Pride of Hinduism - Views of foreigners

[talwan]

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Paul William Roberts ( ? ) taught at Oxford for a year before setting off around the world, stopping in India before settling in Canada, where he has been an award-winning television writer and producer, university lecturer, journalist, film and book critic and novelist. He journeyed through India for twenty years, and in his book Empire of the Soul: Some Journeys in India creates a dazzling mosaic, by turns tragic and comic, of the subcontinent and its people and he says:

“India is the only country that feels like home to me, the only country whose airport tarmac I have ever kissed upon landing.”

“The Vedas still represent eternal truth in the purest form ever written. And they are what drew me to India in the first place, what kept me there, and what draws me back still.” “ There is no stable principle of evil in Vedic philosophy. There is no infernal realm for sinners. Its non-dualism is really beyond monotheism - which creates a fundamental duality of God and man. Evil is not envisaged as a quality opposed to good. It is the absence of good, just as darkness is the absence of light, not its opposite quality.”
“In the beginning the Divine Will arose,
This was the first seed from the Creator’s mind.
Those who can see deeper by putting their mind and heart
together as one
Found the underlying essence of all existence was deep
beyond all that exists,
Fount the non-existent existing in the existent.”

 

[talwan]

Niels Henrik David Bohr, (1885-1962) Danish nuclear physicist who developed the Bohr model of the atom. His received the Nobel Prize in physics in 1922, for his theory of atomic structure (Quantum Theory).

He is on record as saying that he goes into the Upanishads to ask questions.

(source: From article - Indian Conquests of the Mind - By Saibal Gupta. The Statesman.org)

 

[talwan]

John Archibald Wheeler, (1911 - ) physicist, the first American involved in the theoretical development of the atomic bomb. He also originated a novel approach to the unified field theory. He has worked with such famous physicists as: Einstein, Thorne, Oppenheimer, Bohr, etc.
Professor Emeritus at Princeton and Texas universities, studied with Niels Bohr, was named winner of the 1997 Wolf Prize in Physics, for developing the modern "black hole" theory. Has taught students include scientists like Richard Feynman, now occupies the chair that was held by Einstein.

Wheeler wrote: “I like to think that someone will trace how the deepest thinking of India made its way to Greece and from there to the philosophy of our times.”

It is curious that people like Schroedinger, Niels Bohr, Oppenheimer and John Wheeler are Upanishad scholars.

 

[talwan]

Lin Yutang (1895-1976) Chinese scholar and author of the book, The Wisdom of China and India, writes: "Hindus are natural mystics, mysticism meaning a form of religion aiming at achieving direct union with God. To achieve the union of the individual soul (atman) with the world soul (brahman) behind all things may be said to be the whole effort of the Vedic philosophy."
He further writes:
"My love and true respect for India was born when I first read the Indian epics, the Ramayana and the Mahabharata in the present translation in my college days. In these two masterpieces we are brought closer to the atmosphere, ideals and customs of ancient Hindu life than by a hundred volumes of commentary on the Upanishads, and through them Hindu ideals, as well as Hindu men and women, become real to us. And the fact that Hindu imagination produced such masterpieces of literature, closely rivaling Homer in antiquity and in beauty and power of portraying human passions, is definite pledge of the worth and richness of the Hindu civilization."

"The creative imagination of the Hindus has conceived no loftier and holier character than Sita; the literature of the world has not produced a higher ideal of womanly love, womanly truth, and womanly devotion."
"The contact with poets, forest saints and the best wits of the land, the glimpse into the first awakening of Ancient India's mind as it searched, at times childishly and naively, at times with a deep intuition, but at all times earnestly and passionately, for the spiritual truths and the meaning of existence - this experience must be highly stimulating to anyone, particularly because the Hindu culture is so different and therefore so much to offer." "Not until we see the richness of the Hindu mind and its essential spirituality can we understand India...."

 

[talwan]

John Greenleaf Whittier (1807-1892) was a talented poet who was influenced by Emerson and from whom he borrowed a copy of the Bhagavad Gita. To Emerson he wrote: "I will e'en keep it until I restore it to thee personally in exchange for George Fox (founder of the Society of Friends, the Quakers)."It is a wonderful book-and has greatly excited my curiosity to know more of the religious literature of the East."
(source: The Oriental Religions and American Thought (Nineteenth-Century Explorations), Carl T. Jackson -

Greenwood Press, London, England, 1981, p. 80.) The results of Whittier's reading are evident in a good number of his poems like "The Oval Heart," "The Cypress Tree of Ceylon," "The Dead Feast of the Kol-Folk," and "The Khan's Devil." A particularly striking example of his use of Indian material is his well-known poem "The Brewing of Soma," which describes the preparation and use of the Vedic sacrificial drink (source: www.gosai.com )

 

[talwan]

Maurice Winternitz (1863-1937) famed Indologist, author of History of Indian Literature, states:

" From the mystical doctrines of the Upanishads, one current of thought may be traced to the mysticism of Persian Sufism, to the mystic, theosophic logos doctrine of the Neo-Platonics and the Alexandrian Christian Mystics, Eckhart and Tauler, and finally to the philosophy of the great German mystic of the nineteenth century, Schopenhauer." (source: History of Indian Literature - By Maurice Winternitz volume 1. p. 266).

 

[talwan]

M. A. Sherring, noted missionary of the 19th century, eloquently described the antiquity of Varanasi,in the following words:

“When Babylon was struggling with Nineveh for supremacy, when Tyre was planting her colonies, when Athens was growing in strength, before Rome had become known, or Greece had contended with Persia, or Cyprus had added lustre to the Persian monarchy, or Nebuchadnezzar had captured Jerusalem, and the inhabitants of Judaea had been carried into captivity, she (Varanasi) had already risen to greatness, if not to glory.”

(source: Banaras - City of Light - By Diana L. Eck p. 4-5).

 

[talwan]

H. Stutfield author of Mysticism and Catholicism states:

"Especially does there seem to be a growing probability that, from the historical standpoint at any rate, India was the birthplace of our fundamental imaginings, the cradle of contemplative religion and the nobler philosophy."

(source: Mysticism and Catholicism - By H Stutfield 1925 p. 31).

 

[talwan]

F. W. J. Schelling (1773-1854) a crucial figure in the development of German idealist and nature philosophy, Eastern ideas pervade and color much of his thinking. In his book Philosophy of Mythology, he devoted to India more than one hundred pages. He regarded Vedanta as an 'exalted idealism' and this enthusiasm for Indian thought was taken up by Arthur Schopenhauer. (source: An Introduction to Hinduism - By Gavin Flood p. 269).

 

[talwan]

Robert Southey (1774-1843), English poet, generally considered a member of the romantic movement. He was born in Bristol and educated at the University of Oxford. Southey was a good friend of poet Samuel Taylor Cole ridge. He had read the Bhagavad Gita in the preparation of his lurid narrative poem The Curse of Kehama written in 1810.
Southey's verse is among the first in English to incorporate Hindu mythology into verse, so that in The Curse of Kehama we find references:
A stream descends on Meru mountain
None hath seen its secret fountain;
It had its birth, so Sages say,
Upon the memorable day
When Parvati presumed to lay
In wanton play,
her hands, too venturous Goddess, in her mirth,
On Seeva's eyes, the light and life of Earth...
Thereat the heart of the Universe stood still...
And Ganges thence upon the world descended,
The Holy River, the Redeeming Flood.

 

[talwan]

F. W. Thomas, in The Legacy of India, says:

"What gives to the Upanishads their unique quality and unfailing human appeal is an earnest sincerity of tone, as of friends conferring upon matters of deep concern."​

He wrote in his book The Mutual Influence of Mohammedans and Hindus,

"Hinduism is one of the greatest assimilants that the world has known." "It is infinitely absorbent like the ocean." ​

(source: The Discovery of India - By Jawaharlal Nehru p. 90 and The Mutual Influence of Mohammedans and Hindus - by F W Thomas).
​

 

[talwan]

Sir Jacob Epstein (1880-1959), leading English Sculptor. After studying with Rodin in Paris, he revolted against the ornate and pretty in art, producing bold, often harsh and massive forms in stone and bronze. His best-known pieces include the Oscar Wilde Memorial (1911; Père-Lachaise, Paris), a marble Venus (1917; Yale Univ., New Haven, Conn.), and a Madonna and Child (Convent of the Holy Child Jesus, London).

Epstein has written about Shiva Nataraja:

"Shiva dances, creating the world and destroying it, his large rhythms conjure up vast aeons of time, and his movements have a relentless magical power of incantation. Our European allegories are banal and pointless by comparison with these profound works, devoid of the trappings of symbolism, concentrating on the essential, the essentially plastic." ​

(source: Let There Be Sculpture - By Sir Jacob Epstein 1942 p. 193).
​

 

[talwan]

Apollonius Tyanaeus, Greek Thinker and Traveler. 1st Century AD, said:

"In India I found a race of mortals living upon the Earth. but not adhering to it. Inhabiting cities, but not being fixed to them, possessing everything but possessed by nothing."

 

[talwan]

Mr. Thorton, in his book History of British India, observed: "the Hindus are indisputably entitled to rank among the most ancient of existing nations, as well as among those most early and most rapidly civilized ...ere yet the Pyramids looked down upon the Valley of the Nile.. when Greece and Italy, those cradles of modern civilization, housed only the tenants of the wilderness, India was the seat of wealth and grandeur.."

 

[talwan]

Professor Eugene Burnouf (1801-1852) in his Discourse on Sanskrit and Its Literature, given at the College of France, states:

" We will study India with its philosophy and its myths, its literature, its laws and its language. Nay it is more than India, it is a page of the origin of the world that we will attempt to decipher." (source: Discourse on Sanskrit and Its Literature - By Eugene Burnouf).

 

[talwan]

Hu Shih (1891-1962), Chinese philosopher in Republican China. He promoted vernacular literature to replace writing in the classical style. He was ambassador to the U.S. (1938-42) and chancellor of Peking University (1946-48). Hu Shih has commented on the peace-loving nature of Indians:

"India conquered and dominated China culturally for 20 centuries without ever having to send a single soldier across her border." "Never before had China seen a religion so rich in imagery, so beautiful and captivating in ritualism and so bold in cosmological and metaphysical speculations. Like a poor beggar suddenly halting before a magnificent storehouse of precious stones of dazzling brilliancy and splendor, China was overwhelmed, baffled and overjoyed. She begged and borrowed freely from this munificent giver. The first borrowings were chiefly from the religious life of India, in which China's indebtedness to India can never be fully told."
(source: India and World Civilization - By D. P. Singhal p. 338).

 

[talwan]

Professor Vere Gordon Childe (1892 -1957) one of archeology's few very great synthesizers writes:

"It would be absurd to suggest that any two tribes living, say, in Greece and India, and speaking quite unconnected dialects, on reaching the same level of development should have hit upon such similar words for "father," "fall," and "five" and inflected them in such similar ways as the Vedic Indians and the Homeric Greeks did in fact do. The primitive culture must be the stage of development reached by several peoples while living sufficiently close together to communicate."

 

[talwan]

Frederich von Schlegel (1772-1829), German philosopher, critic, and writer, the most prominent founder of German Romanticism. Educated in law, he turned to writing. His brother, August Wilhelm von Schlegel, was a scholar and poet. With his brother, August Wilhelm, he published the Athenaeum, the principal organ of the romantic school. He was so impressed with Indic spirituality that he declared:

" When one considers the sublime disposition underlying the truly universal education (of traditional India)...then what is or has been called religion in Europe seems to us to be scarcely deserving of that name. And one feels compelled to advise those who wish to witness religion to travel to India for that purpose...."​

(source: In Search of The Cradle of Civilization: : New Light on Ancient India - By Georg Feuerstein, Subhash Kak & David Frawley p. 276).
​

 

[talwan]

Eduard Roeer (1805-1866) German Indologist, born in Braunschweig Germany, made a name for himself on account of his research in Hindu philosophy. His knowledge of philosophy and philology enabled him to publish a number of valuable editions of philosophical texts. On Roeer's suggestion the Asiatic Society of Bengal decided to publish the Upanishads together with Shankara's commentary. In a letter to Albrecht Weber, he wrote, " Although the philological frame is very important, it is the philosophy of the Hindus which interests me most in Sanskrit literature and it has been my chief aim to bring about a better understanding of the same."
Roeer called the Upanishads, "sublime emanations of the Human mind" and Shankara's commentary "a shining example of comprehensive erudition, patient research and philosophical acumen of the ancient Hindus".

 

[talwan]

Arthur Koestler, (1905-1983)Hungarian-born British novelist, journalist, and critic. He is best known for his novel Darkness at Noon and The Lotus and the Robot, in which heexamines Eastern mysticism and wrote: "Rome was saved in A.D. 408 by the ransom the Senate paid to Alaric the Goth; ever since, when Europe found itself in an impasse or in a questing mood, it has turned yearningly to the land of culinary and spiritual spices. "
"The greatest influence during the dark ages was Augustine, who was influenced by Plotinus, who was influenced by Indian mysticism.
"Long before Aldous Huxley found Yoga a remedy for our Brave New World, Schopenhauer called the Upanishads the consolation of his life."

 

[talwan]

Jean Herbert (1897- ) famous Indianist, author of several books including Ganesha, précédé d'une étude sur Dieu chez les Hindous, Spiritualité hindoue, An Introduction To Asia and Vedantisme et vie pratique et autre études. He reminds us that:
"Many many centuries before us, India had devised most of the philosophical systems which Europe experienced with later."

"They contained, at least in its essence, the philosophy of the Greeks, the Alexandrine mystique, the religious speculation of the Middle Ages, the rationalism, of the XIXth century and even the most recent incarnations of modern pantheism."
(source: Arise O' India - By Francois Gautier Har-Anand publications. p. 25)

 

[nannilam_balasubramanian]

Lord Krishna and Lord Anjaneya both of them carried the hills for the
welfare of others. Lord Anjaneya brought Sanjeevi Hill to give relife
to the Vanaras, who got caught with the influence of Brahamasthram.
Lord Krishna brought Govarthanagiri protected the Aayarpadi from the
heavy incessant rain. Both of them to sustain Dharma, took the role
of spy. For the sake of Lord Rama, Lord Anjaneya went to Ravanan.
Lord Krishna for the sake of Pandavas, went to Drutharashtiran.
Lord Anjaneya liked very much Sri Rama Namam. Lord Krishna liked
very much Govinda Nama Sangeerthanam.

Balasubramanian
Ambattur

 

[talwan]

'took the role of spy'.

ROLE OF 'DHOOTHA' IS CORRECT THAN ROLE OF 'SPY'.

Alwan

 

[talwan]

The Fourth Caliph, Ali bin Abi Talib (656 - 661 A.D.) had remarked: " The land where books were first written and from where wisdom and knowledge sprang is India."
(Note: Many Islamic traditions support the high standing of Indian culture with the Arabs. This shows the affection and respect of early Muslims had for India. In any case, Caliph Umar, was opposed to attacking India, even when he was told that "Indian rivers are pearls, her mountains rubies, her trees perfumes," for he regarded India as a country of complete freedom of thought and belief where Muslims and others were free to practice their faith.
(source: Hindu Muslim Cultural Accord - By Syed Mohamud Bombay 1949 p. 18 and 21).

 

[talwan]

Edmond Taylor ( ? ) author of Richer By Asia has said: "The sophisticated philosophies of the East (India) are even more abstract, subtle, and given to the splitting of unsubstantial hairs than those of the West, but the emotional basis of the oldest and richest Oriental religion - Hinduism - is perfectly accessible, it sometimes seemed to me, than certain Christian moods."
"The underlying mood of Hinduism is one of joyous acceptance of the universe." It is more richly endowed with gods and goddesses and all the trappings of mythology than even the religion of ancient Greece, and this imaginative exuberance is certainly connected with the pantheist emotional mood."
"More than any other religion, Hinduism hangs upon the concept of wholeness, and the perception of wholeness to the Hindu mind is the most joyous of all human experiences."
"the convictions of the unity and orderliness of the universe is so strong in the devout Hindu that nothing can shake it."
"Popular Hinduism, it is true, is more richly endowed with gods and goddesses and all the trappings of mythology than even the religion of ancient Greece, and thisimaginative exuberance is certainly connected with the pantheist emotional mood, but it seems to be more a by-product than an integral feature of it."
"The Higher Hindu sages have always dispensed with all this objective paraphernalia while retaining their pantheist hearts."
"The emotional root of animism in Hindu village worship seemed to me to lie in a heightened sense of reality rather than in unreality, in the use of marvel to express the marvelous ness of simple reality in creating magical beings to explain the magic feel of normal experience."