The Hindu Matha: An Introduction
A Matha is an establishment encompassing a vast complex of a spiritual, religious, cultural and socio-economic entity
September 22, 2021 Pankaj Saxena
How Old Is The Hindu Temple
The evidence from architecture, sculpture, literature, numismatics and inscriptions, confirms that the Hindu temple is older than the popular academic surmise and older than its earliest extant examples.
September 8, 2021 Pankaj Saxena
Dharmic Circuits: The Temple, The Grove And The Lake – Part 3
“Part 3 of our journey on Dharmic Circuits, Pankaj Saxena expores the sacred trinity of a great temple, a sacred grove and a water body……………
September 6, 2021 Pankaj Saxena
Dharmic Circuits: The Tale of Many Kailashas – Part 2
Mount Kailash holds the most sacred of places in Hindu hearts. Along with being the abode of Shiva, it is also the earthly representation of the mythical Mount Meru.
August 10, 2021 Pankaj Saxena
Dharmic Circuits: Sacred Pathways – Part 1
In part 1 of this essay, Pankaj Saxena seeks to explicate how the divine amalgamation of Teertha Kshetras and the Yatras undertaken is the sacred thread that binds the Hindu society together.
July 17, 2021 Pankaj Saxena
Shri Ram Swarup On The Communist Challenge
In this piece, Pankaj Saxena explains the relevance of visionary thinker Ram Swarup Ji’s thoughts on the communist challenge in the present political climate.
July 6, 2021 Pankaj Saxena
Did Brahmins Monopolize Knowledge in Ancient India?
Through an articulate argument Pankaj Saxena successfully demolishes the age-old charge that the Brahmins monopolized the knowledge system in ancient India.
June 14, 2021 Pankaj Saxena
Yayati Prashna: Why there can be no Technological Solutions to Cultural Problems
What can Yayati Prashna tell us about technology and ecology? Where are we going wrong and what’s the way out?
May 28, 2021 Pankaj Saxena
Symbolism of Temples Part III – Pradakshina and Kshetram
There are very clear instructions in agamas on how to visit a temple and what to do upon visiting a temple. Every Agama Shastra has elaborate chapters on the behavior or ‘charya’ of the devotee
March 30, 2021 Pankaj Saxena
Symbolism Of Temples Part II: The Shared Vocabulary Of Indian Arts
The most fundamental way in which the Hindu sculpture differs from the other significant pagan traditions is iconography. Hindu iconography does not just stop at the level of realism.
December 14, 2020 Pankaj Saxena
Symbolism of Temples Part I: Do Hindus Understand their Sacred Symbols?
Do Hindus understand the symbolism of temple sculpture and architecture? Did our architects and sculptors create masterpieces whose meaning was lost upon the majority?
December 5, 2020 Pankaj Saxena
The Water that Became Ghee
Dharmic and traditional societies had a wonderful and decentralized way of teaching worldviews and lifestyles which were necessary not just for their own survival but also for a harmonious co-existence with Nature.
November 26, 2020 Pankaj Saxena
The Temple and the Teertha
The Temple and the Teertha – Chitrakoot is so central to the Ramayana the story of Shri Rama cannot be imagined apart from it.
October 20, 2020 Pankaj Saxena
Ancient Temples and Modern Dacoits Part V: The Present State of Hindu Temples – Morena as a Case Study
The ancient Hindu temples in most places in north India were either destroyed or desecrated in the Medieval Era and hence were abandoned by Hindus.
October 14, 2020 Pankaj Saxena
Ancient Temples and Modern Dacoits Part IV: The Kachhapaghata Wonders of Morena
Morena witnessed the last great bout of temple-building activity in the Kachhapaghata Era, lasting from the late 10th century to late 12th-century C.E.
October 6, 2020 Pankaj Saxena
