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by Jayaram V
The Bhagavad gita, which is considered to be very sacred by the Hindus, equate
anger (krodh), pride (mad), arrogance (darp), cruelty (kruratv), slaying the enemies (satru hatya), hatred (dhvesh), as demonical qualities (asura pravritti), in contrast to the divine qualities (daiva pravritti), which are harmlessness (ahimsa), absence of anger (akrodha), peace (santi), compassion (daya), forgiveness (kshama) and absence of malice (adhroho). From this description it becomes clear that Hinduism does not support violence, especially when it is perpetrated for selfish or egoistic reasons.
However at the same time, the Bhagavad gita does not condone helplessness and weakness in the face of injustice and wickedness. According to the scripture it is the duty of every individual to protect himself from the wicked acts of evil forces.
The gods of Hinduism work for the welfare of the mankind. They are compassionate and unconditional in their love and extremely tranquil in their reactions. But each of them carries a weapon for the protection of dharma. They serve as the role models for Hindus to conduct their affairs on earth.
The Hindu concept of nonviolence which was brought to light by Mahatma Gandhi during his struggle for freedom of India, is the non violence of the courageous and the righteous, born out of their free will, free from the concerns and anxieties of the weak and the timid.
However, in the field of politics, Hindus never practiced non violence as a creed in the face of violence either in ancient or medieval India. Hinduism amply justifies violence for self defense. Gandhi was an exception rather than a rule and he himself had to face many critics from the orthodox sections of Hindu society for his rigid adherence to non violence. India exploded nuclear weapons, almost three decades ago but committed itself to the peaceful uses of nuclear energy. This attitude is very natural to India psyche, born out of centuries of commitment to certain traditions and beliefs.
By nature Hindus are peace loving people. Left to themselves they would not like to harm any one, even the ants and insects. Long before the west became conscious of the eco balance, the Hindus were aware of the importance of inherent balance in the nature of things and the need to protect to plants and animals from senseless killing. Hindus are capable of extreme patience in the face of oppression. The history of India speaks volumes about this. Individually, a Hindu would like to live in harmony with his environment and would prefer to avoid killing. He is not comfortable with the idea of using violence because he is aware of its harmful consequences. Sometimes the haters of Hindus consider this as cowardice,
where as it is not. There is a lot of violence in present day Indian society, which is rather an unfortunate development and an exceptional situation. It is an acquired behavior learned from other communities thanks to TV, newspapers and films Hindus should learn to be strong not violent. Violence is the trait of the weak and timid. It is the unstable and weak minds who resorts to violence.
Suggested Further Reading
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