Reaching There

Introduction A few days ago I wrote on how a contemporary Dharmic mind is enslaved with various narratives meant to degrade the tradition of Dharmic spiritualism (or Hinduism) and relegate the spiritual path as non-sensical, patriarchal, and regressive (i.e. against modernity). I've three examples below that show the eagerness in contemporary conversations to push this narrative. Since free speech and vaad (Sanskrit: वाद, discussion) are two-way streets so it's well within my right to share my opinion based on sound reasoning and well-established examples. And my opinion doesn't rely on the play of words (Sanskrit: सामान्य छल, quibble)) or a mere attack on the opposition (Sanskrit: वितंडा, cavil/sophistry). Just a side note, these categorizations are based on the ancient  Nyaya philosophy composed by Akṣapāda Gautama between the 6th century BCE and the 2nd century CE. Example 1 -  वितंडा / Sophistry Buddhism and Sanatana Dharma have a long history of coexistence and assim...

A painting depicting Tarkavidya (the science of reasoning and logic) in action. Picture:  The famous debate between Adi Shankaracharya and Mandana Mishra, in which Shankaracharya emerged victorious. https://twitter.com/mimansaka/status/1411535285444247556?lang=b g) Can Science & Religion be reconciled? I've often wondered if there is a reconciliation of science and religion. In past, I've written about misinterpreting faith , the  importance of spiritual philosophies , and spiritualism in the Hindu (or Indian) context . I've also read the likes of Richard Dawkins and Christopher Hitchens, who are the pioneers of the atheistic movement opposing the Abrahamic philosophy, to not limit my view to just my Indic background. In the western world,  more people are identifying as atheists, agnostics, or otherwise nonreligious . Pew Research shows the same trend in the western world when it comes to religion. The same Pew Research also shows the importance of religion in...

What is purva-paksha?  Vaisheshik Darshan throughout the text is not afraid to question the observation and heavily relies on ' purva-paksha ' i.e. debating a former argument to solidify the proposition.  Vaisheshik Darshan  doesn't just state aphorisms, but it takes the reader (you) inside the mind of the author, as he grapples with observations & inferences. And this grappling often leads to counter-argument, which in the case of this  Darshan  is included in the text itself! You won't see any other philosophical treatise, other than Indic texts, where the counter-argument is part of the journey a reader has to take to deep dive into the topic for a clear understanding.  As we go through the proof of one of the nine  Dravyas  (substances) i.e. Atman ( misinterpreted as the soul in Western translation but actually means the reality of realization of our existence i.e. the true "I" ), the author uses counter-arguments to facilitate the proof. ...