The journal
Beyond the obvious.
Essays on the self, society, and the systems we live within.
33 essays · Latest dated essays first
Society
Believers versus Explorers: What Rote Learning Teaches Us to Accept
A child asks why the sky is blue. We offer an explanation. Then comes another question, and another, until we reach the edge of what we can explain.
Society
The Lost Goal of Education: Happiness
We invest heavily in education because we expect it to improve life. Parents make sacrifices. Schools develop new programmes. Students work towards qualifications that promise opportunity and security.
Philosophy
Knowing the Truth: Battling the Vampire of Belief
At a social gathering, someone asked whether I believed in God or the universe. It was intended as a conversation starter, but I felt that a simple yes or no would leave the interesting part untouched.
Self
KPIs of the Corporate Called Life
Performance-review season has its own atmosphere. We assemble evidence, revisit goals, and prepare to explain what we contributed. A rating can affect money, opportunity, and the way we feel about the year.
Self
The Imaginary Filter of Positive Thinking
Think positively. Look at the glass as half full. Surround yourself with good energy.
Philosophy
Spirituality Is Not an Option: It Is Who We Are
We often speak of spirituality as something we might take up later. A practice to try after a difficult period. A retreat, a class, or a subject for people with enough free time.
Society
The Capitalist and Socialist Within Us
We argue about ownership at the level of nations, economies, and institutions. Who should control resources? Who should benefit from work? How should power be distributed?
Philosophy
Hinduism: A Triumph of Collective Human Knowledge
During a journey of about two hundred kilometres, I saw flags, posters, idols, and vehicles decorated with images of Rama. The enthusiasm surrounding the Ram Mandir inauguration continued on my phone when I reached home.
Philosophy
Osho: The Mafia of the Spiritual World
I am writing from Pune, where Osho remains a familiar and contested presence. His death on 19 January 1990 is part of the city's history; his talks continue to provoke arguments well beyond it.
Relationships
Blinded by Vision: The Deeper Reality of Compassion
An image can move us immediately. A face in pain, a child in danger, or a person struggling with something we take for granted can produce sadness before we have formed an explanation.
Relationships
Relationships Explored: Compassion and Soulmates
Mother, son, partner, friend, manager. A few words tell us how we are expected to behave towards the people around us.
Philosophy
Free Will: Deception or Reality?
Yesterday, I could have ordered pizza. I chose pasta. Nobody forced the decision, so it seems reasonable to say I chose freely.
Philosophy
The Nature of Pure Consciousness
Before I begin explaining an experience, there is the experience itself. A colour appears. A thought arises. I feel sadness, notice a sound, or become aware that my attention has wandered.
Self
The Loneliness Paradox: Journeying through Inner Doors
I have always been a social person. I enjoy conversations, gatherings, and the unexpected ways people open up to each other. I have also felt lonely in rooms full of people.
Self
Lifestyle: The Deceptive Veil
I was in London, looking at the kind of palace I had previously encountered through television. The architecture was extraordinary. So were the gardens and the scale of the place.
Self
I Am a Fool
On the morning my tenth-standard results were announced, my name was already in the newspaper. I had ranked third in Pune and first in my area.
Relationships
How Much Kajal Is Enough Kajal?
Someone asked me a question during a conversation: how much kajal is enough kajal?
Philosophy
An Affair with God
During Ganeshotsav in Maharashtra, I am often struck by the work that happens behind the celebration. Artists, organisers, volunteers, and families bring something into being that would not exist without their attention.
Philosophy
Nihilism and the Search for Meaning
I have heard a familiar disappointment in conversations with very different people. Some are married, some single. Some enjoy their work; others feel trapped by it. Their circumstances differ, but the question returns: why does life sometimes feel empty even when the things…
Philosophy
Shiva: The Construct
A psytrance party in Kasol was being advertised as Tandav for Mahashivratri. The name caught my attention because it condensed an association I had encountered many times: Shiva, music, intoxication, rebellion, and freedom from ordinary respectability.
Philosophy
Karma: The Rationality Behind
We often say this when someone has treated us unfairly. A manager denies us recognition, a person lies, or someone appears to profit from behaviour we know is wrong. The thought that life will eventually correct the balance can be comforting.
Self
Intellect and Wisdom
My instinct is wisdom. The thought behind that answer is that being able to solve a difficult problem does not necessarily tell us how to live. We can become highly capable while remaining confused about what our capabilities should serve.
Self
Love Thyself
There is a wonderfully uncomplicated confidence in Geet's affection for herself in Jab We Met. She likes being herself. The charm lies partly in how little she seems to need to justify it.
Self
Inner Beauty
We talk about inner beauty as though everyone knows what it means. A kind heart, a good person, a beautiful soul. The phrases are familiar, but familiarity can conceal how little we have actually examined.
Self
Mr. Bean and the Freedom to Be Unimpressive
Most of us have watched Mr. Bean attempt an ordinary task and turn it into a small disaster. We know the look on his face when a plan works, and the elaborate confidence with which he commits to a plan that clearly should not.
Philosophy
Yoga Beyond the Mat
It is a useful object. It gives us a surface for practising postures and can make physical practice more comfortable. I have no argument with the mat.
Self
Lagom and the Question of Enough
But that answer hides a question: what do I imagine the money would change? Would it give me security, freedom, recognition, or permission to stop worrying? How much would be enough for the change I actually want?
Philosophy
Science and Spirituality: Paths of Curiosity
We can be surrounded by people and still feel alone. We can also be physically alone and feel deeply connected to what we are doing.
Philosophy
Meditation: The Meaning
I once approached meditation with a fairly ordinary expectation: I wanted to feel less restless.
Technology
AI and Life as We Know It
This essay preserves the perspective of early 2023, when I first explored ChatGPT. Its expectations about the future are presented as questions and possibilities, rather than settled forecasts.
Self
Success and Ambition
Before asking how to become successful, I think we need to ask a less comfortable question: what do we expect success to give us?
Self
Survival and Ego
I am not asking whether you laugh often, enjoy a good party, or have people to spend your weekends with. I am asking about what happens when the activity stops. Can you sit quietly without immediately reaching for something to fill the silence? Do you feel at home in your own…
Relationships
Theory of Love: From a Movie to Real Life
There is a film called Stuck in Love that stayed with me long after I watched it. What interested me was the way three people in the same family approached love from entirely different places.