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Tuesday, December 25, 2012

[mukto-mona] NA PATHANO CHHITHI-Sunil Ganguly



A sad story but sounds so real!
-SD
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nMZR3uu-Pok

--
"All great truths begin as blasphemies." GBS

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Mukto Mona plans for a Grand Darwin Day Celebration: 
Call For Articles:

http://mukto-mona.com/wordpress/?p=68

http://mukto-mona.com/banga_blog/?p=585

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VISIT MUKTO-MONA WEB-SITE : http://www.mukto-mona.com/

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"I disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it".
               -Beatrice Hall [pseudonym: S.G. Tallentyre], 190




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Re: [mukto-mona] About communalism and non communalism--please see my writeup as lot peole accuse Islamists of communalism--please circulate



"But how do you distinguish this customized God from a God, for example, a specific religion? And why should one prefer a customized God to a God that he has acquired through social training?"
 
Well, I said make your own God because - the image of God that comes through the social training comes with a baggage, called religion. And, religions are divisive phenomena, to all in our societies, but not God, at least to most people.
 
Jiten Roy

 

 

--- On Tue, 12/25/12, subimal chakrabarty <subimal@yahoo.com> wrote:

From: subimal chakrabarty <subimal@yahoo.com>
Subject: Re: [mukto-mona] About communalism and non communalism--please see my writeup as lot peole accuse Islamists of communalism--please circulate
To: "mukto-mona@yahoogroups.com" <mukto-mona@yahoogroups.com>
Date: Tuesday, December 25, 2012, 10:44 AM

 
So you are saying that religions and all the related rituals, etc. are man made. I agree. Is God man made or no? Are there not many Gods like religions? Yes, you have given the answer already: create your own God. But how do you distinguish this customized God from a God, for example, a specific religion? And why should one prefer a customized God to a God that he has acquired through social training? 
Now let me talk about Jung. I do not think Jung had a conventional Christian God. Despite the risk involved in providing isolated quotes, I will make some quotes from Jung whenever I will deem it necessary. Jung distinguishes clearly between "creed" and "religion". "A creed gives expression to a definite colletive belief, whereas the word religion expresses a subjective relationship to a certain metaphysical, extramundane factors." "----- the meaning and purpose of religion lie in the relationship of the individual to God (Christianity, Judaism, Islam) or to the path of salvation and liberation (Buddhism)." Looks like he is O.K with a religion with God or without God. But he is advocate of infinite freedom of an individual. He does not seem to approve of the intervention of the state (example, a communist state) or a creed (example, represented by a church) in the world of an individual.
My comments are based on my understanding of the content of a 113-page small but not necessarily an easy book by Jung (ideas came when he was 83.) This seems to be a wonderful book although we may not agree with him on every assertion he made.
    

From: Jiten Roy <jnrsr53@yahoo.com>
To: mukto-mona@yahoogroups.com
Sent: Sunday, December 23, 2012 5:15 PM
Subject: Re: [mukto-mona] About communalism and non communalism--please see my writeup as lot peole accuse Islamists of communalism--please circulate
 
Yes, Jung could not negate religion because he could not think of the existence of God without religion. Most people cannot separate God and religion; it's a foreign idea to them, but – not to me. I know - religion is not created by God. How do I know? Well, if He did, there would have been only one religion, not hundreds. Therefore, when I see hundreds of religions, I immediately ask myself who created all those religions on earth, and I know who did. It's created by the human.

I alluded before, most people need a God, but do not need hundreds of religions. In my view – all those rituals, prayers, worshiping, etc. are introduced by humans, not God. God does not need any of these religious rituals and mumbo-jumbo practices. Therefore, just do the right things, and use the image of God in your own way whenever you need; you will be just fine. 

Jiten Roy


--- On Sun, 12/23/12, subimal chakrabarty <subimal@yahoo.com> wrote:

From: subimal chakrabarty <subimal@yahoo.com>
Subject: Re: [mukto-mona] About communalism and non communalism--please see my writeup as lot peole accuse Islamists of communalism--please circulate
To: "mukto-mona@yahoogroups.com" <mukto-mona@yahoogroups.com>
Date: Sunday, December 23, 2012, 11:58 AM

 
"-------it can bring psychological solace from grief, emotions, and distresses."---Jiten Roy.
 
I cannot agree more. But are grief, emotions, and distress not major issues in human life? Jung has seen the modern man overwhelmed with all this and that's why he has not negated religion. He has rather has seen religion as a vital necessity.
I am not saying that I completely agree with Jung. However, personally I have been doing fine without a God since I realized that I do not need it 45 years ago. I have developed my own defense mechanism with moral and ethical values, ideological and political beliefs, and other branches of knowledge. As I have said before, I have been living happily with and among the believers. I do not get along well with the peddlers of religions and communalists. I never ridicule the believers although I criticize the hypocrats.    
From: Jiten Roy <jnrsr53@yahoo.com>
To: mukto-mona@yahoogroups.com
Sent: Sunday, December 23, 2012 10:20 AM
Subject: Re: [mukto-mona] About communalism and non communalism--please see my writeup as lot peole accuse Islamists of communalism--please circulate
 
"I got the impression that Dr. Roy believes religion to be at the root of all evils.  Hope he would confirm it."
Dr. Das, you are right, and I agree with you on the subject of religion. Religion was needed in the past to motivate and educate illiterate people to do right things. It helped bringing us to the point where we are today. In the developing phase of humanity, there was no other intention for religion other than bring people in the right path. It's like teachers using various aides in the kindergarten and primary schools to explain various concepts to the student. There is no other way they could do it. But, as students builds up the concept  and knowledge  bases in higher grades, teachers do not need those silly aides anymore and gradually phase them out, and stop bringing  those aides into the classroom. If teachers still bring some of those kindergarten aides in the college or university level classes, students will start laughing at them. 
 
Unfortunately, believers in religion never graduated from the kindergarten school.  Their mental maturity never occurred. That's because - religion peddlers made sure that they never graduate from kindergarten to exploit them for their personal and political interests. For example, many religions will forbid any changes or modifications to the edicts; they are set in stones. Followers either do it that way or not at all; there is no other way. In my view, such rigidity was introduced to perpetuate personal interests forever. 
 
I agree with you, in this day and age, religion has very limited utility. I understand there are some convicts and drug addicts still use religion to come to the right path. There will always be some of those people who will find religion useful.  But, the division, hatred, and destruction in life and property, created by religion, in the human society out-way whatever gains it will bring to our lives. So, there is no net-positive for religion; in fact, it's a public nuisance, in my view.  
 
Having said all these, I still feel that - some sort of image of God is important to explain many unknowns of our lives; it can bring psychological solace from grief, emotions, and distresses.  
 
I hope that - this will clarify my position on the subject.
 
Jiten Roy
--- On Fri, 12/21/12, Kamal Das <kamalctgu@gmail.com> wrote:

From: Kamal Das <kamalctgu@gmail.com>
Subject: Re: [mukto-mona] About communalism and non communalism--please see my writeup as lot peole accuse Islamists of communalism--please circulate
To: mukto-mona@yahoogroups.com
Date: Friday, December 21, 2012, 11:51 PM

 
I got the impression that Dr. Roy believes religion to be at the root of all evils.  Hope he would confirm it.  I, however, am less sure about the evil nature of religion.  I consider religion was necessary item to unite the primitive society.  In today's universe, it is unnecessary.  Even when the priests ruled the societies, they knew the emptiness of the concept.  One of the Caesars, Caligula, insisted on his statue being placed in the reconstructed Jewish Temple in Jerujalem(Dar-es-Salam in Islamic parlance).  His advisers reminded him that the inaccessible room has a statue of God with donkey's ears (vide, e.g., I Claudius - Robert Graves).  The High Priest entered it to have a heart full laughter.  The Priest knew, had God been just, omnipotent and righteous, he would not have lived with the misbehavior of the religious men.  Caligula was thus desisted, as he had no wish to share a room with a donkey.  

"Rahman has the spirits of not taking every thing in the holy books literally."  Well, he is a wise man by your standard and an avid reader too.  Ask him to explain what is Sidrat-ul-Muntaha and why his prophet could not go beyond it during his rendezvous with Allah? 
On Sat, Dec 22, 2012 at 8:07 AM, Subimal Chakrabarty <subimal@yahoo.com> wrote:
 
I can't agree. That Both Roy and Rahman are believers and that there is no fundamental difference between them do not mean that both of them believe in swarga-narak and behest-dojakh respectively. My impression is that Roy does not believe in heaven and hell. I am not sure about Rahman. But what I understand is that belief level of Roy is higher than that of Rahman. I would request Rahman to clarify if I am wrong. I also understand that Rahman has the spirits of not taking every thing in the holy book literally which is important. 
Sent from my iPhone
On Dec 21, 2012, at 6:38 PM, Kamal Das <kamalctgu@gmail.com> wrote:
 
Only people devoid of common sense would believe, faith brings God.  However faith delivers fool's heaven complete with wine and women.  It would also deliver a prick that would last for twenty five years.  Don't you dare disbelieve it.  It is written in 'holy' literature.
On Sat, Dec 22, 2012 at 5:40 AM, Jiten Roy <jnrsr53@yahoo.com> wrote:
 
Rabindra Nath and Einstein could converse on theological points because of their shared faith in God. As for me, I can converse with a believer also because of my faith in God. But, a disbeliever has a little window of opportunity to discuss on theological points with a believer; they can only try to push their own points of view in vain. That was my point.
Jiten Roy
--- On Thu, 12/20/12, Subimal Chakrabarty <subimal@yahoo.com> wrote:

From: Subimal Chakrabarty <subimal@yahoo.com>
Subject: Re: [mukto-mona] About communalism and non communalism--please see my writeup as lot peole accuse Islamists of communalism--please circulate
To: "mukto-mona@yahoogroups.com" <mukto-mona@yahoogroups.com>
Date: Thursday, December 20, 2012, 10:51 PM
 
Exactly. "Bishwase miloye hari, torke bohudoor. " But All the assertions of Rahaman are not faith-based. If Rabindranath could engage in a dialog with Einstein, you can also do the same with Rahman although you yourself also believe in God, which there is no fundamental difference between you and Rahman.  Sent from my iPhone
On Dec 20, 2012, at 9:20 PM, Jiten Roy <jnrsr53@yahoo.com> wrote:
 
Logical discussion with a believer is impossible. Mr. Rahman believes that he has found the truth, that's his belief. He can't change his mind on the things he believes in. His efforts are always directed to establish those faiths, even they are illogical. First, one has to accept the premise that prophet or Guru has received revelations from God. Those who do not accept that premise cannot converse with those who do. Then there are some people, like Chakraborty and Manab Dharma, who do not know what they believe in. These people will put forth confusing arguments. What are you going to do? It's a crazy world up there.
 
Jiten Roy
--- On Thu, 12/20/12, Kamal Das <kamalctgu@gmail.com> wrote:

From: Kamal Das <kamalctgu@gmail.com>
Subject: Re: [mukto-mona] About communalism and non communalism--please see my writeup as lot peole accuse Islamists of communalism--please circulate
To: mukto-mona@yahoogroups.com
Date: Thursday, December 20, 2012, 8:47 PM

 
When direction was changed (Via God's revelation), he started facing towards Mecca. ... Direction was changed when he was praying on a Saturday along with Jews of Medina.  Revelation came from God(alter ego of the prophet) facing ridicule from the Jews in the congregation.

Look Mr. Rahman, stop exhibiting your shallowness even on things you claim to be an expert on.  Discuss these with someone of your standard, like Chakrabarty, Hannan, Manabdharma etc.  I don't love to post anything for you.  I have expressed it so many times.  Please do me a favor.  Read more and bleat less.
On Thu, Dec 20, 2012 at 6:03 PM, qrahman@netscape.net <qrahman@netscape.net> wrote:
When direction was changed (Via God's revelation), he started facing towards Mecca.


__._,_.___


****************************************************
Mukto Mona plans for a Grand Darwin Day Celebration: 
Call For Articles:

http://mukto-mona.com/wordpress/?p=68

http://mukto-mona.com/banga_blog/?p=585

****************************************************

VISIT MUKTO-MONA WEB-SITE : http://www.mukto-mona.com/

****************************************************

"I disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it".
               -Beatrice Hall [pseudonym: S.G. Tallentyre], 190




Your email settings: Individual Email|Traditional
Change settings via the Web (Yahoo! ID required)
Change settings via email: Switch delivery to Daily Digest | Switch to Fully Featured
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RE: [mukto-mona] About communalism and non communalism--please see my writeup as lot peole accuse Islamists of communalism--please circulate



"... Everyone is stupid and educated at the kindergarten level. But Not Jiten Roy.  He does not like religious rituals and mumbo-jumbo practices.  Because he is soooooooo  ssssuper duper intelligent! ...."
 

Yes, I do talk about religion frequently, but only against someone's faith-based misguided opinion of religion. I do not initiate the talk, only respond.

 

You appear to be one those faith-based personalities, who fail to realize that there is a business component of all religions in the world, which has nothing to do with divinity. If you can't separate that from the scriptures, you will end up with misinterpretations.

 

As you know, I have reminded people, like you, many times, in the past, that -religious scriptures are not written by God; it is written by some people thousands of years after the fact.  It's not an insignificant point; it means, - there is doubt about their cent percent authenticity. This is a fact. Don't tell me it's not a valid statement. I am not trying to be smart here.

 

Just think about – some of the things people do in the name of religion (prayer, animal sacrifices, etc.). Some people believe that prayer for forgiveness will erase all their sins. It's that easy to get redemption from a formless God. Even though He is formless, but – can see and hear everything people say or do. Are you kidding?

 

When someone opines like that – I have the right to put my point of views on the subject. It's not to show - how smart I am. 

 

Now, you can stop all those childish expressions, and start putting forward some intelligent and solid arguments, for a change. Unfortunately, all I get from you are juvenile statements.

 

Jiten Roy

 

 

 

--- On Mon, 12/24/12, Farida Majid <farida_majid@hotmail.com> wrote:

From: Farida Majid <farida_majid@hotmail.com>
Subject: RE: [mukto-mona] About communalism and non communalism--please see my writeup as lot peole accuse Islamists of communalism--please circulate
To: "mukto-mona@yahoogroups.com" <mukto-mona@yahoogroups.com>
Date: Monday, December 24, 2012, 3:13 PM

 
          Everyone is stupid and educated at the kindergarten level. But Not Jiten Roy.  He does not like religious rituals and mumbo-jumbo practices.  Because he is soooooooo  ssssuper duper intelligent! He talks of nothing but religion on mukto-mona for 12 years and never learns nor veers from the same statements against Muslims of India and Indian history over and over and over and over . . . .


To: mukto-mona@yahoogroups.com
From: jnrsr53@yahoo.com
Date: Sun, 23 Dec 2012 15:15:45 -0800
Subject: Re: [mukto-mona] About communalism and non communalism--please see my writeup as lot peole accuse Islamists of communalism--please circulate

 

Yes, Jung could not negate religion because he could not think of the existence of God without religion. Most people cannot separate God and religion; it's a foreign idea to them, but – not to me. I know - religion is not created by God. How do I know? Well, if He did, there would have been only one religion, not hundreds. Therefore, when I see hundreds of religions, I immediately ask myself who created all those religions on earth, and I know who did. It's created by the human.


I alluded before, most people need a God, but do not need hundreds of religions. In my view – all those rituals, prayers, worshiping, etc. are introduced by humans, not God. God does not need any of these religious rituals and mumbo-jumbo practices. Therefore, just do the right things, and use the image of God in your own way whenever you need; you will be just fine. 


Jiten Roy



--- On Sun, 12/23/12, subimal chakrabarty <subimal@yahoo.com> wrote:


From: subimal chakrabarty <subimal@yahoo.com>
Subject: Re: [mukto-mona] About communalism and non communalism--please see my writeup as lot peole accuse Islamists of communalism--please circulate
To: "mukto-mona@yahoogroups.com" <mukto-mona@yahoogroups.com>
Date: Sunday, December 23, 2012, 11:58 AM

 

"-------it can bring psychological solace from grief, emotions, and distresses."---Jiten Roy.
 
I cannot agree more. But are grief, emotions, and distress not major issues in human life? Jung has seen the modern man overwhelmed with all this and that's why he has not negated religion. He has rather has seen religion as a vital necessity.
I am not saying that I completely agree with Jung. However, personally I have been doing fine without a God since I realized that I do not need it 45 years ago. I have developed my own defense mechanism with moral and ethical values, ideological and political beliefs, and other branches of knowledge. As I have said before, I have been living happily with and among the believers. I do not get along well with the peddlers of religions and communalists. I never ridicule the believers although I criticize the hypocrats.    

From: Jiten Roy <jnrsr53@yahoo.com>
To: mukto-mona@yahoogroups.com
Sent: Sunday, December 23, 2012 10:20 AM
Subject: Re: [mukto-mona] About communalism and non communalism--please see my writeup as lot peole accuse Islamists of communalism--please circulate
 
"I got the impression that Dr. Roy believes religion to be at the root of all evils.  Hope he would confirm it."
Dr. Das, you are right, and I agree with you on the subject of religion. Religion was needed in the past to motivate and educate illiterate people to do right things. It helped bringing us to the point where we are today. In the developing phase of humanity, there was no other intention for religion other than bring people in the right path. It's like teachers using various aides in the kindergarten and primary schools to explain various concepts to the student. There is no other way they could do it. But, as students builds up the concept  and knowledge  bases in higher grades, teachers do not need those silly aides anymore and gradually phase them out, and stop bringing  those aides into the classroom. If teachers still bring some of those kindergarten aides in the college or university level classes, students will start laughing at them. 
 
Unfortunately, believers in religion never graduated from the kindergarten school.  Their mental maturity never occurred. That's because - religion peddlers made sure that they never graduate from kindergarten to exploit them for their personal and political interests. For example, many religions will forbid any changes or modifications to the edicts; they are set in stones. Followers either do it that way or not at all; there is no other way. In my view, such rigidity was introduced to perpetuate personal interests forever. 
 
I agree with you, in this day and age, religion has very limited utility. I understand there are some convicts and drug addicts still use religion to come to the right path. There will always be some of those people who will find religion useful.  But, the division, hatred, and destruction in life and property, created by religion, in the human society out-way whatever gains it will bring to our lives. So, there is no net-positive for religion; in fact, it's a public nuisance, in my view.  
 
Having said all these, I still feel that - some sort of image of God is important to explain many unknowns of our lives; it can bring psychological solace from grief, emotions, and distresses.  
 
I hope that - this will clarify my position on the subject.
 
Jiten Roy
--- On Fri, 12/21/12, Kamal Das <kamalctgu@gmail.com> wrote:

From: Kamal Das <kamalctgu@gmail.com>
Subject: Re: [mukto-mona] About communalism and non communalism--please see my writeup as lot peole accuse Islamists of communalism--please circulate
To: mukto-mona@yahoogroups.com
Date: Friday, December 21, 2012, 11:51 PM

 
I got the impression that Dr. Roy believes religion to be at the root of all evils.  Hope he would confirm it.  I, however, am less sure about the evil nature of religion.  I consider religion was necessary item to unite the primitive society.  In today's universe, it is unnecessary.  Even when the priests ruled the societies, they knew the emptiness of the concept.  One of the Caesars, Caligula, insisted on his statue being placed in the reconstructed Jewish Temple in Jerujalem(Dar-es-Salam in Islamic parlance).  His advisers reminded him that the inaccessible room has a statue of God with donkey's ears (vide, e.g., I Claudius - Robert Graves).  The High Priest entered it to have a heart full laughter.  The Priest knew, had God been just, omnipotent and righteous, he would not have lived with the misbehavior of the religious men.  Caligula was thus desisted, as he had no wish to share a room with a donkey.  

"Rahman has the spirits of not taking every thing in the holy books literally."  Well, he is a wise man by your standard and an avid reader too.  Ask him to explain what is Sidrat-ul-Muntaha and why his prophet could not go beyond it during his rendezvous with Allah? 
On Sat, Dec 22, 2012 at 8:07 AM, Subimal Chakrabarty <subimal@yahoo.com> wrote:
 
I can't agree. That Both Roy and Rahman are believers and that there is no fundamental difference between them do not mean that both of them believe in swarga-narak and behest-dojakh respectively. My impression is that Roy does not believe in heaven and hell. I am not sure about Rahman. But what I understand is that belief level of Roy is higher than that of Rahman. I would request Rahman to clarify if I am wrong. I also understand that Rahman has the spirits of not taking every thing in the holy book literally which is important. 
Sent from my iPhone
On Dec 21, 2012, at 6:38 PM, Kamal Das <kamalctgu@gmail.com> wrote:
 
Only people devoid of common sense would believe, faith brings God.  However faith delivers fool's heaven complete with wine and women.  It would also deliver a prick that would last for twenty five years.  Don't you dare disbelieve it.  It is written in 'holy' literature.

On Sat, Dec 22, 2012 at 5:40 AM, Jiten Roy <jnrsr53@yahoo.com> wrote:
 
Rabindra Nath and Einstein could converse on theological points because of their shared faith in God. As for me, I can converse with a believer also because of my faith in God. But, a disbeliever has a little window of opportunity to discuss on theological points with a believer; they can only try to push their own points of view in vain. That was my point.
Jiten Roy
--- On Thu, 12/20/12, Subimal Chakrabarty <subimal@yahoo.com> wrote:

From: Subimal Chakrabarty <subimal@yahoo.com>
Subject: Re: [mukto-mona] About communalism and non communalism--please see my writeup as lot peole accuse Islamists of communalism--please circulate
To: "mukto-mona@yahoogroups.com" <mukto-mona@yahoogroups.com>
Date: Thursday, December 20, 2012, 10:51 PM
 
Exactly. "Bishwase miloye hari, torke bohudoor. " But All the assertions of Rahaman are not faith-based. If Rabindranath could engage in a dialog with Einstein, you can also do the same with Rahman although you yourself also believe in God, which there is no fundamental difference between you and Rahman.  Sent from my iPhone
On Dec 20, 2012, at 9:20 PM, Jiten Roy <jnrsr53@yahoo.com> wrote:
 
Logical discussion with a believer is impossible. Mr. Rahman believes that he has found the truth, that's his belief. He can't change his mind on the things he believes in. His efforts are always directed to establish those faiths, even they are illogical. First, one has to accept the premise that prophet or Guru has received revelations from God. Those who do not accept that premise cannot converse with those who do. Then there are some people, like Chakraborty and Manab Dharma, who do not know what they believe in. These people will put forth confusing arguments. What are you going to do? It's a crazy world up there.
 
Jiten Roy
--- On Thu, 12/20/12, Kamal Das <kamalctgu@gmail.com> wrote:

From: Kamal Das <kamalctgu@gmail.com>
Subject: Re: [mukto-mona] About communalism and non communalism--please see my writeup as lot peole accuse Islamists of communalism--please circulate
To: mukto-mona@yahoogroups.com
Date: Thursday, December 20, 2012, 8:47 PM

 
When direction was changed (Via God's revelation), he started facing towards Mecca. ... Direction was changed when he was praying on a Saturday along with Jews of Medina.  Revelation came from God(alter ego of the prophet) facing ridicule from the Jews in the congregation.

Look Mr. Rahman, stop exhibiting your shallowness even on things you claim to be an expert on.  Discuss these with someone of your standard, like Chakrabarty, Hannan, Manabdharma etc.  I don't love to post anything for you.  I have expressed it so many times.  Please do me a favor.  Read more and bleat less.
On Thu, Dec 20, 2012 at 6:03 PM, qrahman@netscape.net <qrahman@netscape.net> wrote:
When direction was changed (Via God's revelation), he started facing towards Mecca.


__._,_.___


****************************************************
Mukto Mona plans for a Grand Darwin Day Celebration: 
Call For Articles:

http://mukto-mona.com/wordpress/?p=68

http://mukto-mona.com/banga_blog/?p=585

****************************************************

VISIT MUKTO-MONA WEB-SITE : http://www.mukto-mona.com/

****************************************************

"I disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it".
               -Beatrice Hall [pseudonym: S.G. Tallentyre], 190




Your email settings: Individual Email|Traditional
Change settings via the Web (Yahoo! ID required)
Change settings via email: Switch delivery to Daily Digest | Switch to Fully Featured
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Re: [mukto-mona] Maulana Bhashani: The Majloom Jononeta



Well, you are right. I was not so explicit about our other characters. Most of our political leaders are cartoon like characters with very little convictions.
-SD

 
"All great truths begin as blasphemies." GBS

From: QR <qrahman@netscape.net>
To: mukto-mona@yahoogroups.com
Sent: Tuesday, December 25, 2012 12:49 AM
Subject: Re: [mukto-mona] Maulana Bhashani: The Majloom Jononeta

 
Maulana never been consistent in his thinking. There were times when he sounded like a die-hard proletariat and then, very next day, he was a different man with a different agenda. There was no way to put this Maulana in any political box and declare him as a radical man or damn religious reactionary. I found Mr. Bhasani as an enigmatic politician with no fixed political position.


>>>>>>>>>>> I feel you can say similar things about most of our "National leaders". The ONLY difference is Maulana changed his positions to cater needs for average oppressed people of this country and most others changed positions to get close to power and money.

Just being flexible is NOT a bad thing if your INTENTION is to help people. You can look at lives of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman who started very much part of Muslim league (Thus solder of establishing Pakistan) and changed his position when he realized his people were not being served by the establishment. He also worked to establish democracy in this country but at last part of his life introduced one party system. Similarly Ziaur Rahman was undoubtedly one of the top leaders of our glorious muktijuddho (1971) but later we found him working with ex-Muslim league people like Shah Azizur Rahman. Many Jasad leaders became very much part of the "Establishment". Our current minister of information is one prime example of "Flexibility".

One thing is certain that, Maulana did change his positions to reflect reality around him but no one can say he had any personal gains from it. As a "Real" example of a practicing Muslim he died without much wealth to his name or his family. He served people of his country well and returned to his Maker.

May Allah (SWT) reward him for his service to the people.


Shalom!




-----Original Message-----
From: Sankar Kumar Ray <sankarray62@rediffmail.com>
To: mukto-mona <mukto-mona@yahoogroups.com>; deebee60 <deebee60@gmail.com>; sudebmitra <sudeb.mitra@qc.cuny.edu>; btapan2011 <btapan2011@gmail.com>; Barun Dasgupta <dasguptabarun366@gmail.com>; Aurobindo Banerjee <banerjeeaurobindo@gmail.com>; ashimmr2 <ashimmr@gmail.com>
Sent: Tue, Dec 25, 2012 5:09 am
Subject: Re: [mukto-mona] Maulana Bhashani: The Majloom Jononeta

 
I agree with Deeldar Sahib *:

Maulana Bhashani  was a great leader but his secularism was not consistent. Before leading the agitation against the Farakka Barrage he offered Namaj at a mammoth mosque and threw salvoes against India.Agitation against Farakka was logical but why linking a mosque as if Hindu temples were for Farakka. Two, he wasn't ashamed of endorsing the general secretaryship of Mashiur Rahman a k a Jadu Mian in the National Awami Party (Bhasani grouo). In 1947, when share-croppers (adhiars) held a rally (led by Syed Mansur Habibullah and Saroj Mukherjee - later CPI-M leaders in WBengal) for Tebhaga, Jadu Mian opened fire against them. A pathologically anti-(poor) peasant was Maulana's comrade-in-arms. Three, after visiting China, he gave a statement at the Dacca Airport appealing people to support President Ayyub Khan..
SR

*
Maulana never been consistent in his thinking. There were times when he sounded like a die-hard proletariat and then, very next day, he was a different man with a different agenda. There was no way to put this Maulana in any political box and declare him as a radical man or damn religious reactionary. I found Mr. Bhasani as an enigmatic politician with no fixed political position. He was with the flow and he was there with every movement. When he spoke his mind, we could not make head tail of his words. Overall, he was a good force but not enough to be a consistent and charismatic leader.

Did he steal an ox to revolt against his father? I do not know. If he did, the sin is pretty minor in comparison to many of our other 'Gunodhar" leaders. We got plenty of leaders but their quality are pretty rotten and dismal, the least I can say.


 
From: Shah Deeldar <shahdeeldar@yahoo.com>
Sent: Mon, 24 Dec 2012 04:48:08
To: "mukto-mona@yahoogroups.com" <mukto-mona@yahoogroups.com>, Khobor <khabor@yahoogroups.com>, notun Bangladesh <notun_bangladesh@yahoogroups.com>, "chottala@yahoogroups.com" <chottala@yahoogroups.com>, "bangladesh-progressives@googlegroups.com" <bangladesh-progressives@googlegroups.com>
Subject: Re: [mukto-mona] Maulana Bhashani: The Majloom Jononeta
Maulana never been consistent in his thinking. There were times when he sounded like a die-hard proletariat and then, very next day, he was a different man with a different agenda. There was no way to put this Maulana in any political box and declare him as a radical man or damn religious reactionary. I found Mr. Bhasani as an enigmatic politician with no fixed political position. He was with the flow and he was there with every movement. When he spoke his mind, we could not make head tail of his words. Overall, he was a good force but not enough to be a consistent and charismatic leader.

Did he steal an ox to revolt against his father? I do not know. If he did, the sin is pretty minor in comparison to many of our other 'Gunodhar" leaders. We got plenty of leaders but their quality are pretty rotten and dismal, the least I can say.
-SD     

 
"All great truths begin as blasphemies." GBS

From: SyedAslam <Syed.Aslam3@gmail.com>
To: Khobor <khabor@yahoogroups.com>; notun Bangladesh <notun_bangladesh@yahoogroups.com>; chottala@yahoogroups.com
Sent: Saturday, December 22, 2012 5:34 PM
Subject: [mukto-mona] Maulana Bhashani: The Majloom Jononeta

 
Maulana Bhashani: The Majloom Jononeta
M. WAHEEDUZZAMAN MANIK provides glimpses of the formative phase of the life and struggle of Maulana Bhashani.
Maulana Abdul Hamid Khan Bhashani was aptly called "Majloom Jononeta" (leader of the oppressed) because of his uncompromising commitment to the needs of the poor, landless, peasants, workers, sharecroppers, abandoned, exploited and repressed people of the society. By any measure, his long political struggle was characterised by his selfless dedication for championing the causes of the most underprivileged segments of our society. Throughout almost six decades of a struggling political life, Maulana Bhashani was both a demanding spirit and a fearless voice for emancipation of the humblest, exploited, terrorised, and oppressed citizens against the overwhelming powers of the governmental machinery and the overweening grip of the ruling elite of the society. Indeed, he had to his credit an unblemished and impeccable record of life-long relentless struggle for the downtrodden, the poor, the vulnerable, the neglected, the deserted and the disinherited. Yet his dignified comportment throughout his eventful political struggle had displayed a quintessential bravery, relentlessness and dauntlessness
However, Maulana Bhashani was more than a defender of the peasantry and working class. He was responsible for building up an epoch-making resistance movement against the infamous Line system and the brutish Bangal Kheda movement in colonial Assam. He was both the maker and shaker of political events during the most turbulent years of the then East Pakistan. The seed of politics of opposition and agitation was carefully planted by Maulana Bhashani in the formative years of Pakistan in an era when the overwhelming majority of Muslim population of the then East Bengal was not yet ready to be disillusioned with the euphoria of Pakistan movement. He had played a defining role in the difficult task of building up East Pakistan Awami Muslim League, a viable opposition party in the then Pakistan. Doubtless, his was the fearless dissenting voice in the formative years of Pakistan. He was an active leader of the Bengali language movement. He was one of the chief organisers of the United Front, an electoral alliance that routed the ruling Muslim League party in the 1954 elections. He was not only the authentic founder of the East Pakistan Awami Muslim League (EPAML) but he was also the founder of the National Awami Party (NAP). Therefore, the appearance of Maulana Bhashani in the regressive political scenario of the then East Bengal as the most dauntless dissenting voice and an effective organiser of a sustainable opposition party that was capable of building-up a viable resistance movement against the Punjabi-Mohajir dominated Karachi-anchored Pakistani ruling elite was nothing short of a miracle.
It is part of Bangladesh's robust political history that it was Maulana Bhashani who had organised the historic anti-Ayub movement which took place in late 1968 and early 1969 that prompted and hastened the withdrawal of the infamous Agartala Conspiracy case and the unconditional release of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman from captivity. It is widely acknowledged that he had orchestrated a series of 'gherao' (a form of non-violent sit-in strikes designed to 'encircle' the governmental official against whom a protest was directed) immediately before and during the 1969 student-mass movement eventually led to the shameful downfall of the dictatorial regime of Ayub Khan. Maulana Bhashani's legendary name is also integral part and parcel of Bangladesh's struggle for freedom and independence.
Although Maulana Bhashani was intimately associated with all of the  by Shopping Sidekick" id="yiv828363367_GPLITA_0" target="_blank" href="http://www.thedailystar.net/forum/2012/January/maulana.htm#" style="color:rgb(153,102,102);"progressive movements during the Pakistan era from 1947 to 1971, no attempt has been made to provide any analysis or chronological details of any of those movements within the limited scope of this article. No effort has been made to discuss his fearless role in building-up the EPAML as a viable opposition political party in the then East Pakistan. Rather, the main purpose of this piece is to reflect on the formative phase of Maulana Bhashani's life and political struggle with specific reference to his struggling life up to late 1920s and early 1930s when he made Assam's Brahmaputra valley his place of residence and political struggle. However, a detailed discussion of strategies and tactics of his anti-Line system and anti-Bangal Kheda movement is not possible within the size of this paper. 

Gleanings from his early life
Maulana Bhashani was born in 1885 (circa 1884) at a village named Dhangora within the jurisdiction of Sirajganj subdivision (at present Sirajganj is a district) of the then Pabna district. He was the second son of Alhaj Mohammad Sharafat Ali Khan and Mosammat Majiran Bibi. His father was neither a Zamindar nor a Talukder. Nor was he a Jotedar (intermediary between landlord and peasant) of any kind. Mohammad Sharafat Ali Khan owned a small grocery shop. He also owned a couple of acres of cultivable land. Although he was at best a middle-range farmer when Maulana Bhashani was born, his family status was quite respectable in his village by economic standards of that time. It is believed that he was a religious man who had performed Haj at an early age. According to some accounts, he performed Haj at the age of 35, and it is believed that he had walked from Mecca to Medina barefoot through the desert. The Haji title in those days added prestige not only to the performer of Haj but also added a new status to the family of a Haji.
Alhaj Mohammad Sharafat Ali Khan had named his second son Abdul Hamid Khan. However, Maulana Bhashani was known as Chega Mia during the early phase of his life. From whatever is known about his father and mother, it is plausible to suggest that his father and mother were caring parents. Unfortunately, Chega Mia lost both of his parents when he needed them most. He was hardly five or six years old when his father died at an early age in 1889 leaving behind his wife and young children (three sons and a daughter). Chega Mia (Maulana Bhashani) also lost his grandparents, mother, two brothers, and a sister in an epidemic (cholera) in mid-1890s (most probably in 1894 or in 1895) when he was barely 10 years old. Since he lost both of his parents and his grandfather at a very early phase of his life, he had to journey through a chequered boyhood. Given the fact that his father's untimely demise preceded his grandfather's death, Maulana Bhashani was clearly deprived of his inheritance right to his father's property. He was a student at a junior madrasa for several years but he could not continue his studies due to abject poverty and changed pecuniary circumstance. As a madrasa drop-out, he had no shelter even at his paternal house due to the betrayal of his close relatives. He came to know what hunger and starvation meant as a young boy because he had neither food nor lodge even though his father left behind homestead and cultivable land. So he had started wandering around for several years, and there was no profession left in which he did not try his luck in those trying days.
The orphan son of a mid-range Muslim farmer cum petty grocer and a grandson of a humble peasant, Maulana Bhashani had little reason to anticipate, in those trying times, a dedicated and selfless life of an ardent defender of the oppressed and downtrodden people. As a young disciple of Pir Syed Nasiruddin Shah Baghdadi, he had visited and stayed in Assam in the early years of 1900s (his first visit to Assam is believed to be in 1904). Although his main task in those days was to take care of various household chores of Pir Nasiruddin Baghdadi, Maulana Bhashani had received his basic Islamic education including his skills in the rudiments of Arabic from his association with Pir Syed Nasiruddin Shah Baghdadi. At the behest of this Pir, he had also the rare opportunity to pursue more formal religious education at Deobond Madrasa for almost two years. During his stay at Deobond in 1907-09, he was deeply influenced by Maulana Mahmudul Hasan who was popularly known as 'Shaikhul Hind'. It is being conjectured by most of the biographers of Maulana Bhashani that the progressive Islamic thinkers at Deobond and the liberal traditions of Sufi Islamic preachers might have immensely inspired him to become a fearless fighter against all types of oppression and exploitation including his steep opposition to the perpetuation of British imperialism.
After his return from Deobond, most probably at the end of 1909, Maulana Bhashani started teaching in a primary school which was located at village Kagmari near Tangail town at a monthly remuneration of no more than three rupees. He also taught in a madrasa at village Kala near Haluaghat in Mymensingh district after he had quit his primary school job. Since he used to earn a monthly pittance in both of these places, his pecuniary circumstance had remained sluggish in those days. However, it is fair to suggest that wherever he went to work or live in those almost forgotten years he had demonstrated a knack for getting himself involved with the problems of the common people of that area. For instance, he used to deal with the problems of the poor, the poorest of the poor, the neglected, the hungry, the malnourished and the downtrodden. Maulana Bhashani had a strong desire for motivating and organising the marginal peasants and vulnerable villagers to resist all forms of injustices.
There is little wonder why the targets of his grass root level resistance and protest movements in those days were the Zamindars, Talukders, Jotedars, and Mahajans (money lenders). In fact, the juxtaposition of precarious conditions of the vulnerable tenants vis-à-vis the powerful landed class piqued his interest in the difficult task of defending the peasants, sharecroppers and landless agricultural laborers. If there was a conflict between a tenant (a 'Proja') and a feudal landlord, Maulana Bhashani was always on the side of the tenant. He was not only an ardent defender of the tenants' rights but he was one of the most dedicated and effective organisers of the 'Proja' movement in early 1920s. (Details on the early phase of Maulana Bhashani's life can be gleaned from Chapter I of Syed Abul Maqsud's seminal work titled Maulana Abdul Hamid Khan Bhashani, Bangla Academy, 1994, and Peter Custers' "Maulana Bhashani and the Transition to Secular Politics in East Bengal," The Indian Economic and Social History Review, Vol. XLVII (47), No. 2, April-June, 2010).
Glimpses of the formative phase of his political struggle
Given the fact that the formative phase of Maulana Bhashani's political struggle is a matter of distant past, it is difficult to ascertain the exact day or month or even the year when he got formally inducted into national or regional politics. He had developed both the compassion and organisational experience before he made his debut in national politics after joining the Indian National Congress in 1917. Although there is a paucity of authoritative details of the nature of his involvement in national politics of that time, there is no doubt that Maulana Bhashani actively participated in the Non-Cooperation and the Khilafat movement, and he was imprisoned for a brief period during that time. He was a great admirer of Ali Brothers (Maulana Mohammad Ali and Maulana Shawkat Ali) and Deshbandhu Chitta Ranjan Das. Maulana Bhashani had joined the Swarajya party with great a deal of enthusiasm being immensely impressed by Deshbandhu's charismatic and compassionate leadership style. He worked hard as a grass-root level foot soldier of the short-lived Swarajya party being essentially moved by the magnitude of personal sacrifices of C.R. Das toward achieving sustainable unity between the Hindus and Muslims in Bengal. Like C.R. Das, Maulana Bhashani sincerely believed and worked very hard for forging Hindu-Muslim unity. He was greatly saddened due to the sad and sudden death of C.R. Das on June 25, 1925.
Although Maulana Bhashani got himself involved in national politics in early 1920s, he voluntarily remained chiefly involved in the difficult task of ventilating, articulating and defending the genuine rights of the most vulnerable peasants of the regions wherever he lived in those years. In other words, he preferred to work among the peasants even though he had emerged in national politics before, during and after the Non-Cooperation and Khilafat movements. Maulana Bhashani's leadership experiences in the peasant movements in greater Mymensingh district and in other northern districts of Bengal had invariably played a role in his emergence as a charismatic peasant leader in Assam. Banned from the then greater Mymensingh district and eventually after being expelled from various northern districts of the then Bengal province, Maulana Bhashani settled in Char Bhasan (Gaghmari) of Assam in 1926 (according to some accounts, he took permanent residence in Assam in 1928).
As noted by Amalendu Guha, "After his first political experience reportedly as a Khilafatist and Non-cooperator, he (Maulana Bhashani) discovered that the real interests of the Muslim peasantry of Bengal lay in a consistent struggle against the zamindars and moneylenders, who were mostly Hindus. He did not hesitate to exploit the religious sentiment to organize and unite the oppressed Muslim peasantry, who constituted the overwhelming bulk of the Bengal peasantry. … The itinerant Maulana, with his simple and pious habits and great organizing abilities, was accepted by the rural folk not only as a political leader but also as a Pir (saint), believed to be possessed of occult power. Hounded out of Bengal by the zamindars and the police, he settled down on the wastelands of Ghagmari, a few miles from Dhubri in Assam, and also set up another establishment in Bhashanir-char (or Bhashan char), an island in the Brahmaputra (river). Both (places) were in Goalpara district where (Bengali) settlers already formed a fifth of the population. It was after the name of the latter place (Bhashan Char) that he was nick-named 'the Maulana of Bhashani' or simply 'Bhashani' in due course" (Amalendu Guha, "East Bengal Immigrants and Maulana Abdul Hamid Khan Bhashani in Assam Politics, 1928-'47," The Indian Economic and Social History Review, Volume XIII, No. 4, 1976, p. 426)
Similar views about Maulana Bhashani's intimacy with the peasant movement during the formative stage of his political struggle have been expressed in a recently published article by Peter Custers, a left leaning European scholar. As emphasised by Peter Custers, "Though Bhashani originally hailed from Shirajganj in East Bengal (now Bangladesh), he derived his appellation "Bhashani" from 'char' Bhashan, a low lying area of Assam. It was here, in late (19) twenties, having been forced by the British colonial authorities to seek refuge beyond the borders of Bengal, that Bhashani cleared the jungles to build his own bamboo hut. Already by this time, the fiery theologian had distinguished himself as an opponent of the feudal zamindari system which was the backbone of Britain's rule over Bengal. The Bengal province in the 1920s had seen the emergence of a movement for tenants' rights. The 'proja' movement, protesting unjust impositions by absentee landlords, was actively supported by many rural intellectuals, including lawyers and Islamic preachers. Maulana Abdul Hamid Khan, later to be known as 'Bhashani', was not only an advocate for, but also a key organizer of this movement. In fact, he convened several big peasant gatherings before being compelled to shift his habitation to Assam. In Assam, the Maulana re-emerged as an effective and popular peasant leader, ready to champion the cause of the downtrodden" (Custers, Peter.. "Maulana Bhashani and the Transition to Secular Politics in East Bengal," The Indian Economic and Social History Review, Vol. XLVII (47), No. 2, April-June, 2010, p. 232).
There is no doubt that Maulana Bhashani had become a legendary political figure in Assam in mid-1930s and 1940s. Yet it needs to be underscored that he had Assam connection long before he settled there in later part of 1920s. As a young disciple of Pir Syed Nasiruddin Boghdadi, as noted earlier, he had visited and stayed in Assam in the early years of 1900s. Maulana Bhashani had numerous disciples in Assam even before he permanently migrated there in late 1920s. It is believed that he was a frequent visitor to Brahmaputra valley of Assam in 1920s. He was intimately familiar with the devastating effects of the infamous Line system on the Bengali immigrant peasantry in Assam. He had first-hand knowledge about the deplorable plight of the Bengali Muslim immigrant settlers in Assam before he moved there to live. He also felt the acute need for effectively mobilising and organising the Bengali immigrant settlers throughout the Brahmaputra valley in Assam. In fact, he had realized quite early that his fight against the Line system needs to be backed up by public support and awareness, and his initial efforts were deliberately geared toward garnering such public support. For example, in 1924, Maulana Bhashani had organised a large public meeting of Bengali peasants at "Bhashan Char" (Bhashani Island) of Dubri district. The great success of this mammoth gathering of Bengali migrant settlers in Dubri area had inspired Maulana Bhashani to devote his undivided attention to the task of organising more peasant gatherings and rallies in far flung areas of vast char lands of Brahmaputra valley.
Soon after Maulana Bhashani settled in Assam, he observed that the hardworking Bengali settlers in lower districts of Assam were very vulnerable to all forms of discrimination and exploitation because they were not at all organised to protect their own legitimate rights. It was clear to him that those Bengali immigrant settlers in Assam were not in a position to build up any kind of resistance movement against the government-sponsored discrimination and violence. Although he had never hankered after power or authority, he decided to take that responsibility upon himself to organise and develop a sustainable resistance movement of the immigrant peasants against the overweening powers of the vested interests. Maulana Bhashani's strategy at the initial stage of his struggle against the Line system was to prepare and mobilise the unorganised and vulnerable Bengali immigrant settlers in Assam. He was not willing to waste even a moment in building up a sustainable movement against the infamous Line system.
There was a total absence of any dedicated leadership committed to further the just causes of the migrant settlers in Assam even though some 'Bhadralok' Muslim leaders started showing sympathy for the Muslim immigrants. However, the seasonal or sporadic support or sympathy they had received from the Muslim leaders was at best political posturing before the general elections that were scheduled to be held in Assam in early 1937. Neither the upper class Muslim leaders nor the Bengali-speaking Hindu leaders were the trusted allies of the tormented Bengali Muslim settlers in the Brahmaputra valley. In fact, the educated middle class Bengali speaking people of Assam did not offer any form of tangible support for the legitimate grievances of the Bengali immigrant settlers in Assam. Being apparently disgusted, one Bengali scholar (Amalendu Guha) had characterised the lukewarm support of the Assamese Muslim leaders for the Bengali Muslim immigrant settlers in the Brahmaputra valley as "wordy" and "motivated." However, neither the upper class Bengali speaking Muslim leaders and nor the Bengali Hindu leaders did hesitate to woo the support or sympathy from the Bengali Muslim settlers when the then Assam government made the unilateral determination in 1935 "to close down the Bengali classes" in the schools and "to encourage the setting up of new aided schools exclusively for Bengali children."
Maulana Bhashani started holding numerous community meetings throughout Assam for the purpose of forming a viable resistance movement against the vested interests. It is evident that his intent of holding public gatherings was not only to garner mass support and the public opinions in favour of the disinherited Bengali peasantry in Assam but his initial mobilising efforts in Assam were also designed to convince the vulnerable Bengali immigrant settlers, the victims of the Line system, the paramount importance of binding together in self-defense. For instance, Maulana Bhashani organised a huge 'Krishak Shommelon' (Peasants' Conference) at 'Char Bhashan' in 1929. The chief resolutions of this Conference were as follows: abolition of Line system, moratorium on the Bangal Kheda (Eviction of Bangalees) initiatives, the redress of the atrocities of Raja Probhat Kumar Barua (the Zamindar of Gouripur) over the Bengali Muslim migrants, and the introduction of uniform of weighing system throughout Assam (In fact, Maulana Bhashani's serious efforts later led to the adoption of uniform weight system in Assam).
Maulana Bhashani devoted most of his efforts from 1929 through 1935-'37 toward building up numerous organisations of Bengali immigrants throughout Brahmaputra valley. Specifically, he had formed many peasant organisations for the sole purpose of articulating their demands. He also organised the agricultural laborers and landless peasants of Assam through the formation of "Assam Chashi Majoor Samiti" in 1937. During this period, Maulana Bhashani also started holding inter-provincial peasant conferences both in Assam and Bengal districts. For instance, Maulana Bhashani had assembled the 'Bangla-Assam Proja Sommelon' (Bengal-Assam Tenants' Conference) in 1932 at Sirajgunj of the then Pabna district. One of the professed objectives of holding the inter-provincial tenants' and peasants' conference was to sensitise the people of the neighbouring Bengal about the discriminatory policies and initiatives of the Assam Government against the Bengali immigrant settlers in Assam. According to Amalendu Guha, "From 1928 to 1936, while still maintaining his contacts with Bengal, Bhashani used to move up and down the Brahmaputra to visit the riverside immigrant Muslim villages in accessible areas of Assam and organised them on the basis of a peasant programme including the demand for land. The colonisation of Ghagmari and Bhashanir char was due to his own personal efforts. People, suffering under the oppression of zamindars in Bengal, were in any case flocking to Assam in large numbers in order to settle on its beckoning wasteland. By 1936, Bhashani emerged as the accredited leader of the Muslim immigrants of Goalpara. He stood (contested) as a candidate in the 1937 election and returned to the Assam Legislative Assembly, formed under the Act of 1935. He (Maulana Bhashani) remained an important figure in Assam politics during the next ten years" (Amalendu Guha, "East Bengal Immigrants and Maulana Abdul Hamid Khan Bhashani in Assam Politics, 1928-'47," The Indian Economic and Social History Review, Volume XIII, No. 4, 1976, p. 427).
Doubtless, the emergence of Maulana Bhashani as the ardent defender of the Bengali immigrant peasantry in Assam was spectacular. As a saviour of his fellow Bengali immigrant settlers in Assam, he had organised a viable resistance movement against both the Line system and the brutish Bangal Kheda movement in 1930s and 1940s. His was the most trusted voice during the agonising years of tears and fears of the repressed Bengali immigrant peasantry in the Brahmaputra valley of Assam. He relentlessly fought against all odds for establishing their rights in the desolated regions of Assam. Maulana Bhashani dedicated himself for a period of at least two decades for ventilating their fair grievances and articulating their legitimate demands. His defiance of the infamous Line system and his fight against the vicious 'Banglal Kheda' policies and ploys of the then Assam Government made him a charismatic leader in Assam and a 'folk hero' in his own time. Since Maulana Bhashani was one of the tormented Bengali immigrant settlers in Assam, his resistance movement can be characterised as the bold and creative defiance and mass rejection of various anti-immigration policies and ploys of the then Assam Government.
***
The cherished yearning of Maulana Bhashani's early life and political struggle in the then greater Mymensingh district and in various districts of northern Bengal was to free the marginal cultivators, sharecroppers, and agricultural laborers from the yoke of the local landlords and their intermediaries and the money lenders. His struggle in the early phase of his political life both in northern districts of Bengal and the lower Assam districts can be characterised as a grassroots struggle for social justice. The emergence of Maulana Bhashani as the most charismatic peasant leader in Assam at a critical juncture was nothing short of a miracle for the discriminated and repressed Bengali peasantry in Assam. His grassroots level efforts towards building organisational infrastructures in rural regions of Bengal and Assam brought the most neglected and vulnerable segments of the society from periphery to the centre of the political spectrum.
There were a variety of voices against the infamous Line system and the brutish Bangal Kheda movement (also known as Bangal Kheda movement). There had been no dearth of criticisms of various anti-Bengali policies and ploys of the then Assam Government. Yet it was Maulana Bhashani who had emerged as the most selfless and dauntless champion of the most repressed and underprivileged Bengali peasantry in Assam. Indeed, his political struggle in Assam was deliberately designed and launched to dismantle the infamous Line system and to establish a moratorium on the Bangal Kheda movement. His heroic defiance of the Line system and his protracted fight against the Bangal Kheda ploys of then Assam Government represented one of the most courageous and principled stands for establishing the legitimate rights of the Bengali speaking immigrants in Assam. Maulana Bhashani's homegrown, community based resistance movement against the Line system and the Bangal Kheda movement was deliberately designed by him to be a movement of the Bengali peasantry, for the Bengali peasantry, and by the Bengali peasantry in Assam.
Doubtless, Maulana Bhashani was a catalyst of the most authentic movement for accruing or establishing both civil and political rights of the Bengali immigrants in colonial Assam. His relentless fight for the salvation of the toiling masses and his uncompromising resolve to fight against all forms of discrimination, oppression, exploitation and injustices had actually rendered credible voices to the most repressed Bengali immigrants in Assam. Maulana Bhashani had imparted a heritage of simple lifestyle, selfless and untainted leadership, and uncompromising resolve to fight for social justice. As the founder of a sustainable resistance movement against the Line system and the Bangal Kheda movement, Maulana Bhashani provided a path-breaking service for the vulnerable Bengali immigrant settlers throughout Brahmaputra valley of Assam. His organised resistance movement against the brutish Line system not only had to overcome the hopelessness and fearlessness of the Bengali immigrant settlers in lower Assam districts but also had to confront the internalised psychological damage that the Government-sponsored Bangal Kheda drive had inflicted on those tormented souls.
Dr. M. Waheeduzzaman (Manik) is a Professor and the Chair of the Department of Public Management and Criminal Justice at Austin Peay State University in Clarksville, Tennessee, USA and can be reached at zamanw@apsu.edu');" >zamanw@apsu.edu.
http://www.thedailystar.net/forum/2012/January/maulana.htm
Inline image 2
Inline image 3
[Maulana Abdul Hamid Khan Bhashani & Bongobondhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman in 1972.
see Tofail Ahmed in the behind]

On Wed, Dec 19, 2012 at 6:43 AM, Abid Bahar <abid.bahar@gmail.com');" >abid.bahar@gmail.com> wrote:
 
" BHASANI WAS A THIEF" SAYS KAMAL DAS, A MUKTOMONA
Abid Bahar

Was Bhasani a thief? One Muktomona secular Hindu gentleman named Kamal Das lately claimed that Bhasani was indeed a thief. Kamal Das is not a street vendor or a vagabond in a cafe shop, he is muktomona and a professor at the university of Chittagong.  

 Who was Bhasani? Bhasani was the founder of Awami Muslim League, Awami League and the NAP party. He also founded the Ittifaque. Both Awami League and the Ittifaq were the two institutions that led to Bengali's fight against Pakistan. Bhasani was a fatherly figure to Sheikh Mujib. Bhasani' led the 1969 mass uprising using the "gherao movement" which led to the fall of Ayub and this also led to the release of Mujib from being hanged by the Pakistani government. Bhasani was fighting against oppressive regimes of his time.

(1) Unfortunately, Das of Muktomona says "Bhashani was a thief ...!" Well, he says " Being reprimanded by his father he left his house after he stole and sold his ox. "

Abul Maksud the biographer of Bhasani says otherwise that Bhasanl's father died when he was five years old ( Maksud, p. 12). We wonder how  a 5 year old child could steal and to sell his ox. It appears that, Kamal Das is a proto historian with Mukto mona's BJP style historian's communal tools. 

(2) Das also says:  "He ( Bhasani) was never a certified Maulana, learned Arabic by rote of the 'Holy Quran'.

Here also Das failed to understand Bhasani. A better understanding of Islamic culture and Bhasani's life would show that Bhasani was originally " Chega Mia" and Abdul Hamid Khan was his real name. He had attended Deoband madrassa but for his disliking didn't complete the diploma. When he returned back to his pir in Assam, Bhasani's followers called him the "Maulana." Like the title "Bhasani", "Maulana" was a given "title" by his followers, not a diploma. It was never seen by Bhasani or his followers except ignorant people like Kamal as a diploma.

Normally Sufi's are trained by their masters. They hardly require to be trained by the orthodox ullama based religious institutions. This type of Islamic education by Sufi pirs
makes it different from the madrassa educated Ullama. Bhasani was a Sufi pir.

(3) As claimed by Das, Bhasani was not an opportunist. When the Pakistani army was marching toward Tangail to capture " the Kafir" Bhasani they called he in the guise of a refugee mingled with people and crossed the border to India. His house was burnt to ashes. This is when Kamal Das's "debota" Mujib was "dressed up" to surrender to the Pakistan army and was in Pakistan during the entire liberation war.  Bhasani as a rebel leader led the war and remained in Calcutta as the adviser to the Bangladesh government in exile. Later on Bhasani was kept in house arrest by the Indian government when he began preaching for a united Bengal.

(4) Unfortunate that Das, the Muktomona style historian also calls Bhasani an opportunist and greedy leader. This has been the official version of Muktomona about Bhasani.

As opposed to that understanding, history records that unlike most Bangladeshi politicians, Bhasani lived in hut and dined like a Bengali peasant of what was brought for him by his Sufi Sagrits. We know that Bhasani didn't leave anything for his family. He wasn't greedy at all. For this proletarian life style he was branded by westerners as " the Gandhi of Bangladesh."  It is recorded that Bhasani was in the hospital and Ispahani went to see him. Bhasani was very annoyed when Ispahani proposed to give him two houses one in Dhaka and another one in Karachi. He advised Isphani to donate the money in the welfare of his workers.
 

(5) No doubt Kamal Das in the garb of a secularist is a BJP style communal person to propagate lies about Bhasani. This Das is not alone in misrepresenting Bhasani. Bhasani for criticizing BKSAL policies of extrajudicial killing etc. Moni Singh (a closet Indian agent) and a leading member of the BKSAL also threatned him and said he "would destroy Bhasani and cut him into pieces and remove him from the land of Bengal."(E. A. Hossain, p. 5). No doubt, this was Moni Singh's Stalinist fascist expression against a Sufi spiritual leader of Bangladesh.  For Bhasani's fight against Indian aggression, Bhasani was branded by Moni Singh as being "communal-minded." However, in Bhasani's words: "By falsely branding me as communal -minded person they keep me under arrest. For my non communal role, they called me "the agent of India." In my life I have been through so many abuses. Today they propagate that I am communal minded but when I was the president of the Awami League party, I had five Hindus chosen as ministers who are: Monoranjon Dhar, Dhrendra Dhatta, Kamini Kumar Datta, Basenta Kumar Das and one Sutra Dhar. (. The Weekly Haq Khota, May 12, 1972.)

(6)
I wouldn't go any further to respond to Kamal Das who seems to be ignorant and follows the Indian understanding of Bangladesh history. There are many other instances of such false understanding of Bhasani. The Jugantar (from Calcutta) characterized Bhashani as being "dishonest, ungrateful, communal minded and an Indian enemy." T

(7) Bhasani was loved by these India-lovers when he led his fight against Pakistan. It all changed when Bhasani led his movement against Mujib's pro-Indian BKSAL one party dictatorship and his Farakka march against India's dam building projects in the upper reaches of Bangladesh.

Finally, Bhasani was  the great spiritual leader of Bangladesh who lived a selfless life and his struggle was against "jalem" (oppressor) for its julum (oppression). That be by Pakistan, India or any other imperalist forces. Obviously, after the independence he was fighting against Indian aggression. No doubt the communal forces in India-lovers would misrepresent Bhasani. Strange but true, some like Kamal Das even would even call him a "thief." Bhasani said: Freedom struggle continues..." True, this time his message was against the Indian collaborators (Bharotio razakars) who are devoted to make Bangladesh a dependent state of India.







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Mukto Mona plans for a Grand Darwin Day Celebration: 
Call For Articles:

http://mukto-mona.com/wordpress/?p=68

http://mukto-mona.com/banga_blog/?p=585

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VISIT MUKTO-MONA WEB-SITE : http://www.mukto-mona.com/

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"I disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it".
               -Beatrice Hall [pseudonym: S.G. Tallentyre], 190




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