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inserted by Kaushal
What is Hindutva? -one definition-- close to that of Savarkar
<!--QuoteBegin-->QUOTE<!--QuoteEBegin-->The term "Hindutva" is derived from the two terms 'Hindu Tattva", which literally mean "Hindu Principles". Now the question is, what are Hindu Principles and what comprises the "Hindutva" Outlook?
To answer this question we would have to begin with the history of the Hindus. The history of the Hindus is the history of a civilization which has developed in its natural state, without interruption, since antiquity. Its age is dated to be between five and nine thousand years. Hence Hindu History is a prototype of how human civilization would have looked, if civilization all across the globe had been allowed to develop in its natural state. This is the relevance for us to study Hindu Civilization, Hindu History and Hindu Culture.
The evolution of Hindu Civilization can be considered to be natural and continuing as there is no last messiah in the Hindu world view. In fact this is what distinguishes Hindu Civilization from the rest. And this is why Hinduism is called a Living Idea, guided by the sum total of human wisdom that is not considered to be embodied in one person, or one book, or one period of human history. Hence the term "Living". Hindutva is the articulation of this idea of continuity of freedom of thought from which emerge the multifarious Hindu Principles.
Two instances of Hindu Principles that symbolize the outcome of freedom of thought are the pronouncements made not today, but four thousand years back by unnamed rishis (Hindu ascetics) that, "This world is one family" (Vasudaiva Kutumbakam) and that "The Universal Reality is the same, but different people can call it by different names" (Ekam Sat Viprah Bahuda Vadanti). In these two proclamations made in ancient Hindu India, we see the seeds of globalism and freedom of thought, four thousand years before the world was to become the global village of today.
Thus in its true essence, Hindutva is a stridently assertive rational-humanist line of reasoning. And it is this essence of Hindutva that we have kept in mind, while developing this website. At the level of practice, the Hindutva outlook boils down to upholding righteousness (Sat-guna) and fighting ignoble attitudes (Dur-guna). Taking poetic license, we can describe the practitioners of this outlook as "Heenam Naashaayati iti Hinduhu" (Those who uphold righteousness and fight ignobleness are Hindus).
Thus, far from being a narrow nationalistic doctrine, Hindutva is in its true essence, 'a timeless and universal compilation of human wisdom'. Hence it is also called "Sanatana" which means, something that is "forever continuing."
At this site, you will read about different aspects of the history and culture of the Hindus in that part of our globe which is the birthplace of Hindutva. This land is known variously as Bharatvarsha, Hindustan or India. Our approach of looking at history is that of a rationalist and humanist. In the context of India, these two values are a result of the freedom of thought which forms the core of the tradition of Hindutva.
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<b>Hindutva and the Dalit-Bahujans: Dangerous Portents</b>
Yoginder Sikand
Hindutva, the unique Indian form of Indian fascism, is the modern incarnation of Brahminism. Although it projects itself as the defender of the âHinduâ community against imagined âenemiesâ, such as Muslims and Christians, it is actually premised on an unrelenting hostility towards the vast majority of the so-called âHindusâ themselvesâDalits, Shudras and tribals. The very basis of what is today called Hinduism is the caste system, which is specifically geared to preserving and promoting âupperâ caste hegemony that is based on the systematic exploitation and oppression of the so-called âlowerâ castes. Hindutva, therefore, is not to be characterized as âHindu communalismâ as such, as it does not represent the interests of all so-called âHindusâ as such. As numerous writers have pointed out, a more apt description of Hindutva is that it is the contemporary form of Brahminism. In other words, Hindutva may be defined as Brahminical fascism.
This being the case, Hindutva cannot be countered simply through pious appeals to âHindu-Muslim unityâ. The fatal mistake that secularists have consistently been making is to see Hindutva as simply âHindu communalismâ. Consequently, they have been trying, ineffectively, to combat it simply by invoking a common ethical impulse that they argue underlies the different religions. Since Hindutva represents the contemporary agenda of Brahminism, it poses an immense threat not just to the Muslims of the country, but equally, or perhaps even more so, to the vast majority of the so-called âHindusâ themselvesâthe Dalits,Shudras and tribals, who, taken together, form more than 70 per cent of the countryâs population as a holeâthe Bahujan Samaj. Clearly, Hindutva aims at preserving and promoting âupperâ caste rule and âlowerâ caste slavery, inspired by a vision that draws on the cruel laws that the Brahminical scriptures prescribe for the âlowerâ castes. As Shamsul Islam rightly notes, the Hindu Right aims at âdenying [â¦] Dalits of all human rightsâ[1], and the same applies for its implications for other members of the Bahujan Samaj. The most effective way of countering Hindutva is, therefore, to mobilize these marginalized groups against the Hindutva forces by exposing the grave threats that the Hindutva agenda poses for them. In other words, highlighting the menacing implications of Hindutva for the Dalit-Bahujans is the surest way to combat Hindutva, for it is they who are today being so assiduously used by âupperâ caste forces as foot-soldiers in their pogroms against Muslims and Christians, thus threatening to drive the country to the brink of civil war. The Dalit-Bahujans account for the vast majority of the Indian population, and if they are able to see through the Brahminical designs behind the Hindutva project, Hindutva would die a natural death.
This booklet is a critique of Hindutva from a Dalit-Bahujan perspective. It focuses on what Hindutva means for the Dalit-Bahujans, showing how it is essentially geared to preserving and promoting âupperâ caste Hindu rule and suppressing the stirrings of revolt that are now becoming increasingly visible among the âlowâ caste majority.
Yoginder Sikand
February, 2004
<b>The Historical Roots of Hindutva</b>
The Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) was established in 1925 by K.B.Hedgewar, a Maharashtrian Brahmin. Initially, almost all its members were Brahmins, and even today, its top level leaders are almost entirely from the âupperâ castes, particularly Brahmins. The RSS was founded at a time when Maharashtra was witnessing a powerful movement of revolt among the âlowerâ castes against âupperâ caste tyranny led by such stalwarts as Mahatma Jotiba Phule and Dr. Ambedkar. The establishment of the RSS at this time was hardly coincidental. Rather, it is apparent that the rise of âlowerâ caste consciousness and protest against âupperâ caste hegemony was a key factor in the setting up of the RSS. The spread of the RSS in other parts of the country can also be explained on similar lines. Feeling increasingly threatened by the growing awareness and militancy among the âlowerâ castes, âupperâ caste leaders found in the ideology of Hindutva a convenient way to co-opt the âlowerâ castes and to divert their wrath from their real oppressors (the âupperâ castes/classes) onto imagined enemies in the form of Muslims, Christians and communists. By appealing to the notion of an imagined âHindu nationâ and âHindu communityâ, Hindutva ideologues (almost all Brahmins) sought to deny the existence of internal caste and class contradictions among the so-called âHindusâ. This denial aimed at drawing the âlowerâ castes behind the âupperâ castes, and to destroy âlowerâ caste movements of protest against âupperâ caste hegemony. Accordingly, the plight of the âlowerâ castes was sought to be explained away as a result of alleged Muslim or Christian âpersecutionâ, while the âHinduâ period of history was glorified as a âgolden ageâ. In this rewriting of history, the oppression of the âlowerâ castes that saw its genesis in the so-called âgolden ageâ was completely ignored. So, too, was the inconvenient fact that the oppression of the âlowerâ castes is specifically mentioned and prescribed in all the Brahminical scriptures.
Yet, the projection of the notion of a united âHindu nationâ was only at the level of rhetoric. In actual fact, the proponents of Hindutva sought to carefully preserve the exploitative caste-class system by conveniently remaining silent on it. And this continues to be the case till today. Not surprisingly, the Hindutvawadais have never taken up any militant struggles for the rights of the Dalits, for distribution of land to the poor, for the rights of workers and tribals and so on. Instead, they have consistently supported the interests of the capitalist-feudal-Brahminical elites. Not surprisingly, the core support-base of the Hindutva movement since its inception onwards has consisted of landlords, former rulers of princely states, industrialists, merchants, priestsââupperâ castes in general, all of whose interests are diametrically opposed to the Dalit-Bahujansâ, and whose hegemony is based on their systematic subjugation.
That Hindutva fundamentally aims at the preservation of the Brahminical system, based as it is on the exploitation of the âlowerâ caste majority, has been pointed out by numerous scholars. In his incisive study of the Hindutva phenomenon, titled Saffron Fascism, Shyam Chand, a Dalit scholar and activist who served for many years as member of the Haryana Legislative Assembly, quotes from a secret circular sent out by the RSS to its preachers. It clearly indicates the sinister Brahminical strategy of using the Dalit-Bahujans to attack the Muslims and Christians, while at the same time aiming to keep the Dalit-Bahujans under the permanent slavery of the âupperâ castes.
Excerpts from Secret Circular No.411 issued by the RSS:
[â¦] Scheduled Castes and Other Backward Classes are to be recruited to the party so as to increase the volunteers to fight against the Ambedkarites and Mussalmans.
Hindutva should be preached with a vengeance among physicians and pharmacists so that, with their help, time expired [sic.] and spurious medicines might be distributed amongst the Scheduled Castes, Mussalmans and Scheduled Tribes. The newborn infants of Shudras, Ati-Shudras, Mussalmans, Christians and the like should be crippled by administering injections to them. To this end, there should be a show of blood-donation camps.
Encouragement and instigation should be carried on [sic.] more vigorously so that the womenfolk of Scheduled Castes, Mussalmans and Christians live by prostitution.
Plans should be made more foolproof so that the people of the Scheduled Castes, Backward Classes, Musslamans and Christians, especially the Ambedkarites, become crippled by taking in [sic.] harmful eatables.
Special attention should be given to the students of Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes so as to make them read the history written according to our dictates.
During riots the women of Mussalmans and Scheduled Castes should be gang raped. Friends and acquaintances cannot be spared. The work should proceed on the Surat model.
Publication of writings against Mussalmans, Christians, Buddhists and Ambedkarites should be accelerated. Essays and writings should be published in
such a way as to prove that Ashoka was opposed to the Aryans.
All literature opposed to Hindus and Brahmins are [sic.] to be destroyed. Dalits, Mussalmans, Christians and Ambedkarites should be searched out. Care should be taken to see that this literature do [sic.] not reach public places. Hindu literature is to apply [sic.] to the Backward Classes and Ambedkarites.
The demand by the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes for filling in the backlog vacancies in services shall by no means be met. Watch should be kept to see that their demands for entry and promotion in government, non-government or semi-government institutions are to be rejected and their service records are destroyed with damaging reports.
Measures should be taken to make the prejudices amongst Scheduled Castes and Backward people more deep-rooted. To this end, help must be taken from saints and ascetics.
Attacks should be started with vigour against equality, preaching communists [sic.], Ambedkarites, Islamic teachers, Christian missionaries and neighbours [?].
Assaults should be made on Ambedkarâs statues with greater efforts.
Dalit and Muslim writers are to be recruited to the party and by them essays and literature opposed to the Dalits, Ambedkarites and Mussalmans written and preached [sic.]. Attention is to be paid to see that these writings are properly edited and preached [sic.].
Those opposed to Hindutva are to be murdered through false encounters. For this work the help of the police and semi-military [sic.] forces should always be taken.â[2]
*
In the face of this circular, no more evidence is needed to show what Hindutva actually bodes for the Dalit-Bahujans. It circular very clearly indicates that Hindutva aims essentially at preserving the oppression of the Dalit-Bahujans, in addition to the Muslims and Christians, on which the entire edifice of Brahminism stands.
The Dalit-Bahujans and Contemporary Hindutva
Today, the Hindutva movement is actively engaged in wooing the Dalit-Bahujans, threatened as the âupper caste/class elites are by the growing assertiveness of the âlowerâ caste masses against âupperâ caste hegemony. In areas where the Dalit-Bahujan movement has not taken strong root Hindutva groups have been successful in bringing large numbers of Dalit-Bahujans into their fold. Copying the Christian missionaries, the RSS has set up a large number of schools in Dalit localities and tribal areas. The Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) regularly sends out so-called sadhus and priests to preach among the Dalits and tribals in order to incorporate them into the âHinduâ fold and prevent their conversion to other religions. Fed on Hindutva propaganda, the Dalit-Bahujans are instigated to attack, rape and loot Muslims, and now Christians, in the name of defending âHinduismâ. This strategy was well exemplified in the case of the Babri Masjid affair, when, faced with the announcement of reservations in government services for the Backward Castes, the Hindutvawadis launched a murderous anti-Muslim campaign all over the country to scuttle the Mandal report by instigating Dalit-Bahujans to attack the Muslims, thus cleverly diverting their attention from the burning question of caste oppression and âupperâ caste hegemony. For the Hindutvawadis, the Dalit-Bahujans serve their classical role as servants of the âupperâ castes and foot soldiers to unleash murderous pogroms against Muslims. The most recent case is that of Gujarat, where Dalits and tribals were instigated by Hindutva forces to embark on a virtual genocide of Muslims in the state.
Through the process of Hinduisation that the Hindutvawadis are so carefully promoting among the Dalit-Bahujans, the Dalits and tribals achieve an illusory sense of upward social mobility (as âvaliantâ Hindus), while the caste-class structure of oppression remains firmly intact. In fact, that is precisely the purpose behind the entire Hindutva projectâto co-opt the Dalit-Bahujans, to destroy the movements for the assertion of their rights, and to quash their protest against the system of caste-class exploitation, by diverting their wrath from their actual oppressors (the âupperâ caste-class exploiters) onto carefully constructed âenemiesâ in the form of Muslims, Christians, Naxalites, Communists and so on. At the same time as the Dalit-Bahujans are being actively recruited into the Hindutva movement, killings of Dalits and tribals by âupperâ castes continue to escalate, particularly in states where Hindutvawadis have acquired a strong hold. Many of those behind these killings are known to be active Hindutvawadis themselves. This is no mere coincidence. Rather, it is a direct and logical outcome of the Hindutvawadi agenda itself. As Shamsul Islam perceptively notes, âThe Hindu Right which is ruling India presently is totally unconcerned about these mounting atrocities against the âUntouchablesâ [â¦] It should surprise nobody that the states where the maximum cases of caste atrocities are taking place are states where either the RSS/BJP have a substantial social base or are being ruled by themâ.[3]
In order to win the Dalit-Bahujans to their fold, the Hindutvawadis, who fiercely opposed Dr. Ambedkar during his own lifetime, are now seeking to turn him into a harmless icon, projecting him as a great servant of Hinduism and an enemy of Islam. In the Hindutva appropriation of Ambedkar, Ambedkarâs radical critique of Hinduism is totally ignored. This sudden expression of love for Ambedkar is completely hypocritical and has, of course, nothing at all to do with any appreciation of Ambedkarâs own sharp denunciation of Hinduism. It owes entirely to the awareness of the growing importance of Ambedkar and his message among the Dalit-Bahujan masses. Hindutva doublespeak on Ambedkar comes out sharp and clear in a leaflet said to have been issued by the VHPâs Gujarat unit shortly after having used the Dalits to launch on a virtual genocide of Muslims in the state.
âTHE SECOND OPEN LETTER OF TRUE RAM SEVAKSâ
âLet the Ambedkarite Harijans who oppose the Hindutva ideology understand. We will not allow them [to] mix with even the soil of Hindustan. Today, time is in our hands. Hindutva is the ideology of true Hindus [and] it never accepts the Harijans who are the offspring of the untouchable Ambedkar. The Ambedkarite Harijans, Bhangis, Tribals and the untouchable Shudra castes who believe in Ambedkar do not have any right to give speeches or criticize the Hindutva ideology in Hindustan, because as a dog raises its leg and urinates whenever there is a question or discussion related to the Hindutva ideology these Ambedkarites, Harijans, Bhangis, Adivasis and other untouchable low castes sling their dirt on the Hindutva ideology or show their caste [their low birth] by speaking abusively about it.
Now Hindutva has become aware [sic.] and it is time to teach these Ambedkarite untouchable Harijans a lesson. Not even the Miyans [Muslims] can come to their aid now. Understanding the Hindutva ideology requires a large heart. What will these untouchable Ambedkarites, who raise their leg and urinate, understand of the Hindutva ideology?
The fact that the Honorable Narendra Modi has gained a large victory in Gujarat has been because of the Hindutva ideology, not because of the untouchable Harijans [or because of] the Ambedkarite ideology. Narendrabhai has gained victory single-handedly in Gujarat because he explained the true ideology of Hindutva [â¦.]
Vishwa Hindu Parishad, 11 Mahalaxmi Society, Paldi, Karnavati-380007.[4]
Hindutva, the Manusmriti and the Constitution of India
Although this is rarely spoken about explicitly, from time to time Hindutva leaders issue statements that clearly indicate that their entire project is geared essentially to the preservation of âupperâ caste rule, and that the Dalit-Bahujans must be shown âtheir placeâ. Top Hindutva leaders are on record as arguing that the Hindu Rashtra of their dreams would, in emulation of the classical Hindu state that they so ardently espouse, be ruled according to the draconian Bible of Brahminism, the Manusmriti, that consigned the âlowerâ castes and even âupperâ caste women to the most cruel form of slavery that humankind has ever devised. The Manusmriti is the principle code of law of Hinduism, laying down the rules for the different castes and sanctifying the system of caste-based exploitation. As V. Raghavan, a noted Brahmin authority on Manu writes, âManu has determined Hindu conduct for all timeâ.[5]
The founding fathers of Hindutva, almost all of them Brahmins, regarded the Manusmriti as a sacred scripture that needed to be revived and imposed in the âHindu Rashtraâ that they so tirelessly advocated. V.D.Savarkar, founder of the
Hindu Mahasabha and inventor of the term âHindutvaâ, argued that, âManusmiriti
is that scripture which is most worship-able after the Vedas and which from ancient times has become the basis of our culture, customs, thought and practice. This book for centuries has codified the spiritual and divine march of our nation. Even today the rules which are followed by crores of Hindus in their lives and practice are based on the Manusmriti. Today Manusmriti is Hindu Lawâ.[6] Similarly, in his The RSS Story, K.R.Malkani, a top RSS ideologue, was honest enough to confess that Golwalkar, the second supreme of the RSS, âsaw no reason why Hindu law should break its ancient links with the Manusmritiâ.[7] In his Bunch of Thoughts, Golwalkar, quoting from the Rig Veda and echoing Manu, had in fact gone so far as to empathically declare, âBrahmin is the head, Kshatriya the hands, Vaisya the thighs, and Shudras the feet. This means that the people who have this four-fold arrangement, the Hindu people, is (sic) our Godâ.[8]
Reflecting this dogged devotion to Manu, the RSS mouthpiece Organiser carried an editorial criticizing the Indian Constitution shortly after it was promulgated, complaining, âIn our Constitution there is no mention of the unique constitutional development in ancient Bharat. Manuâs Laws were written long before Lycurgus of Sparta or Solon of Persia. To day his laws as enunciated in the Manusmriti excite the admiration of the world and elicit spontaneous obedience and authority. But to our constitutional pundits that means nothingâ (Organiser, 30 November, 1949). Shortly after this, the Organiser carried a piece revealingly titled âManu Rules Our Heartsâ, written by a certain Sankar Subba Aiyar, a retired Brahmin high court judge. Aiyar frankly confessed that, âEven though Dr. Ambedkar is reported to have recently stated in Bombay that the days of Manu are ended it is nevertheless a fact that the daily lives of Hindus are even at the present day affected by principles and injunctions contained in the Manusmriti and other Smritis. Even an unorthodox Hindu feels himself bound at least in some matters by the rules contained in the Smritis [â¦]â.[9]
In recent years, Hindutva leaders have issued shrill statements denouncing the present Constitution of India as âanti-Hinduâ, and have called for a âHindu Constitutionâ to replace it. For them, it is the Mansumriti that should form the basis of the Indian Constitution. This is hardly surprising, given that the Manusmriti has traditionally been regarded as the normative Brahminical legal code. Golwalkarâs and Savarkarâs advocacy of the Manusmriti was by no means an exception or aberration. Recently, the RSS mouthpiece Organiser (10 May, 1992) carried an article titled âHindu Advocates Demand Rewriting of the Constitution to Remove Discrimination Against Hindus and Preserve Bharat as the Hindu Homelandâ. Reporting the proceedings of this event organized by the VHP at Madurai it quoted a certain V.K.S Chandri, advocate-general of Uttar Pradesh, as declaring in his keynote address that âthe Manusmriti rendered justice for allâ. âManuâ, he claimed, âtook the entire mankind and its needs for ages and evolved his Code. Manusmriti was for all times and ages, and for all mankindâ.
Likewise, Chandra Shekarendra Saraswati, the Shankaracharya of Kanchi, one of the pontiffs of Brahminism and known for his ardent support of sundry âHinduâ causes, passionately appeals for the Manusmriti as the legal code, which he rightly sees as integral to the classical âHinduâ (read Brahminical) polity. Nostalgically recalling the days of unadulterated Brahminical rule, he writes:
What in this respect was unique in the olden days was that basic to all our administration there was the dharmashastra functioning, as it were, as the Constitution for the whole country. Of all the Dharmashastras, the Manu Dharmashastra is said to have provided clear, specific guidance to the kings of
yore [â¦] None of the kings attempted to change the rules laid down in the Manu
Dharmashastraârules presenting the essence of Dharmashastras propounded by
selfless rishis. There was no question of any amendment to such rulesâ.[10]
After glorifying the Manusmriti, he goes on to suggest that it still has continuing relevance today, and stridently opposes those who âbelieve that our way of life according to the Shastra requires to be reformed to suit the timesâ.[11] Accordingly, he attacks the present system of universal adult franchise and democracy and indirectly advocates reviving the spirit of Manu by arguing:
It is better to have these [parliamentary] representatives elected by those who have had some education, some property and some sense of responsibility to understand the political currents and cross-currents and thus acquire a qualification to exercise their votes. The qualification for voting must not be confined to particular caste, religion and economic status, but must combine all these aspects.[12]
The last sentence probably suggests that only well-off, propertied and âeducatedâ âupperâ caste Hindus should possess the right to vote.
Likewise, in the Shankaracharyaâs proposed dharmic set-up not everybody would have the right to stand for election. He writes that candidates should have four qualificationsâthey should be revenue-paying owners of land, should own a house, should be between 30 and 60 years of age, and, most importantly, should be well-versed in the Dharmashastras. While the first two conditions effectively debar the poor (the vast majority of the Dalits, Tribals, Backward Castes, Muslims, Christians and Buddhists) to stand for election, the last qualification restricts that right solely to the Brahmins, who alone, according to the Dharmashastras, have the right to study them.[13]
When confronted with such irrefutable evidence that Hindutva essentially aims at revival of Manuâs Code, Hindutva spokesmen usually vehemently deny any such intentions, arguing, instead, that these are the views of only certain individuals and that they cannot be said to represent the Hindutva movement as a whole. This clever face-saving device is simply a means to mislead the increasingly assertive Dalit-Bahujan masses. Actions speak louder than words, and although from time to time some Hindutva ideologues may issue statements decrying any intention to revive Manuâs Code [while at the same time some of their colleagues insist that the Code be revived], the entire Hindutva project as such is geared to the preservation of the system of caste exploitation which is provided religious sanction by the Manusmriti and the Brahminical tradition as a whole. In response to Dalit opposition to Hindutva, some Hindutva leaders go so far as to dismiss the charge of reviving Manu Raj as completely fanciful, but this is done only to confuse their critics and to stamp out any opposition to their agenda. Some Hindutvawadis might even go so far as to verbally criticize or disown Manu, although this is entirely hypocritical and is actually intended to preserve the spirit of Manuâs Code while appearing to oppose it. Although in this age of democracy it may not be possible for the Brahminical elites to revive every aspect of Manuâs Code because the Dalit-Bahujans would stiffly resist such an attempt, it is clear that the Hindutva project is aims essentially at preserving and promoting the spirit of the Manusmriti, if not the letter of the law itself.
Manuâs Code: What Does it Mean for the Dalit-Bahujans?
The Manusmriti forms the basis of Brahminical law, and lays down elaborate rules
for the cruel subjugation, humiliation and oppression of the Dalit-Bahujans.
Extracts from the Manusmriti
The great sages approached Manu, who was seated with a collected mind, and, having duly worshipped him, spoke as follows:
Deign, divine one, to declare to us precisely and in due order the sacred laws
of each of the [four] castes [varnas] and of the intermediate ones.
But for the sake of the prosperity of the worlds he caused the Brahmin, the
Kshatriya, the Vaisya and the Shudra to proceed from his mouth, his arms, his
thighs and his feet. But in order to protect this universe, He, the most
resplendent one, assigned separate [duties and] occupations to those who sprang
from his mouth, arms, thighs and feet.
To Brahmins he assigned teaching and studying [the Veda], sacrificing for their
own benefit and for others, giving and accepting [of alms].
The Kshatriya he commanded to protect the people, to bestow gifts, to offer
sacrifices, to study [the Veda], and to abstain from attaching himself to
sensual pleasures.
The Vaisya to tend cattle, to bestow gifts, to offer sacrifices, to study [the Veda], to trade, to lend money, and to cultivate land.
One occupation only the lord prescribed to the Shudra, to serve meekly even
these [other] three castes.
The Brahmin, Kshatriya and the Vaishya castes are the twice-born ones, but the
fourth, the Shudra, has one birth only.
On account of his preeminence, on account of the superiority of his origin, on account of his observance of restrictive rules and on account of his particular sanctification, the Brahmin is the lord of [all] castes.
Let the three twice-born castes, discharging their [prescribed] duties, study [the Veda], but among them the Brahmin [alone] shall teach it, not the other two; that is an established rule.
As the Brahmin sprang from [Brahmanâs] mouth, as he was the first-born, and as
he possesses the Veda, he is by right the lord of this whole creation [â¦] A
Brahmin, coming into existence, is born the highest on earth, the lord of all
created beings, for the protection of the treasury of the law. Whatever exists
in the world is the property of the Brahmin. On account of the excellence of his
origin the Brahmin is, indeed, entitled to all.
Whatever law has been ordained for any [person] by Manu, that has been fully
declared in the Veda, for that [sage was] omniscient.
Knowledge is the austerity of the Brahmin, protecting is the austerity of the Kshatriya, his daily business is the austerity of the Vaisya, and service [of the âupperâ castes] the austerity of a Shudra.
Let [the first part of] a Brahminâs name [denote something] auspicious, a
Kshatriyaâs be connected with power, and a Vaisyaâs with wealth, but a Shudraâs
[express something] contemptible. [The second part of] a Brahminâs [name] shall
be [a word] implying happiness, of a Kshatriyaâs [a word] implying protection,
of a Vaisyaâs [a term] expressive of thriving, and of a Shudraâs [an expression]
denoting service.
Kshatriyas prosper not without Brahmins [and] Brahmins prosper not without
Kshatriyas. Brahmins and Kshatriyas, being closely united, prosper in this
[world] and in the next. But to serve Brahmins [who are] learned in the Vedas,
householders and famous [for virtue] is the highest duty of a Shudra, which
leads to beatitude. [A Shudra who is] pure, the servant of his betters, gentle
in speech and free from pride and always seeks refuge with Brahmins, attains [in
his next life] a higher caste.
The whole world is kept in order by punishment [â¦] [So] let him [the king] act
with justice in his own domains, chastise his enemies, behave without duplicity
towards his friends, and be lenient towards the Brahmins. The king has been
created [to be] the protector of the castes and orders, who, all according to
their rank, discharge their several duties. Let the king, after rising early in
the morning, worship the Brahmins who are well-versed in the three-fold sacred
science and learned and follow their advice [â¦] Though dying [with want] a king
must not levy a tax on Srotriyas (priests) and no Srotriya residing in his
kingdom must perish from hunger.
A king, desirous of investigating law cases, must enter his court of justice,
preserving a dignified demeanour, together with Brahmins and with experienced
councilors [â¦] A Brahmin who subsists only by the name of his caste or one who
merely calls himself a Brahmin may, at the kingâs pleasure, interpret the law to
him, but never a Shudra. The kingdom of that monarch who looks on while a Shudra
settles the law will sink [low] like a cow in a morass. That kingdom where
Shudras are very numerous, which is infested by atheists and destitute of
twice-born (âupperâ caste) [inhabitants], soon entirely perishes, afflicted by
famine and disease.
[The king] should carefully compel Vaisyas and Shudras to perform the work
[prescribed] for them; for if these two [castes] swerved from their duties, they
would throw this [whole] world into confusion.
A Kshatriya, having defamed a Brahmin, shall be fined one hundred [panas]; a
Vaisya one hundred and fifty or two hundred; a Shudra shall suffer corporal
punishment.
A once-born man (Shudra) who insults a twice-born (âupperâ caste) man with gross
invective, shall have his tongue cut out, for he is of low origin. If he
mentions the names and castes of the [âtwice-bornâ] with contumely, an iron
nail, ten fingers long, shall be thrust red-hot into his mouth. If he [a Shudra]
arrogantly teaches Brahmins their duty, the king shall cause hot oil to be
poured into his mouth and into his ears.
A low-caste man who tries to place himself on the same seat with a man of high
caste shall be branded on his hip and be banished, or [the king] shall cause his
buttock to be gashed.
If out of arrogance he [a Shudra] spits [on a superior] the king shall cause
both his lips to be cut off.
If he [a Shudra] lays hold of the hair [of a superior] let the [king]
unhesitatingly cut off his hands.
He who strikes [a Brahmin] even with a blade of grass [â¦] shall appease him by a
prostration. But he who, intending to hurt a Brahmin, threatens [him with a
stick and the like] shall remain in hell for a hundred years; he who [actually]
strikes him [shall remain in hell] for a thousand years.
A Chandala (the âlowestâ caste), a village pig, a cock, a dog, a menstruating women and a eunuch must not look at the Brahmins when they eat.
Let him [a Brahmin] not dwell in a country where the rulers are Shudras [â¦] nor in one swarming with men of the lowest caste [â¦] Let him not give advice to a Shudra [â¦] for he who explains the sacred law [to a Shudra] or dictates him to a penance will sink together with that [man] into the hell [called] Asamvrita. Let him not recite [the Vedas] indistinctly, nor in the presence of Shudras [â¦]
When he [a Brahmin] has touched a Chandala, a menstruating woman, an outcast, a woman in childbed, a corpse or one who has touched [a corpse], he becomes pure by bathing [â¦] Let him not allow a dead Brahmin to be carried out by a Shudra while men of the same caste are at hand, for that burnt offering which is defiled by a Shudraâs touch is detrimental to [the deceasedâs passage to] heaven.
A Brahmin who unintentionally approaches a woman of the Chandala or of [any other] very low caste, who eats [the food of such persons] and accepts [gifts from them] becomes an outcast, but [if he does it] intentionally he becomes their equal.
The dwellings of Chandalas and Svapakas [people of very âlowâ caste] shall be outside the village [â¦] and their wealth [shall be] dogs and donkeys. Their dress [shall be] the garments of the dead, [they shall eat] their food from broken dishes, black iron [shall be] their ornaments, and they must always wander from place to place [â¦] At night they shall not walk about in villages and in towns. By day they may go about for the purpose of their work, distinguished by marks at the kingâs command, and they shall carry out the corpses [of persons] who have no relativesâthat is a settled rule.
A man of low caste, who, through covetousness, lives by the occupations of a higher one, the king shall deprive of his property and banish. It is better to [discharge] oneâs own [appointed caste] duty incompletely than to perform completely that of another; for he who lives according to the law of another [caste] is instantly excluded from his own [â¦] Let a [Shudra] serve Brahmins, either for the sake of heaven or with a view to both [this life and the next], for he who is called the servant of a Brahmin thereby gains all his ends. The service of Brahmins alone is declared [to be] an excellent occupation for a Shudra, for whatever else besides this he may perform will bear him no fruit.
No collection of wealth must be made a Shudra, even though he be able [to do it], for a Shudra who has acquired wealth gives pain to Brahmins.
He who has associated with outcasts, he who has approached the wives of other
men and he who has stolen the property of a Brahmin becomes [after death] a
brahmarakshas [fierce devil].
It is declared that a Shudra woman alone [can be] the wife of a Shudra, she and one of his own caste [the wives] of a Vaishya, those two and one of his own caste [the wives] of a Kshatriya, those three and one of his own caste [the wives] of a Brahmin [â¦] Twice-born (âupperâ caste) men, who, in their folly, wed wives of the low [Shudra] caste soon degrade their families and their children to the state of Shudras. According to Atri and to [Gautama] the son of Uthaya, he who weds a Shudra woman becomes an outcast [â¦] A Brahmin who takes a Shudra wife to his bed will [after death] sink into hell; if he begets a child by her he will lose the rank of a Brahmin.
A [man of ] low [caste] who makes love to a maiden [of] the highest [caste] shall suffer corporal punishment.
The property of a Brahmin must never be taken by the king, that is a settled rule; but [the property of men] of other castes the king may take on failure of all [heirs].
Let the king corporally punish all those [persons] who either gamble and bet or afford [an opportunity for it], likewise Shudras who assume the distinctive marks of twice-born [men].
Never slay a Brahmin, though he [may] have committed all [possible] crimes [â¦]
No greater crime is known on earth than slaying a Brahmin. A king, therefore,
must not even conceive in his mind the thought of killing a Brahmin.
A Brahmin, be he ignorant or learned, is a great divinity, just as the fire, whether carried forth [for the performance of a sacrifice] or not carried forth, is a great divinity. Thus, though Brahmins employ themselves in all [sorts of] mean occupations they must be honoured in every way, for [each of] them is a very great deity.
[The king] should order a Vaisya to trade, to lend money, to cultivate the land
or to tend cattle, and a Shudra to serve the twice-born castes [â¦] A Brahmin
who, because he is powerful, out of greed makes initiated [men of the]
twice-born [castes] against their will to do the work of slaves, shall be fined
by the king six hundred [panas]. But a Shudra, whether bought or not bought, he
may compel to do servile work, for he was created by the Self-Existent
(swayambhu) to be the slave of a Brahmin. A Shudra, though emancipated by his
master, is not released from servitude; since that is innate in him, who can set
him free?
A Brahmin may confidently seize the goods of [his] Shudra [slave], for, as that
[slave] can have no property, his master may take his possessions [â¦] That
sinful man, who, through covetousness, seizes the property of the gods or the
property of Brahmins feeds in another world on the leavings of vultures.
The Brahmin is declared [to be] the creator [of the world], the punisher, the
teacher [and hence] a benefactor [of all created beings], to him let no man say
anything unpropitious nor use any harsh worlds.[14]
*
This is the âgloriousâ Manusmriti that Hindutvawadis so passionately praise and
advocate as the basis of the âHindu Rashtraâ of their dreams.
Constitution Review and the âHindu Constitutionâ: A Dalit-Bahujan Perspective
The present Constitution of India, framed by Dr. Ambedkar, himself a Dalit, clearly has its own limitations. It is, in essence, a liberal bourgeois document. Yet it also affords the Dalit-Bahujans vital spaces and opportunities closed to them by Brahminical law, including, particularly, the Manusmriti. The notions of equality, freedom, democracy and secularism contained in the present Indian Constitution, all of which are integral to the project of Dalit-Bahujan emancipation, are vehemently denied in Brahminical law. This explains why Dr. Ambedkar publicly burnt the Manusmriti in 1928 in a symbolic protest against the entire Brahminical tradition.
Dalit-Bahujan intellectuals have argued, and rightly so, that the long-standing Hindutva demand for scrapping the present Constitution and replacing it with a âHinduâ Constitution, is aimed essentially at doing away with even the limited opportunities and spaces that the Indian Constitution provides the oppressed castes, and to re-impose the varnashrama dharma or the rule of caste.[15] For, as Sangeetha Rao, a leading Dalit ideologue, argues, Ambedkarâs Constitution is, in spirit, vehemently opposed to the law of Manu, and that is the main reason why Hindutvawadis wish to scrap it. The âHindu Constitutionâ that they wish to replace the present Constitution, would, in Raoâs words, provide legal sanction to âHindu fascismâ, âBrahminical dictatorshipâ and the âManuvadi Vyavasthaâ (the Manu-ite social system)â. Rao writes that behind the Hindutva demand for a Presidential system of governance and for a âHindu Constitutionâ is the actual goal of establishing the âBrahminvadi or Manuvadi systemâ, for the âsocial, political and economic democracyâ that Dr. Ambedkar championed is completely opposed to the âsystem based on âManu-ismâ. As Rao sees it, the âHinduâ system of government that the Hindutvawadis are crusading for is nothing but the âcaste systemâ, the rule of the âupperâ castes and the permanent slavery of the Bahujan Samaj. He writes that the âHindu Constitutionâ that the Hindutvawadis advocate aims at clamping down on democracy and further suppressing the Dalit-Bahujans, because, as he argues,
The Hindu social order does not recognize the necessity of representative government composed of the representatives chosen by the people [â¦] It is nothing short of Hindu fascism. It is reflected in the statement of Sangh Parivar mafia leader Ashok Singhal, âA lasting government will be a Hindu government. If the people do not like it they can go to the country of their choice. Otherwise, they will be at the mercy of Hindusâ.[16]
Rao sees the close collaboration between the âupperâ caste elites and western imperialists, the sharp curtailment of social welfare programmes, the Hinduisation of the education system, the non-implementation of anti-untouchability laws and the sharp increase in atrocities on Dalits in India under BJP rule as all part of the wider Hindutva agenda that aims at the firm suppression of the Dalit-Bahujans and the reinforcement of âupperâ caste hegemony, faithfully following the commandments and underlying spirit of the Manusmriti.[17]
Another leading Dalit spokesman who has subjected the Hindutva project to incisive critique is Ram Khobragade. In his Indian Constitution Under Communal Attack, Khobragade links the destruction of the Babri Masjid with the Brahminical Hindu and anti-Ambedkar agenda of Hindutva, and argues that the Hindutvawadis:
[In] the heart of their hearts bitterly hate Dr. Ambedkar, who made their religion thoroughly naked [â¦] Dr. Ambedkar was the architect of the modern social order of this country, and this very thing these Manuvadis, the protagonists of the Manuvadi social system could not digest. Consequently, on his 37th Mahaparivaran Day [6 December, 1992, when they destroyed the Babri Masjid and unleashed a wave of bloody attacks on Muslims all over the country] they showed to the entire world that henceforth India would be governed not by the Constitution of Dr. Ambedkar but by the social order created by Manu, and by other religious scriptures created by various rishisâthe supporters of the varnashram caste system.[18]
Likewise, another Dalit spokesperson, R.D.Nimesh, argues, the Hindutvawadisâ opposition to the Constitution stems from the fact that the Constitution allows some limited possibilities for Dalits to take to education and better employment, which in itself is a direct contradiction of the varnashrama dharma that the Hindutvawadis seek to revive.3 âIn the name of establishing Hindu ruleâ, he argues, the Hindutvawadis actually seek to impose the âBrahminical law of caste exploitationâ.[19] This view is echoed by Lalloo Prasad Yadav, former chief minister of Bihar, who argues that, âThere is the hand of Manuvadi, fascist and casteist forces behind the move to change the Indian Constitutionâ.[20]
Of course, this actual intention is not stated openly, for in the present political system, which the Hindutvawadis so despise, the Dalit-Bahujans, well over 80 per cent of the population, constitute such a vital force that cannot be ignored. Hence, the Hindutva opposition to the Constitution is camouflaged in different termsâas an effort to promote âHinduâ âcultural authenticityâ or to do away with legal guarantees for religious minorities, such as their right to administer their own educational institutions, regulate their personal affairs in accordance with their own personal laws and so on.
While critiquing the present Constitution as âanti-Hinduâ, the Hindutvawadis seek to replace it with an authoritarian set-up that would more effectively serve the interests of the âupperâ castes and western imperialist forces. Thus, the communist leader Harkishan Singh Surjeet argues that in calling for a review of the Constitution and suggesting a presidential system of government in place of the present parliamentary system, the Hindutvawadis seek âthe perpetuation of bourgeois-landlord ruleâ. Surjeet adds that, âThe RSS has always been in favour of a unitary authoritarian state structure in the image of its own organisational structure, based on the principle of one leader, all the rest working as followersâ. The Hindutvawadi demand for a presidential system is a major step in this direction.[21] Similarly, Prabhat Patnaik, a noted Indian economist, writes that behind the Hindutva demand for the rewriting of the Constitution is the aim of âabridg[ing] democracy in order to consolidate the collaborationist bourgeois state. It is no accident that the need to amend the Constitution is being felt by the very government [the present BJP-led regime] whose pursuit of pro-imperialist policies is marked by unprecedented vigourâ. Patnaik sees the Hindutva efforts to do away with parliamentary democracy and replace it with American-style presidential rule as a response to the growing participation of the lower caste/class masses in elections as a means for the assertion of their rights, which is now threatening the rule of the âupperâ caste/class minority who now find parliamentary democracy a major challenge to their entrenched hegemony. At the same time, Patnaik argues, the western imperialist-imposed âglobalisationâ that the Indian ruling classes have so willingly embraced also demands the ârolling backâ of democracy to smoothen the way for multinational corporations to loot the country.[22]
Behind the Hindutva critique of the Constitution in the name of doing away with its allegedly âanti-Hinduâ elements one can discern a cleverly thought out Brahminical strategy of attacking the very spirit of the Constitution that lays down the principles of equality, democracy and social justice that are so stridently opposed to the Brahminical tradition. This explains how and why the entire Constitution, including its fundamental values of equality, democracy, social justice and freedom that are specifically mentioned in its preamble and later elaborated upon in the document, is branded as âun-Hinduâ by many Hindutva writers. One of these is a certain Bengali Brahmin, Abhas Chatterjee. In a booklet titled The Concept of Hindu Nation, published by a hardcore Hindutva publishing house Voice of India, Chatterjee goes so far as to claim that, âLeave other things alone, even the preamble of the Indian Constitution does not contain any Hindu idea. It enumerates no principles based on Hindu ethos and idealsâ.[23] Likewise, another Brahmin scholar, P.N. Joshi, president of the Rashtriya Hindu Manch, writes in a book tellingly titled Constitution: A Curse to the Hindus, that âPakistan is an Islamic country. It is governed according to Islamic law. India is a Hindu Rashtra. Here it ought to be Hindu lawâ.[24] Naturally, he does not elaborate on what misery Hindu law would bring to the vast majority of the Indians themselvesâthe âlowerâ castes, whose cruel oppression was given religious sanction precisely by the Hindu law that he so passionately advocates.
Since the entire edifice of Brahminism and Brahminical law rests on the permanent subjugation of the Dalit-Bahujans as servants of the âupperâ castes, it is hardly surprising that Hindutva ideologues are vehemently opposed to reservations in jobs and in the state and national legislatures for the âlowerâ castes that are provided for in the present Constitution. This is one of the major reasons for their demand that the present Constitution be scarpped or âreviewedâ. For electoral purposes the Hindutva brigade may not openly oppose reservations, but leading Hindutva spokesmen have repeatedly spoken out against them as allegedly âdividingâ the Hindus and promoting âcasteismâ, as if reservations were responsible in any way for creating the caste system in the first place.
According to the Brahminical scriptures the duty (dharma) of the âlowerâ castes is simply to slave for the âupper â castes without any hope for recompense. For âlowerâ castes to take to any other profession would be a violation of the iron law of dharma and would be a grave challenge to the Brahminical religion. That is why in the Ramayana Rama is said to have struck off the head of the Shudra Shambukh for having so much as dared to engage in tapasya and thereby threaten to ascend to heaven in his physical body. As an âidealâ Hindu king, Ram, as Dr. Ambedkar notes, was an âupholder of the varna vyavasthaâ, or the caste system that spells out permanent servitude for the Shudras as their dharma.[25] Hence, for the âupperâ caste devotees of Rama today the âlowerâ castes must not deviate from their jati dharma or caste duty of slaving for the âupperâ castes. The reservations in government jobs for the Dalit-Bahujans that the present Constitution provides is a flagrant violation of this principle, and this explains, partly, the vehement demand of Hindutva forces to replace it with what they call a âHinduâ Constitution, which would guarantee permanent âupperâ caste privilege and âlowerâ caste slavery.
Reservations are only one aspect of the present Constitution that Hindutvawadis are vociferously opposed to and for which they label it as âanti-Hinduâ. In fact, the entire gamut of laws that flow out of the basic premises of the present Constitution that can be used in favour of the Dalit-Bahujans in their struggle against âupperâ caste/class hegemony is seen by Hindutva forces as âun-Hinduâ, thus explaining their opposition to the Constitution itself. As Hindutva ideologues view it, the law is not what the Constitution says it is but, rather, what the pontiffs of Brahminical Hinduism, arch-defenders of the caste system and Brahminical privilege, say it should be. As Ashok Singhal, general-secretary of the VHP, declares in no uncertain terms, âWhat the dharmacharyas pronounce as dharma, we will also accept as lawâ (The Pioneer, 4 December, 1992). Lest anyone labour under any doubt as far as what this would mean for the Dalit-Bahujans, we have it from authority of all the classical and defining texts of Brahminism that the caste system and the subjugation of the Dalit-Bahujans are an integral and inseparable component of dharma. As scholars of âHinduismâ have pointed out, in the Brahminical texts, the sanatana dharma or eternal religionâ is not defined as a single, universally applicable concept. Dharma, as reflected in the notion of varnashrama dharma, is caste and context specific, and depends on oneâs caste (varna) and stage of life (ashram). The dharma of the Brahmin is to study, teach the âupperâ castes and to receive donations. The dharma of the Shudra is simply to serve the âupperâ castes. It is this dharma that contemporary Hindutva aims to revive, despite its denials to the contrary. As Abhas Chatterjee writes, the state that the Hindutvawadis seek to construct would ânot only accord the highest place to sanatana dharma but [would] also protect its values, project its glory in the world, and make it its source of inspirationâ. At the same time, Chatterjee calls for the scrapping of the present Constitution, arguing that, â[W]e have to change almost all laws and policiesâ and replace them by those rooted in the sanatana dharma.[26] Dalit-Bahujans must shudder at this menacing prospect.
The RSS-VHPâs âHindu Constitutionâ: What it Means for the Dalit-Bahujans
Shortly before the demolition of the Babri Masjid in December 1992 and the ensuing massacre of Muslims all over the country engineered by the Hindutvawadi
forces, the VHP issued a declaration calling for a so-called âHinduâ Constitution for India. At a meeting in October 1992, the VHPâs so-called Sant Samiti (âCommittee of Saintsâ) set up a four-member commission, headed by a certain âSwamiâ Muktanand Saraswati, to rework the âanti- Hinduâ Constitution. Subsequently, Muktanand issued a detailed critique of the present Constitution, with the long, yet revealing, title of Bharat Ki Ekta Akhandata Bhaichare Evam Sampradayak Saddhbhav Ko Mitane Vala Tatha Bharat Mai Bhukhmari, Berozgari, Bhrashtachar Aur Adharm Ko Badhaney Vala Kaun? Vartaman Indian Samvidhan (âWho is Responsible for Destroying Indiaâs Unity and Integrity, Brotherhood and Communal Harmony and for Spreading Hunger, Unemployment, Corruption and
Irreligiousness ? The present Indian Constitutionâ).[27]
As the title of the book itself so clearly suggests, Muktanand sees all the ills of India as a product of the very Constitution of the country itself. Accordingly, he argues, âthe entire Constitution itself is anti-people (lok drohi)â.[28] He equates the Constitution with a pile of garbage (âyeh samvidhan kudey kachrey ka dher matra haiâ, he writes).[29] Presumably, this âgarbageâ also includes the outlawing of untouchability and caste discrimination and the various, albeit limited, democratic provisions that the Constitution makes for women, backward castes and the poor o make amends for the centuries of oppression that they have had to suffer under Brahminical rule. This is clearly hinted at when Muktananda declares that the Dalits, Tribals and Backward Castes should not be granted any reservations in government services nor any other from of special treatment, on the flimsy ground that, âthis would breed the feeling of separatismâ.[30] He also claims that it violates the principle of secularism or what he calls in Hindutva jargon as panth nirpekshita.[31] Referring to the tribals, he asserts: âOnly those rights of the tribals should be protected which nature has granted themâ. Apparently, he wishes to see the tribals lost forever in the dense, wild jungles, never to be allowed to participate in the governance of the country.
A true Hindutvawadi, Muktanand sees democracy as dangerous and vehemently opposes it. Thus, he writes, âRule by representatives is a very expensive and backbreaking system for a poor country like Indiaâ.[32] He argues that, âThe chapters on the legislature, parliament, the presidentâs powers, the union judiciary, and comptroller and auditor general of India in section 5 of the Constitution Articles 52-151) have absolutely no relationship whatsoever with the Indian contextâ.[33] He does not, however, explain why this is so and nor does he offer any alternative. Echoing a pet theme in Hindutva discourse, Muktanand castigates the Constitution for not having made a Uniform Civil Code mandatory.[34] Thus, in an interview to the fortnightly Frontline (January 29, 1993), he asserts: âThere hould be uniform laws for everybodyâ. Yet, in the same breath, he contradicts himself by declaring: âThe state should not interfere in religious and personal matters. There should be no laws regarding marriageâ.[35] If the state should not lay down laws regarding marriage and other personal matters, promulgating a uniform Civil Code is inconceivable since civil codes deal essentially with personal, family matters, but the contradiction escapes Muktanand. If the state were to be ruled by the likes of Muktanand and were, therefore, not to interfere in religious and personal matters, obnoxious practices like untouchability, sati and child marriage would not be outlawed. The present Constitution has banned these customs, and perhaps this is one of the reasons why Muktanand has branded it as adharmik (irreligious).
In late 1993, the Delhi-based weekly Mainstream carried a lengthy three-part interview with Muktanand Saraswati (16 October, 23 October, and 30 October, 1993). The interview covered a range of issues, focusing particularly on Muktanandâs views on Dalits, Shudras, Tribals, Muslims and women. It clearly reveals Muktanad (and the Hindutvawadis more generally) to be a fierce defender of the caste system, Brahminical privilege and the oppression of the Dalit Bahujans and women. The interview provides a chilling view of the Brahminical fascist order that the Hindutva camp seeks to impose on the country in the name of âHinduâ unity. It very clearly indicates that in the âHindu Rashtraâ of Hindutva dreams, not just Muslims and Christians, but the vast majority of the so called âHinduâ population, too, would be subjected to horrendous oppression.
*
Excerpts from the Interview with Muktanand Saraswati
On Dalits
Q: Do you think the caste system is scientific?
A: The caste system is scientific if it is based on an âoccupational societyâ. It is scientific because of specialization and the division of labour. If a person is a teli (oil-presser) by caste (birth) but he does not follow his caste occupation, then the caste system will break.
Q: So, would that be adharmik (irreligious)?
A: If the caste system breaks that would certainly be adharmik (emphatically). Take the case of this fool (kambakht) Jagjivan Ram. Despite having been a Minister he called himself a Harijan. This is bad. You were the Deputy Prime Minister and still saale [a term of abuse] you are a Harijan! Still you want to benefit from reservations for Harijans! Those who want reservations say âLet us remain Chamarsâ. So, if you are a Chamar, how can you get the facilities of a Brahmin? You will get the facilities of a Chamar. You want facilities in the name of Chamars, but you want to become a Shankaracharya. How is this possible? [â¦] Saale, you want facilities in the name of Chamars, but want to sit besides a Brahmin. We won't let you sit (emphatically).
Q: Is it possible to revive the caste system today?
A: By the caste system I mean that the individual should be the centre of the mode of production. For instance, a carpenter is an expert at this work, and his son receives training in this craft from childhood itself and also becomes an expert. So this occupational division of labour is what we desire. Some people ask if it is possible to revive the caste system in this age of industrialization and we say yes, it is possible.
Q: You say you are opposed to consumerism and to wealth as the criterion for measuring oneâs status. If we take the criterion as dharma, what should the social structure be in a dharmic state.
A: In a dharmic state, everyone should know his duties. Each should follow his
own dharma.
Q: What is the dharma of a Chamar?
A: His dharma is to make shoes.
Q: The Manusmriti certainly does not give equal status to Shudras. It advocates
pouring molten lead in their ears.
A: Have you read the Manusmriti? There is no such thing written in the Manusmriti. If somebody advocates this today wonât you say it is wrong? Today, in some Delhi schools children of parents who do not know English are not allowed admission. Is this better than Manuâs law? You are not bothered about the law that is existing today but without any reason you are concerned about the law that was there in the past. If something happened in the past, it may have happened.
Q: The Sant Samaj wants to establish a dharmik societyâ¦
A: According to the place (desh), time (kal) and person (patr) we shall decide what should be done.
Q: Will you impose the Manusmriti?
A: We can implement many provisions of the Manusmriti, and we can leave out many other provisions.
Q: Will you impose Manuâs laws regarding the Shudras?
A: There are no such laws. You are wrongly informed.
Q: What do you feel about untouchability?
A: The Muslim and Christian invaders killed our intellectuals, burnt our literature and libraries. Thereafter, these customs came into being and the illiterate people started following them. Then the intellectuals came to the fore once again and began interpreting the traditions in a different way so as to project their real essence.
Q: Can caste Hindus take food from âuntouchablesâ?
A: There is nothing which stops sadhus and Sikhs from taking food even from Bhangis (sweepers).
Q: But can Sanatani Hindus who are not sadhus do the same?
A: Those Sanatanis who lead a family-life (grihasta), they are not allowed to do so. On the other hand, the sadhus are allowed because they are alone and their actions do not affect others. But a person who lives with his family, he lives with 25 people, he cannot force them to do what he thinks is right. Similarly, if 24 of them think that eating with Bhangis is fine, they cannot force the person who does not share their views to do the same. If they want [to eat with Bhangis] they can go and live elsewhere. There is no law on sati, child marriage and untouchability in Hindu society. It is a question of personal choice, and we have given them a loophole, a safety valveâif you want [to practice these customs], you can. Thereâs no harm.
Q: You mean to say that those who want to practice untouchability should be allowed to do so?
A: Yes, they should be allowed.
Q: And those who donât want to?
A: They should not be forced to practice untouchability.
Q: If a Brahmin priest says he doesnât want âUntouchablesâ to enter his temple,
should they be allowed to go in?
A: They should not. It is his temple so why do you want to enter it?
Q: Is this rule valid for all temples?
A: Temple is something which is private and not a social-affair in Hindu society, unlike tirtha and melas. In the operation theatre of the hospital not everybody is allowed because it has to remain pure. Similarly, our temples are places of meditation for which you require the same sort of vibrations within a limit. I
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