P
Pranay Shome
Guest
Decoloniality starts with changing names, it should begin by renaming places in Bharat by their original Swadeshi name
Colonialism is long gone, but remnants continue to remain.
In that context, colonialism is not just about removing the yoke of foreign rule and establishing Swadeshi rule. It is about mental decolonization.
This is what J Sai Deepak, Vikram Sampath, Sanjeev Sanyal et al call ‘decoloniality’.
Decoloniality is not easy to bring about, it is a painfully gradual process where changes take place incrementally.
It can take years, decades and even centuries for any post colonial society.
Having said it needs to be emphasised that there needs to be a start somewhere.
India is changing, the colonial mentality has largely been eviscerated from the Indian mind at least in the last decade.
But more needs to be done.
One such thing is renaming the places that smack of the colonial era.
India is booming, with the world fifth biggest economy and fourth largest armed forces, Bharat is clearly a force to reckon with.
But being economically prosperous alone would not suffice. Something more is needed.
In order for Indian democracy to be truly Bharatiya, it must be indigenised. Colonial era doesn’t only refer to British colonial period. It also refers to the Islamic colonial past.
It is something J Sai Deepak in the second book of the Bharat trilogy i.e., India, Bharat and Pakistan- The Constitutional Journey of a Sandwiched Civilization calls ‘Middle Eastern Coloniality’.
This exercise is renaming places in India for the purpose of rectifying historical mistakes.
The lead must be taken by the central government.
The government must constitute a high level committee comprising Indic minded bureaucrats, academicians and other civil society organisation members.
It should be especially those places that were products of conquest.
Such a committee should identify the places and recommend their renaming their places.
A good example is remaining Ajmer in Rajasthan Ajayameru, which was the original name given by Ajayaraja II of the Chauhan dynasty of Sambhar.
Another is to rename Ahmedabad, the capital of Gujarat Karnavati which was named after the ruler Karan of the Chalukya dynasty of Gujarat; they were Solanki Rajputs.
Similarly Hyderabad must be renamed Bhagyanagar.
A name matters a lot, decoloniality of the starts with a name.
Leftist and other ignorant people may call this a foolish exercise while there are many other pressing issues in the country.
True, there are many pressing issues, they there will always be some pressing issue or the other always.
But this historical revisiting exercise must be taken up at the earliest for decoloniality.
This renaming exercise will bring down the last remaining remnants of colonial mentality in the Bharatiya mind.
It will trigger a renewed interest in Indic civilization and our roots. It will encourage our upcoming generations to avoid deracination and rekindle their interest in what it means to be a ‘Bharatiya’.
There no doubt will be opposition to this, but it is an exercise that needs to be undertaken, Woke ideology cannot be allowed to prevail.
It is imperative that the minority communities of India understand this at the earliest to avoid any friction.
Decoloniality, is therefore, absolutely essential for the ‘shuddhikaran’ of our consciousness.
Hence, decoloniality starts with a name.
The post Decoloniality Starts with a Name appeared first on The Jaipur Dialogues.
Continue reading...
Colonialism is long gone, but remnants continue to remain.
In that context, colonialism is not just about removing the yoke of foreign rule and establishing Swadeshi rule. It is about mental decolonization.
This is what J Sai Deepak, Vikram Sampath, Sanjeev Sanyal et al call ‘decoloniality’.
Decoloniality is not easy to bring about, it is a painfully gradual process where changes take place incrementally.
It can take years, decades and even centuries for any post colonial society.
Having said it needs to be emphasised that there needs to be a start somewhere.
India is changing, the colonial mentality has largely been eviscerated from the Indian mind at least in the last decade.
But more needs to be done.
One such thing is renaming the places that smack of the colonial era.
Bringing Back Indigenous Names
India is booming, with the world fifth biggest economy and fourth largest armed forces, Bharat is clearly a force to reckon with.
But being economically prosperous alone would not suffice. Something more is needed.
In order for Indian democracy to be truly Bharatiya, it must be indigenised. Colonial era doesn’t only refer to British colonial period. It also refers to the Islamic colonial past.
It is something J Sai Deepak in the second book of the Bharat trilogy i.e., India, Bharat and Pakistan- The Constitutional Journey of a Sandwiched Civilization calls ‘Middle Eastern Coloniality’.
This exercise is renaming places in India for the purpose of rectifying historical mistakes.
The lead must be taken by the central government.
The government must constitute a high level committee comprising Indic minded bureaucrats, academicians and other civil society organisation members.
It should be especially those places that were products of conquest.
Such a committee should identify the places and recommend their renaming their places.
A good example is remaining Ajmer in Rajasthan Ajayameru, which was the original name given by Ajayaraja II of the Chauhan dynasty of Sambhar.
Another is to rename Ahmedabad, the capital of Gujarat Karnavati which was named after the ruler Karan of the Chalukya dynasty of Gujarat; they were Solanki Rajputs.
Similarly Hyderabad must be renamed Bhagyanagar.
A name matters a lot, decoloniality of the starts with a name.
Significance of This Renaming Exercise
Leftist and other ignorant people may call this a foolish exercise while there are many other pressing issues in the country.
True, there are many pressing issues, they there will always be some pressing issue or the other always.
But this historical revisiting exercise must be taken up at the earliest for decoloniality.
This renaming exercise will bring down the last remaining remnants of colonial mentality in the Bharatiya mind.
It will trigger a renewed interest in Indic civilization and our roots. It will encourage our upcoming generations to avoid deracination and rekindle their interest in what it means to be a ‘Bharatiya’.
Conclusion
There no doubt will be opposition to this, but it is an exercise that needs to be undertaken, Woke ideology cannot be allowed to prevail.
It is imperative that the minority communities of India understand this at the earliest to avoid any friction.
Decoloniality, is therefore, absolutely essential for the ‘shuddhikaran’ of our consciousness.
Hence, decoloniality starts with a name.
The post Decoloniality Starts with a Name appeared first on The Jaipur Dialogues.
Continue reading...