A Book A Day - A Literary Podcast from India

This week we are discussing different schools of Indian philosophy and we now arrive at Yoga. Yoga philosophy is well described in “The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali,” where he outlines the eight limbs, or stages, that one should follow to reach moksha. More on this in this episode. Keep following for more interesting content from some really good books.

Today I will discuss the basics of Buddha's philosophy. It is another non-theistic school in Indian philosophy, which focuses on inquiry and contemplative investigation to find the truth. Listen to this episode to understand it better. Don't forget to subscribe.

In this episode I discuss the basics of Jaina philosophy, or Jainism. Jainism is one of the world's oldest religions, originating in India at least 2,500 years ago. The spiritual goal of Jainism is to become liberated from the endless cycle of rebirth and to achieve an all-knowing state called moksha. Find out more in this episode.

This week I will discuss different schools of Indian philosophy, starting with the Charvakas. It is a heterodox school of Indian philosophy. Charvaka holds direct perception, empiricism, and conditional inference as proper sources of knowledge, embraces philosophical skepticism and rejects ritualism and supernaturalism. More about it in the episode.

Philosophers have long wondered about the cause of lack of sleep since they too frequently deal with this problem. So, let's take a look at insomnia through the eyes of a philosopher and discover something new along the way.

Yann Martel talks about the relativity of truth in his book Life of Pi. Throughout the book, he keeps emphasising on this point. What is truth? Is it relative? Let's explore these questions with the help of this brilliant novel. Don't forget to subscribe.

Eva Hoffman's book How to be Bored gives us much needed wisdom on how important it is to take a pause in our lives. A pause to relax, to reflect - something which we have forgotten in our fast-paced lives. I discuss this wisdom with you in this episode. Please subscribe to stay tuned.

I narrate a short story today which was written by Rudyard Kipling over a century ago. The story tells you about the life of Afghanistan back then and how Kipling's own biases affected that. Don't forget to subscribe to the podcast.

Elizabeth Kolbert's Pulitzer Prize winning book The Sixth Extinction argues that the Earth is in the midst of a modern, man-made, sixth extinction. I discuss the fundamental ideas of the book here.

A Haunted House is an interesting short story by Virginia Woolf. It is and is not a ghost story. In less than two pages of prose, Woolf explores, summons, and subverts the conventions of the ghost story, offering a modernist take on the genre. I narrate this story in today's podcast. Visit www.kalampedia.org to check out more interesting stories or follow the podcast here.

Should you eat meat or not? What are the philosophical arguments for or against the idea of veganism? Stephen Law, in his book The Philosophy Files, takes us on a quest where we discuss these kinds of questions. Originally intended for children, this book provides interesting philosophical conversations for adults as well. I discuss one chapter of this book in today's podcast.

Meghna Pant's book How to Get Published in India is an easy guide for all the aspiring writers in India that dream to get published one day. I discuss briefly what you will get out of this book in today's podcast. To know more, you can write us on contactkalampedia@gmail.com or visit www.kalampedia.org and check there.

live in a hectic, hyperactive, over-stimulated age. Excessive busyness and overfilled schedules are the norm, as are their effects on our mental and emotional lives. How to overcome this challenge? We learn it through Eva Hoffman's book How to be Bored in today's podcast. Subscribe to keep exploring the world of books with me.

Anansi is an Akan folktale character. He often takes the shape of a spider and is sometimes considered to be a god of all knowledge of stories. In this podcast I narrate a story which tells us about how he came to possess all the stories. Keep listening. Don't forget to subscribe. Visit www.kalampedia.org to know more.

Shashi Tharoor, in his book India Shastra, gives a broader perspective of India's history, culture, politics, social practices and much more. In one of the chapters, he talks about the atrocities committed by the British during the colonial period. I share this in today's podcast. Subscribe to keep listening to more such interesting stories or visit www.kalampedia.org to explore more.

In her second compilation of published writing, Brianna Wiest explores pursuing purpose over passion, embracing negative thinking, seeing the wisdom in daily routine, and becoming aware of the cognitive biases that are creating the way you see your life. The collection is called 101 Essays That Will Change The Way You Think. I narrate one of the essays from this book.

Thich Nhat Hanh discussed Buddhist philosophy and mindfulness in the simplest ways possible. In his book The Art of Living, he educates us on some of the very basics of leading a good life. I discuss it briefly in today's podcast. Please visit www.kalampedia.org to support me.

Sohrab and Rustom is a narrative poem with strong tragic themes first published in 1853 by Matthew Arnold. The poem retells a famous episode from Ferdowsi's Persian epic Shahnameh relating how the great warrior Rustum unknowingly slew his long-lost son Sohrab in single combat. I narrate the story in today's podcast. Don't forget to subscribe to this podcast. Visit www.kalampedia.org to know more.

I narrate the creation myth from the Quran and Hadiths in this podcast.

Seligmann Fromm was a German social psychologist, philosopher and writer. In his book The Art of Loving, he discusses the idea of love and how it is going extinct as an art under the assault of romanticism. I discuss some of these thoughts in this podcast.

I narrate another fun story today. It was written by Ambrose Bierce and is titled John Mortonson's Funeral. Enjoy.

I narrate Stephen Leacock's famous short story My Financial Career in today's podcast.

Today I discuss some of the very basics of the Quran and try to explain its theology at the fundamental level.

Introduction about this project that I have undertaken. Welcome to the world to the world of books!

In this podcast, I continue with the journey of Prophet Muhammad after he received his first revelations of the Quran.