Finding Nemo

Now that the days have become shorter and the darkness prevails most part of the day, I was remembering the dark stories heard in the childhood. I remember my parents telling me Diwali as a festival of lights where brightness wins over darkness. It was then that I started to read Ramayana once again, only to realize how little did I knew of the great epic. I am sure that when asked the question “Do you know Ramayana?” you shall promptly raise your head and would probably term me as a lunatic for having such a doubt! But trust me, many of us do not know or understand Ramayana! And yes, I shall go to the extremes and say that those who ask of “Ram Rajya” or the “Perfect Ideal Administration” also do not understand Ramayana. Ramayana was written by Valmiki in Sanskrit and has been adopted in many languages and has spread to countries other than India itself. In fact, there are more than 300 variants of the Ramayana known today. Valmiki composed Ramayana into 2400 verses over 7 s...

Just a few days ago, we all worshipped the Goddess as Maa Durga and her other forms. Almost every different community in Indian subcontinent paid their regards to the Goddess in one form or the other. Many were busy feeding young girls and washing their feet – praying for their well being. The young girls are manifestation of the Goddess herself. A few days later, the wives observed fast for their husband’s long life. A wife is a representation of the power of the Goddess working solely for the husband. She represents Sita (in her submissive form) and Lakshmi (by the prosperity she brings). However, last month a news article from Delhi depicted a shameful act being committed to two-year and five-year old girls. Apart from this highlighted news article, there were many others smaller ones that said the stories of innumerable crimes against women – Domestic violence or public violence. Why is that we worship the Goddess as the supreme being, yet consider her human form as infer...

Call it destiny or design, I have been having the same cab driver for the last couple of trips. Few weeks ago, I caught him listening to Osho while waiting for me. When asked, he said he finds it entertaining. Ever since then, we have converted our 45-minute ride a way into quite a confounding discussion oriented ride. The cabbie comes from a meager background and has never been exposed to the fun of high levels of education. Hence calling his ideas, as intellectual orgasmic explosions would be exuberance for the sophisticated. I find his talks to be fundamendalistic. He has raised the points that many of us would have shied away from – why isn’t India rising? In the last few years, we have heard many slogans – “India shining”, “Aam Aadmi ko kya mila”, “Acche din aane waley hain”, or “Aam aadmi”. Yet, the commona man in India is still waiting the better days, wondering what did they get or when would they be able to shine? The situation has worsened for the females in India. The ...

In my last post on Pitra Paksha and another post on the Pind Daan , we spoke about the rites and rituals involved in the offerings made during this time. The Pind Daan ritual is followed by the prayer offering to Lord Vishnu and Yama. While Yama is a god of death and is the caretaker of the souls in the nether world, Vishnu is the God who manages the functions of all the worlds and provides ultimate sanctuary to those who worship him. Lord Vishnu is worshipped in form of the darbha grass, a gold image or Shaligram stone. The drab grass is known as Desmostachya Bipinnata scientifically. The drabha grass has been considered a sacred grass and has been used in religious rituals since Vedic times.  Darbha is also called Kusha and it is considered perhaps the second most sacred herb in the Vedas after Soma.  Darbha has very unique spiritual properties and is used in all religious rituals in the Hindu tradition.  Darbha helps to protect from toxic radiation and negative ene...

I could hear the morning hymns, I could hear the chirping of birds, I could hear the music of the rivers, I could hear the air descending from the mountains.                           I couldn't hear the snake hissing,                           I could not hear someone creeping,                           I could see a vulture hovering,                           I could see an owl staring. Someone moved ahead with me behind, I followed with my eyes blind, A wolf howled, and a dog cried, The vulture winked eyes and dived.                           I felt like in a prison,                   ...

Just a week after the Ganesha Chaturthi, the Pitra paksha has started as per the hindi calendar. This period of 15 days is associated with our ancestors. This period is meant for us to remember them and all they have done for us. This is the period to pay our homage to them before starting the journey of a whole new year of festivals. A similar concept exists in people across USA, however it has lost its meaning and is today reduced to a scary fancy dress show - Halloween. I have often wondered the meaning and the reasoning behind the fortnight dedicated to our forefathers. The curiosity piqued as this period is considered inauspicious and starting something new is not advised. I often wondered why shouldn't my forefathers be happy for me if I try to do something new? Its only later I realized that everyone is busy in praying to their ancestors and trying to strengthen their bonds for this life and afterlife, that starting something new is pushed off until later. This fortnight ...

We just concluded with our Discover India 2015 celebration over the weekend. What an event it was? Awesome performances, amazing choreography and wonderful organization. Yes, I am bragging about my wife who pulled off a great event - much beyond anyone's expectations. I am sure she is setoff to a much bigger horizon. I wish her all the luck and promise all the support needed. One of the highlights in this year's celebration was the epic long drama - History of India. While working through the history, the performers depicted the story of how Chanakya architected the Mauryan empire. Chanakya is worth mentioning for his unparalleled contribution to politics and economics in his book "Arthshastra". He has at one point conveyed that in order to build a honest empire, the king must take care of his officials and keep them well paid and well fed. A well paid, well fed and cared for official is highly unlikely to go corrupt as his needs are completely met. Consider a lio...