Topic of the Month

I started this segment with the aim to get you all thinking about subjects of common interest, express opinion and get new perspectives. It's when we listen that we learn. 
The first prompt was an easy-peasy ice-breaker to get you all going. Four fellow Glow-worms share the interesting story behind their names. Notice how it tells us a lot about our culture and traditions. 
A quick note on how I got my name-Asha. 
'Asha' means wish, hope, desire. Being my parents' first born, I embodied all those virtues in their lives, they say. :-) 


Malini Tarakad Seshu (Grade 8)

Every person is filled with stories, of their lives or of others, of their imagination or something that caught their attention, maybe complicated or easy, and I’m writing this to share mine. This is a story of how I was given a part of my identity. 

My name is Malini Tarakad Seshu. 

I am a South Indian, and in our customs, first names are taken from grandparents and the last name is usually or often the name of the child’s father. I am one of many. The first son is named after his father’s father while the second is after his mother’s father. The same goes for daughters.  

I am the second daughter born into my family, and therefore, my name descends from the name of my maternal grandmother, Narayani.  

My parents wanted a name based upon the one of my maternal grandmother as well as having an alliteration with my older sister, Mythili. They also went through options like Malavika, which amuses me as now, I could not imagine it being my name. 

Narayani is one of the thousand names of the goddess Devi, as scribed in the prayer Lalitha Sahasranama Stotram, which translates into ‘The Thousand Names of Lalitha’, who is a manifestation of the goddess Devi. Malini is also one of the thousand names and is originally from the language Sanskrit. It translates to ‘a girl wearing a garland’, taken from the first part of the name Malini, which is माला (maala), meaning garland. 

I am from Tharekkad, an area in Palakkad - a district of Kerala. The place is the origin of my middle name, with a slightly tweaked spelling. 

My last name is directly taken from my father’s first name, Seshu. 

I am proud of my name and its uniqueness, and I am proud of my identity. 

Shubhangini Gupta (Grade 5)

All parents address their children with sweet , beautiful and meaningful names. Well, I am Shubhangini which means  "auspicious". I am blessed with an elder brother -Shubhanshu. When I asked my father the reason behind my name he answered that he wanted to co-relate my name with my brother's name. When I queried my mother, she said she wanted a name that referred to Goddess Durga. Thus they named me Shubhangini-a symbol of power who is worshipped, respected, loved and is auspicious for all. 

 Advaith Nair (Grade 8)

"Unique is being one of its kind". Advaith means ‘Unique’, and I am happy to have this name. As per  Hindhu mythology, Advaith is the other name for Lord Brahma and Vishnu. This name is of Sanskrit orgin, which also means dutiful and loyal. Lord Ganesha comes with so many varied names. My parents who are devotees of Lord Ganesha, wanted to name me with one of his names. They chose the name Advaith, which means someone Unique. 

Mythili Tarakad Seshu (Grade 10)

My name is Mythili. I’ve always been very particular over how people pronounce my name. Since we can’t talk face to face, let me explain the phonetics of it to you. It’s not Mee-thee-lee, however tempted you may be to say it that way. It’s not Mai-thee-lee either, for all you North Indians who spell and say it that way. It’s very simple actually, let me break it down for you.

My-thi-li.

My is pronounced the same as the ‘my’ in ‘my book’.

Thi is pronounced the same as the ‘the’ in ‘theme’.

Li is pronounced the same as the ‘lea’ in ‘leader’.

My-thi-li.

Mythili.

Well done.

Now that the pronunciation is out of the way, this seemingly random arrangement of syllables literally means ‘Princess of Mithila’. Yes, move over, I’m royalty. Although I’m very tempted to go to Mithila and claim my right to the throne, I’m afraid that they wouldn’t be very compelled to give it to me just on the basis of my name.

Jokes aside, I am named after my grandmother Seethalakshmi. All the mythology fanatics out there would have figured it out by now. Yes, my name is one of the many names of Seetha Devi, wife of Lord Rama.

Those who are scratching their heads in confusion, let me lay it down nice and easy for you. In Hindu mythology, there are two main tales, the Mahabharata, and the Ramayana. They chronicle the lives of two of the incarnations of Lord Vishnu: Lord Krishna and Lord Rama, respectively. In the Ramayana, Lord Rama’s wife is Seetha who is an incarnation of Goddess Lakshmi (Lord Vishnu’s consort).

In Hindu culture, the oldest female/male child is named after the father’s mother/father, while the younger children are named after the mother’s parents. And in Hindu families, this is quite symmetrical and balanced as parents usually choose to have two kids.

So that’s my name inside and out.