Everything men have made can be used as evidence for their history; but in order to do so, we must find out how to interpret it. R. G. Collingwood Are folktales and myths important tools of writing history? Given the current socio-political situation in India, answering affirmatively to this question carries significant risks. There is … Continue reading Finding Meaning in the Mythical: A Note on Collingwood’s Musings on Myths and Folktales—Arkaprava Sengupta
Category: Philosophy
The Myth of Belonging: How to Create a Nation—Hira
Untitled (2005), M.F. Husain [Courtesy: Learning Journal] Amidst the chaos and uncertainty in the academic year of 2021-22, as students and teachers alike learnt to grapple with the online mode of teaching, NCERT used the time to quietly edit the contents of its History and Political Science textbooks from classes 6 to 12. Official communication … Continue reading The Myth of Belonging: How to Create a Nation—Hira
In Defence of Not Knowing—Ananyo Chakraborty
Auguste Rodin's The Thinker [Image Courtesy: Britannica.com] It is our knowledge — the things we are sure of — that makes the world go wrong and keeps us from seeing and learning. Lincoln Steffens It was as if a splinter had hit me straight from my phone screen. It baffled me, and shook me to … Continue reading In Defence of Not Knowing—Ananyo Chakraborty
Yashpal’s ‘The Right to Grief’—Translated by Riya Lohia
Yashpal (1903-1976) was a prolific Hindi writer, who had written short stories, novels, essays, and a play. An active participant of the Indian freedom struggle, he had been jailed by the colonial government for his revolutionary activities. He was a socialist and saw his writing as a means of intervening in a range of social … Continue reading Yashpal’s ‘The Right to Grief’—Translated by Riya Lohia
Samar Sen’s ‘Sans Reverence’—Translated by Suchintan Das
Samar Sen (1916-1987) [Image: Public Domain] The question of livelihood does not arise while discussing the term ‘intellectual’. The Bangla term ‘Buddhijibi’—one who lives off one’s own intellect—is therefore not an accurate translation. Perhaps the remnant of our old Brahminical baggage[1] has lingered on in this rendering. Brahmins were the custodians of intellectual culture and they … Continue reading Samar Sen’s ‘Sans Reverence’—Translated by Suchintan Das
Mahadevi Verma’s ‘War and Woman’—Translated by Avishi Gupta
Mahadevi Verma (1907-1987) Image courtesy: Pinterest [Translator’s note: This essay was first published in 1933, and later included in Verma’s 1941 volume called Shrinkhala ki Kadiyan (Links in the Chain). War and Woman is perhaps one of the earliest extant texts in the intellectual tradition which later came to be termed as ecofeminism. Ecofeminism, if … Continue reading Mahadevi Verma’s ‘War and Woman’—Translated by Avishi Gupta
Society Spectacular—Monjima Kar
Fantastic Planet (1973) Something funny happened a few days back. I watched an online streaming of Frankenstein by the National Theatre (thanks to the current circumstances) with some excitement and it was quite an experience. I had never seen something that magnificent on a stage before—with rolling steam engines and all grand elements on display, … Continue reading Society Spectacular—Monjima Kar
The Alchemy of Well-Being—Suchintan Das
Angelus Novus by Paul Klee A pot of wine among the flowers. I drink alone, no friend with me. I raise my cup to invite the moon. He and my shadow and I make three. –––Li Bai, Drinking Alone with the Moon (Translated by Vikram Seth) These lines, penned by the eighth century Taoist poet … Continue reading The Alchemy of Well-Being—Suchintan Das
Lokayata 