Elections2014 - Not all those who lost are defeated

No battle is won without losing a few brave soldiers. Elections aren't very different when it comes to victory and defeat. With the outstanding victory BJP registered, there were few candidates who lost too. Out of many, the most shocking was the news about the defeat of Shahnawaz Hussain and Arun Jeitley. Smriti Irani even with a defeat, made her fans proud. It is important to analyse the reasons for the loss of these Stalwarts.
  

Shahnawaz Hussain lost from a narrow margin of 9,000 votes! now that takes away the pain from the sting a bit. no?

Arun Jaitley on the other hand became a victim of BJP and his own mistakes and his opponents' effective strategies. First the Navjot Singh Siddhu's issue and then when finally his candidature was confirmed, Congress decided to pull out one of its Big Guns - Ex-CM Capt Amrinder Singh. While Capt Amrinder Singh focused on local issues, Arun Jaitley focused on National issues, which ofcourse helped people to find a connect with Capt. Amrinder Singh and not Arun Jaitley. Capt. Amrinder Singh in addition raised the issue of Jaitley being an 'outsider'.

What impresses me about Jaitley is that neither during election campaigns nor in defeat, did Arun Jaitley ever abandon his Gentlemanly behavior. During the campaign in Amritsar, the two opponents were seen greeting each other warmly during a morning walk. After the results were declared he made sure to greet Capt. Amrinder Singh for his victory - something other Politicians need to learn from Jaitley. 

Last but not the least, Our very own 'India's Bahu' - Smriti Zubin Irani! what a brilliant Lady - Her Poise, Her Grace and her command over language! While AAP kept trying to make the battle in Amethi look like 'RaGa V/s  Kumar Vishwas', as soon as Smriti Irani entered the battle field, it was only Her against RaGa. Kumar Vishwas was no where in the scene, which was even reflected in the poll results when Kumar Vishwas lost his deposit! Kumar Vishwas had managed to secure only 25,527 votes - a humiliating defeat. The margin between Smriti Irani and RaGa was 1.08 Lakh - not a Huge gap, considering previous margins registered by the Gandhi scion. 

Not all those who have lost are defeated. So, along with the victorious, let us not forget the dedicated soldiers who gave a tough fight to their mighty opponents and who made sure that a huge part of the resources and efforts of the other party were concentrated in defeating them. In many ways, they served as a mighty shield that helped keep others safe. A huge Salute and a round of applause for them. 

Inferences drawn from 'Har-Har Modi' issue

As the election campaign for Narendra Modi moved forward with cries of 'Har Har Modi, Ghar Ghar Modi', a controversy too followed. Many devout Hindus and 'Secular' Congress leaders took objection on the use of this slogan, but it was Shankaracharya Shri Swaroopanand Saraswati of Jyotirpeeth who strongly condemned the use of 'Har Har Modi' slogan. Modi promptly requested his supporters to do the same. While the slogan has been MODIfied as 'Har dil Modi, Ghar ghar Modi', there are few interesting things to note about this whole incidence.

It was a pleasant surprise to see Congress for once talking about Hindu sentiments. Yes, we are talking about the same Congress that in its arrogance had even put a question mark on existence of Raam! Recently a Congress Leader, P. Shankar Rao, was in news for constructing a temple dedicated to Sonia Gandhi. Even in past, Sonia Gandhi has been portrayed as Goddess Durga in posters. 



The sycophants do not only exist in Congress, but in every party. A good example is the case of BJP's Hemant Bohra from Jodhpur, Rajasthan, who printed a poster depicting Vasundhra Raje as Goddess Annapoorna. 

Why limit ourselves to Politics?

Sport Personalities like 

Sachin Tendulkar and MS Dhoni too were found in similar controversy. 

While Hindu Saints have been demanding a ban on Cow slaughter, India becomes leader in Beef exports. No heed was payed to their cries when they marched to Delhi to save river Yamuna. Swami Nigamanand died after fasting for 73 days to save holy river Ganga, but no one seemed to care. I have immense respect for Shankaracharya Shri Swaroopanand Saraswati as religious scholar, and eagerly want to know his views on all the above mentioned incidences. I would love to know why he only chose to speak on 'Har Har Modi', and not on any other issue? But I doubt, these questions will ever be answered. 

In any case, whats interesting is that Modi supporters stopped using the slogan after Modi's request, and not because of Shankaracharya's criticism. Usually labelled 'Communal', Hindu masses rejected a Religious Head's views for a leader who talks about development. I try to compare this with Shahi Imam's recent visit to Sonia Gandhi and his endorsement of Mamata Banerjee. Azam Khan addresses a conference of Madrassa managers and Principals to secure his party's Muslim vote bank. This only hints that these religious heads hold a good influence over a huge Muslim population. what inference do I draw from this?  

I'm sure any sane mind will agree with me when I say Religion should not be allowed to control politics of a Nation. While the Majority seems to have learnt this lesson, the Minority yet seems to be in need of time to accept this fact. 

In light of these facts, let us now argue the definition of 'Communalism'. 

How the previous generation of Hindus messed up the current ones.

No this is not just about religion, but cultural heritage and Pride. Those who lack patience may skip the first two paragraphs.

While growing up, I was fascinated with the stories of Hindu gods and goddesses. Most of them were narrated by my grand parents to me at night. They were like short fairy tales, with a moral. Also, had B.R. Chopra not made Mahabharat and Ramanand Sagar, Ramayan, my knowledge about these epics would have been very limited. The Shiv Lingam, for me, was a symbol of Mahadev, but I had no clue about the reasons or story behind it. No elder could give me a satisfactory explanation about it. The term 'Hindu Mythology' pushed me to believe that all the stories that I heard and read were only myths, designed to give us moral lessons. Learning Darvin's theory of Evolution, only strengthened this view. A heavy load of textbooks during school and college made it difficult to find time for reading heavy philosophy of Vedas and Upnishads. Numerous Movies and News about Dhongi-Babas pushed me further away from my own religion. The cast discrimination pushed me further away. My doubts and questions seldom found satisfactory answers by elders; for they never questioned their elders out of respect. At some point, religion for me, became an unscientific and irrational belief. And so, I subscribed to Atheism. I am sure, many will relate to this. 

I remained an Atheist for quite sometime, but the questions still haunted me. By now, reading 'Liberal' writers, I found out that Shiv Lingam was a Phallic symbol. Still not convinced, in search of answers, I started reading and reflecting. It was at this very juncture, that I found the beauty of the religion that I was born with. Even as a non-believer, the philosophy of Vedas and Upnishads had an appeal. Soon new discoveries started linking myths with reality. And so, the circle of belief, for me, was complete; my belief was back, only stronger. I found the real meaning of Shiva Lingam and its story; It is a symbol representing infinite pillar of light that was created by Mahadev.

So, why do I blame the previous generations? 
Because they did not question their elders. If they did, they could have been able to answer the questions of the younger ones. The ones that were fascinated by the modern scientific advancements, abandoned their rich Ancient wisdom. In their enthusiasm for modern western education, they left behind Hindu history as myths.  The devout ones gave up rational explanations and subscribed to blind faith and followed rituals without even trying to find the real meanings behind them. Religion for them was synonymous with rituals. The upstarts in their attempts to sound modern and liberal, went on to criticise scriptures without even reading and understanding them. In their quest for a good salary, they forgot to feed their minds. Their dismissal turned into our loss, their assertions became our burdens. The previous generations, in general, were divided into two extremes - The blind believers and the Liberal atheists; And both encouraged modern education, neglecting Hindu Science, philosophy and history. They held on to the pride of their casts but gave up their duties dictated by the caste system. (no, I'm not advocating caste system. all I'm saying is why just drop the duties and keep the caste pride? abandon both!)

The previous generations created a void, which now is being exploited by missionaries and mullahs to convert young Hindus. Cinema too never misses a chance to capitalise on such vulnerability. The previous generation was blessed with Movies like 'Guide', while we are misguided by the likes of 'Oh my God'. While the common Hindu youth is still confused with numerous versions of 'mythological' stories, opportunists like Amish Tripathi, an atheist, pens down novels like 'Immortals of Meluha' using Shiva and other gods for characters in his second rate fictional story with a language that lacks luster. The Leftists and Liberals, in their arrogance, do not care for this rich heritage and not only support likes of Wendy Doniger in the name of 'freedom of speech' but also try to twist the facts. Painters like M. F. Hussain lack balls to draw nudes relating to his own religion, yet find fame with disturbing paintings of Hindu Gods and Goddesses. 

Textbooks in schools sing praises of Gandhis and Nehrus, but mention very little about Maharana Pratap, Shivaji and Hemchandra Vikramaditya. Bappa Raval doesnt find even a small mention. We are taught Algebra, Pythagora's theorem, Value of Pi etc. and told that their discovery has foreign roots. The reality is, Indians knew it all when the west was still dwelling in caves.The previous generation quietly allowed the Government to rob us of our Hindu Pride. 

Had it not been for the likes of Sri Sri Ravishankar, Dr Chandraprakash Dwivedi, Swami Vivekanand, ISKCON, Gayatri Parivar and Arya Samaj, the Hindu society would have either fallen back into dark ages and its superstitions or transformed into radical Atheists. Had it not been for westerners like Allen Watts, we would have only seen a crooked western view of our culture and philosophy.

Though the generation before ours dismissed the existance of Raam-Setu, Dwarika (Krishna's city) and River Saraswati, the generation before them had a firm belief on these matters, but had no proof. Our generation though has proof, but is confused. Its like we have pieces of a jigsaw puzzle but have no idea how the original picture was, to begin with.

Cut the branches, yet the tree will survive. Sever its roots, soon it will die. 
will our generation be able to get back to our roots? 
Who knows. Theres always hope.