The YouTube channel Hindi University is working on a project to gather videos from Hindi learners all over the world. The videos have three things: name, where you’re from, and why you want to learn Hindi. They asked me if I would do a video and of course I said yes, but then I had to figure out the answer to that third question. Why do I want to learn Hindi? It’s strange how difficult that is to answer. Clearly... Read more
The discussion of the movie OMG over at my Facebook page got a bit more heated than it did here. I noticed a trend among people who found the movie distasteful and offensive. People are bothered by a lack of respect to our rituals. Perhaps even a lack of respect to our Gods. There’s confusion over why God would help and support the character who disrupts tradition, insults the Gods, and takes advantage of people of faith. It seems to... Read more
I go back and forth on whether I call myself a convert, sometimes depending on the circumstance. The truth is that I am a weird hybrid where I grew up on stories from The Mahabharata, chanting Sanskrit prayers, practicing transendental meditation, and reading the Gita. At the same time, I didn’t identify those things as Hindu things. Despite all these things, I figured I was Christian because that’s what everyone else around who looked like me was. I never had... Read more
Sorry there wasn’t a post yesterday, I’ve been sick all weekend 🙁 But I’m back on track now! Today is another Hindi practice day on Twitter, so come on over if you’d like to participate! *** We are doing a scripture study together: reading along through some scriptures and discussing the passages. Today is the third post of my favorite Upanishad: The Katha. This is the story of a boy who chatted with the God of death. Chapter One (part two) http://www.vedarahasya.net/katha-1.htm... Read more
Last week I announced the start of an Indian movie club here at my blog. The first selection was a movie called OMG: Oh My God, which is available on Netflix streaming. Beware that there will be spoilers! First of all, I learned that this movie was based on a play called Kanji Virudh Kanji, later adapted to Hindi as “Kishan V/s Kanhaiya” I haven’t seen the play, but it seemed to me that the movie did a great job and I can’t... Read more
I am delighted to have been given a review copy of Saffron Cross: the unlikely story of how a Christian Minister married a Hindu Monk. It’s a memoir that I first heard about on Twitter and Patheos Book Club gave me the chance to review it. The book when it arrived was smaller than I expected, but it turned out to be densely packed with insight and spiritual growth. I thought I’d finish it in a day, but it took... Read more
Recently I had a much more productive conversation with my half-Indian coworker than before. It was a slow, quiet Friday afternoon. There were only three people in the office and he happened to be working on a project right next to me. I don’t remember how we started but we were soon talking about the differences between Americans and Indians. Particularly around politics and “corruption.” He has a fascinating theory that bribery and corruption create a bond of trust between... Read more
One of the very funnest of the Hindu holidays is coming up next week. This year is seems to coincide with St. Patrick’s Day here in the States. The web tells me that Holi starts March 17th. For all the info, check out last year’s post about Holi, its origins, how to celebrate, and interesting tips: http://www.patheos.com/blogs/whitehindu/2013/03/holi/ Masala Mommas told me about a new app this year that helps kids learn about Holi. It sounds like you get to play holi... Read more
First off, I have to say that last week’s Hindi on Twitter was a great success. I got over my fear to try writing and producing sentences in Hindi and people on Twitter were very supportive and gave me helpful tips. They corrected my grammar and most importantly, explained why what I was doing was wrong! So I’m trying it again today. Join me on Twitter if you’d like to check out my Hindi skills (or lack thereof! lol). ***... Read more
I really want to be doing more to serve and help others. I’ve mentioned before my desire to do volunteer work. Naturally, I think of going to India to help out. Because it is a place that I love, respect, and am grateful to. India created and grew this religion that is such a major part of my life. I want to give back in some way to the land that has given me so much. There’s a system in... Read more
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