Daily Times

The Punjabi Hindu copies
and proudly embraces western culture and traditions in his quest to prove himself to be modern and cultured, but to me he is either unaware or overlooks the historical precedents in the western world. It was customary to speak foreign languages instead of the mother tongue, but that was hundreds of years ago. French and Latin were used by the English gentry. A wealthy and cultured class in Sweden spoke German and French. Once these nations in the west were swept off their feet by the tempest of nationalistic movements, they went back to their roots, began to abandon foreign languages and embraced their mother tongues. Use of a foreign language was regarded as an obstacle in the way of progress and development of the masses. Once they shook off the yoke of foreign languages, they progressed and developed by leaps and bounds. Now no Englishman needs to speak Latin or French to demonstrate that he is cultured and modern and no Swede uses French and/or German. Generally, western people by nature are calculative and not blind followers of any policy.

They without any qualms abandon policies and traditions that are damaging and counterproductive.

One thing that has come out in the light with all the research and experimentation is that one’s mother tongue cannot be replaced by any other language one learns during one’s life. Different languages came into being as an expression and as a result of what different people desired, needed and felt. Language of the one cannot be imposed on others as that will not reflect or express the desires, needs and aspirations of that group. No language can claim to be the only language of modern and cultured people. A person speaking his mother tongue, whatever that may be, can very well be modern and cultured. With this realisation, westerners are not ashamed of their mother tongue, culture and heritage; they rather take pride in, treasure their language and heritage, and are ready to do anything to hold and preserve them.

Sweden is one of the most modern and developed nations in the world but here no mother speaks to her children in English or French, whereas a Punjabi Hindu mother takes pride in speaking Hindi to her children and that is her way of making them ‘modern’ and cultured. A Swedish mother preserves the cultural heritage and enriches it by passing this treasure to them; a Hindu Punjabi mother on the other hand seems to be abandoning the language. The result is a culturally and linguistically impoverished and bankrupt next generation that has been severed at its roots. Except the Punjabi Hindu, all the other communities of India since centuries have realised the importance of being connected at the roots. Tamils, Bengalis or Rajasathanis are not ashamed of their mother tongues. Somehow, the TV and film industry has been loyal to their language and cultural heritage too. The songs and scripts have been loaded with Punjabi language and culture. Actors, singers and music directors are normally admired and idealised in any society. Punjabi artists were idealised by other communities but were ignored and overlooked by Punjabi Hindus.

Will whatever I have written bring about any change in the Hindu’s thinking? Will it touch his heart and soul in any way? These questions have played in my mind over and over again while I started writing this article. But I am disheartened and saddened in the face of reality because somewhere in my heart I know that Hindus will not give two hoots to the message I want to deliver. Not only me, maybe all the scholars of the world from one platform could not convince them to reflect on or change their ways.

The Punjabi Hindu absorbed in a pseudo-egotistical trip has been fixed in his ideas and ways. He is not ill informed or irrational in any way but has failed to take time to reflect and think of the gains or losses he has endured due to his attitudes and decisions. I often feel that for the Hindu, pseudo-egoism is nothing but escapism. When an ostrich sees danger, he buries his head in the sand. Similarly, the Punjabi Hindu who is aware of the threats to his very identity, and to escape that just like the ostrich, he is hiding his head in the sand of Hindi. Having laid down all his defences, he is silently and passively sitting and waiting to be completely robbed of his language, culture and heritage. With own hands he is serving his existence, identity, language on a platter and offering it to the black hole of Hindi.

(Concluded)

The writer is a serving Justice in Sweden