Which is the oldest religion in the world? Nobody knows. Ask the foremost historian or the greatest saint but they will not have an answer. We know so little about the earliest humans who inhabited our planet. But we can take an educated guess about the first god. Keep aside for a moment the view that god created the universe and just consider how humans visualize god. Most probably, the first god that humans recognized and worshiped was the sun.
In our tradition, of the lineage of seers, the family that stands out is the Bhrguvamsha (or the Bhargavavamsha). Bhargava was one of the leaders of our country’s rise in material prosperity; he even tried to reach out to other-worldly wealth. Chyavana, one of the founders of Ayurveda; the seer-poet-artiste Shukracharya, who was a master of the Arthashastra and skilled in martial science; the seer Dadhichi who sacrificed his own body for the sake of universal welfare; and other greats were all descendants of the Bhrguvamsha.
The agnishomiya vyuha – the Agni-Soma formation – is the cosmic structure, the eternal arrangement. It is the eternal establishment that binds the consumer and the consumed. This concept has been discussed in the Upanishads and the Yogavasishtha. Krishna speaks about this in the Gita when he identifies himself with the sun, the moon, fire, energy, sap, thought, etc. (BG 15.12-15).
साहित्ये सुकुमारवस्तुनि दृढन्यायग्रहग्रन्थिले
तर्के वा मयि संविधातरि समं लीलायते भारती ।
शय्या वास्तु मृदूत्तरच्छदवती दर्भाङ्कुरैरास्तृता
भूमिर्वा हृदयङ्गमो यदि पतिस्तुल्या रतिर्योषिताम् ॥
Subhashitas (su = good, bhashita = spoken) are self-contained verses that are witty, romantic, wise, puzzling, devotional, sarcastic, or didactic. While many of the subhashitas are standalone compositions by various poets, some of them are extracts from major works of poetry or drama (like Raghuvamsham).
Do you love your spouse? Do you love your child? Do you love your parents? Do you love your wealth? Do you love wisdom? Do you love power? Do you love god? Most of us would answer with a yes to at least a few of these questions, but according to a famous story in the Brihadaranyaka Upanishad (2.4.1-5) the answer is no.
A freewheeling chat with modern-day polymath and Sanskrit scholar, Shataavadhaani Dr. R. Ganesh about sanatana dharma, religion and modernity, text and spirit, community, and how to approach the study of Indian philosophy (darshana) in general. Enlightening, humourous, and charming by turns, this is a must watch!
Of late in classical dance performances, the proportion of nrutta, which lacks creative interpretation and expression, is on the rise. At the same time, rasabhinaya, i.e., aesthetic communication with creative interpretation of the lyrics and the music is decreasing.