India would possibly maybe simply mute ask His Holiness The Dalai Lama if he would are attempting to be our next President. Unbelievable and in the case of very potentially not because the premise would possibly maybe sound, I mute judge there’s merit in our excessive about it.
After the deeply distressing events of the previous few months around points of id and religion in India, I mediate we’re polarised previous restore. I assemble not pronounce this lightly however on the premise of a recognition of the converse nature of polarisation within the digital media age which in all fairness different from no subject lines and challenges we would possibly maybe need viewed earlier than.
Our divisions these days must not merely along the lines of political interests, identities and even ideologies however they are linked fundamentally to our experiences and the notion of fact itself. This, undoubtedly, isn’t very uncommon to India however appropriate as bitterly glaring in several places, akin to within the US, too. The brand new phenomenon of each person’s bruised, offended, reactive, mercurial-fire minds being “continuously-on” attributable to of social media, compounded by offended TV ticket hosts and panellists, has weighed us down.
Searching on what channels you leer, whose Twitter handles you notice, and whose WhatsApp lists you are on, you are simply not going to acknowledge, let on my own perceive, the explanations for the effort, exasperate, or grief of others around you these days. We’re not all seeing the identical events though we’re on our phones the entire time.
Half of us are astounded that the calls for violence in opposition to a woman fail to evoke the slightest downside among the many different half of. Then there are these who’re equally scared that the ruling birthday party of a secular country can reveal on “Sabka saath” whereas also seemingly condoning the unceasing taunting of fellow citizens for his or her faith.
I mediate that one thing is fundamentally, nearly irrevocably broken now. Now we accept as true with (I employ “we” inclusively for all Indians) rejected an “conception of India” that became as soon as presumably in no way if truth be told impartial, inclusive, and impartial to launch with, without an amazing of the Bharat that goes previous unconvincing cliches and two-confronted slogans.
After the insanity and the ignominy, we’re left stranded these days on two lethal duds — a supposed “composite nationalism” that in no way if truth be told became as soon as, and a supposed “Hindutva” that’s not going to be one thing however harmful and self-harmful, if its proponents assemble not habits an enormous route correction teach. No subject all that India and Indians accept as true with survived earlier than, I mediate the different forms of hatred these days can’t be extinguished except we discover a deeper sense of ourselves than what our cultural and political native weather provides these days.
To put it plainly, there’s no such thing as a theory of a secular India on hand without the soundless and sanctimonious acquiescence to the violence in opposition to Hindus as we accept as true with viewed in Kashmir and in several places going along with it. Conversely, there’s no such thing as a theory of Hindu existence these days, on the different facet, without never-ending provocation.
We don’t accept as true with any one to ticket us a replicate to our souls in our political and even broader public sphere.
What we prefer in our public life is a guru — not a mere sect chief, however a universal, humanistic visionary from the sector previous our mental and political borders, a vishwa guru who can educate us to be the vishwa guru our leaders pronounce we’re intended to be. We need any individual who can care for India’s hand and restore its innocence again.
From the standpoint of the presidency as an institution, the gesture of asking a cultural “son of India” pretty than a strictly legalistically-outlined Indian to signify its folks would make for a mighty affirmation of what it means to be Indian these days previous the dilapidated Eurocentric paradigms of ethnic and non secular nationalism. How many liberal democracies accept as true with, finally, made a “refugee” their President?
From the standpoint of world relatives, one is inclined to be tempted to take into legend this as appropriate a follow scoot at neighbouring international locations. Nonetheless that is inclined to be a blinkered watch. As an different, it’ll seed over again the premise of India as an amazing that a long way exceeds its comprise territorial borders, worthy as Buddhism, artwork, trade, and custom did correct through Asia for centuries earlier than.
From the standpoint of Bharatiya civilisational ancient previous, the premise of a non secular teacher playing a role related to our aloof presidency isn’t very unknown. The Dvaita saint-thinker Vyasa Tirtha sat on the throne of Vijayanagara swiftly at some stage in Krishna Deva Raya’s rule attributable to of the roughly have confidence that existed between the non secular and political figures of the time. A widely revered and cherished non secular figure admire the Dalai Lama doing both constitutional responsibilities as our President and his comprise outdated responsibilities in opposition to his folks and to humanity, in out of the ordinary, will encourage Indians and others to rethink their sense of responsibility not handiest to their authorities and country as abstractions, however in opposition to every different.
Our planet has leaped from the age of colonialism to the Cool War to an equally wintry and callous neo-liberalism all within a hundred years, or three generations. There is almost no connection between folks and the planet, folks and folks, and most of all within folks themselves. At a time of world epistemic, cultural, and ecological crisis, the Dalai Lama mute carries a message of kindness and happiness and savor. As he says in The Art of Happiness, there’s “one other source of rate” in human beings, emanating from a sense of heat and affection for every other pretty than solely self-discipline subject parameters admire wealth and house (or, if I could maybe simply add, economic indicators and id-slogans). Indian presidents admire Ram Nath Kovind and A P J Abdul Kalam accept as true with symbolised India’s democratic ideals in a single crucial formulation. Nonetheless what we prefer now would possibly maybe well be better than appropriate that accept as true with of representation on my own. We need connection and compassion. We must rep rate in fact pretty than propaganda. That’s why we prefer His Holiness The Dalai Lama to be President of India.
(The author is professor of media overview at the College of San Francisco)