Hindu Ethics – Lessons From Dharma Sankatams In Vedic Texts

Vishwa P. Adluri is a Professor in the Philosophy Department at Hunter College, New York, and the author of over a dozen articles and essays on the Mahābhārata. His work mainly focuses on the reception of ancient thought—both Greek and Indian—in modernity. He is the author of Parmenides, Plato and Mortal Philosophy: Return from Transcendence (Bloomsbury), The Nay Science: A History of German Indology (OUP) and Philology and Criticism: A Guide to Mahābhārata Textual Criticism (Anthem) and has edited numerous volumes on the Mahābhārata, including Argument and Design: The Unity of the Mahābhārata (Brill). Vishwa has a PhD in Philosophy from the New School for Social Research, New York, a PhD in Indology from Philipps University, Marburg, and a PhD in Sanskrit from Deccan College, Pune. Prof. Adluri’s papers on the Mahābhārata are available here: https://hunter-cuny.academia.edu/VishwaAdluri

Aditi Banerjee’s first novel, The Curse of Gandhari, a successful bestseller, was published by Bloomsbury India in September 2019. Her second novel, The Vow of Parvati, was also published by Bloomsbury India in April 2022. She has also published Hindu Love Stories: Dharmically Ever After in February 2022. She is a practicing attorney at a Fortune 500 financial services company in the US and has also completed an Executive MBA at Columbia University. She earned a Juris Doctor from Yale Law School and received a B.A. in International Relations, magna cum laude, from Tufts University. She is a prolific writer and speaker about Hinduism and the Hindu-American experience. She is a member of the Indic Academy and Indic Book Club, which sponsored a successful six-city book launch tour for The Curse of Gandhari in September 2019 across India. She co-edited the book, Invading the Sacred: An Analysis of Hinduism Studies in America in collaboration with Rajiv Malhotra, and has authored several essays in publications such as The Columbia Documentary History of Religion in America since 1945 and Buddhists, Hindus, and Sikhs in America: A Short History (Religion in American Life) (Oxford University Press). Her articles have also been published in Outlook India and many other publications. In her free time, she enjoys wandering the Himalayas, cooking with the latest kitchen gadgets, hunting for that perfect cup of coffee, and reading about history and world literature.

Madhavi Kolhatkar joined the Dictionary department of Deccan College as a Research Assistant in 1973 and retired in 2010 as Professor. She is the author of 11 Books, 94 research articles (56 in English, 36 in Marathi and 2 in Sanskrit) and 10 review articles. 2 more books are currently in-press with over two scores of articles (English - 11, Marathi - 9, Sanskrit - 2) more ready for publication. She has been part of over 40 programs (talks, discussions, interviews, lessons etc.) of All India Radio, Pune.

Prof. Rajnish Kumar Mishra teaches at School of Sanskrit and Indic Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. His teaching and research areas involve Kashmir Shaivism, Buddhism, Sanskrit linguistics, Sanskrit poetics, Asian Literature, Philosophy of Language, Comparative Poetics and Comparative Religion. Dr. Mishra has been/is associated with national and international academic projects, such as Encyclopedia of Hinduism (associate editor, 2010), Encyclopedia of Indian Poetics (as an assistant editor, a UAI, UNESCO funded project of Sahitya Akademi, New Delhi, under publication), Towards Asian Poetics: An Interface Study of India, Korea, China and Japan (2016, Academy of Korean Foundation, Seoul, South Korea) and Indo-Irish Anthology. He has published a widely reviewed book titled Buddhist Theory of Meaning and Literary Analysis (1999) and haiva Philosophy and Literary Theory (2019). He has published several research papers in national and international refereed journals. He has also contributed chapters in the edited books and proceedings and has delivered invited lectures. Dr. Mishra was awarded Okita Memorial Fellowship by Japan Foundation and the Indian Council of Cultural Relations in 1998. The Indian Council for Cultural Relations and South Asian Institute (SAI), University of Heidelberg (Germany) had offered Dr. Rajnish Kumar Mishra (2012) a very prestigious chair (Professor Heinrich Zimmer Chair) for two years to teach Indian Intellectual History.

Dushyanth Sridhar (www.desikadaya.org/about) is one of the most sought after public speakers in Sanātana Dharma who renders discourses in English and Tamil. He has rendered over 3500 discourses in 125 cities across 23 countries. His discourses are featured regularly in regional TV channels. He enjoys a wide spectrum of over one million followers on his website (www.desikadaya.org) and social media channels cumulatively. Abhinava e-Pātashālā, his e-learning portal has provided courses to over 7000 learners from 40 countries sans any discrimination. He is a sought-after panelist in national news channels (Times Now, Republic, CNN-News18). He has produced and directed Śākuntalaṃ, the acclaimed Sanskrit movie. He has acted in the movie 'Vedānta Desika:' as the protagonist besides penning its story and dialogues. He has also authored a coffee-table book on Vedānta Desika that has been critically acclaimed and is best selling in its genre. He has organized heritage tours with over 3000 yātris in the last 9 years. He conceptualizes grand thematic classical dance productions that have been venerated for their cultural value in the art world. He manages Desika Dayā, a charitable trust that has donated and sponsored cultural activities for over 8 million INR. His Twitter handle is one of the select few that Shri Narendra Modi (Hon.PM of India) follows. He is a recipient of coveted titles like Sarva Kalā Chudāmani and Harikathā Bhārati. He was declared a global '30-under-30' by BITSAA. He is an alumnus of BITS, Pilani and interned at the Indian Institute of Science, as an IAS fellow. He currently lives with his family in Bengaluru.

Shri Sridhar Potaraju, an accomplished Advocate on Record hailing from Hyderabad, Telangana, boasts an illustrious legal journey spanning over two decades. A distinguished alumnus of Osmania University, he honed his legal acumen at the Campus Law Center. With a rich background in research, he commenced his career at renowned law firm M/s Lakshmikumaran & Sridharan, delving into Indirect Taxes. Guided by the eminent Shri P.S Narasimha, he gained exceptional experience at the Supreme Court of India. Transitioning to independent practice in 2002, he earned the coveted position of Advocate on Record in 2006, showcasing his mettle. Sridhar Potaraju's legal prowess encompasses intricate commercial litigation encompassing infrastructure projects, IP rights, environmental laws, and technology sector consultations. A pivotal figure in landmark cases, including the Sri Ram Janmabhoomi case, where he was part of the core legal team and significant judgement on Hindu women's property rights. His expertise extends to issues concerning Sanatan Dharma before the Supreme Court of India. He is also an avid learner of wisdom from Itihasas and Puranas, as demonstrated by his authored work "Maxims From Mahabharata." Moreover, his insights have found expression in notable publications, including "Dharma is the Atman of Civilizational and Cultural Heritage of India" in News 18, "Deconstructing the Legalese of Demonetisation 2016" in Legally Speaking, The Sunday Guardian, and enlightening articles such as “The Marxist Spin to Indian History Unearthed in The Sri Ram Janmabhoomi Case'' published in Swarajya on Oct 28, 2020.

Nithin Sridhar is a Practising Hindu, Author, and Speaker He is the Director & Chief Curator of INDICA Center for Moksha Studies (Advaita Academy) dedicated to the dissemination of Advaita Vedanta.

He has authored six books on various aspects of Hindu culture and practice. His first book “Musings On Hinduism '' provided an overview of various aspects of Hindu philosophy and society. His book ‘Samanya Dharma’ enunciates upon general tenets of ethics as available in Hindu texts. His latest book ‘Isopanishad: An English Commentary’ is an English translation and commentary on one of the prominent Hindu texts. However, his most widely read book is “Menstruation Across Cultures: A Historical Perspective'' which examines menstruation notions and practices prevalent in different cultures & religions from across the world. His upcoming book is a commentary on the opening verses of Manusmriti.

He teaches courses on Hinduism for Indica Courses and regularly contributes articles and delivers lectures on religion, spirituality, and culture at various platforms. Earlier, he had also served as the Editor of IndiaFacts- a portal on Indian history and culture. He tweets at @nkgrock.

Abhinav Agarwal lives in Bangalore with his wife and two children. He holds a Bachelor's Degree in Computer Engineering from Mumbai University and is a Gold Medallist from the Indian Institute of Management, Bangalore. He is the author of "Completing Vyasa's Mahabharata: 67 Upakathas for the Modern Reader", a retelling of the 67 upakhyaanas from the Critical Edition. He is also the author of a fiction thriller, "Predators and Prey". In 2018 he edited and self-published his daughters' book, 'A Year with the Maha Puranas'. He is theTechnical Editor of an Oracle Press McGraw-Hill book. He is also the curator of Indica Books.

Shivakumar GV is an IT professional in the domain of Learning and Development, with a deep interest in Bharateeya Samskriti. He is proud to be part of the Indica fraternity as a Scholar-in-Residence and Consulting Editor for IndicA Today. He is the Curator of “Aryaa - An Anthology of Vedic Women” - a collection of 10 stories on 10 Vedic Women written by 10 different authors published by Indic Academy. Through Aryaa he hopes to create new cultural conversations on the glorious women of Bharatavarsha. He is also one of the authors of ‘’Unsung Valour: Forgotten Wars of Kurukshetra’’ - curated by Sai Swaroopa Iyer for Indica. As an Indica Scholar, he studies Indic Civilizational Thought to create frameworks for application in contemporary times. He writes on Mahabharata, Puranas, Civilizational thought and anchors Kannada content at IndicA Today. He is a storyteller imagining narratives that appeal to audiences of diverse spectrums.

He is a BE graduate from National Institute of Technology, Surat and an MTech from IIT Mumbai. He is greatly inspired by the Rivers of India – Saraswatee in particular.

To present life and skills through the lens of Ramayana in the most methodical approach, Srirama Chakradhar has started his research on our rich Vedic Scriptures, especially Sri Valmiki Ramayana, 10+ years ago. Thavaasmi, Manasvi and the current Thapasvi are his brain creations. Thavaasmi series of conversations and books are of first of its kind practical guides and pedagogical models in the entire World, which aims to make a human out of man. He strongly believes that service and spirituality are two sides of the same coin. A passionate teacher and personality development trainer by choice, Srirama believes in addressing the roots than on ephemeral cosmetic solutions.

Dr. Srilakshmi Peddada has been an academician for 25 years, committed to the philosophy of continuous learning. She have a deep interest in facilitating and doing research that is interdisciplinary in nature. Dr. Srilakshmi has a proven track record in providing quality education, with a particular focus on jurisprudence.

Trained in Sanskrit and Advaita Vedanta by his hyper-polyglot, polymath and spiritually accomplished sakala-shaastra-paarangata father, late Sri Paturi Sitaramanjaneyulu garu, Dr Nagaraj Paturi is seriously committed to the transmission of Vedic sciences to the present generation. In his PhD thesis (1998, University of Hyderabad), he developed an Indic Model of Myth Criticism of Literature and in his MPhil (1987, University of Hyderabad), he foregrounded Vakyapadiya as the theoretical foundation of the Ashtadhyayi. In addition to over 50 publications and about 60 conference/seminar/workshop papers, Dr Paturi has designed several courses pertaining to the contemporary applications of Vedic Sciences and has been successfully teaching them and getting them taught. Formerly Senior Professor of Cultural Studies FLAME School of Communication (& FLAME School of Liberal Education) and a Visiting Professor, University of Chicago (USA), Dr Paturi is currently Senior Director and Chief Curator at INDICA, a Distinguished Professor, Curriculum Designer, Executive Committee Member, Board of Studies, MIT School of Vedic Sciences (Pune, Maharashtra), Member, Board of Studies at Kavikulaguru Kalidasa Sanskrit University (Ramtek, Maharashtra) and Rashtram School of Public Leadership (Sonipat, Haryana). He is also the Editor-in-Chief of International Journals of Studies in Public Leadership and is a member of the Advisory Council of Veda Vijnana Shodha Samsthanam (Bengaluru, Karnataka). He has provided consultancy to numerous culture research, theatre, and dance innovation projects. He has authored scores of creative writing works for Classical Dance, Modern Theater, and magazines and has delivered several series of talks and other programs on Radio and Television channels.

An Indian citizen with close to nine years of lived experience in China, he is an alumnus of Indian School of Business, Hyderabad, and currently the Director of Special Projects at INDICA. His post-graduate specialization in Strategy, Leadership and Marketing included a study of research methods. His professional experience includes stints as a Market Leader at a Global Fortune 50 firm while he has served a term on the Board of a Shanghai-based not-for-profit. His academic writings span some aspects of ancient Indian chronology, Indian Knowledge Systems, Landscape in Indic texts, Ancient Indian Jurisprudence, Ideas of India and Philosophy. Other professional and pro-bono pursuits have included building differentiated digital platforms for Indic texts targeted at specific learning and research needs and music. His research-based compositional Sanskrit music album ‘Bhārata and her Kāśmīra’ has been listed by the Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts. His subsequent music album ‘Indian Knowledge Systems and Yāskācārya’s Nirukta’ has recently been accepted for listing by the Vedic Heritage Portal. In 2022, the National Museum Institute invited him to contribute content for multiple projects currently underway, including ones on Jammu Kashmir & Ladakh and Kedarnath. In 2023, he was nominated by the Chairman of ICHR as a Member of a National Committee for an initiative focused on Jammu, Kashmir, and Ladakh. His work has been featured in both editions (Chennai and Pune) of Vitasta (2023), a multi-city festival focused on Kashmir organized by the Ministry of Culture, Government of India.