Endo and Exo

[André Signoret]

Good Evening,

Well done ! I feel rather EXO ! That is to say, naive enough to believe that
comparative philology can make peoples closer to one another.
Most European citizens speak with "Sanskrit" roots and are unaware of that.
"Monsieur Jourdain aussi faisait de la prose sans le savoir !".
Almost every time you pronounce , say, French or German, or Russian words,
you utter sanscritic phonemes. But alas one thing is missing : le "sens
critique" (sorry for the pun !).

André Signoret.


----- Original Message -----
From: V.V. Raman <VVRSPS at RITVAX.ISC.RIT.EDU>
To: <INDOLOGY at LISTSERV.LIV.AC.UK>
Sent: Tuesday, October 31, 2000 5:50 PM
Subject: Endo and Exo


> Exo and Endo: Some Demarcation Criteria
> In answer to a letter from an Indologist-friend, I am formulating below
some
> demarcation criteria between Endo and Exo Indologists in the form of some
> questions and answers. Comments, criticisms, objections, improvements are
> welcome. Let me state at the outset (a) that this the classification
implies no
> value judgment,
> (b) that the criteria below are applicable to present-day scholars, and
not
> necessarily to past ones: I mean, many Indologists who wrote and spoke in,
say,
> the first half of the 20th century may not fit into the categorization of
Endo-
> as presented below;
> (b) that these are broad, and not rigid criteria; in other words, there
might
> be exceptions in either group. Thus, each answer may be preceded by <by
and
> large.>
>
> 1. Has Western scholarship contributed anything positive to Indology:
> Endo: Not really. Indology was practiced by Hindus long before the
intrusion of
> Westerners into India.
> Exo: Most definitely. Modern Indology would perhaps have been impossible
> without Western scholarship.
>
> 2. What has been the effect of Western scholarship on our understanding of
> India?
> Endo: Disastrous. Western (mis)interpretations of Indian history and
culture
> have distorted, devalued, and denigrated Indian culture and Hinduism.
Their
> negative effects continue to this day, and have to be routed out.
> Exo: We have come to know a good deal about India's past, from Ashoka to
the
> time-frame of Vedic compositions, let alone archaeological finds and
> translations into worldwide understood languages. Knowledge about Hindu
culture
> and civilization has spread all around the globe, thanks to the Indology
> initiated by Western scholars.
>
> 3. Are the Vedas and the Bhagavad GIta divine in origin, or are they
> writings/reflections of human beings?
> Endo: There is more than elements of ordinary human components in these
works.
> They are very probably revelations from a higher source.
> Exo: They (like the Bible, the Avesta, the Koran, the Illiad, Einstein's
> papers, etc.) are essentially human in origin, inspired by the local
culture
> and belief-systems of the period.
>
> 4. What about the scientific component in the Vedas, the UpaniSads, etc.
> Endo: Ancient Hindu writings embody some of the most recent findings of
quantum
> physics, cosmology, psychology, consciousness science, genetics, and more.
We
> need to study esoteric Vedic hymns and UpaniSadic aphorisms from a higher
> perspective to understand the scientific truths implicit in them.
> Exo: There is no question that the authors of those works were
extraordinarily
> keen minds who (like their counterparts in other cultures) formulated some
very
> interesting views and obtained some profound insights into the nature of
the
> mind, consciousness, and cosmology. But most of those theses have long
been
> improved upon, modified, discarded, or replaced by the vast knowledge and
> insights that have arisen as a result of post-16th century modern
empirical
> science. The ancients had no notion whatever of galaxies and molecular
> structures, let alone quarks and quanta, as claimed by some
Endo-Indologists.
>
> 5. What about language families within India?
> Endo: All languages within India, Tamil and Munda included, and most
languages
> beyond, are Sanskritic in origin.
> Exo: The matter is extremely complicated. As of now, there is every reason
to
> believe that the Dravidian languages belong to a totally different
language
> family from the Sanskritic.
>
> 7. What has been India's contribution to the world?
> Endo: Practically everything worthy and  noble in human culture may be
traced
> to some element or other in ancient Hindu thought, writing, epics, and
> civilization. In many instances, these have been stolen and appropriated
as
> their own, by others.
> Exo: India has been the source of great wisdom, many visions, and much
> philosophy. A good deal of this has been absorbed (consciously or
otherwise) by
> other cultures and civilizations over the ages. However, this is not a
unique
> phenomenon in world history. Other great ancient civilizations, like the
> Mesopotamian, the Egyptian, the Greek, the Chinese, and the Arab, have
also
> contributed to the world, as does Western civilization in our own times.
> Moreover, Indian civilization has also been enriched and enhanced by
knowledge
> and insights from others.
>
> 8. What is the motivation of mlecchas in their pursuit of Indology?
> Endo: Superficially, to learn about the rich and ancient storehouse of
Indian
> culture. But there are quite a few in the crowd who have a hidden agenda:
to
> keep Hindu civilization at a lower level vis-a-vis the European, to be
able to
> denigrate Hindu practices and culture by out-of-context quotes from Hindu
> works, to persist in 19th century European racism.
> Exo: Indology is an enormously fascinating field: intellectually
rewarding, and
> profoundly revealing of factors and forces that give rise to and maintain
a
> dynamic and vibrant civilization. It would be a sad day, for the world
would be
> the poorer, if/when  people beyond the borders of India lose interest in
> Indology.
>
> 9. Can we bridge the gap between the two?
> Endo: Rather difficult, because the Western (and Western-indoctrinated
Indian)
> mind-set simply cannot understand the deeper elements of Hindu culture. As
a
> result of this incapacity it keeps confusing issues.
> Exo: Rather difficult, because  Endo-scholars have difficulty
distinguishing
> between cultural affiliation/patriotism and scientific/scholarly analysis.
They
> imagine that anything even remotely negative about Hindu civilization by a
> non-Hindu arises from arrogant, racist attitudes. However, Endo-writings
can be
> very valuable for Exo-scholars as they provide valuable data for our
subject.
>
> It is important to realize that though it seems as if both (Endo and Exo)
are
> playing the same game, they are actually following different rules. It is
as if
> two groups are both  playing bridge. One is playing contract bridge, and
the
> other auction bridge, say. They can play separately, but not together,
much
> less claim that one is right and the other wrong. The value in my analysis
lies
> in this: As long as each group understands where both come from, one can
avoid
> at least some unpleasantness.
>
> V. V. Raman
> October 31, 2000
>