प्रेक्षा or Prekshaa is a Sanskrit word that means ‘seeing clearly.’ Other meanings include ‘intellect,’ ‘reflection,’ and ‘contemplation.’ The word prekṣā can be explained etymologically as प्रकृष्टतया ईक्षणम् (prakṛṣṭatayā īkṣaṇam) – ‘profound vision’ or ‘well seen.’
The Inspiration
अर्थचतुष्टयशिक्षा
साक्षात्कृत-यज्ञ-दान-तपसा॑ दीक्षा ।
वाग्वृत्तित्रयरक्षा
प्रेक्षाऽसौ जयति भारतीपदलाक्षा॥
(शतावधानि डॉ. रा गणेश)
Victorious indeed is Prekshaa – the clear intellect that has been
constantly educating everyone about the Purusharthas.
Prekshaa is synonymous with the initiation into
Yajna (Sharing), Dana (Giving), and Tapas (Penance) |
Being the protector of the three modes of expression
(Abhidha – the designated meaning,
Lakshana – the suggested meaning, and
Vyanjana – the implied meaning),
Prekshaa, the clear intellect, is indeed the red lacquer
on the feet of Bharati, the deity of wisdom ||
(Śatāvadhāni Dr. R. Ganesh)
A Niche Online Journal of Indian Cultural Heritage
Prekshaa is a niche online journal featuring articles, essays, long-forms, interviews, and videos on Indian art, culture, literature, history, and philosophy in multiple Indian languages. Prekshaa’s primary goal is to make the vast and chequered fabric of Indian cultural heritage more accessible to all.
Prekshaa Journal has three main focus areas:
1. Publish original research of scholars in subjects related to Indian cultural heritage.
2. Produce lucid English translations of valuable literature in these areas, which are already available in Indian languages.
3. Identify, curate, and make available in the public domain primary texts related to various aspects of Indian antiquity and build an online archive.
Timeless Content
Deeply influenced by the Indian spirit, the content in Prekshaa is characterized by the element of timelessness and continuing relevance. The journal tries to resonate within its pages the eternal spirit of the Vedāntic realization by the seers of the Upaniṣads to the poetic genius of Kālidāsa, the historical pre-eminence of Vidyāraṇya to the new dimensions in Indian classical music explored by M. Balamuralikrishna. In other words, the content on Prekshaa is space-and-time neutral.
The Journey
Prekshaa Journal was originally started in early 2010 by a group of youngsters from Bangalore, under the guidance of Śatāvadhāni Dr. R. Ganesh who also composed the verse that inspires the motto of Prekshaa Journal. Encouraged by the regular stream of quality content to its corpus and response from a discerning readership, Prekshaa was officially registered as a non-profit publishing organization in 2016.
In the journey so far, Prekshaa Journal has published about four hundred pieces including essays, long-forms, interviews, translations, and videos in English, Sanskrit, Kannada, and Tamil featuring such stalwarts as Prof. M Hiriyanna, D.V. Gundappa, Dr. M Balamuralikrishna, Dr. S L Bhyrappa, and Śatāvadhāni Dr. R. Ganesh.
Editorial Team
Sandeep Balakrishna is an author, columnist, translator, socio-political analyst, and former technologist. He is the author of Tipu Sultan: The Tyrant of Mysore and The Madurai Sultanate: A Concise History. He translated Dr. S L Bhyrappa’s magnum opus Avarana into English. He is currently working on his third book.
Shashi Kiran B N holds a bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering. His interests include Indian aesthetics, Hindu scriptures, Sanskrit literature, and philosophy. A literary aficionado, Shashi enjoys composing Sanskrit verses set to classical poetic meters. He is currently pursuing his master’s degree in Sanskrit. He co-wrote a translation of Śatāvadhāni Dr. R Ganesh’s Kannada work Kavitegondu Kathe.
Arjun Bharadwaj is a poet, translator, engineer, and musician. He holds a master’s degree in Engineering as well as in Sanskrit. He is a polyglot, well-versed in Sanskrit, Kannada, Hindi, English, Greek, and German. Arjun is currently studying comparative aesthetics of classical Greek and Sanskrit literature. He co-wrote a translation of Śatāvadhāni Dr. R Ganesh’s Kannada work Kavitegondu Kathe.
Hari Ravikumar is a writer and musician with a deep interest in the Hindu scriptures, Carnatic music, education pedagogy design, and literature. He co-wrote The New Bhagavad-Gita, Srishti, and Foggy Fool’s Farrago. He translated Śatāvadhāni Dr. R Ganesh’s Kannada monograph on dharma into English (as Your Dharma and Mine).
Editorial Advisory Board
Prekshaa’s editorial advisory board members represent the highest echelons of scholarship and art in the country. Apart from mentoring the editorial team, the members of the editorial advisory board also give specific inputs on articles and essays in their chosen domain of expertise. The journal is fortunate to have the support of the following luminaries:
Dr. S L Bhyrappa is India’s foremost novelist with over twenty novels and several non-fiction essays to his credit. In a career that has endured over fifty years, he has written novels such as Mandra, Parva, Daatu, Sakshi, Nele, and Aavarana. His novels Vamshavruksha, Tabbaliyu Neenade Magane, Matadaana, and Naayi Neralu were made into critically acclaimed films. After completing his PhD. in philosophy and working in various government departments, he decided to become a full-time writer. He won the Kannada Sahitya Akademi Award twice: in 1966 for Vamshavruksha and in 1975 for Daatu, which also brought him a Kendra Sahitya Akademi Award the same year. In 2010, he was awarded the 20thSaraswati Samman and in 2015, he was given the Sahitya Akademi Fellowship. The Government of India honoured him with the Padma Shri in the year 2016. He is also a National Professor.
Shatavadhani Dr. R Ganesh is one of India’s foremost Sanskrit poets, scholars, and avadhānis. He writes and lectures extensively on various subjects pertaining to India and Indian cultural heritage. Over 10,000 hours of his lectures on Indian culture and heritage, Indian and Western arts, and Indian and Western philosophy have been recorded. He is a master of the ancient art of avadhāna and performs it in Sanskrit, Telugu, and Kannada (he is credited with reviving the art of avadhāna in Kannada.) He is fluent in eighteen languages including Sanskrit, Kannada, Telugu, Tamil, Hindi, Marathi, Pali, Prakrit, Latin, Greek, and Italian. Dr. Ganesh holds a master’s degree in Metallurgy and in Sanskrit. Hampi University gave him a D.Litt. for his thesis, ‘The Art of Avadhāna in Kannada.’ He was formerly the director of the Gandhi Centre at the Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan. He is recipient of several awards and recognitions including the Bādarāyaṇa-Vyāsa Puraskar from the President of India for his contribution to the Sanskrit language.
Dr. S R Leela is a writer, dramatist, professor, and a former Member of the Legislative Council of Karnataka. After graduating with a master’s degree in Sanskrit, Dr. Leela obtained an M.Phil. from Madras University and PhD. from Bengaluru University. She was the director of the RV Institute of Sanskrit Studies and Professor and Head of the Sanskrit Department in NMKRV College. With a view to propagate classical arts in Sanskrit theatre, she established Abhinaya Bharati. Dr. Leela has produced and directed feature films in Sanskrit. She has authored more than fifteen books in Sanskrit, English, and Kannada apart from translating scholarly articles and books from Sanskrit to English. She joined the Mahabharata Pratishtana as the editorial coordinator of the Encyclopedia of the Mahabharata. She was honoured with the Aryabhata Award in 2008.
Dr. S R Ramaswamy is a journalist, writer, scholar, and environmentalist par excellence. Since 1980, he has been the honorary editor-in-chief of Utthana and Rashtrotthana Sahitya. Earlier, he was the chief sub-editor of Sudha. Proficient in multiple languages including Sanskrit, Kannada, Telugu, English, Hindi, and German, Dr. Ramaswamy has written over fifty books and more than a thousand articles in his career of more than five decades. He was in close association with the intellectual giants of India between 1950 and 1990, particularly D V Gundappa, who was a guru and mentor to him. He is currently the honorary secretary of the Gokhale Institute of Public Affairs. In 2011, the Karnataka State Open University conferred him with an honorary D. Litt for lifetime contribution to literature and journalism. In 2015, the Hampi University honoured him with the Nadoja award.
Dr. T S Sathyavathi is a renowned Carnatic classical musician, guided by stalwarts like Smt. Vasanthamadhavi and Sri. R K Srikantan in singing, Sri. B V K Sastry in musicology, and Sri. Bangalore K. Venkataram in mridangam. An ekasandhigrāhi, her musical journey started at the age of two when she sang before the then Maharani of Mysore. She has a deep knowledge of Sanskrit and has composed music-dance-dramas for Gītā-govindam, Abhijñāna-śākuntalam, and Dakṣa-yajña. She has written scores of scholarly articles and papers for prestigious journals. She has been a much sought-after guru and in the past forty years many of her students have become accomplished artistes. She is the recipient of several awards including Karnataka Kalashree, Madras Music Academy Award, Ganavisharade, Karnakata Sangeeta Kalarathna, and Sangeeta Sahitya Vinodini.
Dr. L V Shantakumari is a renowned scholar with extensive work in both academic and non-academic fields. She has a master’s degree in English and a Vishaarada in Hindi. She taught English at Tumkur University, Government Arts and Science College, Siddaganga Women’s College, and Vidyodaya Law College. With her mastery over Kannada, English, and Hindi, she has produced several works of translations. She has written more than twenty books in Kannada and English and has translated eleven books into Kannada and English, including English translations of bestselling novels of Dr. Bhyrappa. Her anthology of essays, A Creative Appreciation of Dr. S L Bhyrappa’s Works has been critically acclaimed. She has also written short stories, poems, and research papers, which have been published in many newspapers and magazines in Karnataka.
