When I had started writing this, it was part of the previous post. But when I was reviewing that post I felt that this topic should stand on it's own because this is something that I really feel strongly about.
So the trigger point for this blog-post was one of my Facebook friend's post about difference between Hinduism and Hindutva. The post was actually tweeted by Shashi Tharoor[1] and she had just shared that post on Facebook. Now this is a very delicate topic and the views differ from night to day depending on your beliefs on the matter, most of which has been shaped by years of reading second-hand, third-hard or nth-hand interpretations of Savarkar's book 'Essentials of Hindutva'[2] or 'Hindutva: Who Is a Hindu?'. I had come across similar posts in the vein of anti-Savarkar from the same friend and had even urged her to read the book herself to form her own opinion. When I had read the book some 6 years back it had offered me clarity on my religion. But I also remember it didn't make me consider people from other faiths any different. In fact it had given me a sense of belonging to India along with all of its faiths, its religions. But again that was my interpretation and everyone is free to arrive at their own interpretation. But I have an issue when people start bad-mouthing Savarkar. Whether you agree or disagree with him, his views, or any interpretation of his views, is your choice to make. But if you are disrespecting a person who went through horrible ordeals to free his country, our country, then that is just wrong. No one in present is in a position to talk derogatorily about our freedom fighters because we are not on the same level. We haven't sacrificed our lives, we haven't faced the same injustice, we can't even imagine the times that these great personalities lived in. I have seen many derogatory posts about Mahatma Gandhi too. People have shared some seriously shitty things about him. Sitting in comfort, living our privileged lives we are in no position to talk about Mahatma Gandhi and question his sincerity and efforts during the freedom struggle. You might not agree with his methods, you might not agree with his decisions but you can't question the man's integrity. You are just not qualified to do that. We have got the gift of time which comes wrapped with hindsight. The views and the decisions that these leaders took at their time cannot be judged from the present.
Another thing we ought to understand is that nobody is perfect. Not even these great leaders. They were extraordinary but still human. They are bound to make mistakes. They are going to have aspects to their personalities which you don't like. They were just as much flawed as any of us, so stop putting them on pedestal and labeling them as good or bad because they were neither. They were normal people who did great things. Most of them have written some very good books which offer us an insight on how these people were shaped and how they thought. I have read books from Savarkar and Ambedkar. I think I had even read some parts of 'My experiments with truth' when I was in school but I don't recollect anything from it. These books were written at a time which was very different from ours. The lens through which we read these books or anything else for that matter is colored by our own experiences. Hence we arrive at different interpretations even though the content is the same. When you are reading these books you don't have to completely agree or disagree with what the author is saying. Some parts of them might resonate with you and some might seem very extreme or absurd. But that doesn't mean you go on insulting the person who wrote that book.
With a country like ours with all of its unique problems nothing is simple or straight. Everything has layers to it and it is difficult to ascertain what is right or who is right. Those greats also had the same boon and bane of diversity. So their efforts too reflect the same variance. They all might have had different ideologies which might have even appeared to be opposing, but they all were fighting for their motherland, for our motherland. That has been the unifying thread from times immemorial which ties all this bewildering diversity together. Just like them we need to work towards a common goal while respecting each others' diversity and even learning from it. That might make them feel better rather than virtual one-upmanship. Because they never asked for our reverence, only country's deliverance.
References:
[1] https://twitter.com/ShashiTharoor/status/1214754453028364289
[2] http://savarkar.org/en/encyc/2017/5/23/2_12_12_04_essentials_of_hindutva.v001.pdf_1.pdf
So the trigger point for this blog-post was one of my Facebook friend's post about difference between Hinduism and Hindutva. The post was actually tweeted by Shashi Tharoor[1] and she had just shared that post on Facebook. Now this is a very delicate topic and the views differ from night to day depending on your beliefs on the matter, most of which has been shaped by years of reading second-hand, third-hard or nth-hand interpretations of Savarkar's book 'Essentials of Hindutva'[2] or 'Hindutva: Who Is a Hindu?'. I had come across similar posts in the vein of anti-Savarkar from the same friend and had even urged her to read the book herself to form her own opinion. When I had read the book some 6 years back it had offered me clarity on my religion. But I also remember it didn't make me consider people from other faiths any different. In fact it had given me a sense of belonging to India along with all of its faiths, its religions. But again that was my interpretation and everyone is free to arrive at their own interpretation. But I have an issue when people start bad-mouthing Savarkar. Whether you agree or disagree with him, his views, or any interpretation of his views, is your choice to make. But if you are disrespecting a person who went through horrible ordeals to free his country, our country, then that is just wrong. No one in present is in a position to talk derogatorily about our freedom fighters because we are not on the same level. We haven't sacrificed our lives, we haven't faced the same injustice, we can't even imagine the times that these great personalities lived in. I have seen many derogatory posts about Mahatma Gandhi too. People have shared some seriously shitty things about him. Sitting in comfort, living our privileged lives we are in no position to talk about Mahatma Gandhi and question his sincerity and efforts during the freedom struggle. You might not agree with his methods, you might not agree with his decisions but you can't question the man's integrity. You are just not qualified to do that. We have got the gift of time which comes wrapped with hindsight. The views and the decisions that these leaders took at their time cannot be judged from the present.
Another thing we ought to understand is that nobody is perfect. Not even these great leaders. They were extraordinary but still human. They are bound to make mistakes. They are going to have aspects to their personalities which you don't like. They were just as much flawed as any of us, so stop putting them on pedestal and labeling them as good or bad because they were neither. They were normal people who did great things. Most of them have written some very good books which offer us an insight on how these people were shaped and how they thought. I have read books from Savarkar and Ambedkar. I think I had even read some parts of 'My experiments with truth' when I was in school but I don't recollect anything from it. These books were written at a time which was very different from ours. The lens through which we read these books or anything else for that matter is colored by our own experiences. Hence we arrive at different interpretations even though the content is the same. When you are reading these books you don't have to completely agree or disagree with what the author is saying. Some parts of them might resonate with you and some might seem very extreme or absurd. But that doesn't mean you go on insulting the person who wrote that book.
With a country like ours with all of its unique problems nothing is simple or straight. Everything has layers to it and it is difficult to ascertain what is right or who is right. Those greats also had the same boon and bane of diversity. So their efforts too reflect the same variance. They all might have had different ideologies which might have even appeared to be opposing, but they all were fighting for their motherland, for our motherland. That has been the unifying thread from times immemorial which ties all this bewildering diversity together. Just like them we need to work towards a common goal while respecting each others' diversity and even learning from it. That might make them feel better rather than virtual one-upmanship. Because they never asked for our reverence, only country's deliverance.
References:
[1] https://twitter.com/ShashiTharoor/status/1214754453028364289
[2] http://savarkar.org/en/encyc/2017/5/23/2_12_12_04_essentials_of_hindutva.v001.pdf_1.pdf
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