Showing 428 articles
The Barrenness of a Busy Life
Author: Tarini VaidyaJanuary 21, 2018
Last week I tried to catch up with a few friends for dinner, three to be precise. Can you believe we could not find a date when we were all free to meet until almost a month later! My friends work and I’m the only one who doesn’t work. Guess who was the busiest? Yes, [...]
Scaling An Inner Summit
Author: Vishal PahlajaniJanuary 21, 2018
“Adopt the pace of nature: her secret is patience.” – Ralph Waldo Emerson Throughout the ages nature has time and again instilled a sense of awe and wonder within human beings; at her unparalleled beauty, at her mysterious methodology and her enigmatic laws that govern the universe. The ancient Greek philosophers, specifically the Pre-Socratic philosophers [...]
Daring to Dream of a New and Better World -Q&A with Yaron Barzilay
Author: Manjula NanavatiJanuary 21, 2018
Tall, trim and relaxed in any environment, Yaron Barzilay smiles easily, but weighs his words very carefully. Understated and well-read, he punctuates his conversations unexpectedly, with an incisive colloquial humor that betrays his acute sense of the current socio-economic and political climate, and his capacious grasp of India’s history and mythology. Professionally, Yaron Barzilay is [...]
Kindfulness: The Need of the Hour
Author: Sangeeta IyerJanuary 16, 2018
If we look at how human behavior has changed since ancient times, it is fairly obvious that we have become more aggressive as a species; more egoistic, more volatile and easily prone to flare-ups of anger, impatience and unfortunately, violence as well. All around us we can see increasing evidence of self-centeredness and ascending intolerance [...]
A Stoic guide to our Emotions – Pt. 2: The sentiments of the sage
Author: Gilad SommerDecember 16, 2017
Despite the popular conception of the Stoics, in their writings, the ideal sage is not portrayed as a cold, apathetic person. By reflecting on the good and the bad, and on the true nature of things, the sage develops natural, rational sentiments – Hai Eupatheiai, literally, the good passions. These are: Wish, Caution and Joy. [...]
A Stoic guide to our Emotions – Pt. 1: Can we trust our feelings?
Author: Gilad SommerDecember 16, 2017
Human beings are often said to be rational creatures, but in reality we are very much emotional creatures as well. More often than not, history is a showcase of tragic actions taken by human beings overcome by their passions. And apart from these grand-scale dramas, our everyday life is full of instances where the right [...]
The Dawn and Decline of Technological Man
Author: Jorge Angel LivragaNovember 1, 2017
How important has technology been to the development of Humanity? By definition, technology relates to the means by which man attempts to rule over matter. However, technical elements alone are not enough to measure progress. Today we find ourselves engaged in a cult to technology, such that we judge the quality and excellence of civilizations [...]
God, Consciousness, Science: Conversations
Author: Sukesh MotwaniOctober 19, 2017
As philosophers born in an age where Science is leading the pursuit of answering questions to do with life, creation and the nature of reality, it becomes incumbent upon us to keep alive the sense of wonder at the underlying order and harmony in the workings of the universe. The search for ‘truth’ and ‘meaning’ [...]
A Moment to Stop and Reflect
Author: Ilanit AdarOctober 19, 2017
This article is a compilation of excerpts from the book A Moment to Stop and Reflect by Ilanit Adar Matoki to be published in Korean. In times when knowledge is very accessible and there exists a flood of information, it is a challenge to acknowledge words of wisdom. The eyes quickly pass over unimportant words [...]
The Ideal Activist: Inner Work for Outer Change
Author: Harianto H MehtaOctober 19, 2017
With a burning aspiration and courageous determination, many a youth dares to dream of a better world, driven by the need to take responsibility and participate in bringing about the clearly evident need for change, whether in the realm of ecology, literacy, socio-economic disparity, or the myriad other causes that demand attention in our times. [...]
Are We Human Beings or Human Doings?
Author: Archana SamarthOctober 19, 2017
This question is relevant to the times we live in. The pace of life accelerated by the need for constantly moving, rushing, or accomplishing emphasises the importance we associate with doing. Just being when the whole world seems to be caught up in a whirlwind of action, seems so passive! By doing, we feel we [...]
Raphael: The Drawings
Author: Siobhan FarrarOctober 19, 2017
Raphael was born in 1483 and by the age of 17 he had been given the title of ‘Magister’, meaning independent master. This exhibition of his drawings and studies at the Ashmolean Museum in Oxford takes a look at the essence of the artist. The opening lines of the exhibition’s guide read as follows: ’Drawing [...]