Lord Macaulay
  • Actually saying that there was no study of anatomy in India until then
    is wrong. It was in India that the Brits learned about plastic
    surgery. I have in my saved files a newspaper report by the Brits
    about this "unbelievable" procedure. I will post it to the group when
    I have the time. Cataract was another operation that was in India. Dr.
    Carpur learned this procedure by our ancestors, went back to the west
    and became a leading "pioneer" of modern medicine. Actually, the nose
    fixing that is done in plastic surgery today still follows the old
    Indian method. You cannot have sophisticated sugery done without
    understanding anatomy.

    Geetha
  • Sorry, that should read...Dr. Carpue learned this procedure from our
    ancestors...

    Geetha
  • Thank you Geetha for your explanation. Your mail actually is a good reply to
    a mental block in most of us, Indians. We tend to believe whatever a
    white-skinned person says. We have a belief that we are inferior to them. I
    think it was *Nelson Mandela who said this "The problem is not that they
    think they are superior, it is that we think we are inferior".* I cannot
    think of a more apt saying.
  • adding to my previous mail, now the Maculay's speach, whether true or
    not, should become more clear for those who were skeptical.

    Suganya once asked how can the europeans, by changing their education
    system, brain wash us. This is an indirect answer. When we start
    feelign inferior, everything comes to an end.

    In just 60 years, if the Indian politicians can make Indians feel that
    talking about true secularism (equality to all religion, common civil
    code etc) is anti-secular or hindutva or saffron brigade etc. etc. and
    pampering minorities is actual secularism, why cant the europeans have
    done that in around 300 years?
  • DEAR RAHUL, SATISH & GEETHA,

    Very good exchanges. Rahul - Nelson Mandela (Living Gandhi - as Dr.
    Manmohan Singh pointed out when met him last week) was never wrong !

    This feeling - feeling high of our nativity - is the LIFE LINE of our
    Group.

    Why we have been repeatedly telling that our past was so much glorious -

    But wait .. ten years from Now, under the Leadership of Dr. Manmohan
    Singh we will be sitting on Top of the World !

    That French man who saw tomorrwo predicted this 400 years back !

    anbudan / sps
  • Hi all,

    Interesting thread. Just a thinking. There is no denying the fact that we should never
    forget the past whether it is glorious or a tragedy. But what is the point in talking about it.
    i think as a nation we have shown great solidarity after so many invasions, so many cultural influences. It is high time we stop talking about the glorious past, realizing it and try to revive it in the present day.
  • Dear MrSPS;

    I have read the last Nostrodamus book a very long time ago (isn't it called
    the Chronicles of Nostrodamus?) and he has also predicted that a Mongol race
    would dominate the world in the future. The emergence of China gives us a
    good idea of who this Mongol race is.
    Mongols have always been a threat to us. But as Sivaram Kannan put it we
    will live on as we have lived after so many invasions upon our land and our
    culture.
  • Hi

    so we are into nostradamus now

    well,Nostradamus (December 14, 1503 – July 2, 1566), Latinized name of
    Michel de Nostredame, was one of the world's most famous publishers of
    prophecies. He is best known for his book Les Propheties, the first
    edition of which appeared in 1555.

    Since the publication of this book, it has rarely been out of print
    since his death and has always been hugely popular across the world


    200 reprints and 2000 commentaries on them

    such a hugely successful writer we are yet to come across


    however many of his prophecies have been grossly misrepresented or
    mistranslated to bloat up the accuracy say present day experts.
  • Hi All,

    My response on Lord Macaulay's speech has become a rallying point against skeptics of our culture and history(I am not one of them). :) I am glad about it.

    My point is that until the British system was introduced, education was only through the gurukul system and was the privilege of the few and hence did not reach the masses. Again, occupational education is passed through generations, sometimes loosing the core of the learning even to the point to not being able to extend and expand on the original learning.

    Our history is full of surprises and our culture(both south & north) has more depth than what meets the eye. Somewhere down the line, our culture and its potential gets broken down, maybe due to dominance of one particular group or due to external interference, who have sub-dued the various fractional rulers, I dont know whether this is infact true or not.

    British system of education, in turn allowed the masses to be educated, but over emphasis on the external culture was a result of the defeatist mentality preached upon us by some of the narrow minded self-styled cultural & political rebels and not by the British.

    Hence please do recognise that the British system of education has again allowed us to open our minds for multiple means of learning, otherwise labourers would be labourers, priests would be priests and warriors will all have to find employment with the armed forces. I doubt we would have had scientists, engineers, software engineers or other professionals.

    My point is still to say, that speech in question could most probably be a hoax. :)
  • Dear Satish,

    Well said
  • Hi
    the british in a broad sense never wanted to degenerate us.
    individuals may have tried to be nasty to the colonies.
    if so he would not have started so many colleges and universities, for
    education gives us confidence( even to oppose him)
    ( I hear sathish saying they brought in education to convert people)
    I wonder how many people were converted by presidency college or
    madras university.

    and british education was not just about creating a second layer
    clerical society. two presidency college students during the times of
    the british has have become nobel laureates. never after freedom has
    this college produced one.

    I wonder how sathish would have loved to live under the nawab of arcot
    which is what would have happened if the british never came?
  • http://www.ciionline.org/default.aspx

    VaNakkam

    ur arguemnt of pro and others on negative side is quite intersting only on sharing information but let us try to extract best from the past and take a lessons from the past on certain historical incidents.

    After freedom we are enjoying like sukirivan in ramayana.

    Now some one required to tune ourself.

    I feel Our loving President Dr.APJ abdul kalam allready motivating our fellow indians in this regards.(please celebrate APJ.Abdul kalams birthday on 15th october)

    let us form a team for chatting and other for creativity from the pastHistory in respective to their fields.

    being a consultant to the NGo sectors in orissa ,

    All win situation is best for the soceity.

    All ready we are in threat by the nature.

    when u distrub the nature
    Nature will distrub u

    villagers are better than the educated people on certain things particularly with the study of nature.This is my personal experience.

    let us work on positive side .

    I feel this psvp Members , can able to do some miracles for this soceity.
    Best wishes to all

    Ur comments please

    S.balasubramani B+ Bhubaneswar Orissa

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