2009/7/18 ss <[email protected]> > On Friday 17 Jul 2009 5:09:47 pm Kiran K Karthikeyan wrote: > > Thanks Salil. > > > > I've always nursed the idea that Hindu fundamentalism's continued rise, > the > > reasons you've stated notwithstanding, > > I have a problem with the widespread assumption that "hindu fundamentalism > is > on the rise". Please hear me out. I'm not joking. > > Hindus, including people from Hindu backgrounds who profess atheism, > agnosticism and other blasphemous -isms tend to have a mental picture > of "Hinduism" as something that is "not fundamentalism"
I don't come from such a background. Rather, I come from a very traditional Menon family where a few decades ago (i.e. within my lifetime) any non-Hindu would not be allowed inside the ancestral home, some of the lower castes were not allowed even inside the compound, every act (even stepping outside the house) was done only during auspicious periods etc etc. So no, I don't subscribe to this assumption. Kiran
