India Post News Service

NEW JERSEY: Caste-based reservations, which have brought about the marginalization of Brahmins was unanimously deplored and condemned during the three-day World Brahman Convention held in New Jersey, July 6-8.

The convention organized by the World Brahman Federation (WBF) at the Crowne Plaza Hotel in Secaucus, NJ attracted more than 200 Brahmans from Canada, Mauritius, Nepal, India, and all over the US.Focused on the theme of "Brahmans in a Secular Society: Myth & Reality", the convention had eminent scholars including keynote speaker Dr. Girija Vyas, Chairman of the National Commission for Women, Government of India; New Jersey Assemblyman Upendra Chivukula and Ashok Trivedi, President & CEO of iGATE Corporation to address the participating Brahmans.

Various panel discussions during the three days included highly potent topics such as the relevance of Brahmins in the 21st Century, the plight of Kashmiri Brahmins who are living as refugees in their own country and understanding the various aspects of Hinduism such as idol worship.In her keynote address on the convention theme, Dr. Girija Vyas said secularism was more than just a political ideology. However, politicians have conveniently adopted the definition that secularism meant atheism and anything other than that as fundamentalism to cultivate vote banks.

"The definition of secularism is harmony, not adjustment," she said.Vyas pointed out that although traditionally Brahmans are highly educated, in some of the Indian states today, Brahmin kids are so economically marginalized that they are far less educated than even the scheduled castes and scheduled tribe children. Historically, Brahmans had held the dual identity of those who practice priest-craft and those of educators of society, she said.

"Those who practiced priest-craft tend to be conservative and resistant to change and hence they have had to face criticism from the others. However as educators, Brahmans have always been on the top of the society," she explained. "Over the centuries, if anyone protected Saraswati (Goddess of Learning), it is the Brahmans."Vyas said that the Indian caste system was devised to sustain the society. "The value system was the most practical system ever given to society by the Brahmans. That value system needs to be brought back into practice," she said. The present political situation in India with reservation for the lower castes in educational institutions and in government jobs has impoverished the Brahman community, she admitted.

"In some of the Indian states, especially Rajasthan, the Brahmans are now beginning to agitate for reservations," she said.Even though they have lost their status in Indian society, Brahmas have not lost their self-respect and dignity, Vyas said. "Self-respect is everything for a Brahman, losing it is worse than a death sentence for him," she stressed. While criticizing political leaders for the gradual sidelining of Brahmans over the years, Vyas said, in some ways Brahmans were themselves responsible for their plight in India. "When all other communities can stand together for their rights, why not us Brahmans?" she asked.Vyas pointed out that Brahman traditions and Hinduism were like flowing rivers and not stagnant like well waters.

The Convention, she added, gave an opportunity to display Brahman unity and solidarity. "We should exercise our role as Brahmans in the world order, which is to be powerful agents of change," she reiterated.Assemblyman Chivukula, who was credited for being the first to start a Sanatan Dharma (Hindu) prayer in the NJ State Assembly, spiritedly told the audience that Brahmans formed only 5 percent of the Indian population, and protecting their rights and creating a voice for them was critical. "Whether Brahmans or Dalits, protecting human capital is critical," he added.Commenting on the plight of the Brahman community in India, Chivukula said, "It is really disturbing to note that nearly 50 percent of rickshaw pullers and public toilet cleaners today are Brahmans; and temple priests earn less than 600 rupees in wages per month.

"Chivukula bemoaned the fact that because Brahmans were generally perceived to be elite, they were being subjected to a reverse discrimination, just as the Caucasians sometimes feel in the US. "In the US, affirmative action calls for reservations on the basis of economic backwardness, but in India, the quota system is determined on caste basis. Brahmans in India face a lot of discrimination because of the government inducted quota system."

He said Brahmans in India should fight for meritocracy and urged the Brahman community to come together to protect Brahman history and wisdom by passing on the values to their children. He added that Vedic education is continued to be taught and promote vegetarianism.In conclusion, Chivukula suggested that Brahmans who are doing well in the US should perhaps start a foundation or organization whereby members adopt a poor purohit (priest) family back in India and support them financially and thus preserve their knowledge of the Shastras and the Vedas.Azad Kaushik, an academician from Toronto, who led the delegation from Canada, said as a community Brahmans need to preserve the Hindu scriptures; they should form a Brahminical Society and have highly educated Brahmans as Fellows; start an initiative to clean the holy rivers of India; and fight the so called Indian culture that is being perpetuated by popular Bollywood cinema all over the world.Speaking to India Post during a session break, M.R. Sharma, Chairman of WBF, based in Delhi, said Brahmans in India faced grave problems today owing to caste-based reservation, more so in politics.

"More than 20 crore voters cannot contest elections because of reservation to other castes. Apart from losing out in various other sectors, we are being blocked politically too," he said.Sharma said 121 Lok Sabha constituencies and 1081 Vidhan Sabha constituencies in India were reserved for other communities. "We have no ill will towards anybody," Sharma said. "We want everyone to prosper, but not at the cost of Brahmans."Bemoaning the demise of a merit-based India, Sharma said that Brahmans, who have been forced to leave the country because of caste-based reservations in educational institutions and in jobs, are doing very well in other countries.

"We want to bring all Brahmans across the world together and to pool their resources to help Brahmans in India. This is our main theme of discussion at this convention. We want a merit-based India," he reiterated.Sharma said that Indian politicians should realize that caste-based reservation system does not work. "If it was such a good system, two different castes -- both enjoying reservation benefits - would not be fighting against each other in Rajasthan."Speaking to India Post, New Jersey-based Nirmalendu Choubey, President of WBF, said the Convention had a clear agenda of bringing Brahmans of the world together and to find solutions to problems faced by humanity today, through Brahmans.

"We work for humanity, through Brahmans," he said.In the US, Brahmans are facing the problems of identity, Choubey explained. "The problem in this country is this country itself," he said. "It is a Christian nation, where as we want to impart Hindu and Brahman values to our kids."Choubey said the WBF has been through its conventions making efforts to dispel the misconceptions about Hinduism. "The West has done a great disservice to Hinduism by defining jaati as caste. Through the Brahman organizations, we want to impart our values and explain the varna vyavastha (value system) to our younger generation," he said.Convention director Sanjay Tripathi said that the convention was "not about propaganda, but about discovery".

He said the topic that drew most attention at the convention was on the relevance of Brahman traditions - not only in India but also in countries like the United States. "We have a lot of people and our own kids questioning our religion. It is important to understand a religion before questioning it. That is something we are trying to bring about through our convention."Tripathi admitted the number of attendees at the convention could have been more, "but we are a relatively new organization and have a long way to go to energize people to come together." Overall, the convention provided an educational opportunity for people of all ages, and at the same time, it was a family oriented extravaganza. Among the attendees were industrialists, philosophers, religious leaders, artists, and science and technology experts.

There were inspirational discussions as well as cultural performances. Star performer at the Kavi Sammelan was Hasya Kavi from India, Abhinav Shukla. World famous Odissi dancer Pt Rahul Acharya and Kathak dancer Purnima Jha also performed at the event. Also, some of the dignitaries and several volunteers who worked hard to make the event a success were awarded with Brahm Vibhushan and Brahm Bhushan awards.