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.

Pravāhaṇa Jaivali

From Hindupedia, the Hindu Encyclopedia

By Swami Harshananda

Story of Pravāhaṇa Jaivali[edit]

Pravāhaṇa Jaivali, the son of Jaivala, hence was called as Pravāhaṇa Jaivali. He was the king of Pāñcāla. He was once holding a big meeting of scholars. Śvetaketu, the son of Gautama Aruṇi, arrived there with a view to taking part in the philosophical disputations and earn some wealth and fame. However, he was unable to answer even one of the five questions put to him by the king. Feeling disgraced, he returned home and took his father to task for not having taught this science that could have helped him to answer these questions. Since Gautama also did not know it, he went in all humility to the king Pravāhaṇa Jaivali and learnt it from him.

References about Pravāhaṇa Jaivali[edit]

This story appears in both the Chāndogya Upaniṣad[1] and the Brhadāranyaka Upaniṣads.[2] In the first chapter of the Chāndogya Upaniṣad[3] also there appears one Pravāhaṇa Jaivali, one of the three who had assembled to discuss about the udgītha.[4] He proves his superiority over the others. In the Jaiminīya Upaniṣad Brāhmana[5] also there is the mention of one Jaivali. He too could be the same person.


References[edit]

  1. Chāndogya Upaniṣad 5.3
  2. Brhadāranyaka Upaniṣads 6.2
  3. Chāndogya Upaniṣad 1.8.1-8
  4. Udgītha means a part of sāman or Sāmaveda mantra.
  5. Jaiminīya Upanisad Brāhmana 1.38.4
  • The Concise Encyclopedia of Hinduism, Swami Harshananda, Ram Krishna Math, Bangalore

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