When Xenophobia makes us Inhuman

“Do not believe in anything simply because you have heard it. Do not believe in anything simply because it is spoken and rumoured by many. Do not believe in anything simply because it is found written in your religious books. Do not believe in anything merely on the authority of your teachers and elders. Do not believe in traditions because they have been handed down for many generations. But after observation and analysis, when you find that anything agrees with reason and is conducive to the good and benefit of one and all, then accept it and live up to it.” ~ Gauthama Buddha

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“Justice just for the sake of justice is not right... Krishna said if a lie saves a life then it is better than hundred truths. I don’t want to go into that Masjid if it comes up or visit the temple.” The fear of being lynched, raped, abused, hurt, torn, humiliated grips my friend just days before the Supreme Court pronouncement on the ill-omen verdict of the Babri Masjid that was brought to dust.

She would rather live in quite seclusion, hiding away from the glares of people who look at her in her Rida, curiously. A stranger, with strange outfits. When a burka draws enough attention as it is, people do not know how to place the “out of ordinary”. We tend to look at the world in its stark dichotomy – and we miss to see the fact that people are a summation of different faiths, culture, looks, and what have you.

Fear leaves her waking in the night. The nightmares do not set her free. She hears the voices of the mob. She sees the blood in the eyes of unruly mob, who believe in a doctrine that is considered sacrosanct – all in the name of religion. All in the name of cultural subjugation. All in the name of creating one order. All in the use of force that only I will prevail, and all other forms that are “unique”, “few”, “other”, “them”, “they”, “it” will follow the I. Cultural xenophobia sets loose.

Her dreams take grip of her. She is not sure if she would be safe taking her little child to the school bus that stops down the road. She does not know if the children in the bus will look at her son curiously. She knows it, because her son has been asking her difficult questions. She knows because her son has few friends. He may be little. But the questions he brings back home are one that adults have orchestrated. When I assure her that not all are fanatic and even though our country continues to be blown to smithereens, justice must be prevail, her anguish cannot contain her. “ Big Talks lava.” She tells me. I try to tell her, "I know, Ima...I understand".

But do I? Do I know the language of fear? I do know the language of rage, for I have seen people of the “majority” speak in superior tone. I have heard people tell me, “it is a shame you are a Hindu”. How do I know what images haunt a mother who prays that she will see her child in the evening, and above all that the child will be hopeful of living in a land that he feels proud to be in.
“I have seen the riots with my own eyes, I have seen bloodshed and people running... those who never had a say or do in it...it is very easy to talk big and talk of justice... you ask a mother whose child has not come back from school, because the school is burnt...Government cares shit about us.... it will only leave the bullies to deal with us”.

When a Culture is Bulldozed, the Bullies are Set Free to Deal with Us

What will be seen after the pronouncement of the Supreme Court verdict is for time to tell. Knowing the pattern of our mind that is caught in a limited understanding of “culture” I fear the worst. I fear not the mob fury. I fear not the blood bath on the streets. I fear the physiological fracture that will scare the innocent. I fear the hatred that will be buried in the subconscious mind. I fear the rape of innocence that will strike in every child on this earth. I fear the lack of trust that will settle in our psyche. I fear the hate that we will teach our children in our homes. I fear the looking of history as black and white. I fear the look that will invade my space. I fear the failure to see the spirit of religion – that teaches us to move beyond attachments to attain salvation. I fear for each one of us who have a right to an opinion, and yet not bulldoze mine as the word of god. I fear for the loss of faith. I fear for the burning spirit. I fear the cowardice to take stand for the “other”.

Muslims Can Pray Anywhere. You Remain a Hindu Even If You Do Not Visit a Temple


Another friend, Gyan, tells me, “when the verdict comes, it will be a ‘free for all’”. Free for all to strike, kill, attack, abuse. Free for all to make right every wrong. Free for all to kill for every stab. Free for all to join the mob of hysteria. Free for all to lynch at anyone your hands can grab for no apparent explanation or reason.

There is a sense of loss in the voice of my friend who thinks all this is absurd. Why is peace often fought for. “Muslims can pray anywhere, they do not need a particular place to pray”, he tells me. I think that this thought is so beautiful. I tell him that is true with Hindu’s too. You don’t cease to be a Hindu if you do not visit a temple. Why cannot one see the liberal thoughts that prevail with most of us – and yet we fail to understand the essence of life. My friend adds on “people are same, Xians, Muslims, Hindus think they are different... its only the prayer that is different”. I tell him, the prayer too is just the same, the language of offering is different. One prays to let oneself free of the bonding from the worldly, to set free the human failings, desires, pain and suffering, to develop a consciousness that leads to nirvana and enlightenment of the soul.

Standing up for Truth

It is for the majority to protect the fewer, the weaker. Being a majority, we have an obligation to protect the vulnerable around us. If we cannot stand up for truth, then no religion is worth following. It is a disgrace to say I am a Hindu, I am a Muslim, I am a Christian, a Jain, a Buddhist, a Non-religious- spiritual person.

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