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Thu Maulana Lbul Kalam heal Memorial Lecture December 14, 2004 GLOBALISATION AND CuLture by Lord Meghnad Desai Indian Council tor Cultural Relations New Delhi GLOBALISATION AND CULTURE Meghnad Dasci Introduction foo! privtegedl and honoured lo be alving Ih prostgious lec“ue for ot least ture special reasons, Maulana Azad wes one of my atoes In the 195Cs fidla when | ses glowing up, The publication oF tnaia Wirs Freecom @NTY'n 1959 was a majer event Ir ay ife. It wes Ihe fis time that tho recor ane focs!ed hisicry of the Partition beceme unbundled thom tre fine paccage which we vad ail been brought up on, The quest io dafne ndian rationhead is yet an untnished one, but an understanding of the Pavillon. which IMF is about, is an indlsponscblo part of it The socond ragsc is of course that 1am able fo joln a dlstingushed lhe which starts wth ony other hero Jewaherlcl Nehru. Never in my wildest creams when | was fgenager could | Imagine such a conjuncture. Even today when there are mciny eflkcs of Nehru and his secular ideal a3 wel cs of Hs economic prograrnine . remain convinced that hake acs not yet Aad his match as ai Prime Minister Atod ond AlHind Maviana Azad wos ¢ rare combination of a scholar, need a Ireologkan. sxpert .n tne clasoat languages A-acle ane Persian but abe a powerful Urcu journalist who served the cause of indeperdence in mony capacities. dis writings ranged trom commentarles 09 tre Quran io his ids book, {WE His ability to make ¢ living seperation beiween his deep ‘eigosty and hs fierce 7 ave dest wlin the cues! for Ind ar. nafonhoodd in my iRoENt eohection Devoloemsnt and Nafieshood eink: Oxo inambership of ne of the great humane sTuggle for fteecom that tne 2cth century wilhesed has faw porcilels, He stucx to his deap beiefs both ‘n islam ond ina seculey Indian Republic, His Le has lessorss for us in a santo deeper than as a cllcné to be meted out on the aceaslen o* such @ Lecture in his hanour. ‘One thing tral suck me when | thst read ebout fhe Maulona’s Ife wos the tacilty wih which in his early years his fernily could move betwoor Calculta ana Macca ond Medina, It was of there wos a corrider trem the Holy Lands of sam ta the far eastern, ends of hdl, 'n 6 sense, there is a continuily between his experience In the early 20Ih century and she story of Ibn Batuta’s tawvels “torn his nerve Metacco through the Moghtcb vic the Holy Lands te India ane. China ithe \th century, Tab area wes fine lei: giobsl order a vita: pert of which was Ar:lInd, “the entire Indian'zed region trom Sine anc’ Makan to the Indonesian Archipelago and meiniand Southacet Asia’ whaee histery is belng traced by Ancre Wink in his magnilcent muifi-volume project of which “he fist hres voumes have ekocoy oppaured. [Winx (1996, 1995, 2003). As Wink says in tha Introduction to hs fist volume: JThe growth and deveicpment of a world econemy in ard Ground fhe Incion Ocean-wih India at Its canter unc the Mladle East and Cina as ts twe dynamic poles-ws effected oy continuad sconemis, social ard cutural ntegrarion Into ever weer cad more compres nottems under the aegis of islam... Already long betoro ihe arya] of the Porluguese, the region from East Attic and Ethiopia to Arabic, ite Yemen, Perla, Indi and the Irderesion Archivelago. Increcsingly acqired a un tery ‘samic Identity. g dlstnctive historleal personality, whion mode it the largest culura! corrinuun of tha world... Iwas roi the Europeons-Ihe Porluguese, Duten of Srltsh whe rade a world oconemy of the Incien Ocesn In any sense. From the vary beginning the inregrative processes whics cocurad hers Under the benner of Isiam have set F apart trom tie Mediteranecn world.” (Wink, |p. 4) | quote Ibis enghhy passage to make several peinis, Fisl is to sew that what we call Slobalsailon 708 rad many avatars, #n the are Soumb ne world, #6 Romon Empire wos ons phate of globallsation wh ch shetched actoss Europe ond much of Central asia andl North Attica! The Isamic phase begar os tho Roman Empire d and shifted! the geographic center af the globalisea order eastwards towards Indic ane stretched ever. to Ching. The: Islami¢ global ace survived onslcughts from the West by Christendom (Causes) aanel from the east by the Mongol arrles, I absorbed the later but the former proved intiactabble in the long run, Once the Columbine (or Da Gamal er began with the discovery of America and the sea route to Insla bo'h In the last cecade of the Ith century, cl new world systom’ was bom, The geograshice? extension beyond Europe, Affca and Asia ta the New World and the Anfipoces made this new order truly global. The Many Avatars of Globalisation The current phase of globalisation Is several ovatars down from the lbelan phose which was bom Ia the late 18th century. that order went thyouga a critical phase when In the 16th century Luther splt the Christian Church and a Profestant exsansion was added fo the ofgingl Iberlan Catholks thrust, Bul soon efter ie the Lats century, Enlightentnert iook the iniilative away fron ihe Church ‘and ¢ rerfond modem piscse was Incugueated., It was during this phase that Industral Capttallstn hice its ergins In the remote Noth West cotner of curope, 'n many ways, world history ancl inceed ultras have never been the same since, Tne change trem the islamic phase of globalisation to the berlem Catholic phose was noé vey damalic, Thete wets lochaclogisal innovations-the fast sailing ship mounzea with marousverable guns 2 There was o Hinsu ceawaman: cawards If fee orchipaloga wilich we nw Idensty wlth Molaysle andl néfaresia. But iis gangraahle Leis were reached scr of by the borers of CamizogiayVistnam where the dine: order tea. vet, being tre crucial oneawhicr gave an advantage fo Iberion salors. (Cipol ¢ (1964)5 But tha coud have been reversed and the Isiarric order could have resovered., Indeed, fougst on os the Ottoman emits for two Aundred years rove, Whal rncida the Western Europes fit fo globelsatior hard fe veverse was the Clufch® of industial innevations which eccurred in mid 785 century England. Whatever |e may say Goul Ils earler forms such as merchant Capitation proper was inaugurated with tha industiicl evolurion, vias tectnology which gove the West ifs supetiory for the next Bo hundred years Vercantie Empires had tong crececed! this “ise Capitelisn, Ine Iberian expansion hed cartes with if Papal and a crusading spitt to the Amesioas, “he kale Frotestanst Enoires of Folland and Erglend were interestec: more ir *he money of the peor they traded with Ihren Ihelr souls, yet they tock tha Chusch long with tam, The was, In my view, superficial but the beliefs of the Europeans who wan! 2ctoss the world seling “he new inak.stiat exports of Industrial Casitatim were a muddle o% Erfighlenment ‘and Chisionity, Thus Wester: Cutisatien (@o-callec) came to the Ibettan estontes kr Is ore meciorn ent retional Cathells variant and Ike Du'ch dnd Fhesh colonies got a strong dose of Irase ang rationality with soft pacaling of the Christian slemants, What made the colonials swolow the dove, stick and persst with tre combination ‘was ‘he sucaior technology bem out of godess Enlightenment andl yer the Church 'n Ils severe! seclarian denominasions aorogatec: to ifeeif an al of superiority as & consequence. Cutlures and The Challenge of Modemily Wher! rested tom this a far as the rect of *he word was corcemed was the challenge of modernity in the form of there cre many cavects to adld fo shit sine cecouns of dushlal ceptatem's origins Fe ny auinoses today hawersr, the sina § cy ‘ssulilcant mpesaistn-a double challenge fo tre cultures of the venqulshect and to their economies whic were transformed through exchange and “he ntreduction of new fechnolegy, Cullire 8 ci contesed concept. While cuftutes have oxisled sinc: fime immernoral, the Idea of culture as a catagory of study & a product of the Ciightorment, Indeed the study of eutures ond their cofticulation fs ne older then the lafe 1$%h cermury when James Frazer puslished Als clussle werk The Gokten Bough, Sincs than onthiopologis's have macped oul several cultures, thei: lifestyles, thelr inship structures, their belles aecut this ane otner wares, But culture as d concep: has lof academia and acquired a political force of ils own as an idealagy of nafionalism. Recently wilh Iho revival of vorlous religious ‘ndamentaisms, i is fashionoble in most progressive c'cles 7> acopt @secular’ detinition af cufure seperaling if from relgion. While n the Zath century an agnostic 0” even athe stic form of culfure grew us ir the West andl “ransmHed [tlt to the childten of Chightenrrerr (arrang whom | ceunt myself] evenrshore. itis imecrtant ‘or my purposes to view thls seporation as 4 recently evolves phase of culture and rol a sluctural permanent capect. “hus | shell take cultures os loaded heavily with: religion for much of x 9own histery, “his helps sharaee the lfc kes we face today on she issue of culture, Culture is often though -o be some timeless constant with deep ‘ols and arclens histories transmitted across ganerotisns iran unchanging fashion. Those who charap‘on this view seek ways of rooring culture In beligfs anc. objects which can claim to be chongeless. Hence the emphasis cn texts which avesctd tobe divinely inspired or even pronounced, BLt d o.thure is as much a preduct of social ard economic forces ae most cther suman prociices, Texts of even div ne provencnos are foLnd, on arco! examminaricn. to be full of disputed Items or a resi of mutip's nputs over a period of titre, ine sesame text undergoes different interpretations cespte clairs tho- here con only’ se one reading o* a text, Culture may chenge at a pace slower than more material objects. I “nay une indeed does evel! a profeund influence ah social and eesnorne life, But ir is as much gn endogenous product cf human socio! praciics at is the economy or technology of even knowledgs The inauguration of Ihe Iaie 18th Century Enlightenment or modem phase of capitals caused 2 crbsis for all religions, Chistianity was challenge athorns by rationally arc sc’ence, Newton ane Faraclay andl Harvey and Denwin demolshed the Gerad sloy as a descriptor Undil t now survives more as @ parable than as Feral truth, But Isa and Kindulrn and every othe’ religion clso went through crlses, For Islarn the cis was delayed due fo the existence of the Oifoman Empire whieh in ifs own ramshackle way held *he flag aloft for the Islamic word order dascriaed by Ancre Wink in the quote aoows. But this delay mad the ctiss all the “nore profound when it came. From mic-!9th century onwards, thers ware stirings within Islam to meet the dual crallenge of Western Impetalism—'o the economy and fo tne reigious/culfural ecology, The react ons as chways: lok two ottemate paths. One was the reassertion of ortnadaxy, a call to reiure to the origins of lam and the ofher Poth wes to adapt and rrodemize to meet the challenge, (Houran’ (19973) The reat shock came with the dafeat of ie Cttomar Empire in ~he First World Wer, The clmombe:ment of the Emple ad its freigmentation into various separate territories - ecich & proto naficn ond yet eager to relcin “he old union ~ ote sill with us and causing ructons around the Midiala East, tt wos then ther! tha ful Imacet of Wester: Imperiallsrns was fell by the Arcb world and bayond by Musimms everywhere. Then it wos that fhe stuggie for modemity n Iam wes engaged and Meulana Azad was on the eide of the rodernsts slorn was rot nique |r this. A similar challenge was posed te Hindluterr ane’ ts reactions alse began In the early 19th century. Here again the *in paths of orthodox revivals and mademist acoptatlon were takes, But “he Hindus in India vad no recent memory of a Powerfu world corquering Empire to seek solace in. The reactions were honvily jonded In favour of vorous rhodes of segplation, some Gioser te Christianity such as the Brahmo Sarre’, and others somewhat closer to ideas of rev. vol g8 in the Arya Serra], This reforreist tit is also. for two other reasons specific to | incuism, i hos met huw previous chalenges <iutng fs long history: tks Forn Budchien wh ch bated! with the ancient religion and receded abread and wrh lam whence: Hindu society witrdraw within its caste based structure. Bul Hnduisrn is aiso religion like no other, I hes no sing!s text, ~o singe Church of priestly order and no single deity, this mokes ff a conslanily changing, cdaptable body of celiofs and practices untke ory otter roligton But along sicle with “his reiigious/autturel response cama the other response 16 the chakenge of rnodernity posed ky the Enlightensnent. This took the form of naticnatiam and in tris he habit of re“onal discourse were eagelly adopted by the natlenalisls everywhere. If the chollenge wes modertity, the resporse wos modemization- nationalism, industiaiizotion, mechanization, Nationalism is in. woty @ Europea deg universalzed a nic other Eurapecn idea was, But os a Idea trens-nitted fom Furepe to the perp rey luring Ine imperialst phage of history, | shaved the ‘lidele | desorlzod above ‘tpemblned rationality and religion In vérlo:.s prepetilons in diferent tanitorios, Tous Kattiona ism san ideolngy sometime fusedt with “ellglon cane other times in conflict wa It, Nesdiess 40 sayy, Incicn national sr a perfect sxcenpie of this amblvasnee Sociaitsm, is Chaltenge md Ils Demise As the challange of modemily wos faced by me various non- Westerr cultures and peoples in 191 cerruty, a new ingredient wes added very much from an andogenous recetien from within seston coipitaiist societies, This wes Socialism as an ideology, as a movement and as 4 programme. Soclelsm was In Its otigin a secular icleology though icligious versions of Soclalism-~Chrastian Socialism for oxample-are Rot unknown, The Manian varion? of Socialism, espectely after 1917, ts tlurepiaat version Rolshovism was athe'stic.