A very incisive article. There is much to learn from the unprecedented times we are striving to survive. The pandemic has been a humbling leveller. It is time to prioritise health care, and pay heed to the age- old wisdom, ” prevention is better than cure.”
Deepankar:
Your introduction to Blaise Pascal (by the way, Pascal, not Pacal. I presume it is a typo. You might want to correct it) had a curious omission: you mentioned every designation of his, except a very important one, that defined his entire perspective — that he was a catholic theologian! This is especially significant due to the mystical experience he had and the description of which he pinned to the inner side of his shirt every day till his death….. His reference to “sitting quietly in a room” has deep theological under- and overtones. Your omission was by default or by design?
It is Blaise Pascal and not Pacal as in the article . It is a delightful article and one which is unbiased in judging our customs and traditions , While aadab and namaste receive a thumbs up the practice of chewing paan and spitting gets the criticism it deserves .
Definitely, there should be a campaign against spitting in the public places. The worst offenders are the pan chewing and Zarda eaters. Secondly, there should be focus on studying and researching in pure science. We are paying a dear price for neglecting science and focusing too much on engineering and medicine in the last four decades. Our entire electronic industry lives at the mercy of China. We cannot make even the simplest ICs in India. One must beg to differ about there being less talk on terrorism. Just a few days back, Maoists have killed 17 paramilitary personnel. Matters such as terrorism may be under reported or not reported. It would be naivete to think that they have disappeared. We can trust our friendly neighbourhood country to push its agend of terrorism at a time like this.
Hyper nationalists never understood it is not the number of people in India that mattered, it is the number of people who came from abroad since the breakout.
My heartly thanks to ThePrint. Please publish more and more articles to honour great Indians who have been perpetually ridiculed and demeaned by India haters from within and foreign countries. Indians have some weaknesses and must improve over many things but Indians also have a lot to offer to world’s progress and happiness.
Well thought out .
Agree mostly
Material loss is Spiritual , Intellectual and Cultural gain
A very incisive article. There is much to learn from the unprecedented times we are striving to survive. The pandemic has been a humbling leveller. It is time to prioritise health care, and pay heed to the age- old wisdom, ” prevention is better than cure.”
Deepankar:
Your introduction to Blaise Pascal (by the way, Pascal, not Pacal. I presume it is a typo. You might want to correct it) had a curious omission: you mentioned every designation of his, except a very important one, that defined his entire perspective — that he was a catholic theologian! This is especially significant due to the mystical experience he had and the description of which he pinned to the inner side of his shirt every day till his death….. His reference to “sitting quietly in a room” has deep theological under- and overtones. Your omission was by default or by design?
Can’t see Indians giving up chewing pan and spitting. Not for at least another 100 years.
It is Blaise Pascal and not Pacal as in the article . It is a delightful article and one which is unbiased in judging our customs and traditions , While aadab and namaste receive a thumbs up the practice of chewing paan and spitting gets the criticism it deserves .
Definitely, there should be a campaign against spitting in the public places. The worst offenders are the pan chewing and Zarda eaters. Secondly, there should be focus on studying and researching in pure science. We are paying a dear price for neglecting science and focusing too much on engineering and medicine in the last four decades. Our entire electronic industry lives at the mercy of China. We cannot make even the simplest ICs in India. One must beg to differ about there being less talk on terrorism. Just a few days back, Maoists have killed 17 paramilitary personnel. Matters such as terrorism may be under reported or not reported. It would be naivete to think that they have disappeared. We can trust our friendly neighbourhood country to push its agend of terrorism at a time like this.
A delightfully meaningful, wonderful piece of writing. Enjoyed it immensely. Thank you sir for this gem and, The Print well done. ?
Hyper nationalists never understood it is not the number of people in India that mattered, it is the number of people who came from abroad since the breakout.
My heartly thanks to ThePrint. Please publish more and more articles to honour great Indians who have been perpetually ridiculed and demeaned by India haters from within and foreign countries. Indians have some weaknesses and must improve over many things but Indians also have a lot to offer to world’s progress and happiness.