Tattva

If there has been a word which can cause a lot of discomfort among many Indians, irrespective of their religious affiliations, it is the word Hindu. What an irony that many Hindus wriggle in discomfort when they hear or have to speak that word. When I became part of a student chapter whose name had the “discomforting” word, one of my room mates asked “Why Hindu? Why not Indian? As people may not feel comfortable with ‘Hindu’ and moreover the term ‘Indian’ attracts more people.”

This made me think of what deserves more importance - is it either being Hindu or Indian? Read the rest of this entry »

Nowhere is assimilation more prominent than in the American high school. I would not consider myself particularly successful at maintaining my traditions and customs. At the same time, I never fit in, and perhaps most importantly, I never found a balance between both extremes. I will cross the stage of my graduation ceremony (the day I wrote this) cognizant of the fact that I am not a normal American, and I am also not a normal Hindu. Read the rest of this entry »

The following letter appeared in “Dear Abby,” a syndicated column published in hundreds of U.S. newspapers:

A rough approximation of the Bible Belt. (Copied from Wikipedia)

“Dear Abby, I am a Hindu woman living in the ‘Bible Belt.’ Many of my friends and acquaintances are Christians, and they are all wonderful except for one thing. Some try in small, subtle ways to convert me to their faith. With Christmas approaching, I know what’s coming: boxes of baked goodies with little brochures and pamphlets tucked inside all about Jesus and the Christian faith. I wish you would remind people that all of us in this diverse nation should respect the faiths of others. To try to convert someone to your faith implies that you consider your religious beliefs superior, and this is just plain wrong. I know these gestures are well meant, but I wouldn’t dream of sending Hindu brochures with my holiday goodies. Abby, what is a tactful, but firm, way of dealing with this?” Signed, Happy Hindu In The Bible Belt.

Abby’s response:

“Dear Happy Hindu, much as you would like, you are not going to change people who feel its part of their religious commitment to ‘save’ you. Ignore the brochures and enjoy the goodies.”

Based on a 12/21/02 Chicago Tribune feature under the head-line “American Advice Columnist Responds to a Hindu’s Concern.”

The decision of leaving India for education in the USA is a tough one for every Indian student. It is a big leap in the career path that comes with a huge financial investment and a challenge of adjusting to a completely new country and culture. So, when I started my journey to Seattle for my master’s degree at the University of Washington, there was a sense of apprehension over whether I would be able to adjust to the way of life in the USA and if I would ever get a chance to follow Indian culture and traditions. Read the rest of this entry »

Many of the world’s current religions, mostly one thousand to two thousand years old, practice the code of One Prophet, One Book, and One Philosophy. Even though the world and society have changed since the origin of these religions, people still tend to adhere to this code of One Prophet, One Book, and One Philosophy, and reject all other views. Read the rest of this entry »

The clock strikes midnight. With a sleep-induced sigh, the massive textbook is slammed vigorously and stacked on top of the others. I rise from my chair and shuffle down the stairs and towards the sanctuary. Sitting cross-legged, back erect, I close my eyes and inhale, the fresh oxygen refreshing my body. Amidst the stress that comes from the rigors of tests and activities and the hustle and bustle of school, the next five to ten minutes are blissfully spent in the solitude of meditation and prayer. The tension is relieved; the worries are removed from my mind. Read the rest of this entry »

Part 1/2 of a first person account of the Epic 62-day struggle to get a land grant for the Lord Amar Nath (Shiva) Shrine located near Jammu city, India.

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The typical Indian mentality and the path of Hinduism, or the Vedic path of spiritual progress, is one of great individuality and freedom for each person to decide what they want or what is best for their own spiritual development. Thus, it is typical for Hindus to work on their own, not necessarily as a group. There is nothing wrong in that. It is the last of the great cultures that promote the utmost freedom for the individual. Yet, there is a great need that is not being met, and that is the need for Hindus / Dharmists / Devotees, especially in India, to unite and work together as a group, or even as a whole society, in order to continue to preserve and protect their own culture, traditions, and certainly the freedom of the individual. Read the rest of this entry »

Dr. Muhammad Yunus, well-known social entrepreneur

In the past couple of decades, social entrepreneurship has become very popular and a potential career option for youth across the world. Social entrepreneurship is the work of a social entrepreneur. While entrepreneurs in the business sector identify untapped commercial markets, and gather together the resources to break into those markets for profit, social entrepreneurs use the same skills to different effect. For social entrepreneurs, untapped markets are people or communities in need, who haven’t been reached by other initiatives. Though they may have different goals, social and business entrepreneurs have a lot in common. They build something out of nothing. They are ambitious to achieve. They marshal resources to meet their needs. They are constantly creative. And they are not afraid to make mistakes. Read the rest of this entry »

Though this summer began with ambivalent uncertainty, it ends with contented fulfillment. Since I was given the extraordinary opportunity to dedicate the entirety of my summer volunteering in both India and Guyana, I was decidedly excited but a tad apprehensive about, well, everything: could I handle the doubtless myriad issues that daily life in foreign places would entail? As my project mostly involved teaching children English (in India) and Vedic Math (in Guyana), I was also anxious about how it would be—would there be communication issues? Would I be able to deal with them, to reach them? Would they like me? Read the rest of this entry »