It is rather too facile to translate the Sanskrit word for the mental affliction of “kaarpanya-dosham” into its near-equivalent Tamil, “மனத் தொய்வு” which, again in a very facile fashion, gets often roughly translated into the English “despair“, “mental depression” or “faintness of mind”. Overall however, as the Tamil literary doyen and my revered friend, Sri.Continue reading ““kaarpannya dosham”: Acedia of Arjuna and the cowgirls in “Tiruppaavai” – Part 2 of 3″
Category Archives: philosophy
“kaarpanya dosham”: Acedia of Arjuna and the cowgirls in “Tiruppaavai” – Part-1 of 3
The pursuit of spiritual progress often means ploughing a lonely furrow. It can very often mean journeying through landscapes of dark, mental desolation. Trying to connect — and furthermore to also remain strongly connected — with one’s own divine self can be a very trying and frustrating religious experience indeed. Practitioners of “saadhana” or spiritualContinue reading ““kaarpanya dosham”: Acedia of Arjuna and the cowgirls in “Tiruppaavai” – Part-1 of 3″
My book “The Epistles of a Prolific Pontiff” gets featured in the LONDON BOOK FAIR (March 11-13, 2025)
Sans “jargon monoxide”, how to explain my personal understanding of “Pitru-Tarpanam” and “Paarvana Shraddham”
Today, Thursday 27 February 2025 … is Amaavasya day (New Moon day)… a day when I must perform the “pitru tarpanam” rite mandated by Vedic “sastra” in remembrance and obeisance of my parents, grandparents and great grandparents, both paternal and maternal. ***** ***************** ****** These days youngsters in even Tambrahm families and homes demand “rational,Continue reading “Sans “jargon monoxide”, how to explain my personal understanding of “Pitru-Tarpanam” and “Paarvana Shraddham””
America spiralling into intellectual and moral anarchy and Curtis Yarvin doctrine is symptomatic of it.
Curtis Yarvin is proposing a new political doctrine for America to embrace. It’s called neo-anti-brahminism … Please scroll down to read a piece on him and his works. In my view, Yarvin is simply proposing the replacement of one oligarchy with another … i.e. a democracy where left-liberal neocons, globalists and Woke oligarchs — whoContinue reading “America spiralling into intellectual and moral anarchy and Curtis Yarvin doctrine is symptomatic of it.”
Devdutt Patnaik ( À la Vairamuthu) unable to discern the Esotericism in Mystic Eroticism – Part- 3.2 (Concluded)
To truly understand Eroticism in Hindu mythology — explained earlier in Part 3.2 above with reference to the Brihadaaranyka Upanishad — one has to got open up one’s mind to the fact that it is the Esotericism of the Vedic motif of Universal Creation that has been woven into the human microsom of Procreation. Therefore,Continue reading “Devdutt Patnaik ( À la Vairamuthu) unable to discern the Esotericism in Mystic Eroticism – Part- 3.2 (Concluded)”
Book Review in the London FT of Manu Pillai’s “Gods, Guns and Missionaries”
A good email friend of mine Arun Bewoor, a Parsi by faith but a very accomplished ex-CEO of a multinational company in India forwarded to me a email below asking me a question: My answer to him was this below: It all depends on what exactly one has in mind when using the word Hinduism. 1.Continue reading “Book Review in the London FT of Manu Pillai’s “Gods, Guns and Missionaries””
Devdutt Patnaik ( À la Vairamuthu) unable to discern the Esotericism in Mystic Eroticism – Part- 3.1 of 3.2
Finally, signing off on his rather prurient essay titled “The Parrot’s Erotic Secret” published in The Hindu dt. 19 January 2025, Devdutt Pattnaik urges his readers, especially womenfolk, to go and read an obscure and most probably a Jainist literary work in Sanskrit called “shukasaptati”… He wholeheartedly endorses the 70 lewd tales in that ancientContinue reading “Devdutt Patnaik ( À la Vairamuthu) unable to discern the Esotericism in Mystic Eroticism – Part- 3.1 of 3.2”
Devdutt Patnaik ( À la Vairamuthu) unable to discern the Esotericism in Mystic Eroticism – Part-2 of 3
In his article, “The Parrot’s (Andal’s) Erotic Secret”, published in THE HINDU dt. 19 January 2025, Devdutt Pattnaik, in my view, erred on two principal counts. He failed to fully understand what the word Eroticism means. And secondly, he erred in conflating Andal’s religious feelings of Bhakthi towards her beloved deity with feelings of Eroticism.Continue reading “Devdutt Patnaik ( À la Vairamuthu) unable to discern the Esotericism in Mystic Eroticism – Part-2 of 3”
The “Tiruppaavai” of Andal and “Nyaasa Dasakam” of Vedanta Desika
At the fag end of the holy month of Dhanur Maasam (Dec 16-Jan 15) on Sunday, 12th of January 2025 marking the day when the 28th Stanza (“karavaigal pin senru …”) of Andal’s Tiruppavai is specially chanted in Vishnu temples and in Hindu homes all across South India, a young friend noticing that I tooContinue reading “The “Tiruppaavai” of Andal and “Nyaasa Dasakam” of Vedanta Desika”