This week we highlight: Conversion to Hinduism, Fighting Bias against Hindus, and an aesthetic!
Praxis Topic: Conversion to Hinduism
When one googles “conversion to Hinduism”, there are a number of contradictory takes on the topic, with some results saying “Yes”, and some saying “No”.
For readers that have followed us for a while, our position is “yes”; a position clearly in line with what actually historically occurred. It is that conversion to Hinduism is possible (but complex) and we have highlighted stories and biographies around numerous converts (Heliodorus - Week 2 , Altai Hindus - Week 80, Raskhan - Week 5, Ghanaian Hindus - Week 131) as well as Hindu missionaries (Shantidas Adhikari - Week 26)
In the Hindu diaspora, many of us were raised with the delusion that conversion to Hinduism is impossible, and that “all religions are the same”. These delusions are exacerbated by Pseudo-Hindu gurus, with many Hindus regurgitating apocryphal statements about some “guru” or another told a potential convert “No need to convert to Hinduism; to be a better Hindu, be a better Christian” and “Hinduism is not a religion, it is a way of life” (anyone with a brain, and knowledge of comparative religion would note the 5x daily prayers of Islam, the restrictive diet of Jains, and the constant days of fasting among Orthodox Christians certainly qualify as “ways of life”)
To put this matter to rest, we wanted to feature a great new piece in Brhat (an organization we featured in Week 138) by @GhorAngirasa (a very knowledgeable Saivism and Hinduism researcher and commentator) and Kavita Meegama titled “Conversion to Hindu Dharma: Past Precedents, Present Challenges and Future Possibilities”. It is a very well-written piece, chock full of scriptural and historic evidence, logical argumentation, and interesting insights.
The key questions the piece answers are:
Can a person, particularly one of non-Indian origin, convert to Hindu Dharma?
What does conversion to Hindu Dharma mean in terms of belief and/or praxis
Following conversion, is it essential for the new Hindu to be assigned a varṇa or jāti?
The article is available at: https://brhat.in/2022/08/23/conversiontohindudharma/
Politics Highlight: Fighting Bias
In the wake of the Hinduphobic attack in Fremont, California by a Khalistani, and racist attacks on Indians across the country, Anang Mittal has a great video discussing the need to fight back against anti-Hindu narratives, with a snippet linked below.
Full video is available below and at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q7--00hDzu0
Aesthetic: Madhya Pradesh Temple
