Am not much in agreement with your views. mine is in red.
I had this rather interesting private message a little while back. I wish the sender would post it for the public. I see nothing personal there.
What I saw there, was something, that is present as an undercurrent in many a posts here in this forum. I think, it all boils down to our sense of identity and nomenclature.
Who are we? Are we priests? Of the priestly class who should be versed in our scriptures? Do we have a duty to maintain the knowledge? To spread the knowledge?
Originally the brahmins were definitely the priestly class well versed in scriptures. Though not anymore, I don't see harm in aiming for that position again. If maintaining and spreading that knowledge is to result in some sort of benefit for everyone, what is the harm.
anand, i am concerned only about today in this post. if a TB wants to excel in scriptures, so be it. i have nothing anything against it and it is none of my business.
i am trying to generalize the tone of a large number of posts. like all generalizations, this may be faulty, but it is a gut feeling that i have.
Personally, I think not too much of the above. my family on both sides, have been removed from the scripture stuff for 3 generations that I know. It could have been more.
So, when I see the residual angst among the new accountants, lawyers, i.t. folks et al, I am quite unable to grasp their dilemma. Why is it that making money appears to be so guilt ridden? Is there a ancestral need for poverty? Was this our driving force in earlier days?
I think that it is not just about making money as everyone needs to make money to live. It is probably about the greed and unethical ways to make money. I would say the present day brahmin is more materialistic than even the NB.
you have hit the point about materialism. another way to look at it is drive, ambition or enterprise. to bring up NB here is, i think, irrelevant. also one man's greed is another man's drive. i think endeavouring to make money is good. i think it is even better to give away all such money made. a la bill gates.
I do not know about other places, but where I live we have private temples. Enterprising TBs have started temples, with a primary deity, and live off the proceeds.
I find it awesome.
Whereas I can hear several voices in the forum, rising up to challenge this supposed blasphemy. To me, that is more a call of fundamentalism, from which I would rather stay away.
Your above point needs a bit more elaboration. If someone builds a private temple and using its proceeds to build a 5 B/R villa with a swimming pool and driving a Mercedes, I would find it obnoxious. But if he were living modestly and using the proceeds charitably, I would find it awesome.
my arguements are same as previous. except where i can list greed. during my varanasi visit, to perform obsequies for my parents, i gave the ganapadigal 50,000 rupees lumpsum. not one penny went to dhaanam. he pocketed the whole thing. now that is greed. by the way, he is construction a 5 b/r villa right in the heart of varanasi.
So too is the apparent commercialization of vadhyars, cooks and other traditional Brahmin professions. Let us not grudge these guys their successes. Each success breeds a few more, and these are like the typical banana tree, each generation, giving birth and nourishing the next.
I agree with you on this. I will not grudge the living standards of these people as long as they are working hard for it.
absolutely. honest, hard work should be rewarded.
As ‘brahmins’ do we have a more duty towards Hinduism. To me that smacks of arrogance and self importance. Hinduism, belongs to all hindus. All of them have an equal responsibility, love, affection and regard for our religion.
Hinduism belongs to all Hindus but traditionally the study of scriptures has been more of a brahmin thing after the varnashrama system came into being. If a brahmin says that we should study and propagate it it is more out of love for it and does not mean the NB should be precluded from doing the same. I don't think personally that we say it out of arrogance. I think it just comes naturally. In my opinion, if non brahmins are not allowed to chant the vedas then that is arrogance.
propagating and love of hinduism, should be the goal of every hindu. the varnashrama system and manu has no place in the modern world. it is in this context, i meant 'arrogance'. a little more humility in the service of the cause, would go a longer way, than a sense of entitlement that we are the sole guardians of the faith. personally, i think i am no more or no less a hindu, than my dalit brother and sister.
To assume that we have a superior motive, I think, is not only wrong, but would give rise, to the type of anti-brahminism, that is so evident in the Dravidian circles. We, think, sometimes, are our own true enemies.
The anti-brahminism among the Dravidian circles is just pure vitriol and opportunistic politics. Brahmins are anti-Dravidian not because Dravidians are anti-brahmin. What we attack is how they go about targeting a particular community. Honestly, I care a hoot about what the Dravidians think about us because I don't need a certificate from them. If needed I will reform myself for my sake and not to look good in the eyes of Dravidians.
this could be a long post by itself. let us please leave it here. my context in mentioning it, was very parochial. i do not wish to go further.
I think, we need to shed, the cloaks and baggages, handed over the generations, in the name of religion. When it came to survival, very easily, we adapted to the modern world, and have done well. Overall, I think, anyway.
Sir, you need to explain what these cloaks and baggages are? If they are mindless superstitions, I agree with you. But if it means, just stop all these scriptures business altogether and adapt to the modern world, then I disagree.
yes, these are mindless superstitions, plus a sum up of my previous comments. it has nothing to do with 'stopping the scripture business'. i am emphatic, that 'scriture business' should not only but continue, but flourish, for the greater good of hinduism. but it is not a sole brahmin function. it is of all hindus.
let me give you an example. in the batu caves off kuala lumpur, there is a murugan temple. they have regular religious meetings where tamil hinduism is discussed and hymns sung. from the apparent first impression, and i hope to be wrong, i did not see one brahmin. the brahmins of k.l. have their own brahmana sangham. it is interesting, that both folks adhere to the same religion, but completely distinct in their approach.
But we have not been so successful, in casting off, our ancient hand-me-down religious beasts of burden. The sooner we do that, we better we would be as a community, and even better we would be welcome among the community of tamils.
What exactly are these hand-me-down beasts of burden?
addressed in previous para.
Not that I do not appreciate the terrible misgivings experienced by many a TBs, at the fast change of events, and even faster change of mores. What I feel more sorry, is the sight of all these folks, in conflict with a world, over which they have no control.
To change oneself to the changing environment depends on the mindset and the value judgments one has. Practically, one may not be able to change the changing environment but I don't agree that one has to merge into it headlong without reservations.
no one has to merge headlong. but one has to find peace with the flow. to constantly oppose the flow, in the name of tradition, is bringing frustration and sorrow upon yourself and your beloveds.
how many posts we have seen here of laments over the 'freedom' given to our girls and hence their 'high expectations' for marriage. how many boys are lamenting over the lack of available girls.
i have said in many posts, to look out of the box and think differently. otherwise there will be perpetual bachelors, and the situation will be worse for next generation. this is one example of the baggage of tradition.
The sooner, I think, they learn to harmonize with the pace and tunes, the sooner, such folks, will find peace. Peace does not come with spirituality alone. Harmony with one’s surroundings is just as important. I think so.
Depends on the surroundings as well.
i think you have to be in harmony with your surroundings, whatever you define it. each of us will understand this, at our own situations. for some it may be work, others the society and for some it is the neighbourhood where they live. my comment was a broad brush over environments without any specifics about which.
thank you.
Thank you.
i have heard of comments like 'paaru andha kudikaran chettiar kalamkathale kudichiruka' and a handful more.
