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The Present Minds
Writer / Editor

Navneet Shukla

Navneet Shukla writes about how people think and how modern life shapes that thinking. The Present Minds is where he explores it.

Navneet Shukla
Navneet ShuklaWriter / Editor

Published writing

113 results
The Margin What I learnt from a teenage boat skipper in Montenegro

What I learnt from a Teenager with a boat in Montenegro is something that might come as a huge shock to a lot of people. It is…

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Purusharth Bhishma did not die when the arrows hit him. He chose when.

Bhishma fell on the tenth day of the war. He did not die. The arrows had entered him from every direction. He lost consciousness briefly when he…

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Purusharth Arjuna put down his bow at Kurukshetra. Krishna told him to pick it up.

Arjuna looked across the battlefield to understand his Svadharma meaning as he saw his grandfather on the other side of the field. Then his uncles. His teachers.…

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Purusharth What the Mahabharata knew about being right and being ignored

Vidura was the wisest man in the Mahabharata. He was also the most ignored. Not in a dramatic way. He held a significant position. Prime minister of…

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The Margin The Necklace by Guy de Maupassant: the last line that changes everything

The Necklace by Guy de Maupassant was published in 1884. It takes about fifteen minutes to read. The last line takes considerably longer to recover from. You…

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The Margin What I learnt from a bus driver in Scotland

What I learnt from a bus driver in Scotland was not something I had packed for, and I had packed for almost everything. Four large bottles of…

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Psychology Why Fathers Struggle Most at One Year

Most parenting advice focuses on the adrenaline-fueled "fourth trimester," but recent data has finally pinpointed why new fathers struggle most at one year. The sleepless nights, the…

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The Margin Something Very Bad Is Going to Happen: tv show of the week

Something Very Bad Is Going to Happen Netflix review: eight episodes of a feeling that has no name. It dropped on Netflix on March 26th. It is…

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Purusharth What the Mahabharatha knew about wealth that nobody told you

What is the meaning of Artha? Often reduced to mere wealth, it was understood by our ancestors as the vital ground that sustains a full human life.…

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The Margin What I learnt from a cab driver in london

What I learnt from a cab driver in London is probably something not many people have even if they are frequent passengers in London. This encounter revealed…

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The Margin The Tiger in the Tunnel by Ruskin Bond: the story about what fathers leave behind

The Tiger in the Tunnel by Ruskin Bond is not really about a tiger. You suspected this the first time you read it. You probably could not…

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Psychology The night you reached for it

Does cannabis help anxiety or make it worse? For the millions using medical cannabis for mental health, a landmark 2026 study just delivered an uncomfortable answer. You…

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Psychology Does your partner change your personality? the research says more than you think

Does your partner change your personality? Most people would say yes, in a vague, intuitive way. You pick up their phrases. You start watching the shows they…

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The Margin What I learnt from my kurdish barber in london

What I learnt from my barber in London is something I realised only after the haircut was done and when I was already outside. That is the…

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Purusharth What is dharma? what the mahabharata knew about losing everything

What is Dharma? It is the question the Mahabharata spends eighteen books answering and never quite resolves. That is not a failure of the text. That is…

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Psychology Why dont men ask follow-up questions? the answer is more interesting than you think

Why dont men ask follow-up questions is one of those complaints that surfaces constantly. In dating conversations. In friendships. In marriages that have been running for twenty…

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Psychology They were always going to leave. that was the point.

Letting go of your children is not a single moment. It is a thousand quiet losses that begin long before they leave, and long before you are…

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Purusharth What Kama Actually Means: the ancient secret nobody told you about pleasure

There is a word you already know. You know it the way most people know it. As something charged. Something that requires a lowered voice or a…

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