Masculinity: The anchor of Hindu civilisation’s survival

Civilisations endure by mastering geography and demography—land and lineage—domains historically anchored by male agency. Men have long protected borders and sustained populations through martial valour and familial leadership, roles complemented by women’s nurturing strength. Yet, Hindu civilisation now faces an existential threat as this balance erodes under the banner of “women’s empowerment.” Imported feminist ideologies, biased legal frameworks, and divisive electoral politics have undermined Hindu men, leaving society vulnerable. To survive, Hindu India must restore male agency and align women’s roles with cultural and demographic needs—a lesson underscored by Europe’s decline, Islamic resilience, and Hindu tradition.

The foundation of male agency

Male agency is both biological and historical. Men’s physical strength suited them for combat, securing territory, while their leadership in families ensured demographic stability. Women, with their reproductive capacity, fostered resilience. Ancient Hindu texts and lore reflect this symbiosis: in the Ramayana, Rama’s heroism defeats Ravana to protect Ayodhya, while Sita sustains the family unit. The Mahabharata showcases Arjuna’s archery and Bhima’s might defending their lineage, with Draupadi as their unifying anchor. This pattern echoes throughout Hindu civilisation.

However, post-independent India’s push for “women’s empowerment” disrupts this equilibrium. Power is finite and a zero-sum game — elevating one group often diminishes another. Laws favouring women in marriage, custody, and property disputes presume male guilt, earning the Supreme Court’s label of “legal terrorism.” The misuse of anti-dowry, family and rape laws, exemplifies this bias, often entangling innocent men in false cases. Affirmative action in education and jobs sidelines qualified men, while women’s reservations in legislatures—championed by all political parties except perhaps Samajwadi Party and Rashtriya Janata Dal—and in urban local bodies and panchayat raj institutions marginalise male voices. The result is a society where men are disempowered, families fracture, and Hindu strength and cohesion weakens.

Welfare’s erosion of male roles

Modern Indian welfare state exacerbates this crisis by usurping men’s provider and protector roles. Historically, men ensured family survival through labour and defence, earning respect and purpose. Today, most government schemes —like cash transfers under PM-KISAN or free healthcare via Ayushman Bharat— target women as primary beneficiaries, often bypassing men. The Mahila E-Haat initiative promotes female entrepreneurship, while men face shrinking opportunities amid job quotas. Subsidised housing under PMAY often prioritises female ownership, while rebates on stamp duty and registration fees for women further reduce men’s stake in family assets. In 2023, over 60% of PMAY homes were reportedly registered in women’s names, sidelining men as household heads.

This shift systematically undermines male agency. When the state becomes the provider—delivering food security through PDS or protection via women-only police stations and helpline for women—men lose their traditional roles. The National Rural Livelihood Mission empowers women’s self-help groups, sidelining male breadwinners. In urban slums, welfare handouts to women diminish husbands’ authority, fostering dependency and resentment. By replacing men, the state fractures families, weakening the primary social unit civilisation depends on. This mirrors Europe’s welfare-driven decline, where state support decoupled men from responsibility, accelerating demographic collapse.

Europe’s decline: a warning

Europe’s trajectory illustrates the peril of eroded male agency. European colonialism, which dominated the globe for nearly two centuries and drove scientific, technological, and industrial revolutions, thrived on masculine strength while patriarchal families sustained population growth.

The 20th century shifted this narrative. Post-war feminism recast male agency as oppressive. Policies favouring women in education and employment displaced men, while no-fault divorce and welfare states eroded their provider role. Cultural outputs pivoted from heroic epics to tales of male guilt. Fertility rates crashed far below replacement levels. Men, stripped of purpose, retreated from marriage and fatherhood.

The 2015 migrant crisis saw millions, mostly young men from the Middle East and Africa, enter a continent too weakened to resist. Native populations dwindled, while immigrant groups, mostly Muslims, often retaining patriarchal structures, expanded. France’s Muslim population nears 10%, with higher birth rates than natives; the election of Muslim mayors in several British cities including London, Birmingham symbolise this shift. Europe’s decline—demographic and territorial—stems from abandoning male agency, a cautionary tale for India.

Islamic resilience: a contrast

India’s Muslim communities offer a counterpoint. Male authority persists in religious, political, and familial spheres, sustaining a fertility rate of 2.6 children per woman against Hindus’ 1.9. Mosques and local networks reinforce social cohesion, evident during the 2020 Delhi riots when Muslim groups mobilised effectively. Where male agency endures, communities grow; where it falters, they shrink.

Hindu civilisation’s crisis

Hindu civilisation teeters on the edge. Feminist rhetoric, borrowed from the West and amplified by urban elites, vilifies men. Cinema, once exalting Rama-like heroes, now peddles female victimhood. Legal biases—dowry laws, custody battles—destroy families, while job and education quotas breed male resentment. The RSS-BJP’s women’s reservation law, a vote-bank tactic, further sidelines men.

Demographic trends are alarming. Hindu population share dropped from 84.1% in 1951 to 79.8% in 2011, while Muslims rose from 9.8% to 14.2%. In Kerala, Muslims climbed to 27%, with Hindus below 55%; West Bengal’s border districts show similar shifts. Recurring riots, like those in Delhi in 2020, expose Hindu vulnerability—disempowered men struggle against organised aggression. Geography and demography, the twin pillars of survival, are fast slipping away.

Restoring male agency and reimagining political power

When men lead, civilisations rise; when they don’t, they collapse. Hindu survival demands pragmatic reforms. A constitutional and legal overhaul must end the presumption of male guilt, ensuring justice based on merit and eliminating women’s reservations or preferential treatment across all fields. Economically, scrap gender-based quotas in education and jobs, curbing youth alienation. Women-centric schemes fracture society for votes; family, not the individual, must be the societal cornerstone. Culturally, revive icons of strength—Rama, Arjuna, Shivaji—over feminist revisionism. Women’s contributions, while vital, should align with demographic needs. Incentivise larger families. This isn’t oppression—it’s complementarity, echoing Rama and Sita’s partnership.

Politically, rethink voting: one vote per family, cast by the male head, would unify households and counter gender-based division. India’s current system of individual votes—patterned after European system—fuels competitive electoral politics that pit women against men. Parties across the spectrum, from BJP to Congress to AAP to TDP to YCP to DMK, offer women-specific schemes cultivating a female vote bank that undermines households. This divides society along gender lines, as seen in campaigns targeting women’s “empowerment” at men’s expense.

A family vote restores harmony. Historically, the household, not the individual, was the societal unit—reflected in Vedic councils where heads represented kin. Assigning the vote to the male head leverages his traditional role as decision-maker, reinforcing family cohesion. It curbs divisive vote-bank tactics, forcing parties to address collective needs—housing, jobs, security—over gender handouts. While critics decry this as patriarchal, individual voting has already deepened gender rifts, proving the need for a family-centric approach. This isn’t subjugation; it’s pragmatism. A unified family voice strengthens social fabric, reducing the state’s incentive to replace men with welfare. India needs this stability to survive.

Conclusion: a civilisation’s choice

Hindu civilisation rests on geography and demography, sustained by male agency. Europe’s shrinking populations and lost borders warn of its absence; Islamic growth proves its potency. India—its Hindu share declining, families fracturing, men disempowered—faces oblivion unless it acts. Welfare’s erosion of male roles and divisive voting compound legal and feminist excesses. Restoring male agency isn’t regression—it’s survival, grounded in the wisdom and pragmatism of Hindu history. Civilisations that neglect male agency fade. Hindu India must choose: reclaim its strength or vanish.