NPR were playing the Fray's -How to Save a Life in a podcast review!- Love that song. Got back home to find the Mrs. playing Ramadasa Keerthanas. Haven't heard them too many times, but just enough to find them magical. Instinctively I find them magical...
But this little experience had me thinking me about a broader and more significant point than my new found versatility in musical taste.
So let me endeavor to get to that -
Sowmya had this introduction to Nagumomo
Most of it is in Tamil, but she makes a point about a key traditional 'ceremony' that is losing place in modern Tamil or more precisely Tam Brahm weddings - The Nalangu. For the uninitiated - The Nalangu is an informal event that follows a day of hectic proceedings. The bride and the groom settle down to play a few games (get your mind out of the gutter before you read further :) with the families on either side playing audience/referees and the occasional pain in the ass (I mean that in a nice way). Most weddings are now doing away with these events to save time or money or both. I find that a pity.
But...
The tricky part in prose is to connect an/set of observation(s) to a point. I've gotta admit I don't have a smart way to introduce the subject of Identity at this point in the post, so I'll just say this :
Sowmya's near lament had me thinking about the Indian Identity in general.
I personally believe that our identity should represent our antiquity while allowing for our status quo. In other words what makes us unique is our cultural evolution over 5000 years or more and we need to be cognizant of that, in fact ensure that we are identified through that social and cultural evolution.
However, the ground reality is that as our economy becomes more conducive for upward social mobility, we find ourselves getting more alienated from our bearings.
Before you sigh and dismiss this as a rant of a newly born traditionalist, let me state that I ain't one and this isn't a call or time to turn outright traditional either.
The fundamental problem that we have is we look at choices as black or white. We are not good with nuance as being nuanced involves more hard work often at the risk of no material benefit.
So, Let me explain my preferred choice of identity :
A good lot of us in the current generation are in a nice place, we can walk out of a Metallica concert on one day right into Marghazi mahautsavam or a Ustad Zakir Hussain concert on another.
In my opinion this amazing ability that the current times have bestowed on us should forge our identity. That is while we retain an Indian core that holds our value systems, our traditions and culture - we also soak in the variations and appreciate what the rest of the world has to offer.
Unfortunately, at this point in time we are polarized on either side depending on which end of the economic spectrum we lie.
I'm convinced that either ends are not the right place to be.
But in the interest of closure, I let myself play the devil's advocate. So I asked myself as to why we need to base our identity on our past, why not just flow with the current tide? In other words, why the effort to prevent an extinction of a culture? Why not let creative destruction or a survival of the fittest take it's course ?
And the response I came up with is Novelty. I need the Novelty that my heritage has to offer that few cultures around the world compare to.
I need the benefit of the lessons learnt from 5000 years or more
But most importantly I need the Novelty that would ensure that I am not just another Tom, Dick or Harry with a brown skin. Hence the nuance!
But this little experience had me thinking me about a broader and more significant point than my new found versatility in musical taste.
So let me endeavor to get to that -
Sowmya had this introduction to Nagumomo
Most of it is in Tamil, but she makes a point about a key traditional 'ceremony' that is losing place in modern Tamil or more precisely Tam Brahm weddings - The Nalangu. For the uninitiated - The Nalangu is an informal event that follows a day of hectic proceedings. The bride and the groom settle down to play a few games (get your mind out of the gutter before you read further :) with the families on either side playing audience/referees and the occasional pain in the ass (I mean that in a nice way). Most weddings are now doing away with these events to save time or money or both. I find that a pity.
But...
The tricky part in prose is to connect an/set of observation(s) to a point. I've gotta admit I don't have a smart way to introduce the subject of Identity at this point in the post, so I'll just say this :
Sowmya's near lament had me thinking about the Indian Identity in general.
I personally believe that our identity should represent our antiquity while allowing for our status quo. In other words what makes us unique is our cultural evolution over 5000 years or more and we need to be cognizant of that, in fact ensure that we are identified through that social and cultural evolution.
However, the ground reality is that as our economy becomes more conducive for upward social mobility, we find ourselves getting more alienated from our bearings.
- We talk Yank, the queen's english but refuse to learn a new Indian language in an Indian state
- We shed our traditions and celebrate advertised 'days' from the trite Mother's day to the imaginative National Orgasm Day (no kidding.., look it up on Google)
- We drink from the same kool aid on values, priorities and mannerisms while refusing to reference the treasure trove of information and perspective that our history begets us
- In short as time passes, slowly but surely we're turning ourselves into Americans and Englishmen in India
Before you sigh and dismiss this as a rant of a newly born traditionalist, let me state that I ain't one and this isn't a call or time to turn outright traditional either.
The fundamental problem that we have is we look at choices as black or white. We are not good with nuance as being nuanced involves more hard work often at the risk of no material benefit.
So, Let me explain my preferred choice of identity :
A good lot of us in the current generation are in a nice place, we can walk out of a Metallica concert on one day right into Marghazi mahautsavam or a Ustad Zakir Hussain concert on another.
In my opinion this amazing ability that the current times have bestowed on us should forge our identity. That is while we retain an Indian core that holds our value systems, our traditions and culture - we also soak in the variations and appreciate what the rest of the world has to offer.
Unfortunately, at this point in time we are polarized on either side depending on which end of the economic spectrum we lie.
I'm convinced that either ends are not the right place to be.
But in the interest of closure, I let myself play the devil's advocate. So I asked myself as to why we need to base our identity on our past, why not just flow with the current tide? In other words, why the effort to prevent an extinction of a culture? Why not let creative destruction or a survival of the fittest take it's course ?
And the response I came up with is Novelty. I need the Novelty that my heritage has to offer that few cultures around the world compare to.
I need the benefit of the lessons learnt from 5000 years or more
But most importantly I need the Novelty that would ensure that I am not just another Tom, Dick or Harry with a brown skin. Hence the nuance!
4 comments:
nalangu did not happen in my marriage - sole reason being me :) did not wanna loose the tengai roll match at any cost - but I would still backup my decision, also one wld also have to sing during nalangu :) remember singing "manasu kulley kadhal vandhalo" during ur marriage function when folks forced me - did not want the disaster to repeat.
A good song for nalangu would be - "loosu Pennae"
What we call culture and tradition isn't static like a fly trapped in amber. Culture and customs evolve over time.
Take the connection between TamBrahms and filter coffee - it is considered a daily ritual to sit with a steel davara and tumbler while reading The Hindu. Yet you won't find anyone drinking coffee until around a century ago, this was a habit that came about after the British set up coffee plantations in the south.
An even more dramatic example- potatoes are a staple of North Indian cuisine, you cannot imagine Indian food without aloo matar or dum aloo or any number of other dishes. Yet this has its origins in the New World,and until the Portuguese introduced it here, no Indians had ever heard of it.
Speaking of wedding customs, child marriages have been the norm in India until very recently. All these games were originally meant to keep the bride and groom occupied..when they both were kids under ten. The Bengali wedding ceremony for example, has the bride being carried on a plank to the pandal by 4 of her brothers.
I've seen a fully grown woman trying to balance on a plank while 4 middle aged to elderly men from her family (who has 4 brothers anymore) struggle to carry here around.
Finally, your example of people coming out from Metallica and heading to a Carnatic music concert is pretty common now. It used to be fashionable to shun Indian culture as backward..about 20 years ago and more. In the very specific case of the Tambrahm blogosphere, see the responses to any post by Krish Ashok - there are plenty of people around the world who still are connected to their roots and culture, who strive to send their kids to paatu class and so on.
Here's a point to ponder - how do you light a sacred fire using cowdung cakes for a puja if you're living in the US, and have to rent a closed hall with smoke alarms and rules against lighting indoor fires? You improvise.
One huge advantage Hinduism has over other religions is its capacity to evolve. We needn't be forced to stick with outdated customs 'just because', we can update them to reflect changing mores. (And get rid of horrible practices like sati in the process)
Every ritual and custom has a historical context. Actual prayers and beliefs however are timeless. In that sense, you can still do a surya namaskar if you live in Canada without actually sitting bare chested outside facing the sun, else you'll get frostbite.
I agree with your points in isolation, but I fail to see why you make them as a response to this post.
I haven't claimed culture to be static - quite the contrary.
my example of metallica and carnatic music was a metaphor, an oversimplification. And you're wrong, it's not common even for that example. If you were to survey a substantial no. of people - you'd realise that it's still an either or 'or'.. The problem is we judge the world by the company we keep.., for every person who's got the mix right, there are 10 families who are enamored by the western lifestyle or conservative to the point of being defensive...
Lastly, with regards to your point on improvisation - duh! ofcourse your improvise. It's not about the act, it's about the symbolism..
Your comment on surya namaskaram
makes it evident that you don't understand it..
But largely - I agree with what you say : cultures evolve. But my point is our culture should be a significant part of our identity. At this point anecdotal evidence suggest that it is not. If you want proof - ask 10 people about what an Indian identity is and you'll get 10 different answers or you may even get one nehruvian secular bs. Eitherways it's wrong!
And while I agree on Hinduism being flexible to a certain extent, I feel that it's a convenient narrative of the libertarians looking to justify a fundamental lack of commitment to tradition....
The problem is that we fail to see that a lot of these have been put in place to make our life better and a richer experience
The premise of Hindu culture and tradition as I'm beginning to understand is to do away with sloth and laziness and keeping the mind activity by a reasonable proportion of spirituality in life..We fail to see it because we've all become homo economicus and have developed convenient excuses to justify our meandering..
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