Suresh Natarajan
2 min readAug 30, 2023

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I normally don't comment on such topics but a 90 batch mate sent me this and I have to say this piece reveals less about Vivek than the author.

First, on the point that a Hindu should say "Gods" and not God. The highest pointer in Hinduism is Advaita (nondualism) that reveals one God resides in all beings (and as all deities). And Vivek literally said that in multiple occasions when asked about his Hindu faith. This talk specifically addresses this because a few others asked about it too: https://youtu.be/9tteSedlxJk

He also rightly pointed out that the values of sacrifice and service are common to Judeo-Christian and Hindu faiths. Ram giving up his kingdom to go to the forest and Jesus giving up his life are both rooted in sacrifice for a higher cause. Both say that the truth will set you free or truth alone wins. And many more. Gandhi has talked about these common threads too.

Caste divisions are a cancer in Indian society and need to entirely go in an ideal world. But in the real world, things happen gradually. That a 'lower' caste guy can deliver food to an 'upper' caste guy is certainly a positive development. It doesn't solve everything but it was unthinkable 50 years back, especially in Kerala. And Vivek is right that capitalism does make divisions less intense. To point this out is somehow casteist?

BLM has been exploited to play identity politics and create divisions instead of healing. MLK jr wanted to judge by the content of character and not color of skin. But BLM type folks think color of skin is all that matters. So one can be totally not racist and anti BLM. I know black folks who say the same.

From what I've seen thus far, Vivek has some good ideas with a smart techie mindset. So with RFK jr on the other side. But both have their blind spots. Vivek seems like an attention seeker who exploits social media quite well. We should be open to genuine criticisms of his ideas or personality. But if this is the most scathing expose' on him, maybe he is not bad at all.

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Suresh Natarajan
Suresh Natarajan

Written by Suresh Natarajan

Exploring the space of synergy between the inner and the outer which is ultimately the same one movement of Life.

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