Today I came across this really inspiring slide show on India. I have seen lots like that before. But this one somehow made quite an indelible impression. It wasn't entirely accurate, as one of my colleagues put it. But it did the job. It got me thinking.
The first thing it did was to make me silently promise myself that I should read the Bhagwat Gita. I don't know a single Christian youth who has not read the bible.
I don't know a single Hindu youth who has read the Gita. Ofcourse, many manage to get hold of abridged versions ... But apart from all that, its quite shameful that most young Indians have let go of their roots, quite comfortably. Infact that very same slide show had a mention of how many applicants for American H1-B visas, Indians accounted for.
I have seen innumerable other blog posts, forwards,video clips and other such articles of information, aimed at essentially awakening any such patriotic feelings that might by lying dormant in people, being furiously circulated through the most technologically advanced mediums of communication. But it rarely ever does anything more than inspire someone into writing a post like the one I'm writing. So what am I doing besides rambling?
Well for one ,I in my small way, will try and help the cause by not following the herd to the Americas and Australias of the world to improve their economy, after having leeched enough from our India.
And there are others , who are doing much more like the guys from IIT, Bombay that formed Lokparitran , a political party aimed at using education and technology to do something more than just earn fat paycheques.
Bless their souls.
Just a place to pen down arbit ramblings...
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Never let a fool kiss you, or a kiss fool you. -Mardy Grothe
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- Prateeksha
- Blore, Ktaka, India
- Im just looking to put down my experiences, and views on things here.
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7 comments:
awesome. though i would have preferred you going the wordpress way, they are a much mor emature product than blogger is, but no probs. the export from blogger is always there, i dont want to ask you to change, after sucha long time you have decided to blog. When you get tired of writing, i shall advise a shift. keep it up. Love your writing style
good one.but i always have confusing thoughts when we speak of indianess and nationalism
Just a thought, People who went to the US in the 80s are the guys coming back to India to invest.... NRI investment is a key part of our national growth strategy.... so going to the US or any other nation is not all that bad.... Staying there with the intent of never getting back is bad (well this is not bad either if he/she contributes to the nations growth in his/her own way), going there to earn a quick buck aint that bad...
Atleast in this part, I can proudly say I have read Gita quite a times and now atleast you know a youth having done so. Right?
Well commendable views about nationalism and being Indian. As far as the thing about reading Gita is concerned reminds me of (might look strange ) Maharishi Mahesh Yogi teaching west about TM( Transcendental Meditation ) and Pandit Ravi Shankar demonstrating the Sitar to the beatles . What we need here is getting back to our roots. Likewise the benefits of yoga are now universally known ( with the usual detractors being there too )in the west but in India it is now that it is somewhat permeating among the youth .
Let me be clear that by getting back to roots doesn't mean what Pol Pot and Khmer Rouge did in Indonesia but it simply should be rediscovering our forgotten treasures and use it for general betterment of the society .
When one writes about these things it is normal to sound like a modern day preacher :) , but its high time we did something about this . Its definitely not easy because some things are so deeply ingrained in our psyche that it is difficult to get rid of them without a collective ( no matter on what scale ) effort .
You should check this out, if you haven't already:
http://www.goodnewsindia.com
Amazing, but truthful stories of real Indian victories. No 35% NASA Indians nonsense here.
And regarding the Gita, isn't it a marvel of Hinduism that it lets you be a Hindu without having to read the Gita? How many other religions can claim the same level of freedom?
Regarding "it is quite shameful that most young Indians have let go of their roots." The question beckons: what roots? What is Indian culture? Do we have consistent definitions of these? I think the beauty of Indian culture is that it cannot be defined. You cannot say "this is Indian, this isn't", because whatever is true of India (and Indian culture), the opposite is true as well.
And finally, on the topic of going abroad, I think there is no harm or shame in that. A fundamental principle of Indian philosophy is "Vasudaiva kutumbakam" - the world is one family. So, it isn't bad if one wants to achieve success in foreign lands - in fact, it is better to be an NRI (Non-Resident Indian) than be an RNI (Resident-Non Indian).
Well written though. You have a very nice way of expressing your feelings in words. For instance, "furiously circulated" - is too neat.
First, as an Indian living in the US, I can be a witness to the fact that not many Christian youths here read the bible. But making this point is no refutation, since reading a sacred religious text IN ITSELF does not prove anything, least of all a pledge of patriotism, notwithstanding the deceptiveness with which many Indians wear their moral and religious cloaks to show their genuineness.
And secondly, one does not necessarily serve the American or Australian purpose if they migrate to these countries. The trend, as far as my little antenna detects it, seems to be that all the booms in software jobs in India (esp. Bangalore) in recent times is only serving to boost the American economy (a form of economic slavery) without America even having to pay the price for their own dollars!
The issue of nationalism turns out to be delicate for crumbling hands...
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