Intellectual Terrorism-Unholy and un-American  
  By: T. R. N. Rao, USA
March 14, 2003

Terrorism is now a household word better understood after WTC towers came crashing down, taking thousands of innocent lives with them. There is another form of terrorism that has not quite come to the public view. That is Intellectual Terrorism. A number of scholars from very distinguished universities are engaged in this activity.

1. "The Bhagavad Gita is not as nice a book as some Americans think…Throughout the Mahabharata ... Krishna goads human beings into all sorts of murderous and self-destructive behaviors such as war.... The Gita is a dishonest book …"

Wendy Doniger, Professor of History of Religions, University of Chicago, Quoted in Philadelphia Inquirer, 19 November 2000.

Wendy Doniger, "When a Lingam is just a Good Cigar: Psychoanalysis and Hindu Sexual Fantasies." In "Vishnu on Freud's Desk", Jeffrey Kripal and T.G. Vaidyanathan (Eds.). Oxford University Press. Delhi. 1999. Pp290-291.

"As Durga, the Unapproachable, she kills the buffalo demon Mahisha in a great battle; as Kali, the Black, she dances in a mad frenzy on the corpses of those she has slain and eaten, adorned with the still-dripping skulls and severed hands of her victims. The Goddess is also worshiped by the Shaktas, devotees of Shakti, the female power."

Wendy Doniger, Microsoft Encarta on Hinduism

2. "Ramakrishna ( Paramahamsa) reveals another secret. After telling his audience how he used to perform Tantric rituals with the Bhairavi, Ramakrishna becomes excited and turns to a disciple: "In that state I couldn't help but worship the little penises of boys with sandal-paste and flowers"

From Kali’s Child by Jeffrey Kripal. Here Professor Kripal’s brilliance is in translating the word ‘dhan’ meaning treasure as ‘penises of boys’, so the great saint turns out to be worshipping the penises of his little devotees. The author received book award by the American Academy of Religions (AAR), a job at Harvard and a prestigious academic position at Rice University. Encyclopedia Britannica listed his book as the top choice for reading about Ramakrishna.

It was quite "obvious" that "Ramakrishna's mystical states were accompanied, and likely generated, by some ethically problematic acts, among them pedophilia."

A letter (14 August 1996) written to the secretary of the Ramakrishna Vedanta Society, Boston by Jeffrey Kripal in defence of his book "Kali’s Child", Chicago Press, 1996

3. Two of the book titles of Sarah Caldwell (winner of the prestigious Robert Stoller Award) are:
"The Bloodthirsty tongue and the self fed breast, homosexual fellatio fantasy in a south Indian ritual tradition"
"Oh Terrifying Mother: Sexuality, Violence and Worship of the Mother Kali." Oxford University Press. NewDelhi/New York. 1999.

4. Paul Courtright’s book, Ganesha Oxford University Press. p.121 has the following:

"From a psychoanalytic perspective, there is meaning in the selection of the elephant head. Its trunk is the displaced phallus, a caricature of Siva's linga. It poses no threat because it is too large, flaccid, and in the wrong place to be useful for sexual purposes. ... So Ganesa takes on the attributes of his father but in an inverted form, with an exaggerated limp phallus - ascetic and benign - whereas Siva is "hard", erotic, and destructive."

5. Distinctive Hindu pattern rather than as a mere intensification of a style of intimacy found in the West… Nursing is not therefore, an occasion through which mother and child cement on an emotional union. … , the mother does not respond by setting up a Western-style loving, emotional partnership."

Stanley N. Kurtz, "Psychoanalytic Approaches to Hindu Child Rearing." In "Vishnu on Freud's Desk", Jeffrey Kripal and T.G. Vaidyanathan (Eds.). Oxford University Press. Delhi. 1999.pp.199-200.

This great Indologist, Kurtz, has no inhibitions to ridicule all Hindu mothers. Cultural denigration and racism is justified as long as it is in the field of Indology research.

To briefly summarize these writings of Indology scholars on Hindu scriptures, Gods and Goddesses:

  1. Bhagavad Gita is a dishonest book;
  2. Lingam is a great cigar; Shiva’s phallus; (Hindu sexual fantasies!)
  3. Hindu saint Ramakrishna Paramahamsa’s mystical states were accompanied, and likely generated, by some ethically problematic acts, among them pedophilia;
  4. Goddess Kali and Goddess Durga: Kleinian 'phallic mother' or introjection of the father's penis;
  5. Lord Ganesha: The elephant head. Its trunk is the displaced phallus, a caricature of Siva's linga. It poses no threat because it is too large, flaccid, and in the wrong place to be useful for sexual purposes. ... So Ganesa takes on the attributes of his father but in an inverted form, with an exaggerated limp phallus - ascetic and benign;
  6. Lord Shiva: Shiva (phallus) is "hard, erotic, and destructive."
  7. Hindu mothers do not love their babies as well as western mothers.

Bhagavad Gita is considered by Hindus to be the essence of all Hindu Vedas (scriptures) and their equivalent of Christian holy bible. Contrast professor Doniger’s view to what Mahatma Gandhi (the Father of modern India, the apostle of peace of Twentieth century) has to say about Bhagavad Gita.

" I find a solace in the Bhagavad Gita that I even miss in the Sermon of the Mount. When disappointment stares me in the face, and all alone I see not one ray of light, I go back to Bhagavad Gita, I find a verse here and a verse there and I immediately begin to smile in the midst of overwhelming tragedies--- and my life has been full of external tragedies—and they have left no visible scar on me, I owe it al to the teachings of the Bhagavad Gita"

Professor Doniger is considered an authority to write on Hinduism for Microsoft Encarta. She should know about Mahabharata and Krishna’s role a little better. Krishna went to Hastinapur to plead as a messenger of peace. He appeals to the elders assembled that in the name of their illustrious forefathers, their family, the clan and the country’s good to avoid war. He commends the Pandava ‘s plea for just five villages for the five brothers to avert war; He describes the slaughter and disaster that would follow if the war is not averted.. He showed his Viswarupa (the cosmic form) in Duryodhana’s court to convince him that there was no hope for Duryodhana to win the war. He talked privately to Karna (in whom Duryodhana has supreme faith to defeat Arjuna) and revealed the secret that he was a Kaunteya in order to make him leave Kauravas. Duryodhana would agree to peace if Karna were to switch sides. Professor Doniger read all of Hindu epics and knows all these and still says, "Krishna goads human beings into all sorts of murderous and self-destructive behaviors such as war." What are we to make out of the role of Professor Doniger -- an Encarta-designate to denigrate Hindu holy books and Hindu Gods?

One can go on volumes with this type of ridiculous Indology scholarship. These writings are vulgar, ugly, obscene, insulting, slanderous and racist. Very shocking and beyond belief! All in the name of psychoanalytic studies, homoerotic hermeneutics and academic freedom! This, my friends, is American Indology in its naked form. Highly reputed university professor-scholars, namely, Doniger, Kripal, Caldwell, Courtright, Kurtz and many others are the self-proclaimed authorities of Indology studies and Hinduism. They heap great praise for each other, write forewords to each other’s books, nominate and receive coveted prestigious awards. Prestigious publishing houses (Oxford Press, Chicago University Press, etc.) publish their books. They have assumed the power and authority to ridicule, denigrate and humiliate all Hindus who believe in the sacredness of Lord Krishna, Ramakrishna Paramahamsa, Lord Shiva, Lord Ganesha, Goddess Kali, Goddess Durga, and Bhagavad Gita. (Incidentally, within India, is the much publicized Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) there is a set of ‘Left, progressive, secular historians’ who publicize one another as Eminent Historians. They exclude every dissenter from the academia and find nothing noble in India’s history prior to the Muslim Moghuls. An excellent book that exposes these secular progressives and their gigantic fraud is Arun Shourie’s ‘Eminent Historians’, ISBN 81-900199-8-8). Professor Doniger, so biased as she is, is singularly unfit to write on Hinduism for Microsoft Encarta, a popular reference all over the world; all children and present and future scholars would derive their knowledge from her Encarta writings. Kripal’s Kali’s Child becomes ‘the top choice’ of Encyclopedia Britannica to learn about Ramakrishna Paramahamsa -- as what? -- a homoerotic Hindu saint! What a fate for Hinduism studies under this patronage of American Indology! Anyone who dares to criticize the work of these scholars is dismissively branded a Hindu nationalist-fascist that is unfit to represent Hinduism.

People normally expect scholars to contribute to the betterment of society and in fostering love, friendship and mutual understanding among different cultures and faiths. Do these writings create understanding between Christians and Hindus in USA? On the contrary, these great scholars are creating literature, full of hatred of Hinduism and extremely harmful to any worthwhile intellectual discourse. Just imagine how much offence these would cause to the average American if we were to substitute Abraham for Shiva and Christ for Ganesha in those wretched writings. (Would these great scholars dare such writing on Prophet Mahammad and live freely in any part of the globe? May be they prefer the life of Rushdie?) These scholars enjoy university prestige (and tenure), well-entrenched academic societal power from America Academy of Religions (AAR), Religions of South Asia (RISA), to bestow upon themselves with prestigious awards and misuse their academic freedoms to cause immense harm among Hindu community in US and resentment and anger of Hindus worldwide. The Indology gurus are engaging in intellectual dishonesty by vulgar translations and interpretations of Hindu holy books and by ugly use of loaded filthy words of warped or deranged imagination. In the words of one reviewer, the works of Kripal, Cartwright and Caldwell are "highly provocative and plainly obscene titles, which should land the book(s) in the soft porn category." (Vishal Agarwal, Book Summary and Critique of Vishnu on Freuds Desk http://www.infinityfoundation.com/ECITvishnuframeset.htm)

Now I humbly report my grievances here before all Americans of good will and ask of them to consider the following:

  1. I believe many noted American Indologists (only a few are cited above) are engaged in a form of Intellectual Terrorism that is totally against the principles of this great country, America. It is simply unholy and un-American.
     
  2. At a time when the world is facing terrorism of immense proportions, and the responsibility of all Americans, and particularly of scholars, should be to provide leadership for religious tolerance, understanding of different faiths, bring all Americans to fight the menace of terrorism, these scholars are engaged in writing such vulgar stuff that hurts and humiliates Hindus by ugly and filthy attacks on what they consider and revere as holy. There writings are deeply offensive to billion strong Hindus in this world.
     
  3. All Americans should condemn unequivocally the writings that denigrate, ridicule, and humiliate religions or forms of worship, different from the main stream Christianity. All academicians, religious groups, and people of goodwill for all and malice to none should condemn the books and awards of these Indologists. Their works are to be declared as ‘Intellectual Terrorism’ and their brand is as harmful as the one of Bin Laden. Their conspiracy and wretched scholarship should be brought to the notice of our social and political leaders and explain that the very dignity of US Academy and American spirit is violated.
     
  4. Finally I propose a spirited campaign to force Encyclopedia Britannica and Microsoft Encarta to revise these writings on Hinduism, Hindu deities and saints. In order this campaign to achieve its goal, please send me an email (trn@cacs.louisiana.edu) with your support and willingness to sign the petitions and letters to media, etc

The motivation for this article is Rajiv Malhotra’s brilliant articles (1&3 below). For a very detailed expose of these American Indologists and for related articles, please consult those and others given below:

1. RISA Lila-1 Wendy’s Child Syndrome by Rajiv Malhotra, Sept.6, 2002
http://sulekha.com/column.asp?cid=239156

2. Kali’s Child Revisited, or anyone didn’t check the Documentation?
By Swami Tyagananda http://www.infinityfoundation.com/ECITreviewsframeset.ht

3. The Axis of Neocolonialism by Rajiv Malhotra, July10,2002 http://www.sulekha.com/column.asp?cid=218625

4. The Groan: Loss of Scholarship and High Drama in "South Asian" Studies -- Parts I, 2, 3 & 4 by Yvette C. Rosser, Sept. 2002 http://sulekha.com/articledesc.asp?cid=267611’

5. Are Hinduism studies prejudiced? A look at Microsoft Encarta, Sankrant Sanu, http://sulekha.com/column.asp?cid=245733

6. Ten Reasons Why Anyone Who Cares About Hinduism Should be Grateful to Wendy Doniger, Lalita Pandit, Sep 18, 2002 (Column written by her husband Patrick Hogan at her request) http://www.sulekha.com/column.asp?cid=243505

7. Fear of Engineering, Rajeev Srinivasan
http://www.rediff.com/news/2002/nov/01rajeev.htm

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