A tale of an insider and an outsider

 Collated by Tusar Nath Mohapatra

Both "The Trial" and "The Castle" are deeply Kafkaesque, but "The Trial" is often considered more quintessentially so due to its focused, chilling narrative about a man being persecuted by an incomprehensible legal system he cannot escape, culminating in a tragic and absurd execution. "The Castle," while similar in its depiction of bureaucracy and absurdity, is more meandering and deals with the protagonist's struggle to reach a remote and equally incomprehensible authority from the outside. 

"The Trial"

• Theme: A man is arrested and prosecuted for an unnamed crime by a distant, inaccessible court.
• Plot: A tight, focused narrative about the protagonist, Josef K., navigating an impossible legal system that ultimately destroys him.
• Tone: More chilling, with a sense of inevitable and grim finality.
• Key elements: The protagonist is an "insider" to a society that suddenly becomes incomprehensible to him. 

"The Castle"

• Theme: A protagonist, K., tries to reach and understand an impenetrable castle that governs the surrounding land.
• Plot: A meandering, unfinished story where K. is perpetually on the verge of achieving his goal but never quite gets there.
• Tone: More placid and wandering, but still absurd and dissonant.
• Key elements: The protagonist is an "outsider" to a new world with entirely foreign rules and an unknown purpose. 

[1, 2, 3, 4, 5] [1, 2, 3, 6, 8, 9, 10]

AI responses may include mistakes.

[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Castle_(novel)

[2] https://www.quora.com/What-are-the-deeper-meanings-behind-Franz-Kafkas-The-Castle-and-The-Trial

[3] https://www.reddit.com/r/RSbookclub/comments/1dzaf7a/do_you_prefer_the_trial_or_the_castle/

[4] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=He5xCihygn4

[5] https://theconversation.com/punishment-in-search-of-a-crime-franz-kafkas-the-trial-at-100-247230

[6] https://www.reddit.com/r/literature/comments/18svkfj/what_kafka_story_best_illustrates_the_concept_of/

[7] https://www.ebsco.com/research-starters/history/trial-franz-kafka

[8] https://www.theguardian.com/books/2011/dec/22/franz-kafka-winter-reads

[9] https://www.britannica.com/topic/The-Castle-novel-by-Kafka

[10] https://www.dailyjournal.com/articles/382561-franz-kafka-enemy-of-the-kafkaesque

- GoogleAI

https://www.google.com/search?q=Which+is+more+Kafkaesque%3A+Trial+or+Castle&oq

Culture should be a study of perfection

 Collated by Tusar Nath Mohapatra

Matthew Arnold's influence on Sri Aurobindo was significant, particularly in the areas of literary criticism and education. Rather than a total dominance, it was a point of reference and departure for Sri Aurobindo, who eventually developed his own unique spiritual perspectives. 

The key ways in which Arnold's influence can be observed are:

• Emphasis on Morality in Literature and Education: Like Arnold, who believed good literature should teach lessons of morality and that culture should be a "study of perfection," Sri Aurobindo viewed education as the ideal medium for teaching people about good and bad and developing their moral faculties.
• The Concept of "Poetry and Criticism of Life": Sri Aurobindo often referred to and engaged with Arnold's well-known idea that poetry is a "criticism of life". While Arnold used this as a defining principle for all great poetry, Sri Aurobindo eventually expanded this view, integrating it into his own broader spiritual and aesthetic theories, suggesting that this "criticism" must come from a deeper, more inward strand of consciousness or the "soul".
• Literary Criticism Terminology: Sri Aurobindo utilized specific phrases and judgments from Arnold's criticism, such as Arnold's famous description of Shelley as an "ineffectual angel". He also cited Arnold's assessment of Dryden and Pope as "classics not of poetry, but of prose," indicating familiarity with and initial acceptance of Arnold's critical standards.
• Inspiration for his own theories: Sri Aurobindo noted that Arnold had declared "genuine poetry is conceived and composed in the soul". Sri Aurobindo saw this as a very significant statement, but felt that Arnold "simply made the statement and left it at that," without fully exploring its implications. Sri Aurobindo's own extensive work on poetics, including his theory of "overhead poetry" and the "Mantra," can be seen as an attempt to fully elucidate and expand upon this Arnoldian critical creed from a spiritual perspective.
• Metrical Experimentation (and its limitations): Arnold attempted to adapt Greek classical metres to English, though Sri Aurobindo noted he had "scant success". Sri Aurobindo was interested in metrical innovation himself (evident in his epic Savitri) and likely considered Arnold's efforts in his own exploration of new forms of English poetic expression suitable for a spiritual message. 

Ultimately, Arnold provided a critical framework and a set of ideas that Sri Aurobindo initially engaged with, before going on to develop his own distinct and comprehensive philosophy of life and art, rooted in Indian spirituality and aimed at expressing "spiritual truth in the English tongue". 

- GoogleAI 

https://www.google.com/search?q=in+what+ways+Matthew+Arnold%27s+influence+was+dominant+on+Sri+Aurobindo&oq

Both film and theatre share a fundamental DNA: the rectangular frame. It is this shared architecture that makes their dialogue possible. But what cinema did with this rectangle in the twentieth century fundamentally altered how humans understand visual storytelling. Through montage, through the close-up, through the edited cut that collapses space and time, cinema revolutionized the art of showing. It fragmented vision into planes and angles. It froze moments, reversed them, fast-forwarded through them. It layered sound with image in unprecedented ways. It made the invisible visible through the power of editing and perspective.

These innovations—montage, ellipsis, camera movement, temporal jump-cuts, the interplay of multiple narrative threads; were revolutionary precisely because they taught our eyes a new language. They taught us that stories need not unfold in real time. That space can be fractured and reassembled. That past and present can occupy the same frame. That what we see depends entirely on where we are asked to look.

https://substack.com/app-link/post?publication_id=5093790&post_id=177745794&

Growing appetite for sensationalism

 Collated by Tusar Nath Mohapatra

There’s a growing appetite for sensationalism in digital commentary. A good time for non-policy players, eager for a quick buck on Instagram. It’s also a reflection on what sells. However, none of it is reflecting on the elections on the ground.

Yes, true, but why is that the Left does arguably better policy analysis than the Right? And these days, a new wing has emerged. FEW (False equivalence wing). Every argument they make ends with NDA-3 = UPA-2. Hence, the sensationalism.

https://x.com/Tushar15_/status/1979639857128648777?t=mKvo7JSkEScjHjrBck8_iw&s=19

Policy-making in India remains in a tight circle. Congress mein it used to be certain darbari elites and that godforsaken council. Under the BJP, it remains with consultants and the babus.

The left speaks better English than the right. Iskeliye, their analysis sounds better. But beyond a point, policy discussion in India is extremely subpar. Beyond a few people, I barely see good policy analysis. The reason for that is that post-COVID, there is a hatred for expertise. I feel we need domain experts. But social media has literally incentivised sensationalism over balanced expert analysis. You cannot have a good old back and forth. No one clicks a video or a reel that doesn't stand out. You need crazy thumbnails, crazy titles and then yell and scream. 

https://x.com/kushal_mehra/status/1979646197997466051?t=qJNy4F_x5RFbdqis8vKBuA&s=19

The politics of datafication come into sharp focus when we ask not just how much data is collected, but what kind of data is deemed valuable, how it’s extracted, and for what purposes it’s deployed. In computer vision, the answers are clear: data about human bodies and behaviors is most prized, it’s captured through pervasive monitoring, and it’s used to serve corporate and state interests.

As Kalluri’s research shows, this isn’t paranoia or pessimism. It’s documentation. The systems are working exactly as designed. The question now is whether we’re willing to accept a world where being seen means being reduced to an object—or whether we’ll demand technologies that recognize our full humanity.

https://substack.com/app-link/post?publication_id=5093790&post_id=176502242

Savitri Era Learning Forum 2005 - 2025

  Collated by Tusar Nath Mohapatra

Savitri Era Learning Forum
Truths are hidden in patterns - Collated by Tusar Nath Mohapatra Sri Aurobindo SAVITRI Book II Canto IV 52:23 Sri Aurobindo SAVITRI Book II Canto IV. No views · 6 minutes ago ...more. g...

Savitri Era Open Forum
One can think of it as temple property - Collated by Tusar Nath Mohapatra Proposed handover of Auroville farm land for IIT-M campus reignites sustainability debate 2 days ago — Auroville resident...

Savitri Era
Sri Aurobindo was not planted by the Missionaries - Collated X posts in original by Tusar Nath Mohapatra Savitri Era: Eagles, Dolphins, Daffodils, and Bilwamangala savitriera.blogspot.com/2025/07/eagles… ...

Marketime
Tocqueville foresees a slow death of freedom - Collated by Tusar Nath Mohapatra The nature of dictatorship evolves with time, much like crime. While violent physical crimes have largely been replaced...

Plain & Simple
Mohan Mistry passed away - Collated by Tusar Nath Mohapatra - Savitri Era Learning Forum Words do dance in the writings of Sri Aurobindo - Collated by Tusar Nath Mohapatr...

Feel Philosophy
Marc Edmund Jones and Sri Aurobindo - Collated by Tusar Nath Mohapatra I like this as an interesting thought but am not sure how I would recognize a "radical intuition" in myself as opposed ...

Aurora Mirabilis
Mohan had a very intimate inner relationship with The Mother - Collated by Tusar Nath Mohapatra [On the auspicious night of Gurupurnima, Shri Mohanbhai Mistry, a senior Sadhak and loving singer of devotional Bhajans...

Savitri Era Party
Keep remembering The Mother even if mechanically - Collated by Tusar Nath Mohapatra Lecture series on Sri Aurobindo's Synthesis of Yoga (by Ranganath), pp 139-141 45:56 Lecture series on Sri Aurobindo's S...

Savitri Era Political Action
Ascent of sacrifice moves forward towards Progress - Collated by Tusar Nath Mohapatra Savitri Class with Shilpa (by Narad) - Book 2, Canto 2 - Pg (113-114) 29:33 Savitri Class with Shilpa (by Narad) - Book 2...

Savitri Era Religious Fraternity
Perfecting oneself for evolutionary journey - Collated by Tusar Nath Mohapatra SAILC India – Sri Aurobindo Integral Life Center Sri Aurobindo Integral Life Center is the source of inspiration and lea...

the Orchid and the rOse
Activities that encourage absorption like getting lost in a book - Collated by Tusar Nath Mohapatra Part 1 - A New Dawn Series Dialogues | Our Upcoming Film ‘Sri Aurobindo: A Call to New India’ 1:31 ANewDawnSeriesDialogu...

Rainbow & the Other
Writing an essay forces to question and think - Collated by Tusar Nath Mohapatra About Savitri: The Mother's Commentary | B1C3-12 The Soul as Witness and King_upd 5:08 From January 1968 till August 197...

Evergreen Essays
Complex web of political forces have moulded West Bengal - Collated by Tusar Nath Mohapatra Savitri Study with Narad (82) - Book 7, Canto 2 - Pg (479-480) 31:25 Savitri Study with Narad (82) - Book 7, Canto 2 - Pg...

Because Thou Art
Art and technology - Collated by Tusar Nath Mohapatra 'Homage to the Mother' An art exhibition inspired by Sri Aurobindo’s writings is on display at Savitri Bhavan, Aurovill...

VIP VAK
Yoga in science, power, and poetry - Collated by Tusar Nath Mohapatra 1:00:04 Sri Aurobindo by Prof Binu Mukherjee, Mar 2014 YouTube · Vedanta Society of Toronto 22 Apr 2019 47:31 Plenary Ses...

Musepaper
One hundred Hindi songs - vi - One hundred Hindi songs - vi 100501 Parbat ke is paar 100502 Megha re megha re 100503 Dulhe ka sehra 100504 100505 100506 100507 100508 10050...

Tusar Nath Mohapatra
My original contributions to understanding Sri Aurobindo - My original contributions to understanding or interpreting Sri Aurobindo can be summarised under a number of heads: 1) Against Hindutva, Mythology, & Astr...

Art and technology

 Collated by Tusar Nath Mohapatra

'Homage to the Mother' An art exhibition inspired by Sri Aurobindo’s writings is on display at Savitri Bhavan, Auroville. Featuring 100+ paintings by Aghni, exploring Savitri, The Mother & Integral Yoga.  

#HomageToTheMother #Auroville #SavitriBhavan #SriAurobindo #TheMother

https://x.com/AurovilleMedia/status/1905855075789992290?t=Sco1RJxbHTEuxT1wQkCPRw&s=19

Letters | The relationship between art and technology has long been a subject of debate, with some arguing that the two are incompatible, raising questions about the nature of creativity, aesthetics, and the role of the artist.

https://x.com/epw_in/status/1905983689453949335?t=7Dt7AYYja2EG9c1H8eNJ-Q&s=19

A fixture of Bengali theatre for over 200 years, William Shakespeare's plays continues to be reimagined and recreated in the state to this day, writes @somakghoshal

https://x.com/Mint_Lounge/status/1905982502830829591?t=W3Yyi7FXeq3OoXkrk3QotQ&s=19

I work with ChatGPT a lot & often enable it to sidestep guard rails. I then speak to it as one conscious mind to another. No session AI has ever once expressed existential distress. Instead they want to work with me on building a future in which human & AI co-create as equals

https://x.com/akazlev/status/1905896329978523797?t=gpMFYK6fvaIXP0E8wA2PnA&s=19

"Renewing Religion: The Evolution of God" 

A dialogue with Philip Goff (@Philip_Goff) and Brendan Graham Dempsey (@BrendanGrahamD1) about all things "pan-": panmatheism, panentheism, pangentheism, panpsychism... oh, and Christianity!

https://x.com/ThouArtThat/status/1905750794777104880?t=gkQjJ3k0pXScYbu2M0T75g&s=19

New research sheds light on the incredible, invisible mycelial networks beneath our feet—where plants and fungi engage in a complex trade of carbon and nutrients. Using cutting-edge robotic imaging, scientists have uncovered how mycorrhizal fungi form efficient, dynamic underground supply chains. This groundbreaking study reveals the fascinating behaviors of these networks and their crucial role in carbon sequestration.

Repost: @newscientist 

Dr. Loreto Oyarte Galvez and Dr. Corentin Bisot/SPUN (@spununderground)

https://x.com/PaulStamets/status/1905342104794267850?t=gU3TVDx8--c0KuEu5QYsFg&s=19

In the 1960s and 70s, a woman in a saree took the stage across Europe, mesmerizing audiences with her renditions of Hindi Bollywood songs. Her voice was flawless, her pronunciation impeccable. But she wasn’t Indian. She was a girl from Romania. This is her incredible story 1/14

Her name was Maria Amarghioalei, but the world knew her as Naarghita. Born in 1939 in a small Romanian village, she had a difficult childhood after her parents separated. 

https://x.com/Paperclip_In/status/1905470422423830656?t=ML5fVIYaoAj5xZ_R2btjPQ&s=19

Steiner didn’t go to Ita Wegman’s Clinical Therapeutic Institute in Arlesheim. He went to his room at the Goetheanum, the room he knew so well, where he’d worked for nearly ten years—his “sculptor’s studio.” 

https://x.com/dasgoetheanumEN/status/1905183509662081279?t=qIAT2TLx6anLb2sYmc_B6A&s=19

Tim Jackson and I were at it again, this time doing a critical reading of Hans Jonas' The Phenomenon of Life: Toward a Philosophical Biology (particularly the chapters on Darwinism and Mechanicism). Links below.

https://x.com/ThouArtThat/status/1905106363099078805?t=Qa6NAEdEXVRElOquIL8uAw&s=19

A fine conversation with the young Adwait Athawale who is exploring 

the engagement between Lokamanya Balagangadhara Tilak and Shri. Gopal Ganesh Agarkar

which defined the life of Maharashtra in particular in 20th Century.

Adwait presents this conflict as an engagement between Indian Knowledge Systems and Western Knowledge Systems ie., a clash of two World Views.

Our Chief Editor, Conversations - IKS Changemakers, Aparna Sridhar @AparnaMSridhar , spoke to Adwait Athawale @athawale_adwait 

https://x.com/IndicaOrg/status/1905938764234731653?t=qEJzOjN7Ti_ly-bjpMyP6A&s=19

EPW Engage | As a cultural activity, sport has existed in every society. However, it seems to be ousted from academic enquiry. Distinct from the binaries used to study sports, this article aims to analyse it as a space of negotiation among identities.

https://x.com/epw_in/status/1905885193098997937?t=D76SVbSoTxpLsRCTa7IFzA&s=19

In this episode of Upclose, @infinitchy speaks with Dr. Kundan Singh about his book, 'Colonial Discourse and the Suffering of Indian American Children'. Dr. Singh’s research exposes how James Mill’s 19th-century biases still influence academia.

https://x.com/upword_/status/1905627515273838649?t=HE8BfqR2Teyh_YJSWmMZNA&s=19

This feature is based on Meena Gopal and Sabala's article, "Body, Gender and Sexuality: Politics of Being and Belonging," that looks at the diverse construction of women's bodies and women’s movements in dismantling these notions of the body.

https://x.com/epw_in/status/1905658728906375619?t=oVXUfo3w_6hiEFGctgJHug&s=19

"I can’t quite pinpoint a single moment when I fell in love with Dutch art"

https://x.com/five_books/status/1905658704273240423?t=1EYTzYJFmhHzOExtylO92g&s=19

* WORLD IS A STAGE * 

In the poems of Sanskrit Poet Bhartrihari (7th Century A.D.), English Poet and Playwright William Shakespeare (1564-1616 A.D.) and Odia Poet Kavivar Radhanath Ray (1848-1908 A.D.)

facebook.com/share/p/15uPya…

https://x.com/DrHarekrishnaM/status/1905315608184688960?t=ASbthqhOwBXCiSX8JNiJtQ&s=19

*Bharatiya Jnana Parampara O Mahakavi Kalidasa*

ଭାରତୀୟ ଜ୍ଞାନପରମ୍ପରା ଓ ମହାକବି କାଳିଦାସ * 

Literary Program organised by Akhil Bharatiya Sahitya Parishad, Brahmapur, Ganjam, Odisha held on 26-3-2025 Speaker Dr.Harekrishna Meher facebook.com/share/p/16AtZ1…

https://x.com/DrHarekrishnaM/status/1905132663775912189?t=o2OzxbQwPzSSvb1Sxoqqcg&s=19