The culture journal
Explore Indian heritage through clear introductions to sacred places, thoughtful readings of familiar texts, and practical guides to living traditions.
17 articles in this topic
Scriptures & Philosophy · 3 min read
Yoga is often encountered through posture classes, but Patanjali’s Yoga Sutras place ethical disciplines within a broader path. The yamas and niyamas ask how a practitioner lives, relates to…
Read articleScriptures & Philosophy · 3 min read
The Upanishads are not a single book written at one time. They are a diverse body of texts associated with questions about the self, knowledge, reality and liberation. The…
Read articleScriptures & Philosophy · 3 min read
The ashrama framework describes four forms or stages of religious life: brahmacharya, grihastha, vanaprastha and sannyasa. It is often presented as four neat blocks of twenty-five years. That popular…
Read articleScriptures & Philosophy · 3 min read
The Purusha Sukta, found in Rigveda 10.90, imagines the world through a cosmic being called Purusha. It is a hymn, so its language works through image, rhythm and sacred…
Read articleScriptures & Philosophy · 3 min read
Om is familiar as a sound at the beginning of a prayer and as a written symbol on books, doorways and temple walls. The Mandukya Upanishad takes that familiarity…
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