Colonial Discourse and the Suffering of Indian American Children Book Cover.webp

In this book, we analyze the psycho-social consequences faced by Indian American children after exposure to the school textbook discourse on Hinduism and ancient India. We demonstrate that there is an intimate connection—an almost exact correspondence—between James Mill’s colonial-racist discourse (Mill was the head of the British East India Company) and the current school textbook discourse. This racist discourse, camouflaged under the cover of political correctness, produces the same psychological impacts on Indian American children that racism typically causes: shame, inferiority, embarrassment, identity confusion, assimilation, and a phenomenon akin to racelessness, where children dissociate from the traditions and culture of their ancestors.


This book is the result of four years of rigorous research and academic peer-review, reflecting our ongoing commitment at Hindupedia to challenge the representation of Hindu Dharma within academia.

Devasenā

From Hindupedia, the Hindu Encyclopedia

By Swami Harshananda

Devasenā literally means ‘army of the gods’.

Devasenā and Daityasenā were the daughters of Dakṣaprajapati. Once they were abducted by a demon called Keśin and subsequently rescued by Indra.

Later, Saṇmukha or Subrahmaṇya (also known as Kārttikeya) led the army of the Devas against Padmāsura and Tārakāsura and killed them. This pleased Indra who then gave Devasenā in marriage to him. Bṛhaspati is said to have performed the religious rites of the marriage. According to this story, the well-known festival day, Skandaṣaṣṭhī or Subrahmaṇya ṣaṣṭhī memorializes this marriage.

Etymologically, the word also means ‘the army of the deva-s’. Since Saṇmukha led this army as its chief and so was called ‘Devasenāpati’ (pati = lord, master).

References[edit]

  • The Concise Encyclopedia of Hinduism, Swami Harshananda, Ram Krishna Math, Bangalore