I have gone through this book as well as the others that Donniger has published. I Kinda like her point of views and it always stimulate thoughs and internal discussions within oneself.
Patnaik tries to turn table against objections without being able to examine the issue in question. Offense is what the book causes - it is not a question of disagreement, it is a question of someone's locus standi to say something. Is Doniger trained in any of the subjects she is talking of? And if one is to say Penguin publishes nonsense and does not deserve any credibility to be discussed within academics, then this book would not have received any criticism. But that is not the case - which is why an objection and question of the author is essential. Doniger's retreat when asked to defend her ideas is much less academic or professional. She must either stand by what she says or take it back. It is not a novel she published, after all. Patnaik talks like a layman - as if it is the objecting people who are propagating hate and intolerance. Get basics right, Patnaik.
Re: Where exactly is hate?
by Divakar Shetty on Feb 17, 2014 04:58 PM
Inidan Inttelectuals always things, any body can spit on Hindus, they can say anything on hinduism, they can interpret the way they feel but we cannot say anything against them. We should love them, alternatively,we should not even wisheper anything against other religions, thier Gods, then we are fundamentalists!
All this discussion is giving Wendy Doniger a huge amount of free publicity for her next book!! Is that what everyone want. People are up in arms because a reputable publisher like Penguin has published something filled with complete inaccuracies - including wrong references!! Factual inaccuracies written and published by such organisation can and often come to be accepted as fact by many people. It is nothing to do with being a Hindu and please dont brand every critic of her work as a "Fundamentalist". We should not accept blatantly wrong "facts" written by her. I would have preferred that the book had flopped in the shops rather than being banned. Every one is entitled to his or her opinion as does Doniger. But to pass it off as fact is criminal. I think we should stop discussing her work as that of a failed author trying to make business out of controversy.
All this discussion is giving Wendy Doniger a huge amount of free publicity for her next book!! Is that what everyone want. People are up in arms because a reputable publisher like Penguin has published something filled with complete inaccuracies - including wrong references!! Factual inaccuracies written and published by such organisation can and often come to be accepted as fact by many people. It is nothing to do with being a Hindu and please dont brand every critic of her work as a "Fundamentalist". We should not accept blatantly wrong "facts" written by her. I would have preferred that the book had flopped in the shops rather than being banned. Every one is entitled to his or her opinion as does Doniger. But to pass it off as fact is criminal. I think we should stop discussing her work as that of a failed author trying to make business out of controversy.
Consider this: if the book was about Allah or Mohemad, _and_ written in the same distasteful manner with equally vulgar interpretations, how would things have unfolded ?
Death threats to the author, protests all over the world, American flags burning, maybe a few attacks on the US Embassies. Maybe even her murder.
But all this didn't happen.
Instead, someone got offended. If you argue that some has the right to offend, others should also be granted the right to 'get offended'. The person filed a legal case.
Penguin decided, for whatever reasons, that it was not worth fighting the case. Perhaps, they realized how 'scholarly' the work really was. They withdrew the book.
No guns fired. No one killed. No dharnas, no death threats.
Only intense scholarly debate (ignore the MSM).
How else would you have wanted things to proceed for a cheap piece of writing, trying to pass off as scholarly work ?
