al. Durga incarnated as the united power of all divine beings, who offered her the required physical attributes and weapons to kill the demon “Mahishasu...

  Arthur J Pais 'In theory, yes, Hindus are very open. I'm one of them. I've coined the phrase 'open architecture'.' 'But I think the Wendy Doniger group is not allowing open architecture. They are closing this architecture.' 'They are bringing a point of view in such a heavy-handed way that it tends to dominate and it tends to suppress the alternative points of view. So some kind of counteraction is necessary and using the law is a decent thing to do.'   Rajiv Malhotra, one of Wendy Doniger's most vociferous critics, speaks to Rediff.com's Arthur J Pais about the prejudices created by American scholars about Hindu gods and Hinduism. Rajiv Malhotra, left, a constant critic of Wendy Doniger and what he calls her Chicago school of writers and thinkers, retired at age 44 some 20 years ago and put his money into the Infinity Foundation, an one-man think-tank. The Indian-American writer of books on India has devoted...