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But Congresswoman Gabbard (hereafter referred to as “Tulsi”) has been a practicing Hindu since her teens. Specifically, she is a Vaishnava. According to India Abroad, she is a student of Sidhasvarupananda, who was himself initiated into the Brahma Madhva Gaudiya Sampradaya by ISKCON Founder A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada.

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Hero-worship is in the Hindu tradition, and unless the hero is considered a direct enemy of the Indian cause -- like Churchill -- every dictator has the sympathy of mnay orthodox Hindus. This is a phenomenon of some complexity, but not really hard to explain. There is the avatara idea -- in every powerful man there is a segment of the cosmic power which manifested itself in the god-kings and heroes of the epic and of mythology. (Mahabharata, Ramayana, the Puranas-Corboy)

Hitler was particularly popular, especially with the politicaly aggressive, for he trounced the British, at least in the beginning; he proclaimed the superiority of the Aryan (this being a Sanskrit word denoting the Hindu as he sees himself) and he was a leader of the Sanskrit-knowing Germans.

(In his travels, on foot and by train through the subcontinent, travels that included attendance at the Kumbhmela of 1954 at Allahabad, Bharati met man very many Indians who were convinced that Germans learned Sanskrit in school)

"I argued against this enthusiasm" Bharati tells us "and have asked enthusiasts, both monastic and lay, how they thought Hitler's deeds and attitudes compatible with ahimsa (non-harmful behavior) and how they explained the dislike of Gandhi and Nehru for Hitler?

"The answers were always in the same jargon: When honour is threatened, when silence could be interpreted as cowardice, and when the inner spirit tells teh leader to act, then ahimsa takes on a different meaning.

"As in Krsna's counsel to Arjuna ( in the Bhagavad Gita - that text so beloved of the Krishnas and of ISKON) As in Krnsa's counsel to Arjuna, there is a higher sort of ahimsa, which that there is no killing even in killing, that is when the spirit has realized its oneness with the Supreme, and so forth.

(Agehananda Bharati The Ochre Robe, page 214. 1980 2d edition

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Sixty years ago, Agehananda Bharati, when a student in a Ramakrishna monastery, caught the professor making textual errors when teaching from a Sanskrit text. Unlike the other students, Bharati had enough background that he knew when the instructor was making a mistake and dared, despite being an underling, to point this out

I learned the stereotypical method of rebuttal common to all* traditions of religious doctrine in India: The moment discursive thought (that is, thought that is based on reaching a conclusion through use of reason and verifiable/falsifiable evidence) would jeopardize the axiomatic perfection of the text, the critic is given a simple line:

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‘Your argument may be intellectually valid but what of it? Only those who have seen the light can see the consistency of the text. Only those who have experienced the truth from within can see that intellectual argument is of no avail in the end.’

Bharati commented,

"this would hardly be objectionable were the atmosphere among Indian scholastics purely non-discursive (that is if they were in a state of enlightenment 100% of the time and used intuitive, non-rational methods of thought 100% of the time).

But this is not true: the theologians avail themselves of refined scholastic argument all the time, but they jettison all of it the moment their axioms are impugned.’ (Bharati, The Ochre Robe pp. 132-133)

Corboy note) In other words, the evasiveness Bharati described seems analogous to losing baseball team suddenly declaring that they are actually winning, not losing, because all along they’ve playing football, not baseball—and the other team is unenlightened and does not appreciate this.

**What Bharati describes can be easily abused and twisted into the various ‘thought stopping’ techniques endemic to cults. What made Bharati’s observation so very radical was his discovery that this ‘shuffle’ was NOT perpetrated by just a few charlatans or rogue scholars; he found this particular evasion tactic was commonly practiced throughout the Indian spiritual scene.

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I claim that the way we - how should I put it? - the way to imagine any radical social change was opened by this logic, which again is not the logic of this eternal circular movement, the logic of disturbed and reestablished balance, where we are part of some large chain of being; but it's the logic of miracle, miracle not in the religious sense - I'm a materialist, to avoid misunderstanding - but miracle in the sense of you can begin from the zero point.

(Social change becomes thinkable, becomes possible. Personal change -conversion-- becomes possible. Corboy)

We are not caught in an eternal movement. To be good does not mean to be identified to your place. And it's here I claim that human rights begin.

Human rights do not mean you have your proper place and dignity comes to you through being identified to that place. (vide the Hindu concept of the varnas--Brahmins from Vishnus' head, Khstryas from Vishnus hands

Human rights means precisely, no, you are something independently of your proper place. Which is why every proper right-winger or proto-fascist always insists on one thing.

This is the eternal organicist metaphoric of fascism or proto-fascism, that society is kind of a mega-organism, a body where the key to order is that everyone has to stick to his or her own place, and things go wrong when people want directly to participate at the universal dimension.

While again, democracy, if this term has any meaning today, begins precisely when you have a direct access to the Absolute, where, independently of your place in this destructive, violent outburst you can acquire a distance towards the specific social structure.

Because of this, against today's onslaught of New Age neo-paganism, it seems to me both theoretically productive and politically salient to stick to this Judaeo-Christian logic.

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The Four Varnas


Although every Hindu must follow general moral codes, each has individual duties according to his or her own nature. These are called sva-dharma, literally "own duties." They are regulated by the system of four varnas (social classes) and four ashrams (stages of life).

The ideal varnasrama system is discussed here. (For more information on actual practice and related issues of caste and untouchability; please see Reincarnation and Samsara). Below we list the main duties of each of the four varnas.

Shudras (Artisans and Workers)
The shudras are the only section of society allowed to accept another's employment; other varnas are occupationally and financially self-sufficient.

To render service to others.
To take pride in their work and to be loyal.
To follow general moral principles, (e.g. not to steal).
To marry (the only compulsory rite of passage).
Vaishyas (Farmers, Merchants, and Business People)
The vaishyas are the productive class. They and the two varnas below are called twice-born, indicating that they accept the sacred thread (symbolising spiritual initiation) and must perform certain rituals and rites of passage.

To protect animals (especially cows), and the land.
To create wealth and prosperity.
To maintain workers with abundant food, clothes, etc.
To trade ethically.
To give taxes to the kshatriyas (ruling class).
Kshatriyas (Warriors, Police, and Administrators)
The kshatriyas are the nobility, the protectors of society. Though permitted a number of privileges, they are expected to display considerable strength of body and character.

To protect the citizens from harm, especially women, children, cows, brahmanas, and the elderly.
To ensure that the citizens perform their prescribed duties and advance spiritually.
To be the first into battle and never to flee the battlefield.
To be true to their royal word.
To never refuse a challenge.
To develop noble qualities such as power, chivalry, and generosity.
To levy taxes (from the vaishyas only) and to never accept charity under any circumstances.
To take counsel, especially from the brahmanas.
To know the scriptures, especially the artha-shastras.
To deal uncompromisingly with crime and lawlessness.
To take responsibility for shortcomings in their kingdom.
To conquer their own minds and senses and to enjoy only according to scriptural injunction.
To beget an heir.
Brahmanas (Priests, Teachers, and Intellectuals)
The brahmanas provide education and spiritual leadership. They determine the vision and values of any society. Traditionally their basic needs were fulfilled so that they could dedicate themselves to their spiritual tasks.They are expected to live very frugally.

To study and teach the Vedas.
To perform sacrifice and religious ceremonies, and teach others how to perform such rituals.
To accept alms and also give in charity.
To offer guidance, especially to the kshatriyas.
To provide medical care and general advice free of charge.
To know Brahman (spirit, the self, God).
To never accept paid employment.
To develop all ideal qualities, especially honesty, integrity, cleanliness, purity, austerity, knowledge and wisdom.
Scriptural Passages





Bhagavad-gita 3.35

"Brahmanas, kshatriyas, vaishyas, and shudras are distinguished by the qualities born of their own nature in accordance with the three material qualities."

Bhagavad-gita 18.41

See also: Bhagavad-gita 2.31–8, 4.13, 18.41–8

Related Values and Issues
Duties, rights and responsibilities
A classless society
Moral dilemmas
Related Stories
Many in the Epics. They usually relate to the warrior dharma, and also give insight into the characteristics of genuine brahmanas.

Personal Reflection
Is a classless society the only solution to social exploitation?
Do these four varnas apply to Hinduism only?
Does a teacher need to develop particular values? How do they relate to the list given above?
Do you agree that education is a leadership role, and should be given greater priority than administration?
Why do you think that brahmanas are not meant to accept a salary? What is the principle behind this?
Common Misunderstandings

The system of four varnas was a man-made structure based on one group exploiting others

Hindu scholars contend that the original system was based on co-operation, mutual service to God, and commensurate rights and responsibilities. For example, although the warriors had great wealth and power, they were expected to be first into battle. The learned, brahmana class were given even greater respect but were required to have full control over mind and senses.

(Invoking a lost Golden Age. Right now in India there is nasty violence by high caste Hindus against Dalits--the former outcastes)

Dharma is considered the ultimate say in moral issues
This is true, but needs careful understanding. Dharma is to be applied with consideration (See Common Misunderstandings, in the Values in Practice section).The whole Mahabharata explores the nuances of dharma, and how difficult it can be to determine what is right action. When there is confusion, decisions are usually made in consultation with brahmins and other spiritual authorities

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When in the Course of human events, it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another, and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature's God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation.

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.

--That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed,

--That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness.

Prudence, indeed, will dictate that Governments long established should not be changed for light and transient causes; and accordingly all experience hath shewn, that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable, than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed.

But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future security.

—Such has been the patient sufferance of these Colonies; and such is now the necessity which constrains them to alter their former Systems of Government.