In India,
history is being distorted and Hindu belief is often trampled upon with
impunity. It all began with Mohammed bin Qasim's invasion on Sindh in 712 AD.
Continuing the iconoclastic tradition of his predecessors, Babar destroyed Hindu
temples and built mosques thereon, evidence of which is seen in the mosque
adjoining Kashi Vishwanath temple in Varanasi and Krishna Janmabhoomi temple in
Mathura.
We do not know how many temples were destroyed by Muslim rulers in India.
Ironically, not much work has been done to unearth the archaeological evidence
of their destruction for the fear of hurting Muslim sentiments! Millions of
Hindus worship Sri Ram and revere the Ramayan. Yet, some Hindus question the
very existence of Sri Ram and are hell-bent upon destroying Ram Setu. In a
similar situation, Muslims would have been baying for the blood of the offender,
real or imaginary, calling it blasphemy.
‘Minorityism' is being pursued by Indian politicians for getting support from
those who vote en masse. No Hindu will oppose any attempt to improve the lives
of Muslims. Even raising the standards of madarsas will be welcomed. But, at the
same time, what is being taught in madarsas should not be ignored.
In one of her articles in The Pioneer, Indulata Das wrote, "The Washoe County
Commission in the US observed Sanskrit Day on January 12 and organised two
seminars to mark the occasion." Similarly, one needs to know that Max Mueller
had regarded Sanskrit as the "greatest language of the world". Mahatma Gandhi,
too, believed that without the knowledge of Sanskrit nobody could be truly
learned. Ironically, in India, intellectuals, true to their ‘secular' tradition,
will always raise a hue and cry if Sanskrit is made compulsory in schools.
Our secularists need to remember that Hinduism is a liberal religion. It does
not interfere with other faiths.
Upanishads are revered across the world. An ancient shloka says, "Sarve
sukhino santu, sarve santu niramaya, sarve bhadrani pashyantu, ma kaschit
dukshamapnuyat" (Let everyone be happy; let everyone remain healthy; let
everybody see good; let not anybody feel sorrow). So, by promoting Sanskrit,
communal harmony can be restored.
If the country is to attain glory and peace, we must be made to read ancient
Hindu scriptures. We should know what Hinduism stands for.
Source : The Pioneer (Delhi Edition)
Date : 22-may-2008
author : JC Chatterji
I n India, history is being distorted
and Hindu belief is often trampled upon with impunity. It all began with
Mohammed bin Qasim's invasion on Sindh in 712 AD. Continuing the icono- clastic
tradition of his predecessors, Babar destroyed Hindu temples and built mosques
thereon, evidence of which is seen in the mosque adjoining Kashi Vish- wanath
temple in Varanasi and Krishna Janmabhoomi temple in Mathura. We do not know how
many temples were destroyed by Muslim rulers in India. Ironically, not much work
has been done to unearth the archaeological evidence of their destruction for
the fear of hurting Muslim sentiments! Millions of Hindus worship Sri Ram and
revere the Ramayan. Yet, some Hin- dus question the very existence of Sri Ram
and are hell-bent upon destroying Ram Setu. In a similar situation, Mus- lims
would have been baying for the blood of the offender, real or imaginary, calling
it blasphemy. ‘Minorityism' is being pursued by Indian politicians for getting
support from those who vote en masse. No Hindu will oppose any attempt to
improve the lives of Muslims. Even raising the stan- dards of madarsas will be
welcomed. But, at the same time, what is being taught in madarsas should not be
ignored. In one of her articles in The Pioneer, Indulata Das wrote, "The Washoe
Coun- ty Commission in the US observed San- skrit Day on January 12 and
organised two seminars to mark the occasion." Similarly, one needs to know that
Max Mueller had regarded Sanskrit as the "greatest language of the world".
Mahat- ma Gandhi, too, believed that without the knowledge of Sanskrit nobody
could be truly learned. Ironically, in India, intellectuals, true to their
‘secular' tradi- tion, will always raise a hue and cry if Sanskrit is made
compulsory in schools. Our secularists need to remember that Hinduism is a
liberal religion. It does not interfere with other faiths. Upanishads are
revered across the world. An ancient shloka says, "Sarve sukhino santu, sarve
santu niramaya, sarve bhadrani pashyantu, ma kaschit dukshamapnuyat" (Let
everyone be happy; let everyone remain healthy; let everybody see good; let not
anybody feel sorrow). So, by promoting Sanskrit, com- munal harmony can be
restored. If the country is to attain glory and peace, we must be made to read
ancient Hindu scriptures. We should know what Hinduism stands for.
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