RMF Summary: Week of June 27 - July 3, 2011

June 27
European critiqyue of Aryan myth
N. S. Rajaram shares an update: Newsgram has carried by book review column on a European perspective on the Aryan myth here. From all this it is clear that India and Indians are the principal propagators of this monstrocity. 

The post below generated an extensive discussion. Click the link to read thru the feedback and comments.
June 27
Kerala school textbook propogates Marxist ideology
http://expressbuzz.com/states/kerala/kerala-school-textbook-propagates-marxism/279305.html THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Catholic Church in Kerala has taken serious...

June 28
{Breaking India} Caldwell: Transforming Linguistics into Ethnology
Excerpted with permission from Malhotra, Rajiv and Aravindan Neelakandan, "Breaking India: Western Interventions in Dravidian and Dalit Faultlines," Amaryllis...

June 28
Re: Islamic and Christian Inculturation
Ganesh seemingly sets the cat among the pigeons with the question:  
Now that this discussion has begun, here's the biggest spanner in the Cog wheel. How do we go about identifying ourselves? As "Hindu's" or as "Sindhu's" or just say we are the descendants of those who lived in Sindhu valley civilization. As per Swami Vivekananda's own admission the word "Sa" in Sindhu was replaced by "Ha" to become Hindu, for the Persian invaders didn't have "Sa" in their vocabulary. If one goes by this logic, then the very identity of many of us Hindu's, is an Islamic one.

Shaas responds:
"Although I like your strain of thinking, you cannot say that the word "Hindu", means your "identification" is islamic! Even as a "Hindu" you identify with the values of Sindhu Civilization, Vedic Civilization."

Utsav thinks aloud:
"I thought that it was the Pre- Islamic Persians who themselves were Proto- Vedic, who used the term "Hindu"."

N. S. Rajaram responds:
"Achaemenid emperor Darius in his Behistun inscription refers to his Indian satrapy as 'Hindush'"


Ganesh follows up:
"But none of our scriptures use the word Hindu. When you do homas and yagnas, mantras are chanted in praise of River Sindhu. "Sindhu nadhi theeray......." etc. River Sindhu is one of the 5 tributaries of the, what is today sadly called a mystical river, River Saraswati."


Followup thread #1
June 28
Antiquity and origin of the term 'Hindu'
I am attaching the copy of Antiquity and origin of the term 'Hindu' by Dr. Murlidhar H. Pahoja... and conclusions ...
In the Avesta, Hapta-Hindu is used for Sanskrit Sapta-Sindhu, the Avesta being dated variously between 5000-1000 B.C. This indicates that the term 'Hindu' is as old as the word 'Sindhu'. Sindhu is a Vedik term used in the Rigveda. And therefore, 'Hindu' is as ancient as the Rigveda.

Followup thread #2
Islamic and Christian inculturation
I am starting a new thread on this as it has moved from the original Kerala story. I appreciate the points raised by Kaajal on Muslim preachers not pretending...
  
This is another very important thread that deals with intellectually and factually countering Marxist revisionism that is rampant in India, which we summarize in depth below.
June 29
Countering marxist ideology through literary works.
Ganesh:
I hope there are enough Kerala literary writers who have managed to go the Sri. S L Bhyrappa's way, by coming out with a block buster book titled "Aavarana" that directly hits out at the subversive nature of Marxists and the so called pseudo-secular Gnanapeeta Prashasti winners like U R Ananthamurthy and his intellectual entourage. Aavarana, since it's launch in 2007, is into it's 26th re-print with close to 10,000 copies printed every time. So popular is the book that U R Ananthamurthy launched a failed book countering "Aavarna" titled "Aavaranada AnavaranNa".

http://aavaranavimarshe.blogspot.com/http://aavaranavimarshe.blogspot.com/

http://churumuri.wordpress.com/2007/06/02/sl-bhyrappa-versus-ur-anantha-murthy/

U R Ananathamurthy even confessed to being a Marxist ideology follower in the recently concluded Vishwa Kannada Sammelana held in Belagavi (Belgaum) between 11-13 March,2011.


followup response on 'Aavarana':
"are there any english translation available for Aavarana?"

Parts were translated & posted here:

http://www.sandeepweb.com/2008/12/06/the-best-of-aavarana/

http://www.sandeepweb.com/2008/12/20/best-of-avarana-2/

http://www.sandeepweb.com/2009/03/25/best-of-aavarana-3/

http://www.sandeepweb.com/2009/06/23/best-of-aavarana-4/

Book review:

http://www.sandeepweb.com/2007/06/14/book-review-aavarana/


mailmeys adds:
"Aavarana deals with the "real" history of India, and starts in the backdrop of ruins of Vijayanagar, the last great Hindu empire. Robert Sewell, had written a book on the empire titled -  "A Forgotten Empire : Vijayanagar". It has written based on the basis of Portuguese Chronicles and accounts of the Muslim historian Firistah. The text is available on gutenberg -

The history is fascinating, and it is also very informative - and lays bare all facts about Tughlaq, his empire, the tyranny endured by Hindus in his rule, his attacks on South India, the excesses of Bahamani Sultans, and subsequent history(has described by Firistah himself)

The success of Vijayanagar, Devaraya and Krishandevaraya's spectaular rule, and the factors leading to downfall of empire are also well written. Will post more resources on the real history of India and Indian empires."


atrineer provides another useful reference:
"For the inquisition at Goa, A.K.Priolkar's 'The Goa inquisition' is a good book. Like wise there is a book written by a french doctor named Dillon, who was a victim of the Goa Inquisition."

June 29
Re: Dictionary of Islam
*June 29, 2011* ** *The Dictionary of Islam *by Thomas Hughes, reprinted by RUPA is also a useful reference. It was written in the 19th C when people were not...
    
This thread generated a lot of discussion. Click the link below to read in full.
June 30 
Purva-Paksha
Kaajal asks: I do agree with Rajiv (and I certainly fall into that category too) that most Hindus lack in-depth knowledge of their own and other religious traditions. Some of this is apathy but much of it is also the inadequate opportunities for serious study of religion in India. Perhaps Rajiv (and others) could suggest ways in which some of us may become better educated and able to engage in discussions with Christians/Muslims etc. Short of going back to school (this may not be an option for many of us), is there a reading list that could be posted here for us. A 101 that would give us all the basic grounding in the theological issues that surface regularly. This list would be in addition of course to the books/articles already authored by Rajiv who tackles many of these issues. Thank you"


[the original newsgram link that is referred to below appears to be dead. Here is an alternative link].
June 30
"The Dangerous Idea of Martyrdom" - my new column
Rajiv Malhotra: Please read my latest column that addresses the religious foundations on which modern suicide bombing is based. I am implicating the much celebrated notion of "martyrdom" in the Abrahamic religions. There are too many martyrs being honored, and these have traditionally served as role models for the younger generation to emulate. This "hall of fame" of martyrs needs to be dismantled as part of peace movements. We should stop encouraging people to die for their religion in fights with others. The whole business of victim hood has also emerged out of this principle of martyrdom.

This is a very provocative piece, because it says things that are not polite, but such a public debate is necessary if we are to make progress.

Farzana disagrees and Rajiv counters:
Suicide Bombing has nothing to do with Abrahamic faiths or martyrdom , the practice was started by Sri Lankan Tamil Hindus, the LTTE. so how do you related it there?

Rajiv response: Not true. Please read my article to get the history.

There is a great book, "God against the Gods", by Jonathan Kirsch. He gives the history of early christianity's focus on encouraging martyrdom for gaining religious merit. These zealous christians were encouraged to provoke fights in
order to become martyrs. This kind of behavior was broadcast in order to encourage more persons. Such martyrs were celebrated, honored, and many of the thousand of saints were recognized primarily for their martyrdom. To fight infidels became seen as the highest sacrifice for God.

Please remember that Jesus is considered the first martyr ...

N. S. Rajaram recommends:
"Please see also *The Calcutta Quran Petition *by Sita Ram Goel. The very fact that a shahid (martyr) has the highest place reserved in the Islamic heaven-- higher even that a ghazi (Islamic warrior) shows that martyrdom is an ancient Islamic notion."    


George provides another reference:
"... Martyrdom is the indispensable fuel for the Abrahamic engine, without which it wouldn't have made much progress. For this very reason early Western Christianity was called the "Cult of the Saints". For more information read "The Cult of the Saints: Its Rise and Function in Latin Christianity (The Haskell Lectures on History of Religions)" by Peter Brown.

Martyrdom is the main ingredient in the conditioning cocktail of young men and women whose flesh and blood are more or less used as manure for the growth of Abrahamic religions... "
 


Karigar comments on LTTE's suicide bombers and Hinduism:
"Also, as far as the LTTE being "hindu" is concerned, the cat has been out of that bag for a while, especially after it's leader Methodist Velupillai Pirabakaran's killing. The few hindus at the higher echelons of LTTE hierarchy had a bad time, many left.

Not to mention that Breaking India carries a substantial portion of how the Church nexus works in Sri Lanka with the displaced Tamils. The LTTE was given moral & ideological support by Christian churches is a well documented fact.

While there is a certain universal glamour to the concept of martyrdom (yes we honor Bhagat Singh, and have historically honored Abhimanyu amongst many other warrious who died fighting against odds), the key points made by Rajiv need to be considered:

(a) to provoke situations where the "martyr" then goes & dies for the "cause" and
(b) to theologically justify that as a major-tenet of the faith

-these are Abrahamic innovations and the least they can do is introspect on the facts.
"


Anil wonders if Rajiv's killer was Hindu:
"Was the Tamil who killed Rajiv Gandhi a Hindu or a Christian? I assumed he was Hindu but some have said he was not. Does anyone know the truth?"

Rajiv Malhotra responds to Anil

Sonia G wanted the jailed woman in Rajiv G's murder case to be pardoned. Said she had repented (a Christian act) and deserved redemption. This was protested by many in opposition. I dont know what the courts decided...

Rajiv Malhotra adds:
"When evangelism appropriates the cult of glorifying martyrs, that is the deadly mixture we are talking about. If a tradition has no evangelical mandates from God then there is no large organized campaign to expand, and in this case a random martyr here and there does not amount to the same thing..."

Vedamohabir provides additional information:
"A major reason for the mothers' support for sons' martyrdom in Islam, is that the son can then intercede/mediate on their and several dozen relatives' behalf to facilitate entry into Paradise."

Rajiv Malhotra responds:

"Mormons also believe in a system of someone being able to
relocate dead relatives to heaven. A distant relative of mine who has converted to Mormonism is desperately trying to raise funds that he must donate to their church, and also trying to convince his parents to convert, because that opens the possibility to get all his forefathers moved to heaven waiting them for a great family reunion. This man is well educated, raised Hindu (the sameness/sufi kind) and was once a top executive at ATT."


Rajiv Malhotra provides additional references that you will have to click on your own :)
DISCLAIMER: Becoming known as a reader of the following works could be dangerous for your reputation.        
Rajiv Malhotra requests readers to post their comments on newsgram where the original article appeared and shares the reason why his amazing Sulekha articles that opened the eyes of so many Hindus around the world stopped appearing. The reasons are not surprising.
".... Besides I want to encourage that web site, which is today roughly the size and popularity where Sulekha.com was when I was invited to write there. I became Sulekha's most popular blogger by far, and sulekha turned into the most visited web site in its space. Unfortunately, thats when friends of Courtright-Doniger-Hawley lobbied to deny me equal access in a big fight that I had started there. I am told that advertisers in NY were called by certain members of SAJA, to threaten Sulekha with loss of sponsorship if they continued to let me express my opinions. Thats when Sulekha did its u-turn. Not only did they do nasty things that were one-sided, they also stopped responding to all my emails. Many mutual friends tried on my behalf but same results. Lately they are changing again and want my writings back. But this time around I decided that we need many such outlets, not just one or two. Hence, Newsgram would be a good one to help build up.

I have just started writing what will turn out to be an enormous number of challenges to the prevailing discourse. This will trouble many persons, which I wish could be avoided. But in the interest of truth, I have to accept their anger as collateral damage. (Caution: The Truth will ultimately set you free; but in meanwhile it might also piss you off!)..."


Another followup thread

Re: "The Dangerous Idea of Martyrdom" - LTTE anti-Hindu

LTTE leadership was strongly anti-Hindu beginning with its leader Prabhakaran. It was financed and inspired by Christian missionaries. It is only the latest in...


July 1
Students convert to bag B.Ed. seats
*Students convert to bag B.Ed. seats - From TOI Archives* 30/06/2011 13:55:52 ...

July 1
Fw: [breakingindia] Need advice on how to dialog with an elite who h
A discussion with a Roman Catholic to whom I said that I deeply respected Jesus as an ethical figure. So did Gandhiji who said that the Sermon on the Mount...

July 1
{Breaking India} A Conspiracy Theory is Born: Cunning Aryan Brahmins
Excerpted with permission from Malhotra, Rajiv and Aravindan Neelakandan, "Breaking India: Western Interventions in Dravidian and Dalit Faultlines,"...
 
July 1
Interesting combination of carnatic music and christianity
See the message below from a gentleman who also teaches in our Temple weekend Hindu school. He received a copy of "Breaking India" a few weeks back.

July 2
The Myth of St. Thomas Matyrdom
An article in Deccan Herald, with the church letter propagating the myth. ...
  
July 2
Rajesh Rao: A Rosetta Stone for the Indus script
A TED talk: Rajesh Rao: A Rosetta Stone for the Indus script ...

July 3
Video: US Congress testimony against India's "persecution" of Christ
... Just as you explained during your talk at Cerittos Library in Los Angeles, how a fictitious story from some small Christian source in Bharat is churned & turned around to form this fictitious Big foot monster that "Christians/Muslims are being persecuted by blood thirsty Hindus"; here is an example of it.
In this video, Florida Republican HouseRep Cliff Stearns is speaking on floor of US Congress about some alleged attack on Christians & Evangelists by "Hindu extremists" ....



July 3
Re: "The Dangerous Idea of Martyrdom" - and slavery
N S Rajaram: I would also recommend the 8 volume magnum opus History of India as Told by India's Own Historians compiled by Eliot and Dowson. It is available from D.K. Publishers of New Delhi.

Rajiv response: 
the above book is the one I refer to in my post as the final item. Now Marxist historians try to cover for Islam by saying that this was british propaganda

Manas responds to a book request:
"Volume 6 available here:
In the top right corner, there is a download link.


Vishal provides another option for interested readers:
"All 8 volumes can be dowloaded as Word docs from scribd.com"
[here's the link]

July 3
{Breaking India} Propagation of ˜ Dravidian Christianity - 2000 - 20
Excerpted with permission from Malhotra, Rajiv and Aravindan Neelakandan, "Breaking India: Western Interventions in Dravidian and Dalit Faultlines," Amaryllis...
  
July 3 
Islamic 'evangelicalism' - Try a religion for a month!!!
'The Blood Foundation', a NGO in Thailand runs two unique programs as part of '*promoting positive intercultural experiences*', *'**Monk for a Month' *and...

July 3
Breaking India - continued activities in Bengaluru
I was in for a pleasant surprise, yesterday, when I dropped in on Mr. K.Chandrasekhar in Banashankari, famed chronicler of the life and times of U.G....
 

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