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.

Pratimā

From Hindupedia, the Hindu Encyclopedia

By Vidya Ramanathan


pratimā, (f), To imitate. prati + mā + [aḍ] | ṭāp |
  1. Copy, Elephant’s tusk knot[Lexicon 1]
  2. Reflection[1][Usage 1][Usage 2]
  3. Made to resemble, image made out of mud, stone, and such[2]
  4. Duplication[3]
  5. Reflection[4]
  6. Reciprocate[5]
  7. Shadow[6]
  8. Image[7]
  9. Icon used for worship[8]
  10. Representative[9][Lexicon 2]
  11. Resemblance[10]
  12. Identical image[11]
  13. Look alike[12][Lexicon 3][Usage 3]
  14. Image of devas following an event[13][Usage 4][Usage 5]

Sanskrit[14][edit]

प्रतिमा, स्त्री, प्रतिमीयते इति । प्रति + मा + [अड्] । टाप् । अनुकृतिः । गजदन्तस्य बन्धः इत्ति मेदिनी । मे, ४८ ॥ ( प्रतिबिम्बम् । यथा रघुः । ७ । ६४ । "निमीलितानामिव पङ्कजानाम् | मध्ये स्फुरन्तं प्रतिमाशशाङ्कम् ॥" तथा च कुमारे । ७ । ३६ । "आत्मानमासक्तगणोपगीते | खड्गे निघक्तप्रतिमं ददर्श ॥"

प्रतिमीयते अनयेति करणे अड् ।) मूर्तिसदृशमृच्छिलाकूलादिनिर्म्मितप्रतिरूपकम् । तत्पर्य्यायः । प्रतिमानम् २ प्रतिबिम्बम् ३ प्रतियातना ४ प्रतिच्छाया ५ प्रतिकृतिः ६ अर्च्चा ७ प्रतिनिधिः ८ । इत्यमरः । २।१०।३६ । प्रतिच्छन्दः ९ प्रतिकायः १० प्रतिरूपम् ११ । इति हेमचन्द्रः । * । (यथा महाभारते । १।१७२।२७।
"गिरिपृष्ठे तु सा तस्मिन् स्थिता स्वसितलोचना ।
विभ्राजमाना शुशुभे प्रतिमेव हिरण्मयी ॥"")
देवप्रतिमाघटनप्रमाणादि यथा -
"विष्णोस्तावत्प्रवक्ष्यामि यादृग्रूपम् प्रशस्यते ।
शङ्खचक्रधरं शान्तं पद्महस्तं गधाधरम् ॥
छन्नाकारं शिरस्तस्य कम्बुग्रीवं शुभेक्षणम् ।
तुङ्गनासं शुक्तिकर्णं प्रशान्तोरुभुजक्रमम् ॥
क्वचिदष्टभुजं विद्माञ्चतुभुजमथापि वा ।
द्विभुजं कर्तव्यं भवनेषु पुरोधसा ॥" *॥
....
इति मत्स्य पुराणे दैवार्च्चानुकीर्तने प्रतिमालक्षणं नाम २३२ । २३३ । २३४ । २३५ । अध्यायाः ॥ * ॥

Lexicon[edit]

  1. mēdinī 48
  2. Amarakosha 2.10.36
  3. Hemachandra


Usage[edit]

  1. Raghuvaṁsha 7.64: Like amidst the blossoming lotuses the reflection of the moon sparkles
  2. Kumārasambhava 7.36: He (Lord Shiva) looked at his own reflection in the shining sword fetched by a handy attendant
  3. Mahabharata 1.172.27 (Recension yet to be located): She, eyes dark and long, standing behind the mountain, shone brightly radiant, a look-alike, all golden.
  4. Chapters 232-235 of the matsyapurANa describe the characteristics of various pratimāḥ
  5. Snippet from chapter 232 in matsyapurANa: I will talk about the form of Vishnu, that is very impressive. Holding the conch and the disc, calm, lotus in hand, holding a mace, his head dark hued, a curved neck, pleasing to look at, a prominent nose, conch shaped ear, a pleasing lineup of arms and thighs, sometimes with eight hands, four hands at other times, or two hands, to be crafted by the chief priest.

Notes & References[edit]

  1. pratibimbam
  2. mūrtisadr̥śa
  3. pratimānam
  4. pratibimbam
  5. pratiyātanā
  6. praticchāyā
  7. pratikr̥tiḥ
  8. arccā
  9. pratinidhiḥ
  10. praticchandaḥ
  11. pratikāyaḥ
  12. pratirūpam
  13. dēvapratimāghaṭanapramāṇādi
  14. Shabdakalpadrumah entry on pratimā