Tragic events continue to highlight a fundamental shift in Hindu attitudes against the minorities in India
- Is it a delayed response to the country’s foreign occupation of Central Asian Sultans, Mughals and the British colonists?
- The Indus Valley civilization is generally believed to be where Hinduism began, with roots tracing back as far as 4000 BCE.
By Nazarul Islam | USA
Not long ago, a Bollywood movie had galvanized Hindu audiences, stirring up new waves of anti-Muslim bigotry across the northern India. Frequent episodes of religious violence in India point towards a desperate rush for change. Is it a delayed response to the country’s foreign occupation of Central Asian Sultans, Mughals and the British colonists?
Tragic events continue to highlight a fundamental shift in Hindu attitudes against the minorities in India. A hardline Hindu supremacist, infamous for his anti-Muslim comments and for policies that demonize or exclude Muslims, had won a second term as chief minister of India’s most populous state, Uttar Pradesh. His victory was projected as a ringing endorsement of the ideology of Hindutva.
A volatile India has expressed its anger over centuries of occupation and rule over its vast Hindu majority. Women’s hijabs are banned in one Indian state and Muslims are attacked for praying publicly in New Delhi.
The belief that India is not a secular nation, or even multi-religious, but an intrinsically Hindu country, is the central platform of India’s ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). But the “Hindu majority” invoked by supporters of Hindutva, in their agitation against Muslims and other minorities, is not a monolithic bloc. In fact, it is highly stratified, with elite groups of Hindus exploiting the vulnerability of marginalized communities for their own political ends.
The politicization of caste by Hindu nationalists is directly linked to violence in several ways:
Weaponizing grievances against minorities: Hindu nationalist leaders exploit anxieties among upper and middle-caste Hindus regarding affirmative action policies (reservations) for lower castes. By portraying Muslims as a “threat” and minorities as “appeased” by the state, they redirect inter-caste tensions toward a common, non-Hindu enemy.
Targeting lower castes who convert: Violence has been directed at lower-caste individuals who convert to other religions, particularly Christianity, to escape caste oppression. Hindu nationalists view these conversions as a demographic threat and use “anti-conversion” laws and vigilante attacks to prevent them.
Fueling inter-caste clashes: Violence is not solely directed at minorities. In 2018, clashes broke out in Mumbai between Dalits and right-wing Hindu groups during a commemoration of a 19th-century battle. Such incidents highlight the persistence of caste-based grievances and the role of Hindu nationalism in escalating tensions.
Violence to maintain social control: Higher-caste individuals, particularly in rural areas, have committed atrocities against Dalits to enforce traditional caste norms. Acts of violence, including murder and sexual violence, serve to humiliate Dalits and preserve their subordinate position.
Politicizing reservations and economic anxiety: Political shifts that empower lower-caste groups and expand affirmative action policies have prompted a “revolt of the upper castes”. The anger over perceived loss of privilege, combined with economic anxiety, has provided fertile ground for Hindu nationalist mobilization and related violence.
If Hindu unity is a facade, it also follows that the Hindu-Muslim binary, while a common framing for the discussion of Indian politics, cannot be as straightforward as it appears.
To understand the nuances of Indian politics, one needs to understand the complex caste system. At three thousand years old, this system of organizing Hindus by their professions and obligations is the world’s longest running hierarchy and probably the most rigid.
By some estimates, there are 3,000 main castes and as many as 25,000 sub-castes, with Brahmins (intellectuals) at the top and Shudras (menials) at the bottom.
Lying outside this system are the Dalits (formerly called ‘untouchables’) and the Adivasi (indigenous tribes), together totaling 350 million people, or just over a quarter of India’s population.
They are the most socio-economically marginalized groups in the country, but they are also contested over by Hindu nationalists, who see them as useful foot soldiers in the struggle against Islam.
An American welfare economist analyzed in her recent article that Hindu nationalism is led by the upper castes and their incitement of all Hindus against the Muslim minority is a ploy that enables them to keep their grip on Hindu society, says the welfare economist Jean Drèze.
She has mentioned this has made it all the more difficult for Dalits and other exploited groups to question their own oppression by the upper castes and revolt against it.”
Politics inside India’s caste system:
At the same time, there is a fear that other religions will prove more attractive to the disadvantaged communities who, being outside the caste system, need not have any particular loyalty to Hinduism. Dalits are not even allowed to enter many Hindu temples. Small wonder that Dr. Bhimrao Ramji Ambedkar (1891-1956), a revered Dalit leader and the head of the committee that drafted Indian constitution, urged every Dalit to convert to Buddhism
If the 25% of the population represented by such communities were to become Buddhists or Christians, the idea of Hindutva would be seriously weakened. Mass Dalit conversions have already taken place. In response, legal moves have been made in several Indian states to prevent people from leaving the Hindu religion.
The Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), a Hindu Nationalist group and the parent organization of the BJP, is also making strenuous if belated efforts to include Dalits and the Adivasis in the Hindu fold. Mohan Bhagwat, the head of the RSS, told a gathering in January that the caste system was “an obstacle to Hindu unity.”
Three years ago, he also said “we consider every Indian a Hindu.”
Using such language, the RSS is able to appeal to emotionally vulnerable Dalits, helping them feel accepted in a society that has historically excluded them. Dalits are told that they are “the real warriors of Hinduism.”
Time magazine has reported that the next step in India is a conversion “into active anti-Muslim sentiments,” Today a Dalit-rights activist, Meghwanshi formerly served in the organization and wrote a book about his experiences entitled I Could Not Be Hindu: The Story of a Dalit in the RSS.
We were trained to hate Muslims,” he says, “so we could be [RSS] foot soldiers in anti-Muslim riots.” (The great majority of those arrested in the 2002 Gujurat riots were from Dalit and other disadvantaged groups.)
Ironically, its middle initial stands for swayamsevak or “self-reliance,” when the RSS is heavily reliant on Dalits and Adivasis to do its dirty work during periods of communal violence.
Compounding the issue is the fact that the Muslim community is also stratified on caste lines, in ways that mirror the Hindu system. Indian Islam has its ashrafs (nobles), ajlafs (commoners), and arzals (“despicables”).
The political manipulation of disadvantaged castes will continue so long as they refuse to see that they are “simply pawns in the middle,” being led by “oppressor castes,” says Suraj Kumar Bauddh, an anti-caste activist and the founder of Mission Ambedkar. “Whether they are Hindu lower-caste communities, or Muslim lower-caste communities, they are only told to kill and die, to gain acceptance within either fold.”
The existence of a ready supply of expendable fighters can only exacerbate India’s spiraling religious tensions. Now more than ever, Dalits, Adivasis—and disadvantaged Muslims—must reframe the political debate.
Historically, Hinduism is a diverse set of traditions, philosophies, and ways of life that originated in the Indian subcontinent and has no single founder. The recent violence perpetrated by Hindu nationalists in India is not a result of inherent religious teachings but rather a politically motivated phenomenon that exploits religious identity for power.
It is difficult to offer a single, uniform definition of Hinduism because of its immense diversity, which includes a wide array of beliefs and practices. The term itself was coined by outsiders to describe the diverse religious phenomena of India. Key concepts shared by many Hindu traditions include:
Brahman: The ultimate, eternal reality that is formless, all-inclusive, and the source of the universe. Many Hindus believe that Brahman exists within all living things.
Dharma: This refers to the moral and ethical duties that guide individuals toward a righteous way of living. It varies according to a person’s abilities, age, and station in life.
Karma: The universal law of cause and effect, where a person’s actions and intentions directly determine their future lives. It emphasizes accountability but does not contain a concept of un-forgivable sin.
Samsara: The continuous cycle of birth, death, and rebirth.
Moksha: The ultimate goal of life, which is liberation from the cycle of samsara and the soul’s union with Brahman.
Ahimsa: The principle of non-violence toward all living beings. While considered the highest virtue by many, it coexists with traditions that accept the use of force under certain circumstances, such as in a righteous war (Dharmayuddha).
The religious-based violence in modern India is not characteristic of Hinduism as a whole but is specifically tied to the rise of Hindutva, a political ideology of Hindu nationalism that promotes Hindu supremacy and marginalizes minorities. This political movement intentionally uses religion to consolidate power and should not be equated with the diverse religious practices of the Hindu people.
Understanding the reasons behind violence in India related to religion is a complex issue with multiple interacting factors.
Four thousand years ago, the birth of Hinduism began as a fusion of diverse beliefs in the Indus Valley. With the passage of time, these convictions blossomed to shape the dominant faith of the Indian subcontinent. Its spread to China and the Far East, however, was less pervasive, and occurred primarily through ancient trade routes and cultural exchange that carried Indian thought, including Buddhism, to the wider region.
Early origins (c. 2300–1500 BCE)
The Indus Valley civilization is generally believed to be where Hinduism began, with roots tracing back as far as 4000 BCE.
Some of its core traditions are connected to prehistoric religions of the Bronze Age Indus Valley civilization.
Vedic period (c. 1500–500 BCE)
Around 1500 BCE, Indo-Aryan peoples migrated to the Indus Valley, where their culture blended with that of the indigenous people.
The Vedas—the earliest sacred texts of Hinduism—were composed during this time and focused on rituals such as sacrifices and chanting.
The Epic, Puranic, and Classic periods (c. 500 BCE–500 CE)
During this era, emphasis shifted toward the worship of specific deities, including Shiva, Vishnu, and Devi.
Important concepts like dharma (duty), karma (action and consequence), and samsara (reincarnation) were introduced in new texts.
The great epics, the Mahabharata and Ramayana, were written, which codified important moral values and continue to profoundly influence Indian and Southeast Asian culture.
The Gupta Empire (c. 320–550 CE) oversaw a “golden age” of Hinduism, as the faith spread and became formalized across the subcontinent.
What were the fundamental characteristics that led to the rise of Hinduism?
No single founder: Unlike many other major religions, Hinduism emerged from a synthesis of various traditions rather than from one individual.
Assimilation: The faith was shaped by the absorption of non-Vedic gods and practices, as local beliefs were gradually integrated into a broader Brahmanical framework.
Diversity: This fusion led to a wide range of traditions and philosophies, rather than a single, unified theological system.
What factors enabled Hinduism to spread to China and the Far East?
Trade routes were the vectors of influence
Hinduism spread east primarily along major trade networks like the Maritime and Overland Silk Roads. These routes allowed Indian merchants, priests, and scholars to travel, carrying their cultural and religious ideas with them.
Early Chinese and Arab records detail active trade and travel between India, Southeast Asia, and China, dating back to at least the 4th century CE.
Spread of Hinduism in China
Hindu influence appeared in China as early as the 1st century CE, often carried along with the concurrent spread of Buddhism.
Cultural absorption: Some Hindu concepts and deities were absorbed into Chinese religions, particularly Buddhism. For instance, some Hindu deities were venerated in Chinese temples, and some scholars trace the origins of the mythological figure Sun Wukong to the Hindu deity Hanuman.
Hindu communities and temples: Archaeological evidence shows a significant Hindu presence in medieval China, especially in port cities like Quanzhou, where Indian merchants built temples. These temples contained motifs of Hindu gods like Shiva and Vishnu.
Limited impact: Despite this historical presence, Hinduism never gained widespread popularity in China, unlike Buddhism. Most temples were later destroyed, with only relics and scattered carvings surviving.
Spread in Southeast Asia
In Southeast Asia, Hinduism took deeper root, influencing the formation of powerful kingdoms from the 1st to 15th centuries CE.
Sanskritization: Local rulers and elites in regions like Cambodia, Vietnam, and Java adopted Brahmanical culture and practices. Sanskrit became an official language, and Indian legal systems and scripts were introduced.
Hindu-Buddhist syncretism: In many areas, Hinduism coexisted and blended with Buddhism and indigenous animistic traditions. For example, the Khmer Empire initially promoted Hinduism before shifting toward Buddhism, but Hindu rituals still remain important in some state ceremonies.
Decline and legacy: Hinduism eventually declined in many parts of the region as Islam or Theravada Buddhism gained prominence. However, its cultural legacy endures:
Bali, Indonesia: Hinduism remains the dominant religion on the island of Bali.
Epics: The Ramayana and Mahabharata continue to be integral to the artistic and cultural traditions of many countries, such as Thailand’s Ramakien.
Architectural heritage: Majestic Hindu temples like Angkor Wat in Cambodia and Prambanan in Indonesia stand as monumental testaments to the faith’s historical influence.
Hinduism profoundly influenced Southeast Asian political structures by introducing the concept of divine kingship, providing a new model for political legitimacy, and offering an elaborate framework for a more centralized and enduring state. These Indianized traditions grafted a more structured political order onto what had been a system of less permanent, indigenous chiefdoms.
Read: Psychology: The Anatomy of Chaos
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The Bengal-born writer Nazarul Islam is a senior educationist based in USA. He writes for Sindh Courier and the newspapers of Bangladesh, India and America. He is author of a recently published book ‘Chasing Hope’ – a compilation of his articles.
