In one of my usual browsing sessions today, I came across a wiki article that raised a very elemental question.
What is the authenticity of the rituals that we follow today in the name of religion (Hinduism in particular)? More precisely, who is a Brahman?
There are copies of the Bible and Quran in certain museums but a complete collection of the Vedas/Shrutis is unheard of. Online archives of the same are of dubious authencity. Perhaps it is largely owing to the early origins of the same. However, the question remains as to the validity of our rituals and ceremonies.
Is a Brahman caste a result of heredity? Or was it meant as a class/distinction granted to meritorious students in the gurukuls? It is a known fact that not all Brahman children are brilliant and vice versa. Therefore, how is it fair to deny the right of our scriptures to our meritorious counterparts simply because they are not conferred the Brahman caste?
The learning of the Vedas was a closely guarded secret for ages. The same has been passed from one generation to the other mostly by word of mouth. Granted that such individuals were learned men of the highest order. Questioning their integrity is definitely a no brainer but what about the interpretation of the shrutis from one generation to the other?
It is an accepted fact that the hand that rocks the cradle rules the world. If Brahman is a product of heredity, why then were Brahman women denied the right to scriptures by the so called brahmins? We know for a fact that women like Gargi, Maitreyee, Khana and others were conferred the Brahman title and elaborate thread ceremonies were performed for them by the rishis. So where did it all change and why? If Brahman is a result of an unbroken line of male descendants and progeny which undoubtedly is a factor of two (of which one is deliberately kept ignorant), what is the guarantee that the resulting gene will be of the highest order?
Coming from a "unbroken" Brahman family where women are treated equal if not superior to men, I have had the privilege to question our roots. I find it depressing when people are rejected as proper alliances in our family simply bcoz of their caste. I am a devotee of Krishna and find myself increasingly being drawn to the teachings of Sanatana Dharma. Is there a clear answer to all my questions which will resurrect my complete faith in the caste system?
Sunday
English is easy
I am lucky to have a father who is a convent educated walking-talking dictionary of the English language. He created the basic platform for me to learn accent free English. I was lucky again in my schooling where my teachers spoke excellent English. I have often been complimented on my English by people of different races. Not all of us are that lucky I know, yet....
How difficult can it be to speak fluent English? Why do most Indians have a mother tongue influence only while speaking English but can converse like a pro in other regional languages? What can be so difficult about speaking accent free, grammatically correct sentences in ENGLISH???
I have nothing against those who choose not to learn English. In fact I am proud of them and think of them as true Indians. At least they have an identity. I love all Indians who travel to foreign lands knowing just their mother tongue and force foreigners to decipher their signals. But what about those who choose to learn half baked stuff and cannot even carry it off?
Why then do we get angry when a white skin mocks our accent yet choose to keep quite when he speaks ridiculous Hindi (and do not give me the cultural values crap). Why do we at all respond to foreigners who do not even bother to bring a language dictionary along on their trips to India? Meet the same foreigner in Spain or Italy or Russia or for that matter in Afghanistan and he will have invested in a local language dictionary.
Meet a Russian or an Israeli and u know he/she understands perfect English, but will not speak the same out of sheer pride for their own language.
Are Indians greedy? Do we really still nurture a slave mentality? Questions like these result in heated arguments in the so called "intellectual" communities. When will we face up to reality? How long will it take for Indians to discover their true individualities?
How difficult can it be to speak fluent English? Why do most Indians have a mother tongue influence only while speaking English but can converse like a pro in other regional languages? What can be so difficult about speaking accent free, grammatically correct sentences in ENGLISH???
I have nothing against those who choose not to learn English. In fact I am proud of them and think of them as true Indians. At least they have an identity. I love all Indians who travel to foreign lands knowing just their mother tongue and force foreigners to decipher their signals. But what about those who choose to learn half baked stuff and cannot even carry it off?
Why then do we get angry when a white skin mocks our accent yet choose to keep quite when he speaks ridiculous Hindi (and do not give me the cultural values crap). Why do we at all respond to foreigners who do not even bother to bring a language dictionary along on their trips to India? Meet the same foreigner in Spain or Italy or Russia or for that matter in Afghanistan and he will have invested in a local language dictionary.
Meet a Russian or an Israeli and u know he/she understands perfect English, but will not speak the same out of sheer pride for their own language.
Are Indians greedy? Do we really still nurture a slave mentality? Questions like these result in heated arguments in the so called "intellectual" communities. When will we face up to reality? How long will it take for Indians to discover their true individualities?
Rooted
I am a probashi (non resident) Bengali. Born and brought up entirely in Hyderabad.
Until about 3 years ago, if someone criticized Kolkata for its impoverished conditions, I would have supported their views wholeheartedly. But not any longer. I agree, that in comparison to other metros, kolkata is sadly lacking on several counts, especially infrastructure!!!
However, there is absolutely no way in which any other city in the WORLD can be "THE CITY OF JOY" other than kolkata. And these are not my words, they are DOMINIQUE LAPIERE'S.
To understand the dilapidated condition of this historical city, u must first read up its history. U talk of expansion, infrastructure malls, industry, maintenance.....Remember the number of times, this very city was chosen as the capital city by different rulers time and time again?
Remember the time when this little city had to accommodate an exodus of refugees from Bangladesh and Pakistan? Remember how this glorious city of ours provided food, shelter, clothing, work and prestige to our homeless brothers and sisters?
U complain of lack of space!!!! Answer this question first - where would any of us b today, if Kolkata had not given our ancestors space then???
U want to know of industries here!!!! Kolkata houses the largest and possibly the best leather industry in the country!!! It has jute and cotton industries as well. And why wud u want to build industries in a city where every inch of land is cultivable!!!!
Check out the week magazine article of June 2006. It has an article on the rising industrialists of Bengal. From leathers exports to jute mills, from packaged food to cutting edge technology, we have it all!!!! AND NO THEY R NOT MARWARIS. They r very much "BENGALIS"
There was a time when I too complained of the such things as dirt, ill-maintenance, potholes, open drains, dingy roads, pollution, rickety buses, dark alleys....so on and so forth....
I was loathe to visit that beautiful city every summer. Never understood its beauty before. Never saw the beatific smile of the poor child, bathing on the road side.
Today I know what I have missed! Don't go by first impressions, they are not always right! Look around the city on foot if possible and u'll simply fall in love with Kolkata.
Despite all that apparent disarray, Kolkata is a shopper's paradise. A unique city that houses the filthy rich and the sickly poor with equanimity. Why do u think, that despite such under development, the richest Indian "Mr. Laxmi Narayan Mittal" celebrated his wards marriage there?
Show me one other city that can match up to Kolkata's variety of sweets and delicacies!!!
Show me just one more city where u get to eat a stomach full of "Bhaat, dal and Macher Jhol" for just Rs 8!!!!! Show me one other city where u actually get merchandise below the prescribed MRP (which is as it should b).
Show me one other city where the entire community comes together to celebrate one single festival on the scales of our DURGA PUJO. Not even Mumbai can come close to it.
I request u to read the novel "shei shomoy" or "THOSE DAYS"(in English) by Sunil Gangopadhyay before ur next visit to kolkata. It will possibly help u to understand Kol better. It certainly did help me. Remember, there is more to kolkata than meets the eye. Don't blame the lack of infrastructure on the city. The blame lies with incompetent old fools who used to pass by as politicians earlier.
Check up on the development of the city in the last couple of years and u'll b proud to b a part of the city.
Of course, non-resident Bnegali's like me will probably choose Hyderabad or other metros over kolkata, but we have absolutely no right to criticize this splendid city.
Until about 3 years ago, if someone criticized Kolkata for its impoverished conditions, I would have supported their views wholeheartedly. But not any longer. I agree, that in comparison to other metros, kolkata is sadly lacking on several counts, especially infrastructure!!!
However, there is absolutely no way in which any other city in the WORLD can be "THE CITY OF JOY" other than kolkata. And these are not my words, they are DOMINIQUE LAPIERE'S.
To understand the dilapidated condition of this historical city, u must first read up its history. U talk of expansion, infrastructure malls, industry, maintenance.....Remember the number of times, this very city was chosen as the capital city by different rulers time and time again?
Remember the time when this little city had to accommodate an exodus of refugees from Bangladesh and Pakistan? Remember how this glorious city of ours provided food, shelter, clothing, work and prestige to our homeless brothers and sisters?
U complain of lack of space!!!! Answer this question first - where would any of us b today, if Kolkata had not given our ancestors space then???
U want to know of industries here!!!! Kolkata houses the largest and possibly the best leather industry in the country!!! It has jute and cotton industries as well. And why wud u want to build industries in a city where every inch of land is cultivable!!!!
Check out the week magazine article of June 2006. It has an article on the rising industrialists of Bengal. From leathers exports to jute mills, from packaged food to cutting edge technology, we have it all!!!! AND NO THEY R NOT MARWARIS. They r very much "BENGALIS"
There was a time when I too complained of the such things as dirt, ill-maintenance, potholes, open drains, dingy roads, pollution, rickety buses, dark alleys....so on and so forth....
I was loathe to visit that beautiful city every summer. Never understood its beauty before. Never saw the beatific smile of the poor child, bathing on the road side.
Today I know what I have missed! Don't go by first impressions, they are not always right! Look around the city on foot if possible and u'll simply fall in love with Kolkata.
Despite all that apparent disarray, Kolkata is a shopper's paradise. A unique city that houses the filthy rich and the sickly poor with equanimity. Why do u think, that despite such under development, the richest Indian "Mr. Laxmi Narayan Mittal" celebrated his wards marriage there?
Show me one other city that can match up to Kolkata's variety of sweets and delicacies!!!
Show me just one more city where u get to eat a stomach full of "Bhaat, dal and Macher Jhol" for just Rs 8!!!!! Show me one other city where u actually get merchandise below the prescribed MRP (which is as it should b).
Show me one other city where the entire community comes together to celebrate one single festival on the scales of our DURGA PUJO. Not even Mumbai can come close to it.
I request u to read the novel "shei shomoy" or "THOSE DAYS"(in English) by Sunil Gangopadhyay before ur next visit to kolkata. It will possibly help u to understand Kol better. It certainly did help me. Remember, there is more to kolkata than meets the eye. Don't blame the lack of infrastructure on the city. The blame lies with incompetent old fools who used to pass by as politicians earlier.
Check up on the development of the city in the last couple of years and u'll b proud to b a part of the city.
Of course, non-resident Bnegali's like me will probably choose Hyderabad or other metros over kolkata, but we have absolutely no right to criticize this splendid city.
My friend revisited
Summer holidays always meant a trip to my mother's hometown. It is a quaint district town in West Bengal and has a charm all its own.
There is a little temple nearby that my grandparents would take me to everyday. The deities (3 of them) in the temple are actually our family deities which we could no longer maintain owing to financial reasons.
My favorite amongst the three, ever since I was a toddler, was a life sized, blue colored little child who stood with his legs crossed at the ankles, holding a flute at his lips.
Granny would tell me several stories about that child who did a lot of mischief when he lived in our home.
Sometimes the child would go out early in the morning and steal fresh peas from a Muslim farmer's crop and sometimes just hide our belongings and return them only when he was offered a pack of salt!
Being a quite child myself, I enjoyed listening to such mischievous activity of someone who I thought was my age.
Today I no longer have the time to go to my hometown and gaze at that lovely face. I console myself with a little golden idol gifted by my father. I keep my Gopal/Krishna at my desk and offer him all sorts of goodies that I personally like. My Gopal loves chocolates, biscuits, chips, cold drinks too, apart from the usual fruits and sweets.
I wonder why we restrict our offerings to God to and sweets only. Don't we get tired of eating the same kind of food everyday? Why then do we restrict God from eating tasty food when it is he who provides us with the means to eat tasty eats?
I learnt sometime back that in Iskcon they feel the same way as I do. Perhaps someday I shall be able to bring my little friend to some temple in Iskcon where he will no longer have to make mischief to eat better stuff.
Meanwhile, just hold on Gopal.
There is a little temple nearby that my grandparents would take me to everyday. The deities (3 of them) in the temple are actually our family deities which we could no longer maintain owing to financial reasons.
My favorite amongst the three, ever since I was a toddler, was a life sized, blue colored little child who stood with his legs crossed at the ankles, holding a flute at his lips.
Granny would tell me several stories about that child who did a lot of mischief when he lived in our home.
Sometimes the child would go out early in the morning and steal fresh peas from a Muslim farmer's crop and sometimes just hide our belongings and return them only when he was offered a pack of salt!
Being a quite child myself, I enjoyed listening to such mischievous activity of someone who I thought was my age.
Today I no longer have the time to go to my hometown and gaze at that lovely face. I console myself with a little golden idol gifted by my father. I keep my Gopal/Krishna at my desk and offer him all sorts of goodies that I personally like. My Gopal loves chocolates, biscuits, chips, cold drinks too, apart from the usual fruits and sweets.
I wonder why we restrict our offerings to God to and sweets only. Don't we get tired of eating the same kind of food everyday? Why then do we restrict God from eating tasty food when it is he who provides us with the means to eat tasty eats?
I learnt sometime back that in Iskcon they feel the same way as I do. Perhaps someday I shall be able to bring my little friend to some temple in Iskcon where he will no longer have to make mischief to eat better stuff.
Meanwhile, just hold on Gopal.
Am I fallback from a different era?
Never been much of a TV person however, watched a documentary playing today. Have been feeling really depressed ever since about the condition of our society at large.
Why is there such duplicity and selfishness amongst the young generation today?
We are the first to criticize our parents when they fail to provide for some of our needs. Towards the end of the their lives when they need us most, we happily send them to old age homes and consider having done our duties!!!
Why does marriage between two individuals not result in a happy union of two families as well? Why are we so selfish these days that we marry someone thinking only of our selfish needs and forget all about our parents?
Why are women unable to treat their in-laws with the same love and respect as her own family and vice-versa? Why do men feel burdened when reminded of their in-laws?
We talk management mumbo-jumbo like - "Take responsibility of your actions", "Owe upto your responsibility", "Be responsible", "Take up more responsibility" - and all of that crap without ever understanding the meaning of the word responsibility.
Where are we headed with such escapist & materialistic attitudes?
Why is there such duplicity and selfishness amongst the young generation today?
We are the first to criticize our parents when they fail to provide for some of our needs. Towards the end of the their lives when they need us most, we happily send them to old age homes and consider having done our duties!!!
Why does marriage between two individuals not result in a happy union of two families as well? Why are we so selfish these days that we marry someone thinking only of our selfish needs and forget all about our parents?
Why are women unable to treat their in-laws with the same love and respect as her own family and vice-versa? Why do men feel burdened when reminded of their in-laws?
We talk management mumbo-jumbo like - "Take responsibility of your actions", "Owe upto your responsibility", "Be responsible", "Take up more responsibility" - and all of that crap without ever understanding the meaning of the word responsibility.
Where are we headed with such escapist & materialistic attitudes?
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