Sunday, April 22, 2012

India in my heart and only in heart

I moved to Austria (Europe)in January, this year. And suddenly, like all other Desi people (who shift to Pardes for further studies or for an on-site project), I started feeling nostalgic @ India within first few weeks. Be it the weather or language or most importantly the food!!!
But wait, I am not writing this blog about how much I am missing my beloved country. Rather, I am just trying to figure out where we stand today...

Over here in Austria, even if you meet someone(please note- A Stranger) in an elevator or in a shop or even a hotel,, the local people greet you with a "gruss got" which is like a hello but actually means "may God greet you". I mean, I know that Indian culture is rich with its greetings and welcoming treats, not to forget "atithi devo bhava"; but do WE follow our culture, age old customs right now in the year 2012??
When I often visit an Indian shop to buy typical Indian grocery items and I "see" many fellow Indian Customers around, no one even smiles or says "hello" or "namaste" to each other! There is a small group of fellow Indians whom I know but hardly anyone is pleased to meet up or  visit each other's place. The world is coming closer and where are WE heading?

I mean when a foreigner asks us about our history and culture, we proudly pour out all "gyaan" right from Bhagvadgeeta, Ramayana and Mahabharat. We also amuse them by telling them that we see God almost in everything; be it a tree or a cow! But do we teach the same things TODAY to our next generation? Where have all that brotherhood and family values disappeared? We strongly believe that our ancestors have written beautiful verses which today have become lessons of life and from time to time we have shared them with rest of the world. But isn't it the time to get an insight of ourselves?!!!