Bob Ross wrote:Oh, the anti-alcohol movement in India is alive and well. Our guide when we visited two years ago gave us a little summary of a variety of Indian beliefs. Here's what he passed around on the subject; I've lost the reference -- UN committee on Third World countries if I remember correctly:
Abstinence from alcohol is a value which is deeply rooted in Indian culture and religion, and as such is the only approach to drinking that could be called "sensible" in this country. Hinduism has the largest following in India, and in the Hindu scriptures drinking is referred to as one of the five heinous crimes, which include murder and adultery. According to the laws of Manu it is a sin to consume alcohol, and the only way to atone for it is to have the image of a liquor bottle branded on your forehead. The ancient Tamil poet, Thiruvalluvar, whose work entitled THIRUKURAL offers some foundations for ethical values in society, also condemns alcohol, calling it a social evil and equating a drunkard to a dead body.
The Indian Constitution strongly endorses the principle of prohibition, a concept that was first introduced by Mahatma Gandhi, and total prohibition throughout India was imposed in 1977. It only lasted for two years but the State of Tamil Nadu was "dry" for a total of 23 years, and the State of Gujarat still is. In addition, some states have partial prohibition in the form of a ban on "country liquor". Even today it appears that most Indian women favour total prohibition, and politicians often advocate some form of it to win their vote.
It is illegal to advertise alcoholic beverages in India, and they do not have a cultural role to play in religious and social activities. Thus it could be said that there is quite a strong "supportive environment" for abstinence here. The modern trend towards serving alcohol at parties reflects the influence of Western culture and is limited to small pockets in urban areas. The large majority of Indians still live in the villages. Furthermore, annual per capita income in India is less than US$ 160, which means that alcohol is a luxury few can afford. For most, it can only be bought at the expense of basic necessities.
Not surprisingly for a country in which the doctor-patient ratio is 1 to 2310, the health services are focused on providing bare essentials such as immunization. When questions of alcohol consumption do arise, the answer is usually simple: "Don't drink". Religiously, culturally, socially and economically it is the only answer that makes sense. In other words, for an average Indian abstinence in not a matter of choice but an imperative.-- Shanthi Ranganathan
I agree with your intuition -- well founded given Indian culture and beliefs as I understand them.
I was very happy to be some of those "urban pockets" where Indian wines were on offer, and were awfully, surprisingly, good, as I believe I reported here.
Regards, Bob
Always amazes me how feeble the religion argument against alcohol really is, especially when those same religious texts that forbid killing don't seem to matter much along the Indian border with Pakistan.
I remember a while back a friend of mine, who is gay, found himself a new fellow. After realizing he was gay, my friend's new beau had divorced his wife and then entered into his first homosexual relationship. He was also a Mormon.
We sat at dinner in a restaurant once--the two guys, my wife and I. When the waiter came to take the wine order, the Mormon asked him to take away his wine glass because he would not be having any. Then he turned to my wife and me and said, "We Mormons don't drink alcohol."
I withheld saying what was too obvious and too damned easy to point out about what his religion might think of his new relationship...
