February 3, 2024

This rabid don't that is raging across India- and perhaps even more so in India's diaspora needs some discussion. It has really torn me asunder. I really like the narrative that pits the hindus as a victim of some atrocity- inflicted over thousands of years by non-hinds, non-Indians. It makes for a sensual story- the kind that has the power of inspiring a revenge movie like those created by Tarantino -think Kill Bill. Lots of intellectuals have been making this point. Our history has been written in such a way so as to depict hindus as losers. And over the years and until know we have lost all sense of pride in our faith. It is perhaps quite true. Now, this theme is being taken up for redressal by the ruling Political Party-and herein lies the problem. If hindus as a people have been sidelined and dominated, then is it is a moral and ethical imperative for their lot to come around from this abyss. But if it is instigated by a Political Party, then it immediately loses its authenticity as it is diluted by the need for some group to occupy a seat of power. It is nice if you can fight a moral and political battle simultaneously- it is convenient and efficient for the Party. Except it offers no credibility to the cause. Not for me. So even though the narrative is correct, the fact that it is coming from the party somehow diminishes it. 

One can argue, if a moral wrong is to be corrected on a civilisational scale, it can only be done via Political Power- and this is probably also a true statement. This is a moral dilemma- but let us leave this aside for a moment. This is not the only wrong that has transpired in the world that needs redressal. By the same token, the blacks in America need redressal, as do the ones in South Africa. Once political power is bequeathed to them, it is unlikely that they will take charitable view of the deemed "oppressor".  This will lead to strife. And if only at the end of this strife, the rage pent up in the oppressed community could said to have been defused. A sunny aftermath, as it were, where everyone is at peace and the scores between each set of teams is 1-1.  I haven't seen many of these, have you?

What would be nice is if we could all become proud hindus again, but without being assholes about it. The mental picture I have of these obnoxious hindu youths on two wheelers, shouting " Jai Shree Ram", particularly on the face of innocent muslims. These chaps don't for a second think about whether their God, Lord Rama would actually, at any level, condone this type of ugly behavior. Why are they taking his name in vain? Is it just a passing phase. If we get a few more temples back, and it becomes ok to profess one's love for our faith, will we calm down and start treating every non-hindu with grace and charity?

I dont identify as a hindu in a strict sensr either- and am not obsessed with any particular god.  Thankfully hindus have still given me a place to exist even with my marginal inclinations. Frankly, I also wish somewhere that one’s faith remained personal. If it provides succour, do it I say. But when your own succour comes at the cost of “othering” someone elses, then it becomes not just a sense of support for oneself but a vehicle of malevolence and destruction for others.

I know in your case you have been close to two faiths and would have imbibed the best of both. There will never be any issue there. You will also transmit the best wisdom to your kids. But the human condition is so inherently fragile that it takes nothing to fracture…and then a really long time to heal. All I hope is that this rabid hindutva and flag waving that is all too prevalent these days will eventually begin to heal the hindus and then they start having a more charitable worldview. But i honestly dont know of a case where this has happened and then people have lived happily ever after.

For my own part, there are insights to be gleaned from the stories and beliefs of our ancestors. This is why and how we have come to be. Each story, each myth, each legend is a distilled summary of a wisdom that has come from thousands of years of consideration- that too at a time when there was nothing for wise men to do than sit in a cave and ponder..hardly any other distraction was forthcoming.  Anyone who disses organised religion misses this point. Sure you can argue it has caused social unrest and divisions- but you cannot dismiss the wisdom imherently in it. What makes these religion-dissers a better judge of things than the fountains of ancient wisdom which have brewed over so many lifetimes. It is a bit like comparing a surgeon who has done 10000 surgeries to one that has done 1, and the results of this one surgery are still awaited.