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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.

Andhatamisra

From Hindupedia, the Hindu Encyclopedia

By Swami Harshananda

According to the Sāñkhyadarśana, one of the more well-known systems of philosophy, there are two types of creation :

  1. The elemental creation
  2. Creation of buddhi

The second one is called pratyaya-sarga. It can be classified under sections:

  1. Viparyaya - Ignorance
  2. Aśakti - Incapacity
  3. Tusṭi - Contentment
  4. Siddhi - Perfection or powers

Andhatā-misra is a subdivision of viparyaya and is manifested as fear of death or self-destruction. Eighteen varieties of this are mentioned. There are five gross objects of pleasure enjoyed through the five organs of perception (e.g., śabda[1] by śrotra[2] etc.) and five subtle objects, their counterparts are enjoyed in higher worlds like heaven. There are also eight siddhis or powers like aṇimā[3] and so on. The fear that these siddhis may be lost is andhatāmisra.

In the Yoga system of Patañjali this is called abhiniveśa (excessive attachment or clinging to life).

The words tāmisra and andhatāmisra have also been used in the purāṇas to indicate certain hells into which people committing certain types of heinous crimes and sins (like suicide, usurping the wealth and women of other people) are casted.


References[edit]

  1. ↑ śabda means sound
  2. ↑ śrotra means ear
  3. ↑ aṇimā means capacity to become atomic in size
  • The Concise Encyclopedia of Hinduism, Swami Harshananda, Ram Krishna Math, Bangalore

Contributors to this article

Krishna Maheshwari, Deval Sancheti

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