Do you think muslims in India should convert to Hinduism and follow those "civilized" holy scriptures instead of
observing the loony bits of their religion?
Apastambha Dharma Sutra III, 10-26, says:
The tongue of a Shudra, who spoke evil about a BRAHMIN should be cut off A Shudra who dared to assume a position of equality with the first three castes was to be flogged. If a Shudra overheard a recitation of the Vedas, molten tin was to be poured into his ears; if he repeated the Vedas his tongue should be cut and if he remembered Vedic hymns, his body was to be torn into pieces.
MANU, 167-272 says:
If a Shudra arrogantly teaches Brahmins Dharma, the king shall cause hot oil to be poured into his mouth and ears.
Again, MANU, 167-272 says:
Let the king never slay even a Brahmin though he may have committed all possible crimes.
You disgust me, for you lie and try to mislead people by saying that this is "Hindu scripture".
That's why I call you naive, incapable of understanding traditions more complex than your own "Follow teh great book written by teh great paedophile!!!", and in general closed-minded (and I apologise if the preceding sentence sounds harsh, but nothing can change the fact that Mohammed had sex with a pre-pubescent girl (the description even states she was dragged away from her dolls)). You assume that if it's in a book, it must be scripture. We, on the other hand, have enough intelligence to understand that if it's in a book, then it's in a book, and someone must have written that book, and that he must have had his biases.
These "scriptures" you quote are not scriptures
at all in the sense you understand the term scripture. Just because some Hindu wrote a book of law does not make it a Hindu scripture. Today, I can write a so-called "scripture" like that. Hell, so can you. It's called a
Smriti, and any Tom, Dick, and Harry Hindu can write one. In fact, things like the above are known not to be a part of the original texts, and historical research has shown that they are the result of such Toms and Dicks writing down things and adding them as they pleased.
For instance, the same Manu Smriti states that a Brahmana who is not firmly fixed in the knowledge of Brahman is not worthy of Brahmanahood, is not worthy of being called the same. Similarly, the ArthaShastra says explicitly that if a Brahmana does not perform the prescribed ceremonies for the outcastes, then the state must dismiss him. There were many opinions even back then, and we don't consider the pronouncements of paedophiles binding.
Today, we universally acknowledge that those old laws were
wrong, they were
screwed up, and that new laws need to be made. And they are being made. There is a group of scholars who have reformed the Manu Smriti, and removed all objectionable and unjust things like the ones you quoted, and have created a new edition, suitable to our times. In fact, they have removed all material their research showed was not part of the uncorrupted original.
We can change, and we have done so throughout history. We can acknowledge that we were wrong, and fix things. We can write new books, deprecate the old ones, and move on to greater things, not weighed down by the useless baggage of the past. And we can incorporate the great principles discovered by others, by the West, to take a contemporary example, without compromising ourselves, for we recognise that principles are universal.
This is what I mean when I talk of the freedom and flexibility inherent in the Indic traditions.
Muslims, on the other hand, can't. If the paedo said something, that is the definitive statement on the matter, no matter if science proves it wrong (in that case, the scientists will be burnt in hell by Allah, for contradicting the paedo is a great sin). In fact, screw that previous statement ("loony bits"). Because Islam can't change, given enough time, the entire religion will consist of purely "loony bits", because all the original principles will be superseded by better ones as society evolves.
On an unrelated note, I'm myself involved in a soon-to-be-started project to get a new Smriti written, which I hope will be relevant at least for the next few centuries.
Most importantly, I again ask you to get out of this thread. You have been warned already for your violation of the forum rules.
Unless you have any real questions, you are not welcome here. Note that this thread is not meant for debate, it is meant for questions and answers. You are trying to derail it. This is a clear case of someone breaking the forum rules. Another stupid post from your side and I'll report you.
