Today is Periyar’s birthday.
He is often compared to Dr Baba Saheb Ambedkar, as his politics majorly revolved against Hindu Gods and Brahmins. However, the BJP whose politics revolves around Lord Rama, loves Dr Ambedkar and hates Periyar. Why?
Below are some reasons –
Dr Ambedkar had rejected the Aryan-Dravidian divide as he was a humanist. He called the Aryan invasion theory an invention. He never justified crimes against Brahmins. He was as critical about Moplah Muslims massacring Hindus as he was about the atrocities of Brahmins.
On the other hand, Periyar believed in Aryan race theory and promoted racial stereotypes. He never condemned the massacre of Dalits by non-Brahmin caste Dravidians in Keezhvenmani. He claimed Aryans to be outsiders, who had snatched power from the Tamilians, who were the rulers of the land.
He also was very critical about Ramayana and other Hindu texts. He considered these texts as tools of Brahmin dominance and caste system. In 1971 in Salem, he had organised a rally where derogatory images of Hindu gods Rama, Sita, Lakshmana were taken out and chappals thrown at them.
Unlike Periyar, Dr Ambedkar was very critical about Abrahamic concepts including universal fatherhood of God, but accepted the Hindu concept of “Brahmann” as the basis for democracy.
Periyar, on the flip side, was pro-monotheistic in the garb of an atheist. He asked people not to worship God, but worship one God like the Christians and Muslims do.
Moreover, Periyar was anti-Indian and professed for Balkanisation of India on linguistic and racial basis. However, Dr Amdedkar rejected nation-state on the lines of race and language as he was convinced of unification of India based on spiritual-cultural thread.
Though Dr Ambedkar was against Brahmins, he had deep reverence for the Sanskrit language, which is associated with this upper caste. He, in fact, wanted Sanskrit to be the national language of India, as per the Report of the Sanskrit Commission, 1956-1957. He observed: “Sanskrit is the golden treasure of epics, the cradle of grammar, politics and philosophy and the home of logic, dramas and criticism.”
Periyar had deep hatred for Sanskrit. He said it is a combination of different dialects and languages, and there is no nobility in it. Also, they held Sanskrit in high esteem in order to claim their superiority and humiliate other languages, he alleged.
In addition, Dr Ambedkar is often quoted from Upanishads to find solutions in social life. He advised Hindus not to borrow from foreign sources, but draw the principles of Liberty, Equality and Fraternity, from Upanishads.
Going by the facts presented above, BJP, whose politics revolves around Lord Ram, Ek Bharat-Akhand Bharat and integral humanism, identifies itself to the thoughts of Dr Ambedkar than Periyar, who was divisive, racial, linguist and anti-India.
(With Inputs From Swarajya Mag)