SV: SV: Vicious Debate

[Lars Martin Fosse]

Subrahmania wrote:

> I find it amazing that people are so eager and willing to attribute
> political motives against Indian scholars, but do not have the
> courage to look at their own motives and prejudices.

I am a bit curious about this. When we look at the arguments put forward by
German Indologists in the 1930's about the homeland (which was preferably to be
put somewhere in the middle of Germany :-)), it is easy to see a political
bias. However, it would be interesting (at least for me) to know how you
construe the motives and prejudices of modern Western Indologists like e.g.
Witzel, Zydenbos and myself. For one thing: how do we profit politically or
otherwise from assuming that the homeland was somewhere in Eurasia? (Mind you:
personally, I have no dogmatic idea about WHERE in Eurasia it was. I only
contend that it wasn't in India, and for this I state linguistic and cultural
reasons).

Furthermore, it cannot have escaped your attention that there are Indian
scholars working in India (as well as at Western universities) who do not share
the ideas of the Indigenous Aryanism, and ascribe political motives to the
proponents that same theory. I have read enough Indigenous Aryanism to see that
strong political and ideological matters are at stake, simply because men like
Talageri and Rajaram keep saying so persistently. So is it really only those
blasted Westerners?

Would you please enlighten me?

Best regards,

Lars Martin Fosse


Dr. art. Lars Martin Fosse
Haugerudvn. 76, Leil. 114,
0674 Oslo
Norway
Phone/Fax: +47 22 32 12 19
Email: lmfosse at online.no