When I heard of a few people, in India, starving because of the lockdown, I was initially unsure of what to make of it! After all, people usually are smart enough to stock up on groceries prior to such occurrences! True, but none of us, least of all those of us in the USA, could predict how long something similar can take place and people slowly started running out of essential stuff to keep their families happy! Now, people have been under lockdown, for over 2 months and quite a few of the people are on their last few items before they call for help! Given the dire situation, they need help but who’s going to provide this? In any other situation, people knew exactly where to go, but this is not any other situation! We’re battling a virus that we know zilch, nada, about!
I was voicing my concern, over the phone, to a friend of mine, who’s from the RSS, and he listened to my rant quite patiently. When I was done, he quietly said, “Have them call the RSS. We will make sure they’re not going to starve!” I replied, “but these are not Hindus” since I had heard the wrong things about the RSS! He patiently replied, “Did I ask you whether they were Hindus?” I had to shamefacedly reply “No”. His reply bowled me over. “NO ONE should go to bed hungry. NO ONE”!
Visuals of the RSS swayamsevaks serving ALL affected during any calamity have always been shown; it’s just that people have refused to see them or believe them. You have to excuse these biased writers as they are just working on fulfilling their preset agenda, one of discrediting the Sangh. Writers like Sanjeev Sabhlok have really never bothered to understand the Sangh, what it stands for, nor have they any friends in the RSS. I do!
What makes me laugh is these writers claim to have no allegiance to any religion, and yet write about subjects they know NOTHING about! If all Mr Sabhlok remembers Lord Krishna for, is his friendship with Sudama, I feel sorry for him! If all he remembers from The Ramayana are the dutiful sons, he probably should read the whole book! There’s many more chapters that describe the victory of good over evil, Sir. You might actually learn a thing or two!
“Jai Sriram” is NOT a war cry, as this writer makes it out to be. Again, let me reiterate for the millionth time, Hindutva is an amalgamation of two words, Hindu and Tatva(Hindu Philosophy, Mr Sabhlok). Would you have the intestinal fortitude to write about Islam or Christianity in a similar way? I will answer that question for you: an emphatic NO! Why is it that a greeting causes so much panic in my liberal brotherhood? I haven’t heard this kind of panic when someone says “Assalam Alaikum”!
We are considered communal when we say Jai Sriram or Shubh Ratri but are pluralistic when we say Assalam Alaikum or Good Night! How so? Don’t they mean the same thing? Apparently not, otherwise the learned people in my brotherhood would not object to it! No one has a problem with a Muslim wishing a Hindu with the Assalam Alaikum, and rightly so! That’s their way of greeting and is perfectly acceptable, just as Jai Sriram should be! Why then do we have double standards. I remember an advertisement, I’m not going to name the source as that would give them unwanted publicity, where the voice-over said, something to the effect of, “Lighting lamps during Diwali is generating carbon monoxide so please stop”. The same source said, on Christmas, “Light a lamp for the savior of humanity”! Really? This is what we are being told everyday!!!
People that believe that Jai Sriram is regressive should take a look at Assalam Alaikum and tell me if this is all inclusive and progressive! It’s very easy to pontificate from the towering mansions they live in, but the ground reality is that Hindus want to be given the freedom to greet each other in any which way they choose without being shamed!
I will close out by telling you how proud I am of the former Pakistani cricketer, Danish Kaneria, who was interviewed by an Indian channel. He greeted the host with a Jai Sriram. The host replied with a namaste!! The host was a Hindu too! I’m sure he didn’t want to be perceived as communal! Public perception has become of prime importance to Hindus while the Muslims could give a damn what one thinks of them!!
जय श्रीराम। हर हर महादेव। उत्तिष्ठ भारत। जय माँ भारती
God Bless the USA.