After the death of the Buddha, his teachings were hardly known beyond the eastern part of India. It was Ashoka, the emperor, who spread Buddist teachings across India and Asia. Through his patronage and efforts, in effect, Ashoka created the
I wrote this blog in 2020 but am returning to it because, in 2025, the world needs GOOD GOVERNANCE and hope that change, in the interests of humanity, is possible. Today the Madras Courier published an opinion piece by me
The Water of Life: Bill Nighy, Victor Glynn and I Do you find that life is like water –rivers flowing alongside crossing, meeting and blending? Thursday was like that for me. The film producer Victor Glynn suggested I be
I love the Today programme during the Christmas period, when it has guest editors. Their choice of in depth subject matter is inspirational. First off was author and screenwriter, Frank Cottrell Boyce, on a subject dear to my heart -
https://www.oxfordmail.co.uk/news/19607563.novel-walk-around-oxford-author-sylvia-vetta/ Most visitors to Oxford cluster around a few streets of Dreaming Spires and, in my opinion, miss out on the complexities of this beautiful city. I recommended a few books on the subject for https://shepherd.com/best-books/oxford-and-where-town-meets-gown In Sculpting the Elephant,
Why the world should know about Ashoka . This blog is intended for those in the West, who know nothing about the man who founded the religion we know as Buddhism, established the world’s first international university, disapproved of
My last visit to India in 2018 was not to the sights of Mughal India, unlike in the pic above taken in 1992, but to a much more ANCIENT India. I was researching for the subplot of Sculpting the Elephant