A misleading portrait ?
Under the headline, "A misleading portrait ", Jotirmaya Sharma reviewed the book by Sudhir Kakar and Katharina Kakar entitled, The Indians: Portrait of a People, in DNA(15/4/07). He said "the projection of a 'Hindu' identity on all that goes in the name of the Indian past is hugely problematic and needs careful delineation...this book will be immortalised by the pamphleteers of the Sangh Parivar for a very long period of time to come."
Sharma's comments made me read the book which I found not merely readable but a guide to understand India and Indians. Sudhir Kakar's Inner World, along with Ashish Nandi's The Intimate Enemy, had '"emancipated us from the certitudes of a popular brand of economic determinism on the one hand, as well as well-worn nationalist pieties on the other " says Sharma, but finds the thesis of the above book that Indian identity is mainly based on Hindu civilization," problematic". After reading the book, I find his comments are more ideological than logical.
The book is a guide to Indian life – what animates it ? What ideas and concepts shape Indians' thoughts, feelings and actions ? It covers all aspects of life : family, caste, role of women, sexuality, health and healing, religious and spiritual life, conflict between Hindus and Muslims, and finally, the Indian Mind.
The authors have provided many insights into Indian life - family is a ' glue that holds Indian society together' which also reflects the fact of lack of faith in other institutions of society; subordination of women ; how the caste is different from clan or tribe due to the phenomenon of untouchability, the biggest blot on Hindu society, as Mahatma Gandhi observed. On Ayurveda, the authors quote Sri Lankan anthropologist Gananath Obeyesekere who said, " Without some awareness of the theory of Ayurveda medicine it is not possible to understand much of what goes on in the minds of men in the South Asian world."
The chapter on ' Religious and Spiritual Life' analyses the response of Hinduism to the disruptions wrought by modernity – by traditionalists, the Hindu nationalists and 'flexible Hindus'. While the traditionalists are struck in the old world, the Hindu nationalists promote a singular identity for all the diverse sects and traditions of Hindu society to stem the tide of cultural alienation through missionary religions and globalization. The 'flexible Hindu' confronts modernity by adapting religious heritage to the new situation.The authors observe that the militancy of outlook and actions of the Hindu nationalists are constrained by the two binding elements of Hindu religion and culture : tolerance and universality.
The best chapter is on the Indian Mind. It summarises the basic ideas and concepts which shape the mind of Indians : moksha, dharma and karma. The belief in the 'ultimate reality' is a beacon of 'higher feeling' in the lives of most of the Indians irrespective of class and caste, rural and urban, literate and illiterate, the rich and the poor. The Indians have conviction that there is an order or a design in life over-riding all transitory problems or difficulties.The divinity immanent within each human being nourishes individual's self-worth.
Dharma which can mean moral duty, right action, conformity with the truth of things, is another idea which permeates Indian mind. " The relativism of dharma supports tradition and modernity, innovation and conformity", observe the authors. Karma ( what you sow, you reap) and reincarnation are also part of the Indian mind.
A modern Indian will have some reservations regarding the authors' rather pessimistic view of Hindu-Muslim relations.After enumerating the reasons for the conflict between Hindus and Muslims, the authors feel that India is moving towards a multicultural society rather than a 'composite' culture – salad bowl, not a melting pot ; ghettoism, not a meeting of minds and hearts. If efforts are made to highlight the common human values ( equality, liberty – freedom of thought & expression- , fraternity, compassion and charity, non-violence etc ) which inform all religions and conveyed to the people, especially to the younger generation, India should be able to lead the 21st century with a new society where acceptance of different ways of life is a part of life. The values of religion are more important than the rituals, customs and practices which have outlived their utility to the religion, society and the individual.
Sharma's misgivings about the portrait drawn by the Kakars may be due to the absence of the contributions made by Muslims and Christians to the making of the modern India in the book. Muslims have contributed immensely to art, architecture, music and dance. Similarly, Christians have made enormous contribution to modern education and health. These have not found a place in the book as the Kakars are portraying the basic features of the Indian social structure and its basis in Hindu religion and philosophy – family, caste and culture. The caste which is not a part of Muslim and Christian religions is prevalent among Muslim and Christian communities as well. This make them both part of the Hindu social structure. The book brilliantly portrays the Indian way of life and view of life.
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