For as long as I can remember, liars and thieves have been the two types of people I've despised most in the world. They deceive others for their own gain and nothing good can come of it, was the way I thought.
Living in Mumbai now, not a week has gone by when someone didn't tell me, 'be careful, you can't trust people.' I assumed they simply meant there are liars and thieves in India like everywhere else. I also assumed we had the same definition of a liar and a thief.
But it seems we don't. At least, not exactly.
India is complicated in the sense that there isn't ONE national identity...or language, or religion, or culture, which means no one actually thinks alike entirely. For the most part, the Catholic, Muslim, and Parsi Indians seem to have a similar conception of ethics as what we follow in the west...similar, though not exact, but I feel I can relate. The Hindu Indians, and its various sub-sects, have a totally different view of the world, how it work, what is right or wrong - and it completely throws my thinking paradigm on its head!
So this is what I struggle with daily. I want to understand, but none of it makes sense to me. It truly is the most FOREIGN thing I've ever encountered in my life.
There isn't really a sense of right or wrong, but rather the shame of being found out with inadequate means to an end. Or of creating a disturbance of some sort. Although money is valued, as in so many other cultures, how you get it or save it is of no ethical importance. Power is valued, so how you maintain it is of no matter. Hence the rampant corruption, everywhere.
I find myself astounded every time I open the papers and read another outrageous corruption story or university cheating scandal or wild fiasco. And even though the newspapers are shamelessly sensationalized, it's still amazing how much deception occurs on a regular basis. It makes one feel incredibly naive, and distrustful.
And yet, I've met so many lovely people - kind women on the train or in the street who have gone out of their way to share advice; taxi drivers who laugh about the traffic; Indian colleagues who have invited me to their homes, shared their sharp wit, and guided me in navigating Indian shops and bargaining. And of course the incredibly honest siblings who discovered and returned my iphone when it fell out of my bag in a rickshaw. There are wonderful people here...who keep telling me not to trust anyone! It's quite confusing.
It is definitely a reality check for me in many ways, and something I hadn't anticipated. The foundation of culture shock.
Living in Mumbai now, not a week has gone by when someone didn't tell me, 'be careful, you can't trust people.' I assumed they simply meant there are liars and thieves in India like everywhere else. I also assumed we had the same definition of a liar and a thief.
But it seems we don't. At least, not exactly.
India is complicated in the sense that there isn't ONE national identity...or language, or religion, or culture, which means no one actually thinks alike entirely. For the most part, the Catholic, Muslim, and Parsi Indians seem to have a similar conception of ethics as what we follow in the west...similar, though not exact, but I feel I can relate. The Hindu Indians, and its various sub-sects, have a totally different view of the world, how it work, what is right or wrong - and it completely throws my thinking paradigm on its head!
So this is what I struggle with daily. I want to understand, but none of it makes sense to me. It truly is the most FOREIGN thing I've ever encountered in my life.
If you find a wallet filled with money on the ground -that's your good karma. It's a reward for something you've done in a past life and it's yours to keep. Period.
I will tell you what I think you want to hear, even if it is untrue, in order to keep you happy because I can accumulate good karma in this life by not disturbing or upsetting others.
I find myself astounded every time I open the papers and read another outrageous corruption story or university cheating scandal or wild fiasco. And even though the newspapers are shamelessly sensationalized, it's still amazing how much deception occurs on a regular basis. It makes one feel incredibly naive, and distrustful.
And yet, I've met so many lovely people - kind women on the train or in the street who have gone out of their way to share advice; taxi drivers who laugh about the traffic; Indian colleagues who have invited me to their homes, shared their sharp wit, and guided me in navigating Indian shops and bargaining. And of course the incredibly honest siblings who discovered and returned my iphone when it fell out of my bag in a rickshaw. There are wonderful people here...who keep telling me not to trust anyone! It's quite confusing.
It is definitely a reality check for me in many ways, and something I hadn't anticipated. The foundation of culture shock.
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