sangom
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A perspective after one year's association with this Forum
I thought a perspective after one year's association, without evaluating individual members and all that, may be a salutary step.
I stumbled upon this site, if my memory serves me right, when I googled for ‘Purusha sooktam commentary’ in some context. I saw a thread here, in which a spirited discussion about chaaturvarnya was going on. I got impressed by the knowledge of the posters and the general standard of posts. I ventured to write that brahmins of yesteryears had the unmistakable conviction that they were one step superior to the three other castes, based on certain minute interpretation of Purusha sookta. There was immediate retorts by Shri Kunjuppu and Smt. HH and I had to provide the book on which my statement was based.
From then onwards I found that there were many things common between myself, Kunjuppu, HappyHindu and Nara. Though some self-styled and learned champions of brahmins now label all of us as BAA or by some other names, there are many issues on which our ideas differ.
Kunjuppu is not an atheist at all, so is HH (and myself too – only an agnostic, I am) and she is a rather devout person; her only mistake or deficiency probably is her interest in Hinduism and her prodigious knowledge on some of its aspects, which go against many of the pet beliefs of tabra champions desire, beliefs which these champions in their heart of hearts, have installed as absolute inerrant truths.
Many of the "ideal" tabras who post here are mostly bothered about sandhyaavandanam, gaayatree, rituals, and other incidental things of the usual tabraic rituals. Sagotra marriage, horoscope matching, etc., seem to occupy the centre of attention. Threads about vaadhyaars using mobile phones during the performance of rituals, doubts pertaining to funerary and accompanying rites and similar topics do come again and again, just as those having something to do with the notion of மடி (maṭi). Of course the pride of place was for inter-caste marriages and inter-religious marriages; these have become less often heard and less vigorously now, and I get the feeling that the community is all but willing to allow and accept these as realities which have to be accepted, just as inter-subcaste marriages were ultimately welcomed from an earlier very strict "no-no", to complete acceptance and even discarding of all notions of sub-caste segregation later on.
The perspective I get is that the members who champion the tabra cause, hold the very few residual brahminic rites, rituals, customs, dos and don'ts, etc., as something very sacrosanct and they dream about perpetuating the very same things through their descendents. In this way, they seem to believe that the tabra community (caste?) will be saved from extinction and some of these champions at least, are confident that as a result of tabras doing their rituals and thereby perpetuating what they fondly call sanaatana dharma, the world and even the universe will be saved from decay and ultimate destruction.
One important point I noticed was that even among these champions of tabraism (COT), allegience to babas, gurujis, godmen/godwomen, etc., is not very pronounced, though we have specimens of die-hard adherents to some Acharyas etc. But I will hazard the guess that most COTs will have one or the other "guru" because it is repeatedly emphasized here in many posts that “the very purpose of life is to ensure extinction of rebirth or liberation”, ‘only a guru will be able to lead you through the correct path so that you will understand and/or experience Iswara and thereby attain liberation’. Still, the arguments against fake godmen/godwomen, their illicit wealth, etc., seem to go mostly unchallenged.
The most striking point I have seen is that in many aspects of social and/or religious life, the COTs are only too willing to change their stand at the individual- and family- levels and embrace the changes without much ado, providing their own reasons and justifications for such changes, but when expressing views here in the Forum, they are particular that they should be seen as pure, unsullied COTs.
Thus the difference between the COTs and their opposing camp, which gives the “energy”, seems to me to be that while the former will like to change their lifestyles, belief systems etc., as and when an absolute necessity or compulsion arises to do so, and they will like to do that rather silently, they just cannot tolerate the opposing camp saying that the world is changing fast and changes are necessary. There is thus only a small difference — reactive and pro-active between these kurukshetra armies. If only this is understood by either side, much of the heated discussions, and so the web traffic probably will get reduced. Hence I wish both sides do not realize the truth and continue their own way!
- I joined this Forum on 30th. May last year and have been associated with it for 15 months now. Of course there were some breaks due to different reasons, not that I browsed each day.
I thought a perspective after one year's association, without evaluating individual members and all that, may be a salutary step.
I stumbled upon this site, if my memory serves me right, when I googled for ‘Purusha sooktam commentary’ in some context. I saw a thread here, in which a spirited discussion about chaaturvarnya was going on. I got impressed by the knowledge of the posters and the general standard of posts. I ventured to write that brahmins of yesteryears had the unmistakable conviction that they were one step superior to the three other castes, based on certain minute interpretation of Purusha sookta. There was immediate retorts by Shri Kunjuppu and Smt. HH and I had to provide the book on which my statement was based.
From then onwards I found that there were many things common between myself, Kunjuppu, HappyHindu and Nara. Though some self-styled and learned champions of brahmins now label all of us as BAA or by some other names, there are many issues on which our ideas differ.
Kunjuppu is not an atheist at all, so is HH (and myself too – only an agnostic, I am) and she is a rather devout person; her only mistake or deficiency probably is her interest in Hinduism and her prodigious knowledge on some of its aspects, which go against many of the pet beliefs of tabra champions desire, beliefs which these champions in their heart of hearts, have installed as absolute inerrant truths.
Many of the "ideal" tabras who post here are mostly bothered about sandhyaavandanam, gaayatree, rituals, and other incidental things of the usual tabraic rituals. Sagotra marriage, horoscope matching, etc., seem to occupy the centre of attention. Threads about vaadhyaars using mobile phones during the performance of rituals, doubts pertaining to funerary and accompanying rites and similar topics do come again and again, just as those having something to do with the notion of மடி (maṭi). Of course the pride of place was for inter-caste marriages and inter-religious marriages; these have become less often heard and less vigorously now, and I get the feeling that the community is all but willing to allow and accept these as realities which have to be accepted, just as inter-subcaste marriages were ultimately welcomed from an earlier very strict "no-no", to complete acceptance and even discarding of all notions of sub-caste segregation later on.
The perspective I get is that the members who champion the tabra cause, hold the very few residual brahminic rites, rituals, customs, dos and don'ts, etc., as something very sacrosanct and they dream about perpetuating the very same things through their descendents. In this way, they seem to believe that the tabra community (caste?) will be saved from extinction and some of these champions at least, are confident that as a result of tabras doing their rituals and thereby perpetuating what they fondly call sanaatana dharma, the world and even the universe will be saved from decay and ultimate destruction.
One important point I noticed was that even among these champions of tabraism (COT), allegience to babas, gurujis, godmen/godwomen, etc., is not very pronounced, though we have specimens of die-hard adherents to some Acharyas etc. But I will hazard the guess that most COTs will have one or the other "guru" because it is repeatedly emphasized here in many posts that “the very purpose of life is to ensure extinction of rebirth or liberation”, ‘only a guru will be able to lead you through the correct path so that you will understand and/or experience Iswara and thereby attain liberation’. Still, the arguments against fake godmen/godwomen, their illicit wealth, etc., seem to go mostly unchallenged.
The most striking point I have seen is that in many aspects of social and/or religious life, the COTs are only too willing to change their stand at the individual- and family- levels and embrace the changes without much ado, providing their own reasons and justifications for such changes, but when expressing views here in the Forum, they are particular that they should be seen as pure, unsullied COTs.
Thus the difference between the COTs and their opposing camp, which gives the “energy”, seems to me to be that while the former will like to change their lifestyles, belief systems etc., as and when an absolute necessity or compulsion arises to do so, and they will like to do that rather silently, they just cannot tolerate the opposing camp saying that the world is changing fast and changes are necessary. There is thus only a small difference — reactive and pro-active between these kurukshetra armies. If only this is understood by either side, much of the heated discussions, and so the web traffic probably will get reduced. Hence I wish both sides do not realize the truth and continue their own way!
) first class chaps and chapesses :first: :cheer2: 3 cheers to all of us.
This Forum is as much 'your country' as it is our country too, in short. Mutual tolerance and accommodation is the best course open to us, imo. 
