Vedanta and the Modern World and Other Indological Essays

About the Authors I have great pleasure in introducing to the scholarly fraternity the work Vedanta and the Modern World and Other Indological Essays by the eminent savant Dr. Nithyanantha Bhat. It is a string of twelve penetrating studies carried out with meticulous care of equal number of topics with an i accent on the Vedic lore. It is so good and thoughtful of Dr. Nithyanantha Bhat to devote almost half of the contents of his volume to education which he has dealt with in all thoroughness and precision. To substantiate his point he has quoted profusely from modern thinkers and masters who have the unique distinction of being opinion makers. It was a treat to go through about half a dozen of his articles related to education. Among his articles there is one that touches the all-important subject of Vedic ecology which has special relevance to present times. Quite educative is his article on manuscripts. The other notable articles in the Volume are The Ideal of Renunciation, Service and Spirituality and True Globalization.

The Muse of Dr. Nithyanantha Bhat has meandered far and wide to cover a large area of Indian wisdom. To go through the Volume under reference is indeed an intellectual feast: utsavah sudhiyam ayam.

Dr. V. Nithyanantha Bhat (b.1946) is a Retired Professor of English. He was awarded Doctorate Degree in the English Language and Literature by the University of Calicut, Kerala, in 1988. Since 1991 he has been guiding research in English for Mahatma Gandhi University, Kottayam. He has successfully guided 15 Ph.D. candidates and 24 M.Phil candidates. He has published a number of research articles in reputed journals. Dr. Bhat is now functioning as the Hon. Director of Sukrtindra Oriental Research Institute situated in Cochin. He has edited several publications on topics of Indological importance for this Institute. He has organized seminars on Indological subjects. He has served Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan, Kochi Kendra, as a Member of the Board of Directors. He has also served as President, International Book Festival, Kochi. The areas of Dr. Bhatt’s special interest are Literature, Education, Human Values, Indian Culture and Philosophy, and Communication.

Foreword I have great pleasure in introducing to the scholarly fraternity the work Vedanta and the Modem World and Other Indological Essays by the eminent savant Dr. Nithyanantha Bhat. It is a string of twelve penetrating studies carried out with meticulous care of equal number of topics with an accent on the Vedic lore. Formed from the root vid, vid Plane, 'to know', the Veda is the repository of knowledge of all kinds. The whole of it is the root/source of Dharma: Vedo 'khilo dharmamullam. It is so complete that there is everything for everybody here. Therefore is the need to divine it, interpret it in all wisdom to discover the spirit behind its every statement. One with a little knowledge may not be able to do justice to it : bibhety alpasrutad vedo mam ayam praharisyati, the Veda is scared of one of little knowledge lest he were to attack it (and consequently hurt it).

It is very wise of Dr. Nithyanantha Bhat to begin his series of articles with the one on Vedanta and the Modern World, followed by Vedanta and the Modern Science. The end portion of the Vedic lore is the Upanisads. Broadly the Vedic literature has four divisions. The first is the Samhitas, the second the Brahmanas, the third the Aranyakas (the forest treatises), the fourth the Upanisads. The first two are connected with rituals and consequently get the name Karmakanda while the latter two deal with the (higher) knowledge and are therefore called Jnanakanda.

Preface This Volume titled Vedanta and the Modem World and Other Indological Essays is a collection of twelve articles written by me. Most of these articles have been published in reputed journals. The first four articles deal with aspects of the Veda and Vedanta. Three articles are on Education. Other articles deal with topics such as Indian manuscript tradition, human excellence, renunciation, service, globalization and nature of poetry in Indian perspective.

I wish to state here that all my articles on subjects of Indological importance including the articles in this Volume were prepared by me making use of the Reference Library of this Institute after assuming charge as its Hon. Director. I am ever grateful to our Founder and Dharma Guru Shrimad Sudhindra Tirtha Swamiji for having given me the opportunity to serve this sacred Institution founded in the name of our Dharma Guru Shrimad Sukrtindra Tirtha Swamiji.

Book's Contents and Sample Pages