Swadharma

Hinduism has always been a geographic faith, tied to South Asia, much like Judaism is tied to the Middle East. When a faith goes abroad, away from its geography of origin, it remains firm in some aspects, and bends in others — we see this in the Jewish Diaspora. But because Hinduism is such a massive and nebulous collection of philosophies and beliefs, without the central text and traditions that Judaism has, it is difficult to isolate these differences when Hinduism is placed in another context.

Fortunately, here in America, students of Hindu ancestry have a way to measure the differences — comparing their beliefs to their parents. Most Hindus that I have met in America are first generation or second generation South Asian immigrants, with parents born in the Indian subcontinent. So we can get a good sense of how an American context shapes Hinduism by comparing our beliefs to those of our parents. This notion is fundamental to Swadharma.

The purpose of Swadharma is to provide a forum for discussing Hinduism in an American context. We especially want to focus on the new issues that Hinduism faces here in America, issues which were either suppressed or culturally solidified back in India. Moral issues like –

• premarital relationships
• homosexuality
• alcohol consumption
• interracial and interreligious marriage
• dietary restrictions

This is by no means comprehensive. Some of these issues, such as premarital relationships and homosexuality, are suppressed in the Indian geographic context; others, such as alcohol consumption and dietary restrictions, were set into the region’s culture. Because of their cultural experience, our parents’ generation has a strong moral grip on ours. It’s hard to question these things, because either the issues have been addressed for us (e.g. dietary restrictions), or they are never approached at all (e.g. homosexuality). There are gaping theological voids for Hinduism in America, and we should address them.

As Swadharma rises, we will establish answers to these questions and continue questioning them. That is why I stress the importance of registering and commenting on these posts — it is only through discussion and shared experience that we can take on the difficult and worthy challenge of placing Hinduism in its uniquely American context.

Related posts:

1. Why am I a vegetarian?
2. Alcohol in Hinduism
3. Parents Are the Best
4. Question of the Week: Where do we get our beliefs?
5. Question of the Week: Why caffeine?