Kanwariyas and the Spirit of Indian Pilgrimage
India has been a country of pilgrimages which have even formed its geographical boundaries. Its boundaries from east to west and north to south have been formed on this basis. Therefore, pilgrimage can be said to be in the blood of Indians. It is also true history that the month of Sawan has been considered sacred for Indians since ancient times because according to mythological tales, Ravana, the king of Lanka, also reached his kingdom Sri Lanka in this month after filling a pitcher of water from Gomukh. Ravana was from the lineage of Paulatsya Rishi and was an ardent devotee of Lord Shankar. Not only Ramayana but other mythological texts are also full of the stories and deeds of Ravana who was immersed in Shankar Bhakti.
The debate and controversy that has erupted these days regarding Kanwariyas is not justified because the basic mantra of Hindu culture is tolerance. Due to this, all the people who followed different cultures from outside India merged into the Hindu culture of India. But some historians are of the opinion that due to the fanaticism of Muslim culture, it could be modified only partially according to the conditions of India. Despite this, the Muslims of the country tried to make their customs Indian under the influence of Indian culture. Before the partition of 1947, every Hindu-Muslim living in the united Punjab had Punjabi culture. But the Muslim League of Muhammad Ali Jinnah, who created Pakistan, broke this fabric and the slogans raised in support of the demand for Pakistan were completely filled with religious frenzy. Then the slogan given in support of Pakistan was 'Pakistan ka matlab kya - La ilahi-il-lillah'.
To raise this slogan of Muslim League in Punjab, students and teachers from Aligarh Muslim University of Uttar Pradesh also went to Punjab. But after the Hindu renaissance in India in the 90s, 'Hindu Jan-Vimarsh' of Hindu culture arose in different parts of the country. Actually, Hindu Vimarsh Jagran can be called that period of Hindu culture of India in which the imprint of original Indianness is present. All the religions that originated in India like Sikhism, Buddhism and Jainism have an inherent sense of devotion towards the land of India. But some people call it a communal viewpoint. This viewpoint is meaningless because India is not a country that runs according to any particular religious philosophy but is a territorial country that runs according to the Constitution. The citizens of every religion living in it have equal rights. The Constitution gives this right. Its simple meaning is that in whichever area of India a person of any religion lives, he is an Indian and has equal rights.
Before 5 August 2019, the rights of the citizens of Jammu and Kashmir were bound by the constitution of this state, but after this date all the laws and regulations of the Indian Constitution started applying to Kashmiris as well and the duplicity ended. In this way, the people of every state of India will follow only the constitution of the nation. It is this constitution that binds people together at the national level and preserves its diversity. Therefore, the kind of baseless propaganda being done about Hindu Kanwariyas these days hurts the basic spirit of Hindu culture somewhere. On the other hand, it is also the responsibility of the Kanwariyas to maintain religious decency and not use loud DJs because Mahashivratri, which falls in Sawan, is celebrated as a devotional festival in India. Although in western Uttar Pradesh there is a tradition of bringing water from Haridwar in a Kanwar on Mahashivratri which falls in the month of February, but the festival of Mahashivratri in Sawan is considered very high in Hindu scriptures because on this day Kanwariyas come from other parts of the country and take Gangajal to all the major Shankar places. But it is impossible that the people celebrating any festival in India should not be politicized.
Many leaders of the regional party of the state, Samajwadi Party, did not hesitate in comparing Kanwariyas with terrorists. This view is not only anti-Hindu but also anti-people because ninety percent of the devotees bringing Kanwar come from the backward Hindu community. The reality is that people of backward class follow religious beliefs wholeheartedly and do not show off in any way. In western Uttar Pradesh, there is even a tradition that in the kirtans held on religious occasions, the heads of their troupes are mostly from this class. People of this class are also physically strong, so they are at the forefront in completing the longest journey on foot on Shivratri. But this does not mean that people from other sections of Hindus do not bring Kanwad in the month of Saavan. They also go but their number is less. Now there is a controversy regarding Kanwadis that many food and drink dhabas on the Yatra route beyond Haridwar are run by Muslim citizens. Some are accused of running shops by changing their names. Some organizations associated with Kanwadis are running a campaign to reveal the names of the real owners of such dhabas and are distributing Hindu symbols in all the dhabas.
Many leaders of Samajwadi Party are saying that the religion of the people working at the dhabas is being ascertained by making them remove their pants. No one can be allowed to do this in India. The head of Samajwadi Party is former Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav. He should advise the leaders of his party to control their tongue. The fundamental question is that it is against the Constitution to discriminate between Hindus and Muslims among shopkeepers. When Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has already said that no person should take the law in his own hands, then the people of Hindu organizations should follow this so that the journey of Kanwadiyas can be smooth.
Along with this, it is also the duty of the Kanwariyas that they should not unnecessarily create any situation of obstruction in law and order and show humility according to their faith. Considering the importance of the Kanwar Yatra of Sawan, they should accept the greetings of citizens of all religions. Shiva devotees should never create a ruckus. To make their journey comfortable, various roads are closed for traffic after Haridwar. The Uttar Pradesh government even showers flowers on them. Therefore, if the meat and liquor shops on the Yatra route are also kept closed for the duration of the Yatra, then we will call it the tolerance of Indians.