Topic started by Chandra on Sat Jan 22 15:03:12 .
All times in EST +10:30 for IST.

Taken from "thamiz maNam" a magazine of the Georgia Tamil Sangam, Atlanta.

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"Why Preserve Tamil Heritage?"
P. Chandrasekaran, Atlanta, perichandra@yahoo.com

That is the only means to connect with one’s own ancestors hundreds of generations back.Tamil heritage is the only record of the sentiments, habits and customs typical of those of one’s own forefathers! Simply ask yourself the following series of questions :
· Have I seen my grandparents? Played with them?
· How much do I know about my great grandparents? Any images of them?
· Do I know at least the names of my great-great-grandparents?
· Wouldn’t I love to have any information about my forefathers?
· ….What information do I have of my forefathers 50 generations back (1000 years ago)?
· What information do I have of my forefathers 100 generations back (2000 years ago)? What kind of Tamil did my own great-great….great-grandmother speak? What was the typical music she was listening to? Her marriage ceremonies? Moral sentiments?
· What is the choicest artifact that can I leave behind that will serve as memory of myself in my descendants 1000 years from now? What role models do I leave behind for them?
· How do I ensure that I and my progeny systematically care about the memories of my own forefathers who lived thousands of years ago?
· The world seems to be getting homogenized. Everybody seems to act like everybody else even when they don’t have to. Variety in the world is fast disappearing! Will the mankind end up with a robotic uniformity 100 years from now meaning there will be even less specificity of memories of my own forefathers and of myself? Will my life, feelings and soul be lost and forgotten in the technological rat race?

Tamil heritage has preserved the choicest artifacts over the past thousands of years. The timeless sangam classics have preserved the superb diction, subtle sentiments, graceful and profound customs of 2000 years ago! Tamil language is the key to that treasury. Enjoying that wealth is the only way to save it! Let us allocate time and space to appreciate it and to pass it on to our children.
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Responses:

• Old responses
  
• From: Karuvayan (@ law-b6.law.utexas.edu) on: Tue Jun 3 16:58:26 EDT 2003
  
  The real threat to Tamizh heritage and Indian heritage in general is - westernization (aka Christianity).
  
  To preserve our culture and to gain an upper hand in the world culture. We should follow the example of the Japanese. The Japanese adopted technology into their languages and have today become superpowers without sacrificing their religion.
  
  In the same way, we should chase out foreing religions from Indian soil and adopt technology.
  
  
• From: Karuvayan (@ law-b6.law.utexas.edu) on: Tue Jun 3 16:59:49 EDT 2003
  
  This is like removing the grain from the dirty husk. The great countries of Europe shattered after christianity was forced on to them by the Roman Emperor Constantine. We should seperate the grain(technology) from the husk(christianity).
  
  
• From: tony (@ sdn-ap-022njpennp0055.dialsprint.net) on: Tue Jun 3 17:14:18 EDT 2003
  
  Most people who want tp preserve Tamil culture want the DMK/ADMK culture to spread. The corruption, filth, debauchery, Silluku dancing and Shtalin kidnapping.Mu.Ka, Alagiri gangs,elitism of being an idiot,throwing chappals as per the great saint EE vay Ra.
  The traditional tamil culture of old, music, literature, bhakti,values etc is dead. Modern DMK culture is now considered the tamil culture.Dr, Hero, Tamilian-1, Miami etc will completely agree that the present culture is the Golden culture and should be spread all over the world and they are doing their part.
  
  
• From: salapathy (@ ac8f91df.ipt.aol.com) on: Thu Jun 5 02:28:12 EDT 2003
  
  Real threat to Tamil heritage is Hindians. They want to destroy every language and culture other than Sanskrit-Hindi. To protect Tamil heritage, Tamil Nadu MUST become free from India(Hindi-a)
  
  
• From: King Porus (@ dialup-67.72.164.138.dial1.detroit1.level3.net) on: Mon Jun 23 01:20:12 EDT 2003
  
  Hey Iam from Kerala and guess what? I still keep malayalam which came from Tamil. So I speak it and I also speak Tamil cause thats my heritage. Naan oru thavana sonnu adhu 100 thavanu sonna madhiri. Big respect to the motherland, culture, tradition, and roots.
  
  
• From: Porus (@ dialup-67.72.164.138.dial1.detroit1.level3.net) on: Mon Jun 23 01:46:44 EDT 2003
  
  Right now Iam in America but that don't mean that I hate my own people, culture, etc :-D
  
  
• From: tamizhan (@ 203.124.144.4) on: Mon Jul 7 08:11:42 EDT 2003
  
  What the heck is TAMIL heritage???
  I was born and brought up in singara chennai, by the age of 17 i had won several awards participating in Tamil literary events, Tamil vazhi kalvi was one thing i aimed at, i even took the pain of (re)learning all math terms in Tamil, although i was educated in a convent, i wear tiruneeru everyday and do my prayers in Tamil. I have written several poems that have been published in several forums. My interest in Tamil should have never warranted my leaving TN, but reservation policies and stuff, i did leave TN and studied in maharashtra, i'm now extremely fluent in hindi/urdu/marathi/bengali. I also write shaayri in hindi/urdu. But what the hell, people like us who really love the land and the language are forced to get out of the land just becoz we r from a forward community, we r denied our right to education. and look at those sons of the soils in TN, Sun TV comperes are the best ones to learn TUMMILL from, these guys n gals lack any kind of respect to the language and simply take the charm out of our language. Kalaignar "u know who" has lots of say in this SUNNT but what the hell does he do about it, he is not bothered about the way these morons speak (Kill) Tamil.
  This "son of a gun" shouts like hell in a dirty slang when he's dragged from his bed in the night, why doesnt he use proper tamil when this incident happened.
  
  "tamizh tamizh enru koorugiraye
  engirinthu vanthhai, en tamizh vaazha enna seithaai, tamizh enbatu unakku panam eetti tharum enthirama, tamizhai thaai enrom, amizhthu enrom, aanaal tamizhai panam enru koori kocchai padutha en munainthai!
  
  vaazhga tamizh valarga tamizh inam, tamizh naattai thavira matra elaa idangalilum!!!"
  
  
• From: tamilan-1 (@ adsl-63-204-32-221.dsl.lsan03.pacbell.net) on: Mon Jul 7 19:19:31 EDT 2003
  
  enna iyerae,
  
  >> This "son of a gun" shouts like hell in a dirty slang when he's dragged from his bed in the night,
  
  u seem to conveniently forgetting the fact that this act was done by a brahmin lady who infiltrated the dravidian organization to kind of spoil the dravidian ideology. This bitch acted against constitutional rights of this sun of a gun. No one arrests a chief minister of dravidians in the middle of the night WITHOUT a fu-cking warrant. Thats what i call brahminism at work. How can this brahminism enrich tamil culture and thats why we shipped it to maharashtra and bihar. if you go with that dont blame the sun of the gun, u should blame your mama, papa's brahministic adventures.
  
  
• From: tamilan-1 (@ adsl-63-204-32-221.dsl.lsan03.pacbell.net) on: Mon Jul 7 19:22:26 EDT 2003
  
  >> Kalaignar "u know who" has lots of say in this SUNNT but what the hell does he do about it, he is not bothered about the way these morons speak (Kill) Tamil
  
  Thats because kalanithy maran's wife is a brahmin. why he married a brahmin? hmmmmmmmmmm. Or may be why that brahmin married k.maran? hmmmmmmmm, may be to push brahmins into sun TV programs.
  
  
• From: Unmaivilambi (@ 166.121.36.7) on: Mon Jul 7 23:48:19 EDT 2003
  
  Hi Maharashtra Tamizhan,
  
  I am glad to know that you still have sentimental attachement to Tamil. I understand your frustration and bitterness about being alienated in a land which was home to you and your ancestors for thousands of years.
  
  But let us not now argue about who started all this forward caste and backward caste issue. It is a very sad and unfortunate part of our history with an otherwise great past. The Thrukkural is itself a clear evidence of our great civilisation. But we should not bask in our past glories.
  
  Let us take it from here and unite under the umbrella of Tamil Language and culture, Use forums like this to speak out against all the negative forces B or NB doesn't really matter.
  
  Most important - wherever you are - keep the language and culture alive in your children - the day will come when Tamizhagam will be rid of all these pests and will once again be a place where we can proudly return and live as friends. (I hope in an environment where people with a 'caste' mentality are treated like the dirt they are.)
  
  
• From: Unmaivilembi (@ 166.121.37.7) on: Tue Jul 8 01:18:40 EDT 2003
  
  Hi Maharashtra Tamizhan,
  
  I am glad to know that you still have sentimental attachement to Tamil. I understand your frustration and bitterness about being alienated in a land which was home to you and your ancestors for thousands of years.
  
  But let us not now argue about who started all this forward caste and backward caste issue. It is a very sad and unfortunate part of our history with an otherwise great past. The Thrukkural is itself a clear evidence of our great civilisation. But we should not bask in our past glories.
  
  Let us take it from here and unite under the umbrella of Tamil Language and culture, Use forums like this to speak out against all the negative forces B or NB doesn't really matter.
  
  Most important - wherever you are - keep the language and culture alive in your children - the day will come when Tamizhagam will be rid of all these pests and will once again be a place where we can proudly return and live as friends. (I hope in an environment where people with a 'caste' mentality are treated like the dirt they are.)
  
  

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