by KESHAV PRASAD VARMA | Feb 14, 2017 | Religion
God is the creator of all that exists. The Rig Veda describes how God created the world; the Upanishads and the Puranas supplement this description and provide more details. This creation is cyclic – it arises, runs its course, comes to an end, and then God creates it again. The complete cycle lasts for a long time. Compared to it, the time that God spends in creating the world is very short. ‘What does God do when He is not creating?’ A commonly-held view is that “He remains busy in running the world”, and it may come with a short explanation, “The world is vast and complex, and managing such a huge system ought to demand all of his time.” This comment is rhetorical and comes out of the concept that God is omnipresent, omniscient and omnipotent. It does not give reasons or provides any basis for the observation and thus it is not a complete reply. For a better understanding, we ought to look into what other knowledge is available to us on how the world operates as a system as it moves on its day to day journey. Today our general perception of the world goes beyond the ancient documents of scripture and mythology and takes into account explanations provided by science, which is based on empirical evidence. At macrocosmic level are the galaxies, stars, planets and other heavenly bodies, all engaged in an endless journey. Physics explains their movement with mathematical precision with the help of the Laws of Motion and that does not call for control or interference by God. Coming down to our planet... read more
by KESHAV PRASAD VARMA | Feb 14, 2017 | Ethics
Ethical behavior is the firm ground under the feet on which a civilized society walks. Ethics defines what right conduct is and what is not. It draws from moral values which, in turn, are framed by religion. Every tenet of ethics can thus be traced to some religious dictum or belief. Conversely, what religion does not approve cannot be a part of ethical conduct. If that is how ethics is defined and ethical code of conduct has evolved, can an ethical life be lived without support from religion? Is it possible? Let us see if there is any historical evidence of it. Atheist Philosophy provides some testimony that it may be possible. Atheists are non- believers and do not follow religion. They have always been part of the human society though never in significant numbers and rarely conspicuous. ‘Charvaka’ was one such sect in India which has been mentioned as early as the 6th century BCE. Atheism as a modern philosophical stream came into its own in the 19th century CE under the influence of four German philosophers- Ludwig Feuerbach, Karl Marx, Frederic Nietzsche and Sigmund Freud. They provided the theoretical framework of Atheism, and it appealed to the intellectuals and attracted them. Atheism grew in popularity and by now it has turned into a political movement which openly ridicules the religious society for its lack of reason and unscientific outlook. The traditional societies all over the world are predominantly religious. The Atheists are part of the same society and live within its acceptable norms of conduct. They generally merge well into the society and it may not be... read more
by KESHAV PRASAD VARMA | Jan 29, 2017 | Religion
Saint poet Tulsidas was a devotee of Rama. He is well known for his epic poem Ramacharitmanasa which narrates the life and deeds of his lord. It is the most widely read book by the Hindus. Tulsidas also wrote a large number of devotional poems dedicated to Rama. In folklore, there is a story describing a visit Tulsidas had once made to a Krishna temple. Tulsidas stood before the idol and looked at it– Krishna was standing there in full splendor, with his characteristic peacock feather tucked in his curly hair and a flute in his hands. Tulsidas smiled, and impromptu recited a couplet which expressed his first impressions and heartfelt emotions. With flute in hands and peacock feather in your hair, O lord, you present yourself very well. But before Tulsi bows his head, Please take the bow and arrow in your hands. Then he bowed before the idol. Rama is always visualized by his devotees, and depicted in paintings and idols, holding a bow in his left hand and a quiver of arrows behind his right shoulder. Tulsidas’s prayer was, “O Lord, please show me yourself as Rama.” The story goes that the idol transformed itself and when Tulsidas raised his head after bowing, it was Lord Rama standing there holding his bow and quiver of arrows. Why did Tulsi do that? Krishna is also a god and as popular as Rama is; what is more, He also is an incarnation of Lord Vishnu, as Rama is. Why did Tulsi insist that he would see the God only as he had always visualized Him, and... read more
by KESHAV PRASAD VARMA | Jan 29, 2017 | Philosophy
Mirza Ghalib is one of the greatest Urdu poets. He lived in the nineteenth century but remains very popular in our times too. Poetry lovers would often quote him to embellish their conversation and writing. Ghalib is a poet of Love and expression of love’s various moods is the primary theme of his poems. So the appeal of Ghalib’s poetry is universal and he is widely appreciated. Ghalib did not write on pure philosophical topics, but philosophic musings also appear in Ghalib’s poems, randomly intertwined with other themes. Some of his verses unfold the Vedanta philosophy; Advaita to be more specific. ‘Advaita’ means ‘not being two’. It is a non-dualistic interpretation of reality. The fundamental premise of Advaita is, ‘The God and all that exists in the world is, in reality, not two (or many) separate entities: it all is only one’. One may call that reality God or give it another name. In these verses, Ghalib speaks on this core concept of Vedanta. And he does so beautifully, employing powerful imagery, and with his characteristic display of mastery over the language. We shall take up a few lines from two of his poems and try to fathom the depth of his thoughts. “Jab ki tujh bin nahin koi maujud Phir ye hangama Aye Khuda kya hai” When there is no other presence anywhere, It is you and nothing without you, Then O God, what is this turmoil around? This is pure Advaita. Adi Sankarcharya, the great philosopher of the eight century, who is credited with bringing Advaita philosophy into focus, had explained this theme in the following verse,... read more
