Tension in Assam after cow parts found near temples

[Bilal9]

About the 3rd point, so how is this proselytizing? Are they actually telling that everyone should convert to Hinduism or are they ever saying that theirs is the only true belief? At the worst this is a case of reactive anger against intolerant Abrahamic faiths that are evangelizing. Do they tell the Jains, Sikhs or Buddhists of India to come back to Hinduism? More importantly, do they tell "everyone" irrespective of where they are or what their heritage is, to come back to Hinduism? RSS is only asking, as you have mentioned yourself, the converted Hindus to come back to their original faith. I am pretty sure they wouldn't be calling, Sanatana Dharma is the only true faith. May be Eternal faith (well that is the literal translation). What the RSS works for is to maintain the demographic advantage the Hindus have. Not trying for world domination.

As for the other 2 points, haters are everywhere. We are talking about proselytizing alone, here. I will not count the first 2 as that.

Thanks for your reasoned response - unlike Mr. Jatt above. ^^

This is exactly the attitude I was talking about. Having an open mind vs. not having one. Boasting of an open mind is not a crime and I don't think it is un-Indian either.

When he calls women 'ugly' - that means he is a woman-hating and minority-hating Bhakt as well. Typical Sanghi misogynist attitude that endorses 'rape' etc. and blames women for it. These uneducated people are beyond help. Someday they will see the light. The Sardarjis I know don't give a hoot about Sanghis and are more or less Anti-RSS.

In any case I have to give you a broad answer.

Let's keep our discussion limited to Islam since that is my religion. In Bangladesh majority are very moderate Sufi Muslims since the conversions there (by and large not forced) were by Sufi saints. I am not 'religious' by any measure and I don't claim to know the nuances of true Sufism but as I see in Bangladeshi Muslim Society - religious belief is akin to having a personal relationship with one's God for spiritual salvation, not through mosques or through organized means by forming 'vigilante groups' that endorse 'lower class' status for followers of other religions.

This is in stark contrast to what we see in India today - the lunatics are essentially running the asylum.

To be honest - at this time under Sheikh Hasina Govt. religion (Islam) is not a matter of public discourse. The last thing Islamic leaders are trying to do locally is 'spread religion'. The invitation to religion is only by setting good examples and good deeds. In fact forcing people to go to the mosque and such would backfire and Bangladeshis are sort of anti-religious in nature anyway....except for observing their faith quietly at home. Their 'Iman' and faith remain strong and immovable however.

Like in the rest of the subcontinent - lately we have seen some rise of religious extremism too (natural adjunct of failure in secular educational mechanisms across India where the economic underclass is getting educated in large numbers). But in Bangladesh we have very strong mechanisms to control religious extremism as well as keeping tabs on law and order unlike you. It is not as open season like it is in India. If you have extremist issues - you have to nip them in the bud. Being extremist is also against the educated Bangladeshi person's psyche. They are more or less reasonable people.

To answer your question - Sufis don't claim that theirs is the only true faith. I think you discount the role of conversions by good deeds in Bangladesh and the fact that in Islam everyone is equal. You cannot forcibly convert an entire population.

The majority of conversions happened in East Bengal because Hinduism by its caste system kept the majority population in a lower class status. There are quite a few people living here who the rest of North India denigrates by calling them Chandala or Sudra/Namsudra - but to us they are, in one word - Muslims. The RSS does not have an answer for this. Kindness, consideration and fellow-feeling are much stronger forces in people converting themselves than fear and hate-mongering. Something the Sanghis should do well to emulate.

To my knowledge - I don't know of very many Muslims 'evangelizing' in Bangladesh and trying to convert Hindus. There could be stray incidents here and there but this would be front-page news if it did happen. In fact I doubt if there could be such evangelizing by Muslims going on in India itself given the RSS being so 'vigilant'. Don't know about other religions like Christianity.

As far as the Ghar-Wapsi things RSS is proposing (I would call it proselytising) - who are the 'converted'?

How recently have they been 'converted'? 10 years? 20 years? 200 years? How far back do you go?

And why is keeping Hindus Hindu so important? If every religion in India is equal (supposedly ) then why does it matter if they become Christian and Muslim?

Religious discrimination (in fact any discrimination) is prohibited under UN charter. Religious violence and communalism even more so. India (no matter how large it is by population or how 'developed' it is) cannot make its own rules in the world community.

If India as a country does legitimize discrimination then Indians need to proclaim it publicly to the world so the world is put on notice. Then India can trade with itself like back in Nehruvian times.