hinduism for hindus. 285
According to the ideals of Gandhian satyagraha, if the measures described above
fail, then a noncooperation movement, including boycotts, strikes, peaceful disrup-
tions, blockades, and sit-ins, should be launched. If this fails to produce a settlement
(i.e., a fair and accurate representation of Hinduism and Hindus), then creation of
a parallel entity to replace the opponent ’s facilities would be necessary. In the North
American context, this would mean setting up independent Hindu schools and uni-
versities on the model of the Catholic schools and universities that have existed for
centuries.
NOTES
- The epigraph by Audre Lorde is quoted in Smith 1999: 19. RISA-L is the list-
serv of the Religion in South Asia section of the American Academy of Religion. - The section heading is a pun on the famous credo, quia absurdum(see Welzer
1994: 241 n. 80). - Welzer 1994: 229–30.
- Ibid., 232–34.
- Nandy 1983: 2–3.
- Read, for instance, messages posted on such Yahoo! newsgroups as Indian Civ-
ilization to realize the depth of Hindu discontent with academics teaching Hinduism in
North America. This seething discontent is matched by the smugness of scholars who
have contributed to the massive (over 600-page) anthology edited by Joseph Elder et al.
(1998) lauding achievements in Indology at universities in the United States. - For an insightful analysis of this topic see Young 1990: esp. 119–40 (chap. 7,
“Disorienting Orientalism”). - Smith 1999: 30–31.
- According to Ashis Nandy (1983: 17), the colonial ideology postulated a clear
disjunction between India’s past and its present. The civilized India was in the bygone
past; now it was dead and “museumized.” The present India was India only to the ex-
tent that it was a senile, decrepit version of its once youthful, creative self. - Cited in Smith 1999: 67.
- Smith 1999: 62–63. [Malhotra’s “U Turn” theory alleges that it is common for
Westerners to learn Indian ideas and practices such as yoga, then bring them back in dis-
guise—in a Christianized or otherwise Westernized form—without acknowledging
their Indian inspiration, or even demonizing the Indic source. See Rajiv Malhotra, “The
Case for Indic Traditions in the Academy,” posted at http://www.infinityfoundation
.com, accessed February 14, 2006. For a visual representation, see http://www.swaveda
.com/journal.php?jid=4&j=Evam&art=63. Eds.] - Fanon 1966: 178–85.