Center for Soft Power

Tatwa‑Tantu: The Sacred Thread of Reality 📅 September 6-12, 2025 | 📍 Vaidyagrama, Coimbatore, India Join the Retreat for 6 transformative days where the timeless wisdom of Ayurveda meets the beauty of temple arts, sacred music, Vedic chanting, and the silent language of Pancha Bhutas — earth, water, fire, air, and space. 🕉️ Guided by masters in Ayurveda, Bharatanatyam, Carnatic music, ritual, and Sanskrit Tatwa‑Tantu is a sacred experience of living the interconnectedness of all life. 💫 What to expect: – Daily reflections from Ancient Indian Knowledge Systems – Immersive sessions with Artists, Vaidyas, Scholars & Seekers – Quiet time in nature for integration and healing – A celebration of art as healing and healing as art Come be part of a vibrant community that honors embodiment, ecology, and inner awakening. 🌺 🔗 Register now at ayurvedaconference.com/tatwa… Vijayalakshmi Vijayakumar - Director @vijayalakshmiVK , Centre for Soft Power @IndicaSoftPower has curated the Retreat and is one of the faculty members along with Dr. Vinayachandra BK @aurovinaya - Director, Centre for Yoga @YogaIndica . #TatwaTantu2025 #Vaidyagrama #Ayurveda #IndianKnowledgeSystems #SacredArts #HealingThroughTradition #PanchaBhutas #AyurvedaConference #SpiritualRetreat #TatwaTantu @SaamaanyaJ @dimplekaul_in @AparnaMSridhar @Sai_swaroopa @vaidyagrama @PunarnavaGroup

INDICA is pleased to announce the release of a new Anthology Gods in Exile Curated by Avatans Kumar @avatans This anthology of short stories draws inspiration from the historical accounts presented in Meenakshi Jain’s @IndicMeenakshi Flight of Deities and Rebirth of Temples, tracing the Hindu response to the destruction of temples and desecration of their deities during periods of Islamic conquest. Each story captures moments of quiet resilience and bold defiance—acts of devotion, courage, and cultural preservation in the face of profound loss. For centuries, the devastation of temples and mutilation of deities have left a deep, transgenerational wound in the Hindu psyche—a trauma that has only recently begun to be acknowledged in mainstream historical narratives. Cantered on the themes of dharmic resistance and spiritual endurance, the anthology honours the efforts of rulers, communities, and individuals who fought to protect, reclaim, and rebuild their sacred spaces. In doing so, it offers a deeper understanding of the cultural and emotional weight these events continue to carry. #GodsInExile #Anthology #HinduHeritage #TempleDesecration #DharmicResistance #SpiritualEndurance #CulturalPreservation #HinduPsyche #HistoricalNarratives #BookRelease #IndicaPublications #IndicaBooks @SaamaanyaJ @nagaraj_paturi @dimplekaul_in @yoginisd @aurovinaya @nkgrock @AparnaMSridhar @PKaipa @SaiSambat @Sai_swaroopa @AbhinavAgarwal @vijayalakshmiVK @blogsophist @advaitaacademy @indicatoday @YogaIndica @IndicaBooks @IndicaPictures @vipulkocher @SVOjha @zeneraalstuff @indiancatch22 @sanatanrasik @daminijosh @IndicaSoftPower @BluOneInk

Ikat: The Common Thread of Indo-Southeast Textiles From the Patan Patola sarees of Gujarat to the Pochampalli of Telangana to the Sambhalpuri of Odisha, Ikat has carved a niche in the textile traditions of India. One of the earliest evidence of this tye-and-dye craft comes from the #Murals of #Ajanta dating almost a thousand years ago. The popularity and uniqueness of Ikat can be attributed to the meticulous process, in which resist is applied to the yarn before it is dyed and then woven. This results in the ‘blurriness,’ around the motifs and geometric patterns woven into the garment, making it a distinctive feature of #Ikat weaves. The threads of Ikat have also woven communities and cultures together since ancient times. Ikat from India travelled far and wide to Southeast Asia, influencing weaving patterns in the region as well as determining trade and commerce. It is also possible that Ikat weaves and craftsmanship travelled west to Egypt, Central Asia and West Asia via the Western trade routes. A recent exhibition at the George Washington University Museum and The Textile Museum, Washington DC, titled ‘Irresistible: The Global Patterns of Ikat’ offers insights into Ikat’s sociocultural, creative and economic importance. While the exhibits included Ikats from Guatemala, Africa, Turkey, Greece, Uzbekistan, China, Japan and a few other countries, it is Ikats from Southeast Asia that found the closest resemblance to India. In Indonesia, imported Indian Ikat became a priced commodity during colonial rule when the Dutch East Indies company traded Ikats in exchange for spices. However, the trade of textiles by merchants and the accompanying knowledge of design, weaving, dying etc was possibly prevalent even in pre-colonial times, given the deep civilizational connection between the two countries. Many Indonesian ethnic groups and tribes wove Ikats influenced from India, particularly Gujarat. Tenganan, in Bali, is the most prominent and the country’s only textile center where double Ikat is woven with some motifs directly borrowed from Patola. Only noblemen and women wore these clothes, especially during sacred ceremonies and festivities. @ArunimaGupta03 @IndicaSoftPower @AparnaMSridhar #SoftPower

Join us on insta live for an interesting session on making #kumkuma with organic turmeric & all things natural, doing alankara to the Devi,chanting suktams, doing Rangoli & more @IndicaSoftPower @vijayalakshmiVK @AparnaMSridhar ⁩ ⁦

Join us on insta live for an interesting session on making #kumkuma with organic turmeric & all things natural, doing alankara to the Devi,chanting suktams, doing Rangoli & more @IndicaSoftPower @vijayalakshmiVK ⁦⁦@AparnaMSridhar⁩ ⁦

Smt @vijayalakshmiVK invites you to 'Kumkuma' this Sunday, March 10th at 8.30 AM IST @IndicaSoftPower @heritage_blr @AparnaMSridhar @SaamaanyaJ @ArunimaGupta03 @VarshaVRaman

#GudiyaSambhrama l Bharatanatyam: Be transported to realms of the divine, this Saturday Venue: Gudda Ramanjaneya Devasthanam, Bengaluru Join us at this @heritage_blr festival! @vijayalakshmiVK @IndicaSoftPower @AparnaMSridhar @SaamaanyaJ @VarshaVRaman @ArunimaGupta03

The album As We Speak, featuring musicians Ustad #ZakirHussain, Bela Fleck, Edgar Meyer and #RakeshChaurasia, secured a dual win at the #GRAMMYs in the Best Contemporary Instrumental and Best Global Music Performance categories. As We Speak (Thirty Tigers) not only showcases the group’s breathtaking abilities as instrumentalists, but underscores the wide range of influences at their command. Across a dozen songs, the quartet glides easily between the cerebral complexity of Indian rhythm and the gut-level groove of a funky bass line, sounding equally at home with the rigors of #raga. Weaving a sonic tapestry of banjo, tabla, double bass, and bansuri, these artists convene to make some of the most soulful, fascinating and undefinable music found in today’s world. Aparna Sridhar (@AparnaMSridhar) had the privilege of speaking to Vidwan Rakesh Chaurasia on this new album and what it means to Indian music Read the Full Interview: csp.indica.in/as-we-speak-th… #Music #Grammy #ZakirHussain #RakeshChaurasia #SoftPower @IndicaSoftPower