PURANIC COSMOLOGY UPDATED

The Transformation of the Earth - The Newer New Order

2012-01-31T06:27:00.008+05:30

On 21 January 2012 Aeon Centre of Cosmology put forth its first in a series of Youtube videos, entitled 'The Maya 2012 - Is it Relevant?. Here is a link to Part II: 'The Transformation of the Earth - The Newer New Order'. In it Patrizia Norelli-Bachelet (Thea) further discusses Carlos Casteneda and the conclusion of his work and the evolutionary progress that is being made by seers of the

The Maya 2012 - Is it Relevant?

2012-01-22T10:21:00.003+05:30

On 21 January 2012 Aeon Centre of Cosmology put forth its first in a series of Youtube videos. In the first, 'The Maya 2012 - Is it Relevant', Patrizia Norelli-Bachelet (Thea) discusses the Mayan calendar, Carlos Casteneda and the significance of 2012 in terms of evolution of consciousness and the birth of the new world. LINK TO VIDEO

The Politics of Dynasty and the maturing of a nation

2011-12-30T23:34:00.003+05:30

Patrizia Norelli-BacheletDirector, Aeon Centre of Cosmology29-30.12.2011The demise of the North Korean dictator, Kim Jong-il and the appointment of his 28 year old son as successor inspires me to discuss the difference between these now-outdated politics of dynasty and the New Way Formula that was experienced in India. I have used this Formula – 9/6/3/0-1 – as an example of the new future that

Open Letter to 'Puranic Cosmology Updated' Readers

2011-12-22T23:32:00.018+05:30

As a result of Patrizia Norelli-Bachelet's research at the Aeon Centre of Cosmology, she has published some of the most important and original works of Knowledge since the sages of Vedic India. Her work with these symbol creatures has provided a body of knowledge which has allowed her to unveil the inner meaning of some of the world's most obscure and profound spiritual

The End of Relativity

2011-12-17T23:19:00.031+05:30

Patrizia Norelli-BacheletDirector, Aeon Centre of CosmologyTamil Nadu, South India15 December 2011This morning’s news, carried on channels throughout the world, is that Time magazine has nominated ‘the Protestor’ as Person of the Year. For followers of this blog it may not be easily understood how this happening can be connected to the end of the speed of light as the distinguishing paradigm of

Updating the Vedic Altar - Epilogue

2011-11-21T23:34:00.008+05:30

Patrizia Norelli-BacheletDirector, Aeon Centre of CosmologyNovember 21, 2011[Link to Part I, Part II, Part III, Part IV, Part V, Part VI, Part VII, Part VIII, Part IX, Part IX, cont., Part X, Part XI or Part XII]If the measurements of the temple are perfectthere will be perfection in the universe.The Mayamata, 11th CenturyAn interview with the noted historian Romila Thapar recently appeared in

Updating the Vedic Altar –12

2011-11-09T12:00:00.006+05:30

Patrizia Norelli-BacheletDirector, Aeon Centre of CosmologyNovember 9, 2011[Link to Part I, Part II, Part III, Part IV, Part V, Part VI, Part VII, Part VIII, Part IX, Part IX, cont., Part X, Part XI, Epilogue]‘But continuing to look they see a big splash and some sort of animal emerging from the water. The distance is too great to make out what form of creature he is, though they suspect it to be

Updating the Vedic Altar – 11

2011-11-03T02:29:00.073+05:30

Patrizia Norelli-BacheletDirector, Aeon Centre of CosmologyNovember 3, 2011[Link to Part I, Part II, Part III, Part IV, Part V, Part VI, Part VII, Part VIII, Part IX, Part IX, cont., Part X, Part XII or Epilogue]‘Here cried (or, moved) the stone impelled by the hand, whereby the Navagwas chanted for ten months the hymn…(RV, V. 45-7) ‘I hold for you in the waters the thought that wins possession

Updating the Vedic Altar –10

2011-10-29T04:02:00.041+05:30

Patrizia Norelli-BacheletDirector, Aeon Centre of CosmologyOctober 28, 2011[Link to Part I, Part II, Part III, Part IV, Part V, Part VI, Part VII, Part VIII, Part IX, Part IX, cont., Part XI, Part XII or Epilogue] The Cow is the Ray is the Year, or the Ray is 15m20 is 365 days – and by the aphorism a year for a day, those 365 days are 365 years. Without the preparation the Vedic Journey offers,

Updating the Vedic Altar – 9 (cont’d)

2011-10-16T22:40:00.027+05:30

Patrizia Norelli-BacheletDirector, Aeon Centre of CosmologyOctober 16, 2011[Link to Part I, Part II, Part III, Part IV, Part V, Part VI, Part VII, Part VIII, Part IX, Part X, Part XI, Part XII or Epilogue]I am discussing the properties of the horizontal in greater depth in this section, but in the next we must add the vertical to complete the Knowledge. However, in both cases it is always the

Updating the Vedic Altar – 9

2011-10-15T06:55:00.052+05:30

Patrizia Norelli-BacheletDirector, Aeon Centre of CosmologyOctober 14, 2011[Link to Part I, Part II, Part III, Part IV, Part V, Part VI, Part VII, Part VIII, Part IX, cont., Part X, Part XI, Part XII or Epilogue]An anecdote regarding the Mother’s first meeting with Sri Aurobindo was often told in the Ashram. I was captivated by this story because of my specialised field: symbols. It involved the

Updating the Vedic Altar – 8

2011-10-13T08:27:00.048+05:30

Patrizia Norelli-BacheletDirector, Aeon Centre of CosmologyOctober 13, 2011[Link to Part I, Part II, Part III, Part IV, Part V, Part VI, Part VII, Part IX, Part IX, cont., Part X, Part XI, Part XII or Epilogue]It is well at this point to establish the Mother’s Vedic credentials. That she was a direct link to the Rishis and the school of higher knowledge that was widespread in the Vedic Age

Updating the Vedic Altar – 7

2011-10-05T05:32:00.050+05:30

Patrizia Norelli-BacheletDirector, Aeon Centre of CosmologyOctober 3, 2011[Link to Part I, Part II, Part III, Part IV, Part V, Part VI, Part VIII, Part IX, Part IX, cont., Part X, Part XI, Part XII or Epilogue]The Cow is the Ray – this is clear; Sanskrit comes to our aid and we have no difficulty with the equivalency. But, what about the Year?True, the year is perhaps the most important

Updating the Vedic Altar – 6

2011-10-02T10:38:00.045+05:30

Patrizia Norelli-BacheletDirector, Aeon Centre of CosmologyOctober 1, 2011[Link to Part I, Part II, Part III, Part IV, Part V, Part VII,Part VIII, Part IX, Part IX, cont., Part X, Part XI, Part XII or Epilogue]A day for a year is a Vedic aphorism that is widely used in the West for forecasting. In India, despite the nation’s Vedic pedigree, it has largely been forgotten. To my knowledge no Indian

Updating the Vedic Altar – 5

2011-10-02T00:01:00.040+05:30

Patrizia Norelli-BacheletDirector, Aeon Centre of CosmologySeptember 29, 2011[Link to Part I, Part II, Part III, Part IV, Part VI, Part VII, Part VIII, Part IX, Part IX, cont., Part X, Part XI, Part XII or Epilogue]The Cow is the Ray is the Year – is an exercise in Equivalency, for which the Sanskrit language is admirably suited. One word may have several meanings. For instance, gau (cow in

Updating the Vedic Altar – 4

2011-09-27T22:59:00.042+05:30

Patrizia Norelli-BacheletDirector, Aeon Centre of CosmologySeptember 27, 2011[Link to Part I, Part II, Part III, Part V, Part VI, Part VII, Part VIII, Part IX, Part IX, cont., Part X, Part XI, Part XII or Epilogue]What I will present from this point onward would seem to fall under the category of science fiction because of its unusual and unfamiliar character. It is not a new discovery; rather,

Updating the Vedic Altar – 3

2011-09-24T20:01:00.004+05:30

Patrizia Norelli-BacheletDirector, Aeon Centre of CosmologySeptember 19, 2011[Link to Part I, Part II, Part IV, Part V, Part VI, Part VII, Part VIII, Part IX, Part IX, cont., Part X, Part XI, Part XII or Epilogue]The Mother, Sri Aurobindo’s co-worker, was the channel for his vision as the 9th Avatar of Vishnu to be rooted in this Earth dimension. He stated that had it not been for her he would

Updating the Vedic Altar – 2

2011-09-19T00:36:00.024+05:30

Patrizia Norelli-BacheletDirector, Aeon Centre of CosmologySeptember 17, 2011[Link to Part I, Part III, Part IV, Part V, Part VI, Part VII, Part VIII, Part IX, Part IX, cont., Part X, Part XI, Part XII or Epilogue]My intention with this series is to offer broad guidelines that can disclose something of the superior quality of the Vedic conceptualisation in ways that perhaps had not been fully

Updating the Vedic Altar – 1

2011-09-14T14:34:00.015+05:30

Patrizia Norelli-BacheletDirector, Aeon Centre of CosmologySeptember 14, 2011[Link to Part II, Part III, Part IV, Part V, Part VI, Part VII, Part VIII, Part IX, Part IX, cont., Part X, Part XI, Part XII or Epilogue]The Hindu Temple is the sum total of architectural rites performedon the basis of its myth. The myth covers theground and is the plan on which the structure is raised.Stella Kramrisch,

‘The new era has dawned…’

2011-08-31T22:02:00.040+05:30

Twenty-two years have passed between writing ‘The Seeds of Undermining’, carried on this site, to Anna Hazare’s victory, as a first concrete step to eradicating corruption, the central theme of that article. It would seem a long time to wait for the Power of the Word to act and to bear results. But I must stress that we are now dealing with spherical processes, not linear. The latter left great

The Seeds of Undermining - Inadequacies of the Indian System, Part III

2011-08-27T10:04:00.001+05:30

An essay on Essence and Form, Part III Reproduced from The Vishaal Newsletter Volume 4, Number 5, December 1989 © Patrizia Norelli-Bachelet 1989 [Link to Introduction] [Link to Part I] [Link to Part II] We are saddled with false conceptions often dating back thousands of years. One is that the ‘spiritual truth’ is untouched by the corrosive substances of a material world – to the extent

The Seeds of Undermining - Inadequacies of the Indian System, Part II

2011-08-24T07:57:00.020+05:30

An essay on Essence and Form Part II Reproduced from The Vishaal Newsletter Volume 4, Number 5, December 1989 © Patrizia Norelli-Bachelet 1989 [Link to Introduction] [Link to Part I] When we say that the nation has lost its ‘dharma’, and that it must re-establish this ‘dharma’, we mean something quite different than the spiritual leaders who, by the dozens, repeat ad nauseam this call. The

The Seeds of Undermining - Inadequacies of the Indian System

2011-08-20T22:25:00.016+05:30

An essay on Essence and Form Part I Reproduced from The Vishaal Newsletter Volume 4, Number 5, December 1989 © Patrizia Norelli-Bachelet 1989 [Link to Introduction] Prominent thinkers the world over realise that the old order has come to an end. We witness the crumbling of iron barriers between nations, hitherto believed to be unshakable and resistant to any attempt at change. However, the

Introduction to the essay 'The Seeds of Undermining'

2011-08-16T21:45:00.023+05:30

An update is required in presenting this essay to readers of this blog. In 1986 Aeon Trust was formed to provide support to Aeon Centre of Cosmology. We had secured a small portion of land to begin building the Centre, where we continue our work to this day. In doing so I had to deal with every aspect of the Government, the Bureaucracy, as well as the police. My experience provoked this essay.

India's Seminar on Scientific Dating of Events Before 2000 BCE: Special Report

2011-08-11T08:58:00.014+05:30

The Hindu Press International article entitled, 'India's Seminar on Scientific Dating of Events Before 2000 BCE: Special Report' is reproduced below because these findings are in tune with the new Indo-Centric Cosmology as found in the writings of Patrizia Norelli-Bachelet. Ms. Norelli-Bachelet helps put such discoveries in the context of the true knowledge of the Vedic Age. The findings in the

A New Cosmology

2011-08-07T03:54:00.032+05:30

In 1982, Patrizia Norelli-Bachelet wrote a synopsis of her cosmology and yogic research up to that point in time entitled, 'The New Cosmology'. The synopsis is reproduced below on PCU blog, so readers can consider how the CONCEPTUALISM of the Puranic Age has been brought forward into our times and updated by Ms. Norelli-Bachelet through the knowledge conveyed in her books, The New Way, Volumes 1&

The Partition of India, its cause, its purpose - Postscript

2011-06-24T23:56:00.065+05:30

I have been reading the reprint of Dilip Kumar Roy’s Kumbha, India’s Ageless Festival, (Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan, 2009). It has inspired me to add a few words to my series, The Partition of India, my most explicit presentation of the evils of Partition. Never before has Partition been linked to the Cosmic Harmony, but each time a breakthrough occurs in the explanation of a ‘knot’ such as Partition

The Partition of India, its cause, its purpose - Conclusion

2011-06-22T05:54:00.014+05:30

‘The above comes from below, and the below from above– the work of the miracle of the One.’Hermes, Emerald TabletCertainly all is not gloom and doom however.Renewal, re-establishment become possible only at certain precise moments, those times when a maturing takes place, a ripening of time and circumstance, as it were. This is because a contingency plan was devised long ago that would provide an

The Partition of India, its cause, its purpose - PART NINE

2011-06-20T19:00:00.001+05:30

An analysis based on the new Indo-Centric Cosmology3.9.2009 – 13.10.2009Lest a misunderstanding arise, there is a fundamental point to clarify. It would appear that India’s problem of ‘fault lines’ occurred or began at the time of Partition. However, the opposite would be the case. Partition could occur because integration of the Mother’s gunaic play had been lost much earlier, long before the

The Partition of India, its cause, its purpose - PART EIGHT

2011-06-18T02:00:00.039+05:30

An analysis based on the new Indo-Centric Cosmology3.9.2009 – 13.10.2009We near the conclusion of this series. It is hoped that with its completion right thinking, right planning, right strategising will be elaborated to deal with this sombre moment in India’s history. Sri Aurobindo warned the powers-that-be and the population in his broadcast to the nation at Independence. What he warned of then

The Partition of India, its cause, its purpose - PART SEVEN

2011-06-15T23:36:00.032+05:30

An analysis based on the new Indo-Centric Cosmology3.9.2009 – 13.10.2009No longer mysterious are the ways of the Divine, for when Vishnu’s Incarnations descend, particularly the 9th and 10th of his line, the most profound mysteries of creation are laid bare. It is not out of the Lord’s compassion that this is so; rather, the clarity with which we are able to disclose the highest truths of

The Partition of India, its cause, its purpose - PART SIX

2011-06-13T20:21:00.033+05:30

An analysis based on the new Indo-Centric Cosmology3.9.2009 – 13.10.2009The cosmos harbours many wonders of which science knows only the surface layers. It contains harmonies that the human being intuits only when somehow the depths of the soul are touched. From there the truths of the collective psyche are transmitted across time and space in the language of the soul which is Myth. All ancient

The Partition of India, its cause, its purpose - PART FIVE

2011-06-08T09:34:00.002+05:30

An analysis based on the new Indo-Centric Cosmology3.9.2009 – 13.10.2009Finally we have reached the point where it is possible to discuss exactly what is meant by Akhand Bharat since it lies at the root of the ills inflicted by Partition. Therefore, we cannot avoid a frank analysis of the map before which the Mother and her Congress guests sat on her 74th birthday in 1952. For all practical

The Partition of India, its cause, its purpose - PART FOUR

2011-06-05T21:36:00.005+05:30

An analysis based on the new Indo-Centric Cosmology3.9.2009 – 13.10.2009On the occasion of India’s independence from British rule, Sri Aurobindo, Vishnu’s 9th Avatar, inter alia stated in a radio message to the nation:‘…India is free, but she has not achieved unity, only a fissured and broken freedom... The whole communal division into Hindu and Muslim seems to have hardened into the figure of a

The Partition of India, its cause, its purpose - PART THREE

2011-06-02T09:00:00.001+05:30

An analysis based on the new Indo-Centric Cosmology3.9.2009 – 13.10.2009Parts One and Two have laid the foundation for our discussion which is an entirely different approach than that of all scholars on the subject of Partition. None have been able or equipped to assess that supremely important event on its own terms. Rather, attempts constantly are made to force assessments into the

The Partition of India, its cause, its purpose - PART TWO

2011-05-30T09:00:00.002+05:30

An analysis based on the new Indo-Centric Cosmology3.9.2009 – 13.10.2009The importance of knowing Destiny is that one does not seek to manipulate or mould an individual to fit a particular pattern that is not a suitable vehicle to express one’s destiny, or one’s dharma. More precisely, the purpose of incarnation is so that a harmony may be experienced in this universe between one’s individual

The Partition of India, its cause, its purpose - PART ONE

2011-05-27T01:10:00.016+05:30

An analysis based on the new Indo-Centric Cosmology3.9.2009 – 13.10.2009It is a problem that may never be resolved, but it just refuses to go away. The scars it has left are too deep and the wounds beneath seem to have touched the core of Indianness. Over the past month in the national discourse the cause of those wounds has been exposed once again: the partition of India.First we must ask what

A Reply to T.V. Sivaraman Regarding the Reformed Sanatan Calendar

2011-04-04T01:43:00.016+05:30

Aeon Centre of CosmologySkambha, 1.4.2011Dear Sivaraman-ji,I have gone through your paper in response to my comments on the calendar you and Darshaney-ji have prepared for the Hindu community of the South. I am afraid my reply will again be lengthy because the points you make are stimulating. But I must say that what you write only drives home the point that we view the function of a calendar

T.V. Sivaraman on the Reformed Sanatan Calendar

2011-04-01T23:09:00.010+05:30

[The following is a response from T.V. Sivaraman, regarding Patrizia Norelli-Bachelet's comments on 'THE REFORMED SANATAN CALENDAR compiled and edited by Acharya Darshaney Lokesh'.]Dear Dr. Patrizia Madam: I thank you for your treatment on the Reformed Sanatan Calendar and for all your points of agreement. First of all I would like to make it clear that I am not a follower of any school

THE REFORMED SANATAN CALENDAR compiled and edited by Acharya Darshaney Lokesh

2011-03-12T01:19:00.070+05:30

THE REFORMED SANATAN CALENDARcompiled and edited by Acharya Darshaney Lokesh[Pictured in part above, Link to Source]A cosmological treatment prepared byPatrizia Norelli-BacheletDirector, Aeon Centre of CosmologyMarch 2011© Patrizia Norelli-Bachelet 2011While I truly appreciate all efforts to have the tropical zodiac reinstated at the heart of time computations for Hindus, replacing the

Tibet, India and the Chinese and the Calendars that Join them

2011-02-24T08:41:00.005+05:30

[Originally published in The Chakra, 21 February 2011]‘…What is to emerge? In what way will the soul of Tibet manifest? What will be the new religious-spiritual experience after the ordeal of the “labour pains” is over? Of this we cannot as yet be certain. But it is sure that the soul of Tibet awaits a higher manifestation, a field wherein it can express the higher triad of planets and the

Caste, Calendar and Cosmos - Part III

2011-02-17T00:33:00.001+05:30

It is possible to demonstrate graphically the effect of the lost wisdom on the civilisation of the subcontinent, as I have done in Parts I and II. Graphics often speak louder than words; this presentation may well prove the point.Cosmic harmonies are largely grounded in geometry. This is because one starts computations and analyses with a whole in which parts are set in place and joined together

Caste, Calendar and Cosmos - Part II

2011-02-15T01:08:00.023+05:30

[Link to Part I]The fourfold One Circle is the Chaturvarna of caste. Its roots lie in the cosmic harmony like everything else the civilisation of the subcontinent has to offer of eternal value. But when that One Circle is dismissed in favour of the subjective relativism of science, and the Ayanamsha Chaos becomes the determining factor of our expression of the Sanatana Dharma, then of course

Caste, Calendar and Cosmos - their interconnection and relevance for contemporary society

2011-02-13T05:23:00.038+05:30

Patrizia Norelli-BacheletDirector, Aeon Centre of CosmologyTamil Nadu, South IndiaPart II have just read an Internet posting regarding a report in circulation on Caste put out by the Hindu American Foundation. I have not yet read the report itself but I feel I must comment on a statement by N. S. Rajaram to the Foundation, carried in this posting. He used a disparaging word to describe one of the

There Will Be a Transformed India the Day the Calendar Problem Is Resolved

2011-01-04T09:34:00.026+05:30

The above video (transcribed below) was captured via a live webcast of the First National Conference on Panchanga Ganitam, at the tail end of the morning session on Saturday, December 25th, 2010. The session was billed in the conference brochure as: 'Finding a solution to the AYANAMSHA issue. Differences between Sayana [Tropical] and Nirayana [Sidereal] Panchangas.' Ayanamsha is the zero point of

A Delegate’s REPORT on the First National Panchanga Ganitam Conference

2011-01-01T12:00:00.017+05:30

Photo Credit: www.prohithar.comA Delegate's REPORTon theFirst National Conference on Hindu Calendar Reformheld at Tirumala, 24-26 December 2010Prepared byPatrizia Norelli-Bachelet (Thea)DirectorCentre of CosmologyTamil Nadu, South India30.12.2010‘I am hearing only the word uniform, uniformity.But this call is not Vedic or Hindu. It should be UNITY.There is a vast difference between the two.’‘You

The Importance of Makar Sankranti in Hindu Calendar Reform - PART ONE

2010-12-30T00:27:00.002+05:30

A treatment in three partspresented at theFirst National Conference on Hindu Calendar ReformTirumala, 24-26 December 2010Prepared byPatrizia Norelli-Bachelet (Thea)Director, Aeon Centre of CosmologyTamil Nadu, South India© Patrizia Norelli-Bachelet 2010In 1915, Sri Aurobindo wrote the following in his masterful book,The Secret of the Veda: The letter lived on when the spirit was forgotten; the

The Importance of Makar Sankranti in Hindu Calendar Reform - PART TWO

2010-12-30T00:18:00.005+05:30

A treatment in three partspresented at theFirst National Conference on Hindu Calendar ReformTirumala, 24-26 December 2010Prepared byPatrizia Norelli-Bachelet (Thea)Director, Aeon Centre of CosmologyTamil Nadu, South India© Patrizia Norelli-Bachelet 2010PART TWO The scientifically-oriented pundits who originally established the time reckoning method used today for temple matters, broadly known

The Importance of Makar Sankranti in Hindu Calendar Reform - PART THREE

2010-12-30T00:09:00.010+05:30

A treatment in three partspresented at theFirst National Conference on Hindu Calendar ReformTirumala, 24-26 December 2010Prepared byPatrizia Norelli-Bachelet (Thea)Director, Aeon Centre of CosmologyTamil Nadu, South India© Patrizia Norelli-Bachelet 2010PART THREEI have established essential points in Parts 1 and 2; the most important of all is that Makar Sankranti and December Solstice are

The Warrior-Child of Ayodhya - 3

2010-10-24T20:06:00.033+05:30

The significance of his appearancefor the Hindu SamajPatrizia Norelli-Bachelet (Thea)Director, Aeon Centre of CosmologySouth India, 17.10.2010Parts 1 and 2 of this series dedicated to Ramlala have brought forward the need to revisit the calendars in use by the Hindu Samaj, which on numerous occasions I have described as a very clever device to divide 80% of the energies of India’s population.

The Warrior-Child of Ayodhya - 2

2010-10-24T20:01:00.015+05:30

The significance of his appearancefor the Hindu Samaj Patrizia Norelli-Bachelet (Thea)Director, Aeon Centre of CosmologySouth India, 10.10.2010 Caste and the Cosmic Order Daily we are told in the media ‘India has moved on’ – that is, Ayodhya is no longer of any interest to young India born after 1992 (the Demolition). This youth wants opportunities, education, jobs,

The Warrior-Child of Ayodhya - 1

2010-10-15T02:39:00.052+05:30

The significance of his appearancefor the Hindu SamajPatrizia Norelli-Bachelet (Thea)Director, Aeon Centre of CosmologySouth India, 5.10.2010 ‘…the disputed site is the birthplace of Lord Ram. Place of birth is a juristic person and is a deity. It is personified as the spirit of [the] divine worshipped as birthplace of Lord Ram as a child. [The] Spirit of [the] divine ever remains present

Guru Purnima

2010-08-16T22:45:00.004+05:30

and other cosmic musings… Patrizia Norelli-Bachelet Director, Aeon Centre of Cosmology 15 August 2010 …The letter lived on when the spirit was forgotten; the symbol, the body of the doctrine remained, but the soul of knowledge had fled from its coverings. Sri Aurobindo The Secret of the Veda On 25 July last, Guru Purnima was celebrated in many parts of the country.

2010-06-30T13:23:00.000+05:30

The series Puranic Cosmology Updated, written by Patrizia Norelli-Bachelet (Thea), has been concluded. However, interested readers who wish to pursue the insights presented in the series are invited to comment or ask questions in the blog, which Thea will be happy to answer. Editor

Puranic Cosmology Updated 21

2010-06-23T21:33:00.011+05:30

22.6.2010I will close this series with mention of the position held by certain Sanskritists – namely, that there is no mention of the so-called ‘western zodiac’ in the Veda. This is a view also held by staunch nationalists for whom the zodiac is not Indian, much less Hindu, and far less Vedic. It was, they contend, brought into India by the Greeks in the latter part of the 8th Manifestation,

Puranic Cosmology Updated 20

2010-06-23T11:33:00.029+05:30

21.6.2010Several thousand years ago science and astrology (or alchemy) were one. The sage was the scientist, the astrologer the astronomer. When the split occurred in the Dark Age it was the signal that the world was being prepared for a gigantic leap forward. At that point, as a reaction to this severance which threatened the foundations of the old world, a reaction sprung up in the form of

Puranic Cosmology Updated 19

2010-06-15T21:48:00.010+05:30

12.6.2010What is superstition? How is it born and how does it serve the individual caught in its grip? In my experience concerning the theme of this series, superstition is born when knowledge is lacking. There is a gradual decline as the original body of knowledge is watered down and the direct experience is replaced by belief alone without empirical support.But this condition is not reserved

Puranic Cosmology Updated 18

2010-05-28T21:31:00.012+05:30

26.5.2010As I begin winding up this series, again the difficulty we have in understanding the ancient lore comes to mind. I recall a conversation in the late 1960s with Federico Fellini, a renowned Italian film director at the time. He was then working on a cinema version of 1st Century Petronius Arbiter’s famous novel, Satyricon. Fellini’s problem was how to give a faithful reproduction of a

Puranic Cosmology Updated 17

2010-05-25T09:51:00.011+05:30

20.5.2010Some followers of this series have expressed the desire to have the complete hymn RV X.135 which I discussed in the last Update, transcribed for readers. I had purposely not done so because not being a Sanskrit scholar myself, for the most part I would have to rely on the various translations in print. To my knowledge Sri Aurobindo has not translated this particular hymn and I would have

Puranic Cosmology Updated 16

2010-05-20T08:26:00.009+05:30

19.5.2010‘The more one goes on this path, the more one feels the limitations of not only speech but of thought. The mind is too heavy, too coarse. It will not respond, or responds but imperfectly, to the subtle vibrations that as it were come to it from above. The highest truth must needs be presented in symbols. Fichte, the German philosopher, said that if he had to live his life over again the

Puranic Cosmology Updated 15

2010-05-11T10:57:00.017+05:30

6.5.2010(click to enlarge)Diagram: Robert E. WilkinsonThe innermost circle is the Tropical Zodiac, or the ecliptic pathway (divided into 12) of all the planets as they journey around the Sun, Earth included. Like the face of a clock it is a fixed, permanent and unchanging measurement and can be ascertained with great precision by the timing of the Equinoxes and the Solstices, the four pillars on

Puranic Cosmology Updated 14

2010-05-08T08:35:00.008+05:30

3.5.2010‘The letter lived on when the spirit was forgotten;the symbol, the body of the doctrine, remained but the soul of knowledge had fled from its coverings.’Sri Aurobindo, The Secret of the Veda.India has a problem, a serious problem. When I explain what that might be in the context of this series, not many will agree. And this is precisely the point.The problem is not obvious like poverty,

Puranic Cosmology Updated 13

2010-05-02T08:05:00.022+05:30

29.4.2010It ought to be apparent by now that the new cosmology in the act of updating the old is bridging what has until now appeared as an insurmountable chasm. There is the physical reality on one side, and the subtle, spiritual on the other. One’s preference may lie with one or the other, according to temperament or inculcation by inheritance or through education and environment. The two could

Puranic Cosmology Updated 12

2010-04-16T17:59:00.015+05:30

12.4.2010Here is a striking image from Bhugola Varnanam by Sri Vadiraja of the school of Acharya Madhwa (12th Century). It is entitled Bhugola Brahmanda with the Universe and the Nine Envelopes. True to the then prevailing concept, verticality is emphasised by the central axis resting on Kurma, with the universal planes connected to this pole, similar to most extant representations of Mt Meru.

Puranic Cosmology Updated 11

2010-04-12T11:25:00.014+05:30

10 April 2010The supreme symbol that holds the keys to eternal truths is the ancient astrological/astronomical symbol of the Sun, In this most simple of all diagrams the knowledge required to update the Puranas as well as to know the path ahead to a universal apotheosis is contained. Its most striking aspect is the privileged position of the central Point. It is as if the Point is the Sun itself

Puranic Cosmology Updated 10

2010-04-09T19:22:00.004+05:30

7 April 2010In this section I propose to discuss just what occurs when ‘the 9 becomes the 10’, as noted in Update 9. This analysis will confirm the most important feature of the old cosmology – i.e., its prophetic capacity. To update the old way, to factualise, to render concrete what may be considered abstract and elusive to the layperson, the best means is to take the Circle once again and

Puranic Cosmology Updated 9

2010-03-27T11:24:00.009+05:30

22 March 2010There is an interesting element of Puranic Tradition that ought to be studied – in and for itself, and later in the context of this updating exercise. This is the prominent feature of Hindu temples throughout India: the Navagrahas (Nine Planets) at their entrance in the form of a 3x3 square diagram, which the devotee is expected to acknowledge and propitiate before all else.

Puranic Cosmology Updated 8

2010-03-23T20:29:00.003+05:30

17 March 2010In discussing Form and Essence, my intention was not to minimise the outstanding art that has come down to us from the Puranic period, a comparable quality of which surfaced in Europe only many centuries later. Rather, I would like to demonstrate how the direction of the quest – the Journey in the Veda – was reflected in art itself. To illustrate, I reproduced in Update 7 the

Update 7 (continued)

2010-03-18T21:48:00.017+05:30

In the yearly circumambulation of the planets around the Sun, the Time and Space axes are brought into alignment. This process is given physical validity in the Equinoxes (space) and Solstices (time). It means that the equal cross is an astronomical fact and is our birthright as inhabitants of Earth. Logically, being so Earth-oriented, this had to be the crux of the Vedic Sacrifice, made evident

Puranic Cosmology Updated 7

2010-03-17T10:44:00.007+05:30

15 March 2010There is a way of looking at Time (and Space) which may be described as initiatic, but of the Vedic sort. To do so, complexity is shed in favour of a compelling simplicity that cuts to the bone of perception. If we observe how the Knowledge has come down to us from the Vedic Age in its large, sweeping design, we see clearly this simplicity actualised – but only when compared to the

Puranic Cosmology Updated 6

2010-03-13T19:23:00.018+05:30

12 March 2010In the Puranic Cosmology Mt Meru is the centre of the universe, which was not confined to material creation alone. It embraced subtle planes or dimensions primarily, lokas, since there were no empirical means to draw those planes onto and into the physical. Thus, the old cosmology was largely metaphoric, if you will. This fact alone makes it difficult to apply to it the term science

Puranic Cosmology Updated 5

2010-03-11T19:11:00.011+05:30

9 March 2010A study of Update 4 may result in an assessment by some readers that this exercise is too ‘bare’, or too simplistic, and that by focussing on a single ‘thread’ from the Vedic Age through the Puranic and into the present, too much is left out that might contradict my thesis, i.e., that such a thread exists and can be located in space as well as in time. This assessment, if indeed it

Puranic Cosmology Updated 4

2010-03-05T19:03:00.026+05:30

4 March 2010By far the most abiding symbol in Indian myth and cosmogony is the Mountain. It stretches back to the Vedic Age. In that remote period, however, we do not find the Vedic geometric altars (vedi) displaying the symbol of the Mountain as overtly as in the Hindu Temple of the Puranic period; rather, it was more cosmic and subtle. An initiation into the ancient mysteries was required (then

Puranic Cosmology Updated 3

2010-03-04T09:20:00.011+05:30

3 March 2010 The inspiration to begin this new series came when I was given a copy of Bhugola Varanam of Sri Vadiraja, translated and commented on by B. V. Bhadarayana Murthy (Akhila Bharata Madhva Maha Mandali, Madras Branch, 1989). In perusing this precious little document it became abundantly clear that updating is the need of the hour. Essentially this is what I have been doing for the

Puranic Cosmology Updated 2

2010-03-01T10:10:00.011+05:30

27 February 2010 More than their cosmological content the Puranas are known to be repositories of the countless myths of the subcontinent. Tradition has kept these tales alive for several millennia; without them what we know today as Puranic Cosmology would have neither sense nor purpose. Mythology and cosmology go hand in hand

Puranic Cosmology Updated 1

2010-02-20T10:43:00.005+05:30

20 February 2010For a number of years I have been concentrating on reconnecting contemporary India to her Vedic roots. I believe that the exercise has been largely successful. Foremost has been the link I was able to establish between Vishnu’s Dasavataras and the Rig Veda via the hymns in praise of Vishnu in the collection, which, to my knowledge, had never been done. With the publication of