New Delhi: It’s tough to convincingly present a view on Hinduism in India today that is critical of two extreme positions prevailing in the country. But that’s what Karan Singh did at the launch of his new book The Eternal Religion: Glimpses of Hinduism in Delhi recently. From the same stage, he was able to express his displeasure for both what’s happening in Modi’s India and the view perpetrated by DMK leader Udhayanidhi Stalin on Sanatan Dharma.
Singh, former Sadr-i-Riyasat of Jammu and Kashmir and one of the cherished scholars of Hinduism in India, said, “I was shocked by what the Tamil leader said on Sanatana. Controversy about Santana and its critics is wrong.”
And on the way the word Hinduism has taken form in the last few decades and more after Modi came to power in 2014, he said “there is no one point we can say this is where Hinduism begins. It is Sanatana because its origins are lost in the mist of time and because of its antiquities and inclusiveness.”
Singh didn’t forget to mention an anecdote that underlined what India’s politics was nearly five decades ago. He recalled when he came to Delhi as a Union Minister in Indira Gandhi Cabinet, many Congress leaders said now you (Singh) will have to give up worship. “I have left my state, not my religion,” he told them.
The 92-year-old, in one sentence, captured the audience profile at the India International Centre, contextualising it with the body of his work. “Most of the people in the audience were not even born when I wrote my first book on Amarnath in 1953,” he said.
Former diplomats, senior journalists, Singh’s friends from Jammu-Kashmir and during Indian Council for Cultural Relations (ICCR) days were the ones who showed up. There was no diversity among the audience, with most in their Vanprastha — third stage in the Chaturashrama system of Hinduism. Answering a member in the audience on the four stages of life, Singh said jokingly how he had skipped both the stages of Vanaprastha and Sanyasa.
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Voice on Hinduism
The book is a collection of essays on Hinduism and his seven decades of experience. Pluralism and inclusiveness have been among the main themes of Singh’s writings over the last seven decades. He wrote his first book at 22.
The seminar hall at the IIC was packed where Singh was in conversation with former diplomat and Rajya Sabha MP and author Pavan Varma.
Varma, who was moderating the event, called Karan Singh “the institution of our time”. In his book Essays on Hinduism, Singh called Vedas as bedrock of Hindu Civilisation and wrote on secularism, the way to peace, human humanity and also on his favourite subject, Upanishads.
Singh’s writing on Hinduism, according to Varma, is based on more than five decades of enquiry, research, observation and study. “I don’t think there is anybody who has such a grasp of the fundamentals of Hinduism but not only Hinduism, of the world of thoughts and ideation,” he said. Varma is himself a voice on Hinduism having written Adi Shankaracharya and The Great Hindu Civilization. Varma in his writings has argued that Hinduism is a quest for an ultimate reality and talks about Hindu chauvinism and xenophobia.
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No happiness without idols
Going down the memory lane, Singh recalled his Amarnath pilgrimage at the age of 22 and his first writings on Hinduism. Hinduism is so vast, extraordinary and multi-faceted, the former Congress leader said.
“Amarnath, the Immortal Lord. The very word has always held a strange fascination for me,” writes Singh in this book. Singh in his book describing his first experience of visiting Amarnath.
Varma, who was constantly trying to know how Singh relates himself to Hinduism and its thoughts, asked Singh — in the pursuit of Saguna, have we lost sight of Nirguna? Singh’s face lit up. “I love saguns and I love murtis. There is no happiness without idols. I want a beautiful idol so that I can see God there. But the concept of Nirguna should not be denied.”
Singh’s love for idols also shows on the cover of the book, which depicts a three-faced Shiva idol, expressing different moods of the deity.
Varma stressed on the importance of knowing Hinduism. “One section claims a monopoly over it. And the best antidote to them is to know more about your own religion which we often don’t do,” he said, adding that Singh’s book is like a nichod (gist) on what Hinduism stands for.
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Untouchability: disaster for Hinduism
In September, Stalin called for the eradication of Sanatana Dharma as it was “against social justice and equality”. Singh condemned Stalin’s statement and said the DMK leader used wrong language. “The oldest temple of Sanatana is in Tamil Nadu. How can he say such things,” said Singh, adding that I rarely get angry but I got angry after hearing this.
“There have been some highly unfortunate and derogatory comments made recently about Sanatana Dharma. This term, which means the eternal religion, is virtually interchangeable with Hinduism and dates far back into the past,” reads the introduction of Singh’s new book.
Singh admitted that untouchability and caste is one of the disasters of Hinduism like the Greeks, where the culture was based on slavery. He pointed out that casteism is not just legalised but also constitutionalised. “You can not speak against casteism. Caste makes things complex. It is an insult and disgrace to Vedanta and the Upanishads.”
Varma was quick to add that we are “perpetually hurt republic” and provocative remarks are responsible for the “weaponisation of Hinduism”. Singh agreed.
Touching upon the idea of historical guilt and current climate, Singh pointed out that India has been subjected to barbaric invasions, Hindu temples were destroyed “but it has got to be a measured and mature backlash, not one that is wild.”
(Edited by Anurag Chaubey)