{"id":42019,"date":"2025-09-10T21:35:15","date_gmt":"2025-09-11T04:35:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/?p=42019"},"modified":"2025-09-10T21:35:15","modified_gmt":"2025-09-11T04:35:15","slug":"my-grandmothers-gita-minda-barat","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/my-grandmothers-gita-minda-barat\/","title":{"rendered":"My Grandmother\u2019s Gita [Minda Barat]"},"content":{"rendered":"

Introduction <\/strong><\/p>\n

Even the most secular ideals of the modern West, human rights, equality, and liberalism\u2014carry the fingerprints of ancient Christian revolution. At its core, Dominion: The Making of the Western Mind<\/em> by Tom Holland argues that these values are deeply rooted in Christian thought, whether we recognize it or not.[1]<\/a><\/p>\n

Holland explores how Christianity\u2019s moral vision\u2014centered on humility, compassion, and the worth of the marginalized\u2014has shaped Western culture for over two thousand years. Rather than offering a traditional history of Christianity, Dominion<\/em> traces the subtle yet profound influence of Christian ideas on movements that often appear secular or oppositional. Holland\u2019s central claim is striking even in a post-Christian age; our deepest moral instincts remain unmistakably Christian.[2]<\/a><\/p>\n

I must admit this book stretches far beyond my capacity to retain each chapter with photographic precision. Its historical scope and philosophical detail call for slow, reflective reading\u2014more like absorbing a symphony than scanning a textbook. I am still digesting its implications, chapter by chapter, multiple times returning to passages that challenge my assumptions or deepen my understanding of how faith has shaped culture.<\/p>\n

Religion<\/u><\/strong><\/p>\n

One chapter that particularly caught my attention is Religion because I am most familiar with it.[3]<\/a> I was raised by my grandmother who was a devout Hindu. I relate to the Bhagavad Gita. The book is often called The Song of God<\/em>\u2014is a sacred Hindu text that blends spiritual wisdom with practical guidance for living. Similar to the Bible for Christians. My grandmother would tell me stories from the Bhagavad Gita.<\/p>\n

I was 10 years old, when I heard about the practice of sati (suttee)[4]<\/a> \u00a0I asked my grandmother how she escaped such a horrid ritual (she was a Malaysian-born, widow). \u00a0No one practices sati in Malaysia (one can go to jail). I also remember asking my grandmother if I am subject to sati if I marry an Indian man and he dies. A 10-year-old girl’s questions! She assured me that the Bhagavad Gita does not<\/strong> mention or endorse the practice of sati. While the term sati<\/em> in Sanskrit means \u201ctruthful\u201d or \u201cvirtuous woman,\u201d and is also the name of a goddess in Hindu mythology, the Gita itself focuses on spiritual philosophy, duty (dharma<\/em>), and the nature of the self\u2014not social customs or widowhood rituals.<\/p>\n

In the book Dominion, the story of the British surgeon who witness the woman Ambabai, \u201cas she circled the pyre, then climbing into the pyre, she made herself comfortable beside her husband\u2019s corpse, began to sing her own funeral song. Ambabai never changed her position, nor did she scream\u2026Smoke billowed. The sun set\u2026.Ambabai had become what she had set out to become : a \u2018good woman,\u2019 a sati.[5]<\/a> This led me to explore Holland\u2019s argument.<\/p>\n

Tom Holland\u2019s Dominion<\/em> touches on the practice of sati (suttee)\u2014the historical Hindu ritual of widow immolation\u2014not to critique Hinduism broadly, but to illustrate how Christian moral frameworks reshaped global norms, especially around human dignity and suffering. Here are three key points he emphasizes in that context:<\/p>\n

    \n
  1. Christianity\u2019s Challenge to Ritualized Violence<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    Holland contrasts the Christian emphasis on compassion and the sanctity of individual life with practices like sati, which were historically justified through religious and cultural tradition. He argues that Christian moral sensibilities, particularly the idea that every life has intrinsic worth, led Western reformers to oppose such rituals, even when they were deeply embedded in other societies.[6]<\/a><\/p>\n

      \n
    1. The Global Reach of Christian Ethics<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

      He shows how Christian-influenced British colonial officials, especially in the 19th century, condemned and eventually outlawed sati in India. While colonialism had its own moral contradictions, Holland suggests that the abolition of sati was driven by a Christian-informed belief in protecting the vulnerable, especially women, from institutionalized harm.<\/p>\n

        \n
      1. The Invisible Influence of Christian Morality<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

        Holland\u2019s broader point is that many modern humanitarian instincts\u2014such as opposing widow immolation\u2014are not universal but stem from Christian moral revolutions. Even secular human rights campaigns often echo Christian values, whether consciously or not<\/p>\n

        Conclusion<\/u><\/strong><\/p>\n

        Dominion<\/em> invites readers to reconsider the moral foundations of the modern West\u2014not as neutral or universal, but as deeply shaped by the Christian morals. Holland\u2019s exploration of sati, and the moral outrage it provoked among Christian-influenced reformers, reveals how faith traditions can redefine cultural norms and elevate the dignity of the vulnerable. As someone raised in a Hindu household, I found this intersection of religious narratives both challenging and illuminating. My grandmother\u2019s teachings from the Bhagavad Gita<\/em> emphasized spiritual wisdom and personal duty, yet Holland\u2019s account reminded me how different traditions frame justice, suffering, and reform.<\/p>\n

        Though I cannot claim mastery over every chapter, Dominion<\/em> has stirred a deeper awareness of how embedded Christian ethics are in the moral instincts we often take for granted. It has also prompted me to reflect more critically on the spiritual legacies, both Hindu and Christian\u2014that shape my own understanding of compassion, courage, and conscience. In that sense, Holland\u2019s work is not just a history, it is an invitation to see the moral shape of the world with new eyes.<\/p>\n

        [1]<\/a> Tom Holland, Dominion: The Making of the Western Mind<\/em> (London: Little, Brown, 2019), xxv.<\/p>\n

        [2]<\/a> Holland, xxv.<\/p>\n

        [3]<\/a> Holland, 397.<\/p>\n

        [4]<\/a> Holland, 398.<\/p>\n

        [5]<\/a> Holland, 398.<\/p>\n

        [6]<\/a> Holland, 402.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

        Introduction Even the most secular ideals of the modern West, human rights, equality, and liberalism\u2014carry the fingerprints of ancient Christian revolution. At its core, Dominion: The Making of the Western Mind by Tom Holland argues that these values are deeply rooted in Christian thought, whether we recognize it or not.[1] Holland explores how Christianity\u2019s moral […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":198,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[3475],"class_list":["post-42019","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-dlgp03-holland","cohort-dlgp03"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/42019","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/198"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=42019"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/42019\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":42021,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/42019\/revisions\/42021"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=42019"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=42019"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=42019"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}