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Re: ARTICLE : Just say no ...
In article <ghenDx7vqv.5pM@netcom.com>,
H. Krishna Susarla <susarla.krishna@tumora.swmed.edu> wrote:
[...]
>can be seen at "Hindu" temples? What about those who claim to follow the
>Vedas, but eat meat, drink alcohol, or smoke cigarettes?
Well, I have a funny story about this one. Some time ago, I was being
"interviewed" to determine whether or not I was "suitable" to start a
Rice University chapter of a nationwide Hindu organization. This group
had been listing Rice as one of the places it had a chapter, but I
hadn't seen one in the ten years I've had some contact here.
Anyway, one of the questions to test my fitness was whether I'd allow
meat or alcohol at events sponsored under the banner of this group. I
was told in incredulous tones how an Indian group at some other
university had a barbecue to celebrate Diwali. The interviewers should
have had some minor inkling of my personal habits, but they just
wanted to make sure. Anyway, I told them that I wouldn't have meat or
alcohol at events I organized.
Finally, I was asked whether I would insult a certain "revered
authority" in their dogma. Apparently, you can't be a Hindu in their
group unless you pay homage to this guy (note to Jaldhar - you're
disqualified ;-). So, I said that I wouldn't promote the guy
personally, but I wouldn't bar anyone else from giving whatever talks
they wanted as long as they left open a questioning period at the end.
The really funny part about this whole incident is that the authority
in question used to like a little bit of the dead animal flesh now and
then, and he didn't mind a puff on a fat stogie, either. However, now
that people are attempting to promote him to being the founder of
modern Hinduism, these aspects of his persona are being whitewashed
(or should that be brownwashed?) away.
So, I imagine that over time, the "new improved version" of this
person's autobiography will take over, and anyone who questions the
odd restrictions will be called a bad Hindu.
>What about those
>who claim to follow the Veda but try to create a syncretic faith between
>its philosophy and that of say, Islam or Christianity?
A friend of mine showed me a gift she had received from a friend of
hers. It was a silver cross with an Om superimposed on top of it. The
giver of the gift had talked about the Holy Trinity in Christianity
and the counterpart Holy Trinity in Hinduism. So, I asked my friend if
she could ask her friend where such a Holy Trinity in Hinduism was
documented in any standard literature. I suspect that this idea also
resulted from colonialism.
>If everyone were to simply be more specific about their belief systems,
>then the "non-Hindus" would benefit greatly from the education. As it is,
>for them to think of Hinduism as a single religion is a misconception.
About two years ago, there was a CBCD (Canadian) girl who was dating a
Caucasian guy and they were creating a big furor on one of the culture
groups. They had both just discovered the subcontinent and the various
belief systems from it. She, incidentally, was born to Sikh parents,
but in a mere semester had become an authority on Hinduism and
Sikhism, as had her boyfriend. One of the best moments of their
outpourings was when the boyfriend declared that Hinduism was
polytheist and that only a dumb-bodypart would say otherwise.
-Vivek
