The Balkh Connection - Resurrection of Persian

A carpet from Balkh adorns our living room. It is a constant reminder old assignments with the UN in Afghanistan, of traveling long dusty roads lined with the relics of various wars, of bustling markets and lovely lilt of Dari language.

Dari is a variant of Persian widely spoken in the country. I had always imagined that the Persian influence on Afghanistan dated back to the reign of kings ranging from Cyrus to Nadir Shah. Today, while communing back home on the metro listening to an episode of the Empire podcast, I realised the extent of my naivety.

There was a time when the Persians ruled most of the territory that extends from today's Punjab to Turkey and North Africa. The mighty Achaemenid kings - Cyrus, Darius, Xerxes - ruled from Persepolis (559 - 330 BC), until the empire was destroyed by Alexander. Then came the Seleucids (312 - 62 BC) who were contemporaries of Chandragupta  of the Maurya empire in India; the Parthians (247 - 224 BC) and the  Sasanians (224 - 651 CE).

Then came a time when the conquerors got conquered. The endless wars between two great empires, the Romans and the Persians, exhausted both and enabled a new kid on the block, the Arabs driven by the zeal of a brand new religion, to colonise  Persia. Over the next 200 years, Arabic took over as the official language, Persian language, culture and religion got subsumed. Amazingly some of the most prominent Vezirs appointed by the Arabs were the Barmakids, a clan of hereditary Buddhist priests ("Pramukh") from the Nawbahar monastry in Balkh who had converted to Islam!  

One of the few holdouts was Khorasan, an area which is mostly the provinces o Herat and present-day Afghanistan. 

It is under the patronage of the Saffarid kings of Khorasan that Persian language survived. The poet, Ferdowsi started writing the epic Shahname under their patronage. However, by the time he finished his magnum opus, the Saffarids had been defeated by the Ghaznavids, and the new king Mohammad of Ghazni was too busy plundering India and did not think much of Persian poetry. 

It is Persia that owes much to Afghanistan - not the other day around!

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BUT-SHIKAN  बुत-शिकनبت شکن

This word, meaning "iconoclast", is an honorific adopted by many Islamic rulers in India. Sikandar Shah Miri, a ruler of Kashmir was called Sikandar Butshikan for the zeal with which he destroyed many monasteries and temples.

So the question is - does 'but' refer to icons of the Buddha?

A friend who loves Urdu poetry insists that the word comes from Persian. So did the ancient Iranians also take delight in destroying temples? Turns out that they did - hundreds of years before Persia was overrun by conquering armies from Arabia under the banner of Islam, it was Zoroastrian rulers who destroyed buddhist monasteries and temples in the Khorasan region!

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REFERENCES & LINKS

• Empire Podcast - https://twitter.com/EmpirePodUK/status/1747563631653396807 
• Buddhism in Iran - https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buddhism_in_Iran
• https://en.unesco.org/silkroad/content/did-you-know-city-balkh-ancient-capital-bactria-and-centre-buddhism-and-zoroastrianism
• https://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/buddhism-i
• https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Persecution_of_Buddhists
• https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sikandar_Shah_Miri 

Revisiting the Epics

I thought I knew a thing or two about Indian epics and classics.  Over the past months, two books and a podcast have undermined this notion, and reminded me that my knowledge is, at best, narrow and woefully shallow.

The two books were - S Jaishankar's "The India Way" and Roberto Calasso's "Ka: Stories of the Mind and Gods of India" (Translated by Tim Parks), and the podcast series, "The Vatapi Curry Point" by Krish Ashok and Anirudh Kanisetti.

Jaishankar's book is mainly about the evolving global stance of the Indian state - the way it views itself, and the rest of the world. Much of the book reads like a guide for career diplomats, but still, what is of interest in this context is Chapter 3, titled "Krishna's Choice". In this he lays out observations on India as a civilisational entity trying to fit itself into a narrower idea of a nation state, a concept born from the Peace of Westphalia - 'an international society of sovereign state entities possessing the monopoly of force within their mutually recognised territories'.

He begins with a quote (or admonition!) from Goethe -  "A nation that doesn't honour its past has no future", and discusses the importance of dissimulation in statecraft. While most of us may be familiar with Kautilya's 'Sama, Dana, Danda, Bheda' (alliance, compensation, force and trickery), as ways of approaching political challenges, the role of specific characters in the Mahabharata was something I did not know.

Take for instance, the role of Susarma. He was the chief of the Trigarta warriors from a kingdom around present day Punjab:

"Traditional allies of the Kurus, they conceived a special enmity towards Arjuna, who defeated them while preparing the ground for Yudhistira's coronation ceremony....their single-minded hostility proved very dear to the Pandavas. Constantly pouring oil into the Kaurava fire, they collaborated in the effort to smoke the Pandavas from the Virata kingdom during their period of exile...their challenge to Arjuna of a fight to the death diverted him away from the main battle, leading to the capture of his brother Yudhistira alive by the Kauravas...The moral here is of the danger of smaller adversaries whose single-mindedness goes to the extent of destroying themselves to inflict damage."

Obviously the reference here is to Pakistan and the state's attitude towards India. Jaishankar presents other examples as well:  Shalya, the maternal uncle of Pandavas, who is tricked by a false flag operation into committing to the Kaurava side; Krishna's brother Balarama, is genuinely neutral as he has taught warfare to both sides and opts out of the conflict by taking a long pilgrimage during the war; and Rukmi of Vidharba, another notable warrior who stays out of the war, by overestimating his own value to both sides and ends up accepted by neither.

Calasso's "Ka", on the other hand, examines the epics from a different dimension. While in Jaishankar's book we can connect to geographical locations that match places in India today, Calasso reminds us that the stars and constellations in their supra-human forms played an active role in the human drama, in this part of the world:

Daksha - "he who is skillful" - emerges from the thumb of the creator, Prajapati / Brahma's right hand. Over time, he becomes a king and weds Prasuti, and the couple have a whole bandwagon of daughters. 27 of these daughters marry Soma, the moon god, who places them in the heavens as dancing troop of 27 Nakshatras/stars. The most headstrong of his daughters is Sati who insists of marrying Shiva, the most reclusive and fiery-tempered of all gods; the one who traps the whole Milky Way (Akashaganga) in his tresses and brings it down to earth as the river Ganga!

The last one, a podcast, is delightfully irreverent. It is a freewheeling discussion on history, food, and science between two authors and social-media-stars, Krish Ashok and Anirudh Kanisetti on Instagram. It pokes fun at the prevailing dogmas, ridicules folks set on creating communal divisions while also asking interesting questions. 

Here is one: What is the similarity between Arjuna and Maradonna?

This question zapped me out for a while. How can there be anything in common between a hero of the epic Mahabharata and a modern football icon? Turns out that just like the tenuous but intriguing linkages brought out in the BBC series Connections 2 & 3,  the connection here too lies in something unexpected -  the metal Silver.

According to Krish Ashok, the Sanskrit name Arjuna is based on the Indo-European word for silver - "Argentum".  Arjuna - Argentum - Argentina - Maradonna!

There is certainly a lot more to the epics than meets the eye :)

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REFERENCES & LINKS

- Jaishankar, S (2021): The India Way

- Calasso, Roberto (): Ka - Stories of the Mind and Gods of India

- Vatapi Curry - Insta - https://www.instagram.com/_masalalab/?hl=en

On Owls and Idioms

This is one of the most intriguing idioms I have come across.

Translated from Hindi to English, it means, "To straighten one's owl", and the common understanding of the idiom in North India is "get one's work done", in a sneaky kind of way.

For instance, when you are in a meeting that has been called to discuss, say, a cleanliness drive. If you see some participants holding forth on an issue that has little to do with cleanliness but more to do with settling an old grudge with somebody specific, it could be said that he is  'straightening his owl'. He is using the meeting as a means to achieve a goal that is narrow and personal.

It is similar to 'Shooting off somebody's shoulder' but it goes beyond taking advantage of a person or a friend, to achieve you own purposes.

While this idiom is pretty apt in a lot of situations - especially at a workplace, or in politics - it origins remain mysterious. The owl (Uluka in Sanskrit, and Ullu in Hindi), despite being the vahana of Lakshmi, the goddess of wealth, is considered a stupid bird in North India. So if you do something idiotic, you might be called an Ullu in Delhi, or an Ullu da Pattha (son of an owl!), in Punjab.

Perhaps this is because the bird looks quite lost and disoriented during daytime. However, unlike bats, it never perches upside down. So how on earth did this idiom originate?

Also, are there similar idioms in other languages?

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REFERENCES & LINKS

• Hindi Idioms - http://www.hindisahityadarpan.in/2013/01/famous-hindi-idioms-phrases-and.html
• 25 Hindi idioms inspired by food - https://www.naukrinama.com/stressbuster/25-hindi-idioms-inspired-food-brought-hearing-saying/
• Vahana - (Sanskrit - "that which carries, that which pulls" - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vahana

Open Sesame!

Long ago, when 40 thieves decided to hide their treasure in a cave, the chosen password was "Open Sesame!"

Unfortunately they were rather lax in their security protocols and Ali Baba ran away with all the gold. But a question still hangs in the empty cave, and in my mind - why did they choose the name of a tiny oil seed?

In today's world of international trade, sesame still holds the secret to a treasure trove. Consider this -

• Until recently, India was the biggest exporter of sesame seeds (now Myanmar is top dog)
• Japan still holds the record for the biggest importer in the world.
• Sesame can grow in places where most other crops fail, and yet it has the highest oil-contents of any seed.

The North Indian market is dominated by the white colored sesame while, in in the South, the most commonly available variety is the black one. Ditto for South East Asia and Japan. Why so?

 

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LINKS

* (BS-2No14) - http://www.business-standard.com/article/markets/india-s-sesame-seed-output-to-rise-by-126-shefexil-114110200688_1.html

* Sesame on Wiki - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sesame

Short Trip, Sharp Eyes

Is there something about short trips that sharpens your powers of observation?

This is the thought that crossed my mind after reading Anu Garg's latest posts on AWAD, which has been aptly described by the New York Times as "The most welcomed, most enduring piece of daily mass e-mail in cyberspace"!

Over the past few days, Anu has been posting Japan Special's after a brief visit to the Far East. Despite having stayed and traveled extensively in Japan for two years, some of his observations have come as a big surprise to me.

I did not know, for instance, that "skosh", "honcho" and "tycoon" were all English words borrowed from NihonGo. Neither did I notice that each of the 47 prefectures in Japan has its own cutesy police mascot, created to "win the affection of the people and make them feel safe"!

Japan's 47 Prefectures and their 47 police mascots! (pic source: idleidol.net)

The one for Ibaraki is neither a frog, nor an owl but a skylark named Hibari-kun.

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LINKS:

* Japan's Mascots -- http://idleidol.net/

* AWAD - A Word A Day - http://wordsmith.org/awad/index.html

Valorization of Expediency?

What on earth is "valorization of expediency"??

I always look forward to reading OpEd articles by Bhanu Pratap Mehta. In his latest piece, 'Sin of Littleness', he discusses a 'contagion of small-mindedness' in public life. He laments that ideas have been replaced by vendettas, the future with past resentments, constructive engagement with rank cynicism.

Without dwelling on specifics, he discusses the sense of insecurity among our leaders and their loss of authority. So far so good...but the subsequent analyses talks of 'formations of power', 'zeitgist which equates expediency with innovation...expediency redounding on itself', and, finally, the last straw - 'valorization of expediency'.

By now the newspaper in my hand feels like a heavy academic journal, and the big words remind me of Amitabh Bachchan in Amar Akbar Antony.

What was BPM trying to say?

If one goes back to the words with a dictionary in hand, it could mean, "to give a value to self-serving means".

That is some progress but I am not there yet...

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NB: According to Google, this expression also figures in a literary article titled, Stephen Cope - As if Objectivist: Oppen’s Political Epistemophelia: "...Ezra Pound’s valorization of the expediency for poetry of ideogrammic script is only the most exemplary of High Modernist bids...". 

A Passport to Thebes

"Welcome to Thebes" was one of the most unusual play I have seen at the National School of Drama in New Delhi.

Directed by Annie Ruth and presented by the final year students of NSD (16-21 March),  it was an adaptation of a 2010 play by Moira Buffini. Apart from a ticket, you  needed a 'passport' to get into the theatre. The play itself an energetic mix of Greek mythology and contemporary politics, presented by actors dressed in African costumes, with their lines forcefully delivered in Hinglish, Tamil and Mizoram's Aso dialect!

The play revolves around the death of a Thebian warlord named Polynices. In the ensuing power vacuum, two neighboring states are vying to control Thebes: Athens and Sparta.

It was interesting to know that, as in the Indian classics, names of key character's have a meaning that is closely reflects their true nature. Polynices means "manifold strife". What about the names of the other characters?

Megaera (played by D. Antony Janagi):  'The jealous one'
Sergeant Miletus (N.P. Chouhan): Named after the Milax shrubs where he was hidden after birth
Eurydice (Kalyanee Mulay): 'She whose justice extends widely'
Prince Tydeus (Debasis Mondal):
Pargeia (Bharti):
Haemon (Mrigendra Konwar): 'Bloody'
Antigone (Arundhati Kalita):
Ismene (Amanjeet):
Tiresias (brilliantly played by Bendang Temsu Walling):
Harmonia (Prashant Kumar):
Polykleitos (Prateek Srivastava):
Aglaea (Raju Roy): 'Splendor, brilliant, shining-one'
Thalia (V. Uto Chishi): 'Abundance'
Euphrosyne (Hardik Shah): One of the three Graces
Eunomia (Janagi): 'Good order - governance according to good laws'
Helia (Thoudam Victor Singh): 'Children of the sun'
Eris (PrashantKumar): 'Strife'!
Xenophanes (Himanshu Kohli):
Thesus (Sanal N):
Phaeax (Victor):

Cracking The Maya Code

`If a script has 20 to 35 signs, it is probably alphabetic, representing simple sounds. If there are 80 to 100 signs, it is probably based on syllables. But if a script has several hundred signs, it is surely logographic, or based on signs for whole words.`

But how do you decipher is an ancient language, which, after surviving 1,500 years, was systematically obliterated by over-zealous conquerors?

Here is the amazing story of some amazing individuals (German, American, Russian) and their effort to decipher the Maya logographic-script.

Transcript of the PBS program telecast in 2008 - http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/transcripts/3506_mayacode.html

Dhak-dhak, Doki-doki, Tun-tun

Dhak-dhak, doki-doki, tun-tun...these words may sound strange and funny but they all have one thing in common -- they describe the heartbeat in different languages!

In North India your heart beat is `dhak-dhak` while in Japan it goes `doki-doki` but to a Latino it is `tun-tun`. 

In English there is a world borrowed (or created) from Greek to classify these colorful `words that imitates the sounds they describe' - Onomatopoeia

Here is an attempt to collect such words in as many languages as possible.  :-)

CHINESE (Mandarin)
Pen-ti: Sneeze


CROATIAN
Kinhuti - Sneeze
Stucati - Hiccup


BENGALI
Haai - Yawn
Tapur-tupur - Sound of rainfall

ENGLISH
Bow-wow - Dog bark
Meaow - A cat`s cry
Ululation -  Howl, wail, lament, felicitation (during a marriage in Kerala)
Achoo (sneeze), Bang, Baloon, Beep, Burp, Buzz, Click, Cough, Crash, Cuckoo, Fart, Fizz, Hiccup, Hiss, Rip, Pop, Snore, Tinkle, Wink

HINDI
Dhak-dhak (धक्-धक्)  - heartbeat
Fatfatia (फटफटिया) - a noisy Auto-rickshaw (3-wheeler taxi) - "tuk-tuk" in Thai
Gubbara (गुब्बारा) - Baloon
Hichki (हिचकी) - Hiccup
Jhatpat (झटपट) - Hasty action
Kharratte (खर्राटे) - Snore
Khusur-fusur (खुसुर-फुसुर)- Whisper
Paad (पाद) - Fart
Teetar (तीतर) - Partridge-bird
Thappad (थप्पड़) - Slap

JAPANESE
Bishi-bishi (びしびし) -  stickily; relentlessly
Bisho-bisho (びしょびしょ) - scattering of drops, pieces
Bura-bura (ぶらぶら) - aimlessly; idly; loiter; loaf; stroll idly;
Chaku-chaku (ちゃくちゃく /  着着 )- Steadily
Chika-chika (ちかちか）- Flickering light
Choki-choki (ちょきーちょき）- Snipping, cutting sound
Dan-dan - (段々) gradually; by degrees
Giri-giri (ギリギリ) - Barely, Just-in-time
Goku-goku  (ごくごく) - Gulp-gulp [same reading - 極極 = extremely, highly)
Goro-goro (ごろごろ）- laze about,sound of an upset stomach!
Fura-fura (ふらふら)- unsteady on one's feet; stagger; reel; totter; dizzy
Haki-haki  (はきはき) - briskly; smartly; promptly; clearly; lucidly
Hiso-hiso (ひそひそ) - speak in a whisper
Jiro-jiro (じろじろ) - To stare
Kira-kira (きらきら) - Glitter & sparkle
Kune-kune (くねくね) ー　Circuitous
Kuyo-kuyo - Worry, fret over
Kori-kori (凝り; こり) - lingering discomfort; uneasiness; bad aftertaste; unpleasant feeling
Mago-mago (まごまご) - Confused
Moko-moko (もこもこ) - lumpy; fluffy
Nazo-nazo (なぞなぞ） - Riddle
Nya-nya (にゃにゃ） - Cat`s cry
Pachi-pachi (パチパチ ) - Clap, sputter
Pera-pera （ぺらぺら）- Fluency in a language
Pika-pika (ぴかぴか） - Gleaming (eg. car)
Ponyo-Ponyo (ポニョポニョ）－ Chubby
Potsu-potsu (ぽつぽつ)- Speckle, pimples
Shimi-jimi (しみじみ) -  《 染み染み》 - Earnestly; keenly; fully; heartily; seriously
Shuku-shuku (しゅくしゅく / 粛粛) - Silently, solemnly
Toro-toro (とろとろ)　- Simmer, stew
Uta-kata (うたかた） - Bubble
Wan-wan (わんわん）- Dog`s bark in Japan (!)
Zaa-zaa (ざあざあ）- Sound of rainfall


MALAYALAM
Addi (അട്ടി) - Hit, slap
Kaakaa (കാകാ) - Crow  (Ditto in Tamil)
Korava (കൊറവ ) - Crowing, Ululation
Koorkam ( കൂര്കം) - Snore
Kushu (കുശു) - Fart
Piri-pirippu (പിരിപിരിപ്പ് )- Fidgetty
Thummal (തുമ്മല്‍ ) - Sneeze
Thulli (തുള്ളി ) - Drop (water, dew)
Umma (ഉമ്മ) - Kiss

ROMANIAN (without the right intonation marks :(  )
Bum-Bum - Heartbeat
Casca - Yawn
Ham-Ham - Dogs-bark
Miau - Cat's cry
Part / Basi - Fart
Sforai- Snore
Stranut- Sneeze
Sughit - Hiccup
Tusi - Cough

SPANISH
Beso ("muak")- Kiss
Gota - Drop
Guau-Guau - Dog bark
Hipo ("hip-hip") - Hiccup
Maulido ("mau-mau") - Cat's cry
Pedo - Fart ............... (Indo-European root?)
Tonwar (v) - Snore
Tos (col.) - Cough
Tun-tun - Sound of heartbeat

SWAHILI
Beua - Burp
Busu - Kiss
Bweka - Dog-bark
Chafya - Sneeze
Jamba - Fart
Koroma - Snore.......(similar to the Malayalam word!)
Kohowa - Cough
Kwi-kwi - Hiccup
Miyao - Yawn  :)
Nyau - Cat's cry




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Reference & Links -

• Onomatopoeia at Reference.com - http://www.search.com/reference/Onomatopoeia
• http://coolslang.com/in/Japan/PeraPera.php
• http://www.lint.co.jp/e+/fun/onomatopoeia/onomatopoeia.htm

Malayalam Words of Foreign Origin

Growing up in a polyglot environment was quite confusing at times. During our schooldays, we used to look forward the summer vacations in Kerala - the two-day train journey from Hyderabad to Chanaganaserry; the endless hours spent in catching fishes, splashing in the pond, hunting for fruits, and playing with cousins. But after spending two months in Kerala, my Deccani Hindi vocabulary would get completely swamped by Malayalam, resulting in strange conversations as soon as we got back to Hyderabad:

Friend - कहाँ था बे? तेरेको इतना बुलारे थे..(Where the heck were you? We had been calling out..)
Me - में तो कक्कूस में था..(Oh, I was in the "Kakkoos"/Toilet)
Friend - कक्कूस?? वो क्या बे?(Kakkoos?? Whats that??)

And that would be the exact moment when a new nickname was born. I would be heartily called "Kakkoos" for a few days until all strange new words were badgered back into the confines of our home.

It now turns out that "Kakkoos" is not even a Malayalam word - it is originally Dutch!

This and many other surprises tumbled out of a PDF file that Dr. Jayathilak sent me sometime back. The file is an appendix to an unknown book and contains a long list of Malayalam words from European languages. Here are some of the more commonly used borrowed-words:
Malayalam words from the PORTUGUESE language -

• Alumaari - അലമാരി - Cupboard - "Armario"
• Amara - അമര - Mulberry tree - "Amora"
• Aaspatri - ആസ്പത്രി -Hospital - "Hospital"
• Chaavi - ചാവി - Key - "Caave"
• Govi - ഗോവി - Cabbage - "Couvre" (also in Hindi)
• Iskuul - ഇസ്കൂള് - School - "Escola"
• Istri - iസ്ത്രി - Smoothing iron - "Esterar"
• Jennal - ജെന്നാല് - Window - "Jenala"
• Kamis - കാമിസ് - Shirt - "Camiso" (also in Hindi, Urdu)
• Kurisu - കുരിശു - Cross - "Cruz"
• Laelam - ലഈലം - Auction - "Leilac"
• Mesha - മേശാ - Table - "Mesa"
• Maestri - മെസ്ത്രി - Foreman - "Mestre"
• Naranja - Lemon / Citrus fruit
• Paadhiri - പാധിരി - Clergyman - "Padre"
• Paappa - പാപ - The Pope - "papa"
• Pena - പേന - Pen - "Pena"
• Pera - പേര - Guava - "Pera"
• Pikkassu - പിക്കാസ് - Pick-axe - "Picao"
• Tambloor - തമ്ബ്ലൂര് - "Tambler"
• Teila - റെഇല - Tea leaves - "Tea"
• Tuuvala - തൂവാല - Towel, handkerchief - "Toalha"
• Vattakka - വട്ടക്ക - Watermelon - "Pateca" (can also mean "the round fruit" in Mal.)
• Vatteri - വട്റെരി - Battery, a set of guns - "Bateria"

Malayalam words from the DUTCH language

• Kakkoos - കക്കൂസ് - Latrine - "Kakhus"

If so many common words have been borrowed from the European traders and colonizers who came a few centuries ago, there must be a much bigger collection of words that came from the Arabs. Wonder where I could find some papers on this...
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Related Links -
English words with Malayalam origin
http://www.nvtc.gov/lotw/months/april/Malayalam.html

Etymology of "Ferenghi"

The first time I remember hearing this word was in the movie "Junoon", a movie based on Ruskin Bond's novel, "A Flight of Pigeons". In a scene where anxious relatives rush out to meet the warriors returning from Delhi during the 1857 revolt, a wounded, haggard Sarfaraz Khan cries out in despair, "Feranghi jeet gaye! Hum Dilli haar gaye!" (The English have won! We've lost Delhi!).

In Asia, why were the English or Europeans in general, called Ferenghi's?

Last year I came across this word again in Orhan Pamuk's My Name is Red. The story revolves around the Ottoman Sultan's attempt to create a book of miniature paintings that would stun the 'Venetian infidels' or Franks into accepting that Ottoman art was much superior to their own. While reading about 'Frankish' master's and 'Frankish' kings, it had sounded so much like Ferenghi...

In Kerala, cashew nuts which was brought in by the Portuguese is called Parangi Andi or 'Foreign Kernels'.

The word for a 'foreigner' in modern Thai is farang, which according to one version, is an abbreviated form of farangset, meaning 'French'.

So is there is common link between Franks, France, Farang and Ferenghi?

Phronesis

An interesting new word.

In Aristotle's Nicomachean Ethics, he distinguishes between two intellectual virtues: sophia and phronesis. Sophia (usually translated "wisdom") is the ability to think well about the nature of the world. Phronesis ("practical wisdom") is the ability to think about how and why we should act in order to change things, and especially to change our lives for the better.

Some related insights from a presentation...

- six abilities that constitute Phronesis -

1. to make a judgment on goodness;
2. to share contexts with others to create ba / shared sense;
3. to grasp the essence of a particular situation / things;
4. to reconstruct the particulars into universals using language / concepts / narratives;
5. to use any necessary means well to realize concepts for common goodness;
6. to foster phronesis in others to build a resilient organisation;

Philosophy is more important than technologies. Such things as money and technologies are just means to serve people...There is no meaning to a technology if it does not consider people at the basis of it. What drives a firm's growth is philosophy...A true technology is a crystal of philosophy.
- Souichiro Honda

Joking is very difficult. You have to grasp the atmosphere of the ocassion and the opportunity. It exists only for that particular moment, and not anywhere else. The joke is in the timing and it doesn't work at any other moment...To joke is to understand human emotion."
- Suoichiro Honda

"Strategy is a creation of events. Quantify you objectives as much as you can. And develop a story to crystallise the numbers by specifying by specifying the beginning-middle-end story
structure."