Kabul to Kanyakumari:
The mindset in general of all South Asian people, all the more the upper and middle strata was fashioned by three historical processes. Native unrest, Islam, and Colonialism.
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Layer 1: Native Unrest
An innate sense of disorderliness and exclusivity expected from a land and a people, where exists only an entry door for continuous migrations and invasions, with none or hardly any exit, or sometimes even the time to adjust.
This unrest and this disorderliness – which very much includes Aryanization, rather Sanskritization of the largely native Indian people – exists as a substratum irrespective of any kind of struggles, changes, developments, influences or inspirations.
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Layer 2: Islam
A millennium of Islam via Arab-Turkic-Mongol rule impressing upon the people. Both Muslims and Non-Muslims alike. Its Arab desert patriarchal insecurities and injunctions, intermixed with the utter insensitivity and ruthlessness of the Turks.
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Layer 3: Colonialism
All of this is superimposed by Victorian propriety passed on by the British rule – and a sense of infused inferiority complex even if expressed as super-superiority.
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So here we are a uniformly – across nationality, religion, race, caste and gender – a disorderly and exclusivist people suffering internally from inferiority complex often sprouting as super-superiority, and externally holding on to an archaic value system and social propriety that serves no good to anybody.
In conclusion,
Kabul to Kanyakumari, we were a very accommodating system that encompasses a heterogeneous mix of practices, rituals, religions, philosophies… The reason why we were repeatedly invaded and colonized is I feel more due to
(1) continuous infighting among Indian kings and constantly fluctuating borders,
(2) No one joining the army except a minuscule who belong to the Kshatriya community,
(3) and something we share with the rest of the world. Utter unpreparedness to the ruthless and non-stop hordes of Turks and finally
(4) Also, our inferior weaponry (mostly bows and arrows and spears against what the Turks had… and one more reason,
(5) In India, war was mostly a sport. irrespective of who was winning or losing, it did not change ground issues or disturb life. So, we had no comprehension of a war that loots and rapes people and desecrates their temples and gods
-By Sarat Kasyap
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