Anuradha Sridharan

  As 2025 draws to an end, it feels like the right moment to pause and reflect on the milestones achieved, the joyful moments cherished, and the challenges faced along the way. Like every year, my heart is filled with gratitude for the many blessings God has bestowed through people and experiences. I am now nearing the final milestone of my MSc Yoga programme. The second and third semesters went well, and the deeper learning and meaningful interactions made the journey truly memorable. I will certainly miss the structured learning and academic rigor that this programme offered. The final thesis work remains, and I hope to complete it in the first half of 2026. 2025 also marked the year I began teaching online Yoga classes. It was a deeply satisfying experience to plan each session and gradually incorporate varied asanas into the practice. However, I had to pause the batch as they clashed with the busy morning routine of preparing lunch boxes on time. I’m hopeful that in 2026 I’ll b...

In 2020, I wrote about my experience with a brain-training app called Elevate , which I found incredibly engaging. At the time, I shared five reasons why it had completely hooked me. Five years later, in an era where apps grab our attention quickly and then fade just as fast, I find myself writing about the same app again. My daughter and I are still using it—so much so that we upgraded to the premium version. Over time, we reached the highest difficulty levels in most of the games. Eventually, our interest dipped slightly. My daughter wanted to keep her streak alive, so she began playing with minimal effort, just enough to maintain it. About three months ago, Elevate introduced a new feature called Leagues. It was a simple leaderboard system where the top ten players advanced through tiers such as Bronze, Silver, Gold, Ruby, and Diamond. This immediately reignited our interest. We found ourselves eagerly playing games across Math, Reading, Memory, Writing, and Speaking categories. It...

One of my most favorite books is " Value of Values " by Swami Dayananda Saraswati. In the first 25 pages, the importance of values and how they impact our everyday life are so beautifully explained.   Our actions, emotions, decisions, and life priorities all trace back to our values. Understanding values brings clarity, reduces confusion, and supports better decision‑making. Why Values Matter Values shape behavior: What we do is determined by what we value. Awareness of values brings clarity: Knowing your values helps resolve confusion and align decisions. Values must be chosen, not imposed: Only self‑chosen values can be truly assimilated into one’s life. Values are universal in content but context‑dependent in application. How We Relate to Values 1. We apply values more strictly to others than to ourselves Example: We demand refunds when we receive less than we paid for, but rarely report when we receive more than we paid for. 2. Going against our own values crea...

January 9th, 2016 — the day I stepped out of my comfort zone. I still remember my very first food stall at a lake santhe. After spending years fascinated by food and nutrition, I finally decided to share that passion beyond my family. My menu was simple but heartfelt — fingermillet idlis, barnyard millet sweet pongal, and rajamudi rice savory pongal. Millets were far from “trendy” back then, but the joy I felt that day is still unmatched. That experience pushed me to start a small home-based catering service for my apartment community. Every weekend, I’d brainstorm menus, shop for ingredients, and cook with full focus — that “in the zone” feeling I cherish. Orders were few initially, mostly from a couple of kind senior citizens. But I persisted. Over time, I added podis and thokkus, and slowly, appreciation grew. Of course, there were also the occasional digs — “Why would a BE/MBA do such menial work?” But honestly, those comments only made me more resilient. 2017 — the world of pack...

Is reading scriptures something to pick up only after retirement? Are stotras and kirtans meant solely for the elderly? Many of us unconsciously assume this, and that belief stops us from encouraging teenagers and young adults to explore spirituality early in life. The early working years are filled with pressure, deadlines, and expectations, leaving little time or mental space for inner work. And even when the desire is there, social norms often dictate what is considered “cool,” steering us away from practices that nourish the mind. There is also a feeling that one needs life experience and emotional maturity to truly understand spiritual wisdom. That is true to an extent, but it shouldn’t become an excuse to postpone the journey. Bhartrhari’s Vairagya Shatakam , a profound collection of 100 verses on detachment, offers a gentle yet powerful reminder on when this pursuit should actually begin. In Verse 75, he lays out the ideal time with striking clarity: “As long as this body is ...

  Certain Modern Feminists view of today's  “Empowered Woman”  – A woman who’s told that empowerment means peppering every sentence with swear words. – One who’s encouraged to smoke because it supposedly symbolizes rebellion. – One who’s expected to drink alcohol as a badge of liberation. – One who’s taught to blame “patriarchy” for every minor inconvenience — from bad weather to traffic jams. – One who embraces batch-cooking and frozen meals as the only “progressive” lifestyle. – One who’s pushed to look down upon women who prefer freshly prepared food, as if choosing tradition automatically makes them lesser. – A woman who is expected to stay perpetually angry at society, wearing victimhood like a proud badge of honour. – One who must reject anything tied to culture or tradition, automatically labeling it “patriarchal” without a second thought. – One who is encouraged to fight endlessly for her rights while treating any mention of duty or responsibility as an out...

In June 2023, I felt completely lost—physically drained, mentally exhausted, and worn down by ego-driven attitudes that blocked progress. It was painful to watch health being marketed through fear, supported by the vocabulary of modern psychiatry. The only thing that kept me grounded during that phase was my practice of Yoga. On an impulse, I signed up for a Yoga Instructor Course (YIC), eager to change direction as quickly as possible. I was even a little annoyed to learn that the batch would begin only a month later, in August. Those two months of the instructor course opened my eyes to a much wider world—Vedas, Upanishads, the Bhagavad Gita, yoga texts, chanting, Indian culture, history, and so much more. Completing YIC felt like catching the first glimpse of the vast streams of Yoga and our Shastras. Wanting to go deeper, I enrolled in the MSc Yoga program.  January 2024:  Back to student life once more—only now, my motivation was entirely different from what drove me du...

  In Viveka Chudamani, Adi Shankaracharya reflects on the five senses in Verse 76, illustrating his point with five vivid examples: A deer is undone by its attachment to sound. An elephant is overpowered by its sense of touch. A moth is drawn helplessly to what it sees, especially sources of light. A fish falls prey to its irresistible attraction to taste. A bee is captivated by the fragrance of flowers, its sense of smell becoming its downfall. In each of these creatures, a single dominant sense becomes a vulnerability that enslaves them. Shankaracharya then poses a striking question: what fate awaits a human being who is attached to all five senses at once? We can already see the consequences. Our excessive fascination with taste alone has led to widespread deterioration of physical health. Overindulgence in the other senses is expressing itself as a rise in various mental and emotional disorders. Modern technology only accelerates this. Apps that track engagement care little abo...

 One of the most prominent gadgets on our kitchen counter is the microwave oven. It offers multiple features and functionalities and comes with various modes, such as grill and convection. But the most popular use case is to reheat leftovers. In many households, the rest of the functionality is hardly explored. Yoga offers complete transformation and evolution of a human being. This profound wisdom enables all-round personality development of the individual - physical, mental, emotional, intellectual, and spiritual wellbeing. But it is unfortunate that we end up relying too much on one aspect of it - Asanas, leaving the rest unexplored. One of my Gurus often refers to an analogy - our present approach to Yoga is akin to chopping off the wings of an airplane and driving on the road to buy vegetables from a nearby shop. The extreme focus given to physical aspects dilutes the entire philosophy. Success in Yoga Sadhana is often projected as one’s smooth performance of complex twists an...

 Festival season has begun for those who follow the path of Sanatana Dharma (also commonly referred to as Hinduism). Patterns that repeat every year: Certain businesses - “I will ridicule your beliefs and traditions, but hey, I do need a share of your wallet allocated for festival spends. Here are my attractive festival deals!” Certain political parties - “An opportune moment to appease people of other faiths. Let’s come up with some announcements and see if they create any effect among the majority. If at all a few make noise, we will use our tried-and-tested playbook and convert a devotion-based, religious festival into a cultural event”. Certain cinema actors - “Do I really need to post wishes for this festival? Will that have any leverage or increase my fan base (or voter base for the future)?” Fake environmental activists - “I need to put on my savior hat and raise my voice now on air pollution, water wastage, noise pollution, animal welfare, and protecting nature....this ...

  Karma and its workings are intriguing topics, not just for exploration and analysis, but for bringing about fundamental shifts in our behaviors. A deeper understanding of Karma is crucial, so that we don't dismiss it as pre-ordained. I read the book " Karma " by Sadhguru in 2021, which brought a lot of beginner-friendly clarity. Since then, I have been exploring various other sources to go deeper into this subject. The latest book that I devoured on this topic is Meetu Bisht's "To the beginning of the end of Karma" .  I loved her earlier books - " Living spirituality " and " Why we are who we are ". They were filled with powerful insights and nuggets of wisdom. Her nuanced approach to writing keeps the reader engaged. In her new book, she has unpeeled various layers of Karma in simple language. It is quite voluminous (300+ pages), as compared to her earlier works. This book is divided into 3 sections. The first section focuses on the na...

  "People who watch a lot of violent action movies tend to have anger and revenge-seeking tendencies"-  I recently heard this statement in a discourse. What we feed our minds triggers our attitudes and behaviors. The impressions get stored in our subconscious minds and influences our actions in very many ways. In the past 3-4 years, there have been so many gory, violent movies that are being released. The censor board giving U/A certificate (13+ rated) to such extreme gore and violent movies is a big concern! I had written a detailed post on this topic when the movie " Jailer " got released. Now as the next superstar's movie is about to release, the trailer looks even worse with so much bloodshed. Though the movie is "A" rated, the impact it will create on our psyche is just not worth it, even if the viewer is 18+. Gone are the days when I used to look forward to Superstar's movies. It is so unfortunate that a person who claims to be spiritual in...