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India’s enduring image
Left to themselves in a world of their own, without a past, and without a future before them, they had nothing but themselves to ponder on. Struggles there must have been in India also. Old dynasties were destroyed, whole families annihilated, and new empires founded. Yet the inward life of the Hindu was not changed by these convulsions. His mind was like the lotus leaf after a shower of rain has passed over it; his character remained the same, passive, meditative, quiet, and thoughtful. A people of this peculiar stamp was never destined to act a prominent part in the history of the world; … They shut their eyes to this world of outward seeming and activity, … The ancient Hindus were a nation of philosophers, … They are absorbed in the struggles of thought, their past is the problem of creation, their future the problem of existence; and the present, which ought to be the solution of both, seems never to have attracted their attention, or called forth their energies. … The only sphere in which the Indian mind finds itself at liberty to act, to create, and to worship, is the sphere of religion and philosophy … (from Chips from a German Workshop Part One By F. Max Muller; ellipsis mine.)
India … a nation of philosophers
Next time when someone says that India is a nation of philosophers (and nothing else), you know who created this imagery. When someone writes a book, The Argumentative Indian, you know where he is getting his ideas from. When someone talks about the supine Hindu, you know the root of that fallacy.
Max Muller's reductio ad absurdum
Hindu rate of growth …
While many Indians go ballistic about the Aryan Invasion /Migration Theory, they do not see the more important damage. It is the self image of Indians which English East India Company, (EEIC) and Max Muller conspired to change – and have partly succeeded. It is these twisted and false (self) images of India, Indians and Hindus that we need change.
Rambharose Hindu Hotel …
Now we know where these phrases, images and cartoons have come from …
Intrigued? Interested!
The 2ndlook blogs group try to give its readers a 360° view of the past present and probable outcomes. These four blogs have each a different focus. The common value that runs through these blogs is an invite to readers for discussion and participation - with a proviso of no personal attacks or use of invective.
2ndlookWith a focus on history, long-term trends, economy, political and social models. A blog that works to breakdown propaganda for what it is. The first blog of the group, over the four years of its existence, it has managed a monthly traffic of more than 10,000 hits. |
Behind 2ndlookThis forum is a visual record of the times. Historical prints to current cartoons, this is the latest in 2ndlook group of blogs. |
St.PT BarnumA forum that takes a lighter or satirical view of weighty matters. Posts on this forum are rare. |
QuicktakeQuicktake focusses more on current events, recent events, reports, media buzz, matters of topical interests. Typically, Quicktakes are shorter than 2ndlook. Sometimes a few Quicktakes, morph into a 2ndlook post. |
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2ndlook on Indus Valley-Saraswati Basin
Exciting new series. From 1 Mar, 2010.
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