Saba Saba - my first flight

Today is 49 years since my first official trip happened on 7th July 1976. Tanzania celebrates its National Day as Saba Saba - 7th of July. As the Asst. Export Manager, I was deputed by ETTDC to take part in the Indian Pavilion organised by TDA and IIFT in the Saba Saba Fair at Dar es Salaam, Tanzania.

My very first flight was on the evening of 5th July 1976 from Delhi to Bombay by Air India. It was a flight from Zurich to Bombay via Delhi. I sat at the window (seat.. F), watching the evening setting sun and orange sky, a breathtaking view with monsoon clouds too. An export manager from HMT, who had just attended a Machine Tool Fair in Switzerland, sat next to me. 

At Bombay, I got a hotel layover at Centaur. I had dinner with Ganu (IIT IIM mate who had joined Grindwell Norton). I don't think I was a very good host.

My night flight from Bombay landed in Nairobi, and my connection to Dar es Salaam was delayed by many hours. Consequently, when I reached my hotel in Dar es Salaam with much luggage (I had some electronics display items for the Fair in my baggage), the chap at the hotel reception told me they had given away my reservation to someone else.

I remember sweating profusely as I lugged my bags along the central avenue of Dar es Salaam at 2AM in pitch darkness, looking for a hotel room. I found a largish lodge-like place, run by a Gujarati, who took mercy on me and allowed me to sleep in the lobby overnight. I remember climbing a huge staircase to reach the lobby area. 

I got a fine hotel the next day, being a part of the Indian delegation. Mr. Gupta, our team leader, took great pains to tell me that a career in exports and foreign travel was impossible for a Hindu vegetarian. He told me to start with chicken as it tastes good and is easy to adapt to. After all these years (I did over 40 years of overseas travel), I am glad I did not listen to him then. I have eaten eggs a few times, which I regret.

I had colleagues from HMT, Kirloskar, NGEF, and Mahindra as my teammates. We had a great experience. The Fair was set up in a beautiful open ground. I had an HMV gramophone player as an exhibit. I had taken Veena (Sri Narayana Menon) and Bharatanatyam (Yamini Krishnamurthy) LPs. The Africans danced in glee, listening to the mridangam beats!

The newspapers came out in the evenings. One evening, a front-page photo showed me with Julius Nyerere, President of Tanzania, and the President of Mozambique, who had visited the India pavilion. I was seen explaining how India is developing small-scale industries in electronics.

I am right now unable to locate photos from my first trip. This photo was taken at the Zanzibar beach in 1978.

The jackfruit tree - the heart of our land

If we regard our dear country, Bharat, as a resplendent, juicy, ever-giving, ever-protecting, ever-loving, ever-growing society, then I think the jackfruit, and its mighty tree, stands tall as our symbol.

1. It grows tall, strong and sturdy. 
2. It has large and beautiful leaves in plenty. 
3. It provides dense shade. 
4. It produces countless fruits, all easy to reach! 
5. Its fruits are fragrant and most iviting, yet well-protected by a thick covering. 
6. To break open the jackfruit is an elaborate ritual, a veritable Yajna. 
7. Each fruit is so succulent and massive in appearance - simply irresistible. 
8. Elephants, bears, monkeys, men, all crave jackfruit. Elephants in reserve forests raid estates to feed on jackfruits.
9. See the pic - this single crop would give maybe 1500 fruit pieces... Can feed a congregation in a temple! 
10. Jackfruit grows in large gardens in estates, farms and temples... absorbing the true spirit of people who live to share, give, play, laugh and love. 
11. Most Indian musical instruments, especially percussion, are made of jackfruit wood. 
12. A great mridangam maestro said that the jackfruit tree absorbs the sacred chants and bell sounds during temple processions and festivals. That is why the jackwood gives such  resonance to musical instruments. 
13. The jackfruit is consumed as a fruit, as a vegetable, and made into dessert, payasam, curry, papad, pickle, ice cream and so on. Its thick outer layer is loved by cattle. Its fruits contain big, beautiful seeds, holding the promise of the next generation of trees. 
14. The jackfruit tree outlives generations. It is thus passed on as a tradition. 
15. When I enter the large estate of a happy family with a thriving jackfruit tree, I feel the jackfruit truly symbolises the cultural tradition of the family, our society and our country! 

Prof. S. S. Raghavachar - a Tribute

My talk at the Tribute function in the Department of Philosophy, Manasagangotri, Mysore, on 12 June 2025, Thursday (embedded with navigatio controls):  

This is the PDF of my talk transcript. The video has also been recorded and can be watched below:

 

Vidyaa Dadaati Vinayam

विद्या ददाति विनयम्। 

This is a part of the shloka in the Hitopadesha

विद्या ददाति विनयं विनयाद्याति पात्रताम्। 

पात्रत्वात् धनमाप्नोति धनात् धर्मं ततः सुखम्॥

"Man attains humility on acquiring true knowledge and wisdom. Humility qualifies him for greater things in life that confer wealth, righteousness and true happiness in succession."

Now, the joke is that you rarely find a truly humble scholar. Most "knowledgeable" people are quite arrogant and even dismissive of others. Those who are famous and successful have cultivated the art of appearing to be humble while they conduct a whole concerto, blowing their own trumpets.

So how do we interpret this line.... "Knowledge confers humility."????

Remember, this belongs to the time when all knowledge was acquired legitimately at the feet of a Guru. As Bhagavan Krishna says in the Gita, 

श्रेयान्द्रव्यमयाद्यज्ञाज्ज्ञानयज्ञः परन्तप । सर्वं कर्माखिलं पार्थ ज्ञाने परिसमाप्यते ॥ ४-३३॥

तद्विद्धि प्रणिपातेन परिप्रश्नेन सेवया । उपदेक्ष्यन्ति ते ज्ञानं ज्ञानिनस्तत्त्वदर्शिनः ॥ ४-३४॥

"Oh, Arjuna, know that an offering of wealth is excelled by the offering of knowledge and wisdom. Indeed, all human endeavours seeking earthly and ephemeral gains are terminated when true knowledge and wisdom dawns on man. This you should seek from a Guru who has acquired true knowledge and wisdom and seen the truth; do this by bowing down to him, and serving him, and humbly asking him to answer your questions and doubts."

So, when one gets this wisdom from a true Guru, by supplication and earnest application and enquiry, what remains then? Not the ego, but true wisdom and knowledge. Therefore, the acid test for true knowledge is the dawn of humility, reverence for the Guru, and knowing how the Guru has indeed opened my eyes. I can then feel just gratitude and a sense of fulfilment, not arrogance!

So by bringing in the Guru element, you can explain "Vidyaa dadaati vinayam."

PS:

This does not apply to those who have been educated in Google, YouTube, Wikipedia and WhatsApp universities.  Indeed, they don't have Vidyaa; where is the question of Vinaya?!?

*** 

॥ हरिः ॐ तत् सत् ॥

Jiva, Ishwara and Moksha

 Jīva, Īśvara and Mokṣa

While chatting with a good friend who is well-versed in Indian philosophy and has heard several talks on Vedanta (often equated with Advaita), the question came up: What is my take on  Jīva, Īśvara and Mokṣa?

I am an ardent believer in the Śrīmad Bhagavadgīta. It clears away a lot of cobwebs in our overfilled brains through direct and straightforward dialogue. I also believe that the words of Bhagavān Śrīkṛṣṇa in the Gīta go far beyond the Vedantic talks that constantly try to split hairs and make a big show of "punditry" (1).  I have therefore summed up my ideas, pinning them on important quotations from the Śrīmad Bhagavadgīta, with Śloka references.

Jīva

1. This is the embodied Ātma, encased in the Body-Mind complex. The Jīva's soul component is reborn repeatedly until merging into/attaining Bhagavān. (2)
2. The Jīva consists of two parts - the perishable and the imperishable. (3)
3. The imperishable part i.e. the soul or consciousness, is located in the perishable body. At the moment of death, it begins its journey in the afterlife. This part migrates from one body to the next, carrying the accumulated Karma impressions, just as the wind carries fragrances as it passes through a floral orchard. (4)
4. Jīva is always engaged in action (=Karma) (5). There is no escape, therefore, from Karma reactions, except...
5. ...when the doer makes Karma his Yajña, or worship (6) (7). True Yajña adds nothing to the existing Karma.
6. This path requires the doer to realise that he is merely a part of the play of creation, playing out his role. Then, he becomes a witness to his own actions, just as an actor can be a witness to his own acting. This is possible when we perform our actions without desiring, i.e. being invested in the resultant outcome for personal gain. This attitude confers equanimity, and, in addition, infuses efficiency into all our actions! (8) (9).
7. Where there is striving done as one's worship, Bhagavān comes to one's assistance through grace. Then life runs on Autopilot, guided by Bhagavān Himself (10).

Īśvara

1. This is the area where the Śrīmad Bhagavadgīta has total clarity, without confusing creation with the creator, and without weaving verbal webs about what is real and unreal. 
2. Īśvara = Bhagavān. He is incomparable, unique, and all creation is like so many beads strung into a necklace whose thread is Īśvara (11).
3. This can be understood only by those who have attained the necessary insight and developed devotion.  This is therefore the best course for the Yogis too. (12) (13)
4. Īśvara is always our companion in all actions. But He transitions in His relationship to the Jīva, from being a mere onlooker to an approver, aide, facilitator and provider in inverse proportion to our sense of ego (=doership), which hopefully diminishes as we make spiritual progress. He is the Ultimate Witness, and is NOT the Jīva! Indeed, this difference makes it absolutely clear that He is Paramātmā! (14). The language of the Śrīmad Bhagavadgīta is crystal clear on this point. Therefore, any interpretation that dilutes this is unfortunate and should be discarded forthwith.
5. Īśvara = Bhagavān is present in every creature. He runs the world like a spinning wheel, carrying all of us, making us go through our actions programmed through our Karmas! (15)
6. Īśvara is always and totally separate from Jīva. This is crystal clear  (16). Īśvara is continually engaged in the activities of creation, sustenance and destruction. On the other hand, a Jīva can only hope for merger into Īśvara and not a substitute for Īśvara!

Mokṣa

1. The goal of human life is liberation = Merger into Bhagavān. Equanimity paves the way for this. Practically, this means that one offers every one of one's actions as one's worship to Bhagavān. In this process, all reactions to Karma, as well as Karma itself, will drop off and the Jīva attains Bhagavān (17). This process is laid out in the Śrīmad Bhagavadgīta.
2. The man who experiences his pure state of consciousness (and thus goes beyond the Body-Mind complex), called Brahman, proceeds further on the path of devotion.  The implication is that no one escapes actions as long as he is in the body, even after attaining Brahman consciousness. Hence, what we call Mokṣa is not a state of nothingness, but an active, devotional connection with  Bhagavān! This is explained in several verses in the ultimate chapter that deals with Mokṣa. (18) and (19). 
3. The Carama śloka in the Śrīmad Bhagavadgīta is 18.66 (20). In this, Bhagavān is asking us to surrender to Him as our sole refuge, abandoning all "Dharma." He says He will save us from all sins = The negative effects of Karma, and we should hence not grieve. Here, Dharma means our sense that our own effort based on our "free will" or life choices will lead to Mokṣa, as if we can act independently and forget Bhagavān. All the fancy rituals, practices, "Yogas", meditations, called by various names like Raja Yoga, Kriya Yoga, and so on, may give us the impression that we can attain liberation or Mokṣa without recourse to Īśvara = Bhagavān. Some pundits have even stated that Īśvara is a figment of our own creation = a creature subject to Māyā, and when we are in Brahman, He will promptly disappear! This is sheer nonsense according to the Śrīmad Bhagavadgīta, which emphatically states that Māyā is the device of Bhagavān, under His total control and an instrument of His play or Līla. We can escape Māyā or our wrong perceptions and identifications (=Body-Mind complex) only by surrendering to Īśvara!!!!  (21) (22)

In other words, according to the Śrīmad Bhagavadgīta,

• I am the Jīva, caught in the Karma-Body-Mind-Rebirth cycle.
• Īśvara is running this creation as a sport, and IS MY FRIEND AND PROTECTOR.
• Worshipping Him and surrendering all actions to Īśvara confers freedom, which is the ultimate devotion and bliss.  This breaks the Karma cycle, and there is then no rebirth.
• The 12th Chapter makes it clear that worship or Bhakti is NOT RITUAL. It is living our life moment to moment connected to the universal presence of Īśvara = many-ness in oneness. I am not quoting verses as the 12th chapter's every verse (there are twenty) is important and clear on this point.

*****

(1) गीता सुगीता कर्तव्या किमन्यैः शास्त्रविस्तरैः । या स्वयं पद्मनाभस्य मुखपद्मात् विनिःसृता ॥ (गीतामाहात्म्यम्)

(2) जातस्य हि ध्रुवो मृत्युर्ध्रुवं जन्म मृतस्य च । (२.२७) मामुपेत्य तु कौन्तेय पुनर्जन्म न विद्यते ॥ ८-१६॥

(3) द्वाविमौ पुरुषौ लोके क्षरश्चाक्षर एव च । क्षरः सर्वाणि भूतानि कूटस्थोऽक्षर उच्यते ॥ १५-१६॥

(4) शरीरं यदवाप्नोति यच्चाप्युत्क्रामतीश्वरः । गृहीत्वैतानि संयाति वायुर्गन्धानिवाशयात् ॥ १५-८॥

(5) न हि कश्चित्क्षणमपि जातु तिष्ठत्यकर्मकृत् । कार्यते ह्यवशः कर्म सर्वः प्रकृतिजैर्गुणैः ॥ ३-५॥

(6) यज्ञार्थात्कर्मणोऽन्यत्र लोकोऽयं कर्मबन्धनः । तदर्थं कर्म कौन्तेय मुक्तसङ्गः समाचर ॥ ३-९॥

(7) यतः प्रवृत्तिर्भूतानां येन सर्वमिदं ततम् । स्वकर्मणा तमभ्यर्च्य सिद्धिं विन्दति मानवः ॥ १८-४६॥

(8) योगस्थः कुरु कर्माणि सङ्गं त्यक्त्वा धनञ्जय । सिद्ध्यसिद्ध्योः समो भूत्वा समत्वं योग उच्यते ॥ २-४८॥ 

 (9)    बुद्धियुक्तो जहातीह उभे सुकृतदुष्कृते । तस्माद्योगाय युज्यस्व योगः कर्मसु कौशलम् ॥ २-५०॥

(10) अनन्याश्चिन्तयन्तो मां ये जनाः पर्युपासते । तेषां नित्याभियुक्तानां योगक्षेमं वहाम्यहम् ॥ ९-२२॥

(11) मत्तः परतरं नान्यत्किञ्चिदस्ति धनञ्जय । मयि सर्वमिदं प्रोतं सूत्रे मणिगणा इव ॥ ७-७॥

(12) अहं सर्वस्य प्रभवो मत्तः सर्वं प्रवर्तते । इति मत्वा भजन्ते मां बुधा भावसमन्विताः ॥ १०-८॥

(13) योगिनामपि सर्वेषां मद्गतेनान्तरात्मना । श्रद्धावान्भजते यो मां स मे युक्ततमो मतः ॥ ६-४७॥

(14) उपद्रष्टानुमन्ता च भर्ता भोक्ता महेश्वरः । परमात्मेति चाप्युक्तो देहेऽस्मिन्पुरुषः परः ॥ १३-२३॥

(15) ईश्वरः सर्वभूतानां हृद्देशेऽर्जुन तिष्ठति । भ्रामयन्सर्वभूतानि यन्त्रारूढानि मायया ॥ १८-६१॥

(16) उत्तमः पुरुषस्त्वन्यः परमात्मेत्युदाहृतः । यो लोकत्रयमाविश्य बिभर्त्यव्यय ईश्वरः ॥ १५-१७॥

(16) यत्करोषि यदश्नासि यज्जुहोषि ददासि यत् । यत्तपस्यसि कौन्तेय तत्कुरुष्व मदर्पणम् ॥ ९-२७॥

(17)  शुभाशुभफलैरेवं मोक्ष्यसे कर्मबन्धनैः । संन्यासयोगयुक्तात्मा विमुक्तो मामुपैष्यसि ॥ ९-२८॥

(18) ब्रह्मभूतः प्रसन्नात्मा न शोचति न काङ्क्षति । समः सर्वेषु भूतेषु मद्भक्तिं लभते पराम् ॥ १८-५४॥

(19) भक्त्या मामभिजानाति यावान्यश्चास्मि तत्त्वतः । ततो मां तत्त्वतो ज्ञात्वा विशते तदनन्तरम् ॥ १८-५५॥

(20) सर्वधर्मान्परित्यज्य मामेकं शरणं व्रज । अहं त्वा सर्वपापेभ्यो मोक्षयिष्यामि मा शुचः ॥ १८-६६॥

(21) दैवी ह्येषा गुणमयी मम माया दुरत्यया । मामेव ये प्रपद्यन्ते मायामेतां तरन्ति ते ॥ ७-१४॥

(22) तमेव शरणं गच्छ सर्वभावेन भारत । तत्प्रसादात्परां शान्तिं स्थानं प्राप्स्यसि शाश्वतम् ॥ १८-६२॥

*****

|| हरिः ॐ तत् सत् ॥

Ode to the poet

The famous poet Dr. H. S. Venkatesha Murthy has passed on. Here is one of his famous poems :

As my tribute to the poet, I will render the poem into Sanskrit:

यथातथं स्थातव्यम्

यथा भविता तथा भूयात् ।

चिन्ताचयनम् निवारयेत् ॥ 

घनसमूहकवारिविसृजने

खं भविष्यति निर्मलम् । 

ताराश्च रात्रिस्सञ्चयति रवौ

उषसि सा उत्सीदति ॥

कुरु गुरो मामपि तथा लघुं 

रिक्तनिर्मलजीवनम् ॥

***

॥ हरिः ॐ तत् सत् ॥

#CarnaticJihadi

#CarnaticJihadi

Early this morning, a wise angel came and told me to write this. 

Do you know who is a #CarnaticJihadi!? 

First of all, Carnatic music is a global phenomenon, like ChatGPT, Insta, rocket science, GM food, rock music and cricket. It is not immune to terrorism either. So the time has come to define the #CarnaticJihadi. 

1. The #CarnaticJihadi comes from a well-to-do background, and has learnt music from the masters.
2. The #CarnaticJihadi is an accomplished performer and builds a good fan following.
3. The #CarnaticJihadi gladly accepts all medals, honours, titles, speaking opportunities and invitations to write books, as this gives a ready platform to do his work.
4. The #CarnaticJihadi is an iconoclast, badmouthing the tradition and the masters from whom he has benefited greatly. He does not hesitate to hit dead people below the belt.
5. The catch words are 'Tradition", "Orthodoxy", "Parochialism", "This corruption called Bhakti" and such. They pepper all his communications that ask the people to rise in arms.
6. The #CarnaticJihadi is singing the same old songs of the masters, delivering the same tradition, even though he prefaces every song and performance with the preaching he is well known for. 
7. The key leverage for the #CarnaticJihadi is A. Tradition B. The audience that loves this tradition. It is the height of hypocrisy that he is trying to subvert the same two things as a #CarnaticJihadi!
8. If we take away the tradition and the traditional audience that the #CarnaticJihadi is leveraging, he will be nothing. Those wokeist audiences who relish badmouthing tradition have many other avenues for entertainment and would consider the #CarnaticJihadi without his music as worth nothing.

Note: I have used "he" for the #CarnaticJihadi. However, this would apply equally to any "she" who also fits these criteria.

Steady like a lamp

Bhagavān Śrīkṛṣṇa in the Gīta says one should steady the mind in meditation like a lamp burning brightly unflickeringly in a windless space...

यथा दीपो निवातस्थो नेङ्गते सोपमा स्मृता ।

योगिनो यतचित्तस्य युञ्जतो योगमात्मनः ॥ ६-१९॥ The Yogi in meditation is advised to steady his mind like this lamp...  What a great analogy. Every time I see a lamp that burns bright and unflickering, I realise that the mind with no ambition, no craving, no restlessness, no thought of, "What next?!" naturally experiences light and is filled with a calm bliss like nothing else. There is no need for any external stimuli for that experience! This is truly

Nirvana. The Sanskrit word निर्वाण means the going out or blowing out of a lamp. It is a negative state. I mean here Nirvana in a positive, bliss-filled state. It is the lamp burning brightly and unflickeringly! 

So what if the moment does not last? That single moment is perhaps the connect we are all seeking within, right?