Contrary to religion, every civilization gas one thing in common and that is waiting for the rising sun. The civilization which has craved the sun in harsh winter and heavy monsoon has this innate desire for the sun.
by Swadesh Roy writing from Dhaka
The roots of nationalism are intertwined with every nation and its people. To understand the patriotism of Bengalis we need to go back a 1000 years to the city of Pundra, go to the banks of the Padma river and think how many years have the Bengalis have walked along these lines, where the sounds of the hallowing river have mixed into the songs of the Bengali people. Just like that, are intertwined into the brass drums displayed in the Museum of Nationalism in the city of Nanning, is the thousand of years of nationalism. It is estimated that these drums may be from 1700 to 2000 years old. On these ancient drums are the drawings of the sun.
Whenever one sees brass, it takes him back to ancient times, because brass has been made 300 years before the birth of Jesus Christ. Smelting copper makes brass with zinc and 9000 years before the birth of Christ people were using copper. People used copper in Mesopotamia during 4500 BC. A thousand years later was used in Egypt and later in 28BC copper was being used in our region in China. Thus when seeing the brass drums from 1700-2000 years ago, one has to think back to 27BC when brass was started being used in China. Rooted with the brass drums is a civilization that is behind it, and upon it; is drawn the sun.
Whenever Bengalis see a drum, we feel a beat in our steps. Like my friend the poet Rudra Muhammed Sahidullah sitting in SachitraShandhani remarked that “We have music in our blood”, because there is no difference between the Dhak and Drums. The way the playing of brass drums displayed in the Nanning Museum of Nationalism is not so different than the ones of Bengali Dhak and Dhol. Not only in Bangladesh, in this Indian Sub Continent the way drums are played very similarly, and this is true for Southeast Asia as well. Researchers and archaeologists will give their reasons why there is the sun carved into the brass drums but human civilization.
Contrary to religion, every civilization gas one thing in common and that is waiting for the rising sun. The civilization which has craved the sun in harsh winter and heavy monsoon has this innate desire for the sun. The brass drums with the symbols of the sun show this ancient side of this Chinese Northern City.
The past and the present
A group of students on a study tour have the Asian feel, almost like the drums made from copper and brass placed in the museum. Humans have this desire to make his own the other person. People behave in the same way all over the world and yet there is a thin line that separates Asia, Europe, and other regions. This line sometimes disappears in the melody of music, the lines of art or the designs of clothes but seldom does there is little similarity in behaviour. Then again there sometimes there is also a similarity. There might be a certain homeliness in Asian people. This feeling of homeliness is apparent in the students who have come on a visit to the Nanning Museum. Just like sons and daughters, they want to become closer to other people. There is an Asian vibe. In another 50 years, Asia will reach the future, and these students will be ones leading it. Thus there is a need for people to recognize this Asian vibe. Either the South China sea, Balakot or Pathankot or the Japanese or Korean ships in the Pacific, there should be no need to reply with the help of weapons. To lead the future world, Asia should first cease to use weapons and see that foreign guns are not pointed in its territory either. Today’s students will be leading the future. China is disconnected from Google and Facebook. Still, they have their search engines and own forums but most prominent is how the students show that they too are part of the global village.
Street food at night, Middle-income bazaars and Global Village
Todays its anyone’s knowledge that among the five global villages in the world, China also holds court. At night in the middle of Nanning, there are streets filled with people going about and eating. Any nationality also has its roots in its products as well, and it is apparent when one looks at the great recipes that one culture has. Just looking at African food, one can see the long heritage it has. The same is true for Egyptian and Indian cuisine as well.
China and Southeast Asia have a sense of art in their food. Just like a friend from South India, Professor MizKirtaniya said “If you never taste the Samosas from old Hyderabad you will not know the heritage behind Hyderabad” That goes for any country be it China or India, if one doesn’t taste the street food then it is hard to feel at one with the heritage of that region, and it becomes impossible to know the artistic sense behind it. Amid the smells and various kinds of food in the street bazar, there are also small pockets of technology. It is fantastic to see how easily food is kept fresh and cold, and that reminds me of Abhijeet Banerjee’s Poor Economy Management. Reading the two economists’ book in 2011, Abhijeet Banerjee is an American with roots in India; there is one quote that describes what is happening “simple problems beget simple solutions”. Seeing this technology keeping the Bazar alive one of my friends Narsirullah who is from Afganistan says that using these simple technologies will make the poor economy grow. They have kept everything cold From fruits to water using these technologies in this open space.
Which then reminded me of Abhijeet Banerjee’s “simple solutions” quote. To understand the food of a new place one has to go to the traditional places where such things are sold and among these will be the tastier and the less tasty of the food. It is, of course, impossible to taste all of them on the first day. When I, Nsirullash and Sameh are going through the bazar another foreigner and his three companions also omes. One of them is Russian, another one is American, and the other two are from Azerbaijan. They tell us which foods are more edible to our taste. They are not tourists, nor they have come to taste the street food, but rather they are students in China and have come for some cheap food. It came to my mind that Rabindranath Tagore’s concept that Aryans and Non-Aryans would build the world and the idea that would happen in India has been taking place all over the world.
Jasmine flowers and tea in the Silk route
To make the global villages more compact, China is on its way to re-initiate its ancient road and river silk route. Of course, I will not delve deeper into that now, I have written about it in the past and will write more about it in the future as well. In the 17th century, Jasmine flowers came into the Tang dynasty using this silk route.
During the Han dynasty around 220 BC Jasmine tea came from Southeast Asia. This is written down in history, but after that, ages have come and gone.
The jasmine gardens in the sunkissed morning of the 10th day are much more different than the other days. There have been many times that I have spent three nights in a hotel room just writing during a trip and bought chocolate in the airport on the way back. Still, this morning in the jasmine fields felt different. A few women were plucking Jasmine flowers in the fields; they had baskets on their heads. The Jasmine flowers are plucked before they are fully open and then are placed in a dry place with a little sun. In the past, flowers would be made bare from the morning dew, and it is still done but with technology which even separates the flower and the leaves. In the space of 1200 hectares, about 10 tonnes of Jasmine tea can be produced. The information technology generation’s aspect is these new ways of farming and production. Walking past the Jasmine fields, I think if it is possible to produce Jasmine tea in Bangladesh. Still, of course, Bangladesh doesn’t have these vast amounts of land, but of course, if the silk road opens, our generation businesses might also centre around Jasmine tea. At this time there is much Green Tea available in our markets which are not bad as well.
In the Heng county’s Jasmine Garden’s, I remembered something, around 1700 years ago, Jasmine tea came to CHina using the silk route. From 1980 onwards there has been more production of Jasmine tea. In this 21st century, China is preparing to export more products like this. When I was thinking about this, my friend from Afganistan, Sameh put a Jasmine flower in my pocket and said tell your beloved that your Chinese girlfriend gave you this. The smell of the Jasmine filled my pocket. Sameh always has this knack for jokes, and I have to give it to him for his humor. At the same time, I thought that if it was possible that Asia might not be the most powerful economy, but the smell of Jasmine might still be there. Asia to become powerful will have to endure more obstacles.
Translated from the Bangla by Safen Roy
Swadesh Roy, Senior Journalist, Dhaka, Bangladesh. He is a highest state award winning journalist and can be reached at swadeshroy@gmail.com
Post a Comment