I was revisiting the Bhagavad Gita and purchased a copy of the Mahabharata…where I am, there is a potential arts project about the Mahabharata and I was invited to participate in its development. When I started looking into what it’s really about I had the realization of how incredibly important it is in the world we live in today and I feel really inspired to be a part of the project.
However, I am not Indian, and aside from a modest but honest occasional yoga practice, I don’t think I know enough about Indian culture. Do you have any recommendations? I think you also recommended Surveillance Capitalism a few weeks ago, which I’ve been tearing through and loving so much I’m ready to call you my first new friend on SN and welcome anything you may recommend to me. Thank you for being a part of this website and being my first new online friend in years!
Edit: If, of course, you accept my online friendship :)
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Thanks! It'll be my pleasure to accept your friendship I'm feeling exuberant knowing that I'm being your first online friend in years.
The variety of Indian culture and the vastness of its history makes me think where should I start from. I think the book that I've recommended is also part of the history and tells us alot about Indian ways in politics and economy. So, I recommend you go through it and then you go through 'Panchtantra', 'Mahabharata'.
To know about contemporary culture and traditions, there's nothing better than this...
https://www.indianculture.gov.in/
Thanks friends! Ask me anything about India and I'll be happy to answer you..
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Greatest book on Politics!!!!
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A fascinating window into the social and economic structures of the time, and into the intricacies of statecraft. Ascribed to Kautilya (commonly identified as the prime minister of Chandragupta Maurya) and dating back more than 2,000 years, the Arthashastra is the world s first manual in political economy. It has a pre- eminence in Indian thought that is akin to that of Machiavelli s The Prince in Europe. Arthashastra (literally, 'the science of wealth ) is a study of economic enterprise; specifically, Kautilya s treatise advises the king on the business of creating prosperity. Arthashastra also addresses the question: what makes a good leader? This book is intended to be an introduction to the economic philosophy of the Arthashastra. Its goal is to analyse the relevance of this classic text in its own time in a world in which kings were regulators of economic activities of their subjects, but also entrepreneurs themselves in the conviction that it has much to teach us that has value in our own age.
sounds rad
Arthashashtra