Abstract: This paper is a brief attempt to discuss the political, social and cultural milieu which facilitated synergy between different religious groups and beliefs in Medieval India. Even though the political history of Medieval India can be located to the Chalukyas, the Pandyas, the Pallavas and the Rashtrakutas my emphasis shall more or less revolve only around the Mughal Empire and particularly on Akbar. I also attempted discovering the various political and social ideologies which influenced the Mughal Empire in promoting syncretic trends. This paper also concerns about the social and cultural aspect which promoted syncretic trends, which is explained with the influence of Sufism, Bhakti movement, Vaishnavas, influence of literatures like Kabir, existence of shrines and religious conversions in Medieval India. 1.0 Introduction: Different religions have found origin and also long and continuing existence in India, contributing to its diversity and pluralism. The establishment of the Sultanate can even be called historically evaluated as the beginning of a new phase in the history of medieval India. It has facilitated a culture of syncretism, which must be explained in relation to various socio-cultural practices which existed during medieval India. If in medieval India, Tolerance and harmony was appreciated, co-existence and cooperation were celebrated with due regards. Anti-syncretic trends were also, present but it was largely neglected due to the peculiar political, social and cultural context. 2.0 Syncretism in Medieval India With the rise of secular national states, markedly with multi-ethnic background, the concept of ‘syncretism’ has acquired its own importance. Historical evidences points that medieval India enjoyed enough of synergy not discord between different religious groups and beliefs. The political context for initiating syncretism in medieval India has largely to do with the establishment of sultanate and the policies they followed. The establishment of Saltanat in north India was always conscious to come in terms with Indian situation, and thus did not forcefully and systematically impose Islam upon their subjects. Their concern and emphasis was on revenue rather than proselytizing the non-Muslim population. They never wanted to destabilize the cultural and social situation which will further destabilize their steady revenue. They even distanced from men of religion and also were promoting the peaceful coexistence of different religious groups and beliefs. According to Muzaffar Alam, tolerance[1] and the promotion of indigenous intermediaries[2] (Saberwal, 2008)was largely encouraged by Saltanat. The acceptance of syncretic trends is not unopposed, even though some of the rulers and orthodoxy has opposed such trends but a large majority of people has accepted it. Babar, the founder of the Mughal rule and his son Humayun had broad visions and inclinations to support Islam and Hinduism but owing to their short rule, not many positive steps could be taken (Burman , 2001). But Akbar could initiate much more. He even initiated an eclectic faith called 'Din-I-Illahi', abolished ‘Jizya’ or pilgrim tax for Hindus, abolished all restriction on the public worship of non-Muslims, appreciated the translation of epics like Mahabharata, Ramayana and Vedic literature into Persian. He even married Hindu princess and allowed his spouses to practice their religious rites (Ghodratollahi, 2007, p. 19). He also supported the congregations of scholars from diverse religious faiths organised in the Hall of Worship constructed by him in Fatehpur Sikri (Burman , 2001, p. 1227) where discussions would happen every Thursday (Ghodratollahi, 2007). For Akbar, monopoly of truth does not lie under any single religion. Such a thought was a result of the philosophical and religious discussion mostly held at the ‘Ibādat Khāna’ (Hall of Worship in Fatehpur Sikri). And it’s not just Muslim rulers who promoted syncretistic practices but also many non-Muslim rulers (in southern India). Sometimes they even gave lands for establishing mosques and also allowed Muslim saints to operate within their territories. For realising his doctrine of Solh-i-koll (tolerance) he was successful in initiating many socio cultural and political reforms as mentioned above. Apart from these, the political ideology of ‘akhlaq’ called for the welfare of all subjects, irrespective of their religion. This has intense effect for facilitating synergy between different religious groups and beliefs in Medieval India. Manuals outlining akhlaq ideology was extensively circulated within Mughal ruling class (Saberwal, 2008, p. 7). According to the doctrine of akhlaq, both the Muslims and non-Muslims enjoy divine compassion (rahmat-i-Haqq) in equal measure and justice is defined in the ideal state as social harmony and also the coordination and balance of the conflicting claims of diverse interest group that may comprise of various religions (Alam , 2004). The syncretic trends were better facilitated due to the activities and influence of Sufism, Bhakti movement and also the sects like the Ismaili’s. According to Rasheeduddin Khan, two fundamental traditions has profoundly influenced Indian; the Indo-Aryan cultural stream which provided Vedic philosophy, and the Indo-Muslim strand of culture based on the intertwining of 'bhakti marg' and Islamic Sufism the composite culture in India (Burman , 1996). This facilitated the seeds of reconciliation, co-existence and cooperation to be sown in Indian soil. But this is not to argue that, there were no absolute tensions between the two communities. The influence of Sufism in India can be better seen in the veneration of dargahs and mazars of the saints of various orders both by Hindus and Muslims. The popular dargahs like Muin-ud-din Chisti in Ajmer and Nizam-ud-din Auliya in Delhi underlines the same. Sufi’s were never following the orthodoxy of ‘shariat’ but were open to personal quest of spirituality. They were much flexible than Sunnis and Shias. Many Sufis showed adherence to the doctrine of ‘wahdat al wujud’, which emphasised and believed in the divine unity underlying all the diversity of religious practices and beliefs. This doctrine contributed to the process of blending of different cultures and also to the formation of religious synthesis. Sufi’s are well known for their willingness to reach out and relate to others (Saberwal, 2008, p. 9). There were many social practices, rituals and folk’s practices, whose exercise would be the violation of ‘shariat’, many Sufis were still practicing the same. The doctrinal elasticity within Sufism must be appreciated. The ‘wajudis’ for instance hold that, ‘God is reflected in everything including the non-Muslims, so Hindus should not be denounced as infidel’ (Dey, 2011). It is very much true that the spread of Islam in South Asia was better facilitated by Sufi’s. So, it is very much essential to recognize the role of Sufi’s in creating a context for cultural synthesis between different religions in medieval India. Saints of the Bhakti movements are also provided a compatible situation for syncretism to flourish. For many scholars, the bhakti movement in India has been to a large extent responsible for promoting eclectic faiths and lessening the religious orthodoxy. According to Lokhandwalla, "The Sufi and bhakti movements blurred the differences between the two religions so much that it was very common till very recently to have a sadguru or a pir having a common following of Hindus and Muslim (Burman , 1996). Many bhakti saints have attempted to harmonise and flourish the orthogenetic elements of both Hinduism and Islam. Their philosophy of life was better comprehendible by common people and was closer to the social ethics and customs of poor and artisans. The Vaishnavas, who also enjoyed enough followers in medieval India, were open to everyone regardless of caste or religious backgrounds. It should be noted that anti-syncretic trends were not completely absent in medieval India. Ulama and certain categories of Brahmins have identified their own distinct space, views and practices. Recurrent pattern of ‘religious and sexual transgressions’ were present which included the destruction of mosques and temples (Saberwal, 2008, p. 11). Syncretic trends were embedded in some of domains of creativity and literature during medieval era. The composers of ‘Marsiya’ (an Iranian Shia musical tradition) drew on the language of their locality, on its compositional traditions and on its physical and social features and Sufis and both Hindu and Muslim nobility has written extraordinary body of bilingual poetry there were (Saberwal, 2008). Literature infact was a powerful tool to embed the existing syncretic traditions. Poets like Kabir has even attempted to simplify the notion of god as mystic object and also regarded the spiritual foundations of both Islam and Hinduism as one and also found equal inspiration in both. There is little or no evidence to argue that; state sponsored proselytization was promoted in medieval India in extensive manner. Even the act of ‘conversions’ (to different religions) were largely not by the use of force. Infact it can be argued that, class oppressions and also Brahmanical oppression has contributed reasons for religious conversion. If Islam seems to have strengthened the de-ritualising and egalitarian trends in Hinduism then Hindu philosophy seems to have strengthened the mystical spiritual strain in Muslim religious though. J.J Burman argues that ‘It could not be an accident that during the long period of Muslim rule the Bhakti movement gathered consider-able following in Islam’ (Burman , 2001, p. 1227). Sketches of syncretism from the very beginning can be traced to the existing ‘shrines’ and customs which are dedicated objects of worship for persons of different religions. J.J Burman has traced many symbols and objects of syncretism in India. The tradition of a peculiar cultural-religious ritual of mock selling and buying of new born infants between the Hindus and Muslims is prevalent in Assam (Eastern part of India), the influence of the dargahs of Khwaja Muinuddin Hasan Chisti of Ajmer in Rajasthan In the western part of India, the shrine of Nizamuddin Auliya in Delhi in the north and Sabrimala in Kerala[3] illustrates such evidences. 3.0 Conclusion Sharif Husain Qasimi has argued that during the medieval period, Hindus and Muslim scholars in India made their best efforts to help each other to highlight the basic feature of wisdom and intellect of their homeland (Kidwai, 2014). Principles of toleration, harmony, cooperation, coexistence and justice can be traced to the political and social ideologies or doctrines like Solh-i-koll, rahmat-i-Haqq, 'Din-I-Illahi', akhlaq which has influenced Mughal rulers to considerable amount and also to the principles and acts followed by various rulers. For the blending of different cultures and beliefs in Medieval India as a reality, thanks to Bhakti movement and the internally flexible ‘Sufism’. Influence of Sufism in India is not just limited to the veneration of dargahs and mazars but also to the principles and ideological flexibility it provided. Literature and literatures of people like Kabir has also promoted towards syncretism .Decent nature of religious conversion and absence of force in it is to some extent a reality. This is not a reductionist reading of reality, but a relative reading of circumstances and evidences. Anti-syncretism and religious orthodoxy were also the part of social reality but the larger influence of socio-political and cultural circumstances has reduced it to optimum minimal. - Ashique Ali T Works Cited Alam , M., 2004. 'Sharia in Naserean Akhlaq'. In: The languages of Political Islam in India. Delhi: Permanent Black, pp. 46-69. Burman , J. J. R., 1996. Hindu-Muslim Syncretism in India. Economic and Political Weekly, 31(20), pp. 1211-1215. Burman , J. J. R., 2001. Shivaji's Myth and Maharashtra's Syncretic Traditions. Economic and Political Weekly, 36(14/15), pp. 1226-1234. Dey, A., 2011. Review: Sufism and Society in Medieval India, Raziuddin Aquil ed.. Social Scientist, 39(5/6), pp. 94-97. Ghodratollahi, E., 2007. AKbar, the doctrine of Solh-i-Koll and Hindu Muslim Relations. Journal of Religious Thought: A Quarterly Weekly Of Shiraz University, Issue 21, pp. 3-22. Kidwai, S., 2014. The syncretic link, s.l.: The Hindu. Saberwal, S., 2008. Medieval Legacy. In: In Spirals of Contention. New Delhi: Routledge, pp. 1-31. [1] Tolerance was practised for indigenous customary law and religious practices. [2] Saltanat encouraged Hindus to enter state service and also learn Persian. [3] It is customary for the devotees who visit the temple of Ayyappa to first pay their obeisance to the shrine of a Muslim saint named 'Vavara' or Vavarswamy, located at Erumeli.
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Once, I was discussing with people, the essence of education system. The kind of ideas popped up really bothered me. I was wondering if it is just about professor entering the room, taking attendance, opening notebook, and begining to read and something like photocopying the notes or is it like stuffing information into the child's head to be vomited during the examination to get more & more marks, ranks and seats in IITs and leading medical and business management schools & securing wealthy careers , something motivating us to compete & compare with others. This was not enough, when somebody at the back said, “It’s more about turning us in to delivery machines”. I felt like there is something deeply wrong, certainly with the whole education system. There is no point in 'reforming' ; it’s a question of 'revolutionizing'. I was amazed by how beautifully British government succeeded in their propaganda; they never wanted to create an intelligent 'people'. In fact, I think no government wants intelligent people. They want people to remain retarded; that way, it becomes easier to exploit, to rule, to avoid any revolution. It then becomes easy for ordinary people to become 'leaders' -- they never want people to ask assertively “if they are capable of doing anything , of delivering the goods”? I speculate if our governments will ever think to do anything about the educational system. Coming back to the above ideas, if I analyze the current education system, I think it takes care only of the mind & this is shallow because the whole being means the body, the mind, the heart & the soul. Unless education takes care of all the four in a balanced way, it cannot create an authentic being, ‘a whole being’. When I say taking care of the body, it means body should be given adequate exercise. We live in the body but nobody thinks about what we are eating, the bodies should be given a chance to achieve their natural potential. When I say mind, I think real education has the power to open a mind but for that we need to understand the idea of ‘intelligence’. It simply means the ability to respond. To come out of all prisons is intelligence & never to get in to another again. We need to ask if we are aware enough to see what is demanded of us, can we act according to the situation or do we need ready-made answer? Do we have the courage to think, question & respect our insight, our own self? Can we undo what society has done to us? Intelligence brings freedom, it becomes spontaneity, and this is how the heart & soul grows. I was pondering if we can nurture the essence of meditation in the system to rediscover intelligence. There are some ideas left, “delivery machines”, “wealthy careers”, “comparison”, these ideas ask me to talk about one essential organ of our educational system, “our teachers or gurus”, but then who is a guru? The word “guru” means , one who has gravitation. The feeling is that you are being pulled towards them & at the same time you are being pulled inwards. This is strange but true that the closer you come to your guru , the closer you come yourself & the more you become independent. A guru never imposes lifestyle because they understand that each person has to find its own lifestyle & can never be a carbon copy. They have the power to teach that money is a need but it cannot be the goal. They can help you understand the difference between ‘making a living’ & ‘living a life’. I think now we can easily ask if that pull is creating boundaries or liberation. Well, lastly I feel, we should ask “how can one go on avoiding life”? How can one miss it? We have to think beyond socially constructed mechanical structures. We need to cherish that it’s beautiful to be on a farm with animals, with trees, with sky & with the sun. I am not against the educational system working on the material plane but when I say the “growth of your life”, I want to highlight that we need to understand the being as a ‘whole’ first. I dream of a system which can teach us to unlearn and at the same time help us understand “what to preserve”. If we can feel that our life is an inspirational book of humanity. If the ideas at the beginning can be transformed where education is seen as a key to unlock the door of freedom, love, compassion, curiosity , creativity, cooperation & empowerment and I feel that’s the journey towards “LIFE”. - Shristi Gupta ([email protected]) 1.0 Introduction
In Indian society, Cow is not just an animal. It is a symbol of Brahmanical and devotional traditions of Hinduism. ‘Cow’ has a political significance in India. It became the source of numerous riots and bloodsheds. It is also a source of worship and a symbol of Hindu mobilization. It shares some essential relationship with caste and communalism. In this paper, I would like to look into those relationships along with discussing the subsidiary effects like culinary fascism (related to beef) and effeminate nature attached to cow. Firstly, I would like to debug the myth associated with the ‘sacred cow’. Then I would like to go into its relationship with caste and then communalism. But, I would not go into the details of riots happened over Cow protection movement or into the details of legislations which banned cow slaughter, instead look into the theoretical frame, which contains all these composite elements. 2.0 The myth of Holy Cow The Holiness attached to cow was purely constructed. In Indian society, the importance of cow was always recognized as the economy moved from pastoral to agricultural orientation. But in ancient times cow was not regarded as sacred or inviolable (Bandyopadhyay, 2009, p. 240). Norman Brown in his work ‘The Sanctity of the cow in Hinduism’ establishes that, Vedic literature show no knowledge of the doctrine of the sanctity and inviolability of the cow or of cattle. Rather it points to a general practice of offering cattle as sacrificial victims and a widespread custom of eating their meat (Brown , 1964, p. 247). ‘’In a period overridden by ritualism there was hardly a day on which there was no cow to sacrifice to which the Brahmin was not invited by some non-Brahmins. For the Brahmin everyday was a beef-steak day. The Brahmins were therefore the greatest beef-eaters’’ (Ambedkar, 1948). According to B.R Ambedkar, the clue to the worship of cow and the transition to vegetarianism by Brahmans are to be found in the struggle between Buddhism and Brahmanism. The reason why cow worship was adopted and beef eating was given up by Brahmanism, was to establish its supremacy over Buddhism (Ambedkar, 1948). Interestingly, Buddhist Bhikshus were also not vegetarians, they were permitted to eat three kinds of flesh that were deemed to be pure, which latter was extended to five. But the practice of animal sacrifice which was the essence of Brahmanism was deadly opposed by Buddhism. According to Ambedkar, if Brahmins had acted from conviction that animal sacrifice was bad, all that was necessary for them to do was to give up animal sacrifice. It was unnecessary for them to be vegetarians (Ambedkar, 1948). Since, the sacrifice of cow had a great deal of opposition among the masses which was largely agricultural population, for asserting supremacy over Buddhism, Brahmins become vegetarians and started worshiping cow. The skilful manipulation of cultural symbols and constructing new cultural symbols, when became the components of cultural project of nationalism in India, cow became a source of Pan-Hindu mobilization cutting across sectarian and caste divides, during the upper caste led anti-colonial movement. Such manipulations were uncritically absorbed by the masses. Further, in the imaginations of Hindu nationalists, cow protection was an essential element and cow was treated to be ‘holy’ or ‘sacred’. So the myth behind the ‘holy cow’ has two dimensions; Brahmanical and Nationalist. While the Brahmanical dimension has roots into the caste system, the nationalist dimension has its derivative in communalism, which latter was inherited by ‘Hindu Nationalism’. So analysing the relationship of cow with Communalism and Caste becomes quintessential for our understanding. 3.0 Cow and caste Brahmanism’s need for asserting superiority over Buddhism paved the foundation for the ‘Holy’ construction over cow. But why should the non- Brahmins follow it? Answer to this best lays at the explanation of French sociologist Gabriel Tarde, who argued that Culture within a society spreads by imitation of the ways and manners of superior classes by the inferior classes (Ambedkar, 1948). Aspiration for an upgrade in social status actually forced many lower castes to imitate aspects like cow protection, cow worship and vegetarianism of Brahmanism. Some of the lower caste movements surrounding cow protection also explain the same logic. Gyanendra Pandey finds the logic of Prevention of cow slaughter becoming a subject for the Ahirs’ Gwala Movement, as a result of their aspiration for an upgrade in social status (since it found support among more privilege Hindu castes) (Pandey, 2006, p. 165). This aspiration of transformation from marginally ‘clean’ castes to seek full ‘cleanliness’ (Pandey , 1999), was a sound reason for propagating strictness on the issue of cow slaughter by lower castes. Along with cow protection, a subsidiary aspect associated with it, is the culinary aspect. When Brahmins made cow a sacred animal, beef eating became a matter of religion. So the untouchables, who continued eating beef when Brahmanism discontinued it, became inferior in society. Interestingly, Cow was scared regardless of living or dead. And Beef eating was made a sacrilege. According to Ambedkar, the broken men who continued to eat beef became guilty of sacrilege and there was no other fate left for the Broken Men other than becoming untouchables[i] (Ambedkar, 1948). The so called modern day casteist saints like M.K Gandhi, has also helped elevate the issue of cow-protection and vegetarianism. He made statements like: ‘’Cow- protection is the outward form of Hinduism. I refuse to call anyone a Hindu if he is not willing to lay down his life in this cause. It is dearer to me than my very life’’ (Hiro, 2015, p. 32). According to Kancha Ilaiah, It was Gandhi’s campaign that took vegetarianism to non-Brahmin social groups that were meat-arian. The only people who were not really influenced by Gandhi’s cow protection campaign and vegetarianism were Muslims, Christians and Dalits (Ilaiah, 2015). It was Ambedkar’s counter campaign which was trying to impart multicultural dimension to food practices, as against Gandhian vegetarianism which in a way excluded dalits from getting appropriated into vegetarianism. He also considers the recent ban on beef [ii] as a cultural imposition, more particularly on tribals and Dalits. Kancha Ilaiah considers Cow as an Aryan animal [iii] and he considers the modern day RSS approach to protect it as a casteist and racist approach (Ilaiah, 2015). The modern day politics of Hindutva also centres on the ‘sacred Cow’. The process of ‘sanskritization’, which the Sang Parivar has been promoting, has taken different dimensions. The major objective of sanskritization is the construction of ‘monolithic Hinduism’, which is a historic absurdity. This attempts at creating a Brahmanical narrative by transcending culturally variant practices of Hinduism. The broader dream of Sanskritization actually lies at the conception of Hindu Rashtra. The RSS have been fashioning the notion of Hindu Rashtra and the associated ‘samskars’ through the ‘shakhas’ which inhales the idea of vegetarianism and holiness of cow, which is essentially ‘effeminate’. According to Christophe Jaffrelot, the technique of conversion of low caste people to Hindutva relied on the same logic of imitation of Brahmins, which can be analysed as a process of ‘sanskritization’ (Jaffrelot, 2001). There is a notion of ‘Purity’ and ‘Impurity’ associated with the culinary art tangled with the process of ‘sanskritization’. While the ‘Purity’ is recognized with the ‘vegetarian’ diets, ‘Impurity’ is recognized with ‘Non Vegetarian’ diets. This notion of ‘purity’ associated with the culinary diets is a pure Brahmanical construct. The assumption and assertion of a monolithic culinary culture is a fascist dictation. It also put the question of Individual rights into hold. But this Brahmanical culinary culture has been challenged both internally and externally in India. The upper caste Hindus of Kerala, Bengal and Assam are profoundly found to practice non vegetarianism. Also there are reported events like, DYFI (youth wing of CPIM) conducting beef festival for challenging Brahmanical Culinary Fascism[iv]. Dalit and left leaning students of Osmania University, Hyderabad has organized a beef eating festival on the campus (April 2012). Under the banner of New Materialist (NM) students of JNU has also organized a public meeting to debate the issue of (dis)allowing certain kinds of foods like beef and pork in the campus on march 2012 (Nigam , 2002). Such challenges are evident, but still Sangi’s have overcome these issues by means of legislation. Often the Brahmanical congress has also failed to intervene in it as matter of ‘secularism’ or as a matter of individual rights, when in power. The culinary fascism of Sang Parivar is essentially related both to caste and communalism. The culinary politics by Brahmanical Hindutva forces must be seen as an attempt to wipe out the cultural identities of Dalits and minorities. The ban on beef (or the imposition of vegetarianism), essentially discriminates dalits economically too. Since Beef happens to be the cheapest source of protein and the leather work associated with cow skin use to be a traditional occupation for many of the castes in India. So for dalits, culinary fascism or a ban on cow slaughter will directly or indirectly deprive them nutritiously, economically and materially. 4.0 Cow and Communalism The Veneration of cow actually increased during the medieval period when the rate of cow slaughter increased phenomenally. Cow protection movement arose in northern Indian with the efforts of Kuka and Arya Samaj and it was stimulated by the writings of Swami Dayanand Saraswati and acquired organizational form with the establishment of Gaurakshini Sabhas in 1880’s (Pandey, 2006, p. 163). Earlier cow or cow protection movement was not overtly a communal issue, such movements were rationalised by economic and nationalistic arguments. But it was during the late 19th century Hindu mobilization took place around the symbol of cow with communal implications. The communal impetus around the cow protection or the sacred cow was further strengthened by the growth of communal organizations like RSS and VHP in the 20th century. It placed the ‘sacred cow’ at the paramount of Hindu Rashtra conception. The communal organizations like Vishva Hindu Parishad (VHP) came into being through the movement focusing on a ban on cow-slaughter (Jaffrelot, 2001). Communal forces have realised that riots is the only way to communalise the poor (Panikkar, 1991, p. 18). The riots stimulated by ‘cow protection’ before and after independence are explicit ways of communalising the masses. Some scholars have sought to distinguish two phases in cow protection movement; Urban and Rural, while the former led by a moderate upper class leadership and which was less militant while the latter guided by extremist leaders from less privilege backgrounds and was more militant (Pandey, 2006, p. 175). Cow protection is of special importance for scholars like Gyanendra Pandey, mainly because it bridges the gap between urban and rural Hindus and elite and popular levels of communalism (Pandey , 1999, p. 307). Rafiuddin Ahmed argues that the ritual slaughter of cows came to occupy centre stage in the politics of the late nineteenth century ‘‘not so much because the Muslims loved to sacrifice cows as because the militant Hindus made it an issue’’ (Pandey, 2006, p. 162). Cow protection movement can be seen as a part of attempt to construct the larger ‘Hindu Community’ in northern India (Pandey, 2006). The selective appropriation of the cultural past (or sacred symbols) exclusively from a so-called Hindu era is a communal view to establish nationalism which is Hindu nationalism (Panikkar, 1991, p. 10). The vibrant notion of communalism underlined by the sacredness of cow can be best explained from the issue of lynching a mob, in Haryana (2002). The suspicion of cow slaughter took the life of five Dalit men Dalit men whose traditional occupation was leather work (Nigam & Menon, 2007, p. 43). But interestingly, the clarification given by the Hindu Right wing explains the communal depth in the issue. They explained it as a case of ‘mistaken identity’ in which dalits were mistaken for Muslims!! The cow protection actually constitutes an ideological agenda for organizations like RSS and VHP. The broader idea, in which cow protection is embedded, lies at the heart of establishing cultural hegemony and ‘othering’ of minorities. Building upon Kancha Ilaiah[v], we could argue that, it was for achieving the goal of cultural hegemony the RSS and other members of sang family, turned cow protection, cow slaughter and beef as a Hindu-Muslim issue even after post-independence. My emphasize on post-independence is because, it was after independence, the idea of Hindu nationalism found extensive soil in India and started replacing ‘Congress nationalism’ of pre-independence whose waves lived till the end of late 20th century. And also due to the fact that, pre-independence mobilization on cow protection, cow slaughter etc. was largely appropriated into nationalist mobilization. Even though it was communal, all mobilizations on cow protection or on cow slaughter, didn’t share the hard printed ideology of Hindu Rashtra as propagated by RSS. While considering the discourse of cow slaughter, there are arguments like, Cow slaughter devastated India’s economy and has resulted in the undernourishment of its vegetarian population (Tejani, 2008) and also arguments arising against cow slaughter out of agrarian emotions, without holding the vision of Brahmanical cultural hegemony. For me, subsuming all such arguments under the communal notion would be a reductionist view on this discourse. These sought of arguments should be considered independently. 5.0 Cow as ‘effeminate’ There were three prevalent thoughts in 1880’s and 1890’s regarding the animal ‘cow’. One, Cow as the ‘universal mother’ based on the proposition that all human beings drink the cow’s milk; in consequence of this Killing of cow has been considered as matricide. The second position was that Cow as the dwelling- place of all the major Hindu gods and goddess, so cow slaughter becomes heinous in Hindu eye. And the third was the representation of Muslims, Christians and the Englishman as the killer of cows and hence the enemy of Hinduism. (Pandey, 2006, p. 179). Apart from the third position, first two positions consider cow as ‘effeminate’. It is the conception of cow as the mother, which further releases the paternalistic concerns over the cow. The conception of matricide is considered as a gross violence over the society, which perceives women either as ‘goddess’ or as to be ‘parented’ or ‘protected’. This protectionist notion when violated is considered to be an attack on the ‘masculinity’ (of Hindu society). Even the third position bounded on hatred generated for the killers of cow, indirectly upholds the first two positions. So the sentiments and emotions emerging out of cow protection are essentially ‘effeminate’. The violation of the chastity of women of one’s family is repeatedly invoked as a spiritual punishment in the appeals of the patias circulated in shahbad in 1917, for action to protect ‘mother cow’ (Pandey, 2006, p. 184). The notion of sacred duty of cow protection, the sanctity of family and the inviolability of the community (Hindu community) are thus collapsed together (Pandey, 2006, p. 184). So what lies at the heart of cow protection is a culturally embedded society with patriarchal values. 5.0 Conclusion The ‘sacred cow’ has necessary relations with the caste structure, which has led to the exclusion of broken people. The ‘sacred cow’ or the ‘holy cow’ is a Brahmanical construct, which has no historicity in Vedic literature or in ancient Hindu history. It was a construct for claiming superiority over Buddhism. The process of ‘sanskritization’ includes vegetarianism and Brahmanical Hinduism and its practices at its peak and tries to appropriate non-Brahmanical castes into it. Such attempt to create ‘monolithic’ Hinduism would be a cultural imposition over dalits. ‘Sacred cow’ is also the source of numerous riots that happened in India. It was used to mobilise Hindus cutting across class and caste barrier. During anti-colonial struggle ‘sacred cow’ has proved its mobilizing power, often under communalized umbrellas. Cow protection movement was essentially religious and communal for most part of the history. Identity formation over cow protection movements was also a process of ‘othering’ Muslims and Christians. The modern day Hindu Rashtra conception also uses the same mode of ‘othering’. Also, I would argue that the paternalist concerns over sacred cow have some relation with the ‘effeminate’ conception of cow. Cow has become a ‘contested’ object, and it will continue to be so, since the ghost of Brahmanism follows it. End Note [i] Imitation was too costly for ‘Broken men’, since flesh of dead cow was their principal sustenance. [ii] In 1976 that the Maharashtra Government banned cow slaughter through the ‘State Animal Protection Act’ but when BJP Shiv Sena faction that came to power in 1995 they amended this act by prohibiting the slaughter of oxen and bullocks along with the cow. It was this amendment was sanctioned by President Pranab Mukherjee in 2015. [iii] Cow came to India along with Aryans. [iv] http://peoplesdemocracy.in/2015/0322_pd/dyfi-organises-beef-festival [v]According to Kancha Ilaiah, RSS turned beef into a Muslim-Hindu issue, in order to pursue their goal of Cultural hegemony. Work Cited Ambedkar, D. B. R., 1948. The Untouchables: Who were they and why they became Untouchables?. [Online] Available at: http://www.ambedkar.org/ambcd/39B.Untouchables%20who%20were%20they_why%20they%20became%20PART%20II.htm#a11 [Accessed 16 March 2015]. Bandyopadhyay, S., 2009. From Plassey to Partition: A History of Modern India. Noida: Orient Blackswan Private Limited. Brown , W. N., 1964. The Sanctity of the Cow in Hinduism. The Economic Weekly, February, pp. 245-255. Hiro, D., 2015. Gandhi's original sin. In: The Longest August: The Unflinching Rivalry Between India and Pakistan. s.l.:Nation Books, pp. 27-50. Ilaiah, K., 2015. Beef ban is an attempt to impose uppercaste culture on other Hindus: Kancha Ilaiah [Interview] (19 March 2015). Jaffrelot, C., 2001. The Sangh Parivar Between Sanskritization and Social Engineering. In: The BJP and the Compulsions of Politics in India. second ed. s.l.:Oxford University Press, pp. 22-70. Nigam, A. & Menon, N., 2007. Politics of Hindutva and the minorities. In: Power and Contestation: India Since 1989. Canada: Zed Books, pp. 36-60. Pandey , G., 1999. Communalism as construction. In: Politics in India. New Delhi: Oxford University Press, pp. 305-316. Pandey, G., 2006. The Construction of Communalism in Colonial North India. Third ed. New Delhi: Oxford University Press. Panikkar, K., 1991. Communalism in India; A perspective for intervention. New Delhi: Peoples Publishing House. Tejani, S., 2008. Indian Secularism: A Social and Intellectual History, 1890-1950. Indiana: Indiana University Press. India as a nation and our leaders as our “representatives” have the power to face an endless level of injustice, indignity and disrespect for our women. We can actually tolerate any kind of non-sense around us with equanimity. I know, I am sounding harsh but before I apologize I want each and every person reading this article to ask themselves ‘Do we have any concern at all for these atrocities faced by women beyond residual anger?’ and the worst comes when our law makers pass comments like “Sexual violence can be apologized for” and justify boys-will-be-boys-laissez-faire attitude, when CM reacts to a media reporter, “Are u not safe? You are not feeling any danger, are you? Then why are you worried?” and when an incendiary comment is passed by a leader that “I will make my boys to go and rape the women of opposition workers” not only disappoints but coerces me to ask Do our hearts really have values of love, compassion, sympathy and empathy or is it just an organ which pumps blood? Now, I will move a step further and discuss some cruel and gruesome incidents which will give you Goosebumps but only if you have a soul! Tales of Horror Well, I am in an ambivalent position while writing this for two reasons, firstly, I am not sure which incident to start with because we have endless brutal stories and secondly, how to pen it down because even the thought of writing it makes my hand shiver. But still with the hope that we have not reached the horrifying point of ‘no return’ and normalizing rapes with our cool attitude, I would like to “rewrite” one of the most recent incidents where a six year old girl was raped inBangalore, and also in Budaun where two girls who went to the fields to relieve themselves did not return as they were raped and hanged from a tree. Also, how can we forget the Nirbhaya rape case of December 16, 2012 who was raped brutally. The case falls under the ‘rarest of the rare category’. I have just highlighted the headlines of our daily newspapers which we read, we rage and very casually turn the page! So now what? Can we ask ourselves at least for the sake of humanity ‘what’, ‘why’, ‘till when’ & ‘how’ the walls of such deep rooted social evils, that we have constructed, can be deconstructed? Delving Deeper When I say delve deeper, I want all of us to think about the deepest roots of the problem, the ‘seed’ of which was sown by “Patriarchy” (pita, pati, putra). The male domination in our society sees women as subordinate to men and as an instrument of oppression. I want you to think of a ‘disease’ namely, domestic violence, which has afflicted the majority of Indian women and is being transmitted from one generation to another. It has been observed that husbands who have witnessed their fathers physically abusing their mothers are more likely to abuse their wives. All of this occurring in the presence of a supposed medicine called the Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act. I don’t want you to focus on the candles we light and the slogans we raise outside but of those 91,202 women who have been the victims of dowry deathsfrom January 2, 2001 to December 31, 2012. Most of them were set ablaze and died screaming and shouting inside their homes. At the root level, I want all of us to note that, in India, a crime is committed against a woman every 3 minutes! Ask yourself, why does India need feminism in the 21st Century? The answer lies in the question itself. Ask your souls why the single largest democracy is the fourth most dangerous place in the world for women to live in? According to National Crime Records Bureau, 80% of girls become victims of eve teasing, stalking and molestation everytime they step outside their homes. A rape victim not only suffers physically but also has to go through the toil of medical examinations and the endless interrogations. I don’t want you to sympathize but empathize with a girl who steps outside with a thousand thoughts in her mind whether she will be able to return safely or not! After a deep analysis, the only thought which comes to my mind is that every passing minute, crimes against women are rising. Disheartening is the fact that the expression of violence has risen to the heights of viciousness and the indispensable Right to life, protected under Article 21 of the Constitution, is considered as a rubberstamp for women. What should be done? Let us move to one of the most integral stage of this article, the stage of zeal and fire to create the change we desire to see. Reformation or Punishment? First of all, we need to introspect whether we want a short term easily implementable solution like capital punishment or do we want the system to be reformed and transformed from its roots? I believe in the saying ‘If you truly want to change, you must first be willing to change your mind’. We need to check our stereotypical thought process which restricts the liberty of women. Instances of rape have occurred where victims as young as 6 years suffered the wrath of the perpetrators. So the argument that women dressing inappropriately instigate men to commit such crimes sounds nonsensical. Initiatives should be taken from school level as adolescents are among the most vulnerable & impressionable of the demographic groups. Sex education must be imparted in schools which will help them understand their biological developments and feed their inquisitiveness. Trained counsellors & psychologists should be appointed to impart quality education. Efforts must be made to ensure an increase in the literacy rate of women so that they can have a better knowledge of their social, legal & moral rights.Independent groups such as a group of pink clad Robin Hoods - Gulaabi Gangshould not be suppressed and must be provided with amnesty so that they have the courage to take a stand against the indifferent system. We all have idols of goddesses in our homes, but stop and take a look at the status of women at home. Is she treated kindly or is she a victim of cruelty and the pawn in the hands of men? Technology can be wisely used and apps can be created which will help women in danger to detect their location and to contact the nearest police station at the earliest such as “Vith U” app and strict rules should be made so that police officers can think beyond their indifferent attitude. The Media should also come forward, not just as a spectator who presents these cases as “breaking news”, but with a solution oriented approach to bring changes in the system by emphasizing that justice delayed is justice denied! Astonishing is the fact that 1 in every 3 women in Europe under the age of fifteen is a victim of sexual violence. As also declared by ‘Kofi Annan’, Secretary General of the UN in a 2006 report of the United Nations Development Fund for Women, “Violence against women and girl is a problem of pandemic proportions. At least 1 out of every 3 women around the world has been beaten, coerced into sex or otherwise abused in her life with the abuser being someone known to her”. Thus, I believe that reformation should be done at the global level & this issue needs to be discussed in international organizations. So, at last, a humble appeal to everyone reading this article that please stop justifying this brutality and see it as a cause of alarm and call for action. The condition has assumed the form of an epidemic. The need of the hour is to shake ourselves out of this apathetic and defeatist mentality. Therefore, I believe that we must fill our soul with zeal, passion and fire to empower women by reconstructing this deep rigid social construction. As Albert Einstein has truly said “The world will not be destroyed by those who do the evil but those whose do evil but by those who watch them without doing anything”. Now, you decide whether you want to fight this evil with a mere sight or destroy the system and challenge the change. Because "ENOUGH IS ENOUGH". - Shristi Gupta (Authour is a Second Year Political Science Student at Ramjas College) Gender is a matter of culture; it refers to the social classification into ‘masculine’ and ‘feminine’. Our social consciousness has also embedded the concepts of masculinity and femininity, so gender is an important discourse which we cannot ignore. Since legislation is one of the most important instruments of government in organizing society and protecting citizens, the discourse on gender and legislation has got significance. The debates in parliament reveal a great deal about gender relations. When we look into the debates on women reservation bill, we can see that popular perception is influenced not only by patriarchy, but also by misogyny. For example Sharad Yadav’s much reviled comment, derisively referring to “short-haired women” (par-kati mahilaen) who would overrun Parliament (Menon, 2009). But opposition to this bill cannot be totally characterized as anti-women, since there is a question of upper caste women vs OBC men. Such sentiments better depict in the words of OBC representative, Nithish Kumar, ‘’we would not allow the social composition of the social composition (of this house) that has been achieved after a long struggle to be changed from backdoor’’ (Randall, 2006, p. 67) In the 2005 debate over amending the Hindu Succession Act to give daughters equal right to property with sons, MPs from the Samajwadi Party protested, arguing it would create ‘ashanti’ (disquiet) at home, pit brother against sister and so on (jagori, 2009, p. 16). So is the psychology of our political class!! The analysis offered by the legal system is not proportional to the woman’s experience and in essentiality is male dominated and gender biased; that all analysis of a given situation which demands legal and state intervention weighs heavily towards the male experience and fails to address the women’s question. If we look into the question of surrogacy debates, it conceptualizes women as a ‘natural body’, as the object of a contractual relationship (Menon, 2012, p. 192). In case of medical termination of pregnancy act (1971) feminist like Nivedita Menon argues that ‘it was not the concern for women, but the motive of population control’ that acted as the rationale behind MTP Act (Menon, 2012, p. 204). The ineffectiveness of law should also be discussed, in case of dowry law Srimati Basu argues that the Dowry Prohibition Act (amended in 1984) is ineffective because it can do little to address the social mechanisms through which dowry flourishes, and can come into play only if a complaint is filed (Menon, 2012). The fact that both giver and taker of dowry are held equally culpable is an inbuilt disincentive to report demands for dowry. Feminist legal analysis has helped to explore the rules and practices that are discriminatory in their impact. Nandita Haskar examined the way in which law has reflected patriarchal oppression. She not only pointed out the laws that continue to discriminate against women, but further connected these laws, and judicial interpretations of these laws, to patriarchal social relations in which women have been oppressed (Ahuja, 2010, p. 8). Even the debates on uniform civil code hardly touched the question of gender justice. This debate often revolved around communal politics and was rarely surfaced in public discourse as a feminist issue. In the case of Shah Bano Judgment, it was viewed as ‘anti-Muslim’ rather than ‘pro-women’. Personal laws have become the primary site of a constitutional and structural opposition between the fundamental rights of minorities (to religion) and of women, and always this opposition was settled in favour of religion. We have enough examples of sexist courtrooms, fuelled by patriarchal understandings on issues. The 1983 judgement of Gujrat High Court states that ‘’corroborative evidence for a charge of rape was not necessary in general and that a women’s complaint of rape should be taken on its own merit’’ (Menon, 2012, p. 116). The judgement looks like progressive, but its justification is totally anti-women. ‘’Indian society unlike the permissive west is tradition bound and a woman was unlikely to make a false accusation of rape, as she would be reluctant to admit any incident likely to reflect on her chastity had occurred.’’ (Menon, 2012, p. 117) This implied that, western women are more capable of making false accusations. This is detrimental to the woman's identity. On the 9th of February 2008, Chief Justice of Karnataka, Cyriac Joseph and State Human Rights Commission Chairperson Justice S. R. Nayak remarked that ‘’immodest dressing was the cause of increasing crimes against women ‘’ (Menon, 2008). Such irresponsible responses are self-explanatory on the psyche of our honourable judges. Section 377 of our constitution penalizes sexual activity ‘against the order of nature’. This prescription of heteronormativity[1] is a way to punish a greater threat to social order. There by dissolving LGBT rights. Section 375 IPC, recognizes only penetration of vagina by the penis as rape. All other forms of sexual assault are considered as lesser crimes, deserving a smaller quantum of punishment. Thus penetration by objects or in the case of very young girls, by a finger, does not constitute rape (Menon, 2012, p. 114). According to Nivedita Menon, section 375 IPC is a way to protect patrilineal descent and property systems. The implications of section 377 IPC and section 375 IPC can be read together with Flavia Agnes remark on rape laws.‘’Rape laws are based on the same old notion of chastity, virginity, premium on marriage and the fear of female sexuality’ (Menon, 2012)’. According to Catherine A. Mackinnon, ‘neutrality of law treats and affects men and women differentially as it is based on male norms, male experience and male dominance, to the total exclusion of women’s experience from the“male-stream” law, and thus law has contributed to women’s oppression’ (Ahuja, 2010, p. 4). If the principles of justice are not to apply directly to institutions such as courts and constitutions, legislatures and laws, then one might well ask what is the point of having them at all? - Ashique Ali T Works Cited Ahuja, N., 2010. www.academia.edu. [Online] Available at: https://www.academia.edu/1562885/The_Need_to_Understand_the_Womans_Question_and_its_Implication_on_Women_in_Patriarchal_Society [Accessed 9 09 2014]. jagori, 2009. [Online] Available at: http://jagori.org/wp-content/uploads/2009/07/dowry_infopack.pdf [Accessed 10 9 2014]. Menon, N., 2008. Judging Women. [Online] Available at: http://kafila.org/2008/02/20/judging-women/ [Accessed 9 12 2014]. Menon, N., 2009. www.kafila.org. [Online] Available at: http://kafila.org/2009/06/07/and-arent-obc-women-women-loud-thinking-on-the-womens-reservation-bill/ [Accessed 9 9 2014]. Menon, N., 2012. Feminism and the Family – Thoughts on International Women’s Day. [Online] Available at: http://kafila.org/2012/03/08/feminism-and-the-family-thoughts-on-international-womens-day/ [Accessed 9 9 2014]. Menon, N., 2012. Seeing Like A Feminst. New Delhi: Penguin Books. Randall, V., 2006. Legislative Gender Quotas and Indian Exceptionalism: The Travails of the Women's Reservation Bill. Comparative Politics, 39(october). [1] Heteronormativity refers to the overwhelming power of the assumption that heterosexuality is natural and normal, and is the norm to be emulated. Islam is a religion, a great religion, but it's not a political ideology for multicultural, multi-religious and multi-ethnic societies of the present times. It contains some golden principles such as equality, fairness and justice that are applicable in politics because such universal principles are recognised as the pillars of democracy and open society. But that does not mean religion, any religion for that matter, can be an alternative to democratic form of government because this inevitably leads to the concentration of power and influence in the hands of some potentates and despots. This has been the case in the the Middle Ages where the Church dominated states and it became a symbol of tyrannical rule and oppressive practices. It is quite so in some Islamic countries where dynastic despots and oligarchs rule by using Islam for their own ends and state oppression. It’s not difficult to see that different people have different interpretations of Islam. Historically, there has never been any unanimity of views in Islam on a range of issues. During the formative period of the Islamic Caliphate after 632 C.E. differing and mutually exclusive interpretation of Islamic state and Islamic rule had soon started to take shape when the community split along the Sunni-Shia lines. Such differences have multiplied over the course of fourteen centuries. Even within the Sunnis different schools of thought emerged and there is no way they can ever be reconciled. Nor, can the Sunni and Shia concepts of what constitutes Islamic ruler be reconciled because of the differing concepts that underlie Caliphate (Sunni) and Imamate (Shia). When some people dare to give their opinions, which do not repeat the centuries-old stereotypes they are attacked for their heretical views by the orthodox and rigid literalists of traditions. They assume only they have the ‘true’ version of Islam; therefore, only they are the ones who can rightfully speak on behalf of God and Islam while all the others are groping in the darkness of ignorance and suffering from the malaise of modern Western ideas of democracy and human rights. However, it is essential to explain that democracy is a form of government in which the will of the population of a country is decisive in forming policies that advance the cause of the citizens in social, religious, economic and political matters. In a genuine democracy this will reflects the actual needs of the people but in a bogus democracy the form of democracy is used to further individual or particular interests while paying lip-service to the values of democracy. -Dr. Nasir, Khan Before writing this article, I was dreaming of a peaceful world free from erroneous crimes with a vision of productive, rationale & responsible youth and a mission for global change. Let’s think at a very general level – If you push someone’s head under water, no matter sinner or saint, he will drown. In a similar manner, you get addicted to drugs once, what happens next is inevitable. It is an involuntary process that happens in every brain. So, first of all, don’t befool yourself that only bad people get addicted because it has little to do with addiction & almost everything to do with theunderlying cause which may be a chemical imbalance, unresolved conflict from the past, a belief you hold which is inconsistent with the existing reality or may be inability to cope up with current conditions or combination of all four. There is an urgent need to analyze these symptoms of dependency within you because the solutions are within you as well. ‘REEL’ LIFE BUT NOT ‘REAL’LIFE Why I am calling it a journey of ‘reel’ life not ‘real’ life is because alcohol, drugs, give you a toy to remain hanging around hallucinations while you are capable of reaching the real.Today, there is no part of world free from curse of drug trafficking & addiction. Adolescent drug abuse is one of the major areas of concern as it estimated that in India, by the time most boys reach the 9th grade, about 50% of them have tried at least one of the substance of abuse nature. According to a UN report, 1 million heroin addicts are registered in India & unofficially there are as many as 5 million. They are the source of temporary escape from your boredom, frustration, misery but remember sooner or later, you get trapped and go on increasing the dose. Now this is the stage when drugs are masters and you are mere ‘slaves’. They are destructive to the body leading to aggressiveness, loss of self control, behavioral problem and can even lead to death. But you are absolutely helpless as in this reel life there is no space in life for your real self. BAN CAN BE A BLACK WEAPON Now after knowing the underlying cause and their disastrous effect don’t you think our battle should not be against ‘bottle’ but something that jostles us to the bottle? We can see that prohibition has not succeeded, In fact it is opening a path for availability of more dangerous kind of alcohol & thousands of people die by poisoning. ‘Banning’ is an uncontrolled weapon leading to black marketing, smuggling such as business of supplying illicit liquor by bootlegging or folder system as prevalent in Gujarat (the only state to have death penalty for those found guilty of making & selling spurious liquor). Consumption of alcohol is also prohibited in states such as Manipur, Mizoram, Nagaland and union territory of Lakshadweep & now Kerala is implementing prohibition in a phased manner. JOURNEY OF RECOVERY — ‘YES’ OVER ‘NO’ Now, if we want ‘Thinkers’ not ‘Drinkers’, we need to analyze deeply. I believe that psychological understanding will be needed so that each child is sent in the direction where he learns something. In every school, college or university, meditation should be made compulsory to have a space for getting rid of anxiety & misery so that one need not turn to drugs. My idea is that education should be divided into two parts –intellectual and practical. This will keep the balance & will help a child drop depression & frustration. Substance abuse can be addressed at individual, local & at cross national level. This has to be a synthesis of biological understanding with the exploration of background of socio-cultural factors. Every year June 26 is celebrated as International Day Against Drug Abuse & Illicit Trafficking. It is an exercise taken by world community to sensitize the people in general and youth in particular to the menace of drugs.NGOs should come forward and supplement measures like education, counseling, treatment and rehabilitation programmes.Such comprehensive measures must be welcomed. “What is money?” ask this question to people and you will get a range of overlapping answers. A child’s definition of money that ‘it is what you use to buy things with’ is equally valid as any other definition. It is impossible to discuss money without creating differences in opinion as to how money should be managed.
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June 2016
AuthorsAshique Ali T |