IAS officer Mr Parikipandla Narahari believes that each new generation of Indians should be aware about its culture, because this helps them to connect with the roots and gain success in every field. With this thought, the 2001-batch officer and the brain behind the immensily successful ‘Ladli Laxmi Yojna’, Mr. Narahari and his co-writer Prathviraj Singh came up with their book titled ‘The Great Tale of Hinduism’.
In conversation with Indian Masterminds, Mr. Narahari emphasized that one should never confuse Hinduism with a religion. It is way of life and every Indian, no matter which God they are offering their prayers to, has been leading this life from thousands of years.
What this book is about
Currently posted as the Commissioner, Technical Education Department, Mr. Narahari said, `‘In the recent times, false information about ‘Hinduism’ has been propagating through social media. It has really impacted the minds of youth. I and Prathviraj used to discuss about it a lot. One day we came up with the idea of a book which should be easily understood and interesting.”.
About three years of research went into the book. It relies mostly on old, traditional tales that have been passed to us through several generations.
“Those tales,’’ said Mr Narahari, “were the inspiration behind this book. We also dug out the original stories behind those tales and mentioned them in the book. Apart from it the book also incorporates current issues. There is separate chapter about ‘The era of empowered women’, yoga, medicinal discoveries, eating habits etc.”
Our Deep-Rooted Culture
Mr. Narahari pointed out that whenever there was a discussion about ‘Hinduism’, people mistake it with religion, but that was not true. It is a way of life which has been followed for centuries, and still every individual living in India is connected with it some way or the other, he insisted.
Giving an example, he said “When Covid-19 struck our nation, we all were advised to do meditation, yoga and follow healthy eating habits. It was our way of life which we had forgotten.”
Co-writer of the book, Mr. Prathviraj Singh expressed his happiness at the success of their work, especially in the international market. He said, “There is trend now a days about people propagating few undocumented facts to showcase the greatness of Hinduism. This undermines the original facts on which we must take pride. For example, you must have heard about Pushpak Viman being the helicopter and surgery being performed on Lord Ganesh. These are mythological stories and there is no proof about it. But there are documented proofs of Rhinoplasty performed by Sushruta, the ancient Indian physician.”
In short, ‘The Great Tale of Hinduism’ is a combined effort by Mr. Narahari and Prathviraj Singh to challenge the misconceptions about Indian culture.
