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Colonial Discourse and the Suffering of Indian American Children is now published after academic peer-review and available through open access.

In this book, we analyze the psycho-social consequences that Indian American children face after they are exposed to the school textbook discourse on Hinduism and ancient India. We show that there is an intimate connection―an almost exact correspondence―between James Mill’s ( a prominent politician in Britain and head of the British East India Company) colonial-racist discourse and the current school-textbook discourse. Consequently, this archaic and racist discourse, camouflaged under the cover of political correctness, produces in the Indian American children the same psychological impact as racism is known to produce: shame, inferiority, embarrassment, identity confusion, assimilation, and a phenomenon similar to racelessness where the children dissociate from the tradition and culture of their ancestors

This book is an outcome of 4 years of rigorous research as a part of our ongoing commitment at Hindupedia to challenge the representation of Hindu Dharma within Academia.

Kalivarjya

From Hindupedia, the Hindu Encyclopedia

By Swami Harshananda

Kalivarjya literally means ‘what is prohibited in the age of Kali’.

Kalivarjya Principle[edit]

The Smṛtis are the handbooks of social values and conduct regulating the current-day societies. Due to external and internal factors, the rules and regulations defined in the smṛtis have been changed to reflect societal changes.

The Kalivarjya Principle refers to principles that were permitted to change in in earlier ages but are not allowed to change in the age of Kali. This principle appeared mostly in the Purāṇa-s around A. D. 1000.

Brief of Kalivarjya Principle[edit]

Scholars have listed 55 items as kalivarjya. Some of these are:

  • Giving a larger share of property to the first or eldest son
  • Niyoga[1]
  • Remarriage of widows
  • Intercaste marriages
  • Re-admission of a brāhmaṇa into the fold even after sea voyage
  • Sattra sacrifices
  • Killing of a cow in the sacrifice called Gosava
  • Vānaprastha stage
  • Sale of the soma creeper by a brāhmaṇa
  • Allowing a brāhmaṇa to eat the food of persons of lower varṇas (this had been permitted earlier)
  • Pilgrimage to distant holy places
  • Begging of food by a sanyāsin from all varṇas
  • Engaging a śudra for cooking in the house of a brāhmaṇa
  • Resorting to sanyāsa
  • Observance of Agnihotra
  • Performance of Aśvamedha and Rājasuya sacrifices
  • Perpetual student-hood[2]
  • Animal sacrifices
  • Intoxicating drinks

Conclusion[edit]

It is difficult to say on what basis these rules or recommendations were made, except a few of them. Educational, economic and cultural upliftment of the society based on the age-old spiritual values as depicted in the Upaniṣads and the Bhagavad Gītā is essential.

References[edit]

  1. ↑ Niyoga means levirate.
  2. ↑ It is called as naiṣṭhika brahmacarya.
  • The Concise Encyclopedia of Hinduism, Swami Harshananda, Ram Krishna Math, Bangalore

Contributors to this article

Krishna Maheshwari, Deval Sancheti

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