This Hindu Woman is One of the Jewish People’s Greatest Advocates

Jews and Hindus may seem like worlds apart but the similarities between both cultures may surprise you. Rabbi Abramowitz recently tackled this question on the site, speaking about many similarities between our patriarchs, matriarchs and other notable people from the Torah and their gods. 

One of those points is about Avraham. In Genesis 17:5 he is told he will become the father of a multitude of nations. Braham, the Hindu creator god is referred to as the father of all. Avraham’s wife, Sarah, is described as being very beautiful and didn’t have a child until she was 90 years old. Brahma’s wife was called Sarasvati and is also known for her beauty. Brahma and Sarasvati didn’t have their first son until they were together for 100 years.

This is just one of many examples cited in both religious histories. But the comparisons actually still continue in today’s modern world as well.

Surya Naga, @verifiedspicequeen on Instagram, is on a mission to advocate for both Jews and Hindus, showing how both groups are actually the victims of terror and colonialism yet are the ones always being blamed for it as the aggressor.

Hindus were attacked by the Greeks and Persians the same way the Jews were. Hindus also try not to “mess with anyone,” she explains. They were also the victims of an Islamic conquest. Pakistan was formed as a Muslim homeland and ethnically cleansed seven million Hindus from the land. She compares this with what the Jews went through — Israel never said Arabs have to leave the country but many of the Arab leaders told their people to, plus Jews have also been ethnically cleansed from every single other Arab country around Israel. 

By contrast, India is a secular democracy and absorbed millions of refugees. Then, in 1971, 3 million Hindus were murdered by the Pakistani Army and in 1990, all Hindus were ethnically cleansed from the Kashmir Valley. Hindus were the ones being attacked and murdered for being who they are, in an attempt for Muslims to achieve more power, not the other way around. In fact, India will soon have the largest Muslim population in the world and everyone there has equal rights.

Much like Israel, every time Hindus speak about making India a place that protects Hindus, they get “villainized” in the Western media. Recently, the Muslim community in India built a mosque on top of their holiest temple and when the Hindus wanted to rebuild it, Al Jazeera and the Western media skewed the story, saying that the Hindus destroyed the mosque for fun. “It’s not just creating double standards, it’s really flipping what’s going on,” Surya says.

It sounds eerily similar to everything going on in Israel. Israel is attacked on October 7 and decides to fight back to protect any other Israelis from being hurt, to save the one tiny Jewish nation that exists. What does the Western media say? It’s all Israel’s fault and they’re the ones committing “genocide.” The truth is that Israel is the most moral army in the entire world and does more than any other army to protect civilian deaths. They are fighting against one of the most heinous terror groups to exist, yet the media can’t speak about it in a way that shows that. Everything is Israel’s fault and it’s affecting Jews and increasing antisemitic attacks around the world.

Actually learning and understanding the facts is one of the best ways to spread the truth and end hatred, most people just don’t want to do that. Surya Naga fortunately started learning about the comparisons between Jews and Hindus early — her best friend from childhood is an Orthodox Jew.

She learned that Jews have the concept of Moshiach, something Hindus also have, but it’s called Kalki. Christians will also try to convert Hindus saying Jesus was Kalki but Surya explains that there are very specific requirements for what that would look like and Jesus could not be it. 

She says that often, people look at Hinduism as this very mystical, eastern, exotic religion, but in reality it has practical and tangible practices that are passed down through the generations. Judaism gets the opposite reputation. It can be known for being dry and devoid of any spirituality when in reality, there is so much mysticism and beauty in there. 

“By connecting, learning and unpacking things about each other’s religions we ended up going deeper on our own spiritual journeys,” Surya says. “That’s always the best thing you could ask for.”

Surya is hopeful that the Hindu and Jewish connection is just getting started and that the bond will help both groups down the line. 

At a recent rally for Israel in San Francisco, she said all of the non-Jewish speakers were Hindus and that was the only real group there in significant numbers. There is also a Jewish youth group on campuses called Hindu YUVA, which is similar to the Jewish Hillel. In 2022 there were 50 branches and now there are more than 150. 10 years ago, there were less than one million Hindus in the United States and now there are about five million and institutions that come along with that.

“I do hope in the coming years we’re going to be playing a bigger role in American society and through that, our partnership will grow,” she says. “Anyone can help. You can be the person who starts the next big initiative.”

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