Hindutva

Many Lingayats were willing to risk their lives to vocally oppose Hindutva. In Kerala, we met with Swami Sandeepananda Giri, another vocal critic of Hindutva. We learned of the risks he’s faced because of his opposition to Hindutva, including a violent attack on his ashram by affiliates of the Hindu nationalist RSS paramilitary group. We were heartened by the growing resistance in Kerala, a state long known for its political diversity and progressive politics.Swami Sandeepananda Giri's ashram in Kundamankadavu, Kerala, attacked by unidentified assailants, October 2018.ANI/TwitterOur final stop was the Ayyavazhi ashram in Kanyakumari, at India’s southern tip, where we met Bala Prajapati. He represents the Ayyavazhi faith, a 19th century offshoot of Hinduism emphasizing egalitarianism, anti-casteism, and social reform. Despite the risk of violence—the ashram has a 24 hour police guard—Prajapati maintains a firm stance against Hindutva. Overall, the journey illuminated the stark contrast between the oppressive, exclusionary nature of Hindutva, which is a much newer creation, just over 100 years old, and the inclusive, liberatory aspects of the many diverse and ancient Hindu traditions. The leaders who draw on the latter tradition can claim many progenitors, including anti-caste revolutionaries in Indian history like Basavanna, Akka Mahadevi, Vaikunda Swami, and Kabir Das. But the challenge of combatting Hindutva is a steep one. The prevalence of nationalist symbols in unexpected places, like saffron flags on fishing boats along the beaches of Goa, one of India’s most diverse states, was a jarring reminder of this during our trip. The elections next month in India will also almost certainly see Prime Minister Narendra Modi of the Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party win a third five-year term. Still, I remain an optimist. The brave Hindu leaders I have met, guardians of inclusive traditions that have survived millennia, are quick to admit that India is going through a dark period. But, they say, it will return to the path of secular democracy and unity. I hope that comes sooner than later.

As India hurtles toward the world’s largest elections next month, I mourn for the democracy of my homeland that once was. The press is increasingly muzzled, dissent is met with incarceration, and a palpable climate of fear pervades society. My country is inching closer to becoming a Hindu supremacist state, as Muslims are getting more excluded by the day.India’s majority Hindu community seems largely oblivious or in denial of the brewing catastrophe. Despite their silence, a significant number of Indians, both within the country and among the diaspora, are actively resisting. I have been resisting in my own way, by creating a platform for Hindus—secular, cultural, or religious—who oppose both the caste system and the nationalist Hindutva ideology. I had previously been inspired by my dear friend and mentor, the late Swami Agnivesh, a radical monk who had devoted his life to ending bonded labor. But my colleagues and I at Hindus for Human Rights were keen to meet a new crop of brave religious leaders who reject hate. In 2023, we journeyed to India for a prema yatra, or “pilgrimage of love,” and met 15 Hindu leaders firmly opposed to Hindutva. Left: The author, Swami Raghavendra, and Swami Korneshwar underneath a huge statue of Basavanna, in Basavakalyan, Karnataka, on Feb. 5; Right: The author with Bala Prajapati at a temple at Ayyavazhi ashram, Kanyakumari, Tamil Nadu, on Feb. 10. At the temple, they have a mirror instead of a deity, "because the divine resides within each of us," says Bala Prajapati.Courtesy Viswanath (2)In our latest trip to India, in February 2024, we were joined by Swami Raghavendra, a leader of the organization Satya Dharam Samvad (SDS). As a monk with strong academic credentials, he represents a new generation of spiritual leaders who challenge Hindutva. In 2021, he organized the inaugural SDS gathering in Haridwar, in the BJP’s stronghold of northern India, as a counter to a hate assembly that explicitly called for a genocide of Muslims. At the SDS gathering that year, faith leaders took a “do or die” oath to protect secular India and the Hindu faith from Hindutva.During the 2024 trip, Raghavendra and I were hosted by Swami Korneshwar, a leader in the Lingayat community, in Karnataka. The Lingayat movement was founded in the 12th century by the philosopher Basavanna, and is known for its staunch anti-caste stance and egalitarian ethos. But the community is at a crossroads, with some aligning with Hindutva while others strive to maintain their unique identity separate from mainstream Hinduism. Several prominent members of the Lingayat community have been assassinated by Hindutva proponents, most notably the journalist Gauri Lankesh. Others remain vocal, despite incessant death threats. During the visit, I saw how

April 12, 2021📘 Read Now 📥 Download eBook detailsTitle: Hindutva: Ek Jeevan ShailiAuthor : Ed. Kalraj MishraRelease Date : January 07, 2020Genre: Classics,Books,Fiction & Literature,Pages : * pagesSize : 2424 KBDescriptionआज भारत के राजनीतिक परिवेश में चारों ओर संकट दिखाई दे रहा है। देश में भ्रष्‍टाचार चरम पर है। धर्म-जाति के नाम पर वोट पाने हेतु राष्‍ट्रीय हितों को तिलांजलि दी जा रही है। छद्म धर्म-निरपेक्षता के नाम पर संप्रदायवाद को बढ़ावा दिया जा रहा है।आज के इस कलुषित वातावरण में हिंदुत्व की अप्रतिम जीवन-शैली को अपनाकर ही समाज में एक जन-जागरण पैदा किया जा सकता है; जिससे अपने संकीर्ण मतभेदों से ऊपर उठकर एक सशक्‍त राष्‍ट्र का निर्माण हो सके।जीवनपर्यंत राष्‍ट्रवाद की राजनीति के आदर्शों पर चलनेवाले वरिष्‍ठ राजनेता पं. कलराज मिश्र ने हिंदुत्व की परंपराओं; वेद; पुराणों और स्मृतियों के माध्यम से सभी समस्याओं का हल खोजने का प्रयास किया है। इस पुस्तक में सम्मिलित अनेक आध्यात्मिक गुरुओं; राजनेताओं; लेखकों के मर्मस्पर्शी लेख बालविवाह; जातिप्रथा; टूटते परिवार; भ्रष्‍टाचार; महिलाओं के प्रति दुराचार जैसी बुराइयों को दूर करने में अवश्य सफल होंगे।हिंदुत्व की व्यापक अवधारणा; उसकी अप्रतिम जीवन-शैली; उसकी संस्कृति का दिग्दर्शन कराती एक श्रेष्‍ठ कृति।Ebook Download "Hindutva: Ek Jeevan Shaili" PDF ePub Kindle

To make a single episode. On January 25, the pilot was aired and Indian television would never be the same again. POLITICAL CONCERNSWithin a couple of episodes, Sagar’s Ramayana became a national sensation, eventually clocking viewership of around 650 million, telecast in 55 different countries and becoming the highest grossing show on Indian television by some distance. But behind and besides the narrative of success underlined by earth-shattering numbers, there were concerns, most of them political, and many controversies. Of the political concerns, chief was the telecast of the epic series in the shade of the Ram Janambhoomi movement that culminated in the demolition of the Babri Masjid on December 6, 1992. Sagar’s Ramayana played in the backdrop of a Hindutva shift in Indian politics, under the aegis of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) and its political outfit, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). While the media and cultural commentators struggled to consider Sagar’s epic one way or the other, there were some who saw it as a catalyst, even if unintended, to the turmoil that the movement resulted in. Chief among them was Arvind Rajagopal, whose book Politics after Television (Cambridge Press, 2001) took the view that not only did Sagar’s show violate a secular principle adjoined to the concept of a national broadcaster i.e. Doordarshan – that Doordarshan should not be in favour of any one particular religion – but that it may even have been the fillip that turned the electoral fortunes of the BJP. “LK Advani’s Ratha

Above, Rithambara was the founding chairperson of the Durga Vahini, the combative women’s wing of the VHP. She had also been part of the anti-Christian campaigns in the middle and late 1990s, besides very infamously in 2022, calling upon Hindus to give birth to four children and dedicate two of them to the cause of Hindu Rashtra.Blurring Lines of Ideology and StateIn recent years, under PM Modi’s leadership, the lines between (Hindu) religion and the State have been blurred considerably. As the PM, Modi sat in religious rituals on several occasions as the yajman (person performing the rituals or the yagya). Most importantly, he performed such rituals in August 2020 and January 2024 in Ayodhya and in the Parliament Complex in December 2020 and May 2023 for the new Parliament building.These acts however ‘objectionable’, it may appear to large sections of the Indian populace, would still pass muster for essentially being political acts of a PM who misses no opportunity to further his grip on political power.However, bestowing State awards to those who played pivotal roles in the agitation that led to some of the most horrifying communal conflicts, takes matters to another level.It becomes worse that these awards are declared along with those for several luminaries from various professional fields and cannot be contested because they are well-deserved.It cannot be forgotten that the Ram Mandir agitation acquired momentum due to the call to Hindus to unite against religious minorities, especially Muslims, and Rithambara played a significant part in this. (Nilanjan Mukhopadhyay is an author and journalist based in Delhi-NCR. He has authored several books including 'The Demolition, The Verdict and The Temple: The Definitive Book on the Ram Mandir Project', and 'Narendra Modi: The Man, The Times'. His X handle is @NilanjanUdwin. This is an opinion piece and the views expressed are the author’s own. The Quint neither endorses nor is responsible for them.)(At The Quint, we question everything. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member today.)Read Latest News and Breaking News at The Quint, browse for more from opinion Topics: BJP Padma Awards Hindutva