The Dharma Dispatch

A Brief Survey of the Proselytising Spirit of Sanatana Dharma Contrary to popular belief, Sanatana Dharma was a proselytising Dharma that took its inspiration from the Vedic corpus. AT ITS CIVILISATIONAL PEAK, Sanatana Dharma had been a proselytising Dharma. However, the nature of its proselytising was the polar opposite of Christianity and Islam which are imbued with unsustainable claims of infallibility which can only be spread through fraud, fire, force, and sword. We have an extensive list of alien tribes who either invaded or visited Bharatavarsha in the pre-Christian and pre-Islamic era and eventually embraced Sanatana Dharma and then became its most vocal champions and defenders. This formidable list includes the Greeks, Kushanas, Hunas, Shakas, Abhiras, Pahlavas, Parasikas, Gurjaras, Maitrakas and Pratiharas. --- Let me not spoil the suspense. Do read the whole essay and share it widely! 😃🙏🕉🛕🪔 https://www.dharmadispatch.in/commentary/a-brief-survey-of-the-proselytising-spirit-of-sanatana-dharma

How Economic Liberalisation led to Hindu Societal Apathy UNTIL LIBERALISATION, the greatest threats to the Hindu societal unity were the periodic eruptions of Muslim street violence, predatory evangelism and English education. After liberalisation, a dangerous new element slithered into this lethal mix and it emerged from within the Hindu fold. This was the American mindset of the mindless and unrestrained pursuit of money as an end in itself by the Hindu middle class. In the process, one of the first things that they abandoned was their profound spiritual heritage. By the end of the first decade of the twenty-first century, this reckless embrace of crass materialism by middle class urban Hindus had become the most powerful agent of de-Hinduisation right on the sacred soil of Bharatavarsha. Hindu employees of MNCs were now revelling in playing clownish games like Secret Santa and delighting in wishing each other Merry Christmas. Read the whole essay! 📑🛕🪔 https://www.dharmadispatch.in/commentary/how-economic-liberalisation-led-to-hindu-societal-apathy

The Contentment of Hotelier Sri Venkanna In an era of cloud kitchens and instant food delivery apps, it helps to recall a profound bygone era populated by hoteliers like Sri Venkanna. It contains valuable life-lessons in slowing down, frugality and contentment. Here is an excerpt. Sri Venkanna’s friends would often ask him: “Hotels are newly sprouting up in the city. Can’t you change your style of business?” I have myself heard Sri Venkanna’s reply: “This much of earning is enough to fill my stomach sir. Do you want me to lose my tradition and discipline by opting to earn more money? Whatever God has given me is more than sufficient.” Do read and pass on these values to your children. 🙏🕉🛕🪔 https://www.dharmadispatch.in/culture/the-contentment-of-hotelier-sri-venkanna

The Sunrise of the Hotel Business in Bangalore The iconic D.V. Gundappa narrates the first hand history of the origins of the hotel business in Bangalore. Here are some excerpts from it. The first person to establish a hotel in Bangalore was a Brahmana hailing from Mulabagal. His name was Avani Narasinga Rao. Avani Narasinga Rao’s hotel was located on the left row of Chickpet after eight or ten houses from the junction where Doddapet and Chickpet met. The second hotel that I saw in Bangalore belonged to Sri Venkanna. He had a strict system. Before 4 P.M. on Saturday, you had to pay four or eight annas as advance to register your name. You also had to mention the exact number of people who would be coming the next day. You couldn't walk in whenever you wanted. Venkanna employed no staff. ---- Read the whole delightful essay! 📑 😃🕉 https://www.dharmadispatch.in/culture/the-sunrise-of-the-hotel-business-in-bangalore

The Final Century for the Hindu Civilisation The Hindu civilisation and society today faces multi-pronged threats to its very survival in an unprecedented way throughout its history. How did we get to a place where an increasing chunk of Hindus not only regards Islam as superior to Sanatana Dharma, but seeks to emulate it? Since when we did allow ourselves to suspend our critical faculties, forget our traumatic history and fall into the snare set by Evangelists of all hues? The current state of the Hindu society is akin to a headless chicken. We seem to resemble dried branches that have forgotten that they belong to a perennial tree which has very ancient roots. --- Read Episode 1 of a new, blockbuster series! 📑🕉🛕🪔 https://www.dharmadispatch.in/commentary/the-final-century-for-the-hindu-civilisation

The Final Century for the Hindu Civilisation The Hindu civilisation and society today faces multi-pronged threats to its very survival in an unprecedented way throughout its history. How did we get to a place where an increasing chunk of Hindus not only regards Islam as superior to Sanatana Dharma, but seeks to emulate it? Since when we did allow ourselves to suspend our critical faculties, forget our traumatic history and fall into the snare set by Evangelists of all hues? The current state of the Hindu society is akin to a headless chicken. We seem to resemble dried branches that have forgotten that they belong to a perennial tree which has very ancient roots. --- Read Episode 1 of a new, blockbuster series! 📑🕉🛕🪔 https://www.dharmadispatch.in/commentary/the-final-century-for-the-hindu-civilisation

How the Tamil movie Bad Girl teaches degeneracy to underage Brahmin girls https://youtu.be/TmLuojVsOqs

The Ennobling World of Hindu Taxation Policy The theory and practice of taxation under Hindu regimes was tempered, just and humane. We see only rare instances of Hindu kings resorting to extortionate taxation and such regimes didn’t last long. What really sets our philosophy of taxation apart from say, ancient Greece, Rome or Babylon is the total exemption of certain classes of people from paying taxes. In no particular order, these were as follows: blind people, idiots, cripples, people over seventy years of age, people who made gifts and donations to temples, rest houses and charitable institutions, pregnant women, ascetics, hermits living in the forest, Brahmacharis (students), Vedic teachers, Shudras, artisans, mechanics and common people who nursed animals. -- Do read the whole essay! 🕉🛕🪔 https://www.dharmadispatch.in/commentary/the-ennobling-world-of-hindu-taxation-policy

Reclaiming Sanatana Spaces: A Profound Lesson from the Mandsaur Silk-Weavers Guild What connected a guild of Silk-Weavers from Gujarat with Mandsaur in Madhya Pradesh? What made them build a grand Sun Temple there? And what made them restore it to even greater glory? The temple still exists. At Khilchipura, about 30 Kms southwest of Mandsaur. Read its full story! 🛕🕉🪔 https://www.dharmadispatch.in/history/reclaiming-sanatana-spaces-a-profound-lesson-from-the-mandsaur-silk-weavers-guild

Lighting Lamps versus Violent Punishment: A Slice of Hindu Jurisprudence The primary impulse of Hindu jurisprudence was spirituality, humane treatment and reform. Violent punishments were prescribed for the gravest of crimes. Unlike today's Supreme Court Chief Justices who are unaccountable and squat on official property even after retirement, our kings voluntarily subjected themselves to public censure and punishment. The vision of Hindu lawgivers was to mitigate ill-will within the society as far as possible through a determined pursuit of spirituality. Conscious forgiveness on the part of the survivor and conscious expiation on the part of the perpetrator are two sides of the same coin. -- Read the whole ennobling essay! 🕉🛕🪔 https://www.dharmadispatch.in/commentary/lighting-lamps-versus-violent-punishment-a-slice-of-hindu-jurisprudence

A Portrait of Hindu Village Administration and Jurisprudence For hundreds of centuries, every village in India was a self-contained and self-sustained world in itself. The extraordinary feature in this regard is that the structure and setup of village administration was almost uniform in the realms of both space and time. In 1012 CE under the Chalukya king Vikramaditya V, the Ummacchige village (now in Yellapura, en route to Goa) was a great educational hub. The 104 Mahajanas of this village were entrusted with the smooth conduct of temple worship, imparting education, feeding the ascetics, water supply, and punishing criminals. The king had only a nominal say in all this. Do read the whole informative essay! 🙏🕉🛕🪔 https://www.dharmadispatch.in/commentary/a-portrait-of-hindu-village-administration-and-jurisprudence

A Portrait of Hindu Ministers as Models of Administrative Excellence The Hindu civilisational continuity is also seen in the organisation of its administration, which was helmed by some extraordinary ministers: from Kautilya to the Ashta-Pradhans of the Maratha Empire. We have an incredible grant of the 11th Century Pala king, Ballalasena, which gives a long list of Government officials in his administration at various levels. This number is exactly 28, as mentioned in the Arthasastra. In the 13th century, we see the legendary Hemadri (or Hemad-Pant as he’s fondly known to the Marathi people), the Chief Secretary of the Sevuna king, Ramachandradeva. He led the Elephant Squadron, fought wars, wrote an encyclopedic legal treatise and founded a separate school of Temple architecture. The details are simply mind-boggling! Do read the whole essay. 🙏🕉🛕🪔 https://www.dharmadispatch.in/commentary/a-portrait-of-hindu-ministers-as-models-of-administrative-excellence