E.V Ramasamy (Periyaar) was not an avatar of god. He is just a normal human as each one of us and it is childish to expect him to be perfect in everything.
He preached rationalism and self-respect. He attacked the widely held religious beliefs which is bound to hurt the sentiments of followers of many religions. He believed in Aryan-invasion theory and tried for a separate country "Dravidistan".
People accuse him for offending the sentiments of hindus by burning (Lord) Ram's effigies. The very same people celebrate "hatred" every year in Ramaleela by burning huge effigies of Ravan and Kumbhakarna.
People accuse him for sowing seeds of secesssion. Yes, he did. Just like Jinnah tried for a separate pakistan, Periyar tried for a separate Dravidistan. Because he feared that Britishers would be replaced by north-Indians and the south-Indians would still remain without political and economic freedom. Ambedkar went to Britishers to ask for separate electorate for dalits. Ambedkar believed that Upper caste hindus would never give 'social justice' to dalits. Does that mean Ambedkar was a British Agent??
Periyar also organized protests against imposition of hindi way back in 1937.
People accuse periyar for spreading hatred against brahmins. He questioned why brahmins who constitute just 3% of the population occupy 70% of the government posts in madras presidency. He attacked the caste system, the benefits of which the upper castes were enjoying. He attacked the rituals and brought self-respect marriage which does not have brahmin priests and other hindu rituals.
Attacking a century old social-system is bound to create tensions. When social change happens, vested interests groups will try to resist the change and preserve the dominance.
If you have problems with the ideology of periyaar, question the ideology and prove in what way it is wrong. Don't find faults in him like he married a young woman, attacked brahmins etc. As I said before, he is just a normal human and not a 'perfect' god.
P.S: I am not a follower of periyar and I dont subscribe to all his views.
He preached rationalism and self-respect. He attacked the widely held religious beliefs which is bound to hurt the sentiments of followers of many religions. He believed in Aryan-invasion theory and tried for a separate country "Dravidistan".
People accuse him for offending the sentiments of hindus by burning (Lord) Ram's effigies. The very same people celebrate "hatred" every year in Ramaleela by burning huge effigies of Ravan and Kumbhakarna.
People accuse him for sowing seeds of secesssion. Yes, he did. Just like Jinnah tried for a separate pakistan, Periyar tried for a separate Dravidistan. Because he feared that Britishers would be replaced by north-Indians and the south-Indians would still remain without political and economic freedom. Ambedkar went to Britishers to ask for separate electorate for dalits. Ambedkar believed that Upper caste hindus would never give 'social justice' to dalits. Does that mean Ambedkar was a British Agent??
Periyar also organized protests against imposition of hindi way back in 1937.
People accuse periyar for spreading hatred against brahmins. He questioned why brahmins who constitute just 3% of the population occupy 70% of the government posts in madras presidency. He attacked the caste system, the benefits of which the upper castes were enjoying. He attacked the rituals and brought self-respect marriage which does not have brahmin priests and other hindu rituals.
Attacking a century old social-system is bound to create tensions. When social change happens, vested interests groups will try to resist the change and preserve the dominance.
If you have problems with the ideology of periyaar, question the ideology and prove in what way it is wrong. Don't find faults in him like he married a young woman, attacked brahmins etc. As I said before, he is just a normal human and not a 'perfect' god.
P.S: I am not a follower of periyar and I dont subscribe to all his views.
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