07-28-2005, 12:47 AM
Bharatvarsh,
The Akal Takht, has, quite a number of times declared themselves as a part and parcel of the Hindu Samaj. The last instance I believe was in 2000 (or 1999?) when the then Jathedar of the AT Gyani Joginder Singh Vedanti declared Sikhism as a part of Hinduism (in fact he used the term 'sword arm'). It came out in all the major dailies in India. A Google search on the name would reveal the news items. But when he retired his successor backtracked.
The whole controversy which you speak of is more to do with politics than with religion. The extremist Khalistani fringe denounce their Hindu identity (the Mann group, Babbar Khalsa, etc.), the Sikhs supporting the Rashtriya Sikh Sangat proclaims it. The majority in the middle keep quiet. The Western Media actively promotes this sense of seperation. As a deeply divided Hindu society at war with it self is a sure way to keep India weak and unassuming. Their handmaidens in the lefty psec Indian press follow suit. God knows what benefit they hope to derive out of this.
There is also another point worth pondering. In India the minority is the king. A religious minority status is a guarranteed assurance for government largesse. More importantly its a guarrantee against governmental involvement and meddling in your community affairs and religious and social institutions. In other words it pays handsomely to be in the recognised minority in India. Do you remember a couple of years back the venerable Ramakrishna Mission, the official custodians of the legacy of Swami Vivekananda, filed a preposterous suite claiming minority status? They claimed that they were not Hindus but Ramkrishnites! They had to do it to save themselves from serious meddling in their institutions by the Left Front Govt. of West Bengal.
I'm in a hurry today, more later. What do you and the other members say on the above points?
The Akal Takht, has, quite a number of times declared themselves as a part and parcel of the Hindu Samaj. The last instance I believe was in 2000 (or 1999?) when the then Jathedar of the AT Gyani Joginder Singh Vedanti declared Sikhism as a part of Hinduism (in fact he used the term 'sword arm'). It came out in all the major dailies in India. A Google search on the name would reveal the news items. But when he retired his successor backtracked.
The whole controversy which you speak of is more to do with politics than with religion. The extremist Khalistani fringe denounce their Hindu identity (the Mann group, Babbar Khalsa, etc.), the Sikhs supporting the Rashtriya Sikh Sangat proclaims it. The majority in the middle keep quiet. The Western Media actively promotes this sense of seperation. As a deeply divided Hindu society at war with it self is a sure way to keep India weak and unassuming. Their handmaidens in the lefty psec Indian press follow suit. God knows what benefit they hope to derive out of this.
There is also another point worth pondering. In India the minority is the king. A religious minority status is a guarranteed assurance for government largesse. More importantly its a guarrantee against governmental involvement and meddling in your community affairs and religious and social institutions. In other words it pays handsomely to be in the recognised minority in India. Do you remember a couple of years back the venerable Ramakrishna Mission, the official custodians of the legacy of Swami Vivekananda, filed a preposterous suite claiming minority status? They claimed that they were not Hindus but Ramkrishnites! They had to do it to save themselves from serious meddling in their institutions by the Left Front Govt. of West Bengal.
I'm in a hurry today, more later. What do you and the other members say on the above points?