Proclamations of Hate in India's Temples T.M. Krishna https://thewire.in/communalism/proclamations-of-hate-in-indias-temples
By disallowing non-Hindus from performing in temples, the right-wing is failing to understand all that the temple space represents.
In nearly all temples, musical and dance performances are conducted in the open grounds, within a covered mandapa or a constructed performance stage. They are not held within the Garbha Griha (sanctum sanctorum).
Is the performance a ritualistic offering to the deity or is it meant to entertain the audience? All cultural events during the festival are part of a community exercise, a socio-cultural event. The selection of artists is based on audience preferences and the popularity of art forms and artists. It is without doubt a public performance. Every musician and dancer is concerned about the assembled aficionados. This is not to say that a connection with the deity is absent. It is the presiding deity who has provided the environment, reason and emotional texture for the artistic expression. Hence, the selection of songs or stories are often intertwined with the deity and associated mythology.
The temple is a religious location but it also straddles the secular. It is unfortunate that we have posited the religious and secular as contesting opposites. In a temple the two co-exist, overlap and converse with one another, enriching each other’s philosophical fibre. The secular is not faithless; it is the embracing of all, the multitudinous dimensions of believing, the agnostic and the atheistic. The open grounds, the mandapas, the walkways are where people with different inclinations mingle. It is a place where people meet, share in each other’s lives, engage in cultural and economic activities. It is from such interactions that syncretic traditions of faith, cuisine, clothing, language and customs evolved.
Even if we do not believe in god, the sheer power of devotion is overwhelming. The temple allows us space to ponder over the human condition. It is imperative that people with all kinds of dispensations co-exist and collaborate inside religious quarters, observing and learning from one another. This can transform our perception of each other and then unjudged sharing becomes a true possibility.