Nyima Tarung Tana Ah, Arunachal Pradesh, the land where the sun kisses the mountains first, where the rivers sing ancient songs, and where every stone has a story. As an Apatani-Monpa Buddhist, let me share with you a tale, poetic yet piercing, of how our vibrant culture is being slowly smothered by the silken shroud …
Beauty, like the economy, is determined by politics
Dr Amritpal Kaur Women have gained many legal and reproductive rights, as well as more freedom to pursue higher education and enter previously male dominated professions through a long, hard and honourable struggle. The more legal and material obstacles women have broken through, the more severe and heavy the backlash, in the form of detrimental …
Crossroads of Covid: Time for Theological Transition
Dr Anuradha Bele & Dr Jas Simran Kehal Reading about Mahavir and Buddha with my son in his class VI ICSE history textbook took us back to the 6th century BC. The chapter explained state of affairs that led to rise of a new religious revolution. The causes enumerated in the textbook forced me …
Myth of Brahmin Merit: Refutation of Superiority
Pranav Jeevan P We have been hearing arguments that try to justify the superiority and monopoly of Brahmins and savarnas in the fields of education and governance based on genetics. Their argument is that generations of endogamy and access to education has created a group of people who are better at learning (Brahmins). They …
Bhima Koregaon and Dalit Bahujan Movement
Swati Kamble I began writing this piece over a month ago at the dawn of January 5th, after ruminating and having constant monologues with self about the violent attacks against Dalits in Bhima-Koregaon and the hunting down of protesting Dalit youth that followed in the next few days. I struggled to scribble down my …
Mahisha Dasara Festival in Mysuru City
Guru Murthy and Mahesh Sosle Dalit Students Federation, University of Mysore The progressive thinkers, cultural personalities and social activists gave a new dimension to the history of Mysuru by celebrating ‘Mahisha Dasara’ on September 29, 2016 organised by Dalit Welfare Trust in association with Backward Class Association, Mysore University Dalit Students and Research scholar Federation …
ಬುದ್ಧನ ನಂತರದವನೇ ಶ್ರೀಕೃಷ್ಣ
ರಘೋತ್ತಮ ಹೊಬ (Raghottama Hoba) ಕೆಲದಿನಗಳ ಹಿಂದೆ”ಬುದ್ಧಿಸಂನ ಸಾಕಷ್ಟು ಅಂಶಗಳು ಭಗವದ್ಗೀತೆಯಲ್ಲಿವೆ”ಎಂಬ ದೇವನೂರ ಮಹಾದೇವರ ಈ ಹೇಳಿಕೆಯ ಹಿನ್ನೆಲೆಯಲ್ಲಿ ಮೂಡಿಬಂದ ಪ್ರತಿಕ್ರಿಯೆಯಲ್ಲಿ’ಬುದ್ಧನ ನಂತರ ಕೃಷ್ಣ?’ ಎಂದು ಪತ್ರಿಕೆಯೊಂದರಲ್ಲಿ (ಪ್ರಜಾವಾಣಿ) ಓದುಗರೊಬ್ಬರು ಕೃಷ್ಣನ ಕಾಲಾನಂತರ ಬುದ್ಧ ಜನಿಸಿದ್ದು ಎಂದು ಅಭಿಪ್ರಾಯ ವ್ಯಕ್ತಪಡಿಸಿದ್ದರು. ಆದರೆ ವಾಸ್ತವ? ಈ ಹಿನ್ನೆಲೆಯಲ್ಲಿ ದೇವನೂರರ ಈ ಹೇಳಿಕೆಗೆ ಪೂರಕ ಅಂಶಗಳು ಅಂಬೇಡ್ಕರರ ಬರಹದಲ್ಲಿ ದೊರಕುತ್ತವೆ. ಅಂಬೇಡ್ಕರರು ಹೇಳುತ್ತಾರೆ “ಮಹಾಭಾರತದ ಮೂಲ ಸಂಪಾದಿತ ಕೃತಿಯು ‘ಜಯ’ ಎಂಬುದು ಮತ್ತು ಅದನ್ನು ಸಂಯೋಜಿಸಿದವರು ವ್ಯಾಸ. ಅದರ …
No Ram, Jai Bhim!
Harohalli Ravindra The usage of the phrase ‘Loafer Ram’ has become a hotly discussed topic today. The person who used this phrase, a senior professor in the Department of Journalism in Mysore University, Prof. Mahesh Chandra Guru, was issued a body warrant and detained in Mysore Central Jail for one week from 17-06-2016. And …
Onam for Adivasis: Celebration of exclusion, betrayal and exploitation?
Narayanan M Sankaran (Translated from Malayalam by Joseph Antony) ‘Onam is the National festival of Malayalis’. It is a sentence one learns or is rather made to learn to write and speak from school days onwards. During my childhood, and for many years after that, Onam stood for exciting times for the sole reason …