Bøker av Venkata Mohan

This book comprehensively deals with issues of caste and religion in the context of India, covering the UPSC syllabus for Sociology and Anthropology. It includes historical and ideological perspectives on the caste system presented by various thinkers and activists. It traces the philosophical connections across the major religions of India and describes their impact on the world.

What constitutes spiritual enlightenment, also called moksha or nirvana? Is there something amiss in the way enlightenment has been construed down the ages? Are the ego and the desires of the mind as bad as they are made out to be in the spiritual traditions? What does modern science say about mind, self and consciousness? Can robots ever be conscious? Is there any scientific evidence for soul, karma and rebirth? Is there indeed something like universal consciousness? What is meditation?This book makes you reflect on such profound issues of life in a new light, while bringing out the limitations of Indian spiritual traditions as well as of modern science.

Can we create a world with shared norms and values to successfully meet collective threats to humankind? Should nations always behave the way they are doing now in the international arena? Can't they relate to each other differently? What prevents them from doing what is in their own interests?With such questions in mind, the author explores major IR theories that attempt to explain war, peace and commerce across nations. Though this does not give any ready-made answers to those questions, this can be a guide in one's search for answers.

What should a spouse do when the fact that the other half has been having an affair for a long time comes to light? Can a man ever understand a woman's mind? What can we do about a personal problem to which there is no easy solution? Through the prism of his personal life, the author raises many thoughtful questions on the nature of romantic love, the nature of self, power, shame, sorrow, and compassion. Explaining that what is personal is common to all and hence universal, the author says your sorrow is a way life reveals its mysteries to you if only you are willing to listen. Though this book can be read completely independently, it can also be taken as a sequel to Marriage of a Monk: A Story of My Ideas and Life.

This book familiarizes the students with important theories and concepts in basic economics, while letting them understand the issues the Indian economy is currently facing. By far the biggest crisis of our times is climate disruption, it deeply affects many issues related to economics such as energy, agriculture, growing inequalities, globalization and the spread of capitalism.

Why do we have a president and a prime minister, instead of having all power concentrated in one position? We know that we borrowed our political structure from the English, but why did they develop it that way? What is fascism? Did Lenin follow what Marx wrote? How is communism different from socialism? Why did the USSR break up? This book traces the history of the modern world from the Reformation to the end of the Cold War, attempting to answer many such questions by explaining not just the historical events but the ideas and ideals that shaped them. This would also help you to have a better insight into modern Indian history and polity by placing them in a larger context.

Tribal people have been facing a wide variety of problems in the modern times, mainly caused by the confrontation with civilization. This book deals at a certain depth with the situation of the tribals of Central India, Northeast and Andaman & Nicobar islands. It then provides a wider backdrop to the discussion on tribals by talking about a number of prominent Indian anthropologists and their contribution to the understanding of Indian society.

Amaravati is exclusive, alienating to other regions and damaging to the ecology. The Polavaram dam is insensitive to lakhs of people, environmentally destructive and, what is worse, unsafe. The first government of AP obviously got its priorities wrong. Instead of discussing these priorities, the people got busy blaming the Centre and making unfair demands on it. This book, apart from critiquing the priorities set by AP's first government, argues for an eco-friendly and inclusive economic model giving primacy to agriculture.