With his iconic work, Avarana, Kannada writer Padma Bhushan Dr. S. L. Bhyrappa indelibly etched his mark with his unparalleled cultural understanding of Bharatvarsha. Meticulously unveiling the fabricated history foisted by liberal historians, Avarana unabashedly exposes the readers to the darkest reality of Islamic zealotry.  

Having imbibed the Bharatiya civilisational spirit, Bhyrappa’s writings deeply reflect the impulsive changes in Indian society and the threats it faced from time to time. Be it interpersonal relations, familial ties or the impact of divisive forces Bhyrappa’s literature has unassumingly brought forth these ideas subtly through his fiction writing. Perhaps nobody has utilised the power of fiction as much as the colossus Bhyrappa to gently acquaint the readers with the political and religious forces that constantly threaten Bharat's civilisational identity.

Notwithstanding the partition based on religion and the British exit from India, the deep undercurrents of Ghazwa-e-Hind and rampant proselytisation by Western missionaries continue to abrade the Bharatiya civilisational landscape. While Avarana composed in 2007 has exposed the diabolical plot of converting thousands of Hindus into Muslims at the point of the sword, Bhyrappa’s one of the earliest novels, Dharmashree written in 1961 lays threadbare the punitive tactics of the Christian missionaries.

Written in Kannada, Dharmashree is translated into English by L. V. Shantha Kumari. The context of the novel is set in the backdrop of the early independence times when poverty, class and caste identities dominated the society. They were indeed the defining attributes of the society during those times. The missionaries having learnt to operate along these fissures used every trick in the playbook like laying bait, intimidation, coercion and luring people to convert unsuspecting and vulnerable sections of the society en masse.

The protagonist of the novel Satyanarayana or Satya in short amidst hardships endeavours to pursue his studies with the help of empathetic people at different places during different phases of his education. During his stay at an orphanage in Mysore, he meets Shankara, a Sangh karyakarta whose profound understanding of Santana Dharma greatly inspires Satya to learn about the Dharma of the land.

Through the animated conversations between Satya and Shankara, the author rightly introduces the concept of Rastra which is often misconstrued as a nation-state. Averring that nation and rastra are not the same and setting the definition straight, Shankara states, “Rastra is not merely a geographical entity. It is not something that can be prepared in a day or two. Its history shapes a nation; moreover, a nation must be endowed with a sublime tradition and a living culture. Furthermore, it must have a unique identity in terms of personal values. Rastra is an entity that comprises all of this”.

Consummate conversations generously splattered along with references to various books the novel caters to the intellectual curiosity of an inquisitive reader about Santana Dharma.  Mentored by Shankara, Satya turns out to be a staunch advocate of Dharma. Struck by the objectivity of his arguments on Dharma, a convent-educated, devout Christian, Lily takes up self-study of Sanatana Dharma. Influenced by the sagacity of Satya’s expositions, she becomes interested in the dharmic underpinnings of Bharatiya civilisation.

Having bonded over a common understanding of Dharma, Satya and Lily despite the unfavourable realities of belonging to different religions decide to marry. Satya agrees to a Church marriage and converts to Christianity. After marriage, despite the comforts, luxury and a well-paid job, Satya who becomes Xavier Satyadasa suffers from severe psychological turbulence. The sudden loss of identity and a sense of connection with the Dharma into which he was born makes him restless. He falls terribly ill.

Tormented by beliefs of his past dharma and his inability to embrace the new religion, his bouts of illness continue to recur. Conscious of the turmoil of her husband, Lily starts behaving like a Hindu wife even at the cost of inviting the wrath of the clergy and her father. Determined to end this mental ambiguity, Lily and her husband return to the Santana Dharma fold under the auspices of Arya Samaj. With this Xavier Satyadasa becomes Satyanarayana again and he names Lily as ‘Dharmashree’.

Largely influenced by Ananda Coomaraswamy, the author having dedicated the book to him, adeptly uses his works to mould the characters. Indeed, the friendly banter that eventually transforms into heated arguments between Satya and Lily is illustrative of the sublime intellectual acuity of the author. In fact, these authoritative and elucidations make the novel an engaging read. The book also delves into the unimaginable favours showered by missionaries on the new coverts to use them to draw more Hindus into their fold and castigates the obstinacy of Hindu society to accept those who want to reconvert.

Usually, novelists tend to portray their protagonists as an epitome of infallibility. Making a huge departure from this tradition, both in Aavarana and in Dharmashree, Bhyrappa shows that the lead characters are also vulnerable to fatal attractions. The genius of his imagination lies in making the lead character come out stronger after the fall and bounce back with immense vigour.

The nomenclatures of ‘Yesupura’, and ‘Yesusthan’ used in reference to Christianisation are indeed very thoughtful and apt. Similarly, some of the powerful statements like Bishop’s rebuking of Hindus and an indirect dig at Satya, “Without compulsion and the threat of punishment, the uncivilised will not become civilised, uncultured cannot become cultured”, leave a stark impression on the minds of the reader.

The visionary public thinker and novelist Bhyrappa through his book Dharmashree written in 1961 raised the issue of religious conversion. Six decades hence, Indian society continues to be strangulated by the proselytising forces. Religious conversions continue unabated. Hindus refuse to wake up and continue to live in the dark ….

Pages: 330

Published by Subbu Publications

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