Ehsaan, a favour
For a word seemingly positive, 'ehsaan' is seeped in negativity. “Do you think you are doing me a great ‘ehsaan’ by......”, is its most common use, followed closely by “you seem to have forgotten my ‘ehsaan’”. Of course, there is the third use too- “I will never forget this ‘ehsaan’ of yours”, but when it is uttered by a Bollywood actor, you can be sure that he will soon betray the person to whom he is indebted.
Personally, I do not believe in “ehsaan”. When you decide to help someone, it should be a conscious choice, not as a favour.
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There are words, and there are words. Some words can be easily translated, others need to be described. In April, I’ll attempt to capture the Soul of 26 'Indian' words in a drabble of exactly 100 words.
7 comments:
Natasha - Isn't it ironic that a word that's supposed to mean something positive - reaching out for each other and helping one another - can have such negative connotations. You've got a good point: we should help because we decide it is the right thing to do and we decide to help.
I'm really enjoying these posts, they're lovely. I guess a single word is worth 100 more.
Great point! Passive resistance is never a good thing. We should help because we truly want to.
Ehsaan faramosh is a complaint we get to see a lot nowadays. That the beauty of language modified with use , starting with something positive and ending as something else far removed.
This is really interesting. I'll be sure to check back to learn more!
Rayna, I may know a whole new language at the end of this challenge. I really enjoy your posts.
This is so fascinating. The idea of a positive word that usually has negative connotations appeals to my storytelling side. :) Makes me wonder what happened over the course of history that made it so.
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