> actual classical philology is dying. Not only are the manuscripts not being adequately studied, but deep practical knowledge of Sanskrit is dying out, too.
The reason for this anger is the fear of losing control of the narrative. By keeping the Sanskrit scriptures arcane, they can build their own narratives around it. But when scholars start studying those text, the cat will be out of the bag.
They may feel that it is harmful to the Hindutva interests when scholars write about the procedure for cow sacrifice mentioned in Yajur Veda or the racism and misogyny perpetuated by Manu Smriti or the Soma drinking revelry in Rigveda.
These efforts to stop others knowing these scriptures are happening since pre-historic times and even codified in Hindu Law.
Dharmasutra says "If he (Sudra) listens in on a vedic recitation, his ears shall be filled with molten tin or lac; if he repeats it, his tongue should be cut off; if he commits it to memory, his body should be split."[1]
Dharmasutra, written circa 600 BCE, is a book on Hindu Law and Sudra is the lowest class in the Varna system.
The ban on Wendy Doniger's book in India is a case in point.
Scholars studying Hindu texts is not offensive to Hindus. What is though, is the racist perversion that some of them like Doniger make.
Doniger's book is not "banned". It was withdrawn by the publisher - because it was offensive. Details in same wiki link.
Another such "scholar" wrote extremely offensive passage on Lord Ganesha and got away with it.[1]
Hindus have tolerated abuse for so long and they continue to do so. Try letting cats out of the bag on Abrahmic religions.
Doniger and the publisher were taken to court like any civil society would. Publisher chose to drop the book instead of facing legal consequences.
By the way, another publisher did publish the same book in India. Any neutral sources for the so called "violent threats"?
One of her book titles literally is "Eroticism in the Mythology of Siva" [1] And yet, there were no riots or burning down the publisher or the cancel culture that Hindu-phobes routinely engage in.
> you have gone with "sound bites" highlighting the negatives without any context thus distorting the whole discourse.
Please provide some context around the following texts from Dharmasutra.
1) Criminal and Civil Law: "If he (Sudra) has sex with an Arya woman, his penis should be cut off and all his property should be confiscated." (Verse 12.1)
2) Contact with Impure Persons: "When a man touches an outcaste, a Candala, a woman who has just given birth or is menstruating, a corpse, or someone who has touched any of these, he becomes purified by bathing with his clothes on." (Verse 15.5)
Note: Candala is a low caste Hindu.
3) Pollution and Remedies: "An ancestral offering is ruined if it is seen by a dog, a Candala, or an outcaste." (Verse 15.24)
4) Unfit Food: "The following are unfit to be eaten: food into which hair or an insect has fallen; what has been touched by a menstruating woman, ..." (Verse 17.9)
Source: The Dharmasutras: The Law Codes of Ancient India, Oxford University Press, 1999
Nope, just when I have no desire to engage with someone who believes there's a conspiracy to defame and destroy Hinduism. In my experience 'Hindu pride' is like 'white pride' in that there are little to no instances where it is not directly linked to supremacism.
The above exact post was written by user "deepglacier" and then deleted. Account for user "bluetreeroot" was created 5 hours ago and posts the same.
What sort of a pathetic simpleton are you?
Clearly you are ignorant of the subject matter and are merely trying to get a rise out of people by selectively quoting from selected texts. Have you even understood what i posted? Stop this nonsense and go study some books on the subject matter starting with the same book that you quote from which incidentally is a translation by the same Prof. Patrick Olivelle that i mention above.
I've also heard that there is anger when non-Indian scholars study Sanskrit. Cambridge shut down their Sanskrit program, after 150 years. https://www.insidehighered.com/news/2016/04/12/scholars-who-...