Sanskritization, de-Sanskritization and Colonial Rule

Pandeys are most likely Biharis......

What makes everyone assume that the author is a Bihari
whay not U.P.ite Bhaiya (derogritily on Chowk)
or for that matter just a psdeudonym

#35 Kaal

Say what you may, but Aparna summarizes text well.

She writes good summaries.

She avoids wasting time with inane interactions - which will only create unnecessary acrimony, after all.

She prefers to put that time to better use, like...

Like, like, like....

Like writing more good summaries! ;)

Beej, I had come back to really blast the author (may be, it`s a bad start of the day), but then I love two famous Biharis - Babu Rajendra Prasad and Hanuman Bhakt Beej Bihari. So, it`s ok. :)

DrSahib, thanks Sir.

#32
Kaal, keep your kool!

#31
kaal ji,
Writings of Kabir and Raidas for example. Sikhism was actually also extension of the bhakti lehar.

Maximum converts into Christianity and Islam also came from sudra varna.

Actually, drsahib, please ignore #31. Not that your opinions are not valuable (they are), but I will not interact on the board of a grad student whose writings are juvenile at best and who will not participate in discussions.

drlokraj jee

That`s an interesting mention of the writings of the bhakti tradition. Which specific ones do you have in mind regarding the official use of the caste system to control day-to-day running of the society?

---

Also, your lumping of the introduction and growth of Sikhism in India with those of Christianity and Islam, and then linking everything to one Indian factor is a piece of masterly theorizing. Hopefully all of us will get to learn more of the details from you over time.

I have not heard of the `flexibility` of caste system where people can move up the ladder. This phenonenon of `upward mobility` has been recognized part of class sysyem, but not the caste system and both these syatem of stratification are not synonymous.

Also, author says that the British made it official or were innovative in using caste system to control society, which again defies historical facts. Writings of the Bhakti tradition which started even before the mughals came to India, stand testamony to this fact. All newer religions in the subcontinent, including Christianity,Islam and Sikhism flourished mainly because people wanted to escape the system which made them second or even third class citizens and refused to give them even the basic rights.

Trying to displace blame for every ill of the hindustani society on to the colonial era is is either denial or just evil.

kamath,

first of all, have you actually READ Armstrong`s The Buddha? It is a very well researched book with extensive quotes from traditional Buddhist scripture. It certainly isn`t a coffee table book. In addition to her I have read many writers on buddhism including books by tibetan monks too.

Naqshbandi
Re: # 29

Of course I have read Karen Armstron`s book. I think her understanding , explanation and interpretation is a bit stupid and does not rise above that of a coofee table book writer.

After reading all these books on Buddhism (as you claim!) and if you say `` Buddhism rose as a reaction to caste system..``. I wonder if you understood the intellectual background of Buddhism at all !!

Kamath

According to some historians hindu caste system was one of the first racial apartheid and segregation systems, may be that explains why higher castes are usually lighter skin than lower castes.

Before it was ``Sare Jahan Se Accha Hindostan Hamara,`` little alien darbari verbiage rooted in egoistic and mostly Urdu poetry’s obsessive pre-occupation with alcohol and women... a debauched side of middle being, then came language of lower being which demarcated Self in neat compartments but fails to capture relationships which drives the universe and the ``nothingness`` of the individual being ... this verbiage objectifies every thing. It changed Hindostan to object India. Now India will try to be Bharat, ie. one who lives (rrut) in knowledge (Bha). The ultimate knowledge of oneness of all. The higher being`s ultimate language is silence, but Sanskrut comes close because its association to codified revealed knowledge even in such mundane areas such as health (ayurved), civil eng (sthapatya) and even computing (ganit.) More and more westerners are learning Sanskrut. This time not for colonizing but to genuinely understand the sages. A visit to Rishikesh will give an idea.More than 3/4 of Sanskrut learners are westerners, whose main interest is Yoga and Ayurved.

Even western kids and educational institution are into it. One of the message at he top on this site
http://www.nada.kth.se/ins.proj.kth.se/projectindia2005/viveka.html
``China is manpower and India is brain power`` was intriguing.

On a Vedic quest






Dr. Dirghangi and his wife performing Agnihotram at his home in the U.S.

``I AM doing Agnihotram not for name or fame but because I love it. It is considered the mother of all Yagas. I believe in Srouta Yaga. I want to know how Agnihotram is performed in different parts of the country.`` Indeed it is the quest of a sincere Nityagnihotri. But he is neither a traditional scholar nor an academic researcher in Vedic rituals. This Agnihotri, Dr. Jayanta Kumar Dirghangi, is a certified medical practitioner of the American Board of Obstetrics and Gynaecology with many professional affiliations to his credit, practising at Memphis, Tennessee.

It needs tenacity of a different kind to juggle a demanding career and a religious rite like Agnihotram with its stringent regulations performed twice daily, day after day. It has become an all-consuming passion with this doctor ever since he set out on this journey to discover his roots over eight years ago. He returns to his motherland unfailingly every year to quench his thirst for knowledge of the age-old Vedic tradition.

Dr. Dirghangi developed an interest in Sanskrit, Vedic chanting and Srouta Karma at an early age and the late Prof. Gourinath Sastri encouraged him to study further. Amidst his hectic professional life in the U.S. he pursued these disciplines relentlessly till he was initiated into Agnihotram on May 1, 2000, according to Apastambha Srouta Sutra, Krishna Yajur Veda. A person, who wishes to perform Agnihotram and other Srouta rites must first acquire the sacrificial fire.

The rituals starting from Agnihotram should be performed with oblations to the three distinct altars having different fires namely, the Garhapatya, Aahavaniya and the Dakshina. The acquisition of these fires and instituting them in one`s house are done through a ritual called Adhana (Agnyadhana, Agnyadheya), during initiation.

Dr. Dirghangi received guidance from the 45th Azhagiya Singar of Ahobila Math and instruction from Sengalipuram Adhvarapathy Dikshitar and Therezhundur Anantanarayana Dikshitar. When a close friend introduced him to the veteran traditional scholar, Agnihotram Ramanuja Thathachariar, it opened up further vistas in his avocation and he mastered the intricacies of performing the ritual and learnt the meaning of the Mantras from him. He has travelled to remote villages seeking the help of masters of this practice, observing them perform, clarifying doubts and documenting the subtle differences among the different Srouta sutras like Apastambha, Asvalayana, Vaikhanasa, Manaba and so on.

He is learning the procedure according to the Rig, Sama and Atharvana Vedas though he follows the Yajur Veda. Back at home in Memphis he has an improvised smokeless Yagasala, where the sacrificial fire has to be maintained. The furnace had to be improvised to conform to the laws of the US where smoke in any form triggers an alarm. He felt the need for a handbook on Agnihotram explaining its performance, meaning and variations. So he has undertaken the task of compiling one himself. His trips to India are well planned. Dr. Dirghangi shared his experience during this trip with this writer. ``This time I visited Kerala to meet the Namboodiris. Through one of my patients I was introduced to an Agnihotrin at Thiruvananthapuram. The Namboodiris performed the Agni (Athirtha) Yaga, which is a little longer than the Somayaga, in 1975, and in 1995 at Panjal near Thrissur and Guruvayur, and he learnt about their history. As many as 64 Namboodiri families migrated from Gujarat long ago and of them 32 settled in the Tulu speaking region of Karnataka and the rest in Kerala. Some of these families continue to practise this rite. Each family becomes the high priest (Yajamana) of a particular Yaga. From Thiruvananthapuram I went to Thrissur as these Namboodiri families live around this place. I met Neelakantan Namboodiri, who is an authority on the Rig Veda, at Vattakulam. I spent a day with him and performed Agnihotram with him. From there I proceeded to Kouprra to meet Sankara Narayan Somayajipad who performs the Somayaga. Finally at Chembra, I had the opportunity of interacting with Ravi Akkithiripad who is the only one allowed to perform the Athiratha Yaga by hereditary right in Kerala, while in Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh others are permitted to.``

``I spend the best part of my visit every time with Thathachariar Swami who has been extremely generous in sharing his knowledge on the subject. I continue to learn the meaning of the Mantras from him as they have both a literary and a subtler meaning. I must share another experience with you. The earlier feature in this paper generated a lot of interest both in the US and in West Bengal. I keep getting calls from people evincing interest in Agnihotram. It gives me immense joy that I should be instrumental in reviving interest in the Vedic sacrifices. I have been invited to present a paper at the Asiatic Society and a lecture-demonstration on Agnihotram before the intelligentsia of Calcutta in this trip.`` Before you wonder where he will be venturing into next, he signs off saying, ``My dream is to become a Somayaji ultimately.``

SUDHAKSHINA RANGASWAMY



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Re: # 25

And he is allowed to practise in the USA. Such obvious mental disbalance.....

naqshbandi#1:

I was surprised to read that post since you are generally well-informed.

``Excuse my ignorance but aren`t the Laws of Manu responsible? The British in fact were the ones who outlawed many of the more obscene aspects of the caste system.``

Believe me, most of us were completely innocence of any knowledge of Manu or his Samriti. The rumour has it that the British dug it from obscurity to find the basis for a Hindu personal law. Some of the more colourful quotes from that book were actually learnt by me only at chowk.

``Buddhism developed as a reaction to the caste sytem``

That`s a common misinformation. Buddhism developed because Budhha sought individual enlightenment, he was never concerned about the social stratification. Could you please give any quotations from Buddha where he speaks against the caste system per se?

nauman:
Urdu`s official status is quite assured and it is one of the sixteen national languages of India. Its downward spiral is due to the lack of its utility in economic pursuits. Most of the roads in Delhi, even the newer ones, have Urdu signs.

And works of Ghalib and other poets are freely available in Devnagri script on the footpaths of Delhi.