Letters to the Editor: Way to honour Bhupenda

The birthday of Bhupenda (Dr Bhupen Hazarika) is celebrated on September 8 in various parts of the state as well as abroad. This is a good thing. If we take Bhupenda's songs to our heart and apply them in various aspects of personal and social life, then it will be true respect and honour to him. It is worth mentioning an unpleasant truth that many people do not understand the meaning of the words of Bhupenda's songs. So, it is not possible to take the songs to heart and apply them in personal and social life. The reason is that many people do not know how to read and write the Assamese language and the number is increasing day by day. Now the point is, it would be better to make arrangements that every person living in Assam can read and write the Assamese language correctly regardless of the medium of study. Then everyone will be able to understand the meaning of Bhupenda's songs.

Dr Buljit Buragohain,

Guwahati.

Origin and history of Bharatnatyam

Bharatnatyam is one of the most popular classical Indian dances. Bharatnatyam is more popular in the South Indian states of Tamil Nadu and Karnataka. Bharatnatyam dance is almost 2,000 years old. It is believed that Bharatnatyam was revealed by Lord Brahma to Bharata, a famous sage who then codified this sacred dance in a Sanskrit text called the Natya Shastra. Bharatnatyam, the oldest Indian classical dance form, originated in the Tanjore district of Tamil Nadu and is regarded as the mother of many other classical dance forms of India. Firstly, it was initiated in the Hindu temples of Tamil Nadu and eventually flourished in South India. It is performed with excellent footwork and impressive gestures and it includes nrita ,nritya and natya. Bharatnatyam was performed by certain families of the Tanjore district and these inheritors were known as 'Nattyvans'. With the origination of temples in Tamil Nadu, Bharatnatyam soon became an important part of South Indian temples around 300 BCE to 300 CE. Temple dancers are known as Devadasis, who were dedicated to serve the lord as dasis or servants, performing the dance form and became an important part of rituals in South Indian temples. The art was handed down as a living tradition from generation to generation under the Devadasi system under which women were dedicated to temples to serve the deity as dancers and musicians forming part of the elaborate rituals. These highly talented artists and the male gurus (nattuvanars) were the sole repository of the art until the early 20th century when a renewal of interest in India's culture heritage prompted the educated elite to discover its beauty. By this time the Devadasis had fallen upon evil days due to lack of state patronage and changed social mores. The revival of Bharatnatyam by pioneers such as E Krishna Iyer and Rukmini Devi Arundale brought the dance out of the temple precincts and on to the proscenium stage, through it retained its essentially devotional character.

Today Bharatnatyam has attained an exalted status and immense popularity. Learning Bharatnatyam has become the status symbol for most, irrespective of social status and rank. Within a short period of five decades, this art form has reached the masses from the four walls of the temples. It is attained worldwide fame and has become part of the international dance forums.

Tanushree Hazarika,

(tanushreehazarika75043@gmail.com)

Today's teacher-disciple relationship

Guru-Shishya tradition is an important and sacred part of India's culture, many golden examples of which are recorded in history. No one can ever take the place of parents in life, because they bring us into this colorful and beautiful world. It is said that our parents are the first teachers of life. Guru and shishya tradition has been going on in India since ancient times, but only teachers teach us the real way of living, inspire you to follow the right path. A teacher is like a gardener who decorates a garden with flowers of different colors, which inspires the students to walk smiling even on thorns.

Today, government efforts are being made to take education to every household. Teachers should also get the respect they deserve. Only a teacher creates good character in the disciple. Today all the teachers have started bidding for their knowledge. In the present perspective, the tradition of Guru-Shishya is getting tarnished. It is the responsibility of both the students and the teachers to understand this great tradition better and provide their co-operation in building a good society.

Bidyasagar Doley

Cotton University.

Mistry's demise

The passing away of Tata Sons' former chairman Cyrus Mistry in a road accident at Palghar, Mumbai is a big loss to the Indian automobile industry. It is all the more doleful that he died in less than three months of the demise of his father Pallonji Shapoorji Mistry due to old age. Mistry took the Shapoorji Group to new heights of success in a very short time. He followed in the footsteps of his father and understood the nuances of business. It was under the leadership of Cyrus Mistry that Tata Motors began its turnaround with the launch of Tata Zest and Tata Bolt. Global NCAP awarded 4 stars to Tata Zest in 2016 for adult occupant protection, and thus began the Tata focus on automobile safety. The reputation of Tata got strengthened during Mistry's period and after.

Ranganathan Sivakumar

Chennai

Suffering from mental health disorder has become a common issue nowadays. Many people in the world are now suffering from this disorder, especially teenagers. It is created by the combination of thoughts, emotion and behaviors of human beings. Mental health includes emotional, psychological, and social well being it effects how we act, think, feel, make choices, and relate to others.

According to World Health Organization In 2019, 1 in every 8 people, or 970 million people around the world were living with a mental disorder, with anxiety and depressive disorders. In 2020, because of the COVID-19 pandemic the number of people living with anxiety and depressive disorders grows significantly. Initial estimates show a 26% and 28% increase respectively for anxiety and major depressive disorders in just one year. Naturally, we are not as conscious about physical health, but some time it is more dangerous and become worse but we don't pay attention to it. Most people with mental disorders do not have access to effective care and most of them do not take any kind of service or advice. The negative effects of mental health can disrupt our daily activities and even lead to suicide. Every day more than 6,000 thoughts come to a person's mind. It depends up to person which thought he/she will those.

Things to do to improve mental health are, self confidence , eating nutritious and healthy food, stay hydrated, staying active, do what makes you relax and refresh, getting enough sleep, regular exercise, medications, spending time with loved ones, being grateful, stay connected with your friends and family members who can provide emotional support and can take care of your mental health .

Dharitri Barman

Cotton University

St Mother Teresa: An epitome of mercy

Saint Mother Teresa of Kolkata (original name, Agnes Gonxha Bojaxhiu) has made India proud by showing and proving to the world what one person's mission can achieve. She was born in Skopje, Macedonia on August 27, 1910 and landed in India in 1929. She founded the Missionaries of Charity in 1950, which is still active today even after her death on September 5, 1997.

The members of her congregation run homes for people, irrespective of caste, creed, colour or religion, dying of HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, leprosy and much more. India has honoured this messenger of Christ with the highest civilian award, the Bharat Ratna in 1980, besides other awards prior to that. A year before her death, the world honoured her with the Nobel Peace Prize. In the year, 1948, Mother Teresa became an Indian citizen. She got her training as a nurse in Patna (Bihar). She opened a school in a slum area in Calcutta (now Kolkata). It was run with the help of donations. Many of Mother Teresa's former girl students also became nuns and came to help her in her social work. Saint Mother Teresa had critics even within the Catholic Church and within her congregation too but how she responded to such venomous criticism is very simple. There was no convincing response other than her simple and profound life lived out for the poor and the dying. Her life which is an epitome of gratuitous mercy, is the only convincing response to all criticism aimed at her.

Jubel D'Cruz,

Mumbai