Barackface: Hinduism

Showing posts with label Hinduism. Show all posts

Friday, April 05, 2024

Wednesday, April 17, 2019

The Major Religions

Sunday, February 28, 2016

Kathmandu And Jerusalem

Jerusalem is where three major world religions meet: Judaism, Islam, Christianity. A lot of people don’t see it that way, but Kathmandu is its own kind of Jerusalem. Two major world religions meet in Kathmandu. Buddhism and Hinduism. Jerusalem is also easier to understand because people not getting along is as obvious as can be. In Kathmandu outwardly Hinduism and Buddhism co-exist like no two religions anywhere on the planet. But do they really? Buddhism is an egalitarian religion. All human beings are not only equal, there is no other way possible. Hinduism and its caste system are not one and the same, but by now who can tell the difference? They co-exist like meat and bone. The caste hierarchy is like a body organ to a Bramhin. Preaching egalitarian thoughts is quite literally blasphemy. What makes things more complicated is the agitating Madhesis did not become Buddhist just like Jews did not become Christian, although Buddha was born one of their own. The agitating Madhesis are caste people and the top leaders of the movement don’t get along because they are from different caste backgrounds. Otherwise the political agenda is the same, and there are not really any major personality clashes. So the Brahmins in Kathmandu say, if I don’t have to even explain this to you, since you are big on caste yourself, how hard is it for you to understand that I have decided upon a second class citizenship for you? How is that any different from the caste system both you and I agree with anyways? Not only two major world religions meet in Kathmandu, two other are right at the heels. Islam is not small in the Madhesh, and Christianity is the fastest growing religion in Nepal, giving the Brahmins nightmares, like Islam is the fastest growing religion in America, and for the same reason. The oppressed are walking out in both places.

Kathmandu is home to two major world religions who are at peace but can not really be because the two social structures are like metal and glass. And Kathmandu, or rather Nepal, is a confluence of five major world civilizations. That there is no civil war is a miracle. The religions might take some of the credit. Because it’s not literacy, it’s not the per capita income, it’s not roads, it’s not bridges.

Maybe there will be peace in Kathmandu, and the same peace template can then be taken over to Jerusalem. Via Kashmir.

For now the question circulating around in Kathmandu is, if the Madhesis don’t have problems with the caste system, why do they have problems with being second class citizens?

India and China have both avoided micro interferences in Nepal not because they fear Nepal -- it is a small country -- but because they fear Jerusalem. Every major power in modern history has thrown the kitchen sink at Jerusalem, and it has stayed intractable. Both India and China stay informed, but the level of micro management that Delhi gets accused of in Kathmandu, if there is truth to it, Delhi has the most efficient bureaucracy on the planet.

The Muslims Did Not Invade India

The Muslims Did Not Invade India

The Hindus, or some of them, broke the Hindu society through a forceful imposition of the caste system. They did such a thorough job for a few hundred years, that they were basically begging to be invaded. There was nothing to invade. You just had to walk in. The Hindu society was so broken up.

The caste system is still intact today. The Hindus could still get invaded by the Americans and the Chinese. Only the creation of a casteless Hinduism will give India the backbone to stand firm. The creation of a casteless Hinduism should be the top project of the RSS. Hire a hundred poets to come up with Bachchan like last names. And “convert.” Get people to adopt these new last names.

Otherwise FlipKart is already owned 80% by non Indian investors. That is the new East India Company knocking at the door. It is already inside the house. The Americans and the Chinese are just waiting to swoop in through the digital doors. You could keep your borders and your army and still get hollowed out. So dangerous is the Hindu caste system. Buddhism is egalitarian. Mass conversion to Buddhism might be another option.

Wednesday, December 23, 2015

Ramayana: Rewriting History

English: Deities of Sri Sri Sita-Rama, Lakshmana, Hanuman at Bhaktivedanta Manor temple, in Watford, England. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Valmiki was a Sanatani. He made Ram look bad. Ram's story is unique. नहीं तो जीजस को देखो अकेले पोल पर लटका हुवा है। ईसाइ धर्म में या यहुदी में है की ईश्वर ने पुरुष बनाया और पुरुष ने अपने हड्डी से औरत। तो वहां तो महिला को बराबरी मिलने से रहा। विश्व के प्रमुख धर्मो में सिर्फ राम सीता की कहानी है जहाँ महिला पुरुष बराबर हैं। बल्कि सीता एक स्तर ऊपर। राम दशरथ का पुत्र सीता धरती की पुत्री। राम ने धनुष नहीं उठाया। सीता ने शिव से अनुनय किया कि मैं चाहती हुँ यही धनुष उठाए। राम सीता पर आधारित धर्म में महिला को बराबरी मिलेगी, मिलनी चाहिए। यानि की रामभक्त को दलित बनाना सिर्फ हरिजन नहीं महिला पर भी वार है। सनातनी महिला को जगह नहीं देते। बिलकुल नहीं।

तुलसीदास रामभक्त था। हरिजन। दलित। रामभक्त ने राम को हीरो के रूप में प्रस्तुत किया। वाल्मिकी के संतति आज के नेपाल के विलन हैं। कुछ ही रोज पहले जानकी मंदिर के भितर बुट पहन के घुस गए। एक हिन्दु वो काम कर ही नहीं सकता।

रामभक्त को दलित बना दिया। तो फिर राम मंदिर किसने तोडा? सोंचने वाली बात है।

राम तो बाद में आए। वानर सेना बाद में आई। सीता ने लंका में अपनी रक्षा खुद की। रावण शायद सनातनी शैतान था। कहा भी गया है, he was the most learned man alive. यानि की उस युगका टॉप सनातनी। शैतान। वेद पुराण का ज्ञाता। That makes the Ramayana a feminist story. कि उससे पहले औरत को प्रॉपर्टी की तरह उठा लिया जाता था।

मंदिर तोडा सनातनी ने दोष दे रहे हैं मुसलमान को। सनातनी के बाद कृष्ण के बाद राम के बाद बुद्ध के बाद जीजस मुहम्मद। सनातनी को कृष्ण से वैर, राम से वैर, बुद्ध से वैर, जीजस से वैर तो फिर मुसलमान से क्यों नहीं होगा वैर? ये डिवाइड and रूल है। यादव और मुसलमान इतने आसानी से मिल जाते हैं। राम मंदिर का तथ्य सामने आया तो यादव, हरिजन और मुसलमान एक जगह आ जायेंगे। सनातनी ये नहीं चाहता।

रावण भी सनातनी, वाल्मीकि भी। अंग्रेज थोड़े कहते हैं हमने कोलोनाइज़ किया। वो कहते हैं हम ने तुम पर उपकार किया। कलम कौन चला रहा है उससे बहुत फर्क पड़ता है।

Why did Tulsidas make changes while rewriting Valmiki's 'Ramayana' as 'Shri Ramcharitmanas'?

Technically speaking, the Ramcharitamanas, or the Kambaramayanam, are all just regional remakes of the original, Valmiki's Ramayana. These might have minor tweaks here and there, but the crux is the same, the story is the same. ..... this is the reason stories like Ramayana when written in various regional languages by Tulsidas, Kamban, Krittivasan, are adapted so as to appeal to the people from the respective regions .... For instance,

in the Ramcharitamanas, there is no mention of Lava Kusa in the Uttara Kanda. When Rama asks Sita to go to the forest, to put to an end the gossip of his subjects, Tulasidas who views Sita as more than a mother and is unable to put her through the tortures of the forest in his version, so he makes Sita call for her Mother, the Earth right away, and Rama, unable to live away from Sita, leaves his mortal body right there.
........ a major deviation from the Valmiki's Ramayana ...... there is this beautiful romanticizing of the Rama-Sita swayamvara in the Kamba Ramayana, where Kamban famously says "Annan-um nokkinaar, aval-um nokkinaal." (Older brother proceeded, she followed suit! (with legs, eyes, multiple meanings) It's a beautiful one-line love-story of Rama-Sita (Kamban always referred to Rama as an older brother in his version), before the actual swayamvara, wherein it talks about how Sita following her glimpse of Rama, prays to Shiva to get Rama to break the Shivdhanush. Small additions like this to the storyline, makes it more beautiful to read, and this is something that is definitely encouraged in literature.

Difference between original ramayan and the ramayan you know
Full text of "Difference between original ramayan and the ramayana you know"
What is difference between tulsidas and valmiki ramayana?
10 Differences Between Ramayana and Ramcharitmanas
Valmiki Ramayana vs. Tulsidas' Ramayana vs. Serials

यादव और कृष्ण, हरिजन और राम: हरे राम हरे कृष्ण

जब हरे राम हरे कृष्ण वाले किसी गोरा को कन्वर्ट करते हैं तो नहीं कहते अब तुम ब्राह्मण हुवे, या वैश्य। कास्ट की बात ही नहीं होती। हिन्दु भी नहीं कहते। Krishna Consciousness.

यादव कृष्ण के संतति। हरिजन राम के भक्त। यादव का कोइ कास्ट नहीं। हरिजन का भी कोइ कास्ट नहीं। उन पर उपर से थोपा गया है। जिस तरह भारत पर विक्टोरिया ने थोप दिया। सनातनी ने हरिजन को दलित बना दिया। Colonized, Oppressed.

तो इस Oppression को ख़त्म करना होगा।

हरे राम हरे कृष्ण एक राजनीतिक कोएलिशन का भी नाम हो सकता है। लेकिन उसके बाद काम ठोस होना चाहिए। सिर्फ दलित नेता या पार्टी को वोट दे के ये Oppression खत्म नहीं होगा। उसके लिए lawmaking, law enforcement, और पाँच स पर जाना होगा। कोइ किसी को मंदिर जाने से रोकता है तो वो जुर्म नहीं है तो जुर्म बनाओ।

सनातनी अपना standalone identity बनाओ और रहो। ब्रिटेन भी एक टापु है।

कास्ट सिस्टम से बड़ा डिवाइड एंड रुल का हथियार विश्व इतिहास में दुसरा कोई बनाया ही नहीं गया। सनातनी सुरज अंग्रेज दीपक।

शायद दलित को ये कहना होगा हम हिन्दु नहीं हरिजन हैं। हमारा अलग धर्म है। हम रामभक्त हैं।

Monday, December 14, 2015

Yadavs Have No Caste

Yadavs have no caste. Yadavs are not Brahmin. Yadavs are not Chhatriya. Yadavs are not Vaishya. Yadavs are not Sudras. And they are large in number. They dominate the Hindi belt in India.

The question, is the Hindu religion possible without the caste system, it is not even a question. Of course it is possible.

It is not a coincidence that the only form of Hinduism that is out there in any missionary position is the one that flows straight out of Krishna, who is considered the Founding Father of the Yadavs. The Hare Rama Hare Krishna people are out there preaching. When you join, you simply become a Hindu, you have no caste. You read out of the Geeta, the crown jewel of the Hindu worldview.

But just like the Brahmins annihilated Buddhists from the subcontinent, they also tried to annihilate the Yadavs. They did manage to in Gujrat, where Krishna was from, where Gandhi was from, where Modi is from. Both Gandhi and Modi are caste Hindus.

Caste Hindus think of religion as geography. They don't feel, there are a billion Chinese, if I can get half of them that will be 500 million more Hindus. They don't care which way the Chinese go. They feel everyone on the subcontinent was once a Hindu, and so any deviation that happened anywhere along the way needs to be corrected. Which makes for amazingly intolerant, obnoxious behavior, like asking Muslims to "come back."

Bramhins are weird. They are supposed to be these learned people, people of the book, but they also have been the most mercilessly bloodthirsty. They have killed like it was nobody's business.

Yadavs also seem to be able to form political alliances with Muslims rather easily. Neither the Muslims nor the Yadavs are part of the caste framework. They have nothing to break out of first.

But I don't see any Yadav in Bollywood. Maybe the good looks stopped after Krishna, who was supposed to have had a thousand girlfriends. Laloo ne sab jagah aarakshan lagoo karvaya, Bollywood shayad bhool gaye.

Bringing Closure To Tibet The Dalai Lama Way

Bringing Closure To Tibet The Dalai Lama Way

It is mind over matter. Chinese communists are matter people. They build roads and bridges. They are so good, there is no more road or bridge to build in China, that is why they are going to Pakistan. The hammer needs a nail. Or it will rust. It is not exactly goodwill.

The Dalai Lama is a mind person. Buddhism is not religion, it is science. It is a science that passes for religion. It is a science that does not mind being called religion.

The brain is body. The brain is matter. The mind is mind.

Buddhism is a science of the mind. There are plenty of sciences that deal with the brain and even mind. But Buddhism is the only that deals exclusively with the mind. It does not deal with food, for example. You want food? Go beg, Buddhism says. The Chinese say (or said) grab the landlord's land, by any means necessary.

Military conquests can not bother the mind. It can damage or even destroy the brain. But the mind is mind. After all, the Buddha himself created the world’s first republic by sheer mind power. He was so effective at evaporating the caste hierarchies of the Hindu cobweb, you see Buddhists in Tibet, in China, in Thailand, even Sri Lanka, but not in India, not in Bihar, not in Gujrat where he died (left the body), not in his hometown where he was born. The Bramhins had to physically eliminate. Totally annihilate. They had to destroy the body and the brain because they were so utterly incapable of confronting the mind. The Chinese have not come even remotely close. The Chinese can only dream about what the Bramhins did. And they did it with primitive tools where you had to see blood before your eyes while you took the life. Tibetans have not diminished in number. The religion is more or less intact. And they don’t much care about taxation, and the railway.

Mind over matter.

The Dalai Lama has the solution to China’s Tibet problem. He is the only one who has. And the Chinese should take it while he is still alive, or they might not have a solution for 200 years. The solution is for the Dalai Lama to visit Tibet and China. The Chinese government may take care of the logistics. The Dalai Lama does not mind. What train he rides in, what lodge he spends the night in. All that is matter. He does not mind. The solution is for the Chinese to welcome the Dalai Lama into the country and take him everywhere he wants to go. The trip could last a year. It might last for the rest of his life. Let him be. He is not asking for Tibet to be a separate country. There is no “splittism,” the most awkward word the Chinese have managed to put into the Oxford dictionary. There’s the selfie and then there is splittism. Both are highly awkward. Blame the Americans for one, blame the Chinese for another.

Only a Dalai Lama visit can normalize Tibet’s southern border and Tibet can go back to the way it was for thousands of years. Tibet is a natural part of South Asia, more so than Afghanistan. There is no India China border dispute. There is only a Chinese reluctance to let the Dalai Lama bring a closure to the whole issue.

Mind over matter. The Chinese should let the Dalai Lama visit before it is too late.

I am a Buddhist. I have been for almost 20 years now.

That is why what is going on in Nepal is of world war proportions. The Bramhins will be defeated in Kathmandu before they will be defeated in Delhi. Buddhists are not looking to conquer, not with the sword. Buddhists are looking to simply exist. You may not annihilate the body. You may not annihilate the brain. And you may not have hierarchies. But for that one person one vote is good enough. People have to make their own choices.

Mind over matter. The Dalai Lama has a bad knee. Maybe the Chinese would like to help. He wants to visit.

If Buddhism is science, my law of political entropy is Buddhist engineering. It is applied science. It is rocket science.

There is also the no small matter of anointing the next Dalai Lama, when the time comes.

Saturday, March 14, 2015

भारतका विश्व शक्ति बनना और बॉलीवुड

अमिताभ हिन्दु, शाहरुख़ मुसलमान। दोनों के बीच जो व्यक्तिगत सम्बन्ध हैं ----- अगर वही सम्बन्ध भारत के सभी हिन्दुवों और मुसलमानो के बीच हो जाए तो भारत विश्व शक्ति बन जाए। The only way India can beat America is if it can celebrate diversity better than America. That's it. It is all about soft power. उनके पिक्चर (sorry, mixture) देखते हो, नक़ल भी कर लो। हेयर स्टाइल नक़ल करो। व्यवहार नक़ल करो। शाहरुख़ के साथ जो व्यक्तिगत सम्बन्ध है, उसे नकल करो। एक मुसलमान तुम भी ढूँढ लो दोस्ती करने के लिए। ये सन्देश मैं मुख्य रूपसे RSS टाइप बालों को दे रहा हुँ। वो कहते हैं सयकरों साल बाद हिंदुवो की गुलामी ख़त्म हुवी। हिंदुवो को विश्व शक्ति बनंना है अब। मैं कहता हुँ गुलामी ख़त्म कब हुवी? हिन्दु अब भी गुलाम ही है, खुदका गुलाम है। गुलामी शुरू कैसे हुवा?

हिन्दु धर्म १०,००० साल पुराना है। लेकिन caste system सिर्फ १,००० साल पुराना है। पहले caste system के मार्फ़त हिन्दुओ ने अपने समाजको चकनाचूर किया, उसके बाद वे गुलाम हुवे। आतंरिक एकता बनी रहती तो गुलाम ना होते कभी। तो वो caste system तो अभी भी बरकरार है। हिन्दु तो अभी भी गुलाम ही है। आजाद कब हुवा? वहाँ भी अमिताभ के पास एक मेसेज है --- मेसेज है उनका last name ----- Bachchan is a casteless last name. सौ दो सौ कवियों को इकठ्ठा करो और बच्चन जैसे सौ दो सौ हजार दो हजार last names का निर्माण करो और प्रधान मंत्री जन धन योजना की तरह लोगो का last name बदलने का अभियान चलाओ। एक casteless Hinduism का निर्माण करो। जैसे कि पहले था। The original Hinduism was casteless and stayed that way for 9,000 years. Got to reclaim that. जब तक caste system बरकरार है तब तक हिन्दु गुलाम है। जब तक भारतके अधिकांश हिन्दुओं और मुसलमानों का सम्बन्ध अमिताभ-शाहरुख़ के जैसा नहीं हो जाता तब तक भारत विश्व शक्ति नहीं बन सकता।

मैं इंडियन हुँ। बिहार में पैदा हुवा। नेपालमें बड़ा हुआ। I identify with the blacks in America because I grew up Indian in Nepal. हम लोगों को नेपाल के अंदर मधेसी कहते हैं। भारत विश्व शक्ति नहीं बन सकता अगर नेपाल में मधेसी को राजनीतिक समानता नहीं मिल जाती। अभी तक मिली नहीं है। श्री लंका में तामिल को दिक्कत, नेपाल में मधेसी को दिक्कत। भारत का अपमान। भारतके विश्व शक्ति बनने का पहला कदम है नेपाल के अंदर मधेसी को राजनीतिक समानता। राजनीतिक समानता के लिए मधेसी के संघर्षको भारतको अपना संघर्ष मानना चाहिए। देखा अनदेखा मत करो। Justice के संघर्ष में विश्व शक्ति बनने का ख्वाब देखने वाला देश neutral नहीं रह सकता।

संसारके प्रत्येक देशमें भारतीय रहते हैं। अमेरिका के प्रत्येक शहर में भारतीय रहते हैं। विश्व भर में एक जो Global Indian Community है उस community के लिए अमिताभ royalty के माफिक हैं। ब्रिटिश लोगो के पास Queen Elizabeth II है, हम लोगों के पास अमिताभ। मेरे को पुछो तो ब्रिटिश के पास जो है उससे कहीं बेहतर royalty हमारे पास है। अमिताभ के साथ Global Indian Community का एक active सम्बन्ध है, बहुतों का एक lifelong सम्बन्ध है ----- I know that is true for me. I grew up watching Amitabh Bachchan. I used to copy his hairstyle. Then my hair went bad on me.

भारतका विश्व शक्ति बनना और बॉलीवुड ------ बॉलीवुड सिर्फ entertainment नहीं है। It is currently India's biggest export. एक और export item हो सकता है: democracy ------- मोदी के ब्रांड वाला development वाला ---- या AAP वाला ---- या फिर दोनों। अरब देशो में, चीन में, अफ्रिका में democracy spread करने के मामले में भारत का निर्णायक रोल हो सकता है। अमरिका से भी बड़ा। जितने अमरिका में लोग हैं उतने तो मुसलमान ही होंगे भारत में। India sits next to China, America does not. India sits next to Pakistan, America does not.

Bollywood, democracy, development ------ all are export items. Even Hinduism. The RSS folks should go on missions all over the world and spread the good word on Hinduism and convert the willing.

Monday, January 19, 2015

The Psychological Underpinnings Of The Caste System

Caste AS (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Hinduism is 10,000 years old. But the caste system is only 1,000 years old. Why did Hinduism after existing for 9,000 years suddenly feel the need for a caste system?

When Modi became Prime Minister he said India after a gap of 1,000 years had thrown the yoke and is now ruling itself. Well, I guess that is plus minus 50 years. Because India became independent over half a century ago. But what is plus minus 50 years when you are talking in terms of thousands of years.

When a Hindu India got invaded by Muslim rulers the religion developed this strangest thing called the caste system. Hindus broke themselves up into all sorts of castes and sub-castes. The unity was broken. I call it self hate. The colonization was internalized. And the caste system was born.

That is to say now creating a casteless Hinduism is essential to Hindu freedom. Hindus are not free unless the caste system is completely dismantled. This requires coming up with casteless last names. This requires Hindus marrying Hindus regardless of caste background. I think the RSS people have work cutout for them.

Wednesday, December 24, 2014

Ghar Wapasi Nahin, Full Blown Conversion

Symbol of Hinduism, white and golden version. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

The Hindu fanatics in India who are disturbing Modi's development focus by the whole ghar wapasi thing --- they should muster their strengths and do the real thing. They should organize global campaigns, go to all continents, create a major online presence, and go everywhere on the planet to teach people who are eager and willing to learn more about Hinduism and possibly convert and become Hindu. The RSS should create a missionary wing, and do this. Go outside India, go outside South Asia.

Religious freedom is a fundamental human right, like free speech. Stop second guessing Hindus who converted to other religions. Try converting people from other religions into Hinduism. I feel like there are not enough Hindus on the planet. And it is a great religion. Spread the word out.

I have a question. What caste will you place those new converts into? Or will you create a new casteless kind of Hinduism? It is about time.

Barackface

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भारतका विश्व शक्ति बनना और बॉलीवुड

Monday, January 19, 2015

The Psychological Underpinnings Of The Caste System

Wednesday, December 24, 2014

Ghar Wapasi Nahin, Full Blown Conversion

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Wednesday, April 17, 2019

Sunday, February 28, 2016

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Monday, December 14, 2015

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