Look At Your Own Religion

By Sumit Paul, New Age Islam 15 May 2023 “If anyone thinks he is religious and does not bridle his tongue but deceives his heart, this person's religion is worthless." James 1:26 This refers to a reader's nudge to Dr Anburaj that instead of criticizing Islam or other faiths, he should look at the anomalies his own religion (read Hinduism) is fraught with. So very true. In 1988, a British sociologist K S Gilbert came to Calcutta to study the abominable caste system and now-prohibited practice of Sati (also written Suttee) in Hinduism. It's worthwhile to mention that when an 18-yr-old Roop Kanwar was burned alive (the poor girl tried to run away but was caught and burned!) with her deceased husband at Deorala in Rajasthan on September 4, 1987, the whole world condemned India and Hinduism. Gilbert wanted to delve into the minds of Hindus and know how even in this modern age, such obnoxious practices were still not only prevalent but was tacitly extolled even by the 'educated' Hindus. In fact, Hinduism not only encouraged such horrific practices but institutionalized them. Even a man of M K Gandhi's compassion and understanding, tried to justify Chatur Varna (Brahman, Kshatriya, Vaishya and Shudra), thus angering Dr Ambedkar. Had Hinduism been considerate and compassionate towards Dalits or downtrodden and the Dalits would have been treated on a par with the upper caste, many of them would never have embraced Islam and Christianity. Have you ever thought as to why scores of (converted) Muslims in the sub-continent have so much hatred for Hindus (and vice versa)? Thompson and Claire's psychological study of the effects of deep-seated anger would explain this. A big chunk of today's converted Muslims had Hindu ancestors belonging to Dalit stratum of the society. Having been marginalised and humiliated by the Hindus for centuries, those helpless Dalits accepted Islam and Christianity. That the sub-continental Islam and Christianity also discriminate on the basis of a convert's earlier caste (!) is different. The point is, if your Hinduism was so liberal and all-encompassing, why did it treat Dalits so badly for millenniums? Why did it burn widows for centuries? Why didn't your social reformers like Vivekananda and Ramakrishna Paramhansa condemn it openly and vocally? Vivekananda did criticise Sati Pratha, albeit tepidly. In fact, had the Muslim and Christian 'invaders' not come to India and abolished Sati, the Hindus would still have been burning young women along with their departed hubbies. We can see a tiny particle in the eyes of a person, but a rod in our own eyes remains invisible to us. All religions are bogus, including Dr Anburaj's Hinduism. Here, I'm not a spokesman of Islam. I've no fascination or fondness for any damn faith. I'm just stating the facts in an unvarnished manner. ----- A regular columnist for New Age Islam, Sumit Paul is a researcher in comparative religions, with special reference to Islam. He has contributed articles to the world's premier publications in several languages including Persian. URL: https://newageislam.com/spiritual-meditations/religion-hinduism-sati/d/129778 New Age Islam, Islam Online, Islamic Website, African Muslim News, Arab World News, South Asia News, Indian Muslim News, World Muslim News, Women in Islam, Islamic Feminism, Arab Women, Women In Arab, Islamophobia in America, Muslim Women in West, Islam Women and Feminism