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Letter to Poojaneeya Dharma Acharyas
Subject: Demolition of Sethu Samudram and state control of temples shows
anti- Hindu mindset of Govt. ; Please guide Hindus in a reformation
movement : a) to take up the leadership role to save Hinduism and
the country; and, b) to revive ethics and nationalism through dharma
prasar
Poojaneeya Dharma Acharyas,
In these extra ordinary times your forthcoming meeting on
the Ram Sethu issue provides an invaluable opportunity to review the
“state of Hinduism” and the country as a whole. As exemplified by the
Govt. arrogance on demolition of Ram Sethu Bridge as well as the virtual
demolition of Hindu religious infrastructure in many states,
particularly in the South, the democratic governance in India is
becoming increasingly hollow and it lacks even the semblance of
ethics. The end game for India’s rulers has become to collaborate with
other political merchants, form alliances and keep themselves in the
saddle without any vision or concern about the long term impact on
country's integrity and security. We believe that this deadly trend
could be halted and uprooted effectively by a widespread dharma prasar
Hindu reformist movement run by selfless volunteers (say "dharma sewaks")
by sparing time and resources for dharma shiksha and dharma "samsthapana".
1) After
sixty years of independence, the following are some of the noteworthy
failures - this trend cannot be allowed to continue.
a) Hinduism is at the mercy of politicians who have
illegally taken over temples and their endowment properties meant for
sustenance in perpetuity in many states across the country.
b) Kanchi Shankaracharya was arrested on Diwali night almost
three years ago. In spite of the fact that the Tamil Nadu Govt. could
not provide convincing proof of his guilt during these years he remains
to be exonerated.
c) Jihadist terrorist attacks on Hindus continue in the
country. The temples such as Raghunath, Akshardham, etc were specially
targeted. The Parliament and trains were not spared. As if that was not
enough the terrorism by Maoists and Naxlites is on the rise.
d) The Govt. having been unable to eliminate terrorism
appeases the Muslim community by unwarranted religion based reservations
which only enhances social separatism and political commercialism. The
Muslim United Action Committee, an umbrella organization of the Muslim
bodies in the country, has condemned caste as un-Islamic and reservation
on the basis of distinctions as improper under the shari'ah. The decrees
have been issued by Hyderabad's most reputed Islamic centers.
e) A large number of farmers are forced to commit suicide
every year due to financial hardship and Govt. apathy, yet the
authorities remain unmoved;
f) With the expulsion of Hindus by Jihadists Kashmir is
Islamized and progressively marching out of India while serious
lawlessness in the North East states beyond Assam has become order of
the day.
2)
Govt. Persecutes Hindus and denies them freedom
of religion:
The demolition of the
Hindu religious infrastructure by many state governments continues with
ferocity by usurping the control of temples under the illegally
enacted lawless laws. Their administration has been transferred to
officials without accountability, religious training, transparency and
community supervision. The abundance of available evidence has proved
beyond any doubt that under government control, the Hindu temples have
not only been exploited injuriously but are also being driven to their
ultimate extinction. Here are a few examples:
a) The Kerala Govt. recently
dismissed the existing temple boards and appointed new Board Members
chosen by the Ministers and MLAs, allegedly filling these positions with
communists thereby assigning Hindu religious institutions to irreligious
political operatives. Henceforth the temple staff is to be recruited by
the communist led Kerala Govt’s Public service commission.
b) In Karnataka the Govt.
grabs temple revenues for Muslims and Christians: In the year 2002-2003
out of a revenue of 72 crores, only about 7 crores was given back to
temples, while about 59 crores and 12.75 crores respectively were handed
over to Muslim and Christian institution. As if that was not enough a
recent news report revealed that Karnataka Govt. allowed the
distribution of the story of Jesus Christ in 75,000 schools.
c) In Andhra Pradesh the
authorities routinely sell temple lands, take away temple revenues,
starve pujaris and bring relgious/cultural functions in thousands of
temples virtually to a stop. The holy shrine of TTD is run as a govt.
department. It is desecrated by Govt. interference and its revenues are
being siphoned away for non Hindu purposes.
...... and so on, in many other states
Nationwide, the famous temples of Jagannath
Puri, Tirupati, Kashi Vishwanath, Vaishno Devi, Shirdi , Siddhi
Vinayaka, Guruvayoor, Chamunda Devi, Dattapeeth, Kali Mandir of Patiala,
Amarnath, Badrinath, Kedarnath, etc. have already been taken under the
Govt. control. Their management is under the authority of non-religious
and at times anti-Hindu hands.
The authorities must be made to understand that temples are
religious assets of Hindus. They are for the Hindus and therefore, must
be managed by them in the same way as other religionists manage their
religious shrines and estates.
(for more details, please visit: http://www.bharatjagran.com/ )
3) Lack of
ethics and vindictiveness by Government: Govt. decision
to demolish the Sethu Samudram and illegal usurpation of temples in many
states shows 'dharma virodhi' conduct of governments. Further, the lack
of ethics and concern for clean and competent persons in responsible
positions could be gauged by having a tainted Ms. Pratibha Patil as the
next President of India. President Kalam's observation that the 'Country
faces shortage of leadership with nobility' needs attention (attachment
A).
Hindus cannot sit idle and hope conditions to improve when
the country is being destroyed by the unscrupulous politicians. The
nomination of highly tainted Pratibha Patil as the next President is an
example of how deeply the ethical standards of the country have been
subverted. Poojaneeya Kanchi Shankaracharya on the other hand was
arrested on concocted charges; though now out of jail, Hindus are still
awaiting his exoneration.
4) Hindus must seriously ponder
over Swami Vivekananda's message and volunteer with an entrepreneur
mindset for Hindu reformation
at individual, local and national levels while
keeping Guru Gobind Singh ji example for selfless service in mind.
Hindus should be so proud and compassionate that " the very name 'Hindu'
sends through a Galvanic shock of strength, and the distress of anyone
bearing that name comes to your heart and makes you feel as if our son
was in distress" (attachment B).
5) In today's world of religious terrorism, the
message of all- embracing Hinduism is needed:
People need to
be motivated for dharma raksha and dharma prasar. We believe that the
current ills in the society are symptoms of lack of "dharma shiksha."
This shortcoming must be eradicated with heavy emphasis on educating the
general public.
Pride for Hinduism and its grandeur must be
created by the exposition of its Vedas, Upanishads, Ramayana,
Mahabharata, the Bhagwad Geeta - its glorious ancient culture,
spirituality and values. However, the kind of knowledge that the community would like to impart
and propagate is not only denied by the state control of temples, but
there are deliberate and irreversible Govt. actions towards liquidating
resources of endowments that could eliminate such religious activities
for good. Pending denationalization,
Hindus must volunteer for propagation of their culture in meetings
across towns and cities. The formation of the Hindu Councils for
overseeing the endowments and trusts must be demanded and realized. They
could also guide the Govt. on such specialized and spiritual mattes that
are beyond the realm of competence of a secular Govt.
6) Hindu electorate must be made
aware of the Lawlessness spread by the Govt. by Controlling Temples and
enforcing religion based reservations:
As a matter of general systemic rule democracy empowers people. However,
in India the divisive divisions in electorate are manipulated and
managed to diminish people’s ability to assert. This enhances Govts
capability to operate almost in totalitarian fashion using and abusing
its authority without effective responsibility and accountability. At
times with absolute authority at its command the Govt. ends up usurping
the Parliament's and peoples sovereign powers. Consequently in its
utter contempt for the Constitution the Govt. violates and abuses the
Laws of the Land. In their policy towards Hindus, Hinduism and Hindu
religious infrastructure the Indian authorities have clearly
demonstrated their anarchic behavior i.e., robbing Hindus to aid Muslims
and Christians. Didn’t the foreign conquerors of India, Muslims &
Christians included, use the same policy of loot, plunder and
suppression against Hindus?
The Karnataka High Court has upheld the obvious
Constitutional mandate by striking down the Karnataka Hindu Religious
Institutions and Charitable Endowment Act, 1997 terming it
unconstitutional. The verdict concluded that the legislation violated
Articles 14, 25 and 26 of the Constitution which provided for right to
equality, freedom of conscience and freedom of profession, practice and
propagation of religion and also the freedom to manage the religious
affairs.
Furthermore,
the Allahabad High Court has directed the Central and Uttar
Pradesh authorities to prepare a scheme for establishing a Board for
Hindu religious organizations on the pattern of the UP Muslim Waqf
Board. It would be highly appropriate and legally prudent for state
Govts. to consider and follow the judgments of these highest judicial
bodies.
National law on retaining status of
religious places must be followed: Anticipating possible dishonorable designs in various
administrations the Indian Parliament adopted a law in 1991 specifically
requiring that -"the status of religious places, as on August 15, 1947
shall be retained". The state governments are
duty bound to uphold this commitment made by a national law and let the
religious places remain outside Govt. Control as they were in 1947. In
case of conflicts or contradictions between the state and national laws
the national law receives the precedence.
7)
The destruction of the Ram Sethu Bridge is a
symptom of a deep malaise which is amply proven by injurious
interference and Govt. control of Hindu temples. There is a concerted
effort by the so-called secular political establishment to de- Hinduise
India by applying the colonial policy of divide and rule. Therefore,
there needs to be a strong nationwide campaign for promoting change of
mindset in the uncaring and insensitive authorities.
Dredging work at the Sethu Bridge,
which is a part of Ramayana and is deeply embedded in the Hindu
psyche, intensely hurts the religious beliefs and sentiments
while causing heightened degrees of distress and deep resentment in a
billion Hindus worldwide. The Ram Sethu must be classified as religious,
cultural, historical and an ancient monument of invaluable
archaeological importance. Unlike many others this site has immense
traditional and cultural value for the vast majority of Indian citizens.
The Bridge has been revered by the entire Hindu civilization since times
immemorial.
It should be noted that the Taj corridor scheme
on the banks of river Yamuna, was barred by the Supreme Court of India
on the ground that it would threaten the historic Taj Mahal. Similarly
the Delhi Metro Rail route was changed when the older scheme was
considered dangerous to the historic Qutub Minar. The same sense of
history, culture and preservation must be applied in the case of Ram
Sethu.
If the
ongoing destructive process is not stopped right away, there should be
highly critical and unfavorable comments in every Ramayana Katha now and
for ever, stating that there was a Congress regime - that in utter
contempt and violation of the sense and sensibilities of the
Indian masses heartlessly destroyed the part of the Hindu history,
tradition and culture by demolishing the sacred shrine of Ram Sethu
Bridge.
8) The campaign for saving Ram Sethu should
be transformed into a campaign for saving Hinduism.
Undoubtedly the Ayodhya Ram temple issue is an
important one. However, its nature under the present divisive political
climate has rather become somewhat contentious.
We strongly
believe that a step by step process for revitalizing the Hindu society
is a pre- requisite for achieving this goal. Looking from another angle,
as Lord Ram had coronation only after overpowering "asuras"
(demons); similarly it may be necessary to defeat the "adharmik" forces
and unite Hindu samaj before the temple issue could be resolved for
good.
Disunity
and weakened state of Hindus that resulted in a thousand years of
slavery must be eliminated through dharma jagran: We have lost territories through the formation
of Pakistan and Bangladesh. The three evangelized states in the
Northeast are as good as lost. We are slowly losing Jammu & Kashmir. In
the process millions of precious lives have also been lost. The question
we must ask is: are we witnessing the East Timor style separation from
the mother country by these states using Christianity and Islam as
vehicles? And should the devotees of Hinduism who have been on the
receiving end all along allow that to happen again? Where
will Hindus live and when will this erosion end?
9) Swami
jis and Dharma Acharyas may consider to follow Lord Parshuram and
actively guide society for "dharma samsthapana” ;
to
keep waiting
for the authorities, whose anti-Hindu and destructive intentions are
well known, to redress Hindu grievances at this late stage could be
unrealistic and even suicidal.
There are thousands of Hindu organizations and many of them
are doing excellent service. But like the hundreds of kingdoms during
the British Raj, without a common platform and a united voice, they are
ineffective at both the state as well as national levels. At this
critical juncture in Hindu history what is needed is leaders with a
vision, passion and dedication to unite Hindus across castes, creeds and
make Hinduism vibrant through dharma prasar.
10)
Each Hindu family may be called upon to volunteer
a person as “Dharma Sewak” for devoting substantial time and energy
for "dharma prasar" and "dharma samsthapana"
The temples are the centers of community's socio-cultural
and religious life, a place of learning with Acharyas, for learning
about community sewa, dharma prachar and for building character. But the
Govt control has deprived them from undertaking such religious
activities. Therefore, alternatives ways and means must be considered
for carrying out these vital functions.
These goals could be achieved by taking initiative at the
individual and family level. Such initiatives may include:
a) teaching dharma to family members, neighbors and friends;
b) teaching dharma to local town, city and village people,
including those in shanty towns;
c) Those who are capable and willing could work at state and
national level for dharma prasar like the missionaries and Swami
Vivekananda;
Working in small compatible groups should be
considered for pooling complementary talents and resources, avoid
duplication and keep the work going. Independent groups could have full
freedom for use of their talent - speaking, sermonizing, doing sewa in
different ways, even participating in electoral process without the
constraints of an organization. This could offer an opportunity for
developing leadership in the community and for state and central bodies.
Such dharma sewaks would need: a) basic study of
Hinduism, preferably in depth knowledge; b) some knowledge of other
religions; c) knowledge of current affairs; and d) the art of
communicating and speaking in groups and huge public gatherings. A Guru
or mentor devoted to the cause could be helpful. These are disturbing
and uneasy times for Hindus and Hinduism; therefore, taking emergency
and expeditious measures for Hindu revival is imperative.
11)
Only
the path of dharma can save India -
those following "dharma virodhi" policies in key positions must be
replaced at the next electoral opportunity. It is essential in the present environment to actively participate in
the over all management of society and its public administration. Hindus
must be called upon to provide leadership for a clean, justice minded,
non-intrusive and equitable management of their governing apparatus.
Regrettably sixty years after independence, Hinduism is
under an assault as never before. Given the lethal nature of this
attack, it is time for a Gandhian type mass awareness movement for
creating "dharmik Jagran" in the masses for restoring and protecting
religious freedom and "dharma samsthapana" and reviving passion for
Hinduism at every possible level.
The agenda for this revivalist movement could include:-
a) Protection and
maintenance of the Ram Sethu,
b) preservation and autonomy of the Hindu temples, religious
infrastructure and cultural centers from the onslaught launched by
government and for their governance by autonomous Hindu Boards.
c) demand for co-opting Hindu Advisory Councils for Trusts
and temples under government Endowment departments for transparency,
guidance and oversight till denationalization"
d) integration of Dalits in the mainstream by introducing
and encouraging their equality in temples , etc.
e) amendment to the divisive Article 30 of the Constitution to help mass
education by Hindu organizations , particularly for dalits and backward
classes; and
f) creating an all important Hindu awareness which emphasizes the
importance of their votes for ensuring righteous governance in the
country.
12) From Rama Sethu to a strong Bharat via Dharma
Jagran
"Yajna"
: Poojaneeya
Dharma Acharyas, may we request for your leadership in guiding and
motivating Hindus in what could be termed as a "yajna" for protecting
Hinduism and making it vibrant. This could be done through dharma jagran
campaigns; active involvement of masses and "sangharsha" for dharma
raksha by every one. They should include individuals to Hindu
families and organizations , Sadhus, Swami jis and Dharma Acharyas. The
Door- to- door campaigns by activists and lakhs of sadhus could offset
the anti- Hindu stance of politicians and the Indian media. Please keep
in mind that Inability to safeguard our religious infrastructure and
dharma has dire consequences and the potential of cultural annihilation
and national disintegration.
We sincerely hope that this endeavor becomes an integral
part of people's campaign to cleanse our country's polity of the evils
of corruption, anti-Hindu discrimination and criminalization. It should
also make the elected representatives and leaders more accountable while
inculcating in them the ability to follow the path of dharma. Such a
phenomenal transformation in turn could rejuvenate all branches of the
Hindu religion and society with well-informed Hindus.
Thanks for your time and consideration.
With respectful pranams,
Dr. Jagan Kaul
Krishan Bhatnagar
Hindu Jagran Forum (USA)
July 19, 2007
Note: Our representations on the high handedness and
injurious control of temples in many states may be seen at :
http://www.bharatjagran.com/
Attachment A
'Country faces shortage of leadership with
nobility'
(Kalam)
Sify news; sify.com
Monday, 09 July , 2007, 21:50
New Delhi:
Observing that the country was suffering from a "shortage of leadership
with nobility," President A P J Abdul Kalam on Monday said the people
were now looking to the judiciary as their "only hope".
Kalam, who prepares to demit office later this month, noted that "a
nation fails not because of economic progress but because of an increase
in decision makers with small minds" and said that it casts a "very
heavy responsibility on the judicial system to live up to the
expectations."
"Our society is going through unique dynamics due to the shortage of
leadership with nobility. The only hope the nation cherishes and looks
to is the judiciary with its excellence and impeccable integrity," he
said while inaugurating the E-Courts Project in New Delhi.
Describing the country's judicial system as "dynamic" and "throbbing
with life," he said, "As the ultimate protector of human rights and the
final resort for dispensation of justice, the citizens of India look up
to this institution with hope."
http://sify.com/news/fullstory.php?id=14489006
Attachment B
Swami Vivekananda's message to follow Guru
Govind Singh ji
:
MARK ME,
THEN AND THEN ALONE YOU ARE A HINDU
when the very name sends through a Galvanic shock of strength.
THEN AND THEN ALONE YOU ARE A HINDU
when every man that bears the name , from any country, speaking our
languages or any other language, becomes at once the nearest and dearest
to us.
THEN AND THEN ALONE YOU ARE A HINDU when
the distress of anyone bearing that name comes to your heart and makes
you feel as if our son was in distress
THEN AND THEN ALONE YOU ARE A HINDU
when you will be ready to bear everything for them, like .... the Great
Guru Govind Singh. After having shed his own blood for the defense of
Hindu religion, after having seen his children killed in the
battlefield -- Ay, this example of the Great Guru - left even by those
for whose sake he was shedding his blood and the blood of his nearest
and dearest -- He, the wounded Lion, retired from the field calmly to
die in the South, but not a word of curse escaped his lips against those
who had ungratefully forsaken him.
MARK ME,
EVERY ONE OF YOU WILL HAVE TO BE A GOVIND SINGH,
if you ant to do good to your country. You may see thousands of defects
in your countrymen, but mark their Hindu blood. They are the first Gods
you will have to worship, even if they do everything to hurt you : Even
if everyone of them sends out a curse to you, you send out to them words
of love. If they drive you out, retire to die in silence like that
mighty lion, Govind Singh. Such a man is worthy of the name of Hindu;
such an ideal ought to be before us always.
All our hatchets let us bury ; Send out this grand current of
Love all around
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