Some ANIL CHAWLA wrote:
"Maidservants working in our locality live in a slum called S. Farm. The slum had a country liquor shop. A large number of the men in S. Farm used to visit the liquor shop and blow up their earnings there. This used to cause hardships to their families. A few months ago under the leadership of a social worker (a woman I do not know) all the women of the slum decided to do something about the menace. One fine evening all the women surrounded the country liquor shop. They were holding placards in their hands demanding closure of the establishment. All the men who were inside were beaten with footwear. In many cases wife/sister of the man being beaten were cheering the crowd to do a more thorough job. Police watched as spectator only ensuring that the beating did not cross limits. The next day, the shop owner decided to shift the liquor shop away from the area. The women were jubilant. They had emerged victorious and felt empowered."
"Contrast the incident of S. Farm with the protest against pubs in Mangalore. The tables have surely turned. Instead of women protesting against men drinking, it is the men who are protesting against women drinking. When women protest against men drinking, there are no issues of individual freedom or human rights or "who gave you the right to do this". I am not in favour of beating up any one – whether men or women. But surely, for all those who believe in equality of women, beating up of women drinkers is in no way worse or more condemnable than bashing up of alcoholic men."
I invite your reaction.....
Wednesday, February 18, 2009
Sunday, January 11, 2009
Karma
Karma is the bedrock of almost all Indian religions. Karma is used to explain all human interactions. Everyone, from intellectual to the illiterate, wealthy to the pauper, elite to the uncouth, innately feels its influence. Joyous or tragic, whatever may be the situation, Karma is said to be the cause. Karma moves the cycle of birth, death, and rebirth. The very purpose of life is to find release from Karma. Therefore, a basic understanding of Karma is essential to understand our society.
The term "Karma" refers to action. Action, i.e. Karma, has effect. The effect of Karma is something like the Newton's third law of motion -- for every action there is an equal and opposite reaction. But, the effect of Karama is (i) invisible, (iii) may not manifest immediately, and (iii) accumulates over time. Karma can be physical or mental and the effect can also be physical or mental.
All of this is quite reasonable. In the U.S. people call this, "what goes around, comes around". Our actions do have consequences. We have to live with the consequences of the choices we make. Smoking causes cancer, bad diet causes a variety of health problems, breaking the law lands you in jail, being nasty to people will make you a jerk, etc., etc. In many of these cases we may not be able to show a clear cause and effect relationship. But no one will dispute that these are instances of cause-and-effect relationship. Often, the consequences may not show up immediately. Be nasty to somebody and you will face the consequences rather quickly. But if you choose to smoke the effect may show up only later in life.
To this extent the concept of Karma is quite reasonable. But, the doctrine of Karma is much more.
Vedas declare three types of Karma, (i) ordained Karma, (ii) forbidden Karma, and (iii) optional Karma. Ordained Karma are actions that must be performed. No benefits are derived by the performance of this type of Karma, but failure to perform them will result in sin, i.e. "papam". One example of this type of Karma is "Sandhyavandhanam". In other words, action does not provide any benefit, but inaction results in sin ("papam"). The reverse is true in the case of forbidden Karma. Action results in sin and inaction does not provide any benefit. Examples of this kind of Karma include telling lies, Shudra reciting Vedas, etc. Optional Karma, the third kind of Karma, are to be performed for some specific benefit. The effect of the performance of this kind of Karma is the enjoyment of the resulting benefit. However, non-performance will not result in sin. Vedas prescribe certain rituals for certain desired benefits. For example, the Vedas promise progeny as the benefit of performing Puthra Kama Homa. Feeding the poor is another example of optional Karma that results in accumulation of "punyam".
Further, the doctrine of Karma claims all Jivathmas (souls) carry an accumulated load of "punyam" and "papam" resulting from the Karma performed by the Jivathma over the course of its uncountable lives. In between two lives, the Jivathmas are given appropriate bodies and with these bodies they enjoy the benefits of the "punyam" in Swargam (heaven) or suffer the consequences of "papam" in Naragam (hell). Then, the Jivathmas are born into this material universe as a member of one of the infinitely many lifeforms. The particular lifeform a Jivathma is born into is a function of the balance of its "punyam" and "papam".
A preponderance of "punyam" results in privileged birth, such as a male birth in one of the three higher order Varnas, namely, Brahmana, Kshathriya, or Vaisya. Female birth or birth in Shudra Varna will result if the balance of Karma lens in the direction of "papam". In other words, a male birth in one of the higher three Varnas indicates "punya" from previous births. A female or a Shudra birth indicates "papam" from previous births. This is the doctrine of Karma.
The doctrine of Karma is the intellectual foundation of the patriarchal and Varnashrama Dharma based society we live in. Karma from previous births is the reason d'etre for the injustices we see everyday. If a rich man loses his only son in an accident, it is due to Karma. If he bags a lucrative contract, it is due to Karma. If the outcaste suffer daily indiginities, it is due to Karma.
O n the flip side, though, one who faithfully fulfills the duties of his or her station, i.e. caste and gender, there is "punyam" to be had, the "punyam" that can allow upward mobilization in a future life. A Shudra who lives as prescribed by the scriptures, will, as the result o good conduct, will be rewarded with higher birth. The doctrine of Karma demands abject acceptance of present conditions, agreeable or disagreeable, during the reality of present life. All the rewards are promised for a presumed future life.
Thus, one of the most important results of Karma doctrine is the Varnashrama (caste) system. Balance of "papam" and "punyam" determine the Varna and gender into which a Jivathma is born. This, then, determines the rights, privileages, and duties. This system, by its very nature, requires Varna purity to be maintained, else how would the duties and privileages determined. Therefore, endogamy is strictly enforced. Violations of endomamy result in immediate ostracization. The progeny from such unions are cast aside as outside the pale of society. Manu in his treatise has put down detailed rules for the hierarchical degrdation, proportional to the degree of social separation between the partners of an exogenous union. These outcasts are polluting even to the sight. They are required to perform all the degrading labor for the benefit of the dominant caste. They are required to perform all the hard labor. Yet, they are not allowed to use any of the prime-resources of the village, such as water, roads, temple, etc. They have to live outside the village and use only substandard resources that the dominant caste don't care to want. These practices continue even to this day in the villages and small towns of India. Disputes between land-owning dominant caste and peasants castes often end with the peasant outcasts violently put down.
In the last 50 to 60 years, the Brahmanas have mostly moved away from the villages to large towns and cities. There are many reasons for this including education and opportunities for advancement. But, the fact the social justice movement, started by Mr. E.V. Ramaswami, targeted the Brahmanas exclusively has also contributed to this trend. Therefore, the atrocities, in the present, against the weak and powerless in the villages, are not committed by the Brahmanas, but by the dominant Shudra caste. Most Brahmanas are indeed appalled by these actions. They always protest that Brahmanas are peace loving and will not hurt anybody. This is true. But, the Brahmins cannot escape responsibility so long as they occupy the upper echelons of religious authority from which the justification for Varnashrama system is derived. If the Brahmanas are not to be held responsible, their religious leaders, such as Sankracharyas, Jeeyars, Andavan, etc., must openly repudiate the doctrine of Karma. Karma is the rationale for the Varna division. Sans Karma, there is no rational for birth based Varna division. Therefore, for Varna to be eradicated the doctrine of Karma must be rejected first.
Since I was born into the Brahmana community, and practiced its tenets for a long time, I have no illusions of this happening. What is practical is for individual Brahmanas to cast aside the yoke of Karma that binds us with other less fortunate ones, through a system of dominance and exploitation. If more and more Brahmanas reject their Varna and repudiate its practice, the less justification the dominant Shudra caste will have for their atrocities. Among the concrete actions we can take are, allowing anyone to become Archakas, allowing anyone interested to learn and recite the Vedas, acquiescing marriage across caste lines, rejecting all forms of astrology, etc.
In summary, Karma is well and good, just as long as the casue and effect do not get into presumed prior and future births.
The term "Karma" refers to action. Action, i.e. Karma, has effect. The effect of Karma is something like the Newton's third law of motion -- for every action there is an equal and opposite reaction. But, the effect of Karama is (i) invisible, (iii) may not manifest immediately, and (iii) accumulates over time. Karma can be physical or mental and the effect can also be physical or mental.
All of this is quite reasonable. In the U.S. people call this, "what goes around, comes around". Our actions do have consequences. We have to live with the consequences of the choices we make. Smoking causes cancer, bad diet causes a variety of health problems, breaking the law lands you in jail, being nasty to people will make you a jerk, etc., etc. In many of these cases we may not be able to show a clear cause and effect relationship. But no one will dispute that these are instances of cause-and-effect relationship. Often, the consequences may not show up immediately. Be nasty to somebody and you will face the consequences rather quickly. But if you choose to smoke the effect may show up only later in life.
To this extent the concept of Karma is quite reasonable. But, the doctrine of Karma is much more.
Vedas declare three types of Karma, (i) ordained Karma, (ii) forbidden Karma, and (iii) optional Karma. Ordained Karma are actions that must be performed. No benefits are derived by the performance of this type of Karma, but failure to perform them will result in sin, i.e. "papam". One example of this type of Karma is "Sandhyavandhanam". In other words, action does not provide any benefit, but inaction results in sin ("papam"). The reverse is true in the case of forbidden Karma. Action results in sin and inaction does not provide any benefit. Examples of this kind of Karma include telling lies, Shudra reciting Vedas, etc. Optional Karma, the third kind of Karma, are to be performed for some specific benefit. The effect of the performance of this kind of Karma is the enjoyment of the resulting benefit. However, non-performance will not result in sin. Vedas prescribe certain rituals for certain desired benefits. For example, the Vedas promise progeny as the benefit of performing Puthra Kama Homa. Feeding the poor is another example of optional Karma that results in accumulation of "punyam".
Further, the doctrine of Karma claims all Jivathmas (souls) carry an accumulated load of "punyam" and "papam" resulting from the Karma performed by the Jivathma over the course of its uncountable lives. In between two lives, the Jivathmas are given appropriate bodies and with these bodies they enjoy the benefits of the "punyam" in Swargam (heaven) or suffer the consequences of "papam" in Naragam (hell). Then, the Jivathmas are born into this material universe as a member of one of the infinitely many lifeforms. The particular lifeform a Jivathma is born into is a function of the balance of its "punyam" and "papam".
A preponderance of "punyam" results in privileged birth, such as a male birth in one of the three higher order Varnas, namely, Brahmana, Kshathriya, or Vaisya. Female birth or birth in Shudra Varna will result if the balance of Karma lens in the direction of "papam". In other words, a male birth in one of the higher three Varnas indicates "punya" from previous births. A female or a Shudra birth indicates "papam" from previous births. This is the doctrine of Karma.
The doctrine of Karma is the intellectual foundation of the patriarchal and Varnashrama Dharma based society we live in. Karma from previous births is the reason d'etre for the injustices we see everyday. If a rich man loses his only son in an accident, it is due to Karma. If he bags a lucrative contract, it is due to Karma. If the outcaste suffer daily indiginities, it is due to Karma.
O n the flip side, though, one who faithfully fulfills the duties of his or her station, i.e. caste and gender, there is "punyam" to be had, the "punyam" that can allow upward mobilization in a future life. A Shudra who lives as prescribed by the scriptures, will, as the result o good conduct, will be rewarded with higher birth. The doctrine of Karma demands abject acceptance of present conditions, agreeable or disagreeable, during the reality of present life. All the rewards are promised for a presumed future life.
Thus, one of the most important results of Karma doctrine is the Varnashrama (caste) system. Balance of "papam" and "punyam" determine the Varna and gender into which a Jivathma is born. This, then, determines the rights, privileages, and duties. This system, by its very nature, requires Varna purity to be maintained, else how would the duties and privileages determined. Therefore, endogamy is strictly enforced. Violations of endomamy result in immediate ostracization. The progeny from such unions are cast aside as outside the pale of society. Manu in his treatise has put down detailed rules for the hierarchical degrdation, proportional to the degree of social separation between the partners of an exogenous union. These outcasts are polluting even to the sight. They are required to perform all the degrading labor for the benefit of the dominant caste. They are required to perform all the hard labor. Yet, they are not allowed to use any of the prime-resources of the village, such as water, roads, temple, etc. They have to live outside the village and use only substandard resources that the dominant caste don't care to want. These practices continue even to this day in the villages and small towns of India. Disputes between land-owning dominant caste and peasants castes often end with the peasant outcasts violently put down.
In the last 50 to 60 years, the Brahmanas have mostly moved away from the villages to large towns and cities. There are many reasons for this including education and opportunities for advancement. But, the fact the social justice movement, started by Mr. E.V. Ramaswami, targeted the Brahmanas exclusively has also contributed to this trend. Therefore, the atrocities, in the present, against the weak and powerless in the villages, are not committed by the Brahmanas, but by the dominant Shudra caste. Most Brahmanas are indeed appalled by these actions. They always protest that Brahmanas are peace loving and will not hurt anybody. This is true. But, the Brahmins cannot escape responsibility so long as they occupy the upper echelons of religious authority from which the justification for Varnashrama system is derived. If the Brahmanas are not to be held responsible, their religious leaders, such as Sankracharyas, Jeeyars, Andavan, etc., must openly repudiate the doctrine of Karma. Karma is the rationale for the Varna division. Sans Karma, there is no rational for birth based Varna division. Therefore, for Varna to be eradicated the doctrine of Karma must be rejected first.
Since I was born into the Brahmana community, and practiced its tenets for a long time, I have no illusions of this happening. What is practical is for individual Brahmanas to cast aside the yoke of Karma that binds us with other less fortunate ones, through a system of dominance and exploitation. If more and more Brahmanas reject their Varna and repudiate its practice, the less justification the dominant Shudra caste will have for their atrocities. Among the concrete actions we can take are, allowing anyone to become Archakas, allowing anyone interested to learn and recite the Vedas, acquiescing marriage across caste lines, rejecting all forms of astrology, etc.
In summary, Karma is well and good, just as long as the casue and effect do not get into presumed prior and future births.
Wednesday, December 24, 2008
kaRpu
To say that "kaRpu" is sexual fidelity, as some do, is to show a skeleton for a fully living body. To understand "kaRpu" one needs to understand the four pillars of femalehood for Tamils, "achcham", "naaNam", "maudum", and "payiRpu". Good females with kaRpu must possess a good helping of these four qualities. These are the essence of femalehood so much so that men, to be men, must be bereft of any of them.
"achcham" (fear/timidity)
This is not the same emotion one feels in the face of imminent danger, but is a feeling of constant trepidation. It encompasses fear of strangers, fear of talking to unrelated men, fear of offending others, and a host of other similar fears.
"naaNam" (coyness/shy)
There are two types of "naaNam": one the coyness that inevitably overwhelms a woman in intimate settings and the other the natural womanly shyness in public.
"maudam" (innocence)
"maudam" is a case of extreme innocence bordering on stupidity, ready to believe her man implicitly without question.
"payiRpu" (aversion)
This aversion is about any kind of contact with other men. Even the mere thought of other men is supposed to produce a sense of unbearable revulsion in the woman's mind.
A woman of kaRpu is endowed with a large dose of these qualities; it is much more than just sexual fidelity to one man. However, in as much as there is no easy yard stick to measure these four qualities, sexual fidelity is the de facto litmus test for kaRpu. Either she has it or she doesn't. A woman must always remain faithful to one man all her life. A woman's marital status does not enter the picture. What is crucial is faithfulness to one man. As long as she is faithful she has kaRpu, if not, she has lost it forever with no chance of ever gaining it back. The most extreme case is when a girl is violated before getting married. In this case she enters a state of lost kaRpu. But, in this case, the lost kaRpu can be restored if and when she gets married to the perpetrator of the rape. In case the woman is already married she has no way of restoring her lost kaRpu. She has to live in infamy or take her own life.
kaRpu is the most revered aspect of Tamil culture. Women are taught to value it more than their lives. They are taught to revere and worship women of antiquity who are supposed to exemplify it. They are taught to worship kaRpu. Legends of the power of kaRpu abound. A woman of kaRpu can stop the sun from rising, make rain to fall by the shear force of her will, and defy gravity (this legend celebrates Vasuki, a woman of supreme kaRpu, who while rushing to attend to her husband's command, let go of the rope used to fetch well water, only to find it suspended in mid-air). The long suffering Kannagi, who cut off her breast and burned the capital city of the Pandiya Kingdom to the ground in defense of her cheating husband, is the goddess of kaRpu (if you value your life you are well advised not to say a doubting word about her in Tamilnadu).
These women possessed aNangu, a mystical power which is said to pervade women of supreme kaRpu that can reek havoc if not kept under check with proper reverence. Indeed, Tamil women are to strive to an impossible standard.
Genetically speaking, men have a need to keep their women faithful. As a gene survival machine, a man is hard wired to maximize the chances of his genes surviving at least two generations. There are two ways he can achieve this. One is to spread his seed as widely as possible and expect a few will survive; there is no promise, explicit or otherwise, from either side to remain faithful. A second alternative is to fashion a bond with a woman who promises to bear his seed and no one else's. Since there is no mutual promise of fidelity, a man pursuing the first strategy will have no way of knowing whether any one of his mates will actually bear his offspring. Therefore, he would have to find as many mates as he can in order to maximize the likelihood that at least one would produce an offspring carrying his genes.
On the other hand, the second strategy may be beneficial for both a woman and a man. A woman has to undergo the ordeal of pregnancy and then, after the birth, invest a fairly long period of time caring for the young. Any help she can get raising them, so that they in turn will produce more gene survival machines (carrying her genes), is invaluable to her. To get a man to stay and help her raise the children, she would be willing to promise to him fidelity. She promises to remain faithful to him in exchange for his promise to share in caregiving. Thus, a man desires sexual fidelity from the woman so that his genes will survive another generation and the woman desires help with caregiving from the man so that her genes also will survive.
It is easy to see why a woman is more likely than a man to forgive her cheating mate, as long as he promises to remain with her and care for her and her children. His cheating does not affect the ability of her genes to survive another generation as long as he remains with her, albeit unfaithfully. On the other hand, it is hard to find a man who will forgive his mate who got pregnant by cheating on him. Even if she terminates the pregnancy and promises future fidelity, how can he be sure that the next time she is pregnant it is his genes that are surviving in the woman's womb?
These gene pressures extend beyond just the self. The mindless journey of survival of the genes forces a parent to maximize the chances of his or her children to reproduce. Siblings pitch in for each other and cousins pitch in to a lesser extent proportional to the extent to which they share genes. This pressure results in controlling the behavior of male and female members of the family or tribe such that their chances of breeding offspring who in turn successfully breed are maximized. From the discussion above it is easy to see that the trait men desire most in a woman is sexual fidelity so that they may be assured their genes will live another generation and reproduce. The trait women find most desirable in a man is help with long-term caregiving. Thus, the families, tribes, and societies try to inculcate these traits, respectively, among their female and male young.
The notion of kaRpu developed by Tamils requires that women play their part. kaRpu demands female sexual fidelity without the men promising anything in return, not even marriage. If a woman is violated before matrimony she has available two options to maintain kaRpu: marry the felon or commit suicide. A married woman if violated has only one option: give up life. Her uterus belongs to just one man or else she looses kaRpu, a thing more sacred than even her life. The woman's side of the gene survival deal is now ingrained in the traditions and customs of the Tamil nation. But what about the man's side of the deal? Does he promise to remain faithful to her in exchange for her promise to carry his seed and no others'?
In fairness to Tamils, I must acknowledge that Tamil men also have strict standards of rectitude. Not coveting another man's wife is the hallmark of manliness of a man among men--in Tamil pErANmai, declared Thiruvalluvar. Honorable men are not even to let their gaze fall on the faces of other men's wives. In the company of women, they are to look down at their feet (the lack of toe ring would reveal the unmarried status of women whom they are free to pursue). However, even pErANmai benefits men more than it does women because it provides a code that prevents men from coveting other men's wives. This ensures the womb of a woman remain the exclusive property of one man, her husband.
Yet, these are only honorable qualities, not life or death qualities. If fallen from honor, a woman is required to give up her life to restore that honor, but a man must merely acknowledge his transgressions and express sincere regret.
Now, if we go back to the top and reread the virtuous four pillars of kaRpu, we might not find them so universally virtuous, after all. On the contrary, Tamils would do well if their women were free from the shackles of kaRpu. Knock down those four pillars! Men and women must have the same standards of honor. More than 70 years ago Bharathiyar urged us to burn the foolishness of belittling women. But change can come only when Tamil women rise up and demand it. Good men can, at best, play a supporting role. This kind of change is not something women should accept as a gift from men. It should be a right that women demand and take as a matter of inalienable right.
Today, the pernicious consequences of a woman's loss of kaRpu are less severe than what I have described here, although it remains the gold standard for female virtue among Tamils. Fortunately, progress can never be stopped. Women must cast aside achcham, naaNam, maudam, and payiRpu, and rise up with the ferocity of tigresses and claim their equal right to pursue their self interest just like men.
To misquote an American bigot, equality now, equality tomorrow, equality forever.
"achcham" (fear/timidity)
This is not the same emotion one feels in the face of imminent danger, but is a feeling of constant trepidation. It encompasses fear of strangers, fear of talking to unrelated men, fear of offending others, and a host of other similar fears.
"naaNam" (coyness/shy)
There are two types of "naaNam": one the coyness that inevitably overwhelms a woman in intimate settings and the other the natural womanly shyness in public.
"maudam" (innocence)
"maudam" is a case of extreme innocence bordering on stupidity, ready to believe her man implicitly without question.
"payiRpu" (aversion)
This aversion is about any kind of contact with other men. Even the mere thought of other men is supposed to produce a sense of unbearable revulsion in the woman's mind.
A woman of kaRpu is endowed with a large dose of these qualities; it is much more than just sexual fidelity to one man. However, in as much as there is no easy yard stick to measure these four qualities, sexual fidelity is the de facto litmus test for kaRpu. Either she has it or she doesn't. A woman must always remain faithful to one man all her life. A woman's marital status does not enter the picture. What is crucial is faithfulness to one man. As long as she is faithful she has kaRpu, if not, she has lost it forever with no chance of ever gaining it back. The most extreme case is when a girl is violated before getting married. In this case she enters a state of lost kaRpu. But, in this case, the lost kaRpu can be restored if and when she gets married to the perpetrator of the rape. In case the woman is already married she has no way of restoring her lost kaRpu. She has to live in infamy or take her own life.
kaRpu is the most revered aspect of Tamil culture. Women are taught to value it more than their lives. They are taught to revere and worship women of antiquity who are supposed to exemplify it. They are taught to worship kaRpu. Legends of the power of kaRpu abound. A woman of kaRpu can stop the sun from rising, make rain to fall by the shear force of her will, and defy gravity (this legend celebrates Vasuki, a woman of supreme kaRpu, who while rushing to attend to her husband's command, let go of the rope used to fetch well water, only to find it suspended in mid-air). The long suffering Kannagi, who cut off her breast and burned the capital city of the Pandiya Kingdom to the ground in defense of her cheating husband, is the goddess of kaRpu (if you value your life you are well advised not to say a doubting word about her in Tamilnadu).
These women possessed aNangu, a mystical power which is said to pervade women of supreme kaRpu that can reek havoc if not kept under check with proper reverence. Indeed, Tamil women are to strive to an impossible standard.
Genetically speaking, men have a need to keep their women faithful. As a gene survival machine, a man is hard wired to maximize the chances of his genes surviving at least two generations. There are two ways he can achieve this. One is to spread his seed as widely as possible and expect a few will survive; there is no promise, explicit or otherwise, from either side to remain faithful. A second alternative is to fashion a bond with a woman who promises to bear his seed and no one else's. Since there is no mutual promise of fidelity, a man pursuing the first strategy will have no way of knowing whether any one of his mates will actually bear his offspring. Therefore, he would have to find as many mates as he can in order to maximize the likelihood that at least one would produce an offspring carrying his genes.
On the other hand, the second strategy may be beneficial for both a woman and a man. A woman has to undergo the ordeal of pregnancy and then, after the birth, invest a fairly long period of time caring for the young. Any help she can get raising them, so that they in turn will produce more gene survival machines (carrying her genes), is invaluable to her. To get a man to stay and help her raise the children, she would be willing to promise to him fidelity. She promises to remain faithful to him in exchange for his promise to share in caregiving. Thus, a man desires sexual fidelity from the woman so that his genes will survive another generation and the woman desires help with caregiving from the man so that her genes also will survive.
It is easy to see why a woman is more likely than a man to forgive her cheating mate, as long as he promises to remain with her and care for her and her children. His cheating does not affect the ability of her genes to survive another generation as long as he remains with her, albeit unfaithfully. On the other hand, it is hard to find a man who will forgive his mate who got pregnant by cheating on him. Even if she terminates the pregnancy and promises future fidelity, how can he be sure that the next time she is pregnant it is his genes that are surviving in the woman's womb?
These gene pressures extend beyond just the self. The mindless journey of survival of the genes forces a parent to maximize the chances of his or her children to reproduce. Siblings pitch in for each other and cousins pitch in to a lesser extent proportional to the extent to which they share genes. This pressure results in controlling the behavior of male and female members of the family or tribe such that their chances of breeding offspring who in turn successfully breed are maximized. From the discussion above it is easy to see that the trait men desire most in a woman is sexual fidelity so that they may be assured their genes will live another generation and reproduce. The trait women find most desirable in a man is help with long-term caregiving. Thus, the families, tribes, and societies try to inculcate these traits, respectively, among their female and male young.
The notion of kaRpu developed by Tamils requires that women play their part. kaRpu demands female sexual fidelity without the men promising anything in return, not even marriage. If a woman is violated before matrimony she has available two options to maintain kaRpu: marry the felon or commit suicide. A married woman if violated has only one option: give up life. Her uterus belongs to just one man or else she looses kaRpu, a thing more sacred than even her life. The woman's side of the gene survival deal is now ingrained in the traditions and customs of the Tamil nation. But what about the man's side of the deal? Does he promise to remain faithful to her in exchange for her promise to carry his seed and no others'?
In fairness to Tamils, I must acknowledge that Tamil men also have strict standards of rectitude. Not coveting another man's wife is the hallmark of manliness of a man among men--in Tamil pErANmai, declared Thiruvalluvar. Honorable men are not even to let their gaze fall on the faces of other men's wives. In the company of women, they are to look down at their feet (the lack of toe ring would reveal the unmarried status of women whom they are free to pursue). However, even pErANmai benefits men more than it does women because it provides a code that prevents men from coveting other men's wives. This ensures the womb of a woman remain the exclusive property of one man, her husband.
Yet, these are only honorable qualities, not life or death qualities. If fallen from honor, a woman is required to give up her life to restore that honor, but a man must merely acknowledge his transgressions and express sincere regret.
Now, if we go back to the top and reread the virtuous four pillars of kaRpu, we might not find them so universally virtuous, after all. On the contrary, Tamils would do well if their women were free from the shackles of kaRpu. Knock down those four pillars! Men and women must have the same standards of honor. More than 70 years ago Bharathiyar urged us to burn the foolishness of belittling women. But change can come only when Tamil women rise up and demand it. Good men can, at best, play a supporting role. This kind of change is not something women should accept as a gift from men. It should be a right that women demand and take as a matter of inalienable right.
Today, the pernicious consequences of a woman's loss of kaRpu are less severe than what I have described here, although it remains the gold standard for female virtue among Tamils. Fortunately, progress can never be stopped. Women must cast aside achcham, naaNam, maudam, and payiRpu, and rise up with the ferocity of tigresses and claim their equal right to pursue their self interest just like men.
To misquote an American bigot, equality now, equality tomorrow, equality forever.
Monday, December 8, 2008
Monotheism must go
George Carlin was one of the greatest. He showed how the same set of words can be prosaic in one permutation but quite offensive in another. George warned us that just because the phrase "he pricked his finger" is innocuous, polite company would be outraged if you changed the order of the words. He was quite a guy. Search YouTube for many clips of his.
One of his favorite targets of ridicule is religion. His bit on the Ten Commandments is a special treat. The Ten Commandments are touted as a precious gift to world jurisprudence by the great tradition of monotheism. What a crock!
The Ten Commandments symbolize why monotheism is particularly pernicious. Just look at the text (even though there is no single universally accepted text). The first four commandments clearly demonstrate that the composer (it seems there were several scribes involved over several centuries for the texts in question) was eager to keep the flock within the tribe. They have absolutely no relevance to jurisprudence but serve as the basis for either dominating those who disagree or forcing them to convert allegiance. While these four commandments have no ethical or moral value whatsoever, they encourage the immoral domination of others.
The remaining commandments are either common sense or silly and in no way unique to monotheism. They are not a precious gift to humanity, nor are they incisive at all, let alone enough to be the basis of thoughtful jurisprudence. For that we need to look to polytheists of ancient Greece or India (yes you can find pernicious stuff among their practices as well, but they never claimed exceptionalism).
The fifth of the Ten Commandments is about honoring your parents. That sounds nice, doesn't it? But they don't really mean it. Just consider what Jesus says:
Okay, what if I love my parents more than you, Jesus? What if I love my mother, who has taken care of me when I was in need, poured all her love into me, sacrificed her life for me, more than I could love you, whom I have never seen and whose existence I have no way of knowing for sure? Well, tough luck! Here is what Jesus wants you to do:
Jesus's answer is you need to put your mother to death if she won't accept Jesus as the savior! Way to go, prince of peace!! This is what happens with monotheism. Peace and love only if you accept to be part of the group. Otherwise, even if it's your mother, cut her throat.
Now, to the sixth commandment: do not commit murder. The first thing their god did after giving this commandment is to command Moses and his lieutenant Joshua to kill and plunder the inhabitants of the land of present day Palestine. So much for this command.
The seventh says do not commit adultery. This is perfectly good advice but hardly unique to monotheism. Furthermore, progressive societies long ago abandoned classifying adultery as a crime, let alone a cardinal sin worthy of eternal damnation.
The eighth (do not steal) and ninth (do not bear false witness) are similar to the seventh: prudent advice but not unique to monotheism.
Now cometh the tenth. What a doozie! Don't lust after your neighbor's house, wife, servant, ox, donkey, etc. What if you are a woman? Yeah, women are just property, so they can't lust after anything.
Well, all religions are full of the good, the bad, and the ugly. But it takes a monotheistic religion to claim their bad and ugly are really good when interpreted correctly and must be accepted by everyone--The Best for All Humanity!!! The Greatest Gift Ever!!!
The great monotheism brought darkness that plunged Europe into ignorance, death, and destruction. It took five to six hundred years for the darkness to lift. It happened when the ideas of a polytheistic society, ancient Greece, were rediscovered in the age of the Renaissance.
For religion in general to lose its sting, the idea of monotheism must be destroyed first.
One of his favorite targets of ridicule is religion. His bit on the Ten Commandments is a special treat. The Ten Commandments are touted as a precious gift to world jurisprudence by the great tradition of monotheism. What a crock!
The Ten Commandments symbolize why monotheism is particularly pernicious. Just look at the text (even though there is no single universally accepted text). The first four commandments clearly demonstrate that the composer (it seems there were several scribes involved over several centuries for the texts in question) was eager to keep the flock within the tribe. They have absolutely no relevance to jurisprudence but serve as the basis for either dominating those who disagree or forcing them to convert allegiance. While these four commandments have no ethical or moral value whatsoever, they encourage the immoral domination of others.
The remaining commandments are either common sense or silly and in no way unique to monotheism. They are not a precious gift to humanity, nor are they incisive at all, let alone enough to be the basis of thoughtful jurisprudence. For that we need to look to polytheists of ancient Greece or India (yes you can find pernicious stuff among their practices as well, but they never claimed exceptionalism).
The fifth of the Ten Commandments is about honoring your parents. That sounds nice, doesn't it? But they don't really mean it. Just consider what Jesus says:
Don’t imagine that I came to bring peace on earth! No, rather a sword. lf you love your father, mother, sister, brother, more than me, you are not worthy of being mine.
Okay, what if I love my parents more than you, Jesus? What if I love my mother, who has taken care of me when I was in need, poured all her love into me, sacrificed her life for me, more than I could love you, whom I have never seen and whose existence I have no way of knowing for sure? Well, tough luck! Here is what Jesus wants you to do:
Brother shall deliver up the brother to death, and the father the child; and the children shall rise up against their parents, and cause them to be put to death. Matthew 10:21
Jesus's answer is you need to put your mother to death if she won't accept Jesus as the savior! Way to go, prince of peace!! This is what happens with monotheism. Peace and love only if you accept to be part of the group. Otherwise, even if it's your mother, cut her throat.
Now, to the sixth commandment: do not commit murder. The first thing their god did after giving this commandment is to command Moses and his lieutenant Joshua to kill and plunder the inhabitants of the land of present day Palestine. So much for this command.
The seventh says do not commit adultery. This is perfectly good advice but hardly unique to monotheism. Furthermore, progressive societies long ago abandoned classifying adultery as a crime, let alone a cardinal sin worthy of eternal damnation.
The eighth (do not steal) and ninth (do not bear false witness) are similar to the seventh: prudent advice but not unique to monotheism.
Now cometh the tenth. What a doozie! Don't lust after your neighbor's house, wife, servant, ox, donkey, etc. What if you are a woman? Yeah, women are just property, so they can't lust after anything.
Well, all religions are full of the good, the bad, and the ugly. But it takes a monotheistic religion to claim their bad and ugly are really good when interpreted correctly and must be accepted by everyone--The Best for All Humanity!!! The Greatest Gift Ever!!!
The great monotheism brought darkness that plunged Europe into ignorance, death, and destruction. It took five to six hundred years for the darkness to lift. It happened when the ideas of a polytheistic society, ancient Greece, were rediscovered in the age of the Renaissance.
For religion in general to lose its sting, the idea of monotheism must be destroyed first.
Saturday, December 6, 2008
Tribalism
I am reading The Selfish Gene by Richard Dawkins. This book was originally published in 1976. In the first 80 pages I have read so far Dawkins argues all life forms are nothing more than gene survival machines. Genes are the blueprint from which the body is built. The body parts are built to like things that enhance the chances of gene survival and multiplication, and to dislike things that reduce them. The degree to which life forms cooperate and even sacrifice for others is directly related to the degree to which the shared genes are able to multiply and survive. This is why a parent is more inclined to sacrifice for the benefit of a child than a child for the benefit of a parent or a sibling. As the circle expands the degree of altruism declines, but not in a linear and completely predictable fashion. There are ups and down. The book offers various insightful explanations for these variabilities.
There is a higher level of gene commonality among the member of a given species compared to those outside the species. Within a species, members of a group are likely to share genes to a higher degree than those outside the group. Among human beings, in due course, these groups must have evolved into tribes. These tribal feelings are hard coded deep inside our genes. This is the source of "us" against "them" emotion. Politicians from primitive times have manipulated this emotion to gain power.
The first step in this process of exploitation is developing a mechanism by which the tribal division can be achieved. Special rituals, stories, myths, markings were developed by politicians to encourage in-group cooperation and out-group hostility. This is the source of religion. My god against your god is a manifestation of this tribalism. In this context, monotheism is the worst. Polytheistic societies are relatively more tolerant of out-groups. Monotheism demands absolute fidelity to the in-group and absolute subjugation of out-group.
Fortunately, genes do not have direct control over human behavior. Genes cannot communicate with the brain on a real-time basis. Take for example a robot built by humans and sent into space. Also suppose that the robot reaches a planet several million light-years away. There is no way for the humans who built the robot to direct it in a real-time fashion. The robot will have to make all the necessary decisions based on the directives coded into its circuitry. Similarly, genes cannot control the brain in real-time. The brain functionality can be used in ways for which it is not designed. One such way is the understanding of human evolution and behavior which can help human minds overcome primitive emotions and breakout of the shackles of religion.
There is a higher level of gene commonality among the member of a given species compared to those outside the species. Within a species, members of a group are likely to share genes to a higher degree than those outside the group. Among human beings, in due course, these groups must have evolved into tribes. These tribal feelings are hard coded deep inside our genes. This is the source of "us" against "them" emotion. Politicians from primitive times have manipulated this emotion to gain power.
The first step in this process of exploitation is developing a mechanism by which the tribal division can be achieved. Special rituals, stories, myths, markings were developed by politicians to encourage in-group cooperation and out-group hostility. This is the source of religion. My god against your god is a manifestation of this tribalism. In this context, monotheism is the worst. Polytheistic societies are relatively more tolerant of out-groups. Monotheism demands absolute fidelity to the in-group and absolute subjugation of out-group.
Fortunately, genes do not have direct control over human behavior. Genes cannot communicate with the brain on a real-time basis. Take for example a robot built by humans and sent into space. Also suppose that the robot reaches a planet several million light-years away. There is no way for the humans who built the robot to direct it in a real-time fashion. The robot will have to make all the necessary decisions based on the directives coded into its circuitry. Similarly, genes cannot control the brain in real-time. The brain functionality can be used in ways for which it is not designed. One such way is the understanding of human evolution and behavior which can help human minds overcome primitive emotions and breakout of the shackles of religion.
Saturday, November 22, 2008
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