Are we cowards or courageous? Hope lies in women’s power: Nuns, Triple Talaq and Sabarimala

Three Prisoners in Cangue or Wooden Pillory as Public Punishment & Humiliation China c1890 (Photo by Chris Hellier/Corbis via Getty Images)

 

Rati Hegde

Written by RATI HEGDE

 

       Note: Why I am a “Know-nothing?” Only yesterday I wrote in the facebook, the following: “All vociferous talk on Sabarimala shows once again that women could be their worst enemies when it comes to defending gender equality.

      “Proof is Smriti Irani a Union minister talking and acting as misogynistic as many men or more. She is no spokesperson for GENDER equality, least of all a feminist. She could be seen as a spokesperson for the present day Catholic church. Three cheers to our Nuns who think and act differently.

      “Otherwise we have to conclude that the Catholic god who created menstruating woman made a mistake and still called his creation GOOD.”

Cowards or Courageous?

       Today comes the elaborate comment by Rati Hegde raising the question: “Are we Bharatis (courageous) or Bheeratis (cowards) in the article given below  after comparing persons from Hindu, Muslim and Christian communities. So you decide who is a knowledgeable person.

        The conclusion arrived at long ago by this “Know-nothing’ is that the greatest wonder in the universe is that no individual here below is alike another to compare, as it is impossible to hunt with the hounds and run with the rabbits. No universal law is applicable to all. Each one of us has his/her own lights, that of a Fire-fly down below or of the  sun in the heavens.

Follow commanding conscience!

         So each of us have to be led by our own limited light called commanding conscience to be HAPPY AND CONTENDED now and for ever. Comparisons are odious! Trying to become or ape some one else is the source of all unhappiness or misery in this world.

        What is to be affirmed at all cost is equality of all, starting with gender equality to equality of all humans irrespective of their caste, colour, creed, community or country. Equally what is to be abhorred at all cost is violence becoming “Homo hominis lupus” (man becoming a wolf to another).

Son of Man, Only option!

        To be perfect what is to be avoided at all cost is comparisons (always odious) that happens even among equals. It is here the SON OF MAN who emptied himself and became the last, least, a slave and washed the feet even of wrong doers,   became the model par excellence!

      Any one in the present multi-layered divisive hierarchical Catholic Church to imitate him? Francis put himself one step below the laity to deserve the title: ‘Servant of servants’. Unless and until the rest starts imitating him, just forget all about reforming or restructuring the present “better-than-thou” Catholic Church.  james kottoor, editor ccv.

 

Please read below Rati Hegde’s  article

 

If anyone tells me today that we were brave and intellectual in the past, I’ll agree with them whole-heartedly. But I’ll also ask them as to what happened to our present race. Show me one brave and intellectual Hindu, Muslim or Christian.

From Bha-ratis we have become Bhee-ratis – total cowards. Bharati is one who has the orb of knowledge and courage surrounding him. Bheerati is the one who is Bheeru –coward. Now before you decide to chide me for such a statement, please do read…

What does any ordinary Hindu do when he sees something unjust happening within the community?

  • He walks away from the scene.
  • He rationalizes it within himself and says it is Kalyug.
  • He justifies his non-participation in stopping it by saying to himself, “It is the duty of someone else.”
  • He blames his earlier generation, previous politicians, judiciary, media & everyone else.
  • If there is a violent agitation, he’ll try to keep away. If there’s a candle march, he’ll try to participate.
  • If the injustice is towards his religion, he’ll try first to be secular. Then he’ll try to remind his brainwashed brain about his regressive, patriarchal culture and give excuses. Even after all this, if he feels he should do something, he’ll look for a petition to sign – that too, only if it doesn’t display his name, email id or other information.
  • The maximum an average Hindu will do is fight online via Social Media … here too, he may want to mask his identity & not show is face or name.

What does any ordinary Muslim do when he sees something unjust is happening within the community?

  • He shuts up about it on every social platform, because he has to see if anyone is raising their voice first and then see what happens to that person.
  • He tries to tell the world that this injustice is happening because of years of discrimination against his community/religion.
  • He checks whether it is injustice as per his holy book & the teachings in his community place of worship.
  • If he still feels that something wrong is happening, he prefers to be invisible or leave the place till the situation is sorted out. (eg. if a group forces one to recite prayers in office during Ramzan and one doesn’t want to do so, one leaves on office work exactly during those hours)
  • If pressurized to take a stand, he says it is the internal matter of the community, refuses to hear or speak anymore.
  • On Social Media, he prefers to keep quiet if he is against the tide, but speaks voraciously if he wants to apportion blame.

 

What does any ordinary Christian do when he sees something unjust happening within the community?

  • First and foremost, he waits for the Padre of his Church to speak on it.
  • Then he waits and waits for the Bishop / Archbishop / Pope to speak on it.
  • Then he waits to see how much the Media defends his community.
  • Then he keeps quiet.
  • If anyone from his own community supports the victims, he neither supports the victim nor the supporter.
  • He will talk in whispers in the Church & say how something wrong is going on and the whole system has to be cleaned, but he will not talk out loudly or openly.

In such a situation, can we really expect Bharat to become the power it was? A country becomes successful only if the people are brave and knowledgeable.

Still I think we have some scope to regain our glory. It is believed by Hindus that when Maha Vishnu, the Protector of the Universe sleeps, it is Devi – the Mother Goddess, who protects. Looking at the women in all the above three religions coming out of their houses to protest wrongdoing, whether it was the Nuns, or the Triple Talaaq or the Sabarimala issue, I still have hope for Bharat. Long live Naari Shakti

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1 Response

  1. Joseph Karukapally says:

    We as Catholics should refrain from taking a stance on Sabarimala.

    The reasons are very obvious. Let us first strive to put our house in order before we go out to redeem the world. As it is we are hands full of problems of our own in every front from gender equality to sexual exploitation, child abuse, financial abuse to name a few.

    We are not on the high moral ground to preach to the Hindus, as to how they should handle their religion.

    As Indians, you can air the opinions but in a different mouth piece.

    JOSEPH KARUKAPPALLY

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