The Burden of Bistory

"The struggle of man against power is the struggle of memory against forgetting."-Milan Kundera.
History means a systematic and an objective study of the human world, or the world in general in our perspective. It is regarded as objective and scientific discipline. But what is the purpose of history; or what the history/historians are doing. Again what is the advantage of the people in learning history; how they are using the historic knowledge in their life. What are the different ways in which the historians, common man, political &religious leaders uses history. More precisely, how the hi knowledge of history turns out to be a burden for all of us.
History means the collective memory of the whole human race. When I say I remember something, I’m simultaneously saying that I'm forgetting something else. In other words, the process of remember, whether it is personal or the collective, includes the process of inclusion and exclusion. We remember what we wanted to remember, not the exact truth. That is why we forget the most important and most touching events in a flash of a second. That is why we have 'memorable' moments in our life, i.e. we are very selective in his case.
The historians, political leaders, and religious leaders while talking about history are very careful to silence certain facts from history. the Hindu leaders discuss about the Muslim invasion; Muslim leaders about Hindu rule and subjugation; Dalits about the hegemony of the upper caste people, and so on....
why do we talk elaborately about our past; past glories and the persecution in the past. What is the advantage we have in talking about the Vedic period and the severe years of untouchability in the contemporary world why do we carry the burden of history. The communal leaders organise their work not by discussing the advantages we have now but by retelling the problems in the past..Why we are dividing the people by using history.

The Storyteller-Mario Vargas Llosa

The Way to Paradise by Mario Vargas Llosa




When I read the novel I really loved it; when I happen to know that the characters in the novel,Flora Tristan and Paul Gauguin, are historical personages, I shocked. Flora who wrote Peregrinations of a Pariah, The Workers Union;who act against inequalities in the society even before Karl Marx, amzing.



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Intersectiction of history and fiction: Madhavan’s Fiction

N. S. Madhavan , one of the most powerful voices in contemporary Malayalam fiction,is a multifaceted personality, who is famous as a short fiction writer, novelist, football columnist and a travel writer, Madhavan enjoys a wide readership in Malayalam.
In the thirty-third year of his writing Madhavan made his debut in the genre of novels with 'Lanthan Batheriyile Luthiniyakal' (Litanies of Dutch Battery) in 2003. The novel is about life in an imaginary island in the Kochi backwater, that got its name from the battery (bathery in Malayalam) of five cannons installed at its promontory by the Dutch(Lanthans in Malayalam) in the 17th century.
The young narrator of this novel is a girl called Jessica, scion of a family of carpenters with a long tradition in boat building. Her reminiscences start from the days when she was inside her pregnant mother's womb. The novel presents an intimate picture of life of the Latin Christians of the Kerala coast. Latin Christians are descendants of poor, low-caste Hindus who were converted to Christianity by the Portuguese colonists in 16th century . The novel is set in the first sixteen years of Jessica life between 1951 to 1967, but draws upon history starting from the time of Vasco Da Gama. She was born during a time when people used to run away from cow-pox vaccinators. it was also the period when Kerala embraces communism, which the novelist calls 'watermelon years' - an allusion to the verdant green-canopied Kerala hiding the Red inside. There are captivating descriptions of Latin Christian residents of Dutch Battery preparing themselves for months to stage Karalman Chavittu Nadakam, an operatic play on Charlemagne,originally written by Chinnathambi Annavi, in the 16th century in Tamil and pidgin Latin.
Set against the background of the city of Madhavan's birth, Cochin, the novel is a roller coaster ride through micro histories,nascent days of a newly independent country, the growth and decline of ideas, and randomness of events affecting human lives

Here in this novel, Madhavan uses History as a tool. The established historiographers never mentioned the point of view of the common masses in their writings. In this novel, N.S. Madhavan intervenes in to that history and wrote a history from the point of view of a little girl. Throughout the novel the novelist reminds us of the shortcomings of the established writings and employed the techniques of oral tradition. It should be noted here that the memory of the people is related to events rather than numbers in the calendar. The protagonist’s mother retells the time of the releasing of the movie, Jeevithasaghi, and remembers that the child born after the releasing of the movie. The life of the people is very much connected to films,theatres, religious festivals. There is a nostalgic effect in the novel while he mentions the theatre, because theatre going is a rare event nowadays.
The Communist movements and the Vimochana Samaram are also part of the memory of that little girl, but her(or the novelist’s) position in all these issues remains ambiguous. Com. Ramachandra Shenoy is portrayed very positively, so is Br. Vadakkan, whereas the priest in the church is a negative character, at least slightly. But in the later part, when the protagonist face a severe problem no noe helped her, even the party. Party was in a strategic alliance with the church.She remains helpless!!!!
The characterization of Jessica remains as a question. What the novelist tries to convey through her?? She is remaining in her self- proclaimed madness. it is better to accept madness in such a worst place? Or is this place not good for an independent, thinking, brave girl like Jessica?

GANDHI: INSPIRING MILLIONS(??????????)

Gandhi,as we all know, is the Father of Nation,for us,Indians. The contribution of Gandhi, i.e.the formation of a new political/religious weapon,Satyagraha proved useful during the independence struggle. Even now Gandhi's name have million dollar importance.....
Our corrupted politicians might find it very difficult to cover their illegal,immoral practices,if there is no martyr's day and a Gandhi. Now Yatras are going on in all states;all the "gandhian" leaders are in the streets facing people,retelling the importance of Gandhi, talking about the glorious battle lead by Gandhi....How many Gandhians here....the real problems of the people,such as price hike and the problems in the governance,nobody wants to speak a word about it. Oh why should we,we are living in Ramarajya...
For the Opposition too have Yatras,to Kashmir,what a beautiful tourist spot yar/ They are going to build another Ramarajya here....They will not speak a single word about corruption.....ohhhh Swiss bank...,,,Yeddyurappa......
Salute the Nation,and Salute Gandhi...

The Country of Darkness

INDIA
THE LAND OF FREEDOM FIGHTERS LIKE MAHATHMA GANDHI...........
THE LAND WHERE THE GREATEST RELIGIONS,BUDDHISM,JAINISM,HINDUISM EVOLVED.......
THE LAND WHERE DIFFERENT CULTURAL,LITERARY,SOCIAL MOVEMENTS ORIGINATED............
THE LAND OF SADHOOS........
now????????????????????????????????????????
the cuntry of a.raja
of kalmadi
of yedduerappa
of pinarayi vijayan



a land where the people did not have any notion of development,where the people cares nothing for their country,where impotency is the norm..............................................................................................................
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....................................................jai hind..............