(Kashmir Times
16 September 2007)
POLITICS AND COMMERCE OF RELIGION
by Anuradha Bhasin Jamwal
First it was the Ram temple and Lord Ram's birth place. Now it is the Ram Setu, contended by believers to be the bridge built by Hanuman and his vanar sena while rescuing Sita from Lanka. It seems the nation's politicians have nothing better to do than making Lord Rama salable for their vote bank politics. If the Hindutava brigade, that deems itself as the sole vanguard and protector of 'Hindu dharma and culture' ups the ante of the numerous controversies they weave around Lord Ram, the Congress plays an apologetic second. In the 80's the then prime minister Rajiv Gandhi tried to do a one-up on the saffron brigade with a shilaniyas. In the new millennium the present Congress government is busy countering its own affidavit filed in the court regarding the status of Ram Setu to be on the right side of the believers, lest the Hindu right wing parties score the goal. It first relied on the report prepared by the Archaelogical Survey of India which maintained that there was no historical evidence that Ram Setu was man made. Next day, buckling under pressure, the Congress sarkar withdrew the affidavit, reasoning that it would reconsider and review the whole issue in the light of the emotions and religious sentiments of the majority community of India. Nothing seems to have changed between the two major controversies regarding Ram. The name is just as politicised as it has been in the last two-three decades and can be marketed both for political ends and commercial purposes.
While the Hindu right wing parties have been quick in distorting the values and ideology that Lord Ram stood for, as per Valmiki's Ramayana, to suit their own politics and to patent their political rights over Lord Rama, a mindless Congress, swearing in the name of secularism, and a nation of gullible people, played on blindly. Historians say there is no historical evidence to suggest that Ram existed. But the belief of millions of Hindus in India and outside is unflinching. Hypothetically if Lord Ram did exist, he came to us from Valmiki and was popularised through this grand epic. But does the hate soaked propaganda unleashed by these self proclaimed guardians of Lord Ram even match the soberness and pacifism of the Lord Ram of Valmiki's Ramayana? It seems the saffron brigade would not only wish to re-write history but also the grand epics from which flow the belief and faith of millions of Hindus in the mythological characters.
India is a land of many gods, where 33 crore devtas rest in the shrines of various temples and the hearts of millions of people. But they also continue to be a major blessing for people who make them a brand name, either for political or commercial use. Following the mega success of the television serials like Mahabharta and Ramayana, a slew of products entered the market - from hair oils to sarees, from match boxes to travel agencies - several things began to be branded in the name of mythological characters and created their own niche and space in the grand market of the country. Rama may not have been the first or last commercialised name. One of the most popularly sold brand names is Ganesha, who has become the popular mantra of the vaastu shastra propagators and believers. Not only have Ganesha idols been recommended as vital for bringing good luck and prosperity, artists in the country have gone overboard with Ganesha as one of the most popular motif in contemporary art. Ganesha sells more than anything else because millions of people - art connoiseurs and layman alike- identify with it.
Even news sells - about controversies related to religious beliefs, about superstitions like idols of Lord Ganesha drinking milk. Does this nation of over one billion people, several taking great strides towards progress in different fields like science, technology, IT and what not and majority reeling under severe crisis of poverty and deprivation, has no better things to focus on? Whatever be the contention of anyone regarding controversies such as Ram temple and Ram Setu, in a secular country like India, religion should be a matter of personal faith and belief - not something that can be used to provoke collective sentiments, or for commercializing and certainly not for politicizing.
