7/29/2019 Hindu Nationalism http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/hindu-nationalism 1/21 Hindu nationalismFrom Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Hindu nationalism has been collectively referred to as the expressions of social and political thought, based on the native spiritual and cultural traditions of historical India. Some scholars have argued that the use of the term "Hindu nationalism" to refer to Hindū rāṣṭravāda is a simplistic translation and is better described by the term "Hindu polity". [1] The native thought streams became highly relevant in the Indian history when they helped form a distinctive identity to the Indian polity [2] and provided a basis for questioning colonialism. [3] They inspired the freedom movements against the British rule based on armed struggle, [4] coercive politics [5] and non-violent protests. [6] They also influenced social reform movements and economic thinking in India. [5] The term Hinduism derives from a Persian word that refers to the Sindhu (or Indus) river in northwest India; "Hindu" was first used in the 14th century by Arabs, Persians, and Afghans to describe the peoples of the region. [8] The usage of the word "Hindu" to describe the native polity of India have been found in the historical accounts of medieval India. These usages show that the word Hindu, until the early nineteenth century was emphasised by nativity rather than by religion. [9] Prominent among the southern Indian rulers of the fourteenth century were the Sangama rulers of Vijayanagara empire who were hailed as "Hinduraya suratana", the best among the Hindu rulers. [10] The Sangama rulers were in constant conflict with the Sultanate of Bijapur, and this usage of the word "Hindu" in the title was to distinguish them as native rulers, as opposed to the sultans, who were "perceived to be foreign in origin". In the sixteenth century in north India, in the year 1556, Samrat Hem Chandra Vikramaditya, native of Rewari, Haryana established vedic "Hindu Raj" from Delhi after defeating Akbar's Mughal forces at Agra and Delhi, albeit for a short period. Prior to his coronation on 7 October 1556, at Purana Quila(Pandvon Ka Quila ) Delhi, Hemu had won 22 battles, between 1553 –1556, against Afghans and Mughals from Punjab to Bengal, without losing any. Hem Chandra was killed in the Second Battle of Panipat. [11][12][13] According to Palmer-Fernandez, "Hindus" did not conceive themselves as a religious unity in any sense except in opposition to foreign rule. For example, the early seventeenth-century Telugu work Rayavachakamu condemns the Muslim rulers for being foreign and barbarian and only rarely for specifically religious traits. [14] The other references include the glorification of the Chauhana heroes of Jalor as "Hindu" by Padmanabha in his epic poem, Kanhadade-prabandha, which he composed in AD 1455. The Rajput ruler, Maha Rana Pratap became renowned with the title of "Hindu-kula-kamala-divakara" for his relentless fight against the Mughals. [15] Maharaja Pratap Aditya was the most prominent of the Hindu rulers of Bengal. He declared
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Hindu nationalism From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Hindu nationalism has been collectively referred to as the expressions of social and political thought, based
on the native spiritual and cultural traditions of historical India. Some scholars have argued that the use of theterm "Hindu nationalism" to refer to Hindū rāṣṭravāda is a simplistic translation and is better described by the
term "Hindu polity".[1]
The native thought streams became highly relevant in the Indian history when they helped form a distinctive
identity to the Indian polity[2] and provided a basis for questioning colonialism.[3] They inspired the freedom
movements against the British rule based on armed struggle,[4]
coercive politics[5]
and non-violent
protests.[6]
They also influenced social reform movements and economic thinking in India.[5]
The term Hinduism derives from a Persian word that refers to the Sindhu (or Indus) river in northwest India;
"Hindu" was first used in the 14th century by Arabs, Persians, and Afghans to describe the peoples of the
region.[8]
The usage of the word "Hindu" to describe the native polity of India have been found in the historical
accounts of medieval India. These usages show that the word Hindu, until the early nineteenth century was
emphasised by nativity rather than by religion.[9]
Prominent among the southern Indian rulers of the fourteenth century were the Sangama rulers
of Vijayanagara empire who were hailed as "Hinduraya suratana", the best among the Hindu rulers.[10]
The
Sangama rulers were in constant conflict with the Sultanate of Bijapur , and this usage of the word "Hindu" in
the title was to distinguish them as native rulers, as opposed to the sultans, who were "perceived to be foreign
in origin".
In the sixteenth century in north India, in the year 1556, Samrat Hem Chandra Vikramaditya, native of Rewari,
Haryana established vedic "Hindu Raj" from Delhi after defeating Akbar's Mughal forces at Agra and Delhi,
albeit for a short period. Prior to his coronation on 7 October 1556, at Purana Quila(Pandvon Ka Quila ) Delhi,
Hemu had won 22 battles, between 1553 –1556, against Afghans and Mughals from Punjab to Bengal, without
losing any. Hem Chandra was killed in the Second Battle of Panipat.[11][12][13]
According to Palmer-Fernandez, "Hindus" did not conceive themselves as a religious unity in any sense except
in opposition to foreign rule. For example, the early seventeenth-century Telugu
work Rayavachakamu condemns the Muslim rulers for being foreign and barbarian and only rarely for
specifically religious traits.[14]
The other references include the glorification of the Chauhana heroes of Jalor as "Hindu" by Padmanabha in
his epic poem, Kanhadade-prabandha, which he composed in AD 1455. The Rajput ruler, Maha Rana
Pratap became renowned with the title of "Hindu-kula-kamala-divakara" for his relentless fight against
the Mughals.[15]
Maharaja Pratap Aditya was the most prominent of the Hindu rulers of Bengal. He declared
Savarkar (above) and Gandhi politely agreed to disagree on
whether Ramayana justified the use of violence in freedom struggle.
India House[edit source | editbeta]
A revolutionary movement was started by Shyamji Krishnavarma, a Sanskritist and an Arya Samajist, inLondon, under the name of India House in 1905. The brain behind this movement was said to be V D Savarkar .
Krishnaverma also published a monthly "Indian Sociologist", where the idea of an armed struggle against the
British was openly espoused.[27]
The movement had become well known for its activities in the Indian
expatriates in London. When Gandhi visited London in 1909, he shared a platform with the revolutionaries
where both the parties politely agreed to disagree, on the question of violent struggle against British and
whether Ramayana justified such violence. Gandhi, while admiring the "patriotism" of the young revolutionaries,
had dissented vociferously from their violent blueprints for social change. In turn the revolutionaries disliked his
adherence to constitutionalism and his close contacts with moderate leaders of Indian National Congress.
Moreover they considered his method of "passive resistance" effeminate and humiliating.[28]
The India House had soon to face a closure following the assassination of William Hutt Curzon Wyllie by the
revolutionaryMadan Lal Dhingra, who was close to India House. Veer Savarkar also faced charges and was
transported. Shyamji Krishnaverma fled to Paris.[27]
India House gave formative support to ideas that were later
formulated by Savarkar in his book named 'Hindutva'. Hindutva was to gain relevance in the run up to the
Indian Independence and would also form the core to the political party named Hindu Mahasabha started by
Savarkar .[5]
Indian National Congress[edit source | editbeta]
Lal-Bal-Pal”[edit source | editbeta]
―Lal-Bal-Pal‖ is the phrase that is used to refer to the three nationalist leaders Lala Lajpat Rai, Bal Gangadhar
Tilak and Bipin Chandra Pal who held the sway over the Indian Nationalist movement and the freedom struggle
in the early parts of twentieth century.
Lala Lajpat Rai belonged to the northern province of Punjab. He was influenced greatly by the Arya Samaj and
was part of the Hindu reform movement.[5]
He joined the Indian National Congress in 1888 and became a
prominent figure in the Indian Independence Movement.[29]
He started numerous educational institutions.
TheNational College at Lahore started by him became the centre for revolutionary ideas and was the collegewhere revolutionaries like Bhagat Singh studied.
[30] While leading a procession against the Simon Commission,
he was fatally injured in the lathi charge by the British police. His death led the revolutionaries
like Chandrashekar Azadand Bhagat Singh to kill the British officer J. P. Saunders, who they believed was
See also: Somnath temple Restoration after Independence
The Somnath temple is an ancient temple at Prabhas Patan in the coastal Indian province of Gujarat, which
had been destroyed several times by the Muslim foreign invaders, starting with Mahmud Ghaznavi in 1025 AD.The last of such destructions took place in 1706 AD when Prince Mohammad Azam carried out the orders of
Mughal ruler Aurangzeb to destroy the temple of Somnath beyond possible repair. A small mosque was put in
its place.[60]
Before Independence, Prabhas Pattan where Somnath is located was part of the Junagadh State, ruled by the
Nawab of Junagarh. On the eve of Independence the Nawab announced the accession of Junagarh, which had
over 80% Hindu population, to Pakistan. The people of Junagarh rose in revolt and set up a parallel
government under Gandhian leader and freedom fighter, Shri Samaldas Gandhi. The Nawab, unable to resist
the popular pressure, bowed out and escaped to Pakistan. The provincial government under Samaldas
Gandhi formally asked Government of India to take over .[61]
The Deputy Prime Minister of India, Sardar
Patel came to Junagadh on 12 November 1947 to direct the occupation of the state by the Indian army and at
the same time ordered the reconstruction of the Somanath temple.[62]
When Sardar Patel, K. M. Munshi and other leaders of the Congress went to Gandhiji with the proposal of
reconstructing the Somnath temple, Gandhiji blessed the move, but suggested that the funds for the
construction should be collected from the public and the temple should not be funded by the state. He
expressed that he was proud to associate himself to the project of renovation of the temple[63]
But soon both
Gandhiji and Sardar Patel died and the task of reconstruction of the temple was now continued under the
leadership of K. M. Munshi, who was the Minister for Food and Civil, supplies in the Nehru Government.[63]
The ruins were pulled down in October 1950 and the mosque was moved to a different location. In May 1951,
Rajendra Prasad, the first President of the Republic of India, invited by K. M. Munshi, performed the installation
ceremony for the temple.[64]
Rajendra Prasad said in his address, "It is my view that the reconstruction of the
Somnath Temple will be complete on that day when not only a magnificent edifice will arise on this foundation,
but the mansion of India's prosperity will be really that prosperity of which the ancient temple of Somnath was a
symbol."[65]
He added "The Somnath temple signifies that the power of reconstruction is always greater than the
power of destruction."[65]
This episode created a serious rift between the then prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru, who saw in movement
for reconstruction of the temple an attempt at Hindu revivalism and the president Rajendra Prasad and Union
Minister K. M. Munshi, saw in its reconstruction, the fruits of freedom and the reversal of injustice done to
Hindus.[65]
The emergence of the Sangh Parivar [edit source | editbeta]
The Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, which was started in 1925, had grown as a huge organisation by the end
of British rule in India. But the assassination of Gandhi and a subsequent ban on the organisation plunged it
into distress. The ban was revoked when it was absolved of the charges and it led to the resumption of its
activities.[51]
The 1960s saw the volunteers of the RSS join the different social and political movements. Movements that
saw a large presence of volunteers included the Bhoodan, a land reform movement led by prominent
Gandhian Vinoba Bhave[66]
and the Sarvodaya led by another Gandhian Jayaprakash Narayan.[67]
RSS
supported trade union, the Bharatiya Mazdoor Sangh and political party Bharatiya Jana Sangh also grew into
considerable prominence by the end of the decade.
Another prominent development was the formation of the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP), an organisation of
Hindu religious leaders, supported by the RSS, with the aim of uniting the various Hindu religiousdenominations and to usher social reform. The first VHP meeting at Mumbai was attended among others by all
the Shankaracharyas, Jain leaders, Sikh leader Master Tara Singh Malhotra, the Dalai Lama and contemporary
Hindu leaders likeSwami Chinmayananda. From its initial years, the VHP led a concerted attack on the social
evils of untouchability and casteism while launching social welfare programmes in the areas of education and
health care, especially for the Scheduled Castes, backward classes and the tribals.[68]
The organisations started and supported by the RSS volunteers came to be known collectively as the Sangh
Parivar . Next few decades saw a steady growth of the influence of the Sangh Parivar in the social and political
space of India.[68]
See also[edit source | editbeta]
Hindu nationalist parties
Hindu revolution
Hinduism in India
Cow protection movement
References[edit source | editbeta]
1. ^ Jain, Girilal (1994). The Hindu Phenomenon. New Delhi:
UBS Publishers' Distributors. ISBN 81-86112-32-4.
2. ^ a b Chatterjee Partha (1986)
3. ^ a b c d e f g h Peter van der Veer, Hartmut Lehmann, Nation
and religion: perspectives on Europe and Asia, Princeton