On the occasion of Ram Navmi (re-sharing an old post) Ram – just the name calms one down. Soothes the nerves and brings tranquility. Imagine what love for Ram can bring to his bhaktas! There are many reasons to love Ram! Every Ram-bhakt has his or her own special connection with some special aspect… Continue reading Voice of the God…प्रभु अपने मुख से गायी…
Some posts must be re-blogged…this is one of them. On the occasion of International Women’s Day, I revisit and re-post this after adding a few more remarks and insights which I think make it more relevant. Maharshi Veda Vyāsa Once upon a time, long, long, long ago there lived a… Continue reading Revisiting a Book about 12 Women
During the months of December 2018 and January 2019, we spent about 5 weeks getting several long-overdue renovation and repair projects completed around the home. The projects involved all sorts of works including masonry, carpentry, plumbing, electrical, and some basic landscape designing — pretty much everything. There still remains some major painting work, but that… Continue reading Four Lessons from Home Renovation
When you dig and dig some more to find out why something bothers you so much, it hurts. When you discover, or at least you think you have discovered, the real reason why something bothers you so much, it hurts. When you figure out that the real reason why something bothers you so much… Continue reading When it Hurts
“Attachment is egoism in love.” This is how Sri Aurobindo once defined attachment (The Synthesis of Yoga, CWSA, Vol. 23, p. 329). Perfect definition, if we deeply, seriously and sincerely think about it. Attachment, egoism and love — these three have an intimate connection. Let us start with the most immediate, the first circle… Continue reading Of Love, Egoism and Attachment
Modern tendency is to depreciate the value of the beautiful and over-stress the value of the useful. Generations of Indians have been cut off from the ancient roots of their aesthetic cultural traditions, thanks to a mercenary and soul-less education. According to Sri Aurobindo, this situation can only be corrected if education can figure out… Continue reading Some Indian Views on Beauty and Art
The entire existence, this world is a gradual self-expression and manifestation of the Divine, says the Indian spiritual tradition. But without the vision to experience the world, and everything and everyone in the world, as a manifestation of the Divine, and more importantly, without the experience of our own self as a manifestation and as… Continue reading On Divine Grace
“All great artistic work proceeds from an act of intuition, not really an intellectual idea or a splendid imagination,— these are only mental translations,— but a direct intuition of some truth of life or being, some significant form of that truth, some development of it in the mind of man.” (Sri Aurobindo, CWSA, Vol. 20,… Continue reading Learning Art Appreciation with Sri Aurobindo
The Northeast Monsoon has been pouring out its gifts at the Bay of Bengal — sometimes a bit too excessively. On this day as the rain gods seem to be taking a bit of a break, I find myself recalling and reflecting on some lines from Savitri, which I happened to read last evening. … Continue reading Monsoon Musings
Let us accept it. We all have this problem, this difficulty, this shortcoming, this imperfection. This hunger for praise by others. It is one of the most serious difficulties or imperfections we come across when we walk the path of becoming self-aware, especially becoming aware of the nature of this part of our being called… Continue reading Agni, a Cure for the Hunger for Praise
[The following is an excerpt from a longer essay titled ‘Hinduism and the Future of Inter-religious Harmony in India’ published in my e-book – The Thinking Indian: Essays on Indian Socio-cultural Matters in the Light of Sri Aurobindo.] Let us now go a bit deeper to see if Sri Aurobindo means something more… Continue reading A Note on the Future of Inter-religious Harmony in India
It was one of those afternoons when you simply don’t feel like doing anything. All you want to do is just be. On one such afternoon, I lazily walked around my home with no purpose or aim in mind, nothing to organize, nothing to sort, nothing to do except just be. My eyes wandered around… Continue reading Of Art, Love and Creation
