Saving Our Planet: A Spirited Squirrel

Saving Our Planet: 

A Spirited Squirrel

You may not have time for the prosaic story of P - an ordinary man. Nothing heroic or extraordinary about him, except that there’s nothing fictional about his story.

CAP (Climate Action by P) before COP

COP 30 would meet in Belem, Brazil during Nov 10-21, 2025. Delegates would present claims and counter-claims regarding GHG (Greenhouse Gas) emission; developed countries would coerce developing nations to accept impossible NDC targets and the latter would harangue the former for their refusal and reluctance to finance and technically support  climate action projects. Concerned organisations, environment-activists and civil society groups would demand in vain for concrete action to achieve global warming target of 1.5◦C. The prospect for an optimistic outcome to COP 30 is remote.

Eating Local

P had good reason to be worried and despondent. I’m giving up almonds, he said at breakfast.

But why, asked spouse?

Since the last several years, he ate every morning eight almonds soaked overnight. Almonds are packed with amazing nutrition including healthy fats, protein, and fiber; and Barack Obama ate eight roasted almonds for his afternoon snack at the White House, he had read.

‘To reduce my carbon footprint. Peanuts have more protein than almonds. Why import nuts from distant California – more than 16000 kms from India - when locally grown and better food is plentifully available here?

At 8 almonds a day, I consume 3.5 kg in a year. That has a carbon footprint of ~16 kg CO₂e. By replacing almonds with peanuts, makhana (Fox-nuts), or sesame seeds, I achieve a 60–80% reduction in carbon footprint without losing nutrition.

Why import Valencia orange from Egypt when Chhindwara orange more commonly known as Nagpur santara is equally juicy and tasty? Why buy Italian or Australian wine when Sula wine of Nashik is as good or better?’

Spouse: I hope it has nothing to do with Trump’s tariff terrorism.

P: Well, Trump is free to do what he deems fit; but so am I regarding my choices. I’m not anti-American. I do use Google, Micro Soft, ChatGPT, and other services offered by US companies. But you know very well, I haven’t sipped a coke since decades, have totally shunned KFC, McDonald, Kellog’s, Domino’s, and similar stuff.

S: How about Starbucks?

P: Though operated in India by Tata group, the profit goes abroad, and the coffee is blended with imported beans. Chikmagalur coffee is fine with me.

Just a Squirrel

(Image Credit: Blogger's prompt, image generated by Gemini Nano Banana)

S: How would your personal sacrifice make any difference to Planet Earth?

P: Well, I’m just a squirrel; but I can do my bit to build Ram Setu.

S: When did you become a 'Protect the Planet' Missionary imbued with religious fervour and asceticism? How many people give a damn for the environment?

P: Almond abstinence is just one of my many modest climate actions.

S: What other sacrifices have you made?

P: Not sacrifices, really, but thoughtful lifestyle choices, a few of which are:

• During the last three years, our rooftop 5 kwh solar power system has generated about 25000 units of which 19539 was exported to the grid. An impressive CF reduction of 20.5 tonnes CO₂e. After discounting the units imported from the grid on cloudy days and for night-time use, the net reduction in our carbon footprint was about 8.4 tonnes CO₂e, equivalent to planting and growing ~127 trees for 3 years.
• I’ve not bought any shaving gel or foam or aftershave lotion since the last 15 years. My innovative Aloe-vera shave has served me fine. A small piece of ghritkumari plucked from a terrace pot serves the twin function of shaving gel and aftershave cooling and moisturising lotion. Organic, and totally free. Can you guess the CF reduction? At an average of  ~11 kg CO₂e/year for shaving gel and after-shave lotion, I’ve reduced CF by 11kg*15yrs! A modest, yet significant contribution.
• By choosing virtual participation in outstation meetings, I’ve skipped during the last three years at least 100 domestic flights to Delhi and Mumbai. A one-hour flight for about 700 km distance in economy class generates ~120–170 kg CO₂e per passenger.
• I no longer get cash from ATM or from the bank. Through cash-less transaction and digital payments, I’ve saved a few trees.
• Haven’t you noticed? I bought no new clothes in the last year, and gave away from my wardrobe several clothes in decent condition to those who were in need.
• Reduced car run through planned shopping trips.
• Higher fuel efficiency by driving the car at 50-60 kms speed.
• Saving precious paper by switching to digital newspapers, magazines, and books.
• No orders to Swiggy, Zomato, or Blinkit, since every delivery has a carbon footprint.
• Carrying shopping bags, saying no to single-use plastic.
• Saving water – no running tap for brushing teeth or shaving.

Should you be interested, I can make an Excel document listing my total contribution to reduction of carbon footprint.

S: Why haven’t you been invited to COP 30? I’m yet to visit Brazil.

P: I’m just a squirrel. Squirrels were not invited to join the coronation at Ayodhya. Anyway, a Bhopal to Belen, Brazil flight – 15000 km one-way with flight time of about 22 hours or more - would generate ~3.2 to 3.8 metric tons CO₂e per passenger. Multiply by two if you’re hoping to join in.

S: How about concluding your sermon, eating mindfully, and finishing your breakfast? Enough worry for Planet Earth for a day.

***

Krishna had no harem, Professor!

Dear Professor Wendy Doniger[i] ,

Hope you are well. I recently read ‘After the War- The Last Books of the Mahabharata,’ a book in which you have translated Books 15-18 of the epic.

The following is an extract from your translation of Book Sixteen: Mausala Parvan- Chapter 8, Verses 32-39:

“The sixteen thousand women in the harem of Vasudeva's son Krishna went behind Vajra, wise Krishna's great-grandson.” (Italics mine)

In the referred translation, your choice of the words ‘women’ and ‘harem’ is incorrect, inappropriate, and unfortunate. For those women were not just ordinary women, certainly not concubines, war trophies, or pleasure-dolls, but Krishna’s honourable wives. They were not incarcerated or restrained without their consent, but were in Krishna’s secure citadels, not in a harem. Krishna had no harem. Nor did he have any concubines.

Which Sanskrit word did you translate as harem? Uneasy with your translation, I checked the original text in Vyasa’s Mahabharata (Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute’s scholarly, authoritative Critical Edition), and noted that you have translated ‘vasudevavarodhanam’ (Adhyaya 8, Verse-37) as ‘the harem of Vasudeva's son Krishna.’

Vasudevavarodhanam  is a sandhi or combination of two Sanskrit words – Vasudeva, meaning Krishna, the son of Vasudev; and avarodhanam meaning “the inner or women's apartments (in a royal palace).[ii]”

It could also be a combination of three Sanskrit words – Vasudeva+vara+dhanam meaning Krishna’s great riches; vara meaning supreme, great, or pre-eminent; and dhanam meaning riches. Bibek Debroy, an erudite translator adopts this meaning in his translation.

Why did you choose harem, a word of Arabic origin, first used in English in 1634, for avarodhanam?  Harem (ˈhɑː.riːm) in this context would mean  ज़नानख़ाना, महलसरा. The related noun Haram: हरम: •حَرَم  (Arabic) means harem, seraglio, women's enclosures or quarters; or concubine, female slave.[iii]

Harem is most often used for the inner or women's apartments in palaces of Muslim kings. Sanskrit puranas refer to queens’ apartments as antahpuram. Another similar word seraglio - from Italian serraglio which derived from Persian -Turkish saray or serai - are of relatively recent, medieval origin and related to specific cultures.

Surprisingly, in your ‘Introduction’ you have mentioned that harem is an erroneous translation for antahpuram:

"Antahpuram, literally, 'inner citadel', which I translate as 'the inner quarters', is the part of a palace where women, children, and old people are kept safe, often misleadingly translated as 'harem'."[iv] (Italics mine)

Therefore, in place of your translation:

“The sixteen thousand women in the harem of Vasudeva's son Krishna;”

a more appropriate translation is:

“The sixteen thousand wives in the secure citadels of Vasudeva's son Krishna.”

I am also inclined to accept Debroy’s translation as ‘Krishna’s great riches.’

Maybe, the incorrect, culturally insensitive, and highly inappropriate use of harem for the guarded and protected citadel of Krishna’s wives is an authorial slip or an editorial goof-up. I hope you would make the necessary correction.

Translation: A complex, challenging task

The Mahabharata with about three million words is the largest of the world’s epics. Several translators have translated parts of the gigantic epic, and only a few have translated the entire book. So, why have I picked up just two words from your otherwise highly readable and well-researched translation and offered my comments?

I am not a scholar, nor an academic, but a humble student of scriptures, particularly in Sanskrit. I have also occasionally translated from Sanskrit, Odia, Sambalpuri, Urdu, and Punjabi into English.

So, my lengthy discourse on the inappropriate use of ‘harem’ in your translation is not to nitpick, find fault, or show off my understanding of Sanskrit; but to underline the immense difficulty in translating from one language to another which also involves a fine understanding of the culture and religion which produced the epic.

Translating Mahabharata is a huge challenge, requires proficiency in Sanskrit, and a knowledge of the numerous labyrinthine, inter-connected myths, stories, and sub-stories.

Krishna’s wives

"Krishna Rajamannar with His Wives, Rukmini and Satyabhama, and His Mount, Garuda, late 12th-13th century" (Source: Wikimedia)

You would of course be aware that the sixteen thousand wives were all legitimate and honoured wives of Krishna. Bhaumasura (the son of Bhumi) aka Narakasura had abducted these young, unmarried girls, and had incarcerated them against their will. These women prayed to Krishna for his mercy. Krishna rode on Garuda, flew to Pragjyotishapura (the Land of the Morning Sun, the present-day Assam), and after a fierce battle killed Narakasura. The event is still celebrated every year as Naraka Chaturdashi on the eve of Deepavali. The released women prayed to Krishna to marry them since no one else would accept them. Krishna not only married them, but replicated himself into sixteen thousand identical forms to live individually with each queen honourably placed in a palace of her own, a protected citadel.

Once, to test the divinity of the little Krishna, Brahma had stolen the cowherd boys and their calves and put them to sleep in his kamandalu for a whole year. Krishna had created exact replicas of the stolen boys and calves, and no one knew the difference. After a year, Brahma realised his mistake, and sought forgiveness of Krishna, the avatar of Vishnu.

You may also recall that for Raas Leela at Vrindavan, Krishna had similarly replicated into sixteen thousand identical Krishnas to dance individually with each amorous gopi.

A literal mind would reject such feats as impossible. But it may just be a metaphor. The easy and most natural manifestation of the divine in each human, if that human is overwhelmed with love and immersed in faith and devotion.

Best wishes.

Sincerely,

Prasanna Dash, a humble student.

Resources

·      Mahabharata by Vyasa (BORI: Critical Edition)

·      A Sanskrit English Dictionary by M. Monier-Williams

·      Mahabharata – English Translation (1883–1896 ) by K.M. Ganguli

·      Mahabharata – Hindi Translation by S.D. Satwalekar (1929–1930)

·      Mahabharata – English Translation by Bibek Debroy

Shrimad

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[i] Wendy Doniger is the author of several acclaimed and bestselling works, among them, The Hindus: An Alternative History: Hindu Myths; The Ring of Truth; Dreams, Illusion and Other Realities; Women, Androgynes and Other Mythical Beasts; Winged Stallions and Wicked Mares; and translations of the Rig Veda and the Kamasutra. She is Mircea Eliade Distinguished Service Professor Emerita of the History of Religions at the University of Chicago, and has also taught at the School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London, and the University of California, Berkeley.

[ii] A Sanskrit English Dictionary by M. Monier-Williams

[iii] Rekhta Dictionary

[iv] After the War- The Last Books of the Mahabharata – Translated and with an Introduction by Wendy Doniger

Beware India, America is Watching!

Beware India, America is watching,

SCO shenanigans are not to its liking,

Your dubious conduct is under Trump’s scrutiny,

Refusal to provide zero-tariff access amounts to mutiny,

'From Russian oil trade brahmins are profiteering!’

Brahmin baiting is a favourite sport in India, but like IPL it has now travelled to the USA. Brahmins are blamed for many things, but amassing wealth is not often listed among their misdeeds. So, it was surprising to hear Peter Navarro, a Trump foot-soldier, accusing India of enriching brahmins through Russian oil trade.

Since when is USA monitoring the economic profile of India’s thousands of castes and for what purpose, it is not known. CIA, and global financial organisations controlled by USA (World Bank, IMF) might be in possession of such data, but they have never published such highly-sensitive, classified data. Navarro’s assertion reveals that there is such a secret data base.

Why did Navarro mention brahmins? Is it to create caste dissension in India? Doesn’t it amount to interference in India’s internal matters? Is that not a legal offence in India? Should Assam police not register a case against Navarro at Tejpur police station, and fly to Washington to meet Trump and demand expeditious extradition of the offender? Trump had recently hosted at the White House a military officer from a country sharing a problematic border with India; so, he may be open to offer similar hospitality to the Thana Inspector from Assam subject to the condition that the state facilitates trade in Trump-family crypto-currencies.

While the long hand of India’s law may take time to reach America, a distance of 12052 kms (New Delhi to Washington DC); here is a little primer to improve Navarro’s knowledge about India.

Brahmins are cursed by Lakshmi, the Goddess of Wealth to remain poor for ever. An arrogant ancestor, Bhrigu had kicked Vishnu’s chest which is the abode of Sri (another name for Lakshmi) incurring Lakshmi’s ire and curse for his entire clan and forever.

That is why no oil refinery is owned by a brahmin, and no brahmin is among the ten richest persons in India.

A few Secretaries to Government of India may be brahmins. Some claim a much higher percentage than 5% - the share of brahmins in India’s total population. But that confirms their relative poverty.

According to a Subhashita, trade is the best path to wealth, agriculture is only half as good as trade, craft half as good as agriculture, and servitude is the worst among the professions. If a disproportionate percentage of brahmins are in public service, it is owing to Lakshmi’s ancient curse. They neither have the capital for trade nor land for agriculture nor the skill for arts and crafts.

But why offer a free course to Navarro? He should pay the blogger’s fees plus Export Duty of 100% on Intellectual Property.

No free lunch for you, Navarro!

Postscript

Why Assam police? 

Why would Assam police go to USA? What's the connection?

Well, Assam police have quite a formidable reputation for swift, long-distance action. They once flew to Gujarat, arrested an MLA, brought him over to Assam and kept him in jail for a few weeks!

(Vadgam MLA Jignesh Mevani arrested by Assam police | India News - Times of India https://share.google/gIPjFmwouFqVzEgur)

Boston Brahmins

A colleague drew my attention to 'Boston Brahmins', a sobriquet in America for the elite - highly-educated, affluent, and powerful.

American Brahman

Another colleague mentioned 'American Brahman' - a well-known breed of beef cattle developed from Indian zebuine stock like Gir, Guzerá, and Nellore. These cattle were crossbred and refined in the U.S. starting in the late 19th century, eventually forming the American Brahman breed. They're prized for their: Heat tolerance and resistance to parasites, Efficient feed-to-beef conversion, especially in tropical climates, Role in creating hybrid breeds like Brangus and Brahmousin.

The name “Brahman” was chosen in 1924 by J.W. Sartwelle, secretary of the American Brahman Breeders Association. It was likely inspired by the Indian Brahmin caste, but in cattle circles, it’s all about ruggedness and adaptability—not religious or social status.

***

Seeking  Forgiveness

Kshamanidhi is a mouthful of a name, so let us call him K. Upon recently receiving from a Jain friend the customary  Micchami Dukkadam message, K resolved to seek forgiveness in his own humble way.

Though not a Jain, I’m not debarred from practicing this cardinal virtue common to all religions, he thought. Didn’t Krishna name kshama among his illustrative opulence in Bhagavad Gita?[i] Didn’t Vishnu forgive Bhrigu who kicked on His chest to wake Him up?[ii]

He made a quick life-audit and began seeking forgiveness from persons he had harmed or hurt, knowingly or unknowingly, by thought, word, or deed.

“O Mother, who left me decades ago; forgive me for my most ill-timed arrival at midnight in winter at a village without a doctor or a dispensary, and at a house without electricity. You survived the delivery, put me to your breast, and helped me to live.

O Father, who ruled by the rod (and countless slaps, too); forgive my resentment against your harsh regime, and your avowed refusal to ever say ‘I love you,’ for fear of spoiling me. Forgive me for disappointing and hurting you when I received my first salary, and deposited the amount in my bank account in stead of placing that little money on your hands, as a ‘good’ son was expected to.

O Grandfather, ever so affectionate, kind and compassionate; forgive my resentment when you dragged me out of sleep well-before dawn to help you with harvesting paddy. Forgive me also for not fulfilling your wish to visit Rameshwaram. Your several visits to Prayagraj for dips in the Ganga do not expiate that omission.

Dear Sisters, forgive my inexcusable rowdiness of pulling your pigtails during our several childhood fights.

Dear Elder-sister, forgive me for diminishing your life-chances, indirectly though. You looked after home and hearth so that I could get a higher education which you were deprived of.

Dear Village which nurtured me during my early years; forgive my omission to give back to you till now. I promise to make amends before it is too late.

Dear Teachers who taught me at school, college, job, and in life; forgive me for not reaching out to you to personally convey my gratitude.

Dear Thabira, forgive me for being kutty with you at Middle school for some silly reason, and for never speaking to you thereafter.

Dear classmate who sprayed black ink on my sparkling white new shirt; forgive me for jabbing your forearm with my sharpened pencil and drawing blood.

Dear Allauddin, classmate at high school; forgive me for my uneasiness and unspoken doubt when you treated me to a sumptuous Bakr-Id lunch at your home, my very first meal in a Muslim home.”

K realised that seeking forgiveness from all he had hurt would take much contemplation and time. So, he decided to pause for now and resume later.

Michhami Dukkadam

Every year, the Jains reach out to friends, family, and even strangers with  a Michhami Dukkadam message; seeking forgiveness during the sacred Paryushana Parv - an annual, ritualised practice of self-cleansing through austerity, penance, fast, contemplation, confession, contrition, and  compassion.

Michhami Dukkadam is a Prakrit phrase. Micchā derives from mithyā (Sanskrit) and means ‘false, wrong, incorrect, illusion.’ In Odia, too, miccha has the same meaning. mi derives from me (Sanskrit) meaning ‘by me, of me.’ Dukkaḍaṁ is from duṣkṛta (Sanskrit), meaning ‘bad deeds, misdeeds, sins.’

So, Micchāmi Dukkaḍaṁ literally means:

“May the bad deeds committed by me become null and void;” or ‘May all my bad deeds be rendered fruitless.’
To bring greater clarity, some translate it as follows: “I ask forgiveness for all wrongs done by me to any living being, knowingly or unknowingly, in thought, word, or deed.”

But the crisp, cryptic phrase may have deeper connotations, and could mean:

The gains which have accrued to me through my bad deeds are illusory and unreal. May those gains be nullified and destroyed.

Or

The gains accrued to me through bad deeds have earned a huge karmic debit which would jeopardise and stigmatise my future lives. Upon this realisation, I confess my guilt and seek forgiveness to wipe away the sin through austerity and penance (tapas).

Forgiveness Heals

Forgiveness is a balm for healing. It soothes both – the forgiver and the forgiven. It is therapeutic, says modern psychology of wellness.

Forgiveness need not be a one-time exercise. A daily or periodic detox and self-cleansing may be better and healthier, thought K.

***

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[i] मृत्यु: सर्वहरश्चाहमुद्भवश्च भविष्यताम् |

कीर्ति: श्रीर्वाक्च नारीणां स्मृतिर्मेधा धृति: क्षमा || 10.34||

I am the all-devouring death, and I am the origin of those things that are yet to be. Amongst feminine qualities I am fame, prosperity, fine speech, memory, intelligence, courage, and forgiveness.

[ii] Rahim’s doha:

छिमा बड़ेन को चाहिए, छोटन को उतपात।

का रहिमन हरि को घट्यो, जो भृगु मारी लात।।