https://skepticalinquirer.org/2023/05/ri...ic-method/
EXCERPTS: In India, traditionalists are challenging the scientific method as a Western construct. This objection stems from the fact that Eastern methods of acquiring knowledge are not dependent on observational phenomena but rather on the methods involving the mind as indicated in ancient Vedic literature. Attacks on existing scientific methods frequently leads to infamous nationalistic statements akin to the one made by a minister of Ayush (the government agency responsible for the propagation of traditional health methods), Shripad Yesso Naik, depicting all physicians prescribing non-ayurvedic medications as anti-nationals.
[...] We are faced with a movement that champions decoloniality over postmodernity. Decoloniality relates to delinking the source of knowledge from the ones laid down by colonizers. The work of prominent sociologists Walter D. Mignolo and Aníbal Quijano linking rationality and modernity with “coloniality”—the indoctrination of the indigenous mind with the principles of their colonial masters—provides the inspiration for this decolonization movement. From an Indian perspective, the aim seems to rid ourselves of the principles of modernity and rationality emerging out of the European Renaissance.
Several terminologies were introduced to indicate the direction that needs to be followed to achieve this decolonization. The recovery of geographical and political space from the colonizers do not immediately lead to a state of complete freedom. Rather it is a state of “post coloniality,” whereby the colonial mindset is still prevalent.
Hence, the final step to complete freedom is freeing the mindset from the Western construct, defined as decoloniality. Although we have freed ourselves from our Middle Eastern and European colonizers, we have not been able to get rid of the mentality ingrained in the Indian system of administration and education.
While there are merits to some of the issues raised by the proponents of decoloniality, there has always been a fear of missing out on the actual benefits and falling into the trap of hyper nationalism. The modernization of the education system, infrastructure, and medical and legal framework were some of the positive developments encountered in the colonial periods. How does decolonization reconcile with these benefits?
This conflict is particularly visible in the field of medicine in India. Do we integrate our indigenous values into the prevalent system, which is global in nature, or do we dismantle all that is considered modern, rational, and progressive by the global definition and introduce a new system based on the cultural traditions dating back thousands of years?
The latter strategy has the propensity to lead to nationalism as evidenced by the statement of Acharya Shri Balkrishna (a prominent figure spearheading the Ayurvedic movement in India): “Amongst all the cultures of the world, Indian culture is not only the oldest of all, but it is also the best and incomparable”. This mixture of culture, nationalism, and medicine can be seen in the introduction of ayurvedic clinics and hospitals independently, as well as integrated into the existing hospital system by the current government.... (MORE - missing details)
EXCERPTS: In India, traditionalists are challenging the scientific method as a Western construct. This objection stems from the fact that Eastern methods of acquiring knowledge are not dependent on observational phenomena but rather on the methods involving the mind as indicated in ancient Vedic literature. Attacks on existing scientific methods frequently leads to infamous nationalistic statements akin to the one made by a minister of Ayush (the government agency responsible for the propagation of traditional health methods), Shripad Yesso Naik, depicting all physicians prescribing non-ayurvedic medications as anti-nationals.
[...] We are faced with a movement that champions decoloniality over postmodernity. Decoloniality relates to delinking the source of knowledge from the ones laid down by colonizers. The work of prominent sociologists Walter D. Mignolo and Aníbal Quijano linking rationality and modernity with “coloniality”—the indoctrination of the indigenous mind with the principles of their colonial masters—provides the inspiration for this decolonization movement. From an Indian perspective, the aim seems to rid ourselves of the principles of modernity and rationality emerging out of the European Renaissance.
Several terminologies were introduced to indicate the direction that needs to be followed to achieve this decolonization. The recovery of geographical and political space from the colonizers do not immediately lead to a state of complete freedom. Rather it is a state of “post coloniality,” whereby the colonial mindset is still prevalent.
Hence, the final step to complete freedom is freeing the mindset from the Western construct, defined as decoloniality. Although we have freed ourselves from our Middle Eastern and European colonizers, we have not been able to get rid of the mentality ingrained in the Indian system of administration and education.
While there are merits to some of the issues raised by the proponents of decoloniality, there has always been a fear of missing out on the actual benefits and falling into the trap of hyper nationalism. The modernization of the education system, infrastructure, and medical and legal framework were some of the positive developments encountered in the colonial periods. How does decolonization reconcile with these benefits?
This conflict is particularly visible in the field of medicine in India. Do we integrate our indigenous values into the prevalent system, which is global in nature, or do we dismantle all that is considered modern, rational, and progressive by the global definition and introduce a new system based on the cultural traditions dating back thousands of years?
The latter strategy has the propensity to lead to nationalism as evidenced by the statement of Acharya Shri Balkrishna (a prominent figure spearheading the Ayurvedic movement in India): “Amongst all the cultures of the world, Indian culture is not only the oldest of all, but it is also the best and incomparable”. This mixture of culture, nationalism, and medicine can be seen in the introduction of ayurvedic clinics and hospitals independently, as well as integrated into the existing hospital system by the current government.... (MORE - missing details)