Mumbai: Jesus Christ was a Tamil Brahmin and Christianity was a Hindu cult, claims a 70-year-old book that is being reissued this week by a rightwing Hindu group in Mumbai.

The book, “Christ Parichay” (introduction to Christ), was written in 1946 by one of the five founders of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (national volunteers corps), the umbrella organization for Hindu radical groups.

The Swatantryaveer Savarkar Rashtriya Smarak (Savarkar National Memorial), a trust that propagates the Savarkar brothers’ literature and ideology, will release the Marathi book on February 26.

Its author, Ganesh Damodar Savarkar, who was the elder brother of Veer Savarkar, claims Jesus Christ was born Keshao Krishna in a Tamil Hindu family, mid-day.com reports.

The book claims the Essenes cult rescued the crucified Christ and revived him with medicinal plants and herbs from the Himalayas. It says Christ attained ‘Samadhi’ in Kashmir, India’s northernmost state.

It also claims Jesus was a dark complexioned Vishwakarma Brahmin by birth and that Christianity is just a sect of Hinduism.

While it does not specify where Christ was born, it says the present day Palestinian and Arab territories were Hindu land and that Christ traveled to India where he learnt yoga.

Father Warner D’Souza, director of the Bombay Archdiocesan Heritage Museum, says such books cannot shake the faith of Christians.

Citing previous claims that Christ is buried in Kashmir, Fr D’Souza said that it was a waste of time to concentrate on such hypothetical historical questions.

“Ours is a country that is deeply and beautifully religious and we think God resides in our hearts,” the senior priest said. Although some try to upset people by these claims, India remains “a beautiful country of faith” but by and large, he added.

According to him, the Gospels and The New Testament were not written to give historical facts. “They are to give faith and experience to their disciplines. So, such a book will hardly disturb true Christians. More important, no Christian should be disturbed, and less importance such things are given the better,” he added.

The book claims Christ’s sacred thread ceremony (janeyu) was held when he was 12, as per Brahmin tradition, and that he wore the sacred thread like any other Hindu. It also claims that Christianity was a Hindu cult and doctrine introduced by Christ and was never a separate religion.

The author also claims that people from the Essenes cult, which practiced Yoga and spiritual science, saved Christ after he was crucified. They then treated him with medicinal herbs and plants to revive him from his deathbed.

After this, Christ was taken to Kashmir where he prayed to Lord Shiva, the book adds. It claims Christ spent the last phase of his life in the Himalayas.

A tomb where his remains are buried, it claims, is known by his name. According to the book, Arabia was a Hindu land and Jews were Hindus. Savarkar claims Arabic has many Sanskrit and Tamil words. He further claims that Palestine’s Arabic Language was a version of the Tamil language.

Savarkar says Jesus’ family dressed in a typical Indian way. The family had Hindu signs on their bodies, he says, adding that the name of Joseph (Christ’s father) was derived from Sheshep, which is further derived from Sheshappa (a common Tamil name).

“There is no mala fide intention in reprinting this particular book after 70 years,” Ranjit Savarkar, executive president, Swatantryaveer Savarkar National Memorial, told mid-day February 22.

“It is one of the books that my grandfather (Ganesh Savarkar) authored. His books are not available and hence we have decided to publish them again for the benefit of readers. I know some people will raise questions. But then what Ganesh Savarkar has written in this book is not new. Many others have researched on the similar lines and drew their own conclusions. Ganesh Savarkar too did his research before writing the book.”

Savarkar claimed he wrote the book to present evidence, references and other materials to prove that Christ was Hindu. According to him, Jesus came to India to study the Vedas, and became an expert in Yoga. He then returned to his country to preach the right path or religion. While preaching, he got involved in a political storm and was crucified, but miraculously escaped alive.

Later, his stay in Palestine, openly or underground, became dangerous. Therefore, he came to India with a yogi. He was a great personality, supposed to be an incarnation. After arriving in India he continued preaching until his death.

Savarkar also said the book was written to remind the Christian world that they have snatched away Christ’s Hindunness and to repay the debt of Christ to us that he gave by hurling the flag of Hinduism beyond India. “I have done this work and I am satisfied with it. Let this literary worship of Christ or Keshao the Krishna reach his divine feet,” he concluded.

A passage in the book says Christ — after being crucified — came to Kashmir with a certain Chetan Nath, became healthy, and with Nath’s help, established a ‘math’ (monastery) at the foothills of the Himalayas, probably in Kashmir.

He worshipped Lord Shiva there for three years and achieved ‘darshan’ (vision) of Shiva. He gathered knowledge and energy and placed the trishoola (trident), a seed of the world. He worshipped Lord Shiva in the form of a Linga (phallus). Sadhus (ascetics) and people arrived from all directions to stay with him and accepted him as Guru, the spiritual teacher.

This way, he carried the work of the cult till he was 49 years old, when he decided to leave his physical body. He sat in a yogic posture and went into deep samadhi (trance) and left the physical body. This way, Ishanath (Isa or Christ), terminated his incarnation. Natha-Namawali (Indian scripture) quotes his name as Ishanatha.

Another claim in the book is that the Bible is not Jesus’s preaching.