Decolonisation PDF

# Chapter 1: Decolonisation On that historical day in 1947, India was declared free and independent. Every year on August 15th, we celebrate this freedom that we got back. It has been ____ years since, and we have celebrated ____ times. To us, colonisation is a thing of the past. Something that we...

# Chapter 1: Decolonisation On that historical day in 1947, India was declared free and independent. Every year on August 15th, we celebrate this freedom that we got back. It has been ____ years since, and we have celebrated ____ times. To us, colonisation is a thing of the past. Something that we remember on Independence day, or during the birthday, or death day of a legendary freedom fighter, or when we happen to stumble upon a majestic statue in the journeys we make. When we discuss British colonisation, we are often filled with images of violence and suffering, looting, and imposition of law. The Jallianwala Bagh massacre; the Kohinoor diamond displayed in the British museum; Bhagat Singh, sentenced to hang until death at the age of 22; Indians forced to fight for the British in the World War; the violent creation of Pakistan; the mysterious death/disappearance of Subash Chandra Bose; the assassination of Gandhi, the Mahatma; and then it was all over. We became free (Or so we think). We think about colonisation with such memory, and we remember it as political and economic control, and a lot of violence. Of course, this memory and recollection is not ours personally. We were never there to witness any of it. But it is our memory too. Our collective memory, or our civilisational memory. And we need it. We need it because it helps us connect the dots and see how past events have shaped our present (the historical context of current issues). It reminds us that we're all in this together and can learn from the past to build a better future for everyone. And we need it also because colonisation is not over. There is more to colonialism that we need to be aware of, more to it than domination, looting and violence. Because now, we are the ones facing it first hand. To begin a discussion on decolonisation, we need to first understand what colonisation is, for all the effects it had on our nation. And it so happens that understanding colonisation as such is the beginning of the process of decolonisation. ## Defining Colonisation Over the past 500 to 600 years, the Europeans set out to "discover" foreign lands. And in their journey they did "discover" - America, Africa, Australia, large parts of Asia, etc. Even today, we learn that Christopher Columbus "discovered" America, and we accept it even though our common sense tells us that this land that was called America by Europeans, was already there before they "discovered" it. There were people there, and great civilisations like the Maya and the Aztec, among many more. Yet still, somehow, they claim to have "discovered" it. European nations thus colonised numerous regions on Earth for a long time before relinquishing control over many of these territories. Subsequently, research has gone into the impact and experience of colonisation in these places, and hence today, we can examine colonisation on a worldwide scale. We can thus reach a nuanced and unbiased definition of colonisation from all those experiences, a definition that is beyond any kind of religious, nationalistic, or civilisational prejudice. In an article by Margaret Kohn and Kavita Reddy, published in the Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy in 2006, they discuss the difficulty in defining colonialism. Often limited to the term imperialism, there is a tendency to define colonialism as only political and economic control. While these are indeed common features, they are not synonymous. But owing to the consistent difficulty in distinguishing colonialism from imperialism, they chose to define colonialism thus. Here settlement or population transfer is the only difference between colonialism and imperialism. This definition is also in-line with an earlier work by Ronald J Hovarth in 1972 [2]. In places like America we find why settlement is given more importance. European settlers in America are called Americans today, and the original people of the land are called Native Americans. Did the natives even call themselves American before the advent of Europeans? In another research discussing the coloniality of knowledge in Africa [3] [4], we find, The coloniser does not only distort the history of the colonised, slaughter their knowledge systems and empty their heads of self-confidence and their hearts of the emotional stamina to live without colonial domination. But he goes ahead to manufacture accusations and labels against the colonised.... Here we encounter another dimension of colonialism. There is something about distortion of history, and of knowledge systems, and about labelling the colonised. This aligns with the work of Aimé Césaire, esteemed author and leader, who extensively studied and worked against colonialism in Africa. In 'Discourse on Colonialism' [5], he exclaims, Colonial activity, colonial enterprise, colonial conquest, is based on contempt for the native and justified by that contempt. In an attempt to make subtle and nuanced understanding of colonialism during and after, Nicholas Dirks suggests, It is not just that colonialism had cultural effects, it was itself a cultural project of control. In certain ways, culture was what colonialism was all about. During and after colonial rule, colonised societies were classified as traditional societies. The newly classified traditional societies were reconstructed and transformed by and through colonial technologies of conquest and rule. This created new categories and oppositions between colonisers and colonised, European and Asian, modern and traditional, West and East, even male and female [6]. These are acclaimed research studies outside India, with almost 10,000 citations combined. They suggest that beyond political and economic control, and violence, colonisation is also about, transfer of population of the coloniser, contempt for the native, process of culture change, distortion of history and being categorised. This could just be the tip of the iceberg. Thus we reach a wider definition of colonisation that we need to bother about, 1. Political and Economic Control, with Violence 2. Transfer of population of the coloniser 3. Contempt for the Native 4. Process of Culture Change 5. Distortion of History 6. Distortion of Knowledge Systems 7. Being Categorised (as primitive, underdeveloped etc.) Of these, we don't have to deal with the first two aspects of colonisation. Our legendary freedom fighters gave up their lives to deal with the first and foremost problem, and by 1947 it was solved. Colonisation in India did not see any permanent settlement of British or other European nationals here. Hence we don't have to face that aspect of colonisation as well. But the rest is still there, and we have to deal with it. Note that some researchers also define these as 'post-colonialism' [1][2]. In many of these countries today, the native traditions have been lost beyond recovery. For them, understanding and addressing the problem of colonisation only means that they rise to the same level of the colonists, be as good as them, be their equal. In India, the indigenous culture is very much alive. The problem of colonisation has to be addressed to return to our civilizational identity, and to prevent further damage. The broader definition of colonialism that we reached here is from global studies of colonialism. This does not mean that this problem has not been identified in India. Though they do not use the word colonisation or decolonisation, many luminaries in India had already identified this problem, and had discussed it. Reading their works brings about a natural process of decolonisation. Who are they? 1. Swami Vivekananda 2. Rabindranath Tagore 3. Sri Aurobindo 4. Mahatma Gandhi 5. Subash Chandra Bose etc. we can immediately see that colonisation is not over. This means that we continue to be colonised, that we are facing it first hand, and we need to gain freedom from this colonisation too. To understand this, and the effect these things have on the core of our being, and our relationship with family, society and nation, we need to first understand how colonialism affects us individually [7], and collectively. Only with such an understanding can a definition of colonialism be complete. ## Taking Notice of Colonisation ### The Monoculture A very visible aspect of colonisation that we constantly see in the world today is the kind of monoculture that has settled in. What does this mean? There are hundreds of thousands of communities in India, and millions more across the world. The differences between them is perceivable. How do we understand one community to be different from others? What do we differentiate? Broadly speaking, among other things, we primarily notice the following [8], 1. Language 2. Dress 3. Aesthetics - Ornaments, art, etc. 4. Architecture 5. Food (medicine, ecosystem) 6. Divine and the Sacred Activity 2: Divide the class into groups of 5 or 6 students, and prepare a graphic presentation of these six aspects of community, for different states of India. When you take the indigenous framework of lifestyle and living, you find such variations based on geography, climate, and other factors. But how has colonial frameworks changed all this? We can find that colonisation has led to a kind of monoculture in all aspects - linguistic monoculture, aesthetic monoculture, technological monoculture, biological/medicinal monoculture etc. A common language, style of dressing, global styles, and concrete in architecture. As you look closer, you find more and more. Is monoculture a good thing? Are they based on any scientific study? ### Colonised Identity Imagine that you are introducing yourself to someone. What details would you give as pertaining to the definition of you. This can be an activity. You would first tell them your name; followed by where you come from, which is your origin. You may talk about your hobbies, your interests and your goals. And when you get closer you share your perceptions of life that take you forward, your view of the world, and what you are setting out to achieve. These are the things that make up your identity and define who you are. Now imagine, that someone is trying to artificially remove your memory, and hence your identity. You can relate to the very popular movies like Bourne Series, Inception, The Maze Runner, Shutter Island, Total Recall, among many more that portray a theft of memory and identity, and the journey back. We trade many things, but we dont give or take our core identity. We won't allow it to be snatched away, manipulated or controlled. On an individual level if such a manipulation happens to us, we can detect and solve it by psychological means. But what if this happens to us collectively, as a community or nation. Is it acceptable if over hundreds of years, our identities, our memories, and our perceptions have been collectively hijacked and manipulated? [8] Robbery of memory personally, is akin to robbery (or distortion) of history in the collective sense. Similarly, forcing a change in our culture implies a forced estrangement of identity on an individual level. Imagine a situation where someone shows contempt for what you believe in! If colonisation is contempt for native culture, it is also contempt for your personal beliefs. This exactly is at the core of the definition of colonialism. Colonisation is the hijacking of our collective identity, by manipulating our past, history, culture, and philosophy, to serve the purposes of the coloniser. Decolonising, hence, is the process of coming back to our true identity. ### Inability to Access Indian Knowledge Systems How did you define Maya, Atma, Ishwara, Asura, Shakti, or Manas? You will have found yourself saying that Maya means illusion, and then explained what illusion is. You will have defined Atma as soul, and then you defined soul. Or Ishwara is God, and then defined God. Right? Make one more attempt to define all these terms. This time, don't go for the English words, illusion, soul, god, etc. Try to describe them in your native language. Are you able to do it? You will be surprised at how hard it is. These terms are very personal to you as well, right? When you try to define Manas, remember that you are trying to define your manas, or Atma is your Atma. How come you do not know what all these things mean? This is the most visible effect of colonisation. It disconnected us from our culture (Indian Knowledge Systems), and had us connect to the culture of the coloniser (Coloniser Knowledge Systems) instead. And hence when we try to define any such terms, unable [Diagram of IKS and CKS] to access IKS, we automatically go to CKS (where we establish a weak connection). In our case, the Coloniser Knowledge Systems is primarily the English or British Knowledge Systems. [Diagram of IKS and CKS] The solution is now clear. We need to establish our connection with Indian Knowledge Systems, irrespective of the status of our connection with CKS. ## Colonial Shadows Within Us If you think that all this is not for you, that you are not colonised, think again! Let us evaluate ourselves based on a scale set for us in another work of research [9]. This work describes what we can take to be the five symptoms of a still colonised mind. 1. A sceptical attitude towards Indian cultural creations and institutions. Unless approved or recognised by the west, nothing in India is good enough. 2. A worshipping attitude towards western cultural creations and institutions, justified in the name of "progress". Unless deemed inadequate in a western evaluation, nothing from the west is to be rejected. 3. An intellectual tendency to compare India of the past with the west of the present, rather than a contemporaneous comparison. 4. A general tendency to judge the west based on its ideals as it were from time to time, as against the tendency to judge Indian society and culture based only on what prevails at the present, without regard to the millenia of foreign invasions. 5. A tendency to assess and judge Indian culture, society, and spirituality using Western intellectual frameworks, while disregarding the insights and tools of analysis offered by Indian philosophical traditions, which are often dismissed as unscientific or irrelevant when applied to Western culture. If you are able to relate to any of these symptoms, have no doubt you are colonised. This colonisation is essentially a disease of the mind that needs to be cured. A decolonised mind is essentially free to think, is able to accept and transfer knowledge without biases. All biases? No. It goes to say that there are personal elements that can lead to bias or block our thinking. Here it is the ability to think originally, owing to the return of our identity, that was collectively hijacked by the colonisers. Whether we accept it or not, we maintain rigid borders in our thought processes. Because, aligning ourselves with the British coloniser, we have divided everything and everyone around us into what is "modern" and what is not. Or what is "progressive" and what is not. What is "science" or "scientific" and what is not. Our imaginations are trapped within these boundaries. We don't allow it to soar wide and free. Decolonisation means that you can dissolve those boundaries, and allow yourself to apply your logic and reasoning to anything and everything around you, be it tradition, faith, arts, sports, science, philosophy and much more. A decolonised mind is hence free to think, without ideas of the coloniser running in the background. ## Notions of Benefit and Progress Almost eight decades after colonisation, we are still chasing western ideas and notions, even when it comes to understanding India. We wholeheartedly agree with the British when they say that it was them who brought progress and modernity to India. We have no problem creating a pros and cons list to discuss the British or Mughal presence in India. Even the violent realities of their presence does not prevent us from thinking about the so-called benefits. We agree to all this without thorough study or research. Activity 3: Divide the class into groups of 5 or 6 students. Let each group create a pros and cons list of European and Mughal presence in India. The existence of these notions, despite lack of proof or study, is another way colonisation can be visibly perceived. For example, the British brought progress to India - Education, Medicine, Law and Administration, or that before the British, India was not united as one nation. How did you come by these notions? Have you been presented with any kind of study or proof that these things are true? You may have read minimally on such matters, but then how did you come to believe that these things are true? Let us discuss and critically analyse the notion that it was the British who educated Indians, or improved our system of education. And thus let us learn to analyse any such notion, before accepting them as true. ## Indian Education - Pre and Post Colonial Activity 4: When you think about education in Ancient India, what comes to mind? List five things you know. Activity 5: This is an activity for a group of two students. Imagine that one of you is born to a family of carpenters in Britain of the 1800s, and the other a woman born in a royal family in Britain, at the same time. What would be your futures? Discuss and contrast. The history of India is replete with contributions in many fields of study. Physics, mathematics, chemistry, medicine, astronomy, metallurgy, linguistics, philosophy, law and administration, architecture, accounting, sports and games, arts, and much more. | SI. No | Contributors | Area of Contribution | Published/ Implemented | Approximate Year of Publication | |:---|:---|:---|:---|:---| | 1 | Sushruta | Medicine | Sushruta Samhita | 600 BCE | | 2 | Lagadha | Astronomy | Vedanga Jyothisha | 500 BCE | | 3 | Panini | Linguistics | Ashtadvayi | 4th Century BCE | | 4 | Chanakya | Economics, Law & Administration | Arthashasthra, Neethishasthra | 3rd Century BCE | | 5 | Patanjali | Linguistics, Yoga | Mahabhashya, Yoga sutras | 2nd Century BCE | | 6 | Bharat Muni | Art | Natvashastra | between 200 BCE and 200 CE. | | 7 | Nagarjuna | Chemistry, Metallurgy | Rasaratnakara | 1st Century BCE | | 8 | Charaka | Medicine | Charaka Samhita | 100 CE | | 9 | Chandragupta II | Metallurgy | The Iron Pillar | 375 - 415 CE | | 10 | Thiruvalluvar | Philosophy, Poet | Tirukkural | 500 CE | | 11 | Aryabhatta | Mathematics, Astronomy | Aryabhattiya Arya Siddhanta | 510 CE | | 12 | Varahamihira | Astronomy and Mathematics | Brihat Samhita Aryabhattiyabhashya, Mahabhashkariya, Laghubhashkariya | 550 CE | | 13 | Bhaskara 1 | Mathematics | Mahabhashkariya, Laghubhashkariya | 629 CE | | 14 | Brahmagupta | Mathematics, Astronomy | Brahmasphutasiddhanta. Commentaries | 665 CE | | 15 | Adi Shankaracharya | Philosophy | (Bhashyas) on the Upanishads, Brahmasutra and Bhagavadgita. Bhaja Govindam | 8th Century CE | | 16 | Bhoja Narapati | Naval Engineering | Yukti Kalpa Taru | 1000-1050 CE| | 17 | Bhaskara II | Mathematics | Siddhanta Siromani Rani-ki-Vav (the Queen's Stepwell), a distinctive form of subterranean water architecture of the Indian subcontinent, located in Patan | 1150 CE | | 18 | Queen Udayamati | Architecture | Rani-ki-Vav (the Queen's Stepwell), a distinctive form of subterranean water architecture of the Indian subcontinent, located in Patan | 11th Century CE | | 19 | Swami Vivekananda | Philosophy | Bartaman Bharat, Vedanta Philosophy, Karma Yoga, Bhakti Yoga, Sangeet Kalpataru, Practical Vedanta and many more. | 1863 - 1902 CE | Now, there is an inevitable question that must be pondered. Can there be a contribution to any field of expertise, without opportunities for systematic guidance and support? One can argue that, for example in mathematics, people would know basic counting or calculations without a stream of mathematics learning. But can there be a cutting edge research finding, or proposal of new theorems, only with individual effort. For an advanced research to happen, there must have been previous research to which the researcher had access. This can be through ## What really happened to education in India? Given all the facts above, the reality is that we are still left with a British-introduced format of education in India. What happened? If not to improve, what could have been the reason behind changing the way education was in India. One popular argument was that Macaulay wanted to remove the quality of Indianness from Indians, and wanted to make them more like the British. His speech in the British Parliament in 1835 is popular, We must at present do our best to form a class who may be interpreters between us and the millions whom we govern; a class of persons, Indian in blood and colour, but English in taste, in opinions, in morals, and in intellect. To understand this better, we need to understand the vision that the British had on education itself, and India's vision of education. The British view on education is well recorded. We saw that only children of nobles were educated. And before 1830, while 'schooling for all' was being pondered, no entity powerful enough ever spoke in favour of it [13]. In fact you find that such people opposed the idea. In 1807 a British scientist Davies Gilbert thus spoke in the House of Commons, However specious in theory the project might be of giving education to the labouring classes of the poor, it would in effect be prejudicial to their morals and happiness: it would teach them to despise their lot in life, instead of making them good servants to agriculture and other laborious employments to which their rank in society had destined them: instead of teaching them subordination, it would render them factious and refractory, as was evident in the manufacturing counties... It would render them insolent and indolent to their superiors... [13] Those who promoted education for the working class viewed it more as a 'means of control' than a 'means of liberation', or a 'means of empowerment'. Education was seen as a way to pacify and mould the working class to fit into the existing social order. Nobody was worried about giving education in light of the inherent higher purpose - the search for truth, or the real purpose of elevation. In India, education has always been a path to liberation. It is the inner journey of each and every individual that takes them forward from wherever they are. It is about seeking and gaining knowledge to enlighten our minds and our hearts. Amma, Satguru Sri Mata Amritanandamayi Devi, often reinforces this great vision of education, "Education should spread light within and without. Education should equally develop discernment and contemplation. It should develop the child. Education should teach us to keep our inner eyes open just as much as our external eyes. Education should instil awareness and strengthen the deep bond between the student and his Nation, the World, his fellow human beings and other creatures, Nature and God." It was in this vision that education was widespread in India. So, no matter what anyone learned, be it mathematics, physics, chemistry, or law, or be it carpentry, smithy etc., they learnt because they wanted to know more. Knowing in itself made them happy. This doesn't imply that gaining of wealth or means of livelihood was absent in India. It is just that priorities that influenced education were different. ### Read 'Jonathan Livingston Seagull' by Richard Bach When the British were here, they may have found that people were educated, but they were definitely not employable for their purposes. For example, education in India did not teach how to be a good clerk or an accountant. This is where the British started creating their own educational institutions, that 'certified' people and ensured cheap employable human resources for their purposes. Imagine the kind of education that only aims to make clerks, assistants, accountants, etc. out of you. British education hence generated a class of Indians who could work in the middle between the ruling British and the millions of Indians they governed. Research also tells us that there are other things that the British did that disrupted education in India. For example, destroying the flow of funds that supported education in India. While these factors are there, what really broke the backbone of Indian Education is the disruption of vision of education. ## Conclusion Colonisation has rendered us prejudiced against our own Mother. Her knowledge and wisdom is second class to us. And we are drawn to all that glitters everywhere else. This does not mean that we demoralise European or western knowledge. There is good everywhere, wisdom everywhere. So what is a decolonised mind? In very simple terms, a mind that is not colonised, right? It is not so difficult to understand what being 'colonised' and 'not colonised' is. But what is difficult is that when we live thinking we are not colonised anymore (after 1947), someone comes along and tells you otherwise. Decolonization simply means to recognise the colonisation of the mind that has happened to us, that it is very real. And to set ourselves free from this colonisation by being critical of the notions that come our way. We need to willingly make an effort to analyse before we accept something as true. Being free thus means to be free of prejudices, to have a framework that automatically filters in the truth only, and to soar the skies of wisdom all over the world. आ नो भद्राः क्रतवो यन्तु विश्वत्व् अदन्धासो अपरीतास उद्भिदः । देवा नो यथा सदमिवृधे असन्न-प्रायुवो रक्षितारो दिवे-दिवे || ā no bhadrāḥ kratavo yantu viśvatu adabdhāso aparītāsa udbhidah | devā no yathā sadamidvrdhe asanna-prāyuvo rakṣitāro dive-dive || May noble thoughts come to us from every side, unchanged, unhindered, undefeated in every way; May the devas always be with us for our gain and our protectors caring for us, ceaseless, everyday. Rigveda 1.89.1 ## Explore 1. We explored the effects of colonisation on those who were colonised. But what about the coloniser? Did colonisation have any effect on the British or Europeans? History of the coloniser is chocked up with a number of mass genocides. From the Jews in Germany, to the slaves in Africa, to the many many forced migrations, including the Goans in India, we can clearly see that colonialism has made the European colonists insensitive to genocides. 2. Have we ever questioned the traditions and beliefs of the British, and asked if they are progressive, scientific or modern? Whatever we are taught as better, were always things that were not pertaining to us. Moreover, to be that "better" we are taught to leave our culture and identity behind. 3. Even today, we talk about good education, or being a good student, to cause good employability. While this makes sense today, is there any other way of looking at education, and our studentship? Read Jonathan Livingston Seagull' by Richard Bach, and reflect on the decisions you have made regarding your education. ## References 1. Kohn, Margaret, and Kavita Reddy. "Colonialism." (2006). 2. Horvath, Ronald J. "A definition of colonialism." Current anthropology 13.1 (1972): 45-57. 3. Seroto, Johannes. "Dynamics of decoloniality in South Africa: A critique of the history of Swiss mission education for indigenous people." Studia Historiae Ecclesiasticae 44.3 (2018): 1-14. 4. Mpofu, William Jethro. "Coloniality in the scramble for African knowledge: A decolonial political perspective." Africanus 43.2 (2013): 105-117. 5. Césaire, Aimé. "Discourse on colonialism." Postcolonism. Routledge, 2023. 310-339. 6. Dirks, Nicholas B. Colonialism and culture. University of Michigan Press, 1992. 7. Okazaki, Sumie, E. J. R. David, and Nancy Abelmann. "Colonialism and psychology of culture." Social and personality psychology compass 2.1 (2008): 90-106. 8. 'Decolonising Indian Education', https://www.youtube.com/ watch?v=MorNZijCuns 9. Goel, Sita Ram. Hindu Society under siege. New Delhi: Voice of India, 1981. 10. Sengupta, Madhumita, and Jahnu Bharadwaj. "Caste census and the impact of colonial sociology in British Assam." Asian Ethnicity 22.4 (2021): 516-541.