Re: The Brotherhood In Saffron Pdf
Sanora Ngueyn
Saffron is a shade of yellow or orange, the colour of the tip of the saffron crocus thread, from which the spice saffron is derived.[2] The hue of the spice saffron is primarily due to the carotenoid chemical crocin.
The word saffron ultimately derives (via Arabic) from the Middle Iranian ja'far-. The name was used for the saffron spice in Middle English from c. 1200. As a colour name, it dates to the late 14th century.[3]
Saffron holds symbolic meaning in Sikhism, representing spirit and sacrifice.[11] Originally a shade of yellow called basanti, the field of the modern Nishan Sahib is saffron.[11][12] Turbans worn by Sikhs most often are blue or white,[13] but basanti colour is common.[11][14]
In politics, it was used by the Indian independence movement, and it was chosen as one of the three colours of the Indian national flag after independence in 1947, and is used by Hindus.[15] India saffron, representing courage and sacrifice, was chosen for one of the three bands of the National Flag of India, along with white (peace and truth) and what is now called India green (faith and chivalry).[16][17] The Flag of India is officially described in the Flag Code of India as follows:
The colour of the top panel shall be India saffron (Kesari) and that of the bottom panel shall be India green. The middle panel shall be white, bearing at its centre the design of Ashoka Chakra in navy blue colour with 24 equally spaced spokes.[18]
Bhagwa or the saffron colour denotes renunciation or disinterestedness. Our leaders must be indifferent to material gains and dedicate themselves to their work. The white in the centre is light, the path of truth to guide our conduct. The green shows our relation to (the) soil, our relation to the plant life here, on which all other life depends. The "Ashoka Chakra" in the centre of the white is the wheel of the law of dharma. Truth or satya, dharma or virtue ought to be the controlling principle of those who work under this flag. Again, the wheel denotes motion. There is death in stagnation. There is life in movement. India should no more resist change, it must move and go forward. The wheel represents the dynamism of a peaceful change.[19]
The use of saffron in the national flag and as political symbolism has been opposed.[8] One line of opposition asserts that the color is sacred and should not be politicized.[8] Another source of opposition comes from Islamists who claim the color is forbidden in Islam and strongly prohibited to be worn by the males.[8][20]
The saffron flag (bhagwa dhwaj) of the medieval Hindu warrior Shivaji was held in high esteem by the Hindu Mahasabha and Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) in the 1920s as a representative of Hindu resurgence and militaristic tradition. The saffron flag was the "true guru" to which Hedgewar demanded obeisance from the RSS members. "The Gerva [saffron] Flag shall be the flag of the Hindu nation. With its Om, the Swastik and the Sword, it appeals to the sentiments cherished by our race since the Vaidik [Vedic] days," he said.[23]
The Bharatiya Jana Sangh and its successor Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) both used saffron as their colour. The BJP used a saffron lotus on its flag, along with a green side band that possibly reflected accommodation with Islam.[24] The Vishva Hindu Parishad (VHP), a Hindu religious body affiliated to the RSS, also used saffron as its predominant colour, with its ascetic leaders clad in saffron robes and the lay leaders wearing saffron scarves.[25] During the Ram Janmabhoomi movement in the 1990s, the VHP and its affiliate Bajrang Dal distributed saffron flags and saffron headbands to their followers by the millions.[26][27][28]
The predominance of the saffron symbolism in the BJP and its allies led to the BJP being referred to as the 'saffron party' in the 1990s, and the term'saffronisation' came to be used describe the increasing influence of Hindu nationalism in party politics. This period saw phrases such as the "saffronisation of the coastal belt",[29] "saffronisation of Karnataka"[30] and "saffronisation of the Congress(I)".[31] Academic and non-academic scholars wrote books with titles involving 'saffron' to refer to Hindu nationalism: Brotherhood in Saffron,[32] Khaki Shorts and Saffron Flags,[33] The Saffron Wave,[34] and The Saffron Swastika.[35]
Saffron-coloured cloth had a history of use among the Gaelic-Irish. A saffron kilt is worn by the pipers of certain Irish regiments in the British Army, and the saffron léine in the defence forces of the Republic of Ireland. The latter garment is also worn by some Irish and Irish-American men as an item of national costume (though most wear kilts, believing them to be Irish). Its colour varies from a true saffron orange to a range of dull mustard and yellowish-brown hues.
The Antrim GAA teams are nicknamed "The Saffrons" because of the saffron-coloured kit which they play in. The Old Irish word for saffron, cróc,[36] derives directly from the Latin Crocus sativus. In Ireland between the 14th and 17th centuries, men wore léinte (singular léine),[37] loose saffron-coloured shirts that reached down to mid-thigh or the knee.[38] (see Irish clothing).
Even the judiciary has come under attack in India with saffron netizens blaming the judges for pronouncing against jallikattu, the bull-taming sport in Tamil Nadu, for inflicting pain on the animals; the use of firecrackers during Diwali for causing pollution; and reducing the height of human 'pyramids' during the Dahi Handi festival on the occasion of Janmastami, Lord Krishna's birthday, in Maharashtra to prevent accidents.
For the judiciary will have endorsed, like the 'media workers' -- another term used by the saffron lobby for presstitutes -- the old-fashioned concept of a secular and humane polity that shuns prejudice and ensures that there is a fair law for everyone.
(The Christian Science Monitor) For many Americans, the image of Buddhism is that of monks wearing saffron-colored robes, meditating peacefully on windswept mountains, revering all forms of life while seeking higher states of enlightenment.
With BJP putting together a coalition of several regional parties in its attempt to consolidate Hindu votes, Mr. Gandhi claimed that the opposition coalition will destroy the brotherhood and progress which the 15-year-old rule of Congress has ushered in Assam.
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