I got this post through Whatsapp from a college friend today. Obviously the reference was to the Asifa rape case, which reportedly happened in a temple. What it definitely does not say is that the first FIR neither mentions that any Rape had happened, nor does it mention that the murder of Asifa had happened in the temple. In fact it does mention that she had fresh soil on her clothes & body, that she had been murdered more than 8 days back & that she had not been raped. This article is not about contesting the first FIR or the subsequent FIRs. This article is also not about the botched up investigation of the J&K Police. This article is about RAPE – but which rape? It is the rape of Hinduism and the Hindu society.
Before we go further, I’d like to point out that I am not at all pointing fingers to Islamists or Christians. I am pointing my fingers, and all five of them, on the Hindus themselves.
When such a shameless post comes on one’s timeline, what should any ordinary Hindu do? If we want to claim that we are Hindus, then the first thing should be to INTROSPECT. Is it possible for anyone to rape anybody for 7 days continuously in any temple which has people going in and out of the temple? Anyone who has been to a temple would know that it is only at night that the temple is closed completely – at all other times, even if the door is closed for Darshan, it will the door which has grills on it, so that the devotee can take Darshan of the Idol from afar. This is true in almost all the temples – there may be exceptions, but the temple at Jammu was NOT an exception. In such a case, should any Hindu forward such a post?
Secondly, is there any connection between permitting a woman during her menstrual cycle inside the temple & raping a woman inside the temple? Should one not even for a minute think about this? Ignorance about traditions, rituals and customs should not make one blind to COMMONSENSE. This is not the first time a Hindu has been made to feel ashamed about his traditions & rituals. It is like as if the yoke of shame has to perpetually be on the Hindu’s neck, so that he never looks up & feels proud of his ancient heritage & knowledge systems. That subtle energy which is so Sukshm that it cannot be seen through the naked eye, is continuously harped on as an ‘orthodox belief’ in an attempt to discredit it – that is till some White (sorry, not trying to be racist) happens to ‘discover’ it and repackages it & sells it to us.
Thirdly, is it only Hindus who should feel shame for such a heinous crime? Is it only Hindus who commit such a heinous crime? Should the crime be protested against, or should the religion of the perpetrator of the crime be protested against? Every other day, I see news articles of rape, molestation and sodomy happening in Churches and Madrasas, by Bishops & Maulvis, no less; I read about the Pope and the Imams forgiving the molestors and rapists. But till today I have not seen any article about Muslims or Christians taking out protests against these Bishops, Maulvis, or rapists of either of those religions. Fact is that we Hindus have begun to think that we are so good, pure & perfect, that for every heinous crime foisted on us, we must protest against the criminal Hindus. So far so good – but we forget that we should protest against the crime first & against the criminal only when it is established that he/she has committed the crime. What we do instead is that we protest against the alleged criminal first (especially when he/she is a Hindu) & then the crime! In fact if the criminal belongs to a Minority religion, we forget about the victim & the crime itself. No forwards then!
Fourthly, I really want to know, which religion uses rape as a method of punishment? Is it Hinduism? I definitely do not think so. Then on what basis is a crime so horrid as rape being used to talk bad about Hindu temples, Hindu rituals or Hindus as a society? Look at these images:
How is the religion of the person over and above the seriousness of the Crime? In the first picture, is there any indication of whether Hindus commit crimes in the Middle East? Is there any indication of the basis of riots in Bharat? And what is the basis for newspapers like the New York Times and Washington Post (article by Barkha Dutt), to mention that Hindu nationalists are defending the accused? Do they have any proof of the crime or the perpetrator of the crime, sitting in the USA? When Terrorism, Conversion, Bestiality (which happens very much in Europe) have no religion, how does Rape in Bharat have a religion? And again, why are Hindus the ones who are writing such posts? Is money over and above your own identity as a Bharatiya or as a Hindu? If you are truly ashamed of being a Hindu, please read up more about what it is that makes one a Hindu. Hint: It is not your birth.
I was sent a link to a site which asked for #JusticeforAsifa by a friend – I asked the person sending the link, why have you never asked for Justice for the others who are raped? Pat came the answer – “Yaar yeh forward aaya hai – toh maine bhi forward kiya. Friend ne bheja tha … tujhe karna hai toh kar, nahi toh chod na”. Another person feigned ignorance about the other rapes happening in Bharat & said, “Media mein jo case aate hai, we follow that. More than that, who has the time to see? That way toh roz rapes hote honge”. So much sympathy, empathy, fight for justice, sorrow, etc. etc. Fact is that no Hindu wants to get up and fight for the Hindus. Kashmir genocide has proved that for us. What is happening in Jammu is the precursor to a repeat performance – Rohingyas are waiting to occupy our land. It is easier to hold candle marches by night, that too, if someone else starts it. We are a community who want our neighbour’s son to be Bhagat Singh, and our daughters to be Shakti. But no, we don’t want that for our sons and daughters-in-law respectively. We have become lazy, basking in the glory of our heritage. We don’t even want to protest wrongful history being foisted on us & take pride in saying that our children learnt English before they learnt their Mother-tongue.
To conclude, Hindus have to wake up & start understanding how slickly we are being made to feel ashamed of ourselves. This awakening cannot happen outside, it has to happen within each person, each family. This awakening should not happen with a victim complex. We should not consider ourselves as Victims but as Proud Protectors of our Culture, our Religion. Do not allow anyone to revile your religion. To rephrase Swami Vivekanand – “Awake, Arise – Stop not till you have revived Hinduism to its Old Glory!”