Viveka & Rta/Satya

[Arun Gupta]

S. Palaniappan wrote :

While such a speech in that forum would not normally belong in Indology, the
"70 centuries" of brahminic contribution proudly mentioned by one of the
leading neurosurgeons of India should be of some concern to Indologists.


The traditional date for the start of the Mahabharata war puts it at
3000 BC.  So 70 centuries is in line with tradition.

If you object to a leading neurosurgeon of India believing in this,
I hope you are equally concerned about neurosurgeons who believe that
God created Adam, that Moses parted the sea, the Virgin Birth, the
Resurrection and other such varieties of superstitious belief.
Admittedly, Indology would not be the right place to raise such a
concern.

If you make an argument that the former variety of belief is oppressive,
there is an equally strong argument that the latter variety of belief is
oppressive as well.

My point simply is that "70 centuries" is a variety of religious belief,
one that takes the chronology of the Puranas literally, exactly as the
Christian beliefs I mentioned take the word of the Bible literally.


-arun gupta