Have We Internalised Contempt?

Instilling a Respectful Attitude Towards Hindus & Hindu Rituals

For introspective parents, there is learning in everything that goes on in the world.

The insensitive comments by the Chief Justice of India are on the minds of people today. 

While ruling on a petition to restore the head of a desecrated Vishnu murti in a Khajuraho temple, the CJI didn’t stop at the ruling, but took a needless dig at the Hindu petitioner and the deity itself.

While it is no doubt shocking and a new low from people in positions of power, contempt for Hinduism and Hindu rituals is seen everywhere in India. An attitude of scorn is typical among English-educated Hindus who have been raised on English-language books, newspapers, and foreign opinions. Many Hindus don’t realise that they are ridiculing only Hindu rituals, while giving every other religion a free pass.

The incident below is often quoted as an example of mindless superstition among Hindus:

In a well-known story from his travels to Haridwar, Guru Nanak saw people throwing water toward the rising sun to offer it to their ancestors. He then began throwing water in the opposite direction, toward the west. When questioned, Guru Nanak explained that his fields in Punjab were withering, and if people questioned how his water could reach his fields so far away, he asked how they believed their water could reach their ancestors, who were much further away in the other world. This encounter highlighted his critique of meaningless rituals, emphasizing that true spiritual devotion lies in serving the living God through actions of love and community, not in hollow ceremonies.

Many generations of Hindus have been raised on stories that open Hinduism alone to charges of blind belief. At the same time, the superstitious elements existing in other religions have been left unmentioned.

The proliferation of stories like these in our general conversation, in textbooks, in magazines, newspapers, and movies, has led to a situation where Hindus have internalised contempt. The problem is not with the stories themselves, but the lack of availability of perspectives, leading to healthy discussions.

The humility of a religion, culture, and people, their openness to change, growth, questioning, and their ability to laugh at themselves, has been weaponised to ridicule Hindus and Hinduism in its entirety. 

We question everything Hindu, as we have been doing for centuries. We question things because our beautiful, open religion allows us the freedom to do so. But we have forgotten that the world has changed.

Unlike centuries back, today we have ideologies that would like to see Hinduism destroyed. These ideologies have powerful tools at their disposal - the dissemination of one-sided information through mass media. It comes at a time when, thanks to secular education, we Hindus know very little about ourselves and our rituals. 

We also need to realise that people compare the worst excesses in Hinduism with the best that other religions have to offer. It is not a fair or accurate comparison. We have allowed others to broadcast our weaknesses en masse to shame us, while hiding from us their problem areas. We need to keep our eyes on the incomparable majesty of Hindu thought and philosophy, and not allow ourselves to be shamed all the time. 

A population that has internalized contempt for itself will eventually produce people with the same attitude occupying positions of power and influence.

To get out of this vicious cycle, we need to start talking to the next generation of children. Start talking within families and in groups of friends. Start talking - to understand together who we are and who others are. Families and friends can start and anchor discussions around a new book, Svayambodha and Shatrubodha, by Pankaj Saxena, which provides a framework for the knowledge we need today.

We have been silent for too long. It’s time to shine the torch on those complex topics and let in air and sunlight through open discussion. We cannot let our silence become a noose around the neck of future generations of Hindus.

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