Tavleen Singh wrote a great piece�in Indian Express a few days back titled, “A dark, distorted Hinduism“.
In that�article, Tavleen talked about how “in these jehadi times, when Islamists run around the globe killing innocent people to prove that their Prophet and their book are the best, now and forever, the Hindu idea becomes even more relevant. What grander idea of faith can there be than that everyone is entitled to their own truth?“.
I was reminded of� �The Dangers of Monotheism in the Age of Globalization�, in which Jean-Pierre Lehmann suggests …

For the last several weeks, I have been deeply distressed by several comments, reports and other articles re. the question of caste and how it is destroying the very fabric of our society and ruining any chances of a united Hindu society.
See for example, the string of comments in response to my two posts Utterly shameful and inexcusable and Periyar was against Brahminism, not Brahmins.
In response to one of the comments to the fore-mentioned posts, Selvan suggested I have a look at this site: “NavyaShastra“.
NavyaShastra‘s aims are noble and its …

*****CAUTION: Long Post*****
By now, most of you must have heard or read about the controversy caused by Smt Pratibha Patil’s recent remarks on the purdah system.
To recap briefly, Smt Patil, the Congress nominee for the post of President, while speaking at a function to commemorate the 467th birth anniversary of Maharana Pratap in Udaipur said, “We have been practising purdah in Rajasthan, which was brought about since we had to fight the Mughals”We had to protect our women and children and that is why the women were kept behind closed …

I had not visited Sandeep’s blog before although I had seen it linked on several blogrolls. Today, I finally chanced upon his blog (following a link from another one) and came away impressed with the clarity and lucidity of his writings.
I am mentioning just two of his posts�- which will give you some idea of his style and context of writings. He�makes some great points re. M F Husain, Hindu “Fascism” and other things here:
Short of Hindu Fascism� and �the Fascism Debate Continues Here�
I am also adding him to my …

In a short piece in Outlook, Mark Tully reviews his book, “India’s Unending Journey” and talks about how:
“India traditionally does not write full stops because it understands the uncertainty of certainty, it prefers the middle road, and believes in the perpetual search for balance….The West, on the other hand, tends to see things in black and white, to look for certainties, and so to lurch from one extreme to another…
The most obvious evidence for this contrast lies in the different attitudes to religion. R.C. Zaehner, who held the chair at …

I read this headline earlier this morning and thought it was a joke… Govt mulls ban on Orkut�
But apparently not… “The (Shiv) Sainiks vandalised a cyber cafe in Thane, Mumbai and demanded a ban on Orkut because of the remarks posted on one of its forums”
“Orkut is used by many destructive elements to spread canards about India, Hindus, our gods and cultural heritage,” said Abhijit Phanse, president of Bharatiya Vidyarthi Sena.�
Now I am not very familiar with Orkut but the argument seems to be a bit like: Lets ban the …

Some of you may have already come across the controversy surrounding a decision by the Welsh assembly government in UK to slaughter a “sacred bull” which has tested positive for tuberculosis. (read here and here).
The bull, Shambo, lives in a shrine that belongs to the Skanda Vale Temple in Llanpumsaint, Carmarthenshire. The fight has been joined by the Hindu Forum of Great Britain as well.
Amitabh Soni recently wrote a very good article titled “Shambo : A symbol of Divinity and Development” on this issue from which I am reproducing some …

I wrote a follow-up comment on Jo’s blog following my earlier comment� which I feel is worth reproducing in full here:
Jo,
First a clarification (which I think is very important):
I am all for freedom of expression and as I have maintained several times in the past, I label myself as a liberal who is prepared to fight for the ideals of freedom, tolerance and respect for others
To make it absolutely clear: Although I do feel offended by certain paintings of Husain 1] this is a free country and Shri Husain is …

Some of you may have heard of the UK-based organisation called AWAAZ.
Its front page says that: “AWAAZ – SOUTH ASIA WATCH is a UK-based secular network of individuals and organisations committed to monitoring and combating religious hatred in South Asia and in the UK.”
and the FAQ section http://www.awaazsaw.org/awaaz_faq.htm� mentions (emphasis�mine):
WHAT IS AWAAZ � SOUTH ASIA WATCH?
Awaaz � South Asia Watch is a UK-based network of South Asian organizations and individuals. It was established in 2002 following the carnage in Gujarat. Awaaz members have signed up to a common platform of …

If you missed this article in yesterday’s rediff, I think it is worth a read: “‘Periyar was against Brahminism, not Brahmins’”
It makes the important and useful distinction and opens the way for reconciliation between the hatred that some followers of Periyar appear to have towards traditional Hindu culture…see for example: “Was this a cover-up or blind omission?”
I would like readers’ comments on this – particularly from those who are from the south of India or have some experience, understanding and familiarity with anti-Brahminism movement.

Image Courtesy: Bala Subs

Some excerpts from the …