Adhikaarinee Dr Vindhya Persaud intervenes in Phagwah Controversy in Guyana, 2022

Guyana must thank Adhikaarinee Dr Vindhya Persaud for her timely intervention in this year’s national phagwah celebrations. She sought to protect dharma and the reputation of her great country, Guyana. She noted that in a secular country, deep respect for each other’s religious events should guide celebrations “in alignment with the significance and manner prescribed by the religious community.” Her response came in the wake of alarming alcohol, dance and fete advertisements inviting public participation. It is the LCD (lowest common denominator) way for culture promotion in the Caribbean and is not a “one fit all.”
The Guyana Hindu Dharmic Sabha’s Holi Utsav 2022 is a model for Hindus to emulate. Alcohol and lewd dancing, for example, are not welcome in this sacred space. Krishna and the Gopis in Ras Lila demonstrate how to mix the sacred with the worldly.
Adhikaara is a Sanskrit word, meaning the one who has the authority, ownership, right, experience, and competence to pronounce on an issue. Adhikaarinee refers to the female with these qualities.
In the context of dharma, adhikaara refers, for example, to the authority that parents have over children and that the scholar or pandit or other such leaders have over a samaj or society. This person must have the right knowledge, competence and responsibility to judge an issue. Persons can have “adhikaara” in different spheres of life but not just based on title; they must meet conditions of trust, knowledge, competence, ability to examine and make sober decisions, knowledgeable on the subject, have valid ownership, and so on.
In the context of Phagwah/Holi celebrations, adhikaara belongs to those persons who claim ownership of the tradition, are educated in the subject and have the required intellectual tools to examine the issue in different contexts. It is their tradition – they have kept it alive, made the necessary changes over time, transmitted it, know the process, values, etc. These specialists are called adhikaaree-s. They have the right to pronounce on matters related to their dharma traditions, and Phagwah/Holi is a Hindu dharma tradition. Along with fellow dharma adherents, they are the keepers, protectors and transmitters of the traditions and values.
In Trinidad, Phagwah used to be celebrated mainly in villages where Indians were in large numbers and where mandirs were located. Some men would drink in the village rum shop and join the celebrations later. I recall that this rum drinking was the main recreation of the sugarcane workers. Then, slowly, the phagwah celebrations became centralized in community spaces that attracted alcohol and immoral conduct.
Ravi-Ji of the Hindu Prachar Kendra was followed by Mr Sat Maharaj of the Sanatana Dharma Maha Sabha in celebrating phagwah in mandir and Hindu school spaces. Much innovation went into these efforts that creatively provided for the celebratory spirits.
Sacred stories and dramatic presentations around Prahalad and community games of the ancestors, and so on came to be associated with the fun and frolic of Phagwah at the Hindu Prachar Kendra. The Kendra led in the creative adaptation of dharma to suit the times. Now rum-drinking men would have to do that on the sly and not in the phagwah space.
This year, Guyana faced the very dilemma that Trinidad faced some years back in the celebration of Phagwah. The public holiday of Phagwah and Divali allowed for a more national celebration. Sometimes, persons who are not knowledgeable about the nuances of the culture might be motivated to bring non-harmonious elements into the festivities. We understand that and only education and laws can assist in this regard. Perhaps it is time to call for appropriate regulations in the law books.
I recall way back in the 1980s when a Trinidad political party group advertised a Divali Barbeque and quickly retracted it when I wrote about it in the press. Since then, there have been Divali curry-ques suggestive of a vegetarian approach. It shows how we can live in mutual respect and harmony. Once we understand the other, we can and should adapt.
The story in India shows a significant decline as bhang, Bollywood actors, and unconventional conduct take over some phagwah/holi celebrations. They, too, need their dharma adhikaari-s to intervene in the degradation of Hindu sacred events and spaces.
Hindu teachings prescribe four goals of life: dharma (righteous living), artha (legitimate pursuit of wealth), kama (legitimate pursuit of worldly pleasures like recreation, love, and sex), and moksha (transcendence of the material world for immortality).
Selling alcohol and indulging in illegitimate kinds of worldly pleasures cannot be expressions of the ethos of Hindu festivals and sacred events. They are not in harmony.
Societies get derailed when the Adhikaaree-s fail to step in and provide timely guidance.
Dr Vindhya Persaud, therefore, must be heralded as the Adhikaarinee who did that to protect dharma in Guyana.