Standing up for Hindus : A Conversation with Francois Gautier

Francois Gautier is a vocal and visible Dharmik voice, a lover and defender of Hindus in India and abroad. He is an eminent journalist in his own right, and has worked with Le Figaro, DNA and Outlook India. He has written books such as ‘The Guru of Joy’ and ‘India’s Self Denial’. He has in the past brought awareness to the idea of a ‘Hindu Holocaust’ in the medieval ages. He has also founded an NGO called the Foundation for Advancement of Cultural Ties. He has been awarded Panchjanya’s ‘Nachiketa Award’ and the ‘Bipin Chandra Pal Award’ in the past.

Here are excerpts from a conversation Dr Mrittunjoy Guha Majumdar (A physicist, activist, writer, social worker and philosopher) had with him.

Q. You have openly said that Hinduism is under threat from Christianity, Islam, Marxism and westernisation. You also have spoken up against what you see as a Buddhist-Jain tradition – Ahimsa. What do you feel is a way to stand up against the threats that Hinduism faces today ? Fundamentally, how must the inclusivist Dharmik traditions oppose the exclusivist traditions in the contemporary world, according to you? As they say, we may embrace them, they won’t.

A. Hindus in India have faced multiple attacks. Ofcourse some of the Gulf countries are much more radicalised. I have seen that Islam in India has also become much more radicalised, in places, than it used to be when I first arrived. More so probably because Indians have been going to certain Gulf countries, where you know it is much more strict and dogmatic. And many Muslim Indians feel they are Muslims before being Indian. That is a problem and poses a threat. But this is not the only one. Another is that westernisation is fast catching up in India, with televisions and cable. I feel westernisation is the greatest danger that India is facing at the moment. When Sonia Gandhi was at the fore, helping lead the Government, I feel this was more, with the idea that the solutions to India’s problems lies with westernisation.

And this is a problem with most Indologists in the West, when they think that they are a superior civilisation and India needs the West to become a civilised country. And the media … the Indian media looks at India with western eyes. They do not look at India with Indian eyes. They are more concerned about what Amnesty International says or some senator is saying. So, where is the Indianness ? I am a westerner who came to see that Indianness is great, is essential. Most Indians have lost their Indianness. The school system, the education system in India hardly imparts any Indianness. Politics in India is just a copy of Democracy in the West. And a bad copy, at that !

Q. The Hindu holocaust over centuries is a reality, which we both have written and spoken about. Given the scale and number of years that this holocaust took place, it stands unmatched in the levels of barbarism and casualties in human history. Much like colonialism is seldom shown in the true light in modern Britain, the description of this holocaust is watered down in modern India by various historians. How do you see us moving away from this tradition of obfuscation of truth and yet not be absurdly revisionist ?

A. Absolutely. You know, I started studying Indian history with the period of Aurangzeb since Aurangzeb is a venerated man by most historians, who portray him as a very staunch but a very just emperor. But I think he was a monster. Even with his own family, he imprisoned his father and beheaded his brother Dara Shikoh, who was a true Sufi. So, he was an absolute monster. Now, we did an exhibition on Aurangzeb according to his own records. He was a very meticulous emperor and every order he gave, he personally signed it and it had the emperor’s seal on them. Whether we speak of the temple raids he ordered or the Hindus being attacked and massacred, all of these orders are preserved. But when I showed this exhibition in Delhi, many people asked – ‘Why do you want to wake up the past ?’

The same goes for the Kashmiri Pandits. I showed an exhibition of Kashmiri Pandits in London, where many people came. Again, people asked – ‘Why do you want to wake up the past ?’ It seems like Indians are not ready to look at the past.

The Hindu holocaust, you know, not only Aurangzeb, I mean Timur killed a 100,000 Hindus. It is recorded. He made a pyramid of 100,000 skulls of Hindus. So, I don’t know if many Hindus want to look at it and know about this dark chapter. I am not sure if the BJP Government wants to look at it either.

But no Nation can move forward unless they look at their own history – the good and the bad. There are a lot of good things in Indian history, a lot of unhappy things to say, but the Hindu holocaust is the greatest in the world ever.

Research shows that 100 million Hindus (roughly) died from the times India was invaded to today. Whether it is 100 million or less, it is the greatest holocaust ever. The burning of Kandahar, the razing of Delhi several times – these are all historical facts. These need to be put in books but no one is willing to.

I have seen three Education Ministers, the HRD Ministers, you know, none of them had the guts to touch them (and address this). The one who was there who stood out was Murli Manohar Joshi but even for some of his good steps on this front, there was such outcry that he had to back off. That was 20 years ago; but now, we have a billion Hindus worldwide and still not much is being done. They can do it.

Hindus must unite. Every sixth person is a Hindu. They can do it. But only some spiritual and social leaders can do it, not the politicians, for I don’t think the politicians can do this. They don’t have the will or the courage to do it.

(Courtesy : OpIndia.com)

Indologists in the West think that they are a superior civilisation and India needs the West to become a civilised country !