This is not necessarily a commentary on the current affairs, namely – the narrative wail that: ‘Sengol/Chengol/Scepter handing over ceremony in 1947 is/was feudal, despicably anti-progressive, unacceptable & anyway, was totally fabricated…’
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Ma: Dei Ramaswamy… Come here, I want to show you how your Appa looked like in an old photo… come, come…
LeLi: Oh come on, amma – am tired and sick of your nostalgia; you are always loopy and narrate the same story a gazillion times. In any case, how can I be sure that he was indeed my appa?
Ma: What? Have you gone mad or what?
LeLi: What what?? It is you – who is senile and downing tablets forever counting your days, not ME! It is YOU who is nuts…
Ma: Ayyo! It is my karma. All purva-janma papa. That, I have to listen to all this!
LeLi: See, I only have high sugar, high BP, high hypertension, deafness, NDTV, TheHindu, dravidianism, liberalism & youtube channel subscriptions. Otherwise I am fine. Look at you, you can’t even walk. You wobble & waddle like a duck.
Ma: Ishvara! You should take care of yourself, you are also ageing. In any case, I hope to die before you… Hope Sri Rama blesses me with your long & healthy life…
LeLi. Enough of advice and sentimental maudlin nonsense, you take care of yourself first… But, you can’t even do that…
Ma: True, I should… Agree that this argument started only because I wanted to show you a photo of the wedding day of your father and I. I am really sorry about it…
LeLi: I have seen it umpteen times, am sick and tired of the whole thing! You start the WHOLE thing and then apply reverse gear! How am I to cope with this?
Ma: You know, we got married in 1947, the day of Indian independence? The photo is the proof of it. We had both pinned the Indian flag to our kalyana-dress, see see…
LeLi: Look, don’t get me started AGAIN! Photos can be photoshopped. Understand some technology at least!
Ma: What? What is that? We never shopped or anything. In those days there were only local Nadar provision shops… what are you saying!?
LeLi: For you ‘WhatsApp University’ people, nothing can be taught. I should have known better than to have a mother like you…
Ma: Dei… Just look at this photo… you know, your appa wore the flag upside down and I had to discreetly correct him, heh heh…
LeLi: What HEH HEH! What is the PROOF that he was MY dad? Some old pig-eared grainy photo? What the hell!
Ma: Ayyo, Deivameh! Isvara! What has happened to my Son, is he feverish?
LeLi: No. I am not running temperature. But am angry that, there is NO proof that he was my real Appa, my truthful biological father – though you were indeed my Amma, perhaps…
Ma: Ayyo! What happened to my son today? How can you demand proof for this! Don’t you have any sense of shame?
LeLi: Why not? We scientifically minded people, only believe-in those things based on evidence…
…
…
Ma: Here is the old yellow-pink wedding invitation; you know, the wedding happened in Pazhani? Before and after Kalyanam we prayed to Bhagawan Muruga… Gnyana panditha he is…
LeLi: What is this stupid piece of crazy shit?! Even this can be photoshopped! Bah!!
Ma: What is this shop you keep talking about…I don’t understand!
LeLi: It is my misfortune that I have a mother who doesn’t understand the basics of Technology. See Amma, what is the proof that HE was my bloody Appa??
Ma: What proof can I give, I used to wear a Mangalya Sutra, and that is there in the Almirah somewhere… Good that your Appa passed away many years ago! He doesn’t have to listen to all this … kashta kaalam… what to do…
LeLi: How can your thaali or mangalyam be a proof for my biological father?
Ma: What? May be I can ask my brother and tell you his personal experience of the wedding, its details etc? Hope he remembers, he has Alzheimers…
LeLi: No. We nitpicking & dazzlingly brilliant people do not operate based on mere anecdotal evidence…
Ma: May be, I can give you a testimony from the Sastrigal who conducted our wedding rituals? Fortunately he is still alive & taking care of himself in our ancestral village near Gobichettypalayam – his sons have all passed away, and grandchildren are all well-settled in america, canada and australia…
LeLi: How many times should I tell you – how can a simpleton crossbelt kudumi be a proof! That too to scientifically determine my parentage? That too after so many years?
Amma: Oh no… How am I EVER going to convince my own son that he is indeed my own son! I can’t even cry because… …
LeLi: Look here Amma, I am saying this for the last time… I want to know the correct details of my real, biological father, not someone I have merely been told is my father without any evidence whatsoever… the days of meaningless traditions and superstitions are over… I need solid, clear & independently verifiable proofs for the following:
1. DNA certificate (from an internationally accepted labs) to prove that my ‘father’ was actually born of his parents, to claim a certain lineage (one has to do a thorough job, you see…)
2. Photo IDs of them – along with proofs of residence.
3. DNA certificates of yours and that of my ‘father.’
4. If DNA certificates can’t be given (see, I am quite a reasonable man…) then:
a. Sworn affidavits from other people who have actually seen you and your ‘partner’ getting into the bedroom together & leaving it, assuming that there was no one else already in that room. I would also need circumstantial evidence for the presence of those other people, mind you.
b. Your menstrual cycles mapping based on my date of birth to arrive at a date of conception that should correlate to the above affidavits. (Oh my GOD! I remember that my own Birth Certificate did not exist then, so may be my entire birth has been faked!)
c. … …
Amma: Ayyo! Kadavule! I never thought I would live to hear this (cries, almost faints, falls down)
LeLi: What? You do not want to argue and represent your case systematically and with tangible evidence!? Can’t believe that you are MY Amma! Bah! May be you were my surrogate mother or what??
Amma: Please s t o p… what has got into you, Dei!?
LeLi: Nothing. I am my usual self – that is – normal, thinking, rational, progressive, secular self – full of scientific temper & immense love for Jawaharlal Nehru, his grace, his dazzling brilliance & his everything else…
Okay, I will give you chance to redeem yourself from your stinking Hinduism and stupidity repackaged shit called Sanatana Dharma, though I am really sick of your shenanigans…
But I want to redeem you from your superstitions, brahminical patriarchy and self-hating misogyny… Here’s a 1 Re coin – am going to toss it.
If it is heads, then I will convert to Christianity.
If it is not and is tails – I would convert to Islam.
Amma: I s h v a r a aaaaaaaa…
(curls up and dies instantly)
LeLi: Good riddance. Now, let me toss my coin anyway…
END
(of everything…)
tamil translation charlie foxtrot
May 23, 2023
Ayyo! 😩 Read the rest of this entry »
“Who first came up with theory that Tamil Murugan is different from Skanda-Kartikeya-Subrahmanya?”
April 15, 2023
Sri Badri Seshadri asked that question on Twitter a while ago (24th July 2022), and I responded (25th July, 2022) with some notes/takes.
This post captures it for (pre)posterity, for whatever it is worth, with some minor edits. Read the rest of this entry »
“Penis mightier than Sword”
February 1, 2023
oops, ooopiss & fellow 7.5s – that probably was a typo; please read it as ‘Pen is.’ Oh the horror! :-(
I was not planning to post about the current controversy involving the feckless fantasy attempt of the current Dravidian DMK govt headed by the namesake of that celebrated Marshal Stalin, the mass murderer of Russia – to install a statue of a Pen, to commemorate his father (& benefactor) M Karunanidhi’s professional prowess & procreative acumen. Read the rest of this entry »
Mughals & their Hindu Slave industry/trade – some facts & notes
January 21, 2023
One of the many persistent & elaborate myths of ‘Mughals’ is that they were particularly egalitarian & that their rule was ‘just.’ Of course, they treated their citizens/subjects equally, irrespective of their religions.
But the fact is that they were hopeless & dastardly bigots – and singled out their Hindu subjects for terrible ill-treatment, one of which is the subject of this post – namely, ‘Slavery of the Hindus’ – including exporting & gifting of them – and making enormous profits out of the ‘trade’ so-called. Read the rest of this entry »
TK Akhilan’s thoughtful & fabulous reflections on Richard Hamming’s thought-provoking, evergreen essay
January 17, 2023
A couple of posts ago on this blog, there was this recommendation of Mahamaho Richard Hamming’s brilliant essay: You and Your Research.
And, then Sriman, young TKA has actually read it in full (may be one of a very few who committed that crime?), reflected on it and has been sweet enough to share his thoughts… His essay is reproduced verbatim, below – with his permission. Read the rest of this entry »
Tamil Dating Industry: ‘Sangam Age’ spins & our lovely Tamil Hysteriagraphy – quick notes
January 5, 2023
A query from a young man:
> I was reading your blog and in several articles you have talked about dating sangam literature and how they are not as old as they are claimed to be. Could you please refer me to papers or books regarding this? Most of the respected authors I have come across seem to date the oldest of our Tamil poems to at least 1st century CE. Apologies if you’ve linked references and I’ve missed them.
>
> Read the rest of this entry »
> I was reading your blog and in several articles you have talked about dating sangam literature and how they are not as old as they are claimed to be. Could you please refer me to papers or books regarding this? Most of the respected authors I have come across seem to date the oldest of our Tamil poems to at least 1st century CE. Apologies if you’ve linked references and I’ve missed them.
>
> Read the rest of this entry »
how does a left / liberal / dravidian public(!) intellectual(!!) cope (=🐍😠😭) with gujarat 2022 legislative assembly election results?
December 10, 2022
Answer:
In a delightful variety of ways – anger, mourning, moaning & cursing included. Read the rest of this entry »
false claims on the (non)indian connections to tea, coffee, rajmah, samosa: some notes on the facts
November 29, 2022
Since these random claims (especially of Islamists, attributing everything under the Sun to the Mughals, other Invaders & assorted ‘Others’) have a way of getting resurrected every year, here they are in one collection; the debunking was restricted by default Tweet length – but, please note that there is enough and more primary evidence for the debunking of the claims, thanks! Read the rest of this entry »
shredded shraddha, our hindu daughters, puzzling behaviours & value judgements – febrile notes & unformatted musings
November 19, 2022
Chanced upon this tweet-response of Sri Sudhir Srinath – the context is the slaughter & dismemberment of the unfortunate kuf’r girl, Shraddha by an Islamic psychopath – please refer to the previous post, if you want more background.
*sheesh*
:-(
Yes. This can be puzzling – those lingering, ‘why did she not runaway, after all she is educated & was employed…’ etc etc kind of depressing questions… Read the rest of this entry »
kaizen & other assorted process improvement + quality enhancement management nonsense from japan, ‘happiness at work’ – musings
October 29, 2022
This is a blast from the past – written by a dear friend, who circulated it in a CUG that we both belong to: Read the rest of this entry »
matthew b. crawford: shop class as soulcraft
October 8, 2022
For the past 15 years or so, I have been reading & rereading this remarkable short document, as I relate to it in toto. Read the rest of this entry »
Was ‘Buddhism’ really separate from ‘Hinduism?’ ‘First Sermon of the Buddha in Saranath’ – did it happen at all? – Questions & Notes
October 2, 2022
1
No doubt, Gotama ‘Buddha’ Siddhartha was a brilliant, articulate man, a remarkable missionary & an inventor of a new monastic order. He successfully repackaged some of the pre-existing tenets of what he understood as Dharma & made it his lifelong mission to propagate his version. He is one of the many Gems that Bharat has produced & kind of continues to produce to this day. Read the rest of this entry »
A forward, a few instances of which, I received in the past few months:
“Dr. Mumin Ali Ph.D. in Politics, New York University Mar 23 2022
Is there any unbiased source to refer to to learn more about the exodus of Kashmiri Pandits?
Originally Answered: Is there any unbiased source to refer to to learn more about the genocide of Kashmiri Pandits?
It was not genocide as per Shar1a and it is the way to ensure peace. In the area where we are the majority, we must force others to either convert to our belief or purge them as per our holy book. Kashmir was a non-believer state once, but people of our religion migrated there, with a high birth rate they became the majority. Then conversion started. Only those who did not convert were killed as per our prophet’s instruction. Our religion is a religion of peace, so to ensure peace, we must remove any other belief which can contradict our belief. That’s what was done in Kashmir and that will happen as more and more areas where we will become the majority. We have to do that to follow our religion. Anyone who thinks otherwise is a fool and does not understand us.”
I would say, it is fair. And is, an accurate description/articulation supported by Islamic texts, facts & history. Read the rest of this entry »
Have been having some discussions about the fundamental differences between (mostly) nonsensical ‘Social Sciences’ and that of the real, useful Sciences – especially as adapted & applicable to ‘Tamil discourses.’
+ நம் பாவப்பட்ட தமிழ, அதிசராசரிச் சூழலில் – நாட்டாரியல், திராவிடமாடல், அகழ்வாராய்ச்சி, இனம்-நாடு-‘இனமானம்’ போன்ற இன்பலாகிரி வஸ்துக்கள் ‘அறிவியல் பூர்வமானவை’ எனப் பவனி வரும்போது, ‘இலக்கியவாதிதான் சமூகத்தின் மனச்சாட்சி’ எனப் பிரமைகள் உருவாக்கப் படும்போது (நமக்கு அறிவியல் என்றால் என்ன, அதற்கும் உடும்புத்தைலத்துக்கும் உள்ள சிலபல முக்கியமான வித்தியாசங்கள் யாவை எனத் தெளிவாகத் தெரிவதில்லை – போன்ற) நம் பார்வைக் குறைபாடுகள் துல்லியமாகவும் பட்டவர்த்தனமாகவும் தெரிகின்றன. Read the rest of this entry »
adolescents, their parents, ‘career’ choices, ‘counseling’ & life – some suggestions & notes
May 7, 2022
I am not a great/grand advisor to parents/kids nor claim to be a repository of virtues – nor pretend to have achieved anything fantastically significant/useful in my life so far – though I have some plans for the future, oh the hope lies eternal in the human breast; however, I do have some ideas & suggestions that I give based on my (of course limited, but continuously updated) understanding of the Universe, that too, only when approached by forever worried & hassled parents – sometimes directly by the Child even… (initially I was very tentative & reluctant about this coaching/guiding/advising/whatever – but not anymore so, as apparently my attempts seem to be helpful to some of the folks at least!) Read the rest of this entry »
Now, I know that Singapore is a very small, not a very significant, mustard-seed of a nation and we can’t really compare the way it is governed, to our Bharat with its history, geography, social structures & what not.
It is not even the question of a mere Scale. It is massively complicated, across many, many axes – compared to a rather simplistic State of Singapore. Read the rest of this entry »
popular tamil history goes ‘boink!’
November 24, 2021
Sometimes. Read the rest of this entry »
mathematics, stories, bharatiyata, school teachers – a presentation + notes
September 14, 2021
Though I generally avoid working with Teachers or even other Adults (…erm, Adolts, if you will) these days and hence restrict myself, if at all, to working with young ladies & gents – once in a while, I get to chat with School teachers in small groups; and a few of them happened recently. Read the rest of this entry »
Lying to the young is wrong – notes
August 24, 2021
I confess that Yevgeny Aleksandrovich Yevtushenko, the fine ‘Soviet era’ poet has been somewhat of an influence on me, at a variety of levels. Read the rest of this entry »
| ஒத்திசைவு | प्रत्याह्वय | resonance | 