After I criticized Shree Shree Ravi Shankar’s remarks on MF Hussein, I was perhaps not surprised by the how many aggressive responses I got back. What confused me though is many people responded with the painting being both anti Hindu and anti Nationalist. Are are they now the same thing for many people ?
I think Shree Shree Ravi Shankar’s force does amazing work. Which is why I was surprised at his remarks. For I thought Universal Compassion was at the centre of Hinduism and the Art of Living. If this was a remark from an ordinary person I would not have given it a second thought.
So the question does arise, is “what is Hinduism” and does it need protection from what people are terming as ‘obscene’ art ? (Which I will say again, I do not believe it is).
What is the Hinduism that needs protection ? How do we see Hinduism now. It seems it now has become an ‘identity’ which it was never supposed to be. Not in the Hinduism that I have understood. Hinduism is about the concept of experiencing the ultimate unity of all that is space, time and matter. It is about experiencing the illusion of the ‘Self’.
If anything Hinduism is about the loss of Identity. And yet more and more people are calling these ideas ‘liberal and therefore “pseudo- intellectual’. Is there a new Hinduism that is emerging that has tones of Nationalism in them ?
I wonder how many people who wrote to me would have supported the Islamic Fatwa against Salman Rushdie for writing Satanic Verses ?
I did not commented on the earlier post but wanted to convey as a common women, I am pro freedom of speech and freedom of art.
Who are we to judge MF art and RS commitment to compassion ( personally I really dont care for either of them).
No religion need protection from human beings and people who declare themselves as protecters are living in lala land of illusion.
I love Reading comments so many different ways of looking at same incidence.
Peace
It seems now better sense prevails in you SK. Yes definitely we oppose the Islamic Fatwa as well as fanatic hooliganism in case of Bajrang Dal or RSS. But what hurts in case of MFH is commercialisation of art by targetting one religion and it can be termed as day light rape guarded by pseudo seculars of our great democracy.
How on earth can we compare satanic verses with MF’s sexual pervertism? May be you wud have connected better with what the AOL guru xpressed if MF painted all the ten gurus of sikhism totally naked having sex with several nymphs in hitherto unthinkable poses;plx dont tell us that u wud love to see such xploration of art!
Just want to share a comment that my friend made — We expelled M.F.Husain for hurting the Hindu sentiments, we expelled Taslima Nasrin for hurting the Muslim sentiments. Now I should be expelled for hurting your sentiments and you should be expelled for hurting mine! Who will remain in the end?
Dear Shekhar
Most of my muslim friends openly say that India is secular only because of Hindus. Its true that Hindus have become very reactionary and aggressive for the last 10/15 years- which is totally opposite to their tolerant and secular nature. But you need to understand the whole thought process behind it. Even being a Hindu majority country Hindus encouraged not only Islam but all the diverse religious opinions to flourish and expand in this country. The statistics are very clear about the percentage of Muslims and Christians in the subsequent years- India became a sovereign land.
But !!! but !! my friend the problem started when some minorities started suffering from the politically vested and projected fear of extinction and became unduly and overtly aggressive. No only this – they started playing the ‘victim card’ for no apparent reason. Unfortunately the media trying to turn every justifiable or unjustifiable voice as a TRP enhancing tool – allowed itself to be gladly exploited. The result is apparent…
In a country where Hindus are the proud inheritors of Khajraho ‘TEMPLES’ and Maharishi Vatsayayan’s Kama Sutra- M F Hussian’s nude portrails would not even have caused a little dust particle irritant in the eye- leave aside the blood shot angry gaze of contempt.
Dinesh
Its easy to hate and get enraged at the comments and opinion stating other than your confirmation. The point of oppose views will turn towards hate speeches. Just you stated anything against Sri Ravi Shankar, people started using hard tones on you. They were the same people who were fan of your views few day ago. It is not the matter of Hussain or Shekahr Kapoor but about the expression of the feelings. Almost all of the people (including you and me)don’t want to hear anything that can shake their deep belief. And the level of tolerance shows the maturity of society. it is not decided by the democratic or secular or republic setup of government. The concept of comparison showing my ‘culture’, ‘country’, ‘religion’ superior to others is root cause of ego clashes. They are so insecure about their identity that even a minor act offend them. Christian jumps on Davinci Code, Muslim jumps on Rushdie and Taslima Nasreen, Hindu mob rises against Hussain. The problem with these countries, communities and people is that they have people like Hussain, Rushdie and Richard Dawkins who are hundreds of years ahead of their society consciousness. They will be thrashed when they are alive and will be praised by these scholars after their death as thinkers ahead of their time. Most of us can take life in the name of culture and nation but never accpet the truth or free expression in first place.
Shekhar
I am myself surprised by the coments of sri Sri Ravishankar, and have been trying to understand the reason behind it. Usually Hindus have known to be tolerant, but looks like that with changing time, there is shift in the psyche of Hindus.
You are right, that Hinduism is about finding the ultimate truth and losing your identity, Hinduism has always been called a way of life. But, that was in old times when there was no need for an identity, and the sole purpose of life was supposed to get Enlightened.
Today, Religion has taken a strong Identity, For common man, who cannot meet both ends meet, enlightenemnt is illusion. For him his religion is his identity, and also , there are many other religions, which are more agrressive, believing in conversion,and less tolerant, thus promoting hatred and Insecurity.
In this scenario, which is very unfortunate, Religion has taken a shape of communalism.
This is not a justification, but my view of why Hinduism has taken identity, while it was supposed to be a path to lose identity.
Is there a new Hinduism emerging…..? your question make me smile as well as sad …why people of India who raise such issues are so unaware about the basic principles of the so called religion. (which is not in truth)(hinduism is a way of living or the art of living which is being make known by Guruji himself)and Shekhar losing our identity dose not mean that we may we may lose our dignity? India is MADE a secular nation which is not in truth, because of the inclusive nature of its faith, we are facing wrath in name of terrorism …you say ultimate unity? agreed we do strive for that but supporting unjust and fighting for it is also what Bhagwat Gita teach us, guest are welcome according to our shastra but they can not rule the host.
The reason for what the great artist such as Hussain is being dragged into a baseless issue, why the condemner forgets that the omnipresent formless God or Goddesses of our faith which we worship them in idols are also an artwork of some realized soul who must have imagined Shiva with Shakti to be best portray as ash covered sanyasin adorned with snakes and tiger skin and Parvati on side? and why do we forget the sculptures on our ancient temples such as Khujhrao or konark, if we talk about nudity then those figures cross all the limits of nudity, but we admire the art work and feel proud about the beautiful creation of artist. god save those temples from eyes of our government…would only say in last
I have to say I completely lost Shekhar on this one, right in the first paragraph of the earlier post. Exploration of purity? How were you so sure that was the artist’s intention Shekhar?
To me, this debate is neither about the artist himself nor about the endless rants about why his expulsion is a shame for India, nor about all the political agendas behind the controversy. Nor is it about Hinduism or Islam. It’s a springboard for deeper questions about:
What is art? What is the purpose of art? Are there boundaries to artistic freedom – and where does one draw the line between freedom and artistic responsibility, particularly if it is art showcased in the public domain. Is ‘freedom of expression’ synonymous with the liberty to disrupt collective consciousness of the times and context in which art is placed? What gives a painter wielding his brush more liberty to upset prevailing collective sentiments of a community, (under the mask of ‘freedom of expression’) any more than a condemned politician with fundamentalist affiliations wielding his power to divide rather than unite? How much of the ‘freedom of expression’ is really about pure art vs. misusing to rise above the clutter and for self-propagation? Are artistic liberties wielded for expressions that incite, rather than unite or galvanize a positive force, at the heart of ‘freedom of expression’? Was MF Hussein’s paintings an irresponsible expression of less pristine intentions in the guise of creativity and artistic freedom?
I don’t know. Many other questions keep bubbling up in this specific case, and in no logical sequence…
As much as I endorse artistic freedom, I just fail to understand the nature of the urge to explore purity by framing the exploration in the context of Goddesses – and it is irrelevant if the artist was Muslim or Hindu, or if the context of the art was a Hindu Goddess or an Islamic Prophetess. The very act of contextualization has polluted the potential purity. Would it have been less gratifying or fulfilling for the artist if ‘purity’ was explored sans contextualization? Why? Was the artist’s intent one of “humiliating” the Goddess (as has been apparently stated by the artist himself at some point), the feminine principle, or a collective sentiment? Was he creating (and exploring) for himself or for consumers of his art? Would anybody care if he explored in the confines of his drawing room? And, what’s the difference between ‘rape’ and creative ‘exploration of purity’ as in MF Hussein’s painting/s in question? Just that one is objectionable because it involves lack of mutual consent from sentient beings, while the other is interfacing with a non-sentient source of feminine energy? I imagined my Self in the canvas and it made me cry. Wonder if the Goddess in the painting was infused with breath and came alive, how she would view his exploration of Her purity, that too in public! What next? – a creative exploration of Durga in an act with the tiger She rides on? Where does one draw the line?
I am no Sri Sri Ravishankar (have neither met him nor visited his ashrams), and yes, I am an ‘ordinary person’, but I believe his voice represents a collective sentiment of ‘ordinary persons’. And I didn’t see his challenge to the artist as one that defies all the universal virtues that his foundation propagates and stands for, but one of deeply questioning the artist’s true intent, and perhaps attempting to bring an awareness into the dimensions of art as a mirror of life, collective consciousness and the art of living — EVERYTHING to do with art (and the fundamental virtues of the art of living) and NOTHING to do with politics, condemning Islam or Islamic icons. The specifics of what the artist was being challenged to do and questioned about by Sri Sri (and everybody else sharing similar sentiments), I believe, are just small details and nuances.
As long as there is a gross dichotomy between the creators of art and those who consume it, in terms of how each views art and defines the purpose of art, there will be debate and controversy. And if the artist has chosen the path of exploration through disruption of prevailing collective consciousness, I suppose it is the artists unstated choice to be challenged, controversial (call it what you may) by the very constituency that his art serves. And one of his own choice to either live amidst such controversy, or run away from it.
So let us not feel sorry for MF Hussein or for ourselves. It’s all our own choice after all.
Shekhar, amazing two posts and consequent reaction, provided mirror to the contemporary Indian sentiments and just shows that world is a global village now where none of us are living in an individual and isolated caves of our own.
This is not about religion, this is about common sense. Keep it simple!! Universal Compassion is not a form of passive, subjugated witnessing. You need to hone your understanding of these things. Lord Ram – who was an enlightened being by all counts – went to war over his wife. He did not just sit there and say: Oh, let Ravana do what he pleases and disgrace my wife..he is just being creative.
This is where the virus of pseudo-secularists has proven to be the most harmful for India over milleniums..the very reason it was enslaved and subjugated time and time again because of the blessings from these self-indulgent, deluded pseudos.
Have you seen the paintings..do a search on the internet. Laxmi, Saraswati and Ganesha..all revered figures, in the love and devotion for whom millions of Hindus perform rigorous penance, have been reduced to nude caricatures. Here is the point of balance: There is nothing wrong in doing these things in private..you are free to think or believe in whatever, but the audacity to make it public?
All organized religions of today are terrible diseases. However, there are differences. Islam is like cancer, Christianity is like brain tumour, and Hinduism is a mild flu.
This my God vs your God thing is nothing but conflicts between egos. The one non-objective God is to be realized within the self. Only esoteric Hinduism preaches this with consistency. When you encourage religions that encourage copyrighted gods, violent fanaticism and half-baked teachings that skip the important things as the laws of reincarnation, universal consciousness, proper diet, respect for animals and environment and such deep wisdom, you are are not doing good for the society. This is why you are called pseudo-secularists. You think you are being secular, but by supporting fanatics, you are the worst kind of fanatic.
Vowwww… deep breath …
“Ordinary people are more repressed when getting old”
Pls think
1 yr old “MF” losing mother at 90 should learn to respect why he was deprived of a Mother all the life.
Some people never grow, I guess !
totally agree with @amit
Shekar,…again…..the discussion is not about hinduism, its tolerance its secular nature etc. T
he discussion is about hurting sentiments of people. Period
“I wonder how many people who wrote to me would have supported the Islamic Fatwa against Salman Rushdie for writing Satanic Verses?”
I will answer your question,90%of the muslims would have. And its the same with MF Hussain’s paintings,90%of the hindus are against it.Religion is a Way of Life for everybody and it would be better on parts of greats like MF,you and the media not to interrupt in the way people live.We indians are different from rest of the world,saying christ was also painted nude does not make a difference to anybody.We India and US are two different world.Atleast 75% of the indians do not him and 95% of the rest 25% does not give it a shit if he’s a Indian national or Qatar.We do respect his art but not at the cost of our belief.
Any organised religion breeds and empowers identity.As does Hinduism. The core spiritual message behind it is something most of us do not want to deal with.We merely enjoy our personalised versions of it.The drama of the maya is way too engaging for most, we love acting out our parts in the story,questioning our part, the story and losing our identity does not interest many.Unless the seed to uncover and search for the truth is not sown, one does not genuinely move towards universal consciousness.
In the larger context everything is an expression in consciousness. MF’s art and your reaction to it too.Depending on how you have believed your world into existence you will sit on either side of the debate and argue for it. While you enjoy the diatribe, I hope you don’t miss the chance to question your own beliefs. Where did they come from? Why are those beliefs working for you, and would they if you did not power them yourself. In the search for the truth even your worst enemy, your deepest fear, your strongest moral stand hands out the chance to enjoy it or to unlearn it.Watch your choice.
I understand that artists must have a freedom of expression and any cultured society must help art and artists thrive. But can artists exist in vacuum? Do they also not have a responsibility towards the collective consciousness of a society? Creation is something that is born out of love and not hatred. But when you analyze M F Hussein’s paintings you see a clear pattern of deliberate prejudice towards Hindu Symbols and Deities. I realise that art is open to interpretation and therefore how can you say that the interpretation of the majority of Hindus is wrong? I would believe the media and all the supporters of MF Hussein if he showed some consistency in his paintings, if he dared to paint some religious symbols from Islam and Christianity (I respect both these religions and would not ever do anything to hurt the people following these religions). Why are Hindus always taken for granted, because we will take anything just lying down? The people who support his paintings will have any credibility only when they show the same intense support for the Danish Cartoons (if that was wrong, then so is this). Hinduism is the oldest system of spiritual science and will not need anyone to ever protect it. What M F Hussein has done is silly and perverted and Hinduism is too great to be insulted. We Hindus do strive to eventually connect to the Nirgun form of God. We just do not want anyone to brazenly insult our way of life and get away with it in the name of artistic freedom. We are not fundamentalists but we are brave enough to speak out and stand for what is clearly wrong. The Media has lost its soul and is only driven by TRP’s. As for Sri Sri Ravishankerji, he like always was spot on and I don’t think any of us have the credibility to question his integrity. Shekhar, I always admired you for your clarity of thought and free spirit but this stand of yours is startling. We are not saying that nudity per se is insulting, but painting of revered Mother figures in the nude is clearly wrong and must be condemned. It only shows Hussein’s arrogance and lack of sensitivity to the feelings of his fellow countrymen.
Why we never raise a single voice against the builders or occupants of buildings for having tiled the staircase with picture of Lords just to prevent the corners and walls from people who habitually color the wall red by mindlessly spitting?isnt it disgusting? there is no harm if the walls are decorated without THIS intention,do we know what was in the artist mind when he painted deity in nude?has he ever commented on this?
I did not see any vulgarity or sexual connotations in the paintings mentioned. May be its a matter of perception.
But looking at the massive outrage expressed at the supposed obscenity in art, just curious (perhaps out of ignorance):- How about the shivalinga? How is it that we rever and worship this symbol openly (in public)?
Sir, ur understanding of Hinduism is amazing. I completely agree with your point. But the problem is most people supporting Hussain donot understand Hinduism the way u do. Their opposition to Hindu fanatics is not because of enlightenment but just plain and simple pseudo secularism. I am not against Hussain but I always oppose these pseudo secularist and so I get dragged to the group of people opposing Hussain. But its ok with me, bcos to me these pseudo secularists are even more lower caste than the Hindu fanatics.
What surprises me is the sheer intolerance in people. yet what do they say when you visit the hindu temples of Konark etc, world heritage centers depicting orgies, homosexuality and even beastiality? Isnt that against the hindu culture?
What is the hindu culture? burning widows in funeral pyres? condemning the poor in society as untouchables? hindu culture is a growing culture.
The religion is totally different. MF was expressing his art as he sees it as a cultural hindu.
If we stop growing we stop living.
Dude,
how can you say a naked goddess sitting on Ganesh as art. or durga making love to tiger.
“It seems it now has become an ‘identity’ which it was never supposed to be. Not in the Hinduism that I have understood. Hinduism is about the concept of experiencing the ultimate unity of all” this is what you say. Your understanding.
It could have as well been for a certain section of people. And for quite a few other sections of the people, may be it was always part of their identity. One can only venture out a guess, I mean If Everyone does the same thing, follows a pretty similar identity, then probably a separate term/ identity wasnt required. But that changed few hundred years ago. But then before that changed, there could have been people who looked at the religion the same way we do now and werent really looking at the attaining god. Grihastam is as much a part as sanyasi stage is in hinduism.
At least today it is. Another Hindu could have an entirely different idea than what you have. One cant go around imposing your view point of the religion to others.
I am offended by Hussain’s painting which appears to be a deliberate attempt at insulting what is considered sacred by my religion, I am told that is not how I should look. Because there is a pre-existing tradition from 1000 years ago(but what is the status as of today). And the copulation portrayal aspect which looks incestuous. Washing this aspect under the carpet irritates me than anything else.
What also irritates me is the different yardstick? I mean Prophet cannot be painted as nude because it doesnt exist in their religion. But this incestous aspect that doesnt exist in my religion is considered as creative freedom. I mean why do you set different expectations for a person’s feeling based on whether they are part of a majority or minority religion. A Hindu has as much right as a Muslim.
LEt me also say this clearly, I dont think any Indian has to leave India because they had a different view point or even tried offending my sentiment. A world famous artist(? he is one?) or not. But I would like to register that it was offensive.
‘exploration of purity’ ?
What is pure about sexual perversion ?
A craving that has become a perversion, the disconnected subconscious on display. Maybe it serves a purpose to show what enlightenment is not.
Plus, his intentions are clearly suspect here. He’s abusing freedom of speech, using his paintings as a weapon.
you are digressing away from the topic.
prove it to me those paintings are a smbol pf purity!!!
Hello Shekhar,
I am a big fan of your blog and have been following for over a year, but this is my first post/comment. In regards to the issue, if painting the goddesses nude is exploring purity, why did Mr. Hussein paint his mother fully clothed? I think that is one of the reasons for this whole issue. I hate to mention it but I am an atheist, I believe in my parents and the people around me rather than a religion. So I cannot relate to others feelings about those paintings, but to me those particular paintings are just bad, but I do love some of his other paintings.
I found this on google, thought I would share
http://www.vishalarya.net/?p=64
IT MAY BE USEFUL FOR ALL OF YOU TO KNOW – The paintings in question were created in 1970, but did not become an issue until 1996.
Hey Shekar,
I have always been amazed by the depth and honesty of your work & life…. but am a bit surprised that an individual as intelligent and nuanced, does not exhibit these capabilities on this topic!
Btw, before I wrote to you, I took pains to read Shree Shree Ravi Shankar’s quotes about Hussain. I also read up a bit about Mr. hussain, as well as what others have to say about him – for as well as against!
a) forget the action on M.F. Hussain for a moment, let us just step back and see what he has attempted to do!
– painting Hindu gods & godesses nude, copulating with animals, seemingly palyful & nude with their abductors ( sita sitting nude on Ravan’s lap! witha nude Hanuman watching!!!!), a godess copulating with the security guard in front of her husband ( parvati with nandi, in the presence of Shiva) with clear captions on all of them – durga, sarasvati, shivaratri etc.
However, the same man paints Fatima – supposedly the prophets daughter, fully robed! Ditto Mother theresa! If nudity is art and is an expression of a painters artistic license, and an artist is honest, surely the artist can paint all holy figures with the same brush!
Why would an artist – a 90 year old man at that, choose to take this divergent views against different religious symbols?
As a man of reason, I Wonder why you have not questioned this….? You have also depicted nudity in your film, hence you surely understand the difference between artistic necessity and subjective prejudice / perverted outlook…?
Just stepping aside – lets look at an example closer home & in your terrain. Would Madhuri Dixit stay quiet if Hussain chose to portray her nude???????!!
She would move the court and raise hell! She would demand justice!
Ditto here – people of this country, whose sentiments have been hurt ( & whose collective memories nurture horror stories about forced islamic conversion, plundering & destroying temples, raping native women, untold sufferings for close to 800 years) have raised hell!
They have demanded justice and most know that given our politicised governance, they cannot expect it! Hence, some other sections of society seem to have taken the law into their hands( not justified) and simply issued death threats!!!
Again, lets move away from all of this adn come back to old man Hussain!
This 90 year old man has lived life to the fullest! He claims love and respect for “mother(Nude) India” Surely, the old man is not afraid of death! He also professes great faith in the country’s secular fabric and social justice system! Now, why would someone, who claims he is not out to hurt people, but rather expressing his art, who claims he loves this country and has great faith in her people and judicial system, run away??????
One can still understand if he is a young man in his prime….. but a 90 year old man????!!!
Ok, lets park this thread – lets explore another!
This is a man – an artist who values freedom of expression! Why then does he not choose a secular country which has always guaranteed artists freedom of expression – lets say France or netherlands? Or even more progressive western nations like US or UK????
Why Qatar?????
Wikipedia describes Qatar as an ” Absolute Monarchy, since 1800’s” http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Qatar
And also states that “Qatar has an emirate government type.[8] Based on Islamic and civil law codes; discretionary system of law controlled by the Amir, although civil codes are being implemented; Islamic law dominates family and personal matters; the country has not accepted compulsory International Court of Justice jurisdiction”
Come one Shekar, you are way too intelligent not to probe into this further! Why would a free speech loving, secular artist accept citizenship of an absolute monarchy, where the law is islamic and the arbitrators are monarchs? Where the concept of speech is bound by Ismalic principles?????
Shekar, I would expect an intellectual like you to stop mouthing homilies & question this! Please…. we need your tribe to flourish…. please do justice to your own intellectual capabilities… you may not have the answers, but surely you can ask some questions!
Maybe the question we should all be asking is – Does Hussain deserve the respect and love he has been showered on for the last 70 odd years?
After all, he seems to have shown that religion is thicker than nationhood!!!!!!
Now, maybe the nationalistic angle does make sense???!
Shekar – intellectual re-boot and re-examine please… waiting for the SK magic on this one…..:)
Hi Shekhar Ji,
Well I think the spirit of ravi shankar’s comment is that MF Hussain leaving India is not in any way India’s loss as Mr. hussain would like us to believe.
The issue is not pro Hindutva or compassion etc. The issue is the questionable senility of Madhuri Fida Hussain! Who in the right mind would paint Mother India as nude (naked!?), or show a goddess copulating with an animal? and if some ones likes such ‘art’ then they just have bad taste!
If it was a painting depicting a Muslim deity all hell would have broken loose, as we have witnessed earlier as well. So let him try to ‘express his artistic feelings’ by depicting prophet copulating with a rat and then we’ll see if he lives to be 96!The issue is that in the name of ‘compassion’ Hindus accept anything and even feel ashamed to stand up (or at least speak out) for what’s right.
Finally, it is plain stupid to put Ravi Shankar’s name in the same line with Hussain. Most of formers work is not advertised to gain publicity etc, so ppl do not even know how much development, peace n joy is there cz of shankar in the world.(which is not pro hinduism but pro spirituality btw).
What amuses me most is that ppl stuck in there own concepts claim to ‘know’ everything about art of living without even experiencing Sudarshan kriya!
Bye Bye MF, be the headlines of newspapers in Qatar – our dismal media have many more petty issues to exaggerate!
Hiya Shekhar…
Have not seen what his art is like, but then what I understand from here…it does not seem to be in good taste….
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well whatever…
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for a change why does he not make funny, sexual art of jesus or buddha or allah as a matter of fact?
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why touch sensitive issues of people?
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is he trying to sell himself and stir public for his publicity? his art?
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I am someone who does not believe in god…at the same time I would not go to insult someones sentiments becuase I would not believe in it…
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He needs a tight slap across his face…tell him to wake up…try not to exploit peoples sentiments in the name of fucking art
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sorry for the crude term…he can go fuck off to hell dont need such characters
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whatever
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cheers
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for a change tell him to paint his mother with a bull…that would be nice would it not?
Idiot!!
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I have seen him…in one show….walking bare feet, hugging a woman…trying to show to public how wanted he is…he is a insecure bastard…like these parading cheap gurus….
his face index shows whats he okie….
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if not for his art I would have put him in some roadside cheapster catagory
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He is an artist does not prove that his thoughts are great!!!!
Neeti ji:
it shd have been “definitely ignorant”, plz edit your post to make amends asap;)
Gagan ji:
Kudos to you for adopting the zinda laash lifestyle since god knows when!!! I hope you the first and last of such kind in your family/vansh/community.
Few paintings of MF, judge for urself, if he is more Muslim or more Indian!
http://www.hindujagruti.org/activities/campaigns/national/mfhussain-campaign/
This is horribl
Shekhar ,
At your game again ?
Ask MF Hussein to paint your mother nude – he already must have – with paint and *more
Ha you even look like him – the weedy beard , for instance.
I dont blame you for supporting your father , M F Hussein – enjoy your mother’s nudes.
Dont wank too much .
Dear SK ,
Sri Sri is a dharmic Guru in the Indian Vedic tradition. Whenever he sees an act of adharama happen such as the mindless vilification of Indian Gods and Goddesses by *anyone*, he must and will speak out. Just because Hinduism is about the “Self”, does not mean that anything goes. It is this very attitude that lead to India’s enslavement for over 2000 years. The common man has “simple” things such as love for a God/Goddess that he holds sacred. Can anyone ride roughshod over these things and then hide behind the veil of the “Universal Self” ?
One question to you : It seems from your writings and your association with Dr. Deepak Chopra, that you are a spiritual person. Is there anything that is sacred to you that you would protect with your life ? Anything that is sacrosanct and precious that you would not allow ANYONE – be he/she a filmmaker/author/painter vilify with their camera/pen/brush ? Perhaps then you would see some sense in what Sri Sri says.
Best,
You are a B grade artist. you should not try to pose as an intellectual.
I think we people of India have forgotten the essence of hinduism, But there are lots of changes that has happened and over time, that all these gods and goddesses, that we think are just images and not the truth, it is we humans who gave them the images, It is just a depiction and I don’t see any issue in MF drawing things on gods, God is energy and ppl confuse it with image, and As SK said the moment we try to give identity to something problems arises, But am sure all will still look into the modern Hinduism than the actual essence of it. Hinduism really does not have a identity and But it is more than that.
None of the religions doesn’t need any protection as such.. as they all are propagating same positive vibration. At the same time majority of the followers are uneducated and they are not intellectual like Kapur or MF or Sri Sri.
So it is not really good to hurt the feeling or belief of others. Freedom of expression has to be only up to the NOSE of the other person. Not the heart or brain. No one still not interested to publish nudity of MF, or his close ones or his near ones or his dear ones. People are busy living life or surviving. His talent has to support the society instead creating the negativity by crucifying individual or community. We all Indians still respect MF as an artist. We all are much tolerant when he realise his ignorance.
I find some of the above comments to be very hateful… no wonder there have been numerous cases of religious violence in India, n in the world.
Note:This POV contains Explicit Contents without Diplomatic attributes.Transparency regard to concepts in hindu philosophy and practises by gurus and tantriks are maintained:
Shiv Linga is worshipped, as Dhyana Linga, Shiv Linga, as simply, The Linga etc.Now there is terming in Linga called Linga Bhairavai,which is supposed to be a Deity ( or something else?) of Fierce Feminine Force..
— Linga n Yoni..
“Creation happens by Linga and Yoni”..is the Concept..based on which, these worships have been done..which seemingly sounds primitive, and could be perhaps a raw idea,from which Creation theory in hindu texts stemmed and further elaborated to Purusha and Prakriti, Shiva and Shakthi..etc..
Now
Worshipping Phallus and Yoni is considered sacred.??.Yoni pooja as by some poojaris,gurus and tantriks in occult and esoteric realms, is conducted as well.
Some Stories..
According to hindu mythology,Shiv had an ambiguous SSA with Vishnu ,who took the form of a woman, Mohini..and had a union, but the child out of their union was born from the thigh of Vishnu,aka Mohini..
In another story
Lakshmi devi was alledged by Vishnu to have been attracted to a horse, and later he granted her a curse, that in the birth cycle, she will be a female horse and he will take birth as a male horse to satisfy her..
Are The Above outline of stories in the hindu books vulgar?? or Obscene or Profane??
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POVs..to Ponder..
Prophet’s Life if can be portrayed in as in case of his wives ,Aisha ( who was 6 yrs,while Mohammed was 50) , Safiya( who was 17 yrs,while Mohammed was 57) etc..Then will it become or termed Child abuse or Minor’s Abuse..??
“I wonder how many people who wrote to me would have supported the Islamic Fatwa against Salman Rushdie for writing Satanic Verses ?”. Well Shekhar, the Government of India (representative of India) banned it in India! IS the Govt ready to ban those painting because the majority of India is offended by it? This is the hypocrisy that is responsible for artist like F M Hussein getting away with this bullshit!
i am in the country where he has been granted to stay. and this is the last time i am writing. all i need to say is the hindu fundamentalism is far tooooo weak to speak about.
shekharji,
Hindu mythology and all ancient mythology humanised existantial forcess in the form of gods. They are all symbols. We cannot make a dailogue with scientific facts but in this form we can make a relationship with existance more deeply and beautifully. But now a days the basic concept have gone lost. People have forgot complitely that all this images are artistic expression of existancial forcess. And all mythological stories wich we called purana reavils behaviour of existantial forcess. So my question is shall existantial forcess behave as M.F.Husain portrait it.
Shri Shri Ravishankarji does his work respecting contemporary belifs and sentiments of the people.
Everybody needs target audience. Even spiritual personalities too. Everybody is not interested in spiritual search and everubody is not suffering with the question of who am I. So the system has to be made. And every system has some protocol about how to relate with outside reality. It keeps the mental balance well. So he has to follow it.
I only have to say this. This is not a situation where you can give a black and white response. But though I am in awe of M.F. Husains artistry, I will go with my gut here.
He was irreverant and I want to see him being irreverent about that one way street called Islam before he toys with the sentiments of a group of people he and many others assume are tolerant to the extent of taking any shit lying down. I favour no religion and I absolutely believe in freedom of speech..but there is a difference,I don’t believe in absolute freedom of abuse of speech and there is a difference. When you speak out, it is inherently understood that you intend to be heard, and it is incumbent to take stock of who you are speaking to and what and where you are speaking, becuase in honor of the principle of truth, it matters who we say, what we say to. If there was no one to see or hear I don’t think anyone would be speaking or doing anything, including the loft Mr. M.F.Husain. He just thought his grey hair, great deal of artistic clout and fame made him immune to criticism, and he could get away with impunity doing provocative things that he has done more to satisfy his own whims. It’s not like he was spearheading some social cause. More than like Mr. M.F.Husain sat bored one day and thought “Ah, let me paint the Indian Godesses Naked..that’s all they are worth.”
So he did what he wanted to, no one stopped him actually. Now a section of the public is reacting strongly. Why should they be stopped? He acted the way he wanted, but he forgot that he cannot control the public’s reactions. He threw something at the public, they thre something back at him. It all squares up I guess. 🙂
ShekharJi….Do not talk on subjects you don’t have expertise in. Hindus are tolerant that’s why these Muslims are doing whatever they want to do. Now M.F hussain had painted all nude paintings of Hindu Gods and no paintings of Allah ? Why ? Can you answer that ? Now all Hindus have filed several cases against him and he ran outside of INDIA. Why? because he knows he had done a big crime which he will have to pay. Don’t waste your time in spite of being a HINDU to support Muslims.