Colonial Discourse and the Suffering of Indian American Children is now freely available.
Colonial Discourse and the Suffering of Indian American Children Book Cover.webp

In this book, we analyze the psycho-social consequences faced by Indian American children after exposure to the school textbook discourse on Hinduism and ancient India. We demonstrate that there is an intimate connection—an almost exact correspondence—between James Mill’s colonial-racist discourse (Mill was the head of the British East India Company) and the current school textbook discourse. This racist discourse, camouflaged under the cover of political correctness, produces the same psychological impacts on Indian American children that racism typically causes: shame, inferiority, embarrassment, identity confusion, assimilation, and a phenomenon akin to racelessness, where children dissociate from the traditions and culture of their ancestors.


This book is the result of four years of rigorous research and academic peer-review, reflecting our ongoing commitment at Hindupedia to challenge the representation of Hindu Dharma within academia.

Aṅga

From Hindupedia, the Hindu Encyclopedia

By Swami Harshananda

Aṅga literally means ‘part,’ ‘limb’.

The word is often used in a technical sense. For instance, in medical sciences it stands for the body or its limb. In Jainism, it stands for a class of scriptures which are twelve in number.

In Vedic sacrifices the word aṅga indicates a subordinate rite. For instance, Paśubandha is an aṅga of Somayāga; or Prayāja is an aṅga of Darśa. These subsidiary rites may or may not produce any separate result.

More often the word is used in combination with other words getting a technical flavor. Here are some samples:

  • Pañcāṅga - The five parts of an almanac like nakṣatra or star
  • Rājyāṅgas - The seven components of an imperial set-up like the king
  • Senāṅgas - The four parts of an armed force like infantry
  • Vedāṅgas - The six subsidiary branches of knowledge which help the study of the Vedas, like Sikṣā or the science of articulation
  • Yajñāṅgas - The vessels used in a sacrifices like sruk and sruva (spoon and ladle)
  • Yogāṅgas - The eight steps of yoga like yama or restraint and so on.

Aṅga has often been mentioned as a country, now identified with eastern Bihar or the region around Bhagalpur in Bihar. Śiva is said to have burnt Manmatha (Cupid) to ashes here. Since Manmatha was ultimately revived, getting back his aṅgas or limbs, the place came to be known as Añga or Aṅgadeśa. This was once ruled by the well-known king Romapāda. During his regime there was once a severe famine. When the sage Rṣyaśṛṅga was tactfully brought into the kingdom, it rained heavily and the people were saved from starvation.

The Arthaśāstra of Kauṭilya[1] mentions that Aṅga is famous word used for well-bred elephants. In the mythological lore, several kings by name Anga are mentioned :

  • A king who had joined Duryodhana in the Kurukṣetra war
  • A kṣattriya hero who fought the great king Māndhātṛ
  • A kṣattriya king, the eldest son of Bali and Sudeṣṇā
  • Karṇa, of the Mahābhārata fame, was the king of Aṅgadeśa.


References[edit]

  1. ↑ Arthaśāstra 2.2
  • The Concise Encyclopedia of Hinduism, Swami Harshananda, Ram Krishna Math, Bangalore

Contributors to this article

Krishna Maheshwari, Deval Sancheti

Explore Other Articles

Retrieved from "https://hindupedia.com/index.php?title=Aṅga&oldid=133752"