Thursday, 29 March 2018

Temple Entry


Temple Entry
All village temples in our panchayat are open to all, and one important temple in the Reddy village, Varadappanaidupeta, has a SC priest because historically the god had appeared to that family in a dream 100 years ago.
But the Rama temple in the next village Vallivedu was not open to them. To me in the midst of pressing social issues of food and water crisis and livlihoods, that was a non issue, and no one else seemed concerned either.
But 5 years ago, when the temple deity on its annual procession changed the old way and included the SC village in the route, there was much joy, and people made generous offerings of coconuts and prasad. So I learnt that to village communities, essentially religious, these temple dynamics hold deeper significance of assertion and empowerment that we sometimes understand. And then I understood better the Temple Entry demands of Gandhi and Narayana Guru and the others.
Komakkambedu Himakiran Anugula Symbolism!
Komakkambedu Himakiran Anugula The fact that the people rejoiced is proof that there was latent anger in them. Like most people they learn to live with it. But this is seen as acceptance of status quo as correct by the Manu Smriti proponents. For them, all is well in Bharat. For us we know there is anger and we find ways to change the situation by socioeconomic reforms.
Aparna Krishnan True. What i was trying to say was that temple is a core need to the people, which has been denied. We cannot advice atheism to them. we need to claim temple entry. And in that empowerment happens.
Aparna Krishnan That Ambedkar converted the people, rather than advised atheism is to his credit - in understanding that people will not give up religiousness on this land.
Aparna Krishnan But my village people will also not really give up Gangamma or Balaji, and take Buddha. So I really wonder how many of Ambedkar's followers stayed Buddhist.
Komakkambedu Himakiran Anugula Now you will understand why a staunch Atheist like Periyar played a key role in the Vaikkom temple entry issue.
Aparna Krishnan Yes. And yes, maybe he would have been wiser societally to demand correction in the religion, rather than atheism in followers. I'm sure all of them pray on the sly !
Komakkambedu Himakiran Anugula You need to understand the context of the times. Travancore was called a mental asylum by Vivekananda himself. There was no space for debate there. Unless someone shook the rotten foundations of the system, nothing would have changed. He took on a temple that was backed by the King himself. That's what makes it special.
Unless an Atheist comes along, believers don't change!
Aparna Krishnan Not quite true. Narayana guru and Vivekananda did impact. Also Periyar spewed venom of religion, which was humiliating. Wheat he missed maybe was that the very people he stood for also revered divinity. Anyway much was acheived, and much water has flowed also. And that he was central in the Vaikom issue, and he stood shoulder oto shoulder with SNDP speaks for itself. I think much was rhetoric all said and done, and not worth bothering about in this late day, "Nagamma with Mrs. Joseph, Mrs. T. K. Madhavan and Mrs. Govindan Channar, among others formed a Women's committee to persuade the women of the villages and get them ready to participate in the Satyagraha. They went around villages explaining to the women, the meaning and purpose of this Satyagraha and collecting from them, handfuls of rice and small changes to maintain the volunteers' needs. The women started to offer Satyagraha on May 20, 1924. Nagamma was arrested along with Mrs. T.K. Madhavan and later released. Nagamma's leadership induced courage and solidarity in the women." Nagamma, Periyar's wifr, and Mrs. Mahadevan on SNDP !
Komakkambedu Himakiran Anugula "spewed venom on religion"? why such a spin? he simply lamblasted religion and its practitioners to counter a system that treated 95% of the people as dirt.
It's amazing why none of the social reform movements didn't become violent. The anger was real and it was people like Periyar who channeled that into self respect.
You are taking his words targeted at a hegemony and applying that to the villagers you know. That's diversionary. Why is it that since we are believers, we only want believers to come and reform us? Our system gives space to believers and non believers in equal measure.
Aparna Krishnan i agree that everyone can and should question - theist and atheist. i also agree that my perspective from the village religiousness colours my responses. There was a post the other day where he says beleivers are crooks, and barbarians etc. But that is probably rhetoric, but still i would avoid it. But as you say the rage can be understood only by someone standing in those shoes.
Sailesh Bhupalam well i have to agree with you that religion is a social necessity. I don't think people in general are wired to think they are autonomous beings without connection to any divinity, not for another century or two and not in this society. My personal opinion about Periyar is, he was a champion of the reform movements, but his anger clouded his wisdom. If he had taken religion into the fold of his reforms, he would have probably been more successful.




Sudha Gupta I don't understand why people want to go to such temples where entry is restricted God is not in those temples I a Brahmin but will not go to such temples however big and famous it may be Build a puja place in your house and meditate there
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Aparna Krishnan About demanding temple entry, it was not for nothing that giants like Gandhi and Narayana guru made that a plank, rather than saying 'pray at home'. Caste discrimination needs to be questioned in bold and public ways.
Komakkambedu Himakiran, Raghunandan Tr and 3 others
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  • Jagannath Chatterjee
    In Bengal the shrine at home was much more important than the Temple. Brahmins are supposed to worship and meditate three times a day.
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  • Jagannath Chatterjee
    Brahmins did play truant in Bengal. But they were put in place by Lord Chaitanya and then the duo of Sri Ramakrishna and Swami Vivekananda. However there were many more Brahmins who were large hearted than those narrow minded. The latter were always caricatured.
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  • Aparna Krishnan
    Caricaturing has the problem of diverting from serious addressing of any issue.
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    • 5y
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  • Aparna Krishnan
    Now when the modern day highest-in-pecking-order in the EnglishFluent person, rather than a brahmin, the activists are not ready to address that shift. That amazes me.
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  • Raghunandan Tr
    Agree here. I am not a temple goer, but I can understand, when I listen to my mother, who witnessed the temple entry movement first hand, what a big thing it was at that time. It was perhaps the most powerful symbolic step to show that things were beginning, and ought to change.
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    • Aparna Krishnan
      That generation of our parents saw giants, and witnessed process that reaffirmed their faith in possibilities and in power of integrity. I envy them. But we at least drew on them. The next generation we have offered little to I feel. I would have loved to hear your mother's accounts. please write about those stories sometime.
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