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Showing posts from October, 2019

Indian Festivals Used To Represent Excitement And Tolerance, But Does That Hold True Today?

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Pujo, or Durga Puja, for me, meant a long break from school, I still remember how the collection of money ( chanda ) would start usually months before the Durga Puja, where I come from, in Bihar, which is adjacent to Nepal’s Tarai region, a place called Pachpakri. I remember I used to go to see Durga puja rituals all the seven days of the pujo . This used to be a festive moment, one meant to be enjoyed, for me and all my siblings. This was the village market, but now, of course in 2019, this has been developed and has helped the commerce and transaction for areas even 30 kilometers at the periphery. To go see the Durga puja pandals , we would be brimming with anticipation and curiosity since morning, and we would stop reading or writing, which used to be our only work at that time. I would always try to find a way to escape from studying. Usually, we would reach the market in the afternoon, around 2:30 pm, looking forward to the mela (carnival) and the big Durga pandal

Mahatma Gandhi at the age of 150 traveled with me to understand contemporary India

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  We are celebrating 150th birth anniversary of Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi, popularly known as “Mahatma Gandhi” he was lawyer, freedom fighter, social activist and prolific writer on the contemporary issues. He was born on 2nd October 1869 at Porbandar in Gujrat. Most likely I have heard name of Gandhi in my childhood, this is my home district, where Gandhi had started his Champaran experiment in 1917.   My grandfather used to share Gandhi’s story, about his visit to our nearby village, he was fond of his bodily work and commitment towards cleanliness, the truth and respect for others.   Once I started going to school, I learn more about Gandhi and his idea. I learned one word “Gandhian” people who claims to knows about Gandhi and keeper of ideas of Gandhi, now I can think about those Gandhian, most of the Gandhian came from same caste group, almost everywhere in the India, whether you go to north to south or east to west. Those caste group got prestige /positions. And i have ob