Guest guest Posted October 16, 2001 Report Share Posted October 16, 2001 I thought someone would comment on "thug" if you came across literature on this. Any takers? You may write to me private with pointers if you choose so. I appreciate. Bijoy Misra On Sat, 13 Oct 2001, Bijoy Misra wrote: > > Dear friends, > > The cover article in the Oct 13 issue of Newsweek > makes the following statement (online http://www.newsweek.com): > To many, bin Laden belongs to a long line of extremists who have invoked > religion to justify mass murder and spur men to suicide. The words thug, > zealot and assassin all come from ancient terror cults -- Hindu, Jewish > and Muslim, respectivelythat believed they were doing the work of God. > > I always thought that the "thug" was a tribe of professional robbers > and had little to do with Hinduism. Can someone comment what connection > with Hinduism if any existed? Is this author Fareed Zakaria being > metaphorically poetic? > > Where does the word come from? > > Thank you for any analysis. > > Bijoy Misra Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted October 18, 2001 Report Share Posted October 18, 2001 Bijoy, I suspect you may find some answers if you walk down to Widener and check out the book "The stranglers: the cult of Thuggee and its overthrow in British India", by George Bruce (London, Longmans, 1968), call number Ind 2014.382. >From what I remember there were thugs of both Hindu and Muslim backgrounds, and they had various non-mainstream mystical beliefs to do with their profession, some centred around the Hindu goddess Kali. Regards, Rohan. On Sat, 13 Oct 2001, Bijoy Misra wrote: > > Dear friends, > > The cover article in the Oct 13 issue of Newsweek > makes the following statement (online http://www.newsweek.com): > To many, bin Laden belongs to a long line of extremists who have invoked > religion to justify mass murder and spur men to suicide. The words thug, > zealot and assassin all come from ancient terror cults -- Hindu, Jewish > and Muslim, respectivelythat believed they were doing the work of God. > > I always thought that the "thug" was a tribe of professional robbers > and had little to do with Hinduism. Can someone comment what connection > with Hinduism if any existed? Is this author Fareed Zakaria being > metaphorically poetic? > > Where does the word come from? > > Thank you for any analysis. > > Bijoy Misra > > > > > > > indology > > > > Your use of is subject to > > > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted October 19, 2001 Report Share Posted October 19, 2001 Hi Bijoy, The thugees were devotees of the goddess Kali who would attack and kill travelers. It found its way into English for its usage today. Bill Lanning Bijoy Misra wrote: > I thought someone would comment on "thug" if you came across > literature on this. Any takers? > You may write to me private with pointers if you choose so. > I appreciate. > > Bijoy Misra > > On Sat, 13 Oct 2001, Bijoy Misra wrote: > > > > > Dear friends, > > > > The cover article in the Oct 13 issue of Newsweek > > makes the following statement (online http://www.newsweek.com): > > To many, bin Laden belongs to a long line of extremists who have invoked > > religion to justify mass murder and spur men to suicide. The words thug, > > zealot and assassin all come from ancient terror cults -- Hindu, Jewish > > and Muslim, respectivelythat believed they were doing the work of God. > > > > I always thought that the "thug" was a tribe of professional robbers > > and had little to do with Hinduism. Can someone comment what connection > > with Hinduism if any existed? Is this author Fareed Zakaria being > > metaphorically poetic? > > > > Where does the word come from? > > > > Thank you for any analysis. > > > > Bijoy Misra > > > > indology > > > > Your use of is subject to Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted October 22, 2001 Report Share Posted October 22, 2001 On Fri, 19 Oct 2001, Bill Lanning wrote: > Hi Bijoy, > The thugees were devotees of the goddess Kali who would attack and kill > travelers. It found its way into English for its usage today. > Bill Lanning Bill, The piece of research that one would need is if Kali was used as a cover or as a ritual. Most robbers in India show some devi connection, which is used as a confession of guilt. If the goal of these people was robbery, then the question would be if such acts are sanctioned in Hindu scriptures. Is there an evidence or a literature reference? Socially, using devi as a cover for violence is prevalent in many parts of India. I wish to find reference on approval through the classical writings. Please help. Bijoy Misra > > Bijoy Misra wrote: > > > I thought someone would comment on "thug" if you came across > > literature on this. Any takers? > > You may write to me private with pointers if you choose so. > > I appreciate. > > > > Bijoy Misra > > > > On Sat, 13 Oct 2001, Bijoy Misra wrote: > > > > > > > > Dear friends, > > > > > > The cover article in the Oct 13 issue of Newsweek > > > makes the following statement (online http://www.newsweek.com): > > > To many, bin Laden belongs to a long line of extremists who have invoked > > > religion to justify mass murder and spur men to suicide. The words thug, > > > zealot and assassin all come from ancient terror cults -- Hindu, Jewish > > > and Muslim, respectivelythat believed they were doing the work of God. > > > > > > I always thought that the "thug" was a tribe of professional robbers > > > and had little to do with Hinduism. Can someone comment what connection > > > with Hinduism if any existed? Is this author Fareed Zakaria being > > > metaphorically poetic? > > > > > > Where does the word come from? > > > > > > Thank you for any analysis. > > > > > > Bijoy Misra > > > > > > > > indology > > > > > > > > Your use of is subject to > > > > > > > indology > > > > Your use of is subject to > > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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