The hidden threat of Hallyu wave to Hindu Culture
- In History & Culture
- 11:18 AM, Feb 20, 2020
- Raghu Bhaskaran
Some history first-
South Korea, is rather unique among the nations, when it comes to Christianization. Check this list of Christian populations in Asia (1). The nations which have more than 10% of Christians are only a handful.
Most of them are the Orthodox nations around the Caucasus, which got Christianized in early centuries of common era, in the first wave of Christianity and escaped the Islamic rollback.
Then the next wave of Christian assault on cultures - Colonization, did not make a dent in the Islamic zone. Even the other nations of Asia, withstood the assault well. India being the best example, but also SE Asia, even China and Japan. They were all either fully colonized, partly or at least faced unequal treaties and interference in their societies by colonizing emissaries and missionaries, yet did resist Christianization to a good extent.
The list of countries where population of Christianity crosses 10% are
- Philippines-hit by two waves of Colonisation from Spain and the US.
- E. Timor – Portuguese colonisation and Western domination via the Aussies.
- Singapore – a City-State with unique dynamic.
I will exclude the above three, because none of them had a strong cultural history, established order etc., prior to the modern era. But Korea was and is a culturally strong and influential region. Their culture was highly influence by China and Japan, but yet even China and Japan, recognized the uniqueness of Silla, Goryeo and Joseon.
So how did Korea, South Korea end up having 30% Christians, of all the Asian nations?
Few things are very obvious to even a non-expert-
Christianity got a huge boost in Korea, when the missionaries aligned with Independence movement. This is rather unique. Because for all the pretensions of virtues by missionaries, they never stood for the freedoms of the oppressed people, when the oppressor were Christians and the oppressed were not Christians or at least potential Christians. Miguel Hidalgo in Mexico was fighting for Christian Mexicans against Christian Spain.
So then why did the Christians fight for freedom in Korea?
Simple, there the colonizer was not any Christian nation, but the Shinto/Buddhist Japan.
It is only in such cases, will Christians come forth for the freedom of the people. Such is their 'opportunistic' compassion.
And then they used their usual tactics of monopolizing education and healthcare, to infiltrate the society, conflating Christianity with modernity, Western success etc.
Though Japan did conquer multiple nations during WWII, Korea was a distinct case, because there the colonization from Japan had a centuries long history and not merely during WWII.
Now to the present-
S. Korea is the second largest origin of international missionary activity, and India one of the top destinations for Korean missionaries. That threat needs assessment.
- India/Hindus are generally more wary of White proselytizing and there is some impact of the colonial history. And Whites as well have a measure of Colonial guilt. But Koreans don’t have either sociological obstacles.
- Like the cultural impact of Hollywood, the impact of Korean Hallyu wave with K-pop, K-drama is on the increase and underestimated (2). And not just in North East India, but even to Tamilnadu (3).
Culture is a strong carrier of influence. Additionally, Korean content, mimics the Western tropes about caste and discrimination.
For example-The Korean Drama "Because this is my first life", has a dialogue spoken by a character who has been cheated by another. "I want to be reborn as a Brahmin in India and make him my Sudra".
This despite Korea's own history of elaborate social segregation based on birth with some mobility. Broad categories were,
- Yangban - Nobles and ruling class,
- Seonbi - (virtuous scholars during the Goryeo and Joseon periods of Korea who served the public without a government position, choosing to pass up positions of wealth and power to lead lives of study and integrity)
- Sangmin- middle class, traders etc.
- Cheonmin - lower class
- Baekjeong - lowest caste, untouchables etc.
- Nobi - Slaves
Japanese occupation, rapid Christianization causing social churn, with Gabo, Gwangmu reforms starting 1890s, these old orders were dismantled and the society changed slowly.
Now why is this a threat?
Koreans with their own history of birth-based discrimination, still choose to use "Indian Caste system" for such purposes.
Hindus are only slowly becoming aware of the distorted depiction of them and their history by the West.
But already such depictions have reached other cultures as well.
Of course, we had birth-based segregation. But pretty much every culture which reached a level of complexity did have such segregation. Segregation and hierarchy, is a fact of any organization. The differentiation is how it is managed, the extent and intensity.
Given the complete lack of caste-based rebellions, peasant rebellions, slave uprisings in Indian history, as compared to all the other cultures from Japan to S. America. Ancient Indian society seems to have been relatively more successful in balancing hierarchy with humanity.
- No Brahmin ever had the power of life or death, over a Shudra or avarana - Like the Korean Yangban had over Baekjeong or Nobis.
- No Kshatriya could covet and abduct peasant women, without repercussions. Like the European feudal nobility could do so with their serf women - Prima Nocta.
Yet Hindu culture is being vilified as the sole specimen of birth-based discrimination, by the hypocritical narratives.
We should change, for change is constant, yet it is important to look at the past with some empathy, if we want our future to look at us with some empathy. And defend the choices of our forefathers in the context of their time and in comparison, to other societies at that point in time.
The rise of Korean Christian proselytizing, accompanied by the popularity of K-pop and K-Drama, with such embedded and subliminal attacks on Hindu cultural heritage, are the threats hidden in the Hallyu wave.
Here is a sample of how Korean Christians are no less obnoxious as their Western counterparts.
A group of South Korean Christians visited a Buddhist pilgrimage site in India and held a religious service to protest “idol-worship” according to a local Buddhist newspaper. Citing a South Korean monk and eyewitness, the Beopbo Shinmun said three young visitors on Friday sang hymns and prayed inside the Mahabodhi Temple, one of the religion’s holiest places. The temple in Bodhgaya, in Bihar state in India’s northeast, marks the location where Buddha is believed to have attained enlightenment.
In the one-minute video segment, one man is playing a guitar while a woman is singing. A third person appears to be praying with his head bowed down. The eyewitness monk confronted the group and asked them to stop but the visitors resisted, saying the Christian God was the only saviour, according to the repot (4).
Are the Hindu organizations, Government of India aware of the hazard that lurks in the Hallyu?
Uttishta Bharatha.
Image Credits: Creative Commons
References
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christianity_in_Asia
- https://www.indiatoday.in/…/k-pop-korean-pop-popular-north-…
- https://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/chennai/korean-serials-the-tamil-way/article6555813.ece?fbclid=IwAR2XA6wwZxdpmQHnibNX2MjXcPRioLjPkc0W-hw_NI_JSMw1_MaBOcjAFAQ
- https://blogs.wsj.com/korearealtime/2014/07/09/korean-christians-seen-holding-service-at-indian-buddhist-site/
Comments