I am honoring my 3 cultures (🇮🇳 + 🇫🇷 + 🇺🇸) in my upcoming book
There is a debate raging now in France as to whether one can claim to be a “pure and real” French(wo)man while having a second citizenship or belonging to a second culture.
I believe what matters is not how many cultures you belong to.
For me, BELONGING to 1, 2, or 3 cultures is insignificant.
It doesn’t matter to me whether a person is mono-cultural or multi-cultural.
What really matters is this person CELEBRATES, VALORIZES (raises the value of), and above all CONTRIBUTES actively and consciously to 1, 2, or 3 culture(s) which they are part of.
This is the thought that crossed my mind as I was reading this week the proofs of my upcoming book The Frugal Economy, published by Wiley and Thinkers50.
I decided to use the Dedication page at the beginning of this book to pay homage to my 3 cultures: Indian, French, American.
The Dedication in my book features:
- a quote from Benjamin Franklin (famous American politician),
- a quote from Antoine Lavoisier (famous French scientist), and
- a Hindu mantra from the Isha Upanishad (Indian holy text)
Read below👇🏽these two quotes and the mantra.
India has enriched me spiritually,
France has enriched me intellectually,
America has enriched me professionally.
As I turn 54, I wanted to show my appreciation to these 3 cultures by highlighting them simultaneously at the beginning of my next book.
I hope readers will be inspired!
—
“The way to wealth is as plain as the way to market.
It depends chiefly on two words, industry and frugality:
that is, waste neither time nor money, but make the best use of both.
Without industry and frugality nothing will do; with them, everything.”
— Benjamin Franklin
“Nothing is lost, nothing is created, everything is transformed.”
— Antoine Lavoisier
oṃ
That is Infinite, this is infinite
this infinite arises from That Infinite
when this infinite is taken from or added to That Infinite
Infinite only remains
om peace peace peace
— Isha Upashinad / shlokam