Monthly Archives: July 2006

avyakta origin mythology

Posted on July 31, 2006 by mAnasa-taraMgiNI

The two tantric upaniShads, avyakta and nR^isiMha-tApini are clear in their pA~ncharAtra affinities. Yet the saMkhya origin mythology of the avyakta is a pretty remarkable piece that is worth considering, for it is a rather distinctive expression of earliest stages … Continue reading →

Posted in Heathen thought | Leave a comment

Strange and frightening conversation

Posted on July 30, 2006 by mAnasa-taraMgiNI

I received a call and we set off for the evening. The women-folk wanted to make their stock of powders and pickles for the quarter and had spent the day collecting their ingredients. As we converged at the pre-destined venue. … Continue reading →

Posted in Life | Leave a comment

“Tantric” upaniShad-s and their role in Hindu thought

Posted on July 29, 2006 by mAnasa-taraMgiNI

The point of origin of the later sectarian upaniShads is unclear. It appears that the early shaiva-s and vaiShNava-s had begun the composing upaniShadic material in the latest phase of the vedic era. The oldest amongst these is the shaiva-leaning … Continue reading →

Posted in Heathen thought | Leave a comment

Emperor Julian

Posted on July 27, 2006 by mAnasa-taraMgiNI

Many years ago when we were yapping away on the then latest production of the socialist academic Jared Diamond, Guns Germs Steel Blah blah, we turned our attention to two historical incidents which were reasonably faithfully described by him. One … Continue reading →

Posted in Heathen thought, History | Leave a comment

harihara

Posted on July 25, 2006 by mAnasa-taraMgiNI
Posted in Heathen thought | Leave a comment

Flogging dead Germans

Posted on July 24, 2006 by mAnasa-taraMgiNI

Recent events have exposed a peculiar bunch of Europeans- they appear on face to be sincere students of Indic issues, but deep within are Hindu-haters. This group is dominanted by people of Germanic origin, but also includes a range of … Continue reading →

Posted in Politics | Leave a comment

shrIvidyA beyond the pa~nchadashI and classical phase

Posted on July 23, 2006 by mAnasa-taraMgiNI

Not much is remembered of the shrI-kula traditions before the universal sweep by the pa~nchadashI and structurally related mantras, like manu vidyA or skanda vidyA. These may be termed the classical shrIvidyA mantras and examples include:The manmatha vidyA or kAdi … Continue reading →

Posted in Heathen thought | Leave a comment

The saMkShipta-bhairava mantra

Posted on July 23, 2006 by mAnasa-taraMgiNI

The formulae of the fierce saMkShipta bhairava can be used to counter a range of mAraNa attacks. It is different from the amR^iteshvara vidya, like that described in the netra tantra tradition. The latter is shAntaM, while the saMkShipta bhairava … Continue reading →

Posted in Heathen thought | Leave a comment

Aunt Spring on the khANDavan front

Posted on July 22, 2006 by mAnasa-taraMgiNI

With Jx liberated from the grahaNa, and Mn having stabilized his ratha, and jyeShTa-tanu having recovered from his head-shattering blow, aunt spring wanted to move ahead with operations on our front. The muni, a stickler for etiquette, felt that Mn … Continue reading →

Posted in Life | Leave a comment

Is bhArata safe?

Posted on July 22, 2006 by mAnasa-taraMgiNI

Is the geographical nation of the Hindus safe? Nay is the nation of Hindus itself safe? This is a topic I did not really want to write about but the flurry of chats have almost forced to repeat myself on … Continue reading →

Posted in Politics | Leave a comment

kubjikA and the pa~nchavaktra mahAdeva

Posted on July 20, 2006 by mAnasa-taraMgiNI

The great tradition of paschimAmnAya goddess, our hallowed mother kubjikA, had a number of streams that are now largely forgotten. One of the older streams before its standardization in the tradition of the kubjikAmata and ShaTsAhasra streams was the worship … Continue reading →

Posted in Heathen thought | Leave a comment

Jx etc

Posted on July 17, 2006 by mAnasa-taraMgiNI

We heard from Jx that through the sAdhana-s his preceptor had bestowed on him he had completely repulsed the abhichAra. He was finally relieved from the flight of the crane: it was confirmed, but it had taken a severe toll … Continue reading →

Posted in Life | Leave a comment

The substrate in Old Indo-Aryan

Posted on July 16, 2006 by mAnasa-taraMgiNI

Over the past century Western as well as Hindu investigators have noted the substrate in Indo-Aryan. However, identifying its origin has been largely left to the speculative whims of the worker. Dravidian and Austro-Asiatic have been the pet choices, but … Continue reading →

Posted in History | Leave a comment

Maharatti and Kannada and more musing on Indo-Aryan

Posted on July 16, 2006 by mAnasa-taraMgiNI

Obivously, Indo-Aryan and Dravidian have been at the center of my linguistic interests because they are the very basis of my cultural and genetic heritage. During my peregrinations in the peninsula I made some observations, and read a work of … Continue reading →

Posted in History | Leave a comment

The sarpasattra: vedic and aitihasic.

Posted on July 16, 2006 by mAnasa-taraMgiNI

The sarpasattra as per the itihAsa was the gory sacrifice of janamejaya pArIkshita done to avenge the death of his father parIkShit by the sarpas. The itihAsa states that the interaction between the pANDus, yadus and the sarpa-s was a … Continue reading →

Posted in Heathen thought | Leave a comment

Yinlong and the evolution of Marginocephalian dinosaurs

Posted on July 15, 2006 by mAnasa-taraMgiNI

Many years ago, when I was around 9 or 10 years old, I performed my first phylogenetic study of the ornithopods. Not having access to the actual specimens and having to rely on outdated description, the venture can hardly be … Continue reading →

Posted in Scientific ramblings | Leave a comment

The akShara puruSha maNDala of the pUrva srotas

Posted on July 14, 2006 by mAnasa-taraMgiNI

The five faced one manifests as the inactive matter at the origin, the all-pervading matter in the universe and the vaccuum from which all emerges. Hence is worshipped as:shAntAya namaH | sarvagatAya namaH | shUnyAya namaH | These three states … Continue reading →

Posted in Heathen thought | Leave a comment

The pa~ncha vaktra chakra of the pUrva srotas

Posted on July 13, 2006 by mAnasa-taraMgiNI

The pUrva srotas of the tantras of rudra is comprised of the garuDa tantras, which encompass the glorious prANeshvarI and mR^ityu~njaya vidyAs. However, less known are the aspects of the regular worship of mahAdeva in this srotas. The most critical … Continue reading →

Posted in Heathen thought | Leave a comment

Indo-Aryans: Movement of their culture, languages and genes

Posted on July 12, 2006 by mAnasa-taraMgiNI

Indo-Aryans have heavily influenced the world by way to the movements of their genes, languages and culture. Let us compare some of these movements to understand their dynamics. 1) The invasion of the Indian sub-continent: After breaking away from the … Continue reading →

Posted in History | Leave a comment

Indo-Aryans of the Middle East

Posted on July 11, 2006 by mAnasa-taraMgiNI

The Indo-Aryans of the second millenium Middle East have been a topic of continuing interest highlighted beginning with the works of Johannes Friedrich in 1929. Subsequently, Mironov and PE Dumont have also expanded upon this subject. These studies are of … Continue reading →

Posted in History | Leave a comment

Some notes of the ShaTsAhasra tradition

Posted on July 10, 2006 by mAnasa-taraMgiNI

When in gavalkuNDa, R1 and A saved us from the pangs of hunger. R1, A and our clan had similar histories with peregrinations through the length of jambudvIpa over time in the practice and quest of the mantra-shAstra. R1’s clan … Continue reading →

Posted in Heathen thought | Leave a comment

The victory of the prince of the Bangalore

Posted on July 10, 2006 by mAnasa-taraMgiNI

If am writing this it really means I am wasting time. Since I have done a lot of that over the past two days and feel guilty about I am just adding x to infinity — something a person with … Continue reading →

Posted in Cricket | Leave a comment

Formulae for the rahasya prANAyAma.

Posted on July 9, 2006 by mAnasa-taraMgiNI

prANam me pAhi prANam me jinva svAhA tvA subhava sUryAya |oM |apAnam me pAhyapAnam me jinva svAhA itvA subhava sUryAya ||

Posted in Heathen thought | Leave a comment

The gAtha on the founder of our nation

Posted on July 9, 2006 by mAnasa-taraMgiNI

hiraNyena pArivR^itAn kR^iShNA~n Chukladato mR^igAn |maShNAre bharato .adadAch Chatam badvAni sapta cha ||1|| Cased in gold, black beasts with white tusks, at maShNAra bharata gave by the herds, seven hundred of them bharatasyaiSha dauHShanter agniH sAchIguNe chitaH | yasmin sahasram … Continue reading →

Posted in Heathen thought, History | Leave a comment

In the quest for food

Posted on July 8, 2006 by mAnasa-taraMgiNI

bhR^igu, the founder of our race, had said that food was brahman. In that quest we set out to the city center. They say no journey in the company of a true friend is ever long. They say no wait … Continue reading →

Posted in Life | Leave a comment

Some notes on Shahji and Sambhaji the brother of Shivaji-IV

Posted on July 7, 2006 by mAnasa-taraMgiNI

Sambhaji and Shivaji break freeFollowing Shahji’s arrest his sons Sambhaji in Banglore and Shivaji in Pune started asserting their independence against the Moslems. With the help of the Brahmin advisers they started acting as independent *Hindu* rulers and did not … Continue reading →

Posted in History | Leave a comment

Some notes on Shahji and Sambhaji the brother of Shivaji-III

Posted on July 6, 2006 by mAnasa-taraMgiNI

Mustafa Khan’s invasions Shah Jahan called on Adil Shah and Qutb Shah to destroy the Hindus of the South and bring the whole of Hind under Islam. First, Mustafa Khan attacked the Vijayanagaran army lead by the Nayaka Shivappa who … Continue reading →

Posted in History | Leave a comment

Some notes on Shahji and Sambhaji the brother of Shivaji-II

Posted on July 6, 2006 by mAnasa-taraMgiNI

Randulla Khan’s invasion of the South Muhammad who succeeded Ibrahim, as the Adil Shahi Sultan was a fanatic Jihadi who wanted to put the Hindus in their place and bring the whole of South India under the cresent banner. Muhammad … Continue reading →

Posted in History | Leave a comment

Some notes on Shahji and Sambhaji the brother of Shivaji-I

Posted on July 5, 2006 by mAnasa-taraMgiNI

In my childhood I was quite disappointed with our history books not providing any details what so ever, beyond even the merest mention, about the life and role of Sambhaji the brother of the founder of the Maharatta nation. So … Continue reading →

Posted in History | Leave a comment

The mahAmantras of the urvashI prayoga and saubhAgya sarasvatI

Posted on July 4, 2006 by mAnasa-taraMgiNI

The most glorious urvashI is invoked by her mahAmantra:oM hrIM eM | abhi na iLA yUthasya mAtA sman nadIbhir urvashI vA gR^iNAtu | oM hrIM eM | urvashI vA bR^ihad-divA gR^iNAnA .abhyUrNvAnA prabhR^ithasyAyoH | huM svAhAThe mantras of urvashI and … Continue reading →

Posted in Heathen thought | Leave a comment

When chimps and men stopped mating

Posted on July 3, 2006 by mAnasa-taraMgiNI

Chimps and humans are so close that I had wondered since my school days when the ancestors of chimp and humans had stopped mating with each other. There were several rumors of human-chimp hybrids but they were just rumors. There … Continue reading →

Posted in Scientific ramblings | Leave a comment

Lessons from the Mohammedan onslaught

Posted on July 2, 2006 by mAnasa-taraMgiNI

The battle raging in the Middle East between the Jews and their Mohammedan enemies has some important historical lessons. It may be a relatively low-level conflict in a small part of the world but its lessons are very clear. In … Continue reading →

Posted in Politics | Leave a comment

The bhinnayoni vidyA

Posted on July 2, 2006 by mAnasa-taraMgiNI

Since I was asked of the famed bhinna yoni vidyA, which powers the mahA mAtR^ikA nyAsa I have written it down. Of course its prakaTa as pratya~NgirA needs the inter-twining with the atharvamukha, of which the bhinna yoni is itself … Continue reading →

Posted in Heathen thought | Leave a comment

The blight of Monotheism

Posted on July 2, 2006 by mAnasa-taraMgiNI

Moving out of the frustration from the futile discussion on the thermal stability of acyl monophosphates I began filling Marc up on what I had recently learnt from the two hours I had spent with a garrulous Spanish gentleman. He … Continue reading →

Posted in Politics | Leave a comment

Gansus and the early ornithuromorph/euornithan evolution

Posted on July 1, 2006 by mAnasa-taraMgiNI

Several new specimens of the previously enigmatic bird Gansus throw light on the evolution of early ornithuromorph birds. There appear to be the following evolutionary grades and clades recognizable to different degrees of clarity amongst the Mesozoic birds. The primitive … Continue reading →

Posted in Scientific ramblings | Leave a comment