Mahaajanah ?IV: How scribes recognise and describe them: Language & Culture

Sanskrit and all other sister languages concern this column from the very beginning. And, in Sanskrit Purva means earlier and Pashch means that which comes after. Therefore Paschim has no independent existence. It is dependent on purva for its existence. How can it be appropriate to judge the identity of one who appeared earlier, by the one who appeared later on the scene? Doesn’t it require deeper contemplation? It does. India is language focussed culture. It’s unparalleled in this sense. Is there any other culture in the world that has this distinction?

 

This attitude exhibited by ‘chunk’ of looking at our own identity from Paschaatya drishti (word, pashchaatya means ‘that which comes later’ and, in Sanskrit words and their essential meanings are self-explaining) must change. And, it may change only when our drishti becomes ‘as it should be’. And, for Drishti to become ‘as it should be’, our mind should be objective. It is objective, free from impressions when we become capable of seeing our real spiritual location. Once we find our real (spiritual) coordinates, the location of all others becomes visible. This point is termed as seeing the unseen. At this point, fearlessness becomes our second nature. There is no alternative to uphold truth in one’s person, be it a nation or the individual other than being fearless.

 

Hope is that empowered with new education policy, ‘chunk’ will change for the better. It will understand that it is not by gagging indigenous self-expression but by empowering indigeneity that ruling elites (‘chunk’) are empowered. And, indigeneity of self (swa) is best expressed and empowered in swa-bhaashaa( own language). Therefore, empowering indigenous languages is the first step in the direction of empowering Rashtra in real terms.

 

In the present scenario, if an indigenous voice speaking or writing in Kannada, Tamil, Telugu, Marathi, Hindi etc. is eloquent and ahead of times then also, it is neither recognised nor established. ( Look around or look back and see, I am sure all of you will recall faces of many brilliant ones, budding talents crushed in the bud because their stories/narratives/lives weren’t perceived by this ‘influential chunk’ with the same dignity as it deserved. )

 

 

On the contrary, no stone is left unturned by ‘chunk’ & associates to ‘somehow’ show how ‘aforesaid voice’ is influenced by some of the other Western thinkers, even when there is nothing to suggest or prove it.

 

Not all such exercises need to be designed with ulterior motives behind them. It often lacks courage and excess of laziness that finds solace in keeping moving with the subjugated mindset that foreign rule had imposed on us.

 

This kind of inferiority complex doesn’t augur well for a nation like India, which is ancient most civilisation and culture that whole humanity experienced (at some point in time). Therefore not only they but we too should be proud of India. ‘Chunk’ must do some soul searching.

 

When we look at German, French, Japanese, (and, now Chinese too…) we find that they recognise and value their voices through their languages. And, that has visibly led them to places—one more example. The United Nations has Russian as one of its six official languages though there are approximately 166 million Russian users while Hindi with 341 million speakers is still not got that status on the said international forum, why?