December 8, 2005 NEWS LETTER Vol. 011105


Indic Influence on Greek Thought

R.C. Majumdar
Source: In History and Culture of the Indian People, Vol. II - The Age of Imperial unity, PP 683.

It has been claimed that Indian Philosophy exercised a certain influence upon Greek Philosophy (Cambridge Ancient History, XH, 112). Clement of Alexandria even went so far as to say that the Greeks 'stole their philosophy from the barbarians'. Sir William Jones was the first to point out that the analogies between the Sankya system and the Phythagorean philosophy. Phythagoras lived in the latter half of the sixth century BC.

Rawlinson has drawn our attention to a statement of Eusebius, which runs as follows: Aristoxenus, the musician, tells the following story. One of the men met Socrates at Athens and asked him what was the scope of his philosophy.' An enquiry into human phenomena' relied Socrates. MORE


The Mattancherry Jews

Anupama Ramachandran

My earliest memories of Judaism are linked to my state Kerala, a lush green paradise tucked away in the southern part of India. Normally when people think of Kerala their thoughts conjure images of coconuts, picturesque backwaters and delicious seafood set against a verdant landscape. Seldom does one expect to find a synagogue in Kerala of all places!

However, Kerala or more specifically Mattancherry in Cochin is home to an ancient and extremely beautiful synagogue (in fact one that dates back to the 16 th century). I first visited the synagogue when I was about 5 years old. I remember going into an old place that I immediately equated with a cathedral and lighting candles. As I grew older, due to its proximity to my house, the synagogue and the old Jewish quarter in Cochin was a frequent haunt. MORE

Recent Events: India-Israel-US Connect

India-Israel-United States
This paper was written about 2 years ago in South Asia Analysis Group website
and DESI would like you to revisit it in light of the recent India-Israel-US connect
event on campus (mentioned above ) as well as the recent
developments regarding the India-Iran ties and India-US nuclear deal

The Ring of Five Gray Moths and the Dissolving Peacock Feather

Lavanya Deshmukh


Dreams are strange. Real-unreal, bland-vivid, in gray-scale or in 3600dpi color. I can feel the slates of late winter sunlight filtering through the bamboo shutter fall on my still closed eyes. "I need to wake up" I tell myself. "Its 7.00 in the morning and I have to get to work". I open my eyes and look to see if Om is awake. If he is I will have to get up. If not I can sleep for a few more minutes and pretend I was not awake earlier than him. I look over. He is definitely fast asleep.

I close my eyes and my mind wanders lazily over nothing in particular till suddenly I think "What was that I was dreaming about" My thoughts reach through the gray fog of memory. A word here "ring" another there, "moth" and still another till it forms a continuous string like a white swing bridge reaching across a misty green valley. "Almost there" I tell myself and feel the bridge connect to the other hill with a soft thud "schwep". MORE

Deepavali---Deep+Avali:Row of Lights
My first one away from home

Shailee Desai

Come November (the Kartika month of Hindu calendar), like millions of Indians I start preparing for Diwali; the festival of lights. It is by far the most glamorous and one of the most important Hindu Festival. Enjoyed by people of every religion, its magic creates an atmosphere of joy and festivity.

It is the time for new beginning with celebrations, light, togetherness, prayers, blessing from elders, fun, food, new clothes, gifts and fireworks. Though the festivity continues for 5 days, the preparations start almost a month in advance. However this time around, when most of my friends back in India were lighting the diyas (earthen lamps) I was taking an exam. It was my first Diwali away from home and family, and I was definitely missing everyone. However it was a new kind of Diwali for me, a delightful experience, with me and my friends visiting each other in the evening, sharing amongst ourselves the sweets and blessings which our families couriered all the way from home, and attending festivities like Diwali Mela and Diwali dhamaka organized by different Indian groups. MORE

Editor: Sravya Kosaraju | Composer: Kunal Kothari
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