It has taken 8 months for me to write about Mahirl Malar, my daughter. These 8 months have been well spent in discovery of joy.

Mahirl Malar (மகிழ்மலர்) - joyous flower – yes, she is.

Anything that I can write will pale in front of what I feel. So, again, let me leave the writing bit for a little later. For now, being with Mahirl is more precious than writing about her.

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?

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.

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?

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.

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.

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?

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.

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.

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.