Lord Hanuman (Anantashakti)
Festivities in a new temple dedicated to the Indian monkey god Hanuman in Frisco, Texas, earlier this month remind us that a minority of religions exists within the shores of the United States that is relatively silent. The faith that is the subject here, of course, is Hinduism, which in that North Texas town, at least, is enjoying an "expanding population," according to the Dallas Morning News. Despite the fact that Indians have been quietly enriching the American melting pot for decades to centuries, few non-Indians know much about the colorful religion of Hinduism.
In actuality, the term "Hinduism" represents not a monolithic faith but a conglomeration of more or less varied religions, sects and cults largely originating on the Indian subcontinent and often incorporating beliefs, doctrines and traditions dating back several thousand years. What we perceive of as "Hinduism," then, encompasses and embraces a wide variety of beliefs, to the extent that even recent icons such as Elvis Presley, Princess Diana and Mother Teresa have reputedly made it into the extensive Hindu pantheon of a traditional "333 million" deities, demigods and saints, etc. As the national newspaper of India, The Hindu, reports (11/27/03):
KHUSHBOO'S HAD it, Amitabh's had it, Bob Marley's had it and now Elvis Presley and Princess Diana will get one each. An award? No, too boring. A temple, no less."
According to his hairdresser-cum-spiritual advisor Larry Geller, the "King of Rock and Roll" Presley, who was raised a Christian, was fond of reading books about Eastern spiritual traditions. The affection for Indian philosophy by members of the music group the Beatles is legendary, especially in the case of George Harrison. Many Indian gurus and yogis have found welcome on this side of the Atlantic and Pacific, and the ancient physical and spiritual exercise of yoga in a myriad of forms is practiced by up to 20 million Americans.
Yet, Hinduism remains a mystery to most Americans, both at times intriguing and bizarre with its sundry gods and goddesses. Part of the reason for this oversight is because Hinduism in its fullness seems so alien to cultures largely dominated by either the Abrahamic faiths with their aloof monotheistic God or the "New Atheism," which has a tendency to ridicule and dismiss such lively piety, and not necessarily without reason.
Hinduism plays nice in the U.S.
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Hindu Temple at Malibu, California (G. Krishnamurthy)
Another reason Americans as whole are largely oblivious to Hinduism is because its practitioners in general do not rabblerouse, set up terrorist camps, call for the destruction of the U.S. Constitution, bilk the American public for millions, establish bogus "charities," engage in unethical and seedy "televangelism," lobby Congress for special favors and consideration, challenge constantly the principle of separation of church and state, abuse the First Amendment and all of the fun stuff (sarcasm) we are used to seeing from fervent religionists in our country and elsewhere.
This lack of aggression by Hindus in America does not reflect that they do not take their faith very seriously, as they certainly do. Like Christians who proclaim that Jesus Christ is real because they have had visions of him, devout Hindus often feel as if their deities have made their very real presence known, as in the case of Cheeni Rao, author of In Hanuman's Hands, who while going down the destructive path of drug abuse was "saved" by the monkey-headed god. Rao's experience was every bit as life changing as that of Christians in a similar position—and this instance illustrates that the form of a profound spiritual presence purportedly experienced is largely if not entirely dependent upon one's cultural conditioning, not upon any "ultimate reality" or "absolute truth."
"Hinduism" as a monolith has its flaws—and non-Hindus both religious and secular will no doubt point them out—including taking itself too seriously to the point where, in its native land, a certain amount of strife and atrocity can be traced to Indian beliefs, such as the rare but ongoing practice of widow-burning or sati in various districts, as well as other sexism, prejudices—exemplified in the brutal caste system—and violence committed by its fanatical minority. The grinding poverty, cruel bigotry and debilitating superstition that Hinduism has not only failed to solve but has actually fostered in India—there are many problems with this ancient religion as practiced overall in that nation, and we are not advocating its adoption by anyone as the "one true faith."
However, we would like to emphasize the civil behavior of Hinduism's better educated adherents in the United States. While some "enlightened gurus" have been opportunists preying on a gullible American public with enticing stories of metaphysical and supernatural wonders, so far traditional Hinduism's practitioners generally have not brought unsavory and violent "traditions" along with them to their new homelands and demanded they be allowed to break the law of the land in practicing them, unlike members of other faiths. If there comes a point when Hinduism in America degenerates to the same fanatical state it is in India, then it will need to be assailed further as a source of unethical and corrupt behavior.
In the meantime, we can only hope that other religionists in the United States and elsewhere will follow suit and behave in a similar, more spiritually mature manner as the American Hindu population, rather than bullying and elbowing their way in, exploiting the system and creating enmity. Rarely if ever do we hear complaints or derogatory news items about Hindus in America, while members of other groups such as Christianity, Judaism and Islam often make it into the news for disreputable and illegal behavior. Does this frequent broadcasting of these three faiths result because they are under a bigger microscope, or could there be a problem with the Abrahamic monotheism itself, whereby it insists on its own way, to compel and force itself upon people against their will, with dire threats of eternal punishment for rejecting it?
Concerning the fanatical monotheism depicted in the Old Testament, from which the Abrahamic faiths arose, in Pagan Christs (17-18) John M. Robertson remarked:
Monotheism of this type is in any case morally lower than polytheism since those who held it lacked sympathy for their neighbors. Most of the Jewish kings were polytheists. What I am concerned to challenge is the assumption—due to the influence of Christianity—that Jewish monotheism is essentially higher than polytheism, and constitutes a great advance in religion.... If the mere affirmation of a Supreme Creator God is taken to be a mark of superiority, certain primitive tribes who hold this doctrine and yet practice human sacrifice must be considered to have a 'higher' religion than the late Greeks and Romans."
Monotheism in America will simply need to become accustomed to the fact that this country is inhabited by polytheists such as the Hindus as well as atheists, humanists and secularists, and to stop being so aggressive and insistent upon its own way. That's America under the U.S. Constitution, a fact that freedom lovers everywhere will appreciate.
Sources & Further Reading
Indian guru visits Frisco to celebrate Hindu temple's first stage
Book Review: In Hanuman's Hands by Cheeni Rao
Elvis Presley Worshipped in India
The Hindu: A temple for his idol
Previous Headlines
Science versus religion: The debate comes to the NIH
Beware of 'defamation of religion' censorship!
Islamist Assault on the U.S. Constitution
Jimmy Carter: 'Stop abusing women in the name of God'
Does the Old Testament foster corruption?
Comments
Comment on the 'lack of agression' in hindus: You'll be surprised how violent hindus can be. I live in India, I see it all the time. If you're interested in links on violence in hindus, links that will prove it beyond doubt, I can give you a few links.
Maybe hindus are not violent in North America, but they are certainly violent in India.
u are definately a muslim... sir if u live in india then u must b well aware of the reasons behind the violent responses by hindus... n btw they r more tolerant towards other faiths as compared to their neighbours pakistan... wats ur take on this??
Hi Acharya,
I am unable to post links here, website wont allow. Let me know if you want to see the links I mentioned above. They are beyond doubt proof that violence by hindus, on religious grounds, is not some occasional, spontaneous thing.
Murdock's article is as well-balanced as my colleague's previous comment is not. Of course, there are extremists in every religion, and these fanatics are prone to use violence to get their way.
However, Hinduism is perhaps unique in its extreme tolerance of other religious beliefs. You will often see pictures of Christ and Buddha in Hindu homes next to Hanuman or Krishna.
Hinduism also teaches Ahimsa (non-violence) as a virtue; and Karma (similar to Christianity's Golden Rule), both of which have a moderating impact on Hindu people.
What about the cruel caste system or the widows, often children, who are outcasts for the rest of their lives and must live as beggars and/or prostitutes?
And I have seen many gurus who manipulate and control their disciples thru the chakra system and milk them for all the money they can get.
if ur speaking some money laundring swamiji im sorry but no one can help u bcoz it is not hinduism or for that matter any kind of religion they r just some greedy ppl who want to make money thru any means possible. it is nature of greed of humans and has nothing to do with religion.
abt caste system thy r social evils and are abolished(sati) just like say racism or witch burning.
Justyn,
I understand that the caste system has its flaws however, they are not only practiced by Hindus but also Christians and Muslims in India under the different 'denominations'. Also, I would like to bring to your notice that similar systems differentiating communities are followed in every religion and country. The English royalty and nobility are still considered 'upper class' and they are given the right to look down upon the lesser mortals. People of African origin are constantly considered lesser humans by the Caucasians - would you not regard this as cruel? Discrimination is cruel be it racial or otherwise.
I am not sure what has given you the impression that widows and children are considered inferior in Hinduism and/or India and are 'outcasts' - there is as much truth in this as in me refering to the Americans as Marxians!!! Are all beggars and prostitutes Hindus? Is there is no prostitution and poverty in the Christian and Islamic countries?
There are manipulative priests/gurus in every religion - I know for a fact and I am sure so would all that there are a lot of Catholic & Protestant priests who do several inappropriate things in the name of religion not just in India but world over. It is important to understand that there are anti-social elements in every religion, every community and every country across the globe but one must refrain from making blanket statements about another religion especially when one is not knowledgeable about it
Sorry to hear this and it is evident that you know very little of Hinduism and may be what ever you know id not correct. Let me correct some point you have raised:
**1. Caste System - According to veda or the Varnasram Dharma, a society should have 4 sector or pillar to sustain. A educated class (Bramhin), a warrior class (Kshtriya), a business class (Vaishya) and worker class (Sudra). According to Srimad Bhagavad Gita, a person in hinduism is karma yogi, judged by action and not by birth. That means, a born of Bramhin (educated class) needn't be bramhin if he is not educated enough and similarly for others. Srinad Bhagavad Gita also says that no class is greater than the other and infact the so called higher class are responsible for the happiness and prosperity of the so called lower class.
**2. Corrupt Gurus - please don't call them guru, they are thugs. A real guru will be a different persona and hardly gives any public appearances. His ideology is same for all irrespective of all religion, cast, creed, race, sex etc. His words will make you happy and not hate like you see today.
There are many I can explain to you that are today disgrace to Hinduism but are not part of the actual hinduism or "Sanatan Dharma" the Vedic religion. Vedic religion if studied properly can solve many mysteries that exists today. I am not saying this because I am a Hindu but Hinduism is a great religion.
Dear Vikram, Culture doesn’t go away very quickly. You should know it. If Hindus are violent by nature, you would see it at least in some extent. But you don't why?
Hinduism may have it's faults but it's trivial when compared to the barbarasy of the three Abrahamic faiths.
In India it's usually the Christians and the Muslims that start the attacks and kill and murder people of other religions. Hinduism usually only attacks in retaliation. The media tends to leave this out of the stories though.
Perhaps it would be of aid to have a cursory understanding of Theistic Monism.Theism is the foothills leading to the Mountain Top,which may be considered Monism.This maybe more easily understood if we look at the various levels of Physical,Emotional,Mental,& Spiritual ie.or Superconscious maturity of the Individual to the path chosen,be it dualism or Advaita.I sincerely hope this helps G.
Check out some videos of Indian singer, Shelia Chandra. She's hot! She looks like an Indian Acharya S.
I also like Deepak Chopra, who is Indian.
Are you kidding me?
"Elvis Presley, Princess Diana and Mother Teresa have reputedly made it into the extensive Hindu pantheon of a traditional "333 million" deities, demigods and saints, etc."
What a ridiculous claim. I can assure you that most of India's population has no knowledge of who Elvis Presley or for that matter, who Princess Diana is. As pop culture icons, they may have be centers of fanatical obsession among a select few fans, as is probably the case in other countries.
The '330 million' number represents the belief that in each of us exists the spirit of God. There's no list of 330 million specific deities that apparently, according to the author, Hindus constantly update.
What a ludicrous claim.
As a separate point, the Hindu American community is certainly not equivalent to the larger Hindu Indian community. Most Hindus in America are highly educated and tend to work in well-paying fields.
As an Indian, raised in India for the first 18 years of my life, I can say that the person who wrote this article hasn't got a clue of the real Hinduism.
The longest running apartheid system is the Hindu caste system. Twenty five centuries of slavery through the god-given caste system, the oppression of women, the child marriage system, are responsible for the primitive status quo of India. There are 200 million Dalits (outcastes) in India who are doing worse things than what the blacks did in the 19th American south. My dad who was of the Shudra caste, the lowest of them all, couldn't get into any college due to his caste, but was fortunately accepted by a college started by his fellow caste men. Without living in India and integrating, there is possibility that this person could conjecture anything about Indian society.
This religion doesn't seek to proselytize outside the south Asian ethnic group but is the most oppressive to its own adherents.
im soory my friend but u need to know some things abt society and religion.
every society has divides and i mean it every society which has atleast 500 yrs of history has divides
the russians had czars in britan thre were aristocrats and noblemen(courtship holders) who used to treat ppl like slaves and i mean it is not the problem of religion but of society
ill say u an example i come from a place where there used to be landlords and they were ruthless they didnt care if u r an upper caste lower caste namely brahmin krastriya or other they simply wanted power and they were running a law system parellel to the government and yes they took the caste system and used it to their advantage to get their way.u think this this would hav changed say if there was no caste system i believe not .india has ppl of different regions cultures and sometimes its tough amidst all these differences to keep unity and divides r created . and wee have to fight against it.
and ppl fought against it "The RISE OF COMMUNISM" is a result of such fight particularly the class fight
my region was plagued with naxalism until very latest.during the last 15 yrs the government understood the problem and started to curb the differences.gradual change came in th form of education fr all freedom. I didnot know what caste i belong to until i had to write it in tenth standard examination
I hope u understand that it is not religion but ppl in society who take false advantage of things
vedas say and learnd man is a brahmin
a warrior is a khastriya
a bussiness man is a vysha
an agricultarist is a shudra
nothing else the rest r created by the upper classes or selected few ppl
i agree that to an extent hinduism was responsible but the main reason is the greed of power of ppl
I wonder, is this belief more noble than the talking snake theory?
The India most people see on television make up less than 3% of the population--Mumbai, Chennai, Calcuta. The rural areas, which is most of India according to western standards, is where the traditional caste system is entrenched: this is where you will see the dalits working as slaves; the Shudras doing the menial work; the Brahmins priests claiming the privileges of the 'white, slave owner.'
If it hadn't been for the British intervention of these ingrained superstitions, India, today, would look like the staged version of Jungle Book.
People like Murdock end up reading books on Hinduism--written by the Brahmins--and end up enamored with a false notion of eastern spirituality.
Hinduism in India is far from being the spiritual remedy for westerners who are sick of the Abrahamic faiths. As an Indian I can say that western Europe which was civilized only in the past five hundred years has made better progress than five thousand years of Hindoooo civilization!
"Acharyaneedsschooling" feels the need to insult the author, even though she isn't even talking about Hindus in India - and she isn't exalting Hinduism. She's just applauding the behavior of Indians in the U.S. Nice straw man.
"The '330 million' number represents the belief that in each of us exists the spirit of God." So, why is it a "ridiculous claim" that some Hindus are revering Elvis Presley, Princess Diana and Mother Teresa?
anybody who praises hinduism as a socially viable religion is fooling themselves.It's an ultra-violent pretentious religion, just because it is a minority in the US doesn't mean that it is moral. As soon as they become mainstream in terms of voting powers, they will do worse than both christianity and islam.
I advice Acharya to read carefully the hindu scriptures, it is as violent and idiotic as any other religious texts. And oh by the way just check up on the massive human rights and women's rights violations the hindus are doing in India. I expect to see a better informed article from Acharya on the same topic next time.
This is the most ignorant article I have read. Looks like Ms.Murdock was in la la land writing this article and it is actually offensive to a person like me who was discriminated, abused and banished from the village temples just because I am an untouchable. Hinduism to this day practices violent oppression of untouchables. Thanks to the United States of America that took me in and provided me with the opportunities I was denied in India just because I was an untouchable in the Indian Hindu caste system. Ms. Murdock, please do not write blindly euphoric and ignorant articles like this.
I am sorry that you were ill treated in India due to the 'untouchability' stigma and I am absolutely against such behavior and attitude. We are all equals in the eyes of God. However, do you know that the 'untouchables' in India have a quite good lifestyle offlate with reservations and quotas in education and jobs? A lot has changed.
I have been to the US and have seen the way the Afro-Americans and to a lesser extent the Hispanics are treated there - its equivalent to their being untouchable. Such things exist everywhere - not all but many Americans regard non-Americans as second class citizens - whats that?
To my Indian critics, I am sorry you feel abused by Hinduism, but I am NOT praising Hinduism in this article, nor am I advocating people follow Hinduism or pray to Hindu gods. As another commenter correctly pointed out, I AM praising the BEHAVIOR of American Hindus - I simply have no reason to criticize them. I don't attack individuals who behave civilly, regardless of their beliefs - and I expect the same from my readers, as the entire problem with this planet is people attacking other people over beliefs.
To another critic, I have added the news item from The Hindu about there being a TEMPLE to Elvis Presley and Princess Diana. I also included a link to an Indian poet who has praised Mother Teresa as a goddess. I do not make "ridiculous claims."
The fact is that I have met many American Hindus and Jains who were very pleasant to be around and whose religious practices were colorful and refreshingly happy. There is obviously a problem with Hinduism in INDIA.
I seriously have to wonder if my critics are have even read my article - where do I praise Hinduism and suggest that it is correct and should be followed? I do not.
Please actually read an article before posting comments, especially ones that are derogatory and based on a false impression.
"to read carefully the hindu scriptures"
I have read many Indian writings dating back to the Rig Veda, up and including parts of the Mahabharata, as well as the Upanishads and the Bhagavat Gita. As I have pointed out in this article, there is no unified Hinduism that follows one specific set of scriptures. If there is a particular text you believe Hindus are following specifically to discriminate against others, please point it out, and I will gladly critique it. I would, however, need compelling evidence that Hindus are using the supposed teachings of God in order to oppress others. One of the points of my article concerns the difference between monotheism and polytheism - without the one central god dictating his sole will, there is increased tolerance of others.
Also, it appears that my critics have completely skipped over the paragraph in which I expose the flaws of Hinduism in India - I see no manifestation of these problems in the U.S.
Some of the Ancient old temples ,
and those like somnath of gujrat,Vishnu Temple in Vietnam,Temples in Bali..
Will tell you volumes of wisdom,
will give you a keener insight into the history
Of the race than any amount of books.
Mark how these temples survive on earth
LONG AS ABOUT 10,000YEARS BEAR
THE MARKS OF THOUSANDS OF
ATTACKS AND THOUSANDS OF REGENERATIONS,
continually sprininging up out of the ruins,
REJUVENATEDand STRONG AS EVER!
FOREVER LIVE LOVE! FOREVER LIVE PEACE! FOREVER LIVE HINDUISM!
"hindus lives and rule world when even greece did not exist,When jesus or mohammed was not born rome was not thought of,when the very fathers of modern europeans lived in forest and painted themselves blue.Even earlier,when history has no record and tradition dare not peer into gloom-ideas after ideas have marched out from here Hindustan(india),but every words has spoken with a blessing behind it and peaace before it"
Long Live SANATANA DHARMA LONG LIVE MOTHER EARTH ...
Indian's use a spice called Turmeric in their food, which some nutritionists believe helps prevent Alzheimer's.
If you are head strong that your religion is the word from GOD then my friends you are an oppressed soul............Hindusuim may be the oldest religion, Chrisitiany may be the biggest lie, Islam may be the most Violent and so on.......guys stop bickering....everyone is oppressed because of our upbringing,we belong to a religion but to set your soul free.....educate yourself.....and educate yourself.......stop bickering......be strong to accept that your beliefs may not be as you believe to be.
Most Muslims in America are just as civil as Hindus. Muslim countries have been the target of destabilization compaigns by the CIA as well as violent interventions since WWII. Indian, on the other hand, is being given preferential treatment for strategic reasons. The destabilization of Pakistan has resulted from long-term support of Muslim fanaticism by the CIA and other meddling through the CIA's control of the ISI. The U.S. is recruiting India as an allie against Russian and China and is planning to feed parts of Pakistan to Indian imperialism to make sure they don't join Russia and China. The excuse is already there: "The Islamic Bomb." Bombing civilians in Pakistan and Afghanistan has helped turn them toward the Taliban. All part of the long-term plan. There are good reasons why Muslims are a little upset. In spite of all that, no terrorism has occurred on U.S. soil. 9/11 was done by our own government to have an excuse to occupy "Pipelineistan."
I very much appreciate the author for writing this article. I have taken birth in untouchable caste and although I rarely had any problem due to caste (probably because my family was affluent), I read about attrocities against untouchables every now and then.
Eventually I moved to USA for college education and to great surprise, I have hardly read any issue related to untouchability by hindus living in India.
What this suggests to me is that several things have become part of Indian culture but not necessarily practised by each hindu. Hence in USA you don't find untouchability practised by hindus.
The author has very rightly mentioned that as long as hindus continue to live in civillized manner in USA and not bring their fanatical Indian practises in USA, they are welcomed here.
Regarding some pro-Hindu, anti European, comments on here:
The oldest Vedic sriptures, the Rig Veda, date no older than 1700 BCE. There are signs of prehistoric religion practised in India and elsewere dating back much further. In Western Europe too, where some people say "the very fathers of modern europeans lived in forest and painted themselves blue", there are stone built monuments and burial chambers showing strong signs of astrologically and environmentally aware religious practice, dating to before 3000 BCE, before the time of the pyramids in Egypt, or any similar structures in India or anywhere else. Perhaps the template for blue painted Hindu gods came from the forests of Europe. LOL. Who cares?
No person who attempts to degrade any other culture without proof of burden can call his or her own religious stance morally superior in any way.
@Dev Vashi and Dhruva: How can you say hindus in india are not violent? Do you not read the papers? Do you not know of radical hindu organisations? Do you not know of social evils that find their roots in hindu culture? Social evils, discrimination (based on caste, sex, 'religious morals') is also violence because it leads to long term trauma and imbalance at the social level.
Hope violence does not equal only 'guns' in your dicitionary. Because the gun is just one of the many tools used for violence. Broad Definition of violence - Anything that is used to control and create psychological terror - is violence.
For anyone who's interested in reading on hindu violence, radicalism, extremism, etc. in India:
Google search term for a blog that keeps a track of violence in Hindu-India -> "Communalism Watch". You'll find this blog at blogspot. Click the label 'hindutva', on this blog.
@Dev Vashi and Dhruva:
My comments are not 'anti' for the sake of being 'anti'.
I am deeply influenced by Advaita Vedanta, and also am an active member of a few hindu organisations in my hometown.
I am extremely appalled by the comments posted by Hindu imposters from Shudra caste to demean Hinduism, one such “Acharyaneedschooling”. This reader’s comments “The longest running apartheid system is the Hindu caste system. Twenty five centuries of slavery through the god-given caste system, the oppression of women, the child marriage system, are responsible for the primitive status quo of India.” Demonstrates how un-informed and illiterate he/she is on Hinduism.
The essence of Hinduism is experienced in Bhagvat Geeta where Lord Krishan himself says in Ch 4:13
“????????????? ??? ????????, ????????????: |
???? ????????? ??? ?????????????????? ||”
(Chatur Varanam Maya Shrishtam, Guna Karma Vibhagash, Tasya Kartarmapi mam, Vidhya Kartar mavyayam)
The above Verse (shloka) states that I, Lord Krishna, has divided (Vibhagasha) human nature into four (Chatur) categories (Varnam), based on their human qualities and innate properties (Guna) and action (Karma) of thought.
Lord Krishna further states that the three Qualities(Gunas) are Tamogun, Rajogun and Satgun and among these are spread four categories of humans, Shudra, Vaishya, Kshatriya and Brahaman.
GUN CATEGORY
Sat Gun |? BRAHAMAN
|
|? KSHATRIYA
Rajo Gun |
|? VAISHYA
|
Tamo Gun |? SHUDRA
Complete description in English is provided at yatharthgeeta Track 4B at 7 minutes and 45 seconds from start (for Ch 4:13).
It is not the physical work, nor the division by birth, nor their exploitation in the Indian caste system as it exists today, that defined these four classes, but the three mental qualities is a measure, a yardstick of the type.
SHUDRA : Laziness, excessive sleep, Ignorance, darkness, aversion to work (mental and intellectual introspection), compulsive addiction to evil; worship cannot commence in such a state
VAISHYA: Control of Senses, accumulation of other virtuous impulses
KSHATRIYA: Virtue of righteousness, prowess, the ability to be immersed in action, unwillingness to retreat, mastery over feelings, the property to carve his way through the three properties of nature,
BRAHAMIN: Further refinement of action, evolution of virtue such as control of mind and senses, concentration, innocence, contemplation, abstract meditation, capacity to hear universal omnipotent being
Just because the Eternal Knowledge has been mis-used in social context for exploitation and self-interest by those empowered with it, the so called “society’s BRAHAMIN”, you should NOT get into SELF-VICTIMIZATION, instead seek truth, the true meaning of human existence.
Secondly, oppression of women is the result of 700 years of Islamic onslaught due to which Hindu families began to protect their women and children from ravaging onslaught. It is simply a social adjustment, an outcome of Islamic onslaught.
Child marriage is exactly the result of the same reason. Refer to the pre-Islamic history of India, see the temples and the pure art they depict. You can estimate the supreme place of women in Indian culture in TV serials like Ramayana, Mahabharata and Chanakya.
As far as your claim of primitive status quo, it is the systematic economic destruction staged by the British during their rule where they brought down Indian economy from 25% of world’s GDP in 1700 AD to less than 0.1% in 1947, at independence. The strategy adopted by them in America to eliminate natives could not be deployed in India as the population to eliminate was massive. Hence they staged famines so they could escape from being held accountable for the holocaust, which took the lives of over 15 million Indians.
Finally, you seem to be encased in your ANGER and LOW SELF-ESTEEM and have not explored the reason for the misery the Indian Society is in today.
The Knowledge Hindu culture holds delivers humans from their self-inflicted miseries, much beyond Sigmund Freud and others offered. Remember he was an Austrian, the same German race where Max Muller came from who translated the whole treasure of the Vedas and other Hindu scriptures. The immense wealth of this knowledge and the supremacy of Aryan race made Hitler to bring disgrace to the purest symbol of Swastika and the Aryan race, of which the Germans have no connection except for the bluff called by the British in the 19th century in the Aryan Invasion Theory.
Mr. Acharyaneedschooling, look at the virtues of your ROOTS, rather than load your mind with “PERSONAL GRIEVANCES and the feeling of VICTIMIZATION”. Empower people with the TRUE knowledge so they don’t fall into the same TRAP you are in!
And to my friend “anti-hindu star”, I would advise him to enlighten himself at the website of hinduwisdom, this site is an ocean on HINDUISM, please go there to get your facts straight.
untouchability is no longer practised in india, tho it still exists in de mind of some part of de population. instead unjustifiable things lik reservations in job and education sectors irks de general populations. these r things tht ve to be done away wit by spendin more money on de lower sections to uplift them, thn reservations which is not doin good anywy to the financially bckwd. hinduism is nva undastud in its full essence but its bein exploited by opportunistic minds for favour of votes or otha reasons which create a bad impression abt the religion which inherently is a rich culture. it is one of the very few religions(is there ny otha) which stood centuries of attacks by proselytizing religions. but to me all religions r rough variants of same philosophies whr de newer ones solely instituted for selfish greedy purposes.. its de biggest business as well as the biggest curse. it has done irreparable damage to mankind. more harm thn gud. but its worth a read. n m sure hindu texts
n m sure the texts ll amaze u wit its content.. n u ll find many of de teachings similar to ur faith too.. its very rich n de way of livin described is very real. v mite be polytheists but in no way does it mean monotheism is the true one. either way is true for its followers.
wtva be it.. pls spread love instead of this hatred.. try to be civilized n learn to respect ur fellow humans. n for heavens sake stop proselytising, u r not knowledgeable enof to kno which one is de true faith, nor does ur faith n ur richness(in terms on money) give u de rite to exploit poverty n illiteracy. india was once one of the richest nations n centuries of foreign rule of suppression n looting rendered it poor. but still v stood straight n hold on to ourselves n v r on de rite track. once again stop this nonsense of ridiculin others cuz of their faith.
n scientology is de biggest crap. don eva fall for it. even i can start a religion borrowin stuff frm otha religions n wut not includin stuff of ma own.. who cant philosophize n who cant promote it if u were reach n if u r able to gather some support frm among some of de elite n influential.. come on open ur eyes.. its sad tht many ll nva undstnd de reality..
be educated n reasonable n logical lik de author of this article... use ur brains..
* correction-
who cant philosophize n who cant promote it if u were *rich n ....
stephen-knapp.com/war_against_hinduism.htm
I love Hinduism its beyond religion ...
I really like these articles. If we don't talk about these issues human kind will never advance. All these millennia and what have we truly learned about living a good life? Humankind as a whole must constantly revise and with all these cultures to pick from a cosmopolitan peaceful future is just around the corner.
A very objective and balanced presentation. In a multi-religious society, one into which USA is fast turning into, a knowledge of the basic tenats of the religion of one's neibour is certainly desirable. It is certainly beneficial to know what my neibour believes in and why, and what his ideas about my religion are. Ms Murdock should be complemented for her initiative in promoting inter-religious understanding.
I've had a number of Hindu friends, including a Hindu girl friend for a time. What most surprised me was how she felt about her skin color - like she was inferior because she wasn't white. This is certainly a legacy of the British in India and elsewhere Hindus have gone, e.g. Guyana. Fine Christians, the Brits, demeaning people because they aren't "white." All the Hindus I've had the pleasure of knowing were kind, gently people. America is richer for welcoming them into our culture.
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