Medical Lessons from the Death of a Poet Mr Gopalakrishnan,

My condolences on Revathy`s passing. Your experience is very upsetting and heart-wrenching.

Thanks very much for sharing this with us.

Best,
Rakesh

An Interview with Shashi Tharoor Has Munir Akram withdrawn his bid or is he still in the running? Anyone know?

Dreaming of an Indian Renaissance Re: # 3

To each his own sir. Depends on how you look at it.

Dreaming of an Indian Renaissance Re: # 1

Inquirer sahab,

The author has not just described these organisations but has also taken the pains of succintly explaining what DIA and IndiCorps do. Perhaps asking for some more ``inquiry`` on your part would not be uncalled for.

As for the others, the gist of it is that others ought to appreciate such examples and be inspired.. and then either participate in such initiatives to change/improve our societies from the youth level or, for the more enterprising amongst us, to try and set up such organisations ourselves where we feel they might be helpful and successful.

Emerging City of the World Asking someone to describe the food of the UAE would be akin to asking someone to describe ``the food`` of Manhattan. There is no such thing.

The UAE is so cosmopolitan that every conceivable cuisine is on offer.

Deranged Arranged Marriages Hahahha..

Well written Asad!
I`ve heard the ``all girls are evil and after money`` all too often!

I Could Invent a Religion… Re: # 7

Absolutely! I agree entirely with your post, and judging by the raging debate we had on my previous article, I never thought this could happen!

Religion has degenerated into a force. What`s special about it though, is the power that it has at its disposal. But what the hell gives some priest or religious body a right to order me around? As with many other ills we face in South Asia, the root cause of this malaise is, once again, the lack of education. I`m not saying fervent belief is bad, but people should be in a position to make an informed decision. That`s all.

I Could Invent a Religion…
Revathy,

Great article! I found myself identifying very closely with a lot of things you have written about - from the freedom to read, the falseness of expressions and smiles to being ``dunked into an ocean of religiosity``

I can`t seem to understand what irked Harimau so much that he resorted to a long-winded diatribe about an unfortunate incident in rural UP. The girl wasn`t raped because of her religion... that probably had nothing to do with it. And yet, it created another pretext for empty headed fanatics to annihilate each other.

Rushdie once wrote something along the lines of - everyone needs love and companionship.. and its understandable that God isn`t bothered with the devastation in the world today because he`s more upset with the kind of lovers he`s attracting!

Seoul Searching Re: # 1

I agree.. everything American in Seoul seemed to be given more value than it was worth. Korean teenagers would prefer hanging out at an American bistro as opposed to a Korean fast food restaurant. Classic case of American being ``cool``

Which makes me wonder.. are Indians/Pakistanis more traditional or equally susceptible to American cultural influences, since youngsters throng the McDonalds` but the places are also burnt down by angry protestors every now and then...

Caste, Reservations and Indian Muslims Re: # 3

Sanjay,

Regarding Hinduism, we are still essentially a monotheistic religion. Multiple divinities are presented as different aspects of the same God and multiple names are given for the same God. Hence, whichever deity you pray, you are still reaching God albeit through a different path. This is the basic philosophy of Smarta Hinduism. A true polytheistic faith would be that of the Ancient Greeks.

[...Indian Muslims have been in a disadvantagious position. Because, they do not have any State or Province in India where they are in majority...]

They are a majority in 1 state - that of Jammu & Kashmir - besides numerous towns and districts in various other states, notably Kerala.

As far as reservations are concerned, I agree with you that Indian Muslims need to be given reservations out of the existing reservations, and without increasing the total amount of reservations. However, I`m also intrigued by Salil`s opinion that reservations should be given based on economic status. Attempting to classify ``Dalit Muslims`` is not such a great idea, as it will fracture Islam further.

Time for the mullahs to stop preaching gibberish about jihad and instead focus their energies on exposing and altering the blasphemous and discriminatory practices among the Indian Muslim ``upper classes``

\'Constitutionally\' Different Neighbours Re:

[Rakesh, can you share with us your solution to resolve temple-masjid issues in Mathura and Kashi?]

Krishnaji,

It would be pompous of me to claim that I had a simple solution for an issue that people have been discussing and fighting over for so long. In Mathura, the destruction of the ages old Keshav Dev temple on the Krishnajanmabhoomi by such vandals as Mahmud of Ghazni and Aurangzeb many centuries ago calls for the most bitter denunciations of their actions and motives. A site of paramount spritual significance to the Hindus was obliterated to make way for a mosque. However, it must be noted that these destructions were carried out centuries ago and today, there can be absolutely no excuse whatsoever to justify the demolition/bringing down of a mosque in order to build a temple, or vice versa. The Babri Masjid demolition, while justified by some, was an outrageous and barbaric act.

Although I will be the first to admit that I am not cognizant of the intricacies of matters on the ground, my logic would entail the area being used both as a mosque and as a temple. The area can be shared as a common holy place for Hindus and Muslims, much as Jerusalem is a holy place for more than one religion (although it has its own problems)

In fact, I read once that the Babri Masjid area was used in the 18th century as a religious place of significance for both Hindus and Muslims. There were no serious conflicts then. Why now? Let bygones be bygones sir, that is my philosophy regarding these issues.

\'Constitutionally\' Different Neighbours Re: # 66

[Islamic whatever .... is NOT reactionary. It is the way it is. Violence is a clear, present and legitimate trait of this collective..... If you still think staying silent or accomodating them is going to turn them back into humans, I don`t know what to say]

I must say that your summary of the differing viewpoints is on the mark. However, we might have to jot down another ``problem`` to the list since I do feel that ``Islamic whatever`` is reactionary.. to the extent that, if there`s no perceived threat from Hindus, Americans, liberals..etc.. there`s nothing to stoke the fire.

As far as accomodation is concerned and rhetoric is concerned, it will certainly have an impact on fundamentalism because, we`re essentially denying the mullahs a supply of wood for their fires, to continue the same analogy. However, I do concede that you are right in the sense that no amount of ``silence`` is going to make certain pockets of Muslims less fanatically bent. But yet, despite your reservations against Muslims in general, Islamic fanaticism is not as prevalent in India as it is in other countries. Most are mild... it`s a fact that, on the whole, India has the best behaved Muslims in the world.

But thanks for your post and allowing this mutual share of opinions and stands on such issues.

\'Constitutionally\' Different Neighbours Re: # 49

Touche

\'Constitutionally\' Different Neighbours Re: #60

Wiseguyin,

[ .... However, the same goes for the Hindus as well..... > This is EXACTLY the kinda sh|t that gets the label of secularism in our country. This equating of an obviously violent cult with higher philosphies, as if all of them are equally inclined towards violence, is only going to nurture more Krishnas]

Wiseguyin, we are not debating the relative merits of myriad religions here. We aren`t discussing whether such-and-such religion is inherently violent or peaceful either. Being a Hindu Brahmin myself, I agree wholeheartedly that Hinduism is not just highly philosophical, but rather intellectual as well in a lot of ways. But that doesn`t make us superior in any way to someone of a different faith.

My point in saying that ``However, the same goes for the Hindus as well`` highlights the fact that Hindutva and Islamic fundamentalism are both reactionary forces. Hence, if my statements result in more Hindus being goaded toward ``Krishnaism`` then yours, surely, spur the growth of Islamic fundamentalism. If we can both learn not to viciously offend each other, we wouldn`t have such problems. That, sir, was my point.

[We are supposed to be a hindu majority country and in 6 decades we have not been able to build 1 temple in ayodhya. 1 temple in the birthplace of the lord. Just 1. And its not like we are asking for the temple over Kaaba (though god knows mankind can benefit from that)]

It`s statements like these, that excite feelings unnecessarily. Not so much the wish to build a temple in Ayodhya - which is a legitimate religious concern which can be addressed through dialogue - but rather, the statement about the Ka`aba. These types of statements add momentum to the dastardly Islamic fundamentalists and then their actions add impetus to the Hindus. The cycle will go on. Until we both learn to behave.

\'Constitutionally\' Different Neighbours Re: # 54

[The mistake we made in `47 was to make India a secular country. And follow that with policies which are anti-Hindu.... India to be made a country where all Indic religions have equal and first status. Where Hindus/other Indic religions suppressed all over the world can get asylum. Where Hindus are not discriminated against. ]

So you`d like India to be a Hindu country.. and Hindus have ``first`` status. So doesn`t this indirectly mean that the minorities will be discriminated against? Besides.. what about the affirmative action program, are you against that as well? So India becomes not just Hindu.. but dominated by the Brahmin (like myself) and upper caste elites, just like in the past?

You speak of Hindus being suppressed ``all over the world``... I can understand that they are being not only suppressed, but also strangulated, in Pakistan. But where else? Where else are non-Indian Hindu citizens being suppressed and discriminated against?

\'Constitutionally\' Different Neighbours Re: # 45

Please see #54