South Asian Chaat
Edited by Mithila Rajagopal and Mahvish Qureshi
Hi everyone, we know that this isnt the format that most of you are used to seeing when you come to read South Asian Chaat, but we are in the midst of transitioning from the Bryn Mawr Web Server due to technical issues. So please bear with us for the time being. You will notice on the right hand side under Links all our usual sections plus a new feature(!), hope you enjoy this issue!
Welcome back to all our readers! We hope that the semester has been treating everyone well, and that everyone is set for fall break! The past few months of summer and into the school year have proven to be tumultuous and interesting times for South Asia. Pakistan has undergone much political turmoil from the election of a new president to the bombing of the Marriot hotel in Islamabad (an event that has been nicknamed the 9/11 of Pakistan). Nepal has had a change in government structure from a monarchy to a republic form of government with the communist party in power.
Despite the many political uncertainties of the area, there has still been much celebration in the region. The past month was Ramadan, a sacred month for the Muslims, who would fast during the hours of sunlight. At the month’s end Muslims celebrate Eid-ul –Fitr by dressing up, saying prayers, and exchanging gifts. This month is also important for Hindus who are celebrating Navratri, or, nine nights of celebration and prayers. Navratri is celebration of good over evil, and people pray to the nine forms of Goddess Durga, the warrior Goddess.
So browse through our issue this month and learn more about both the celebrations, and the current politics of South Asia!
As always feel free to contact either mrajagopal@brynmawr.edu or mqureshi@brynmawr.edu with article ideas, written articles, or questions about anything and everything!
Politics and Religion
Mithila Rajagopal ’10 and Mahvish Qureshi’
Politics and religion seem to be inseparable in many of the South Asian countries. Though most governments declare freedom of religion, it appears that the regions and governments remain mired in religious conflict. The creation of Pakistan itself for instance was a result of a religious rift between great freedom fighters of India, who were the first political thinkers of the country. Till today, the Hindu-Muslim war has raged on. Many, and it is said this includes Mahatma Gandhi, considered this partition to be the greatest failure of independence from colonial rule.
It is not surprising after all that political ideology is influenced by religion. The government is ruled by an elected oligarchy, whose thoughts are influenced by their faith. This is not ofcourse the golden rule but it is a more often true than not. In Maldives, the government has declared Islam as the official state religion and prohibits the practice of any religion other than Islam by Maldivian citizens. In Pakistan also Islam has been the national religion as of 1973. Such national religions and government biases have different consequences for different sects of the religion. Shias and Sunnis for instance appear to leap into favor and fall just as quickly out of it with the change in political climate. There was a recent article in the ‘TIME’ on “Religion’s defeat in Pakistan’s election” which described the recent humiliating losses that the religious parties suffered in the 2008 elections. It is thus evident that the government, a representative of the population’s opinions, is going to have the same religious mindset and the same motivations that the majority of the population does. We don’t even have to mention the force a rule can have even if it is not in complete favor with the Public: The Taliban is on highly controversial topic.
In India, a declared secular state, it has been difficult, especially in recent times, to isolate the government from religious life. In Tamil Nadu, for example, the state government manages Hindu temples and in Punjab, a Sikh political party usually controls the state assembly. (US Library of Congress). Many of the problems associated with Hinduism, such as castes, have been publicly addressed by the government, and several measures are installed to give special consideration to those affected by this tenet of Hinduism. Several political parties have been accused of indulging in vote bank politics, that is giving political support to issues for the sole purpose of gaining votes from a specific section of the community and such issues have quite often had religious connotations.
Though it is admittedly hard to separate religion from politics, it is admirable to attempt to do so. The world has issues which must be dealt with hopefully, to benefit the majority of people. In this regard, it is important to remember that religion does not define people, it is people who define religion.