Madras DV meet a wash-out

V.T. RAJSHEKAR

Madras: The Tamil Nadu Dalit Voice silver jubilee celebration turned out to be a fiasco – with not even 30 members of DV present on March 1. We did expect a low turnout knowing full well the terrible ideological confusion within the Dalits created by the Brahminical forces but never thought that it would turn out to be such a big fiasco.

Even the Madras city DV family members did not turn up —proving our fears that entire Tamil Nadu has plunged into appaling confusion.

Rev. M. Azariah, our host, had made elaborate arrangements but the whole thing went waste. DV circulation itself in TN has suffered a steep fall.

However, the original people who started the Dalit movement turned up. They included R.Mohan from Arkonam, Sampath Welcome, Advocate Rajgopal and the only Muslim Buhari. Dalit movement was started in Madras around 1975 under the leadership of Dalit Ezhilmalai who later became the Union Health Minister. The Tamil edition of DV, named Dalit Kural edited by Ezhilmalai became popular. We used to have many well-attended meetings. But soon Brahminical saboteurs infiltrated the movement and diverted the attention of Dalit youths. It is very easy to destroy but takes decades to build.

Dalit Voice has become so weak in the whole of TN that this was our first meeting. The fall of DV also proves the fall of the Dalits — if not the fall of Tamil Nadu itself.

DV is, however, strong in other parts of India —though the glamour of vote politics is taking Dalits away from DV.

“Casteism is worst form of terrorism: Archbishop Chinnappa

V.T. RAJSHEKAR

Madras: Archbishop Chinnappa of Madras, a former chairman of the SC/ST Commission of the Catholic Bishops Conference of India (CBCI), said here on March 1 that “casteism created by the Brahminical people is the worst form of terrorism facing the country. But India’s top leadership is silent on this”.

The head of the Catholic church in Madras, a powerful position presiding over a vast empire, and also a rare Dalit Bishop in the upper caste-dominated Catholic church, was addressing the Madras Dalit Voice silver jubilee meeting held at the Santhome (Madras) headquarters of his church.

Worse than dogs: “Casteism has created so much of enmity not only in the country but even within the church. It has created all our problems. According to the Brahmins, we (Dalits) are considered worse than dogs. Casteism, therefore, is the worst kind of terrorism facing the country”, he said amid cheers.

“Terrorism is a one-minute killing but casteism is a life-long terrorism under which all of us are suffering”. We have never heard a Bishop speaking like this.

Look at the difference between an upper caste Bishop speaking and that of a Dalit Bishop. A Roman Catholic DV member said Archbishop Chinappa was a fearless person and the words poured out of his heart. That is how he has become the darling of the church.

Expanding further, the Archbishop said “casteism has crippled the country and had devastating effect on our thinking and action”. Giving an example, he said: “Indians have not even invented the simple table and chair”. The British introduced it. But we were clever enough to invent the caste system. We Christians are not above the caste. We cannot say that the church is free from caste”, he said and revealed that “for such an open admission of facts of life I am hated in the church. If I am a disciple of church, I have to say all this”.

Unequal even in death: Death comes to every one but when we (Dalits) are dead and buried in the graveyard, even here we don’t get equality, he said.

Earlier, the Archbishop said “singers move our hearts but writers (like V.T. Rajshekar) move our mind. Their role is very important. The movement you started must be carried to its completion”, he said congratulating the Editor, a Backward Caste man, for moving into the Dalit liberation. He assured full support from his church to spread the message of DV.

Lotus Sutra alone can revive Budhism in India

SINYOU TSUCHIYA, KEMPON HOKKE, SADDHARMA YATRA PROJECT

I have posted the Lotus Sutra digest to you. It was printed in India. The great achievement of Bodhisattva Ambedkar who revived Buddhism in $B!!(BIndia has reached far Japan. For 750 years, We Japanese Budhists had been waiting the time when revived Budhists of India should spread the true teaching of Budha all over India for not only individual peace and prosperity but social peace and prosperity.

Budhism in India collapsed in the 13th century. At that time in Japan, Nichiren Bodhisattva, the founder of our sect, was insisting on the true dharma at the risk of his life to prevent Japanese Budhism from being corrupted, and to save the people from distress and to regain the peace of the nation. Then Nichiren Bodhisattva left a message with his disciples. When the Budhism starts to revive in India, my followers have to bring this Myoho Renge Kyo (the Lotus Sutra) to the Budhist in India by all means.

This Myoho Renge Kyo (the Lotus Sutra) shows the truth that Sakyamuni Budha is the eternal Budha and exists through all eternity and this eternal Budha keeps always educating all the people still now. And by this Sutra, all Budhist can realize that we are the son of eternal Budha and we are born in this world as an eternal disciple of the eternal Budha to build the ideal pure land on this world.

Dr. Ambedkar is new Budha: And this Sutra says that the spiritual leader appears in this world for reviving true Budhism again when Budhism is nearing collapse. In Japan, this leader appeared as Nichiren Bodhisattva 750 years ago. In India, this leader appeared as Dr. Ambedkar Bodhisattva, 50 years ago.

To help the new Buddhists of India, revived by Dr. Ambedkar, Bhante G. Shurei Sasai has come alone to India 40 years ago with chanting Namu Myoho Renge Kyo. Then I went to India on invitation from Bhante G. Shurei Sasai. We distributed 10,000 books of the Hindi version of this summarized Myoho Renge Kyo.

To release Dalit from human discrimination under Hinduism, we have to spread widely the Lotus Sutra which preaches that every person is a child of the Budha without discrimination. It is not for only Dalit but for all people.

(shamon-sinyou@kch.biglobe.ne.jp)

http://www5c.biglobe.ne.jp/~lotus/myoho5%20 photo.htm

http://www5c.biglobe.ne.jp/~lotus/india%205%20 web.htm

http://www5c.biglobe.ne.jp/~lotus/india% 20slide. htm

Why Brahmins did not produce a single intellectual ?

varahamitra@gmail.com

Your perception is narrow-minded. Untouchability is wicked but your view on Brahmins is very biased. Whatever evils exist in society are blamed on Brahmins. In several villages, shudras too discriminate against the Dalit. What the Dalit needs is education, healthcare etc. and not a hate campaign against Hindus. I may be a Hindu but I do not hate Dalits. Several comments have been made without any basis such as “Caste war among Hindu gods” etc. Could reference be cited? You say there is no place for democracy and rights in Hinduism but in which other culture is there so much freedom? This is why so many sects have existed each with their own philosophy, Shaivaite, Vaishnavite, Shakta, Jain, Budhist, Atheist etc . As to your comment on Hinduism having no one single god, there is the supreme being, the Brahmin, who is omnipresent and can be worshipped in any form — male, female, animal or plant. Discrimination based on caste is not inbuilt. Valmiki was a tribal bandit, Guha a tribal chief, Satyavati, mother of Vyasa, was a fisherwoman. Neither Rama nor Krishna was a Brahmin.

The criticisms made in Dalit Voice on Hinduism, Brahmins etc. are all repetitions of what Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar, Father of India, had said. Please read his volumes of Writings and Speeches to know the Truth. This country has not produced a greater genius than Babasaheb. But the problem with the toxic Brahmins is they want to read nothing, learn nothing and know nothing. That is why Brahmins have not produced a single intellectual — EDITOR.

INDIA SHINING

Indian rulers forget its poor

New Delhi: India is failing its rural poor with 230 million people being undernourished — the highest for any country in the world. Malnutrition accounts for nearly 50% of child deaths in India as every third adult (aged 15-49 years) is reported to be thin (BMI less than 18.5). According to the latest report on the state of food insecurity in rural India, more than 1.5 million children are at risk of becoming malnourished because of rising global food prices. While general inflation declined from a 13-year high exceeding 12% in July 2008 to less than 5% by the end of January 2009, the inflation for food articles doubled from 5% to over 11% during the same period. Foodgrain harvest during 2008-09 is estimated to be a record 228 million tonnes. However, the requirement for the national population would exceed 250 million tonnes by 2015. India ranks 94th in the Global Hunger Index of 119 countries, the report said. Brought out by the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP), the report points to some staggering figures. More than 27% of the world’s undernourished population lives in India while 43% of children (under 5 years) in the country are underweight. The figure is among the highest in the world and is much higher than the global average of 25% and also higher than sub-Saharan Africa’s figure of 28%.

—(Times of India, Feb.27, 2009)

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Only 11% get higher education

Mysore: Only 11% had the access to higher education in the country in the year 2006-07, which is too low compared to 23% world average, University Grants Commission Chairman Prof. Sukhadeo Thorat said. Recognising the grave need the 11th Plan aims to increase the GER to 21% by the end of 12th plan with an interim target of 15% by 2012. He was delivering his convocation address at the 89th convocation of the University of Mysore at the Crawford Hall on March 7, 2009.

—(Deccan Herald, March 8, 2009)

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