17/10/2017
Hindu Forum of Europe, 11-12 October 2017, Brussels
I was invited to the Diwali celebration held under the auspices of Hindu Forum of Europe (HFE) in the premises of the European Parliament (EP) in Brussels on 11th October 2017. I accepted the invitation and returned from Brussels at midnight between 12th and 13th October.
About 200 persons, mainly Hindus and sympathisers of Hinduism and India, living in Europe, attended the celebration; several delegations from Hindu Councils and Yoga Federations in different countries, and the ambassadors to Belgium plus EP of countries like India, Nepal, and Mauritius graced the occasion with their presence. Several members of EP, and the dignitaries like the following were present: Mr. Geoffrey Van Orden, Member of EP and Chairman, Delegation for Relations with India; Ms. M. McGuinness, First Vice-President of EP; Ms. I. Jahan, Permanent Observer Mission, Organisation of Islamic Cooperation to EU; Dr. Lakshmi Vyas, President, HFE; and Amrta-Suryananda, President, Yoga Confederation, Portugal.
Martin Gurvich (Mahaprabhudas), General Secretary, HFE, worked assiduously to make this three hour-long celebration in EP a success. Speeches, feast and Indian dances were the important aspects of the celebration.
In my speech on this occasion, I highlighted the symbolism of Diwali, the celebration of luminosity. Light or fire --agni, an Indo-European word, stands for intellectual vigour and heightened intuition which enable us to comprehend the subtle truths embedded in the texts of Hinduism.
After the celebration, a busload of delegates proceeded towards Radhadesh where they reached a little after midnight. Radhadesh, physically speaking, is a bunch of ancient castles situated in Septon-Durbey area of Belgium in the bosom of nature away from high-rise buildings and shopping malls. In the main castle, there is the ISKCON temple. An ISKON community lives in Radhadesh which attracts tourists.
• On the morning of 12th October, there was a three-hour long seminar on “Challenges and Opportunities of Hinduism in Europe”. Mr. Gurvich stressed the need of infrastructure development and fund-raising to diffuse Hinduism-related matters to the media in a Christian milieu. Ms. Lakshmi Vyas, President, HFE mentioned that organisations in England, Spain, Italy, Holland, Belgium, Sweden, Austria, Hungary, and Portugal are members of the HFE, and that Swiss Federation for Hinduism would probably become a member soon. Mr. S. K. Sharma, secretary, National Council of Hindu Temples, UK was of the opinion that the Hindus of UK became victims of a plot by the Anglican Church which, through its representative, had piloted what is commonly called Lord Harries Caste Amendment Bill. Some delegates coming from England raised the question: “If anyone in the gathering knows the reasons for governmental discrimination vis-à-vis Hinduism in Europe?” Two European scholars, engaged in writing a book on Hinduism in Europe, presented a general sketch of the contents of their books. They answered the question regarding the alleged governmental discrimination. According to them, (i) Hinduism is not well understood generally even by ordinary Hindus living in Europe; (ii) case of each country is different from that of another; (iii) Hindus are not so organised that authorities would be able to find out which body is the representative one; (iv) in Eastern Europe Hindus are not significant in number.
• Taking part in this lively discussion, I said that leaders in Europe generally do not estimate Hinduism correctly: they regard this religion as caste-ridden, and promoter of idolatry and polytheism. For various reasons, the so-called caste system was not reformed periodically and hence the anomalies in modern times. I added that Hindus accept one God whose name in Hindu philosophies is Ishvara, which is almost like the Abrahamic God, but generally Hindus worship many devatas. A devata, in the modern context, is the anthropomorphisation of one or a few aspects of Godhead. Since for Ishvara and for devata, the same word is used in European languages, Hindus go down undeservedly in the estimation of the Abrahamic people. I added that Hindus do not accept the commandment: “Thou shall not bow down before any representation of God”, and there are valid reasons for this non-acceptance.
