instead of 7 sins in Western thought, there are only 5 evils in Sanksrit. Also these evils are correlated, if you control one too much, the other evils will rise. Kam – Your Lusts or Desires Krodha-Your Anger Madh-Your Pride Lobh-Your Greed for Monetary Satisfaction Moh-Your affection and love and attachments
While vacationing in Goa, I came across a marvelous place on Anjuna Beach called Tantra. It is basically a beach side restaurant cum hotel, but what makes it unique is the use of natural building materials like wooden poles tied together with ropes to create a magnificent and comfortable ambiance . The decor is artistic without being too loud, a big golden statue of the Buddha greets people as they come in , the music is Sanskrit and Hindi hymns , there are books left casually around for the reader. There are statues of Ganesha and a Shiva -Linga, evening lighting is shielded lighting, and dinner is over candle-lights and the manager Karan Singh has basically created a sort of mini-naturalistic paradise. It is basically India as it was meant to be, before we turned weirdly capitalistic.
An amazing thing at the Tantra is the pricing, they are very much a fit for the traveler who does not want to stick to expensive hotels, and does not want to compromise on hygiene. Tantra is clean, very healthy living, and you go to sleep with the sound and sight of the Ocean, and are woken gently by the Sun.
If you are in the mood to travel to India, you should travel to Goa, and in Goa, Tantra , Anjuna beach is one of the finest places you can have an authentic travel experience.
Location- Tantra is located almost at the heart of Anjuna Beach, it is just ahead of the famous Anjuna Famous Market. To get to Anjuna, you can take a taxi or Bus from Mapusa, or Margoa. To reach Margoa, you can take an air-conditioned Volvo or non-AC bus from Mumbai (that would be the best way to travel)
About Tantra- A great place in Anjuna, Goa with a difference.
Set next to the flea market, surrounded by unique antique furniture and art. Experience the serene and chilled out space. Great place to watch the sunrise and sunset. Swing by.
Contact Info
Over the month long break I took, I was helping firm up my ideas for R for Analytics , I also took a break and read some books. Here are brief reviews of two, three of them-
1) Hindu Myths
This is a classical book translated from original Sanskrit written by Professor Wendy O Flaherty of University of Chicago. I found some of the older myths very interesting in terms of contradictions, retelling the same story in a modified way by another classic, the beautiful poetic and fantastic imagery evoked by Hindu myths. Some stories are as relevant in prayers, fasts and religious ceremonies as they were around 11000 years while most have morphed , edited or even distorted.
It should help the non Indian reader understand why hundreds of millions of conservative Indians worship Shiv Ling ( or literally an idol of the Phallus of Shiva), the Hindu two cents of creation of the universe, and the somewhat fantastic stories on super heroes /gods/ in the ancient world.
The book suffers from a few drawbacks in my opinion-
1) Sanskrit is a bit like Latin- you can lose not just the flavor but original meaning of words and situational context. Some of the stories made better sense when i read a more recent Hindi translation.
2) An excessive emphasis on sexual imagery rather than emotional imagery. The author seems wonder struck to read and translate ancient indians were so matter of fact about physical relationships. However the words were always written in discrete poetic than crass soft pornography.
3) Almost no drawings or figures. This makes the book a bit dense to read at 300 pages.
I liked another book on Hindu Myths (Myth= Mithya which I read in 2009) and you can see if you can read it if you find the topic interesting.
A Handbook of Hindu Mythology
Hindus have one God.
They also have 330 million gods: male gods, female gods, personal gods, family gods, household gods, village gods, gods of space and time, gods for specific castes and particular professions, gods who reside in trees, in animals, in minerals, in geometrical patterns and in man-made objects.
Then there are a whole host of demons.
But no Devil.
Mere Christianity by C S Lewis is a classic book on reinterpreting Christianity in modern times. However the author wrote this when World War 2 was on and it seems more like a British or Anglo Saxon interpretation of beliefs of Christ Jesus– who was actually a Jewish teacher born in Middle East Asia.
While the language and reading makes it much easier to read- it is recommended more at Western audiences, than Eastern ones, as it seems some of the parables are a more palatable re interpretation of the New Testament. The Bible is a deceptively easy book to read, the language is short and beautiful-and the original parables in the Gospels remain powerful easy to understand.
C S Lewis tends to emphasize morality than religiosity or faith, and there is not much comparison with any other faith or alternative morality. Dumbing down the Bible so as to market it better to reluctant consumers seems to be Mr Lewis intention and it is not as scholarly a work as an exercise in pure prose.
However it is quite good as a self improvement book and is quite better than the “You Can Win” kind of books or even business concept books.
Note- I find reading books on religion as good exercises in reading the fountain source of philosophies. As a polytheist- I tend to read more than one faith.
I have used the word Hinduism in the title tag, but it may be interchangeably used by the word India. Hinduism remains the world’s only religion without a founder and also with the maximum number of Gods including gods of Nature, and was in existence long before the Egyptians, and Romans came and died. Most people end up taking the religion they were born into, without knowing what it means- Hinduism is a melting pot and a philosophy.
It has nothing in common with the people who try and market it for profit.
Here are some techniques for Strategy in Sanskrit
1) Sam ( Pronounced as Saahm) – Praise someone to gain their favor.
“Excellent Job”- Terrific- Wow
2) Dam ( Pronounced as Daahm)
Offer money to baser monetary instincts
3) Dand ( Pronounced as Dund)
Punish the person by denying him what he thinks he deserves.
4) Bhed ( Pronounced as Bhaid)
Provoke the target’s jealousy and envy by praising someone else in his presence or ignoring him.
The definitive manuscript for strategy was written by Kautilya and here is a paper from a University that refers to it-
DECISION STATS 