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While it is true Hindi is only about 40% of the languages spoken among Indians, it is the predominant language because India is such a crazy-quilt of languages with 0..13% of this, 0.25% of that and so forth. What, there are dozens, more likely even hundreds of languages in a country of 1.3 billion and growing?
A 40% language and religious base in a country as fractured as India means dominance.
I'll give you a technical point for the derivation; i.e., Hindi/Sanskrit. Still, my point remains about the religiosity associated with the yoga practice stands. No religion in public schools, nor government schools.
Quote:
Originally Posted by shanv3
Hindi/Sanskrit not Hindu...500 million Hindus who do not speak Hindi do not even give a hit about that word..They have their own languages..
The Constitution says you are guaranteed freedom of religion.... not freedom from exposure to any and all religious symbols and traditions in society.
It just means the government cannot choose or enforce on the people any particular religion over another.
The free exercise clause means that just because you are free to choose any religion... or none at all, does not mean you have a right to deny others from practicing their religion in public places.
It also means that you cannot give one religion a preference over others and that is what most Christians want.
While it is true Hindi is only about 40% of the languages spoken among Indians, it is the predominant language because India is such a crazy-quilt of languages with 0..13% of this, 0.25% of that and so forth. What, there are dozens, more likely even hundreds of languages in a country of 1.3 billion and growing?
A 40% language and religious base in a country as fractured as India means dominance.
I'll give you a technical point for the derivation; i.e., Hindi/Sanskrit. Still, my point remains about the religiosity associated with the yoga practice stands. No religion in public schools, nor government schools.
Now foreign languages cannot be spoken bc of the percent of people who speak that language who may or may not practice a religion?
Did this person say they had anything to do with each other? It's like saying we should ban "Christianity and Islam".
Wait, what do they have to do with each other?
Anyway, while I'm an agnostic and liberal, I think the parents in this case are justified. We are talking about Hindu religious traditions here, regardless of how watered down and hippyfied they have been in the west. If you can't pray in school, how much different is meditation and chanting Hindu mantras?
You're an ignorant agnostic and liberal.
Millions of Indian people say, "Namaste" as an informal greeting and it HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH RELIGION.
OMG.
People make fun of our country for being dumb and xenophobic and they're 100% correct. I can't believe I defended us for so long. It's all true.
Millions of Indian people say, "Namaste" as an informal greeting and it HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH RELIGION.
OMG.
People make fun of our country for being dumb and xenophobic and they're 100% correct. I can't believe I defended us for so long. It's all true.
#disillusioned
Merry Christmas really has little to do with religion either but.................
If a teacher was telling his students "God bless you" as they leave the classroom they would likely be instructed to stop. That saying is also pretty much the same sort of statement.
You can't say it has NOTHING to do with religion at that. It most certainly does. It may have become a general greeting but so has many things people say that they have been instructed not to in an official capacity any longer.
Want to end that? O.K. but until we do one can't complain sometimes while not complaining other times.
The Constitution says you are guaranteed freedom of religion.... not freedom from exposure to any and all religious symbols and traditions in society.
It just means the government cannot choose or enforce on the people any particular religion over another.
The free exercise clause means that just because you are free to choose any religion... or none at all, does not mean you have a right to deny others from practicing their religion in public places.
So Bob, you would be in favor of children praying from the Koran every morning before classes.
So Bob, you would be in favor of children praying from the Koran every morning before classes.
The statement you replied to is pretty irrelevant to what went on here. They are correct that individuals can practice their religions in public. That isn't what is in question here.
The problem was teachers leading students in a religious practice.
If two students want to greet each other with a "namaste" they are, and should be allowed to.
If the school wants to make yoga exercises a part of a physical fitness program they can. They just have to leave the religious aspects out of it.
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