The reason I admire Hinduism is primarily its
affinity towards acceptability, its capacity to
absorb almost anything. Infact, it has been one the
most "volatile" religions. The form of Hinduism that
we see today has manifested itself through ages,
and has stood the test of time. It has all the ingredients
intermingled, from the Harappan concept of the "Rudra",
the Aryan concept of the "Indra" (or the Purendra as they
call him, the destroyer of the demons), the Gupta period
"Vishnu", and last but not the least, the existence of "Shakti",
which culminated during the reign of his holiness Ramkrishna
Paramhans.
Although there are many impressive points to be discussed
about Hinduism (which I will be doing from time to time in
my blog), the one that truly stands out in spirit is that of
the "Devi Mahatmya", or the importance of the female character
in the Hindu religion. Hinduism has always potrayed
feminism as "shakti", and if you happen to read excerpts from
Durga shaptashati, you will realise the truth of the statement.
This is in sharp contrast to what many critics say, which is the
blaming of the formation of the present male chauvinist Indian
society on religion. I beg to differ.
The more I have delved deeper into the mythological realms,
the more I have found that Hinduism is a pioneer when it
comes to potraying and spreading the importance of the
female power or "nari shakti", not only as the creator of
beings, but also as the destroyer of those powers who
give no due respect to (the spirit of) womanliness. It is the
second point which is worth noticing, for this gives us all
thereason to think that a woman is to be treated with reverence,
and if not, she herself has the capacities to both defend
herself and punish the guilty.
The power of feminism culminates with the advent or
rather "incarnation" of Devi Durga, who is shown to be
the powerhouse of all shakti. By defeating demonic powers
to whom, all other powers had earlier submitted to,
Hinduism demonstrates the superiority of the female form.
It goes to the extent of declaring that Shiva is powerless
without his shakti (which he derives from Gauri),
and so is Vishnu without his.
I definitely respect this aspect of Hinduism, which I find
almost unparalleled and rather a valuable gift.
affinity towards acceptability, its capacity to
absorb almost anything. Infact, it has been one the
most "volatile" religions. The form of Hinduism that
we see today has manifested itself through ages,
and has stood the test of time. It has all the ingredients
intermingled, from the Harappan concept of the "Rudra",
the Aryan concept of the "Indra" (or the Purendra as they
call him, the destroyer of the demons), the Gupta period
"Vishnu", and last but not the least, the existence of "Shakti",
which culminated during the reign of his holiness Ramkrishna
Paramhans.
Although there are many impressive points to be discussed
about Hinduism (which I will be doing from time to time in
my blog), the one that truly stands out in spirit is that of
the "Devi Mahatmya", or the importance of the female character
in the Hindu religion. Hinduism has always potrayed
feminism as "shakti", and if you happen to read excerpts from
Durga shaptashati, you will realise the truth of the statement.
This is in sharp contrast to what many critics say, which is the
blaming of the formation of the present male chauvinist Indian
society on religion. I beg to differ.
The more I have delved deeper into the mythological realms,
the more I have found that Hinduism is a pioneer when it
comes to potraying and spreading the importance of the
female power or "nari shakti", not only as the creator of
beings, but also as the destroyer of those powers who
give no due respect to (the spirit of) womanliness. It is the
second point which is worth noticing, for this gives us all
thereason to think that a woman is to be treated with reverence,
and if not, she herself has the capacities to both defend
herself and punish the guilty.
The power of feminism culminates with the advent or
rather "incarnation" of Devi Durga, who is shown to be
the powerhouse of all shakti. By defeating demonic powers
to whom, all other powers had earlier submitted to,
Hinduism demonstrates the superiority of the female form.
It goes to the extent of declaring that Shiva is powerless
without his shakti (which he derives from Gauri),
and so is Vishnu without his.
I definitely respect this aspect of Hinduism, which I find
almost unparalleled and rather a valuable gift.
No comments:
Post a Comment