A Desert Safari and ˜Belly Dancers

This is a signature item of Dubai and costs about $ 50 per head. It requires an entire day and includes a desert drive and then a visit to a Bedouin village. this is fun as you can see the local handicrafts as well as ride on a camel. If you are the modern type you can hire and belt around the sand in a sand scooter You end up with a barbecue meal and in case you want alcohol, it is available, but you pay extra for it.
The last item in the safari is a desert belly dance. This is not only lovely but sexy as well. Lovely girls dance to Arabic music and it is the finale of the safari. Girls are Arabic, mostly from Egypt and Lebanon, but now Indian girls are also there.

I have now observed Russian and Ukrainian girls competing.  Its good fun though these are girls are beautiful they lack the lilt of the Lebanese and Egyptian girls.

The Lure of the Sari

Background

The sari is the standard garb of the women of the sub-continent. It creates a mystery and exudes sex appeal
It must be noted that a multitude of religions, clans, and tribes l form part of the Indian union. But the one dress that is universal is the sari. The sari is a long wrap that is worn around the hips and extends to the ankles. Women of the subcontinent will wear a blouse that will add to the luster of the sari.

The sari proper

The sari extends to 5 or 6 yards and comes in vibrant colors and designs. In addition, sari's will be made of a variety of materials ranging from cotton to silk. Some of the saris will be embroidered with intricate designs that could make use of gold thread as well. The sari thus can be a costly item as well. Some of the saris can set you back by Rs 5 Lakh.

Wearing a sari

There are many methods to tie the sari. It is usually draped around the waist with a petticoat as an anchor. It has a number of folds and wearing a sari is an art by itself. The sari can be worn in a way that the midriff is bare and in some cases, it can be tied low so as to add to the allure of the wearer. When worn with a blouse that can be sleeveless or backless the sex appeal of the woman is greatly enhanced. Many western men have told me that seeing a lovely woman in sari is a matter of great fantasy for them, as it creates a mystery of the woman by revealing a little and promising a lot.

Sari and sex appeal

Some of the Indian women will tie the sari in a way that the naval is visible. They will embellish the navel with a jewel as well. They will wear a low-cut blouse that may be backless. This dress creates a great degree of sex appeal and is sure to fire the imagination of a man. One only has to look at the present-day heartthrob, the film actor Deepika Padukone in a sari to realize the potential it generates in terms of sex appeal.

The Ritual of "Chaddar"and marrying the Elder Brothers Widow.

An Important custom earlier on

ceremony of Chaddar

Background
“Chaddar” literally translated means Bedsheet. Before I write anything further on this subject its worth stating that in Hindu society particularly in Punjab a woman had no share in the property. Thus in case, a husband died his wife would have a difficult time as she inherited nothing. All this was only changed in 1955 when Nehru brought about the Hindu marriage act
How Society Reacted to Widows Rehabilitation
Punjabi society had its own solution for the problem of a widow and her future life. They adopted a custom that took care of this problem. Nobody is aware of how this custom originated. The custom involved the wife of a deceased man marrying the younger brother (her brother in law). This was done in a brief ceremony where the widow placed a white Chaddar (bed sheet) on the younger brother. From that moment she became the wife of the younger brother. This was done to keep the woman in the same family and provide protection to children from the first marriage. Otherwise, her life was doomed. As can be assumed the woman was forced into this alliance by the mothers-in-law.
Practical Aspects of Chaddar
Placing the chaddar had its own problems. In some cases, a widow became the second wife of her brother in law. In other cases, the bridegroom was much younger than the widow, yet the marriage was consummated. There were cases of a widow entering a new household where there were already pubescent daughters. This had its own problems but the generally placing the chaddar on the younger brother gave a new lease of life to the widow in terms of sex, companionship, and status.
Effect of the Chaddar on Land Holdings
One reason for placing the chaddar is to stop the fragmentation of landholdings. In the Punjab, land has tremendous value and agricultural land, in particular, is a status symbol. This is particularly prevalent among the Jat community, who are the major owners of land in Punjab.
Once a woman cast a chaddar on her husband’s younger brother she became his wife and all the land owned by the elder brother came to the younger brother. Thus fragmentation of the agricultural lands was avoided and land remained within the family.
New Life for the widow.
Women in Hindu and Sikh society had no place after she became a widow. Widow remarriage started very late only in the late 19th century. By having the ceremony of the Chaddar, gave a new life to the widow. She again became a married woman a ‘Suhagan’. There was no stigma attached to such marriages and the religious leaders supported this custom.
Children born of the elder husband also found a home. Though some piquant situations were created in that an earlier wife (in case the brother was married) had to adjust to the new wife also.
Success of Such marriages
Such marriages were generally successful. One reason for this is the fascination in Indian folklore for the Bhabhi or wife of the elder brother for the younger brother. Umpteen tales and ballads talk of the love between a Bhabhi and her Devar (younger brother of the husband). Thus all marriages fell in a groove and were generally successful.
The opinion of the widow was never taken and she was expected to place the white chaddar around her husband’s younger brother at the earliest opportunity after the funeral of her husband. Grieving and mourning for any length of time was not in vogue.

Last word.
The custom has now almost frittered away as with greater awareness and new laws brought in by the government incorporating rights for women, the chaddar is almost obsolete. But when it was active it served a purpose.

Memorable Christmas Scene from Louisa May Alcott's "Little Women"

Louisa May Alcott was an American writer of young teen fiction. She was born in 1832 and died of 55 in 1888. Louisa may Alcott is remembered for her novel ‘Little Women’ and its sequels ‘Good Wives’, ‘Little Men’ and ‘Jo’s Boys’. All these books are considered mini classics and in the world of English literature that has a niche of their own.

Little women

‘Little Women’ was published in 1868. It was the first in the series of books she wrote. The novel is based on an account of her childhood and experience with her sisters. It is a story of four sisters namely Meg, Jo, Beth and Amy and is still widely read like a classic. Louisa Alcott modeled the character of Jo on herself, with a subtle difference. In the novel, Jo marries, while in real life Alcott remained a spinster and never married.


Personal Love

It will be however wrong to conclude that she had no emotional attachment to a man as she had a romance with a Polish gentleman named Ladislas "Laddie" Wisniewski, who she met while on a visit to Europe. She made entries about him in her diary, which she deleted just before her death. This is typical of the morality of that period where it was not thought good to leave a memory of unrequited love. The character Laurie in her books is perhaps based on Wisniewski.

Alcott and Christmas

Alcott was brought up in not a very affluent house. She experienced shortages during her younger years. This is manifest in the opening scene of the book which starts with Christmas and presents for the sisters. The girls do not have any new clothes, but Amy the youngest of the girls says with a sniff that at least they have father and mother. There is thus an element of danger in the novel and Christmas is the time when the girls realize that they are relatively poor.

Christmas scene and Tone of the Book

Book cover

The Christmas scene is adroitly used by Alcott to showcase her characters, the young heroines of her novel. Alcott lived during the period of the civil war (1861-65) and she was a staunch protagonist of rights for Negroes. She describes Christmas during the tumultuous war years. Though the family is poor, the girl's rally and in the true spirit of Christmas donate their breakfast to a poor family as well as make presents for dear Marmee. Marmee is their mother who brings up the girls as their father was away as a Chaplain during the war. This is one of the most memorable Christmas scenes in English American literature.

Louisa May Alcott and her sisters were brought up by parents, Abigail May and Amos Bronson who were transcendentalists. Transcendentalism has been influenced by Asian religions particularly Hinduism and this has been acknowledged by Thoreau in his book ‘Walden’. Transcendentalists believe that people flower to their capability when they are self-reliant and independent. This belief influenced the life of Alcott and finds expression in her book ‘Little Women’. In fact, the opening Christmas scene in the book sets the tone of the novel.

Last word

the 4 girls

Louisa May Alcott had contracted Pneumonia and she was treated with mercury, which never left her system and could have been the cause of her death. She died relatively young at the age of 55, an age at which the genius of most writers flower. The novel ‘Little Women’ is still popular and has an important place in American English literature. It’s a book that is read all over the world and has immortalized Louisa May Alcott for all time to come. The Christmas scene can be read and re-read to realize that Louisa was a genius.

Short Review: Rajdeep Sardesai's book" 2019: How Modi Won India"

I am averse to writing short reviews because they cannot give a detailed analysis of any subject. But at the same time, they are important because many readers just want to know the Ëssence" or "meat˜" of the book. They would like to know something about a book; perhaps just an introduction. In this context, Rajdeep Sardesai's book "2019: How Modi won India" is worth a few paragraphs.

In this context, Rajdeep Sardesai's latest book on politics"2019" How Modi won India" is worth a short review. Rajdeep is the son of famous Indian batsman Dilip Sardesai who I remember hit 2012 in the first test against the West Indies during the 1971 tour and laid the road for a victory in that series. Rajdeep did not take up cricket but has become a journalist and accepted a Padma Shri for his sycophancy of the Congress party during the UPA regime. Now he says he shouldn't have ACCEPTED IT BUT I AM AFRAID  this is an afterthought after Modi swept the hustings.

 Sardesai would like his opinions to be accepted under the banner of  "objective reporting". But all along his concept of India is alien to what other countries practice to achieve greatness like say Russia or China or even the United States. He sees secularism in a narrow-minded way and equates it with placating the major minority.  His vehemence against any reference to Godse shows that he is not aware of the 1947 happenings and the butchery that went on there.

In his entire book, one finds a veneer of trying to justify the defeat of Congress. He fails to realize that India has moved forward and an assertion by Hinduism in India is both natural and desirable. It is the same all over the world but Rajdeep sees it as something anti-secular.

The book is best set aside and not worth the price tag of Rs 699.  His bias against Modi is apparent when on a TV program he gleefully commented on the break up of the Shiv Sena-BJP alliance by stating "even my mother congratulated Uddhav."

The Waterloo for the Catholic Faith is Indian sub Continent

Christian faith

Jesus

The British ruled India for close to 200 years. Generally, it is accepted that the Battle of Plessey (1757) under Robert Clive which the British won, marks the start of British rule. By a policy of divide and rule, the British became the paramount power in the subcontinent.

This continued till 1947 when the British had to leave India very reluctantly. The retreat from the subcontinent was brought about by Adolf Hitler who severely weakened England that it just could not hold on to its colonies. In short the victory in the Second World War was a Pyrrhic victory.

British rule and missionaries

British Rule and Missionaries
During the almost 200 years of British rule, a lot of good took place as the British laid the framework of a modern nation. This also fuelled a nationalism that went beyond caste and religious lines. Gandhi and Bose successfully channelized this nationalism as well as instituted a sense of pride in the culture of the sub-continent which was dominated by a vast Hindu population and minority Muslim believers.
The British were the paramount power also allowed Christian missionaries to come to India. Their purpose was to civilize the people of the sub-continent and convert them to Christianity. A lot of impetus was given by the Pope who made unlimited funds available for the missionaries to facilitate the conversion of the Hindus and Muslims to Christianity.
The Role of the Missionaries
The missionaries spread out in the hinterland of India concentrating on tribal areas and poor Hindu and Muslim residents. These were given ample gifts and were told that these were sent by Jesus Christ and as such, they should convert to Christianity.

This inducement by the church marked the hallmark of the thrust under guidance from Rome to convert as many as possible to the Christian faith. I will add that the main thrust was from the Catholics from Rome and in comparison, the Protestants were not that zealous in their attempt to convert Indians to Christianity.

Failure of missionaries

Indian church

Despite unlimited funds and food aid, the missionaries made little headway in the subcontinent. They did do some good also as they set up schools and hospitals, but the overall framework was to spread the gospel. In this, they felt anything including inducements was justified. Fr the missionaries the end justified the means. But despite a vigorous thrust for 2 centuries, the missionaries could barely convert 2% of the population to the Christian faith.

The reason is not far to seek as Christianity came face to face with Muslim and Hindu religion and the missionaries just could not, despite all the inducements counter the appeal of Hinduism and to a lesser extent Islam.

Reasons for failure

Tribal church

Reasons for Failure
One of the reasons which I think stand out now is that all the missionaries were whites and these appeared to the people as Alien. The Christian god Jesus was thus associated with the white race and most people in the sub-continent were averse to being ruled by whites. Another reason was that despite the concerted attack on Hindu ideals and philosophy the people felt that Christianity as a religion lacked the deep spiritualism of the Hindu faith. This was a major reason as despite preaching the gospel along with inducements, the locals never converted to Christianity. There were cases of missionaries being attacked and many were killed. Many people felt that if the Church was sincere, why it was not advocating freedom from British rule.

This was a major flaw and like in America where the church condoned and supported slavery, the church in India also never advocated an end of British rule. In fact, with the protection of the state they penetrated deep into India but the result was an abysmal failure.

Last word

Young converts

One other reason for the failure of Christianity is that the rulers were Protestants and they looked at the actions of the missionaries with askance. In fact, most Protestants were keen to revive Indian culture and many studied Hindu philosophy, but Protestants made no concerted attempt to convert the local people to Christianity.

The failure of the Church and Catholic faith to convert Hindus and Muslims to Christianity will remain a discussion point. It will not be wrong to say that Christianity, in particular, the Catholic faith met its waterloo in India.
All photos from wiki free