Of Hinduism and its influence on the West
I read in an Economist article that there is no word for “irony” in the Sanskrit language. Intrigued, I tweeted for help, and it arrived in the form of @Sajesh, who pointed out this essay to me, which, incidentally has been written by the person whose obituary is the first hyperlink.
Agreed, Sanskrit is one of the most oldest languages known to man, but not having a word for something is an attribute I would have accepted in the case of other languages. But the reasons for such an eventuality are pretty clear, when you go through aforementioned (brilliant, brilliant, brilliant) essay.
I wish I had come across this article while in school, it would have been so much fun discussing it with DP and the rest of the gang! I could sit down and read it more carefully, but there is really no time for such a pursuit. :(
