While re-reading the decisive role played by the great Nelson Mandela (may his Atma be liberated) in shaping the destiny of his once-divided nation, I could not help but see the similarity to the present situation in India.
Mandela was the voice of native Africans oppressed by a racist minority that was supported covertly and overtly by powerful forces in the west, and also by monotheist scripture. His people were oppressed for centuries by white rule and their native knowledge systems digested or destroyed. The system of apartheid, that has biblical blessings, was used to eradicate native black culture and rights.
Modi has travelled far, but he also has a lot more to do, but already, he is the voice and the unifying force of the dharmic, peaceful, and pluralistic peoples that have formed the heterogeneous majority of India over many a millennium. However, they are controlled by a west-sponsored Stalinist-Nehruvian minority that has looted India for more than 60 years and stays in power by the vice of divisive vote banks that perverts democracy. The intellectual wing of this militant leftist minority (who self-deprecatingly mock themselves as 'liberals') have borrowed the racist Aryan-race and Aryan-language theory that Mandela's captors so cherished, to divide India and allowed their white sponsors to intervene in India's fault-lines (read 'Breaking India'). The leftist monopoly over the discourse and media, the appeasement of fundamentalist monotheism, promotion of divisive racist fiction (Aryan/Dravidian) under the garb of secularism, the targeted shaming of innocent people over their dharmic faiths, entrapment of their Gurus for propaganda, weakening their educational and leadership institutions, the takeover of their temples, the divisive anti-Hindu legislations, the digestion of indigenous knowledge systems of its artisans and Rishis into Western monoculture, the ethnic cleansing and takeover in Kashmir and Assam, the fundamentalist Christian (missionary) activity that is destroying the social fabric in many parts of India, the institutionalization of poverty ...the list is endless. There is more than enough evidence to suggest that the dharmic peoples of India live in bondage despite gaining political independence, and have been persecuted based on a policy that looks, smells, and feels like apartheid. The similarities are quite shocking, frankly. Let us today resolve to fight this apartheid in India.
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Narendra was born in poverty in an economically backward community, worked humble blue-collar jobs and rose up the ranks despite all odds (If not for the single reason that he acknowledged his deep faith in dharmic ideals and patriotism, his lotus feet would've been worshipped by leftists and secularists, and they would be constructing his statue of unity!). He wandered through many parts of India to obtain a grass-roots level understanding of the Indian society and its problems. For the last twelve years, he has been vilified and made a target of a concocted witch hunt for the riots of Gujarat that was triggered by the burning alive of scores of innocent Hindu pilgrims, including women and children by an Islamic mob, encouraged by their 'liberal' protectors. It has now been acknowledged that Evangelists and leftists in the US teamed up to deny him a visa. Now it is also clear to everybody, except the the chauvinists, that he was not responsible for the 2002 riots. Moreover, what is now becoming increasingly known, thanks to the internet, is that this left "liberal" minority was actually responsible for instigating or participating in several pogroms (not riots) such as the one in 1984) that have been orders of magnitude more disastrous in terms of the human toll and the divisiveness it has caused to India. In fact, it is also reocgnized that Modi saved the lives of thousands of Haj pilgrims via his decisive actions during the riots. These stage-managed attacks have only made Modi stronger.
Nelson's imprisonment for 27 years is well known. What many do not know is that the US regarded him as a villain and placed him and his followers on a terror list until just 5 years ago. The decades of imprisonment did not break Nelson, but only made him more determined.
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Modi, a Gujarati, is inspired by Swami Vivekananda, and Mahatma Gandhi (who was inspired by Vivekananda), and Sanathana dharma.
Mandela was also inspired by the Gujarati Gandhi, other Indians, and it is now known, how the Hindu festival of Deepavali lit a lamp in Mandela's heart and mind during his incarceration. Many Indians of Gujarati origin reside in Africa, and contribute to the continent's prosperity.
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Nelson was a unifying force for his peoples and polarized world opinion into taking a clear moral stance on whether they were for, or against apartheid.
Similarly, Narendra has unified those who consider India to be their 'Bharat Mata', and polarized opinion - those who want the destructive western proxy rule in India to continue, and those who want India to take control of its own destiny.
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Modi's idea of development based politics and dharma-based messaging is inclusive of all Indians, including equal roles for women and men, young and old, rural and urban, and is a wonderful living example of India's pluralism. He has been very clear in not blaming the present day citizens of India who are born in the religions of India's invaders. He has demonstrated his commitment to the Indian concept of dharma-Sapeksha (not the silly Marxist import of secularism, which is dharma-nirpeksha) by showing no fear or favor to any community while making policy. He has lived his talk, and today, Gujarat is the best example in India, of what a positive, corruption-free, optimistic approach to governance can achieve.
Mandela's efforts in the reconciliation of the native majority and white minority, and his work resulted in a stable South Africa that is called a "rainbow nation". He did not launch a revenge campaign against the white minority after coming to power, and instead proposed a unified model of growth and prosperity that has worked well so far.
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I can go on, but these few examples will suffice for now.
Long Live NeMa. Namaste to NaMo. There are many differences between them, but both have exhibited a grace under pressure that has been unmatched in recent times.
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