The Cahanas: Keeping the Faith in the Worst of Times
Keeping the faith, as we are collectively paralyzed in dark and turbulent times, is very difficult. We are in the third year of a pandemic, marked by vast losses of lives, economic crises, homelessness, and food insecurity. The senseless genocide of people in Ukraine perpetrated by the Russian army is
Rabindranath Tagore: His Literature and Spirituality
Rabindranath Tagore was born in the Bengali section of north Calcutta (nowKolkata) on May 7, 1861. He was a man of many talents: writer, poet, composer, painter, social reformer, essayist, and novelist. Tagore was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1913, after which he
Thích Nhất Hạnh: Embodied Peace in Uneasy Times.
“The mind can go in a thousand directions, but on this beautiful path, I walk in peace”. Thích Nhất Hạnh There is much unease in the world with all the changes. Feelings of anxiety, nervousness, anger and frustration related to uncertainty and unpredictability arise at times. This catapulted me to
LALON FAKIR, HUMANISM AND THE BAUL TRADITION
Lalon Fakir’s philosophy is relevant to all ages and times. Lalon was a mystic, social reformer, songwriter, and a Baul singer in Bengal in the late 18th to early 19th century. Baul singers are wandering minstrels who originated in the land of Bengal, which during the era of
INTERVIEW WITH ROB GENTILE: QUARK OF LIGHT (NDE)
There are numerous books on various people’s Near-Death Experiences (NDE). Rob Gentile’s book, “Quark of Light: Near Death Experience (NDE)” is a powerful, honest, and profoundly insightful account of Rob’s NDE after a series of frightening events: heart attack, heart transplant, prostate cancer, and in a coma for four days
Japanese Tea Ceremony: Path of Tea
Growing up in India during my childhood, I was exposed to tea, chai, early in life. I love drinking chai. There is chai for every occasion. Drinking with friends or alone. I can drink chai for no reason at all, except that I am taking a break from a whirling
The BLACK MADONNAS OF SPAIN
The idea for pilgrimage to see the Black Madonna at the Royal Monastery of Santa Maria in Guadalupe, Extremadura, Spain germinated after I interviewed Dr. Andrew Chesnut for a blog post on Our Lady of Guadalupe in Mexico City. Dr. Chesnut discussed that Our Lady of Guadalupe in Mexico City