Centuries ago, India was crowned as the ‘Golden Bird of the World’, with palaces, kingdoms, princes and provinces scattering all throughout the mainland, pregnant with world’s knowledge and wisdom. Wealth and prosperity flowed through the subcontinent, in all four directions. But as every good thing comes to an end, the Golden Bird was abused and killed by years of battles, oppression, devastation, and calamities and with this destruction, the seamless flow of knowledge also came to a halt. Knowledge and wisdom are two sides of the same coin and closely linked with the same is the importance of books. Earlier saints used to get the opportunity to attain this wisdom and then pass it on to their pupils and consequently, princes and other noblemen stood in the line of this wisdom. Years of deprivation, now, have also filtered out to whom this knowledge will be passed on- the haves or the have nots?
For generations, this fountain of knowledge had been ubiquitous to only a certain class of the Indian social milieu. This becomes a testament to a much wider socio-political and cultural consciousness of only the mighty and powerful having the key to knowledge and wisdom. Construction of libraries in houses to show the extent of one’s knowledge and by extension, one’s power and status is one of the most common examples to showcase one’s might.
One factor that needs to be shed a light upon, as far as source of knowledge is concerned, is the fact that the accessibility to education and the creation of books is also in the hands of only the powerful, rich, successful people. The urban society is much ahead than the rural and semi-urban areas as far as accessibility of books is concerned. The under-development of apt educational infrastructure in backward areas, is also to be considered in this regard. The casteism prevalent throughout ages has also cut through the realm of education where books and consequently, knowledge, easily turns a blind eye towards the low-caste people, curbing them of so many opportunities. Books in this regard, more than a symbol of wisdom, becomes a symbol of privilege. The question of how affordable the books are, is also one of the major factors that gives only the moneyed people the agency to nourish themselves intellectually. This disparity is a constant reminder of the economical stratification that runs in our society.
‘Rich people buy books’, therefore, not just becomes a statement to showcase how books have become tokens of cultural capitalism but also the desire to pass on wisdom across generations, also falls in the hands of a selected few who can not only buy books but also create them for their progeny, restricting the fountain of knowledge to only a certain bracket of the society; the fountain that should have flooded all of humanity.
Wordsmith by day, digital marketing guru by night, Aditi has been busy crafting compelling content and conquering the online world for over a decade now. She will tell your story in the most captivating way imaginable! 🚀✨
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