The British Makeover of India: Indigenous Education and Languages Downgraded

India, that is Bharat, has been a land of seekers of knowledge. Learning and pursuit of knowledge have been an integral part of Indian civilisation. Nearly eight decades into independence, India hasn’t yet completely reclaimed its civilisational heritage. Relentless Muslim invasions and British colonisation have struck at the very foundational structures of its civilisation.

In her rigorously researched two-volume series on the impact of the British Colonisation on India’s civilisation, Padma Sri Meenakshi Jain brought to light the systematic destruction of India’s indigenous institutions by the British East India Company (EIC). The first volume, released in 2024, expertly uncovers the colonial dismantling of the native judiciary and its allied institutions, which were rooted in the Dharma Shastras and Sutras. (A review of the first volume- The British Makeover of India: Judicial and Other Indigenous Institutions Upturned can be accessed here).

Structured in four sections, the second volume titled- “The British Makeover of India: Indigenous Education and Languages Downgraded” brings out in sordid detail the steady decline of the indigenous education system. Enduring the double whammy of lack of government support and impoverishment of the natives under colonial rule, the system that thrived for millennia crumbled.

Western travellers and the early EIC officials were in awe of the indigenous education system, mostly ‘single teacher run schools’ that imparted the 3 basic Rs of Reading, Writing and Arithmetic. Supported by the communities, the schools erected by teachers and built in clay catered to rudimentary learning. The curriculum enabled the students to become competent in the skills needed for local transactions. Mistakenly described as rote learning, the indigenous system focused on practice and memory as a tool of learning.  The author highlights and traces the functioning of Verdah or Tinnai Schools in Tamil Nadu that survived through the early decades of the 20^th century.

Soon, the colonial government often confronted the traditional and institutionalised learning of these schools, forcing them to shift to the modern (British curriculum). Arguing for Anglicisation or Christianisation, Charles Grant, along with Rev. David Brown and George Udny, drafted a plan, Mission to Bengal, to set up missionary schools headed by clergymen in all eight provinces of Bengal. He insisted “The People are universally and wholly corrupt, they are as depraved as they are blind, and as wretched as they are depraved, and to govern them and render them obedient and orderly upon right principles is no easy Work….. to reconcile them for a foreign dominion like Ours, it seems equally clear that We and they ought to have some strong common principles…… Religion is that Common Principle, the only just and durable one that can be established between us” (p35).

Terming the European arts and science as “superior lights”, Grant proposed that the ‘implantation’ of this British curriculum through the English language would silently disconnect the Hindus from their heritage. Drawing from the earlier Muslim invaders who conducted public affairs and governance in Persian and asserted their superiority, Grant believed that English must be made the language of administration and judicial work. Grant’s plans were the meat of the Company Charter of 1793.

EIC’s plans are renewed every twenty years by the parliament. Seemingly, in the early stages of colonisation, the parliament, taking a cautious approach on sending missionaries to India, didn’t endorse the plan in its entirety. However, Grant, who had the backing of Prime Minister Henry Dundas, using his authority, sent twenty Chaplains to India. Soon, the ‘Sermapore Trio’- William Carey, William Ward and Joshua Marshman, who arrived in Calcutta without valid licences, expanded the evangelisation programme. Anglicist William Wilberforce advocated for the dissemination of Christianity through various Indian languages.

Initially, a section of EIC officials, referred to as Orientalists, endorsed the indigenous education systems and espoused revival of traditional knowledge. They established new institutions in Bengal, Bombay province. Warren Hastings started Calcutta Madrassa in 1781 and Jonathan Duncan founded Sanskrit College in 1781 to increase intellectual contact between Pandits and British officials, surmising the concept of ‘reinvigorate, not replace’. But eventually, missionaries used these institutions to become proficient in vernacular languages. Translating the Bible into local languages, they distributed Christian texts and books to the common people. Soon, the missionaries even turned their focus to different Oriental languages and spread Christianity to South East Asia as well.

With the appointment of William Bentinck as Governor General of India in 1828, the pretence of ‘engrafting European sciences’ on traditional knowledge was shed. He approved the introduction of English to reduce administrative costs, and natives also showed interest to learn the language to earn a livelihood. Eventually, the Company Charter of 1793 fructified in 1835 when Anglicists Charles Trevelyan and Thomas B Macaulay pressed hard for its implementation.

In his speech before the Parliament opposing scholarships and funds to the indigenous institutions Macaulay said, “To have found a great people sunk in the lowest depths of slavery and superstition, to have so ruled them as to have them desirous and capable of all the privileges of citizens, would indeed be a title to glory all our own”. Confessing to having no knowledge of Sanskrit or Arabic, Macaulay argued, “who could deny that a single shelf of a good European library was worth the whole native literature of India and Arabia… It is, I believe, no exaggeration to say that all the historical information which has been collected from all the books written in the Sancrit language is less valuable than what may be found in the most paltry abridgements used at preparatory schools in England” (p70).

The Macaulay Minute of Feb 2, 1835, which has veered the indigenous education system away from its traditional moorings and produced thousands of brown sahibs, was unhinged about its contempt for natives. Obtrusively citing the end goal, Macaulay indicated, “We must at present do our best to form a class who may be interpreters between us and the millions whom we govern- a class of persons Indian in blood and colour, but English in tastes, in opinions, in morals and in intellect. To that class we may leave it to refine the vernacular dialects of this country to enrich those dialects with terms of science borrowed from the Western nomenclature and to render them by degrees fit vehicles for conveying knowledge to the great mass of the population”(p70). Perhaps, given the brazenness of Macaulay’s stance, the Minute was published in 1853. Macaulay didn’t want it to be published.

Apprised of the consequences of this wily Charter, which was approved by the Parliament, in a letter to his father, Macaulay confessed- “No Hindoo, who has received an English education, ever remains sincerely attached to his religion. Some continue to profess it as a matter of policy; but many profess themselves as pure Deists, and some embrace Christianity. It is my firm belief that, if our plans of education are followed up, there will not be a single idolater among the respectable classes in Bengal thirty years hence. And this will be affected without any efforts to proselytise, without the smallest interference with religious liberty; merely by the natural operation of knowledge and reflection. I heartily rejoice in this prospect”. (p74). In fact, the growing tribe of influentials HINOs is a direct outcome of the Macaulay education system, which was imposed on the unsuspecting natives.

The Charter Act 1833 opened the floodgates for missionaries so much so that the period between 1830-57 was reckoned as “Age of Mission School”. Offering elementary education in vernacular languages, missionaries successfully penetrated even the rural areas. Given their increasing reach, evangelists argued for grants-in-aid for missionary schools, pressed for introduction of Bible as a class book and called for abolishing Oriental schools and colleges. Alexander Duff, author of educational despatch, described imparting English education without religion, “a blind suicidal” policy.

The EIC, wary of perceived threats to the interests of the Empire in the wake of the Vellore Mutiny, Tinnevelley riots and Nagpur riots, halted direct financial assistance to missionaries and tried to rein on the religious bigotry of missionaries. However, the missionaries soon ventured into secondary education. Simultaneously, the colonial government began tweaking the indigenous curriculum in colleges by removing key Sanskrit texts and adding the Western classics in arts and literature.

Post-1857 revolt, the government totally abandoned the policy of religious neutrality and imposed Christianity. Postulating, keeping people away from Christianity caused the 1857 Mutiny, Herbert Edwardes said, “between us and the Indian people, the great want is the want of a link. We are divided by our religions. There is no amalgamation between the races. There is nothing to twine one within the other and cement our interests. We stand aloof- and find nothing in our worldly policy to bridge the space. We shall only find that link in Christianity. If we Christianise one man, we have made one friend. If we Christianise a race, we have got an army. If we Christianise a province, we have founded a government. If we Christianise a people, we have made an empire…”. (p253).

In addition to Christianisation, rampant exploitation rendered the prosperous Indian society impoverished. Dire economic straits resulted in teachers' reluctance to barter knowledge. Further, the mandatory fees for enrolment into schools denied the masses basic access to elementary education. Once a thriving society of knowledge and education, the education system of India collapsed due to a lack of patronage from the government and the dire poverty of people.

The last section of the book examines the colonial times when Hindus and Muslims asserted civilisation identity through language. Stripping Hindavi, an amalgamation of Sanskrit and Persian languages of the Sanskrit heritage, elite Muslims during the decline of the Mughal Empire developed Urdu. Refurbishing Hindavi with Persian heritage, Muslims flaunted a separate identity. Urdu created fundamental dissensions between Hindus and Muslims. Soon, Hindus asserted their Indic heritage under the umbrella of Hindi, which became a unifying factor for Hindus during the freedom struggle. As politicians rake up language issues for electoral gains in different parts of India now, it would be the right time to revisit the pursuits of Hindu stalwarts to unite under a common language to awaken national pride and national unity.

Impeccably packed with numerous references, authentic original sources, survey reports and memorandums, the book is a testimony to the objective and unbigoted research of historian Meenakshi Jain. As a foremost historian of our times, she has silently brought out inconvenient and uncomfortable facts that tore into smithereens the colonial narrative peddled by left-lib historians. This book meticulously decodes the malevolence of British colonialism.

 

Number of pages: 400

Publishers: Aryan Books

@ Copyrights reserved. 

Delimitation and States Reorganization: For a Better Democracy in Bharat

Teeming with 1.4 billion people, India has set a lofty goal of Viksit Bharat 2047 on the strength of three Ds- Demography, Demand and Democracy. Marked by a peaceful transition of power and a five-year periodic cycle of free and fair elections, India burnishes its democratic credentials.

India has been the mother of Democracy, which has been the hallmark of mature civilisations. Self-governance and devolution of power, the vital elements of a democratic setup, have been integral to Bharatiya society even before the Mauryas and Guptas. Notably, despite sheer geographic separation, similar democratic impulses existed in Greece. While the capricious Amerisphere think-tanks designate India as an ‘electoral autocracy’, based on its Christianised version of democracy, passages in the Rig Veda Mandalas and Atharva Veda vividly describe the election of ‘rajan’ by the Samiti. Democratic system existed in various forms in India from the Vedic times. Clearly, no country, including the West, can have a monopoly over the term ‘Democracy’ and can’t be allowed to set normative benchmarks in judgment of other countries under the garb of ‘rules-based order’.

Unfortunately, waves of foreign invasions have irretrievably disturbed the embedded democratic principles of Bharatiya society. Over two centuries long British colonisation had left a deep imprint on the body politic of India. Having mastered the art of weaponisation of identity markers like religion, caste and language, the British created fissures in the Indian society. The brutal partition of India is rooted in these divisive identity politics, which are a threat to the unity of the country. However, for quick political gains, regional political parties deliberately latch onto identity politics to mobilise the electorate. Unity in diversity is the bedrock of Indian civilisation. The heightened assertion of identities coupled with a renewed call for a freeze on delimitation can be inimical to the democratic framework of any country.

Countering this frenzy, authors Gautam R Desiraju and Deekhit Bhattacharya have brought out a book, “Delimitation and States Reorganization For A Better Democracy in Bharat”, a sequel to Bharat: India 2.0 (authored by Prof. Desiraju), offering a bold, new framework for reshaping the Indian States.  Discarding the time-worn dogmatic methodology, the book gets to the root of the growing trend of identity politics. For their administrative convenience to strengthen their hold on India, the British encouraged provincial reorganisation along the linguistic lines. Soon, the political identity on linguistic lines was firmly instilled in people by around 1920. Ever since, regardless of history, culture and tradition, language emerged as the primary identity of people.

The rise of linguistic consciousness soon bred the supremacist political idea, triggering the genesis of exclusivist political parties that seeded linguistic and cultural chauvinism. During the freedom movement, these hardened linguistic identities dented the national unity by fostering sub-nationalism. Identifying Tamil language as a vector, missionaries instilled the Dravidian ideology in the Madras Province by propping up the caste divisions and designating Nadars as non-Aryan. By turning language into a vector of social engineering, the British successfully drilled in the idea of separateness and sowed seeds of division between Bharat and the Tamil people.

Upholding the objectives of the Justice Party that advocated Dravidian ideology, its offshoots are now stoking embers of separateness in Tamil Nadu. The recent doubling down on imagined Hindi-language imposition and demand for a further freeze on delimitation, provoking the North-South divide indeed warrants a serious relook at the reorganizational framework of States.

Acknowledging “Tamil language as the totem of Dravidianism”, the authors hark back to the failures of the political leadership of independent India that unsuspectedly adopted linguistic reorganisation of States. Strangely, the 1956 States Reorganisation Commission of independent India echoed the British approach of “convenience and apathy” in carving new states based on language, disregarding the economic concerns and cultural identities of the people. Applying the theme of “One Language One State”, new states were formed conforming to a new uniform identity of language, resulting in the suppression of other dialects.

This larger fragmentation created artificial homogenisation, loss of cultural diversity and accentuated dissimilarities between states. With no rationale for the division and application of metrics, India ended up having disparate states with some wielding outsized political heft. This has destabilised the crosstalk between the Unitary (Centre) and peripheral units (States). Centrifugal disruptive tendencies of the states can impact the overall unity of the country.

To stem this rising sub-nationalism and the arm-twisting of States with disproportional electoral heft, the authors recommend the creation of 75 small states based on a common ethnicity, historical connections, language, and culture that enhances self-worth, linguistic pride and self-development. Asserting that the reorganisation of states and delimitation are two sides of the same coin, the book strongly recommends delimitation of States based on the census scheduled for March 2027.

The principle of equal representation is paramount in democracy. The potential of national diversity can be best represented with “Each Vote Same Value and Each State Same Heft”. The authors believe that reorganisation into smaller units of an average 2 crore population can herald mental decolonisation, inspire citizens to embrace their civilizational identities unapologetically. In fact, small states with optimal population size and diversity, besides augmenting the country’s potential, can promote true federalism. If states are roughly the same size, none would have disproportionate heft.

The authors strongly recommend that the Centre must bite the Delimitation bullet frozen for 50 years, against the 10-year renewal after every census. The last delimitation exercise was carried out based on the 1971 census. Boundaries were readjusted in 2001, but the number of Lok Sabha and Assembly constituencies remained the same.  Small states can resolve the inconsistencies of demography, economy and federal impulses to a large extent. Currently, the average voters represented by an Lok Sabha MP is 17.9 lakh, more than the size of Sweden. ‘Delimitation helps in realignment and reemergence of new power dynamics’.

Advocating for an extremely onerous task of delimitation, which involves demographic, political and legal complexities, the authors want the exercise to be done ‘ab initio’ not incrementally. As per Article 3 of the Indian Constitution, Parliament can form new states and redraw the existing boundaries. Delimitation is the first step in reshaping and reimagining India.

‘Bharat is an ancient civilisation, India is a new country’ trapped in the Westphalian artifice of the nation state. India has given in to the British imposition of institutionalised linguistic identity. British model can be exemplified by Winston Churchill’s statement, “India is a geographical term. It is no more a united nation than the equator”. As the authors rightly contend, “intellectual colonisation outlasts political colonisation”, and the Indian elite looking at India through the British lens has embellished and institutionalised this lie.

Indeed, the “Western notion of federalism rooted in the Roman idea, of varied peoples pooling together select political power as foederatis makes little sense in the Indian context- our model is of singular all-pervading Brahman manifesting itself in many forms by declaring ‘May I be many, may I grow forth’ instead of preexisting bits and pieces of agglomerating together”.

Offering a compelling logic, the authors present Dr. Ambedkar’s note on the 1956 SRC entitled “Thoughts on Linguistic States”. He wrote, “The formation of Linguistic States, although essential, cannot be decided by any sort of hooliganism. Nor must it be solved in a manner that will serve party interest. It must be solved by cold-blooded reasoning”. Suggesting an alternative foundation, the authors have come up with the idea of “One Language One State”.

Forwarded by Dr. Murli Manohar Joshi, the 245-page book comprising five chapters offers prescriptive solutions and an actionable plan for India aspiring to rediscover, reclaim its civilizational identity. Presenting a clear distinction in the end goals of a nation state and a civilizational state, rooted in a Dharmic foundation, the authors provide a blueprint that necessitates the reorganisation of States and a new constitution that resonates with the values and aspirations of people.

Historically, Bharat had small states, and the new model of 75 states aligns with the time-tested idea that uncompromisingly nurtures diversity, which is the essence of our civilisation. With a nationalist dispensation at the helm, India is going through a silent churn. The dispassionate visionary blueprint etched out by the authors to make India a better democracy deserves huge applause. The roadmap is reflective of their desire in India’s emergence as a civilisation state. The book is timely and a must-read.

@ Copyrights reserved.

Malabar and The Portuguese

The most illogical rationale for European colonisers justifying their imperial control of India was the ‘civilising mission’. Iberians always envied Venetian and Arab access to Indian commodities and aspired for the same. However, access to Indian trade took a hit after the Ottomans firmed up their control over the maritime trade routes and began levying taxes. This spurred the Iberians to embark on long-distance explorations to India. They travelled around Africa to reach India. With embedded cultural and religious missions besides the overtly propagated trade monopoly as the paramount objective, the Portuguese through successive expeditions managed to reach the Indian shores.

Building on accumulated experiences of over half a century of explorations systematically collated over years, including the adventurous naval expedition prowess of Dom Henry, better known as Prince Henry the Navigator, Vasco da Gama set sail for India in 1497 with the express consent of King Dom Manuel from Belem. Aboard San Gabriel rounding the Port of Hope, taking an Indian Davane hostage and escorted by the pilots of King of Melinde, da Gama landed at Kappat north of Calicut on May 17^th. Equipped with the 1441 Papal Bull that granted sovereignty over all new lands in Africa and Asia to the Crown of Portugal, stocked with provisions and heavily armed with guns, the Portuguese set foot on India.

Generations of India had the misfortune of graduating with the curriculum and syllabus that gratified the colonial masters and made them accept the benefits of European rule. All the available literature written with a colonial lens had eloquently subscribed to the trade theory as the primary motive of waves of European expeditions to the Indian subcontinent. Shedding light on the less-known details of the earliest European colonial settlements, K. M. Pannikar’s “Malabar and the Portuguese” written in 1929 offers insights into the imperial motives of Iberians. This book is among the earliest and the most authentic Indian historical record of Portuguese settlements in the Malabar region.

Pannikar who served as Indian ambassador to China and one of the greatest influences on Nehru, had been at the centre of India’s Chinese foreign policy debacle. With his sympathetic portrayal of China, he justified Beijing’s actions and policies and forced Nehru to surrender the Indian diplomatic mission in Tibet tamely. The botched-up foreign policy carried under the counsel of Pannikar and VK Krishna Menon has reaped on India the livewire of the largest un-demarcated boundary. Infamous as a Chinese apologist, while I debated the choice of the book, the new tag of being a Voice of India publication disquieted my apprehensions. Panikkar was a scholarly historian before donning the role of an administrator and diplomat. He authored many historical works and was the architect of the ‘Indian Naval Doctrine’.

Written at a time when the Britishers still ruled India, the book debunks the Portuguese propaganda of Estado da India or the Portuguese State of India. Panikkar outrightly rejects the claims of Iberians of having a massive foothold in India. His work was exclusively restricted to Portuguese attempts to make Malabar a springboard for their larger ambitions of extending their presence across India. Laid out in 14 chapters, the initial chapter- Malabar before the arrival of Portuguese provides a sneak peek at the societal setup in the region, its extensive trade connections with Egyptians, Greeks, Romans, Arabs and with regions in the Far East. By the 8^th century, Malabar had thriving communities of St. Thomas Christians, Jews and Arab Mohammedans or Moors. At the time of the arrival of the Portuguese, Malabar was divided into small principalities ruled by small Rajahs or chieftains who accepted the suzerainty of major rulers. 

Around the 15^th century, the Kolathari or King of Cannanore or Zamorin or King of Calicut was the major ruler of Malabar, with several small Rajahs like Rajahs of Tanur, Cranganore, Cochin, Mangat, Idappalli, Vadakkumkur, Procaud, Kayamkulam and Quillon. Malabar had a unique law which didn’t recognise the right of the sovereign to oust a rebellious chief or to confiscate his property. But when hostilities arise, “after subduing them (Chiefs of Malabar), it was a practice to return to them their possession, and the restitution, although sometimes delayed for a long time”. But in the end, the major Rajah or Zamorin would always return. The political organisation and feudal system of Malabar was a bit different.

At the time of the arrival of the Portuguese, the Zamorin who belonged to the Nair caste, had all the rights like entering into alliances, minting coins in his name and had enjoyed perks of royalty denied to Rajah of Cochin, a Kshatria with superior social status. Hence, he felt slighted. Indeed, the Portuguese after their arrival capitalised on this and effectively exploited these differences between the rajahs and played them one against another to entrench themselves into the important principalities. Most of the Rajahs were in charge of ports bustling centres of trade and commerce.

Apart from trade, the impetus behind Portuguese exploration is driven by the devout Christian duty of conquering new lands for Christ. They believed that the supremacy of the Indian seas was a work of God and none other than Christians had a right over them. Motivated by a zeal to conquer new lands, Portuguese expeditions were replete with episodes of unheard brutality that startled Malabar Kings and the Moors who excelled in sea trade. Short of muscle power to indulge in open confrontation, the Portuguese launched surprise attacks on unsuspecting seafarers and plundered and drowned their ships. As a message to Zamorin, who refused to respond to Portuguese peace overtures, they heaped despicable brutalities on the crew of a vessel which had no parallels in history. With marauding expeditions on ports, the Portuguese created a famine-like situation in 1577.

Backed by the valiant Kunjali Marakkars, Zamorin took on the Portuguese and strategically repelled every attempt to wrest control of the important ports in Malabar. Except for Cochin, Procaud and Quilon, the Portuguese failed to penetrate much beyond a few miles from the coast into the interiors. Even their precarious hold over these regions was completely decimated out with the arrival of the Dutch. Portuguese even eyed Ceylon. But Zamorin effectively frustrated all their attempts by siding with Maydunna, the brother of Ceylon King Bhuveneka Bahu.

Along with setting up factories at Cochin, the Portuguese after acquiring forts expelled non-Christians. They encouraged intermarriages where Christian converts were extended the same privileges as the Portuguese. They believed conversion was their imperative duty. “Cross in one hand, sword in another”, they unleashed their narrow spirit of intolerance against native Christians. Indeed, these Christians upon the arrival of da Gama approached him and acknowledged their allegiance to the King of Portugal and even suggested building a strong fort to occupy entire Malabar.

These native Christians enjoyed communal privileges and had absolute religious freedom in Malabar. They were even governed by Metrans or Bishops, representatives sent from the Archiepiscopate of Bussorah. Despite the special treatment accorded by the Hindu rulers, at the first opportunity they shifted their loyalties without any compunction.  However, the Portuguese considered native Christians as heretics and their Bishop Archdeacon of Syria a traitor. With the reluctant approval of Rajah of Cochin, Alexis de Meneses, Archbishop of Goa coerced the St. Thomas Christians to accept the supremacy of Rome at the Synod of Diamper (Udaimperoor). The Portuguese converted Rajah of Tanur but he reverted to his native faith after 10 years with the support of Zamorin. The primary targets of the Portuguese Inquisition were the native Christians.

Portuguese could control Cochin completely. They exercised their political authority and interfered in domestic affairs including succession. Despite being in alliance with the Rajah of Cochin, the Portuguese attempted to plunder Pallurithi Temple which the Rajah held in high esteem. The Portuguese contingent in India has twice the number of clergy than the soldiers and officials. Rivalry existed between the religious orders and the administrators. Massive infighting between officials, corruption, inefficient administration, feudal mindset, lack of loyalty and indulgence in private trade led to the crumbling of Portuguese power in Malabar.

Portuguese burnt temples and mosques along the coasts. They were inherently hostile to Moors given their faceoff with them in Spain and Africa. They used locals to fight the Mohammedan rulers, a policy which later Europeans followed. The Portuguese who were driven away from Malabar occupied Goa and destroyed all Hindu temples at the orders of the King of Portugal. Portuguese made plans to attack Canjeevaram temples. However, since the local Rajah got the whiff of the plans, they were forced to retreat. 

The spirit of intolerance flowed from the King of Portugal who was intent on spreading Christianity. In his orders, he instructed Viceroy Joao de Castro to direct all his powers to evangelism. It says, “ The great concernment which lies upon Christian Princes to look to matters of Faith and to employ their forces for its preservation makes me advise you how sensible I am that not only in many parts of India under our subjection but in our city of Goa, idols are worshipped, places in which our Faith may be more reasonably expected to flourish; and being well informed with how much liberty they celebrated heathenish festivals. We command you to discover by diligent officers all the idols and to demolish and break them up in pieces where they are found, proclaiming severe punishments against anyone who shall dare to work, cast, make in sculpture, engrave, paint or bring to light any figure of an idol in metal, brass, wood, plaster or any other matter, or bring them from other places; and against who publicly or privately celebrate any of their sports, keep by them any heathenish frankincense or assist and hide the Brahmins, the sworn enemies of the Christian profession……. It is our pleasure that you punish them with that severity of the law without admitting any appeal or dispensation in the least”.

Since the Portuguese hardly made territorial gains in Malabar, they were unsuccessful with their policy of conversion in Malabar. But they unleashed their intolerance to the fullest in Goa. In fact, to give up cow slaughter in Quillon, the Portuguese had struck a deal with the Queen that Christians should be governed as per the edicts pronounced by their captain.

The unvarnished facts in the book unambiguously reinforce the religious fanatism of the Portuguese and the later Europeans, who used every trick in the book- inducement, intimidation, and coercion to convert the natives at sword’s point.

With the contemporary discourse dominated by debates on rules-based international order, there can be no better time to lay hands on available historical sources. As the collective West more so, the European countries, masquerading as custodians of humanity spare no occasion to lecture Indigenous civilisations on values-based polity, it is time to show them the mirror. This book can be a good starter for anyone interested in unlearning and relearning the ordeals of the Indian civilisational story.

Vritrahan

Some books leave you in contemplative mode long after you have finished reading them. Ratul Chakraborty’s Vritrahan belong to that unique category. The finesse in writing and expertise in intertwining Cosmic balance, Civilisation and the modern world can awe the reader. Written in fast-paced poetry, the sharp, crisp, and pointed messaging has particularly appealed to me. I re-read some of the verses to assimilate and relish the philosophical depth.

Indic civilisational treasure is embellished with several tales meticulously crafted to impregnate the collective conscious with dharmic values. Passed on for generations, these tales served as a moral compass for Bharatiyas to renew and rejuvenate themselves periodically and steer forward despite various onslaughts and vicissitudes. This psychological attuning to the cosmic principles of dharma and karma inherently attests the unimpeachable truths of the triumph of good over evil and the restoration of a balance or order. Essentially, this dharmic framework served as the fount of energy from which Bharatiya civilisation drew strength.

Subtly pushing the Bharatiya concepts of ‘Purusartha’ and Rta with an imaginative retelling of the ancient tale, the author gently prods the reader to derive strength from our civilisational moorings. Employing the time-tested Katha style of story-telling of yore, the book takes a deep dive into the legendary Indra-Vritra battle, a Pauranik story of the Rg Vedic times, central to the creation and dissolution narrative. Set in six parts with an epilogue, the book deliberately omits the endnotes and an explanation to Indic untranslatables, perhaps underscoring the author’s resolute conviction to mainstream the Indic vocabulary.

Bold, pulsating and rhythmic, the verses make a strong impression on the reader.  Invoking the blessings of Maa Saraswati, the book dwells on the timelessness of Hiranyagarbha. Then, it starts with the story of Indra killing Trishira or Vishwarupa, the son of Tvashta, the Maker. Grieving over the death of his son and seeking vengeance, Tvashta creates Vritra to strike at Indra. Vritra benumbs Indra in a sudden and powerful attack and parches humanity by withholding the entire waters of the Earth. Dejected, defeated and remorseful, Indra then prays to Narayana. Bhagwan Vishnu guides him to Dadichi, who gives up his body to build a powerful weapon from his bones, which accumulated mighty powers due to his intense Tapas. Wielding the weapon, Vajra made from these bones, Indra slays Vritra, bringing back prosperity to the Aryans.

The book vividly captures the centrality of the theme of the adharmic killing of Trishira by a conceited Indra, the Asura-Devata battle toppling the cosmic balance, a depleted Indra consumed by penitence and his gradual march onto the dharmic path with the grace of Narayana with exemplary brilliance. All attributes like greed, arrogance, conceit, anger, revenge, grief or the Arishadvargas, the inner enemies that cause stagnation, are much the same, be it the cosmic story or personal life.

These enemies cause a loss of sense of direction and must be overcome with resilience. Be it a modern life overwhelmed by a lack of clarity or a nation with a moral obligation to uphold the civilisational values the stumbling blocks of apathy and lassitude must be bested. The book gently goads readers to realise sense of purpose, confront the challenges in life and look within.

Expertly marrying the dharmic principles and their potent role as an anchor to modern living the book neatly layers it with civilisation duties with an element of obtrusive patriotism. Borrowing from the book, “the three building blocks of civilisation- value of oaths, value of law and value of brotherhood”.

Referring to the World when Devatas were driven away from Svarga by Vritra, the author writes-

“Fear controls the hearts of the living;

The rabid mob has become the law,

Wisdom is now a crime

Logic and respect, taboo

When their lives get divorced from nature

The mortals lose sight of Rta

Inevitably, the Law of the Fish

Holds sway over civilisation”

 

The book has so many elements. The reader can imaginatively cling to any aspect that enkindles them. Be it a commiserative message to an inconsolable father at the murder of his son- 

“All things begin with Death

All Death ends in Birth

Between the two is Life

Fleeting, glorious, inconsequential;

It is whatever you wish it to be”

 

Or Indra’s realisation of sense of duty-

“Along with his senses, returned his perception;

The anguished cry of innocents

The pangs of hunger of the poor

The stench of all-pervasive corruption

The caustic poison in the air-

Each one a hammer blow

Hitting Indra all at once

Until at last the floodgates opened

Revealing in garish detail

The true horror of reality.

With newfound clarity,

Indra saw Vritra for what he truly was-

Not just a spirit of vengeance

Not just a reaction to Adharma,

But the very incarnation of Avidhya,

The primordial un-knowledge that is the source of Chaos”.

 

It is impossible to sign off without acknowledging the author’s mastery of words and his unparalleled craft. The brevity of the book stands out.  Challenging the thought process, the book rejigs lazy intellect, forces you to think, contemplate, connect and rediscover. Words have been carefully chiselled. The book is a work of art and deserves the highest honours for brilliantly mediating through the Chaos within and in the Universe.

 

Dharmashree

With his iconic work, Avarana, Kannada writer Padma Bhushan Dr. S. L. Bhyrappa indelibly etched his mark with his unparalleled cultural understanding of Bharatvarsha. Meticulously unveiling the fabricated history foisted by liberal historians, Avarana unabashedly exposes the readers to the darkest reality of Islamic zealotry. 

Having imbibed the Bharatiya civilisational spirit, Bhyrappa’s writings deeply reflect the impulsive changes in Indian society and the threats it faced from time to time. Be it interpersonal relations, familial ties or the impact of divisive forces, Bhyrappa’s literature has unassumingly brought forth these ideas subtly through his fiction writing. Perhaps nobody has utilised the power of fiction as much as the colossus Bhyrappa to gently acquaint the readers with the political and religious forces that constantly threaten Bharat's civilisational identity.

Notwithstanding the partition based on religion and the British exit from India, the deep undercurrents of Ghazwa-e-Hind and rampant proselytisation by Western missionaries continue to abrade the Bharatiya civilisational landscape. While Avarana composed in 2007 has exposed the diabolical plot of converting thousands of Hindus into Muslims at the point of the sword, Bhyrappa’s one of the earliest novels, Dharmashree written in 1961 lays threadbare the punitive tactics of the Christian missionaries.

Written in Kannada, Dharmashree is translated into English by L. V. Shantha Kumari. The context of the novel is set in the backdrop of the early independence times when poverty, class and caste identities dominated the society. They were indeed the defining attributes of the society during those times. The missionaries having learnt to operate along these fissures used every trick in the playbook like laying bait, intimidation, coercion and luring people to convert unsuspecting and vulnerable sections of the society en masse.

The protagonist of the novel Satyanarayana or Satya in short amidst hardships endeavours to pursue his studies with the help of empathetic people at different places during different phases of his education. During his stay at an orphanage in Mysore, he meets Shankara, a Sangh karyakarta whose profound understanding of Santana Dharma greatly inspires Satya to learn about the Dharma of the land.

Through the animated conversations between Satya and Shankara, the author rightly introduces the concept of Rastra which is often misconstrued as a nation-state. Averring that nation and rastra are not the same and setting the definition straight, Shankara states, “Rastra is not merely a geographical entity. It is not something that can be prepared in a day or two. Its history shapes a nation; moreover, a nation must be endowed with a sublime tradition and a living culture. Furthermore, it must have a unique identity in terms of personal values. Rastra is an entity that comprises all of this”.

Consummate conversations generously splattered along with references to various books the novel caters to the intellectual curiosity of an inquisitive reader about Santana Dharma.  Mentored by Shankara, Satya turns out to be a staunch advocate of Dharma. Struck by the objectivity of his arguments on Dharma, a convent-educated, devout Christian, Lily takes up self-study of Sanatana Dharma. Influenced by the sagacity of Satya’s expositions, she becomes interested in the dharmic underpinnings of Bharatiya civilisation.

Having bonded over a common understanding of Dharma, Satya and Lily despite the unfavourable realities of belonging to different religions decide to marry. Satya agrees to a Church marriage and converts to Christianity. After marriage, despite the comforts, luxury and a well-paid job, Satya who becomes Xavier Satyadasa suffers from severe psychological turbulence. The sudden loss of identity and a sense of connection with the Dharma into which he was born makes him restless. He falls terribly ill.

Tormented by beliefs of his past dharma and his inability to embrace the new religion, his bouts of illness continue to recur. Conscious of the turmoil of her husband, Lily starts behaving like a Hindu wife even at the cost of inviting the wrath of the clergy and her father. Determined to end this mental ambiguity, Lily and her husband return to the Santana Dharma fold under the auspices of Arya Samaj. With this Xavier Satyadasa becomes Satyanarayana again and he names Lily as ‘Dharmashree’.

Largely influenced by Ananda Coomaraswamy, the author having dedicated the book to him, adeptly uses his works to mould the characters. Indeed, the friendly banter that eventually transforms into heated arguments between Satya and Lily is illustrative of the sublime intellectual acuity of the author. In fact, these authoritative and elucidations make the novel an engaging read.

Usually, novelists tend to portray their protagonists as an epitome of infallibility. Making a huge departure from this tradition, both in Aavarana and in Dharmashree, Bhyrappa shows that the lead characters are also vulnerable to fatal attractions. The genius of his imagination lies in making the lead character come out stronger after the fall and bounce back with immense vigour.

The nomenclatures of ‘Yesupura’, and ‘Yesusthan’ used in reference to Christianisation are indeed very thoughtful and apt. Similarly, some of the powerful statements like Bishop’s rebuking of Hindus and an indirect dig at Satya, “Without compulsion and the threat of punishment, the uncivilised will not become civilised, uncultured cannot become cultured”, leave a stark impression on the minds of the reader.

The visionary public thinker and novelist Bhyrappa through his book Dharmashree written in 1961 has raised the issue of religious conversion. Six decades hence, Indian society continues to be strangulated by the proselytising forces. Religious conversions continue unabated. Hindus refuse to wake up and continue to live in the dark ….

 

Pages: 330

Published by Subbu Publications

The British Makeover of India: Judicial and Other Indigenous Institutions Upturned

Rundown by three waves of colonisation, Bharatiya Civilisation was subject to the interpretations of the colonial powers. Even now, the world continues to view Bharat through the colonial lens. Perception is the foundation for a narrative. Unfortunately, even after becoming independent, a jaundiced narrative of India administered by colonial laws is widely prevalent. Very little effort has been made to unshackle independent India from the Colonial governance structures.

The institutional framework of independent India is an extension of the colonial structures erected by dismantling the indigenous structures. While relentless Islamic invasions partially corrupted native institutions, they were completely uprooted by the British colonisation.

Castigating the British colonisation as exploitative and ruthless, famous French historian Fernand Braudel stated that – “the despotism of the Mughals in India was ‘enlightened despotism’ as compared to the mindless plunder of the British”. He observed that while the Mughals desired the golden egg, they were wise enough to know that they shouldn’t kill the goose that laid the golden egg. On the contrary, the British killed the golden goose for their avarice and greed. As the British consolidated their power over India with a series of victorious battles, they systematically trampled down the Indian institutions- political, economic, educational and cultural and subsequently created fissures in the society.

Padma Sri Meenakshi Jain in her new book- “The British Makeover of India: Judicial and Other Indigenous Institutions Upturned” takes a deep dive into this colonial institutional architecture. Her latest work is a new addition to the rich corpus of knowledge treasure she has produced. Laid out in 19 chapters, the author critically dissects the paradigm shift in the East India Company's (EIC) attitude towards India- a shift from initial enthusiasm to utter disdain and disparagement.

Conferred with administrative powers of three provinces in 1765, the mercantilist East India Company transitioned from being revenue collectors to the supreme rulers of India. Along with a string of military successes, the notion of the dominant race began to gain currency.  As a result, the initial reaction of awe and adoration towards Indian antiquity steadily descended into abomination. They began depicting India as a “people uniquely predisposed to corruption, extortion and mendacity”.

From around the 1760s till the early 19^th century, Britishers associated with the East India Company- William Bolts, Luke Scrafton, J.Z. Holwell, Alexander Dow, and Harry Verelst hailed Hindus as  “an ornament to creation” (p-5). These people even advocated that the company must adhere to the native institutions. They contended that the Mughals didn’t tamper with the Hindu laws and were allowed to follow their own regulations. Indeed, Harry Verelst warned of the adverse consequences of introducing English laws. Concerned about the loss of British colonies to America, Edmund Burke exhorted the need for respecting the indigenous laws.

Indeed, the first governor-general of India, Warren Hastings took a deep interest in the Hindu religion. Quite uncharacteristically, he attributed “Europe’s triumph not to the superiority of Christianity but to secular reasons like – free government, cold climate and printing and navigation”(p-20). He believed that to administer India, a sound knowledge of its culture was essential and went on ‘Pundit hunting’. He worked to create an elite orientalised service well-versed in Indian languages and Indian traditions.

During his tenure, he encouraged oriental scholarship and established the Asiatic Society of Bengal in 1784. Researchers like Charles Wilkins, Nathaniel Halhed, Jonathan Duncan and William Jones made notable contributions in the fields of Indian language, archaeology, philosophy, philology and history. Charles Wilkins translated Bhagavad Gita, Halhed translated Hindu Law- ‘Vivadarnava Setu’, as A Code of Gentoo Laws while Jonathan Duncan started a Sanskrit College in Banaras in 1791.

Hailed as the father of Indology, William Jones translated Kalidas’s Shankuntalam, and Gita Govinda. Jones believed that Pythagoras and Plato drew from the Sages of India and accepted the concept of transmigration of the soul. Simultaneously, Hastings encouraged the translation of Islamic texts like Ayine Akbery, Fatwa-al-Alamgir, and Hedaya into English. The motivations for an exalted interest in Indian civilisation weren’t “politically naïve” altogether as Hastings wanted to control, dominate, and divide the Indian population.

Some believed that dissemination of Indian knowledge would liberate the East India Company from charges of “moral turpitude”. Among the scholars who were in admiration of India included several Scotsmen who were critical of missionaries' depiction of Hindus “remain under the grossest, the darkest and most degrading system of idolatrous superstition that almost ever existed upon the earth”(p-51).

By the mid-18^th century, the tide began to change steered prominently by Charles Grant, an evangelist and James Mills. They challenged the consensus of the earliest set of Oriental scholars. The Company took an initial fascination with India. But it was driven by strategic objectives. They were cognizant of the huge benefits they could accrue from India. They believed that retreat from India would lead to “French domination” which could give them “the empire of the sea” and make them a “universal monarchy”.

After obtaining Diwani rights, the British ruthlessly exploited the farmers. British policies even induced famines that killed close to 10 million people in Bengal.

Hastings and his group attempted to reinterpret the Indian laws and Dharmasastras through a European lens and committed grievous errors. They believed that Dharmasastras were immutable legal texts. However, they are intellectual and philosophical discourses that are not fixed or static but evolutionary. They attempt to ossify them. ‘Lokavyavahara’ prevailed over dharmasastras. The Britishers overlooked local customs or acaras and complicated the matters with their narrow interpretations.

Indian perspective of justice was different from the European one which relied on precedence and consistency.  Dharma sastras and sutras never demonstrated their obsession for precedent as they largely believed that every individual had a unique dharma and a unique set of responsibilities. Indeed, the Indian texts were attuned to the changing requirements. By codifying the laws, the British had made them rigid. Case laws appeared for the first time in 1816. While the practice of administering justice through ‘A Code for Gentoo Laws’ had commenced, in some provinces governors depended on the local customs, unwritten maxims and verses in the local language for quicker dispensation of cases.

British had set up two centres- St. George College at Madras and Fort Williams in Calcutta to train officials in the new code. But this code created a divide in India with the Company men in the South resisting the ‘Northern School’ of the Code of Gentoo Laws which believed in the primacy of Dharmsastras. Francis Whyte Hall, the precursor of the Dravidian ideology opposed it calling them a ‘Brahminical recommendation’ (p-81) and pressed for the application of customary laws. This north-south difference had been a creation of the missionaries and the evangelist Company men furthered these divisions by widening these fissures.

The British gradually introduced the rules and regulations of European legality. Reluctant to employ Indians for higher positions, company men faltered to dispense cases quickly. To overcome the language barrier and to facilitate easy communication, they introduced the Vakil system which made justice redressal an expensive affair. Unlike the Panchayats which were efficient, effective, less expensive, regular, prompt and approved systems for dispensing justice, English Courts were highly unpopular. They invoked distrust, fear and eventually became seats of corruption as people had to pay huge sums of money to hire a Vakil to defend their case.

Modelled on the ‘Royal Irish Constabulary’ the British dismantled the indigenous policing system and the appointment of ‘Darogahs’ by district magistrates (Chapter 14). The magistrates relied on the advice of officers who were bribed to favourably recommend a person. Soon, corruption, bribery and oppression became all pervasive in the police system.

By transplanting the European institutions onto Indian territory, the British inflicted a death blow on the indigenous institutions that ensured the smooth functioning of the society. Disinclined to recruit natives for higher positions, Britishers trained relatives and friends of the company at Haileybury College, London for deployment in India. The course curriculum included vernacular language learning including Sanskrit, Persian, Arabic, European knowledge and Christianity with a mandatory reading of James Mill’s ‘History of British India’.

Compiled with the information sourced from missionaries in India, James Mill who never experienced India wrote a six-volume treatise. In the words of Orientalist, H.H. Wilson, the book was – “its tendency is evil; it is calculated to destroy all sympathy between the ruler and the ruled… a harsh and illiberal spirit has of late years prevailed in the conduct and councils of the rising service in India, which owes its origin to impressions imbibed in early life from the History of Mr. Mill” (p-264, Chapter 19).

The Haileybury College was a testament to the change in the outlook of the EIC. The curriculum injected a harsh view of India into the British officers from around 1830. This marked change in the Company also stemmed from its tightening strangle grip over India.  Subsequently, the Company officials shed any pretence of religious neutrality and openly supported missionaries. They facilitated Christian teaching in educational institutions. Through the Charter Act of 1813, the company gave missionaries the right to propagate religion.

Dismantling the indigenous institutions, the British weakened the harmonious social fabric of India. Aflush with several references, the book is an excellent go-to source to understand British Colonisation. The book is among the great works of Meenakshi Jain. However, an in-depth analysis could have certainly enhanced eloquent articulation.

This thoroughly researched work is an eye-opener to colonised Indians who take immense pride as inheritors of the European Framework.  A sequel to the book, (yet to be published) on the Company’s ruination of the native education system is expected to offer a complete perspective on British colonisation that extirpated every trace of “Indianness” and its identity.

@ Copyrights reserved.

 

The Fate of Tibet: When Big Insect Eats Small Insects

A series of quick-paced events including- the passage of the “Resolve Tibet Act” by the US Congress, a unanimous resolution by the Canadian House of Commons recognising Tibetan claim for self-determination followed by a US bipartisan delegation of legislators to meet Dalai Lama at Dharmshala, have brought back global attention to the over seven decades old unresolved Tibetan issue. Though the period of colonisation has effectively ended by the mid-20th century, some territories are still under the stranglehold of imperialistic forces.

In this era of the free world, to evade global scrutiny and defend their stranglehold on the occupied territories, imperialist forces have tactfully renamed them as autonomous regions. Without an ounce of autonomy to even safeguard their cultural, religious and spiritual heritage, these regions are at the end the verge of losing their identity. The Buddhist Land of Snow, Tibet living under the throes of invading force is still awaiting a peaceful resolution to emerge as a self-governing Republic.

Known as the roof of the world, Tibet once known for its military might was a major power in Central Asia with territories stretching from Xian in China to Pamir and Samarkand in the West and the Himalayas in the South. The advent of Buddhism has changed the war-like nation. This was soon reflected in its attitude and approach towards its neighbouring countries- India, China and Mongolia.

Sandwiched between the two Asian giants the Himalayan territory which served as the buffer zone between India and China is now at the centre of a crucial fault line and holds the key to the Asian Peace. Contented with its spiritual recourse, cut off from the din and clamour of worldly affairs, Tibet lived in seclusion for centuries with interdependent interests and relations with neighbours. With over two thousand years of history of independent existence, the world hardly knew about Tibet until the Chinese invasion shook the territory from its complacency. By the time Tibetans realised that their freedom was snatched away, the situation had become irredeemable.

The upheavals and the trials of Tibet are largely unknown to the world. The nebulous identity of Tibet perpetrated by China largely dominated the worldview. The tribulations of Tibet remained mostly unknown and unheard. Impeded by a paucity of historical writings about Tibet, the world is largely unaware of its independent identity and rich religious and cultural heritage. The available knowledge chunk largely drawn from Han records tries to attest to the Chinese perceptions of Tibet. Cutting through the clutter of the bigoted discourse peddled by China to defend its occupation, Claude Arpi, a passionate Tibetologist through his years of research published a book- “The Fate of Tibet: When Big Insects Eat Small Insects” that delves into the historicity of Tibet and objectively unravels the story of the roof of the world.

The work was largely an outcome of his abiding interest in Tibet eventuated after he first met the Dalai Lama. His association with Tibet thus ensued and ever since he continued his research on Tibet. Tibet considered India as the ‘Land of the Gods’ from where Buddhism entered their land had a Priest-Patron relationship with Mongolia. By the end of the 13^th century, Khubilai Khan of Mongolia became the Emperor of China and he was succeeded by the Yuan Dynasty following which Tibetans continued their Choe-Yon or the Priest-Patron relationship. This relationship continued till the fall of the Manchu Dynasty in 1912. This relationship of equals was devoid of any superiority wherein Tibet provided religious services for the benefit of the people and the Patron was obliged to protect the Priest. Hence the matter of subordination or existence of a tributary system never existed.

Under the leadership of the 13^th Dalai Lama from 1913 till the PLA troops marched into Tibet, it existed as an independent country. During this period, Tibet signed the Simla agreement with British India where the Mc Mahon line demarcating the India-Tibetan border along the Eastern frontier was ratified. Hence the Chinese claims of the ‘suzerainty of Tibet’ stand invalidated. As an independent nation, Tibet also signed agreement with Mongolia as well. Similarly, Chinese assertions fail on many counts like- China has never administered Tibet directly nor was a standing Chinese army ever stationed in Tibet barring some troops deployed for the protected the Chinese Amban (representative). Even the maps published in 1914 by China during the Simla meetings do not show Tibet as part of the Chinese Empire during the Yuan Dynasty.

Burnishing claims of suzerainty, China in one of the White Papers flaunted its practice of awarding titles and rewards to Tibetan Lamas. Conferring titles has been a customary practice since the times of Mongolian rulers and it was often reciprocal as Dalai Lamas also gave titles to Kings. For example, the Third Dalai after receiving the title “Talei Lama” from Atlan Khan bestowed the title “Dharmaraja, Brahma, Lord of the Devas” on the Khan (p-74). Indeed, Vietnamese, Korean and Burmese were also beneficiaries of titles and awards given by Chinese and Mongol Emperors so does this mean that these emperors have a claim to the ownership of their nations?

In his work, the author clinically busts the Marxist narrative of their suzerainty of Tibet. After the death of the Emperor and Empress of the Manchu dynasty in 1908, Tibet’s Priest-Patron relationship with China ended. In 1910 when Chinese troops started pursuing the 13^th Dalai Lama, Thubten Gyatso escaped to India, and made Darjeeling his home. He developed good contacts with British India and signed a new trade treaty in July 1914. With this British India became a major player in Tibet and subsequently Tibetan access to the outside world was through India.

By 1948, Tibet accepted India as the legal inheritor of treaties, obligations and rights of British India. Soon, both countries established air connectivity, India even recognised Tibetan passports and provided arms and ammunition requested by Tibetans. For all purposes, Tibet functioned as an independent country. India had a full-fledged mission in Lhasa and trade marts in Yartung, Shigatse and Gartok.

Unlike the Indo-Tibetan border which was relatively demarcated (barring the Ladakh sector), the undemarcated Sino-Tibetan border turned restive with China setting its eyes on the Amdo and Kham provinces. Indeed, the PLA troops marched into Tibet relatively unopposed on October 7^th, 1950 and on October 25^th Chinese broke the news of invading the Himalayan territory to the world. The Communist Party which made no secret of its plans of “liberating Tibet, Taiwan and Hainan” accomplished its objective without any resistance.

The Indian leadership aware of Mao Zedong’s idea of ‘revolution’, who in his letters to Indian communists had stated that ‘India has to be liberated’ didn’t find anything wrong in the Chinese war and struggle. On the contrary, the socialist-leaning, Indian Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru and Indian Ambassador to China KM Pannikar believed that ‘a small dose of communism was not bad for a ‘feudal’ Tibet.

Knowing full well, the revolutionary zeal of Marxists and Mao’s inveterate China’s ‘Son of Heaven’ fetish- (a mandate coming from the Heaven to rule ‘all under Heaven’) and the strong superiority complex of ethnic Chinese, India disappointed Tibet by failing to offer full support. Smitten by the romantic idealism of Asian resurgence and ‘friendship at all costs with Communist China’, Nehru allowed the Communist takeover of Tibet without any hitch. For Pannikar, the loss of Tibet was worth the price of liberating Asia from ‘Western dominance’ and believed that “friendship at any cost (with China) was the only way to fight the’ last traces of imperialism in Asia’” (p301).

In his letter of June 1949, Sardar Patel prophetically warned Nehru- “We have to strengthen our position in Sikkim as well as in Tibet. The farther we keep away, the Communist forces, the better. Tibet has long been detached from China. I anticipate that as soon as the Communists have established themselves in the rest of China, they will try to destroy its autonomous existence. You have to consider carefully your policy towards Tibet in a such circumstance and prepare from now for that eventually”. Against the sane advice of several Indian leaders like Dr Rajendra Prasad, Acharya Kriplani, Jaya Prakash Narayana, Nehru remained indifferent to the Marxist march into Tibet.

Two weeks after news of the Chinese invasion of Tibet, KM Pannikar in his Memorandum to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of China state said, “it is… not necessary to repeat that government of India’s interest is solely in a peaceful settlement of the issue … it has however been reported that some military action has taken place or is about to take place, which may affect the peaceful outcome of these negotiations” (p321). Ironically, when China was right up India’s border, the Indian ambassador was concerned about China’s entry into the UN and UNSC. Alarmed by the Indian reaction, Tsongdu (Tibetan National Assembly) noted –“it is pathetic to observe that the Indian Ambassador to China could not or would not see even a hint of the strategic implications for the security of his own country”(p-322).

Later India squandered its stakes by meekly surrendering its special privileges in Tibet. By failing to even raise alarm over the Tibetan issue, India allowed Communist China to get away with its brazen expansionism. Eager to play a larger global role in mediation during the Korean War around the same time, Nehru let go off ‘the Tibetan issue.’ India informed Lhasa that it wouldn’t even sponsor the Tibetan appeal at the UN to not anger China.

Nehru’s priorities of avoidance of world war and maintenance of honourable and peaceful relations with China have cost India its long-term security and territorial integrity.  Steeped in romantic idealism replete with ambiguity while the UK was struggling with legalities at the UN, Nehru rejected the legal arguments. He even requested the US to refrain from publicly condemning China as he “feared that such condemnation might lend credence to Chinese charges that Western powers had an interest in Tibet and that the Americans were exerting an influence over the Indian policy”(p-342). Nehruvian appeasement of China knew no bounds and he allowed the ground beneath his feet to slip and refused to acknowledge the true intents of Communist China till the 1962 war.

Mao claimed that it was their ‘sacred duty’ to liberate Tibet and their communique openly proclaimed that PLA troops were freeing Tibet of its ‘olds’ (akin to the four ‘olds’ of the Cultural Revolution- Old ideas, Old Culture, Old traditions and Old Customs).

Enamoured by the idealistic perception of Asia as the custodian of peace, Nehru bent over backward to be in the good books of Mao. Nehru admitted in his Telegram to Krishna Menon that he wanted things to remain vague and added, “I have answered them (questions asked at press conferences) rather vaguely and tried to avoid direct commitment. We do not intend any such declaration (regarding Tibet) because whatever we may say may be embarrassing either from a Chinese or a Tibetan point of view”. India refused to be part of the 1951 San Francisco conference to sign the Japanese Peace Treaty, as it lacked a clause restoring Formosa (Taiwan) to China. Nehru’s deplorable naivety and China syndrome have permanently imperiled India’s sovereignty.

Over seven decades now, China continues to trammel over historical agreements with impunity and undermines Indian interests. Hence it becomes doubly imperative to get acquainted with the events of the past and the Himalayan blunders to carve out an assertive Tibetan policy prioritising national interests.

Geopolitics have always been rife with power dynamics of big powers staking small nations for their larger ambitions. In the early 20^th century, Britain found it convenient to prop up an ambiguity regarding the independent status of Tibet to prevent it from allying with Russia and China. This nebulous suzerainty clause tweaked into the tripartite agreement has permanently snatched away the freedom of the ‘roof of the world’ and brought nuclear nations facing each other at the border.

Riddled with episodes of expansionist exploits as China continues to make farcical claims over Indian territories, India shouldn’t shy away from playing the Tibetan card and formulate its long-term China policy accordingly.

Laid out in twenty-seven chapters, the book, a compendium on Tibet is a must-read for China observers and foreign policy analysts for a discreet understanding of Indian diplomacy during early independence era days.

 

Pages: 432

Publishers: Har-Anand Publications Private Limited.

@ Copyrights reserved.

Tiananmen Square: The Making of a Protest

China is often reckoned as the beacon of political and economic stability. Political stability has laid a robust foundation for the economic and financial stability of China. Bereft of a history of dissent and wide protests in the contemporary history of the People’s Republic of China, the single-party state controlled by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) is widely believed to be monolithic. Further with the country's return to Mao Zedong’s days under Xi Jinping, the existence of liberal views in CCP appears to be implausible. After the fall of the Gang of Four in 1976 and the concomitant return of Deng Xiaoping as the Supreme Leader, China entered into a new phase. Deng steered a devastated Chinese economy onto the path of recovery registering at least an annual growth rate of 7% through the policy of Four Modernisations.

The making of modern China was set forth by the 1976 Tiananmen Protest instigated by Deng, which set the course for the country's economic trajectory. Deemed a moderate government official, Deng shifted the emphasis away from class struggle and embarked on the cause of ‘social modernisation’. Thirteen years later, similar protests set off at Tiananmen Square shaped the future course of the Communist State that deeply acknowledged the paramountcy of ideological preservation above everything else. Thirty-five years after the June 4^th Tiananmen Square protests, revisionist China continues to tread on the same path.

As a young diplomat posted in China around the same period, Vijay Gokhale, former Foreign Secretary and India’s ambassador to China provides a ringside view and a diplomat’s perspective of these protests through his book- “Tiananmen Square: The Making of a Protest”. Laid out in ten compact chapters, the book provides vivid commentary about the ‘untold details’ and the day-to-day developments that culminated in the largest student protests ever in China. The opaque Chinese administration has literally whitewashed the “Tiananmen Square” incident from the annals of Chinese history as an inconvenient past.

Sprang up amid tectonic geopolitical events like the fall of the Berlin Wall, and the imminent collapse of the Soviet Union, the protests failed to garner much international attention. The ideologically predisposed Western narrative described the protests as a ‘pro-democracy movement’. Illustrating that the protest was an unfinished agenda of 1986 student protests fuelled by liberal intellectual Fang Lizhli, who wanted to hold an academic conference on reforms, the author enlists the four demands of students. The protests indeed had nothing to do with democracy, but in fact, the focus has been on – better education and job opportunities, elimination of entitlement, empathy towards citizens' needs and some personal freedoms. However, press freedom became another plank for the protests after the liberal newspaper World Economic Herald was taken over by the party and the editor Qin Benli was dismissed.

But by and large the liberal proclivities of Hu Yaobang, one of the trusted lieutenants of Deng and his idea of giving freedom to intellectuals had ignited a churn. His death on April 15, 1989, triggered a storm. Further, the inept handling of the crisis by General Secretary Zhao Ziyang turned the protests into a massive movement. The faction infighting among the students, a lack of a conciliatory approach from the party leadership led to radicals gaining ground in the protests. Steady escalation through massive hunger strikes and the eventual unveiling of a statue of the ‘Goddess of Democracy’ by students on May 30^th proved to be the final nail in the coffin.

After announcing martial law on May 21, the party which was in relative disarray, quickly got back on its feet by first unifying the central and state party committees, then reorganising and reassigning the role, and finally announcing a new leader Jiang Zemin at the helm. In a move to clamp down on any kind of dissent, the state completely took over the media. Instead of placation, taking the bull by its horns, the party ordered the march of Armoured Personnel Carriers (APC) on Tiananmen Square Avenue to clear the arena. APC and PLA troops were stationed in the area to deter further protests. Thus, by June 5^th morning, Tiananmen Square was stripped clean of student protestors.

With the press under state control, even now the final trail of events, the whereabouts of thousands of student protestors is completely hazy. But the State Version declared that- a ‘very small number of people’ who caused counter-revolutionary turmoil with the motive of overthrowing the party and People’s Republic warranted an action’. Hence the steps taken by the Central Committee were both ‘necessary’ and ‘correct’. The details of the crackdown have never seen the light of the day. Till date, the party hasn’t disclosed the number of casualties. There was never a mention of the blood spilled. As the author rightly puts it,- “For the majority of young Chinese, the Tiananmen Square incident is an aberration, a distant fact that they know nothing about beyond the Party line”. Instructively, the party last spoke about the incident on 24 June, 1989 and a then ‘blanket of silence has descended over the matter’.

Ever since, any discussion on the protests is a taboo. Exercising its immense economic clout, China besides physically stalling any kind of commemorations has ensured internet censorship on this event. Obliterating any reference to the protest even in the public domain, China is wiping it out of the public memory. Even now, the number of casualties is unknown. Declassified US government documents in the final briefing paper put up a casualty figure of 500-2600 with a whopping 10,000 injured.

In the aftermath of the incident, the US announced sanctions- no World Bank loans, a moratorium on arms sales and military exchanges. But barely a year later, it was business as usual with the Wall Street helming America’s China policy. The US’s perfunctory advocacy of human rights confirmed Deng’s assessment of the West’s preference for profits over principles. Buoyed by the West’s hypocrisy, throwing the concerns of isolation, if any to the wind, Deng strengthened the idea of collective leadership and built the idea of a leadership core with the general secretary of the CCP as the anchor. Further, the disintegration of the Soviet Union reinforced Deng’s focus on building a stable party line that could serve as bedrock for the social and political stability of China.

The last chapter “Dousing the Flames” summarily packs the nuggets of wisdom underscoring how Tiananmen Protests served as a watershed in potentially strengthening the CCP’s commitment to core party ideology. Being the only major communist power post-1990, the Chinese leadership regarded the US as ‘the primary existential threat to survival’ and was ‘apparently number one’ enemy. But outwardly, China continued the delicate balancing act until it grew economically and militarily as per Deng’s strategy of ‘taoguang yanghui, youso zuowei’, meaning biding time by keeping a low profile.

For long China played along Deng’s advice-“Observe calmly; secure our position; cope with affairs calmly; hide our capacities and bide out time; be good at maintaining a low profile; and never claim leadership”. He adds, “They (Chinese) are convinced that the ultimate aim of the Americans- to subvert the Communist Party of China by introducing ideas about Western Capitalism and democracy into China, until it erodes the ideological foundations of the regime. They know it as ‘peaceful evolution’, first articulated by Secretary of State John Foster Dulles in the 1950s.”.

China all along distrusted the Americans and now that they are in a position to challenge them, they are no longer circumspect about staking claims for global leadership.

Being a closed country with scant details about the party functioning coupled with a paucity of authentic Indian scholarship on China, a diplomat’s perspective can serve as an important primer to understand the Dragon. As the author concludes, “It has taken the West thirty years after the Tiananmen Square incident to realise the errors of their ways”. The book which offers an account of Sino-Soviet normalisation, Deng-Gorbachev's evocative meeting, China’s signal to President J.H. Bush on interference in internal matters, should have included the Indian government’s response to the Tiananmen incident.

Knowing an inveterate adversary and their ways is extremely crucial for India moreover at a time when two armies are standing against each other across the LAC. Staying true to foundational values and political preservation doctrine enunciated by Deng in letter and spirit, Xi has essentially maintained the same trend. Objectively there is no difference between Deng and Xi. Gokhale’s memoir replete with a nuanced account of the party’s response to the protests on a day-to-day basis can help discern the responses of the supreme leader at the helm. As an astute Chinese observer, Gokhale’s insights are invaluable. Finally, the book clinically invalidates West’s illusion of a democratic future for China.

 

Pages: 183

Publishers: Harper Collins

 

@ Copyrights reserved.

Vishwanath Rises and Rises: The Story of Eternal City

True to her style of writing- authentic, objective and factual, the latest book of Padmasri Meenakshi Jain- “Vishwanath Rises and Rises: The Story of Eternal City” is yet another priceless contribution to Bharatiya historicity. India is on the cusp of revivalism which is marked by a greater sense of reverence towards sacred geographies. There is an undercurrent of enthusiasm to understand and assimilate the ethos of our civilisation. To nurture a sense of connect, Sanatanis are more curious than ever to know about the antiquity of their civilisation.

Santani’s special attachment to the Sapta Mokhapuris which includes Ayodhya, Kashi, Mathura can be traced to the scriptural citations- “Ayodhya Mathura Maya Kashi Kanchi Avantika Puri Dwaravati chaiva saptaite mokshadayakah” (meaning the seven sacred cities- Ayodhya, Mathura, Haridwar, Kashi, Kanchi, Ujjain, Puri, Dwaraka can bestow moksha to devotees). Hence these seven cities were held in the highest esteemed by Sanatanis. But unfortunately, the temples at Mathura and Kashi are still under partial siege.

The Supreme Court’s unanimous historic verdict on the Ayodhya Rama Janmabhoomi case has been a major milestone in India’s civilisational journey. The ruling attested to the significance of incontestable facts and exposed the falsities of the contrived history generated by Marxist and secularist historians. This eventually triggered a significant scepticism towards the chequered history peddled by fake historians and increased an appetite for facts based on primary sources. Ayodhya Rama Mandir consecration has provided fresh impetus to the generational struggle for the reclamation of the Kashi Vishwanath temple which is still dispossessed.

Meenakshi’s Ji book aptly caters to the Sanatani quest for a bona fide account of the cumulative events that marked the trajectory of eternal Kashi. The legal battle to reclaim the original temple complex at Kashi received a shot in arm after the scientific survey by the ASI affirmed the presence of a large pre-existing temple beneath the alleged Gyanvapi mosque. This breakthrough ignited a thirst for clinically unravelling and understanding the antiquity. It is in this context Meenakshi Jain’s book made a valuable addition to the existing knowledge repository on the eternal Kashi Kshetra.

Kashi kshetra is inextricably intertwined with Sanatana Dharma. For eons, Sanatanis believed that Kashi has been resting on the Bhagwan Shiva’s trident. The three tines represent the three divisions of Kashi- Omkara in the North, Vishveswara in the Centre and Kedara in the South. Hallowed by the pious waters of the Ganges, the place has immense spiritual significance riven with a belief that “Kashya maranam muktihih” implying that dying in Kashi will offer mukti and liberation from the endless cycles of birth and rebirth. Mukti is the quintessential goal Hinduism and hence Kashi is the most sacred place for practicing Sanatani.

The book provides an interesting perspective on the ghats. As per Hindu Mythology, each ghat represents 1 lakh species which provides the basis for the Hindu understanding of 84 lakh species living on earth. These 84 ghats symbolise the integration of the 12 zodiacs with the seven chakras of the body and the seven layers of the atmosphere. Kashi which has been integral to Hindu tradition and civilisational moorings was attacked and ravaged thrice.

Despite the onslaughts of the fanatical iconoclasm of the Muslim invaders, after every desecration, Hindu rulers and common citizens have rebuild the temple and asserted their unflinching faith in their deities.  After the first Ghaznavaid attack on the temple in 1013 CE, the Gahadhavalas rebuilt Vishwanth Mandir, the epitome of Hindu faith and tradition. Around 1584, Todar Mal and Narayan Bhatt reconstructed Vishwanath Mandir and Raja Man Singh built Bindu Madhav temple which demolished by the Delhi Sultanate (1489-1517). A century later, in 1669, Aurangzeb again destroyed 76 temples in Varanasi and constructed a mosque on the remnants of the existing temple to humiliate Sanatanis and to showcase the superiority of the marauding, iconoclastic faith.

Donning the coveted “saviours of Sanatana Dharma” mantle, Marathas developed the Kashi kshetra, rebuilt the ghats, consecrated several shrines and negotiated with the Nawab of Awadh to gain the possession of the Gyanvapi complex. For over 100 years, after the original Vishwanath Temple at the Gyanvapi was pulled down, Ahilya Bai Holkar in 1777 built the present temple which housed the Vishesvara linga as well which was secretly worshipped by the Hindus. Maharaja Ranjit Singh donated gold for embossing the edifice of the shrine and the Raja of Nepal gifted the Nandi. The ongoing legal for reclaiming the Gyanvapi began after Din Muhammed Hussain filed a plea in 1936 claiming the Gyanvapi as Waqf land.

The ongoing legal battle is severely hindered in the contemporary times due to shifting stances of the government which even stalled Hindu worship at the traditional shrines within the Gyanvapi Complex around 1993. As highlighted in her book, “Flight of Deities and Rebirth of Temples” earlier, the prolonged battles of Hindus for centuries to reclaim, restore and preserve their civilisational heritage has no parallels. Undeterred, generations of Hindus have made supreme sacrifices to protect their deities. Hailing the Hindu spirit, the author notes-“despite the difficult centuries, the construction of temples in Kashi did not cease, no matter how modest the structures might be”.

Kashi, the “City of Light” was an embodiment of Indian Civilisation, has been symbol of Hindu resistance. Etched with mention of the arrival of Bhagwan Shiva in Kashi by Purana Pancalaksana, excavations at one of the three settlements of Kashi, Aktha revealed its antiquity to 18^th and 19^th BCE. Frequented by Rishis who performed Vedic rituals, Puranas are replete with references to Kashi. The book neatly encapsulates the linear journey of Kashi in time and emphatically buoys the unbroken bond of Sanatanis with Kashi.

Besides, Sanatanis all the Indic faith systems have an indelible connection with Kashi. As per Suparshva, the seventh Tirthankara and Parasnath, the 23^rd, were both born in Kashi. Buddha delivered his first sermon at Sarnath one of the major settlements of Varanasi. Records indicate that Guru Nanak visited Kashi in 1506 to collect the verses of Kabir, Ravi Das and other saints which were later made part of Guru Granth Sahib.

Kashi has been a seat of learning and has been instrumental in religious and cultural revolution. Sri Adi Shankaracharya, who propounded Advaita during his stay in Kashi composed several strotras. He was instrumental in the creation a militarised sect of ascetics, the Dashnami order which waged pitched battles with Aurangzeb’s troops. This sect which organised into akharas protected Sanatana Dharma from the onslaughts of iconoclastic zealotry. Kashi was the adobe of Kabir, Ravi Das and Tulsi Das. Swami Ramanand founder of Ramanandi Sampradaya visited Kashi and settled at Panchaganga Ghat.

Reverberating with pulsating literary and cultural discourses, the place has been a magnet for several litterateurs. By patronising and supporting the literary stalwarts, Pandits, seers and saints, the Kashi Kings have kept the literary activity at a high level. The Kashi Dharma Sabha founded by Raja Ishwari Narayan Singh spearheaded the defense of Sanatani tradition.

The book brings to life various aspects of Kashi- as a major trading hub, and as a thriving centre of arts and textiles. Citing generously from travelogues, the book offers varied perspectives, one of the views echoed- “Benares has been from time immemorial, the Athens of India, the residence of most learned Brahmins, and the seat both of science and literature. There, it is highly probable, whatever remains of the ancient astronomical knowledge and discoveries of the Brahmins is still preserved…” (William Robertson).

With 21 chapters, the book comprehensively explores various facets of Kashi stretching from its heydays of glory under Hindu rulers through the difficult periods of Islamic attacks and the advent of missionaries during British rule. Above all, the book manages to capture the indomitable will and courage demonstrated by Sanatanis towards upholding dharma ensuring the continuity of this timeless civilisation. The corpus of well-researched treatises authored by Meenakshi Jain has immensely enhanced Indic awareness and shed light on an epoch of Hindu resistance.

Meenakshi Ji’s diligent research prowess accentuated by her immaculate writing makes this book a must read.  

@ Copyrights reserved.