Desicritics Category: Culture: Religion

How Companies React To Major Crisis Events

Dr Bhaskar Dasgupta — Sun, 4 Jan 2009 20:17:29 EST

The infamous Mohammad cartoons crisis had reached global proportions. One of the most common reactions by Muslims was to embark on a consumer goods boycott against firms which were primarily Danish, but other firms were involved as well, all the way from New Zealand. Similar situations like these keep coming up, whether it relates to boycotts of Israeli made/associated firms/products, or environmental disasters, or religiously oriented issues, corporate firms keep on getting in the crossfire. Unfortunately and unlike nation-states, they are not organised to handle political, religious and other crisis like this. So it was instructive to read how various firms reacted in different ways to the Cartoon crisis.

The paper was quite interesting indeed. Crisis management of this scale is not something that firms do very well. Take for example the recent news story that Lehman Brothers so totally mismanaged their bankruptcy and demise that it cost creditors up to $75 billion US Dollars. The authors quote some interesting events such as:

Environmental catastrophes such as the Union Carbide/Bhopal industrial accident and the Exxon Valdez oil spill had long-term ramifications for the companies involved. Criminal and terrorist acts such as the Tylenol poisonings, the Lockerbie/Pan American disaster and the 9/11 World Trade Center attacks have sensitised the public to a world of intense danger. Some crises, such as the Perrier water contamination crisis, seem largely of the company's own making through quality control failure.4 Others, such as the Belgian Coca-Cola crisis, seem to have arisen out of nowhere, apparently attributable to mass hysteria triggered by the previous dioxin scare, but intensified by corporate mismanagement. According to Johnson & Peppas: “A senior Coca-Cola Enterprises official, Phillippe Lenfant, did state that the scare had been mishandled, that communication was inadequate, and that the company was unprepared for a crisis of this magnitude

But religion is perhaps the one which is most difficult to deal with. Usually religion is the furthest from the minds of corporate executives (with perhaps the exception of praying for divine intervention when sales tank or losses mount) and the authors point to some events:

In 1994, the McDonald's fast-food restaurant chain, during its promotion of the Soccer World Cup, printed the flags of participating nations on its disposable bags. Included was that of Saudi Arabia, which bears the Shahada (Islamic creed) including the name of Allah. Muslims were outraged that the name of God was printed on material to be crumpled up and thrown away.18 A similar situation arose when Amstel, the Dutch brewer, printed the flags under the caps of beer bottles, in contact with alcoholic beverage. In India, Reebok encountered huge controversy over its brand champion, Indian cricket captain Mohammed Azharuddin, autographing footwear – including on the sole – resulting in the name Mohammed being trampled in the dirt, which was seen by some as particularly offensive.

The authors have given a nice timeline for the Mohammad Cartoons crisis.

30 September 2005: Danish newspaper Jyllands-Posten publishes editorial cartoons depicting the prophet Muhammad.

12 Oct: Eleven ambassadors from Islamic countries complain to Danish prime minister and request a meeting with him.

17 Oct: Egyptian newspaper El Fagr reprints six of the cartoons together with an article strongly condemning them.

21 Oct: Danish PM replies to the ambassadors, indicating that freedom of expression is the foundation of Danish democracy and the Danish government has no means of influencing the press. (Refusal to meet the ambassadors has been subsequently condemned by 22 Danish former ambassadors).

28 Oct: Coalition of Danish Muslim groups files criminal complaint. A regional prosecutor investigates but decides against prosecution.

10 January 2006: Norwegian Christian newspaper Magazinet reprints the cartoons, greatly inflaming the situation.

26 Jan: Saudi ambassador to Denmark recalled; retaliatory boycotts against Danish products initiated in Saudi Arabia with supermarkets displaying signs indicating that Danish products have been removed. Norwegian foreign minister condemns publication of the cartoons in a Norwegian newspaper, on the grounds that they incite hatred or hateful expressions.

30 Jan: Jyllands-Posten publishes open letters in Danish and Arabic: “In our opinion, the 12 drawings were sober. They were not intended to be offensive, nor were they at variance with Danish law, but they have indisputably offended many Muslims for which we apologise.”

31 Jan: Danish Muslim group says the apology is “ambiguous” and demands a clearer one.

1-2 Feb: Media in many European countries (France, Germany, Spain, Iceland, Italy, Belgium, Switzerland etc) and in Jordan reprint the cartoons.

2 Feb: Boycott again mentioned in Friday prayers in Saudi Arabia and Kuwait; in Qatar, the Grand Mufti calls for boycotts of Danish products; in Yemen, posters of Danish PM set alight; in Lebanon, the boycott situation “has worsened significantly”; in Morocco, “the affair continues to run in the media”; in Egypt, “the controversy is the main topic in the media and Danish products have been removed from all Egyptian supermarkets”; in Sudan, “the president has issued a statement forbidding buying or trading in Danish products.”

3 Feb: Wellington NZ newspaper Dominion Post indicates an intention to republish the cartoons in spite of the outrage in the Middle East and the already-significant losses reported by Danish dairy giant Arla.

4 Feb: New Zealand ministers warn that the decision by New Zealand newspapers to publish the cartoons is irresponsible and could threaten NZ trade. Specific mention is made of Fonterra which “sells much of its product in Muslim countries”. NZ meat industry officials lambast the media for placing trade at risk. Danish and Norwegian embassies in Damascus and Danish embassy in Beirut torched.

6 Feb: Supermarkets across the Middle East remove Danish products from their shelves. Arla is losing €1.3m a day in sales.

7 Feb: The Iranian government sets up a committee to look at possibly annulling trade deals with countries that have published the cartoons, threatening more than NZ$100m-worth of New Zealand exports.

8 Feb: Politicians in Jordan call for cancellation of trade worth NZ$70m. Prime Minister Helen Clark condemns the publishing of the cartoons and refers to New Zealand's reputation as a “peaceful and understanding nation”. Arla – Fonterra's partner in the UK butter market – closes its factory in Riyadh as the boycott bites. Fonterra publishes advertisements in Middle Eastern newspapers emphasising the NZ origins of its Anchor brand milk powders. NZ diplomatic posts are placed on high alert.

By April 2006: retailers across the Middle East were beginning to restock Arla's products, although uptake was slow, with only 20 per cent of pre-boycott sales being recorded by the end of May. Market recovery proved slow in spite of Arla investing heavily in advertising campaigns in selected markets such as Algeria.

Dec 2006: The cost to Arla Foods of the boycott of Danish products in the Middle East amounts to approx. DKr400m for 2006. This equates to a loss of DKr40,000 for each of Arla's 10,000 Danish and Swedish co-operative members. “It's a relief that the boycott has come to an end … many products have been sold at discounted prices.” According to Finn Hansen (divisional director, Arla), “the boycott will have pushed back Arla's development in the Middle East two years.”

March 2007: Arla chairman Knud Erik Jensen was able to say: “We're back in the Middle East and expect to return to previous levels of sales by the end of 2007.”

What I found amusing was the last line, all that outrage and foaming and what was the result? Not much and not for long. But time heals all wounds, so to say, and all it needed was a bit of courage and lots of communications to heal those wounds. Arla went after the crisis with a perspective of doing something is better than doing nothing. They tried to communicate the fact that freedom of speech was part and parcel of western life and supporting the Danish stance. This did not work, and then Arla tried to distance itself. On the other hand, the New Zealand firms simply refused comment or tried to comment as little as possible, keeping heads down hoping that it blows over.

I have certain issues with this. Letting things blow over, especially when you are talking about quarterly financial reporting cycles, free flow of capital, footloose capital, fast changing credit ratings and the like is just not possible. Firms cannot absorb losses over such a long period of time. So one thing which corporates should remember is whenever governmental or Societal related boycotts hit you, you should immediately ask you’re your government’s support so that the firm can endure the boycott or survive the event. Public memory is short and as they say, a week is a long time in politics. It might take longer when we are talking about religion, specially considering that religion is the opium of the masses, but pass it will. You just need capital to ride over the issue.

Second is that corporates should not tie themselves to government or political stances. That is dangerous. Firms are not organised to handle political issues nor can they spin news as is required in today’s 24 hour news and media management. So they will simply stumble and cause issues for themselves. Keeping the head down is a good idea indeed.

Third is the use of gatekeepers. The authors recommend using gatekeepers to link into the populace. Looking at this cartoon issue itself, who would be the gatekeepers? I wrote some essays on this issue.

So go to Al Azhar or to Qum? Or start debates on Al Jazeera or MBC? Or get some fatwas in your favour? Or start dealing with the famed Muslim / Arab Street? And how do you keep them listening to the message? This area is highly emotional, charged with religious symbolism, prone to minefields, subject to linguistic interpretations, full of politics, in short, everything that a corporate executive will never have had handled before in his life. So how on earth would the executive or the corporate communications team know how to handle such aspects? I mean, they themselves make heavy weather of investor relations with bog standard corporate disasters such as losses. Can you imagine them working with a religiously sensitive topic such as this? That said, there is nothing like getting some discreet conversations underway with the gatekeepers and opinion formers directly (and be prepared to pay out of your nose, as these opinion formers are not going to be cheap), but put them on retainer and see what comes up.

Oh! Also pray.

All this to be taken with a grain of piquant salt!

Pope Benedict XVI - Homo-Sensitive?

thedeskjockey — Wed, 31 Dec 2008 13:46:17 EST

In an age of mindless killing, misinterpreted religion and questionable politics comes an earth shattering revelation by the apostle of the Almighty Himself. According to the revered Pope Benedict XVI, one of the biggest threats to the Homo Sapiens kind on earth is well….being homo. It ain't the overstretched war or the mindless death of a sixty year old mother or the spread of a disease mostly due to apathy. No Siree Bob (who is also gay by the way)! The male lip-lock and old time girl-on-girl action makes the protectors of God’s creations cringe in as much horror as we would if we saw a character, God forbid, have an extra marital affair in a Sooraj Barjatya movie.

While I myself am unaffected by the sexual preference of people around me, I am very aware of coming from a country which has been distinctly homophobic for a long time. Even Bollywood which, according to Madhur Bhandarkar, is filled to the brim with consenting adults of the same-sex/bisexual variety, seems to be leaden footed in maturely portraying a gay relationship. While the incredibly moronic Girlfriend carried the message that all lesbians are pouty, crazy bitches, Tarun Mansukhani had us believing in Dostana that the difference between gay and straight men is that the former look or talk like extended cousins of Bobby Darling (ironic, considering Tarun is Karan Johar’s protégé).

So what is it that causes homosexuality to stand out like a beacon to an 81 year old among all the ills afflicting the world? To put this post in context, here is the excerpt from his speech to the Vatican staff that’s causing all the heartburn (the type that cannot be cured by Eno/Pudin Hara).

“It is not out-of-date metaphysics to speak of human nature as 'man' or woman'. It comes from the language of creation, despising which would mean self-destruction for humans. […] Gender theories lead to man's "auto-emancipation" from creation and Creator. […] Rain forests deserve, yes, our protection but the human being... does not deserve it less”

The Pope actually denouncing it is not a surprise. Almost all religious texts soundly condemn it and any sexual acts around it. However, as much as the moral police would like us to believe that there is a line in the sand, people suffer from that uncontrollable ill that plagues, at least, the civilized world; as Morgan Freeman playing God tells Jim Carrey in Bruce Almighty, the one of “free will” or “choice”. Now choice comes with its own baggage. Is homosexuality something you are born with or is it something you turned to because your last 3 heterosexual relationships were with alcoholic biker dudes/supremely boring bimbettes with IQs of a teacup? And do we really have the right to begrudge you a committed loving relationship even if it was with someone within your gender? Are gays never people of God or vice-versa? If the Pope were to be believed, the moment you step over the line, the sin committed is on par with greedy destruction of Mother Nature’s delicate balance. And therein precisely lies the problem of the message – where you decry racism, apartheid, caste systems, religious killing and slavery on one hand, but willing to outcast people because of their sexual preference on the other.

Perhaps we have let our moral compasses become too blurred to see the big picture…perhaps we prefer to see the goodness in people outside of what they do behind closed doors….or perhaps, just perhaps when we send our prayers upwards, we hope that God showers His blessings without discrimination.

Action Sociology: Human Rights with Sanitation

Somik Raha — Sat, 27 Dec 2008 16:34:43 EST

Ever since independence (and from a long time before that), people in India have been appalled with the abuse of the caste system, especially the poor treatment meted out to "untouchables." As usual, well-meaning people think they can change attitudes by passing laws. And so, India has The Protection of Civil Rights Act, 1955, which punishes the preaching and practice of untouchability. Needless to say, the act made little difference on the ground in terms of changing people's attitudes.

There is no dearth of angry activism on this issue in India and outside, and as is the nature of all angry activism, the message is so loud that people close their ears and ignore it. Meanwhile, India's politicians are more interested in maintaining the status quo and milking caste divisions for votes instead of working for the welfare of the "untouchables." In this hopeless scenario, one man is running a silent revolution with a lot of success.

This is the story of Bindeshwar Pathak, whose life transformed as a young man in the 60s, when he was told by the General Secretary of a Gandhian organization that it was Gandhi's unfinished work to remove the profession of manual scavenging from India and liberate the untouchables. The General Secretary told the young Pathak that he had to finish Gandhi's mission and added, "I see light in you." The young man had no clue what this meant, but he read a few books published by the WHO on sanitation, and decided to live in a scavenger's colony for two months to understand them and their problems. People thought he was crazy. He survived, and came back with an understanding that was different from any social activist in this field.

He felt that the discrimination of the untouchables was due to technical reasons. The untouchables, or manual scavengers of toilets, were considered dirty as they dealt with human excreta while cleaning "bucket toilets." Human excreta would be pulled out of such toilets into buckets and then, scavengers would carry buckets on their heads to a location for disposal. If there could be an alternate toilet designed to be self-cleaning, then it would be cheaper for the consumer as they wouldn't need to hire people to clean it. It would also eliminate the need for the scavenging profession.

Pathak started "Sulabh" (which means "easy") to address this. He came up with the two-pit pour-flush toilet which would work in the Indian context. One pit would be in use at a time. Once the pit was full, it would would be closed and the other would be in operation. Over a year, the first pit's contents would turn into manure and could be used as fertilizer in the field. Thus, there would be no need to scavenge and clean these toilets. Sulabh's toilet product turned out to be a great hit, with over a million pieces already sold. Sulabh then channeled their profits toward retraining the untouchables to enter mainstream society - as cooks, beauticians, electricians, etc. Today, Sulabh has a whole array of toilet products to suit your budget.

Pathak also felt strongly about the problem of open defecation. Unlike those who faulted the "Indian civic sense," he recognized that the problem was that we didn't have enough public toilets. This is also a question of human dignity, especially for women, as they would suppress the call of nature the whole day and only go very early in the morning or in the night. Even so, such trips would make them a target of sexual predators, snakebites, diseases due to defecating in unhygienic environs, etc., not to speak of the health problems that come from suppressing the call of nature the entire day. Again, this was a technical problem waiting to be solved. So, he started the first public toilet in (hold your breath) Arrah, Bihar, a state where people would rather travel on top of trains than buy tickets. Pathak believed people would pay for a clean toilet experience, and he was proved right. The people of Bihar paid and sustained the public toilets. Today, Sulabh has built over 5000 public toilets all over India, including the largest toilet in the world at Shirdi for pilgrims.

Not only do these toilets generate local employment, they also collect raw material for Sulabh's energy innovation - bio-gas and electricity production. You have to see it with your own eyes - yes, your excreta can now be used to produce cooking gas and electricity.

Pathakji also understood that he needed to help the children of the scavengers get the same opportunity as others. Sulabh uses its profits to run a school where children of the scavengers get free education, books and uniforms. They also eat together with children of other communities, and learn Sanskrit, a language they were earlier denied access to. The children in this school are taught all religions so they can celebrate all of India's traditions.

And the story does not end here. Sulabh also has a toilet museum which is now on the tourist maps of New Delhi. They have expanded to eco-sanitation projects that help with pisciculture, among other things. Throughout these projects, Pathakji continued his education to go on for a Phd and a D.Litt, and has coined a new term, "Action Sociology," which he advocates as a way to solve social problems.

Behind all of these efforts is a deep-rooted spirituality. Pathakji's day begins with the entire Sulabh community praying (they sing a universal prayer) and filling their hearts with positive vibrations. When I interviewed him, not once did I sense anger against society for discrimination of the untouchables. At the same time, there was no acceptance of the injustice. Like Krishnammal and Sandhya, and in a completely unique manner, Pathakji has transcended anger and hatred to make a difference, a big difference, through social entrepreneurship. He is indeed a bright light in India who has illuminated our conscience and given us great hope for the future.

You can meet him by going to the Palam Vihar (New Delhi) office of Sulabh International Social Service Organization (although he travels often, he is generally accessible). You can also meet the other heroes of Sulabh and see their toilet museum and a demonstration of bio-gas and electricity from human excreta in the same complex. There are several volunteering and internship opportunities with this organization, if you have the time.

And if you can't visit them, here is a film I made on Sulabh in 2006. I recommend watching it in full-screen mode (press the TV icon) and using headphones.

In case the full screen feature does not work below, you can watch it directly on Blip TV.

Errata: the film says Sulabh has built over 500 toilets, when in fact, the number is ab

19 Varieties of Gazelle: Poems of the Middle East by Naomi Shihab Nye

Vivek Sharma — Mon, 22 Dec 2008 02:03:31 EST

Naomi Shihab Nye's collection contains sixty poems about Palestinians and Middle East, about love and longing for lost and imaginary homelands. The poems are fragrant with spices of the Middle-East, flavors of figs and olives, and served with a tenderness of a grandmother talking to a grandchild, a five year old to his mother, an aged man to his beloved he unites with after a lifetime.

In the world torn by religious and political conflicts, these poems represent an oasis of hope. It is the humanity of these verses, that leaps from the page like the memory of nineteen varieties of gazelle described in the title poem.

The poems assume special significance in the context of post-September 11 world, for they contain a platter of understanding and taste served to assuage our need to be comforted. The solace is brought in by the mint green language of a poet born to a Palestinian father and an American mother. Perhaps the unique identity of Nye offers her perspectives about the Arab East and American West which her creativity has shaped into a narrative that offers respite from the reactionary rhetoric that dominates our daily thinking and actions.

As an Indian residing in America, I sense a brotherhood with Nye's characters, who chase the voices, flavors, visions, music and familiarity that maps their nostalgic world. As a poet with Indian heart and Americanized mind, I find Nye, like Agha Shahid Ali, present our cultural and emotional duality in a lyric that is both powerful and poignant. The tapestry of inheritance of the East is laced with tales quite unknown in the West, and this wealth can nourish many a chasms that exist between the material and spiritual. It is voices like Amichai's and Nye's that remind us that the transcendental humanity within us can help us to outlive the wounds inflicted by the fanatic forces everywhere.

The Dividing Roots Of Religions

Deepti Lamba — Mon, 8 Dec 2008 10:19:07 EST

She came over to ask for Neem leaves. We started talking about the death of my Neem tree due to the Jamun tree pushing at it. We talked about gardening, snakes crawling into our homes, children and somewhere in between we got talking about religion.

It wasn't a topic I wanted to talk about. It makes me impatient. She told me she was a Muslim and asked about my religion. I replied- Buddhist. She smiled, nodded and said that I was a Hindu.

I didn't get into the semantics and merely shrugged. She became more chatty and continued talking about her Hindu friends and I stared at the bamboo rhizomes that were growing under my cracked cemented walk path.

I wasn't interested in hearing about her secular inclinations, I wasn't interested in her exchange of gifts on Hindu Muslim festivals nor was I interested in hearing about her getting bored to tears in Gulf, her hating the burkha nor was I was interested in her horrified reactions against the Mumbai tragedy.

She was barking up the wrong tree. I was already on her side. I had already faced half her shit post 9/11 in America when people who recognized that I wasn't a Hispanic or 'Native American' decided I was a Muslim.

I had to wear my religion on my chest as if to ward off others 'righteous' anger. I told them at the airport security checks - "No, that lady in burkha isn't my mother in law. I am a Hindu. Are you done checking my six month old? Yes, I know its for safety that you have special checks. But why is it that whenever we travel we always get the special security checks?"

Things did get relatively easier a couple of years down. But there was always that fear in the back of our minds when we traveled. We didn't discuss politics when we stepped out, our phone calls were also censored and we maintained a polite front even when a jackass passed a racist comment or snubbed us in a queue.

We had friends who treated us no different whether they were Republicans or Democrats but fear had nestled deep within my heart. And the sense of insecurity plagued me constantly. We tried to keep a low profile. The attitude that if we kept our heads down and didn't stand out like sore thumbs things would be fine was ingrained in us.

By the end of our five year stint I was eager to return home. Between the yellow, orange, red alerts my poor heart had done enough palpitations wondering what shit would be dished out to us if terrorists did some shit on US soil.

I was ready to return home and feel like a majority upper class Hindu all over again.

After nearly three years of returning home I found myself trying to make a defensive Muslim lady comfortable in my garden. I didn't talk about the apprehensions I suffered while in US being similar to her feelings. There was one big difference between her and me.

To me, my country was a haven I willingly returned to but for her there was no sense of security in her own homeland; not that she said it to me but her loud proclamations of being a moderate secular Muslim made it clear to me.

She took some curry leaves and lemons, grumbled about the death of the Neem tree and politely declined my offer of tea.

I closed the gate behind her and wished we didn't talk about religion and politics. It made both of us pussyfoot around each other and maybe it kept us from becoming good friends.

Mumbai Burns

Vivek Sharma — Fri, 28 Nov 2008 08:32:24 EST

Did you see the sobbing reporter describe how the Taj of Mumbai burns?
How many will Asuras cause to die before O Vishnu as avataar returns?

The fanatic bullet hunts gazelles everywhere that nostalgia mourns.
Where is the machine crafted that chokes our unfinished yearns?

Differences are astonished at the atrocities flowing in their name.
Can anyone explain it to these cubs, where this feud begins?

Words loaded into Kalashnikovs explode in believer's brains.
What savage desires issue death sentences to their sons?

You fight your kith and kin, seeking separate land-holdings.
See our heritage now desecrated by our own selfish actions.

Tearful ocean is filled with the ash of my extinguished loves.
My hurt is the chorus of subdued sighs of colossal nations.

There is absolutely no God who honors assassins.
He is all powerful. He needs no help from tainted persons.

Courage is in protecting, in fighting limitations, in peace.
Who is using this chicanery to teach the faithful satanic lessons?

Light up a diya, whisper me the ancient hymns of Shanti!
Forge within Vivek again that grit for overcoming tribulations.

TV Review: Apparitions

Aaman Lamba — Sun, 23 Nov 2008 10:46:05 EST

The ghost-hunting/horror genre in television has seen an uptick in recent years. From Sci-Fi Channel's plumbers turned Ghost Hunters to Showtime's True Blood. A new BBC series, Apparitions takes the adventure to its source, as it were, with the lead character a member of the Vatican's society of exorcists and the blasé attitude of the Roman church to wonders.

Martin Shaw, who played Judge John Deed on the BBC for six years, dons the role of Father Jacob, whose primary focus is validating candidates for the sainthood under the auspices of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints. His current case is that of Mother Teresa, who, as the series never fails to remind us, was beset by doubts, fears and died possibly after battling demons. He is also an active exorcist, in the sense of the New Testament actions of Jesus driving out demons. Demons beset him, at least nominally to prevent his becoming Chief Exorcist.

The demons are the hardcore sort, not shy of peeling the skin from a sinner-turned-martyr, and capable of quoting scripture or working wonders that to the casual eye, might seem miraculous. The Christian demonology referenced in the series is well-defined and adheres to the standard canonical principles. These are very ancient demons, the leading one appears to be that who beset St. Bartholomew, first missionary to India.

The series does not shy from confronting thorny issues for the Church, whether it is Pope Pius' silence in the face of the Nazi horror or the contemporary implicit fear of parents to entrust their children to the care of priests. A disbeliever who later turns out to be possessed keeps Richard Dawkins in his library, and a key character, who took into himself Mother Teresa's demons is beset by homosexual thoughts, and Father Jacob performs a blessing on him before casting him to the demons, as it were. His piety is rewarded by being flayed alive, just as St. Bartholomew was, in canonical tradition.

The series has started promisingly, if quite disturbingly, and the concept of exorcist gunslingers defending the modern world against ancient monsters is an interesting one. The DSM-IV or the ICD-10 does not recognize demonic possession as a valid psychiatric or medical diagnosis, preferring instead to ascribe such symptoms to dissociative identity disorder or another related phenomenon demonomania or demonopathy. All the same, as Hamlet reminded Horatio, "There are more things in heaven and earth, ... Than are dreamt of in your philosophy."

Kumbakonam, Cheats, Pariahs, and Conversion

Suresh Naig — Sun, 23 Nov 2008 09:40:50 EST

Can anyone be implicated in India for using an English word? This question might appear strange for many readers in this forum. The answer is yes. Once the maverick politician Dr.Subramaniam Swamy was issued a non bailable warrant, for using a well known word in a well known context.

He was referring to LTTE, the dreaded terrorist organisation as an international pariah, after it was proscribed by many countries. When he rubbed the then chief minister Jayalalithaa on the wrong side, his above statement on LTTE was used against him. He was sued for having used the word "pariah" denoting a scheduled caste of Tamil Nadu and a warrant was issued. Dr.Subramaniam Swamy had to run for cover till he got the warrant cancelled by a higher court. Subsequently in a press conference he vowed to strive to eliminate the word 'Pariah" connoting untouchable, exile, recluse etc from the English dictionary

There are many words of foreign origin adopted by English, perhaps which makes the language very versatile. Recently few words of "Inglish" were included in the Oxford dictionary, such as "prepone" and "airdash", very liberally used by all Indian-English newspapers and until they were included in the dictionary, I never knew they were not proper English.

I do not know whether the word "Pariah" has been removed from English usage, but certainly another word, which was used liberally by the earlier generation of white settlers in India, has become extinct.

The word was "kumbakonam", which is the name of a town in Tanjavur district of Tamil Nadu, but associated in a wrong way. The word "kumbakonam" had a negative meaning conveying deceit, cheat etc and the word is used even till date in Andhra Pradesh conveying the same meaning. Some time back the word was used in All India Radio news bulletin; kicking up lot of dust, when Vijayabaskara Reddy tried to topple NTR, taking advantage of his absence to US for treatment. The news bulletin referred it as "Kumbakonam jarikindhi" - meaning a devious plan of switching the loyalty of MLAs of TDP to Congress led by Vijayabaskara Reddy.

When I enquired for answers of how Kumbakonam and deceit were associated, only one answer from an octogenarian retired from Railways was convincing. He said during British period, Railways was controlled by English officers and promotion to higher rank was denied for deserving Indians for they belonged to Hindu religion. Conversion to Christianity was a precondition laid for promotion and few persons belonging to Brahmin community got themselves converted to Christianity to claim promotion.

After enjoying all perquisites associated with Railways officers, these people one by one reconverted back to Hindu fold on retirement. Having got beaten in their own game, English have associated Kumbakonam with cheats and it stayed for long in usage, until removed.

Was Ayyappa a Tool to Fight Conversion?

Suresh Naig — Thu, 13 Nov 2008 12:39:02 EST

Ayyappa's shrine is situated on the hills named as Sabarimala in south Kerala. Sabarimala - a part of Western Ghats, in Pathanamthitta district is adjoining other hilly districts of Kottayam and Idukki. I had undertaken pilgrimage to this shrine regularly, for more than five times and out of which, three times I had trekked the long path from Erumeli to Sabarimala, walking for two days and spending a night in the temporary sheds enroute.

Besides visiting these hilly regions on religious pilgrimage, I also visited all the above mentioned three districts professionally for over a decade. This article is the result of some loud thinking, leaving behind the religious passion.

The legend of Ayyappa goes like this. Ayyappa is the avatar of Shiva and Vishnu, the followers of these two deities, known as Shivities and Vaishnavites respectively, always at conflict with each others’ philosophy. Ayyappa took this avatar to conquer a demon named Mahisi, who was tormenting people to stop the traditional worship and terrorising them to worship her instead.

The king of the province, Pandala Raja, did not have an issue and happened to come across the abandoned Devine child Ayyappa in the forest, by the pre-determined design of Vishnu. The abandoned child Ayyappa was growing in the kingdom nurtured by its foster parents, until the queen was blessed with her own son. So as to do away with the foster son, the queen cunningly dispatched Ayyappa to the forest to fetch the milk of a tiger, to cure her stomach ache. In the forest Ayyappa encountered Mahisi and destroyed her to fulfil his purpose of birth. He not only abdicated the throne, in favour of the biological offspring and vowed to stay celibate, so that even his future generation would not demand the throne of the Kingdom.

Before conquering Mahisi, he had conquered Vavar, a muslim trader who had landed on the coast and after conquering he had become a close friend of Ayyappa. Even now people who are on pilgrimage to Sabarimala are expected to pay their obeisance at the dargah of Vavar at Erumeli.

Ayyappa should have been a recent existence, because of the character Vavar, a muslim. Muslims’ entry into Kerala started only from 13th Century onwards. To my knowledge Ayyappa’s existence does not find place in any works earlier to 19th century. We can safely presume then, that Ayyappa came into existence only 200 years back, i.e. after the missionaries started propagating Christianity in the hilly regions of Kottayam.

Perhaps the major plank of conversion was the divide between Shivites and Vaishnavites, and the caste system in Hinduism. Hence Ayyappa was depicted as an outcome of Shiva and Vishnu. Caste system is underplayed in Sabarimala, again to curtail fodder for the missionaries.

When fighting a common enemy, enemy’s enemy becomes a natural friend and that’s how Vavar had become a friend of Ayyappa and collectively they wanted to fight the spread of Mahisi’s religion-read Christianity. A leaf is drawn from Christianity in the making of Ayyappa, granting celibacy as the highest virtue for God, forbidding women of fertile age from visiting the shrine.

I presume Ayyappa could have been a real character akin to Lakshmananda of Kandhamal, succeeded in reconverting many to Hindu fold, or could have been a figment of imagination aimed to dissuade conversion.

Brothers and Sisters; Thanks for Clarifying Demographic Issues

SAN — Sat, 8 Nov 2008 12:09:29 EST

Who are My Brothers and Sisters?

As I mentioned in the title, this gratitude is expressed only to my brothers and sisters. There are some Christians who may not consider me as their brother. I do not insist on them calling me as a brother. That is their choice and this is anyway not for them. There might be some Muslims, some liberal Hindus and some atheists who may not call me as their brother. I will not insist on them calling me as a brother either. That is their choice and this is not for them either. But I will insist that every RSS and Bajrang Dal member should consider me as their brother and this is for them.

Allow me to explain my reasons. Recently a self-claimed RSS leader (I am yet to cross-check the veractiy) wrote to me that he can never be a brother of either a Muslim or a Christian. But I gave him reasons why he should call me his brother. Of course, I know that his Guru Golwalkar in Bunch of Thoughts called Muslims and Christians as internal threats and enemies. So I should be his enemy and not his brother. But I will stubbornly insist that RSS and anyone who follows Golwalkar should call me as a brother and not as an enemy if they are Indians.

You see, the Indian national pledge very clearly says that 'all Indians are my brothers and sisters". Since the RSS insist that national song Vande Mataram is compulsory for every Indian, I am sure they compulsorily follow the national pledge and compulsorily call every Christian, communists and especially Muslims as brother and sister. Since I have defined my target audience clearly, and if you do not fall under this category (compulsory brother and sister) and have bothered to read until this line, you may chose to leave. However, if you chose to read further, I do not have any issues as this is not such a family secret. But the gratitude is not for you.

Now let me thank you.

My brothers and sisters, until now I was under the wrong impression that you were against changing the demographics of a society. Some misinformed secularists had written some biased reports in politically correct newspapers that you violently oppose anyone who changes the demographics (e.g. Orissa). For a moment I was perplexed and troubled. I never believed it. How can it be from my brothers and sisters?

But then the issue of transfer of forestland to the Shri Amarnath Shrine Board (SASB) came like Sree Krishna's appearance to Arjuna. All my doubts were cleared after that. I read objections of those Mlecchas to the land transfer - i.e. it will change the demographics of the Valley. How silly!!!

But then I was anxiously waiting for your response too. I was thinking that if those pseudo-secularists were true in their accusations against you, then you would surely agree with those Mlecchas. But then I saw agitations after agitations, destruction upon destruction against such logic of demographic changes.

My eyes were filled with tears. How wicked can this pseudo-secular media become in their accusations against my brothers and sisters. RSS and Bajrang Dal- they will never oppose anyone who changes demography in fact they are for it.

But I had some doubts still left in mind because of the indoctrination of secular media. Then Raj Thackeray came. He fought like Shivaji against North Indians (particularly from Bihar and UP) coming to Mumbai. He too argued against the demographic change (and culture too???).

This time I was not expecting a strong protest like the earlier protests for the Shrine. I only expected an ideological protest in whisper volume. Do not doubt me. This was not just because Raj had a Thackeray attached to his name but also because the Shrine makes business sense. Who bothers about human beings in a land of billions. Somewhere we all need to prioritize our work. I can understand that. So I expected only an ideological protest. And to your credit, you did that.

That is why I am so thankful to you. Now, I know that secularists are lying. You are not against demographic changes. You are for them.

Now, I will surely continue my missionary work. Hope you do not mind if demography changes. If you want to convert, do let me know. We will teach those Mlecchas in Kashmir a lesson or two by changing the demographics.

Thank you brothers and sisters anyways for clearing all my doubts.

Jerry Thomas is a student of comparative religions with Sakshi: An Apologetics Network in India (www.sakshitimes.com). The views expressed here are personal and does not necessarily represent the organization or the Christian community that he belongs to.