Hindus fight discrimination in California textbooks - 3

If you are a Harijan Hindu, and if your child goes to a California school, she would be told that she is a broken person ? that is, if Michael Witzel et al have their say.

If you are a Harijan Hindu, and if your child goes to a California school, she would be told that she is a broken person ? that is, if Michael Witzel et al have their say.

Everyone would agree that positive reinforcement is the best way to nurture a child. But, Witzel et al, in their capacity as reviewers, have insisted that California textbooks should call Harijan Hindus ?Dalits? [Ref.: State of California, Curriculum Development and Supplemental Materials Commission?s Memorandum, dated November 22, 2005, edit 86]. This word literally means ?a broken person.? It was adopted in 1972 by a militant group called Dalit Panthers Party [Joshi, B.: Untouchables! Voices of the Dalit Liberation Movement, pp. 141-147]*. The party was ephemeral but some politicians, who act as the fifth column of Christian missionary fronts [see note at the end], insist on using this word to denote the Harijans. In the effect it has on the child, this obnoxious word is not different from ?nigger,? a word used by racists to call Black Americans. Such words inculcate anger, a feeling of victimization and destroy the child. Will textbooks ever describe Native Americans as ?nits? and ?wolves,? the words racists used for them?

Witzel et al did not stop at that. They also wanted an illustration of a night-soil remover to depict a Harijan in a textbook on ancient India for grade six [Ref.: State of California, Curriculum Development and Supplemental Materials Commission?s Memorandum, dated November 22, 2005, edit 7]. Can Witzel cite evidence that this obnoxious profession even existed in those times? Is it not a fact that even in the recent times, only a fraction of the Harijans performed this degrading task? Why does he insist on falsely stereotyping the Harijans, who have a heritage they can be proud of? Will he demand that textbooks have the powerful depiction of victims of Inquisition or jihad to illustrate Christianity and Islam respectively? At least, those institutions were integral to those respective religions, whereas, untouchability is a social evil, found even in non-Hindu societies like Korea, Tibet and Japan.

Which are the most celebrated Hindu texts? Most would think of the Vedas, Bhagavad Gita, Mahabharata, Ramayana and Tirukkural. Who wrote or compiled those texts? Vyasa, who was born of a fisherwoman, and hence a Harijan, wrote or compiled the Vedas, Bhagavad Gita and Mahabharata. Valmiki, a hunter, and hence an Adivasi, authored the Ramayana. Tiruvalluvar, a Paraiyah by birth, wrote the most celebrated treatise in Tamil: the Tirukkural.

When you think of the great Saiva and Vaishnava Bhakti saints, the Nayanmars and Azhwars, the names of many celebrated Harijan saints such as Tiru Panazhwar, Tirumazhisai Azhwar, Enati Nayanar, Kannappa Nayanar, Atipattar Nayanar, Anayar Nayanar, Kaliar Nayanar, Tirukkurippu Tondar Nayanar, Tiru Nilakanta Nayanar, Tiru Nilakanta Yazhpanar and Nantanar Nayanar come to mind.

Does a Harijan child studying in a California school have the legitimate right to take pride in the fact that her ancestors wrote the most celebrated Hindu texts? California Department of Education [CDE] guidelines say so. Apparently, Witzel et al do not think so. Will CDE use facts to inculcate pride in the Harijan Hindu students or will it yield to the whims of anti-Hindu ideologues and destroy the self-worth of those children?

The word Harijan was originally coined by the 13^th century Muslim-born Hindu saint, Kabir, who used that word to denote realized souls that have transcended the pulls of worldly lust:

?kam kahar aswar hai, sab ko mare dhaye
koi eka Harijan ubhare, jaka Ram sahaya?

[A few children of Hari transcend the push and pull of lust by His grace]

Tulasidas, the great medieval saint, who rendered the Ramacharitamanas, used those words for the exalted devotees of God [Bala Khanda, Chaupai 273]:

"sur mahisur harijan aru gayi hamare kul in par na surayin!?

[Our clan does not show its valor against devas, Brahmins, devotees and cows!]

Narasimha Mehta, a great social reformer, who worked to eradicate untouchability, used that word to collectively refer to those peoples, who had been treated as untouchables. Mahatma Gandhi popularized it [Gandhi, M.K.: Removal of Untouchability, p. 13.]. A word like that inculcates pride in a child. Is it not essential to use such positive terms to refer to a group?

Needless to say, the Harijans are not a homogenous group. They are linguistically and culturally diverse. Each sect has a long history and distinct identity. In the past, American society demanded assimilation ? that is, to give up one?s ethnic identity and to dissolve into the mainstream, from its constituents. Today, it realizes the value of acculturation ? that is, to retain one?s ethnic uniqueness and still to be a part of the mainstream whole. So, every Harijan caste has the right to retain its unique identity, and it must be encouraged. If a caste feels for the need to adopt a new name to identify itself, society should respect it and accept it. For example, the Pallars of Tamilnadu renamed themselves Devendra kula Vellala; the Tiyas have renamed themselves Ezhavas; the Chanars have renamed themselves Nadars.

Such changes are perfectly welcome and understandable. Historically, some caste names have assumed a negative connotation, and the concerned caste might want to change that. This is not applicable to the Harijans alone. The Sangam literatures respectfully call the Brahmins of Tamilnadu Parppan, but this name assumed a negative connotation during the highly abusive Dravidianist movement. Today, many Brahmins would be offended by that tag.

But, is it not cruel to call a child a ?broken person?? Witzel et al, if one were to judge by their obnoxious recommendation, do not think so. In that, they seem to echo the mindset of unscrupulous soul-harvesters, who would inculcate self-hate in the Harijans to convert them. Why should a civilized and pluralistic society like California tolerate that?  

Christians claim, of course falsely, that St. Thomas visited India 2,000 years ago, and that he converted all sections of society. If one were to accept their claim on face value then one should concede that some Harijans have been Christians longer than Europeans have. Yet, one has never heard of a Harijan saint or Pope. Likewise, every Caliph has been an Arab by race, even though non-Arabs make up most of the Muslims.

In contrast, many Hindu sacred texts have been authored by the Harijans and they have a heritage they can be proud of. The CDE, which makes every attempt to present Christianity and Islam favorably, and oppress their despicable aspects like anti-Semitism and jihad, never spares an opportunity to highlight the imagined or real evils of Hinduism. Is the White man still carrying the ?burden? on his shoulders? Be it so, how can CDE violate its own guidelines and deny a Harijan Hindu child the chance to have justifiable pride in her heritage?

Note: Most people are unaware that all fronts calling themselves ?Dalit? are actually created and maintained by fundamentalist Christian missionaries. For example, Dalit Freedom Network [DFN] is an umbrella of most rabidly Hindu-hating ?Dalit? activists like Udit Raj and Kancha Ilaiah. If you call their toll-free number 1-866-921-1333, a Caucasian American will answer the call from Colorado. Ask for their contact information in India, and she will direct you to the All India Christian Council [AICC]!

The author is an India-born, Silicon Valley-based orthodox, practising, agnostic Hindu. He can be reached at kalavai.venkat@gmail.com