Hindutva or Hindu Nationalism, is it a blessing or a threat for humanity?

[kalu_miah]

I have been harping about Hindutva and Hindu Nationalism for some time in this forum. Now in this thread we will take on the subject head on. Here we will study:

1. Hindu religion or collection of religions, as it is also known as Sanatana Dharma by the Hindu's
2. the evolution of this belief system from its origin to its current incarnations, specially the one started by Veer Savarkar in early 20th century
3. the fanatic extremists among the followers of this belief system
4. the geopolitical implications of this belief system among the majority population group in India and what it means for its neighbors in South Asia, in Asia and other parts of the world
5. the role of resurgence of Hinduism in the eventual decline of Buddhism in India and its implication for Hindu-Buddhist relations in current context
6. the role of Brahmins and other Varnas (colors/castes) in this belief system

Hopefully this topic is kosher in PDF. I would encourage members to refrain from trolling and quote material from authentic sources.

 

[Bharthi]

Troll Thread

 

[junk]

any religion or ideology which shies away from a honest debate is not a threat to themselves but to the whole world.

 

[ksgokul]

Kalu_Miah,
You haven't replied to my question on your thread kalu_miah's new world order.
Hindutva / Hindu Nationalism, is a topic concentrated on India and i don't believe anyone can come up with an argument of Hindu nationalism in other countries. Its existence among a considerable minority is due to the fact that during partition, muslims wanted a separate country. The overtures that come across the border on Hindu minorities and some extremist elements in Indian minorities provide water for the growth of it. Actually they feed upon each other. There is no reason for existence of one, unless the other exists.
But they are minority in India and India is a Secular country. Most of the Indians are secular people and they raise voice when there is a danger to the security of minorities. Gradually these elements will vanish. So in short Hindu nationalism in a Secular country is not good. I would say it is very under control in India and government doesn't support such activities.

 

[AUSTERLITZ]

They have little influence anyway,we are past these obsolete concepts of nationalism based on religion.

 

[notsuperstitious]

 

[kalu_miah]

I will start the discussion with:
5. the role of resurgence of Hinduism in the eventual decline of Buddhism in India and its implication for Hindu-Buddhist relations in current context

Decline of Buddhism in India - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Xuanzang's Report
Much of what we know about the state of Buddhism in the second half of the first millennium CE comes from the 7th century Chinese pilgrim Xuanzang, who traveled widely and documented his journey. Although he found many regions where Buddhism was still flourishing, he also found many where it had sharply and startlingly declined, giving way to Jainism and a Brahmanical order.[47]
Xuanzang compliments the patronage of Harshavardana. He reported that Buddhism was popular in Kanyakubja (modern day Uttar Pradesh), where he noted "an equal number of Buddhists and heretics" and the presence of 100 monasteries and 10,000 bhikshus along with 200 "Deva" (Hindu) temples.[48] He found a similarly flourishing population in Udra (modern Orissa). He found a mixed population in Kosala, homeland of Nagarjuna, and in Andhra, and Dravida which today roughly correspond to the modern day Indian states of Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu.[49] In a region he calls Konkanapura, which may be Kolhapur in southern Maharashtra, he found great numbers of Buddhists coexisting with a similar number of non-Buddhists, and a similar situation in Northern Maharashtra. In Sindh he finds a large Sammitiya and Theravada population. He reports a fair number of Buddhists in what is now Pakistan.
In Dhanyakataka (today's Vijayawada), he found a striking decline, with Jainism and Shaivism ascendant. In Bihar, site of a number of important landmarks, he also found a striking decline and relatively few followers, with Hinduism and Jainism predominating. He also found relatively few Buddhists in Bengal, Kamarupa (modern Assam). He reported no Buddhist presence in Konyodha, few in Chulya (in the Tamil region), and few in Gujarat and Rajasthan, except in Valabhi, where he found a large Theravada population.
During the reign of the Chalukya dynasty, Xuanzang reported that numerous Buddhist stupas in regions previously ruled by Buddhist-sympathetic Andhras and Pallavas were "ruined" and "deserted".These regions came under the control of the Vaishnavite Eastern Chalukyas, who were not favorable to Buddhism and did not support the religion.[50] Xuanzang's report also mentions that, in the 7th Century, Shashanka of the Kingdom of Gouda (Bengal), was expanding his influence in the region in the aftermath of the fall of the Gupta Empire. He is blamed by Xuanzhang and other Buddhist sources for the murder of Rajyavardhana, a Buddhist king of Thanesar. Xuanzang writes that Shashanka destroyed the Bodhi tree of enlightenment at Bodh Gaya and replaced Buddha statues with Shiva Lingams. However, it has been claimed that Xuanzhang had a Buddhist bias in favor of the buddhist rulers such as Harshavardhana and that his account may therefore be slanted.

19B.Revolution and Counter Rev.in Ancient India PART II

There is therefore nothing to vitiate the conclusion that the fall of Buddhism was due to the Buddhist becoming co(n)verts to Islam as a way of escaping the tyranny of Brahmanism. The evidence, if it does not support the conclusion, at least makes it probable. If it has been a disaster, it is a disaster for which Brahmanism must thank itself.[/B]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/B._R._Ambedkar

Conversion to Buddhism

Ambedkar believed that the Mahar people were an ancient Buddhist community of India who had been forced to live outside villages as outcasts because they refused to renounce their Buddhist practices. He considered this to be why they became untouchables and he wrote a book on this topic, entitled Who were the Shudras?.

Ambedkar studied Buddhism all his life, and around 1950s, Ambedkar turned his attention fully to Buddhism and travelled to Sri Lanka (then Ceylon) to attend a convention of Buddhist scholars and monks.[30] While dedicating a new Buddhist vihara near Pune, Ambedkar announced that he was writing a book on Buddhism, and that as soon as it was finished, he planned to make a formal conversion back to Buddhism.[31] Ambedkar twice visited Burma in 1954; the second time in order to attend the third conference of the World Fellowship of Buddhists in Rangoon. In 1955, he founded the Bharatiya Bauddha Mahasabha, or the Buddhist Society of India. He completed his final work, The Buddha and His Dhamma, in 1956. It was published posthumously.
After meetings with the Sri Lankan Buddhist monk Hammalawa Saddhatissa,[32] Ambedkar organised a formal public ceremony for himself and his supporters in Nagpur on 14 October 1956. Accepting the Three Refuges and Five Precepts from a Buddhist monk in the traditional manner, Ambedkar completed his own conversion, along with his wife Dr. Savita Ambedkar(née Sharada Kabir). He then proceeded to convert a large number (some 500,000) of his supporters who were gathered around him.[31] He prescribed the 22 Vows for these converts, after the Three Jewels and Five Precepts. He then traveled to Kathmandu in Nepal to attend the Fourth World Buddhist Conference.[citation needed] His work on The Buddha or Karl Marx and "Revolution and counter-revolution in ancient India" remained incomplete.[33]

 

[Rajputana]

Dude like seriously seriously?

You are quoting wikipedia articles in part, as well as Dalit extremist websites. It is well known that Dalit extremists have blamed brahmins specifically and attempted to portray them as Buddhist killers. While this may be true in Eastern parts of Ancient India which has been historically the seat of Sanatana dharma, you may want to look how western strands of buddhism disappeared.

 

[jbond197]

Mods, are religious topics not banned on PDF? Or are we allowed to open threads on Islam and its threats? Just a question..

I actually have tons of topics on the similar lines to be discussed.. Waiting for your go..

 

[Hyde]

Mods, are religious topics not banned on PDF? Or are we allowed to open threads on Islam and its threats? Just a question..

I actually have tons of topics on the similar lines to be discussed.. Waiting for your go..

If he was merely discussing the Hinduta Ideology in relevance to social affairs and it's impact/implications on South Asia that was perhaps not an issue but he is touching the core issue of Hinduism as a religion and that is against the forum rules