Weaving India's MAHAKATHA (Grand Narrative) for the 21st Century By Rajiv Malhotra Radhakrishnan Memorial Lecture Indian Institute of Advanced Studies Delivered on March 20, 2018 © 2018 Infinity Foundation 1 TABLE OF CONTENTS What is a Grand Narrative?............................................................................................................. 4 A brief overview of some Grand Narratives ................................................................................... 6 The United States of America ..................................................................................................... 6 China ............................................................................................................................................ 7 Pan-Islam ..................................................................................................................................... 8 Other countries such as Japan, France and Britain ................................................................... 11 Pakistan ..................................................................................................................................... 12 Does India presently have a Grand Narrative? ............................................................................. 14 Our Shastras’ view of who we are ................................................................................................ 16 Vedas and Upanishads .............................................................................................................. 16 Infinite cycles of emanation and dissolution ....................................................................................... 16 Vedic History ....................................................................................................................................... 16 Vedic Universalism .............................................................................................................................. 17 Itihasa ........................................................................................................................................ 17 Arthashastra and Dharmashastras ............................................................................................ 18 Sacred Geography ..................................................................................................................... 19 Hindu Rashtra ............................................................................................................................ 19 The Big Banyan Tree Metaphor ................................................................................................. 22 Colonial Disruptions to India’s Grand Narrative ........................................................................... 24 Islamic Destruction of India’s Grand Narrative ......................................................................... 27 European Destruction of India’s grand narrative ...................................................................... 30 Digestion ............................................................................................................................................. 35 Destruction of Traditional Structures and Narratives ......................................................................... 36 Impact of Imported Racism and Distorted Historiography ................................................................. 38 Impact on Education ........................................................................................................................... 38 Indian Constitution as a Muddled Grand Narrative ..................................................................... 40 Where are today’s Pandavas? ...................................................................................................... 42 Integral Humanism: India’s Grand Narrative proposed by Pandit Deendayal Upadhyay ............ 42 Three Competing Grand Narratives: Westernized India, Breaking India Forces, and Bharat ...... 47 Lack of a Grand Narrative Development Program ....................................................................... 52 Who is doing the heavy lifting? ................................................................................................. 52 Death of purva-paksha .............................................................................................................. 53 Moron Smriti ............................................................................................................................. 54 Moron Gurus ............................................................................................................................. 55 Varna Depletion ........................................................................................................................ 56 Disconnected Assets .................................................................................................................. 57 Intellectual Sepoys .................................................................................................................... 59 2 Traditional Gurukulas and Scholars........................................................................................... 60 Government Irresponsibility ..................................................................................................... 62 Resources for building India’s Grand Narrative for Today ........................................................... 64 Re-imagining dharma ................................................................................................................ 64 Re-writing India’s History .......................................................................................................... 65 Invasion Theory of India ...................................................................................................................... 66 Marxist view of History ....................................................................................................................... 67 Chauvinistic Theory of India ................................................................................................................ 68 Key areas of a correct history ....................................................................................................... 68 History of Indian Science and Technology ................................................................................ 68 Philosophy and Mind/Inner Sciences ........................................................................................... 70 Ethics ......................................................................................................................................... 71 Theory or Worldview ................................................................................................................. 71 Technology or Practice .............................................................................................................. 71 Social and Political thought........................................................................................................... 73 Art and popular culture ................................................................................................................ 74 Revisiting the Renaissances .......................................................................................................... 74 How to develop and disseminate our grand narrative ................................................................. 77 Swadeshi Indology Research ..................................................................................................... 77 Disruptive ............................................................................................................................................ 78 Constructive ........................................................................................................................................ 78 Systems and Institutions ........................................................................................................... 79 Network Consortium across various organs of society ............................................................. 80 Research and Think Tanks ................................................................................................................... 80 Higher Education ................................................................................................................................. 80 Schools ................................................................................................................................................ 81 Guru Paramparas ................................................................................................................................ 81 Government – Administrators/Politicians........................................................................................... 81 Corporates ........................................................................................................................................... 82 Media .................................................................................................................................................. 82 NGOs ................................................................................................................................................... 83 Bibliography .................................................................................................................................