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| Tradition is our asset |
Today, if you don’t know who ‘Angelina
Jolie’ is or you are unaware of the fact that with whom ‘Britney Spears’ is
having an affair, then surely you are no less than a nonsensical, dim-witted, mumbo-jumbo
creature on this blue planet. On the contrary, if you are well versed with mythological
scriptures and know who Sita, Draupadi, Krishna,…....are, then incontrovertibly,
you are regarded as someone who stands as an exemplified ‘twerp’ possessing
a doctoral degree in the field of ‘Ignorance’. There has been a dramatic transition
in our thinking and living pattern and whenever there is any shift pertaining
to the structure of ideologies, it is always coupled with a multitude set of
pros and cons.
Hailing from a conventional
middle-class Indian family and having my roots deeply submerged in sound rural
background, I can undeniably say that Indian ‘Sanskriti’ and ‘Parampara’
has been and should always be the most fundamental base for our living. It is
neither a matter of holding an electoral contest between duos like
‘Angelina-Sita’ and ‘Britney-Draupadi’ nor it is a subject of race for the
dominance of ideas. In fact, it is a pursuit that exists between two altogether
different ideologies that has got impregnated in our mental framework i.e. -
‘Tradition Accept’ and ‘Tradition Neglect’. Ideology is not just an idea that
we hold in our minds rather it is the viewpoint through which we perceive the
external world. Today, our ideology has been mutated more with the external influence
rather than keeping its originality intact.
The major impediment lies in the
realness of fact that we deliberately become ignorant about our deeply
ingrained tradition, our immaculate culture and pristine heritage; though we
are not in actuality. Ignorance does not signify the state of ‘not-knowing’, in
fact it indicates the state of ‘neglecting’. We embed in our minds that
our tradition is feeble, archaic and nothing more than a piece of mockery. We configure
our present day perceptions without adhering to the veracity of our cultural
legacy and in this process, undermine the fabric of our rich traditional
heritage. We forget that the base of a building is more important than its ceiling,
the root of a plant is more significant than its leaf and a living soul is more
imperative to a dead corpse. Our incorrect interpretations deaden its sanctity
and trueness. We are relegating, decimating and deteriorating the essence of
our exemplary culture and traditional bequest by neglecting it in every form of
our living.
The blunder which we commit is by
considering that ‘Social flexibility’ can be established in the Indian
society only when our age-old heritage is ruthlessly murdered. Secondly,
‘Tradition-Murder’ is seen as a synonym for modernization and development. The
portrayal of our tradition, culture and heritage is knowingly been done in a manner
wherein it looks erroneous rather than displaying its flawless, faultless and untainted
character. In Hindi, there goes a saying that ‘Ghar ki murgi daal baraabar’,
which
means that we relegate and ridicule things that we possess and pay more heed to
what others have, in spite of the fact that our assets are far worthier than
that of others. Indubitably, this is what we are doing. There is nothing wrong
to know about ‘Britney’ or ‘Shakira’ but it is certainly deplorable to debase
the holiness of ‘Sita’ or the sanctity of ‘Durga’ by our act of contempt and disdain. There is
nothing wrong in adopting new tenets externally but it is definitely unacceptable to
ridicule the inherent quality of our traditional legacy. Rather than regarding our culture and
tradition as a handicap, let us make it our strength and soft power.
Today, you go and ask a five-year
old child about his favourite song; he will instantly come up with a list comprising of innumerable
answers ‘Hips
don’t lie, ‘Dhinkchika’ or ‘Sheila ki Jawaani’ etc….etc,
in spite being utterly ignorant about what it actually conveys, at his
subconscious level but if you pose the same question asking him to recite his
favourite hymn from Gita or Quran, he will firstly, wonder in
utter incomprehension and thereafter give an alien look, signifying his
inability to respond to the query. This is where a gulf is being created. We are
easily able to impress upon the nascent minds about ‘Honey Singh, Sheila or
Shakira’ but we fail to impart them with permanent imprints of ‘Krishna, Jesus
or Rumi’. From the early childhood we indent in the burgeoning minds the
negative aspects concerning our tradition rather than portraying its true
acuity. We imbue in their brains the superficial knowhow of our age-old
tradition rather than percolating their intellect with a thorough understanding
of our traditional legacy thereby reflecting its profoundness and originality. It is
this impression that a child carries with him throughout his life. He reflects
only what has got embedded more into his brain by the external
influence. He should be fed with the virtue of ‘Tradition Accept’ and not
with ‘Tradition Neglect’.
Our traditional heritage and culture is our
latent strength. Let us abide by it and mould it in a way wherein its
originality is retained.
