| After September 11
attacks in the US, Christian groups in the West are keen on an alliance
with Hindu forces, claims an Indian scholar teaching in Florida.
Director of the Bangalore-based International Sanskrit
Research Academy, BV Venkatakrishna Sastry who teaches "spiritual
linguistics" at the Hindu University of America in Orlando, Florida,
claimed that there was a growing awareness of Hinduism in the
"administrative circles" in the US.
"The evangelical Christian movement, the driving
force of the US administration, is looking at what kind of allies they
should have for a regional and administrative balance," Sastry, 49, said.
"After the attacks, it is felt that those with an
Islamic faith background will not suit the administrative approach of the
US. So, the driving thrust is on Judaism, because of the situation in
Palestine, and on the Asian side, Hinduism."
Noting the two predominant religions in Asia,
Hinduism and Buddhism, he said that since a large number of Buddhists are
from China they are ruled out as American allies because of ideological,
cultural and economic differences. "That leaves Hinduism, which is more
acceptable because of several factors."
Further, English is spoken everywhere in the
subcontinent and communication with the US poses no problem.
"Technology wise too, India has a leading edge,"
Sastry said. " IIT graduates are feeding intellectual research abroad.
Besides, Indian legacies such as yoga and ayurveda are widely regarded as
alternative medicines and sources of spiritual healing."
The Columbia space shuttle accident in which Kalpana
Chawla died created more awareness of Hinduism because of the publicity
given to the India-born astronaut's background, he said.
There seemed to be a link between all this, he said
and pointed out the resurgence in the interest in the decade-old Hindu
University in Orlando.
"Elsewhere, Hinduism is taught as part of Indology or
Sanskrit or Vedic studies or as part of linguistics and cultural studies,"
Sastry said.
"They look at Hinduism through the lens of
Christianity and through English translations, which cannot come close to
the complexities of the religion."
Besides the Western need, social pressure from
Indians abroad is also contributing to the growth of Hinduism, Sastry
felt.
"There are almost two million Indians in the US and
every year around 75,000 go there for various reasons.
"The third generation Indian American born and
brought up in the US needs a cultural base. There is a need for an
authentic academic environment for Hinduism to be taught on par with other
religions," said the scholar. |
