abhyAsa : Confluence of the east and west.
When I was young, my mom used to call me toorpu padamarala melukalayika – the confluence of the east and west. My father raised me to see and take the good in both cultures… Infact the good in all cultures of all times.
He taught me that traditions were based on common sense of the time and place we live in and that religions were based in science, sociology and psychology.
I had the right to accept or reject customs as they made sense in the context of my life.
We could eat with knives and forks or using our hands. We could wear jeans or sarees. Speak telugu or english. Study sanskrit or science. With equal respect and love for both.
I know people who frown on all things past, or all things modern, or all things eastern, or all things western, or all things Indian or all things foreign. We call them -ists. We are not any-ists.
I consider myself uniquely blessed.
We like to think for ourselves and work things out from first principles. We get labelled as the-other-party-ists. We reject the labels and try to tolerate the labellers.
It is disappointing to be labelled, but what to do? -ists love to label themselves and others.
They like to speak condescendingly or insultingly. Excluding-ly.
I think sarees and dhotis are awesome. So also the spanish dresses and african dresses and jeans.
Samosas and kajjikayalu are delicious as well as pizza and colas.
So i will wear jeans and a kurta and bottu and short hair and shoes with a saree. Whatever makes personal sense to me.
I study vedic sanskrit and write english.
The confluence of the east and west.
Speaking of which – to me Arabia and Africa are also west. It is a little funny when white people call themselves westerners, for me even Afghanisthan is west. And some northerners would be white? Closer to the Arctic beyond the himalayas?
Satya
