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[palindrome]

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I am making this SINGLE post for a specific reason for a specific set of people. This post can well be deleted. All of the below are my personal opinions.

1) All mutts of south India (except Adheenams) were established during Vijayanagar period or its aftermath. The Vijayanagar rulership wanted institutions of higher learning located across south india to train priests and keep vedas and vedic traditions alive. Thus, mutts and their branches came into being. These institutions also served as centers of philosophy; and everything associated with the sampradaya each represented. Patronage for mutts continued under all post-Vijayanagar rulers, such as the Marathas and Nayaks.

2) Temples can show proof of grant(s) from Chola, Pandya, Pallava, etc periods. But not a single mutt can show proof of existence prior to the Vijayanagar period. There is no evidence from historical accounts of ancient kingdoms to show mutts existed in their time. Those who claim antiquity for Kanchi Mutt are able to merely show grants / copper plates from folks like Chokkanatha Nayaka (seriously, why would a mutt depend on copper plates or grants from shudra rulers to prove its existence; why not from established kings like say Cholas, Pallavas, Pandyas and Cheras kings).

3) It is my personal opinion that reservations plus the anti-brahmanism fiasco happened due to a select group of people on the TB side as well as the NB side. If at all we need to understand, and undo damage created by both these sets of people, we have no choice but to delve into specific issues, including the possible role of a specific mutt. Tambrams think ALL non-brahmins somehow manage to get reservations and/or fake caste certificates; and support reservations. That is not true at all. There are NBs against reservations too (I am an exception though).

4) Kindly note, nobody said (or says) anything against Shringeri Mutt or any other mutt. So please do not assume everyone speaking about a specific issue wrt to a specific mutt, are against all mutts. No they are not.

5) Hinduism is doing well. So kindly do not link a specific issue of a specific mutt to all religions which now come under the umbrella term 'hinduism'. I believe it is not correct to speak for hinduism as a whole when it comes to a specific contention, wrt to a specific mutt.

6) Kanchi mutt has a very small band of followers. What good it has done for its followers is very subjective. IMO it has only gained prominence for itself with the help of its followers, by dabbling in politics, hobnobbing with politicians, acquiring assets. My opinion is the mutt will die a natural death or it will become a fringe organization catering to hindutva fundamentalism. Either ways, its relevance to mainstream society will cease to exist (as it is happening so already). Time will take care of it (as it already is).

7) Let no hindu be fooled into thinking issues affecting a particular mutt has anything to do with hinduism. Let no hindu be fooled with its publications either (take it with a pinch of salt and verify anything it says wrt history yourself).

All above said, I believe people are not mature yet, to accept debacles of their own doing, let alone willingness to undo damages of the preceding centuries. This applies to both, the TB side as well as the NB side. Personally, i find, there is no willingness on both sides, to accept political fiascos of the colonial and post-colonial period happened for self-benefit. Indians still play the blame game in every scenario; and wud like to throw the ball in any other direction but themselves.

In such a scenario, it perhaps makes no sense to talk about these issues. Nothing seems to come off it. Instead, one may loose precious relationships and peace of mind. So instead of talking about all this, i feel, it is best to put the past behind, and develop good relationships with people across all indian strata and be socially responsible at an individual level. The future holds a better tomorrow.

Thank you.

Best wishes to all.

 

[tks]

Dear Sri tks,

There is no need to apologise. I am not here to moderate or advise on any one as to how they should write their posts. But it is important that members confine their opinions on the subjects and not to use words which would hurt others.
I would feel happy if you would please remove the words that may hurt Brahmins, from your post#15.

Regards,
Brahmanyan,
Bangalore.

I am unable to find the edit post option on post #15 and have written to Sri Praveen ..When I am able to I will fix this.
I still stand behind my opinion and can express it differently

 

[tks]

Dear Shri iniyan,

I believe the Indian attitude, preponderantly, may be summarised as "what we believe is Satyam".

That might well me the attitude of Indians these days in your experience. However there is a reason why history is irrelevant in our tradition.
History is about History of our world - Jagat.

[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, Nimbus Sans L, sans-serif] Etymology of जगत् connotes जायते गच्छति इत्येव "is born, goes, that's all". So, very etymology of जगत् connotes the temporary nature of all existence in the world. Writing history is like someone writing in a stream of water as it goes into the sea. [/FONT]

[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, Nimbus Sans L, sans-serif]In trying to understand any change we try to understand the changeless core. In Sciences like Physics the focus is on understanding invariant like conservation of energy, conservation of momentum etc. Even in management leadership situations managing change is done by managing the 'constancy of purpose'

A truth that is not changing with time is the only thing that matters. Through all History certain truths remain self evident.

Timeless truths can be understood any time - there is no need to study history which has no authenticity to begin with. So while there could be academic obsession with history but most of the time it is a useless activity (to understand 'Sathyam' ) in my view.

Kanchi Mutt has added significant value to many people's lives - that is all that matters. Daivatthin Kural is a great body of work.

So why bother about who started what and why. It is at best intellectual masturbation


[/FONT]

 

[Brahmanyan]

without comments.

I am unable to find the edit post option on post #15 and have written to Sri Praveen ..When I am able to I will fix this.
I still stand behind my opinion and can express it differently

Dear Sri tks,

It is really good of you to have accepted my request to delete the strong words from your post#15. Of course, you are at liberty to express your opinion freely. It is my view that however good may be our intention, using polite language is important while expressing the same.

Wishing you well,
Brahmanyan,
Bangalore.

 

[tks]

Dear Sri tks,

It is really good of you to have accepted my request to delete the strong words from your post#15. Of course, you are at liberty to express your opinion freely. It is my view that however good may be our intention, using polite language is important while expressing the same.

Wishing you well,
Brahmanyan,
Bangalore.

Sri Praveen was kind enough to offer to edit what I have suggested though time to edit by me has elapsed.
You could have sent a PM to me long ago and I would have taken care of objections.. My intent is to ensure that a message does not lose its intensity in trying to be polite but at the same time I know I could have expressed that statement better. Thanks for pointing it out

 

[கால பைரவன்]

Hindus have a disdain if not contempt for history.

..............

Do we really believe in Sathyam? Even if it hurts our beliefs. Are we interested?

In general, people tend to accept the version of history that benefits them.

For example, NBs support reservation because it benefits them. Brahmins oppose because it is detrimental to them. History is just a tool to achieve political/social/material benefits.

You are asking do we really believe in Sathyam? I am sure everyone does believe in Sathyam. It is just that the Sathyam that people believe differs from person to person or from group to group.

 

[Nacchinarkiniyan]

Hinduism is the only religion which is based on Philosophy. The Dharsanas.

History, Philosophy, Mythology and Religion are different.

History can be interpreted by different groups in different ways.

But there are Historical facts.

Over the centuries organized religion has always been against History because History would reveal the deficiencies of the organized religion.

Many religious institutions stand to benefit by spreading falsehoods. It may be to promote an institution or a sect. Sectarian rivalry has led to the creation of many false histories in India.

Now coming to the question of sathyam, you can not justify falsehood by quoting Philosophy.

This has been the bane of Hinduism.

The Universal values are:

1. Truth

2. Justice

3. Honesty.

4. Fairness.

Hindus especially Brahmins are always talking about Dharma.

Unfortunately Dharma does not mean Truth, Honesty, Justice or Fairplay.

Dharma - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Dharma in irretrievably linked to Varnashrama Dharma.

That is how we are able to justify the act of Dharmaputra in gambling away his kingdom, siblings and wife. Justify all the unjustifiable acts of Gods in Puranas and epics.

All the inconsistencies in the Purnas and scriptures are explained and swept under the carpet by reciting some Sanskrit slokas and quoting some philosophical texts. The pravachana people do it day in and day out.

It is a fact that the Indian Society has treated the Dalits badly to say the least. But what is surprising that instead of acknowledging this social crime, we tend to justify it by quoting Varnashrama Dharma.

I will be writing more about Dharma in my thread on Yugas.

I am surprised that in this modern age educated people justify falsehood by quoting Philosophy and Theology.

Hinduism has a specific Dharsana called Nyaya where intellectual discussion are codified. Hinduism has always been open to intellectual discussions.

History teaches many valuable lessons. History enables society to ensure that past mistakes are not repeated. Any society which does not bother about history will become an anachronism of the past.

 

[suraju06]

That might well me the attitude of Indians these days in your experience. However there is a reason why history is irrelevant in our tradition.
History is about History of our world - Jagat.
Etymology of जगत् connotes जायते गच्छति इत्येव "is born, goes, that's all". So, very etymology of जगत् connotes the temporary nature of all existence in the world. Writing history is like someone writing in a stream of water as it goes into the sea.
In trying to understand any change we try to understand the changeless core. In Sciences like Physics the focus is on understanding invariant like conservation of energy, conservation of momentum etc. Even in management leadership situations managing change is done by managing the 'constancy of purpose'
A truth that is not changing with time is the only thing that matters. Through all History certain truths remain self evident.
Timeless truths can be understood any time - there is no need to study history which has no authenticity to begin with. So while there could be academic obsession with history but most of the time it is a useless activity (to understand 'Sathyam' ) in my view.
Kanchi Mutt has added significant value to many people's lives - that is all that matters. Daivatthin Kural is a great body of work.
So why bother about who started what and why. It is at best intellectual masturbation

Dear Tks,

I beg to differ Sir. I think we tend to philosophize a lot. History is not like writing on a stream of water. Not these days when writing technology has matured. It might have been true in those days when what was written on stones and metal plates were subject to the vagaries of nature and writers were not sure where they will end up ultimately. Moreover in those days writing itself was a strenuous exercise. We moved from those times to the times when we wrote on palm leaves and they are preserved and are available for us to study and understand the course of events that are recorded there. So there is a certain amount of permanency and reliability in recorded history. You have completely missed a great benefit that accrues to a society in recording history and revisiting it periodically. If history is the recorded experiences of humanity through hundreds of years, there is quite a lot to learn from it. Thus, history says a despot in Germany a hundred or so years back rallied people under the banner of hatred on the basis of religion and succeeded in grabbing power. It also says how he used that power to further inflict unspeakable miseries on the whole world by waging a war. It tells us how he was ultimately defeated and it tells me who was born into this country much later that more than two million of my countrymen were part of that struggle which included hand to hand combat in far off war theatres like Kohima on the eastern borders and the African jungles/deserts. I understand when I read that, how a despot, if allowed a free run, would bring miseries on all. So I am very supportive of my Government when it fights terror tooth and nail whether it is in Afghanistan or Kashmir. If higher order values like human rights have to be traded off in fighting terror, I hesitate, but I learn from history that what is involved is exploitation of these higher order values and not respect for them in such cases. So I try to build checks and balances and still go gunning for those evil. History, in all this process, has helped me a lot in understanding things in their true light and right perspective. When I am in the midst of bullets flying all around, I would choose (as any one among us would do) to
deal with the situation rather than philosophizing. In this history certainly helps.

No doubt Kanchi Mutt has added significant value to many lives. That is really good, no doubt. to say that it is all that matters is too simplistic an outlook. There is nothing wrong knowing how this was achieved. If there is reliable recorded history, as it appears to be in the case in hand, we certainly should have a look at it. Knowing Kanchi Mutt's origin from recorded history is like knowing how Dhirubhai ambani built up his business empire from his shack in the port of Aden struggling as a tally clerk in a shipping agency office. History can really inspire us in many ways!!

Without speaking about"truth" this would not be complete. You have said "A truth that is not changing with time is the only thing that matters".

This again is possible only if we have recorded history available with us to test whether the truth has changed with time or not. So history is not what is written on a flowing stream of water. While truth remain what it is, our perception of it changes with time depending on the tools with which we perceive truth. Our life span being what it is, we believe what we perceive as truth and record it for the benefit of the society as history. Des Cartes to Isaac Newton to Einstein and Planck the truth has always remained whatever it is. But what they recorded has helped us live our life a little more comfortably. Are we sure even today as to what is the" truth"?

"Timeless truths can be understood any time - there is no need to study history which has no authenticity to begin with" you have said this. We did not understand for a longtime many of the timeless truths such as earth moves around the Sun in a trajectory and that moon moves around the earth.
Again you said,"So while there could be academic obsession with history but most of the time it is a useless activity (to understand 'Sathyam' ) in my view". Reading history is not out of an academic obsession, it is rather a search for the elements of a pattern which can be used to project and derive conclusions. Until God decides to give us complete knowledge and truth about everything this kind of a search will have to continue. and that is the human nature. It is in the human nature to raise questions about who started, how he started and why he started a certain process and to look for answers in the recorded history. It is an intellectually rewarding experience and not what you have called it.

Cheers.

 

[sangom]

That might well me the attitude of Indians these days in your experience. However there is a reason why history is irrelevant in our tradition.
History is about History of our world - Jagat.

Etymology of जगत् connotes जायते गच्छति इत्येव "is born, goes, that's all". So, very etymology of जगत् connotes the temporary nature of all existence in the world. Writing history is like someone writing in a stream of water as it goes into the sea.

[/SIZE]In trying to understand any change we try to understand the changeless core. In Sciences like Physics the focus is on understanding invariant like conservation of energy, conservation of momentum etc. Even in management leadership situations managing change is done by managing the 'constancy of purpose'

A truth that is not changing with time is the only thing that matters. Through all History certain truths remain self evident.

Timeless truths can be understood any time - there is no need to study history which has no authenticity to begin with. So while there could be academic obsession with history but most of the time it is a useless activity (to understand 'Sathyam' ) in my view.

Kanchi Mutt has added significant value to many people's lives - that is all that matters. Daivatthin Kural is a great body of work.

So why bother about who started what and why. It is at best intellectual masturbation


[/SIZE]

Ancient Indians obviously could not have lived without this Jagat, the food and shelter provided by it etc. There are sentiments echoing a yearning for long life in this very same Jagat; this shows that the ancient Indians were very much interested in dabbling for as long as possible with this जायते गच्छति इत्येव and playing in the very stream well knowing that it was flowing into the sea.

How Kanchi Mutt comes into this scenario is unclear. To me the above post is truly the intellectual masturbation of someone who is wont to do it.

 

[suraju06]

Palindrome wrote this:

3) It is my personal opinion that reservations plus the anti-brahmanism fiasco happened due to a select group of people on the TB side as well as the NB side. If at all we need to understand, and undo damage created by both these sets of people, we have no choice but to delve into specific issues, including the possible role of a specific mutt. Tambrams think ALL non-brahmins somehow manage to get reservations and/or fake caste certificates; and support reservations. That is not true at all. There are NBs against reservations too (I am an exception though).

While discussing about anti-brahminism every intellectual usually suffer from a disease called equivocation. Anti-brahminism may be bad but a section of brahmins have to share the responsibility for that........runs the usual argument. How brahmins can be responsible for anti-brahminism is something that I do not understand. Even though other so called not-eligible-for-reservation non-brahmin castes do not enjoy reservation, they are the ones who control the levers of power(the Naidus, thevars, muthalis and pillais). When you have the chunk of meat safely kept in your freezer you do not bother about the bones that are thrown to the dogs.

All above said, I believe people are not mature yet, to accept debacles of their own doing, let alone willingness to undo damages of the preceding centuries. This applies to both, the TB side as well as the NB side. Personally, i find, there is no willingness on both sides, to accept political fiascos of the colonial and post-colonial period happened for self-benefit. Indians still play the blame game in every scenario; and wud like to throw the ball in any other direction but themselves.

Again equivocation. Even when brahmins want to undo the damage are they allowed to do that? Every time a brahmin opens his mouth to say some thing the first reply that comes from the crowd is "that is a brahmin speaking". It is like the colonial days when every whiteman was a "sahib" irrespective of whether he was an Engine Driver or the Viceroy. Every brahmin is first looked at and treated as a brahmin first. So whatever he utters has to be first applied to the touch stone of casteism. In this all pervading ghetto mentality where is the opportunity for a brahmin to undo what has been done through centuries (please note what has been done through the centuries is not the handiwork of brahmins alone). And my this observation has already been evaluated with prejudice and dubbed "a blame game". I have given up all hope of any understanding on the part of the rest of the castes about the true nature of casteism.

In such a scenario, it perhaps makes no sense to talk about these issues. Nothing seems to come off it. Instead, one may loose precious relationships and peace of mind. So instead of talking about all this, i feel, it is best to put the past behind, and develop good relationships with people across all indian strata and be socially responsible at an individual level. The future holds a better tomorrow.

All others can try to put the past behind at least as a public posture, but brahmins will never be allowed to do that. At every juncture a brahmin will be reminded that he is a brahmin. All relations with him will be only superficial with an undercurrent of hostility. The brahmins, despite such heavy odds, remain socially responsible at the individual level with the hope that the future may be a better one. For the present many of them either choose to go to US or Germany or prefer to live in gated communities.

Cheers.

 

[tks]

Dear Tks,

I beg to differ Sir. I think we tend to philosophize a lot. History is not like writing on a stream of water. Not these days when writing technology has matured. It might have been true in those days when what was written on stones and metal plates were subject to the vagaries of nature and writers were not sure where they will end up ultimately. Moreover in those days writing itself was a strenuous exercise. We moved from those times to the times when we wrote on palm leaves and they are preserved and are available for us to study and understand the course of events that are recorded there. So there is a certain amount of permanency and reliability in recorded history. You have completely missed a great benefit that accrues to a society in recording history and revisiting it periodically. If history is the recorded experiences of humanity through hundreds of years, there is quite a lot to learn from it. Thus, history says a despot in Germany a hundred or so years back rallied people under the banner of hatred on the basis of religion and succeeded in grabbing power. It also says how he used that power to further inflict unspeakable miseries on the whole world by waging a war. It tells us how he was ultimately defeated and it tells me who was born into this country much later that more than two million of my countrymen were part of that struggle which included hand to hand combat in far off war theatres like Kohima on the eastern borders and the African jungles/deserts. I understand when I read that, how a despot, if allowed a free run, would bring miseries on all. So I am very supportive of my Government when it fights terror tooth and nail whether it is in Afghanistan or Kashmir. If higher order values like human rights have to be traded off in fighting terror, I hesitate, but I learn from history that what is involved is exploitation of these higher order values and not respect for them in such cases. So I try to build checks and balances and still go gunning for those evil. History, in all this process, has helped me a lot in understanding things in their true light and right perspective. When I am in the midst of bullets flying all around, I would choose (as any one among us would do) to
deal with the situation rather than philosophizing. In this history certainly helps.

No doubt Kanchi Mutt has added significant value to many lives. That is really good, no doubt. to say that it is all that matters is too simplistic an outlook. There is nothing wrong knowing how this was achieved. If there is reliable recorded history, as it appears to be in the case in hand, we certainly should have a look at it. Knowing Kanchi Mutt's origin from recorded history is like knowing how Dhirubhai ambani built up his business empire from his shack in the port of Aden struggling as a tally clerk in a shipping agency office. History can really inspire us in many ways!!

Without speaking about"truth" this would not be complete. You have said "A truth that is not changing with time is the only thing that matters".

This again is possible only if we have recorded history available with us to test whether the truth has changed with time or not. So history is not what is written on a flowing stream of water. While truth remain what it is, our perception of it changes with time depending on the tools with which we perceive truth. Our life span being what it is, we believe what we perceive as truth and record it for the benefit of the society as history. Des Cartes to Isaac Newton to Einstein and Planck the truth has always remained whatever it is. But what they recorded has helped us live our life a little more comfortably. Are we sure even today as to what is the" truth"?

"Timeless truths can be understood any time - there is no need to study history which has no authenticity to begin with" you have said this. We did not understand for a longtime many of the timeless truths such as earth moves around the Sun in a trajectory and that moon moves around the earth.
Again you said,"So while there could be academic obsession with history but most of the time it is a useless activity (to understand 'Sathyam' ) in my view". Reading history is not out of an academic obsession, it is rather a search for the elements of a pattern which can be used to project and derive conclusions. Until God decides to give us complete knowledge and truth about everything this kind of a search will have to continue. and that is the human nature. It is in the human nature to raise questions about who started, how he started and why he started a certain process and to look for answers in the recorded history. It is an intellectually rewarding experience and not what you have called it.

Cheers.

Sri Raju

One does not need Historical figures like Hitler to know there were, there are and there will always be power hungry people who will do any harm to rule over others. How to deal with such situations does not require one to study what people did then.

If we respect all beings have equal right to live in this planet we have atrocities committed today to animals

One has to only see disturbing images in this video below to see what human beings are capable of doing today - here and now.

MeatVideo.com - The video the meat industry doesn't want you to see.

Yes, it is good to have good epics like Ramayana which are 'containers' to teach how to reason, what Dharma is and why it is necessary to protect Dharma. Ramayana may be based on an ancient historical figure embellished by imaginations of many but it can teach without being a history book.

Time less principles can be verified here and now.

Does it really matter if Sri Sankara or Sri Ramanuja was born in a particular century or what their name was? Why care when they were born to understand their teachings (which is not history likeyou have interpreted in your post). Does it really matter if Newton was really someone else and born in another era? We can verify the experiments here and now to understand the truth of physical laws he put forth. It is irrelevant that it took many years to establish that earth moves around the sun and there were many ignorant people that blocked the progress.

Such people exist today - you only have to look at those who block true scientific studies even today in all countries in the name of some religion.

As far as having better writing technology - that is not true either. Yes we have paper and pens and they are better than writing on leaves.
But I can tell you that the half life of storage media is shrinking. Email became common in India perhaps in late 90s and early 2000. I have been using email since 1980 and I took past email and other items (like Usenet news) in late 80s and got that stored in a small DEC tape. I recently came across that tape only to realize there is no way to read that back. In fact the so called standards around electronic media is changing so fast that what is stored in CD and DVD will be unreadable by your children or grand children in a few years.

In fact if anyone thinks these websites are there for the future generation are in some intellectual la-la-land. All these posts have relevance for a few days and no one is going to do any research on any of these in a few years.

Deepak Chopra says in one of his books that our bodies regenerate all the cells in 7 years. I have a different body than I had 7 years ago if that is true. Based on some calculation some have tried to show that we all have shared an atom or two with each other both now in our life times as well as with those that existed in years ago going back to Christ and a old mountain squirrel. The point is that one can try to write a history of the atom as it moves from body to body - but that would be pointless. There is nothing to learn from that.

Given enough time most institutions will evolve to do both Dharmic and Adharmic activities - this includes Mutts too.

Only thing that remains is that there are some mutts and Ashramams that do good today - there is something to learn from some of them for our personal growth.

Our mind wants to dwell in the past - study of History most often is a good Quadrant 4 activity.

I have nothing against those that love history - all I say "Have a good time" !

 

[suraju06]

Dear tks,

One does not need Historical figures like Hitler to know there were, there are and there will always be power hungry people who will do any harm to rule over others. How to deal with such situations does not require one to study what people did then.

Do you suggest that the citizens of Germany those days knew Hitler's mind well and yet elected him their Head of State and invested him with all the power so that he could misuse them? If what you say were to be true every pettai rowdy represents the aspirations of the people living in the pettai and is not some one who has appropriated that position by terror and deceit. Please tell this to the families of jews who were decimated in pogroms ( if any one is surviving at all) and you will get a proper reply which I am unable to give because I have not suffered those unspeakable atrocities.

If we respect all beings have equal right to live in this planet we have atrocities committed today to animals
One has to only see disturbing images in this video below to see what human beings are capable of doing today - here and now MeatVideo.com - The video the meat industry doesn't want you to see

.

This is what I call contradiction and philosophizing. Even the video which you have uploaded is a recording of events which is called history and you have accessed it to argue your case.

Time less principles can be verified here and now.Does it really matter if Sri Sankara or Sri Ramanuja was born in a particular century or what their name was? Why care when they were born to understand their teachings (which is not history likeyou have interpreted in your post).

Why not? I do not know about you. But I have many a time wondered what was the kind of society and what were it's ethos and what was the environment which produced such brilliant individuals. In that I look up to history for help. At one level their teachings answer many of the queries that had blossomed in my mind over a period of time. Naturally I am interested in knowing the individuals who answered my querries better by looking at their backgrounds as well. Such a knowledge helps me understand them better. When, like me, you are not interested in summary judgmental knowledge from sources such as the acharyas you have mentioned, you need to know every bit of info not only about the knowledge disseminated but also about the teacher and his circumstances. History helps me in this.

As far as having better writing technology - that is not true either. Yes we have paper and pens and they are better than writing on leaves. But I can tell you that the half life of storage media is shrinking. Email became common in India perhaps in late 90s and early 2000. I have been using email since 1980 and I took past email and other items (like Usenet news) in late 80s and got that stored in a small DEC tape. I recently came across that tape only to realize there is no way to read that back. In fact the so called standards around electronic media is changing so fast that what is stored in CD and DVD will be unreadable by your children or grand children in a few years.

come on. You are not telling me that the libraries in Chennai (Madras University) and in Trivandrum (Kerala University) which preserve palm leaf manuscripts and help scholars by allowing access to them are non-existent or that their service is of no use. Your CDs and Hard Disks, if they are stored properly or if their data is stored properly in magnetic tapes can be retrieved even after a thousand years irrespective of the technological marvels that may come in the mean time. History needs to be written and preserved too.

Our mind wants to dwell in the past - study of History most often is a good Quadrant 4 activity.
I have nothing against those that love history - all I say "Have a good time" !

What you say is about nostalgia. Nostalgia is beautiful and soothing sometimes. That is at another level. But if you are a serious researcher in search of answers, study of history is a must. You can get rare insights into the circumstances that helped some of the minds to do what they did and if that is what is "good time" you can have that too.

Cheers.

 

[sarang]

I agree with on most of the issues.

When I bought a Data General minicomputer in the mid seventies for my project, I was assured by the DG sales team who refused to reveal the hardware/software tech secrets, bit they gave the assurance that all tech data - circuits, maintenance info etc will be kept in bank lockers and made available to the needy if the company goes bankrupt and vanishes without a trace. The company evaporated and I wonder who made use of the bank locker data. Whether the data stored is valid or not is debatable.

History is like puranas, one doesn't know or ever will know what is truth and what is hype. Even today's news beamed by the media is not truth; history is what is projected by the biased media and opinionated historians (JNU communists and psecs) for the gullible.

History, no doubt, is a fascinating subject. One has to be wary of historians. They are hysterical, not historical (mallentrop).

Cyberpralaya will one day wash out the data stored but no one will miss anything and life will go on.

As far as having better writing technology - that is not true either. Yes we have paper and pens and they are better than writing on leaves.
But I can tell you that the half life of storage media is shrinking. Email became common in India perhaps in late 90s and early 2000. I have been using email since 1980 and I took past email and other items (like Usenet news) in late 80s and got that stored in a small DEC tape. I recently came across that tape only to realize there is no way to read that back. In fact the so called standards around electronic media is changing so fast that what is stored in CD and DVD will be unreadable by your children or grand children in a few years.

In fact if anyone thinks these websites are there for the future generation are in some intellectual la-la-land. All these posts have relevance for a few days and no one is going to do any research on any of these in a few years.

Given enough time most institutions will evolve to do both Dharmic and Adharmic activities - this includes Mutts too.

Only thing that remains is that there are some mutts and Ashramams that do good today - there is something to learn from some of them for our personal growth.

Our mind wants to dwell in the past - study of History most often is a good Quadrant 4 activity.

I have nothing against those that love history - all I say "Have a good time" !