Black as Evil

[Akhilesh Jha]

Namaskar and Vanakkam,

I also fully agree with Sri Vidyasanakar's
observations. I find it hard to believe that
knowledgeable people should still be discussing such
obsolete ideas as the one that attempts to interpret
Vedas on the lines of racist thinking which is just
another way of clinging on to thoroughly discredited
Aryan Invasion Theory.

Jha

--- Vanbakkam Vijayaraghavan <vijay at VOSSNET.CO.UK>
wrote:
> I wholy concur with Vidyasanskar's perception of
> 'hidden agenda' and
> the 'sub-plot' to this thread.
>
> On Sun, 10 Dec 2000 21:32:11 -0000, Vidyasankar
> Sundaresan
> <vsundaresan at HOTMAIL.COM> wrote:
>
> >>I take exception to any suggestion that ideas such
> be banned because they
> >>are "dangerous."  We are free men and women and
> may speak as we
> >Ideas need not be banned, but the manner of
> discussion and the
> >selective and repetitive assertion of certain ideas
> makes one
> >wonder where the discussion is headed. And also to
> question how
> >the said ideas are formed in the first place.
> >
> >>one.  The discussion has been carried on in fairly
> good humor, and none of
> >>us, I trust, are racists.
> >
> >Debatable. I join you in expressing the hope that
> none of us
> >is racist. However, it seems to me that those who
> have shown
> >the most enthusiasm on this thread are not so sure.
> They seem
> >to believe that many list-members are indeed
> racist.
> >
> >If I may summarize the predetermined conclusions
> sought to
> >be established by a few (?) list notables,
> supported by some
> >ottu-UtukiravarkaL (check with the Tamil
> specialists for the
> >meaning of this term) -
> >
> >1. The "Aryan" texts, Veda and Avesta, gave birth
> to the idea
> >that black is evil. Ergo, these people were the
> original racists,
> >as are their descendants today. However, they
> became racist only
> >after they entered India. They were not racists
> when they lived
> >in their original homeland, wherever that might
> have been, for
> >they never encountered black skin (kRshNa-tvac)
> there. Judaism
> >and Christianity have only borrowed the black vs.
> white divide
> >from Persian sources, as proved by repeated
> assertion.
> >
> >2. In opposition, "Dravidian" India, from Indus
> valley times,
> >regarded white as bad, and made widows wear white.
> They also
> >celebrated black, and welcomed the black
> rain-cloud, and said
> >the god mAl/nArAyaNa was black in color. Ergo, this
> is a 3000
> >year old subaltern tradition that represents the
> "real" India.
> >Therefore, (Western) Indologists should all shift
> to Dravidian
> >studies if they want to study the real India and if
> they want
> >to denounce the problematic racism in their own
> historical
> >legacy in Europe and America.
> >
> >There are a few variations built into the above
> song, but this
> >is the theme and the refrain.
> >
> >Best regards,
> >Vidyasankar.


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