About My Posts

This page is a consolidation of all that I write about. It has all the links to the posts that I authored on this site. The latest topic is always on the top. Instead of just providing the links, I am providing a brief synopsis on what each post is about. Please feel free to click through. If you like any of the posts, please let me know by clicking on the ‘Like’ facebook button. The comments you type in the comments box of each of the posts will be revered and treasured! But before we jump in, here is a little bit about me and my first welcome message. So, without much ado, here is the list.

Documenting Our Return To India

After staying in the U.S for 16 years and in Singapore for two years, I returned to India on June 21, 2011 to dedicate our lives to the cause of education in India. How much is enough to make this big transition in our lives is the subject of discussion in the next article. We started our new life in Nandigama a small town in Andhra Pradesh, India. Here is how and why we chose Nandigama.

Blog articles prior to our return to India

I started a new series on Annamacharya. The series starts off with a story of the copper plates followed by an approach to decoding the inscriptions on the copper plates. What follows is a post on how Annamayya turned into a household name. We then move on to know about the ancestors of Annamayya and the conditions at the time of his birth. We later discuss the early life of Annamayya and his journey to Tirumala. Annamacharya walked up the seven hills and arrived in Tirumala to have a darshan of the Lord.  He lived a very happy and contended life in Tirumala. He was forced by his parents to return to his native village. While leading a happy married life in Tallapaka he also received royal patronage from the greats of his time. Understanding his compositions, the inspiration behind his inexhaustible devotion and an analysis of the lineage of the Tallapaka Family were the focus of the next three articles before I discussed Annamacharya’s return to Tirumala. I thoroughly enjoyed writing this series although it had to be concluded very reluctantly. I think I will come back to this topic at a later time.

I have been doing some research on the role of women in our societies. This led me to discover that a woman is truely an epitome of patience. Women own up half the sky, but they are not given their due share. They are subjected to severe troubles but they are the ones who can really solve all the problems of the world. To know how, you should first read about the girl effect.

What a shame it is when millions of children in India are forced into prostitution! Many people worked very hard to create a path from this darkness to a new light. Between you and me we too can join the fight against this national shame of ours.

I have worked with non-profits just enough to be dangerous. They struggle from both the “old” problem as well as the “new” problem. But there are certainly ways to unite the old and new and continue to do their best to serve the causes they were created to serve.

Over the past few years I developed a great interest in the viShNu sahasra naamaM(VSN), its meanings and the special significance it holds for all the Hindus. Covering a total of 21 articles, including an introduction, I wrote on several aspsects of the VSN. To begin with, Bheeshma is the author of the VSN. When King Yudhistir asked him five questions, he answered them in clear unambiguous terms. He validated his answers by revealing the 1000 names of Lord Vishnu in the form of the viShNu sahasra naamaM. The chanting of the 1000 names is preceded by chanting of the poorva peeThika. This is followed by the dhyaana slOka that acknowledges the rishis, the grammar, the deity, and the purpose of chanting the divinity filled sahasranaama mahamantra. This is followed by five verses that are in praise of Lord Vishnu. Over the entire VSN one finds a very wide variety of names that describe Lord Vishnu. The first name vishvaM and the second name viShNu reveal the secrets of the mighty form that pervades the entire universe. The first verse consists of nine names and the last verse consists of eight names. Between these two verses there are the names that inspire melody in bhajans, the most common names that we hear day in and day out, the names in numeric values ranging from zero to infinity, many names of Sri Krishna, great names that start with the word maha, several names that mention the ten avatars of Lord Vishnu, the association of Sri Maha Lakshmi with Lord Narayana, and various other names that try to describe the indescribable forms of Lord Vishnu. In uttara peeThika we reminisce on the benefits of chanting the VSN. We offer our apologies for any mistakes committed while chanting and finally dedicate all our efforts to His Lotus Feet. In the final post in the series, I presented my conclusion that when we chant the VSN in full faith and with deep conviction, it makes us feel elated and deeply contented.

The theme of this site is Educare i.e caring for the world through education. But does education provide a roadmap to happiness? Do teachers hold the key to social transformation? I asked and provided some answers to these questions that bothered me for a long time. I also presented an inconvenient truth about our education system.

I have always wondered about the source and meaning of certain invocation slokas and the role they play in the daily life of a Hindu. To that extent, I was able to do some research and write about Gayatri Mantra and Hayagriva sloka. I hope to read and write about more of these invocation slokas.