Shashi Tharoor, author and Member of Parliament, takes no offence when they say, “Garv se bolo ki tum Hindu ho”. He is only happy to do that—for the openness, the diversity, the range, the lofty metaphyscial aspirations of the Vedanta, of the various ways in which Hindusim is practised, and for its extraordinary acceptance of differences.
Tharoor is happy to be a Hindu for other reasons, too. The religion is all-encompassing; recognising everyone’s need “to learn and to earn, to have sex, food and money; to love, to nurture, to assume responsibility....”
Tharoor’s Why I am a Hindu is political and emotional, with lively anecdotes. He writes about hindutva and Hindu Rashtra, on the inclusiveness of Hinduism and why he loves the pot-bellied, elephant-headed Ganesha. The book is simple, racy and light.
Writing about caste, Tharoor believes the system won’t disappear because of the “too many political and administrative benefits and disadvantages” that come with it. He also explores views on hndutva, right from that of sangh parivar leaders Vinayak Damodar Savarkar, M.S. Golwalkar and Deen Dayal Upadhyay.
On the extent to which the Modi government has put Upadhyay’s beliefs into practice, he says “the prophet of the BJP has so far been honoured in lip service rather than literally”.
Former prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee’s rule saw no dramatic change in the Constitution, despite a largely unread 1,979-page Constitution review report. Under Modi there has so far been no dramatic challenge to the Constitution. But it is far less certain that this will remain so.
A must read. Don’t look forward to reading a book on Hinduism, but be prepared to explore how it interplays with nationality.
Why I Am a Hindu
By Shashi Tharoor
Published by Aleph
Price Rs 699; pages 302
