Introduction
Every person
has multiple layers of identities – that of belonging to a certain group or
other. The group(s) can be defined by one’s affiliation to a certain caste,
creed, religion, profession, school or even interests. As a person accumulates
years in his life, some of these identities multiply, some wane, some get
intermingled, a few others just fade away.
The easiest
& the most contemporary way of decoding the types of identities is to know
which groups are you forming part of on WhatsApp & Facebook. For the
slightly older generation, this realization comes in form of the yearly
subscriptions of some Groups / Societies that one has to contribute towards. In
both the cases, whether one is active on those Groups or not, whether one
contributes to the certain Society or not, one has ‘chosen’ to be a part of it.
However, same cannot be same about when one says that I belong to xyz religion.
We are
‘born’ in a certain religion, at least constitutionally so; rather than
‘choosing’ it. As we grow, the religion we are ‘born’ into grows on us, with
all its myths & logic. Our earliest thoughts, ideas about good / bad,
choices in life, preferences in life, predilections – all get shaped to a great
extent by it. As we come across wider choices of education, people, career, ideas,
etc – most of us, is spite of the evident shortcoming in our religion (I would
rather call it “Codified Faith”), stick to it; while a few ‘choose’ to
‘convert’ to some other religion & begin the same journey of shaping of
thoughts, ideas, choices, preferences, predilections, etc de-novo, with the
newly adopted “Codified Faith”.
It is said
that there are no atheists in Foxholes. This is just to emphasize that every
person in this world requires a set of beliefs, a faith, a ‘religion’ – to make
sense of his / her life. This participation of the divine in one’s life is
inherent to our growth from mere species – the Homo-Sapiens, to the rise of
(& ironically, the fall of many) human civilization(s).
Hinduism for Me
My journey
into understanding the religion that I was ‘born’ into – Hinduism, started
after I had clocked at least 25 years of age. But, for me, it has been
synonymous with my quest into other religions of the world too, notably Islam,
Judaism, Christianity, Sikhism & Buddhism. Ever since I have embarked on
this journey, it has brought me immense intellectual satisfaction, personal
happiness, reverence for all religions & a better understanding of my ‘own’
religion.
It is
difficult for somebody to list out the basic tenets / commandments / rules that
define Hinduism. It is, according to me, a syncretism of multiple faith-systems
brought together mostly by chance & sometimes by choice. Instead of a
single narrative, there are multiple narratives, which jointly & ‘broadly’
define what it means to be a ‘Hindu’. As happens in all religions of the world,
multiple ideas, rituals & narratives have jostled for centre-stage in Hinduism
in various times in history. The same is happening now, but with a notable
exception that science, rationality & democracy have taken the centre-stage
in India, as in rest of the world.
The general
world view of a common Indian is not shaped by religion, but by education, material
progress, social mobility & freedom of expression. This is not to say that
religion has taken a backseat. In fact, it has employed the means made available
to it by modernity to revive itself & increase its outreach among masses. Unfortunately,
the present narrative of Hinduism has been sharply divided between two major ‘political’
factions – one defined (or rather hijacked) by extreme rightist view &
another defined by extreme leftist view.
The extreme
rightist views all of India’s past (without knowing the actual period) as
zenith of our civilization’s evolution & views most present problems (if
not all) from the myopic view of dilution of those by-gone rituals &
value-systems. And yes, did I miss to mention that it comes with a complete
package of a narrative which is parochial, avowedly casteist &
anti-feminist, bigoted & is extremely sensitive to criticism. The common
refrain “शास्त्रों में लिखा है” is inevitably
spoken to show the knowledge of religion, or rather the lack of it, as if one
has gone through the entire range of diverse & rich scriptures. This
narrative supports the likes of Khap Panchayats, bans books & expressions
of art, and vandalizes shops on Valentine’s Day – as if somebody has given them
an extra-constitutional right to be the custodians of Hinduism. And, frankly speaking, this narrative
basically does everything that doesn’t make an average Hindu very proud of his
heritage.
On the other hand, the extreme leftist views, supposedly claim a
rational & scientific basis for everything & out rightly debunk
millennia of social, cultural & civilizational progress made by Indians. For
them, to quote Marx, “Religion is the
Opium of the masses”. Ironically,
where this narrative converges with the previous one is the fact that it (also)
does everything that doesn’t make an average Hindu very proud of his heritage.
The
difference between mythos & logos couldn’t have been starker in this case,
but the purpose they serve is the same!!! The situation has come to a pass that
calling yourself a Hindu & a secular Indian are seen to be disjoint
statements; where impartial learning about other cultures & religions is
easier that learning about our own culture & religion, where Hinduism is
known more by regressive mentality than by the wonderful contributions it has
made over thousands of years in various fields of arts, science, health,
spirituality, philosophy, etc; where debate about Ramayan & Mahabharat is
not focused on its academic, literary, mystical, social, historical or
archeological value, but focused more on whether Ram Temple should be
constructed on not.
The idea of
India is synonymous with evolution of the ‘way of life’, rather than a ‘codified
religion’, called Hinduism. This is not to say that all Indian are ‘Hindus’, as
some extreme rightists have suggested. Why should our shared ‘Hindu cultural
heritage’ (I could not find a more politically acceptable term) be contingent
on its narrow definition based on ‘Hindu religion’, as defined in today’s
India? Why should Hinduism be in clutches of today’s Hindutva? Why do we have
to choose this identity over that? Why can’t our multiple identities coexist
simultaneously? India is a land where Yoga & Kamasutra, Dvaita &
Advaita, Theism & Atheism, Astronomy & Astrology, Myths & Science, Ascetism
& sensory excesses, Bhakti & Tantra – all co-existed & developed
together; sometimes in a synergistic, sometimes in a antagonistic manner; sometimes
in a complementary, sometimes in a supplementary manner. Why have we lost the
tolerance for views divergent from ours? Why can’t we agree to disagree? Why
can’t being argumentative be more important, than being right yourselves or
proving the others wrong?
The Way Out
The only
remedy out of this situation is for Hindus to change themselves, instead of
finding fault with others. Be critical of self first & foremost. Get rid of
the yoke of dogma & malpractices that are prevalent today in the name of
religion. No religious text, no scripture, no book – is beyond the values
enshrined in our philosophy of वसुधैव कुटुम्बकम्. Strive for a
just society based on Liberty, Equality & Fraternity. Accept that we never
were, are not & will never be perfect. Excellence, & not perfection, is
what we should strive for as a society, by learning from all other societies
& religions. Read & learn more about our own heritage, our own culture,
to better appreciate what others have to offer. Be in tune with the times. If we fail to change for better, adapt
ourselves to the changes, we would perish – as simple as that. Our adaptability
is our strength & not our weakness.
Well said Dhiraj! !
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