BAPS’ ‘Eiffelgate’ episode underscores the challenge of cultural translation

BAPS’ ‘Eiffelgate’ episode underscores the challenge of cultural translation

Earlier this month a delegation of 100 women, men and monks travelled to the Eiffel Tower for the inauguration of France’s first traditional Hindu mandir. The historic moment for Hinduism was overshadowed when women employees were purportedly sidelined to ‘minimise interaction’ with celibate monks. The communal hurt and conceivable miscommunication, magnified by the media onslaught, quickly created a narrative that slighted Hindu monks and BAPS. In France, where a secular republic encountered Hinduism on such a scale and with such intensity for the first time, unfamiliarity bred hasty conclusions and sharp outrage. Meanwhile, in India, the episode generated fertile ground for political and sectarian opportunism, with some attacking the organisation’s closeness to the political establishment and its rapid growth. In the ensuing hullabaloo, the voices of practitioners and those who know the BAPS Hindu community in France were drowned out. As a scholar, journalist, and practitioner who has engaged with BAPS and its monks in various capacities over four decades, I waited patiently for the dust to settle. There is little value in responding while others are still reacting. I am no apologist for those who discriminate against women or reject lived equality, but I was there. I am not trying to dismiss the outrage, but I feel compelled to offer a counternarrative and context. Eyewitness accounts and initial inquiries reveal a stark disconnect between the actions and intentions of BAPS and the portrayal of that day’s events. BAPS categorically denies requesting that female staff be ‘hidden’ or ‘dismissed’. Rather, a small subsection of the observation deck was cordoned off. A security officer told me that this was common practice for large groups. On the deck, there was little interaction between BAPS members and others. Women in the BAPS delegation participated from a distance out of respect for the monks’ personal vows, while the monks adhered to those vows. Across airports, train stations and public squares worldwide, these monks routinely navigate daily life without imposing restrictions on women or expecting them to ‘disappear’. In France, however, the translation of sacred monastic discipline into corporate site management broke down, illustrating how easily intent is misunderstood when ancient traditions enter unfamiliar cultural spaces. To understand the monks’ boundaries, one must examine the roots of the tradition. Established in 1907, BAPS is a prominent institution within the Sampraday founded by Shri Swaminarayan in Gujarat at the start of the nineteenth century. It is one of the many bhakti traditions of Hinduism, which believe that God is manifest in murtis (or sacred images), in mandirs, and through the words of the guru. Bhakti (love for the Divine’s creation) and seva (selfless service) are core principles of the faith and its practice. Far from a legacy of exclusion, the community emerged as a force for social change. The community broke rigid social hierarchies by initiating monks from marginalised Dalit and Adivasi backgrounds, an integration celebrated by historians and Indologists. In an era marked by widespread gender-based violence, Shri Swaminarayan fought against female infanticide, the dowry system and sati, contributing to significant social change in western and northern India. The community also built the first all-girls school in the region, establishing gender reform as a tenet. Today, women across BAPS lead initiatives, making substantial contributions to social and spiritual programs. To put things into perspective, initiated monks comprise a tiny fraction of this community. Only 1,300 monks are currently observing lifelong vows of brahmacharya (celibacy), alongside detachment from material possessions, family ties, and social prestige. This practice of letting go is rooted in the idea of connecting with a greater whole. Brahmacharya is followed differently in sub-traditions of the Hindu, Jain, and Buddhist traditions. There is no doubt that the vows laid down by Shri Swaminarayan are particularly stringent, at least in theory. And yet, one must understand the climate of nineteenth-century India, when he was actively confronting abuses of authority by religious figures against women disciples. These vows were designed to protect disciples and cultivate personal renunciation, never to be an imposition on women and society. To that end, Shri Swaminarayan ordered his monks to suspend these rules immediately during any life-or-death emergency. The principle upon which these vows are based, of course, becomes complicated as the norms in communities evolve and the definitions of imposition and equality change in society. The Swaminarayan monks do not claim perfection but follow in the footsteps of their gurus to directly contribute to society through humanitarian service, social counseling, and spiritual guidance. Most BAPS monks have college degrees, with many holding postgraduate degrees. I have found them to be respectful and accessible. They are not the stigmatised ‘babas’ of the past. The monks are aware of the critique of their vows, but they have also been celebrated for fostering familial harmony and promoting domestic values by directly counseling men or responding to queries by women through male intermediaries and indirect modes of communication. As regressive as this may seem to a portion of society, these vows have not prevented them from doing real work in society. Swaminarayan monks live in mandirs. BAPS is known for its regal mandirs which stand as models of Indian craftsmanship and culture. These mandirs are not just majestic but also act as centers of communal unity. I spent my own childhood learning regional languages, Indian classical and folk music, and verses from the Upanishads and Shrimad Bhagavad Gita in the small basement of one such mandir in Flushing, New York. These mandirs play an important role in transmitting and preserving cultural values, even for those who do not necessarily subscribe to all the teachings of the Swaminarayan tradition. People from all parts of India can gather for the darshan (or devotional viewing) of various regional deities. Finally, these mandirs serve as cultural embassies abroad, long predating the rise of the BJP. In France, the new BAPS Hindu Mandir sits on an interfaith esplanade, selected only after rigorous scrutiny and vetting by local authorities. Perhaps Hinduism and BAPS have a messaging problem, but it does not rest solely on their shoulders. Communication involves explanation and reception. Transnational socio-religious organisations like BAPS naturally face complex messaging hurdles when translating concepts like ascetic detachment, murtis, and sacred architecture to societies unacquainted with Hindu beliefs. When empathy gives way to the speed of the reel-scrolling cycle, lifelong spiritual discipline can easily be misread as modern chauvinism. The pain of the women working at the Tower was real. That pain, which percolated through French society, was real. But so are the BAPS monks’ vows of brahmacharya, and their initial apology. Maybe we should adopt ‘real’ as the sentiment at the heart of this incident. Maybe barriers to cultural and linguistic translation are real? Maybe leadership could have used different terminology to address these real vows? Maybe a swift, unequivocal apology from BAPS followed by an explanation of the community’s real, core principles and its limited monastic order would have quelled the ensuing real anger? Alas, the challenge before them is real. I pen my thoughts while listening to the remarks of Yann Dubosc, the mayor of Bussy-Saint-Georges, the small town outside of Paris where the mandir now stands. He reminds his constituents that BAPS has spent the last ten years working with the local community to build ‘trust through transparency’. He is confident that what is being painted in the media scape does not define BAPS. He recalls a 2023 visit by BAPS Hindu monks to Town Hall, where no special requests to remove or replace women were made. He is sure that this relationship is real and commended the organization’s ‘calm and dignity’ in the face of sudden hostility. Some may ask whether BAPS could have handled this moment with greater awareness of how French society would perceive such vows in a public space. Commentators, politicians and social activists could have considered its track record before placing the burden of a labour dispute between the union and Tower management squarely on BAPS’ shoulders. They could also have resisted weaponising the episode in service of upcoming elections. Other Hindus, too, could have stepped back to recognise the cultural bridges BAPS has built with over 3,000 communities. Regrettably, these may all be unreal expectations. What is real, however, is that the mandir is now part of France’s religious and civic landscape. I have watched thousands of Parisians visit this week. As for those intent on criticising BAPS, such attacks are unlikely to disappear anytime soon, if ever. Much is expected of those at the helm. As a crisis communication expert and scholar of media, history, and religion, I often counsel religious organisations to play the long game: apologise genuinely, explain thoroughly, help others understand, continue doing good work without expectation, and, most importantly, develop thick skin. This time, I offer the same advice publicly to BAPS Hindus and its monks. And yet, as Mayor Dubosc suggested, BAPS has already exemplified this principle. Perhaps my advice is redundant. Their composure is itself part of the path toward repair and rebirth in France. It reflects the core of their philosophy: inner discipline can withstand an outward storm, and lasting trust is built through generations of silent service. Hindu texts and teachings have stood the test of time. BAPS and the broader Hindu community will, in time, find a respectful place in French society. The Tower’s own history of slow acceptance teaches us just that.