Was India’s Knowledge Elitist?

Source INDIA, December 32, 2018 (New Indian Express by Michel Danino): Indian civilization’s obsession with knowledge was our last “master idea,” with endless and still poorly explored contributions in nearly every field (“India as a Knowledge Creator”, The New Indian Express, 29 November). But there is another side to the story, which in many ways characterizes the paradox of Indian…

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How Christians Use Education Programs to Convert Poor Hindus

Source INDIA, February 9, 2018 (Swarajyamag by M. Kishwar and S. Kishwar): In recent years, the issue of conversions from Hinduism and ghar wapsi (reconversion to Hinduism) has evoked a great deal of controversy. Hindu groups allege that Christian missionaries use force, fraud and all kinds of illicit means in order to “harvest souls” for Christianity. Therefore, they seek a…

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Daily Inspiration

Source Truthfulness alone constitutes the spiritual discipline of the kali yuga. If a man clings tenaciously to Truth, he ultimately realizes God. Without this regard for Truth, one gradually loses everything. — Sri Ramakrishna Paramahansa (1836-1886)

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Making the South Indian Nagaswaram Instrument Sweeter

Source CHENNAI, INDIA, January 2, 2019 (The Hindu): Not many know that Narasingampettai, a small town in the Thanjavur district, has an important role to play in the world of Carnatic music, especially in enriching the music of the nagaswaram. It was N.G.N. Ranagantha Asari, an ace carpenter from this village, who completely transformed the instrument, which is now known…

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Indic Academy Announces Ram Swarup-Sitaram Goel Memorial Fund to Promote Research In Indic History, Culture and Religion

Source INDIA, December 26, 2018 (Swarajyamag): Commemorating the 20th death anniversary of Hindu thinker and scholar Shri Ram Swarup, Indic Academy today (26 December) announced that it has instituted a Ram Swarup-Sitaram Goel Memorial Fund for promoting Indic research and publication. Shri Ram Swarup and Shri Sitaram Goel are both towering intellectuals and widely regarded as the pioneers in Indic…

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The Vegetarians at the Gate

Source UNITED STATES, December 18, 2018 (Bloomberg): During a busy lunch service in the cafeteria of one of Silicon Valley’s largest cloud-computing companies, the vegan chef Chad Sarno turned up a gas burner and slowly poured a bottle of white wine into a steel saucepan filled with chopped onion, capers, vegetable stock, and al dente linguine. He tossed the mixture…

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Daily Inspiration

Source It is only through sadhana that you will be able to prudently delineate between true intuition and the feelings of need and greed from the externalities of your instinctive nerve system. — Satguru Sivaya Subramuniyaswami (1927-2001)

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Nalanda University Plans

Source RAJGIR, INDIA, February 13, 2017 (YouTube): Nalanda was a Mahavihara, a large Buddhist monastery in the ancient kingdom of Magadha in India. The site was a center of learning in the 5th century CE to c. 1200 CE. It is a UNESCO World Heritage Site today. The site of the new Nalanda University is 12 miles from the ruins.…

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Ganesha the Playful Protector

Source DENVER, COLORADO, December 31, 2018 (Denver Art Museum): Ganesha The Playful Protector is developed in collaboration with the National Museum of Cambodia in Phnom Penh, which is loaning a statue of Ganesha created in the 600s to 700s that is the centerpiece of the exhibition. The 29-inch tall cross-legged figure, featuring human arms and an elephant head, is known…

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