Wednesday, August 20, 2014

Quick notes: 'Genocidaire' of masses, Scorched birds...

  • ISIS is Islamism without its palatable wrappings: "Islam is not just the ‘opium’ of the masses as Marx has said but their genocidaire".


  • In Iraq, U.S. is spending millions to blow up captured American war machines.


  • Female Kurdish Fighters are a big problem for ISIS extremists


  • Solar plants scorch birds in mid-air: Quest for clean energy sometimes has inadvertent environmental harm.


  • For Bharatiyas, religion is all about experience:

    Hinduism is defined by me as re-enactment of sacred narratives, i.e. participatory and not just theoretical knowledge. Yoga is not an act of watching someone else do asanas, nor is meditation, nor yagna.

    Note that TV Ramayana killed the live enactment of Ramlila that had been continuously performed in every village as the theater of nation building.
    It is possible that one day some stupid "development" plan by the government might broadcast Kumbh Mela live from multiple locations, making it unnecessary to go to the Mela itself. Similarly all yatras might become virtual yatras available to you sitting on the couch at home drinking your chai. Would that be Hinduism or simply infotainment?

    If you understand the importance of this, then you will know what kinds of examples I need to help my yagna: Rajiv Malhotra 

No comments: