Reforming Hinduism

[Babaji]

This thread might be heavy in theology so I'm not sure if it's appropriate for this forum. But IMO it'll turn out better than the usual Hindu-Muslim shitfest. The title is self-explanatory so I'll start off with some suggestions:


1) The priesthood should be meritocratic and not limited to a single community. I see this as the only way to break down the Chaturvarna system

2) Get rid of caste specific surnames and use generic terms. Self explanatory

3) A grassroots highly organized missionary order. This will help disadvantaged sections and combat Abrahamic expansionism

4) Sanskrit as the national language. This step alone has the potential to change India's destiny. Hindus (along with Jains and Buddhists) will be able to read their sacred texts. Also, apart from religious value, there is a huge wealth of Sanskrit literature.

5) The temple should allow the community to congregate regularly. Priests provide spiritual solace to followers instead of pointless puja-prasad-mantra based ritualism


Lets apply our energies constructively

 

[warriorextreme]

Everything you said has already been done by arya samaj..

PSlease do not confuse caste system with varna system..varna system is merit/karma based while caste system is not.

 

[sukhish]

This thread might be heavy in theology so I'm not sure if it's appropriate for this forum. But IMO it'll turn out better than the usual Hindu-Muslim shitfest. The title is self-explanatory so I'll start off with some suggestions:


1) The priesthood should be meritocratic and not limited to a single community. I see this as the only way to break down the Chaturvarna system

2) Get rid of caste specific surnames and use generic terms. Self explanatory

3) A grassroots highly organized missionary order. This will help disadvantaged sections and combat Abrahamic expansionism

4) Sanskrit as the national language. This step alone has the potential to change India's destiny. Hindus (along with Jains and Buddhists) will be able to read their sacred texts. Also, apart from religious value, there is a huge wealth of Sanskrit literature.

5) The temple should allow the community to congregate regularly. Priests provide spiritual solace to followers instead of pointless puja-prasad-mantra based ritualism


Lets apply our energies constructively

also no more temples in the middle of the roads and underneath every tree, India is too much conjested with temples and mosques.

 

[A chauhan]

Sanskrit as a national language ? although I support you but I was always a Gadha in Sanskrit it was tough for me. How about making it compulsary as a second language for Hindus?

 

[civfanatic]

Sanskrit as a national language ? although I support you but I was always a Gadha in Sanskrit it was tough for me. How about making it compulsary as a second language for Hindus?

Sanskrit should replace English as the lingua franca of India and would be learned in schools, while regional languages like Hindi, Bengali, Telugu, etc. would be learned at home. Sanskrit would be the second or third language of most Indians, rather than the first. All Indians should be required to learn it, regardless of religion, ethnicity, or what have you.

 

[A chauhan]

Sanskrit should replace English as the lingua franca of India and would be learned in schools, while regional languages like Hindi, Bengali, Telugu, etc. would be learned at home. Sanskrit would be the second or third language of most Indians, rather than the first. All Indians should be required to learn it, regardless of religion, ethnicity, or what have you.

Yeah ! Sanskrit should be a compulsory language.

 

[blank_quest]

Sanskrit is not India's Official language.. its Hindi though Nehru wanted Hindustani ( Hindi+ Urdu mixture) as the India's official language

 

[Predator]

Sanskrit should replace English as the lingua franca of India and would be learned in schools, while regional languages like Hindi, Bengali, Telugu, etc. would be learned at home. Sanskrit would be the second or third language of most Indians, rather than the first. All Indians should be required to learn it, regardless of religion, ethnicity, or what have you.

well something on which i agree with you

 

[rock127]

This thread might be heavy in theology so I'm not sure if it's appropriate for this forum. But IMO it'll turn out better than the usual Hindu-Muslim shitfest. The title is self-explanatory so I'll start off with some suggestions:


1) The priesthood should be meritocratic and not limited to a single community. I see this as the only way to break down the Chaturvarna system.
Good idea.Implement it through Gurukuls type schools where anyone can get admission and learn modern education as well.

2) Get rid of caste specific surnames and use generic terms. Self explanator.
Good idea.Cast crap is gradually fading but only in big cities.In rural areas the Caste system is alive and thriving.PROPER education is the key, specially for women.

3) A grassroots highly organized missionary order. This will help disadvantaged sections and combat Abrahamic expansionism
Explain more.

4) Sanskrit as the national language. This step alone has the potential to change India's destiny. Hindus (along with Jains and Buddhists) will be able to read their sacred texts. Also, apart from religious value, there is a huge wealth of Sanskrit literature.
Let's be practical.Before Sanskrit we need to first learn PROPER Hindi since lot of Hindi words came from Sanskrit.

5) The temple should allow the community to congregate regularly. Priests provide spiritual solace to followers instead of pointless puja-prasad-mantra based ritualism.
Good idea, this can help.Also add Community Services where people can use their energy positively in some social service.

Lets apply our energies constructively

Comments added in red.

 

[Energon]

1. Make it an action oriented and service based religion as opposed to a ritual centric one.

2. Focus on building institutions particularly those that provide a great (secular) education and/or critical medical care.

3. Utilize wealth reserves to pursue service provision and building institutions instead of accumulating it. Hindu temples have traditionally been repositories of gold and precious jewels. This is useless when you have a sea of fakirs and beggars sitting outside with their hungry children. Historically, in spite of immense wealth, India always had extreme poverty. These vast reserves of wealth stacked in iconic temples could have been used wisely for social development instead of sitting there for marauders to loot and plunder with impunity. Even today, families (including mine) make vast donations to their temples, money that is then used to make the temple more ornate. This is entirely pointless. Ornate temples make good tourist attractions, but have no value in of themselves to the worshipers or society at large.

4. Shift focus to the future with an emphasis on prosperity. Obsessing over past glory (a lot of it imagined) for the sake of self gratification is a waste of time when hundreds of millions of impoverished Hindus live in medieval conditions

5. Stop immersing in unworldliness or otherworldliness and focus on the present.

6. Embrace modernity (I don't mean just web broadcasts of pujas and installation of flat screen tvs on temple grounds). The reason there are "two Indias", one current and one still living in prehistoric conditions is because the latter group has no medium to connect with the former. Hindu temples can fill that void if they bring ideas of the modern world, such as emancipation of women and adequate child care.

7. Adopt sound hygiene. Some Hindu temples have elaborate architecture but the core practice of hygiene in the temple itself is abysmal. India will never lose its stigma of squalor unless Hindu temples take charge and eliminate this long standing social blight.

 

[ani82v]

1. Make ...
2. Focus..
3. Utilize ..
4. Shift...
5. Stop ...
6. Embrace...
7. Adopt ....

Is this an IT project plan!?

In modern times, you reform Laws, reform Systems to reform Society. You don't reform Religion.

 

[amitkriit]

Is this an IT project plan!?

In modern times, you reform Laws, reform Systems to reform Society. You don't reform Religion.

Hinduism can be reformed, it has reformed itself several times during it's course of existence.

 

[warriorextreme]

Hinduism can be reformed, it has reformed itself several times during it's course of existence.

Very true...No other religion has reformed itself so many times..

 

[Energon]

Is this an IT project plan!?

In modern times, you reform Laws, reform Systems to reform Society. You don't reform Religion.

If people can find energy to constantly cry about other religions poaching their adherents and then engage in mob violence and murder to blatantly violate the supposedly reformed laws, surely they can try for reform.

Also I don't know what makes you think there are no reformations within religious orders in modern times. Mormons, Presbyterians, Methodists, Episcopalians, and heck even Scientologists have all embarked upon radical reform within their religious orders in order to either comply with the law and/or to make themselves look less cookey. Mormons in this regard are by far the most impressive because they went from being a whacky impoverished cult to a vibrant, action oriented and prosperous organization.

Reformation of law (provided it's actually implemented) is a structural mechanism of a society; reformation of religious ideals is a social mechanism which is just as important.

 

[ani82v]

How about writing the fifth Veda? Time to so some serious writing.

 

[blank_quest]

How about writing the fifth Veda? Time to so some serious writing.

why to write veda!! write a constitution of religion in india for every indian!!

 

[Kunal Biswas]

This thread might be heavy in theology so I'm not sure if it's appropriate for this forum. But IMO it'll turn out better than the usual Hindu-Muslim shitfest. The title is self-explanatory so I'll start off with some suggestions:

1) The priesthood should be meritocratic and not limited to a single community. I see this as the only way to break down the Chaturvarna system

2) Get rid of caste specific surnames and use generic terms. Self explanatory

3) A grassroots highly organized missionary order. This will help disadvantaged sections and combat Abrahamic expansionism

4) Sanskrit as the national language. This step alone has the potential to change India's destiny. Hindus (along with Jains and Buddhists) will be able to read their sacred texts. Also, apart from religious value, there is a huge wealth of Sanskrit literature.

5) The temple should allow the community to congregate regularly. Priests provide spiritual solace to followers instead of pointless puja-prasad-mantra based ritualism

Lets apply our energies constructively

Hinduism which is already ok if followed by intelligence, You are saying indirectly reforming the way of today`s society which is indeed needed..

But bringing change to improve need changes from very basis root of the system which is not so easy as you mentioned above..

 

[Sabir]

Sanskrit as mandatory language is a funny idea today. Only few people talks in Sanskrit (including one village in Karnataka).It can be tought in school as it is done today. We studied in seventh and eighth standard. Many of the regional language originated from Sanskrit but impossing Sanskrit on people making regional language less significant will be disastrous. The Pakistanis did try to impose Urdu on Bangladeshis expecting it will bind all Muslims- you know the result. Language, culture etc keep on developing. Any attempt to swim against the tide cant be said practical. And there are people in significant numbers who speak non-Sanskrit language.

My own point of view, I will never tolerate anything if you impose on Bengali. And removing English from India is almost impossible now.

 

[warriorextreme]

How about writing the fifth Veda? Time to so some serious writing.

They say Puranas are fifth vedas..but all i see in puranas is bs and more bs..

 

[Kunal Biswas]

Sanskrit as mandatory language is a funny idea today. Only few people talks in Sanskrit (including one village in Karnataka).It can be tought in school as it is done today. We studied in seventh and eighth standard.

My own point of view, I will never tolerate anything if you impose on Bengali. And removing English from India is almost impossible now.

Nothing is funny, If you have a will, This can be implemented and the result will be in next 50 years..

Sanskrit is something not forgotten language its still widely used in Hindi and Bangla, If anyone speaks pure Bangla its almost Sanskrit...

No one talking about removal of English ..