Surishi Kapil Sharma
The famous story of a goat and tiger drinking water from the same place… A story with which every duggar is familiar with.
Since time immemorial this soil has never failed in displaying that it indeed is a place of “Tranquility” where the weak and strong have been living peacefully.
This land is home to diverse religious and cultural societies.
One such is Our Dogra culture. A culture so unique, pious and peaceful.
Dogri the sweet language of the Dogras, derived from the Sauraseni Prakrit having roots from sanskrit. And when I say sweet it actually is so sweet that even the harsh words are pleasant to every ear….
From Dogri Akkhar script to Devnagari, from being recognised as a National Language of India, to being recognised as one of the Official Languages ( 8th schedule) for UT of J&K, the language has witnessed a lot.
It’s a shame that the language which has travelled thus far is failing to reach the doorstep of each and every Duggar family. Only a few of the young generations are able to speak and understand dogri fluently and properly…..
But Who is to be blamed for this? The growing Western Influence? Or
The decreasing boost to native language within families ? Maaboli to be precise.
What I feel is that it is important to learn western languages (majorly English) but a child from the very beginning should be taught these too: Matribhasha Rashtrabhasha….. Karambhasha ( professional language) … Devbhasha that is Sanskrit.
In this tech-savvy generation knowing your Devbhasha is as important as knowing computer languages.
Sanskrit the only ancient language that is scientifically proven as most computer friendly. A Language that can decode each and every intellectual treasures of not only India but also worldwide.
The Dogri and Dogra culture is not just a language and ethinicity but it’s a bouquet of different arts, crafts, cuisines etc The famous Basholi Qalam Paintings to Mankot style and Guler Jasrota style of paintings shows the richness in art and crafts of duggars.
Rasamanjari, Shangri Ramayan, Nainsukh’s
Neel kamal paintings are some of the artistic wonders of the culture.
Dance forms like dandaras, geetru, jagarana are like an extra star to the beauty of this culture. And when it comes to food then nothing can beat the satisfaction that Dogra cuisine brings. How many of the young dogras know lohri and chajjha dance, rutt rarhe ceremony during Monsoons, Ramleela during Navratras etc etc… List is endless I can go on and on
The Duggar land has seen many battles and wars be it communal or political, yet the Dogra culture stands tall as always.
But with time this culture is facing some identity crisis and again the question arises, who is to be blamed for this?
This time it’s not the Western influence but the lack of knowledge and pride for the culture among the youth.
The legacy that our great Maharajas have left us with is very precious, The Dogra legacy is full of with the stories of Great Kings, brave battles fought and won, big sacrifices, great educated civilisations and rich culture.
We the Dogras need to carry the culture with grace and pride only then we can maintain the legacy of duggars.
Dogras have been through a lot and yet there’s one thing about us that hasn’t changed a bit…. And we the Dogra community can proudly say…
Kuch baat hai ki hasti mitt ti nahi hamari….
We were, We are and We’ll always be
Khand Mitthe Dogre…… !
(The author is MBA student University of Jammu.)
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