Do you have to be Indian to be Hindu?

I fully agree, there's nothing in the Vedas about the untouchables or racism between other castes. Castes were intended so that people did what their family had original did in the thought that a 5th generation farmer would be better at farming than business or being a temple priest and also so people married people from similar backgrounds which would mean they would have more in common and would be less likely to have marital problems. However the reality is far from the truth and Hinduism has been used by the Brahmin to keep the lower castes down, the same as rich people in west have done to poor people. I'm just saying that Hinduism looks like a great religion to westerners who see it as all tolerant and great, but for those born Hindus it's not all that rosie, but as you pointed out it's the same with Christianity, just not to the same extent.

 

I agree with you that western people may look at it all through rose tinted specs, seeing only partial aspects of what Hinduism is in actual practice. But I think westerners are also in a different position in relation to Hindu teachings than Indians anyway. I don't know how successfully a western person living in the west can really 'become a Hindu'. I'm not even sure what that would mean.
Myself, I've been interested in aspects of Indian philosophy and culture, yoga teachings and such things, for a number of years, and I've done some amount of practices which derive from that. But am I a Hindu? I don't think so.
I'm really a follower of the path of inner consciousness - my way has led me in this direction, and others too. I dislike a lot of this rigid external labelling of people as 'Hindu' 'Buddhist' 'Christian'. All these teachings have proven interesting to me, and all have their own validity.
I'm also into human rights issues, and I am well aware of the plight of so called un-touchables and lower castes in India, as well as the appalling poverty and working conditions of many Indian workers, and India's many other problems.
In a way, it's only if one is prepared to throw away the rose tinted specs that one can begin to disentangle what is good and what is bad. In any culture.

 

"Hinduism" is the culture and a material designation, sanatana-dharma is the spiritual essence. An Eskimo who never comes out of his igloo can understand and practice sanatana-dharma.

 

It's seeing that though. Rather than the surface of 'Hinduism', which can be seen by some in an overly romantic kind of way. But Sanatana Dharma for me includes every way that leads to God. Christianity is Sanatana Dharma too. So is Buddhism...

 

Carlos Santana mostly though has new age beliefs which is kind of an amalgamation of hindu, christian, buddhist, etc. I like his older stuff more than his newer stuff. His stuff he did with John McGlaughlin as the Maha Vishnu Orchestra is cool.

 

Thats whe he was calling himself Devadip, and was into Sri Chimnoy. Don't really like Santana at that period.

 

Really the one who knows himself to be a fool is ofcourse most intelligent, one who has not come to that stage will mistaken it for something else.

 

You see thats why we rock, we allow everyone into this country, unlike a little island I know . (okay, i am just kidding)

 

Actually I don't think the USA allows just anyone in.
Here in Britain there is a very wide mix of ethnic groups - muslims, hindus, sikhs, west-indians, and these days many migrant workers from eastern europe. Thing is, this is only a small and already overpopulated island, whilst America has plenty of space.
Myself I welcome the diversity of the uk - I think if you give it 200 years or so, we'll have a predominantly coffee-coloured population. The dominance of the anglo-saxon will be at an end, as will any supposed dominance of the church.