[Reader-list] Fwd:Understanding Hindutva

[Rohan DSouza]

Dear Lalit,

Im not sure how you see this article as Hindu bashing. It actually talks
about the merits of Hinduism. In fact wherever the author has talked of
Hinduism, he has talked about it in a reverential manner.

For eg - "It is recognized (even by non-Hindus) as being, perhaps, one of
the oldest religions in human history. It outlived the ancient religions of
the Sumerians, the Etruscans, the Mesopotamians the Greeks and the
Egyptians. Hinduism has always been associated with 'sanatana' which denotes
timelessness or ancientness"

Another section, which you yourself has quoted says, "In the broadest sense
of the word, Hinduism is "heterodox" and embraces a vast variety of rituals,
beliefs, popular practices and dietary preferences. In the Bhagavad Gita,
Lord Krishna tells Arjuna: "Through whatever path men come to me, I accept
them through that very path."

What I think the author is doing and which I agree with is, to differentiate
between the eclectic and all encompassing nature of the Hindu approach and
the exclusive, hate driven approach of Hindutva, which also incidentally is
a fairly recent concoction (as compared to the ancient nature of Hinduism),
courtsey people like Sarvakar, Shyam prasad Mukherjee etc. And also how
confusion is sought to be created between Hindutva and Hinduism for the
benefit of proponents of Hindutva such as LK Advani, Ashok Singhal etc.

You ask, 'Is Shyama Prasad Mukherjee a fascist just because he opposed the
then prevailing system of entry in to the state of J&K through permit/visa?'
and my response is he is fascist because of his belief in the ideology of
fascism which plays out in different ways, including propogating the
superiroity of one 'race' over another and therefore promoting subjugation
and decimation of others.

And to me, if Subhash Chandra Bose hobnobbed with Hitler, Mussoilin and the
Fascist axis, sought their help and believed in their approach, he was also
as much a fascist as they were.

My intention (and perhaps even the authors) is not at giving anyone a lesson
on secularism, but pointing out the differences between Hinduism and
Hindutva and the dangers of embracing the latter.

Sure, I agree the nation belongs to all its citizens, be they Hindus,
Muslims, Christians, Sikhs, Jains etc, but then thats not what the Hindutva
approach and Hindu Rashtra model envisages!

Regards,
Rohan


On Wed, Oct 15, 2008 at 12:12 AM, Lalit Ambardar
<lalitambardar at hotmail.com>wrote:

> Nothing new - routine Hindu bashing on this forum. Doesn't deserve any
> response. But still a few observations to help you guys to know your nation
> better.
>
> Netaji Subash Chandra Bose- the hero of the nation had met Hitler & had
> sought his help in the freedom struggle against the British colonialism. Is
> he too sought to be declared a fascist?
> Following sentences in the article itself contradict the very claim in the
> article that tribals aren't Hindus:
>
> *In the broadest sense of the word, Hinduism
> > is "heterodox" and embraces a vast variety of rituals, beliefs, popular
> > practices and dietary preferences. In the Bhagavad Gita, Lord Krishna
> > tells Arjuna: "Through whatever path men come to me, I accept them
> through
> > that very path." *
>
> And this is precisely why Hindus are traditionally secular.
>
> Why is it that faith of innocents is being sought in exchange for so called
> charity? Who dedicated this century to 'one' particular 'faith' in Asia ?
>
> It is preposterous to attribute motives to  Swami Vivekananda's famous
> visit to the USA.
>
> Hindus have welcome all persecuted communities from world over. It is only
> in india that Jews never faced any persecution. India is not secular just
> because the secularism is enshrined in the constitution of India- it is
> because Hindus are secular & they constitute a majority in this country.
> Name the country that practices secularism that prevails here . Remember
> what the Australian PM advised his  Muslim subjects recently.
>
> It is ironic that it is the very Hindu who is being now taught the lessons
> on secularism. Who sought the two nation theory based partition of India?
> Why are you self proclaimed secularists silent over the 'ethnic cleansing'
> of a minority Hindu Pandit community in Kashmir by those kalashnikov
> wielding pan Islamists who are  seeking 'azadi bara e islam'( freedom
> through Islam) in kashmir?
> You know what that former PM was doing when Hindu Pandits were being
> butchered in the streets of Kashmir- he was having 'laddos' with that  known
> part politician Imam , celebrating his win.
>
> Instead of digging in to the  history of 'yours' ( that earlier said Ram
> did not exist & now claims Ram only ordered sethu demolishing), why don't we
> stick to the idea of India that remained after its vivisection ( Muslims
> demanded & they were granted  land in 1947), that vowed inspite of
> provocations, to continue to adhere to the Hindu tradition of secularism .
>
> Is Shyama Prasad Mukherjee a fascist just because he opposed the then
> prevailing system of entry in to the state of J&K through permit/visa?
>
> It is not to justify any kind of violence. Stop being  myopic .This nation
> belongs to all its citizens. Let us build it on its own traditions.
> Regards all
> LA
>
>
> ------------------------------
>
> > Date: Tue, 14 Oct 2008 09:42:13 +0530
> > From: virtuallyme at gmail.com
> > To: reader-list at sarai.net
> > Subject: [Reader-list] Fwd:Understanding Hindutva
>
> >
> > Dear All,
> >
> > Am forwarding an interesting article which explores the concept of
> Hindutva
> > and tries to point out the differences between it and Hinduism. The
> author
> > puts forward the theory that Hindutva is a political project, grounded in
> > the principles and practices of Fascism, aimed at creating and
> maintaining
> > an authoritarian state, with suppressive control over human beings.
> >
> > He also brings out the difference between the inclusive, open approach of
> > Hinduism and the exclusive, suppressive ideas of Hindutva.
> >
> > Thought Ill forward this piece to this list as there have been many
> > discussions around similar issues.
> >
> > Regards,
> > Rohan
> > ________________________________________________________________________
> > ________________________________________________________________________
> > UNDERSTANDING HINDUTVA - by Averthanus L. D'Souza.
> > Posted by: "SJPRASHANT, Ahmedabad" sjprashant at gmail.com
> > Date: Sun Oct 12, 2008 8:40 pm ((PDT))
> >
> > UNDERSTANDING HINDUTVA
> > - Averthanus L. D'Souza.
> >
> > Ramesh Rajaram Vispute, a former Secretary of the Vishwa Hindu Parishad
> > (VHP) once remarked: "The enemies of the Hindus are the Muslims, the
> > Christians, the Hindu intellectuals and the media." It is very
> significant
> > as well as intriguing that Vispute included the Hindu intellectuals and
> the
> > media in his category of the "enemies" of Hindus. It does not take great
> > intellectual acumen to interpret the meaning of this statement by a very
> > prominent Hindutva promoter. It is quite obvious that Hindu intellectuals
> > (nor any other reasonably educated person for that matter) will refuse to
> > swallow the confused gibberish which is churned out by the Hindutva
> > propagandists to arouse anger and hatred against Muslims and Christians,
> > for which the VHP is so notorious. Any thinking person (including Hindu
> > "intellectuals") will see through the falsity of the arguments which the
> VHP
> > advances in its hate campaigns. It is precisely because the position of
> the
> > Hindutva campaign is irrational and untenable that the propagandists
> prefer
> > to recruit uneducated and unthinking followers who can easily be
> manipulated
> > to believe anything that is fed to them. The Bajrang Dal, which is
> > considered to be the front-rank of the storm-troopers of the VHP is a
> good
> > example of uneducated youth, with more passion than reason, who are
> willing
> > to blindly follow orders without thinking, and who are conditioned to
> > believe that heroism consists in slaughtering helpless women and
> children,
> > and burning innocent people alive. In this respect the Bajrang Dal is no
> > different from the Hitler Youth of Nazi Germany or the youth brigades of
> the
> > other fascist movements in Europe who were used to terrorize the
> population
> > into submission. With their saffron head-bands and wielding 'trishuls',
> > and screaming full-throated war-cries, these rampaging gangs can cause
> > terror anywhere - which is precisely what they are trained to do. They
> are
> > 'programmed' to follow orders, irrespective of the morality of the orders
> or
> > the consequences which follow. B.S. Moonje, a prominent RSS leader,
> > personally met the Italian fascist leader Benito Mussolini in Rome on 19
> > March, 1931, visited some important military schools and educational
> > institutions and became acquainted with the Balilla and the Avanguardisti
> > organizations. Moonje wrote in his diary that the keystone of the fascist
> > system is the 'indoctrination' of youths, rather than education. This is
> > the foundation on which the Bajrang Dal is built.
> >
> > While cultivated ignorance of the youth is one facet which is promoted by
> > the Hindutva ideologues, deliberate falsification of current facts as
> well
> > as of History is another method of indoctrination used. Lal .Krishna.
> > Advani closely studied the system of propaganda developed by Nazi
> Germany.
> > He says: "In Nazi Germany, fascism in action developed two other
> > distinctive characteristics: firstly, adoption of propaganda as a key
> > instrument of State policy; and secondly, the systematic development of a
> > demonology to keep the masses in a mood of perpetual tension and
> hysteria."
> > (L.K.Advani- "A Prisoner's Scrap Book" ) Advani and his colleagues have
> > tried hard to refine and improve upon the propaganda-cum-terror machinery
> > which was developed by Nazi Germany, specially by Hitler's most trusted
> > lieutenant Paul Joseph Goebbels, whose name has now become synonymous
> with
> > high-voltage mendacious propaganda.
> >
> > One of the more prominent falsifications which the Hindutva protagonists
> are
> > propagating is that Hindutva is an integral part of Hinduism. No sensible
> > person, (including thinking Hindus) accepts this claim. In fact, the vast
> > majority of Hindus are aghast at this identification of Hinduism with
> > Hindutva. Hinduism is a highly respected religion of long standing. It
> > is recognized (even by non-Hindus) as being, perhaps, one of the oldest
> > religions in human history. It outlived the ancient religions of the
> > Sumerians, the Etruscans, the Mesopotamians the Greeks and the Egyptians.
> > Hinduism has always been associated with 'sanatana' which denotes
> > timelessness or ancientness. Hinduism has never been associated with any
> > particular political system; nor has it ever shown a preference for any
> > particular cultural context. In the broadest sense of the word, Hinduism
> > is "heterodox" and embraces a vast variety of rituals, beliefs, popular
> > practices and dietary preferences. In the Bhagavad Gita, Lord Krishna
> > tells Arjuna: "Through whatever path men come to me, I accept them
> through
> > that very path."
> >
> > In sharp contrast to Hinduism as a religion, Hindutva is a clearly
> > distinguishable "political" ideology which is straining to concoct a
> > "national" identity based on the Hindu religion. Hindutva is a clearly
> > fascist political movement, which has drawn much of its inspiration from
> > European fascism and German Nazism. The most prominent protagonists of
> > Hindutva, Vinayak Damodar Savarkar (1902 - 1966), Madhav Sadashiv
> > Golwalkar (1906 - 1973) and Shyama Prasad Mukherjee (1901 - 1953) among
> > others, have derived their ideologies from European fascism and modified
> it
> > to suit Indian conditions. In fact, Pravin Togadia the "International
> > General Secretary" of the VHP explicitly says that India is a Hindu
> Rashtra
> > since millennia, and that Hindutva is not a religion but a synonym for
> Hindu
> > nationalism. It should be quite clear, therefore, that the rejection of
> > the claims of Hindutva cannot be construed as being anti-Hinduism. In
> > fact, it is precisely because of the distortion of Hinduism by the
> Hindutva
> > brigade that the Hindu intellectuals have rejected it. The Hindutva
> > fanatics thrive on spreading this confusion between Hindutva and
> Hinduism.
> > They have been able to increase their popularity because they repeat the
> > (false) propaganda that the promotion of Hindutva is the promotion of
> > Hinduism
> >
> > There are many distortions which the Hindutva fascists have wrought on
> > Hinduism. Suffice it to indicate only a few blatant contradictions in
> > their propaganda.
> >
> > One: Hindutva is supposedly a movement to create a Hindu "Rashtra". The
> > secularism enshrined in the Indian Constitution is violently rejected by
> the
> > Hindutva protagonists. At the same time they have made a conscious and
> > vigorous effort to create an "international" Hindu community. The
> > formation of the "World Hindu Council" and the creation of the post of an
> > "International General Secretary" of the VHP is a clear contradiction of
> the
> > claim that Hindutva is limited to the objective of creating a Hindu
> > "nation." This contradiction is obvious to every sane person, except, of
> > course, the rabid Hindutva ideologues.
> >
> > The claim made by Pravin Togadia that Hindutva as a "Rashtra" has existed
> > since millennia is patently false. By all historical accounts, whether in
> > ancient or mediaeval India, there were several "kingdoms" or "empires."
> > Among the more well-known ancient empires were the Mauryan empire of
> > Chandragupta Maurya ( approx. 326 B.C. to 184 B.C.) and the Asokan empire
> > (approx. 269 B.C. to 232 B.C.) There were also other lesser kingdoms like
> > those of Kushana. In the south there were the numerous kingdoms of
> > Adilshah, the Pandyan and Chola kingdoms, the Chalukyan dynasty and the
> > Vijayanagaran kingdom (1336 to 1567 A.D.) and the better known Maratha
> > Kingdom whose best known figure is Shivaji. In the course of history, all
> > these kingdoms were in conflict with one or another with a view to expand
> > their fiefdom or to retrieve lands which had been taken away by force.
> > There was never a "nation" called India. Even after the gaining of
> > political independence from Britain in 1947, it was left to Sardar
> > Vallabhbhai Patel to consolidate the various major and minor kingdoms
> into a
> > unified Nation. It is indisputable that it was under Pandit Jawaharlal
> > Nehru and Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel that the so-called "Princely States"
> were
> > abolished and integrated into the State of India, which, for the first
> time
> > in its entire history adopted a Constitution which was to govern the
> > "Nation." The falsity of the VHP's claim that India was always a Hindu
> > "rashtra" is proven by the very fact that it is still seeking to "create"
> > the Hindu Rashtra of its dream.
> >
> > Two: the VHP claims that people who profess and practice other religions
> > cannot be part of the Hindu Rashtra. This is in stark contradiction to
> the
> > repeated statements made by the Hindutva leaders that Hindutva is a
> > "secular" concept. In fact, they claim that they are secular precisely
> > because they are Hindu. They accuse non-Hindus of being "pseudo-secular."
> > They continue to trumpet this obvious contradiction that only Hindus are
> > secular and the followers of all other religions are not secular. Yet,
> > they also claim that Hindutva is a "composite" culture which embraces a
> > variety of religions, cults, languages and ethnic cultures. The Hindutva
> > ideologues have never been able to reconcile this glaring contradiction
> in
> > their position. If Hindutva "embraces" other ethnic cultures, why is it
> > that they are systematically forcing tribals (who are not, and never have
> > been, Hindu) to "convert" to Hinduism? On the one hand they have
> > sponsored so-called "Freedom of Religion" legislation in many States;
> > because they are ostensibly opposed to conversions by force, fraud or
> > inducements; yet on the other hand, they themselves are forcibly
> > "converting" tribals, members of scheduled castes and followers of other
> > religions. They offer the lame and unconvincing argument that they are
> only
> > bringing back these people to the Hindu fold. They have called this
> > movement a "ghar vapasi." The fact is that the tribals have never been
> > Hindu. They have their own culture, religion and social practices. "Ghar
> > vapasi" in their case simply does not make any sense. Former Indian Prime
> > Minister, V.P. Singh has rightly pointed out that "ultimately what they
> are
> > aiming at is authoritarian rule. Then not only will the minorities be
> > targeted, but also those who do not agree with them. You will be declared
> an
> > anti-national and treated thus."
> >
> > One of the more prominent characteristics of any dictatorial political
> > movement is the systematic creation of confusion in the minds of the
> > citizens so that they can never be sure of what the truth is. This is
> done
> > in two ways. One is to spread rumours through the cadres of grassroots
> > level workers, and another is to simultaneously issue "official"
> statements
> > "clarifying" the official position on any particular issue. This is a
> very
> > subtle psychological game which is being played by the top leadership of
> the
> > Hindutva brigade. Citizens need to be aware of this and not fall into the
> > trap which is deliberately created by the Hindutva ideologues. A
> glaringly
> > example of this "double-speak" is the fact that the Bajrang Dal leaders
> in
> > Karnataka have openly stated on TV channels that they are responsible for
> > the attacks against Christian churches, institutions and personnel. At
> the
> > same time, the BJP government in Karnataka and the VHP leadership insist
> > that the Bajrang Dal had nothing to do with the attacks.
> >
> > There are too many contradictions in the propaganda arsenal of the Sangh
> > Parivar to be treated at length in a brief essay, but this short analysis
> > will, perhaps, help to pinpoint the contradictions:
> >
> > Hindu Nationalism v/s International Hindu Solidarity.
> >
> > The entire Hindutva movement is grounded on the principle that India is a
> > Hindu nation, and that only Hindus can enjoy rights of citizenship in
> India.
> > In this view, Muslims and Christians, in particular, but also Jews,
> > Parsis, Buddhists and Jains, are viewed as non-Indian. Each time a
> violent
> > attack is carried out against Muslims or Christians, the Bajrang Dal
> > terrorists shout that the Muslims and Christians should either become
> Hindus
> > or leave the country. Islam and Christianity are considered to be
> > "impositions" by foreign Muslim conquerors or by Western Christian
> > missionaries. The teachings of V.D. Savarkar and M.S. Golwalkar are very
> > explicit about this. According to them, non-Hindus cannot enjoy rights of
> > citizenship. The Muslims are constantly warned that their continued
> > presence in India is entirely dependent on the "goodwill" of the Hindus
> and
> > the Christians are "advised" to form an Indian Church under the complete
> > control of the Indian Government, similar to the National Church in
> China.
> > The so-called principle is constantly repeated that only those who sever
> > their links with any international community and become entirely Hindu
> will
> > be tolerated in (an Hindutva ruled) India.
> >
> > The stark contradiction in this position is the fact that Hindutva is Not
> > confined to the geographical territory of India; it is sought to be made
> an
> > international religion. Ever since the famous Parliament of Religions was
> > addressed by Swami Vivekananda, in Chicago the "missionary" dimension of
> > Hinduism was begun with the formation of the Vedanta Society in 1893 in
> New
> > York. Today there are Hindu "missions" all over the world, in the U.S.A.,
> > in Europe, in the Pacific Islands, in the West Indies, and in South
> Africa.
> > The claim that Hindutva is a movement to establish a Hindu "Rashtra," is,
> > therefore, patently false. The comparison with the expansionist movement
> > of Nazi Germany is too striking to be missed. First it started with the
> > unification of German speaking countries; then it was extended to include
> > all people of Aryan ethnic stock. Since racial characteristics could not
> be
> > "assimilated" the Nazis began a systematic extermination, first of the
> > Jewish people and then of other "tainted" races. The Hindutva claim to
> > form a Hindu Rashtra, is, on the face of it, a huge fraud perpetrated by
> the
> > Hindutva ideologues. From a close examination of the literature
> available,
> > it is clear that the Hindutva brigade wants to establish a theocratic
> Hindu
> > State in India, not dissimilar to the Islamic State of neighbouring
> > Pakistan.
> >
> > Tolerance v/s xenophobia.
> >
> > Another myth which has been created by the Hindutva protagonists is the
> > claim that Hindutva is a tolerant ideology and is based on secular
> values.
> > This is far from the truth. Hindutva is a blatantly intolerant movement
> > which thrives on spreading hatred and fear among people. In fact it is so
> > intolerant that it seeks to re-write history, which, according to it, has
> > been written by "pseudo-secularists." Its distortion of history is so
> > blatant that it has even created the myth that Asoka and Chandragupta
> > Maurya were Hindu kings. This is a blatant falsification of History. All
> > reliable sources tell us that Asoka ruled over a Buddhist kingdom, and
> that
> > Chandragupta Maurya was strongly associated with the Jaina tradition. The
> > Hindutva view of history is not based on scientific research, but on an
> > imagination running wild. The Hindutva "historians" are worthy disciples
> > of Goebbels who taught that if you repeat a lie over and over again,
> people
> > will soon begin to accept it as the truth.
> >
> > If Hindutva is a tolerant political ideology which respects secular
> values,
> > why is it that in all the States which are ruled by the BJP there is a
> > systematic attack against Christians and Muslims? Why is it that tribals,
> > who are not, and never have been, Hindu are being terrorized into
> converting
> > to Hinduism?
> >
> > The Hindutva fanatics claim that they are against conversion by force,
> fraud
> > or by material inducements. In fact they accuse the Christians of having
> > converted Hindus by offering such material inducements. Yet, the
> duplicity
> > of their claims is starkly evident in the fact that wherever they have
> > attacked the Christians, independent Commissions of Enquiry have not been
> > able to confirm a single case of conversion by the use of fraud, force or
> > material inducement. The Laws in India are very clear about such
> > conversions. If the Hindutva terrorists have any evidence of such
> > conversions, they should have recourse to the Law. Instead, they resort
> to
> > violence and terror against helpless, innocent and weak communities. They
> > themselves use force to (re)convert people.
> >
> > The Hindutva movement is built on the foundations of falsehood, force and
> > terror. In times of natural calamities, like the earthquake in Gujarat,
> > they prevented anyone else from assisting the affected people. They
> sought
> > exclusive rights to dispense aid, but they distributed this aid in a
> highly
> > reprehensible manner. Muslim victims were carefully and deliberately
> > excluded. Others were given aid only on condition that they swore to
> > remain or to become Hindu. There is voluminous evidence of such
> > discrimination even in times of dire affliction. And these very people
> > claim that Hindutva is a humanitarian and generous movement.
> >
> > Citizens need to be aware of the duplicity of the Hindutva movement. They
> > should examine all their claims critically; and most of all, citizens
> > should not be beguiled into believing that the Hindutva movement has any
> > redeeming features. It is an unmitigated evil.
> >
> > The battle lines are very clear. We Indians, of all faiths, varieties of
> > cultures and languages, are facing a grave threat to the secular,
> > democratic and pluri-cultural fabric of our society. We need to join
> > forces to defeat the evil forces of fascism and authoritarianism. The
> > fight is not between Hinduism and other religions. The fight is really
> > between secularism and democracy, on the one hand, and fascism on the
> other.
> >
> > Averthanus L. D'Souza,
> > D-13, La Marvel Colony,
> > Dona Paula, Goa 403 004.
> > Tel: 2453628
> > _________________________________________
> > reader-list: an open discussion list on media and the city.
> > Critiques & Collaborations
> > To subscribe: send an email to reader-list-request at sarai.net with
> subscribe in the subject header.
> > To unsubscribe: https://mail.sarai.net/mailman/listinfo/reader-list
> > List archive: &lt;https://mail.sarai.net/pipermail/reader-list/>
>
>
> ------------------------------
> Watch useful tips on recipes, fitness, yoga and fashion only on MSN videos.
> Try it! <http://video.msn.com/?mkt=en-in>
>