Thought 8: Origin of caste system in India

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In the previous episode, we discussed the Varna system that was prevalent in India. It is this Varna system that later gave rise to the often-criticized caste system.

Thought 7: Did the colonial rulers create the caste system in India?

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In one of his talks, the well-known Hindu revivalist namely Mr. Rajiv Malhotra almost accuses India’s past colonial rulers for giving rise to the caste system in India. This great scholar based in US, with several books to his credit, goes into the genesis of the word ‘caste’ and tries to absolve India from this dark spot which has always tarnished the glorious past of India.

Thought 6: Are you a sinner?

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I had an Indian friend who lived in US for a while. She was working in IT industry like most Indians who migrate to US. She told me an interesting incident.

Thought 5: Why is Hinduism what it is?

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Most westerners brush aside Hinduism as a polytheistic religion with idol worship at its core. 

People of Abrahamic religions pride themselves as practitioners of monotheistic faith. That they feel, makes their faith superior to ‘the rest of the Pagan’ faith systems. 

If you have followed my previous posts and or many of my earlier posts, you will agree that monotheism is not some prerogative of the Abrahamic religions.

Thought 4: Amazing thoughts from the Upanishads!

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Upanishads are the ancient Indian texts believed to be dating back to at least 5000 years. They are parts of the Vedas. They formed the main philosophic texts of Ancient India, at least before the advent of Buddhism.

Some of the thoughts expressed in these Upanishads are amazing, seen even from today’s point of view. My intention is not to say that whatever expressed in them is right. I just want to highlight how wrong we are when we try to assign a chronology to intellectual evolution.

Thought 3: Was this world created or it evolved on its own?

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Most religions have a creator God. This creator God is the one who is believed to have created this world. If you are a believer, you just accept this without asking questions. But the modern Atheists like Richard Dawkins don’t agree that any such God exists. In that case, how did this world come into existence?

Thought 2: O God! Are you there?

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I recently had an interaction with a young Indian friend of mine, a teenager with a rather religious Hindu background. This young man was sure that God does not exist since there is no proof that he does. On second thoughts, he however, chose to categorize himself as agnostic rather than atheist 😉

Thought 1: How to enjoy?

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Why does one slog for 10 hours a day, may be 5 days a week? Obviously, to earn money and enjoy! We acquire things, amass wealth, with a single point agenda – enjoyment. All our focus in life is around enjoyment! Whether it is a street dog or an advanced Yogi, all want to enjoy. It is just that each has a different definition for enjoyment 😉

NewBooks: “Stories of Krishna” series

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Sometime last year, on August 18^th 2022, to be precise, I started my new series of talks based on the ancient Indian scripture namely the Bhagavata. That day happened to be the birth day of Krishna who was the focus of my talks. That series went on for 33 weeks and finally concluded this year i.e. on March 30^th 2023.

Bhagvat33- End of drama - it is time to lower the curtains!

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You remember the circumstances in which God agreed to appear on earth? We discussed that in the very beginning. It was to put an end to many tyrants who were wreaking havoc on earth and tormenting helpless people. With the killing of Kamsa, Chanura, Jarasandha, Duryodhana and so on, God’s purpose of coming to earth was successfully completed. Now it is time to lower the curtains and end this divine drama.

Bhagvat32- Did ancient India have nuclear missiles?

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Ancient India had her own atomic theory propagated by sage KaNaada. That theory talked about atoms, sub-atomic particles and their combinations. But did those Indians have nuclear missiles too? Based on superficial similarities, many commentators of ancient Indian scriptures tend to believe so. What they really had is something difficult to guess, but it appears as if they had more fierce weapons than our present-day nuclear missiles.

Bhagvat31- All is fair in love and war?!

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We often justify our wrong ways by quoting this adage. Many of the wars fought these days stealthily follow this principle. Even the terrorists use this to justify their dastardly acts. They even claim the support of their religious scriptures which apparently preach them that way!

Bhagvat30-It is time for Bhagavad Geetha!

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I was talking about war preparations and all of a sudden, I now am talking about Bhagavad Geetha! Were you surprised?

Bhagvat29-Krishna tries ‘divide and rule’ strategy

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Having failed to convince Duryodhana about the futility of the war, Krishna set out on the next strategy namely Bheda or ‘divide and rule’. He wanted to weaken Duryodhana and force him to give up war.

Bhagvat28-Could Duryodhana seize Krishna?

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We were discussing the plans of Krishna to go to Hastinapur as a peace maker. It was a strange situation. On one hand, Krishna very well knew how futile his attempts were. He also predicted the end game and assured Draupadi that war was going to happen and her revenge would be taken. On the other hand, Krishna wanted to play his role as a human being. He set off to Hastinapur as an envoy of Yudhishthira who wanted to avoid war at any cost. Yudhishthira was even prepared to give up his claim for the Kingdom.

Bhagvat27-Krishna makes one last attempt to avoid war

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As we discussed in the previous episode, Sanjaya reaches Upaplavya with a message from the Kauravas. He informs the Pandavas, that Dhritarastra wants peace and not war. The only condition is that the Pandavas should forget whatever had happened and live in peace with Duryodhana. But there was no talk about giving back their kingdom to them which Duryodhana had snatched from them deceitfully.

Bhagvat26-When God is on your side, victory is assured!

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The Pandavas finally completed their 13 years of exile. They went through lot of hardships both when they spent their 12 years in the forests as well as when they spent a year incognito. Especially the last year was quite tough.

Bhagvat25-It was a woman who dared to speak up!

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In a gender biased world, one’s gender is usually associated with what that person is. Normally men are considered to be brave, logical and dashing; while women are assumed to be emotional, weak and indecisive. Though this characterization is baseless, we often tend to unknowingly use this generalization.

Bhagvat24-Draupadi was disrobed in a full court!

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In the previous episode, we saw how the wicked Dhushasana dragged Draupadi, the Queen of the Pandavas, to a fully assembled court. Her husbands had lost not only themselves but also her, to Duryodhana. As per the rules of the unfair dice game, all of them were now the slaves of Duryodhana who could treat them in whatever manner he felt right. Draupadi was pleading for help. But none had the guts to take on Duryodhana. Not even his blind father Dhritarastra.

Bhagvat23-Shameful incidents in the Royal court

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The purpose of Bhagavata was to instill devotion in God and assure helpless people that God would always come to their rescue. But Mahabharata had a different focus. It was a complex plot where intricate ideas of right and wrong are dissected and contrasted to bring out the subtle nuances of righteousness. Many a times it is difficult to give a verdict on what is right in a given complex situation.

Bhagvat22-Link between Bhagavata and Mahabharata

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We were discussing about Krishna’s stories from Bhagavata. Now all of a sudden, I seem to shift from Bhagavata to another Indian Epic namely Mahabharata. It is not without reason though.

Bhagvat20-Naked man’s Gurus – 14 to 24!

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We were discussing the interesting story of Avadhoota – a completely liberated person who was moving around like a mad man completely nude. Though Avadhoota had attained the ultimate knowledge, he never had any specific Guru. He imbibed whatever he knew from various sources which he considered as his Gurus. Some of these were not even human.
In the previous episode, we saw 8 of them namely fire, moon, sun, pigeon, boa constrictor, sea, moth and bee. We also saw what Avadhoota learnt from these Gurus. Let us continue with rest of his Gurus in this concluding episode on Avadhoota’s story.

Yoga for the New year

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Happy New year and my best wishes! I have some interesting things to announce for this New year.

Bhagvat20-Naked man’s Gurus - 5 to13

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We were discussing the interesting story of Avadhoota – a totally liberated person who was moving around like a mad man, completely nude. Though Avadhoota had attained the ultimate knowledge, he never had any specific Guru. He imbibed whatever he knew from various sources which he considered as his Gurus. Some of these were not even human.

In the previous episode, we saw 4 of those Gurus namely earth, air, sky, and water. We also saw what Avadhoota learnt from these Gurus. Let us continue with some more of his Gurus in this episode.

Bhagvat19-Naked man’s 24 Gurus!

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Guru is a Sanskrit word which means a teacher – someone who shows you the way. Many of us spend our lifetime searching for a Guru in our spiritual journey. We try to coverup our lazy lifestyle by saying that we have not yet found a proper Guru. And some of us hang on to fake Gurus who mislead more than lead us on the right path. Bhagavata talks of a strange man who claimed that he had not one but 24 Gurus! But most of them were not even human!

Bhagvat18-Legendary story of Sudama – Krishna’s schoolmate

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As we discussed a few episodes ago, Krishna did his schooling in a residential school run by a well-known teacher by name Sandipani. Such residential schools were called Gurukul – literally meaning ‘family of teachers’.

Students lived in such Gurukuls along with their teachers and their family, during the period of their study which could be as long as 12 years. During that period, these students not only studied various subjects but also took part in the day-to-day household activities of the teachers’ family. In a way, it used to be all-round-training.

Bhagvat17- Killing of Jarasandha

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Jara bringing child Jarasandha

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

With the dual intention of freeing the Kings imprisoned by Jarasandha and also attending special Rajasuya ritual organized by Yudhishthira, Krishna and his entourage reaches Indraprastha. It would have taken several days for them to travel from western end of India to almost Northern end.

Bhagvat16- A typical day in Krishna’s life!

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Krishna has left behind his naughty childhood days. And also, the playful youthful days. He is a mature person now, married and also with several children. Though he was not the King, for all practical purposes, he worked like the representative of aging King Ugrasena – his maternal grand father.

Have you ever wondered how a King or Prime minister or President of a country spends his typical day? Here is a short snap shot that Vyasa provides.

Bhagvat15- Krishna accused of stealing a Gem!

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While he was in Gokul, as a mischievous kid, Krishna was often accused of stealing butter. As he grew into a young man, people accused him of stealing the hearts of young girls. He was now an adult and the prince of Dwarika. But accusations of stealing never left Krishna. And now, he was faced with the accusation of stealing an expensive Gem. What is this new story?

Bhagvat14- Krishna-Rukmini: A strange love story

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Krishna was now in Dwarika. He was no more the boy of Mathura. He had grown into an adult. Naturally, like all human beings he too fell for the cupid’s arrows. That is, he too fell in love like a typical human being. But it was not a one-sided story. Nor was it a smooth love affair. Let us discuss this love story in this episode.