Sightings Articles
Looking Back on My Run-in with Censorship in India
Ed. Note: The author has discussed other aspects of the story of her publishing experiences in India in The New York Review of Books (“India: Censorship by the Batra Brigade,” May 8, 2014); Sightings (“Prelude to Censorship: The Toleration of Blasphe...
October 1, 2018
The Expanded Spelling of "koinonia"
Though as an Indian I take a certain pride in the accomplishments of Indian American children, I generally do not follow closely the spelling bee contests where they emerge as winners in most years. Still, I could not help but take notice when fourte...
June 28, 2018
Life and Death Matters: The Cosmic Man
Three months ago, on August 10, the High Court of the state of Rajasthan in India ruled against the Jain community’s voluntary practice of meditating without food or water until death. Though this practice is held in high regard by the Jain comm...
October 29, 2015
Prelude to Censorship: The Toleration of Blasphemy in Ancient India
India today is experiencing a powerful wave of censorship of literary texts, films, and artworks. Such a degree of repression is unprecedented in India, but it is rooted in concepts of blasphemy that underwent a number of changes throughout Indian hi...
May 21, 2015
#JeSuisCharlie: Blasphemy in Hinduism and Censorship in India
Free speech, under attack in France, is also contested in India, where violence ignited by videos or messages deemed “blasphemous” or “insulting” by orthodox Hindus has long been a reality. In 2014 alone, eighty-five religion-related attacks on the m...
January 22, 2015
The Bioethics of Euthanasia in India: Past and Present
Hinduism’s response to the question of euthanasia...