Language:
Hebrew
Year of publication:
2015
Titel der Quelle:
תיאוריה וביקורת; במה ישראלית
Angaben zur Quelle:
44 (2015) 127-149
Keywords:
Ben-Gurion, David,
;
Prime ministers Attitudes
;
Buddhism Relations
;
Judaism
;
Israel Relations
Abstract:
This article traces David Ben-Gurion's attitude toward India and Buddhism, highlighting his Orientalist approach. This is evident, first and foremost, in the distinction Ben-Gurion made between Buddhism, which he identified with rationalism and Western philosophical values, and Hinduism, which he saw as having a mystical and Oriental aspect and which he consequently considered inferior. On the basis of this dichotomy, Ben-Gurion praised Buddhist values, but at the same time denied India's uniqueness; he demanded a clear distinction between religion and secularism and between rationality and mysticism, while ignoring the complexity and hybridity of Indian culture.The conceptual key to Ben-Gurion's dichotomous view of India can be found in the Zionist idea of "the negation of the Diaspora." This approach was based on a distinction between the biblical era (associated with values that have shaped Western culture and philosophy) and the age of the Diaspora (in which rabbinic Judaism held sway and led Judaism toward superstitions, which Ben-Gurion, like many leading Zionists, attributed to the East). By presenting this historical dichotomy, Ben-Gurion suggested indirectly that India should return to its Buddhist origins and reject Hinduism – just as the Zionists have done in their negation of the Diaspora. This view enabled Ben-Gurion to emphasize modern Israel's superiority to India – which apparently had not yet learned to free itself from its Hindu past – and to justify his attempts to persuade India to establish diplomatic relations with Israel.
URL:
אתר את הפרסום בקטלוג המאוחד של ספריות ישראל
