Kapil’s Khichadi
Follow me on Twitter: @kk_OEG
Avid readers of Gujarat Samachar and Asian Voice will remember that along with some great individuals, I was one of the founders of the Hindu Forum of Britain (HFB). It gave me a unique insight into how our community organisations and Mandirs work. I have been monitoring developments, or lack of, for quite some time and have on many occasions questionedthe plight of British Hindus and whether our organisations and their leaders were moving in the right direction. Increasingly I have hadpeople from across the country call me in their desperation. So today, in brevity, I should like to address this head on.
British Hindus are represented at multiple levels by a variety of organisations. At the local level it might be a Hindu community centre or a Mandir. At regional/city level there are organisations that bring Hindus together, for example the Hindu Council of Birmingham. We then have national organisations which are either community based, sampradaya based, clan based or mandir based. For example, the HFB, HCUK, NCHT, BAPs, ISKCON, Brahma Kumaris, Chinmaya Mission, BrahmSamaj, Arya Samaj, NHSF, Prajapati Association, Shree Swaminarayan Sansthaand many more.
The main complaint being that we Hindus are attacked by anti-Hindu forces and we do nothing. The truth is that there are organisations and individuals who do a lot, but in the scheme of things and the huge task before us, often it leaves behind huge holes.The fault lies with ALL of us.
The cash rich Hindu organisations tend to be Sampradaya based and Mandirs. Given these are totally spiritual, most of them find it difficult to engage on the political side, and rightly so. The organisations that can fight for our rights, such as the HFB, HCUK, NCHT etc are starved of cash and resources. We expect the world from them for free, and none of us are prepared to put our hand in our pocket!
Contrast this with the Jewish and Muslim Community. I commend them since they ensured they have socio-political organisations that are cash rich and served by experts at every level. They take on battlesand win major victoriesbecause they are willing to put up the hard cash.
We Hindus want the Earth, but we find it hard topart with pennies. Most are more than happy to give money to the Mandirs and to our Sampradaya, perfectly OK. BUT, unfortunately not to Hindu organisations who can fight for us.
Would it not be great if say every Sampradaya and Mandir in the country agreed to donate about2% of their annual income to our leading national organisations?Just2%, but collectively it will enhance our national organisations and empower them to be our advocates and lobby for our rights. Our scriptures tell us, Dharma protects those who protect Dharma.
So today I invite our British Hindu organisationsto come forward and unite under the umbrella of Sanatan Dharma so we may empower our champions to fight the political fight. I am ready to receive direct messages from leaders of all Hindu organisations, please tell me if you support my proposal and if so, what % of your annual income you would be willing to donate?
It will be telling to see who responds, if any.
Let’s not lose the war whilst we are busy building Mandirs. Lest we forget, it was such errors that led to the destruction of thousands of Mandirs in the past by our enemies.I hope the message of Navratrimay guide our collective endeavours.
