Menorise; Saturday Sayings

"The older you get, the stronger the wind gets...

and it is always in your face."

(Pablo Picasso)

First Friday Filmclub

Something a little different this month, insofar as this video is a personal one, created by one of my long-term blogpals, "Magiceye", aka Deepak Amembal, of Mumbai. Those readers who have been here long enough will recall I visited him - or more specifically, his dog Bozo - shortly before departing India. Anyway. Deepak likes to ride around his local area on a pedal bike... but also travels far on his motorbike - wearing a camera. Thus we get to ride along with him and share some of the roads, traffic, people, city and countryside and wonderful vistas of the destination. 

The YAMster, in her younger years, had a couple of boyfriends who were bikers and she thus learned to be a good pillion passenger (there's technique, you know!) and really loved the freedom of riding this way. Thus, I get rather a buzz from watching Deepak's ride alongs. In a recent post, he asked that the video be shared (and if you click through you'll be able to see more of Deepak's vids - and subscribe to his channel if you like the thrill of these as much as I do!).  So without further ado, here it is... (pee ess - you can read more about the trips over at Travel Magic!)

Menolibrikul; E-book Reviews; Part Six

This will be the final of this little series of reviews. Having never done reviews to this extent before, it has been something of learning for me too. Has there been too much of the teacher at work? Has any pertinent point been missed? Have I checked myself first?.. I may have been informed - hampered? - by the fact that earlier in life, I had the task of editing and proofreading and have never lost that particular 'muscle'. 

Then there is the assessment of the subject matter itself. Always these things are, to a degree, subjective because one is likely to choose from the list items that fall within one's area of interest. I do have an eclectic approach to my reading, so there has been variety. Then again, Some of these things have been very close to my own areas of expertise, and this last offering is absolutely that. Which has meant not only wearing the hat of a reader but also a peer. I admit to struggling with that slightly - given that is not the expectation from this particular e-book challenge. 

Anyway. Another thing that happens (some of you may have experienced it) is that thing called serendipity. If one accepts that the mind is but a river of thoughts, then when casting about for things to comment and write about, find that others have had the same idea, that the thing you are reading is what you have already put down on the page yourself albeit in a different fashion, (and assuming we are not faced with direct plagiarism), then you have to think 'here is some brilliance!' There is a confluence - and it helps when it is identified that there is a common source. The noble Ganges itself originates from two main branches, the Bhagirathi and the Alakananda, from the upper foothills of the Himalayan range. Both these rivers are held sacred for their contribution to the whole.

Did that seem rather too esoteric for this humble magazine blog? That's the stuff YAM usually reserves for Aatmaavrajanam, is it not?

Well, yes. Except that I am about to review a book selected from the Blogchatter e-carnival, and that fits fully into this blog. However, the subject matter holds a lot that is central to who I am and how I relate to the world. All you regulars here have seen something of it in the "Menoculayshunal" posts. It manifests more directly over at AV-bloggy. Regardless, here it is. You can see clearly the title. The "blurb" is direct and accurate... but let's get the teachery/proofreadery stuff out of the way first.

Of the nine items picked from the 'shelf', this is the closest layout and presentation to an actual book. This may sound a little fierce upon the previous offerings, but it is only a matter of degrees. Right from the start, one feels a level of professionalism - including on the frontispiece where it is made clear this is a 'first edition', demonstrating the author appreciates there will need to be some tidying up to do. By now, you know YAM's watch-cry on this... get a 'third eye' on it! You will see below that I consider this a masterful presentation, so it is sad to find typos, occasional unintended lapses into 'Indian' English (nothing wrong with that, just that the standard of English is actually very high, so these glare off the page) and slips into the highly personal occasionally, which, for this book, might be better removed. There is still, in places, reference to the origin being A-Z which can also go now... for this is a book I would heartily recommend to all and sundry who have any interest at all in the background to Indian thought and culture.

In terms of the language used, there is one quirk I find I cannot quite ignore. Mr Dash uses the word 'algorithm' a lot - and, it might be observed, not entirely correctly. Rather than mathematics, it is more a matter of logic to which he refers, and therefore a more appropriate word might be 'schema.' That is to say, a structural form by which to organise knowledge. And SanskRtam itself is a language of logic!

Let us leave the grammar and semantics of English behind as we now appreciate what is on offer here. I will not elaborate on all chapters; that is for the curious reader to do for themselves. What I do want to make clear is how authentic and straightforward this book is. That confluence I mentioned above? As I was reading, I was once again back in Sandeepany listening to achaarya-ji exquisitely explaining the difference between texts and philosophies (VARIETIES OF VIDYA), the need for a student to not be passive, but ever enquiring (ASKING QUESTIONS IS THE KEY), and elucidating various texts, (including BHAJA GOVINDAM and NARADA BHAKTI SUTRA, for example). What is more, much of the commentary of this author echoed my own. For example, although taken from a slightly different angle, there is a discussion on religion v spirituality (and here is mine), debate on history and dating of texts (FINDING OUT AND FIXING DATES + WHO WROTE AND HOW) as well as the concept basics of Sanskrit as a language (THE LANGUAGE OF GODS + ONES AND ZEROES + X FACTORS...) and the cultural aspects that come out of it, such as dance and drama, mathematics and other sciences... and a chapter most pertinent to today's political picture, the hows and wherefores of 'debating not hating' (TARKA SHASTRAS AND THE CULTURE OF THE ARGUMENTATIVE INDIAN). 

You have an idea now of where this book takes the reader. The author's love for the language and the culture provided by the texts and literature within it shine through but in a measured and worthy manner. I was particularly taken with the chapter, INTERPRETATION OF INDIC TEXTS. It is a plain fact that if one is to obtain the maximum benefit from any writing, it is best read in the language of its origin. I learned Russian to read Pasternak, Dostoevsky and Tolstoy and even at the most basic level of my understanding in that language, I could tell how some translations I had read were 'inventive'! In the case of The Bible, it is advisable to seek out authoritative translations from the original Hebrew, Aramaic, and Koine Greek. The same applies to Sanskrit. If one relies on interpretations taken themselves from interpretations and sometimes the third level, never mind lots of writers taking a text such as, for example, the Bhagavad Gita and giving their personal take on it, not necessarily having the appropriate background for doing so... well, you catch the drift. Mr Dash brings this out beautifully. 

This description of how chants in Sanskrit can wield a sort of power over one is clear and effective - I have myself considered it a sort of magic, but that also has all the wrong connotations! (To be fair, the early chants of western religious devotion have a similar effect - Hildegard Von Bingen is a personal favourite for bringing body, mind and spirit together.) The vibration created by such chanting goes beyond the words or even the sounds and reaches parts of us neither of these things could specifically of themselves. There is a formula in there somewhere - in this case, then, the word 'algorithm' might well apply!!!

This book's key point is to draw attention to the language, Sanskrit, and how it reaches out in so many ways in such a variety of written works (did I not mention several to you myself, just this Monday past?!) It does this with clarity and erudition. Referring back to the confluence mentioned at the start - although our teachers may come from slightly different branches, the source is the same, and the understanding flows as one mighty river.

I think, by now, you might surmise I have loved this book. It is not that any of it was news to me, but that perhaps, in different circumstances, this is the book I would have written (or liked to write). Semantics and typos aside, I give this publication my wholehearted two thumbs up and recommend it be added to your library! For that, I will direct you through to the author's own blog, where you'll find the link through to Blogchatter.  I am going to take the leap, though, for those of you who I know may not wish to sign up to the Indian website, and again offer to forward the PDF to any who request (via comments or email) - I am certain this author will be delighted to have a broad readership. The more who fully appreciate the setting, the deeper the bonds and understanding can grow between cultures.

Menoizikkul; Midweek Musicalisms

To complete the set, this is what happens when malambo goes 'Riverdance'. This is a showcase presentation - a trailer, I suppose - for their show. Tricksy drums, meltdown malambo and, man, do these boys know how to handle their balls. 😐

(... I may have "impuro" reasons for including this one!)

Me-Now-Views; Less Speak More Peek

From lack of time - and perhaps, inclination - this week I thought I'd share some of my photos that have been fully tizzied up to use as banners when posting over at Blogchatter. I do like a dabble in the digiworks.

OKAY - this one wasn't a banner - but I had fun with it anyway!

Menoculayshunal; The Intellectual Feast List

Before starting this post properly, I just wanted to share with you an image I hunted frantically through the archives for last week and failed to find. Typically, it turned up when I was looking for something else later in the week. Sums up menoplyxinaemia, really. Anyway, it was one of only two images I have of Nandi in the Jagadeeshwara mandir at Sandeepany. Not entirely sure why it meant so much to find it for you, but here it is. Nandi is a guardian but also a vehicle. A protector and a conveyor. When circumambulating the garbha, devotees might stop and whisper in the ear to have their prayers communicated by this intermediary to the Lord. It may just be the Taurean in me, but I love Nandi...

(I decided to do a retrospective of my Indian photographs through July over at My Take bloggy. and other Nandi's will appear there in due course... Keep your eyes on that one from Thursday!)

As I sat to prepare this post, I wondered where to wander next and realised that this weekly memoir, which was begun with no clear focus, is not as random as I had thought it might seem. There was the arrival, some rationale, the setting and the settling, the nourishment of the body (food), a little more rationale and, latterly, the arrangement of the average day. Occasional dips into the memoir pure. It's all still rather scene-setting with a slight brush with a character or two. I think it has to continue in this vein as I build up to the deeper, much more personal aspects. ... I realise that I am along for this ride as much as you, the reader, and like most writers, even though I know outcomes according to the plot, I am still eager to uncover any little gems or revelation. Thinking out loud does that for one. 

In short, there is a sort of catharsis going on here. Following the departure from India, I had no time at all to properly decompress. Two months back in OZ before repatriating to the Bonny Land after thirty years apart. In the seven-plus years back here, much of my time has been taken up - as most of you are aware - with duty to family.  This is fine - but now I have to come to terms within myself on various matters, not least my life as a Vedantin. 

It is my anchor, and it has been dragging a bit as the storms of life buffeted. It has stabilised me, albeit with a ding or two here and there. Now it is time to relax and repair and lift that anchor to sail back into the deeper sea. That is what prompted the resurrection of Aatmaavrajanam bloggy. Some of the personal discipline and routine is returning. But that is, once more, a rationale. A sift and sort of thoughts. Let me say, to round off this post, and about the content of a regular day back in Sandeepany, there were a lot of texts to get through. To give you an idea, here's an indication of what was included. 

You already learned, of course, that Sanskrit and Vedic chanting were on the curriculum, but the bulk of the study was the various writings of Vedanta, both ancient and more recent (as in those of Adi Shankara).  It is to be acknowledged that many of the suktams and mantras learned are, of themselves, texts, but they are not necessarily Advaitic. Previously, I mentioned the Sadhana Panchakam as the first we embarked upon. There were also the Tattva Bodha, Atma Bodha, Upadesh Sara, Bhaja Govindam and the Keno Upanishad as foundations. We built up with Drg-Drshya Viveka, Vivekachudamani, Vakya Vritti, Panchadashi (Selected Chapters), Advaita Makaranda, Vedanta SaraH, Saddarshanam, Hastamalaka Stotram, Manisha Panchakam, Dakshinamurti Stotram... then into the Bhagavad Gita and the Upanishads, including Isha, Katha, Mundaka, Aitereya, Taittiriya, Prashno, Mandukya (+Karika), Chandogya, Kaivalya, AmRta Bindu and Shvetashvatara. Many devotional texts, the already mentioned Bhagavatam, the Narada Bhakti Sutra, Makunda Mala and so forth, plus plenty of stotrams and there were bhajans ("happy-clappy songs").

...still here? Well done. Just reading that list doesn't of itself convey much - particularly to non-Indians. Think in terms of starting with the high school chemistry text, for example. Gradually working up to biochemistry and add in physics. Then astrophysics, quantum theory ... and keep on going. If we choose, we can read texts from these things - but how much would we truly understand? To the point that we can make connections and start to arrive at our own conclusions? For that, we require systematic study and the guidance of those who have already travelled that way.

MenoSundays; Life Lived Lovingly

The final offering from the anniversary poesie and memorial of my parents - thank you for bearing with me on this month of Sundays referencing personal history!