In this vibrant volume, Khushwant, in his inimitable style, tackles all issues related to religion, faith, blind faith, new cults, and new movements in other words, he charges like a raging bull to attack the epidemic of gods and godmen that has swept the nation in recent years. Khushwant Singh quotes liberally and with perfect ease from the Adi Granth, Adi Shankaracharya, Upanishads, Koran and other holy books to buttress his arguments.
Begone Godmen! describes Dr. Kovoor's encounters with assorted fakes attempting to cash on the credulity of their victims. It is a work of detection and exposure, as enjoyable a any thriller, and a warning against the bogus gurus the reader may come across.
Conventional wisdom says that integration into the global marketplace tends to weaken the power of traditional faith in developing countries. But, as Meera Nanda argues in this path-breaking book, this is hardly the case in today’s India. Against expectations of growing secularism, India has instead seen a remarkable intertwining of Hinduism and neoliberal ideology, spurred on by a growing capitalist class. It is this “State-Temple-Corporate Complex,” she claims, that now wields decisive political and economic power, and provides ideological cover for the dismantling of the Nehru-era state-dominated economy. According to this new logic, India’s rapid economic growth is attributable to a special “Hindu mind,” and it is what separates the nation’s Hindu population from Muslims and others deemed to be “anti-modern.” As a result, Hindu institutions are replacing public ones, and the Hindu “revival” itself has become big business, a major source of capital accumulation. Nanda explores the roots of this development and its possible future, as well as the struggle for secularism and socialism in the world’s second-most populous country.
A chance meeting with a former US Army Special Forces officer AKA Candyman in war-torn Kabul sets Shiv, a disillusioned civil engineer, from the comforts of Mumbai on a journey to find his inner peace. The craggy peaks and troughs of the Karakoram Range echo the ups and downs of Shiv’s life as he seeks answers to questions of life, destiny and happiness. In a way, Shiv’s travails are no different from that of millions of others seeking answers to the apparent unfairness in life’s distribution of bounties and miseries. Keeping him company in this quest is Nasir, a dour-faced Pashtun, who struggles with his own torments as he despairs at the caprices of fate. But what is a former US army officer doing amidst the ruins of Kabul living in a tent house, and why does the American go by the moniker “Candyman”? The answer to this innocuous question hides in itself the purpose of life we seek and how and why happiness eludes most, despite religion, religious structures, gods and godmen and most important of all… why God won’t help! Or will He?
Gods, Demons and Spirits is a worthy successor to the bestseller BEGONE GODMEN. In it, Dr. Abraham Kovoor, the famed rationalist, continues his relentless crusade against charlatans and miraclemen with greater vigour. It is a scathing exposure of the conning methods employed by pseudo-gods, bogus gurus and assorted fakes to entrap their gullible victims.
Through shrewd marketing and publicity, Hindu spiritual leaders can play powerful roles in contemporary India as businessmen and government officials. Focusing on the organizations and activities of Hindu ascetics and gurus, Lise McKean explores the complex interrelations among religion, the political economy of India, and global capitalism. In this close look at the business of religion, McKean traces the ideological and organizational antecedents to the Hindu nationalist movement. The Indian state's increasing patronage of Hindu institutions makes competition for its support greater than ever. Using materials from guru's publications, the press, and extensive field research, McKean examines how participation by upper-caste ruling class groups in the Divine Life Society and other Hindu organizations further legitimates their own authority. With a remarkable selection of photographs and advertisements showing icons of spirituality used to sell commodities from textiles to cement to comic books, McKean illustrates the pervasive presence of Hindu imagery in India's burgeoning market economy. She shows how gurus popularize Hindu nationalism through imagery such as the goddess, Mother India, and her martyred sons and daughters.
Instead of entering into a pointless debate on whether or not God exists, it is more important to bear in mind that belief in the existence of God has little bearing on making a person a good or a bad citizen. One can be a saintly person without believing in God and a detestable villain believing in Him. In my personalized religion, there is NO GOD! Khushwant Singh, over the decades, has built up a reputation for coming up with something new and controversial in each book, and he does not disappoint his readers this time too. He begins with a chapter on the ‘need for a new religion – without God’, in which he questions the relevance of God. He then moves on to describe how religion has proved to be more harmful than beneficial and, in the process, debunks astrologers and the breed of so-called ‘godmen’. However, he is not dismissive of religion. Through his lucid writing, he brings out the beauty and significance of holy books such as the Bhagvad Gita, the Quran and the Granth Sahib. He provides relevant extracts to highlight the poetry and the music in such books. The author next tries to dispel the prejudices held by many non-Muslims against their Muslim compatriots by giving down-to-earth examples. He also emphasizes the importance of the Ramzaan fast. Khushwant Singh’s description of the life and times of Guru Nanak and Guru Gobind Singh and his in-depth analysis of the Granth Sahib throw new light on a particularly troubled period in India’s history. The chapter devoted to the interaction of the author (a confirmed agnostic) with the Dalai Lama (probably the world’s most renowned spiritual leader) makes for fascinating reading. Here’s one book containing a wealth of knowledge and information that you would want to read or consult again and again.
