SV: "Bagger Vance" & Doniger on the Gita

[V.V. Raman]

1. <Imagine what Americans think of the Gita after reading this.>

Why should we care about what Americans think about the Gita? Is the intrinsic
value or the Gita dependent on this? There are many Americans today who think
highly of what the Gita has to say, many others who feel otherwise, and the
vast majority don't even know about the work.

2. <What can be done about this injustice?>
Is allowing a scholar to express her views (however unacceptable and
distasteful to us it may be) injustice? Many  people, scholars and others,
Americans, Christians, non-Christians,  speak out against Christianity too.

L.M.Fosse wrote: <America is a free society, and consequently people have the
right to discuss and criticize other people's religion.>
As of now this is true of India too, and of a few other countries in the world.
Whether we like it or not, this is a fact. There are forces in the world (they
exist within America too)  which would like to subvert this system. Pathetic is
the plight of (thinking) people who have to live in places where your tongue
will be cut off (or its equivalent) when you speak against what the people in
power believe to be the TRUTH.

3. By the way, there have been Hindu thinkers who have criticized the Gita too.
Personally, I did not like what Doniger wrote, and I published a strongly
worded rebuttal to her.

Best regards,
VVRaman
March 14, 2001