Promod Puri

STUDY OF THE SELF A SIGNIFICANT ASPECT OF LIFE

The Sufi poet and philosopher Bulleh Shah (1680–1757) once said: “Parh parh alim fazil hoya, kadey apnay aap nun parhya he nai.” Translation: A person becomes a scholar through endless reading, yet may never have read their own self. Bulleh Shah’s words cut deep, like a satirical jab at scholars and learned individuals. Yet, beneath…

Seeking Evolution in Religions:

Rituals, customs, and traditions often form the backbone of a religion’s identity. Yet, if we strip these away, what remains are the core teachings of morality, righteousness, and noble deeds—values shared universally by all religions. At their essence, pathways to divinity are paved with principles of ethics and virtuous living. However, these pathways are often…

I’M ONLY A MASON, CEMENTING WORDS IN MY 2024 WRITING SPREE In 2024, my love affair with words blossomed into a full-fledged partnership. This creative alliance resulted in a sprawling mosaic of articles—some sharing news with discerning views, others condensing thoughts into two- or three-line musings sparked by instinctive impulses. My pen wandered far and wide,…

Some of the interesting and inciting thoughts that can be quotes I wrote in 2024: If one has understood God through rituals and customs, then what has been understood is not God. The concept and understanding of God are subject to review. After all, God is man’s creative imagination. I don’t read further in motivational posts…

Besides Humans, Everything Has Consciousness Too

by Promod Puri What’s the difference between you, me, a spoon, a table, or even a rock? At first glance, it’s obvious—we’re conscious beings; they’re not. But wait—what if they have consciousness in a form we can’t sense? It’s a thought that flips the script on what makes us “aware” and them “inanimate.”This raises an…

How India’s Hindu nationalist rhetoric played a role in the violence at a Canadian temple

Sheetala Bhat, York University, Canada Diplomatic relations between India and Canada continue to decline in the aftermath of the slaying of a Canadian Sikh activist in British Columbia. A recent violent confrontation at a Hindu temple in Brampton, Ont. between pro-Khalistan protesters and Hindu nationalists has created further tensions. Dozens of pro-Khalistan Sikhs, many of…

Bulldozing Hindutva’s Laughable Temple-Under-Mosque Campaign

Hinduism, a timeless and inclusive philosophy, has nothing to do with Hindutva’s absurd obsession with conjuring temples beneath mosques. Hindu temples exist, even side by side, in harmony with mosques, but not underground. Hinduism, with its vast cultural depth and secular ethos, stands worlds apart from Hindutva—a counterfeit ideology cloaked in fanaticism and fueled by…