Many tens of millions of Americans have become dependent on such social media conglomerates as Facebook, Twitter, Youtube, Google and Yahoo (among others) for vital communication with friends and relatives, and as avenues for the vital expression of speech and opinion. Additionally, many innocent members of the public rely on these corporate interests for their news and information. Despite the fact that these companies are almost 100% dependent upon their members for the content that these companies then use to make profits from, all of these social media companies have been guilty of data mining, censorship and the repression of free speech of those very members. Given the important service that social media potentially provides for the lives of so many people, the time has come for the federal government to declare the worst of these abusive companies to be public utilities. The social media companies singled out would still remain in the hands of private owners, but with government oversight and regulation to ensure that these companies to not violate their members’ free speech rights, do not steal data and information from their customers that their customers do not want abused, and do not serve as propaganda outlets for anti-American interests. The time has come to end the abuse of social media. For more revolutionary idea on how to make our world a more just society, read The Dharma Manifesto.
Tag Archives: the dharma manifesto
2016 – A Pivotal Year
“I believe that 2016 is going to be a year that is absolutely pivotal in bringing about the new Golden Age that God’s true devotees have been praying to see for decades. We are going to experience both terrible things (terrorism, continued cultural decline, bitter conflict, etc.), but also many wonderful things at the same time. We will begin to see for the very first time millions of people wake up from their trance-like slumber and begin to question the honesty of the self-serving media, corrupt politicians and the malicious system that has ruled over the people for so very long. It is up to us to make sure that as many of our fellow human beings as possible wake up to the truth of the real nature of our world. It is up to us to help them to free themselves from illusion, and to embrace the light of Dharma.” – Sri Dharma Pravartaka Acharya
Alex Jones & Acharya
Alex Jones with Sri Dharma Pravartaka Acharya, author of The Dharma Manifesto.
Alex Jones read The Dharma Manifesto over a year ago and was blown away by the book. He was also extremely impressed by the book’s brilliant author when they first met in 2015.
Acharyaji was interviewed by Alex Jones (a major alternative media figure) for about two hours on April 8th, 2016 in Austin, TX. This important interview will be the first interview of a new series that Alex Jones is launching in which he speaks with cutting edge alternative thinkers and spiritual leaders about world issues. He chose Acharyaji as the very first person to speak to for this new series! The interview will be aired in May and potentially be seen by millions of viewers.
Spirituality & Politics
“Do not allow your political stance to contaminate your spirituality. Rather, allow your spirituality to inform your politics.” – Sri Dharma Pravartaka Acharya
March 15th Primary Analysis
March 15th Primary Analysis
Five states (Florida, Illinois, Missouri, North Carolina and Ohio) held their primaries yesterday.
On the Democratic side, despite his seeming popularity with Millennials and many trade union members, Bernie Sanders lost all five states to Hillary Clinton. Despite not winning any states, however, he came extremely close to winning in several of these states (specifically Illinois and Missouri).
Given the deep corruption and criminal activity that is systemic to the Clinton machine, this development does not bode well for the future of the Democratic party. Of the two contenders for the Democratic nomination, Sanders is arguably the more sincere, populist and honest. Sanders represents a voice of hope; whereas Clinton represents a whine of entitlement. Indeed, as has been pointed out repeatedly by many political pundits, it cannot even be assured that Hillary Clinton (the only candidate on either side who is currently being actively investigated by the FBI) won’t be formally charged with serious crimes before the general election is even over!
On the Republican side, Donald Trump also swept the field, winning four of the five states up for grabs last night. In what has now been the final nail in the coffin of Marco Rubio’s campaign, Trump even beat Rubio in his own state of Florida – and by almost 19% points! As we predicted, Rubio has already suspended his campaign and very wisely (if not soon enough) dropped out of the race.
The slight surprise of the evening was how well John Kasich did in the state of Ohio (of which he is the Governor). This win (his only win in the entire primary season thus far!) now has Republican establishment supremos and donors flocking to his banner as the newly anointed “only person who can stop Trump“. Of course, Jeb Bush was supposed to have been the establishment’s great hope to beat Trump…and then Marco Rubio…and now…the one state wonder known as John Kasich.
Our guess is that this thoroughly corrupt and out of touch Republican establishment will eventually find themselves on their tenth great hope as the “only person who can stop Trump” deep into Donald Trump’s second term as President of the United States.
To the hearty celebration of all supporters of Dharma everywhere, fundamentalist Evangelical fanatic Ted Cruz lost every single state he campaigned in last night. Like Marco Rubio, it would be wise for Cruz to drop out now, rather than face greater embarrassment later – and perhaps even the final end of his political career entirely.
But very few have ever accused Ted Cruz of being wise.
Dharma Revolution: An interview with Sri Dharma Pravartaka Acharya (Part One)
The Dharma Manifesto by Sri Dharma Pravartaka Acharya is a “blueprint” for creating a new type of society based on the ancient spiritual principles. At its core is to restore the sacred to the ordinary and dignity to the individual so that each person might fulfill their full potential. Below is the first of a two-part interview exploring Sri Dharma Pravartaka Acharya’s life, work, the principles and purpose of The Dharma Manifesto, and his vision for a new, very different, and Dharmic politics and nation state.
About Sri Dharma Pravartaka Acharya:
Sri Dharma Pravartaka Acharya has been a follower of Sanatana Dharma (“Hinduism”) for four decades, and has been a recognized teacher in the tradition since 1988. He holds a doctorate in Religious Studies from the University of Wisconsin at Madison, and is the founder, head, and guide of the global Dharma Nation movement. He also lectures and writes on the Dharma. His other books include The Shakti Principle: Encountering the Feminine Power of God and Sanatana Dharma: The Eternal Natural Way.
The Dharma Manifesto: An interview with Sri Dharma Pravartaka Acharya (Part Two)
The global rise of Dharma, the future Dharmic nation state, and the thousand-year war against Hinduism. These are just a few of the subjects Sri Dharma Pravartaka Acharya (an ordained orthodox Vedic brahmana, and author of The Dharma Manifesto) discusses in this, the second part of a two-part interview with People of Shambhala. We hope you enjoy.
About Sri Dharma Pravartaka Acharya:
Author David Frawley has said of Sri Acharyaji, that he “represents the Sankalpa [the will] of the Hindu people and the cause of Sanatana Dharma.” He has been a follower of Sanatana Dharma (“Hinduism”) for four decades, and has been a recognized teacher in the tradition since 1988. Sri Acharyaji holds a doctorate in Religious Studies from the University of Wisconsin at Madison, and is the founder, head, and guide of the global Dharma Nation movement. He also lectures and writes on the Dharma. His other books include The Shakti Principle: Encountering the Feminine Power of God and Sanatana Dharma: The Eternal Natural Way.
Organic Government – The Dharma Manifesto
It is possible to have government function in a way that is healthy, efficient, spiritual and organic.
Read “The Dharma Manifesto”, by Sri Dharma Pravartaka Acharya, to learn how.
Available through Arktos Media:
http://www.arktos.com/sri-dharma-pravartaka-acharya-the-dharma-manifesto.html
Consciousness Wars: The Dharma Manifesto
Over the years, we have been offered “holy wars”, “class wars”, “culture wars”, and “info wars” as attempted solutions for the dire global crisis that we are currently experiencing. In actuality, what we have been experiencing has been a consciousness war. We are presently in an ongoing struggle between the forces of materialism (with its consciousness of lust, anger and greed) versus the forces of spirituality (with its consciousness of love, tranquility and compassion). The way to transform our world for the better is to help others to elevate their consciousness, and thus liberate their perception and awareness of the truth of their true identity and of what is truly happening around them.
A Vedic Examination of Abrahamism
The following article is from chapter 3 of the groundbreaking new work “The Dharma Manifesto“, by Sri Dharma Pravartaka Acharya.
A Vedic Examination of Abrahamism
By Sri Dharma Pravartaka Acharya
The Abrahamic worldview is today represented by five closely aligned ideological tendencies: 1) Judaism, 2) Pauline Christianity, 3) Islam, 4) Marxism, and to a less significant extent 5) the Baha’i movement. Of these Abrahamic tendencies, Marxism is the only self-stated atheistic one, the others being religious in nature. The greatest real-world challenge and exact philosophical juxtaposition to the entire Dharmic worldview has historically been, and continues to this day to be, the Abrahamic mentality and worldview.
While some very important theological and ritual distinctions can be seen between them all, nonetheless the specifically religious-oriented aspects of Abrahamism – Judaism, Christianity and Islam – share a common worldview, psychological make-up, and guiding ethos. Judaism, Christianity and Islam are historically referred to as the “Abrahamic” religions because all three religions trace their origins to the prophet Abraham, and can thus be seen to be quite similar in many aspects of their respective outlooks. The following are only a few of the similarities that they all share.
1. All three religions have a shared acceptance of the teachings of the Old Testament prophets (Christianity, in addition to the accepting the Old Testament prophets, also accepts Jesus. Islam, in addition to the Old Testament prophets and Jesus, also accepts Muhammad).
2. Anthropomorphic monotheism. The supreme god of Abrahamism is seen in very human terms, including in his exhibition of such very human emotions as anger, jealousy, prejudice and vengeance.
3. A profound sense of religious exclusivity, creating two strictly delineated camps of “believers” in opposition to everyone else.
4. The belief that there is only the sole true faith, and that any other form of religious expression external to the “one true faith” is necessarily wrong.
5. The acceptance of terrorism, violence, mob action, looting and aggressive missionary tactics to spread their religion.
6. A common sense of being at a war to the death with the Dharmic (“Pagan”) world that preceded Abrahamic ascendency.
7. The centrality of unidirectional prayer to commune with their god, with systematic meditation practice playing either little or no part in the practice of their respective religions.
8. A belief in the existence of angels, the devil, demonic spirits, etc.
9. All three teach the bodily resurrection, the Final Judgment, the creation of the soul at the time of conception or birth (as opposed to the soul’s pre-existence, which all Dharmic spiritual traditions teach), the binding effects of sin, etc.
10. The importance of a specific holy day of the week set aside for prayer and rest: For Jews – Saturday. For most Christians – Sunday. For Muslims – Friday.
These are only a few of the elements of the Abrahamic worldview, of which mainstream Christianity is an integral part.
Up until 2000 years ago, the Dharmic worldview was by far the predominant worldview for most of humanity – from Ireland in the West to the Philippines in the East. Though there were thousands of diverse individual cultures, languages, foods, customs and traditions among the ancient Indo-European peoples, most of these ethnically varied cultures were united in their deep respect for, and attempted adherence to, the Natural Way (Dharma).
This ancient uniformity in adherence to Dharma was the case for tens of thousands of years until the radically anti-human and anti-nature Abrahamic ideology suddenly burst upon the world scene 4000 years ago with an evangelical fury, religiously-inspired violence, and zealous civilization-destroying vengeance the likes of which the civilized world had never seen previously. Never before had the multiple ancient and noble pre-Christian cultures of the world ever experienced such massive destruction, death, persecution, forced conversion, and cultural annihilation performed in the name of an artificially expansive religion as it witnessed at the hands of the new Abrahamic ideology that had arrived, seemingly out of nowhere, onto the world stage. It was in the wake of this never before experienced juggernaut of Biblically inspired destruction that the light of Dharma began to swiftly wane, and that Reality as it was known up till then was turned literally on its head.
Religiously inspired imperialism began with the more localized expansion of the Israelites in the Levant region two thousand years before the birth of Christianity.[1] However, it was soon after the appropriation of the original teachings and spiritual movement of Jesus, and the massive expanse of this later, corrupt form of post-Constantine Christianity, that the expansion of the Abrahamic ideology began to take on truly global proportions. As the French thinker Alain de Benoist explains this catastrophe in the context of European history,
“. . . the conversion of Europe to Christianity and the more or less complete integration of the European mind into the Christian mentality, was one of the most catastrophic events in world history – a catastrophe in the proper sense of the word…”[2]
With the ascent of the Abrahamic onslaught came the counter-proportional descent of the Indo-European world’s traditional Dharmic civilizations.
Christianity, in retrospect, was but one of several artificially constructed, new movements that all fall under the general term “Abrahamic”, named after the infamous founder of fanatical religious exclusivity, Abraham (1812 BC – 1637 BC). These four anti-nature ideologies are 1) Judaism, 2) Christianity, 3) Islam, and 4) Marxism. Whether we speak of Judeo-Christian “holy wars” and Inquisitions, or the bloody and unending Islamic jihads against “infidels”, or the genocide of over 100 million people in the name of Marxist revolution, all four of these Abrahamic movements have been responsible for more destruction, loss of life, and social mayhem than all other ideas, religions, and ideologies in world history combined.
The Abrahamic onslaught has been an unparalleled juggernaut of death. More, while all four ideologies have remained seemingly divided by dogmatic, sectarian concerns, all Abrahamic movements have been fanatically united in both their common origin, and in their shared aim of annihilating their perceived enemy of Dharma from the earth, and seeking sole domination of world power for themselves alone. While Judaism, Christianity and Islam have been at war with each other for millennia, they are all united in their insistence that Dharma is their principal hated enemy. The essential driving principle of Abrahamism is to bring about the immediate death of Dharma.
Dharma and Abrahamism are exact opposites in every way. Dharma and Abrahamism stand for two radically opposed visions for humanity’s future. Dharma stands for nature, peace, diversity, and reason. Abrahamism stands for artificiality, war, uniformity, and fanaticism. They are the only two real ideological poles of any true significance in the last two-thousand years. There has been an ongoing Two-Thousand Year War between these two opposing worldviews that has shaped the course of much of human history since this conflict’s start. Every philosophical construct, religious denomination, political ideology and general worldview of the past two millennia falls squarely into one camp or the other. Every human being living today falls squarely into one camp or the other. Dharma and Abrahamism are the only two meaningful ideological choices for humanity today. And for all too much of the duration of this Two-Thousand Year War, Dharma has been on the losing end as Abrahamism has continuously succeeded in its unrivalled ascendancy.
The destructive ascendancy of Abrahamism is, however, about to come to an end. We are now about to witness a period of Dharmodaya – of Dharma ascending – in this very generation. As is explained in thorough detail in the two books “The Dharma Manifesto” and “Sanatana Dharma: The Eternal Natural Way”, we are about to experience the rebirth of Dharmic and Vedic civilization throughout the totality of our world.
The Dharma world-view represents a positive moral and philosophical alternative to the many ills and cultural distortions of Abrahamic modernity. Vedic culture is human culture, because Vedic culture is the model of spiritual civilization. Our world is not without meaning. Our future is not without hope. Though the darkness of the Kali Yuga (our current “Age of Conflict”) and a civilizational crisis has now descended upon us, the Sun of Dharma will soon be seen again. No cloud can obscure our vision of the Sun forever. We will live to see Dharma triumphant again, and to see a Golden Age of compassion, true culture, and the Natural Way be firmly established.
[1] One of the prime example of such Abrahamist expansion was the conquest of Canaan (circa 1400-1350 BC), described in the Book of Joshua and the first chapter of Judges.
[2] Alain de Benoist, On Being a Pagan, ed. Greg Johnson, trans. Jon Graham (Atlanta: Ultra, 2004), p. 5.
_______________________
This article is from chapter 3 of the groundbreaking new political work “The Dharma Manifesto“, by Sri Dharma Pravartaka Acharya.
The Dharma Manifesto serves as the first ever systematic revolutionary blueprint for the nascent global Vedic movement that will, in the very near future, arise to change the course of world history for the betterment of all living beings. The Dharma Manifesto signals the beginning of a wholly new era in humanity’s eternal yearning for meaningful freedom and happiness.
About the Author
Sri Dharma Pravartaka Acharya has been acknowledged by many Hindu leaders throughout the world to be one of the most revolutionary and visionary Vedic spiritual masters on the Earth today.
With a forty year history of intensely practicing the spiritual disciplines of Yoga, and with a Ph.D. in Religious Studies, Sri Acharyaji is one of the most eminently qualified authorities on Vedic philosophy, culture and spirituality. He is the Director of the Center for the Study of Dharma and Civilization.
His most historically groundbreaking politico-philosophical work, “The Dharma Manifesto“, is now offered to the world at a time when its people are most desperately crying out for fundamental change.
Reaction, Revolution and Dharma Renaissance
Reaction, Revolution and Dharma Renaissance:
The Case of “Hindu” Nationalism
By Sri Dharma Pravartaka Acharya
The following article is from chapter 2 of the groundbreaking new political work “The Dharma Manifesto”, by Sri Dharma Pravartaka Acharya.
“Every major question in history is a religious question. It has more effect in molding life than nationalism or a common language.”
– Hilaire Belloc (1870-1953)
The following paper will examine the Indian social movement known variously as “Hindu” Nationalism, or “Hindutva”[1].
The overtly political aspects of the ongoing Hindu renaissance that has been haphazardly developing for the last approximately 135 years, along with its repeated failure to secure its self-stated aim of instantiating Rama-rajya (Dharmic rule) on the political scene, are crucial topics that very few Hindu intellectuals have addressed in an ideologically cogent and politically mature manner. Some of the few intellectual leaders who have, in fact, addressed this issue in a truly systematic and well-formulated ideological way include Dr. David Frawley (Sri Vedacharya Vamadeva Shastri), Sitaram Goel, Ram Swarup and Dr. Koenraad Elst. I have also written about this topic very extensively, but have only begun releasing a limited number of my writings on this matter to the general public starting in early 2011, The Dharma Manifesto being the ideological dénouement of these writings. The following are a few thoughts on the current state of contemporary Dharma politics on the South Asian subcontinent, with an emphasis on the specific case of what is often termed “Hindu” Nationalism.
As we will see, the primary stumbling block that has relegated the greater Hindutva movement to near irrelevancy in the dual realms of both ideological development and engaged political action has been:
1) Its preponderance of reactionary thinking and action, rather than proactive cultivation of a more revolutionary outlook and practical strategy to both a.)gain political power and to b.) consequently govern the Indian nation-state along purely Dharmic principles.
2) The lack of the divinely-bestowed spiritual empowerment that is necessary for any self-described religious-based movement to secure meaningful success.
By the time the British and other European powers began the incremental process of colonial domination in India and the rest of South Asia in 1757, much of the Hindu community in north India specifically had already experienced hundreds of years of genocidal religious cleansing at the hands of the Mughals and other Islamic invaders before them. Without doubt, the establishment of European rule over India directly saved Hinduism (and, arguably, much of Vedic spiritual culture that served as the ancient basis of the later phenomenon of “Hinduism”) from inexorable extinction at the hands of Islam. If the British had not assumed the administration of India when they did, Hinduism would most likely not exist today, and all of present day India would be an Islamic state. All followers of Dharma must be eternally grateful to the British for this inadvertent rescue of the non-Islamic elements of Indian culture.
During the more liberal atmosphere of the British Raj period (1857-1947), history witnessed the beginning stages of a budding, if often very confused, and ultimately self-abnegating, Hindu renaissance with the emergence of such neo-Hindu movements as the Arya Samaj, Ramakrishna Mission and Hindu Mahasabha, as well as such Hindu leaders as Swami Vivekananda (1863-1902), Bhaktivinode Thakura (1838-1914), Bal Gangadhar Tilak (1856-1920), Arumuga Navalar (1822-1879), Gedong Bagus Oka (1921-2002), Sister Nivedita (1867-1911)[2], Annie Besant (1847-1933)[3], and many others. As a result of the rediscovery of their Vedic heritage on the part of many 19th century and early 20th century Hindu intellectual leaders, a new sense of political activism in the name of a rediscovered “Hinduism” cautiously developed with the nascent political theories of such people as Vinayak Damodar Savarkar (1883-1966) and Keshav Baliram Hedgewar (1889-1940).
The culmination of this new movement, which was decidedly devoted to a Hindu identity politics, has resulted in the overwhelmingly dominant role of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (founded in 1925) and its greater Sangh Pariwar family of front organizations over the realm of Hindu politics in India for the last 85 years. The overtly political manifestation of the Sangh Pariwar movement was eventually manifest in the later Jana Sangh political party. The party operated under this name from 1951-1980. It was founded by Dr. Shyama Prasad Mookerjee (1901-1953), who was subsequently murdered by the Congress Party regime in 1953. Since 1980, the party has been known by the name Bharatiya Janata Party.[4]
There has been a clear, multi-stage trajectory in which pro-Hindu political ideology and activism have progressed in the last 135 or so years. Before I discuss the nature of that trajectory in any significant depth, first I need to lay out the three general morphologies that most political formulations have historically taken. There are three general forms of political activity observable in the modern political realm: 1) Utopian, 2) Reactionary, 3) Revolutionary.
Utopian designates a primarily futuristic-oriented politics that tends to be very unrealistic and fantasy-fueled. In many cases utopian-based ideologies tend to be eschatologically-driven and millennial in outlook, with the never-achieved (or achievable) promise of a perfect paradise on earth that can only be delivered by the particular political movement making the given promise. Such disastrously failed movements as Marxism, Leninism, Maoism, Anarchism and the political Left in general are Utopian in nature.
Reactionary, on the contrary, is primarily past-oriented[5] and looks toward a “better, more ordered time”, that is historically usually no more than several generations previous to the present era, as the archetypal hallmark and model for present-day cultural renewal. As Nicolás Gómez Dávila explains the mindset of the reactionary: “The reactionary is, nevertheless, the fool who takes up the vanity of condemning history and the immorality of resigning himself to it.” American reactionaries, for example, tend to see the 1950s as the apex of American civilization. As is clear from the term itself, reactionaries are capable only of reacting to assaults on tradition that they detect around them, and are usually incapable of proffering pro-active and positive ideas for how to foundationally transform society for the better in the face of modernity’s degenerate encroachment upon traditional values and culture. Reactionaries are especially known for timidity, intellectual incuriosity, lack of vision, as well as narrow parochialism and immaturely expressed xenophobia. Republicans, Tories, and the conservative Right in general fall under this general heading. Utopian and Reactionary represent the two furthest opposing extremes of the political spectrum.
Revolutionary, on the other hand, describes a political stance that is proactive and constructive in nature, rather than merely utopian or reactionary. Rather than supporting either unrealistic utopian goals, or merely reacting in an ineffectively knee-jerk fashion to the incessant attacks of its opponents, the revolutionary perspective proffers positive systemic change designed to transform the basic characteristics of a presently-given social reality in a wholly original and fundamental way. Revolutionaries seek to alter society, not merely peripherally and incrementally, but foundationally and swiftly.
In the very specifically Hindu/Vedic context, the revolutionary perspective looks at the ancient past (and not merely two or three generations back, but millennia back) as the source from which to derive eternal principles that are designed to be used in the present day to create a radically better future. The Dharmic revolutionary subscribes to an archeofuturism, to use Guillaume Faye’s instructive terminology.[6] Rather than merely dreaming about an unobtainable future based upon blind faith and wishful thinking, or conversely, merely reacting in a frustrated manner to the negative occurrences happening around them, revolutionaries seek systemic (and not merely cosmetic) change in the here and now.
The term “Revolutionary” tends to carry with it the stereotyped, and wholly inaccurate, notion of political violence, which is not at all the technical denotation of this word in political science terminology. Rather, by “Revolutionary” is meant a concept, ideology or movement whose aim is to affect fundamental systemic changes (i.e., a change of the prevailing system itself), rather than merely cosmetic or surface change alone (i.e., minutial changes and readjustments within the confines of the system). With this proper understanding of the terminology, the term “Revolutionary” does not in any way denote violence.
In brief, a Revolutionary movement must have the following features:
A) It is predicated upon a grand, but rationally achievable, vision.
B) It is led by a professional vanguard of elite leaders dedicated to achieving the vision, (b.i) who are capable of intellectually formulating that vision into ideological form, (b.ii) who know how to organize the masses in both the largest and most effective ways necessary to achieve the vision, and (b.iii) who themselves wholly personify the vision of the movement in their own personal character and lifestyle; i.e., the leader is the movement.
C) It has a clearly and systematically formulated ideology that encompasses the totality of political concern, including a comprehensive and defensible internal ideological structure, the minutia of economics, a philosophy of governance, social relations, geopolitical formulations, etc.
D) It has the ability to both formulate constructive alliances with like-motivated movements/organizations, and has a keen understanding of all aspects of the opposing forces.
E) Most importantly of all: a revolutionary has the resolute will to win.
As we look at the last 135 or so years of modern Hinduism, we see that Hindu forms of political expression have progressed roughly and sequentially, though certainly with significant overlaps, through the above three stages of Utopian, Reactionary, and Revolutionary.
“We Are One” – Utopian Stage (1875-1925)
Beginning in the Colonial era, and continuing down to today, such historical trends as the 19th century neo-Hindu movements and Radical Universalism, as well as such historic figures as Swami Vivekananda, Gandhi, and many of the earlier gurus who came to the West, clearly represented an early Utopian stage of Hindu political expression. The concerns of such Hindu Utopians included such unrealistic liberal Western notions as radical egalitarianism, universalism, evolutionary and historico-progressive world-views, temporal-centrism,[7] and such emotionally-driven eschatological visions as the future establishment of a pan-ecumenical world political order – what today would be more accurately termed the New World Order. Such intellectually puerile sentiments, however, did not (and could not) lead to the type of strong Vedic restoration movement necessary to revive Dharma globally.
Such a Vedic restoration is necessarily radically traditionalist in nature, and is thoroughly opposed to all the key corrosive elements that have rendered modernity non-viable. The German intellectual Edgar Julius Jung (1894-1934) presciently describes a similar vision of such a restoration in the following way.
“Restoration of all those elementary laws and values without which man loses his ties with nature and God and without which he is incapable of building up a true order. In the place of equality there will be inherent standards, in the place of social consciousness a just integration into the hierarchical society, in the place of mechanical election an organic elite, in the place of bureaucratic leveling the inner responsibility of genuine self-government, in the place of mass prosperity the rights of a proud people.”[8]
For Sanatana Dharma to both survive and thrive in the coming decades and centuries, a thorough Vedic Restoration along the lines of Jung’s words above must be brought about – a reaffirmation of Sanatana Dharma’s most ancient and orthodox cultural and spiritual expression in direct contradistinction to the values of both Western materialist modernity and shortsighted Indian nationalism (i.e., “Hindu” Nationalism).
Most of the formulators and present-day thinkers of the “Hindu Nationalist” movement represent, to one degree or another, a rather sharp historical and conceptual disconnect from the traditional Sanatana Dharma that had been taught by the Vedic Acharyas and that had been practiced by the common Hindu people for thousands of years. After 1000 years of genocidal battering on the part of Islamic invaders, modern Hinduism was definitely not at the height of its intellectual, cultural, spiritual and political/military glory by the time the British arrived on the scene. By the time the British had saved Vedic culture from extinction, a radically traditional Sanatana Dharma, in its unapologetic, pristine, and consciously Vedic-centric form, needed desperately to be reconstructed by her intellectuals and spiritual leaders. Unfortunately, a serious process of tradition-oriented reconstruction was not seriously attempted at that time.
Instead of seeing the dire problems with Hinduism that were present by the 18th and 19th centuries as something that needed to be addressed and cured from within the confines of Sanatana Dharma, the neo-Hindus instead turned to external, non-Vedic, sources for their guiding inspiration. As a result, rather than attempting a true reconstruction of authentic Sanatana Dharma, which would have made Sanatana Dharma strong and pure once again, they instead attempted an unnecessary “reform” of Sanatana Dharma along the lines of Christian norms and ideals.
Thus we saw the Christian-inspired, neo-Hindu obsessions with eliminating “caste”, eliminating sati, eliminating murti worship, Christian style monotheism, “social reform” at the expense of intellectual/spiritual development, Hegelian historicism, and Radical Universalism. Attendant upon these superfluous “reforms”, we now witness the sad legacy of a Hindu world confused about what it believes, about what even constitutes a “Hindu”, about its future, as well as Hindu children who are not interested in Hinduism, and a Hindu community of almost one billion people many of whom suffer from inferiority complexes and the psychological scars of a people disconnected from their true spiritual heritage. What Sanatana Dharma really needed was never “reform” along these neo-Hindu lines, but rather a positive tradition-based reconstruction of its eternal ideals. “Hinduism” needed to re-embrace its true essence as Sanatana Dharma – the Eternal Natural Way.
What Sanatana Dharma needed – and still needs! – were two interdependent developments.
A) A reclamation of Vedic-based, traditional Sanatana Dharma, with a highly orthodox, Vedic-centric understanding of the unitive and integral Vedic culture that had sustained Sanatana Dharma for 5000 years. It needed a purely Vedic understanding of pramana (valid means of knowledge and derivation of authority), of the nature of Dharma (in the strictest of philosophical senses, not just the popular sense), of what constitutes Vaidika (Vedic) vs. Avaidika (non-Vedic), etc.
B) Once the pure Tradition of Sanatana Dharma was reconstructed, the next organic development needed to be a strictly Vedic-based strategy for both juxtaposing, but also actively interfacing, traditional Sanatana Dharma with the modern world.
The latter project of fostering dialogue between Sanatana Dharma and modernity needed to be done, not by falsely denying the differences between the two (as almost all of the 19th century proto-Hindutva figures attempted via Radical Universalism), but in the same manner that every other ancient culture had met the challenge of modernity: recognition of most modern religions/ideologies as purva-pakshas – opposing ideological constructs; friendly and open debate with these purva-pakshas; unapologetic assurance in the exceptional status of Sanatana Dharma, and a concomitant refusal to concede to the forced imposition of an inferior status.
Unfortunately, because the unneeded distraction of “Hindu reform” became the more easily accomplished dominant paradigm of the hour, to this very day the real project of Vedic reconstruction outlined above has barely gotten off the ground. It is now time to begin the process.
Many of the “Hindu reformers” were well-motivated and sincere persons who truly felt that they were acting in the interests of Sanatana Dharma. Many of Ramakrishna’s words are very inspiring and wise. Swami Vivekananda was a truly courageous and talented leader who the Hindu people can and should take immense pride in. More, many of these personalities did accomplish some good in providing at least some modicum of a vehicle for interfacing Sanatana Dharma and modernity, however self-destructive this particular vehicle has ending up being in the long-run. In formulating a Christian-inspired paradigm for Vedic survival with only short-term successes in mind, however, they did not have the long-term implications of their syncretism in mind.
“We Are Different” – Reactionary Stage (1925-1945)
Beginning roughly in the Interwar period (the 1920s and 1930s), we then see the formulation of a strictly Reactionary form of Hindu politics with the emergence of Savarkar, Savitri Devi (the European Pagan writer Maximiani Portas, 1905-1982),[9] the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, etc. The uniformed paramilitary formations, martial aesthetic, stress on character development, egalitarian ethos combined with a rigid hierarchical structure, and much of the generic patriotic rhetoric of the RSS was directly appropriated from the newly immerging, parallel nationalist movements that were sweeping the European continent during the 1920s.
Unlike their much more successful European counterparts, however, this new reactionary Hindu movement had very few innovative ideas, did not know how to successfully engage in politics either electorally (not till the 1980s at the earliest) or in terms of mass mobilization (other than borrowing heavily from the paramilitary structure earlier developed by their much more successful counterparts in the various nationalist organizations of contemporary Europe), were wholly disconnected from the traditionalist and orthodox Vedic understanding and practice of the Yoga tradition, had no clear understanding of Dharmic political theory, and most importantly, did not know how to construct an elite political vanguard capable of leading the people by their own spiritual example.
The RSS and Sangh Pariwar defined itself, both historically and to this very day, exclusively in negative juxtaposition to what they were not: they were not Muslims; they were not Christians; they were not Marxists; thus, if only by necessary default, they were “Hindus”. However, to this very day, the RSS has found itself incapable of defining in positive identitarian terms what it actually means to be a Hindu in the spiritual sense of this term. Savarkar’s blind imitation of then-fashionable European racialist theory in the formulation of his interpretation of “Hindutva”, or “Hinduness”, as designating a specifically racial group was doomed to failure from the outset. For Savarkar and all those who followed in his footsteps, being Hindu meant being Indian; being Indian meant being Hindu. Thus, Hinduism for the Hindu Nationalists was merely another term for the Indian race![10] Being a politician, and not a Vedic philosopher, Savarkar did not understand that Sanatana Dharma does not equate to the Indian race. Sanatana Dharma is a world-view and spiritual tradition. It is the sacred heritage, not merely of those people who happen to possess an Indian passport, but of the entirety of the Indo-European peoples.
To this day, rather than facilitating the radical, systemic change necessary to bring about a new Dharma civilization (which is clearly not at all the aim of these Hindutva movements, and never has been), the Reactionary tendency in pro-Hindu politics has shown itself to be an un-visionary, anti-intellectual, philosophically impotent and currently irrelevant political force. It finds itself dedicated more to a rather light version of Indian Nationalist conservatism than Vedic nation building.
The deepest extent of their political program essentially consists of a return to an era more within the comfort zone of the octogenarian men who lead this reactionary movement – possibly a return to India circa 1855 for Savarkar and Hedgewar, or an India circa 1955 for an Atal Bihari Vajpayee and Lal Krishna Advani. A Dharma Nation will never be achieved by the feckless Reactionaries, if only because such a goal is not even within the scope of their actual aims or intellectual understanding.
Sadly, the vast bulk of so-called “Hindu activism” that takes place today still falls under the category of Reactionary, and is more a reflection of amorphous Indian Nationalism, and general pride of place and ethnicity than any serious attempt to reorder society (either Indian, American, or global) in such a manner as to reflect Dharmic principles instantiated in concrete political form.
Many of the attempts at polemical and ideological writing that we have seen arising from “Hindu Nationalists” make it all too apparent that they are not yet politically mature enough to either vie for power or to govern a working nation-state. When, and only when, it comes to the point that self-described “Hindu Nationalists” develop the philosophical maturity to engage in the nuanced ideological struggle necessary to win power, and only when they learn how to develop temporary and practical alliances with others while also keeping the greater goal of political power in mind, will they be ready to govern the current nation-state of India. Only then will “India” become Vedic Bharat once again! Contemporary “Hindu Nationalism” needs to move away from the fantasy-rhetoric level that they have wallowed in for so many decades, and begin the hard work of engaging in real politics in the real world.
“We are Vedic!” – Transforming the RSS into a Revolutionary Movement
Without doubt, the current attempt at Vedic restoration is seen as almost being synonymous with the vision, leadership, organizational structures and ideological pronouncements of the RSS movement. With approximately six million dedicated activists, the RSS is officially the largest volunteer organization on the Earth today. Unfortunately, the RSS has served as a sadly flawed and ideologically challenged vehicle for Vedic restoration. The RSS will need to address the following problems if it is going to transform itself from a Reactionary movement to a Revolutionary one:
A) Distinguishing between Indian Nationalism versus Vedic Restorationism. Many difficulties arise when these two separate concerns become indistinguishable, as they very clearly have in the minds of almost all “Hindu Nationalists”. Indian Nationalism is an ethnicity/national/racial movement. Vedic Restoration, on the other hand, is a religious/cultural/philosophical one. The RSS has, in my opinion, been more of an Indian Nationalist movement than a Vedic Restorationist movement. More, this is the primary reason why the BJP so badly lost the Indian national election of 2004 – because they tried to appeal to Muslims, Christians, pseudo-secularists, and other non-Hindu Indians merely as patriotic Indians, rather than appealing exclusively to the majority community as follower of Sanatana Dharma[11]. The RSS’s main concern has become Indian Nationalism rather than Sanatana Dharma…and this has only set the movement back.
B) Within the current day Vedic Restorationist movement, we must clarify the difference between Hindu Revival (a political/social/cultural phenomenon), which the RSS is predominantly engaged in, versus Vedic Reconstruction, (an intellectual/academic/philosophical/spiritual matrix of projects), which is precisely what such individuals as David Frawley, Swami Dayananda Sarasvati, Shrikant Talageri, Subhash Kak and myself, as well as other, more traditionalist, Vedic thinkers are engaged in. Both are projects of seemingly rival significance, and the different natures, goals and methods of these two separate projects need to be understood.
C) Within the parallel projects of Hindu Revival and Vedic Reconstruction, we need to distinguish between a Neo-Hindu versus a Traditionalist world-view, which has been addressed to a much greater extent in the book Radical Universalism: Are All Religions the Same?, by Sri Dharma Pravartaka Acharya.
The RSS is currently a neo-Hindu, revivalist, Indian Nationalist movement. What it needs to become is a Traditionalist Vedic Reconstructionist movement. Like some of the 19th century neo-Hindus of the past, the RSS has done much good for the Indian nation-state historically. The RSS has been on the front-lines of defending Hindu India from foreign aggression, both military and missionary.[12] The sacrifices of countless individual RSS members are too numerous to mention. Today, however, both India and Sanatana Dharma need radically more. The RSS needs to change quite radically if it is going to maintain itself as an effective organization in the future.
The following is a ten point program that Hindu Nationalists should implement if they truly wish to transform their nation of India for the better.
1) Annihilate the immediate existential threat from the Communist terrorists, Islamic Jihadists and Christian missionaries who have enslaved your country.
2) Stop graduating countless engineers, “IT professionals” and medical personnel, and instead begin to once again encourage your children to become philosophers, sadhus (sages), artists, thinkers, warriors and leaders.
3) Revive the Kshatriya warrior spirit of your ancestors and no longer revel in weakness in the name of ahimsa.
4) Re-Aryanize, re-Vedicize and re-spiritualize the entirety of your present-day culture.
5) Eliminate the Dalit problem once and for all by allowing those many individuals who are eligible among this community to enter the varna system in accordance with their inherent individual psycho-physical nature. If a Dalit behaves like a brahmana, then he is a brahmana. Period!
6) Learn to interact with modernity in a successful manner. That means, without excuses, rededicating yourselves to excellence and perfection in everything you do and communicate.
7) Build your own economy instead of depending upon the West for economic success via immigration and outsourcing of jobs. To do this, you will need to completely exorcise your economy of even the slightest taint of socialism and collectivism. Once and for all – Socialism simply does not work!
8) Start to carry yourselves with courage and pride in your Vedic heritage, rather than viewing this heritage as an embarrassing burden from the past. If you do not reclaim your immense Vedic heritage, someone else will reclaim it from you.
9) Make spoken Sanskrit the sole recognized language of your nation.
10) To successfully achieve all of the above, stop reaching for any and all excuses for why you have not yet been able to achieve these goals. Victory belongs only to those who reject excuses. Then, and only then, will Bharat regain the respect of the world.
Dharma Nationalism: A New Revolutionary Approach
The new stage that Hindu activism needs to take is undoubtedly the Revolutionary approach. It is clear that Indian Hindus now need to enter the Post-RSS phase of Hindu activism. As a starting point, 21st century Hindu activism needs to make a sharp break from its more paranoid and pessimistic past, and begin to start thinking in much more realistic, concrete, strategic and winning terms.
The enemies of Dharma have had the gift of being able to think and strategize on a long-term basis. Their end goal has always been the end of Dharmic civilization and the creation of their own dystopic vision of reality ranging centuries into the future! Contemporary Hindu activism, on the other hand, has only seemed able to operate reactively, only thinking about some immediate injustices that have just occurred in the news today – and even then only rarely reacting effectively, if at all. The contemporary Indian Hindu activist movement needs to stop looking for excuses, and beat the enemy at their own game.
A truly Revolutionary Dharma activist movement has not existed on the world scene until 2012. The seeds of its birth have now come to fruition in the form of the Dharma Nationalist movement.
Indeed, the Indian nationalist fueled “Hindu” activism of the past will now quickly take a back seat to the spiritually fueled Dharma Nationalist activism of the future. Unlike parochial “Hindu Nationalism”, Dharma Nationalist activism is, indeed, comprehensively total in its application. It is based primarily upon spiritual/philosophical concern, and only secondarily on ethnic/national concern. It is motivated by the spiritual insight and compassion gifted to us by the eternal Truth of Sanatana Dharma, and not merely on an empty pride residing in the relative and temporal, ever-changing geographical boundaries of the nation-state of India. It fosters a true selfless action akin with that of the rishis, and not merely a series of political calculations based upon the personal need for power and aggrandizement.
More crucial than any other juxtaposing comparison to the failed Hindu activist endeavors of the past: Dharma Nationalism presents a clear, realistic, and achievable strategic diagram revealing exactly how society should be best structured in order to ensure the maximal amount of happiness and prosperity, to the fullest degree of qualitative and spiritual depth, for the greatest number of living beings. This fact will be abundantly evident upon an attentive reading of The Dharma Manifesto.
[1] Tentatively translated as “Hinduness”.
[2] Born as Margaret Elizabeth Noble, an Irish social worker who abandoned Christianity and became a follower of Sanatana Dharma.
[3] The second leader of the Theosophical Society after Helena Petrovna Blavatsky (1831-1891).
[4] “Indian People’s Party”.
[5] Reactionaries do not look to ancient or Classical antecedents for guidance for the present, but tend to only look back a few generations at most.
[6] See Guillaume Faye’s Archeofuturism: European Visions of the Post-Catastrophic Age for more on this innovative concept.
[7] My term for the deceivingly comforting psychological phenomenon exhibited by any given generation that convinces them that the particular era in which they find themselves represents the most important and advanced era in history. A much more healthy approach in reconciling one’s subjective perception with the particular times in which one finds oneself was nicely stated by the German philosopher Friedrich Schiller (1759-1805) in the following manner: “Live with your century, but do not be its creature.” (On the Aesthetic Education of Man)
[8] Edgar J. Jung, Deutsche uber Deutschland (Munich, 1932), p. 380.
[9] Savitri Devi and Savarkar were in agreement on several basic issues of Hindu Nationalism. Babarao G.D. Savarkar, brother of V.D. Savarkar, even wrote the Forward to Savitri Devi’s book “A Warning to the Hindus“.
[10] “India is dear to us because it has been and is the home of our Hindu Race, the land which has been the cradle of our prophets, and heroes and Gods and godmen …. The real meaning of Swarajya then, is not merely the geographical independence of the bit of earth called India. To the Hindus independence of Hindusthan can only be worth having if that ensures their Hindutva – their religious, racial and cultural identity.” (Vinayak Damodar Savarkar Hindu Rashtra Darshan, vol. 4, pp. 218-9)
[11] Approximately 83% of the Indian population are followers of Sanatana Dharma – a clear majority.
[12] Balraj Madhok, the president of the Bharatiya Jana Sangh party in the late 1960s, is a living example of the patriotic fervour of Hindu Nationalism. He wrote the following in 1970: “Western countries also have been exerting to exploit India’s illiteracy and poverty by using their economic aid measures, their cheap and provocative literature, and, above all, their missionaries as instruments for a campaign of mass conversion. We want to warn these foreign powers not to indulge in activities that violate India’s sovereignty and independence and demand that the Government of India take stern measures to curb them.” (Indianisation? What, Why and How. New Delhi: S. Chand, 1970, p. 103)
This article is from chapter 2 of the groundbreaking new political work “The Dharma Manifesto”, by Sri Dharma Pravartaka Acharya.
The Dharma Manifesto serves as the first ever systematic revolutionary blueprint for the nascent global Vedic movement that will, in the very near future, arise to change the course of world history for the betterment of all living beings. The Dharma Manifesto signals the beginning of a wholly new era in humanity’s eternal yearning for meaningful freedom and happiness.
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