Echoes of the Himalayas : A product of a wounded heart

By DR SHREEDHAR GAUTAM

D B Gurung is an established author in Nepalese writing in English. Before the present book was published by a reputed foreign publication, he had already become a familiar figure among the native as well as foreign readers through poems, which have been published in various anthologies in the United States, and have won several awards. Though a teacher by profession, he has proven his creative genius through his several poetic works. Being a son of a British Gorkha veteran (during the Second World War) he has closely observed and experienced the life of a vagabond solider. Moreover, his own struggle for survival in Japan as well as in Nepal has further enriched his understanding of life.

Echoes of the Himalayas opens up a discourse that British Gorkhas are still treated as aliens in their own land. But it was not out of pleasure that these Gorkhas left their country to become soldiers in foreign country. Though there has been a great change in the mind set of Nepalese intelligentsia regarding the role of famed fighting ‘Gorkha Force’, still the sons of ex-Gorkha soldiers are expected to opt for their fathers’ profession whether they are cut out to be soldiers or not, especially in the case of the so-called Matwali castes like Magar, Gurung and Rai. Even after the restoration of multiparty system 12 years ago, our politicians have not taken the question of Nepalese boys joining foreign army as a symbol of insult. There was a heated debate in the parliament over the issue in the parliament some years ago, but majority of them rejected the proposal of banning Nepali national joining the foreign army. Surprisingly, the members belonging to the so-called Matwali caste also spoke against the proposal.

It is a sad fact that our ‘Gorkha’ brothers are compelled to join the foreign fighting force with full knowledge that they could be either killed or incapacitated while fighting for others’ sake. In both the cases they symbolise the tragedy of Nepali life that even after the dawn of democracy there is no basic change in people’s condition. We have seen many widows and children left behind by their husbands and parents in a miserable state. Similarly, there are ex-British and Indian soldiers who are leading a crippled life facing all kinds of difficulties in their retired life. The greatest irony in the life of these soldiers is that they are neither recognised well by the countries they fought for nor by the country they were born in. The protagonist, Gagan, in D B Gurung’s novel is the son of a Gorkha solider of the British Indian army who showed supreme valour while fighting the Japanese in Burma during the Second World War.

The novelist has realistically shown that the tale of Gagan’s frustration is not that of an individual, but the people at large who are against corrupt system of governance perpetuated for long. So, Gagan’s struggle is a pointer to the century long maladies prevailing in our society. Many Gagans have already lost lives in the course of fighting against this corrupt system that discriminates people on various pretexts. The book opens with a tug of war between a teacher and a student who refuses to listen to his teacher’s argument that only Chhetris and Brahmins are entitled to take up teacher’s profession. And this student happens to be the father of Gagan, the protagonist. The teacher’s remark comes as a bolt from the blue to the young student once he knows that a son of Mathwali has to become either Gorkha soldier or should take up other manual job, but not the teaching job supposed to be the monopoly of Tagadharis, especially the Brahamis and Chhetris. It is with this frustration that the student, Mr Ghondey, joins British Indian army and later settles abroad in retired life not getting any sympathy for his war crippled life. But his youngest son, Gagan, comes back to Nepal, facing all sorts of odds and injustice, to find his roots. Though mostly grown up between Bhutan and Sikkim, he is all the time harbouring a deep nostalgia for his imaginary homeland, Nepal. And it is with this vision in mind that he leaves Sikkim for Nepal. Gagan tells his brother, Akash in the first chapter regarding his intention to enter Nepal: "That has to be the ultimate home for a rootless Nepali, blown off course by the storm of destiny."

The second chapter is equally insightful as it is here Gagan’s father tells his sons not to join British or Indian army, terming the profession as satanic occupation which has driven generation of Matwali into nightmare. It is through his father that Gagan comes to know how most of the jobs in Nepal are occupied by Brahmans and Chhetris, the dominant ruling elite. He exhorts his son not to repeat the mistake of joining foreign army and thus spoil his life. Once Gagan enters Nepal he finds not much difference between the lifestyle of Indians and Nepalis. He is dumbfounded when he sees Nepalese talking with an India accent. He finds Biratnagar a confused and shapeless town sprawled in a typical Indian fashion. Though Gagan’s difficulties in Nepal become acute for employment due to lack of citizenship certificate, he pursues his efforts vigorously because he cannot let his dream be deferred, or sacrificed for an imaginary career in Sikkim.

Ultimately Gagan comes to Kathmandu which he finds resembling a large saucer, surrounded by mountains. It is all very exciting for Gagan on his first visit in the city. Though Gagan is employed as a teacher in Kathmandu, his troubles compound with the principal reminding him that he has to submit his citizen certificate in due course of time. Later he is fired from the service for his failure in producinh Nepali citizenship certificate. He is denied the citizenship, as he cannot furnish the required document for the sake of certificate. Gagan tells the concerned clerk that there are thousands of genuine Nepalese who are having a similar, and more often, a difficult problem than faced by him. But he is asked either to pay a heavy amount of bribe or to go back to Sikkim or Bhutan.

Later on, he is taken to the Hanuman Dhoka police station for his offensive behaviour against the CDO. After his release from prison on parole, Gagan is still an enraged person and becomes one of the active members of the All Nepali Native People Organisation (ANNPO). Gagan and his friends agree upon the need of bringing together like-minded people to fight against the corrupt system. The novel ends with the ANNPO getting more active to eliminate the nepotism and the dominance of Brahamic policy in Nepal. Gagan echoes the sentiment that nobody is superior or inferior, neither the Brahmin nor the blacksmith.

On the whole, the Echoes of the Himalaya is a novel written from the bottom of a heart, that is humiliated and hurt several times for yearning to know about one’s own roots, whatever the cost. At the first look, critics may find this novel rather communal in tone and in the treatment of its character, but very soon one would realise that the basic motive behind this novel is not to spread communal hatred but to arouse awareness in the larger silent community that there is a need of drastic change in the socio-political structure as well as the mental set of bureaucrats. The writer has aptly raised the issue of corruption in bureaucracy because even non Nepali whether they are of Tibetan or Indian origin can get citizenship in no time if they offer large sum to the concerned officials. The obstacles created in the path of Gagan’s citizenship process were unnecessary and biased. He was denied citizenship because of the lack of essential document, but because he did not conform to the corrupt practice of getting certificate by bribing the official. It is in this sense that this work can be taken as a landmark in the field of modern protest literature.

Unlike the literature of medieval protest, modern protest is not based on parochialism or narrow religion. Gurung’s work is an example of modern protest as it includes scientific consciousness and political vision. His spirit of protest seems to have been greatly influenced by modern writers who do not seek inspiration from any religion. He does not take protest something as a sentimental or emotional outburst. He wants the protest to come into the purview of thought process so that it becomes valid and robust in its range, temper and meaning. Gagan, the protagonist of the novel, seeks to expose new, values rooted in the realities of life. The book shows that significant value emerges when protest conflicts with actual circumstances prevailing in a period or at historical moment. The protest shown here has nothing to do with dogma. But, the writer could have been more careful while showing his sense, of protest without naming some castes in an overt way, thereby giving an impression whether the writer is interested in arousing sectarian feelings. Though this is not the intention of the writer, it could have been more appropriate if the writer had used rather subtle and covert style to express his justified anger. However, the writer can take the solace that this is a minor lapse on his part and it in no way minimises the message that he wants to convey through this book.

A peep through the keyhole

By Manish Mudvari

Architecture has been a subject that has stirred up the human mind, body and spirit since thousands of years. Starting from the early civilisation of human beings to this time at present, this vast subject has been receiving ever-lasting attention of one sort or the other. Whether we talk about the Egyptian pyramids, Greek temples, the Roman engineering skills or the works of modern architects such as Le Corbusier or Frank Lloyd Wright, architecture was always and still is considered wider than a subject. It was and is considered as a discipline, or rather, a religion .

Architecture has always been a topic of interest for all. When we look at the history of civilisation, there are plenty of examples where a litterateur would be fond of writing about the perpetual beauty of a great architectural piece; a poet would love write a long rhythmic poem or a painter would insist on painting a subject with architectural character. However, it is an inevitable fact that the negligence and lack of awareness about the topics of architecture, planning and conservation has been a crystal- clear problem or fact in the society in the past as well as at present. Therefore, the necessity of order in architecture and planning makes it easier to understand the situation of chaos. Thus, to understand the scope of architecture, in good terms of course, it is essential to understand the basic elements of this subject.

A good piece of architecture is not only a good dwelling, office or any other building in its form, structure or use, but also a well performing building as a part of the whole in most of the happening aspects. This could be in terms of physical, social, cultural, philosophical, artistic, and economic as well as the psychological aspects. A building or any form if it exhibits a good quality of space with desirable relations among its elements it could be called as "good" or sometimes "fit." The elements of architecture, or any architectural statement, may range from physical elements to purely symbolic and cultural elements, its scale varying from as small elements as reinforcement of a beam or a column of a building to the open spaces in any form of urban or rural planning.

So, it is understood, when we have reached to this point, that the scope of architecture and the architectural discipline is very deep and vast. Once somebody has understood the some sense of this subject and has equipped oneself with the basic principles that are often used in architecture, the field of vision of the scopes will be immense. Someone with good knowledge about architecture will consequently have a good taste of form, shape, pattern, texture, colour, light and shade. The scope of a knowledgeable person in this divine discipline would be much more than becoming a modest architect or an architectural critic. The avenues will be open towards the fields of advertisement, visual arts, graphics, movies multimedia, cartoons and animations, planning and strategy making, provided one is competent and willing to exploit these skills.

The sentimental and psychological advantages and disadvantages that are generated by the building that the user uses are distinct and many-a-times predictable because man’s performance is dependent on the environment that he is exposed to. His house is the environment where he is exposed at the times of rest and recreation and the office is the environment where he is exposed at times of work. Whatever, it may be, the importance and the merits of architecture in life is profound.

The skill and knowledge of architectural discipline is always beneficial in life because it gives the sense of order, balance and parity in most activities that are prone in everyday life. Either in the developed countries, the developing countries, or the under developed countries, the benefits of good architecture can always be tapped. A good understanding and implementation of the proper architecture always helps. The use of the material, technology and construction techniques are guided by the architectural need, which is in turn governed by the demand and the life-styles of the users of the building. One must not disagree, therefore, to the fact that architecture is the term familiar to people from all spheres of life. However, the things well hidden behind the scene of this well respected and treasured discipline is waiting to be highlighted in most parts around the world. People mostly neglect, consciously or unconsciously, the many faceted character of this discipline either because they are stopped by the overwhelming complexity that they perceive in this discipline or because they are not fully aware of the definitions, trends, professions and the scope that architecture stores within.

The buildings that we see around us are the examples of the architecture prevalent outside as well as within us. Therefore, we can well analyse the performance and the beauty directly or indirectly. All the things are not well clear in terms of the views towards the ongoing trends for construction of new or the renovation of the old structures- dilemma and conflicts are always there. The various schools of thoughts giving importance to the revolutionist and reformist architecture are mostly arguing in terms of their choice of priority. So is the case for the groupism generated by the issue of vernacular and the modern technology. Certain degree of ambiguity is always present but it is in itself a challenge to solve the problems of architectural nature, keeping all the benefits and outcasting all the harms of different schools of thoughts. Facts are in front of us, where do we go from here is our choice. How do we solve the problems and still keep the benefits alive? That is a big question waiting to be solved.

Where are our leaders ?

By Anish Man Singh

I still remember the curfew days of the 1990s. I was in my early teens. During the heightened intensity back then, I was safe at my home, or so I had thought. The remote sounds of gunshots made me wonder of the possible loss of a life of someone who was once so dear to another. More than a decade later, the essence behind the movement and all the sacrifices associated is forgotten. Life goes on and so and so. Leaders emerged bringing nothing but despair to their people, resulting in the current social unrest. The older generation has lost all hope in moulding our country into an example of a suffered but encouraged nation, still to show its potential to the world. And let’s not forget about our generation, the battered and astray cluster of individuals who aspire to become all but the leaders of our nation.

Yes, it is our generation and the next to follow that I am concerned about, the future stars of Nepal. We have aspiring doctors, teachers, computer specialists, engineers, architects, entrepreneurs etc., but where are our aspiring politicians, the leaders, the shapers, the would be legends? There are none. We persevere to ensure a better future as we educate ourselves abroad, some with full scholarships, some with partial and some who are self-dependant. After enduring years of hardship in both emotional and financial senses, we finally return home as an experienced and learned individual. And what do we get in return-deprivation of hope. Where are the jobs? Where are the opportunities? Where are our leaders? Nothing is in view of us. And how could it possibly be? Every possible opportunity suitable for qualified competitors like us has been handed over to the undeserving. What person in his or her right state of mind would readily forego the benefits of an education received from abroad for a low salaried, unrecognized position? Exactly, no one! Let’s face it, times have changed and so have the lifestyles of people. The daily demands for necessities have turned into daily demands for luxury. So, those who think that government salaries not only paid to our grandfathers but also to our fathers would suffice to meet our standards should reconsider why they are being called jackasses. Besides, it’s not only about the money. Don’t forget the level of menial work one is required to do. The run-arounds and dirt taking from existing bodies of rude, power crazed, and uneducated political demeanors just doesn’t seem all that tempting. Wait. Let me add to the Nepali novelty of a working environment in such government institutions. Poor unhygienic working conditions, inefficient resources due to disorganized data, lack of well-rounded personnel who have the decency and manners to receive visitors, and the absence of work since everything is always on a pending basis. All of which contribute to the melancholy attitude of employees.

So let’s not wonder whom to look up to as our future aspiring politicians/leaders, but instead, reason why there are none. Nonetheless, I firmly believe that there is a way to tackle this absence of aspiring politician phenomenon. We must start by supporting the truly deserving as we act upon this injustice by reasonable means. We must help arise the genuine developers of our nation who have been and are buried underneath the spoils of political wars that have continued since our liberalisation.

Concept of civic education in Nepal

By RAMESH PRASAD GAUTAM

Human civilisation from stone age has come to the age of computer revolution, satellite, telecommunication, nuclear power and bio-weapons, etc. Moving on to modern age is hard to define the complex relatives of our life. Now information is on our fingertip, just we click the key or button and have information within the fraction of a second. In this way, human being has created such fantastic and civilised creation. Especially, this credit goes to the satellite communication and networking of computers to lead the society into this form. More than a half of population are information workers in the developed countries, it is also increasing in the developing countries like Nepal. Such a massive build up on information and technology can, therefore, also be oriented towards civic education.

We hold on to a set of beliefs of a society we belong to and as citizens of this nation we have certain rights and responsibilities to be realised and shared. Nepal’s democracy is still in its infancy and needs time to develop. Naturally, citizens seek to retain positive attitude towards democracy, human rights, peace, co-operation and development. Yet how can we promote this democratic opinion in a situation where economic integration of the world into a single market is colouring the vision of social and political justice? It is a challenge of normative kind. Yet to retain positive attitude towards democracy, we need to inculcate and develop civic sense so that our democracy can run well into the future.

A poor and least developed country like Nepal, and particularly its citizens, suffer from poor nutrition and diseases. Most of the people live in villages. They drink water which is neither safe nor clean. From birth to death they remain destitute. Flood, famine, drought and other natural disasters continually plague them. They cannot buy books for the children nor pay fees for the quality education. Indeed the presence of the poor and hungry among us is a challenge to our value system, our moral principles or democratic set-up and values. How can we, in a grim situation like this, promote civic education is a challenge to Nepalese society?

We are seeking meaning in this era of uncertainty and we worry about our children as to whether they will be able to cope in this new world. This worry draws attention to the role of schools in preparing young people for the future and changing values, knowledge and skills employed to accomplish this task. Similarly, citizens should know about the principles and values of democracy, the rights and responsibilities of individuals and groups and understand the importance of serving the common good. Over the last ten or twelve years, a fair number of our citizens have learnt the importance of civic education but the majority of them do not have civic consciousness as we understand from that term. They might have participated in voting but they might not yet understand the real significance of the role they have played. It remains to be seen how such a large mass of illiterate people can be augmented with the civic idea of choosing a right candidate, how we can uplift him from the party line, and above all, how his civic consciousness can be achieved. A massive amount of work is yet to be done to make how democracy works. This is civic education.

Citizens should take an active role in building pressuring on government officials and politicians to meet their demands. For example, citizens meet with their local officials to insist that rubbish be collected in their villages, or drinking water pipelines or electric lines be distributed in their villages. This example demonstrates how citizens can participate in meetings and ensure that their demands are met. Hence, they need to understand the political process. Similarly, students, parents, teachers, staff and community members should be involved in establishing goals based on tolerance, acceptance and choice and the awareness of persons and groups. Awareness can be generated from the school, where students should be taught the importance of civic education not only as a subject in itself but also by integrating civic values in other subjects like literature, political history, geography etc.

In our country the Popular Movement of 2046 restored multiparty democracy. After this movement, the nation has already witnessed three general elections. But leaders so far have concentrated on capturing power and position. Discipline and order, social security etc are not attended to whereas lack of democratic conduct and economic degradation have been providing a decadent value to democracy. People have developed a lack of confidence in the way democracy is being conducted. The values have dropped to such an extent that people are already talking about alternatives to democracy.

It seems that people have developed discontent towards democracy. It is very bad for the country and people. At this moment, the party leaders have to unite to end this confusion, instability and corruption. But improvements take time and we need to be patient and not expect too much from our government right away

Education is a strategy and process towards human capacity development. To solve the issues and problems of our society we should be clear in the meaning of the term "quality and reliance of education." It is often pointed out, and studies have also indicated, that the quality of education delivered by most schools are unsatisfactory. Education should always be future-oriented. Although future cannot be predicted accurately, we could deduce the trend and we should be clear where we want to go. Accordingly, we should decide our educational goals. The goal should be set up with an eye to the upliftment of the values of the society, we must use formal, informal and non-formal approaches to provide education from primary to higher levels in such a way that democratic governance is both understood and accepted by people.

Our school education system comprises five years of primary education, three years of lower secondary education, two years of secondary education and two years of higher secondary education. The policy of replacing intermediate level of education from university, has gradually been in progress. The structure of tertiary education consists of 3 years of bachelor’s degree followed by two years of Master’s degree programme. In all the ladders of the education system we have to seriously devise the content and performance of curriculum in such a way that civic consciousness is aroused in the student psyche, right from the primary level to the master degree programme. The contents have to be devised in a way where all the disciplines--art, commerce and science--are given the right amount of civic education whereby each student can become a right and disciplined citizen who can willingly take the burden of a developing democratic country.

The purpose of education may be defined and set as per the contextual situation of a specific country. The system of education is a part of our society and under the influence of different social groups, each country has developed its own modalities. It should contribute to the development of individual’s livelihood and yet sustain the democratic values a country has been inculcating.

Nepal has to incorporate its education system by emphasising science and technology with a view to eradicating poverty or poverty alleviation. In this regard, we should consider the problem of our country. Nepal has already crossed more than one decade of democratic practice. But the gaps between the haves and the have-nots has not lessened; there has been a substantial rise in the number of people below the poverty line. More than fifty percent of the people are still illiterate and ignorant. Again in the school curricula, even if the democratic values are mentioned, the practical aspect of them has remained weak. In this context, with a view to making people aware of the democratic principles, it is essential that emphasis in democratic values be given right from the school level. Therefore, it is essential that the people have basic understanding of the process of democracy and its implication in the total development of the country. Similarly, all the participants in nation making- i.e students, teachers, parents and school management committee and local representative can play important roles in this regard. By participating in political process people can help improve the quality of governance, civic education can help people get involved in their political system by informing them about the objectives of government works and the government officials responsibilities are, and what areas of the political process are most open to citizens’ involvement. Therefore, to make democracy an effective form of government in Nepal, citizens must participate in the political process. But Nepal’s democracy is still in its infancy and needs time to strengthen and improve it. We must be patient and realistic about our expectations and dedication to making particular changes within our government in an effort to develop its effectiveness.