Hinduism- Some Cardinal Principles

The Santhi Mantra of Hindu's lokah Samastah Sukhino Bhavantu' seeks the well-being of all. The kernel of Hindu philosophical thought is the recognition of Atman as the imperishable self-luminous principle in all jivas and the knowledge that it is essentially one and the same as the Cosmic Consciousness. Thinkers of the Upanishad, recognized Atman our innermost individual being, same as Brahman - the inmost Being of Universal nature and all phenomenon. This knowledge gives the Hindus, the guidance of their way of life and ethics and attitudes to other beings. The book discusses the revelation of Upanishads and other topics including Guru, Atman and Brahman, Karma, God, Varnasrama Dharma, and women's position in society, Death and Liberation in simple, non-technical language.

Dr. N.Narayana Pillai took his Ph.D in Civil Engineering from lIT Kharagpur in 1965 and joined there as a lecturer in Civil Engineering. He specialized in Water Resources Engineering. He did Post-Doctoral Work in Canada and later in USA where he had teaching assignments also. He served as Professor and later as Principal at REC, Kurukshethra. He was the founding Principal of Amrita School of Engineering, Amrita University. He has guided many doctoral students and has numerous publications. His area of interest includes Buddhism, Advaita, Bhagavad Gita, Upanishads and interdisciplinary studies on Science and Spirituality.

The opportunity to read the book of Dr.N.Narayana Pillai entitled 'Hinduism: Some Cardinal Principles' is really an interesting experience. The study is noteworthy as it is a sincere and serious attempt on the part of the author to analyse and interpret certain noble doctrines of Hinduism which contain moral principles and human values. Like the lightning amidst the dark clouds, the work pours light in the minds of the readers so as to enable them to remove the darkness of ignorance. High philosophical speculations embedded in Vedic texts are dealt in the work. The language used is notable for its simplicity and clarity. This little literary piece can be called a 'gem' which is small but precious. This book is small in size, but great in content and nobility.

The author depicts seventeen divergent topics taken from Hindu scriptures to complete his unique work. He starts with the article 'Atman the Imperishable Reality of man' and concludes by a writing on 'The liberation or Mukti'. The article proclaims his profound knowledge in 'Arshajnana'. Certainly the work would serve as pathfinder that helps the ordinary mass to familiarize themselves with the features of the noble cultural heritage of India. The writer, proficient in Hindu scriptures gives a vivid explanation of certain prominent Vedic Suktas like the Gayathri mantra.

The approach adopted by Dr. Pillai towards the study is rational, systematic and scientific. The attempt of the author is praiseworthy as it is an earnest and honest effort to explain and elucidate the terms of Hinduism such as `Atman', 'Brahman', `Maya', `jagat' etc. The work unveils the authenticity of the author in the subject. It provides a rare opportunity to the reader to imbibe the basic tenets of Hinduism. One of the articles Karma and law of Karma deserve special mention in this context. The way of presentation is attractive. The book is readable and reachable even to an average reader.

**Contents and Sample Pages**