Mother India, 75 years into her Independence, marching dominantly, and leaving impressive footprints in the global landscape has much to cherish, to feel proud, and to boast. From thriving economy to bustling tourism; from skyrocketing manufacturing to booming startups; and from mind-boggling tech & services advancements to whopping infrastructural developments, the country has certainly bagged innumerable laurels globally and has traveled a phenomenal journey in the past 7 decades. However, there still exist several lacunae, that to a huge extent, nullify the enormous efforts being put in by the governments, the skilled bureaucracy, the white-collar executives, the blue-collar workers, and the modest yet efficient civil society. In my previous post, I shed light on how India is actually turning out to be an ‘unsafe hell’ (that actually aspired to become a ‘safe haven’ after the deplorable Nirbhaya chapter in 2013) for women out there, and provided the quintessential solution to deal with the menace.
In this post, let us talk about the four-legged creatures (nah, not the dogs as I pointed out in one of my earlier posts). I am talking about the bovines, specifically cows, that have long been a matter of debate across the corners of this country (especially in the northern and central parts) because of the starkly opposite interests of different sections of society. One, worshipping it and equating it to a goddess, the other considering it as just another food source. The former indeed supersedes the latter by a handsome margin (except in the Malabar region of Kerala, where during my recent visit I got to witness a bleak reality that the people in north and central India are completely unaware of). However, there exist a lot of people out there who are advocating for the protection of cows in an abnormally violent manner. These (group of) men mostly clad up in saffron, call themselves cow vigilantes and the protectors of Hinduism (alas!), often bypass and undermine the rule of law, and lynch/hack people to death (Hindu or Muslim, not a question) proudly in the broad daylight, at times only in the (brazenly wrong) suspicion of the victim carrying beef. The recent cases of a young Hindu boy shot dead by these goons, and an old Muslim man traveling in a train assaulted by these assailants due to the same suspicion is a big shame for a country governed by the rule of law.
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| Photo by Miguel Alcântara on Unsplash |
These monsters who drape the garb of Hinduism and call themselves the protectors of ‘Hindu Goddess Cow’, in reality, shame the entire fraternity of Hindus and malign the purity of Hinduism by indulging in such appalling acts. What sort of Hinduism is it that takes the lives of innocents or ruins families out there? Neither they are the guardians of this divine religion, nor do they deserve any commendation for their misdeeds against the innocent. Instead of completely misinterpreting the cardinal tenets of Hinduism, had they well-read the philosophy of Karma, and understood the gist of the virtuous religion that Hinduism is, neither they would have devastated the family of a young innocent, nor reserved their place in hell, nor got beaten, and publicly name-shamed by the police, politicians, and virtue signalers respectively (at least in a utopian world where the police-politico nexus works with all integrity). These so-called Hindu loyalists are only living in an atrocious world of broken Hinduism, while the matter of the fact is they do not even deserve to call themselves a Hindu.
Penning another example highlighting the desolate picture of Hinduism in the
current context. Having lived in Baba Mahakal’s Nagri-Ujjain for quite a
significant duration of time, I was already well aware of the ‘Kanwad Yatra’
and the ‘Kanwad Yatris’ walking bare feet for several tens/even hundreds of
kilometres, carrying heavy ‘religious apparatus’ on their shoulders, and facing
the extremities of weather- mostly incessant rains, as a mark of devotion to
the Almighty. But, having witnessed these devotees closely and spending the
Hindu month of ‘Sawan’ in Delhi for the first time (which works as an
epicentre/satellite city for these Kanwad Yatris connecting them to several
Lord Shankara shrines in the vicinity cities), I came across a grimmer and
darker picture this time. Yes, it is absolutely fine to express one’s devotion
towards the almighty in a manner that’s not impinging upon the lives and
comfort of others. In fact, during some special events or festivals, it may
also be fine (if the local authorities and district administration permit) at
times to play DJs a little high on volume, to cause occasional traffic
blockades and bring little mis-convenience for the commuters. But, it is not at
any cost, to completely block the road for hours, make all the traffic
including emergency services snarl for kilometres, indulge in hooliganism,
half-naked groove on deafening beats, pass obscene gestures at the passers-by
(especially the women), intimidate or thrash the ones who ask for a side or
object to their crass behavior, and vandalise anything and everything that obstructs
their way. Causing extreme discomfort to others, flaunting their rowdiness, and
normalising such a disorderly demeanor in the name of God is certainly not what
Hinduism (or any other religion) teaches us.
The centuries-old noble religion is based on the values that are exemplary and next-worldly on their own. A true Hindu who understands the real meaning of the religion will never commit such crimes, and those who do, they really need to go through the epics and judiciously choose their gurus, all again.