Digesting Karate :: Digesting Yoga

By now you are probably familiar with the appropriation, distortion and digestion of Indian cultural assets, like yoga, meditation, bharatanatyam into western Synthetic Unity. Here we shall see how similar self-serving justifications are used to appropriate Karate and other martial arts by the cultural aggressor.

FAQ: Why Hindus wear dot on forehead (bindi)?

One of the most frequently asked questions is “Why Hindus wear dot on the forehead?”. It is one custom which has been part of tradition that can be traced back to remote antiquity. Anytime a curious non-Indian meets an Indian, this is a question they have always genuinely wanted to know the answer for. It is so common that it has to be on Google suggestions list:

Swastika and Hindu Cowardice

Given here is a series of email exchanges between myself and the local Diwali program organizing committee members. As a volunteer, I was assigned publicity work for the event. I designed a poster for the event that was to be printed and distributed at local businesses. On four corners of the poster I added the official symbols of four Dharma Traditions that celebrate Diwali. Swastika is the official symbol of Jain dharma. Some of the members objected having swastika on the poster, mostly out of fear that it could be misunderstood and cause unnecessary trouble. One member privately supported to keep the symbol, but was too scared to do so openly. Here are the emails where members expressed their objections and I explained my stance. If you are one of the committee members reading this – don’t worry, I have removed all your names. This is just to showcase the level of cowardice we have stooped to and use this opportunity to introspect. Nothing personal.