When a society surrenders its most fundamental right to defend itself entirely to the State,hands over all its institutions to the State,and puts all its eggs in the political basket,it is bound to be orphaned and deprived of all its defenses. Case in point - The Hindu society.
The next time some colonialised idiot tells you why d State should run Hindu Temples or underestimates d need for decentralised Temple management bcoz "muh normative structures for Hindu unity bro",tell him he doesn't have the first clue of Bharat’s Temple management history.
Let these "normative" idiots take their BS to non-Brahminical Temple management structures in any part of Bharat & let's see if they come back with their faces intact.They understand jack about Temple management history but d arrogance with which they hold forth on it is amazing.
But they won't pause for a moment & ask if their rootless deracinated blather makes sense. Why? Oh because they have a normative vision. OK what is that vision based on? Facts? History? Or just the opinion of a clique which is sought to be imposed on all? Oh yes Unity.
You think there is unity between Christian denominations? You shud see them fight for territories. You think the Muslim society is united? Just look at the Middle East or even within Bharat. What unites ppl is the identification of the out-group, not some vague normative BS.
When you lack the guts to identify the out-group just because you have single handedly muddled the definition of who is a Hindu, you will waffle all over the countryside about Hindu unity and go about destroying every Dharmic structure, whether you understand it or not.
To fight for respect for every group within the Dharmic fold shud be the goal as opposed to destroying select identities under the facade of unity because clearly you don't have the guts to destroy all identities. After all, some are more politically important than others.
The more I read history d more I am convinced that certain issues need to be addressed head on but the solution simply isn't to throw the baby out with the bathwater. That is the solution of the unimaginative & ignorant idiot & what makes him dangerous is his normative certitude.
Subalternisation of Dharma is a postcolonial project and no amount of Chanakyaneetification can convince me that it is good for Dharma. It is *not* a masterstroke. The postcolonial school of thought in Bharat has done nothing except harm Dharma in d most insidious ways possible.
So pls think originally instead of repackaging postcolonialism's toxic nonsense as the basis of this grand Hindu unity project. Learn to read the past for what it was, warts and all, and evolve a policy that respects indigeneity and meets contemporary needs and challenges.
Our history isn't something u delete with a "hit reset" button to conveniently suit ur normative BS. Read before u offer half-baked solutions about such important social structures with d enthusiasm of a school kid who wants to impress d audience & wants a star in d report card.
The first thing a decolonised society must do is to sanitise its history as much as possible to remove colonial biases.Until such exercise is undertaken,the justifiable presumption is that more often than not,we are consuming colonialised versions of our past,which is unhealthy.
So when we are tempted to offer half-baked normative solutions based on our history *as received from the colonizer*, it's best to resist that temptation, burn the midnight oil and read or learn from better informed ppl. That's Dharmic humility.
If you don't have d humility to at least learn from those who have spent years trying to make sense of whatever remains of indigenous epistemology,ur solutions *must* be approached with deep circumspection notwithstanding your best intentions. After all,the road to hell..U know.
Anyways, it's close to Brahma Muhurtam now and Varuthini Ekadasi begins in a short while. Om Namo Bhagavate Vasudevaya.
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