Colonial Discourse and the Suffering of Indian American Children Book Cover.webp

In this book, we analyze the psycho-social consequences faced by Indian American children after exposure to the school textbook discourse on Hinduism and ancient India. We demonstrate that there is an intimate connection—an almost exact correspondence—between James Mill’s colonial-racist discourse (Mill was the head of the British East India Company) and the current school textbook discourse. This racist discourse, camouflaged under the cover of political correctness, produces the same psychological impacts on Indian American children that racism typically causes: shame, inferiority, embarrassment, identity confusion, assimilation, and a phenomenon akin to racelessness, where children dissociate from the traditions and culture of their ancestors.


This book is the result of four years of rigorous research and academic peer-review, reflecting our ongoing commitment at Hindupedia to challenge the representation of Hindu Dharma within academia.

Ahīna

From Hindupedia, the Hindu Encyclopedia

By Swami Harshananda

Ahīna literally means ‘lasting for several days’.

Sacrifices are considered to be the links between men and gods like Indra. Ahīna is one of the several kinds which come under the Soma group of sacrifices. It is a general nomenclature for all Soma sacrifices wherein the extraction of the soma juice is spread over several days. Hence it is named as ‘Ahīna,’ ‘that which takes several days to perform’.

An Ahīna always begins on a full-moon day. The extraction of soma juice may spread over 2 to 12 days. It should always end with an Atirātra (another Soma sacrifice spread over a day and night), along with the dikṣā (consecration of the sacrificer at the beginning) and upasad (another small sacrifice of the iṣṭi type). The whole sacrifice should not extend beyond a month. The well-known Aśvamedha sacrifice belongs to the Ahīna group.


References[edit]

  • The Concise Encyclopedia of Hinduism, Swami Harshananda, Ram Krishna Math, Bangalore