Don't despair your mother loves you. Don't be proud because she has to.
There’s a case to be made that I am a pretentious weirdo for constantly extolling the beauty and greatness of texts that are thousands of years old. Honestly, where’s the lie? I genuinely like the translations I discuss, but it would be disingenuous to claim that the historic esteem in which they are held wasn’t... Continue Reading →
Gandhi and The Gita On 12 March 1930 Gandhi and 78 others began walking the 240 miles from the Sabarmati Ashram to the coastal village of Dandi. During his journey he taught his ideas of Satyagraha to crowds and thousands joined the march. After he arrived at the seashore on April 6th he boiled seawater... Continue Reading →
In a dissenting opinion regarding the constitutionality of the death penalty Supreme Court Justice Henry Blackmun famously wrote “I shall no longer tinker with the machinery of death”. Taking a life is appropriately recognized as the most severe penalty we impose for criminal behavior. So severe that whether or not it is a fitting punishment... Continue Reading →
One afternoon in ancient India two armies gathered across a field near Kurukshetra. Following a series of horn blasts innumerable hosts stand in formation with standards raised and weapons drawn. The tension is palpable, yet the battle will not begin until the leader of the smaller force calls to attack. He is absent from the... Continue Reading →
There are a lot of theories about how to define dharma. In a tradition as old and as diverse as Hinduism expecting unity would be unreasonable. The academic analysis is that dharma derives from the Sanskrit root “dhr” which means to uphold or support. Dharma is commonly translated as duty which implies obligation. But what are... Continue Reading →
One way to examine an idea is to determine what it is not. The Sanskrit term for the opposite of Dharma is Adharma. I’d like to examine the most vivid presentation of Adharma in The Ramayana: Ravana. In the Vedas Dharma was linked with the processes of upholding divine order. Ravana overpowers the gods, disrupts... Continue Reading →
One thing the reader should know about The Ramayana is that like my own writing, it is full of detours, digressions, and flashbacks. Based on my admittedly limited experience with The Ramayana, Mahabharata, and Bhagavad Gita this complex structure appears to be characteristic of the genre. Sometimes these techniques can be disorienting. One minute you’re... Continue Reading →
If I recall correctly this question intrigued viewers of the popular American television show Lost about 20 years ago. I was a late arrival to the series, and never bothered to watch the first half, nor did I think too closely about the contents of the series following its conclusion, but it seemed like a... Continue Reading →
The very concept of judgment is an admission that axiomatic rules have failed. If the laws under which one operates are correct and the facts are known, there is no need for judgment, there is only consequence. Once a cannon ball is released one does not judge whether or not it has followed the trajectory... Continue Reading →
Ever notice how metaphors for revenge involve food and taste? Sweet revenge. Revenge is a dish best served cold. Maybe this has something to do with the concept of revenge appealing to a deep desire or appetite within us? If you’ve been wronged there’s something inside that wants to settle the score. While the actual... Continue Reading →
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