Reaching There

 I apologize as I start this post with a negative article on  Vaiśeṣika from the online magazine The Wire. The article published in 2017 posits a question ' Were the 'Atoms' of Acharya Kanad a Product of Science or Speculative Metaphysics? ' (Note: I haven't yet reached the sutras that discuss anu or atom) The author concludes that " the positing of the idea of the atom by Kanada did not carry an explanatory burden; it was just a speculative thesis. It is outrageous to compare it with modern scientific atomic theories." Yet the author fails to states that a n inference is conclusion drawn based on observations and prior knowledge. And inference eventually leads to hypothesis which can be then proven via an experiment. So, it's the gradual evolution of observations. Here is an interesting article that discusses ' How did Einstein Think? ' Did  Vaiśeṣika  prove that atoms exist? No, during it's course of categorization it inferred that matt...

What is Dharma? In the first post of my series on  Vaiśeṣika Darshan, we started with the basic question - What is Dharma ? As Jagadguru Kripalu Ji Maharaj points out that the word Dharma ( धर्म) originates from the  Sanskrit  root word 'dhru (धृ)' , which means to bear, or support. It can be interpreted as a support system that serves a purpose for us, so by definition is not self-serving.  A purposeless life is a boring life, at least that's my imperfect philosophy. We as human beings don't just want to live a daily life centered around survival but we strive for knowing the unknown. Whether that's knowledge of oceans, stars, soil, chemicals, the human body, or other sentient beings. Just for curious minds, the  Sanskrit word for knowledge is  ज्ञान ( gyaan - from root word  ज्ञा) which means to know or to be aware of. Back to our discussion. A system that supports us should provide us a purpose and means to fulfill that purpose. But to understand...

Hindu Philosophy is unique in its way that it includes Samkhya (rationalism and atheism), Yoga (focusing on mental as well as physical study) and Nyāya (logic/rules) as part of its six philosophies. While world debates on monotheism, atheism, iconoclasm, superiority, equality, proselytization and other such subject which are bound to create controversy and divisiveness, Hinduism is comfortable in the diversity of thoughts from ancient time and is still evolving. As author, Prafull Goradia in his book Hindu Masjids , says 'it is well known that the conceptual purpose of every Hindu is self actualisation". Some call it moksha , mukti , nirvana or bhagwat prapti . Although the goal sounds a simple enough endeavour yet for a logical mind there needs to be a rationale that helps you to identify this as a goal one needs to focus & strive for. I think Hinduism is the only religion (or way of life ) which believes in self-critique, debates, logical analysis and takes considerable...