I'm a student of Vedic philosophy: Don't ask me to prove my patriotism
If you are someone who tries to practice Vedic philosophy rightly, your face has been contorted in a permanent grimace for the last few days if not months. The braver ones have been reduced to cringing at every social media post and article flung their way and the less courageous ones have taken a hiatus from an India which is so angry and extremist in not only its actions but also in its reactions. If the actions are horrifying and inhuman, the reactions are irrational and hateful. We are quick to judge, label and permanently brand people. The contemporary India has divided people like never before. The freedom that is hailed, is what really stands murdered. There is no common ground. There is very little tolerance all around. You either conform to one side completely or you are immediately labelled and looked at suspiciously. We are at our rudest, brazen and most illogical best. Everybody is aggressively staking a claim to the high moral ground.
Nobody with any sense of right or wrong will stand by what happened in Dadri irrespective of their faith and politics. It was murder of humanity and absolutely nothing justifies the act. The culprits are zealots who murdered in the pretext of defending their religion. The perpetrators were misplaced in their sense of loyalty and grossly incorrect in the understanding of their faith. They are criminals who committed a heinous crime. They are cold-blooded killers who hide behind religion causing much political mischief. The need for speedy justice and exemplary punishment for the killers of Mohammad Akhlaq is unquestionable.
Much has been written and with a lot of eloquence and justified anger about the Dadri incident but there is something which has been missed which requires honest introspection and analysis. A lot that has been written are quick angry reactions, ruthless and sweeping in their censure, taking potshots at even those who do not deserve it. There is no room for hope if you go by them. People like me who are students of Vedic philosophy and try to practice it every day, stand in fear of being judged and labelled. I am suspected of saffron leanings if I have not yet demanded a pink moist steak on my plate. If I have not expressed my solidarity by questioning the philosophy itself and declaring it violent; I am a rightist. If I have only condemned the incident and not denounced my nation entirely, then my political leanings must have something to do with my brand of patriotism.
Suddenly in the last few months I have increasingly felt the need to explain my religious practices. I have learnt a new term religious apologist. I have struggled to understand the derision of my French-loving multilingual Indian friends who brand me archaic because I can quote Sanskrit shlokas. My politics has been wrongly assumed and it has even been suggested that I can better my parenting skills if I bring up my children without any religion. I am stunned by the assumptions and stifled by the lack of freedom or respect. The use of loudspeakers in Dadri has been thrown at my face in the hope of a specific answer. It is ironical that what is being touted as the turning point, could not have been better understood by me because I belong to a state where loudspeakers were used to drive out an entire religio-ethnic community in 1989-90. The IAF has offered to relocate Sartaj and his family and I understand his pain because I see the same pain in the eyes of my Kashmiri Pandit friends who continue to live in exile.
I condemn the Dadri killing and refuse to acknowledge the killers as Hindus. For me they are just criminals. I have never expected my Muslim friends to eat pork to prove their humanitarian values after every terrorist act and I will not eat beef to prove mine. If signing the petition to stop slaughter of dogs for meat makes me an animal lover, then signing the petition to stop cow slaughter does not mean I am a food fascist. I have a right to exercise my freedom of choice peacefully and my love for all God's creation is guided by the fundamental principle of my faith, that there is divinity in all. My religion teaches me reverence for self, others and all creations. I will not give up on my faith because some don't follow it correctly and others don't read it properly. My child's best friend is a Muslim and it is his religious education, which has taught him to view his best friend as his divine brother. So I will continue to raise my children with religion because they are better for it.
Why the cow is "mother-like" to me and what makes me see divinity in man, plant and all animals alike is a separate matter and a theological discussion. Debates are an integral part of Vedic philosophy. From respect for an atheist Charvak to the epic debate between Adi Shankracharya and Mandan Mishr, it is part of the philosophy's appeal and most welcome.
As I felt ashamed for what happened in Dadri and angry that my religion was used to defend the horrendous act, I looked for an opinion that could mirror my angst but found none. I have read article after article to share, with an aim to express my solidarity with Mohammad Akhlaq's family but there was not one I came across that spoke for me. The politicians played politics and the media did rabble-rousing and held khap panchayats in their studios. I was unable to completely relate to most of what has been written or said. Posts and tweets on social media continued to corner me and my kind, pointing fingers at my preference for a Vedic lifestyle. They were also in their grief and anger, venomous, leaving me with a feeling of hopelessness. I was grateful for Mohammad Akhlaq's friend Manoj Sisodia, who I could identify with. The last call Mohammad Akhlaq made was to his friend Manoj, who did his best to help. Manoj Sisodia could not save his friend but he arranged for the son of the deceased, who is grievously injured to be taken to the hospital, risking his own life in the process. Manoj did what any friend should do, Hindu or not.
Feeling increasingly alienated as far as reactions went, I was relieved to find that one person who I could completely agree with. That person is none other than Sartaj Mohammad, the son of the deceased. Sartaj effectively said on NDTV to Barkha Dutt, that for the misdeeds of few, you cannot hold everyone guilty. He in my eyes is a nationalist because he refuses to give up on India even under the most trying of circumstances and reminds us all of "Saare jahan se achha Hindustan humara, mazhab nahi sikhaata aapas mein bair rakhna".
Sartaj Mohammad gave me the courage to voice my views. He is my hero. He is my proverbial phoenix rising from the ashes. His strong, calm demeanour, his amazing grace and wisdom have shut out the din for me. He is the one, whose story I will be telling my children tonight.