You will not find me adorned in saffron and shouting hoarse in a crowded market place or at a public gathering that I am a proud Hindu. Neither will you hear me speak of the hidden truth of the great Hindu scriptures or sermonize an unwilling entity on the Vedanta philosophy over buttered scones and tea. I have never found a reason to do any such thing simply because I lack adequate knowledge and even if I were to possess enough of it for arguments sake, I would not see a reason to blow my trumpet unless I am ‘pushed’ to do it. When would I be ‘pushed’ to do such things? If somebody scorns or mocks at the tenets of which Hinduism is based upon, I would then deem it necessary to argue rationally on the merits of the case without making a spectacle of myself. But, this is a highly individualistic display and there are many who well and truly cannot help but make a spectacle of themselves simply because their emotions get in their way. Frankly, even I am not sure as an educated individual if I could garner the gumption to be rationally argumentative and not emotionally argumentative. There is something about religion that always touches the ‘ raw’ nerves. At some point or the other, each one of us have fallen victims to this ‘soft’ spot and even borne the brunt of being termed a bigot.

The fundamental tenets of Hinduism are based on pluralism. In a 1995 judgment, the Supreme Court of India ruled that “Ordinarily, Hindutva is understood as a way of life or a state of mind and is not to be equated with or understood as religious Hindu fundamentalism … it is a fallacy and an error of law to proceed on the assumption … that the use of words Hindutva or Hinduism per se depicts an attitude hostile to all persons practicing any religion other than the Hindu religion … It may well be that these words are used in a speech to promote secularism or to emphasize the way of life of the Indian people and the Indian culture or ethos, or to criticize the policy of any political party as discriminatory or intolerant.” Crystal clear in my opinion, what more needs to be explained. When somebody talks of how intolerant Hindus are, I simply say to them that they cannot be following the Hindutva way of life, the one that universally embraces the same values and aspirations.

There is a group that raises its powerful head quite often; lets call them the Illuminati for now. This is a highly educated, influential and affluent group. You will find this group in all walks of life, influencing behavior of others with an agenda best known to them. They pretend they are not religious, they pretend to be democratic and yet they carry with them a sword that tears into every audible murmur that a Hindu will make and will try to take him to the gallows at every given opportunity. The Illuminati at the same time turns a blind eye to reason, facts and factualism are usually relegated to the back burners. If their target so as to dares to substantiate a point of view with credence, the target is immediately zeroed in and labeled as an enthusiastic member of the saffron brigade. They are also termed as the bigots who are tearing down the very fundamentals on which the constitution of this country is drafted upon. You will never hear the last of the logic of the Illuminati; usually blaring at you from those tiny squares on prime time lop sided TV debates. Pretty much like the Illuminati of the yesteryears who were however more productive, this not so secret society conspires to establish a new world order. You will find them peeping in movies, magazines, newspapers, television shows and yes, you will find them pulling the strings. More recently, you will also find them laughing and jeering at the ongoing Science Congress which until recently has probably not even dared to rake up the science of the Vedas. It is not about examining into evidences of flights of fantasy that were taken by Indians a long time before Pratibha Patil took them, it is about debunking, refuting the probability of this concept entirely without examination. To the Illuminati, Hinduism is a myth; the sacred texts of the Ramayana and Mahabharata are a mythology in its exact sense even if all other sacred texts that bear no relation with Hinduism are factual Science. But what is their agenda one may ask and the reason for this rather well organized and well funded display of solidarity against all things Hindutva? For one, the core agenda is to shake the roots of which the principles of Hindutva are based upon and to stunt the growth of Hinduism. I must agree with Shashi Tharoor who rightly stated – “To mock the credulous exaggerations of the Hindutva brigade, you don’t need to debunk the genuine accomplishments of ancient Indian science!”

A stone Ganesha cannot drink milk and plastic surgery on the elephant God is labeled ludicrous. Yet a stone Mother can weep blood and the veritableness of Immaculate Conception is not debated upon. Our texts state that even many Hindu Gods and Goddesses had their holy offspring’s via immaculate conception. Why not discuss the significance of these events so carefully drafted in religious scriptures as the foundation for modern day reproductive techniques like IUI and IVF? But, will it be discussed? I am a proud and devout Hindu. I enjoy debating and I strongly encourage multiple narratives, I am a liberal, I am not ashamed of my religion and I will not permit my religion to be made a mockery of and will air my ‘limited’ knowledge without fear of being run down. But how many do?