Quotessence
Home / Authors / Abhijit Naskar

Abhijit Naskar Quotes

Author

Filter quotes by topic

Famous Abhijit Naskar Quotes

“Dead Men's Tale (The Sonnet) They say, time and tide wait for none, Lest the bird learns it can fly. The best way to control apes is, To make them feel guilty for their light. They say, dead men tell no tale, and yet, We live our lives based on dead men's tale. It is okay to tell tales if it enhances sight, But not the kind that produces a walking hell. There is no divide when we are alive, Divisions exist only in kingdom of the dead. We are divided because we are dead, Come to life, and all divides will be deleted. Let us write a new tale with the spirit of life. Instead of celebrating death, let's celebrate each other's light.”

“Masterclass for Humans (The Sonnet) Only the Native Americans are real Americans, Everybody else is an immigrant. Before you tell someone to go back to their country, Start by heading back to Britain yourself. Only Indigenous people are real Canadians, Kiwis, and Aussies, everybody else is an immigrant. Before you yell slurs at an immigrant of today, Start by heading back to Europe yourself. Turkey was transformed by one man, Upon the foundation of thoughts most rational. Before you bring back the days of fanaticism, Start by taking down the statues of Mustafa Kemal. India never had any organized religion, Brahmin barbarians peddled a myth to have control. Before you cremate a secular beacon into safron ashes, Wipe out all memories of Kabir, Ambedkar and Tagore. From discrimination to assimilation, That's how we walk the course of progress. Till every trace of intolerance is history, Keep on struggling against mindlessness.”

“So far, heritage has only caused a mess. You know why? Because it is never about just heritage - all talk of heritage inadvertently leads us to the savage dilemma of "our heritage versus their heritage". And such dilemma might have been acceptable in a savage society, but it is totally and utterly out of place in a civilized world. So, either the very construct of heritage evolves, or becomes an impediment to the expansion, hence the welfare, of the world as well as the self. That is why I say - just because you are born and raised in a particular culture, it doesn't mean, you are supposed to stay chained to that culture all your life, with blinkers on your eyes, that keep you ignorant of the beauty beyond the horizon. Let me put this into perspective with an unambiguous example. Some of you have asked me, what's my relation to Turkey? Well, everybody loves Rumi, but I learnt his tongue, so I could pick up where he left off. Some of you have asked me, what's my relation to Latin America? Well, everybody loves to yell "viva la libertad", but I learnt el idioma, so I could revolutionize the very paradigm of revolution. Every corner of earth has some distinct strongholds, and I am the force that brings them together to create a strong, sapient, and undivided planet.”

“DEI Sonnet I call it curiosity, You call it science. I call it integrity, You call it defiance. I call it contemplation, You call it philosophy. I call it accountability, You call it sociology. I call it correction, You call it revolution. I call it existence, You call it inclusion. All I see is humans finally living a human life. You with your brainy fancy philosophize it as DEI.”

“Walk La Solo Ray (Sonnet 1006) Heart immeasurable is measure supreme, All other measures are caveman's dilemma. What measured minds deem as blasphemy, The immeasurable deem the end of myopia. You can inherit money, not mind, You can inherit cash, not character. When heritage makes mind petrified of mind, It is not heritage but a humanitarian disaster. So what, if the measured don't flock behind, Like they frolic on the beaches of frivolity! The sun above burns alone giving light to all, While the hyenas below never run out of company. Defy all old and new that desecrate the heart away. Hearken to no inherited fear, and walk, la solo ray.”

“The Immeasurable Dimension (Sonnet 1014) During my bouts of nirvikalpa samadhi or trance, I have no perception, which language I'm writing in. When the trance breaks and normal awareness returns, It looks less like literature 'n more like exotic cuisine. It is not only difficult but plain impossible to adapt the immeasurable to the measures of a prison camp. So I rewrite the original light simplified by love, Hoping it may reach the heart across cultural handicap. Handicap of culture is a choice, it's not your destiny, Only you can sign the release orders from your imprisonment. We cover our eyes from the evil outside and its cure inside, Then we run here and there chasing fictional treatment. There is a dimension immeasurable intrinsic to every human mind. Be immersed within, and you shall rise with an immeasurable light.”

“Let's start a tradition - a tangible tradition of integration. Instead of celebrating our own culture, let's dedicate each festival of ours to our sisters and brothers from another culture - let's celebrate their goodness, their laughter, their wisdom - so that one day, our children may wake up to a world where there is no "our culture and their culture", just "human culture".”

“Home is a people, not a place. Move to a different city, and anyone from your hometown will feel like family. Move to a different country, and the very sight of someone from your native country will make you emotional. Move to space, and the very sight of earth will wreak tears of joy. We keep bickering over trivial things like race, religion, gender, sexuality, status and so on, because even in this day and age we still take human life for granted. Ask an astronaut, and they'll tell you, whether they can find any trace of those prehistoric barriers from up there in space.”

“Mental Por El Mundo (The Sonnet) Mental por el mundo, Mental por la gente! Sin mentalidad de servicio, No podemos seguir adelante. Some are mental por dinero, Some are loco por la ropa. Let them be as they please, Estoy loco por la humanidad. A promise was once made, He asked me to unify the world. Ever since, I have been on duty, My life isn't mine but of the world. If I fail, you cross off one human. If I succeed, you witness civilization.”

“Neighborhood Humanitarian (The Sonnet) They ask me, why do I never run out of ideas! It is because I never dwell in one culture. Sometimes I'm North American, sometimes Latino, Sometimes I'm South Indian, sometimes I am Turk. When I run low on charge, I listen to Español, When my sight gets foggy, I watch Cary Grant. Whenever I feel homesick, I listen to some Telugu, Whenever my heart bleeds, I run straight to Turkey. It is sort of a perpetual motion engine, I empower the cultures, the cultures empower me. If I am the world's not-so-secret hometown human, The world is my secret to my infinite electricity. How, do you think, I became the neighborhood humanitarian to every single person on earth! It's because I never glorified one culture over another.”

“Thus Peace Begins (The Sonnet) Peace begins with society, Society begins with individuality. Individuality begins with liberty, Liberty begins with accountability. Accountability comes from unity, Unity comes through community. Community comes through diversity, Diversity comes through inclusivity. Inclusivity comes through nonrigidity, Nonrigidity comes through curiosity. Curiosity comes through expansivity, Expansivity comes through evolvability. Evolvability comes through taming animality. Animality is tamed when we prioritize humanity.”

“Just Need to Be Human (The Sonnet) You don't need to be an arab to stand by the muslims, you just need to be human. You don't need to be an immigrant to stand up against hate crime, you just need to be human. You don't need to be a woman to stand up to misogyny, you just need to be human. You don't need to be a queer to stand up to phobia, you just need to be human. You don't need to be colored to defy discrimination, you just need humanity. You just need to be not stupid enough, to confuse diversity with pathology. Every person we meet is our neighbor. We cannot exist as human beings, till we wipe each other's tears.”