Latest update June 26th, 2024 12:59 AM
Nov 11, 2015 Letters
Dear Editor,
Local Hindus have largely over the years shown loyalty to the Guyana Hindu Dharmic Sabha (GHDS), accepting that whatever auspicious observances are placed in the calendar put out by this organization have been thoroughly researched and cross-referenced and should therefore be followed. So much reliance is placed on the GHDS’s calendar, that many Hindu families feel that their homes are not complete without such a calendar, obtained well in advance of the new year.
And I am sure there are many here in Guyana who would attest to having relatives living abroad, putting in their requests for GHDS The confusion about the date of Deepavali; the factional representation of the Hindu community; the growing rifts and polarisation along seemingly political lines, and the revival of old rivalries, all add to creating further instability and uncertainty among Hindus locally.
I have seen what that kind of confusion can cause in communities divided along political lines. I recall that there were many very-thriving mandirs along the lower East Coast back in the 1980’s and early 1990’s that died a gradual and painful death. Suffice to say that these mandirs had leaders who held esteemed positions in society.
Hindus in Guyana have a plethora of social problems. These include alcoholism, drug abuse, domestic abuse, abject poverty, and suicides. If I were to just consider suicides, the names of the grand majority persons of who ended their lives this past year, as reported in the press, sound like Hindu-ascribed names. Hindus account for 69% of the suicides committed.
There are other very worrying national trends. Check on the names of those persons being passed through the courts and a certain trend will emerge. Hindi names will jump at you.
I have spent almost all of my working years in the agriculture sector, where most Indians, particularly Hindus earn their livelihoods. Among the rural poor, I have seen evidence that suggests a very high level of substance-abuse, and when you listen to the stories about their families, it is almost always a tragic and dysfunctional existence. This is also very common in communities where inequities and disparities in wealth are very obvious.
Another story that many will be familiar with, is that of the Hindus who converted to Christianity. On a percentage basis, more Hindus convert to Christianity than Muslims do. Converts would tell you that they were suddenly able to stop drinking rum, kick the life of wastefulness, become thrifty, afford things they never could have before, and enjoy the respect of others. If changing religions really make such a radical difference, I have to ask what really prevented them doing any of those things before when they still were Hindus.
It could not always have been this way. One then has to wonder how things ever got this way for Hindu Indo-Guyanese. Where did the “system” fail them? How is it that there are so many who are just Hindu in name, and have no clue as to what their religion dictates, teaches or requires of them.
Who is spreading an understandable form of Hinduism that finds a place in the lives of the followers of this ancient way of life? Who is delivering that message that kindles hope, assures them that what they are asked to do has a divine and useful purpose, and prepares them for the challenges that lie ahead?
Many persons of good academic standing openly question the validity of the teachings of Hinduism in Guyana. They would ask for the scriptural proof that forbids the consumption of alcohol or meat, particularly pork and beef. If the academics are walking away from the religion, who will be tomorrow’s leaders?
I am assuming that there is still a place in our society for Hindu academics. I have had my own shockers. I did some developmental work with a group of livestock farmers, specifically pig-rearers. When I asked what was their market constituent they blithely explained that it was mainly comprised of Indo-Guyanese, because when the price of pork goes up only that sub-set of our society will still have the money to buy pork. When in the week is the most pork sold? Sundays! What happens on Sundays in Hindu households?
Hinduism in Guyana is on the ropes now. The teaching of this sacred way of life has become commercialised, with the teachers becoming ever glibber and more calculating. I am certain many would have heard stories about certain pandits conducting pujas only for the very affluent and socially-positioned class. In fact, becoming a pandit now, as some say, is “getting into big business”.
Should we be surprised at Hindus’ response when they hear that the doors of the Christian church are open to anyone and that “all are equal in the eyes of God”?
The work for our Hindu religious leaders at this time is not one of political point-scoring. It is about getting back to the basics our fore parents taught us. It is about valuing the deed more than the rewards that it may bring. It is about being there to guide, to set a course for life, to teach, to nudge those who falter, to set a good example worth emulating.
I think that in closing, I need not say that there is a huge social challenge waiting out there. Political intervention may bring some benefits, but the answer lies more in getting a spiritual revival for those who have so many unanswered questions.
Khemraj Tulsie
This country does not hear anything about oil from the PPP or the PNC
Jun 26, 2024
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