There is a lot of talk these days about minimalism, particularly among the neo-rich urban crowd who are burdened with the ‘problem of plenty’. We live in a society that celebrates consumption and accumulation. I myself am a hoarder of all things handmade and beautiful.
As a result, my home feels like a museum and my closet is overflowing with beautiful, hand-woven sarees. But even beauty is bondage. I realise that now, as I take my baby steps on the long road of #अनासक्ती
Minimalism is a tool that can assist you in finding freedom. Freedom from fear. Freedom from worry. Freedom from being overwhelmed. Freedom from the trappings of the consumer culture we’ve built our lives around.
The original Indian lifestyle has always been minimalistic. All of us have grown up in homes were reduce, reuse, recycle was a way of life. I realised that once again, very powerfully this time, when I visited a tribal home in a village in #Bastar.
The home was fairly large, four specious rooms, with a generous sit out outside. There was one shelf for pictures of Gods and rows upon rows of corn cobs and bamboo shoots smoking over a mitti ka chulha.
The kitchen consisted of a chulha and a shelf fitted into the wall that displayed vessels. The family was #atmanirbhar in almost all their needs. There was a traditional wooden flour mill, a hen coop fashioned out of bamboo, and a thatched cow shed.
The matriarch kept a benign but watchful eye on babies as adults went about their daily chores. They brewed their own liquor from Mahua flowers, grew their own vegetables. Plates and glasses were fashioned out of leaves. Everything was natural, handmade and beautiful.
There were no electronics in the home, not even the ubiquitous TV, though some adults had their own smartphones. The home is electrified and one room had a fan. But other than that, we could have been in a different world, a world free from the tyranny of consumerism.
I cannot imagine being this minimalist, but the few hours I spent in their home made me take a long hard look at my own lifestyle. I pride myself on being a conscious consumer, but this encounter with the tribal culture made me realise how much I need to declutter.
Maybe for the tribal family, this culture of minimalism is not out of choice, maybe given an option, they would choose consumerism. Maybe it is a lifestyle thrust upon them by tradition and lack of opportunities.
Maybe.
But the contentment I felt in the place was real!
• • •
Missing some Tweet in this thread? You can try to
force a refresh
#thread on ‘inter-faith’ murders that were reported in India over the last ONE MONTH. 1) The case we all know - #AftabPoonawalla kiIIing his live-in partner #ShraddhaWalkar and cutting her body into 35 parts! This happened after two years of physical abuse and threats to murder.
Within a week of #ShraddhaWalkar’s murder, #NidhiGupta was pushed from a 4th floor terrace to her death by her ‘stalker’ Mohd Sufiyan because she refused to convert for him. Nidhi was only 19!
22 year old #Rabita, a tribal girl from a very small mountain tribe in Jharkhand was chopped into 50 parts by her husband Dildar and his family, within 10 days of her ‘marriage’. Dildar was already married.
#ChanderiChronicles#thread The beautiful town of Chanderi, surrounded by the Vindhyachala ranges is one of the best kept secrets of @MPTourism. The town sits low below a ridge that is crowned by the magnificent #Chanderi fort.
When we say #Chanderi, most of us textile enthusiasts think of the diaphanous, light-as-air Chanderi sarees, a fabric known for its subtle jari motifs and gossamer thin translucence that made Chanderi the favourite of erstwhile royal families of Rajasthan, MP and Maharashtra
But there is so much more to #Chanderi. Once known as Chandrapuri and Chedi Nagri, the town of Chanderi and the countryside around it formed a part of the Chedi kingdom. Chandrapuri is believed to be the capital of Vakradanta, the father of Shishupal mentioned in the Mahabharat.
#Thread Idi0t’s Guide to #NoBindiNoBusiness, for the trolls who deliberately misinterpret the hashtag n the thought behind it. Repeat after me, #No_Bindi_No_Business is about CHOICE. It is not a compulsion, it is not a law. It is about the right of the ordinary Hindu to say NO!
When brands advertise for Hindu festivals like #AkshayaTritiya#Ugadi#Deepavali#GaneshChaturthi it is a reasonable expectation that they should respect the consumer’s culture, traditions, symbols. A bindi/Tilak/sindoor is one of the prominent Hindu symbols #NoBindiNoBusiness
If a brand wants Hindu money, the brand HAS to respect Hindu sentiments. The ads have to reflect the Hinduness, the joy, the spiritual significance of the festival. You want Hindus to buy gold from you for #AkshayaTritiya then show respect to Hindu culture. #NoBindiNoBusiness
#Thread This is for the outrage brigade who froth at the mouth 24/7 abusing RSS/VHP/BJP/Modi, everyone, while pretending to be ‘Hindu activists’. If you are a @BJP4India voter, you have every right to question/criticise this govt. But why the tirade against @RSSorg?
As the name suggests, RSS is a volunteer driven org. They don’t owe anyone anything. They work on ground. They have different Sewa projects from orphanages to old age homes to #gharwapsi programmes to intervening in #lovejihad cases. Do you support them in any way?
Do you give your money/time/contacts to any of these causes? Do you at least provide intellectual cover to the parivar organisations that work on the ground for Hindus? Do you write articles covering their Sewa work? Do you defend them when they are attacked by the left?
The responses to this thread were phenomenal. Collating them all together in replies to this tweet. Do check them out. #OurTrueHistory. It made this #RepublicDay very special for me. Congratulations to all the winners and participants. Watch out for the next context on 15th Aug.
#Thread Did you know that there are 7 temples in Tamil Nadu around Thiruvarur that are known as Sapta Vitankas because they have 7 images of Somaskanda that are believed to be divinely created without a chisel? (Vi-Tanka). These were sacred to Saint Thiagaraja. #TamizhTales
Each of these shrines is associated with a certain form of dance. The Sapta Vitankas have been glorified by the Tevaram verses of Nayanmars or Saivite saints of TN from 1st millennium CE. The first one is at Thiruvarur and is known as Thyagaraja Swamy Kovil #TamizhTales
Next is the Tirunallar temple that has a shrine dedicated to the planet Saturn. This is one of the Navagraha temples as well. King Nala from Mahabharat is said to have worshipped here. #TamizhTales