Dawn of the new millenium brought to attention the world over a growing threat from islamic ideologue. Though India had been suffering from it ever since independence due to mostly political and sometimes religious reasons the world especially the superpower US came face to face with islamic terrorism only after 9/11 attacks. The damage that these islamic fundamentalists have done to Islam and its people will take many years to repair.
The middle ages also saw another religious extremism, that from Christianity. To say that the christian crusades were bloody would be an understatement which originally was to recapture the "holy" land from muslims ended up becoming a war against all other belief systems. Christianity still has not been able to break the hold of that gruesome period on its psyche though its been close to 6 centuries since the crusaders last roamed.
Hinduism has had a long history, no tradition of compassion towards all irrespective of faith. Yet the last 2 decades have stood as spectator to a new and budding extremism- the Hindu fanatics. Driven by political leaders masquerading behind "Hindutva" philosophy it still has not reached its potential unlike the others, christianity and islam ,but with rising support and political patronage it will in a few years. The coming centuries may well be the golden ,no "Saffron" age of Hindu extremism. Unless the political class and common man nip it in its bud now it will develop into a very thorny problem for us .
Politicians and intellectuals may say there is no colour for extremism but common sense tells there is. The middle ages witnessed the Red White and Blue extremism . We are witnessing Green (Islamic and not environmentalists) fundamentalism and in the future we may suffer from "Saffron" terrorism. No guesses which country will suffer most from it.....
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