Article Title: No Room for Xenophobia

Article Summary

In the article at hand, the author offers a condemnation of elitism and exclusivism within the Hindu religion, establishing that neither of the two have a logical basis. The article starts by bringing to light the tangible discrimination that still exists in places with a Hindu dominance, like temples, where women or people from other religions are not treated with respect or even are barred from entry. This is pure xenophobia, a fear and lack of acceptance of anyone that does not belong to the dominant class in a system. In Hinduism, the status of the “dominant” has been appropriated, unfairly, by some men of the religion, who have further proceeded to stop the involvement of women or other religions in the areas ruled by Hindus. However, one important caveat is that Hinduism treats as sacrosanct and absolute the scriptures, and nowhere is it stated in the scriptures that xenophobia is commendable or requisite – in fact, the apex Hindu god Krishna actually denounces it as folly. Him, and thus Hinduism which he is the mouthpiece for, thereby stand for equality and neutrality, of the most important things in the world including the soul or ‘atman’.