WRITERS ON RELIGIOUS THEMES

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WRITERS ON RELIGIOUS THEMES

Whenever I come across a nice  English book on religion, I reflect on the poor situation in India, in Tamil, especially on Hinduism, and feel so sad.

Two types of writers there are: those who are masters of the language, and of the subject.The first type gather all types of information and write well, but they don't help you much. Why is there so much suffering in the world? Why so much pain? Such issues cannot be answered by any amount of learning. It is where the second type of writers emerge better: they know the subject ie they have experienced it. They don't give solutions, but they provide some understanding. 

Then we have two other categories: those who are religious men, belonging to some order like a clergyman, monk, etc,  and those who are lay writers. But in India, none of them write about religious themes in general.

The problem with writers with a religious background is their bias- bigotry. The problem with lay writers is credibility. They may write anything because it sells.

Over the years I  read hundreds of books on religious topics, especially from a Christian angle. Catholic friends recommended  Bishop Fulton Sheen . I found some good essays, but he was mostly dry. You may remember the famous song 'Qe sera sera'  ( whatever will be will be, the future's not ours to see etc) from the movie The Man who Knew Too Much.Bishop Sheen criticised this song and its popularity, as implying fatalism. As a Hindu, I found it understandable and wondered how a westerner could express those sentiments so well! That was the end of my reading Fulton Sheen!

In the 60s there was lot of press coverage for the prediction about the assassination of President Kennedy. An American clairvoyant Jeane Dixon was supposed to have  made the prediction, in 53 0r 55, long before Kennedy's election, and it was covered in a book by Ruth Montgomery. For a time, such books became the craze, though they had nothing to do with true religion but with occult phenomena. But such literature led me to the work of Edgar Cayce who seems to have combined clairvoyance with genuine spirituality. What made his work valuable to me was his insistence on the law of Karma as the basic law of life, and its corollary-rebirth!.  He pointed out many facts about the life of Christ, not covered by the orthodox church. The man was genuine.

Edgar Cayce,1910. Public domain via Wikimedia commons.

Personally, Cayce was a pious Christian, read Bible daily. He never profited from his mystical gifts. He cured thousands by prescribing unconventional solutions. The ideas he expressed in his "readings" did not please the Christians. He said his statements in the readings should be examined and not accepted on faith.  He also said that their final result should lead the recipient to a better life. What shocked the mainly Christian audience was that though he was a practising Christian, his readings revealed the truth of all the ancient religions of the world which Christianity had destroyed! There are nice books on him by Gina Cerminara , Jess Stearn and Thomas Sugrue..

He gave over 13,000 "life readings" for individuals which are still available for research.

Among Christian writers , we have many evangelists who will just promise everything on earth, if only you believe in Christ and have the positive attitude. Norman Vincent Peale, Robert Schuller, Billy Graham are the leading names and their writing is powerful! But over the years, they fall flat.

Christ was a strict teacher. He did not say, "just believe me, take my name, and I will get you everything." He said his Kingdom was not of this earth, and that those who wanted to follow him should sell their possessions, distribute the money among the poor, take up the cross and follow him. They were not to worry about the morrow-what they would eat, what they would wear, etc. Such a world-renouncing religion cannot have a large following. So, organised Christianity changed the teaching. 

The biggest problem faced by Christianity is how to reconcile the pain in the world with a Just or Merciful God. For long things were taken on faith, people believed in a natural and social hierarchy, and things worked. But once people began to question faith and sought to make reason the basis of life, things broke down, leading to denial of religious validity. It became the high cult of the 20th century and organised Christianity could not face the assault. 

G.K.Chesterton.


Just then, two great English writers appeared on the scene and infused faith in the basics of Christianity. They were not clergymen and had themselves been non-believers at some stage. Their writing carried conviction. They are G.K.Chesterton and C.S.Lewis.

Even today, nearly a hundred years after the one and seventy  years after the other, their writing commands readership, though they are not backed by any official agency. Such is the power of genuine writing.

                          C.S.Lewis.
Both photos from National Portraits Gallery, London.

One does not become religious by being born in a religion, or becoming member of a church. One must have an authentic experience, face a moment of Truth or revelation ( not a miracle)which leads to a permanent change in consciousness. This is called 'conversion'- not mere change of faith. I had once met Dom Bede Griffiths, a Benedictine Monk, in Nagpur. I asked him how he became a convinced Christian, how he became a monk. He told me that he was a non-believer after his university days and felt very distressed.Once he decided to spend some time with another friend, cut off from the society. Once there, one day, he distinctly heard the word "retreat" repeated. He did not know about it then. Later, when he came out, he made enquiries and found that 'retreat' was a very technical term of Catholic usage, it meant retiring to solitude for concentrated meditation and contemplation. He became a Catholic and monk later. Later I found it related in his autobiography "The Golden String".Genuine religion is not glib talk.

Fr. Bede Griffiths.
From You Tube.
Copyright status not known. Acknowledged with thanks.





(Care: later, he adopted many prctices such as living like a Hindu monk, calling his place an ashram, using Sanskrit words in Christian worship, experiment with yoga and calling it 'Christian yoga', inter-religious dialogue, etc. I doubt the genuineness of such measures and their motives.)

Genuine religion or spirituality is not about dogmas or theories. It is a sense of wonder or bewilderment about the world we live in. Science is supposed to have advanced so much, but no good scientist claims to know everything! Take the astrophysicists who are investigating the universe. They are careful to say "the observable universe". They are aware that the great universe is beyond our capacity to observe or comprehend fully. The nearest star that we see is 4.3 light years away. Work out the distance yourself, with light travelling at 1,86,000 miles per second!We are seeing it as it was 3.5 years ago, not as it is now!At a constant velocity of 60,000 km/hr, it will take 76,000 years to travel that distance!  And how many billions of stars and galaxies like that! It is such awe that is the foundation of the religious feeling-as Einstein said. But most scientists are just of the tin horn stuff.

A picture of the "observable Universe" - its diameter is 93 billion light years.
By Azcolvin429 (Own Work) CC BY-SA-3.0 (http:://creative commons.org/licences /BY-SA 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons.

However good a writer my be, he is only as good as his subject. Any philosophy or theology can be justified up to a point- that is why so many views flourish. But they fall in the end if the truth cannot be experienced.

 Christianity teaches man that he is a sinner, that his only salvation lies through Christ, who is the only son of God. Thus from the beginning it robs man of his self-worth and makes him dependent on the priest, the church, the dogma! This is actually a kind of neurosis! And look at the foolishness ! It condemns the whole of the human race, except a few, in some corner, in the last two thousand years! How even able writers like a Lewis or Chesterton could rescue a sick religion? Christianity like Islam is so aggressive because it is so sick and hollow at bottom. Do we not see how mad men go about disturbing the world? This is what Christianity and Islam have done ever since they were founded.The history of the world in the last two thousand years is essentially the story of how the Christians, and then the Muslims and then the two together fought among themselves, fought each other and then fought every one else in the world in the name of God! And this they call Western civilisation! Surely, wars were fought in the past, but no one deliberately destroyed whole civilisations, millions of people, in the various continents , like the Christians and Muslims did. This destructive spree is still on show!

A 16th century engraving of Spanish massacre in Cuba

A mass grave being dug for the 150 peaceful Lakota Indians killed by the US Army in 1890, at Wounded Knee.

Earlier, Col John Milton Chivington ot the US Army deliberately killed Indians of  other tribes, over two thirds of them being women and children, and he said: 

Damn any man who sympathises with Indians...I have come to kill Indians and believe it is right and honourable to use any means  under God's heaven to kill Indians....Kill all and scalp all, big and little;nits make lice.

Incidents like these clearly show that it is not just these men who were devilish, even their God was the very devil! The Bible was the greatest death warrant for peaceful people all over the world. The Quran, as it is interpreted, is the permanent fatwa against all other people.

Care: This does not mean that there are no different or sober voices among Christians and Muslims. In fact, thoughtful people are rejecting Christianity in Christian lands, as revealed by surveys. But in India, it is the old, proselytising type that is still active.

Most Indian writers are not well read- and they do not read the original sources. We have not developed a class of discerning readers. Our popular journals spread some information at low levels. And there are few journals dedicated to serious thought. So, our writers churn out the old stuff endlessly. While there is much writing on religious matters, most of it is just muck.

There is an additional problem with Tamil writers. After the Dravidian parties came to power, there is an attempt to force their way of speech and writing. This does not matter to most of us because we do not really depend on Tamil sources for serious knowledge! But when it comes to religious matters, it becomes ridiculous because in their blind prejudice against Sanskrit, they make ridiculous translations. The tragedy is when even some orthodox sources succumb to such trends. The height of foolishness is reached when Veda is written as 'Vetha';Vaidika is written as Vaithika; mantra is written as manthiram' ; Rama is written as Irama. But I do not feel sorry.. A people who do not know the value of their heritage and who do not care to defend and preserve it do not deserve it. 

OUR MEDIA MONSTERS

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OUR MEDIA MONSTERS

 The educated middle class has  long been addicted to reading newspapers and magazines. Our world was made up of what we read there. We learned our facts from them. Our opinions were formed on what we read there- the editorials and other articles. Up to the sixties, they were mainly responsible for spreading nationalistic ideas among the common man. They were edited by responsible men and we could rely on them.

Three Tamil periodicals deserve special mention. Ananda Vikatan, Kalki and Kalaimagal.  Vikatan was a popular weekly, catering to varied tastes, was the first to use commercial techniques to boost sales. Over the years, it gave voice to many writers. It was nationalistic in a general way, but not overly so. Its editor SS Vasan took objection to the leading writer 'Kalki' taking part in the individual satyagraha. Kalki later came out and founded his own weekly in that very name. It used to cover art criticism, (including cinema) literary matters, fiction, political comments and other matters.Kalki's serialised novels were so popular, everyone at home would compete to read it first on arrival on Thursdays. Kalaimagal was a true cultural symbol-totally given to culture and literary matters. It had high standards. Its editor Ki.Va.Jagannathan was a great scholar and literary master. 

All the three magazines still appear. But for the name, they share none of the greatness of the originals. And now there are many more. They cover mainly cinema and politics and at a cheap level at that. The problem is this: the sociology of class has changed in Tamil Nad, the Tamil  magazines have nothing useful for the educated person (who relies on English souces) and they cater to only those sections which want cheap entertainment or titillation.

As for newspapers, we had three: Swadeshamitran and Dinamani in Tamil and The Hindu in English. They were all 'weighty' and bent on spreading knowledge, not just information. They had all been supporters of the national causes, but after Independece became independent in views. The Hindu was always pro-establishment. All three had a reputation for factual reporting and avoiding sensationalism.

Swadeshamitran ceased publication in the 50s. Dinamani has had problems after its great long-term editor A.N.Sivaraman. The Hindu is still there- but only the name is common with the old paper. After N.Ram took over as editor, it  become unabashedly leftist and pro-DMK in its approach.

Old readers continue to rely on old names. They hardly realise how things have changed, while the old names have been retained. The new management have no intention to continue with the old policies ( which is not wrong) but it is diabolic to continue with the old name. This just amounts to plain cheating- exploiting the good will attached to the old name. I throw a challenge to N.Ram: let him now start a new newspaper with a different name and show how people receive it!

The Times of India group and The Statesman of Calcutta were owned by Englishmen. Times of India was first acquired by Indians, but the way they conducted it was not liked by the original owners. So, The Statesman group took great care to transfer it to proper hands in the 60s. But it ran into problems due to the leftist interests and govt attitude.

 Recently I did a check on the ownership pattern of our media.  This is what I found on the Internet:

Times of India Group, including Times Now TV Channel:      Owned by Bennett, Coleman, and Co.                        But  World Christian Council does 80%                      of the funding.An Englishman and an                        Italian share the rest equally. The                            Italian Robertio Mindo is a close relative                    of Sonia Gandhi.

The Hindu:  125 years old. Recently taken over by                       Joshua Society, Berne, Switzerland. The                   wife of N.Ram, present publisher, is a                       Swiss national.

Indian Express:    ACTS Christian Ministers have                                  major stake. (New Indian Express,                            South  seems to be independent)

Hindustan Times: Owned by the Birlas but close to                               the Congress. Now working in                                   collaboration with TOI.

The Statesman:  controlled by Communist Party

Mathrubhumi:     Muslim league leaders and                                        communist leaders have major                                  stake.

Andhra Jyoti:      Purchased recently by the Muslim                              party MIM and a congress minister.

Asian Age and Deccan Chronicle:   Owned by Saudi                                      Arabian company, with                                         M.J.Akbar as  chief editor

NDTV :             Funded by Gospels of Charity in                                Spain.Has connections with                                     communists. Indian CEO Prannoy                             Roy's wife is the sister of Brinda                               Karat.

INDIA TODAY : Since bought by NDTV

CNN-IBN :       100% funded by Southern Baptist                              Church,  head quartered in USA.

STAR TV:         Supported by St.Peter's Pontifical                              Church, Melbourne.

KAIRALI TV:    Controlled by the CPM.

Now, such information is surrounded by lot of controversies. Who can authenticate or deny them?

However we know that the management of The Hindu newspaper has been subject to controversies/internal bickerings, some of which came into the open, in the recent years. I was a reader of The Hindu for over 50 years, but stopped buying/reading it 10 years ago when the leftist slant of N.Ram became intolerable. 

But there are other aspects. 

Almost all  our English newspapers and media channels are pronouncedly anti-Hindu in their news coverage and commens. Is this just by chance?When we write about their biases and point out even factual errors, these are not entertained or acknowledged. Even on on-line editions, they cut out hostile remarks, couched in polite language, in the name of 'moderation'. Those of us who still think of our newspapers as objective champions of freedom of expression and undistorted reporting should think again. At least those of us who are  Nationalists should immediately stop buying these newspapers and watching these news channels. This is in our hands. We don't need a Modi for this.

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Hindu religion is both fascinating and frustrating at the same time: extremely helpful, and also totally unhelpful. The basic ideas are simple, but not rendered easy of comprehension by the advocates of religion.It has been made complicated by every succeeding philosopher, theologian, Acharya, guru etc.

At base, Hindu Sages said the world is an appearance; there is a greater reality behind the world. Our job is to find it, experience it- not be satisfied with any mental or verbal statement.. We cannot find peace with the world or ourselves till this is done.

But they did not go about tom-toming this to all and sundry. They sat in their place and addressed themselves to the serious seekers. For the rest they gave some toys- some gods, goddesses, some theory some ideas, some rituals,etc, so that they won't harm themselves or others. This would keep them engaged with the world, so long as they liked it that way. But when some serious teachers like Buddha or Sankara attempted to make it the standard for all, it broke down and made society weak.

The Sages found the solution was Individual, not communal. There was no collective salvation. Each one had to work out his way at his own pace. Communal life was necessary to fulfil social needs, but it could not interfere with the personal effort. What one believed personally about God or the world or the devil did not matter, so long as he conformed to the social norms. The Gita clearly says that even the Realised person has no business to unsettle the mind of the common man. 

One can find these two elements in all religions (except perhaps Islam). True Hinduism  or its higher form (Vedanta) was practised by a handful in isolated communities in forest dwellings; or by  lofty individuals in splendid isolation even in society; the rest was a preparation for it. The base was large and so stable; it supported the rising superstructure, getting narrower at the top. Or, rather it was like the lamp. When we say the lamp burns, it is only the tip of the wick that burns; but we need the lamp proper, the whole wick, the oil, etc. But so long as the system could produce such a genuine phenomenon, it was safe and sound. 

 Absolute spiritual  truth and relative existence were reconciled by this device of a two level  approach. Where the organised church tried to impose blind uniformity in alignment with political power, it led to the Reformation and splitting of the Church. Islamic fundamentalism is likewise an attempt to foist one system throughout. It is bound to fail, but not before causing much damage.

Hinduism did not make such  a mistake. It teaches that one has to live in the world as if it were real, but knowing that there is a greater reality behind it. It cannot be reconciled by any neat theory or philosophy. We know the sun does not rise or set, but all our practical affairs are arranged as if the sun rose and set! Or it is like particle physics and Newtonian physics. This is perhaps the most distinct, fundamental insight of Hinduism. It does not go about imposing it on all as the only doctrine. It states the facts and leaves it to one to experience the truth of it.

Nor did Hinduism enter into arguments about God, Creation,etc.: whether God is with or without form, whether he has attributes or no attributes, etc. This was a favourite topic of discussion  among the English educated Bengalis of the 19th century, under the influence of missionary movements and reform outfits. Sri Ramakrishna gave the most effective answer. After him, Sri Ramana Maharshi revolutionised the spiritual quest: he revealed it as an enquiry into  or the discovery of the truth of the Self- which alone is the one incontrovertible fact of existence- which even an atheist cannot deny. This involves no theory, no theology, no dogma, no philosophy, no God, no Church. 65 years after his passing, this is not yet understood.   

The rise of modern thinking since the 19th century has removed the idea of religion and God from human consciousness, and day to day life. The experience that led to the founding of the religions has become alien to the modern consciousness, and nothing else can touch it and hold it for long. Peter Watson has written a magnificent book, chronicling all the ideas that held sway' in the wake of that unfortunate declaration by the mentally unstable Nietzsche: 'God is dead, and we have killed him.' (The Age of Atheists: How We Have Sought to Live Since the Death of God. Simon & Schuster, 2014)Finally, everything is as false as religion was supposed to be  and nothing is ever  certain anymore!  The so called modern philosophers do not know what to make of their own existence, any more than the scientists. They have no idea of 'truth' at all.

Friedrich Nietzsche
Photo by F.Hartmann. Public Domain. Wikimedia commons.
He was a critique of mass culture, said it led to mediocrity and led to the decline of the human species. Some could become superior individuals through will power.

Most of  us are blessed. We do not have to wade through these dense oceans  of modern  verbal nonsense to understand that its authors are unhinged. But even then we are not spared. These ideas and derivatives from them have pervaded all aspects of life and thought, and continue to bombard us through the media in all its forms: the press, invariably owned by vested interests; the TV and electronic channels and media, video and other forms of digital communication,etc. Art, literature, literary criticism, academics, science, the professions- no field now openly acknowledges God or celebrates his reign. 

There is something which C.S.Lewis in the 30s called "chronological snobbery" - the uncritical acceptance of the intellectual climate common to our age. ( See: The Essential C.S.Lewis. Edited by Lyle W.Dorsett, Simon&Schuster,1996, p.7 and 15) This is now prevailing in India. Established religion is its biggest victim, while any number of cults and whims flourish by the wayside! Educated, intelligent writers have enriched every movement criticising God and religion- like secularism, philosophical materialim, moral relativism, Freudianism,nihilism, existentialism, Marxism, multiculturalism, mass consumerism,etc whereas the religions have suffered from a lack of able, intelligent advocates. And even when they say or write something worthy, they do not get a platform!

Those who oppose religion are united in that goal, but the advocates of religion differ on the basis of faith and dogma. This is indeed a pity because critical studies have shown that it is the mere fact of some religious faith, and not the scientific validity of its theology that is beneficial. Religion is more useful as a sociological  factor, embedding people in a common psyche and it provides sense of security, physical and mental health benefits. 

Every religion in the world flourished in a specific cultural context. Christianity and Islam, in their conversion zeal, imposed alien ideas and landscape on converted people. But this has led to a strange spectacle. In 1900, 80% of Christians lived in Europe and America. Today, 60% of Christians live in third world countries. Educated Westerners are becoming more secular and less fertile, and the adherents of fundamentalist faiths have much higher birth rates! Reasoned, established and enlightened approaches to religion are being replaced even in America by such movements as evangelicals, charismatic persons promising health,wealth, everything; Pentecostals, fundamentalists of many types.

Many thoughtful,decent people have rejected religion on account of the atrocities they have committed through history. If we are a little more thoughtful, and equally honest, we will have to say the same about science: were not the two world wars prime results of science's triumph and God's death? Is not the current ecological crisis the result of science?Religion did not remove poverty or reduce distress- true. But has the progress of science done that? Or any of the other world-conquering ideologies? Not only the God of religion, but every God has failed!

HINDUS IN CRISIS.

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HINDUS IN CRISIS.

There is a Chinese saying which goes:"May you live in interesting times". This is actually a curse,not a wish or blessing! One explanation is that it is better to live as a dog in peaceful times, than as a man in times of war! It will perhaps be more appropriate to say 'distressing' times, than interesting times.

If we look around and observe, no country in the world is wholly free of distress of some kind: economic struggle. political contentions, religious strife, the problem with the environment, umpteen social problems like rape, teen-age pregnancy, single parent family, insecurity in old age, huge cost of medical care, seeping unemployment etc. At the same time, all the indexes that human ingenuity has invented like the GDP, Sensex, etc are soaring! More of humanity is now immersed in poverty than at any time in history;the disparity between the haves and have-nots is the widest ever in recorded history. Science and technology, economic development and our commercial arrangements have deprived huge  sections of native populations everywhere of sources of life support systems. Natural resources have been gobbled up by the moneyed interests, people have been dispossessed of their lands, and people have to buy even drinking water. All these are happening right now in India!

People have been deprived of the  traditional sources of livelihood- which they acquired without cost, practised without govt patronage. Traditional skills have been rendered irrelevant. Local communities have been displaced;large scale migration is taking place to cities and towns, where formerly self-dependent people are now forced to eke out an existence somehow.People live anonymous lives in cities and towns.  Even in a multistoried residential complex, neighbours hardly know each other.There is a total  loss of the sense of 'community'.Local cultures have declined. We may now only speak of society or community on the basis of some narrow and temporary interests, basically material. Our interests are supposed to be mutually competitive.

All these developments have only one factor in common: assault of science on religion.It was religion which endowed man with more than material worth.It gave him a sense of self, and related him to the cosmos. It was the foundation of family, with marriage and children as its focus. It brought people into a community, and taught them, however ineffectively, to subordinate self-interest to common good- however conceived. It taught people to relate to each other otherwise than on material needs or causes. Religion gave rise to art, literature and culture- in the broad sense. It gave rise to many local institutions to meet functional needs and engaged everyone in primary social relationships. It promoted inter-generational communication naturally.

Modern science is based on materialism, and the technology, industry, social,economic and cultural arrangements it has spawned are equally material. Modernity has reduced every relationship to the purely marketable-material. Family is now regarded mainly as a earning unit and has lost its position as the basic building block of the society. Marriage is now regarded as merely a contractual arragement, subject to civil law, and not a sacrament. The disintegration of the family and the disappearance of the non-material values associated with it is the greatest source of social distress today.

The greatest of these non-material values is culture. It is difficult to define it, but may be readily understood as "the way we do things here". This way is imbibed,almost casually, in slow degrees and small doses, rather than acquired by  laborious instruction. It is always occasioned and reinforced by personal example.Speaking the truth, keeping one's word, respect to elders and the learned,not giving offence, honesty and decency in relationships, dependability, trustworthiness, helpful disposition, willingness to subordinate self-interest to urgent needs of others, the spirit of give and take, willingness to accommodate others, and not to nurse a grievance- may be these are all parts of culture we acquire only in the family atmosphere- which alone provides both the examples to observe, and the field to practise! And we can see how these are the very same virtues which religions are trying to inculcate. Any decent civic society would benefit from such virtues on the part of its ordinary citizens. But where do we learn them in the absence of a family?

Religions sanctified family as an institution  (except perhaps Buddhism which exalted the monks above family men). It was the family which in turn taught people religious values and practices. This is especially true of Hinduism which values pratice above belief or theology. Most senior persons can recall how all that they know they learnt in an informal family or social atmosphere, never in a theological school or seminary. Avatara vada, adhikari bheda, karma and rebirth, moksha, Atma and Brahman,- these are the practical pillars of the Hindu religion and these are all picked up as we spend our days  in family atmosphere. The  formal philosophies and theologies we learn are almost totally useless: they are all products of human brain and human flaw.

The normal orthodox Hindu family used to celebrate or observe events of religious significance almost every day. Not only the big occasions like the birthdays of Rama and Krishna, the sacred night of Shiva or the nine nights dedicated to divine Mother, the Deepavali or Sankranti, but even the small ones like the new moon day, the 11th day of the waxing and waning fortnight, the eclipses, etc were observed with all solemnity. Most involved fasting for people above 18, restrictions in food, avoidance of certain behaviour, etc- all teaching self-restraint even for the well to do. But above all, almost all men did Gayatri japa as prescribed. There was something religious associated with the day, star, tithi, Yoga, karana- the five aspects of the Hindu calendar, almost daily. People today cannot even imagine how smoothly things worked.

But there were two aspects which facilitated this. Society generally followed Brahmanical mores,even while only the Brahmins were expected to strictly adhere to all its demands. For instance, on the new moon day, the school opened an hour late, to facilitate the Brahmin teachers to complete their tarpana ceremony, though  all teachers were not Brahmins. Secondly, people lived in villages and small towns where the atmosphere was like that of an extended family,with mutual obligations and demands respected and honoured by all. I myself come from such a place, and had experienced how it worked. Sure, there were bad people, petty jealousies, small mindedness, cheating; but people were known to each other  for generations and such deviations could not continue for long. It would look incredible today: the barber who attended my grandfather had his association running into 3 generations; our tailor, though Muslim, was from  a family we had known for 60 years; so were our goldsmith, suppliers of milk and curd, vegetables.We all hailed from the same place- children of the same soil.

 Certain relationships were fixed: the water used to wash the rice, the vegetable cuttings and scraps left, were to be given to the milkman,to feed the cows, who would give us cow dung in exchange, which was essential for ceremonial cleansing of the premises; the villager would come to set the roof tiles before the rains and he could not be refused; the man cleaning the well would likewise come in summer to clean the well and remove the obstructions in the spring.

This is exactly the kind of tiled house we lived in till the late 50s! My In-laws lived in such a house till the 80s!
This picture is by Kalluri Bheemeswara Sarma. Gratefully acknowledged.

House with similar tiled roof  from  ......Honduras!
Picture taken from flickr. Casa con tejas. Thanks.

 There was also an obligation to reserve a portion of the sweets and other special preparations for every one connected with us; if they did not turn up to collect their share in time, we had to send for them! Money did not enter the calculation at all.Every one connected with us had to be given fresh clothes, crackers and sweets for Deepavali. 65 years ago, no 'family' doctor would demand money immediately on every consultation. The compounder would dispense the medicine, keep the account and it could be paid any time, as convenient.

Parents kept strict watch over the children and the company they kept. So did the teachers. So did the neighbours! If one was found to be reading something considered undesirable,  the teacher would promptly inform the parents.We had many opportunities to move with elderly people and observe them, and also to interact with them. This taught us things like how to talk in learned company, how to defer to them and differ with them. They would engage us in conversation and find out how well we were learning.When pleased, they would give us nice books. One lawyer gave me the books he himself had studied in college- among them the first editions of Benham's Economics, books by Taussig, Pigou, etc. Another was so pleased  that I studied the combination 'Economics, History, Political Science' that he gave me books of Sir Ernest Barker, Ivor Jennings etc. This is how the value of learning was impressed on us. This is how elders in  society shaped us.

But the greatest benefit was with respect to religion. There was  a gentleman working as an accountant in the post-office. He would gather children- mostly the classmates of his own son, in the age group 11-13 and teach them Vishnu Sahasranamam every Sunday. In three months we had learned it by heart.There was an advocate who conducted 'sampradaya bhajans' at his residence every Saturday evening. It was not a huge affair, but like a family gathering. We boys would go early and do all the arrangements: clean up the place, spread the mats,arrange the pictures of the Deities, keep the musical instruments in place, etc.Even the beginning used to thrill us- how the invocatory slokas were recited with charming music. The bhajan itself would last over four hours,consisting of numerous items sung by all the great saints in all Indian languages - which we learnt easily, and learnt to respect. That was not the age to appreciate the greatness of the lyrics or the loftiness of the philosophy: how could a 12 year old understand "Bruhi Mukundeti" or "Manasa Sancharare", or "Eteeruga nannu daya chuchidavo"? But we knew instinctively that it was sublime just because the person who sang it was himself so moved! When we two or three boys retruned home around 1 or 2 am, we would feel as if we were walking on air! Today too, such bhajans are still performed, but in the city Sabhas,as entertainment, and with the mike, lighting and other paraphernalia, the atmosphere is like that of a mela, not a sublime gathering. We miss the sense of personal intimacy and instant elevation of mind and spirit. People have become cerebral,or material, and cannot connect with others at other levels.

Sadashiva Brahmendra, the jnani, of the 17-18 century who gave us a few but immortal kritis combining jnana and bhakti., like Bruhi Mukundeti and Manasa sancharare. Those who are able to listen to this in a bhajan ( in contrast to a musical show) are truly blessed.

Bhadrachala Ramadas, who gave us many kirtanas on Rama and who was an idol of even Sri Tyagaraja! His devotion was such that even his Muslim sultan was blessed with a vision of Rama and Lakshmana!

I have personally felt that the sampradaya bhajan is the greatest discovery or invention of Hinduism in the last 3 centuries or so. It unites all languages, all philosophies, all theologies, all deities and doctrines! Most bhajan performers are also accomplished musicians- who are better than the professional Vidwans because they never destroy the diction and swallow the sahitya. Listen to how Sri Tyagaraja's "Utsava Sampradaya Kirtanas" are sung in the sabhas and see how they are rendered by the bhajan master! I have known many dedicated bhajan practitioners among bankers, commercial executives, school teachers, office workers. 

Such are the benefits when 'cultured' people live in close, small communities.I used to think that  this was some special privilege I was blessed with. Later, when I went to Delhi, Nagpur, Ahmedabad and Bombay and attended sampradaya bhajans, I met many people of my age group coming from different places, who too had had such opportunities. It was a prevailing cultural form in the old Madras state.  And our political and social movements have since destroyed such a sense of community and culture! Even villages are deeply divided on political basis.  Thomas Hardy wrote about the disappearance of the rural English culture and landscape in his novels, as Oliver Goldsmith wrote  earlier in his poetry.

There are pious Indians who hold that Brahmins are themselves to blame for their plight, as they have given up their basic dharma. It is not without merit, but is not the whole truth. Hindu dharma has always held that it is the protection and authority provided by the ruler (kshatram) that keeps people in their dharma.  Tamil Saint composer Tiruvalluvar concedes that the dharma practised by the Brahmana is the basis of social order:

Even if the Vedas are forgotten, they can be learned again. But once the Brahmin falls from his 'swadharma' , that spoils everything.      134

Care: Valluvar uses the word 'pirappozhukkam' which I have rendered as 'Swadharma' here. The Tamil word  in the original literally means 'the discipline that comes by or with birth'. So, it clearly refers to the dharma of the Brahmin. Modern translators give all types of interpretations. The Kural says that if the Brahmin falls from his dharma, then ' things get spoiled ('kedum'). It does not just mean that only the Brahmin falls.  For a full range of the meanings of the expression and its implications, see the comprehensive edition of the Kural with the commentary of Ki.Va.Jagannathan, 1963, Sri Ramakrishna Mission Vidyalaya, Coimbatore- 641020.


Even so, Tiruvalluvar clearly states that it is the ruler who provides the base even for the dharma of the Brahmins.

The sceptre of the king is the mainstay of the science (scriptures) of the Brahmanas and the basis of dharma.              543  

The udders of the cows will dry up and the Brahmanas will forget their scriptures  if the King ruleth not with justice.             560

In medieval India,during the domination of the Muslim invaders, two saints understood this. One was Vidyaranya who founded the Vijaynagar empire and stopped the Muslim spread into the South. The other was Samartha Ramdas Maharaj who inspired Shivaji to found the Hindu Swaraj. The influence of Shivaji dynasty lasted long in Tanjore and the Bhajan sampradaya is its fruit. Hinduism was thus transformed, and could not just return to its old forms.

Ruling power in the cause of dharma! 
Samartha Ramdas Maharaj and Chhatrapati Shivaji, the last great Hindu emperor!
Picture taken from www.adhyatmavidya.com. Thanks.


 This is a period when such developments took place in all old civilisations and religion was dethroned by rationality and materialism as the arbiter of life. Life has become secular ie Godless or irreligious all over the world. Please study things deeply. Hinduism is also succumbing and disintegrating.Both culture and religion have some mystical or mysterious (undefinable,language-defying)  elements and in the absence of an atmosphere which fosters them, they cannot surviv

Public Domain via Wikimedia commons.

Sister Nivedita said that it takes just one generation for people to lose their heritage!


Religion also needs appropriate economic and social arrangements to flourish as a living culture, not a mere system of belief. No authority or agency in India is in a position to comprehend or tackle the present global forces- where even a Vivekananda failed.  Hinduism is not reviving. Some elements are struggling to survive. People are not using political power to defend Hinduism, but using the label to get power!

INDIA'S STRUGGLE FOR EXISTENCE

A WIDE CANVAS

INDIA'S STRUGGLE FOR EXISTENCE

In a sense, every country may be said to be struggling for existence today: the US, the only superpower, is battling Islamic fundamentalism, though it would not admit it openly; the Middle East and  Africa are in conflict, besides the economic distress faced by the latter; the countries of the former Soviet Union in Eastern Europe are facing ethnic, religious and political conflicts; Western European nations have forged a magnificent political and economic union, forgetting centuries of strife, and two grave world wars, but they too are facing problems of Islamic fundamentalism. China is dominating Asia and no one is sure what it thinks- which is a source of stress for other nations. Southeast Asian nations suffer from ethnic and religious conflicts. 

Map showing current conflicts in the world, mainly political-military. 
By Futuretrillionaire CC BY-SA 3.0 http://creativecommons via wikimedia commons.




The Indian subcontinent has to be viewed in this context. The three nations- India, Pakistan and Bangladesh hold the largest Muslim population in the world. India is sandwiched between them, one exporting terrorism, and the other illegal immigrants.
Yet, there are people in India who close their eyes, and deny both!

Europe is not expansionist and does not pose a threat to any nation, except when it may join the US in its adventures; but even then, not all nations will support the US. The US is certainly expansionist- it may not seek colonies in the geographical sense, but it surely seeks spheres of influence  in the political and economic sense. Islam is expansionist- whether it is of the Saudi-Wahhabi, or Iranian-Shia, or Turkish or others like Islamic State type.. China is expansionist- it already holds large chunks of Ladakh and Arunachal Pradesh. It is building a large number of dams across the Himalayan rivers and will choke the water supply to India in the decades to come. Christianity is also expansionist, seeking to convert Hindus, Buddhists, Jains and Sikhs. Most western nations have separated church and state and become genuinely secular, but they tend to blindly support Christian organisations in India in their conversion efforts.

The peculiar nature of Indian plight is this: while every other nation or power or religion has carried the conflict away from its homeland, all of them have converged on India! We face all enemies on our own soil, simultaneously!

After the collapse of the USSR in 1989, the cold war, which was basically ideological ,officially ended. Samuel Huntington, an American political theorist then proposed that conflicts in the post- cold war world would be based on civilisation and culture, and not political ideology. At one level, this has turned out to be broadly correct (even if one can disagree on details): the conflicts today are between Islam and Christianity; between factions of Islam itself; between China and others; between expansionist Christians and others.

Samuel P.Huntington, who proposed  'Clash of Civilizations' after the ideological cold war. He identified Hinduism as a major civilization. But our own pseudo-'sickular' pundits have other ideas!
Photo By Copyright World Economic Forum
(www.weforum.org swiss-image ch/Photo by Photo by Peter Lauth [CC BY-SA 3.0 Creative commons via Wikimedia Commons]

At one level, there certainly is conflict today in the world between Christians and Muslims, and between Muslims and other non-Muslims, and India faces problems from both Christians and Muslims.


But at another level, the conflict of ideology has not really ended. Outwardly communism has lost power; but its ideological followers have captured power in the Academies, media and press in the West. In the American universities today, no one is allowed to criticise Islam while no holds are barred on other religions. In the name of multiculturalism, they are not willing to speak about Western or American culture. 

The situation has become so serious (or ridiculous) that they are not even prepared to  admit that the founders of the American republic and its Constitution were imbued with some noble, spiritual sentiments, though they could not be identified with any Christian denominational theology. Thomas Jefferson, the drafter of the Declaration of Independence, which provided the inspiration for the great constitution of the US clearly said:

Can the liberties of a nation be thought secure when we have removed their only firm basis, a conviction in the minds of the people that these liberties are of the gift of God?

 Thomas Jefferson: Notes on Virginia.
Quoted by Daniel J.Boorstin in 'The Lost World of Thomas Jefferson'.1948

The Declaration of Independence, drafted principally by Jefferson, was approved and adopted by the general  congress on 4 July,1776 and its second sentence stated:

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, that among them are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.

In the first sentence, it said that "the laws of Nature and  of Nature's God entitle them" to these..

Benjamin Franklin, and John Adams seated and Thomas Jefferson standing. Drafting of the Declaration of Independence, July, 1776.

The original draft, in the handwriting of Jefferson, additions and alterations made by Franklin and Adams.

Under the influence of multiculturalism, moral relativism, and sheer leftism masquerading as 'liberalism', it is precisely these values which American academies are unwilling to own up boldly! What to talk of India , whose Constitution is a flat political statement, mostly borrowed, in keeping with the Macaulay spirit of blind imitation, without a single ray of original inspiration!

All our national leaders before Gandhi were inspired by an ideal of India as a civilisation or a divine power, not a mere geographical piece.  Gandhi too embodied it briefly in his first and only book 'Hind Swaraj' in 1908, when he declared: "My Swaraj is to keep intact the genius of our civilisation". But he soon forgot it and plunged for a  normal western type of political arrangement. The Nehru dispensation has almost completely erased the record of the work and words of those old leaders, like Tilak and Sri Aurobindo, from public memory. And our leftist elements , disguising themselves as liberal,, whose imitated inspiration always comes from abroad ( now, from Harvard, Chicago, etc,after the fall of Moscow) would call them all Hindu fundamentalists!

CAN PREJUDICES BE OVERCOME?

A WIDE CANVAS

 CAN PREJUDICES  BE OVERCOME?

Communication and commerce  have brought the nations of the world together. The influence of the media in all its forms is promoting a uniform lifestyle all over the world, dominated by a few brands or their imitations. Mass manufacture has replaced local industries, and many traditional arts and crafts are suffering a slow, painful death.Mass entertainment has killed the variety and creativity of numerous local art forms.  Agriculture as a way of life has been replaced by the commercial farm, turning it into  a huge consumer of chemical inputs, controlled by large MNCs; in the process, self-reliant, local and farmer-centred technologies are being wiped out; food security of vast populations has been severely compromised. The cost has grown beyond the capacity of the farmer to bear and recover; it has gone beyond the capacity of the consumer to pay, necessitating huge subsidies, which are met by taxation. Even then, farmers commit suicide, or sell off their lands and migrate to towns and cities. And consumers demand subsidies. Taxation has got its limits too, and then govts resort to debt- burdening future generations for the profligacy of the present ones.  The consequent ethical issues do not bother our economists who are mercenaries who are paid to use their intelligence(?) to justify any damn theory or opinion; nor do they worry our philosophers if any still left. The politicians are slaves of dead idols and defunct theories, bent on feeding people with tall promises and vain hopes. The public who elect them to power are blissfully unaware of the damage to the real economy, society or the environment. Even the so called educated segments are not aware of the basic issues.The press and the media are also busy fanning current flames and making their buck. 

An important aspect of this development has been that people who have been traditionally antagonistic and nursed grievances against each other are now brought together . It is a tribute to the basic humanity and human resilience that most people have been able to overcome past prejudices and learnt to live and prosper together. This is the phenomenon we see especially in Western Europe.

Europe is the cradle of Western civilisation, the mother of America. The USA is a big country, not yet a civilisation. Europe is essentially a civilisation, in spite of its national divisions, and historical tensions and troubles among them. The countries are not uniform, but there is a basic unity. They have been inspired by the ancient Greek and Roman ideals, rediscovered and reinterpreted, and also by the Judeo-Christian ideas. May be, no country in Europe fully absorbed  or exemplified these ideals but the greatest minds of Europe have been fired by them. And this has spread to all countries, shared by all people in course of time, each country or society giving its own shape or form to them.

Western Europe, which has been democratic in various degrees is divided by language and national pride, ethnic affiliations and religious differences; but this did not prevent ideas travelling beyond language and prejudice. English language grew, freely taking words from other European languages, so much that about 40% of the language consists of words of French origin- this in spite of their political rivalry and fought wars. The British 'romantic' movement was based on the ideas of  German philosophers, and drew inspiration from the French Revolution, though the final turn that it took did not please the British temperament.

For us, it will always remain a mystery why on earth these civilised countries, sharing a common intellectual and religious heritage, descended  into two world wars, fought savagely, and causing enormous misery to the victor and vanquished alike.  But it also led to severe soul-searching among its leaders and has now resulted in the great European Union, beginning with small steps. Churchill said that only a United States of Europe could ensure peace and prosperity. Konrad Adenauer, the West German Chancellor and President De Gaulle of  France entered into a treaty of friendship in 1963, burying the past enmity, and it has held for half a century! 

Sculpture showing Adenaur and De Gaulle, to commemorate the restoration of relations between Germany and France.


There were other visionaries like Joseph Bech of Luxembourg,John Bayen, Alcide Gasperi of Italy,Walter Hallstein, Jean Monnet, Robert Schuman, Paul Henri Spaak, Altiero Spinelli, who must all be regarded as the Fathers of the European Union. We must salute the people who are able to rise above past prejudices and petty interests. (And just see how Indian politicians are daily devising  new methods  to divide the people!)

Even so, some prejudices die hard. And history has been used by both politicians and so called scholars alike to keep and foster some prejudices. It has been observed that in England, history at the school level is dominated by anti-German sentiment- as if they are still at war! Historians have pointed out that during this period, (World War II) England also had to shed its colonies, that Great Britain was reduced to Small England, an island nation, and that the War against Germany serves to reinforce its national identity! But for the youngsters there to be taught about the Nazis - who ruled but for 12 years, in such intense manner , 70 years after those events seems odd, when right now Germany is its largest trading partner! Germany was a great country before, noted for its philosophy,science, technology, music and other arts.English Royalty has German blood. Its people suffered due to the Soviet imposed partition; it made miraculous economic recovery and has again united. The Nazi period is just like a scar, no more when seen in the light of  its whole history and accomplishments and  over all contribution to humanity . Not that it did not make blunders or even commit wrongs.But which of our nations have been wholly free of these? (Churchill denied food grains to Bengal during the great famine of the 40s and caused 3 million deaths of innocent, poor civilians- all subjects of the British empire. And the English officers  escaped to safety, after negotiating with the Japanese and abandoning the thousands of Indian troops defending Singapore, and making them surrender to the Japanese. Many of those who survived this joined the INA of Subhas Bose; (those who did not join were executed by the Japanese.) and many  perished in the march through Burma. But it was this INA which made the British lose confidence in the loyalty of the  Army and  Navy and hastened their decision to leave India!)

Netaji laying the foundation of the INA Memorial at Singapore.8 July 1945. It was demolished by the Indian Army in September,1945.
Netaji was elected Congress president  in 1939 in the teeth of open opposition from Gandhi. But Gandhi did not allow him to function. Later, he foisted Nehru as the PM, though a majority of the PCC leaders openly preferred Sardar Patel. Indian govt. under Nehru and his clan has  tried to erase the very memory of Netaji from Indian minds!

The manner the Nazis dealt with the Jews- culminating in the Holocaust, involving the killing of two out of every three Jews living in Europe at the time, is surely something we cannot wish away. But are only  the Nazis to blame? Or, were the Jews the only victims of the Nazis?  Could it have been a sudden development? 

The history of the Jews officially begins with the Exodus from Egypt, but for the last 2000 years they have been wandering without a homeland. They were treated as less than second class citizens in most places, made to live in ghettos, denied many common rights, denied entry to many occupations or professions- all by the God-fearing Christians! Even then, they prospered in whatever they were allowed to do- finance, banking, trade; and their success only attracted further envy and persecution!  They were persecuted by the Communists, no less than the Christians. Research has now shown that every country in Europe, except England, joined or assisted the Nazis in their crime. Even leaders such as former French President Mitterrand, UN Secretary General Kurt Waldheim and Pope  Benedict XVI  (Joseph Ratzinger) are revealed to have had Nazi connections. Even Switzerland, considered neutral, refused to admit Jewish refugees into Switzerland and  to give details of the accounts of the Jews in their banks, or assist their descendants in tracing back their accounts. The property of the Jews were taken away, their monies appropriated, their art collections looted and traded freely in the market, apart from what the Nazis and Soviet commies pocketed for their private possession. It seems anti-Semitic prejudice is part of the Christian or Western mind. Nazi was one extreme; now the Arab attitude is another extreme. In my view, president Obama is deeply  anti-Semitic, if not a neo-Nazi! Just wait and watch. [Obama is entering into a nuclear deal with Iran, without insisting on Iran giving an assurance about not attacking Israel (even if that assurance is  not worth anything). Before  World War II  British PM Neville Chamberlain appeased Hitler,with the Munich Agreement! It only gave time for Hitler to consolidate his position, without having to bother about England. Now Obama is committing a more serious blunder. Every non-Muslim  and non-Shia Muslim country in the region has reason to fear this development.]

PM Chamberlain announcing the Munich Agreement on return to England, as ensuring "peace for our time"! Britain entered the War in less than a year.

Chamberlain, French PM Daladier, Hitler and Mussolini after the Munich Agreement.29/30 September,1938.
Bundesarchiv Bild183-R69173/CC BY -SA 3.0 creativecommons via Wikimedia Commons.

Ironically, the Jews did not make much of the Holocaust for the first twenty years or so, after World War II. They brushed it aside as a bad dream, and got on with the job of living. As the anti-Israeli sentiment grew to mad proportions among the Arabs, resulting in wars, and even the UN started blaming the Jews for everything, it appears that the Holocaust is serving to foster among the Jews all over the world a sense of unity- a shared misfortune, from which  they have to build a new future. The Jews are an intellectually diverse community and are not given to herd thinking (like the Muslims) There are Jews who fiercely oppose Israel (anti-Zionism). Over the centuries, the Jews took to education and cultivation of the intellect in a big way- as this was one property which no one could take away at the borders! This only seems to strengthen the prejudice against them!

On the other side of the globe, Japan has emerged as a world economic power. People may remember that it was also a main player in the War. Hiroshima and Nagasaki are surely remembered. Most people may not know that it was the stealth Japanese  attack on Pearl Harbour that brought the US into the War and changed the course of the War and subsequent world history- including that of Japan. It was the US which allowed the Japanese emperor to retain his title, but forced  a democratic system on the country after the War!

USS Arizona burning at the Pearl Harbour, Dec,7, 1941. Public Domain, Wikipedia Commons 

But what most people do not know or care to remember is that Japan was one of the most brutal and  savage powers, its armed forces trained to inflict  unimaginably atrocious,inhuman and violent orgies against opponents, POW, civilians- most of whom were fellow Asians, and non-combatants! It is estimated that Japan killed 30 million people- Filipinos, Malays,Vietnamese,Cambodians, Indonesians,Burmese. (23 million were supposed to be ethnic Chinese).  Their atrocities included besides massacres and mass murders, human experimentation, biological war, use of chemical weapons, cannibalism, forced labour, looting, perfidy, forcing women as "comfort women " for soldiers (mass rape/prostitution) followed by brutal assault and murder of even young girls.

Chinese being prepared to be buried alive.

An Australian POW about to be beheaded.

Japanese shoot Sikh prisoners who have been blindfolded. Public Domain

Somehow, Japan has been able to outlive this dark period in its history and the mention of the name does not somehow bring those atrocities to mind, as the mention of the  name Germany does. We  rather view Japan as the victim of the first atomic attack! Of course, what the Muslims are currently doing to their own fellow-Muslims, and others far exceeds all this- though there is supposed to be no such big war raging now! Japan has profusely apologized for its war record.

We see countries and people trying to forge ahead, forgetting the past blunders.Time heals wounds, and adds perspective to our vision and brings understanding. But we also see new prejudices rising and swaying people. Modern academics is fostering new prejudices: feminism, leftism, multiculturalism, race-based preferences, justice coloured by special interests, moral relativism, etc.