Dadhichi Lives

Hindu Dharma has always exhorted the sons of Mother India to sacrifice. The great epic Mahabharata has the story of the golden mongoose which showcases a family which down to the last child was ready to embrace death by hunger willingly in order to feed a stranger who has come as a guest to their house. Saivaite devotional literature tells repeatedly of the sacrifices of individuals who sacrificed their lives, their dear ones, their very vital organs including the eyes, their children without the least hesitation for the Divine. Kannapa the tribal devotee of Shiva piercing his own eyes to give it to Shiva is an enduring image in the devotional iconography of South India. 

Sister Nivedita the disciple of Swami Vivekananda was the first to design the national flag of India. In that first design of the national flag of this ancient land, she rightly introduced the Vajra – the thunderbolt – the weapon of Indra against the forces of darkness. It was the Vajra that was made by the backbone of Dadhichi. Sister Nivedita says about this design of the national flag thus:

…The gods, it is said, were looking for a divine weapon, that is to say, for the divine weapon, par excellence-and they were told that only if they could find a man willing to give his own bones for the substance of it, could the Invincible Sword be forged. Whereupon they trooped up to the rishi Dadhichi and asked for his bones for the purpose. The request sounded like mockery. A man would give all but his own life-breath, assuredly, for a great end, but who, even to furnish forth a weapon for Indra, would hand over his body itself? To the rishi Dadhichi, however, this was no insuperable height of sacrifice. Smilingly he listened, smilingly he answered, and in that very moment laid himself down to die-yielding at a word the very utmost demanded of humanity. Here, then, we have the significance of the Vajra. The Selfless Man is the Thunderbolt. Let us strive only for selflessness, and we become the weapon in the hands of the Gods. Not for us to ask how. Not for us to plan methods. For us, it is only to lay ourselves down at the altar-foot. The gods do the rest. The divine carries us. It is not the thunderbolt that is invincible, but the hand that hurls it. Mother! Mother! Take away from us this self! Let not fame or gain or pleasure have dominion over us! Be Thou the sunlight, we the dew dissolving in its heat.

One may say that these are all mythologies and legends. A skeptic may argue that in real life such sacrifices seldom happen. History has shown that the unbelievable acts of sacrifices by Guru Tegh Bahadur and Guru Govind Singh were vital in preserving Sanathana Dharma. A skeptic may still say that they too belonged to a bygone era and in the modern society where selfishness reigns and consumerism prevails such sacrifices may well be nothing but a figment of imagination. 

Maruthachalam and Kalavathi are daily laborers living in Coimbatore, the financial capital of Tamil Nadu. For decades they had toiled and through their sweat and sacrifices, made their son Rajagopal a computer science graduate. The boy was both intelligent and patriotic. After graduating he joined a software firm in Coimbatore. He was also a leader in the local BJP unit. On September 4th 2013 Rajagopal met with an accident when driving his two-wheeler. Unconscious he was taken to a hospital nearby. Soon the parents arrived at the hospital. The parents were informed by the chief physician of the hospital that their young boy, hope of their future has suffered brain death. The parents struck as they were by this monumental tragedy, at their moment of extreme grief made a decision of supreme sacrifice. The boy's two eyes were donated to 'Arvind Eye Hospital'. His liver, heart and kidneys were also donated to different ailing patients. One of his kidneys provided a new life to a Muslim sister. That the parents even at this moment of grief decided to act with such a sense of sacrifice should make even the toughest of the skeptics stand up and take notice that in this land of Dadhichi, the tradition continues to this day. Rajagopal's parents when they decided to give the body parts of their son to provide healed lives to the ailing humanity have made us all aware of the lineage of sacrifice into which each one of us is born. In this 150th birth anniversary of Swami Vivekananda let us all salute these great parents and let us rededicate ourselves to the national ideal of sacrifice which Swamiji emphasized again and again in his soul stirring words:

Who will give the world light? Sacrifice in the past has been the Law, it will be, alas, for ages to come. The earth's bravest and best will have to sacrifice themselves for the good of many, for the welfare of all. Buddhas by the hundred are necessary with eternal love and pity.

             

Aravindan Neelakandan

YB-ET

Yuvabharati : Voice of Youth : October 2013

Of a martyr and a law

Narendra Dabholkar became a martyr when he was shot dead by unknown assailants by the side of a road in Pune. He had been fighting against superstitions all his life. His single-minded devotion to the cause had earned him many enemies. He had been attacked violently in 1990s twice. While there are many areas where one can and have to disagree with the warrior of rationalism, none can deny his sincerity and commitment. He strived for a healthier, stronger Hindu society in his own way.  The Anti-Hindu forces have made use of his campaign to malign Hindu culture. Repeatedly we are told that the very Hindu culture and religion are rationally deficient and hence the abundance of superstition and charlatanism in Hindu culture. Somehow the shallow rationalists want Hinduism to follow the path of the Western history of rationalism where every triumph of science and reason had to be won through a hard battle with the religious authority.

However a survey of the popular culture of the West shows that it teems with superstition and deficiency in scientific outlook. It is not culture specific as claimed by many.  None can deny the fact that India has been teeming with superstitions.  However there is a major difference between the Indian superstition and the superstition as seen in the Western nations.  Indian superstitions are mainly not completely the result of social anxieties which in turn are the result of the colonial impoverishment, missionary influences and additionally the failure of the Nehruvian state apparatus. The western superstitions are essentially and in most cases though not completely the result of a theological assault and aggravation on the dark aspects of the human psyche. This aspect needs an explanation. For example, a survey of the major superstitions would reveal that they come from the anxieties over the child health or health of the near and dear ones in the family. This is the result of the failure of the State to take a good humanistic medical network to the people in backward areas.
Another phenomenon in India's backward states is witch hunting. Poor rural and tribal women are accused of being witches and are killed. However a survey of Indian folk and classical literature shows that the idea of witch –women practicing black magic- is conspicuous by its absence. The very concept is derived from western religion and folktales which abound with evil witches. The children are taught to fear such evil witches who lure the children only to turn them into toads. It is not an accident that most of the witch hunting happens in and around the places where missionaries took the western education and culture. One does not have to convert to an alien religion to internalize the concept of witches. Almost every western educated and semi-educated person knows witches. And this mixed with family feuds, the fear at female spirituality etc. can become effective breeding ground for witch hunting. 

Usually when a Hindu moves from the impoverished state to a better socio-economic condition most of his or her superstitions cease to exist. But in the case of the West it is the affluent who churn out superstitions like anti-Christ incarnating as a child, blood sucking historic monsters in your backyard and worse the achievements of non-western civilizations are attributed to aliens from other planets and not the forefathers of the non-European civilizations.  The Western superstitions are the children of a theo-racial arrogance coupled with abject scientific ignorance.

Then there is of course the problem of fake godmen. All humanity has needed spiritual counselors and the cultures world over have produced genuine sages as well as incredible charlatans. Even here there is a marked difference. Even the worst of the charlatans in India have not led their followers into mass suicides as in the case of mass suicides reported in the Western culture with unbelievable regularity: Jonestown to David Koresh to Heavens' Gate – the mass suicides or homicides can be traced to the Biblical idea of apocalypse internalized by the cult leaders who considered themselves the promised messiah. One can extend this to the nuclear arms build-up initiated by US and the West who may be unconsciously driven by the Biblical vision of Armageddon again the idea of which is part of the popular culture.

That brings us to the tragic death of Narendra Dabholkar and his controversial bill to end superstition. One man's superstition is another man's faith. So where shall we draw the line? How much right can the State have to decide what one person believes is superstition or not? Dabholkar belonged to the socialist school of thought which considered the State to be the ideal representative of the collective will of people. In a country like India with a rich cultural knowledge base the line between the indigenous knowledge system and superstition is a thin one. Is panchagauya indigenous knowledge or superstition? Is Bharatanatyam a social degradation which needed to be banned as was claimed by missionaries and Dravidianists or is it a wonderful spiritual art form as proved by Rukminidevi Arundale? Is fire-walking a superstition or a therapeutic system which helps people to walk through the tests of life in hard times providing them self-confidence? 

But can we allow abject exploitation of our people in the name of religion by charlatans? The beating and chaining of women in the name of exorcism happens in many temples, churches and Islamic holy places. These women who are actually in need of psychiatric treatment or are victims of abuse are treated worse than animals by charlatans who fleece their relatives. No god picture that is not framed in glasses oozes out holy ashes. 'Materializations' of objects by these god-men are invariably within the size of the palms. Miracle stories of even genuine saints and sages, who lived exemplary transparent lives, are narrated by fraudulent people after their Samadhi and marketed by corporates. 

Dabolkar fought against superstitions all his life.  He is often accused that he only targeted Hinduism. Even if it is true, that will seldom lead to  a point of desolation because Hinduism is the only religion that can flourish vibrantly after being cleansed of all superstitions and blind beliefs. Swami Vivekananda boldly declared:

Is religion to justify itself by the discoveries of reason, through which every other concrete science justifies itself? Are the same methods of investigation which we apply to sciences and knowledge outside, to be applied to the science of Religion? In my opinion, this must be so, and I am also of opinion that the sooner it is done the better. If a religion is destroyed by such investigations, it was then all the time useless, unworthy superstition; and the sooner it goes the better. I am thoroughly convinced that its destruction would be the best thing that could happen. All that is dross would be taken off, no doubt, but the essential parts of religion will emerge triumphant out of this investigation. Not only will it be made scientific, as scientific at least, as any of the conclusions of physics or chemistry, but will have greater strength, because physics or chemistry has no internal mandate to vouch for its truth, which religion has.

In his own way Narendra Dabholkar was heeding the call of Swami Vivekananda.

However the cleansing has to be done by an enlightened selfless leadership. The present pseudo-secular polity which is based on caste and minority vote banks is far cry from such an enlightened leadership. Scientists, free-thinkers, psychologists, sociologists, Hindu Acharyas, Hindu nationalist organizations, community leaders, women representatives, the leaders and educators of tribal communities, medicine men – they all have to sit together and form a legislature to clean our nation of charlatanism in the name of religion. This has to be done in the spirit of a common goal of making Hindu society healthier and a real guide to the world community to follow. That shall be the real tribute to the fallen martyr of reason and humanism. 

                                                                                                                         Aravindan Neelakandan.  
                                                                                                                                YB-ET

Uniqueness of the term Dharma.

Bharath being the cradle of civilizations has spun out thousands of such terms which illustrate the culture and value systems of the nation which has a long and hoary tradition. Dharma is one such word which elucidates our culture. This word is taken as an example because it has no equivalent in any other language in the world, which has around 6000 languages surviving at present.  This will also exemplify the fact that the culture of our land is unique and peerless. 

When Swami Vivekananda was addressing the west he used the term religion to connote Dharma. Since, the culture of those lands were bereft of that value, he had no other option but to rely on the  term  religion to make them understand the concepts which he was presenting before them. One often sees dharma translated as religion, duty, or even righteousness, but in fact, there is no single direct translation for dharma. Religion, duty and righteousness are not wrong; they are simply included within the idea of dharma. But we must be clear that Swami Vivekananda was NOT referring to religion as understood by us. In the Hindu parlance religion can be equated with ’pantha’.  

Dharma literally means the one which upholds. The word "dharma" comes from the Sanskrit root dhri, meaning to "uphold" or to "sustain." From this perspective, the best way to think of dharma is to say, "that which upholds or sustains the positive order of things: the nation, the community, the family and ultimately even the universe." At a social level, every individual has a particular dharma according to their place in life. Children have a dharma, parents have a dharma, teachers have a dharma, the police have a dharma and everyone right from the head of a nation has a dharma. One of the dharmas of a child, for example, is to obey parents and to study. Parents have a dharma to protect and look after children: to make sure they are educated, fed, housed and trained. It is sometimes written on the sides of police cars: To Serve and to Protect. This is a statement of dharma for police. A head of state has a dharma to protect the country and to provide a secure environment for its citizens. If everyone performs their dharma: children obey parents, parents look after children, citizens uphold the laws of the land, the police enforce the law, a head of state protects the nation, then the family, the community and the nation are "upheld" and there can be prosperity. This is dharma, and it all follows from the idea of dhri, to uphold. 

The word dharma is also used in a different way within Hindu philosophy that can also be understood from the root dhri. Every constituent of matter: liquids, metals, gases, fire, and so on have different dharmas. For example, the dharma of water is fluidity. The dharma of ice is coldness. The dharma of fire is heat. In other words, whatever it is that makes water as water or ice as ice, or fire as fire; what "upholds" the state of being water, ice, or fire, etc., is dharma. Knowledge of Dharma and Adharma (the opposite of dharma) is knowledge of right and wrong, proper and improper. It is universal truth and it doesn’t require any special education to comprehend these truths. It requires understanding. Understanding of our being and our fellow beings. Our culture which lays a great emphasis on moral and ethical values has these Dharmic values embedded in its every activity. That’s how these ideas occupy an important part of Hindu philosophy, even though they are subtle.

Various facets and Misconceptions.

Dharma takes various meanings and connotations according to the place and person. It is adherence to Dharma which elevates one from vikruti  to prakruti.  Adi Sankaracharya goes further and says that if we don’t  adhere to Dharma, then we will be leading the life of an animal. He says in his sutrabashyah, “Human beings and animals have the same urges. They eat and sleep and copulate and besides the feelings of fear are common to both. What, then, is the difference between the two? It is adherence to dharma that distinguishes human beings from animals. Without Dharma to guide him man would be no better than an animal.”

“Aharanidrabhayamaithunam ca samanyametat pasubhirnaranam

Dharmo hi tesamadhiko visesah dharmena hina pasubhissamanah”

But one simple way to get a grip of this outwardly confusing concept is to know about the various facets of dharma. One must be inclined to do whatever he expects others to do to him. In the same vein, one must desist from acts, which he does not want others to do to him. This simple yet insightful value is called as Samanya dharma. We don’t want to get cheated, hurt, humiliated, robbed or deceived. Hence, our first duty towards our society is not to do these to others. Swami Dayananda Saraswati lucidly explains this, “...all that you do not want others to do to you, and others also do not want you to do to them. You do not want to be hurt, robbed, cheated, or deceived in any manner.  On the contrary, you want others to be compassionate, to be giving and loving.  This is Dharma.  That is why we call the act of giving also as dharma.  In no other culture is giving called dharma.  Others call it charity.  Charity is the most uncharitable word, because you assume a patronizing attitude when you give charity.  We lead a symbiotic life.  We need each other; we need to help each other.  Therefore, giving is dharma.  It’s a kind of duty.  We expect people to be giving.  Definitely, we can be very understanding.  We can be accommodative. We can understand others’ limitations, as we need them to understand our limitations.  This understanding is something very profound in day to day life……” (Living intelligently – Page 80)

While this Samanya Dharma lays the foundation for harmony in the society, there are some exceptions to it too. For example Ahimsa which is a Samanya Dharma, meant for all in the society to follow. Men engaged in the work of ensuring the safety and security of people, like Police or Security forces, cannot and should not follow this. You should not hurt is a universal value. But at the same time people are to be protected and if use of force against those who are Adharmic , is warranted, to ensure the safety of commoners , then it should be used and any hesitation in this regard will only cause greater harm to those who believe in Dharma. This action which apparently causes Himsa is the Visesha Dharma of Police and security Forces.  The hurtful actions of a medical surgeon is another example of visesha dharma. It is the Motive behind the action which will qualify an act whether it is Dharma or not. Varna-asrama-dharma,and kula-dharma, together, are called visesha-dharma, which can be divided in many ways. Visesha-dharma means peculiar or particular dharma, governing certain situations, whereas samanya-dharma applies to all human beings whether a person is a student, a householder, or in any other stage of one’s life. A particular dharma is one that is governed by the structure of a society. For instance, in the Vedic society, the society envisioned by the Vedas, there was a structure called varna and another called asrama. This structure, consisting of the varnas, made it possible to assign particular jobs to particular groups of people. A broad division was thereby created, along with a concept of duty. Because I belong to this varna, this is to be done by me. This is all an integral part of karma-yoga. This structure of assigning specific duties to particular groups of people is called varna-dharma. This is a visesha-dharma.

Then, there is asrama-dharma,which provides guidelines as per the stage in one’s life. For example, a brahmana, as a student, had to follow a certain order. When he or she married, certain changes occur and additional dharma is included. As a student, one was not supposed to pursue certain activities. You could follow politics, but you should not participate in politics. If you do, you cease to be a student. You become a politician, instead. Thus, there was a structure with reference to one’s asrama. Asrama­dharma - what was expected of you, depending on the stage of life you were in, is also visesha-dharma.

Another example of visesha-dharma was stri-dharma or purusa-dharma, based on whether a person was male or female. There was also kula-dharma, dharma applicable to a particular family or clan. The Kuru clan, for instance, had its own dharma. If there is any conflict between the Samanya Dharma and Visesha Dharma, Visesha Dharma will override, since all these are duties meant for a harmonious social order. Wrong understanding of these Samanya Dharma and Visesha Dharma have led to serious mistakes in our history. Swami Vivekananda expounds this complex phenomenon in a rather perspicuous manner. He says,

“ .. The Bauddhas were confounded just there and brought about all sorts of mischief. Non-injury is right; "Resist not evil" is a great thing — these are indeed grand principles; but the scriptures say, "Thou art a householder; if anyone smites thee on thy cheek, and thou dost not return him an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth, thou wilt verily be a sinner." Manu says, "When one has come to kill you, there is no sin in killing him, even though he be a Brahmin" (Manu, VIII. 350). This is very true, and this is a thing which should not be forgotten. Heroes only enjoy the world. Show your heroism; apply, according to circumstances, the fourfold political maxims of conciliation, bribery, sowing dissensions, and open war, to win over your adversary and enjoy the world — then you will be Dharmika (righteous)…”( East and West  8 &9)

 All these will make it clear that Dharma is always intertwined with Karma, which means action or Duty. Dharma can only be established through practice and this is where the present day society’s lacunae lie. Due to the several decades of Alien rule which was followed by rulers who are plagued by the educational system introduced by the Imperialists, practice of dharma has taken a back seat. Understanding clearly that the bedrock of this nation is Dharma, the British rulers planned to do away with the system of education which introduced these concepts to the students. It was replaced by an education system which denounced our Vedic concepts and Dharmic approaches to life.  The society started believing in the myths rolled out by the western academics as true. Many even got converted thinking that it is the real path for salvation. Bhagavad Gita denounces such attrition by people of their own Dharma thus,

” Svadharme nidhanam shreyah,  paradharmo  bhayavah.” (Ch: 3.35)

Following the path dictated by one’s own tradition/nature is always Superior to following another person’s path, even though it may well lack financial gain, fame, or approval. Working out the law of one’s own nature, even though it may lead to our demise, is superior to the folly of attempting to follow the path of another person is certain to turn out badly.”. But the rot was slowly setting in and as a result the national scene saw a vacuum.  A nation of more than 300 million people were unable to rise themselves united against a few hundred English Officers.

It was at this crucial juncture Swami Vivekananda emerged on the scene. When the entire nation was reeling under complex of guilt and timidness foisted by the academia, Swami Vivekananda, a product that very same English education gave the much needed succor to the Indian psyche by firmly re establishing the role and importance of our Hindu Dharma.  He had the knowledge of both Eastern and Western philosophies and hence was able to see things in proper perspective. He realized that his life’s mission was not just attaining Moksha but the liberation of the masses who are reeling under ignorance. After the 3 day Tapas at kanyakumari, he hit upon a grand plan to resurrect this nation to her past glory by re establishing Dharma as the undercurrent of all activities, personal, social and national. He urged our countrymen not to ape the west and get goaded by their materialistic pursuits. He felt that dharma, being unique, should be the soul of our nation. He says,

“…With every man, there is an idea; the external man is only the outward manifestation, the mere language of this idea within. Likewise, every nation has a corresponding national idea. This idea is working for the world and is necessary for its preservation. The day when the necessity of an idea as an element for the preservation of the world is over, that very day the receptacle of that idea, whether it be an individual or a nation, will meet destruction. The reason that we Indians are still living, in spite of so much misery, distress, poverty, and oppression from within and without is that we have a national idea, which is yet necessary for the preservation of the world…. With every man, there is an idea; the external man is only the outward manifestation, the mere language of this idea within. Likewise, every nation has a corresponding national idea. This idea is working for the world and is necessary for its preservation. The day when the necessity of an idea as an element for the preservation of the world is over, that very day the receptacle of that idea, whether it be an individual or a nation, will meet destruction. The reason that we Indians are still living, in spite of so much misery, distress, poverty, and oppression from within and without is that we have a national idea, which is yet necessary for the preservation of the world….”( East & West 3-4)

These words are refreshing and reassuring for a society drenched with the western ideals. Swami Vivekananda urges our people to believe in the system which has carried the national boat so far, instead of castigating it. He says,

“..The powerful men in every country are moving society whatever way they like, and the rest are only like a flock of sheep. Now the question is this, who are these men of power in India? — they are giants in religion. It is they who lead our society; and it is they again who change our social laws and usages when necessity demands…” ( east & west 23).

Swami Vivekananda, while asking people to follow the age old principles also cautions them about being dogmatic. Being dogmatic is another confounded position which has led to several decay in our society.  He says,

 “..Now, this Jati Dharma, this Svadharma, is the path of welfare of all societies in every land, the ladder to ultimate freedom. With the decay of this Jati Dharma, this Svadharma, has come the downfall of our land. But the Jati Dharma or Svadharma as commonly understood at present by the higher castes is rather a new evil, which has to be guarded against. They think they know everything of Jati Dharma, but really they know nothing of it. Regarding their own village customs as the eternal customs laid down by the Vedas, and appropriating to themselves all privileges, they are going to their doom! I am not talking of caste as determined by qualitative distinction, but of the hereditary caste system. I admit that the qualitative caste system is the primary one; but the pity is qualities yield to birth in two or three generations. Thus the vital point of our national life has been touched; otherwise, why should we sink to this degraded state? ..”( East & West)

He clears the air about the misconceptions of Jati Dharma by further saying,

 “..Remember always, that there is not in the world any other country whose institutions are really better in their aims and objects than the institutions of this land. I have seen castes in almost every country in the world, but nowhere is their plan purpose so glorious as here. If caste is thus unavoidable, I would rather have a caste of purity and culture and self-sacrifice than a caste of dollars. Therefore, our solution of the caste question is not degrading those who are already high up, is not running amuck through food and drink, is not jumping out of our own limits in order to have more enjoyment, but it comes to every one of us fulfilling the dictates of our Vedantic religion, by our attaining spirituality, and by our becoming the ideal Brahmin…” The age old fallacies and misconceptions which are clogging our national vein are thus cleared by this wonderful exposition of Dharma by Swami Vivekananda. Swami Vivekananda has reiterated the role India has to play to resolve the crisis which Humanity is facing. The role is spreading Dharma, and he says that it is Viswa Dharma. If India doesn’t play her destined role the loss and suffering will for the entire Humanity. He says,

 “..Shall India die? Then from the world all spirituality will be extinct; all moral perfection will be extinct; all sweet-souled sympathy for religion will be extinct; all ideality will be extinct; and in its place will reign the duality of lust and luxury as the male and female deities, with money as its priest, fraud, force and competition its ceremonies and the human soul its sacrifice. Such a thing can never be. The power of suffering is infinitely greater than the power of doing; the power of love is infinitely of greater potency than the power of hatred.” 

To achieve this ideal Swami Vivekananda gives us this call,

 “Lay down your comforts, your pleasures, your name, fame or positioin, nay even your lives, and make a bridge of human chains over which millions will cross this ocean of life. Bring all forces of good together. Do not care under what banner you march. Do not care what be your colour - green, blue, or red - but mix all colours up produce that initense glow of white, the colour of love. Ours is to work. The results will take care of themselves. I do not see into the future; nor do I care to see. But one vision I see clear as life before me, that the ancient Mother has awakened once more, sitting on her throne rejuvenated, more glorious than ever. Proclaim her to all the world with the voice of peace and benediction. “

Swami Vivekananda urges people to be inquisitive and at the same time earnest in their search. It’s not mere questioning but questioning to get more refined in our walk and make the society a better place to live. With a society deeply mired in corruption and moral degradation, one may be tempted to pray for an Avatar to descend and set the things on right order. But we must remember that, Lord Krishna, Swami Vivekananda and many other seers of this Holy land will work with us if we allow them to work within us.  

V.V.Balasubamaniyam

YB-ET

Yuva Bharati : Voice of Youth Icon : August 2013

It is time for a moratorium on …. You decide.

The month of May mostly brought us anguish and heart burn: for some for the right reasons but for many for non-issues. Chinese intrusion inside the sensitive Ladakh region and Maoist massacre at Chattisgarh should have made Indian psyche burn in anguish. And Indian collective mind did burn and it did for IPL Cricket scandals.  Such is the stranglehold of Cricket in the minds of Indian people.

China has been making systematic plan of weakening Indian geo-political advantages in the region. Apart from the 'String of Pearls' the network of Chinese military and commercial facilities around Indian Ocean which effectively neutralizes the naval advantage that India has over China and Pakistan in the Indian Ocean, now China has also connected a strategically important Pakistani port Gwadar port via rail, road and air routes. This makes it possible for a China-Pakistani coordinated encircling of India through a naval network. The deal was signed by the authorities of two nations May this year – when Indians were enthralled in a voyeuristic pursuit of IPL scandal over that colonial hangover called cricket that is more a gambling than a game – even in its pre-degenerate days when it used to be played without cheerleaders in miniskirts.

 Maoists have been launching deadly attacks on our security personnel, democratic setup, using every weakness and corruption in our polity luring the frustrated and righteously angry youths as well as marginalized tribals into their ranks. On the day of the recent massacre perpetrated by Maoists, the social networks of Indian cyberspace buzzed more with IPL scandal than with this inhuman barbaric attack committed by a section of our own people on us.  Can one think of US cyberspace talking about a baseball scandal on 9/11 evening? Welcome to the modern mind of India where the opiate of a colonial game makes people worry more about the scandal in the gambling lanes of their metro-cities than their own kith massacred in the killing fields of Chattisgarh.

Bollywood-cricket-human auctioning-millions of rupees- obscene consumerism: it is all heavy heady cocktail for the terrorist network, next door and inside India, which has already taken strong roots in the shadowy financial world of Bollywood. Dawood and his boys would have to be moronic imbeciles if they are not using this brew to boost their operations and control over the financial empires of India. And they have definitely done a perfect job – even as our middle class cheered with meaningless jingles the action of the greased palms in the cricket creases.    

Let it be said that cricket has for long sucked the vitality of our national youth, drained our national resources mercilessly and has imposed itself on our collective psyche like a demon. Think of the unsung heroes and heroines of other sports and games. See the way Chinese and Japanese sports and games are promoted worldwide and see just how much attention Kabadi gets. In fact Kabadi is the naturally evolved sports of this nation. It unites India in a way we have never given its due. If one has seen the players belonging to any state – Punjab or Gujarat or Tamil Nadu- before entering the field instinctively touching the soil and venerating the Mother Earth, one would surely understand how much of a civilizational value that game represents. Promoting Kabadi internationally is promoting also Indic values and cultures worldwide. But where is the money? Where is the media limelight that is due? It has all gone into that colonial drain called cricket which now also finances Dawood to plot further massacres of Indians.

Or wrestling: It is one of the most beautiful games in the world. It is about flexibility and strength. It is a scientific game. It is not barbaric as boxing where the players routinely spend the evenings of their lives immobilized and privacies of their lives as socially hostile individuals. But in India wrestling has been nurtured as a spiritual tradition. The Akharas with Hanuman as the spiritual Guru of the sports, has created a vibrant network of logistics for the players throughout India. When the International Olympic Committee (IOC) decided to drop wrestling from the 2020 Olympics games, where was the outrage that should have been there in India? It was missing because all sports energy has been channelized into that colonial game called cricket.  

Or Hockey: India was once the best team in hockey in the world, and The Indian men's field hockey team is the most successful field hockey team in Olympic history with 8 gold, 1 silver, and 2 bronze medals. However we and our media notoriously let hockey fade from our attention. Where was the national euphoria when India beat France in 2012-Olympic qualifier hockey with a resounding 8-1? Where did vanish the media lime light and adulation for Sandeep Singh, who scored against France five goals – including a hat-trick? Where was the national outrage, when hockey player Dhanraj Pillay was humiliated by powers of petty politics which systematically destroyed hockey in India? When was the last time one saw a hockey player endorsing a product in Indian television channel?  

Or Archery: How many of us remember the tragedy of Limba Ram – the boy from the Ahari tribe of Rajastan who was nurtured by Vanvasi Kalyan Ashram and who went on to create world records and win gold medals for India in International Archery and ultimately ended up living in the garage of an MLA when a shoulder injury –not properly treated- affected his archery talents? Where are those advertisements which featured Limba Ram – a worthy descendant of Arjuna and Rama- and where are those posters which adore the youth hostels projecting him as a youth icon for millions of Indian youths?

The simple answer is cricket swallows it all. Like a glutton cricket has lapped up all our time, energy, money, and media light. In return it has given us degeneration, corruption and scandals. 

To paraphrase Mahatma Gandhi, even with the best of our efforts India can only be a third rate cricket playing country but with a little more effort it can create the best teams in hockey, chess, wrestling, Kabadi and archery. Then for Indian sports and games, scandal shall become a rarity and Olympic medals in dozens a habitual reality.

Aravindan Neelakandan
YB-ET

Yuvabharati : Youthicon: July 2013

Does Mythology reinforce Caste Prejudices?

Recently in Tamil Nadu a caste leader made a hate-speech triggering violence and inter-caste hatred. In the speech he made a reference to the mythological origins of his community and claimed that they were born of sacrificial fire and that they were the children of Shiva and Parvathi. That was an interesting claim and the demagogic orator supplied the Puranic evidence for his claim. The Purana does exist – a latter Purana belonging to the medieval times and it has origins in the southern city of Madurai. The Hindu hating pseudo-progressives at once went for the jugular. They started claiming and criticizing Hinduism as reinforcing caste pride and prejudice and caste hatred through its mythologies.

However what the rabble-rouser as well as the pseudo-progressive Hindu bashers missed was that every community in India has such a mythological account enshrined either in a mythology or folk memory which forges a special relation with the Divinities. 

The 'Valangai Malai' – a very famous and popular ritual folk song among an important community in Tamil Nadu claim them to be the children of Goddess Kali. Joe de Cruz the eminent Tamil writer points out to the abiding belief in his community that Deivayanai the celestial consort of Muruga belongs to their community. Chenchu tribes of the Andhra Pradesh claim that Narasimha was their son-in-law.  The 122nd name of the Goddess in Sri Lalitha Sahasranama is Shambhavi. This name also means She is the Mother of Sambhavas – those dear to Shiva. Shambhavaas also is the name of a Dalit community in South India. Similarly many Dalit communities see Shiva as belonging to them. The famous Dalit thinker and leader M.C.Rajah, (who was a close friend and associate of Lala Lajpat Rai, Dr.Ambedkar and Veer Savarkar) had pointed out there is a tradition among the Dalits that Adi Sankara learnt his final Advaitic lesson from the Divine who came as a Dalit in Kasi and He was their community forefather. Saiva Siddhanta considers Siva as the ultimate cleaner of the worst impurities – the inner one and thus forging an identity with the occupation of cleaning the impurities – which was considered then in many societies as defiled. 

All these mythological origins, relations and status attributed to different communities are not idle stories of community pride. Far from that they served a purpose. The different occupational, social and regional communities used these mythologies to form organic relations within themselves, with other communities and also with the natural resources. For example many tribal communities have a special relation to the Vishnu at Sri Rangam. In a 16th century classic famous Vaishnavite Tamil poet Pillai Perumal Iyyengar celebrates the fierce independence of the tribal community by organically foisting it with the special relation they have with Vishnu. Many medicinal plant species are preserved by specific communities because of their centrality in the mythologies of that community. During the 20th century these community centric-mythologies have been used by social reformers and revolutionaries to promote social emancipation. For example, the dramatization of Siva coming as a tribal to bless Arjuna with the knowledge of divine weapons and the romantic marriage of Valli the tribal girl by Skanda have been popular weapons in the hands of social emancipators like Ayyan Kali in Kerala and SanKaradhas Swamigal in Tamil Nadu to promote social harmony and fight against the evils of untouchability and caste discrimination. For many nomadic communities marginalized in the dominant historical processes because of many factors like alien invasions, migrations, colonial impoverishment etc. these mythologies have provided them with self-respect and have guarded them against exploitation. For example the folk tradition of Guru Ravidas being the spiritual mentor of Rajput queen Mirabhai has been central to the social harmony and Dalit liberation narratives in North India. What is true of social communities is also true of gender minorities. Transgender in India identify themselves with both Arjuna as well as Sri Krishna – based on folk versions of Mahabharatha.  

The recent isolated incident of a casteist rabble-rouser using a mythological version to boost the caste ego is definitely condemnable. However it would be foolish on our part to jettison this rich socio-spiritual literary resource our civilization has evolved because of the flaw of a single person. On the other hand we should remember for every one such demagogue there are many social emancipators who have used Indic-mythology in a positive way to enthuse confidence in the minds of the down-trodden people of India. In fact, the Indic mythology which for an outsider or a western-educated mind looks like an untamed forest is actually a well-developed socio-psychological and spiritual science. To contrast let us see the way the Abrahamic and Indic minds work with their mythologies. The West has churned out race theories by historicizing Biblical mythology which in turn had led to bloodbaths of Nazi holocaust and Rwandan genocide to mention a few. Indic mind on the other hand has been constantly mythologizing the history thus removing all bitterness and forming positive healthy relations with other communities. Now those forces which try to read racial narratives in our epics or caste superiority in our mythologies are simply reversing this age-old process. Ultimate aim of our myth maker-seers and forefathers is of course to transcend all these relative labels using the symbols evolved through these very mythologies and embrace that great identity, which Adi Sankara requests Goddess on behalf of us all to bestow upon, 

Oh! Goddess Parvati, you are my mother and Mahadeva Siva, is my father. All devotees of Siva are my brethren. All Universe is my own country.

Aravindan Neelakandan

YB-ET

Yuva Bharati : Youth Icon : June 2013