Editor,
Please bear with me as I begin this missive with what I feel is a relevant quote. The quote is from Alan Watts’ book ” The Wisdom of Insecurity”
” To be secure means to isolate and fortify the ‘I’ but it is just the feeling of being an isolated ‘I’ which makes me lonely and afraid. In other words the more security I can get, the more I shall want. To put it plainly: the desire for security and the feeling of insecurity are the same thing. To hold your breath is to lose your breath. A society built on the quest for security is nothing but a breath retention contest in which everyone is taut as a drum and as purple as a beet.”
And a little later in the same chapter.
“In other words, if we can really understand what we are looking for – that safety is isolation, and what we do to ourselves when we look for it- we shall see that we do not want it at all. No one has to tell you that you should not hold your breath for ten minutes. You know that you can’t do it, and that the attempt is most uncomfortable.”
It is intriguing to read even the most intelligent people believing in safeguards to preserve the society. What is being missed by all is the psychological aspects of this search for security. This quote I hope sheds some light on it and is relevant not just for individuals but societies too.
There are many examples of groups of people who have done well in the most adverse of circumstances. In India perhaps the Parsis and the Sikhs displaced during the partition standout. Both categories were faced with a loss of homeland and no reservation were availed by them. Yet they not just survived but thrived.
Looking further the Jews in Israel in spite of being outnumbered by Arabs have not succumbed to the feeling of being victims.
The Japanese after World War 2, the progress of the Singaporeans, the Taiwanese are other relevant examples of strong determination. Often it is adversity and not the much- championed cushioning from it that helps societies to succeed.
Yours etc.,
Paramjit Bakhshi.
Via email
Need to investigate death of KIIT student
Editor,
A thorough investigation is needed to find out the reason behind the death of Arnab Mukherjee, a third-year BTech student at Kalinga Institute of Industrial Technology (KIIT) in Odisha. He was found dead under suspicious circumstances near an under-construction building about 10 km from the KIIT campus on Monday. Given a 20-year-old Nepalese BTech student, who allegedly died by suicide in her hostel room at the same deemed university in February, had reportedly faced continuous harassment on campus, the death of the Bengali student raised questions about whether he also faced similar treatments. The police must conduct an impartial inquiry to find out whether he was murdered, and if he himself jumped from the seven-story building, then the reason behind it.
Yours etc.,
Sujit De,
Kolkata
A public apology
Editor,
Please kindly allow me to express my admission and public declaration through your esteemed paper, that I had thoughtlessly written derogatory remarks on Facebook against the legal advocates merely on the basis of disgust on reading some news regarding the release on bail of persons charged with rape and murder, forgetting that it is also the legal advocates who defend the victims and the innocent.
Therefore, I hereby tender my humble apology to the legal advocates and the Shillong Bar Association, who have sent a legal notice to me.
Yours etc.,
Fabian Lyngdoh,
Mawbri, Ri Bhoi.
Shad Suk Mynsiem
Editor,
Apropos to the letter by Kyrsoibor Pyrtuh captioned, “No intention to offend anyone” (ST March 29, 2025), I read the paragraph No 6 of the letter about the “Shad Suk Mynsiem” where Kong Sweetymon Rynjah opined that Shad Suk Mynsiem is “primarily a thanksgiving dance and not a religious dance as it does not entail any religious rituals, but we only beseech through prayers and exhort before the Almighty.” These words made me ponder as I believe the dance is a religious dance for worshipping U Blei U Nongthaw U Nongbuh, U Trai Kynrad (The Almighty God of the Khasis). My observation, understanding and belief are that the Shad Suk Mynsiem is a religio-ritualistic thanksgiving dance to worship U Blei by offering thanks to Him for the blessings and guidance in the bygone days, and again seeking blessings and guidance for the coming days.
Coming to another point, the name “Shad Suk Mynsiem” was coined by the Seng Khasi (Kmie), Mawkhar, in the year 1912, and since that year the Seng Khasi had successfully organized the dance annually. However, in recent years, the name of the dance has been used by Khasi people in some Khasi villages for dances similar to the Shad Suk Mynsiem. The dances in the villages are not organized by the Seng Khasi, and the villages are under the jurisdiction of the Hima Khyrim. I had watched the dance in some Khasi local YouTube channel and I would like to request the Seng Khasi (Kmie) to do something on this issue as I believe the Seng Khasi is the ‘sole owner’ of the name Shad Suk Mynsiem.
Finally, I wish a grand success to the religious-ritualistic thanksgiving dance this year, 2025.
Yours etc.,
Wallambiang Rani
Upper Shillong
