Diversity, a virtue of our nation.,..

 

Politics in India is complicated business owing to the nation's diversity in language, culture, heritage, legacy, cuisine, art forms,  regional ideologies, caste systems and many more..... Politicians who are serious about staying on course should not encourage any form of division based on language and other aspects that give uniqueness to each one of us.  It was indeed a huge blunder committed by our leaders in the past to draw the geographical boundaries of our Republic using languages as a parameter.  In the recent past we have witnessed several protests and unrest in states including Karnataka and Tamilnadu  over claims of language superiority and exclusivity. 

As a person whose mother tongue is Telugu, a language studied throughout my  schooling, claim reasonable fluency in speaking, writing and reading  Hindi and Tamil languages, such protests and claims of language superiority gives a sense of unsettling.  There are instances when people have killed one another over languages without  taking pride in our cultural diversity. Myopic politicians believe they can garner votes by claiming to earn recognition for their state language on a national platform and some political parties have built their cadre on language superiority.  Sometimes it is funny to watch some political leaders claiming superiority of the Tamil language, when they have ignored the plight of  Tamil speaking Sri Lankans living in the refugee camps for decades on with no respite with their pleas  for citizenship ignored. 

 There is a huge section of Tamil speaking population that has made other states their home. Have the political outfits that vociferously claim to protect the interests of Tamil speaking population been able to help the cause of Eelam that was encouraged and promoted by them? Have we been proactive in ensuring the implementation of the 13th Amendment to the Sri Lankan Constitution? We have very little answers to problems that are complex and tackled at the national level. Intellectuals have visited Chennai to seek help with the implementation of the 13th Amendment only to be sidelined for selfish reasons and political greed. Our state is fully answerable to the Tamil Diaspora that hoped to find solutions to their ethnic conflict. Eelam is not about LTTE;  LTTE was not the only solution to the cause. It was made  a scapegoat for our helplessness and political failure on the issue.

Why are governments hesitant to initiate concrete steps to assimilate those who have fled the war and repression into our mainstream society. Is it okay for a business group from one state to own a cricket team representing another state that consists of players from almost all states? Hypocrisy and  tokenism are part of today's politics and it requires a change of thought process to serve the society in a better manner.

 India needs to revamp its rules to recognize political parties and de-recognize parties that name their party based on language or conduct their political affairs with claims to raise the status of one particular caste or community. Progress needs to be uniform with no state boundaries or borders for the nation to grow as a global power.

On a different note, the recent news item of naming an auditorium at a medical college campus after a student who committed suicide over having failed in an national entrance exam is a moral paradox.  With due respect to those who decided to name the auditorium after her some issues should not be politicized without understanding the implications of such actions. Suicide is not an act of bravery and does not amount to martyrdom that can be lauded by those with huge responsibilities towards society. Suicidal thoughts need intervention and help and there should be  no memorials who end their life causing life long misery to families they leave behind.

I wish to quote here a similar political hypocrisy on patriotism.  When I visited the Golden Temple at Amritsar, I refused to visit the Jallianwala Bagh because I did not wish to see the bullet marks on the walls.  I believe it was abject politics to  "renovate" a place of horror and create a memorial for the right reasons. It should have been preserved  for future generations to understand the streak of patriotic fervor among those who died for our nation. This just goes to show that we as a nation are not really good at preserving and accepting our nation's history in 'as it were' condition, but we seem to be  at our best to help those who wish to distort history for political mileage. 

 

Religion, a personal choice.

 

Hinduism is all about Dharma and Karma and serves as a guide to leading a peaceful and harmonious life. As it is based on the premise of reincarnation,  one needs to be careful with their  words, actions and deeds. With due respect to Christianity and Islam,  Hinduism  does not impose conditions or restrictions upon its followers  and is rather scientific in its approach to teaching Hindu values.  I am proud to be a practicing Hindu having grown up in a household where reciting slokas and lighting the lamp during prayer was the daily regime. The practice of conversion does not exist in Hinduism but it is  perplexing to see many Hindus converting to Christianity over promises of healing and prosperity. Just as it is a personal choice to convert one’s religion and faith  it is also a personal right to remain loyal to the religion you have been taught to be by your parents. It is unduly wrong to force another religion on anyone who has not raised any doubts over his or her faith. It is also perfectly understandable when people decide to change their faith at the time of their marriage to a person of another religion.  Hinduism does not call for such requirements. Sermonizing once in a while is okay, I guess.  Human beings desire peace and happiness,  just that happiness does not depend on one’s personal faith or connected rituals. Happiness is the ability to lead a life with detached attachment to all that we hold as  most precious and carrying on with no expectations from others and remaining constant in our pursuit for personal growth in terms of wisdom. Manipulating Hindus to convert their religion to Christianity is a institutionalized  human trafficking.  Those who are a part of it cannot take credit for bringing more sheep into the flock of the Good Shepherd if  Jesus has not asked  of them to do so.  I doubt he can manage so many followers singing hallelujahs for it can get very loud indeed for his own comfort.  Every religion is great in its own unique way, but my personal belief is that Hinduism is the most scientific in its approach. As simple as that. I don’t have to preach Hinduism to anybody, most of those who love to practice Hinduism take it up voluntarily and assimilate it in their daily life even without really going to temples.  

I believe good intentions in dealing with another human being  go a  long way to build our savings of good karma. I don’t believe in grabbing what is not morally, ethically and legitimately mine. I don’t think empires built on someone’s else’s grave will last long enough to keep its citizens happy. Confidence comes out of the ability in accepting one’s own imperfections of personality and not attempting to have an image makeover to deceive the public. Feeling insecure over another’s capability and achievements only reflects diffidence and a sense of inadequacy. Crushing another person to ensure personal growth is cowardice just as breaking into a house in the absence of its inmates and handling the personal property of an inmate is equally an act of a coward who is incapable of leading a legitimate fight based on values. Cowards outsource their insecurities to hatchet men and harass an individual, even if it is a woman who is willing to face the perpetrator all by herself without any help from others. It is not a sin if one procures information about another person surreptitiously or using illegal methods, but selling it to unsavory elements and using it for blackmail will be treated as a sin probably in all religions. Surveillance and stalking are conceptually two different things but when it is used to change historical facts and create new history then it does become a problem. This is no moral lesson but the outrage of being targeted for no valid reason except to spew venom and keep another person on the boil. Charm of things is to let things just be. A friend once commented ”When you admire the beauty of a flower silently, is brings about a surreal sense of appreciation and joy; but when you comment upon it ,the nuanced sense of beauty  that one is experiencing would be lost.”. The aggressive attempt to change a person’s choice of leading one’s life is violation of a person’s privacy and personal space. Eavesdropping or bugging a residence is not the same as having a decent conversation in the living room with friends and family. You send people who are wired to eavesdrop on those who are considered terrorists or corrupt public officials and not on private citizens who are harmless and mind their own business. If one does not intend to deal with me in a direct manner, it is only fair not to interfere  with my internet space and give me the privacy that I and my family legally deserve. Losing family members  to another religion  is painful because it brings about such a huge cultural shift that it changes personal equations to a large extent.