Bride burnings,
infanticide, dowry, widows, male-dominance, and other ....
Bride burnings, infanticide,
dowry, widows, male-dominance, and other gifts
brought by invaders:
Hinduism has been changed greatly over the last two thousand years
by
multiple invasions and settlements by foreigners. Muslims and
Christians
have had the greatest impact, turning a very matriarcial society
into a
male-dominated one. These foreigners have also brought meat into
the diet
and have integrated their teachings and principles into Hindu
society. As
the story goes . . .
During the great Muslim invasions of the Middle Ages, many men
died, leaving
widows and children to the mercy of their enemies. Tradition has
it that
widows were to shave their heads, cease wearing jewlery, and wear
only white
as a form of protection against the enemy. By being unattractive,
the woman
was safe from rape and captivity. Seti began under similar
circumstances.
Tradition has it that a certain bride was so devoted to her dead
husband
that she flung herself into the flaming funeral pyre rather than
be taken by
her husband's enemies. Soon it became the "thing" to do,
both to protect the
bride, and to free society from having to supporting her. Seti has
never
been legal in India, and is a crime that comes with severe
punishments.
The treatment of widows has improved in modern times, as people
start to
realize that it is unnecessary for widows to don specific clothes.
Modern
widows remove their wedding pendant, outstanding jewels, and the
red bindi,
but little else.
Dowries also have a place in the past. Originally seen as gifts
given by the
bride's family to the groom's, it developed into a requirement for
marriage.
Traditionally, the groom adorns the bride with great wealth, and
her family
provides enough to set up house. Today, many brides are murdered
because the
groom's family demands more and more dowry. In India, dowries are
illegal,
and if a wife dies within a year of marriage, the groom often goes
to jail,
questions asked later. The current trend is for familes to use
money that
would have gone towards a dowry to send their daughters to
college. No
self-respecting middle- or upper-class family would expect a dowry
today.
The desire to have male children arises from two things--dowrys
and the
higher male status brought by the foreign invaders. Traditional
Hinduism
never advocated male children over female ones, and holds the
woman as very
sacred and mystical. A home cannot be complete without the mother,
the first
teacher and guru to the children of the family. It is now illegal
to kill a
female infant before or after birth and ultrasounds can only be
used for
medical concerns, not for determining the sex of the baby.
There is a great movement in Hindus to go back to the scriptures,
to restore
the old values and reject the ones brought in by the conquerers.
Education
has helped to curb some of these behaviors. Many gurus speak out
against
such practices and condemn those who follow them. Although great
battles
between kings and foreigners is a part of Indian history, the
modern trend
is to follow Gandhi's example of peace.
ISKCON ("Hara Krishna"), Self-Realization, and other
modern Hindu-related
organizations:
Although Hinduism is very open in allowing its people to choose a
number of
paths, there are some edicts to being truly Hindu. There are also
many
modern movements that have grown out of Hinduism, but are not
Hindu. Some
are associated with Hinduism and some are not.
"Acceptance of the Vedas with reverence; recognition of the
fact that the
means or ways to salvation are diverse; and the realization of the
truth
that the number of gods to be worshiped is large, that indeed is
the
distinguishing feature of the Hindu religion."-- B.G. Tilak's
definition of
what makes one a basic Hindu, as quoted by India's Supreme Court
on July 2,
1995. In addition, true Hindus live according to the concepts
described
above, living kindly and promoting non-violence and love of the
divine in
all aspects of their lives and the lives of others. They follow
firmly
established lineages and rituals as passed down through
generations of
priests and yogis, and recorded in the sacred texts.
Most big, public temples endorse true Hinduism and are not
associated with
any gurus or satgurus, but were founded by public donation. If a
guru or
satguru is involved with the temple, it is most likely a Hindu
temple, but
not always. The best way to find out is to ask if it's a
traditional,
mainstream Hindu, or one founded by an alternative movement.
"Quasi-Hindus" acknowledge Hindu roots but do not follow
Hindu traditions
closely. They introduce some concepts that are not part of
traditional
Hinduism, or exclude tradional and widely-accepted practices or
lineages.
Most of these organizations are focused more on the founder of the
movement
and his or her teachings than traditional or mainstream teachings.
Some say
that Sai Baba is a Quasi-hindu.
Non-Hindus either deny that they are Hindu, or declare themselves
as a
seperate movement, sometimes not attached to any one religion or
belief.
They may borrow many elements from Hinduism, but the core focus of
their
movements is distinctly removed from Hinduism. Famous
self-declared
non-Hindu groups include ISKON and Self-Realization. Many of these
groups
align with Hinduism when their actions or practices are met with
controversy.
Srila Prabhupada, the founder of the ISKCON movement, was aware
that the
Indian community had a mistaken impression of his Hinduness. In a
1970
letter to a temple administrator in Los Angeles, he wrote,
"The Hindu
community in the West has got some good feeling for me because
superficially
they are seeing that I am spreading Hindu religion, but factually
this
Krishna Consciousness movement is neither Hindu religion nor any
other
religion." (Hinduism Today Magazine, October 1998)
Buddhism, Seikism, and Jainism started out as movements branching
from
Hinduism, but over time, each has become an established religion
in its own
right.
Hinduism Today Magazine has published a list of these groups and
where they
categorize themselves, based on their mission statements.
http://www.hinduunity.org
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