Paara

HINDU DHARMA IN A CHANGING WORLD
Dr. BABU SUSEELAN
For centuries, our Vedas, Upanishads, Darsanas, and Purnas have influenced the originators of different schools of Philosophy, Psychology, Health and Natural Sciences, Ethics, Logic, Art and literature. Our all inclusive thought system has provided the world with a rich, highly complex philosophical system that covers every aspect of the universe. Our great Rishis held that the universe reveals the workings, the development, the realization, the unfolding of the world spirit (Brahman). The universe is spiritual. It has direction and the explanation of ordinary facts, human action, change and strategies for living. As a result India became opulent. We became rich with spiritual, cultural and universal thought system. Hindu Dharma has attracted the attention of world’s greatest thinkers, scholars and philosophers.
Even today Hindutva has more explanation on the world than those available in Newtonian mechanics or Darwinian biology, Social Darwinism, Empiricism, Rationalism, and Marxism or in any other fundamentalist, reductionist dogmas.
Hindu concept of Integral Humanism is instrumental in the current Human Rights moment and Environmental Protection Movement. Life-Span Development in Psychology, Transcendentalism, Holistic Health Care, transition from the disease model to Life Model of Practice in psychiatry and general systems theory has its roots in our Vedas. Even before eclectic thinkers coined the term “Global Village”, we have been preaching, practicing and promoting the concept of “Lokha Samsatha Sukhino Bhavanthu and Vasudeva Kudumbakam”. System thinkers and activists of several social movements seeking foundations and scaffolds for their principles and programs were inspired by our universal, pluralistic and all inclusive Vedas, Upanishads and Darsanas.
In spite of our universal, systemic, all inclusive and tolerant philosophy, and pacifism; we were invaded, attacked; our wealth was looted, our country was divided, minds were polluted, people were forcefully converted and people were misdirected.
Thousands of years of Islamic invasion and Christian colonialism had resulted in Hindus moving in different directions with lack of self—esteem. We have embraced alien ideologies. Our bogus secularists, Marxists, atheists and Jihadist have made an unholy alliance against Hindutva. They have deliberately infused mind viruses and we became victims of infinite variety of disorders including Cognitive Disorder, Denial, pacifism, apathy, indifference and escapism.
DOING GOOD: THE LIMITS OF BENEVOLENCE
Bahujana Hithaya
Bhahujana Sukhaaya
(We always aspires the welfare and Happiness of one and all)
Our highest goal is “Asato Maa Sadgamaya (Lead me from Unreal to Reality)
Tamaso Maa Jyotirgamaya (Lead me from darkness to light)
Mritor Maa Amritanagamaya (Lead me from death to immortality)
We believe and practice Ahimsa, tolerance, pluralism, coexistence, human rights, universalism and secularism. In the name of tolerance, pluralism and secularism, we also accept without critical evaluation parochialism, alien ideologies, Hajj subsidy, favoritism, and special privileges provided to people who are forcefully and deceptively converted into exclusivist dogmas.
Concealing the truth, ignoring reality and blind acceptance of dangerous and destructive practices may often lead to terrible results. While our impulse for benevolence is well intentioned, the results often border on insanity. We, Hindus with tolerant and passive nature accept rather than challenge critical issues.
Hindus need to address several pressing problems facing us. We cannot move forward by hiding behind a thick wall of Denial. Overcoming denial and facing threatening issues like coercive religious conversion, Jihadi terrorism, subversive activities and Marxist menace are very important.
Several Hindu organizations and spiritual leaders continue to spend too much time looking inward, planning too much from the past history, rather than creative imagination and current reality. They suffer from indifference, apathy, otherworldliness, and do not demonstrate sophistication needed to be viable and visible, let alone assertive in the changing political context. They may have good intentions. Are good intentions good enough? I do not condemn those who wish to preach “Aham Brahmasmi” Ahimsa Paramodharma or “Vasudeva Kudumbhakam”. Searching always within for answers for external causes, blaming Hindu victims, having guilt without reasons, use of twisted logic and excessive zeal for pseudo secularism continue to plague Hindus around the world.
The Denial, Cognitive confusion, and the secular disorder have so twisted reality while Hindu intellectuals and activists are called dysfunctional; and pseudo-secularists, Marxist anarchists, Jihadi terrorists and conversion mafia are regarded as hope of India. Such irrational logic and twisted thinking have unintended consequences.
In an attempt to preach suppression of our desires, ahimsa, tolerance and do good philosophy, very often bad things happen. India’s sacred institutions are destroyed, temple wealth is looted, and our children are made into slobs and zombies. Our phony secularism has produced a bumper crop of homegrown traitors. While Jihadi terrorists are stabbing us in the throat, these traitors are stabbing us in the back. Our moral codes, social ethos, culture and spiritual traditions are either deconstructed or destroyed. Camouflaged under a number of catch phrases like “Prolitarian revolution, labor unity, multi-culturalism, religious pluralism, our enemies are pushing Bharat and Hindu Dharma off the planet.
WHO POISONED THE SYSTEM
The Congress party, Marxist anarchists and the jihadis have made an unholy alliance against Hindus and they compromise our national security, and strip India from the rock-bed Hindu identity. Further jack hammering the foundations of our Hindu identity has been coercive and deceptive conversion.
To destroy a country, Solzhenitsyn wrote, you must cut its roots. India’s roots are in sanathan Dharma, in large measure been severed. In books, plays and films Hindus are mocked for amusement of secularists. In the name of modernity and progress social decadence is promoted. India’s schools teach anti Hindutva. Our educational curricula have been systematically chained of all Hindu contents; they have lost all trace of Hindu character. Our educational system is raising a nation of cowards. There is no means of teaching our young about the glorious attributes of heroism and patriotism. Since independence our country has produced a sizable number of spineless, luxury-loving, spiritless characters. As we all know patriotism feeds upon hero-worship and we have abolished heroes from our education. Our traditional Vandemataram is replaced with Mary Had a Little Lamb, Shivaji Maharaja and Jhansi Rani were replaced with Hansel and Gretel. Even the fairy tales and nursery rhymes beloved by generations of children were abandoned, and tinkered with. Sri Rama, Sri Krishna, Bhima and Arjuna have been replaced by Mickey Mouse, Kermit the Frog and Miss Piggy. Instead of studying heroic deeds of Bhagat Singh and Vir Sarvarkar, our children are taught blasphemous images of atheist Nehru and Boforous fame Italian catholic Sonia. Our national nose has been first tweaked and then rubbed contemptuously into the dirt.
The results are plain for all to see. Our youngsters are growing up to become slobs. Thus, the expulsion of our Dharmic system from education and a collapse in public morality has gone hand in hand with the collapse of public morality. We are in deep denial that our nation is in danger and many of us neither know nor care. It is our own fault. We were busy embracing alien ideologies and we forgot that the first duty of a nation is to secure its cultural, spiritual institutions and value system. Our values that we have treasured were allowed to fade away from our class room and the consciousness of the public.
Our current secular education system forces people to escape from reality, behave like zombies, and accept falsehood as reality. They are persuaded that to be tolerance of intolerant dogmas and intolerant brutes id a positive virtue. People are indoctrinated to believe that India is a country of multiple culture and all religions are the same.
What went wrong? What is the alternative? Do we want Marxist anarchism, Maoist violence, Jihadi terrorism, coercive religious conversion, constant decaying of our moral values to continue? If the answer is NO, then we have to do something urgently. We want our fellow Hindus informed and disciplined, alert and assertive. Our country is in a strange sort of war against our Dharma. Throughout our modern history a substantial number of our leaders sold out our country. There are many things we did not learn from history. Much of what ails India is due to our apathy, indifference and our inaction. And his indifference and apathy has led to a moral disarmament and political paralysis. If we are detached, someone’s values are going to prevail, then why not ours? Why should the moral codes of bogus secularism, Jihadism and Marxism prevail? Why should a minority rather than the majority see its values dominant? If tolerance is a necessary virtue in our democratic society, there must be tolerance for the values of the majority.
Today, in India, it is popular among self-styled “intellectuals” to sneer at patriotism, question our sacred values and insult our Hindu nationalists with contempt. But in the present decadent atmosphere Hindus often are too shy to talk about it-as if it were something shameful or irrational weakness. Hindutva is not sentimental nonsense. Nor something dreamed up by demagogues.
We cannot accuse our sacred philosophy of Hindutva of incapacity to find a solution to our problems. We have to lift the fog surrounding us. Let it be recognized that we Hindus have as much responsibility to defend our sacred thought system, culture and our country with insight and collective will.
The only option Hindus have then, is never cease struggling-until we have re-created a government and India that conforms, as close as possible to our image of the good society based on Hindu Dharma. Our struggle will be endless and it will define us, test us, and likely provide us rewards.
TAKING THE HIGH GROUND
We cannot succeed or move forward by hiding the facts. We have to move forward with pragmatism, realism and strength. We have to wage a relentless battle for the hearts and minds of Hindus.
We live in dreadful times. When dogmatism, bogus secularism and fundamentalism are seeking and despising our all inclusive Hindutva, we should not shirk the responsibility to carry with vigor and vitality.
Hindus have to be strong, active, assertive, and fight for our survival. Only lower level people who are so poor in spirit and spineless secularists, and luxury loving political leaders are refusing to fight or join battle. Their main problem is the bogus secular frame of mind that considers it unsophisticated and narrow minded to love our country, our sacred Dharma. They are very skeptical of their own country, but very tolerant and open-minded of Jihadis, Marxists and totalitarian dogmas. Their main hobby is to renounce, insult and demean Hindutva.
Hindu leaders and laymen must develop basic skills for critical thinking and techniques for perception management. The skills are essential for separating facts from opinion; identify media manipulation and psychological warfare against Hindus. The ability to make the basic distinction between factual statements and statements for mental misdirection and deception is required for all Hindus.
Hindu Dharma is the soul of our nation. It is the spiritual values that bind us. It is the set of values, ideals pervading our consciousness that has been with us for centuries. Whether we admit it or not, and even if we claim we are not religious, we tend to operate according to our vision, spiritual tradition and moral values. This unifying Dharma is now under attack by phony secularists, mindless Marxists, Maoist anarchists, Jihadis and conversion gangs. They subscribe to alien dogmas. These dogmas are contradictory not complementary. They are not mutually supportive but destructive.
THE WAY OUT
All progress starts from an attitude and electing/selecting the right people to represent us. Ultimately we get what we deserve. The power of intention runs this creation. If the intention is strong and focused enough we can create whatever we want.
We cannot also escape the responsibility of correcting contemporary issues threatening our survival. Many of the issues of our times are how to understand the plurality of causes that precipitate such issues. Whether the particular issue is Jihadi terrorism, coercive religious conversion, corruption, Love Jihad, our preferred explanation tends to be internal that is speak no evil, see no evil, and hear no evil.
The great escape of our times is escape from analyzing external realities. The explanation is automatically assumed to be internal and the solution is assumed to be “keep quiet”.
Our political leaders seldom look for any facts that might be against the explanations that sets their meaningless philosophy. There can be grave consequences on insisting “blame the victim” philosophy. This allows individuals to escape personal responsibility. It is not the non-judgmental ideology of the intellectuals but also the self-interest of politicians that leads to so much down playing external problems, and external explanations to “solve” the problem. Blaming the victim policy is not likely to solve the country’s problems.
Hindus who intend to do very much for Hindustan have to accept the fact that there will be times when we will not receive approval from everyone. The need to get approval from our enemies will steal our destiny.
Hindus around the world must now join together and work with fire, the conviction and the clear vision. If we are united we can return with strength to erase the corrosive influence of today’s fake secularists. We can and we will one day return Hindustan and India to its glorious roots of freedom and spiritual practice. Our work is about Hindus that once were, and Hindus that could be again-if we have the will to stand and fight against the enemy within and without.
WHAT CAN ONE HINDU DO?
Hindus must design new messages that must bring about an attitude that must cause action. This requires that we must sent persuasion (advocacy) messages that offer the best solution (or the logical one) toward solving the problem addressed or fulfilling target needs. Persuasive message can be designed to induce perspective behavioral change or perform activities as a proud Hindu.
The aim is to provide an algorithm for implementing techniques for multi-channel support from Hindus.
Every Hindu must get into daily habit of writing brief letters to elected representatives, state and central ministers and newspaper editors on pressing issues like:
Declare a moratorium on Tax payer subsidy for Hajj
Central government must enact common civil law for all citizens
Each and every state must enact ant-conversion laws
Demand Hindu temple management should be handed over to Hindu organizations
Elect only good Hindu candidates with proven track record
Show up during election time and vote for the right Hindu candidate
Visit local temples and support Hindu organizations
Participate in Hindu community activities and do voluntary service for the community
India’s secular brigade has joined with our enemies to destroy our nation and culture with their corrosive lies and deception techniques. It is our duty to fight back for Dharma for our life and for the lives of our next generation. Act now before it is too late.

‘Love Jehad’ figment of imagination: PUCL

Bangalore: The People’s Union for Civil Liberties (PUCL) has said it will file a writ petition in the Supreme Court challenging the Karnataka High Court’s order asking a woman who had converted to Islam to marry a Muslim man from Kerala, to return to her parents’ home until the case was investigated.
The PUCL will question the decision of the High Court to send the 23-year-old woman back to her family despite her statement in court that she had willingly converted and was waiting to get married under the provisions of the Special Marriages Act.
Hearing the case of Siljaraj and Azghar, the court had said the facts had “national ramifications concerning security, besides the question of unlawful trafficking of women,” and ordered the Director-General and Inspector-General of Police to hold a thorough investigation to rule out the theory that this was a case of ‘love jehad’ (a loose coinage implying that women are being lured into conversion through marriage) and file a report by November 13. The girl was asked to stay with her parents until such time.
“She is a major and no one has a right to thrust her back into the family. We see it as part of a pattern of continued intimidation on the basis of community and gender, first started in Dakshina Kannada,” said Ramadasa Rao of the PUCL. He feared that the girl might come under pressure of family and community during her stay with them.
The whole notion of ‘love jehad’, said Professor Rao, is a “figment of the imagination” and the order will severely impact the rights of young women and men to free association and marriage.
Reacting to the order, senior advocate Ravi Varma Kumar said that it violated Article 21 (of life and personal liberty) and Article 25 (of freedom of religion) of the Indian Constitution. He cited Lata Singh vs. State of Uttar Pradesh, 2006, in which the Supreme Court upheld the right of a person who had reached the age of majority to marry of his or her own choice. Kirti Singh, a Supreme Court advocate and legal convener of the All India Democratic Women’s Association (AIDWA), described the case as “absolutely shocking.” She said the question of national security was being mixed up with the simple case of a girl exercising a choice guaranteed to her under the law of the land and Constitution. “The court has taken a patriarchal role,” she said, stating that it reflected intolerance for the girl’s choices.
In Bangalore, Home Minister V.S. Acharya told reporters that ‘love jehad’ appeared to be a “serious issue.” The State government would take steps to counter it.
The Muslim Central Committee of Dakshina Kannada and Udupi districts will convene a conference of Muslims in Mangalore on November 12 to discuss issues related to ‘love jehad’.
Addressing reporters in Mangalore on Thursday, committee president K.S. Mohammed Masood alleged that vested interests were attempting to tarnish the image of Islam by framing the phrase ‘love jehad’. “There is no such phrase in Islam. It is an absurd usage,” he added.

The conventions are less than ten months away. How are the organizations doing?
Are you satisfied with the work of each organization? What are the problems with each organization?
Is unity still needed? Also, what is the relevance of court cases now?
Sasidharan Nair says that Fokana registerd another name. Is it wrong?

DO ALL CHRISTIANS GO TO HEAVEN?
By Stephen Knapp

Most Christians feel that they are bound to go to heaven simply because, as they say, Christ died for their sins. This is one of the basic principles of Christianity, which was an idea that originated from the apostle Paul. How do I know this? Because I was born and raised a Christian for 20 years of my life and seriously studied it out of my own conviction for several years as well. So, many Christians seem to think, and some even say, that even if they cannot give up all of their sinful habits, all they have to do is believe in Jesus and that he died for their sins, and they will be saved. It’s very simple. So when they compare Christianity with other religions, this is one of the reasons why they point out it is so much easier than others. They especially do this when preaching to Hindus or Buddhists in their attempt to convince them to convert. Yet, mere belief in Jesus and his crucifixion as being all you need to be saved is a controversial point.
Not all of the gospels that were in circulation when the New Testament was compiled agreed that the crucifixion was an act of atonement. Nor when you really study the teachings of Jesus is this elementary thinking advocated. It is a little more complicated than merely believing in something, which the next few pages will point out. This means that it may not be so easy for just anyone to claim to be a Christian and have an easy path to heaven.

First of all people need to realize that Jesus was a Jew whose message was primarily for the Jewish people. In Matthew (10.5-6), Jesus tells his twelve disciples to go and preach, but not to the Gentiles (non-Jews), nor to the Samaritans, but go to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. This was to whom he wanted his message to reach. Again in Matthew (15.22-24), a woman besought Jesus and asked for mercy because her daughter was vexed with a devil. But Jesus said nothing to her. Even his disciples, who were Jews, asked him to send her away because she cried after them. Yet his answer was that he had come to this world only for the lost sheep of Israel. His intention was to help only the Jewish people. Only after much pleading from the woman did Jesus finally cure her daughter. So this seems to indicate that Jesus’ main interest was with the Jews; yet, they completely rejected him. They did not accept him as a divine savior. And when he
was crucified by the Romans, this was taken as further indication that he was not the messiah that was described in the Jewish prophecies. Nonetheless, the Gentiles and non-Jewish people accepted the doctrine of Christianity and now believe they are saved by the blood of Christ, which is another concept that came primarily from the Apostle Paul. You generally do not find this teaching before he interjected his own thoughts and writings into Christianity.

So do all Christians go to heaven? Not when you consider all the rules for exclusion. According to the books in the New Testament, Jesus left specific instructions that have to be followed or entrance into heaven may not be as sure as many Christians say. In Matthew (10.37), Jesus says that if anyone loves his or her father, mother, son, or daughter more than him is not worthy of him. But also in Matthew (15.4), God commands that a person must honor his father and mother, and he that curseth his father or mother must die the death. So you must honor your parents, but not more than you love Jesus or you will not get to heaven.

Jesus also explains in Matthew (12.36) that any idle words a man speaks will have to be accounted for on the judgement day. So you must also avoid idle words and gossip. That is not an easy task for many people. Many so-called Christians I see do not even make the attempt to curb such tendencies. Jesus further explains in Matthew (16.23-28) that a person must deny himself the interests or pleasures of men and take up the cross and follow him if he expects to reach the kingdom of God. This certainly indicates that more than mere faith is expected of a Christian, but how many can deny themselves of the common pleasures of men and take up the cross?

In Matthew (18.34-35), Jesus says that the Lord will punish you if you do not forgive everybody of their trespasses against you. And again in Matthew (25.35-46) we find that it is expected that a good Christian must feed and clothe the poor, and take in the homeless, though they be strangers, for as much as you do this for them, you do it also for Jesus. And if you ignore such people, it is as if you ignore Jesus, and you will go into everlasting punishment.

Now we can see that the requirements for getting into heaven are getting more demanding. But wait, there is more. In Matthew (19.20-30), a man comes to Jesus and wants to follow him, but Jesus tells him to first sell everything he has and give the money to the poor. However, the man could not bring himself to do that and sadly went away. Jesus explained to his disciples that hardly any rich man can enter heaven; it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle. Then his disciples were amazed and questioned, if this was the case, who could be saved? Jesus replied that all things are possible with God, but those who have forsaken houses, father, mother, wife, children, or property for his name’s sake shall inherit everlasting life. So the conclusion is that if you cannot become renounced, you miss that everlasting life.

Similarly, in Luke (6.20, 24-30), Jesus says blessed are the poor, for they shall reach the kingdom of God, and woe to the rich, woe to those who are full for they will be hungry, and woe to those who laugh now for they will know sorrow. Plus, you must love and do good to your enemies and those that hate you, give the other cheek for those that hit you, do not forbid anyone to take your coat, and do not ask that your goods be returned from one who takes them. (This is all a huge difference compared to the time and tactics of the Inquisition, which tortured or killed anyone who refused to be a good Christian.)

In Luke (9.61-62), there is the story of a man who came to Jesus and asked to follow him, but first simply wanted to bid farewell to his family. But Jesus rejected him and said that no man, having once put his head to the plough and looks back, is fit for the kingdom of God. In another place in Luke (9.59-60), Jesus orders a man to follow him, but the man requests that Jesus first allow him to bury his dead father. Jesus, however, says to let the dead bury their dead, and go preach the kingdom of God. In Matthew (5.21-22), Jesus explains that if a person kills another he shall be in danger of the judgement. But he further explains that simply getting angry at another without just cause shall also put one in danger of the judgement. And (Matthew 5.20) unless your own righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, you shall in no case enter the kingdom of God.

What all this seems to indicate is that anyone who wants to follow Jesus has to display a high degree of detachment and renunciation from the world and its material attractions and pleasures, and take up the cross. Otherwise, they are not true followers of Jesus, nor are they fit for the kingdom of God. Many Christians may feel that faith alone is all they need to be saved, but these biblical quotes of Jesus certainly indicate that he expected and required much more than that. And the direct quotes from the Bible and from Jesus should certainly carry more weight than the rationalizations of the Christian pastors and priests when they try to minimize the seriousness of what has been said herein.

So what happens to all those who cannot measure up to the proper standard? In Matthew (13.41-42), Jesus says that the Son of man will send his angels who will gather out all the things that offend and the people who do iniquity and cast them into a furnace of fire where there will be great wailing and gnashing of teeth. If all these rules that Jesus explains must be followed perfectly, along with all the commandments, etc., in order for Christians to get to heaven, then that furnace must be a mighty big place. But what kind of God would create a hell where people eternally suffer? Especially if, according to Christian theology, they are given only one lifetime to have one chance at either becoming perfect and righteous or go to eternal hell. What is the value of eternal punishment if it never ends and the soul does not get the chance to rectify himself? Why would God create living beings who have a fallen tendency and then send them to suffer eternally
if they cannot measure up to the proper standard? Threatening someone with eternal damnation is hardly an expression of love and mercy. Therefore, this Christian concept of God and hell makes little sense because this form of punishment is not a matter of rehabilitation, but is based on an attitude of anger and vengeance. What need does God have for this if He is a God of love, mercy, and compassion? Why would God spend His time acting like an angry tyrant? He certainly has better things to do. And as we look into the Vedic conception of God and the nature of His personality as described in the Puranas, we certainly do find a much different and more appealing revelation of the characteristics of the Supreme Being.

The Christian concept of God is that He is a God we must fear. To verify this some people, of course, will point out that in Exodus (20.5) it is written that God says He is a jealous God. But a person exhibits jealousy or anger when he is afraid of losing something, feels insecure, is competing with another, or does not get what he wants. So why would God, who is the creator and controller of everything, feel insecure or fearful? Qualities such as jealousy, insecurity, anger, or vengeance are qualities found in the modes of passion and ignorance. And these modes do not touch the Supreme. But God is perceived differently by different cultures.

In the Bhagavad-gita (9.18), Lord Krishna says that He is the creation, the basis of everything, the sustainer, the goal, the refuge, the master, and the most dear friend. This is a much more appropriate understanding of God. Naturally, He must be our friend since we are all parts of His spiritual energy. The only thing that gives the appearance of our being in opposition with God, or being fearful of Him, is our ignorance of spiritual reality. This ignorance must be overcome with spiritual knowledge, not compounded by the inadequacies of a religion that is lacking in spiritual awareness and provides a deficient understanding of God. The goal of any complete spiritual path is to attain enlightenment of God, our spiritual identity, and our relationship with God. The goal of the Vedic path of bhakti is to develop love and devotion for God, but you cannot love someone when you are afraid of him. Love and fear are incompatible. Therefore, a spiritually
realized person will find it difficult to accept that God is angry, jealous, or vengeful. Why should God be angry or vengeful with us when the universal laws that have been established by God automatically take care of whatever good or bad things we deserve? One who is spiritually realized knows that God allows us the freedom to do what we want within the confines of the universal laws, such as the law of karma, and is always waiting for us to turn toward Him, and that He is a God of love, mercy, compassion, and unfathomable understanding. This is God as He really is and is the God we will know in our state of spiritual enlightenment. This is the benevolent God we learn of in the Vedic literature. This is the Supreme Being who cares more about us than we do Him, but who is always waiting for us to turn toward Him and is always with us as Supersoul, Paramatma, the Lord in the heart. This is what is described in detail within portions of the Vedic
literature. Thus, we can begin to recognize the depth of genuine spiritual knowledge, if we look in the right places.

[More Information can be found on his large website, http://www.stephen- knapp.com.]