Two paragraphs about atheists in Early North India from historian Romila Thapar's book
I came across the paragraphs mentioned below yesterday as I was reading the referenced book. BTW I have great respect for both Jainism and Buddhism. And I am a Hindu and a Brahmin though I do not perform Brahmin rituals anymore. As most, if not all, readers would agree, we need to have a religious environment of peaceful & tolerant co-existence where we can appreciate and promote the good parts of every faith and also those who are of no faith but follow humanist values. Studying the past of religions including some unfortunate parts where religious leaders have misused and abused their power, people of one religion/sect have battled violently with people of another religion/sect etc. helps us get a better understanding of the dangers and threats to peaceful and tolerant co-existence posed by some historical aspects of various religions (including Hinduism) and no-faith groups.
From pre-eminent historian of early north India, Romila Thapar's (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Romila_Thapar), book, "The Past Before Us; Historical Traditions of Early North India", 2013.
An extract related to nastikas (atheists) in early North India from Chapter 17, the Prabandha-cintamani (page 657 of paperback book) is given below. As contextual info., this chapter deals with the historical tradition of Jainas. Mahavira (key figure of Jainism) and Buddha, lived and preached between the sixth and fourth century B.C., and the religions they revived/founded were key challengers to Hindu Brahminical tradition in North India (and later, other parts of India too). As these religions got better established in early North India through formation of monasteries with powerful patrons like kings and feudal chiefs, they felt the need to maintain some historical records. While doing so, they also recorded other traditions besides theirs including atheism then. The dates associated with the two paragraphs below are not explicitly specified in the book, but I guess it would apply to the first millennium A.D. and maybe even the first millennium B.C., as that is when Buddhism got founded by Buddha and Jainism was revived by Mahavira. Perhaps Mahavira and Buddha were able to preach their religions in this perhaps conducive atmosphere of some opposition to Hindu Brahminical views, including from atheist groups.
---start short extract ---
The need to maintain records also arose from the broader ideological background of those sects and communities that were opposed to brahmanical views, of which there were quite a few. The opposition took various forms: the denial of deity and sacrificial rites; the non-acceptance of an immortal soul, atman, and its rebirth, different from the continuity of consciousness or the self; and a refusal to concede that society was governed by immutable rules deriving from divine sanction, such as those of varnasramadharma [Ravi: caste based Hindu society].
The category of nastikas [Ravi: atheists], among which such groups were included, ranged across a spectrum of non-orthodox thought, some at one extreme in pursuing a life of hedonism, others insisting on virtually altruistic social ethics. The concern with the centrality of the human condition, and of the origin of the institutions of society lying in human needs, was common to all such sects. This tended to encourage turning to the past to understand the reason for the existence of institutions and to view them as continuous from previous time to now.
---end short extract ---
As an aside, as I googled for hedonism I came across this great Calvin & Hobbes cartoon related to hedonism.
From pre-eminent historian of early north India, Romila Thapar's (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Romila_Thapar), book, "The Past Before Us; Historical Traditions of Early North India", 2013.
An extract related to nastikas (atheists) in early North India from Chapter 17, the Prabandha-cintamani (page 657 of paperback book) is given below. As contextual info., this chapter deals with the historical tradition of Jainas. Mahavira (key figure of Jainism) and Buddha, lived and preached between the sixth and fourth century B.C., and the religions they revived/founded were key challengers to Hindu Brahminical tradition in North India (and later, other parts of India too). As these religions got better established in early North India through formation of monasteries with powerful patrons like kings and feudal chiefs, they felt the need to maintain some historical records. While doing so, they also recorded other traditions besides theirs including atheism then. The dates associated with the two paragraphs below are not explicitly specified in the book, but I guess it would apply to the first millennium A.D. and maybe even the first millennium B.C., as that is when Buddhism got founded by Buddha and Jainism was revived by Mahavira. Perhaps Mahavira and Buddha were able to preach their religions in this perhaps conducive atmosphere of some opposition to Hindu Brahminical views, including from atheist groups.
---start short extract ---
The need to maintain records also arose from the broader ideological background of those sects and communities that were opposed to brahmanical views, of which there were quite a few. The opposition took various forms: the denial of deity and sacrificial rites; the non-acceptance of an immortal soul, atman, and its rebirth, different from the continuity of consciousness or the self; and a refusal to concede that society was governed by immutable rules deriving from divine sanction, such as those of varnasramadharma [Ravi: caste based Hindu society].
The category of nastikas [Ravi: atheists], among which such groups were included, ranged across a spectrum of non-orthodox thought, some at one extreme in pursuing a life of hedonism, others insisting on virtually altruistic social ethics. The concern with the centrality of the human condition, and of the origin of the institutions of society lying in human needs, was common to all such sects. This tended to encourage turning to the past to understand the reason for the existence of institutions and to view them as continuous from previous time to now.
---end short extract ---
As an aside, as I googled for hedonism I came across this great Calvin & Hobbes cartoon related to hedonism.
Comments
Post a Comment