We drove straight from his place to Hotel Meridien. It is a very daintily maintained hotel, with beautifully manicured lawns and blooming flowers. We made ourselves comfortable in the room on the ground floor. As we had tea and snacks, we talked about the situation in Kashmir. The hotel staff boy who attended on us took keen interest in what we talked and agreed passionately with what we spoke about how some people had misused and misinterpreted religion to drive a wedge between one brother and another and how all Kashmiris were of one stock and that divisive politics always feasdted on creation of difference to find a foothold for its survival. Everyone who I met that day in the hotel was warm and full of joy upon seeing a Kashmiri pundit come to re-connect to his native land. That night I realized that Kashmir had changed far beyond what the media reported about it. The days of militancy and support for it were all a thing of the past and the days of Peace are here to grow and stay on if only the governments at the state and the national level know how to touch the hearts of the masses.
Tuesday, July 14, 2009
Rediscovering Kashmir, Rediscovering the Self
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2 comments:
yes sir,
these are very hard times. On one hand there are communal forces that are trying to spread tension, on the other hand we found seperatist movements.
It is so brilliant to imagine that our native land is so diverse and beautiful.
while reading to this warm article i m listning to Lennon's song "imagine" and the song says:
"...imagine there is no countries,
it isnt hard to do,
nothing to kill or die for,
and no religions too,
Imagine all the people,
living life in peace..."
Thanks, son.
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