Colonial Discourse and the Suffering of Indian American Children Book Cover.webp

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.

Nirviśesa

From Hindupedia, the Hindu Encyclopedia

By Swami Harshananda

Nirviśesa literally means ‘that which is without special characteristics’.

The nature of the highest Reality, generally designated by the word ‘Brahman’ in the Upaniṣads, is an important point of discussion in the Vedānta philosophy, considered as the crest-jewel of philosophical systems. According to the Advaita Vedānta, Brahman has two lakṣaṇas or characteristics:

  1. Taṭasthalakṣaṇa - accidental characteristic
  2. Svarṅpalakṣaṇa - intrinsic characteristic

When Brahman is described as responsible for the creation or evolution of this world[1] it is the first lakṣaṇa that has been indicated. This is only an indirect way of pointing towards it. However, in its own intrinsic nature it is described as ‘nirviśeṣa-cinmātra-svarupa’. It is pure consciousness without any viśeṣas or qualities. It is this essential nature of Brahman that is indicated by the word ‘nirviśeṣa’.

Another word used in the same sense is ‘nirguṇa’.[2]


References[edit]

  1. ↑ The Brahmasutras 1.1.2
  2. ↑ Śvetāśvatara Upaniṣad 6.11
  • The Concise Encyclopedia of Hinduism, Swami Harshananda, Ram Krishna Math, Bangalore

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