In her new book, Kavita Krishnan shows the American alt-right co-opting the idea of ‘Kaliyug’
· Scroll
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In the global alt-right ecosystem, Kaliyuga – the spectre of the Hindu caste order turned upside down – has emerged as the central image representing the democratic world order. De-democratisation, says Alexandr Dugin, requires the overthrow of Kaliyuga, that is, in his words, “the present order of things, of which the core could be described as human rights, anti-hierarchy, and political correctness”. He had said this in Delhi in 2012, while attending a prestigious international social science conference, in an interview published by a magazine that declares its purpose “is to promote white identity politics”.
Kaliyuga – a Hindu term for an epoch of sexual and social degeneration caused by the collapse and corruption of caste hierarchy – has excellent traction in contemporary white-supremacist, alt-right and multipolarist discourse internationally, among ideologues, media figures and even political parties. As an Indian attuned to recognising Kaliyuga as a trope in social conservatism as well as Hindu-nationalist and Hindu supremacist discourse, it is startling to see the extent to which Kaliyuga memes, imagery, slogans, T-shirts and other merchandise permeate the global far-right social media ecosystem.
Carole Schaeffer, in a 2018 essay investigating the relationship between India and a “global wave of white supremacy”, had noted that...