Work, Honour - And Prestige

Watching an early episode of a talent show, and seeing a contestant and her pop, and a judge too, in tears about how school children taunt one amongst them - about the father doing what they consider "beneath"! as if children shoukd have any such concepts - brought, this time, an onrush of thoughts, puzzled and protesting.

We went to the US style community schools that were designated by locality, and while we knew some of us had pops who had ranks higher than others, as evident by the number of rooms in the house allotted by the government (this being probably leftist style), our equations at school were far more about who gets along with who, and even academic prowess played a far smaller part than any other considerations.

That children so young, not even teens yet, should have such contempt for honest work, is abominable. And yet this happens precisely at the expensive schools that are supposed to be often run by institutions, such as church, that profess equality, should tell the whole story.
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For too long has India been subjected to values that are, not only not of India, but completely false. One such issue, related to work, has far reaching roots and threads, to do with culture and history and traditions of India, and the false whipping of India indulged in by various powers that sought to break up India for not merely sadistic pleasure taken in such pursuits by such powers, but - of course - for all the benefits they expect, once India is broken.

For it hasn't been easy, no matter what false propaganda of centuries used to tame the subjects into slavery. Other cultures took much less being wiped out by the dominance of Rome or by the onslaught of the conversionist powers, and they were the ancient cultures India knew in antiquity. Egypt, Persia, .... wiped out in less than a century except in name, and here still remains India - not merely in existence but alive and vibrant. And her own self. Despite the conversionists attempting to shame India with lies, false theories, propaganda. Despite every Macaulay. Despite every other culture imposed on her.
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One such aspect, a major one, has been about work, position, and prestige accrued thereby, usually mistaken for honour or lack thereof. And this has far reaching connections every which way one looks.

India has always had a caste system based on categories of work, but they always were categories separated by the character of the vocation - intellectual work, physical power related work, trade and consequently wealth, and crafts. The higher castes, as a rule, were not richer, but quite the opposite. And the top two were not allowed to charge for work, or to refose services if someone could not offer much, or anything at all for that matter.

It's the colonial regimes that brought their own caste systems and in addition created new ones that together were used by the said regimes in order to establish and entrench the said rule, and they formed the vicious castes, fraudulently labelled class, that stayed on, while Indian styke caste system gets whipped every possibke opportunity.
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Hence the disrespect meted out to someone who is respected world wide, but constantly reminded by political opposition in India that he used to be a tea vendor as a young boy. 

Hence the tears of a judge at a music talent show because her sister was taunted - at an elite school she went to, where her pop sold snacks outside the school, and couldn't move much further because it was a small town. Not that a few miles would change the mindset that did this taunting. 

For, such mindset is based on the premise that, short of being a British royal, being as high as possible on the rungs of various ladders towards that peak is the prestigious thing, while any honest work including not only trade but also professions such as medicine or science, are low, unless they are mere hobbies, or bring in tons of money without need to actually work. 

Feudal landlords therefore are high in this as are those titled by the British, but a chef is only goid if holding a certificate , preferably from West somewhere. The alternate rung of prestige is, of course, the administration - and since this is vestige of the era when as part of the administrative services one woukd be on the side of rukers, not subjects, that explains the obsession for "jobs" with very angry disdain for entrepreneurial opportunities created by a new government that has cut through every possible red tape. 

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I recall a classmate who, last time we saw one another, was still not out of primary school, but was helping his pop deliver coal, which we rarely used but were having it that one time, don't remember why. I was startled to see him, and began to realise much. 

Of all the classmates I recall - and one was always there until we both finished our college, as she reminded once - him I remember with a pinch at heart. 

I wouldn't have taunted. Would never have occurred. But then, nor would have any other schoolmates, I would think. Such a behaviour would have brought eyebrows raised at the very least, and a disdainful clamour one could bet safely - "who does that one think they are?" 

And that, in short, would be giving it a short shrift. 

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But then, ours wasn't an expensive school sponsored by foreign values and teaching them.
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Fortunate, India!

Fortunate, India!


When a good candidate is on the horizon, likely to win, fascists get cracking to defeat him. This one was in CA. 

In India,  the smug Lutyen's heritage dynasty never thought Narendra Modi could possibly win, because he worked as a tea vendor during his early childhood, and they said so, too, openly, condescendingly - "we will never let a te vendor become a PM of India, but we may let him have a tea stall". Thus was before India chose to elect the tea vendor who had since gone on to be elected CM of Gujarat, for three consecutive terms, and proven his competence.

So, since then, the now reduced to less than opposition stature but still claiming the right to rule party and its allies in scams, have gone berserk, lying and abusing just as the opponents of Upton Sinclair had; in addition, though, they have attempted to create a situation to make it necessary to bring about emergency measures and heavy law forces, through the country, several times during the over three years of the new government thst people have gone on liking, not despite but all the mire due to demonetisation that drove the opposition berserk - for now they lack the power to buy those votes! And this delights the people of India!


8 January 2018


https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/story-muckraker-upton-sinclairs-dramatic-campaign-governor-california-180964897/

Divine And Scientific Spirit

Dawson and other general community of atheists is usually reacting to social pressure of authority, whether church or merely parents as in case of India, to defy them and assert oneself in that if it is not perceivable and reasonable or provable, one would not go with a blind belief; this is perfectly reasonable.

But often they stumble further, and assert not only this much but that if they do not see it or are not given scientific proof of it (whatever it is), it is thereby impossible and proved false. This is scientifically incorrect thinking, but no one in science is usually likely to point that out, most are busy fighting church authority. (Or trying to not look ridiculous to those that might look down on anyone from India.)

A true scientific spirit does not go "this is not possible, therefore it cannot be, because nothing I know can justify this". Unfortunately many supposedly rational or scientific thinkers do this and do not realise how unscientific this logic is.

A true scientific spirit is to observe reality and gather data and find corelationships, possibly with a new theory or even with a discarded one that one might have not agreed with, but not by throwing out data that does not fit pet theories.

When a final, conclusive, decisive proof one way or another is not yet at hand, a scientific spirit leaves it as undecided and unknown, the only possible respectable scientific conclusion, and perfectly acceptable.

So a true scientific spirit could very truthfully say "I don't know, but neither do most" when it comes to theism vs atheism; after all belief is not something unfamiliar to anyone, if only one gives a moment of thought to something no one would like to think about.

Belief in the knowledge of one's blood is what most of us (those not geneticists) can affirm, not knowledge, actually; only a geneticist could possibly really know who one's parents are. As for the rest they have to take someone's word for it. If this were not so, anyone expressing doubts about one's parents would not involve anger or worse. One does not get angry if someone says "hey, you have only two fingers" when one can perfectly well see and hold out ten.

This is true about much of knowledge discredited, whether evolution by creationists or homeopathy by scientists of west. Ayurveda, Acupuncture, Yoga, Astrology, ... reincarnation, .... Gods, ....

At one pole of possibilities Dawkins does not know, and if and when he does he will be reasonable about it. At the other he could be right. Doubt the latter but that does not diminish his logic and scientific methods applied to thought and perception.

The story about a normal person tumbling into a valley where everyone is blind, and finally needing to escape few days before his wedding to someone (he had decided to stay on due to falling in love), because they mandated he needed to be normal like them and not delusional about this thing he called sight which was impossible, comes to mind. So the one with sight escaped before they could remove his eyes with surgery.

While it seems unbelievable they could do surgery without sight, what we consider normal might still be able to inflict a great deal of harm to people they perceive as extraordinary in any way, because people usually don't tolerate anyone superior. 

A colleague of mine who was of the supposedly rational mind (did not believe anything that could not be proved scientifically, and asserted it was impossible, out of question) once was asked "what if I told you there is someone who can block off a part of your brain (without any touch of anything physical, just with use of mind)?" and he promptly with not an instant's hesitation replied hotly "I will break his head".

I laughed and asked if he realised that this meant he thought it was possible, else he would not have this reaction, and simply would laugh and shrug it off, or even better, invite anyone to try. (Better only in the sense of how strong his belief in impossiblility of scientifically not proven things was, not in the sense of someone blocking his brilliant mind. ) ...
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4 February 2018 at 01:30

West, Religions And Racism

West, Religions And Racism

All very true, although this writer of the article is more defensive and polite, to those heaping abuse on Indian vast treasures of knowledge, than wouId serve the purpose of either correcting them, or correcting their mistakes and falsehoods for sake of future and present generations of young, especially the NRI.

What is needed is to see this from Indian viewpoint.

For example, the author refers to a portrayal of the Divine Goddess Kali, and in describing the western author's slant about Kali vs the Greek goddess Diana, questions if the western author couldn't have picked a different Indian Goddess for a fair comparison.
But what is needed is to strike at the very root of the mistake, in that the western author, and perhaps all West, see Kali as one invoking fear, and they simply assume this is how India sees too.

Fact is, fear is how all abrahmic faiths subconsciously, and often enough explicitly as well, think and feel about their one monotheistic imposed image or name of the entity they call God - while India does not see any firm of Divine with fear, especially not Kaalie. She is the Divine Power, for protection of the innocent and wiping evil out of existence, and hence is Mother. Think Ramakrishna Paramahans,  and recall that his Divine was Maa Kaalie. This would make the point clear to anyone of India.

West, and all abrahmic faiths on the other hand, speak often enough - regardless of the language, the phrase and the feeling being common to them - of fear of God.  This is rooted in the basic concept that those faiths impose on their followers, and attempt to do so on humanity, that of all humanity being guilty by definition, born in sin.

India would laugh at this. Humans, and creatures too, are - of course - innocent, except by their own doings, whether of acts or thoughts or intentions or heart.

Here is the point to make this difference clear - church holds all humans, including newborn babies, sinners. India refuses to entertain such a concept, and holds it beneath contempt.

And yes, definitely, comparison of Arjuna is with the allies, whether generals or higher.

This author of the article might not have thought about it, but much of the bias that the abrahmic faiths have against India in particular, and polytheism in general, has nothing to do with any rational, much less higher, thinking about question of monotheism vs polytheism, or the assumed superiority of monotheism, so assumed without any logic. Rather, it has to do with the horrors perpetrated by the various conversionist religions in wiping out all other religions and faiths as far as they possibly could, to establish a monopoly of power over minds of people. The subconscious racial memory therefore sees all that their religious institutions disallow, with horror.
What they do not realise, or think about, is the inherent contradiction - of some dozen branches of one, and twice that of the other, of the two conversionist abrahmic faiths all preaching three main points equally stridently:-

- that there is only one God (not true, by the way,  as pointed out by one westerners on the internet in a debate - this worshipoed one, Elohim, is one picked out of many, which include for example Bacchus and many others);

- that the only true God is one followed by them, while all other branches of their faith and of all others too are false;

- that their path alone leads to salvation while all others lead to hell.

Just think, and it becomes clear, that either they are all following the same God (If what they preach in the first part is true), in which case the other two after are false impositions; or they are indeed all different, so everyone is going to several hells (and they tacitly hold that all Jews and Hindus are going to all of them)!

Ridiculous!

And yes, this author is correct, in that using imagery from India for negative psychological terms is racism, beyond that of using African American or Hispanic figures in images about misuse of drugs.

In fact it was British who imposed opium planting on Indian farmers, and reduced them from self sufficient well being to dire subsistence level below poverty, while the product then was forced on China by stealth and treachery, before using the poor men of India to make war for the purpose against China, the men of India forced to bonded labour under British due to the poverty brought about by the said imposed opium farming.

As for the opium war against China, all West was in it together. How is that for negative image?

Re animal sacrifices,  yes, most temples don't; but it would be far more effective if, rather than go on the defensive as this writer does, to ask, if the person arguing against such practice abhors the abrahmic co religion, for they conduct such sacrifices punctiliously, every year, across all Islamic nations and more, not one per mosque but per family.

Chances are, and its a safe bet, the person arguing against temples of India "because they conduct animal sacrifices" would backtrack - and fast. 

Tuesday, 9 January 2018


http://postcard.news/stereotyping-hinduism-american-education/

http://postcard.news/stereotyping-hinduism-american.../


Responding to a comment below the original article, about why don't understand the simplest of all religions:-

Because simple it isn't, it's as complex as all space and Earth and creation, rich and more. Simple they understand - one man (must, man), one book, et viola! War!

Canary - And Last Hope

Once an Israeli citizen had commented that Israel was being treated like a canary in a coal mine by the West, but it would be too late for west if and when - and this is just as true of the salami tactics of land grab being played out against India while west sits on fence sympathetic with what they are bludgeoned by rome into preferring with an enforced delusion of superiority of a monotheism, with an attitude of horror and disdain for the other alternative which they name pagan.

But they don't realise the fence is barbed wire, the delusion just that, and the horror is due to submerged racial memories of how church perpetrated horrors of massacre and inquisition to enforce its power and grip.

As for the land grab being perpetrated against India with salami tactics, the perpetrators aren't waiting for finishing off India before they begin on the West, so India isn't even the canary, just the first victim of the world conquest ordered in one religion to bring about the end of the world civilisation.

West is already undergoing its own conquest, as the happening in UK and Europe are a testimony to - grooming in UK, Sweden with areas where police vehicles are pelted with stones, Cologne new year's eve horror two years ago and berlin last year, ..... not to forget the WTC attacks and the immediate first response by bush in protecting the family of the mastermind.

As for India,  it isn't canary, but the last hold of civilisation, of treasure of knowledge humanity hasn't lost yet because India preserved it through the onslaught of invasions and colonial regimes.

http://postcard.news/kashmiri-hindus-exodus-start-inside-story/

As for Kashmir Pandits, one recalls the phrase To Kill A Mockingbird - they've been driven out in an ethnic cleansing, and those that think their land can now be pakified are unaware of the predator that stalks, not sparing anybody!

http://postcard.news/kashmiri-hindus-exodus-start-inside.../

Monday, 8 January 2018

Choices - Andre, Alcohol, Et Al.

Someone recently shared a video clip from a film, YJHD, on a social  site, and it was shared further until a friend thought it a good idea to  share it.

The very short clip is a part of the continuing argument between a  couple that's not quite a couple, not quite friends, and have issues. He  has had a life of highly vital sort, which he aspired to and had not  only hoped but planned, and he's taking a break for a friend's wedding.  She had been a studious classmate, thought she was boring, fell in love  with him when he earnestly assured her she wasn't boring because she  could get drunk and sing about kissing on Fridays, and has since lived  where she always has, despite her mum planning to make her a medical  doctor. The film never did quite make it clear if the mum succeeded in  this project, and the daughter has the personality less of a successful  doctor than of someone in a staid job she is bored with but thinks it's  her duty to stay put and claim she finds enjoyable.

I was familiar with the film, and quite possibly, to begin with  misunderstood the message, if only because I've been often accused of  being the one that won't stay put loyally to claim supreme satisfaction  in the spot one is in, but am honest enough to have loved various places  and say so.

But having been perplexed about it later, naturally the attention turned  to try and make sense of why I was sent the clip in a message. Which  turned to thinking about the clip, the film, and more.

Possibly it had dawned on me before, but certainly became clear now,  that the film is a bad copy of an original wonderful one that was our  favourite circa mid eighties  - My Dinner With Andre - which this  director has pulverised and twisted and mixed with typical masala his  style, to present something all at once supposedly glamorous, romantic,  traumatic, patriotic and more; in this he might have succeeded with  those that believe it's unnecessary to think. We, I recall, both fell  deep asleep during this film, especially since it curtailed it's  fledgling promise of the career of the aspiring hero taking a flight,  and instead diverted into a song and drink medley with emotional  exhortations about return of the native. We did see the film, but were  impressed negatively and strongly so, so much so we stopped taking  trouble to watch films in theatre and spending huge amounts that that  entails.

But it's fortunate that the clip was sent to me and so it brought to  attention precisely what is wrong with the pulverised copy of the  wonderful original.

The original is a conversation between two very unlike guys, one who has  had wonderful, out of the way experiences, as he's lived and travelled  around the world, opening his inner vision and widening his  consciousness in the process - and the other an average joe who has an  average life, is happy with it, and towards the end of the very  enchanting account of experiences of Andre, confused rather than  thrilled he asks what's wrong being an average joe happy with his  average life like everyone around.

In this clip, however, where the constant banter of the couple comes to a  quiet boil, with her resisting him and his accounts as if it were a  ping pong match she has to win, she delivers a smash that's not quite  playing sport - by informing him that, since whatever choice one makes  one is bound to miss something, one ought to reconcile to staying put  exactly where one is and learn to like it! It isn't a volley, it's  rather an irate bully hitting the winner on head with the bat - at close  range.

And therein the fallacy, since the latter in no way follows from the former, by any twist of logic.

Clearly it's trivially obvious that wherever one is, one is missing  every other spot in the universe at that moment, and this cannot be  helped. It's equally clear that one may make one's choice, for the  moment or for a future, which might be temporary or for life, as one  sees fit. But it's equally clear that it in no way follows that one must  stay and learn to like precisely what and where one has always been and  done exactly what one always did.

If so, think about it - does that not wipe out the very notion of  education, most of it, since it's about growth of mind and learning  about times, places, any experiences of others? History, literature,  even news and films and music is rendered negated by this diktat via  strange logic that director has the woman expound, since it all takes  one out of where one happens to be. As does most education of non  primitive sort.

But mainly, the conclusion she forces with an unexplained process of not  quite logic, is spurious, not because of its unavoidable implications,  but due to it's inherent fallacy. For it is in no way clear that his  choices are worse. And most of us make a choice most of the time this  way is that, not by adhering to a stay or leave loyalty, but by one's  own priorities and more leading one.

At that, this pulverised and more copy of the wonderful original has  faults that are way beyond counting. The most obvious being, calling or  labelling all studious or academic or intelligent people boring, and  constant sponsorship of the drinking and mindnumbingly low level life  as as fun. An obvious corollary of this is that the film shows the  studious bright one stay home in a routine job, while the one who never  did well academically is the one flying off with a scholarship abroad to  a career he aspired to, with a glamorous life.

Glamour might be in the eye of the beholder, or the director in this  case, but the fallacy is obvious here - just looking at the roster of  those that do go abroad with scholarships, or look at the silicon valley  for short.

That a life of mind, whether spent in one place or otherwise, is far  from boring, but a life of alcoholic stupor mindnumbingly so, is  perhaps beyond those that think this bad copy of a superb original was  good. That they don't know about the original might make no difference  to their taste, but that's a non sequitur.

 

Acceptance of false attitude perpetrated by monotheistic colonial powers

A good deal more information than one expected, that too in so short an article, and it includes some archaeological tidbits too!

One may not agree with some of the things - for example, why kowtow to this negative attitude about images of Deities, calling it "idol worship", when everyone really does know it's an image portraying the Deity? The whole negative attitude belongs to abrahmic faiths, amongst which Catholics don't quite have it either - after all their churches do rever the mother and son in full form images. And why not? European deities prior to domination by church were, after all, worshipped in images, as were Egyptian and others around the world, from Chinese to Mayan.

And those that bow to the negative attitude about what they call "idol worship" then go on to rever images and icons of their not officially worshipped icons such as political leaders, stars, and so forth.

After all, when someone shows a passport and the photograph is bad, and the officer says "is this you?", who replies "no, moron, it's an image made up of points on paper, it can't be me, I'm right here before you,  how could you think the little picture could be a full human?"

So one might not agree with everything here, and possibly on reflection this writer too would agree with this point about images of Deities, but very worth reading all the same.

Responding to a comment below the original page:-

Greek and Latin have roots in Sanskrit. Try looking at words for numbers, family relationships, etc, and more. The term Indo-Europeean is used for the group of languages that evolved from these roots, and it covers most languages of Eurasia except Turkic ones.

http://postcard.news/historian-and-soldier-in-netaji-boses-army-claims-with-proof-that-hinduism-is-the-root-of-all-religions-including-christianity-and-islam/?utm_source=shimla-facebook&utm_campaign=shimla-facebook-utm&utm_medium=cpm