------------------------------------------------------------------------ * * * 2007 ANNUAL GOANETTERS MEET - GOA * * * ------------------------------------------------------------------------ WHERE: Foodland Cafe - Miramar Residency - Miramar, Goa
WHEN: December 27, 2007 @ 4:30pm More info: http://lists.goanet.org/pipermail/goanet-goanet.org/2007-December/066098.html ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Indians are not secular but theistic, says historian Bangalore, Decan herald DHNS: "Sense of an all India community is a recent development and part of the political process," said Prof Tapan Raychaudhuri, emeritus fellow, St Anthony's College, Oxford and formerly professor of Indian History and Civilisation, Oxford University, United Kingdom. Politicisation of religious identity is a recent development in India. Till the 19th century the primary identity was that of caste than religion. "Sense of an all India community is a recent development and part of the political process," said Prof Tapan Raychaudhuri, emeritus fellow, St Anthony's College, Oxford and formerly professor of Indian History and Civilisation, Oxford University, United Kingdom. In an enlightening lecture on 'Hindu-Muslim Relations: A Historical Perspective,' in Bangalore on Monday, Prof Raychaudhuri said, the politicisation of religious identity is largely due to the "grotesque" mistake made by the Britishers in understanding the Indian culture. "They were never good at understanding other cultures. Unfortunately we accepted it as the truth. Many of our contemporary miseries are due to the wrong social mapping done by them," he said. He was delivering the lecture at the Institute for Social and Economic Change under the auspices of the Ramkrishna Hegde chair. "Britishers were just a few thousand and they needed a social map to rule such a vast and complex country like India. With the received wisdom they divided Hindus and Muslims and their divide and rule policy is not absolutely correct. They were desperately looking for allies because they had become insecure after 1857 rebellion, he observed. He said historically there has been a co-existence of religious groups and they have not always been hostile. "Hostility and conflict does not necessarily leave behind a traumatic memory. Wherever, there has been hostility and bloodshed there has always been a tendency towards `mutual tolerance' to prevail in their own interest. He said that three riots in the 1920s at Kanpur, Delhi and Ahmedabad gave birth to the RSS. "In the 19th century Hindu-Muslim riots did take place due to social misunderstanding. After the riots they became politicised." Moreover, he called for an unbiased, academic understanding of the facts rather instead of focussing on received knowledge. Prof Raychaudhury observed that India is not secular. "I don't believe that we follow secularism either in our governance or at homes. We are theistic, superstitious people. We have a non-majoritarian policy. It is the best option for a multi-ethnic society like ours. I would love to see secularism in India," he said. Posted by jadrp --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Spread the Christmas Cheer, even when you're not here! Send classic greetings to your loved ones in Goa. EXPRESSIONS - 2007 Christmas Hamper Visit http://www.goa-world.com/expressions/xmas/ Or e-mail: [EMAIL PROTECTED] ---------------------------------------------------------------------------