Thursday, November 6, 2008

Change We can believe in

This Election will remain testament to the fact that American people still cherish and share principles and values of their Constitution. A Constitution which had been protecting the freedom, equality and prosperity of its people. Purpose well served by a Constitution which is more than 3 centuries old.

India has lessons to learn and need to observe America more closely. India may survive if it follows destructive American Capitalism but it will not last another decade if we do not learn from our partners in Democracy and its people and the unity shown to overcome deep-rooted prejudices. Who could have imagined 60 years after the Civil Rights Act was passed, an Afro-American, will become the chief executive of the most powerful nation on the planet.

India is a novice nation which is trying to find its place in these uncertain times. A world's largest Democracy has failed to inculcate the values and principles shared by our founding fathers. Gandhi once said ' Parliament is not sovereign but its people, laws passed by the Parliament is a mere courteous ratification of its peoples will'. These values have been lost or should I say annihilated by our current deep rooted divide between its communities and castes. Communal violence is at its peak when Hindu extremist groups turn Christian houses and Churches to ruins and publicly burn a disabled child, a 'Convert Christian'. Our middle class population is indifferent to blasts from Assam to Delhi. the only reaction to these blasts are a couple of tears from an over-sensitive middle class family. Media's coverage shifts from reporting the incident to formulating theories on who is behind the terror blast. Prime Minister to a local councilor, issues statements condemning blasts.

'WE the people' first three words of the Preamble to the world's largest Constitution has failed to serve its purpose. WE need to unite against these threats to our nation, not by targeting the other side, but working together for a better future. Middle class needs to own up to its duty to act and Vote. WE need to get these politician to work for us. WE need a government which unites itself first and then its subjects, a government which inculcates Nehruvian ideologies. Hence, WE need to change. With that India can find its rightful place in these volatile times.

As Purna said 'purse-based' issues dictate voters. May be, we will see this in action when India goes to Polls next year. I am not too optimistic on social attitudes or customs which will dictate a voter to vote for the right candidate. Castes, religion, minority politics will again dictate Manifestos of political parties and real issues, real enemies of India will not be dealt with yet again. I can not do anything except to vote and hope for a leader that will unite this centuries old country and bring the 'change we can believe in'.

Sunday, August 24, 2008

Our Tradition

I thought I will write about saddened mindset of Indians in relation to homosexuality or comment on the disappointment surrounding Indian politics. But I am moved to write about our proud and marvellous ethnic tradition. I went to the land of Ganges , Haridwar and Rishikesh, where pilgrims flock to take a dip in the holy river to revive and to seek blessing for the future. I was amazed, as an atheist, by the sheer passion that drives masses of devotees to this holy river. I witnessed traditions being performed everyday with same passion and deference. I feel proud when I call myself a citizen of this beautiful country which embraces such vibrant culture. Being an atheist allows me to enjoy such tradition without being mystified. It allows me to observe a fascinating history and be cynical.

Our driver, who hailed from the plains of the holy river and was a rigid Hindu, shared with us some fascinating stories/myths. He articulated how river Ganges is supposedly a river of heaven, a symbol of the living god. I was amused and bewildered when he failed to make me understand how he could dispute its geographical source i.e. glaciers. Apparently, source of Ganges is the 'jata of a god named Shiva'. I was met with angry sneers when I doubted the purity of the Ganges. I guess I was just wrong in stating the obvious and dint realise I came across as an arrogant literate person to people who dint share my atheist ethics but were a part of centuries old myth. I also heard how Jainism differs from Hinduism and is superior and demonises certain deities of Hinduism. This might be my interpretation of jain granthas, which is off course prejudiced. Although I saw my driver grumbling on this comment made by my brother. Least he dint burn buses or shouted anti-jain slogans and destroyed public property when spoken against, may be because we both shared some sort of brotherhood and could join him in singing holy hymns and aartis praising the Maa Ganga.

Enough of being a cynic and don’t want to question else’s faith. But I have never seen such an amazing display and have never been surrounded by the ambience that hypnotised believers and non-believers alike. It was outstanding and awe inspiring evening when I joined hundreds others in the evening aarti at those centuries old ghats. I and thousands others were catapulted centuries back since the first aarti was performed according to the shastras. Arguably, Aaarti has not changed a bit since then but has embraced loudspeakers and bollywood singers. This serves as a great example of how we have survived and managed to cultivate our wonderful heritage.

But I also shared rather disappointing and rotten side of this religious festivity. I saw God being sold and divinity a privilege of very few rich sinners. God was being auctioned and so was the faith of various other poor pilgrims. Rich could pay money to perform the main ceremonies along with prime priests. But I guess this rarely matters when you can do your little own aarti if you know ancient mantras written in Sanskrit. I frequently crossed paths with several devotees and holy sadhus begging for food in the god’s owned land. Certainly faith cannot, alone, arrange for food or precious currency to support families of poor people but it can certainly pay for building, huge extravagant, temples built to praise the very same god who had forsaken its own subjects in its own land. Thousands of temples, with huge costs to the beneficiaries of various dharma trusts, are built without acknowledging what god itself tell in granthas ‘I am the, and the is me’ (I am not sure how its written). Servicing mankind means praising god's very precious creation. But I believe our rich and holy men are oblivious to this fact because they believe writing the word RAM more than 1 million times will get you access to the god. (There are books available with small empty checker boxes in which a devotee can write RAM’s name.. apparently there is a temple in Ayodhya where you can open an account in a 'holy bank' if you have written the word RAM more than 125000)Guess this serves its own purpose as it does come with a guarantee that a place in heaven is guaranteed for him, although all the sins he commits by dejecting poor men will go unnoticed by the God on the judgement day.

There was this general aura around which begged the question of the sanctity of religion. Why weren’t the poor part of god’s plan? I guess this very question attracts poorest of the poor to these holy temples and sites created by the rich in a hope that this will wipe off their sins. (Again cynical me) The poor come here to pray to deities made up of lifeless stone in a hope that there prayers will be answered by this entity which is as abstract as air itself. Will it not be better to save money spent on the pilgrimage to afford better education for their children and work hard for a better life, instead they will hope that god will talk back or shall I say stones will talk back. Cant really blame them, anyone who doesn’t find itself glorified by gods warmth, atleast have an assurance of an institution which claims to fulfil their wishes ( although sometimes you might just have to pay rupees to pandas for a direct connection with god) I saw people dipping in the freezing water of the Ganges which promises to make one sin free. I don’t know whether you get free of sins or not I am sure of catching cold.

Poor sanitation, poor facilities for pilgrims and lack of security dominated my trip. Although, sanitation, forms part of our culture and was highly advocated in our shastras, was seldom seen around. Used plastic bags and other wasted material used for religious ceremonies patched the landscape. I hardly saw anyone behaving in a manner which corresponded to the sanctity of the place. ‘RAM TERI GANGA MAELI HO GAYE’ stood true. I failed to draw a parallel between performing aarti’s praising the river as a pure and divine god and how devotees and caretakers were making that very river a dump. I should not commit the crime of generalising all the devotees. There were educated folks who would pay a higher price for a bio-degradable ‘diya’ and other ‘samagri’. Shopkeepers also did their part to save the environment. They sold raincoats made from recycled M&M’s packaging. Least there is some improvement.

I have seen many ironies in a day and have tried to put my logical mind in understanding religious augments and have failed to separate myth from the fact. I have failed to understand what attracts , rich and poor alike, to this mystical place where all of them want to take a piece of heaven and find salvation through the holy water of the river Ganges. I should not doubt their faith, after all this is all they have.

Tuesday, August 12, 2008

A genuine discussion

Comments:-
"Front page The Times of India......people, your so called seculars chant slogans of pakistan and say ..... hindustan murdabad, jeering the country that they live in, that provides them food, that provides them with all....People hate these traitors because in times of need while people in other parts of the country at least hold peace demonstrations these so called 'secularists' of yours foment more trouble by granting access to militants.I am ashamed to be a part of a country where these people murrder my brothrs and sisters in blasts and the like. Every single day in mosques across the country these people are told to vehemently murder hindus, jews and chrisitans, fomenting a non-justifiable violence against innocent women and children. Surely men of courage would know to negotiate rather than support countries that want to bring dis-unity to us.But then again some people, like you my friend, obviosuly have never experienced the shame or pain of seeing your own country men die.Jai Hind"

"If you love your country and are a patriot, then you shall Not be afraid to speak the truth.Bharat mata ki jai ho!as for facts, remeber there were 56 pilgrims who were torched by islamic fanatics in gujarat. Repercussions are bound to ensue. Yes the state could have better managed them and what happened was totally uncalled for. But was nonetheless a repercussion to an earlier equally gruesome and heinous act of evil.Shows how cowards operate, doesn;t it? to hide behind and attack innocents. A man of courage and conviction does not.And by the way as far as negotaitons go, it takes two to tango."


I say:-

you are again looking at things from a general prespective. How can you discount the fact that we have been ruled my emperors like Akbar and Hindus have been in minority. So do not commit the crime of generalising muslims and madrasas.With the same token Shiv Sena is well justified in calling for hindu terrorist squads. I am sure that it is a well justified call for killing more innocent people. How can you see things White and Black.Many of my dad's employees are Muslims, who are wonderful craftsmen, equally agree that Terrorism has no religion. Once we start looking thaings from the communal prism things turn ugly and this is precisely you are doing. Do not be aroused, but must think logically and see who is at fault rather than which community. If you do embrace a united India do embrace its second largest community. I believe Terrorists have succ. in its motive to grow this hatred which is to culitvate in people who are driven by a strong passion towards its community rather than India. I am not saying that you shall not make your community a part of your identity but you need to be tolerant and not extrimists.
'Clearly your view of secularism is warped and your penchant to attack one side and take sides , to me, shows a lack of critical ability to dissect the issue and understand the underlying dichotomy'.


Yes I agree that my blog takes side and I am prejudiced with my view towards BJP. This is not because I support someone else. This is due to the fact that I have had the experience of receiving the shame when Gujrat or Babri-Masijid is brought up and the Sangh-Parivar has everything to do with it. I am not discounting the fact that there are million other factors for such an event. But I am concerned when one of the largest party tries to take sides (I am not). It is not disputable that Mr. Advani’s Rath yatra in the last Lok Sabha elections was widely criticized. Promoting ‘Hindutatva’ is one of BJP’s main motives as demonstrated by careless speeches of top party officials (I am referring to Sushma Swaraj).

I don’t mind promoting a particular religion as everyone has such right. But my concern springs from the fact that India has experienced harshness of religious political party Muslim League, which divided India on Communal lines. Hence, I don’t believe anyone who has read our history would agree that it was acceptable. Therefore, every step should be taken to make sure that the confidence of the nation, Hindus and Muslims alike, is restored in its ruling party. Considering our history Hindus and Muslims have shared a love and hate relationship and there is a great deal of insecurity among young Muslims. If we want a full integration in the Indian society we need to make sure Hindus and Muslims must be heard alike. For example, Left has never had any religion or promotion of religion in its manifesto. Hence I can say that they represent a secular nation. ( I must make clear that I do not agree with the Left on any other issue).

If anyone who has read our constitution and have read the commentaries of the drafting committee, it will be clear that none of the members intended to give power to a religious political party. Our very demographics were the reason that we adopted a secular nature of the Constitution unlike Pakistan. ‘A State shall have no religion’--- This sums it. Flip pages of your history books and tell me if BJP had no religious ideologies. By the same token when it ruled India it promoted that religion and sought not to counter anti-minority forces.

Do I take sides?

'Clearly your view of secularism is warped and your penchant to attack one side and take sides , to me, shows a lack of critical ability to dissect the issue and understand the underlying dichotomy'.

Yes I agree that my blog takes side and I am prejudiced with my view towards BJP. This is not because I support someone else. This is due to the fact that I have had the experience of receiving the shame when Gujrat or Babri-Masijid is brought up and the Sangh-Parivar has everything to do with it. I am not discounting the fact that there are million other factors for such an event. But I am concerned when one of the largest party tries to take sides (I dont). It is not disputable that Mr. Advani’s Rath yatra in the last Lok Sabha elections was widely criticized. Promoting ‘Hindutatva’ is one of BJP’s main motives as demonstrated by careless speeches of top party officials (I am referring to Sushma Swaraj).

I don’t mind promoting a particular religion as everyone has such a right. But my concern springs from the fact that India has experienced consequencies of formation of religious political party the Muslim League, which divided India on Communal lines. Hence, I don’t believe anyone who has read our history would agree that it was acceptable. Therefore, every step should be taken to make sure that the confidence of the nation, Hindus and Muslims alike, is restored in its ruling party. Considering our history Hindus and Muslims have shared a love and hate relationship and there is a great deal of insecurity among young Muslims. If we want a full integration of the Indian society we need to make sure Hindus and Muslims are heard alike, we need to make sure that real issues must be discussed rather than a particular religion. In simple words, DO NOT TAKE SIDES. For example, Left has never had any religion or promotion of religion in its manifesto. Hence I can say that they represent a secular nation. ( I must make clear that I do not agree with the Left on any other issue).

If anyone who has read our constitution and have read the commentaries of the drafting committee, it will be clear that none of the members intended to give power to a religious political party. Our very demographics were the reason that we adopted a secular nature of the Constitution unlike Pakistan. ‘A State shall have no religion’--- This sums it. Flip pages of your history books and tell me if BJP had no religious ideologies. By the same token when it ruled India it promoted that religion and sought not to counter anti-minority forces.

Sunday, August 10, 2008

Secularism Contd.

I was watching ‘We the People’ on NDTV, which is of course famous for the bright and controversial Barkha Dutt. I was not only impressed by the presence of array of politicians from a Jammu Muslim to a kashmiri pandit, from BJP to the so called Amarnath Sangharsh Samiti reps.(ASS, more of a literal translation). I JUST DONT GET IT... what do these people want. I mean Mr Ravi Shankar, a BJP Rajya Sabha MP, WHAT DOES HE WANT. He compared and characterised the economic blockade of the region by ASS as a step that would equal terrorist blowing up Jammu-Srinagar highway. Even a primate with a single human chromosome will understand that terrorism is a different force on which the state has no control. It is used by people who cannot get involved in a rational discussion. ASS on the other hand is an organisation backed by one of the largest political party in this country. Where is the responsibility Mr Advani. Why cannot we sit down and talk about this non-issue. ASS refused to talk with Kashmiri leaders on the grounds that this was the problem created by the Kashmiris. WHAT!!! --- This how you resolve issues, by burning busses and killing minority muslims in Jammu.... if you have an issue; you sit down and like humans and as believers of LORD RAM have faith in talks. In a democracy you have to sit down to speak to the people who make policies and have patience and courtesy to listen to someone else.

There is no excuse to hijack the regional government’s independence and lives of already destitute and impoverish civilians. If you are affected by this just because you are a Hindu, why not everyone else around India is also so agitated to take the nation hostage and burn busses. The truth is, involvement of the BJP and other communal forces have raised doubt on ASS’s motive.why I am angry about ASS making these agitations? I am sure everyone has a right to protest if they do not like anything. But once you start looking things from religious prism in a secular country, you start losing your motive to secure a just result. Next thing we know we are fighting for our regional identities (although this has happened before, remember the KHALISTAN movement!!)

On the program , the news ticker showed comments from various people. There were two comments which particularly attracted my attention and worried me. First was and I quote “Kashmiri Muslims started it and now Hindus are Fighting back” and the second was “Freedom of Minority does not mean marginalising the majority”. I wish and try to persuade myself that these are just people who have been hypnotised by the BJP and these comments don’t form part of their honest thoughts on this issue. It has to be or else this country cannot survive this century. It has been widely acknowledged that J&K’s problems have never been a referendum on the dynamism between these two communities in different parts of India. But these thoughts are scary as they are born with pure passion towards people who promote extremist religious views.

This is also a sign of how Shiv Sena and its followers have managed to damage the thread that runs between different communities. Working out the damage which will be caused by our new ‘home grown extremists’ to our future generation is unfeasible. It is probable that the new young generation that doesn’t find itself part of the India Inc. may find an attractive alternative career in these organisations and get a well paid job of suicide bombers like Palestinian children and youngsters are. I might be reckoning a horrible future for our nation but I believe it is necessary that we evaluate where our society is going and choose right people for the job (Narendra Modi is unlikely to be a top-contender). The day is not far when we shall have no educational institutions except Madrasas and Gurukuls breeding a new form of SIMI activist preaching holy wars. Well I believe I have painted a grim talibani future for our secular nation, but I believe this will not be realised as parties such as Left and Congress will remain to uphold the values of our founding fathers and freedom struggle. TRUST ME I AM NOT CYNICAL.



P.S:-I am annoyed by this stupid American Word processor which litters my draft with errors when I write Hindi names, but recognises TAJ or SHANKAR, how stereotypical of the west)

Friday, August 8, 2008

SECULARISM

Its 3 in the morning and I am watching ‘how to be different on the discovery channel. Its showing how scientist can now alter the genes and can pre-determine gene set for future offspring. I just thought to myself wouldn’t be great if we could just do the same with the BJP. Just Invent something which can either wipe-out the ‘Sangh- Parivar’s ideologies or just wipe them out altogether. I am not ‘hinsak’ and truly believe in Ghandhi’s 'Ahinsawad'. Also I, being a part of a civilised society, am tolerant to other people’s views. But this whole VHP, BHP and Shiv Sena trilogy is out of bound of comprehension. My every logic is defied when I see top party officials making irresponsible moves in one of the world’s most volatile and explosive regions, J&K. Why will a ‘PM in waiting’ will play with several lives just because he needs to prove his point. Why will a party, which opposed the Emergency and played the most important role in India’s history of democracy, not stand up and listen to logic. I am no political analyst, but even my Nepali domestic help understand that J&K isn’t an ordinary state with easy history. It has demographics which mirrors Israel and Palestine (I don’t which to draw such parallels but it seems highly probable). Recent calls for more agitation in Jammu by the opposition seems a cowardly act to play on Hindu votes of the region. BJP well knows it has lost everything elsewhere and there is no one who supports them except for Hindu fanatics.

Sovereign Constitution of this country allows Freedom of association and gives full political freedom. It also says in the preamble that WE ARE A SECULAR NATION. There is an obvious question how do we balance the two. It becomes problematic when religion fuses with politics and is used to secure political gain for a particular community. This has been characterised by some scientists (political scientists off course) as a first step towards communalism. The whole idea of securing political power is to uphold not just the articles of the Constitution but the ethical and moral glue which binds it. None of our founding fathers thought we will have Babri-Masjid or Godhra just because a ruling government of the day wanted to uphold not the Constitution or the oath it took, but its abstract religious party ideologies. This should have been a warning sign for the Supreme Court to ban such organisations as extremists or should have given warning signs. Turkey represents a fabulous example of how a secular Constitution should be upheld. When a Muslim majority party wanted to impose strict communal Muslims law in a country which has 70% or more Muslim population, its people took it to the streets. Why we are so dormant when it comes to us. Why do not we stand up against VHP or Shive sena which calls for Hindu terrorist squads or call for a nuclear strikes against our neighbours. Is this the freedom our founding fathers envisaged. Perhaps there is one person who stood up, Amar Singh, may be for an edge over his political opponents or to gain advantage over BSP for the next general elections. But he stood up and fought to keep communal forces away from the power. May be he is not a good example on how to be secular but he stood up for what was right (after much of a heated discussion with various other political parties).

Omar Abdullah has again done it. Adored by my female friends as a hotty with brains, he has again made his point loud and clear. He has again stepped out and counted out the bugs (BJP). He has again restored my faith in our democracy when he delivered his 5 minutes long passionate speech in the Lok Sabha amongst the whole Cash for Vote scam. He outlined the true nature of ‘what it should be all about’. No organisation of political parties for religious furtherance but for a cause that affects every religion. Although I shall not rule out use of religious groups for lobbying the high corridors of power and some divine intervention.

I am not an academic or a policy maker but an ‘Aam Aadmi’ looking for a job and trying to fight a double digit inflation. I can only hope for our leaders to return to their senses before we destroy this secular nation’s fabric and return to middle ages.

Thursday, August 7, 2008

aftermath

Finally I have the chance to sit down and trace my thoughts. I have been wanting to write for a long time but never got the chance. Well, I cannot really complaint at the moment. I am unemployed and have no friends. Only thing that makes me feel good is the disgusting state of thousands others like me fighting to be a part of shining India. I am listening to ‘Shine-take that’ never thought I will need to listen to songs just because I want to feel good and feel optimistic about life. It is just delusional when people have faith in you. I ask, does that really make a difference when everyone else except me believes in me. I believe I am fortunate enough to earn confidence of my family (that is why I am still here). Dads always have their own version of the world. I know how hard it is to be one of those who have not succeeded in fulfilling parents dream and I also know the agony of a father.

But I just cannot relate to my dad’s agony. I know it’s a bit harsh but when popes (People who think they own the world) comes in between my hard work and dad’s logical thinking, it becomes a bit difficult to share my failures. I have had enough of continuous nagging every 5 in the morning. He wants me to become a part of the shining India which he sees around him and his mates share. He always feels proud when anyone, he remotely knows, has received a good job offer or is working hard. This is just the beginning. My family is extra-ordinary, oversensitive and extremely prone to persuasion bunch of primates. Frequent mood-swings and hope of a worse future prevails 28 hrs a day. I don’t think I have lived away from them for such a long time that I don’t understand their chemical structure.
I do not want t o write in detail about how I am surviving, just makes me too unhappy.