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Absurd Arguments Against Hindus
Firstly, they make the case that Hinduism is a monolithic religion, and that it is based on a text called the Manu Smriti.
Then they say that all of them are characterized by these following unempathetic practices:
- Sati
- Devadasi System
- Caste System
- Ayyappa Swami Kshethra (menstruating women not allowed to visit)
- Slavery of women by forcing them to be bare breasted
Then they say that:
1> This is an effect of polytheism
2> All polytheism is a man-made religion to satisfy man's desire in violation of God's law
3> All polytheism is evil
Firstly, My Opinion
If you don't know anything about a culture, then stop judging it. Judge it for the specific elements that it held and were problematic. But if the culture itself allows reformation of the norms, unlike some other cultures that consider their texts as a basis for eternal morality, there is no point in criticizing the culture for its historical practices that are not moral by today's standards. The people who do this assume that they are a breed specially different from the rest that happened to have not committed any mistakes at all.
But when we specifically refer to Christians or Muslims, they consider themselves as sinners, by moral codes that they bring forward with their texts, even though others don't agree with them, and still tell them to repent according to the principles of their belief system. This is again a problem that comes with their belief system that forces other people to adapt to their belief systems. These systems then cause the problem of not being able to solve problems even when a better way exists, because they say that it is the unchangeable word given to them by a dualistic creator being called God, who is jealous and demands worship and complete belief, regardless of evidence.
Truth
- Sati, Devadasi System and Caste System are deplorable, but they have no basis in what Hindus consider scriptural. In fact, scripture itself is considered something that can be heard, and the written works are only trusted by our trust in its authors (i.e. Apara Vidya). The theology is that the truth (Para Vidya) can be heard directly through mediation.
- The Castes themselves are described in the Vedas written by Vedavyaasa, but it never referred to them in terms of hierarchy, but rather by analogy to the part of the body by which they carry out their works. It also did not refer to the idea that a person is born into a caste by the virtue of their birth, but rather, it was said to be a description of their choice of profession.
- The Bhagavad Gita, a mythological excerpt that is also considered valid scripture does however mention that all the castes and their hierarchies were created by God, who presents themself as Krishna. They say that they did so to carry out their storyline, but also says that all castes really are equal. In effect, it simply affirms the history of castes, but at the same time also points out that it is not the correct path of Dharma, but simply something that was done out of necessity.
- Slavery of women by being bare breasted has happened in Kerala, where there was an extreme form of the caste system, known as Jati. However, in other parts of India, including Tamil Nadu, women not hiding their breasts was a common practice among their people. This can be likened to the practices of nudists. It is mainly only the Abrahamic theology, coming form Judean culture that asks people to cover their naked body out of a sense of morality. But the Mahabharata also does have the cast of the humiliation of Draupadi, in which Draupadi is clearly clothed.
- But this was the practice of the richer people, and the Dravidian folk would have fairly unsophisticated cultural nuances, which included less focus on the covering of women. Chastity seemed to be a thing however, with references in Sangam Literature to women of chastity, and love. However, that was regarding sexual affairs, not with the clothing itself. Even in the 20th century, women used to not cover their navels, which was a practice seen as indecent by Christians. This example can also be found in the historic records of Arabia relayed by the reports of Mohammedans, where the people of Mecca used to perform their annual ritual sacrifices at the Haram by circling around the Ka'aba naked.
- Ayyapa Swami Kshethra
- This was based on the myth where Ayyappa's foster mother tried to kill him by exploiting his kindness towards her, and he said that he needed to live forever in a place where no woman would come to hurt him again.
- This is a culture based on a specific story, and it neither promotes discrimination against women, nor is the entire culture against women in any manner. In fact, there are many revered goddesses, many of them in higher ranks, and the real God of reality themself is half feminine, referred to as Adi Paraa Shakti.
- People who do not understand the nature of this culture believe that the culture is based on the worship of all gods, and denial of the worship of a god makes the people inferior in rank, and that this is a form of social discrimination. These are baseless claims.