05/23/98 - 1815

Defending the Holy Land

India (VNN) - by Narasimha das

It is grossly hypocritical for US leaders to condemn India and create sanctions against this friendly nation for testing bombs underground. India has been invaded repeatedly over a period of many centuries, and in recent years both Pakistan and China have threatened India and invaded this holy land, which is sacred to millions of Hindu, Buddhist, Christian, and Vaisnava Americans. Even in the face of such grave dangers, Indian leaders and Indian people have shown great tolerance and restraint repeatedly.

Recently President Clinton sold advanced components for missile guidance systems to the Chinese government. Indeed, every White House administration since Nixon’s has bent over backwards to please Chinese leaders. Who are these Chinese leaders? Why do American leaders try so hard to work with them while continuously dealing with India in such a way as to sour their attitude toward America? Why do American leaders feel China and Pakistan should be supported and India neglected?

China is ruled by a violent, totalitarian, communist regime devoted to exploitation and atheism. India, on the other hand, is the largest and most religiously diverse and tolerant nation on earth. India is ruled by a democratic government, and the whole population is as devoted to democratic ideals and religious freedoms as we Americans. The India people and the American people have many cultural, religious, and economic ties. The Chinese people and the American people, on the other hand, have little in common.

Pakistan is a country ruled by Muslim fanatics. It was created artificially by the British partition of India. They have repeatedly threatened and harassed India from the very beginning of their bleak and dark conception. Presently they are actively engaged in supporting terrorists in India, and they fund and supply special military forces working in Kashmir to overthrow the Indian government there. With American help, Pakistan recently launched a successful test of their own advanced missile system -- a system capable of delivering nuclear warheads to New Delhi. It is believed by many experts that Pakistan may also have the bomb, and that other Muslim nations may also have it soon.

In spite of threats from every side, and in spite of America’s unwillingness to deal honestly with Indian leaders, top American leaders expect India to sit back and tolerate all aggression. Where is the assurance that America would help India if they were invaded by unfriendly neighbors? There is none at all. Rather, the opposite is more likely-- that American leaders will support India’s aggressors. America has shown itself to be an ally of China and Pakistan, although this goes against all logic. We can only conclude that our American leaders think the Indians are wimps who can be pushed around forever. Those who are familiar with the mentality of Hindu people understand their tolerance only stretches so far. When they finally snap, their fury is awesome.

Srila Prabhupada said once that his “greatest fear” was that his American disciples would be asked to leave India. He tried many times to arrange some special status for his disciples to immigrate or reside in India. Due to the political tensions between the two governments, however, the Indian government has always refused such requests. They naturally distrust Americans and perhaps haven’t yet understood that many Americans are as devoted to India as they are. We can only pray that the new Hindu fundamentalist government (BJP) will patiently deal with American leaders and intelligently try to cultivate the sentiments of the American people, most of whom will easily recognize and respect India as the greatest democratic and God-conscious nation in the world.

Many politicians criticize the Bhartiya Janta Party (BJP) for being devoted to the fundamentals of Hinduism. Yet we see every major nation on earth is ruled by an elite who profess a particular religious sentiment. The Jews have their own nation. The Buddhist, Muslims, and Christians each have several nations. Even the atheists rule their own nations. Only the Aryans, or Hindus, or those who follow Vedic culture, have no major nation to call their own. (Nepal is a weak mountain country that--like Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Burma--was created by dividing India.) India, the mother of all religious cultures, is home to the oldest sects of Christians, Jews, Muslims, Hindus, and Buddhist. This fact alone shows that Indians and Indian leaders are among the most broad minded, sane, and religious people on the planet. Why should Americans leaders think India is the problem? The real problem is America’s and England’s long time grudge against and lack of support for India. Such stubborn political policies aimed at manipulating India fly in the face of the affection most Americans and British have for India and Indian culture.

It was Srila Prabhupada’s vision that Americans and Indians could work together to revitalize and preserve real religion and Vedic culture. He showed that such formulas of cooperation based on Vedic ideals are very effective. As usual, however, politicians are proving they are interested in their own selfish interests based on sin rather than the peace and happiness of the people. They have no program for peace, nor will they accept Srila Prabhupada’s peace formula. Unfortunately, the result of our collective neglect of Srila Prabhupada’s formulas will be World War Three. It’s coming soon.