December 2025
Dharma
The world’s progress and sustenance depends on adherence to dharma. It is because of dharma that even a weak person can defeat a stronger person. In a world without rules, the stronger one always wins, irrespective of whether he is right. But in a world that is governed by principles, the winner is the one who adheres to the right precepts and not necessarily the one who is physically stronger.[1]
Dharma is broadly divided into two:...
Consciousness
There’s an old joke of a student in a philosophy class who asks his teacher, “Professor, how do I know that I exist?” Pat comes the response, “And who is asking the question?”
Every question that arises in our minds presumes the self-evident truth of our existence. From there, we proceed to perceive the world in our unique way. Needless to say, the process of understanding the world depends on our physical and mental faculties.
If...
Hinduism, the universal way of life, is practised by more than one billion people the world over. Adherents of the Hindu faith comprise a sixth of the global population. Available records tell us that it is the oldest religious order in the world, with an unbroken history of at least seven thousand years.[1] A person who follows Hinduism is called a ‘Hindu’ but we must remember that this term is more a geographical indicator than a religious one...
Prasanna-rāghava
Jayadeva, the author of Candrāloka, has also penned a play called Prasanna-rāghava. The play in seven acts narrates the story of the Rāmāyaṇa starting from Sītā’s svayaṃvara to Rāma’s homecoming after fourteen years of exile. Śūrpaṇakhā and Mālyavanta play no role in the plot. The playwright, however, introduces a few fantastical elements – it is not just Rāvaṇa who competes and fails in stringing Śiva’s bow, but Bāṇāsura...
ನಿಗ್ರಹಾನುಗ್ರಹಸಮರ್ಥರಾಗಿದ್ದ ನಾರದರಿಗೂ ಅನ್ಯರಿಂದ ಶಾಪ ಬಂದಿತ್ತು; ಆಗೀಗ ಅಪಮಾನಗಳೂ ಆಗಿದ್ದವು. ಇವುಗಳ ಸೂಚನೆಯನ್ನು ನಾವು ಮುನ್ನವೇ ಕಂಡೆವಾದರೂ ಅವುಗಳ ಕೆಲವು ವಿವರಗಳನ್ನೀಗ ನೋಡಬಹುದು. ಹಿಂದೊಮ್ಮೆ ಇಂದ್ರಸಭೆಯಲ್ಲಿ ಉರ್ವಶಿಯ ನೃತ್ಯಕ್ಕಾಗಿ ನಾರದರು ವೀಣಾವಾದನ ಮಾಡುತ್ತಿದ್ದರಂತೆ. ಆಗ ಅವಳು ಅಲ್ಲಿದ್ದ ಇಂದ್ರಪುತ್ರ ಜಯಂತನನ್ನು ನೋಡಿ ಮರುಳಾಗಿ ತಾಳ ತಪ್ಪಿದಳು. ಇದನ್ನು ಲೇವಡಿ ಮಾಡಲೆಂದು ನಾರದರು ತಾವು ಕೂಡ ಬೇಕೆಂದೇ ಶ್ರುತಿ ತಪ್ಪಿದರಂತೆ. ಇದನ್ನೆಲ್ಲ ಕಂಡು ಕನಲಿದ ಅಗಸ್ತ್ಯರು ಇಬ್ಬರನ್ನೂ ಶಪಿಸಿದ್ದಲ್ಲದೆ ಮಹತೀ ವೀಣೆಗೂ ಶಾಪವಿತ್ತರಂತೆ! (ವಾಯು...