Hindu Values: Being humble and open

Hindu value #2: Humility and willingness to learn

Last we saw how debate is important to Hindu values. Similarly, it is considered good to be humble and willing to learn from anyone. For example, when Ravana, the demon king and the villain of the epic Ramayana lay dying, Lord Rama went himself to his feet to request the enemy he had mortally wounded to kindly teach him something about statecraft!

This is unheard of in any other culture. Ravana was a villain, but he had a heroic side as well. He knew all the scriptures by heart, was a mighty warrior, an excellent musician, an able dancer, a genius poet, a staunch Shiva devotee, and a shrewd ruler. His subjects worshipped him. Rama saw no shame in learning from him, even though Ravana had abducted his wife and they had fought a bitter war over it. Rama had slain several of Ravana's kin and children. Yet he went and asked respectfully for knowledge from the mighty demon. And Ravana consented to teach. Such honour, such large mindedness in both the hero and the villain.

There is another corollary to this: Hinduism has no concept of devil. The light and dark dance in a delicate balance. They oppose and complement each other. Without the dark the light has no value, and vice versa. A good story is incomplete without a good hero and a good villain. It is all deemed a play and display of one consciousness. As a prism splits the light into seven colours, the consciousness expresses itself in infinite ways. Diversity is the nature of the world, yet everything is but one. 

Hindu Values: Honouring debate and using your own mind

Before we can talk about Hinduism, there are some Hindu values that we need to understand. Without this understanding we risk being influenced by jokers on either side of the fence of "Hinduism sucks" vs "We want a Hindu Rashtra" thinking, most of whom have very little idea about these values. Judge for yourself if the people you have heard talk about Hinduism positively or negatively truly understand this.

Hindu Value #1: The ability to use your own mind and challenge all principles, including the “divine” word.

"Rama, even a child's words are to be accepted if they are words of wisdom; else, reject it like straw even if uttered by God himself".
-Sage Vasishtha to Lord Rama on means of gaining knowledge 

The above quote is from "Yoga Vasishtha", the conversation between Lord Rama and sage Vasishtha as in the Hindu epic "Ramayana". The conversation is primarily about the means of liberation and the nature of mind. You will hear some of the Sanskrit chanting from this conversation being played at end of the first "Matrix" movie, and its ideas have inspired "Inception". Ramayana is an integral part of the Indian culture: the festival of Diwali is closely linked with it.

The quote above clearly specifies that any word, including the divine word, should be rejected/ challenged if it sounds unwise. Yes, in Hinduism even God's word is fit to be rejected and challenged without risking death for apostasy/ hurting somebody's idiotic sentiments.

Such level of freedom, however, comes with responsibility. While one is free to debate logically, twisted logic hell-bent on proving a single point of view (Kutarka) is categorically rejected.  E.g. arguing that if door is half close it is half open, therefore if door is fully closed it is fully open. Respectful debate with a genuine desire to find the truth rather than chest bashing to prove whose daddy is strongest. It is not an open license to disagree without using your mind, it is a command to actively use your brain to find your way while studying anything, and trust it more than any divine word.

Debate is the only way that knowledge can be refined, and the stories of scholars engaging in "Shastrarth" i.e. debating knowledge is pretty common in Indian folk lore. And no, there was no prosecution for that. Scholars discussed knowledge while people revelled in the debates. Respectfully challenging the teacher with the intent of learning was a sign of intelligence and character. A society that cannot allow a healthy debate on the principles it wishes to enforce will soon find itself sliding into bigotry.

As Hinduism tries to get a bit more organised and militant in the face of Abrahamic religions, where God brooks no dissent, we risk losing this core value. Ours is not a vengeful God who insists that we are born of sin/ vermin crawling in the mud. Our God insists on the divinity of every single cell of this universe, and that to understand it you need to truly think and not obey. I doubt if even all Hindus understand this.

The word in Devanagari script used for religion is "Dharma". Dharma is the righteous action, a code of conduct that urges people to do the right thing in accordance with the scriptures under the guidance of a person who understands these scriptures from experience. However, while this is deemed as the best way, it is acknowledged time and again that you cannot force somebody to become spiritual with brute force, and it is important that seekers of truth use their own mind to convince themselves of the truth.

As far as religious commands go, I haven't come across anything as sensible and beautiful as this. Rote learning and unquestioning obedience is the worst thing to have in any learning system as it stifles thinking and promotes fanaticism. Rote learning can create only parrots, with the knowledge just becoming a concept in the mind.

Hinduism is not a classic religion, but a journey of self-discovery to find the subtle truth permeating every part of this Universe. Not everybody will have either the courage or the intellect to follow it. Nevertheless, I hope and pray that may we completely revive this spirit of independent thinking in India, and stand out as a positive example to rest of the world.

Under a Veil

Anonymity gives man courage, I have to admit. With a world full of prickly fools short of sense of humour, anonymity helps. The feeling of being able to write without the burden of being judged is certainly liberating. Irrespective of what people say, freedom of speech is a tricky business. But, what do I intend to write behind this mask? Anything irreverent, true thoughts that pass my mind. Pretty much just a window to my mind.

For the purpose of this blog, you can know me as a Hindu Indian, familiar and well-versed in a wide variety of subjects including history, politics, economics, philosophy, psychology, and statecraft. What I will write, not many will like. It is true nevertheless to the best of my knowledge.

I will primarily write about Indian politics, India, Hinduism, statecraft, religion, philosophy, and psychology. As is with most forms of truth, many people will find some of my opinions unpalatable. To them I have only one thing to say: I am open to change my opinion unless I am talking to somebody with preconceived, bigoted notions. The one who cannot change his own opinion in light of facts has no right to ask another to do the same. Being anonymous, sensitivity and political correctness would be the last things on my mind. Only reality shall be my judge.

Hope you enjoys my articles, and I hope they provoke at least some people to think beyond the apparent reality they are a prisoner of.