A BLAST FROM PAST
Love them or hate them, but you can't ignore them. The legacy of Rana rule remains everywhere: from the imposing fade of Singha Darbar, the presence of Ranas at the top echelons of modern Nepal's business, army and police, and the Rana family tree, which is interwoven with the present members of the Shah dynasty. All this makes for fascinating history that has been documented in research papers, academic treatises, a best-selling novel and recent Rana nostalgia in architecture
Rana power transitions were messy affairs, and watching all this from the background was the British regent at Lazimpat. We see how British India tried to influence events in Kathmandu, and this has familiar echoes today. When Bir Shumshere sidelined Jagat Jung and exiled him to India, the British refused for five months to recognise Bir as leader. And when Jagat Jung began preparations to overthrow Bir Shumshere from Indian soil, the British arrested him while he was planning to march into Nepal with his armed followers. Sound familiar?
It was perhaps inevitable that when Jung died during a hunting trip in Chitwan in 1877, his brothers immediately started squabbling for power. Jung's brother, Dhir, installed Jung's brother Rana Udip Singh as successor, while he manoeuvred to take over. Suspecting a plot, he beheaded two dozen courtiers and managed to carve out a place for himself and his 17 sons in the succession. The clan was thus effectively split between the Jung Ranas and the Shumshere Ranas. By 1885, matters reached a head again and Dhir had his six sons kill their uncle, Rana Udip Singh and remove all the descendants of Jung Bahadur's other brothers from succession.
Chandra was succeeded by Bhim Shumshere, Joodha Shumshere, Padma Shumshere and finally, Mohun Shumshere. But time was running out, the end of Empire was near. Although they tried to modernize Nepal with industrialization, banking, railways, urban water supply, and even a liberal constitution, it was too little too late. Mohun Shumshere had to deal with newly-independent India and grapple with democracy-minded Nepalis whose demands sounded uncannily similar to today's discourse: set up a constituent assembly and form an interim government.
A glimpse of Gaddi baithak
photographed 1985 BS
Dear Bardan,
ReplyDeleteI am so impressed and feeling proud to be your Thulo Papu. After going through all, I liked to drop few words for you. Never find a job or enter a career just to please your father and mother. In fact, do not ever find a job or enter a career to please or impress anyone. Most people are so busy trying to impress somebody else they won’t notice.
In fact, adults know very little compared with the all the knowledge about the world there is to know. Yet adults love to act as if they have all the answers. Job titles are fantastic foxholes. Don’t be impressed by people’s titles. Be impressed by whatever good they are doing. If they are not doing any good, there’s no need to be impressed at all. The only advice I can give you is, take advice from people who are doing things better than you currently are. And only in things that you want to do. DO YOUR OWN RESEARCH.
But most adults won’t do the little extra to make themselves extraordinary. Many adults are always looking for the next thing. They’re in one job to build up their resume for the next job without giving their current job a hundred percent. “I’m not paid to do this” is something you’re going to hear at some or many points in your working career. What is this little extra? Taking extra courses without needing to be paid to, reading extra books that enhance their work, or doing that little extra networking to meet others in their field to make them better at what they do. You know how some kids are really good in your class while some kids just do OK? Well, it’s like that in the adult world as well. DON’T HESITATE; ALWAYS DO MORE THAN THE NEXT GUY.
Bardan, you might turn out to be brilliant. But if you can’t string together a sales pitch to get that brilliance out of your brain, you’re going to be the tool for the person who can. TRUST ME – IF YOU CAN PITCH, PRESENT AND CLOSE, YOU WILL ALWAYS HAVE INCOME…FOREVER.
We all theoretically have equal opportunities. But we are not equal. There are millions of people who are smarter than you, more capable than you and more creative than you. There are also millions of people who are less intelligent than you, less capable than you and completely unable to connect simple ideas. And here’s the thing, there’s no guarantee who will be happy, healthy and successful. THE ONLY WAY TO TIP THE ODDS IN YOUR FAVOUR IS HARD WORK AND NOT BEING AFRAID TO LOOK STUPID A FEW TIMES.
Bardan, Anything can have value if you attach yourself to it. Save the attachment for people and places.. If you ignore everything else, remember just this; see everything through the listener’s eyes before you see it through your own. AT LEAST MAKE THE EFFORT.
By the way, if you ever talk to some adult who comes off as knowing everything, there’s a good chance he’s more worried about his tomorrow than you are of yours. So keep up the spirit and continue your effort. One day you will become a great historian of our country. This is what my soul, my confidence on you and my heart says… Good Luck Bardan!!