Acceptance of diversity makes anti-Semitism almost non-existent in India

HUGH RAICHLIN

Bowers’ anti-Semitic hate crime stands in stark contrast to the Indian society I had just experienced. India has the rare distinction of the local population never once displaying anti-Semitism in more than 2 000 years of Jewish history in the country.

The only two occasions in which anti-Semitism reared its ugly head in India was, first, during the 16th century, when Catholic Portuguese colonialists destroyed several synagogues in Cochin. Then, centuries later, in 2008, Pakistani Muslim terrorists murdered Rabbi Gavriel and Rivka Holtzberg, together with a number of their guests, at the Nariman Chabad House in Mumbai. It horrified and embarrassed the Indian population.

Former United Kingdom Chief Rabbi Jonathan Sacks, in his book Future Tense, makes the point that throughout history, Jews have borne the burden of difference. Whether in Christian Europe or the Muslim Middle East, they were the quintessential “other”. In today’s world of rising anti-Semitism, the globe has much to learn from the predominantly Hindu culture of India, which has created a society where there is no “other”.

A historical overview of India reveals that the Jews of India, from the very earliest settlement of Jews in Cochin, were given an honourable place in the communities of the Hindu rulers. The Jews served in the armies of the rulers, refraining from fighting on the Sabbath, and played a valuable part in the local economy with their international contacts.

The Raja of Cochin went so far as to give Jews protection and friendship, even providing a site for the Paradesi synagogue next to his palace. Our group was privileged to spend Shabbat at the Paradesi synagogue.

Fifty years ago, on 15 December 1968, the late Indira Gandhi, then Prime Minister of India, delivered a speech at Paradesi synagogue in which she stated, “This is not my first visit to this ancient synagogue. Each visit is a reminder of the long history of our country with which the Jews of India and certainly, the Jews of Cochin, are associated, and also of the tradition of religious and cultural tolerance, which is our very great heritage.

“We welcomed the Jews of India as indeed we have also welcomed others who have had to leave their original homes because of political or religious persecution or for various reasons. The Parsis are another notable example. Our tradition has not been one of communalism or parochialism, but of tolerance, of mutual exchange, and of peacefully living together. This is the teaching of our great men. The Emperor Asoka proclaimed that reverence for one’s faith rested on reverence for the other’s faith.

“Our heritage is the mingling of numerous streams, great and small, which have joined the river of India’s progress at different times. Together, all these differing parts make up the whole. To deny or ignore any – even the smallest or the most recent – would be to diminish India. It is a matter of pride for us in India that all the great religions of the world are respected in our country.”

Prime Minister Gandhi expressed the deeply held beliefs of Hinduism, which embraces cultural and religious diversity, in fact, a tolerance for every moving, living being. This was apparent on the heavily congested roads of India. Millions of people, vehicles of every description, and a wide variety of animals, are all able to navigate the roads safely and peacefully. There is no ego, no road rage, no aggression. People give each other space, literally and figuratively. India is a place where there is the absence of fear and hatred of difference, as exemplified by the hate filled shooting in Pittsburgh, and the terror that currently grips the world.

While taking a hike in tough winter conditions as a national serviceman in the South African Air Force many years ago, we were about to cross a freezing river shortly before nightfall (which we were all loathe to do), when I asked the non-Jewish group if we could please pause while I said my afternoon prayers.

While saying my prayers, a message came through that there had been a change of plan, and as we had not yet started the river-crossing, we should divert along another route. My prayers had clearly brought about a miracle!

Some of the boys even spoke of converting to Judaism, to which I replied, “Different religions are like different instruments in an orchestra. As long as we play the same music together, our differences enhance the sound of the music, we don’t all have to be the same!”.

Peace is possible. Jews have lived in total peace and security in India together with their Hindu, Muslim, and Christian neighbours. They have survived as a distinct community without resentment from their neighbours. But tolerance can exist only where there is an inherent recognition of the value of others, where members of society do not see differences as a threat, but rather as enhancing the fabric of society. Diversity must be seen as a strength not a weakness.

The world has much to learn from India.

• Hugh Raichlin is a Johannesburg attorney, an amateur historian, and international tour guide.