Collated by Tusar Nath Mohapatra
Wednesday, April 24, 2024
This meeting and handshaking are not without a flaw
Saturday, April 20, 2024
Nostalgia for simplicity and authenticity
Collated by Tusar Nath Mohapatra
Love is the formidable helpmate of our attention. This was something on which the philosopher Simone Weil, who famously took upon herself the sufferings of others, insisted – refusing, for example, to consume more that the miserable rations allowed her compatriots in France, when she was confined to a hospital bed in London in 1943. ‘By loving the order of the world we imitate the divine love which created this universe of which we are a part,’ she wrote...
Human beings could intentionally attend to this dynamic and collaborate with it. But, if not, if love is demoted from this role it becomes, at best, a moral ideal or emotion, exapted from evolution and sustained by the brain. Metaphysical agnosticism has replaced ‘ontological rootedness’, to borrow from the philosopher Simon May. Little wonder people feel disorientated or worse. To misquote R D Laing: someone who describes love as an epiphenomenon might be a great scientist, but someone who lives as if love is so will need a good psychiatrist.
https://aeon.co/essays/in-the-beginning-there-was-love-we-can-move-with-its-power
As India strides on the path of rapid economic growth and liberalisation, it grapples with the dual forces of erasure and romanticisation of its past. Traditional lifestyles and environments find themselves at the crossroads of modernity, often sacrificed at the altar of progress. The bustling markets, the artisanal crafts, and the rural agrarian ways — integral to India’s identity — are fading, leaving behind a nostalgia for a simplicity and authenticity that progress threatens to engulf. Yet, in this race towards the future, there is a simultaneous romanticisation of the past, an idealisation of cultural heritage that is often commodified rather than preserved in its essence. This dichotomy underscores the haunting presence of what is lost in the pursuit of what might be gained, a poignant reminder of Derrida’s assertion that the ghosts of the past always overshadow the future.
Sanjay Kaushal teaches at Indian Institute of Management, Bodh Gaya
Issues are rooted in history, but flowing into politics, unfortunately: Vikram Sampath https://www.newindianexpress.com/states/karnataka/2024/Apr/13/issues-are-rooted-in-history-but-flowing-into-politics-unfortunately-vikram-sampath
A famous historian once said, "Every work of history is an interim report." It is always a work in progress; new evidence comes up. So, I might have written the most well-researched, well-written book on a particular subject. Suppose you find something new and discover something new, which I have either intentionally ignored or didn't have the capacity to research thoroughly. My thesis could be completely overturned, and my book might end up in the dustbin. Your book might become the new narrative on that subject. So, it's not 'correcting'. What I'd like to say is, it's presenting an alternative version of history...
From self-portraits using traditional symbols to paintings portraying resistance and documenting history, Pal’s work consistently remained both rooted and ahead of her time. The use of motifs from tradition and myths of India was not unusual, but Pal went beyond the obvious symbols and their conventional usage. She used the process of transfiguration to turn mythical creatures such as the kinnara, the mythical part-human part-bird and kamadhenu, the ‘mother of all cows’, into expressions of the self. She also closely observed the strategies used to represent women in popular culture, and added her own artistic voice to it, through her series on nayikas.
Democracy is under attack globally, not just in India. Authoritarian forces are using a largely pliant media effectively for propaganda, assuming that people are gullible. This has less to do with gullibility and more to do with technology, affluence...
In today's democracy, the winner takes all. It is not fair and needs a deep rethink. Just because you are elected by, say 40 per cent of the vote, you ought not to have the licence to rule everyone. Secondly, there should be no corporate funding for ...
Read more at: https://www.deccanherald.com/elections/india/the-tuesday-interview-this-election-is-about-choosing-the-future-of-india-2952093
Friday, April 05, 2024
Spiritual pluralist worldview grounded in mutual respect
Collated by Tusar Nath Mohapatra
I want to take this opportunity to thank everyone for their support. My first book, "Nastik: Why I Am Not an Atheist," is finally available for PRE-ORDER on Amazon! Reserve your copy and join me in this journey from neo-atheism to Nirīśvaravāda #Nastik
https://twitter.com/kushal_mehra/status/1776167362007290350?t=vW2a4IRJO0ntWghpM6QK_Q&s=19
"Nastik: Why I am not an Atheist" by Kushal is an excellent intellectual intervention to take back the narrative from neo-atheists and/or "cultural Christians", Islamists, myriad Hinduphobes, Smriti-statist "rightists" and so-called progressive-rationalist "leftists".
"Believing" in God or Gods is *not* a requirement to be a Hindu. Nor are their "tiers" of Hindus. One is not better than the other. The word "belief" itself needs to be interrogated. Some have wondered "Did the (ancient) Greeks Believe in Their Myths?"
What exactly does it mean to believe when one is reduced to tears or ecstasy in (or when looking for) a divine presence? Or even when one is not. Is it partially analogous to the "fourth wall", for the aesthetic cannot be discounted in the inherent emotion. Circumstances play a role. There are no atheists in foxholes, as some have said. Though there may or may not be Nastiks.
A genuinely spiritual pluralist worldview grounded in mutual respect *is* what is needed to be a Hindu. What works for you may or may not work for me, and vice versa. What works for you may not even work for you (or may not have worked for you) some other time.
Be true to your inner spiritual journey, not to some mob or kitsch notion. The ritual and discipline is absolutely key in a personal and social setting, but only as a subset of Dharma. The ritual may or may not be related to a God and/or Goddess. So be true to whatever subset you have so chosen. And if you have not, keep searching and seeking.
My full support for everybody who openly doubts - for without doubt there can be no faith. For questioning everything is deeply rooted in our Vedic traditions. That is what makes this "faith", this "civilisation" what it is. Ancient and modern. Sanatana and timeless. Universalist and pluralist.
May you write more books @kushal_mehra
https://twitter.com/harshmadhusudan/status/1776196655345221632?t=XIVcblEHLiaUMlgxwz16rg&s=19
Congratulations on behalf of Savitri Era Religion and I hope that the new knowledge, devotion, and volitional yoga that The Mother & Sri Aurobindo inaugurated on March 29, 1914 are duly evaluated by the present generation. The Life Divine and Savitri are incomparable creations.
https://twitter.com/SavitriEra/status/1776203575456350712?t=Km6NjNleu8bfB9ZaydA0ag&s=19