அடையாளங்கள்: அமர்த்யா சென் கட்டுரை

பொருளாதார நோபல் பரிசு பெற்ற அறிஞர் அமர்த்யா சென்னின் புதிய புத்தகமான 'Identity and Violence' நேற்று பிரசுரமாகியிருக்கிறது. அப்புத்தகத்திலிருந்து ஒரு கட்டுரை இன்றைய ஸ்லேட் வலையிதழில் வெளியாகியிருக்கிறது. இன்றைய உலகில், ஒரு மனிதனுக்கு இருக்கும் பல அடையாளங்களில் மதம் என்ற ஒற்றை அடையாளத்திற்குக் அதீத முக்கியத்துவம் கொடுக்கப்படுவதால் எழும் அபாயங்களைக் குறித்துப் பேசுகிறது.


அருமையாக எழுதப்பட்டுள்ள இக்கட்டுரையிலிருந்து சில quotable quotes:

"The world is made much more incendiary by the advocacy and popularity of single-dimensional categorization of human beings, which combines haziness of vision with increased scope for the exploitation of that haze by the champions of violence."

"The noble and elevating search for amity among people seen as amity between civilizations speedily reduces many-sided human beings to one dimension each and muzzles the variety of involvements that have provided rich and diverse grounds for cross-border interactions over many centuries, including the arts, literature, science, mathematics, games, trade, politics, and other arenas of shared human interest. Well-meaning attempts at pursuing global peace can have very counterproductive consequences when these attempts are founded on a fundamentally illusory understanding of the world of human beings."

இக்கட்டுரைக்கு பல காட்டமான எதிர்வினைகள் வந்திருக்கின்றன. அவற்றுள் பிரசுரிக்கக்கூடிய ஒன்று:

Subject: Singularity of Identity
From: Jaque
Date: Mar 29 2006 7:00PM

ESteemed Prof. Sen goes to great length to point out multitudes of identities Muslims have beyond being a Muslim. But he fails to see that the singular identity the world sees of Muslims is self chosen by Muslims. They talk of "Unmah" something like brotherhood of Muslims at large. It is them who want to obliterate all other identities in favor of one!

Why noone, for example, keeps pointing out that Prof. Sen is a Hindu. I think it is because Hindus do not self impose this singularity. As he has pointed out other identities like he is a Bengali, or an Indian or a Nobel Laurate, a Professor of Economics far outweighs the identity of he being a Hindu.

Take for example when Pakistan tested the nuclear bomb. It was immediately branded as "Islamic bomb"! Who gave that identity? It was the Muslims!

When Taliban destroyed 1500 year old Bamiyan Buddhas, Buddhists all over the world didn't riot or demonstrate in streets since they have other strong identities.

So while Prof. Sen's observations are correct he doesn't see where the problem lies.

There is an International organization of Islamic Countries (OIC). Have you seen one like that of say Buddhist countries, Christian countries?

So if there is the singularity of idnetity among Muslims it is self-imposed. And in fact that is the primary reason of a potential "Clash of civilizations". It is Clash of single identity Muslims against all other diffused, multitude of identities of the world.

Peace.
-Jaque

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