[Reader-list] National Shame

[anupam chakravartty]

thanks for saying that Dr B R Ambedkar's ideas of Upanishads are strange and
unwanted. that explains your respect to such leaders.

good day

On Sat, Apr 17, 2010 at 5:23 PM, Pawan Durani <pawan.durani at gmail.com>wrote:

> And I thought I had shared a news about a tourist being raped in
> India. The pathetic insensitivity shown and ending up in Hindu bashing
> again is simply deplorable. I used a slogan which is also the official
> slogan of Govt Of India in "Incredible India" campaign ,to highlight
> an alleged rape of a tourist.
>
> But then , world consists of strange unwanted things as well.....like
> the mail below
>
> Regards
>
> pawan
>
> On Sat, Apr 17, 2010 at 4:30 PM, anupam chakravartty <c.anupam at gmail.com>
> wrote:
> > Let's see what Dr B.R. Ambedkar had to say about Upanishads:
> >
> > http://www.ambedkar.org/ambcd/17.Philosophy%20of%20Hinduism.htm#q7
> >
> > The philosophy of the Upanishads can be stated in very few words. It has
> > been well summarised by Huxley[f29]  when he says that the Upanishad
> > philosophy agreed:—
> >
> > "In supposing the existence of a permanent reality, or `substance',
> beneath
> > the shifting series of phenomena, whether of matter or of mind. The
> > substance of the cosmos was `Brahma', that of the individual man `Atman';
> > and the latter was separated from the former only, if I may so speak, by
> its
> > phenomenal envelope, by the casing of sensations, thoughts and desires,
> > pleasures and pains, which make up the illusive phantasmagoria of life.
> This
> > the ignorant, take for reality; their `Atman' therefore remains eternally
> > imprisoned in delusions, bound by the fetters of desire and scourged by
> the
> > whip of misery.
> >
> > Of what use is this philosophy of the Upanishadas? The philosophy of the
> > Upanishadas meant withdrawal from the struggle for existence by resort to
> > asceticism and a destruction of desire by self-mortification. As a way of
> > life it was condemned by Huxley[f30]  in scathing terms :—
> >
> > "No more thorough mortification of the flesh has ever been attempted than
> > that achieved by the Indian ascetic anchorite; no later monarchism has so
> > nearly succeeded in reducing the human mind to that condition of
> impassive
> > quasi-somnambulism, which, but for its acknowledged holiness, might run
> the
> > risk of being confounded with idiocy."
> >
> > But the condemnation of the philosophy of the Upanishads is nothing as
> > compared to the denunciation of the same by Lala Hardyal[f31]  :—
> >
> > "The Upanishads claim to expound `that, by knowing which everything is
> known
> > '. This quest for ' the absolute ' is the basis of all the spurious
> > metaphysics of India. The treatises are full of absurd conceits, quaint
> > fancies, and chaotic speculations. And we have not learned that they are
> > worthless. We keep moving in the old rut; we edit and re-edit the old
> books
> > instead of translating the classics of European social thought. What
> could
> > Europe be if Frederic Harrison, Brieux, Bebel, Anatole France, Herve,
> > Haekel, Giddings, and Marshall should employ their time in composing
> > treatises on Duns, Scotus and Thomas Aquinas, and discussing the merits
> of
> > the laws of the Pentateuch and the poetry of Beowulf? Indian pundits and
> > graduates seem to suffer from a kind of mania for what is effete and
> > antiquated. Thus an institution, established by progressive men, aims at
> > leading our youths through Sanskrit grammar to the Vadasvia the Six
> > Darshanas! What a false move in the quest for wisdom ! It is as if a
> caravan
> > should travel across the desert to the shores of the Dead Sea in search
> of
> > fresh water! Young men of India, look not for wisdom in the musty
> parchments
> > of your metaphysical treatises. There is nothing but an endless round of
> > verbal jugglary there. Read Rousseau and Voltaire, Plato and Aristotle,
> > Haeckel and Spencer, Marx and Tolstoi, Ruskin and Comte, and other
> European
> > thinkers, if you wish to understand life and its problems." But
> > denunciations apart, did the Upanishad philosophy have any influence on
> > Hinduism as a social and political system? There is no doubt that it
> turned
> > out to be most ineffective and inconsequential piece of speculation with
> no
> > effect on the moral and social order of the Hindus.
> >
> > It may not be out of place to inquire into the reasons for this
> unfortunate
> > result. One reason is obvious. The philosophy of Upanishad remained
> > incomplete and therefore did not yield the fruit, which it ought to have
> > done. This will be quite clear if one asks what is the keynote of the
> > Upanishads. In the words of Prof. Max Muller[f32]  the keynote of the
> > Upanishads is `Know thy Self". The `Know thy Self of the Upanishads,
> means,
> > know thy true Self, that which underlies thin ego and find it and know it
> in
> > the highest, the eternal self, the One without a Second, which underlies
> the
> > whole world."
> >
> > That Atman and Brahman were one was the truth, the great truth which the
> > Upanishads said they had discovered and they asked man to know this
> truth.
> > Now the reasons why the philosophy of Upanishads, became ineffective are
> > many. I will discuss them elsewhere. At this place I will mention only
> one.
> > The philosophers of Upanishads did not realise that to know truth was not
> > enough. One must learn to love truth. The difference between philosophy
> and
> > religion may be put in two ways. Philosophy is concerned with knowing
> truth.
> > Religion is concerned with the love of truth. Philosophy is static.
> Religion
> > is dynamic. These differences are merely two aspects of one and the same
> > thing. Philosophy is static because it is concerned only with knowing
> truth.
> > Religion is dynamic because it is concerned with love of truth. As has
> been
> > well said by Max Plowman[f33]  :—
> >
> > ". . . .Unless religion is dynamic and begets in us the emotion of love
> for
> > something, then it is better to be without any thing that we can call
> > religion; for religion is perception of truth and if our perception of
> truth
> > is not accompanied by our love for it then it were better not seen at
> all;
> > The Devil himself is one who has seen the truth only to hate it. Tennyson
> > said "We must love the highest when we see it". It does not follow. Seen
> in
> > pure objectivity the highest repels by its difference and distance; what
> we
> > fear it, and what we fear we come to hate. . . . ."
> >
> > This is the fate of all transcendental philosophies. They have no
> influence
> > on the way of life. As Blake said "Religion is politics and politics is
> > Brotherhood. Philosophy must become Religion that is it must become a
> > Working Ethic. It must not remain mere metaphysics. As Mr. Plowman says—
> >
> > "If religion were a Metaphysic and nothing else, one thing is certain, it
> > would never be the concern of the simple and humble men.
> >
> > "To keep it wholly in the realm of Metaphysic is to make non-sense of it.
> > For belief in religion as in something not directly and vitally effective
> of
> > politics is ultimately belief that is strictly speaking idiotic; because
> in
> > the effective sense such a belief makes no difference, and in the world
> of
> > time and space what 'makes no difference' does not exist."
> >
> > It is for these very reasons that the philosophy of the Upanishads proved
> so
> > ineffective.
> >
> > It is therefore incontrovertible that notwithstanding the Hindu Code of
> > Ethics, notwithstanding the philosophy of the Upanishads not a little not
> a
> > jot did abate from the philosophy of Hinduism as propounded by Manu. They
> > were ineffective and powerless to erase the infamy preached by Manu in
> the
> > name of religion. Notwithstanding their existence one can still say
> > "Hinduism! Thy name is inequality!"
> >
> > **********************************************************************
> >
> > Inequality is the soul of Hinduism. The morality of Hinduism is only
> social.
> > It is unmoral and inhuman to say the least. What is unmoral and inhuman
> > easily becomes immoral, inhuman and infamous. This is what Hinduism has
> > become. Those who doubt this or deny this proposition should examine the
> > social composition of the Hindu Society and ponder over the condition of
> > some of the elements in it. Take the following cases.
> >
> > First as to the Primitive Tribes. In what state of civilisation are they
> ?
> >
> > The history of human civilisation includes the entire period of human
> > progress from Savagery to Barbarism and from Barbarism to Civilisation.
> The
> > transition from one to other has been marked by some discovery or
> intention
> > in some department of knowledge of Art resulting in advancing the onward
> > march of man.
> >
> > The development of articulate speech was the first thing which, from the
> > point of view of human progress, divided man from the brute. It marks the
> > first stage of savagery. The Middle period of the state of savagery began
> > with the knowledge of the manufacture and use of fire. This wonderful
> > discovery enabled man to extend his habit almost indefinitely. He could
> > leave his forest home, go to different and colder climates, and increase
> his
> > food supply by including flesh and fish. The next discovery was the Bow
> and
> > Arrow. This was the greatest achievement of primitive man and marks the
> > highest state of savage man. It was indeed a wonderful implement. The
> > possessor of this device could bring down the fleetest animal and could
> > defend himself against the most predatory.
> >
> > The transition from Savagery to Barbarism was marked by the discovery of
> > pottery. Hitherto man had no utensils that could withstand the action of
> > fire. Without utensils man could not store nor could he cook. Undoubtedly
> > pottery was a great civilising influence.
> >
> > The Middle State of Barbarism began when man learned to domesticate wild
> > animals. Man learned that captive animals could be of service to him. Man
> > now became a herdsman, no longer dependent for food upon the precarious
> > chase of wild animals. Milk procurable at all seasons made a highly
> > important addition to his dietary. With the aid of horse and camel he
> > traversed wide areas hitherto impassable. The captive animals became aids
> to
> > commerce, which resulted in the dissemination of commodities as well as
> of
> > ideas.
> >
> > The next discovery was of the Art of smelting iron. This marks the
> highest
> > stage of advancement of barbaric man. With this discovery man became a
> > "tool-making animal" who with his tool could fashion wood and stone and
> > build houses and bridges. This marks the close of the advancement made by
> > barbaric man. The dividing line which marks off Barbaric people from
> > Civilised people, in the fullest sense of the word Civilisation, is the
> art
> > of making ideas tangible by means of graphic signs— which is called the
> art
> > of writing. With this man conquered time as he had with the earlier
> > inventions conquered space. He could now record his deeds and his
> thoughts.
> > Henceforth, his knowledge, his poetical dreams, his moral aspirations
> might
> > be recorded in such form as to be read not merely by his contemporaries
> but
> > by successive generations of remote posterity. For man his history became
> > safe and secure. This was the steepest assent and the climbing of it
> marks
> > the beginnings of civilisation. Stopping here for the moment let us ask
> in
> > what state of civilisation are the Primitive Tribes.
> >
> > The name Primitive Tribes[f34]  is expressive of the present state of
> people
> > who are called by that name. They live in small-scattered huts in
> forests.
> > They live on wild fruits, nuts and roots. Fishing and hunting are also
> > resorted to for the purpose of securing food. Agriculture plays a very
> small
> > part in their social economy. Food supplies being extremely precarious,
> they
> > lead a life of semi-starvation from which there is no escape. As to
> clothes
> > they economise them to a vanishing point. They move almost in a state of
> > complete nakedness. There is a tribe, which is known as “Bonda Porajas”
> > which, means "Naked Porajas". Of these people it is said that the women
> wear
> > a very narrow strip which serves as a petticoat almost identical with
> what
> > is worn by the Momjak Nagas in Assam, the ends hardly meeting at the top
> on
> > the left thigh. These petticoats are woven at home out of the fibre of a
> > forest tree. Girls wear a fillet of beads and of palmyra leaf and an
> > enormous quantity of beads and neck ornaments extremely like those worn
> by
> > many Komjak women. Otherwise the women wear nothing. The women shave
> their
> > heads entirely. . . . . Of these Chenchus, a tribe residing near Farhabad
> in
> > the Nizam's Dominions it is said that "their houses are conical, rather
> > slight in structure made of bamboo sloping to the central point and
> covered
> > with a thin layer of thatch..... They have very little, indeed, in the
> way
> > of material effects, the scanty clothes they wear, consisting of a
> langoti
> > and a cloth in the case of men, and a short bodice and a petticoat in the
> > case of women, being practically all, besides a few cooking pots and a
> > basket or two which perhaps sometimes contains grain. They keep cattle
> and
> > goats and in this particular village do a little cultivation, elsewhere
> > subsisting on honey and forest produce which they sell". Regarding the
> > Morias, another Primitive tribe, it is stated the men generally wear a
> > single cloth round the waist with a slap coming down in the front. They
> also
> > have a necklace of beads and when they dance put on cock's plumes and
> > peacock's feathers in their turbans. Many girls are profusely tattooed,
> > especially on their faces, and some of them on their legs as well. The
> type
> > of tattooing is said to be according to the taste of the individual and
> it
> > is done with thorns and needles. In their hair many of them stick the
> > feathers of jungle cocks and their heads are also adorned with combs of
> wood
> > and tin and brass.
> >
> > These Primitive Tribes have no hesitation about eating anything, even
> worms
> > and insects, and, in fact, there is very little meat that they will not
> eat,
> > whether the animal has died a natural death or has been killed four days
> or
> > more before by a tiger.
> >
> > The next groups of the people he will come across are the Criminal
> > Tribes.
> >
> > The Criminal Tribes live not in Forests as the Primitive Tribes do but in
> > the plains in close proximity to, and often in the midst of civilised
> life.
> > Hollis in his "Criminal Tribes of the United Provinces" gives an account
> of
> > their activities. They live entirely by crime. A few may be ostensibly
> > engaged in agriculture, but this is only to cover up their real
> activities.
> > Their nefarious practices find largest scope in dacoity or robbery by
> > violence, but being a community organised for crime, nothing comes amiss
> to
> > them. On deciding to commit a dacoity in any particular locality spies
> are
> > sent out to select a suitable victim, study the general habits of the
> > villagers, and the distance from any effective aid, and enumerate the
> number
> > of men and firearms. The raid usually takes place at midnight. Acting on
> the
> > information given by the spies, men are posted at various points in the
> > village and by firing off their guns attract attention from the main gang
> > which attacks the particular house or houses previously appointed. The
> gang
> > usually consists of 30 to 40 men.
> >
> > It is essential to emphasis the great part played by crime in the general
> > life of these peoples. A boy is initiated into crime as soon as he is
> able
> > to walk and talk. No doubt the motive is practical, to a great extent, in
> so
> > far as it is always better to risk a child in petty theft, who, if he is
> > caught, would probably be cuffed, while an adult would immediately be
> > arrested. An important part is also played by women, who, although they
> do
> > not participate in the actual raids, have many heavy responsibilities.
> > Besides being clever in disposing off stolen property the women of the
> > Criminal Tribes are experts in shop lifting.
> >
> > At one time the Criminal Tribes included such well-organised
> Confederacies
> > of Professional Criminals as the Pindharies and the Thugs.
> >
> > The Pindharies were a predatory body of armed gangsters. Their
> organisation
> > was an open military organisation of freebooters who could muster 20000
> fine
> > horse and even more. They were under the command of brigand chiefs. Chitu
> > one of the most powerful commanders had under his single command 10000
> > horse, including 5000 good cavalry, besides infantry and guns. The
> > Pindharies had no military projects for employing their loose bands of
> > irregular soldiery, which developed into bodies of professional
> plunderers.
> > The Pindharies aimed at no conquests. Their object was to secure booty
> and
> > cash for themselves. General loot and rapine was their occupation. They
> > recognised no rulers. They were subjects of none. They rendered loyalty
> to
> > none. They respected none, and plundered all, high and low, rich and
> poor,
> > without fear or compunction.
> >
> > The Thugs[f35]  were a well organised body of professional assassins,
> who,
> > in gangs of from 10 to 100 wandered in various guises throughout India,
> > worked themselves into the confidence of wayfarers of the wealthier
> class,
> > and, when a favourable opportunity occurred, strangled them by throwing a
> > handkerchief or noose round their necks, and then plundered and buried
> them.
> > All this was done according to certain ancient and rigidly prescribed
> forms
> > and after the performance of special religious rites, in which was the
> > consecration of the package, and the sacrifice of sugar. They were
> staunch
> > worshippers of Kali, the Hindu Goddess of destruction. Assassination for
> > gain was with them a religious duty, and was considered a holy and
> > honourable profession. They had, in fact, no idea of doing wrong, and
> their
> > moral feelings did not come into play. The will of the Goddess, by whose
> > command and in whose honour they followed there calling, was revealed to
> > them through a very complicated system of omens.
> >
> > In obedience to these they often travelled even the distance of hundred
> > miles in company with, or in the wake of, their intended victims before a
> > safe opportunity had presented itself for executing their design; and
> when
> > the deed was done, rites were performed in honour of that tutelary deity,
> > and a goodly portion of the spoil was set apart for her. The Thugs had
> also
> > a jargon of their own, as well as certain signs by which its members
> > recognised each other in the remotest part of India. Even those who from
> age
> > or infirmities could no longer take an active part in the operations used
> to
> > aid the cause as watchmen, spies or dressers of food. It was owing to
> their
> > thorough organisation, the secrecy and security with which they went to
> > work, but chiefly to the religious garb in which they shrouded their
> > murders, that they could continue for centuries to practise their craft.
> The
> > extraordinary fact was that Thugee was regarded as a regular profession
> by
> > Indian Rulers of the day, both Hindu and Mahomedans. The Thugs paid taxes
> to
> > the state and the state left them unmolested.
> >
> > It was not until the British became rulers of the country that an attempt
> > was made to suppress the Thugs. By 1835, 382 Thugs were hanged and 986
> were
> > transported or imprisoned for life. Even as late as 1879 the number of
> > registered Thugs was 344 and the Thugee and the Dacoity department of the
> > Government of India continued to exist until 1904 when its place was
> taken
> > by the Central Criminal Intelligence Department. While it is not possible
> > for the criminal tribes to live by organized bodies of criminals, crime
> > continues to be their main occupation.
> >
> > Besides these two classes there is a third class which comprises a body
> of
> > people who are known as Untouchables.
> >
> > Below the Untouchables there are others who are known as unapproachable.
> > Untouchables are those who cause pollution only if they touch. The
> > Unapproachable are those who cause pollution if they come within a
> certain
> > distance. It is said of the Nayadis—a people, who fall into the category
> of
> > the Unapproachable, "that they are the lowest caste among the Hindus—the
> > dog-eaters.
> >
> > They are the most persistent in their clamour for charity, and will
> follow
> > at a respectful distance, for miles together any person walking, driving
> or
> > boating. If any thing is given to them, it must be laid down, and after
> the
> > person offering it has proceeded a sufficient distance, the recipient
> comes
> > timidly forward, and removes it. "Of the same people Mr. Thurston says,
> "The
> > subject (i.e. the Nayadis) whom I examined and measured at Shoranus,
> though
> > living only about three miles off, had, by reason of the pollution which
> > they traditionally carry with them to avoid walking over the long bridge
> > which spans the river, and follow a circuitous route of many miles".
> Below
> > the Unapproachable are the Unseeables. In the Tinnevelley District of the
> > Madras Presidency there is a class of unseeables called Purada Vannans.
> Of
> > them it is said, "that they are not allowed to come out during day time
> > because their sight is enough to cause pollution. These unfortunate
> people
> > are `compelled' to follow the nocturnal habits, leaving their dens after
> > dark and scuttling home at the false dawn like the badger, the hyena, the
> > avordvark."
> >
> > Consider the total population of these classes. The Primitive Tribes form
> a
> > total of 25 million souls. The Criminal Tribes number 41/2 millions and
> the
> > Untouchables number 50 millions. This makes a grand total of 791/2
> millions.
> > Now ask how these people could have remained in the state of moral,
> > material, social and spiritual degradation surrounded as they have been
> by
> > Hinduism. Hindus say that their civilisation is older than any
> civilisation,
> > that Hinduism as a religion is superior to any other religion. If this is
> so
> > how is that Hinduism failed to elevate these people, bring them
> > enlightenment and hope; how is it that it failed even to reclaim them ;
> how
> > is it that it stood with folded hands when millions and millions were
> taking
> > to life to shame and crime? What is the answer to this? The only answer
> is
> > that Hinduism is overwhelmed with the fear of pollution. It has not got
> the
> > power to purify. It has not the impulse to serve and that is because by
> its
> > very nature it is inhuman and unmoral. It is a misnomer to call it
> religion.
> > Its philosophy is opposed to very thing for which religion stands.
> >
> > ENDS
> >
> > On Sat, Apr 17, 2010 at 12:43 PM, Pawan Durani <pawan.durani at gmail.com>
> > wrote:
> >>
> >> What happened to our teachings in Upanishads  where it is written
> >> Matru devo bhava, Pitru devo bhava, Acharya devo bhava, Atithi devo
> >> bhava". Means One should worship Mother, Father, Teacher and Guests as
> >> God. ...What happened to our "Atithi Devo Bhavah". This act is a
> >> National Shame.
> >>
> >>
> >>
> >>
> http://www.hindustantimes.com/Japanese-tourist-gangraped-in-Bodh-Gaya/H1-Article1-532395.aspx
> >>
> >> A 25-year-old Japanese tourist was gangraped by five unidentified men
> >> at Bodh Gaya in Bihar, police said on Saturday.
> >>
> >> The five pulled the woman out of an auto-rickshaw, carried her to the
> >> Gaya railway station before committing the crime at an isolated place
> >> on Friday night, Superintendent of Police, Sushil Khopade said.
> >>
> >> The victim lodged an FIR with the Amawa police station this morning, he
> >> said.
> >>
> >> The Japanese woman is a resident of Itabolutachi in Tokyo and is
> >> currently on a tour of various Buddhist pilgrim towns in India.
> >> Two persons have been detained for interrogation, Khopade said, adding
> >> that raids are on in the area to arrest the criminals.
> >> _________________________________________
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> >
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