There is no incarnation or rebirth concept in Buddhism. ‘Buddha disregards the concept of the soul, then how come will he be a supporter of rebirths?,’ Ambedkar asks. Buddha disregarded Upanishads as Upanishads, in his opinion, didn't answer the questions it raises against Brahmanism. Brahmins realizing that they were losing their hold on the society they lived came up with a new group of sacred texts to appropriate Buddhism and Jainism and consolidate their superiority. This group of texts is called Puranas. Puranas include Mahabharatha, Ramayana, Manusmriti, Smritis, and Shrutis. If you analyze these texts, it's once again clear that…
Thank You for your articles.
Reading through them is always an enlightening experience. I went through the article on Hinduism. Many of your theories make sense, and as you said, Hinduism is in itself incoherent. Its eclecticism is a sham created by Brahmins. To make it clear, the Vedas (rig Veda, Sama Veda, Yejur Veda, and Atharva Vedas) were different aspects of Brahmanic rituals and philosophies. In the Rig (10:90), the Brahmanic worldview to make themselves superior through caste and social divisions in the world order is evident. In India, Colonial powers did the same to rule over it. …
Perhaps Indian politics has lot of striking resemblances to the ideas you discuss in this article. The main Opposition party of India is more inept than democrats could ever be and Modi is the hypermasculine demagogue whose organization RSS-BJP is known for their depravity. Yet, majority of Indians (urban and rural, young and old, poor or rich) loves him and thinks that he is the modern day God incarnation (he has a Rs. 50 crore temple in his constituency where he is the deity). The reason for their success:
1) The ineptitude and Upper Caste dominated political space (right, left…
A great article!
Trump and his followers make me nostalgic about Modi and his followers. They call themselves 'Bhakts' meaning 'pious believers'. That's what they are blind believers of anything that their master says. Recently, North Indian COVID situation has become so disastrous that it can be read as an apocalypse. Everyday you can say dead bodies floating in the river banks and the shored bodies being devoured by street dogs because India's healthcare system so incompetent. But our health minister has enough time defending his Master and govt. about how efficiently they have dealt with COVID that second wave…
The dominant discourse enforced by established religions
‘Transgender Individuals need our help,’ said my friend once.
I laughed and said, ‘If so, begging is not the way to ask for help. Besides Quran clearly states that there are only two genders — Male and Female. Trangenders do not need any help. They should be shunned! Why can’t they live as a man or a woman assigned at birth?’
My friend was silent. He didn’t respond, and the topic of our conversation got diverted to something else. My friend is from one of the poorest states of India — Bihar. Being from a poor state, he had to…
The farce of society and religion
‘Life is not fair.’
I have often heard this phrase from people around me. Growing up in a conservative society and being queer, I can relate to that. Our society has long discriminated against a minority group due to our privilege of being able-bodied. This minority group has been in the shadows till they started speaking up for themselves. They have faced the abled society’s ignorance, apathy, and callousness for a long time. They are the community of the differently-abled. Have we ever thought about their plight? …
Society’s selective quoting of science and the injustices among them
In a conservative society, often married couples are haunted by a question:
‘No kids yet? Isn’t it time for you to have children?’
From one’s parents to family, from neighbors to the whole neighborhood would haunt with that question once a year gets over after your marriage. It's like they are getting irritated by you not having children and they have taken up to themselves to make sure that you have children. Forcing someone to have sex without his or her consent is rape. …
Thank You for writing this article!
I too had been a victim of these consumerist lies. During my teenage years, six pack abs with big muscular hands was a boy's fantasy. I starved myself for achieving the look and got diagnosed with ulcer due to erratic eating habits. After 10 years, when I look back, I wish that I had eaten more. I have strong reason to believe that my short stature (5 foot 5 inch) is because of my erratic eating and starvation during the critical years of one's physical growth.
Years have gone by, nothing can be done…
Macho Indian Men! swinging in the cradle of patriarchy;
doesn't realize the privilege they enjoy;
stereotyping feminists and say they are pro-woman;
Even if realized, who would want to break away from a system that privileges them!
The case of Feminist and LGBTQIA+ Movements being part of a larger Movement
Imagine you are from a religiously conservative family and one day you get bullied for being too feminine. You fall into a downward spiral of depression. You can’t tell your mother as you have never been close to her. You being born a male has created a barrier for your relationship with her. You can’t tell your father as he fears his disappointment with his son. No, he won’t get angry. At the maximum, he would ask his son to man-up. This is because his father would be consumed by shame, not by anger. …
Sophia Nynnat
Ambedkarite-Periyarist. Find me at: https://www.patreon.com/malayalamennudethaimozhi
