Mourning the lost days...
Young boys in their early twenties, they came from regular middle class families. Like thousand others they were in the capital city looking for a better education which could lead to a brighter future.They were shot down or arrested one morning, the reason:
They were the terrorists who worked under the banner of Indian Mujaheedin.
I am not debating whether it was a fake encounter set up by the Police to save face or not. I am also not debating whether they were targeted because of their religion.
What I am wondering about is this:
How come people who come from regular families, have a decent upbringing and education are turning to such hard line stances?
And mind you I am not looking at just one community. I am looking at everyone, minority, majority and across language and state barriers.
When we were in school, someone being a Christian meant that you visited them during Christmas , said ‘Merry christmas’ and had the yummy cakes. And during Ramzaan you asked your Muslim friends every single day when Id would come so that you didn’t miss out on the feast and phirni.
When did we turn hardcore?
I remember a time when even in the most traditional homes friends of the other faith were welcomed, though the utensils used to serve them were kept separate and wonder of wonders they didn’t mind. Each understood the compulsions and restrictions of the others faith and respected it.
We lived and let others live as well.How did these times of ghettoes for different communities come? I have seen them for myself when in Bombay I couldn’t buy eggs a mile around my house only because it was dominated by Marwaris and Gujaratis around. Even now in my NCR locality the shop keepers don’t stock chicken maggi because of the big Jain populace around.
When did schools which cater to all on paper but pander to a particular in reality come up? My niece told me of how a classmate who belonged to a different religion was taunted by even the teachers and had to finally leave the school.
When did the sight of a group of men in saffron or in skull caps start to mean uneasy thoughts?
First it was an ancient Masjid now churches, more than a century old are being attacked and destroyed. Are we then any less than the Taliban which had destroyed the Bamiyan Buddhas?
How did we let so much intolerance creep in?
India they say is on its way to becoming a superpower. Indians they say are poised to take on the world. Our economy is booming. Education levels are at an all time high. It all looks good from above but look at the roots, they are rotting.
Comments
Guess I am adding more questions to your questions.
BTW I have two Muslim boys in my class, and I am proud of my class that is never partial against them. They are just two classmates to them, thats it. I wish it remains that way.
Our society is based on division of classes. Be it social or economic, we the people of India, are taught to respect that division. How much ever, we think of ourselves as global citizens; some how, we have not been able to break these shackles. Why? That is something that beats me as well.
Now, modern India only seems to recognize two categories: the winner and the victim. The first becomes a celebrity, an instant hit; the latter wallows, effectively, in the swamp of collective despair forever. No one cares for the later, even if they look like they do; it is only temporary. As far as the government is concerned, this institution still being run according to archaic EastIndia rules has by and large remained right wing. All they have done, over the last 61 years is create a falsified comfort zone for the victim. It is called reservations. Muslim youth have been denied this false comfort as well, which is good but, they do feel victimized because they aren't given;at leat this false hope. Some of them are being drawn towards extremist ideas by a growing sense of victimization. This is most evident among the young, not unnaturally as they are the ones who feel the humiliation of discrimination in jobs most keenly.
And this applies not only to the muslim youth but, to all the youth in this country that is deprived of its legal rights.
Dont be sorry about adding your questions to mine...the way to finding a solution is to begin by questioning the norms.
I guess it is bcoz,today's generation is very less informed spiritually,even about the faith they belong to..So it is easy for fanatics to brainwash them and take them for a ride..Sad..
It is our responsibility to inform people around us RIGHTLY..Running away from God or becoming an atheist is not the solution..Thatz escapism..Confront it and defeat it and live in harmony..
But, I think its time the country starts taking a hard line against terrorists whether hindu, muslim or christian. And I donno how fake the encounter was considering a police officer also lost his life.
apparently the organizers of the Muhammad Ali Park Durga pujo in Kolkata are mostly Muslims. And they win a prize for the best or second best decoration every year.
Sallu bhai gets home a Ganesha idol for ten days.
in this century where religious festivals have become more cultural than religious and have opened their arms to people from other communities, the intolerance levels of people have increased as well.
if the governments could provide education and employment to all, do you think they would have had to invent religious divide to keep the youth occupied? it is all a nasty political game...
and yes, like we blame the Talibans for destroying the Bamiyans, we have our own Talibans at home . . . who started it all in 1992, exposing our lives thereafter to the dangers of terror...
there were always insurgencies, but geographically secluded ones. punjab, the naxal movement, etc. but nothing so pan india ever before...
Unfortunately, though all religions speak of love, their practitioners who matter and motivate use the tool of hatred, of us vs them. That does not come from the heart...that is why you see around you all that is despairing and devoid of love.
C
but that is not reaching everyone.
you and i and a like minded few are actually educated to think liberally.
people who indulge in acts of terror, may be learned but they don't have the right education. after all, education is what remains
after what has been learnt has evaporated
even here... i see the desis STICKING to their communities. not all. but enough to make me uncomfortable.
i try telling ppl i am acquainted with that it's not right to judge another based on their caste or nationality. and then, i get labeled as a "firang"... someone who's indian but tries to be secular. like it's a bad thing!!
we've done away with a lot of acquaintances coz neither of us are accepted in their intolerant groups. so far, we don't care. we'd rather lose friends than sit with them and speak ill of another based solely on their "caste".
I dread exposing my son to the differences and intolerance albeit by others! I dread to bring him up in a world filled with so many differences!! I am not sure how I will handle it when it becomes a reality in our life ... but for now I am using the tool of ignorance in his case.
I wrote a poem about this recently.. I think you will like it.. do read Is the world in wrong hands
**How come people who come from regular families, have a decent upbringing and education are turning to such hard line stances
I used to wonder abt it too. But then, lately I realised that a good family background, a decent upbringing and education dun always mean SENSES.
Look at Blogville for example...so many so-called educated, decent ppl hv so much spite and intolerance against one another. So much of jealpusy and unhappiness. How then can we expect the average humanbeing to be SENSIBLE?
Alot of it comes from the INDIVIDUAL. The background doesnt matter at all. Cos even in the lowest of places, there r some very good ppl. Just like Lotuses grow in the mud...
Keshi.
I agree with Kesh above. Everything finally boils down to the INDIVIDUAL.
I personally know of elite families, highly educated and all that but still would frown at the mention of a non-brahmin bride as a prospect.
Its not just religious intolerance you see, but a mix of a whole lot of other things...
Its really really hard to find answers to the questions you posed. Least we can do is keep the individual within us untouched, un-tainted...
I couldnt have put it better. You have correctly identified the problem. Now lets hunt for a solution and not wait for someone else to hand it to us.
pinknblu...i disagree its not to be true to our faith that these hardline stances are taken up...its to be accepted as a part of a group.
Nimmy you are so very right. Correct guidance is the need of the hour.
Oreen...sadly even inspite of education and oppurtunity young guys are going ashtray. Look the London blast guys or even the ones caught in Delhi...they are not the ones who didnt have enough oppurtunities.
Vinod...thanks for seeing my rant for what it is...wounded despairing love.
Corinne....welcome to my world...hope to see more of you. and thanks for blogrolling me.
Sailor...yes education is not reaching its true platform...its mere knowing the alphabets the dispelling darkness of the mind bit is missing.
Looking forward to connecting with you in person.
Rayshma....kudos to you and hubby for standing up for whats right.
Preethi...if we want our children to have a better tom...we will have to work towards it...Ur poem was touching.
Keshi....you are so very right. Its upto the individual to set things right.
Ships...welcome to my world...you are right its intolerance of all thats different...be it religion, region, caste, language or gender.
पिकूं भाई , आपको लगता है कि कभी भी हमारे मे धार्मिक सहनशीलता रही थी । न कभी रही और न कभी होगी । क्योंकि हम religion या धर्म के वास्तविक चरित्र को कभी पहचान ही न पाये । एक पुराना शेर है , " मजहब नही सिखाता आपस मे बैर रखना " सुनने मे बहुत अच्छा लगता है लेकिन सच क्या है । सच सिर्फ़ यह है कि हर मजहब सिर्फ़ होड सिखाता है , आगे रहने की होड । हर धर्म अपने आप को सबसे बडा और सर्वेश्रेषठ कहता है , और जाहिर है जब हम अपने को बडा मानेगे तो दूसरे को नीची दृष्टि से देखेगें । हिदूं , मुस्लिम , और भी अलग-२ धर्म के लोगों के अलग-२ तर्क हैं और अपने को और अपने खुदा को असली कहने के बहाने भी । यह होड सिर्फ़ एक मजहब के लोगों के दूसरे मजहब के लोगों के प्रति रही हो ऐसा भी नही है , जब एक सिर के नीचे रहते हैं तब भी लडते फ़िरते रहते हैं । यही कारण है कि पाकिस्तान इस्लामी राष्ट्र होने के बावजूद एक न रह पाया । और हमारे यहाँ हिदू भी अलग -२ जातियों मे लडते मरते रहे । मुस्लिमों मे शिया -सुन्नी के झगडे भी बिल्कुळ आम है ।
as for the point you have made about all religions teaching 'one upmanship' I think our definition of religion differs. To me religion is what is the true essence of whether the Gita, Koran or Bible. Religion is not what one Pundit, Maulvi or Priest decides to interpret it as.
I have read the Bible, spoken to people who read the Koran and Gita and nowhere i beleive does it say that one needs to show ones superiority over another. Infact all these books talk about peaceful coexistence and respect for the others view.
आमीन !!!!
ओ इन्सान को बाँटनेवालो, क़ुदरत को तो बाँट के देख़ो।
ओ भगवान को बाँटनेवालो, क़ुदरत को तो बाँट के देख़ो।
कोइ कहे रंग लाल है मेरा, कोइ कहे हरियाला मेरा।
रंग से ज़ुदा हुए तुम कैसे ओ रंगों को बाँटनेवालो? ओ इन्सान को....
आसमाँन की लाली बाँटो, पत्तों की हरियाली बाँटो,
रंग सुनहरा सुरज का और चंदा का रुपहरी बाँटो।
मेघधनुष के सात रंग को बाँट सको तो बाँट के देखो। ओ इन्सान को....
आँधी आइ धूल उठी जब, उससे पूछ लिया जो मैने।
कौन देश क्या धर्म तुम्हारा, वो बोली मेरा जग सारा।
मुज़को हवा ले जाये जीधर भी में उस रूख़ पे उडके जाउं।
ना कोइ मज़हब टोके मुज़को, ना कोइ सीमा रोके मुज़को।
मिट्टी के इस बोल को बाँटो ओ सरहद को बाँटनेवालो... ओ इन्सान को....
नदिया अपने सूर में बहती, गाती और इठ्लाती चलदी।
मैने पूछा उस नदिया से कौन देश है चली किधर तू?
हसती गाती नदिया बोली, राह मिले मैं बहती जाउँ।
ना कोइ मज़हब टोके मुज़को, ना कोइ सीमा रोके मुज़को।
नदिया के पानी को बाँटो, ओ मज़हब को बाँटनेवालो। ओ इन्सान को....
फ़ुल ख़िला था इस धरती पर, महेक चली जो हवा के रुख़ पर।
मैने पूछा उस ख़ुश्बु से चली कहाँ खुश्बु फ़ैलाकर।
ख़ुश्बु बोली कर्म है मेरा, दुनिया में ख़ुशबु फ़ैलाना।
ना कोइ मज़हब टोके मुज़को, ना कोइ सीमा रोके मुज़को।
फ़ुलों की ख़ुश्बु को बाँटो, ओ गुलशन को बाँटनेवालो। ओ इन्सान को....
उडते पँछी से जो मैने पूछ लिया जो एक सवाल।
कौन देश क्या धर्म तुम्हारा, हँस के वो ऐसे गया टाल!
पँछी बोला सारी धरती, हमको तो लगती है अच्छी।
ना कोइ मज़हब टोके मुज़को, ना कोइ सीमा रोके मुज़को।
आसमाँन को बाँट के देख़ो, उँचनीच को बाँटनेवालो। ओ इन्सान को....
"Millions of dead motherfuckers, all because they gave the wrong answer to the god question. Do you believe in God? No. Boom! Dead. Do you believe in God? Yes. Do you believe in my God? No. Boom! Dead. My god has a bigger dick than your god! " ~George Carlin
Might look a little out of the topic, but bear with me...you will be able to realise the truth, if you let the initial abrasiveness of the quote pass away.
Hemanth...u will make a Clarin fan.
Anonymous....what you say is so true.Dont think I can add anything to it.
IHM...i knew u would :)