Friday, January 05, 2007

Panchjanya on temple entry

jan 4th, 2007

there should be no controversy over all this.

simple answers:

1. all hindus have the right to go to all hindu temples.

2. all temples have the right to exclude all non-hindus. these are temples, meant for worship, not for semites to come and gawk at.

the temple entry proclamation in travancore on november 12, 1936 is the right way. that day onwards, all hindus have had access to all temples in travancore, and later kerala, without let or hindrance.

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Tarun
Date: Jan 4, 2007 11:52 AM
Subject: Panchjanya on temple entry
To:


The Times of India Online
Printed from timesofindia.indiatimes.com > India
RSS rips into ban on Dalits entering temples
[ 3 Jan, 2007 1932hrs IST INDIATIMES NEWS NETWORK ]

NEW DELHI: Following up on its radical call last year to train and appoint Dalits as priests in Hindu temples, the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) has severely condemned the barring of Dalits from a temple in Orissa recently.

An year-end editorial in the Sangh mouthpiece Panchjanya termed as unfortunate the discriminatory attitude of temple authorities at the Jagannath temple in Kerdagarh saying it was "shameful that even in 2006 there are temples where Dalits are disallowed ... Even God will desert the temple that Dalits cannot enter."

The sanctum sanctorum of the temple was closed in mid-December with upper caste Hindus refusing to perform puja after three groups of Dalits, armed with a High Court order, entered the premises.

The entry of the Dalits into the temple put an end to a 250-year-old ban, but the upper caste Hindus immediately closed the temple down saying it had been "desecrated". The imbroglio was later resolved by religious leaders, but deep-rooted resentment on both sides continues to simmer.

The editorial further states that after the intervention of several senior religious leaders, Dalits have been allowed to enter the Kerdagarh temple. However, there are two paths leading up to the area from where devotees offer prayers – one for the "so-called upper castes" and one for Dalits. This, it says, is wrong and has to be amended forthwith. "There should be one path for all Hindus."

The RSS has castigated what it repeatedly calls the "so-called uppers castes" for their discriminatory ways saying they are in fact of the "lowest levels" for doing so. "Those who are against allowing Dalits inside temples are against the Hindu Samaj", it states emphatically. "There should be no Hindu temple which discriminates against people on the basis of caste."

Further, it says, "those Dalits who are being provoked to change their views through such incidents have to be assured that crores of Hindus are with them.

It has also come down strongly on leaders of the "Hindu Samaj" for allowing situations which political opportunists can exploit. "The moment this controversy happened, political vultures started fuelling it ... Upholders of the Hindu Samaj have to ensure they allow no incident to occur that can be used by political opportunists. Nor should there be occasion for such an issue going to court." --a direct comment on the fact that Dalits had to approach the High Court for an order to enter the temple.

Orissa temples have for long been embroiled in controversies arising out of incidents of caste or communal discrimination. The Jagannath temple in Puri famously turned away the then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi for being married to a non-Hindu. She had to view the temple from a building across the road.



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2 comments:

habc said...

Christians dig deep for graveyard plot

India's Christians are running out of space to bury their dead, leading some to pay small fortunes to book their final resting place in a relative's grave. Churches are asking people to empty remains from graves of family members who died more than 25 years ago and store them in specially created vaults, a senior official of the Catholic Bishops' Conference of India said. "We foresee a major crisis across India and are asking people to empty graves and shift the remains," said Donald H R De Souza, a former Deputy Secretary General of the conference.

Israelis blast past others in bid to own moon
About 10,000 Israelis have purchased moon property since it became available in 2000. Of the 10 million acres sold worldwide, 1 million are owned by residents of Israel, Wegner said Wednesday.
"Some Israelis believe that buying land on the moon is an original gift and a great investment that their grandchildren might benefit from," he told The Jerusalem Post.

I think Hindus should also buy land on the moon since there might not be any land left on planet earth for future generations

Ghost Writer said...

On another note - Please see how the honorary WASP, the "Great Technological Giant" cannot even make a decent water heater without killing people
http://www.indianexpress.com/story/20172.html

This would have been funny - except the folks that died were Indians in that broken down city called Bangalore.

What is not funny however, is the irascible Deve Gowda claiming that he did not bow down to the "pressure" of Indian scientists.
http://www.indianexpress.com/story/20170.html

Anyone who knows anything about the bureaucracy-stricken Indian scientific community (notice how Kakodkar curled-up to Moron Singh on the nuclear deal last August) will know how much "pressure" they can exert.
A case of a self-confessed Shikhandi this Deve Gowda