Rajiv’s Ghost and Srilankan Tamils

Why did India not bomb the under-seige Taj and Oberoi Hotels, to flush out all the terrorists? Why did Indian foreign minister escort a top terrorist to Kandhahar to get the hostages released? Why is Indian army not launching an all-out war against terrorists, even in Kashmir, where they are accused of extreme excesses? Why did India not support Israel’s rampage in Gaza? Any sane Indian citizen will dismiss these as questions of a lunatic.

But then, by the same rationale, should Indian government not be condemning Srilanka for its utter disregard for human lives in its war against LTTE? Why then, is the acting Prime Minister reading out a statement in the Parliament that eerily resembles Srilankan government propaganda material?Yes, LTTE is a proscribed organization, which may have indulged in acts of terror. Yes, LTTE may have assassinated a former Indian Prime Minister. Yes, Pirabakaran needs to be tried in a court of law in India. Yes, LTTE may be holding over a lakh Tamils as ‘hostages’.  But how does any of these make the actions of the Srilankan government justifiable? Will any government put the onus for the lives of its citizens on the terrorists? If the Government doesn’t care about a lakh citizens perishing during its pursuit of a thousand terrorists, why would the terrorists care – after all, these are people who have least regard for their own lives? How can India endorse such an act, particularly when the Indian connection is so strong for the victims through their sympathising brethren in Tamilnadu? Is it because the victims have a stronger ‘Tamil’ association than a ‘Hindu/Indian’ association?

It is time Rajiv Gandhi’s ghost is exorcised. One hundred thousand people cannot be allowed to languish anymore because of one man’s unfortunate death a decade ago. Mahatma Gandhi’s ghost was buried with the ascent of BJP to power. Indira’s ghost was bid adieu with the Sikh pogrom orchestrated by Congress. Rajiv’s ghost still dictates India’s policy on Srilanka and by being approvingly nodding, indirectly presides over the mass man-slaughter occuring in Srilanka. How many more lives need to be sacrificed before India exorcises Rajiv’s ghost and asserts itself as a moral and regional power to rescue the thousands of innocents caught in the cross-fire between a suicidal rebel group and an irresponsible fascist government?

Ahimsa in sports

2008 has been a great year for nice men in sports.

Anand’s world championship win is an emphatic victory for all the nice men in sports, and in life,in general. The power of non-violence is extending beyond the political arena to all spheres of life. Anand is the Gandhi of chess, the non-violent but efficient winner in a sport renowned for ugly spats across and off the board, more than on the board.  The greatness of this man, lies in his assertion after this victory, that the ‘match format’ is not the superior format but he was desparate to win in this format so that he gains the moral right to make this assertion. (I had written about the unfairness of the match format and the challenge process earlier, in an unrelated article).

Anand is a pioneer-gentleman in chess but he has parallels in other sports.

Federer is a smiling assasin, but still the most perfect tennis player I have seen. Despite a few heartbreaking losses, he had his great moments this year. In a modern game of violent hitters of the ball, Federer artistically caresses the ball, with no less power.

Sachin, the boyish champion, has reached the highest landmarks this year and has even revealed newer strengths. Tendulkar’s only blemish in his long career has been his loyalty to his errant teammate in the so-called race row ( பொய்மையும் வாய்மை யிடத்த புரைதீர்ந்த நன்மை பயக்கு மெனின்? -  As Thiruvalluvar said, can a lie be equivalent to truth, if it is benefecial to all?).

Laxman, the perfect gentleman-cricketer with lazy elegance and wrists of an artist, is the strange satyagrahi who chooses to march only against the champions.

Abhinav Bindra is the rich man’s Gandhi with a gun and the Rama of Kamban. After winning the first-ever individual gold medal for India there was no thumping of hands,  no chest-bumping, no waving of flag or shirt, no shout of relief; just a reluctant smile – as if, to mark the end of a regular day at office!

If non-violence can be employed in Sport, where winning is everything, can it not be deployed everywhere else in life where there need not be any losers.

Spy satellite for Israel – India’s moral compromise

While the whole of Indian media was brimming with elation and jubilation over the launch of its moon mission – Chandrayaan, the other side of India’s space capability was tucked away in remote corners of media coverage. India launches a spy satellite for Israel. 

This is the country that had practised a diplomatic apartheid against Israel and South Africa for long. The moral high-ground gained through a non-violent independence movement, decades of principled non-alignment and various other self-imposed restraints in international relations, cannot be traded away for mere monetary gains. One doesn’t need to be a rocket scientist to know the purpose to which this spy satellite will be used for. Then, why is it, our rocket scientists at ISRO, with the tacit approval of the Indian Government, are willing to play an active role in an endeavour that could ultimately be crucial in an immoral war?

Gandhi on Jews

I was ploughing through the vitriolic comments that had flowed in for the post on Israel and the subsequent apology (more of a clarification)  by Arun Gandhi (Mahatma’s grandson) on The Washington Post, when I stumbled across this link in one of the rare comments in support of the Gandhis. Mohandas Gandhi’s views on both the creation of Israel and the persecution of Jews, are so balanced and in retrospect, so full of foresight. Mohandas Gandhi is one person, who can easily be quoted, completely out of context, as many many have done in their comments. Any sentence, highlighted in isolation, can sound insensitive but in the context of what he has written, will carry deep insight.

Contrary to what most comments claim (that the Mahatma has been shamed by his grandson), I thought Arun Gandhi had shown immense courage in countering a complex and sensitive issue, and sounding right:

“Any nation that remains anchored to the past is unable to move ahead and, especially a nation that believes its survival can only be ensured by weapons and bombs.”

More importantly, he had the grace and courage to apologise for the only error that he was willing to concede in his article, without compromising on the core premise. He seems to be a man who has understood what his grandfather stood for and is not just, as alleged by so many in those comments, living off an illustrious surname.

More from Bharati…

The Fire-ling

I stumbled upon a fire-ling. In a hole,

deep in those dark woods,  I placed it.

The forest was consumed by the ensuing flame.

In matters of courage, where lies the difference

Between a novice and the veterans?

Thath-thari-kita thath-thari-kita thath-thohm.

Challenging the God

Another translation from the Tamil poet, Bharati:

In persistently pursuing food and gorging,
In squandering off time in squabbling and tattling
And then, sulking and profusely suffering,
In scheming to inflict on others, undue misery
And then, after graying and growing senile,
Being preyed upon by the deities of death,
Withers away the lives of ludicrous men.
Like them, do you dare think, I shall fall?

Crafting Bharati’s veena

Here is a piece of poetry, straight from the soul of the fiery Indian nationalist poet, Subramania Bharati, translated from Tamil. I am attempting the impossible; there is not a word in Bharati’s songs that can even be replaced or rearranged, without losing the original fire and flavour, let alone be translated.

 

Will one discard in the dust, a veena, delicately crafted?

Solladi Sivashakthi, you have borne me, sparkling

with brilliance! Will you not Vest me with valour,

Arming me to make this world worthy of living!

Solladi Sivashakthi, will you let me rot in stagnation

Turning me into a burden for this nation?

 

Like a ball in acceleration, I seek from you, a body,

Agile, and obeying what the mind commands.

From you, I demand, a heart devoid of desire

And a life glowing anew with eternity.

If my body be roasted on fire, even then, I beseech you,

Sivashakthi, to bestow me with a soul that will sing of you.

From you, unwavering determination I demand,

Solladi Sivashakthi, what barrier do you see

For granting me, what I wish from thee?

* Veena – an Indian string instrument

Solladi - Can be loosely translated as ‘Tell me’ , however in doing so, it will lose the original tone of affectionate admonition.

Sivashakthi -The Hindu Goddess, Bharati’s embodiment of a friend and mother.

$700 billion bailout plan in US Vs. Farm Loan waiver in India

There was a hue and cry from the corporate world and business media about the farm loan waiver. I found it amusing then. It looks even more amusing now, in the wake of the $700 billion bailout plan (now aborted) in that, presumptive, most capitalist of capitalist countries, the US. There was a muted response to this plan in the mainstream media; most debates were about how best to finetune this plan. 

P.Sainath ridicules this plan, in The Hindu, contrasting these reactions against the earlier rage over the “historic farm loan waiver for $16 billion”. (Sainath belongs to those rare breed of journalists, who slog it out in the vast rural hinterland to unearth the real truths, while his more elitist counterparts hog the limelight with lazy-sleazy sting operations and Arushi sagas. His apparent Socialist leanings notwithstanding, it is the existence of honest contrarian-journalists like him, which will make democracy and ‘free markets’ work and evolve).

Whether we like it or not, for those of us who were waiting for the crash, the developments are interesting, to say the least. This is definitely a serious test for capitalism and at the end of it, hopefully, we will evolve to a higher, humane form of capitalism (or whatever new -ism) and not find recluse in retrograde initiatives. The real danger is not the impending recession or a repeat of the ‘Great Depression’ with ripples across the world, but a reactionary withdrawal of heads into an excessive-regulatory shell. A temporary recession, which doesn’t hinder future growth, is more welcome than a few more decades of decadent licence-raj.

Gandhi’s Message to America

Here is Gandhi’s message, given in 1946, to Americans. It sounds more relavant today, than ever.

Dislodge the money God called Mammon from the throne and find a corner for poor God. I think America has a very big future but in spite of what is said to the contrary, it has a dismal future if it swears by Mammon. Mammon has never been known to be a friend of any of us to the last. He is always a false friend.

The soul of Mahatma

Very few, truly, know this man. But this man needs no introduction. A simple line sketch of his side profile is enough to evoke recognition from even children. There are numerous biographies, a truthful auto-biography, multiple movies, letters, articles, thesis,…and yet, very few, truly, know this man. 

In trying to search for myself, I stumbled upon Gandhi, again.

Gandhi has always been with me – within and without. There was a time during my adolescence, when I (to say, hated him will be too harsh) disliked him for the meek manner in which Independence was won and yet, in an effort to emulate him(and thereby dissolve the aura around him), turned vegetarian. My experiment with truth lasted for over 12 years, in trying conditions. With age and maturity, my dislike for Gandhi dissolved and realization came about that there was no better way to fight a powerful enemy; ironically, my experiment ended, as the need to emulate him with this motive, had also ended. Without completely knowing Gandhi, I started understanding him and admiring him. Earlier, as a boy-orator, I used to speak, ferociously, on stage, that we needed a leader like Netaji and all our problems would be solved. Looking back, I find this thought to be naive. Without knowing why, I started believing that Gandhi was the most relevant leader for India, and the 20th Century world.

After many aborted half-hearted attempts, I finally read Gandhi’s ‘Experiments with Truth‘. Oh man! No book has moved me so much. He was narrating, not a thrilling tale of adventure, not even the tale of the independence movement, but only simple truths. Truths, they are. There is some mysterious air about this book, I know not whether the credit belongs to Gandhi or his trusted Secretary and translator, Mahadev Desai, that make every word ring true. I could trust the truth of what he wrote more than what I, myself, write. That, I think, is what makes this a special experience. Gandhi was walking on a tight-rope. A little stumble, and he would have come across as a bombastic spiritual guru when he talks about his religious beliefs, as a third-rate romance writer when he writes about his carnal desires, as a real ‘quack’ when he writes about medicine and as a scheming politician when he talks about the way his political thoughts evolved. None of this has happenned; Gandhi, for all the faults that he lays bare, emerges stronger through this book. If, over eighty years after he wrote this, I feel, I know this man more than I know myself, what would have been the impact Gandhi had on his contemporaries?

There is no single truth. Each man has to seek his own truth. And, when a man, believes he has found his truth, there is no stopping him – he becomes a leader; millions are willing to follow him even if  they disagree with that truth. I disagree with a lot, if not most, of what Gandhi says in Experiments with Truth and elsewhere. 

• I can only gasp at his firm religious belief. To paraphrase Gandhi’s words uttered elsewhere, God and religion would have been nice ideas. 
• I find his thoughts on sex and brahmacharya to be naive and unscientific; I subscribe to modern scientific view that the more one suppress ones sexual feelings, the more the psychological damage to that person.
• His thoughts on medicine are idealistic and impractical in today’s world. His reasoning is sound – the cause for an ailment needs to be removed; there is no use in treating the symptom. I follow this most often, in case of common cold and headaches, but it is almost impossible to practise this at all times, particularly, in cases of serious ailments. Mud-therapy and hydropathy sound ‘quacky’ as he himself admits.
• His views on food are regimental – a diet of only fruits and nuts! I am not willing to test the truth behind his claims.
• His claims on vegetarianism sound appealing; I have followed it for 12 years, but don’t feel as strongly about it anymore. My tongue rules over my heart now; convenience comes ahead of principle in this case.
• His thoughts on Swadeshi are dangerous and retrograde. It was a powerful tool in a war of independence but had to be discarded afterwards. I am inclined more towards Tagore’s (and Satyajit Ray’s) The Home and the World, which paints a powerful picture against Swadeshi.
• His obsession with Varnas is difficult to comprehend and impossible to agree with. A man, whose antipathy towards caste and untouchability was so obvious and admirable, should have given the burial to Varnashashtras, that it deserved.
• His idea of a rural economy and self-sufficient republic villages look powerful but again Utopian.
• I find his initial treatment of Kasturba and his later day experiments with young women to be insensitive.
• I completely disagree with him on his views on Hindi and English, though I do, amusingly, like the idea of North Indians learning Tamil!

Having found so many reasons to disagree, it is a miracle that I still call Gandhi, the most influential leader for me. There lies the strength of his courageous, unrelenting belief in a perceived truth, even if that truth is not my truth. There lies the power of his ideas on Satyagraha and ahimsa; they are weapons of no parallel in history. There lies the charm of his self-sacrifice; one has to look through his self-deprecating belittlement of his abilities as a lawyer, a profession he forsake for social service. There is no doubt that he would have become a great lawyer if he had set his mind on it, evident in his clear analytical approach in building up an argument to establish the truth – the way he explains the irrelevance of history when arguing about the effectiveness of passive resistance in Hind Swaraj is outstanding. (”History, then, is a record of an interruption of the course of nature. Soul-force, being natural is not noted in history.”). 

If I had been born when Gandhi was alive, or if Gandhi is alive today, there is no doubt in my mind that I would have followed him. I am sure, Nehru would have had all the disagreements with Gandhi that I have mentioned here; did he not follow Gandhi ardently, as long as he was alive?

I have found Gandhi. Will Gandhi help me in the search for the unfound ‘me’, it remains to be seen.