Kabir’s search for solitude resembles our search for privacy in totalitarian times

An excerpt from Kabir, Kabir: The Life and Work of the Early Modern Poet-Philosopher – by Purushottam Agrawal.    Why were Kabir’s detractors “forced” to escalate matters up to the sultan? Mostly because they were smarting from having failed so miserably to check his influence themselves. Kabir’s fame was sky- rocketing, despite his obvious lack… Read More Kabir’s search for solitude resembles our search for privacy in totalitarian times

Dilip

Alexander Stern: What the Frankfurt School has to stay about bureaucratic progressivism

“Cultural Marxism” is often invoked by some on the right to explain the rise of “woke” politics in universities, newsrooms, and corporations. According to this well-rehearsed line of criticism, the fixation on race and gender, the erosion of free speech, and the high-pitched frenzy of political correctness and cancellation, are nothing less than a communist… Read More Alexander Stern: What the Frankfurt School has to stay about bureaucratic progressivism

Dilip

Alexey Shuntov – Strike, exile, arrest: what happened to Belarusian workers?

Mediazona, a media outlet focusing on law and justice, spoke with workers at three different enterprises who took part in last year’s protests to find out how they happened. As part of our coverage of Belarus, openDemocracy has translated and republished this article with permission here.    Alexey Karlyuk, 35, is from the town of… Read More Alexey Shuntov – Strike, exile, arrest: what happened to Belarusian workers?

Dilip

Aya Al-Ghazzawi: After the nightmare of the Gaza massacre, what comes next?

We were all so excited. Ramadan was coming to an end, and preparations for the Eid al-Fitr holiday were underway. As the eldest daughter in my family, my parents sent me shopping with my sisters for new clothes for Eid, while my father went out to bring ingredients for  sumaqiyya and feseekh. Meanwhile, Israel was undergoing its… Read More Aya Al-Ghazzawi: After the nightmare of the Gaza massacre, what comes next?

Dilip

Five Questions on the Shameful Proceedings Against Natasha Narwal, Devangana Kalita, Asif Iqbal. By Madan B. Lokur, former judge of the Supreme Court

Appalling. That’s the only way to describe the manner in which the proceedings against Devangana Kalita, Natasha Narwal and Asif Iqbal Tanha have been conducted and are being conducted by the police and prosecution till now. In the process, the underbelly of our criminal justice system stands exposed in some respects, and it’s a pretty… Read More Five Questions on the Shameful Proceedings Against Natasha Narwal, Devangana Kalita, Asif Iqbal. By Madan B. Lokur, former judge of the Supreme Court

Dilip

Jaap Kloosterman: Secret Societies – a history

Attempts to circumscribe our topic are naturally hampered by the fact that secrecy is a many-sided thing. The expression “secret societies” evokes a Wittgensteinian family resemblance of a great variety of organisations with all sorts of similarities, yet not a single feature common to all. As a result, most existing definitions are accompanied by abundant… Read More Jaap Kloosterman: Secret Societies – a history

Dilip

Bharat Bhushan – Yogi Adityanath and the media: A survival game

Only a week ago, Yogi Adityanath’s Chief Ministership appeared precarious amid speculations that misgovernance in UP may cost him his job. However his recent blitzkrieg of the media suggests that he may have saved his seat. Full front-page newspaper advertisements claim that he has always been “two steps ahead of the pandemic”. The “Teeka jeet… Read More Bharat Bhushan – Yogi Adityanath and the media: A survival game

Dilip

American priorities

  Andrew Bacevich: High Crimes and Misdemeanors of the Fading American Century Victor Jara murder: ex-military officers sentenced in Chile for 1973 death Lucian Truscott: Trump wants to end the forever wars – except the one about oil and money Alfred McCoy: The crumbling delusion of Washington’s endless world dominion William Astore: The U.S. Military’s… Read More American priorities

Dilip