Between a rock and hard place
Modern Indian State has acquired Desert-Bloc-Platonic-Confucian authoritarian principles of State as parens patriae
Hitler-Gandhi meter
Gandhi was more violent than Hitler. (It’s crucial to see violence which is done repeatedly to keep the things the way they are) …
… Though Gandhi didn’t support killing, his actions helped the British imperialists to stay in India longer. This is something Hitler never wanted. Gandhi didn’t do anything to stop the way the British empire functioned here.
For me, that is a problem. (via ‘First they called me a joker, now I am a dangerous thinker’ – All That Matters – Sunday TOI – Home – The Times of India).
Run … hide … but you can’t turn your back
Slávoj Zizek can’t (presumably) support Hitler. A status quo-ist like Gandhiji, is unacceptable to Slávoj Zizek. His dilemma! Having to choose between two दुरातान्त्रिक duratantrik systems (like socialism or communism), Slávoj Zizek’s is having a difficult time. Slávoj Zizek’s views are, to say the least, provocative, forcing you to re-think.
The world faces a Hobson's choice today. You can have any colour you want - as long as it is black. (Cartoon by RK Laxman; Courtesy - timesofindia.com). Click for larger image.
India itself does not know the place that भारत्तंत्र Bharat-tantra (Indic political system) has, means or stands for in the history of the world. The history of the world, till about 8 AD, is basically torn between दुरातंत्र, duratantra, (meaning vile political systems) versus सुरातंत्र suratantra (equitable political systems) systems. भारत्तंत्र Bharat-tantra (Indic political system) was highly respected in the ancient world – went into decline from 8th century to 18th century.
Glimpses into the past
Property rights India, till the 12th century, vested property rights with the producer, upto the advent of the Islamic iqtadari system. The 200 years foreign, Islāmic rule in India, by Turko-Persian offshoots, changed Indian property holding patterns. The main Islamic dynasties, of the Middle East /West Asia, the Abbasids and Ummayads, never directly, attempted any military campaigns against India.
Slavery (distinguished by capture and recapture, buying and selling, state protection, ‘free’ slave markets) were unknown in Indic regions.
Quo Vadis (where are you going) …
The political constructs of the West have hit a wall – and there is no way, but down! Since the West is busy hiding elephants in the room, the need for a different political ideology remains unaddressed. The development of the four Western political systems – i.e. Feudalism, Capitalism, Socialism and Communism, is related to two factors. Property (and loot of property) and slavery – the two elephants in the room of Western history.
Gandhiji supporting the British in South Africa (Gandhi, middle row 5th from left with stretcher bearers of the Indian Ambulance Corps - 1899-1900).
The costs of the Western welfare State is going up – not down, not away. Welfare bills are getting more ambitious – and the domestic lobbies want more ambitious schemes. Western economies have become isolated, high cost protected by barriers and stockades.
Completely ignored by ‘modern’ Western education system, (which India also blindly follows), the Indian political theory and its application have been largely forgotten in India too.
Platonic-Confucian axis
The axis of Confucian-Platonic authoritarian, ‘wise’ rulers, was the alternate model for the world. Property rights remained with less than o.1% of the people. Under the CRER principle, (cuius regio, eius religio, meaning whose land, his religion; CRER) even personal religious beliefs of the individual were subject to State approval, as per law.
The West scorns the Chinese one party rule. How does one more, collusive party in the national polity, in a ‘democratic set-up, become the paragon of political virtue. Two-party democratic polity is just a more polished and conniving way of exercising the same authority – in a more invisible manner? In India, with more than 70 crore voters, the winning party got less than 13 crore votes and the final difference between the winning party and the second largest party. Approximately 5 crore voters. This leaves people with little or no choice – much like the choice between one-party ‘dictatorship’ and two-party ‘democracy’.
Now compare
The only exception to this was the Indic system of polity – where property rights were vested with the user, justice was decentralized (did any Indic king dispense justice?), religion was maya and dharma was supreme. The modern Indian State has acquired the Desert-Bloc-Platonic-Confucian authoritarian principles of the State as parens patriae. So, the power of the Indic ideas is something that India seems to have completely forgotten, missed and lost!!
One party dictatorship or two-party democracy. What's the difference? One more collusive political party! (Cartoonist - Matt Bors; Posted on August 4, 2008; Cartoon Source and Courtesy - cagle.com). Click for larger image.
Is there an Indic political system at all? Simple leads …
- What is Sanskritic word for slave? Or what does the Indian narrative call Slave owners?
- Why do traditional traders resist taxes even today? The biggest tax offenders of modern India are the traditional ‘marwari’ business man. Why?
- What triggered the persecution of the Roma Gypsies in Europe?
- How did the Roma Gypsies start the Church Reformation in Europe?
- Why does India have the lowest crime rates and incarceration rates in the world? Yet was behind the biggest crime wave in history?
- Why and how did India build the world’s largest private reserves of gold? Without loot, luck or slaves?
- From the carbon-dated 3000 BC Indus Valley to the India in 2000 AD, how could India resist cultural and military invasions?
- How did India emerge as software service economy in a short 15 years?
- India is today a counterpoint in softpower – in TV, cinema,publishing, newspapers, et al! How come?
- While the Western world is going public sector, how come India continues down the private sector path?
Related articles
- Pakistan – An alienating identity (quicktake.wordpress.com)
- Slavoj Žižek talks to Julian Assange (anabakalinova.wordpress.com)
2ndlook 
“2.Why do traditional traders resist taxes even today? The biggest tax offenders of modern India are the traditional ‘marwari’ business man. Why?”
The best Marwari that I have known in my life is a “British”. If you want to conduct a business, you must join a British and live in Britain for sometime with a view to observe them, not just to subserve them. When I was in UK in 70-80s and Mrs Margaret Thatcher was PM, I remember her saying, ” If no administration, no business”; while negotiating the revision of the lease for the territory of Hongkong. What was the problem for not conducting the business if they had no administration? I wish if the Indians, so called Macaulayiites, could understand the essence of true business. We imbibed the worst of “British” but ignored the best of them. This was a rhetoric taught by them again to divide and rule by creating ‘Hate’ in the various sections by one pretext or the other, like religion, caste and so on. To create hate is also a good business strategy. Then it becomes easy to exploit that particular section. They always projected the natives that they are barbarics and
we have come to educate them. How many of you would agree with their this thesis? We all know, by this propaganda, they demoralised the natives and then like Uncle Sham, looted
them blatantly for two or more centuries, which is what the modern brown sahebs are doing.
I always admire Lord Macaulay for his wittiness. I wish, if our English trained polititians had even a 10% IQ of Lord Macaulay, then the modern India would have been in a far better situation. He was a true British and our English Grads. did a very poor business after the independence. I just feel sorry for this over a billion subjects, who are still struggling for their even identity as an Indian, within their India.
All the politicians who thrive and misappropriate the tax-payers money during the job in their office, how much return of the responsibility do they discharge to their ‘Patrons’, i.e. “The People”. I am sure you are all aware of the money the exchequer spends on one MLA or MP in this country. Then how much more do they spend in the perks and other lavish amenities at the expense of tax-payers, is never questioned, what a better business could you do than becoming a politician? Why is the big fight for?
During her regime, Mrs Thatcher did a lot of cut down in public spending and abolished subsidies. The result was a staggering unemployment in Britain due to closure of the age old business houses and an economic slump. I was working in the Scotland just south of Glasgow. They started new ‘Adult Education Programme’ classes called,”How to be your own Boss”, to put back those youths into business. This course was to teach the unemployed people, how to start their own business. Curiously, I also attended the same, wondering the caption. I still remember on the first evening (they were weekly evening courses spread over months), a professor from the Commerce section from Glasgow University came and his lecture was on ‘Book-keeping’. He said,”My job is to teach you, how not pay the taxes”. I was horrified and muttered to myself, what is he talking.
But then next he explained, he is going to tell, how to maintain the books and plan the taxes, so that to pay the minimum.
As far as paying is concerned, nobody wants to do that, but when it comes in, everybody rejoices it. Even the judges are not willing to expose themselves to scrutiny, but they scrutinise everybody else. Mr Sukh Ram’s revelation of the cosy cushion of money bundles is not a bad business. It can happen in India. We go here by the dictum,”Innocent till proved guilty”. I think Mr Lalu Prasad could not do a bad business, when he said, “I shall run the State even from jail”. Hats off to him, he did and the equally lalu-brand Indian corrupt politico-bureaucratic machinary could do nothing. He also proved that the “Politics is the last refuse for the scoundrel”. The reason, because he is not alone in this business of “Bahati ganga me haath dholo”. Incidentally, bribing ang corruption is one of the oldest known businesses. The English East India Company got its foothold through these means.
God bless these modern Indian Marawaris who are now the biggest money lenders to the Swiss. They could suddenly woke up when Baba Ramdeo reminded them of their Swiss Bank connections. This will be used as a business for vote propagandas during elections like Bofors. Once the elections are over, all these are stacked up till next elections. It is all good business, “You earn and I enjoy”. A technique of “High Intelligence coupled with Low Desires”.
Dr. O. P. Sudrania