Author: Maria Wirth

I had posted my answer 7 months ago and today only I discovered by chance that Quora had removed it. The question was: How do Indian Rishis get knowledge by just meditation? Here is my reply – and I wonder why Quora didn’t like it. I keep wondering about this question since long. My feeling is, in Vedic tradition, human beings are not the ‘crown of the creation’ as in the Abrahamic religions. There are other conscious, intelligent beings apart from humans. The Saptarishis (seven sages) for example are in my view not humans as we are. My feeling is,…

I had once a talk with a college student who sat next to me on a long bus ride. She grew up in a village near Meerut, went to the local Hindi medium school and enjoyed her time in school. But when she went for higher studies, she almost gave up, as English was a big hurdle. Yet after one year struggle, she managed well. She told me that most of her college mates, who had been to English medium schools, had become atheists. Yet she loves her Hindu faith and we had a good conversation about the depth of…

My book “Why Hindu Dharma is under attack by Muslims, Christians and the Left” has now also been published in Hindi by Suruchi Prakashan. Please share this with your friends who prefer to read Hindi. I paste here the introduction, to give you an idea about the book: The world has changed significantly within the last few years. Many of these changes are very concerning, especially the casual talk by some politicians about the possibility of a nuclear war, and the dangers of artificial intelligence, which will not only render many jobless and possibly directly influence our thoughts, but may…

This morning, unexpectedly, a Sadhu whom I had met in Gangotri in 2001 came to my mind. I had written a chapter about him in my first English book “Thank you India – a German woman’s journey to the wisdom of yoga”, published by Garuda Prakashan in 2018. In 2001, my life was in some turmoil, as I had left my Guru and tried to get some clarity. I stayed for three months in Gangotri. I felt, the story of this Sadhu would be inspiring for others, and maybe I should put it on my blog, since not many have…

The below article was published in the “Journal for Indian Thought and Policy Research” (March 2026). The Issue of Conversion: Challenges before Hindu Society Hindu’s Conversion to Abrahamic Religions Abstract The article examines the aggressive proselytization targeting Hindus in India, exposing the socio-political and cultural ramifications of conversions to Abrahamic religions. It highlights the lack of reliable data on conversions, despite documented cases of fraudulent tactics, including financial incentives, “miracle cures,” and exploitation of vulnerable communities. She contrasts Hinduism—an inclusive, philosophy-based tradition emphasizing dharma (righteousness) and universal spiritual truth—with the exclusive, dogmatic nature of Christianity and Islam, which claim sole…

This interview conducted by Varsha Panth from newsgram was via zoom, but my internet connectivity was bad. AI put it into writing. So it is quite long and in very colloquial language. You can scroll and see which Question interests you. Here is the interview, originally published on newsgram: Maria Wirth is a writer and author originally from Germany. She studied psychology at Hamburg University and worked with Lufthansa in her early years, which allowed her to travel across many countries, from Chile to Indonesia. In 1980, Maria came to India for what was meant to be a short stopover…

I was born into a democracy in Germany and heard from childhood that democracy is OF COURSE the best form of government. “Of the people – by the people – for the people” – what more could we want! Luckily media informed us whenever “democracy is in danger” and when we need to “save democracy” or bring the gift of democracy to other countries like Iraq, Syra, Libya…. Then, a few weeks ago, the founder of Vitasta Publishing asked me to be on a panel for the book release of “Democracy with Dharma” by Salvatore Babones. For the first time,…

Most of us are familiar with Maria Wirth, the German author who has made Bharat her home and is spiritually connected with Bharat. Her latest offering answers a fundamental question I’ve often asked myself (as would have many common Hindus) – why do Hindu Dharma & Hindus receive hatred from all quarters? Once we answer this question we shall understand how to deal with forces hostile to Hindu Dharma. Maria Wirth’s latest book is a guide in Shatrubodh Communists, Christian Evangelists, and Islamists are at the forefront of defaming and demonizing Hindu Dharma. I would add HINOs (Hindus in Name…

Boarding had started but the plane was probably not yet ready, because we passengers were stuck in the narrow pathway and waiting to move on. I made a comment to a young man next to me in Hindi, something like ‘lagta hai plane tayar nahin hai’. “I don’t speak Hindi. I am from Tamil Nadu. We speak Tamil and English,” was his reply. “Oh okay. Yes, I heard Tamilians don’t like Hindi. How did you manage in Delhi?” “I have picked up some Hindi over time…” Then I asked, “are you Hindu or Muslim?” “Muslim.” “Please don’t look down on…

I am a Hindu but multiple Gods don’t work for me. How can I adopt Monotheism? This was a question on Quora to which I replied the following: I doubt that you are a born Hindu. It sounds as if you want to ‘encourage’ other Hindus to reflect if “multiple gods work for them’… And if you are indeed a Hindu, you obviously don’t know the basics of your tradition. Your tradition claims that all this temporary multiplicity is like many waves on the one ocean, or is like the multiple pictures of a movie on one screen. All is…