Getting a Fake Shaligram, Intentionally
So, I got a fake Shaligram. But don’t be indignant on my behalf, it was on purpose. One of the most pervasive fears many Shaligram devotees (or would-be…
Author: H. W.
Keshav Shaligram
I don’t think I have ever done the Keshav Shaligram yet for my occasional “Spotlight” series. So, let’s do that one today! Because there is much to say…
Happy New Year!
Tonight, I happily bring in 2020 with a Surya Shaligram! May the New Year bring light, joy, and illumination to the world. फूल खिलेंगे गुलशन में खूबसूरती नज़र…
Shaligram Interpretive Practices: The Vasudev Shaligram Example
One thing I love about Shaligram interpretive practices is how extensively narrative they are. As in, not only does each specific ammonite fossil invoke stories about the geological…
A Shaligram is Born – Part 2
This second part on the birth of Shaligrams is meant to briefly demonstrate the concrete links between the sacred contexts of Shaligram veneration and the actual practices devotees…
A Shaligram is Born – Part 1
Witnessing the appearance of a Shaligram stone within the Kali Gandaki river is to, quite literally, witness its birth. Formed in the womb of the mountains (the Himalayas)…
A Visit to the Damodar Kund
Recently, a friend and devotee I’ve been blessed to know for a while now was finally able to make his yatra (pilgrimage) to the Damodar Kund. For those…
Shaligram Paleontology
In honor of Cephalopod Week, I’ve put together a short discussion on the types of ammonites typically found in Shaligrams. So, here we go! The Nepal Himalayas contain…
Perspective: The Many Ways of Shaligram Darshan
Shaligram shrines are each as unique as the households that look after them. As I move into the planning stage for my second manuscript on Shaligram interpretive traditions,…
Reading Shaligrams
The book is nearly complete! It’s been a long road but I will be turning in the revised and completed manuscript to my publisher in just a few…
Shaligram Stone in an Ammonite Museum
Whenever I am paging through endless spreadsheets of museum collection data on fossils I am always on the lookout for a few magic words: Ammonite, Spiti Shales, Nepal…
Preparing to Publish and Seeking a Title!
Great news! I’m excited to announce that my book manuscript has been accepted and is now officially under contract with Amsterdam University Press for their “New Mobilities in…
Spotlight: Dadhivamana (Vamana) Shaligram
While it is listed as Dadhivamana in the Brahma Vaivarta Purana, this Shaligram is often described as a variation of the more common Vamana Shaligram of the Dasavatara…
Spotlight: Vaikuntha Shaligram
Vaikuntha (the Place of Non-Hindrance), Paramapadam, Vishnupada (Vishnu’s feet), or Param Padam (the Supreme Abode) is the celestial home of Vishnu. In most of the Puranas, and in the majority o…
Muktinath Cable Car
Depending on how long the project takes, this will be a fascinating addendum to my upcoming manuscript on Shaligram pilgrimage and mobility in Mustang. http://kathmandupost.ekantipur.com/news/2018-08-…
Spotlight: Yagnamurti Shaligram
Yagnamurti Shaligram Yajna (or conversely, Yagna) literally translates as “sacrifice, worship, or…
Shaligrams Featured on “The Familiar Strange”
Hey everyone, My work on Shaligram stones has been featured on the popular anthropology blog The Familiar Strange. Check it out. “Living Fossils” — The Familiar Strange