prasad1
Active member
I am not surprised, some people here now are making Ravana the hero. LOL
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Brahminism in current day context
- Thread starter gaddaddy
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I am not surprised, some people here now are making Ravana the hero. LOL
S
Servall
Guest
Dear K:
I continue to read your posts with interest and have aligned with you many times in your progressive thinking on many common issues that are addressed in this forum.
One thing I strongly disagree with you, from day 1 I joined this forum, is the constant tirade of your brahmin vs dalit sentiments. Your comments in this regard somehow resembles that of a man who may have had some bitter personal experiences and you somehow cannot get over it.
It may be true, as Mr. Sangom suggested elsewhere on this thread, that the ancestor brahmins may have 'created and perpetuated' casteism and supremacy against their fellow beings once upon a time...and the current 'brahmins' have no clue about it....how is it fair K that you incessantly continue to ask all generations to come to take responsibility for it and reel under it? So it must be true of living British because of General Tyre,
all living Pakistanis for their past astrocities in Bdesh? I strongly detest those behaviours and apologize for those atrocities committed but how do we move forward? If you still insist that generations to come should feel guilty about it, isnt that tantamount to your dispensing 'the poorva karma janma' theory in a new bottle, that you are so vehemently opposed to?
All societies, in general, may be in different degrees, committed crimes in the past and will continue to do so in the future. It is nonsense to hold the future generations to account for it.
Wake up K, didnt we elect a dalit to be president of the second most populous nation in the world? Have you walked the halls of TCS or Wipro lately and watched those young men and women who work in those cubicles, or those doctors that tend the patients in the hospitals etc. These people have no time, or patience nor do they care to identify what happened centuries ago!!
Your lines of thinking while intrigued me with creativity at times, your constant insistence that somehow I was responsible just because I happen to be a brahmin, for poor dalit's flight is not appropriate. You look around men and women in trains and any public place today, do you think any one cares who the next person is? Do you really know your neighbour? When I hire someone at work, the caste or color is the last thing that comes to mny mind,
and I am sorry, the discussion B vs NB is so much discussed only in this forum and not really in too many other places!!
We all take responsibilities to our own actions: any rational brahmin will no more condone any ill treatment that is dished out to fellow beings, isnt it time we all knew that every day brings us new opportunities and the world expects us to accomodate to all this newness and we need to be flexible.
The caste train derailed long time ago; if you insist it is still prevalent in India, it is only in some narrow packets and it is a matter of time that also is removed, the new train with new hope and order is ready to leave and I am ready to jump on it.
Cheers to everyone....
I continue to read your posts with interest and have aligned with you many times in your progressive thinking on many common issues that are addressed in this forum.
One thing I strongly disagree with you, from day 1 I joined this forum, is the constant tirade of your brahmin vs dalit sentiments. Your comments in this regard somehow resembles that of a man who may have had some bitter personal experiences and you somehow cannot get over it.
It may be true, as Mr. Sangom suggested elsewhere on this thread, that the ancestor brahmins may have 'created and perpetuated' casteism and supremacy against their fellow beings once upon a time...and the current 'brahmins' have no clue about it....how is it fair K that you incessantly continue to ask all generations to come to take responsibility for it and reel under it? So it must be true of living British because of General Tyre,
all living Pakistanis for their past astrocities in Bdesh? I strongly detest those behaviours and apologize for those atrocities committed but how do we move forward? If you still insist that generations to come should feel guilty about it, isnt that tantamount to your dispensing 'the poorva karma janma' theory in a new bottle, that you are so vehemently opposed to?
All societies, in general, may be in different degrees, committed crimes in the past and will continue to do so in the future. It is nonsense to hold the future generations to account for it.
Wake up K, didnt we elect a dalit to be president of the second most populous nation in the world? Have you walked the halls of TCS or Wipro lately and watched those young men and women who work in those cubicles, or those doctors that tend the patients in the hospitals etc. These people have no time, or patience nor do they care to identify what happened centuries ago!!
Your lines of thinking while intrigued me with creativity at times, your constant insistence that somehow I was responsible just because I happen to be a brahmin, for poor dalit's flight is not appropriate. You look around men and women in trains and any public place today, do you think any one cares who the next person is? Do you really know your neighbour? When I hire someone at work, the caste or color is the last thing that comes to mny mind,
and I am sorry, the discussion B vs NB is so much discussed only in this forum and not really in too many other places!!
We all take responsibilities to our own actions: any rational brahmin will no more condone any ill treatment that is dished out to fellow beings, isnt it time we all knew that every day brings us new opportunities and the world expects us to accomodate to all this newness and we need to be flexible.
The caste train derailed long time ago; if you insist it is still prevalent in India, it is only in some narrow packets and it is a matter of time that also is removed, the new train with new hope and order is ready to leave and I am ready to jump on it.
Cheers to everyone....
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sangom,
through my journey of tamil blogdom, every once in a while, i come across posts which reflect a viewpoint directly opposite to what i have been brought up. to me these are enligthening, not because, they may be correct, but because there is a pov, that i never knew existed.
here are two pieces, one on siddhas, and the other on bhagvad gita - an alternate view. what i find is that there exists a lot of anger, and how it comes out on analysis.
your own views on these posts, i solicit, if you dont mind. thank you.
sidhdhas as nasthikas
gita as a proponent of varna
these types of readings and blogging are very popular and afaik widespread, and more instrumental in spreading the view of tamil nationalism, ethnicism, and instigating a feeling that somehow tamil brahmins were responsible for the worst horrors of caste feeling and economic depravity.
i am not saying this blogger is right, but tambrams, i think, have never been able to combat these types of arguements, effectively or in numbers. to stem the tide of excluding brahmins from tamil society. just a gut feeling, that is all.
the amazing thing, is that most of these bloggers are devout tamil hindus, and better versed than me in tamil hymns. from the egyptian history onwards, i think, priestly class, have always been held in suspicion and contempt, and that feeling probably continues to this day.
after all, சாமி வரம் கொடுக்கு முன்னாலே பூசாரி வரம் கொடுக்கணமே !
through my journey of tamil blogdom, every once in a while, i come across posts which reflect a viewpoint directly opposite to what i have been brought up. to me these are enligthening, not because, they may be correct, but because there is a pov, that i never knew existed.
here are two pieces, one on siddhas, and the other on bhagvad gita - an alternate view. what i find is that there exists a lot of anger, and how it comes out on analysis.
your own views on these posts, i solicit, if you dont mind. thank you.
sidhdhas as nasthikas
gita as a proponent of varna
these types of readings and blogging are very popular and afaik widespread, and more instrumental in spreading the view of tamil nationalism, ethnicism, and instigating a feeling that somehow tamil brahmins were responsible for the worst horrors of caste feeling and economic depravity.
i am not saying this blogger is right, but tambrams, i think, have never been able to combat these types of arguements, effectively or in numbers. to stem the tide of excluding brahmins from tamil society. just a gut feeling, that is all.
the amazing thing, is that most of these bloggers are devout tamil hindus, and better versed than me in tamil hymns. from the egyptian history onwards, i think, priestly class, have always been held in suspicion and contempt, and that feeling probably continues to this day.
after all, சாமி வரம் கொடுக்கு முன்னாலே பூசாரி வரம் கொடுக்கணமே !
prasad1
Active member
Wonderful and detailed post.
dear servall,
thank you for your kind note #27. especially the part about progressive thinking and aligning on such. any complements to me personally, on my stands here, sir, is unwarranted, as most of these issues stand on their own (de)merits, and to an impartial observer, needs succour and rectification.
re dalits in particular: my own awareness, of the historical wrong done to them, came late in life, and as i age, in contrast to the norm, i appear to be veering towards the trend to understand and atleast lend my voice to the correction of past wrongs, which i term as 'crimes against humanity'. there is not much more to say than that.
many a times, i wonder, had i been born a dalit, instead of a brahmin, how much my anger towards those who were instigating this hierarchy, and who condemned my ancestors to situations akin to the worst of animals, would be. to say it mildly, i would probably explode. one needs to peruse the writings of Malcolm X, to understand the minds of those who have been suppressed for ages, and deprived of human dignity. one or two generations alone cannot set things right.
contrast to this, i live in canada - alien to me in race, language, religion, weather and culture. within one generation, my children are not only proud canadians, have the best of opportunity provided by an egalitarian non sectarian society which believes and practices the fundamental right of every human - to be provided equal opportunity with dignity. all within one generation, a ex homogeneous white society has adjusted itself, with a little effort, to a multicultural mosaic, sufficiently tolerant enough for its non white citizens to attain their potential.
i feel somewhat at despair, when i think of the dalits, and their accumulated anger at the past. i dont know what praayaschiththam can be done. by the upper castes. that includes and be led by us brahmins.
i hope this explains somewhat where i am coming from. this is the best i can do.
thank you again, i do tender an apology, for roughing up any of your sensitivities.
God Bless.
thank you for your kind note #27. especially the part about progressive thinking and aligning on such. any complements to me personally, on my stands here, sir, is unwarranted, as most of these issues stand on their own (de)merits, and to an impartial observer, needs succour and rectification.
re dalits in particular: my own awareness, of the historical wrong done to them, came late in life, and as i age, in contrast to the norm, i appear to be veering towards the trend to understand and atleast lend my voice to the correction of past wrongs, which i term as 'crimes against humanity'. there is not much more to say than that.
many a times, i wonder, had i been born a dalit, instead of a brahmin, how much my anger towards those who were instigating this hierarchy, and who condemned my ancestors to situations akin to the worst of animals, would be. to say it mildly, i would probably explode. one needs to peruse the writings of Malcolm X, to understand the minds of those who have been suppressed for ages, and deprived of human dignity. one or two generations alone cannot set things right.
contrast to this, i live in canada - alien to me in race, language, religion, weather and culture. within one generation, my children are not only proud canadians, have the best of opportunity provided by an egalitarian non sectarian society which believes and practices the fundamental right of every human - to be provided equal opportunity with dignity. all within one generation, a ex homogeneous white society has adjusted itself, with a little effort, to a multicultural mosaic, sufficiently tolerant enough for its non white citizens to attain their potential.
i feel somewhat at despair, when i think of the dalits, and their accumulated anger at the past. i dont know what praayaschiththam can be done. by the upper castes. that includes and be led by us brahmins.
i hope this explains somewhat where i am coming from. this is the best i can do.
thank you again, i do tender an apology, for roughing up any of your sensitivities.
God Bless.
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N
Nara
Guest
Dear Sangom sir, this is a question that people bringing up this topic time and time again need to answer. We have seen this happen countless time, glib self-congratulatory post gets made, more people pile on in mutual adulation, a rational mind questions the absurdity of this caste based stupor, a self appointed sage waltz in and says we are BBs, B haters, etc. To go through this cycle one more time may not be advisable, but no harm done and even if one person experiences a spark, it would be worthwhile.
People are against caste in the abstract, but when it comes to their own personal lives not an inch is given. If they are asked to own up to the past atrocities they say they are not responsible, others did it, and million other excuses to avoid taking any serious action.
IMO, those who think of their identity in jati terms are not free of responsibility for the caste atrocities that take place anywhere in India. Those who don't want to be tainted by this responsibility must reject even the trace of caste identity.
Cheers!
S
Servall
Guest
Dear Kunjuppu:
I appreciate your candid response.
One observation though from your post # 32, if I were you, I wont be so quick to heap so much praise on the white
Canadian society.
I dont know where you were in the early 80's, much before the immigration boom into Canada. It was predominantly white,
racism was rampant, every brown man for the white canadian was a 'paki', the day my wife landed at toronto airport she was
practically yelled at and called 'paki go home'. Remember sardar's shops were looted, and few indians were pushed to the
tracks in front of the oncoming train. Did you try to get a job in the 80's?
All I am saying is we had problems here too, look at Canada now, by sheer numbers and boom in immigration we
out-numbered them and the plates are turned!! and in the process, the white man became tolerant too.
Cheers
I appreciate your candid response.
One observation though from your post # 32, if I were you, I wont be so quick to heap so much praise on the white
Canadian society.
I dont know where you were in the early 80's, much before the immigration boom into Canada. It was predominantly white,
racism was rampant, every brown man for the white canadian was a 'paki', the day my wife landed at toronto airport she was
practically yelled at and called 'paki go home'. Remember sardar's shops were looted, and few indians were pushed to the
tracks in front of the oncoming train. Did you try to get a job in the 80's?
All I am saying is we had problems here too, look at Canada now, by sheer numbers and boom in immigration we
out-numbered them and the plates are turned!! and in the process, the white man became tolerant too.
Cheers
thanks servall.
i am not saying canada is perfect. far from it. but what was a vision of pierre trudeau, is now a reality.
my emphasis, is that we as 'close to alien' immigrants, in our lifetime, have seen our children prosper and feel part of a society, by and large.
ofcourse, massive immigration, coupled with low birth rate of the whites helped. but i also feel, there was a willingness on the part of the white canadian society to accommodate. something that i feel, is not the case, in the ancient white societies of europe.
for all its fault, to a person, immigrant americans like Yamaka, Nara & KRS would swear that there is no country in the world like USA, inspite of all its warts and bumblings. the fact is, these countries in our lifetime, have gone through massive transformations along with change of attitudes.
whereas in india, while massive external transformation have/are happenings, we still have a 'holding onto' ideas which are basically inhuman. atleast i feel so. enough said. pardon.
i am not saying canada is perfect. far from it. but what was a vision of pierre trudeau, is now a reality.
my emphasis, is that we as 'close to alien' immigrants, in our lifetime, have seen our children prosper and feel part of a society, by and large.
ofcourse, massive immigration, coupled with low birth rate of the whites helped. but i also feel, there was a willingness on the part of the white canadian society to accommodate. something that i feel, is not the case, in the ancient white societies of europe.
for all its fault, to a person, immigrant americans like Yamaka, Nara & KRS would swear that there is no country in the world like USA, inspite of all its warts and bumblings. the fact is, these countries in our lifetime, have gone through massive transformations along with change of attitudes.
whereas in india, while massive external transformation have/are happenings, we still have a 'holding onto' ideas which are basically inhuman. atleast i feel so. enough said. pardon.
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Sowbagyavathy Valli, Greetings.
In my opinion, your response is rather heavy handed. The author of the post #14 expressed few very simple desires. There is no exclusivity in any of those desires. As you know very well, there are many cook books that carry all these recipes in detail and everyone has access to such recipes and dishes. I don't think your message was in good taste. Sorry.
Cheers!
Dear Sri. Kunjuppu, Greetings.
This is my opinion about the discussion between you and Sri. Raju. Sri. Raju only responds to your opinions. His puts forward arguments that negates some of your point of views in total. But that does not mean he is destroying you. When your opinions are expressed in a public forum, those opinons are fair game.
Cheers!
This is my opinion about the discussion between you and Sri. Raju. Sri. Raju only responds to your opinions. His puts forward arguments that negates some of your point of views in total. But that does not mean he is destroying you. When your opinions are expressed in a public forum, those opinons are fair game.
Cheers!
I am new to this forum. In fact I just joined today. This is a topic that is near and dear to my heart. I am over 40, and I just started learning about Brahmins, our heritage, our customs etc. While I am not proud that I have spent a vast part of my life not practicing "Brahminism", I feel that I am being "guided" to change my path and reflect on my heritage. Brahminism cannot be practiced anymore in the context of our "varnam": If we begged food in order to sustain our lives we will be disrespected. If all we did was to teach veda and scriptures, we will lag behind economically as a community. But the same applies to the other three varnams also. They have adapted to changing times and so have we.
If we live a simple life, eat vegetarian, follow honesty, teach what we know to interested persons, and speak Tamil just like our forefathers used to speak AND NOT FEEL BAD ABOUT IT, then I think we are doing our part to uphold "Brahminism". We should also be brave to stand up for our rights when we feel lack of fair treatment. This single act of standing up may be the best way to practice Brahminsm, in the context of this day and age. This is my humble opinion. Thanks for the great forum!
If we live a simple life, eat vegetarian, follow honesty, teach what we know to interested persons, and speak Tamil just like our forefathers used to speak AND NOT FEEL BAD ABOUT IT, then I think we are doing our part to uphold "Brahminism". We should also be brave to stand up for our rights when we feel lack of fair treatment. This single act of standing up may be the best way to practice Brahminsm, in the context of this day and age. This is my humble opinion. Thanks for the great forum!
Dear Sir,
We have touched upon and discussed almost everything, i suppose -- cultural phases, history of religion, the way it developed over time, caste-based atrocities, colonial period issues, reservations, etc.
I do think people stand to benefit from our conversations, either opposing ones or the agreeing ones.
Since there are new comers into the forum all the time (and a growing number of people who 'Like' this website on facebook), maybe its a good idea to discuss relevant stuff, every now and then, so that new comers can also know various facets of 'sanatana dharma' (instead of just a few limited aspects of it).
Am more keen to see posters offering solutions and suggestions actually...It would be nice to see new comers like JayKay, Ozone, Jayam33, AswinAsh, Prasad1, Govinda, etc, come up with solutions.
Some people feel 'caste' must remain but not the 'discrimination'. But to me, caste as a fixed format applied to a diverse group of people itself is a social fiction. So diverse, that no two families within a social group may have had the same history or same occupation in the past, though both may come under the same 'caste'.
Obviously the concept of caste (occupation), in present day context, is bound to change (as it already is), over time as people enter different varied secular professions. It is impossible to expect caste in its present form to remain. This is bound to impact the religion also. I suppose its about reconciling to the fact that, 'kala', 'manvantaras', 'ages' move ahead in time, not backwards.
So it would be nice to see suggestions and solutions for successful adaptation, ie., for a welcome change agreeable to most people.
Regards.
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Hello Balaji Srinivasan,
The term 'Brahmanism' has two meanings.
In circles discussing history of 'hindu' religion or phases of change, it refers to 'culture' that came to be considered 'brahmanical'.
Additionally, it also means Brahmanical labour Laws (that is, dharmashastra laws which hindu kingdoms followed. This is viewed negatively, because it was about rigidly assigining occupations at birth using violence).
The former (as culture) faces multiple issues, such as - (a) it is increasingly falling into disuse amongst people who barely manage to do even Sandhya; and (b) the mere adherence for rituals does not convince the public of brahminhood.
The latter (as brahmanical labour laws), one cannot follow even if he wants to, as the government has legally banned it.
So you may wish to ponder over what is brahmanism and what is the future of brahmanism (in whatever context you may mean).
Also, sir, vegetarian diet is not brahmanical. On the contrary, trading classes who converted from Jains into Hindus in medieval times were probably vegetarian for a longer time, than brahmins.
Please also think of this in another way -- even vegetarianism gets 'stolen' or gets claimed as brahmanical culture. Why really sir? (this is how a jaina or buddhist or low-caste vegetarian wud wonder).
Again, living a simple life, following honesty, and speaking Tamil is not restricted to brahmins alone. So why should these 3 things be ascribed to brahmanism?
Regards.
sangom
0
Kunjuppu,
As you might be knowing somewhat clearly by now, I hold the view that there was some indigenous population in south India (consisting of Andhra, Tamizh, KarnaaTa, Chera and may be part of Utkala) before the vedic people, be they pure aryans or mixture of aryans with the local populations from NWFP to Varanasi, ventured south of the vindhyas. (Brahui is a point to be kept in mind in this context, imho.)
The siddhas were most probably thinkers within the Tamizh society who probably were attempted to be placated by the incoming aryans with the sanskrit honorific "siddha"- someone who has already acqired/found out (?) - but those siddhas were outside the social norms just as the aajeevikas of the north in times past. So, there is substance and truth in the blog saying the siddhas viewed the vedic religion as falsehood.
But the aryans were cleverer; they developed the argument that once a person dutifully follows their religious prescriptions and reaches the highest level of 'spiritual attainment' (whatever that may signify) then all religion, religious practices, etc., become irrelevant and useless fr such humans. Thus, unwittingly, the vedic religion a.k.a. sanaatana dharma, a.k.a. the religion taught by brahmins, had to confer high spiritual status to the older Siddhas; but it is worth mentioning that those vedic religionists did not encourage any large following to those siddhas, including Pattinathaar, but bhadragiri ramdas stands on a different footing. One Ramdas was a ramabhakta, and two, Ramadas advocated only ramabhakti even at the cost of spending public money to build temple without proper sanction, and he did not preach the kind of spirituality or philosophy which the older siddhas did.
Regarding BG, I agree there can be a very valid view of that text in the way in which the blog looks at it. The fact that Sankara who had to write a Gita Bhashya, relies not much on it otherwise, will show that he did not perhaps consider it as a great authoritative text. It was most probably an interpolation into M.Bh. after the fabrication of Srimadbhagavata and Harivamsa, so as to buttress Krishna's position as Lord Supreme. If viewed in this angle, BG is the brand new veda of a resurgent aryanism and hence of casteism.
If you had lived in cosmopolitan surroundings you would know this fact; Maharashtrians generally eat chappathis with vegetables or non-veg. they do not take curd [there may be exceptions];
Gujarathis; early morning there breakfast consists of Ghatia;Papdi;Kakra{all salty fried items} On Amavasya days it is the Ladies of the house; who give Raw Wheat;pulses;Jaggery Etc. to the Priest in the Temple. Gujarathis keep Garbha[Anaiya Vilakku] for 10 Days in Navarathiri; Maharashtrian Ladies Have Haldi; Kumkum[Manjal;Kumkumam] Ceremony after Sankatanthi. All Hindus through out our country irrespective of caste or creed have certain rituals; food habits.
So we as Tamil Brahmins if we had been following fixed regimes;not only food but rituals too [now a days it is diluted; to suit the changed working atmosphere] why hate it; our nature is still Satvic ;we still hold on to reasons;logic; people may poke fun by telling; "Sambar Sadham; Morunjatham"; as far as we remain non-violent & contribute our part; however small it may be; we are a portion of community the society needs; as you all know ...Greed & violence are the order of the day. We certainly are not head Strong & intend to bemean other caste or religion; all are following different path to reach the same Goal; "SWADHARMO NIDHANAM SHREYA: PARADHARMO BHAYAAVAHAHA" applies to all castes; follow the path of wisdom to attain the highest.
Gujarathis; early morning there breakfast consists of Ghatia;Papdi;Kakra{all salty fried items} On Amavasya days it is the Ladies of the house; who give Raw Wheat;pulses;Jaggery Etc. to the Priest in the Temple. Gujarathis keep Garbha[Anaiya Vilakku] for 10 Days in Navarathiri; Maharashtrian Ladies Have Haldi; Kumkum[Manjal;Kumkumam] Ceremony after Sankatanthi. All Hindus through out our country irrespective of caste or creed have certain rituals; food habits.
So we as Tamil Brahmins if we had been following fixed regimes;not only food but rituals too [now a days it is diluted; to suit the changed working atmosphere] why hate it; our nature is still Satvic ;we still hold on to reasons;logic; people may poke fun by telling; "Sambar Sadham; Morunjatham"; as far as we remain non-violent & contribute our part; however small it may be; we are a portion of community the society needs; as you all know ...Greed & violence are the order of the day. We certainly are not head Strong & intend to bemean other caste or religion; all are following different path to reach the same Goal; "SWADHARMO NIDHANAM SHREYA: PARADHARMO BHAYAAVAHAHA" applies to all castes; follow the path of wisdom to attain the highest.
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Also says any one will change and adapt and it does not need some one thumping at the others head from a distance to make that happen
sangom
0
Shri Srinivasan,
I am glad that you have been able to compress your notion of "brahminism" like winzip, but am surprised by your statement "If we live a simple life, eat vegetarian, follow honesty, teach what we know to interested persons, and speak Tamil just like our forefathers used to speak AND NOT FEEL BAD ABOUT IT, then I think we are doing our part to uphold "Brahminism".
Kindly tell me whether you consider three or four generations as sufficient to represent "forefathers" which as per dictionary meaning covers almost all those who have contributed to the present stage from time immemorial.
Brahmins of yore were not, as a rule, living simple life; they used to get huge dakshinas for the sacrifices (like somayaga, ashvamedha, rajasuya, etc.) they performed. Yajnavalkya won 1000 cows in a debate.
Vegetarianism is a late advent into brahminism. Brahmins used to eat beef also and it was compulsory for marriage feast. Eating the meat of different animals (500 to 1000 different kinds of animals have been alluded to as necessary to be sacrificed in an ashvamedha) was a religious injunction. It is laid down in the dharmasastras that if porcupine meat is served to the 'brahmanas' on sraaddham day, the pitrus concerned will not feel hungry for one (earth) year. Hence, vegetarianism is not a sign of brahminism.
"teaching what we know", for example chemistry, physics, surveying and levelling, etc., are not allowed for brahmins; only teaching of vedas is allowed.
And our forefathers did not necessarily all speak Tamil, nor did they all have same or similar accents/slangs. A brahmin is supposed to master sanskrit, the devabhasha and all other languages are considered polluting according to dharmasastras.
Hence, unless you say that "this what I believe to be brahminism and I don't want anybody else's opinion but others should listen to me since this is a public forum", I think your case stands on very weak grounds.
PS. Regarding the highlighted portion above, I am reminded of the bible preachers-cum-proselytizers (called "suviSeSha pracaarakan" - one who publicises the noble tidings, in Malayalam). They stand in public places, preach what they (are called upon to) believe and will not brook any doubts or questions or dissent.
In this forum ever post is not a reply to the original post of the thread starter. The members are
free to reply to any post ( be it from a newbie or a veteran), so long as the language is polite and not hurting the sentiments of the members.
So you also claim that the post #4 was written with narrow minded-ness? Sorry sir, I disagree with your pick
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Ozone
I was referring to your Post#13 (from which I have quoted) directing Sri K to reply to the original poster of the thread.There was no allusion to Post #4 of Smt Jayam.So why do you infer that I
consider her post as narrow minded?
Sir, Thank you for the clarification.
Post #6 of Sri K quoted Post #4 and had comments of narrow-minded ness.
I feel those accusations were misplaced if done under the quoted #4. You also seem to agree that post #4 cannot be considered narrow-minded.
Hence I asked him to vent his prejudices against the original post, because, someone especially a Newbie who sees his/her post quoted and a whole lot written under it, would think every thing said applies to his/her quote.
I felt the veterans should be considerate to the (mild) newbies. I think thats fair and appropriate to expect.
If you feel there is a better way to articulate this, I can gladly adapt the next time.
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BalajiSrinivasan's post #38 for reference:
Hi Balaji,
you said:
I am sure you would have understood by now what you have got into here. You made a simple and innocent opening statement that you live a simple life as a brahmin and immediately some one asked you why do you steal "simple life", "vegetarianism", "honesty", "speaking Tamil" etc from others and appropriate them to yourself as a brahmin. That is the level of hostility you face here for being a brahmin. Here "brahminism" is a bad word and so be careful while using it. There is no common definition for that word here and so people invariably misunderstand you and start giving you a lecture. If you are brave enough to stand up for what you think is right as you have mentioned here, please do that. I will be very happy to see some one do that here for a change.
Hi Balaji,
you said:
I am sure you would have understood by now what you have got into here. You made a simple and innocent opening statement that you live a simple life as a brahmin and immediately some one asked you why do you steal "simple life", "vegetarianism", "honesty", "speaking Tamil" etc from others and appropriate them to yourself as a brahmin. That is the level of hostility you face here for being a brahmin. Here "brahminism" is a bad word and so be careful while using it. There is no common definition for that word here and so people invariably misunderstand you and start giving you a lecture. If you are brave enough to stand up for what you think is right as you have mentioned here, please do that. I will be very happy to see some one do that here for a change.
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Kunjuppu,
Your post #32:
1. Who were 'instigating'(?) the hierarchy?
2. "I would probably explode"-- But that is no solution. What constructive solution do you have to suggest after gathering yourself?
3. "one or two generations alone cannot set things right"-- Okay. How many generations would do that? What should these generations do as amends?
Will you be kind enough to reply? That would help us here to know where you stand.
Your post #32:
1. Who were 'instigating'(?) the hierarchy?
2. "I would probably explode"-- But that is no solution. What constructive solution do you have to suggest after gathering yourself?
3. "one or two generations alone cannot set things right"-- Okay. How many generations would do that? What should these generations do as amends?
Will you be kind enough to reply? That would help us here to know where you stand.
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