Have
you seen that tv show? It's made by – oh what's his name – he's a
British comedian who brags about being an idiot, I mean an atheist.
It'll come to me. Anyhow, as a practical joke he has taken a “friend”
and sends him off to different parts of the world and requires his
friend to enter into precisely those situations that his friend finds
most uncomfortable. It's pretty unkind when you think about it but
thanks to atheists in the entertainment industry we live in a time
when laughing at people, ridiculing almost everyone and everything is
a sign of intelligence and sophistication.
I've
only seen two episodes of this show and the last one was called, “An
Idiot (that's what he calls his friend) Abroad in India. My, my, my.
What wonders Hinduism and Jainism have done for the people of India.
In fairness, India is the world's largest functioning democracy so
it's not a total screw up. And of course British colonialism hardly
improved things. Pressure from Christianity has rid the country from
the worst offences like the immolation of widows along with their
dead husbands, and the so called ending of the caste system, there
are still 100 million Dalits – the so called untouchables. Since
Independence, crimes against Dalits have doubled with murder, arson
and rape being the primary crimes. Yet the efforts of Christians to
implant the notion of the equality of human life into Hindu society
is seen by the Government as destabilizing and met with violence and
persecution.
So
why am I writing this? Well, curiously, Hugo has as much as said that
his in-laws are so committed to their religion that through an act of
“ACCOMMODATION” Hugo is willing to set the date for his wedding
during the most favourable cycle of the moon, one that will give him
the best chance of a good marriage.
This
leads me to wonder if perhaps if Hugo doesn't recognize where he
stands in the Hindu cast system, and whether his in-laws are hiding
from him where he stands.
Hugo's
fate rests on the following. The sacrifice of Purusha, the primeval
man, from whose immolation came all creation, together with the four
Hindu castes.
From
Purusha's breath had come the Brahmans, the priestly caste;
From
his arms, the warriors, or Kshatriyas;
From
his thighs, the Vaisyas – agriculturalists and traders; and
From
his feet the servile caste, the Sudras.
All
other men were outcasts; dalits; 'untouchables' whose very presence
was defilement. So I wonder if Hugo's in-laws let him know where he
stands (fit only for cleaning clogged sewers or toilets) or if they
accommodate him in order to not lose contact with their daughter.
As
Hugo attempts to accommodate their beliefs by choosing just the right
phase of the moon for his wedding, do they pretend to his face that
he is acceptable to them?
