Mangesh V. Nadkarni
Encyclopedia
Mangesh V. Nadkarni was a professor
of English literature, and a disciple
of Sri Aurobindo
. He lectured on Sri Aurobindo
’s philosophy and vision
Mangesh V. Nadkarni was born in Kodibag and raised in Bankikkodla
. At Bankikodla, literature, folk art, spiritual lore, music and sports kept him enthralled during his school days. Mangesh completed his high school diploma (1948-49) from the A. H. School
, Bankikodla. His teachers in high school gave impetus to his imagination and taught him to perceive the sheer excitement of ideas, leading him to the path of his inner quest. Sundar Nadkarni a Karnataka Sahitya Akademi winner was Mangesh's younger brother.
Nadkarni completed his M.A. in english literature from Rajaram College
, Kolhapur, and began his teaching career in Rajkot. Later, he moved to Anand
where he was a lecturer of english at Nalini Arvind & T.V. Patel Arts College. During his college career, Nadkarni was a student of professor V.K. Gokak who influenced Nadkarni towards Sri Aurobindo’s philosophy. Mangesh earned his Ph.D. in Phonetics from the UCLA, and was a professor of linguistics at the Central Institute of English and Foreign Languages, Hyderabad. He later taught as a senior lecturer at the National University of Singapore
(1985-93). During the course of his tenure, he guided Ph.D. candidates and published in theoretical and applied Linguistics journals.
The influence of Sri Aurobindo’s philosophy on him was gradual and he found it intellectually most liberating and satisfying. He was a Yogi
on the path of continuous progress, and a renowned exponent of the Integral Yoga
of Sri Aurobindo and the Mother. He lectured many times on Sri Aurobindo’s philosophy and vision. Dr. Nadkarni spoke brilliantly on ‘Savitri’, a 24,000-verse epic poem by Sri Aurobindo. The poem recounts the saga of human victory over ignorance and the conquest of death. Reading ‘Savitri’ is itself considered a practice of integral yoga and a potent vehicle of aspiration. Nadkarni inculcated ‘Savitri’ as a mantra in his life.
Professor
A professor is a scholarly teacher; the precise meaning of the term varies by country. Literally, professor derives from Latin as a "person who professes" being usually an expert in arts or sciences; a teacher of high rank...
of English literature, and a disciple
Apprenticeship
Apprenticeship is a system of training a new generation of practitioners of a skill. Apprentices or protégés build their careers from apprenticeships...
of Sri Aurobindo
Sri Aurobindo
Sri Aurobindo , born Aurobindo Ghosh or Ghose , was an Indian nationalist, freedom fighter, philosopher, yogi, guru, and poet. He joined the Indian movement for freedom from British rule and for a duration became one of its most important leaders, before developing his own vision of human progress...
. He lectured on Sri Aurobindo
Sri Aurobindo
Sri Aurobindo , born Aurobindo Ghosh or Ghose , was an Indian nationalist, freedom fighter, philosopher, yogi, guru, and poet. He joined the Indian movement for freedom from British rule and for a duration became one of its most important leaders, before developing his own vision of human progress...
’s philosophy and vision
Mangesh V. Nadkarni was born in Kodibag and raised in Bankikkodla
Bankikodla-Hanehalli
Bankikodla-Hanehalli , twin villages of Uttar Kannada district are neighbouring villages in a valley in the south western section of Karnataka, India. Together they form a community of people from different castes and religions....
. At Bankikodla, literature, folk art, spiritual lore, music and sports kept him enthralled during his school days. Mangesh completed his high school diploma (1948-49) from the A. H. School
Anandashram High School, Bankikodla
Ananadasharm High School , one of the oldest high schools in Uttar Kannada, was a private school located in Bankikodla-Hanehalli. The school was founded by M.N.Kulakrni and Datta master Chitrapur Saraswat Brahmins from Bankikodla-Hanehalli...
, Bankikodla. His teachers in high school gave impetus to his imagination and taught him to perceive the sheer excitement of ideas, leading him to the path of his inner quest. Sundar Nadkarni a Karnataka Sahitya Akademi winner was Mangesh's younger brother.
Nadkarni completed his M.A. in english literature from Rajaram College
Rajaram College
Rajaram College, Kolhapur is a Government college affiliated to Shivaji University in Kolhapur. It runs degree level courses in science, humanities, languages and arts. It also has a popular junior college offering higher secondary education courses in science and arts. very old collge Rajaram...
, Kolhapur, and began his teaching career in Rajkot. Later, he moved to Anand
Anand, Gujarat
]]Anand is the administrative centre of Anand District in the state of Gujarat, India. It is administered by Anand Municipality. It is part of the region known as Charotar, consisting of Anand and Kheda Districts....
where he was a lecturer of english at Nalini Arvind & T.V. Patel Arts College. During his college career, Nadkarni was a student of professor V.K. Gokak who influenced Nadkarni towards Sri Aurobindo’s philosophy. Mangesh earned his Ph.D. in Phonetics from the UCLA, and was a professor of linguistics at the Central Institute of English and Foreign Languages, Hyderabad. He later taught as a senior lecturer at the National University of Singapore
National University of Singapore
The National University of Singapore is Singapore's oldest university. It is the largest university in the country in terms of student enrollment and curriculum offered....
(1985-93). During the course of his tenure, he guided Ph.D. candidates and published in theoretical and applied Linguistics journals.
At Puducherry
Nadkarni's interest in Sri Aurobindo and his writings were awakened when as a young man he came across the following utterance of Sri Aurobindo in a journal, "Heaven we have possessed, but not the earth; but the fullness of the Yoga is to make, in the formula of the veda, 'Heaven and Earth equal and one'"The influence of Sri Aurobindo’s philosophy on him was gradual and he found it intellectually most liberating and satisfying. He was a Yogi
Yogi
A Yogi is a practitioner of Yoga. The word is also used to refer to ascetic practitioners of meditation in a number of South Asian Religions including Jainism, Buddhism, and Hinduism.-Etymology:...
on the path of continuous progress, and a renowned exponent of the Integral Yoga
Integral yoga
In the teachings of Sri Aurobindo, Integral yoga refers to the process of the union of all the parts of one's being with the Divine, and the transmutation of all of their jarring elements into a harmonious state of higher divine consciousness and existence.Sri...
of Sri Aurobindo and the Mother. He lectured many times on Sri Aurobindo’s philosophy and vision. Dr. Nadkarni spoke brilliantly on ‘Savitri’, a 24,000-verse epic poem by Sri Aurobindo. The poem recounts the saga of human victory over ignorance and the conquest of death. Reading ‘Savitri’ is itself considered a practice of integral yoga and a potent vehicle of aspiration. Nadkarni inculcated ‘Savitri’ as a mantra in his life.
Selected work
- Beyond Liberalism 'Humanism and Technological Trans-humanism.' - a monograph
- 'Some thoughts on taking Sri Aurobindo to the youth'. - a monograph
- A Brief Introduction to Savitri - a monograph. - a monograph
- Problems of Human Unity in Sri Aurobindo's Light - a monograph.
- Hindu-Muslim Unity in Sri Aurobindo's Light - a monograph.
- A set of sixteen audio-cassettes containing talks given by him on Savitri at the Sri Aurobindo Ashram have been published.
- India's Spiritual Destiny - Its Inevitability and Potentiality
- "Bilingualism and syntactic change in Konkani" published in - Language, 1975 - (a major journal included in JSTOR) has 86 citations.
See also
- A journey on The Sunlit Path - A collection of tributes to Nadkarni (Publisher Mirravision Trust, Pondicheri- 605003, India.), 2008.