This week I will discuss different schools of Indian philosophy, starting with the Charvakas. It is a heterodox school of Indian philosophy. Charvaka holds direct perception, empiricism, and conditional inference as proper sources of knowledge, embraces philosophical skepticism and rejects ritualism and supernaturalism. More about it in the episode.

Philosophers have long wondered about the cause of lack of sleep since they too frequently deal with this problem. So, let's take a look at insomnia through the eyes of a philosopher and discover something new along the way.

Yann Martel talks about the relativity of truth in his book Life of Pi. Throughout the book, he keeps emphasising on this point. What is truth? Is it relative? Let's explore these questions with the help of this brilliant novel. Don't forget to subscribe.

Eva Hoffman's book How to be Bored gives us much needed wisdom on how important it is to take a pause in our lives. A pause to relax, to reflect - something which we have forgotten in our fast-paced lives. I discuss this wisdom with you in this episode. Please subscribe to stay tuned.

I narrate a short story today which was written by Rudyard Kipling over a century ago. The story tells you about the life of Afghanistan back then and how Kipling's own biases affected that. Don't forget to subscribe to the podcast.

Elizabeth Kolbert's Pulitzer Prize winning book The Sixth Extinction argues that the Earth is in the midst of a modern, man-made, sixth extinction. I discuss the fundamental ideas of the book here.

A Haunted House is an interesting short story by Virginia Woolf. It is and is not a ghost story. In less than two pages of prose, Woolf explores, summons, and subverts the conventions of the ghost story, offering a modernist take on the genre. I narrate this story in today's podcast. Visit www.kalampedia.org to check out more interesting stories or follow the podcast here.

Should you eat meat or not? What are the philosophical arguments for or against the idea of veganism? Stephen Law, in his book The Philosophy Files, takes us on a quest where we discuss these kinds of questions. Originally intended for children, this book provides interesting philosophical conversations for adults as well. I discuss one chapter of this book in today's podcast.

Meghna Pant's book How to Get Published in India is an easy guide for all the aspiring writers in India that dream to get published one day. I discuss briefly what you will get out of this book in today's podcast. To know more, you can write us on [email protected] or visit www.kalampedia.org and check there.

live in a hectic, hyperactive, over-stimulated age. Excessive busyness and overfilled schedules are the norm, as are their effects on our mental and emotional lives. How to overcome this challenge? We learn it through Eva Hoffman's book How to be Bored in today's podcast. Subscribe to keep exploring the world of books with me.