Years of my childhood was spent learning the languages of machines ..like Basic, Cobol, Fortran, C, C++, Java. Many of them are long dead and the rest will die too eventually. They got me a job that pays my bills but do nothing to soothe my heart.
How I wish those years were also spent learning the languages of our people. These languages are ever alive, changing yet constant. I could use them everyday until the last days of my life.
If I knew Urdu, I would drown in the rich world of shayaris. I would learn Bengali just to dive deep into Tagore's world. Thankfully I know Kannada well enough to enjoy Kuvempu. I understand Tamil barely enough to understand Thirukural. The little Malayalam I know lets me sing tender lullaby's to my kids.
Atleast I know a few languages to be able to taste the tip of the iceberg. If the tip is so sweet, can you fathom what the depths are like? I feel for my children who will never understand the dimensions and depths of feelings that our native languages evoke. Most of it will just be Lost in Translation!
How I wish those years were also spent learning the languages of our people. These languages are ever alive, changing yet constant. I could use them everyday until the last days of my life.
If I knew Urdu, I would drown in the rich world of shayaris. I would learn Bengali just to dive deep into Tagore's world. Thankfully I know Kannada well enough to enjoy Kuvempu. I understand Tamil barely enough to understand Thirukural. The little Malayalam I know lets me sing tender lullaby's to my kids.
Atleast I know a few languages to be able to taste the tip of the iceberg. If the tip is so sweet, can you fathom what the depths are like? I feel for my children who will never understand the dimensions and depths of feelings that our native languages evoke. Most of it will just be Lost in Translation!
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