Hinduism And Modern Issues , Part I

Hinduism on LGBTQ  Community 

More Progressive Than You Assume

Most of the world views Eastern religions and ideologies as narrow-minded, orthodox, unprogressive and conservative. But a certain Eastern religion is much more accepting and progressive than we realise. 

Hinduism is the world's third-largest religion, with approximately 1.1 billion Hindus worldwide, and it constitutes 15% of the world population. Hinduism is a prominent religion in the Indian subcontinent and surrounding islands. Roughly 95 % of the world’s Hindus live in India. Hinduism is unique in that it’s not a single religion but a compilation of many traditions and philosophies. Because the religion has no specific founder, it’s difficult to trace its origins and history. But most Hindus argue that the religion is a 'Sanatana Dharma', which means eternal faith, others say that Hinduism is not a religion at all, it is a culture. The English word 'religion' cannot entirely encompass what Dharma is, but it is the closest to the true meaning of the word. Note that the religion itself and the religious society have varying , and sometimes contradicting views. Thus, for the sake of convenience, in this piece of writing Hinduism will be looked at through the Western lens of religion, and the views of the core religion, not the modern religious society following it, will be discussed.

In India , the conservative Hindu right, when justifying their stand against homosexuality and LGBTQ rights, often use religion as a shield against criticism. However, contrary to popular belief, no aspect of Hindu sacred texts propagate homophobia. In fact, Hinduism is one of the few religions which showcases its deities and heroic figures cross-dressing, transitioning in terms of sex and same-sex relationships. Take the parentage of Lord Ayyappa, in some versions of this story the deity was born to Shiva (the destroyer) and Vishnu (the preserver), when the latter had taken the form of a woman, Mohini. Several of the deities in Hinduism are seen as androgynous rather than the binary male and female, this may be due to the Hindu belief that all creatures living or dead are a part of the Brahman, the ultimate cosmic reality. Brahman, not to be confused with Brahmin (part of the varna system), is gender-neutral, it transcends all empirically discernible categories, limitations and dualities. In the 4th century holy text, Kama Sutra, there exists a separate section for men attracted to men. In the Mahabharata, a classic Hindu epic, one of the prominent warriors, Sikhandin, was transgender, and before transitioning was bound in a same-sex marriage. Even in the modern world such representation is often not seen. Thus, we can conclude that Hinduism itself does not invalidate or take an opposing stance towards the LGBTQ community.

A large part of the misleading views on Hinduism being intolerant and orthodox can be chalked up to mistranslations and incorrect interpretations (though it can be argued that Hinduism is a religion that doesn't label any interpretation as right or wrong.), but British colonialism to plays a part in this constricted view of Hinduism. In fact, India was very accepting of the LGBTQ+ community until section 377 of the Indian Penal Code was introduced by the British regime, which stated that, “carnal intercourse against the order of nature,” would be penalised harshly. 

The modern Indian society still sees Hinduism as a conservative and discriminatory religion, causing the newer generation to denounce themselves as Hindus, thinking that the beliefs are far too restricting. It is necessary that we educate ourselves about our cultural and religious roots instead of maintaining a western-centric view. Hinduism is one of the less talked about religions, which makes it an easy victim of false information. The more liberal strata of the population disregard and criticise it for being too conservative, while some on the conservative side use it as a defence for bigoted views.

In a noble effort to showcase the values and preachings of Hinduism, many organisations have been started. These institutions educate westerners and Hindus alike about the misconceptions surrounding Hinduism. One of these organisations is the World Hindu Federation. It is vital that the religion,as well as the religious society, evolve with time. In this case, religion has progressed but society has not.

It is still an uphill battle, but acceptance, at the moment, seems to be on the upswing.

In conclusion, Hinduism is one of the, if not the most, accepting religions when it comes to the LGBTQ community. 

CoronaVirus Report

COVID-19 REPORT

NOT The End of The World

A global pandemic is a disease epidemic that has spread across a large region, for instance multiple continents, or worldwide.

The world currently is facing a new pandemic , COVID-19, commonly known as corona virus.

The virus has spread rapidly over a course of four months.

To combat this virus it is necessary to know what exactly is Corona virus.

What is COVID-19?

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is an infectious disease caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2).

The virus can spread from one person to another via respiratory droplets produced during coughing. It may also be spread from touching contaminated surfaces and then touching one's face. The virus can live on surfaces up to 72 hours. Time from exposure to onset of symptoms is generally between two and fourteen days, with an average of five days.

 Symptoms are physical or mental features which are regarded as indicating a condition of disease. 

Symptoms can help identify the disease and take the proper treatment. 

It is important that one consults a medical professional as soon as they observe certain symptoms or go for a simple routine check-up.

According to the WHO, the most common symptoms of COVID-19 are fever, tiredness and a dry cough. Patients may also have a runny nose, sore throat, nasal congestion and aches and pains or diarrhoea. About 80% of people who get Covid-19 experience a mild case – about as serious as a regular cold.

About one in six people, the WHO says, become seriously ill. The elderly and people with underlying medical problems like high blood pressure, heart problems or diabetes, or chronic respiratory conditions, are at a greater risk of serious illness from COVID-19.

As this is viral pneumonia, antibiotics are of no use. The antiviral drugs we have against flu will not work, and there is currently no vaccine. Recovery depends on the strength of the immune system.

How has this new virus affected the world?

The virus was first identified in 2019 in Wuhan, the capital of Hubei China, and has since spread globally, resulting in the 2019–20 coronavirus pandemic.

The first case of coronavirus outside of china was recorded in Thailand on January 30 2020.

First death outside of china , due to COVID-19, was recorded in

Philippines on February 2 2020.

From February 12 2020 onwards there is a spike in coronavirus cases in south korea.

Iran outbreak begins on February 19 2020. There is outbreak in Northern Italy on February 21 2020.

From there on it spreads all over the world , finding the bodies of the many tourists as vessels of transport for the deadly disease .

The pandemic has also affected the world economy in several way. Wall Street has joined a global sell-off; the S&P 500 index of US companies fell by 11.5% the week commencing on February 24, the worst week since the 2008 crisis. China has effectively been in economic lockdown for a month since Chinese New Year, and the knock-on effect for global manufacturing has already been felt.

The lockdowns and quarantines have put a dangling sword over the heads of daily wage workers and those employed in the unorganised sector. These workers are paid on daily basis , the lesser number of days they work , the lesser they earn.

The most dire of conditions bring out the worst of mankind. 

People have started stocking up unnecessary amounts of perishable and non perishable supplies , this results in a shortage for those who actually need it. Supply shortages are expected to affect a number of sectors due to panic buying, increased usage of goods to fight the pandemic, and disruption to factories and logistics. There have been widespread reports of supply shortages of pharmaceuticals, with many areas seeing panic buying and consequent shortages of food and other essential grocery items. The technology industry, in particular, has been warning about delays to shipments of electronic goods.

What has been done to improve the situation and what more can we do?

In Japan, the handling of a COVID-19 outbreak on a cruise liner led to transmission of the virus into the Japanese population and has even resulted in the cancellation of the Tokyo Olympics. In other countries such as in Iran, a lax response by the country's healthcare system led to a loss of containment of the epidemic, which is now spreading to the rest of the Middle East. The lockdown of towns in Northern Italy was too late, with the spread of the virus from Italy already underway across Europe. Hong Kong also shows the importance of strong public signals. Early in the crisis, the government closed schools, canceled public events, told all civil servants to work from home, and strongly encouraged private businesses to let their employees do the same. India has also taken various steps in an effort to combat the spread of coronavirus , a complete 21 day lockdown has been instated by the government , starting from March 25 ,2020, unto April 14, 2020.

We , as individuals, can do our part by practicing social distancing , self quarantine and thinking logically instead of buying into the panic.

Statistics concerning COVID-19.

To check wether the disease is coming under control or not , we can check data and analyse graphs .

An epidemic grows exponentially , not in a linear manner . So it is important that when looking at data we use a logarithmic graph and not a linear graph.

This is a linear graph , the scale is consistent.

This is logarithmic graph , the scale grows exponentially .

The Future of AI and Humanity

The Future of AI and Humanity

- Ishita Desai

When I talk about AI what comes to your mind? A futuristic society with robot butlers and flying cars or a doomsday scenario where humanity has been over run by AI and robots.

If it is the latter then let me tell you an interesting fact , experts predict robots will take the place of  surgeons as early as 2053, and within 43 years  machines will be competing with mathematicians for space in top academic journals. So your concerns, about AI taking over the human society, are perfectly reasonable .
Almost all of us use a smartphone . We talk to Siri , Google assistant and Alexa ,this means that we are already using AI on a daily basis. But Alexa isn't evil , she just plays music when I ask her to.

And that exactly is my point.


I believe there is no need to be afraid of AI itself , though we should be concerned as to who uses it. Russia , South Korea and USA have already begun the formation of AI controlled weapon systems . The Chinese government rates its citizens as good or bad using an intelligent system that scans through their financial history and credit scores , there have also been attempts to monitor the emotions of school children and reward or punish them on this basis .

The youth in our country is already suffering from unemployment , the interference of AI would only further worsen the situation. Creation of jobs is a slow process , but the advancement of AI is not . Artificial intelligence can and will take over our livelihoods . Private sectors will prefer to employ AI over humans as AI is an one time investment and can do the work of multiple humans at once , people require monthly salaries , breaks and health benefits . AI is a non stop working machine humans are not.

In all of these situations it is not the AI itself which has turned malicious but the people behind it .

So , once an AI which is perfectly capable of deciphering good from bad and having an independent thought process, instead of parroting its creator , is created then only can we judge wether AI itself is evil or not . But until then precautions and limits are necessary , because if and when we reach that point it will be too late . AI can be perfect , but man can never be flawless,

A perfect weapon in the hands of an imperfect man can only lead to doom and destruction.

Humanity has achieved many of its dreams but this is one we should not dare to dream about , for AI is a destructive dream.

That is why I believe that the development of AI will do more harm than good towards humanity.