India of old-new dreams - By Claude Arpi

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India of old-new dreams - By Claude Arpi

 

The first days of the New Year are a time for reflection. During the

last few days, I have been "musing" over the past 28 years that I

spent in this country. Though I am still a French man, I adopted

this country as my own long ago However, today, I am sad. When I

left France for India, I came with a dream: I was going to the land

of the Vedas, of the Buddha, a continent with an eternal religion. I

thought everyone in this country was turned "inwards", seeking a

higher light; I believed India would soon be able to guide the world

towards a more meaningful tomorrow. Why I am sad now? I can't help

feeling a terrible divide between this dream and today's reality (at

least the one depicted in the English media).

 

Opening a "national" newspaper is a most depressing act. This

morning for example, I read: after three days of deliberations, an

Indian History Congress has decided to set up a committee to examine

the new history text-books brought out by NCERT. Their reason is

that the Congress "takes note of the reports in the press that

elementary requirements of impartiality when dealing with religious,

linguistic and cultural traditions had been given a go-by."

 

Is it not disheartening that historians base their judgement on

press reports and not on their own scholarship? Then why do they

spend three days discussing text-books when there are so many more

important subjects related to history to be discussed? What about

the neglected discoveries of Poompuhar or the new sites in the Gulf

of Cambay? What about the non-release of the Henderson Brooks Report

of 1962 war or Indira Gandhi-Bhutto negotiations of 1972 which are

still classified? Are they not history too? What is sad and shocking

is that these historians, like many intellectuals in India, are not

at all concerned by what has always made India great, they prefer to

denigrate India. Fifty-five years ago, Mahatma Gandhi wanted "a

Harrow boy, a Cambridge graduate, and a barrister" to carry on the

negotiations with the British. More than half a century later,

India's so-called elite are ashamed of what has been the fabric and

genius of their culture

 

One can see the tremendous repercussions of this mentality in all

fields of life and most particularly in education. For example,

India should be proud to have an Education Minister who is not only

a physicist, but also a knower of the country's deeper traditions.

But the reaction is reverse. He is constantly maligned for no rhyme

or reason. His only crime is to have tried to introduce some

Indianness in a colonial system of education. On several occasion,

talking to Indian friends, I have had the surprise of being told

that "Indianisation" of education is part of a "fascist programme".

 

At the dawn of this New Year, this makes me sad. I still believe

in "India of the ages", but I cannot grasp why Indians themselves

still refuse to acknowledge the greatness of their culture. Even if

you look at what is happening abroad today, you can see the truth of

Andre Malraux's words: "The 21st century will be spiritual or will

not be." It is estimated that 12 million Americans are today

practicing yoga and that 450 yoga centers are blossoming in the US.

The same tidal wave is submerging Europe. In France alone, more than

one million people are practicing Buddhist meditation.

 

Recently, some disciples of yogacharya BKS Iyengar decided to teach

yoga asanas to villagers. As a first experiment, Jalore, a small

town located in Rajasthan, was chosen and a few selected teachers

went there for a week. One teacher recounts: "The greatest challenge

came on the day of our arrival, when we were briefed about the

tradition and lifestyle of the people of this region. Society here

is very traditional and conservative." Women wear saris with pallu

in front of elders; a daughter-in-law could not sit in front of

elders; men had never worn shorts.

 

A few days later, all barriers had gone. The teacher reported: "We

had not realised it at first, but along with teaching yoga, we had

brought about some kind of social change in this small town... Even

the organisers were very much surprised when they learnt how easily

people had accepted 'mixed' classes... the response, the enthusiasm,

the love and affection shown by the local people willed us to

continue."

 

This experience shows not only how ingrained these traditional

sciences are in the very blood of the ordinary Indians but also how

they could bring immediate benefit to the Indian society. If

experiences similar to Iyengar's could be multiplied by hundred or

thousand, if every school in this country could be given the

possibility to study and practice India's ancient knowledge along

with modern subjects, India would become closer to the place I

dreamt of thirty years ago.

 

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Comments

 

"I really liked the article, Indians need to look into their own

past to make a better future instead of looking at the west for all

solutions. The Gandhi Nehru philosophical impact on the Hindus of

India has greatly contributed to the present day situation. Nehru

distorted the Indian history and made a rule to hate and make fun of

any thing that is related to Hinduism. The present day English media

is walking the same path. They try to look towards western masters

and criticize their own religion. "