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| The Hindu Phenomenon |
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HINDU NATIONALISM : THE FIRST PHASE |
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British, of course, had no desire to help in the re- emergence of
Hindus. Indeed, after the formation of the Indian National Congress,
they spared little effort to contain the rise of Hindus. The grant
of separate electorates to Muslims and partition of the Bengal
presidency, dominated by Western-educated Hindus in every field in
1905, were two such early steps. More were to follow, leading
finally to partition in 1947. But even the mighty and shrewd British
could not reverse the overall trend which they had promoted in no
small way by undermining the Ottoman empire.
Broadly speaking, two processes have been on in Hindu society since the early nineteenth century -- modernization based on the Western model and self-renewal through social reforms. The two processes have been interlinked and must be seen as such. In view of the obvious Western dominance in most fields of human activity, Hindus had no choice but to come to terms with it. Otherwise, they would have stagnated. Muslim rule had debilitated Hindus to a point where a meaningful attempt at self-renewal was just not possible in the absence of the stimulus that the British provided. The degradation of almost one-sixth of the Hindu population to the status of untouchables, rigidity of the caste structure and excessive emphasis on rituals were expressions of that debilitation.
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| About Hindu Nationalism: The First Phase |
