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.

Mahatparināma

From Hindupedia, the Hindu Encyclopedia

By Swami Harshananda

Mahatpariṇāma literally means ‘transformation that gives the aṇus or atoms mahattva or practical dimension’.

The Vaiśeṣika Darśana is one of the six recognized systems of the philosophy. It has developed its own atomic theory of creation. Out of the seven fundamental basic principles of creation the four elements earth, water, light or fire and air are in the form of the paramāṇus or extremely minute atoms. They have existence but no perceptible dimensions.

However when by the will of īśvara or God and the totality of the karmas of the unredeemed souls of the previous creation, the process of creation starts two paramāṇus of the same element like the earth join together forming a dvyaṇuka or a diad. When three such dvyaṇukas join together forming a tryaṇuka then only it attains:

  1. Mahattva - perceptible dimension
  2. Dīrghatva - length and breadth

This change in the paramāṇus becoming ‘mahat’ is called ‘mahatpariṇāma’.


References[edit]

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