Post-Hindu India: A Discourse in Dalit-Bahujan, Socio-Spiritual and Scientific Revolution
About this ebook
This work challenges Hinduism`s interpretation of history, with a virulent attack on caste politics, and also takes a refreshing look at the necessity of encouraging indigenous scientific thought for the sake of national progress. It establishes Hinduism as a `backward` religion that suppresses the latent scientific and productive potential of the Dalit–Bahujan communities. The author says this oppressive system of spiritual fascism is detrimental to both the future of religion and the nation-state. He thus criticizes the idea of spiritual justice or varnadharma, used to justify the caste system, as rooted in spiritual inequality.
On a micro-analytical level, it is based on a thorough study of the productive knowledge systems of the Dalit–Bahujan communities of Andhra Pradesh, and provides a detailed day-to-day analysis of the scientific technological processes and events at work in the life of a member of these communities. On a macro level, it shows how Hinduism fails to negotiate between faith and reason, unlike other major religions of the world.
Kancha Ilaiah critiques the intellectual imagination of the dominant communities and inspires the marginalized. In the process of doing so he crafts a work of immense socio-political interest which appeals to academics, and also to all those who are concerned about contemporary India`s polity and social fabric.
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About the author
Kancha Ilaiah, a passionate social activist and author, is a Professor at the Department of Political Science, Osmania University. He is a major figure in the ideological movement against the Indian caste system and has been instrumental in internationalising Dalit–Bahujan issues. He was born into a Kuruma Golla (an ‘other backward caste’) family and grew up in a small South Indian village. A prolific writer, he has authored several books and regularly contributes articles to national newspapers and magazines. His book Why I am not a Hindu—A Sudra Critique of Hindutva Philosophy, Culture and Political Economy (1996) is a bestseller. He has also authored God as Political Philosopher: Buddha’s Challenge to Brahminism, The State and Repressive Culture, Manatatwam (in Telugu), Buffalo Nationalism: A Critique of Spiritual Fascism, Turning the Pot, Tilling the land: Dignity of Labour in Our Times and The Weapon of the Other: DalitBahujan Writings and the Remaking of Indian Nationalist Thought.