P
Pranay Shome
Guest
Review of the book The Hindu Way by Shashi Tharoor, the author of over ten best selling books
Writing a book on Hinduism is a challenging task for any individual.
It becomes more so when one is an acclaimed writer.
This is because the audience tends to harbour high hopes from their favourite author.
But Dr.Shashi Tharoor is an expert when it comes to satiating the audiences’ perception through his brilliant books.
This time it is a book called The Hindu Way-An Introduction to Hinduism.
The book is a continuation of Dr Tharoor’s Best selling Why I am a Hindu.
It is aimed at giving an exhaustive exposition into one of the world’s greatest religions.
The author has written the book in a mix of scholarly and anecdotal content.
The book has over seven chapters, each one has a different vision on the origin, meaning and the essential underpinnings of Hinduism.
Dr Tharoor asserts right from the beginning that Hinduism is not based on a single belief system.
It is an agglomeration of multiple sects and faith systems that have been united under a central belief system of what constitutes a good life.
He asserts that Hinduism is both a polytheistic and monotheistic faith.
How?
He articulates the idea of the Saguna Brahman and Nirguna Brahman.
While the former conjures up an anthropomorphic perception of God, the latter articulates a shapeless manifestation of the almighty.
In the light of that, we worship millions of deities having different divinities and avatars, yet all those maybe the manifestation of a single supreme entity.
He delves deep into the history of Hinduism arguing that while it is not really possible to discern as to when it began, he did argue that it may have begun with the arrival of the Aryans in India.
While the Aryan Invasion theory is controversial, the moot point is that this highlights the beauty of Santan Dharma, nobody knows for sure when it actually began.
One of the most brilliant points in his book in his description of the meaning of ‘Om’.
The author states that it is the eternal sound of transcendence that suffuses the cosmos.
It channelises our inner energy and willingness to achieve greatness.
While this term may sound a bit clichéd, yet it is safe to say that Dr Tharoor has brilliantly portrayed Hinduism to be environment friendly.
Dr Tharoor has stated that the worship of multiple deities within the Hindu fold is meant to protect nature and highlight Hinduism’s eco-friendly character.
This is also the precise reason behind the central government’s LIFE approach to combat climate change.
In the book Dr Tharoor dedicated a chapter on the greatest teachers of Hinduism, starting from Ashoka to Adi Shankarcharya to Guru Nanak Dev.
He delved deep into the issue highlighting how Hinduism became world famous thanks to the efforts of these religious ambassadors.
While I disagree with the author’s description of Hindutva in the book what attracts me most about the content of the book is how eloquently Dr Tharoor portrays Hinduism.
He, however, doesn’t shy away from critiquing the Abrahamic faiths because of their missionary character.
Despite being a Liberal, he critiqued Islam by stating that it ‘denies salvation to people of other faiths’.
The book The Hindu Way by Shashi Tharoor is, therefore, a good starting point to understand the basics of Sanatan Dharma.
The post The Hindu Way by Shashi Tharoor appeared first on The Jaipur Dialogues.
Continue reading...
Writing a book on Hinduism is a challenging task for any individual.
It becomes more so when one is an acclaimed writer.
This is because the audience tends to harbour high hopes from their favourite author.
But Dr.Shashi Tharoor is an expert when it comes to satiating the audiences’ perception through his brilliant books.
This time it is a book called The Hindu Way-An Introduction to Hinduism.
The book is a continuation of Dr Tharoor’s Best selling Why I am a Hindu.
It is aimed at giving an exhaustive exposition into one of the world’s greatest religions.
Nature of the Book
The author has written the book in a mix of scholarly and anecdotal content.
The book has over seven chapters, each one has a different vision on the origin, meaning and the essential underpinnings of Hinduism.
Dr Tharoor asserts right from the beginning that Hinduism is not based on a single belief system.
It is an agglomeration of multiple sects and faith systems that have been united under a central belief system of what constitutes a good life.
He asserts that Hinduism is both a polytheistic and monotheistic faith.
How?
He articulates the idea of the Saguna Brahman and Nirguna Brahman.
While the former conjures up an anthropomorphic perception of God, the latter articulates a shapeless manifestation of the almighty.
In the light of that, we worship millions of deities having different divinities and avatars, yet all those maybe the manifestation of a single supreme entity.
He delves deep into the history of Hinduism arguing that while it is not really possible to discern as to when it began, he did argue that it may have begun with the arrival of the Aryans in India.
While the Aryan Invasion theory is controversial, the moot point is that this highlights the beauty of Santan Dharma, nobody knows for sure when it actually began.
One of the most brilliant points in his book in his description of the meaning of ‘Om’.
The author states that it is the eternal sound of transcendence that suffuses the cosmos.
It channelises our inner energy and willingness to achieve greatness.
Environment Friendly
While this term may sound a bit clichéd, yet it is safe to say that Dr Tharoor has brilliantly portrayed Hinduism to be environment friendly.
Dr Tharoor has stated that the worship of multiple deities within the Hindu fold is meant to protect nature and highlight Hinduism’s eco-friendly character.
This is also the precise reason behind the central government’s LIFE approach to combat climate change.
Role of Dharma Gurus
In the book Dr Tharoor dedicated a chapter on the greatest teachers of Hinduism, starting from Ashoka to Adi Shankarcharya to Guru Nanak Dev.
He delved deep into the issue highlighting how Hinduism became world famous thanks to the efforts of these religious ambassadors.
Conclusion
While I disagree with the author’s description of Hindutva in the book what attracts me most about the content of the book is how eloquently Dr Tharoor portrays Hinduism.
He, however, doesn’t shy away from critiquing the Abrahamic faiths because of their missionary character.
Despite being a Liberal, he critiqued Islam by stating that it ‘denies salvation to people of other faiths’.
The book The Hindu Way by Shashi Tharoor is, therefore, a good starting point to understand the basics of Sanatan Dharma.
The post The Hindu Way by Shashi Tharoor appeared first on The Jaipur Dialogues.
Continue reading...