tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-46338251242958426152012-05-24T14:57:01.640+05:30Entries on Indian spirituality, Vedic culture, and musicM. Shrihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12894931275191748342noreply@blogger.comBlogger13115tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4633825124295842615.post-69296978994216003942012-05-11T17:37:00.000+05:302012-05-11T17:49:54.322+05:302012-05-11T17:49:54.322+05:30

Learning about the major forms of the Divine in Hinduism may, at times, become confusing for non-Hindus, especially because the hierarchy [1] may differ, depending on whom you ask. Contrary to propagated belief, the number of forms of the Divine in mainstream Hinduism is small. Contemporary Hinduism basically revolves around Rama/Krishna/Vishnu, Shakti (the Mother Goddess), and Shiva. The forms

M. Shrihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12894931275191748342noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4633825124295842615.post-63610761391872959132012-04-06T18:10:00.001+05:302012-04-07T17:48:29.888+05:302012-04-07T17:48:29.888+05:30

Many non-Hindus have tried their best to explain that the Divine could not have appeared on Earth as a human being. The Indian intelligentsia, including some established authors, has tried hard to portray Rama as a glorified fictional hero. Academicians have, at times, lied to us that the nirguna Rama of certain bhakti saints is different from the saguna Rama of the Ramayana and other bhakti

M. Shrihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12894931275191748342noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4633825124295842615.post-82502730850696021672012-03-23T21:36:00.000+05:302012-03-23T21:36:25.570+05:302012-03-23T21:36:25.570+05:30

According to a description in the Srimad Devi Bhagavata, Goddess Sarasvati and Devi Ganga used to live in the abode of Bhagavan Vishnu, where they revered him along with the Lord’s primordial power, Goddess Lakshmi. One day, Sarasvati and Ganga got into a tense verbal discussion and Goddess Saraswati cursed Ganga, “You will have to descend to Earth and get in touch with the bad karma of all

M. Shrihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12894931275191748342noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4633825124295842615.post-81301788038097527112012-03-07T09:01:00.003+05:302012-03-25T06:29:56.897+05:302012-03-25T06:29:56.897+05:30

Over the last few days, all the posts from my blog on classical music migrated to Hindu Expressions. If you are interested in Vocal Music, you can check out the instructional pages on sargams, ragas, and the khayal. Similarly, students of Tabla can check out the notes on teentaal, keherwa, roopak, and the other rhythmic cycles through the music page, which also has links to older posts and

M. Shrihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12894931275191748342noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4633825124295842615.post-59774821025907573552012-01-23T16:49:00.000+05:302012-01-23T16:49:52.996+05:302012-01-23T16:49:52.996+05:30

For Hindus who prefer to remember Devi Saraswati only once a year, Basant Panchami, her birthday, is the best day for her remembrance. On her last birthday, we learned that the Devi holds a book and uses a swan as her vehicle. This year, we can go on to understand what these symbolize. What is the title of the book that Saraswati holds? Graciously, the book does not have a title, for it

M. Shrihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12894931275191748342noreply@blogger.com0