198ste Spiritmail

Indian Buses on the Roads of USA

By Karmayogi

An elderly American reading what a
young American had written was surprised. He asked where he had learnt to write
so well. The answer surprised him even more. ‘‘I learnt it in India.'' One may wonder how
someone whose mother tongue is English can learn writing English from another
person whose mother tongue is not English. The standard pronunciation
dictionary in English was written by a Danish linguist. When Tamil scholars
came from Czechoslovakiato deliver lectures in Tamil Nadu on Silapadigaram, the audience was struck by
their chaste pronunciation. The Right Honourable Sastri made the Englishman
feel shy by his precise pronunciation. JRD Tata in 1975 felt the same type of
surprise when a young American proposed to him that his buses could be sold to
the USA. After a prolonged
discussion, Tata was convinced. Life took a different turn. Tata received
continuous export orders from the Gulf countries and there ended our proposal. We
know man does not know his weaknesses. I would say, ‘‘Man does not
know his strength.''

My perennial theme is India has
a treasure in knowledge, subtlety, insight, intuition, philosophy, and
SPIRITUALITY. They are the treasures found nowhere else in the world, but they
are not here in a usable form. They are found here as ingots of gold. Unless
they are made into jewels, one cannot use them. Indians are unaware of their
strength, greatness or value. If the buried Indian talents are brought to the
surface, Indian manufactured goods will have an edge over the products of any
other country. American parents who visit Indiamarvel at the affectionate atmosphere in our families. One American husband
after a few hours in an Indian house found that the lady of the house never
came out to participate in the discussion. On knowing more about the feminine
fairness of India, he
declared, ‘‘This is great. I am unable to conceive of such an
atmosphere.''