Future Strategic Scenario for the Indian Subcontinent -II

[joshvajohn]

When I talked about imposing I was not necesarily talking about Modi. In Karnataka recently a minister wanted all the school children must study Gita which is an imposition of BJP. I do wish people read and study Gita but not necessarily imposed. I hear many westerners say they hate reading Bible because as children they were forced to read bible.

Accept Gita or quit India, says Karnataka education minister
http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes ... ster-epics

regarding Modi the fear is mainly the way Muslims were handled in particular cases particularly burning of a muslim alive and the link to the police and so on. This is yet to be discovered but threatening of so called many races and religious coexistence in India!
THEY HATE US, WE FEAR THEM – THE SITUATION IN GUJARAT
http://www.indianmuslims.info/articles/ ... jarat.html


In India people have to live with 140 million Mulsims and 27 million Christians besides Jains, Sikhs and so on.You must realise the fact that this is not a campaign against Modi anyway. As he fasts for communal harmony he may have to take extrasteps to build a confidence in wider society at national level.

[Sanku]

"Missionary" acts are not the fiefdom of any one group in the world. All groups need to practice it, as an when needed to protect their core from predatory acts by others -- as also to extend the group that believes in it.

There is nothing wrong in consolidating Indian thoughts and Indian values in Indian children, we after all do not want a MTV generation.

So you see SRoy, stuff is happening.

[joshvajohn]

yes Sanku I agree with your points. But how do we address this issue of MTV culture? When parents have two children one is conservative and another is MTV culture. How do we encourage them not to become either extreme fundamentalist and also extremely liberal though being religious and having freedom in thinking and acting are both important. In this way learning some of the core texts in one's own religion is important and promoting their reading is more important than imposing them!

[Sanku]

In this way learning some of the core texts in one's own religion is important and promoting their reading is more important than imposing them!

It is incorrect to associate Indian philosophical texts as
1) Religious
2) Imposition.

Consider it a easy primer to introduction to Indian thought process. Its not a imposition, its encouragement.

Much needed sorely lacking.

People need to distinguish between religious and philosophical matters. Just because there are Indian texts which predate the entry of external religions in India, they do not axiomatically become a religious text.

I remember some one was cribbing about Arihant being a "Hindu" name; where as its a Sanskrit word. Such confusions must be sorted out.

Exposure to real Indian culture, history and philosophy as opposed to the British imposition will be a good start.

[vishvak]

Though I agree with US Congress in terms of best governance of Modi, I think BJP should not revolve around some individuals if it has to come to power next term and if they ever dream of Advani being the pm. There is a lot of fear factor around Modi still in the mind of people as well as in the mind of political parties the events in Gujarat which many would assume that may be repeated at national level. The central governance is possible only with anti congress joining in the coalition with BJP. I appreciate Modi for the courage to bounce back in many ways in terms of development and administration but if BJP has to come to power it has to work with people with diverse views and accommodate wide range of people who may converge and sympthise with many of their concerns. They should not behave like missionaries in the sense of imposing their own version of Hinduism in India on all people as there are varieties of Hindu texts and versions that need to be accommodated besides the minorities and their views particularly that of Muslims. I do not wish to see India turning into another Pakistan style where everyday there will be a bomb here and there because the minorities are pushed to sides by the governments. This is purely a political critique and opinion about India's future leadership.
Narendra Modi's Gujarat best example of effective governance: US report
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/indi ... 977258.cms

I think the fear factor is mostly political. It is nowhere as such within Gujarat, where international funding against BJP has perhaps failed. Yesterday there was this discussion on a news channel Times Now, where this was pointed out. Minorities, perticularly muslims, are voting for Modi also. In Godhra town a BJP candidate perhaps won a local election.

The same anti-minority treatment is however not extended to Rajiv who ignored anti-Sikh riots in Delhi by the same media national or international.

No one in media is even bothered about duties of Chief Ministers of various states where ethnic cleansing of Hindus is going on or was going on. These include Chief Ministers of J&K, Nagaland, Tripura, etc.

This unfair treatment means that the entire discourse is bogus and anti-Hindu.

A most noticeable part is silence of media, national and international, on massacres and mistreatment of Hindu pilgrims in various states. This behavior include burning women's compartment, derailment of trains carrying Hindu pilgrims, takeover and mismanagement of Hindu melas, banning Hindu festivals, etc.

I have no sympathy for national or international media & those who project unfair image. If they all vanish tomorrow, I am sure I will not cry an ocean.

India is a multicultural country and people have to accommodate Hindu ethos also. By these standards, American, Europeans and Arabs are extremely right-wing and even worse, but where is media pointing it out. I think BJP knows more about civility than -wolves in sheep's clothing-parties in USA-Europe-Middle East.

Has anyone ever wondered why minorities like Parsis, Jews, Bahais, etc. do not go on the bogus anti-Modi bandwagon.

What are views of Jews in India about 'mistreatment of minorities in India'?

[Arjun]

Imposing the Gita, as opposed to making it optional, is not warranted....In Karnataka what actually happened was that a circular was issued to support a program for teaching Gita - but the program was entirely non-compulsory and to be done after-hours for those who were interested in attending.

The Minorities Commission had challenged this in court - but the petition was dismissed when the court found that the program was not compulsory.

[SRoy]

"Missionary" acts are not the fiefdom of any one group in the world. All groups need to practice it, as an when needed to protect their core from predatory acts by others -- as also to extend the group that believes in it.

There is nothing wrong in consolidating Indian thoughts and Indian values in Indian children, we after all do not want a MTV generation.

So you see SRoy, stuff is happening.

Unfortunately not.

I'll reply in the GDF version of the thread.

[vishvak]

Imposing the Gita, as opposed to making it optional, is not warranted....In Karnataka what actually happened was that a circular was issued to support a program for teaching Gita - but the program was entirely non-compulsory and to be done after-hours for those who were interested in attending.

The Minorities Commission had challenged this in court - but the petition was dismissed when the court found that the program was not compulsory.

Is it not that Bible reading is mandatory in Christian schools that are built next to churches?

This is clearly communalizing education. Why do you need Churches and schools next to each other? This must be strictly prohibited by laws.

[Sanku]

Is it not that Bible reading is mandatory in Christian schools that are built next to churches?

This is clearly communalizing education. Why do you need Churches and schools next to each other? This must be strictly prohibited by laws.

Yes it is, yes there are discriminatory laws in India.

However the issue in KKta was that these were state run schools.

But I think it can be compulsory. The Gita is not a religious text in the way the Bible is. It does not teach anyone methods of worship of ways to A particular god. In fact it does not teach of worship to any god.

I don't know; perhaps that part is scarier to some than if it was a "Hindu" text. This way they have to live with the "faithful" who may actually start asking questions rather than behave like sheep.

[shyamd]

But I think it can be compulsory. The Gita is not a religious text in the way the Bible is. It does not teach anyone methods of worship of ways to A particular god. In fact it does not teach of worship to any god.

I don't know; perhaps that part is scarier to some than if it was a "Hindu" text. This way they have to live with the "faithful" who may actually start asking questions rather than behave like sheep.

I dont think that is correct. There are quite a few references explaining the concept of worship and the supreme lord.

[vishvak]

The Minorities Commission had challenged this in court - but the petition was dismissed when the court found that the program was not compulsory.

The minority commissions and the media needs to read this India's Jews

Yet this country of 1 billion largely impoverished people, home of the second-largest Muslim population in the world, still manages to maintain a sturdy system of democracy based on respect for religious and ethnic diversity. In the U.S., diversity is a politically correct slogan. In India it is a historical fact. Much as we in the West may resent it, India has a lot to teach us when it comes to religious tolerance.

To my mind, the best example of that can be found in the remarkable story of a tiny minority--India's Jewish community. India may be the only country in the world that has been free of anti-Semitic prejudice throughout its history. As the Jewish genealogical journal Avotaynu recently observed in an article on one Indian Jewish group, "The Bene Israel flourished for 2,400 years in a tolerant land that has never known anti-Semitism, and were successful in all aspects of the socio-economic and cultural life of the people of the region."

Anyone has more views from the the Jewish genealogical journal Avotaynu, about this?

But in "backward" India, from the beginning, the Jewish communities have not only been free of discrimination but have dominated the commercial life of every place where they have settled--something that has fed traditional European anti-Semitism.

Why has India remained free of this scourge? Various reasons have been advanced for that--such as, the Hindu religion does not seek to convert those from other faiths. What we do know is that anti-Semitism seems alien to the Indian character.

This is Hindu by nature.

Kochi's Jews were indeed persecuted--not by Indians but by the Portuguese, following in the glorious traditions of the Inquisition. With the help of the Hindu maharaja and the Dutch, Kochi's Jewish community rebuilt its synagogue, burned by the Portuguese, in its current location near his maharajah's palace. It has remained there, unmolested, ever since.

Note this carefully - Hindus did not build temples there & start a bullshit of religious nature. Where do you find this in Europe and America and on secular Muslim lands?

A short distance away is a Jewish cemetery, and again the distinction is in what you don't see--there's none of the overturned headstones and vandalism that have been sadly common in Jewish cemeteries in the U.S. Yes, even in Brooklyn.

It's pretty much the same story elsewhere in India. Separate Jewish communities were established over the years in Mumbai, where the Bene Israel arrived over 2,000 years ago, and in Kolkata, where a more recent community of Middle Eastern "Baghdadi" Jews became established. In the northeast of India is the Bnai Menashe, who trace their origins to the Israelite tribe of Menasseh.

So these international media are preaching to Indians now about secularism from a baseless position here.

A great many chose to make a career in the military under the Raj (British rule that ended with independence 60 years ago this week)--a phenomenon that, believe me, is certainly foreign to the Eastern European Jewish experience.

In the end,

In other countries, the absence of Jewish communal influence--or even the absence of Jews--has not prevented rulers from using Jews as scapegoats. Poland of the late 1960s, the era of "anti-Semitism without Jews," is a good example.
(So anti-Semitism is religious but not dependent on Hindus or Jews)

All this has a way of mystifying Indians. I've always had difficulty with Indians when we've discussed anti-Semitism. They don't understand it, and to tell you the truth, I've had difficulty explaining it myself.

Indians are sometimes accused of being condescending toward Westerners, and of being excessively preachy in their attitude toward other nations. That accusation is sometimes correct. But when it comes to India's treatment of one of its smallest and most vulnerable minorities, there is ample reason to be both condescending--and proud.

I have not heard any bias from likes of APJ Kalam, former President of India, Missile man and he was also part of nuclear tests.

This anti-minority treatment of Hindus is just a way to de-franchise Hindus on Hindu lands by those who have this baggage of holy duty of converting dharmic lands to adharmic.

[vishvak]

In India people have to live with 140 million Mulsims and 27 million Christians besides Jains, Sikhs and so on.You must realise the fact that this is not a campaign against Modi anyway. As he fasts for communal harmony he may have to take extrasteps to build a confidence in wider society at national level.

Extra steps? Why because Muslims and Christians need to be pampered? What is the logic here?

Demanding something extra and then complaining all over the world is baseless.

[joshvajohn]

What People of India may want now is anticorrupt and proinvestment, a balance between growth oriented and pro-people policies, a balance between national interest and international interest - a proper governance in India. I am not sure about the present government is able to do in anyway nor interested to do. When people think of options there is no other options available except hoping for BJP. But BJP has to become one. When Vajpayee can pull together something good for India why not Advani too?

[Sanku]

But I think it can be compulsory. The Gita is not a religious text in the way the Bible is. It does not teach anyone methods of worship of ways to A particular god. In fact it does not teach of worship to any god.

I don't know; perhaps that part is scarier to some than if it was a "Hindu" text. This way they have to live with the "faithful" who may actually start asking questions rather than behave like sheep.

I dont think that is correct. There are quite a few references explaining the concept of worship and the supreme lord.

It is not a atheist book, that is correct, but it does not say what a supreme god must be or how it must be worshiped like the Bible does.

It talks of many philosophical schools including atheism and those of faith and different understandings of the nature of truth and various paths that exist. It also does not make any definite suggestions on what is better.

That is different from stories of the Bible -- a comparable text would be Vishnu purana.

[Sanku]

When Vajpayee can pull together something good for India why not Advani too?

I am confident that BJP has large number of good leaders which can rise to the occasion. We dont only need a PM we need a capable cabinet too.

The issue is that the social engineering that allows people to win on anti-India platform must break first.

[Pratyush]

^^^

That brings us to the RJM verdict and its consequences.

[joshvajohn]

It is not a atheist book, that is correct, but it does not say what a supreme god must be or how it must be worshiped like the Bible does.

It talks of many philosophical schools including atheism and those of faith and different understandings of the nature of truth and various paths that exist. It also does not make any definite suggestions on what is better.

That is different from stories of the Bible -- a comparable text would be Vishnu purana.

Unfortunately this is the kind/,method of argument that missionaries (not only Christian) of those days had in favour of Bible or in favour of any texts that they were promoting!

[SRoy]

It is not a atheist book, that is correct, but it does not say what a supreme god must be or how it must be worshiped like the Bible does.

It talks of many philosophical schools including atheism and those of faith and different understandings of the nature of truth and various paths that exist. It also does not make any definite suggestions on what is better.

That is different from stories of the Bible -- a comparable text would be Vishnu purana.

Unfortunately this is the kind/,method of argument that missionaries (not only Christian) of those days had in favour of Bible or in favour of any texts that they were promoting!

Look at Gita as a superstructure / framework. There is nothing in Gita that prevents it from being read alongside the Bible or any other religious book. Gita accomodates even the atheists. You do not cease to be a <<insert your religion here>> by reading Gita. So, no equal equal exists and hence no danger of one supplanting the other.

[joshvajohn]

yes Roy as long as it is optional. I am not in favour of making any religious text as compulsory reading in schools. The church schools stopped making it compulsory not because the government stopped it, it was Christian parents themselves did not want at the first instance to make it compulsory but also it backfired at times. So even attending Christian services are made optional by Government rules of education nowadays even for Christians as they come from diverse traditions as well.

[SRoy]

"Compulsory" was / is never an Indian/Hindu practice as you might have noticed.

[Sanku]

Unfortunately this is the kind/,method of argument that missionaries (not only Christian) of those days had in favour of Bible or in favour of any texts that they were promoting!

Well a knife can be used to cut vegetables as well as murder, not the knifes fault. Similarly a method can be used for creating a framework where all Indians are exposed to Indian heritage or like missionaries behave in a predatory manner.

The methods can be same even if end goals are different.

I am not in favour of making any religious text as compulsory reading in schools.

Well what we are saying is that the argument is flawed because Gita != Bible.

Bible ~= Vishnu Purana.

So comparing religious teaching and Gita in the same breath itself is wrong.

[joshvajohn]

Sanku
If you have read my earlier posts (regarding the Koran in the Hotels) I wrote saying Indian Children should be exposed to Gita. In my arguments I am not comparing Bible with Gita or anything rather reading can help people in understanding one's own religion. For me I would also suggest that Tamil Children read Thiruvasagam, Thirumandiram and so on (mainly Saiva Siddhandha texts) rather than Gita. These are very effective tools of making better human beings as well. Thirukkural and Aavai's Aathisudi are good moral and social texts which were already part of tamil texts in Tamil schools (when I studied but I do not know nowadays they still are! May be they may have changed them for Kalaigner's poems).

[Sanku]

For me I would also suggest that Tamil Children read Thiruvasagam, Thirumandiram and so on (mainly Saiva Siddhandha texts) rather than Gita. T.

I would have much rather preferred it if you had said, that Tamil children should read both Gita and the other works you mention.

Also I would have been happier if you had said the Tamil works should be shared outside as well.

Having said those -- comparing texts is tricky, but the considered Indian view places the Geeta as one of the foremost intellectual and philosophical works in Indian tradition.

I would rather not compare it to religious texts (which you repeatedly bring in) -- also if a choice for promotion of A work is needed, Gita does happen to be a preferable candidate over any other Indic philosophical work given its primacy and role as the "original" compilation.

[joshvajohn]

I have good respect for Gita. But I should say my preference would be vedas or Uppanisads with critical interpretation along with it as a popular text for many to read not as compulsory but as an option to read and learn.

I still use even in my own context a saying from Upanisad - one who says I know everything, knows little. One says I know little starts knowing!

[SRoy]

I have good respect for Gita. But I should say my preference would be vedas or Uppanisads with critical interpretation along with it as a popular text for many to read not as compulsory but as an option to read and learn.

I still use even in my own context a saying from Upanisad - one who says I know everything, knows little. One says I know little starts knowing!

That's a good choice. BTW, the Bhagavad Gita is also called Gītopaniṣad i.e. it is also considered a Upanishad, because it contains a gist of all the major Upanishads.

[devesh]

The "Hindu" philosophy is summarized in the Prasthaanatrayam. The Upanishads, Brahma Sutras, and Gita are the 3 texts which make up the Prasthanatrayam.

the Brahma Sutras are very advanced. it takes lot of skilled intuition in Sanskrit literature and also life experiences which finally prepare man to delve into the topics presented in the Sutras. if one is really interested, then one can pick either the Sankara Bhashyam, Sri Bhashyam, or Madhva Bhashyam to get a basic understanding of how they are explained and presented. the Sutras should not be covered in school b/c the kids won't get anything out of it.

Upanishads and Gita are the most accessible. the Upanishads have many interesting stories which contain a lot of morals. I personally think educating kids in those stories and then developing the "philosophical mind" by delving into them, is a very good starting point. even the Gita comes only after this, IMVHO. start with stories from Upanishads, then proceed to Gita.

Gita covers a wide range of topics. and there is also a chance of twisting the teachings. Krishna presented it in a way that its interpretation can be anything by anybody. so, first a solid grounding via easily understandable stories is necessary. after that, the teachings in Gita can be like an anchor which guide you through thick and thin.

[joshvajohn]

Hindu philosophy cannot be summarised into a few texts (nor Hindu religion nor Hindu faith). They are interpreted by many diverse texts in many different languages. Each text has its own merits. Such a diversity has to be respected as well while giving some preference to some texts. When we bring such texts for education of the public or people a sensitivity to diverse texts and also working alongside such diversity is an essential criteria to follow in promoting values of community and humanity.

[devesh]

also, will the "essential criteria" of promoting "community and harmony" be taught to all kids, irrespective of religious orientation or will it only be reserved for "Hindus"?

[joshvajohn]

yes. May be a kind of religious education (that provides a multi-religious text centred approach - ofcourse not all at one point) which keeps this as primary task and giving scope for focusing on one's own religion at later stage is a good possibility for 'all'. Such education certainly will provide best leaders for this country who will not propagate ignorance about other religions hopefully.

[devesh]

^^^
hmmm.....so now, it's a multi-religious approach? if it is going to be multi-religious, it will be important to set the historical record straight. it will be very important to teach the history of all these religions wrt India. like how Christianity first secured a beachhead in India with the help of the generous and glorious efforts of the Portuguese. or how Islam peacefully entered the subcontinent by peacefully destroying the Hindus in Sindh and various parts of present day Pakistan, all peacefully of course.

will this history be a part of the "multi-religious" curriculum or will it be circumvented?

[Sanku]

yes. May be a kind of religious education (that provides a multi-religious text centred approach -

Considering that you are back to "religious" treatment of Indian philosophy, what was the use of this discussion?

We are talking of teaching Indian philosophy and value systems, not religion.

[devesh]

Sanku ji,

very astute observation. any "proposal" for "multi-religious" education is a carefully constructed fifth-column agenda which pushes Abrahamic education into India minds. "Hindu" education of course will consist of the usual stuff about Sati and Caste system. the vested interests know that the major hindrance to X-tianity in India is the complete dissonance from the monotheistic "one book, on God" thinking of Abrahamics. if latest generation is brain washed to accept this "one book, one God" under the guise of "multi-religious" education, then the next generation will make the progression into "opposing paganism" as "reform", and after that India will be on the path towards Greece like oblivion.

[joshvajohn]

why are suddenly scared of religious education? If you notice my argument was to answer your question, you wanted your dharmic philosophy to be taught to all. Then each one will ask for their own religion or philosophy to be taught as well. Or we will have schools in our country teaching Indian philosophy in Hindu schools and government schools where Hindus are majority and Islamic philosphy in the Muslim schools where Muslims are majority or under Muslim Management and then Jain and Buddhist and so on. This religious education has an interesting option of learning one's own religion at later stage. I am not very convinced of saying Indian Philosophy/ies, culture/s and religion/s are completly independent of each other. They are intertwined. For your own information, the former RSS leader Sudharshan reinterated sitting before me that in India religion, culture and philosophy cannot be separated. I agree Indian Philosophical schools (for your knowledge there is no one single Indian Philosophy either if you look at the books - they all include Buddhist and Jain and even others as part of their schools) have excellent information for various people for learning and education. If you genuinely know that Indian philosophical schools have always an open space for further argument and discoveries and additional theories if they add something new. So your emphasis on Indian philosophy as Hindu Philosophy does not stand on its own. Saiva sidhanthis will not accept some of the philosophical concepts of the core texts except their own texts. Jains too theirs, Buddhists too theirs. Because these diversity is already accommodated and so Hindu philosophy is one segment of wider philosophies in India. When you start teaching Indian philosopies in Indian context - (say excluding Abrahamic traditions) you have to work with multi-facet of philosophies themselves. As many Muslims would say their philosopies too has to be added. If one is genuinely an Indian Philosopian then one may find a space for new philosopies as augment to their arguments taken further or self realisation is made complete for someone in their own ways.

[Sanku]

why are suddenly scared of religious education? .

Not scared of religious education, disgusted that you are trying to make a discussion on religion out of a discussion on Indian philosophy.

Apparently you can not see beyond devise labels into inherent unity.

You are hell bent into bringing religion into secular culture and philosophy. This is a sad trend.

And let xyz speak for themselves, you speak for yourself, I have no wish to respond to your views on what others will say, you are not qualified to speak on their behalf and hence its pointless discussing what others will say or do.

I personally think its a great thing that Indian philosophy is being taught in Indian schools, we need more of it, any of the major versions would do, they are all linked anyway.

[devesh]

JJ,

the overarching emphasis in the Prasthanatrayam is supported by every "Hindu" school of thought. the Shaiva Siddhantis you mention don't "reject" these texts. they might have something more to add on specific concepts, but they do agree with the ideas outlined in the P3 ( ).

the idea that "hindus" are all disjointed sects who can't/don't agree on broad principles is hogwash. it is only in your mind. the fact that India does exist as it is today and "Hindus" do get along well with each other is a testament to this fact.

[joshvajohn]

The words, Hindu, Indian Philosophy and others are interchangeably used in your argument. Let me make it simple, for any future of Indian leadership or for any future of Indian education, if one wants to promote a particular school of thought or schools of thought one should become aware of the fact that Indian schools of philosophy are multifacet one. So there is no question for imposing one system of philosophy as the Indian Philosophy because it is against the core philosophy itself. Secondly if you are linking these as Hindu thoughts, there is an underlying connection but they are also different. Some other schools will not accept one school of thought to be promoted at the expense of other schools of thoughts. It is not only Saivasidhantha but also Sri Narayana Guru's tradition, Ramakrishna mission tradition, Brahmo Samaj, Arya Samaj and there are different sects with different approaches even within particular tradition. Sikhism too has its own diversity. This is what any leadership should be conscious of. I will certainly be happy to have Indian philosopies taught in schools as philosopies of India not necessarily in relation to particular text rather to texts.

[Sanku]

Let me make it simple, for any future of Indian leadership or for any future of Indian education, if one wants to promote a particular school of thought or schools of thought one should become aware of the fact that Indian schools of philosophy are multifacet one. So there is no question for imposing one system of philosophy as the Indian Philosophy because it is against the core philosophy itself.

I know all that, why are you getting your lungi in a twist? I am asking for Indian philosophy to be promoted, not a "brand" of philosophy. Gita is particularly good because it is "brand free" -- it deals with nearly every major branch of philosophy from atheism, knowledge to faith.

Some other schools will not accept one school of thought to be promoted at the expense of other schools of thoughts.

As I said, "tannu ki?" let those who want to speak for inclusion of their philosophies step and speak. I have not seen any of

t is not only Saivasidhantha but also Sri Narayana Guru's tradition, Ramakrishna mission tradition, Brahmo Samaj, Arya Samaj and there are different sects with different approaches even within particular tradition. Sikhism too has its own diversity

speak on this issue. They seem quite sanguine that they are not getting a short shrift. You however seem to be quite agitated -- so kindly dont go about riling up disharmony while hiding behind others.

Since no one has said it yet, you have no right to speak on their behalf.

You want to disagree, feel free, but kindly dont

1) Promote religious divides to Indian thought
2) Promote strife on the basis of "speaking for others"

[joshvajohn]

diversities, differences and distinctiveness are connotatively different from dividing! 'Becoming aware of diversities' is an essential quality of any leadership who is going to be leader of all who share such diversities. I had students doing research on those schools of thoughts so I do not speaking for others but with little knowledge I had to engage in this argument if you are making an argument against the diversity. And I had to use examples as well!

[brihaspati]

Assuming that "religious/philosophical" education is so important for the future "strategic scenario" : just a few observations

(1) this will soon go off topic

(2) there is a better thread to discuss this - in fact the GDF version of this thread already has started such a discussion I think

(3) we are talking as if we already have rashtryia power aligned to our thinking in such a way, that all direct or indirect obstacles in the way of proper exposure to philosophies/religions that originated within the subcontinent - are removed

(4) hypothetically speaking - suppose you have such overall rashtryia changes, including the state/rashtra/constitutional framework - you will still need to take into account that the "teachers/professors" you have at that juncture, have actually come out filtered through the previous setup which would ensure that onlee those who would be against "Indic", unless it is some imaginary whitewashed reconstruction of Buddhism or say even Jainism - would come through.

Educational reform on such sensitive topics is a matter of political struggle - all carried out under pretensions of objectivity and realism, and academic neutrality, and it takes time, almost 20 years roughly to replace the "personnel".

There are no quick replacement solutions either - since the readymade "pro-Indic" teaching faculty may fail to be consistent with other aspects of modern "education" and "knowledge-body" if they come from practised theological background, and likely to be either over-mystical or over-dogmatic.

(5) For a start, to any intense growing debate where each representative theologian from every small corner of the theological cave networks, India origin or non-Indian origin [at least by their own claim] - encompassing all claims of sole truths and all others being evil devils - that their particular golden reconstructions have to be fully drilled into kids - I would simply say that we will teach not a single religion formally, but that each kid will have to be tested on the primary texts - over their school life. Just like two-three languages, each one must appear for tests on any three religions relevant for India.

School libraries will have to stock the source literature - in all their resplendent golden glory - unadulterated, un-selectively-edited, un-whitewashed, un-apologized, un-hagiographed, - as raw as they were originally blasted out.

If religious leadership dance too much about demonization- we will bring religion's records directly to the kids, without batting an eyelid.

[Sanku]

^^^ Even better.