Enlightened ... There are no special effects.

Photo by Zulmaury Saavedra on Unsplash The story of Satyakaman is from Chandogya Upanishad, often used in 'modern' times in the debates on who is a Brahmin.  Before we talk about Internet Hindus, listen to the story of Satyakaman in Tamil  or read it in English here . In current times, the debate centers around the definition of Brahmin or about honesty. In a way, we, the people of today look for a Śabda Pramāṇa - that is proof from well-recognized texts.  In the recent past, people may have looked for a Upamāna Pramāṇa.  That is, when a situation demands, this story may be compared to arrive at a resolution. The purpose of all these stories, Purana and our Itihasa aren't just for proof.  They have served a much bigger purpose than just referencing texts like the Bible or the Quran.  (Grammarly suggested changes from 'a Bible' to 'the Bible' and 'a Quran' to 'the Quran'.  That explains the difference between a Hindu system of values and an A...

Photo by Tingey Injury Law Firm on Unsplash  "If they go to High Court, I'll go all the way up to Supreme Court.  I have financial strength.  Even if I die, my son would fight the case." said the angry old man.   He said that when I tried to work out a compromise between two warring parties in a civil dispute.  I'm no lawyer, but believe that older people can live a lot happier if they don't have to deal with the courts or the governments.  The parties involved were highly educated, held high offices in the government or private sectors. This gives one of the many reasons for the cases piling up in our courts.  Unlike a village Panchyat that has a responsibility and an interest towards resolving local issues, our courts are the creations of coloniality.  They are often disconnected from the ground realities.  The farther the courts are from the locations of dispute, the more disconnected they are.  To be fair to the system, in this...

Stock Photo Courtesy:  Deepak kumar on Unsplash Till my uncle from Mumbai visited us, no one at home probably thought of enrolling me in a school. Maybe they thought I was too bright or too dumb to gain anything by going to school at that age.  Anyhow, my uncle had made up his mind and decided to take me to a school.  He may have got me admitted.  But I had the last laugh.  I refused to go to school walking and indicated that I’d consider it if a rickshaw was arranged.  Since the family didn’t want to commit to a higher expense just to keep me occupied, the plan was shelved. I don’t remember how or when, but remember that I was taken to the Principal who ran a tutorial college attached to a preschool.  The radio in his office was playing ‘Allah Allah’ song, sung by M S Viswanathan in his metallic voice.  I have heard that song and liked it.  So, I didn’t throw tantrums at his office.  Little did I realize that the event was just to enro...

Photo by Bibek Raj Shrestha on Unsplash I have been reading the book Sanskrit Non-Translatables: The Importance of Sanskritizing English by Rajiv Malhotra and Satyanarayana Dasa Babaji. The book explains the limitations of English in representing Indic thoughts. As we adopt more English, we run the risk of losing some of the elaborate meanings attached to the Sanskrit terms. From the book: Manas is not Mind  Manas occupies a pivotal and central position in the Indian psychological tradition. It performs the role of connecting consciousness (atma) with the physical body. Perception involves 1) the contact of jnanendriya-s with the external objects; 2) jnanendriya-s with manas; and 3) manas with the atma. Thus, manas is the interface between the internal and external worlds of a human being. There are associated components called Buddhi, Chitta, and Ahankara. Needless to say, as per the authors, their English equivalents are equally incorrect. In Indian languages too, we hav...