To cut the Gordian Knot:

Two nations, one language

It was the last sentence: ‘What is really happening today is that two languages in one country are gradually paving the way for resulting in two countries at the end.’ in S. Akurugoda’s (SA) excellent article ‘16A removed Sinhala as the country’s official language’ published in The Island 17.08.2020, which prompted me to write this piece; which has been in my mind for a number of years. If I had the discipline of my father, I would have written this as an essay if not a short story. If I had his genius, I would have written it in Sinhala with the appropriate socio-cultural relevance. Since I have neither, I will restrict myself to an anecdote.

The year was 1983 and I was travelling through parts of Europe on a fairly long leash with daily telephone call updates to my father, who was on a sabbatical in Belfast and to my mother who was reading for a MPhil in Reading. Ekrem, a Turkish girl (not part of the daily updates!) was a fellow traveller from Ankara, whom I met in a stay over in Antwerp. In conversation she happened to mention that her family came from Gordion. I admitted that the only thing I knew about Gordion was the narrative of Alexander and the cutting of the Gordian Knot. She smiled at me and asked if I was interested in the true story behind the historical legend.

Ekrem’ s family were direct descendants of Phrygia – the place where the famous Ox cart was tied. Her great great…. grandfather Cetin, had had the honor of actually seeing Alexander the Great cut the Gordian Knot.

Cetin was the newly appointed assistant to help the aging Chancellor who was responsible for looking after the Ox cart among his other onerous duties. Having worked with the Chancellor for a few months and gaining his trust, Cetin requested permission to have a go at unraveling the knot – permission was not granted to all and sundry – willy nilly. The Chancellor was happy enough to allow Cetin to have a go at it, saying he will be back soon enough, as they had to make preparations for Alexander the Great himself who was arriving the next day. What confronted the Chancellor on his return was a determined Cetin hacking away at the knot with his knife!

When the Chancellor opened his eyes he was lying on the ground with his head on a visibly anxious Cetin’ s lap, who was trying to administer to his master a few sips of water. Once recovered he (the Chancellor) looked around to confirm that they were alone in the chamber and instructed Cetin to close and bar the doors to the chamber. Examining the knot it was revealed that Cetin had only been able to cut one strand of the many interlaced strands that made the knot. Finally, when the Chancellor spoke to Cetin it was through a hiss of fury. ‘You imbecile! What gave you the idea to cut this knot? Did you not think that every other person could have done that as well? What do you think the boys who get their kites entangled in a knot do? What do you think the fishermen whose lines get caught in a knot do? You idiot, if this thing could be cut by anybody, where do you think the challenge was going to be? Having vented his anger long enough for it to subside, he reverted to the practicality of their predicament. What are we to do? What are we to tell Alexander the Great when he comes tomorrow? That the challenge has been taken care of by the village idiot who decided to cut the knot?

Cetin replied ‘my lord, I took the knife out as a final resort. This knot is not just one simple knot. There are many knots. It will take, above all patience and much time, to unravel this knot. I have seen many, seated for long hours in front of this knot and not making any progress. And as you can see the knot is still undone. There are many great qualities attributed to Alexander the Great, but patience is not one of them. I will conceal the strand that I have cut and none will be the wiser’.

Whether it was the stress of the coming day, old age, or ailing health, or a combination of all of these, one does not know, but the Chancellor slept his last night that night. It was therefore by default that Ekrem’ s great ancestor Cetin, had the honor of presenting the Gordian Knot to Alexander the Great. The legend is that Alexander the Great, the prince of Macedonia, who was tutored by no less a person than Aristotle till the age of 16, the man who had conquered half the known world by the time he was 30, grappled with the knot. In frustration he looked at Cetin. Cetin looked at Alexander and then looked at his sword. This he did, three times. The rest is history.

We as common folk have a tendency to be mesmerized and swayed by leaders, famous personalities etc… This should not be the case. In fact Buddha in his ‘Kalama Sutra’- which was one of the famous teaching points of the Late Prof. Carlo Fonseka – advocated for us to examine, dissect and analyze to discover the truth for ourselves. He said do not believe this because, I say this, because so and so says it etc…

This is exactly what has not happened, with this famous statement of Colvin R. De Silva. It has been taken as gospel. In fact he used the word nation. One language, two nations. One nation, two languages. Certainly a most beautiful piece of oratory; which has been used by both Sinhala and Tamil politicians to further their cause. But, think about it. What does it mean? What is the concept of a language? It is much more than a mere spoken word and a written script. It is the ‘soul’ of a nation. Two languages is in fact like splitting the soul of a nation. Language is the civilizational force that keeps the soul of the nation intact over centuries. The supplement of The Island on the same day that carried SA’s article was on Indonesia’s Independence Day. According to the supplement Indonesia has 330 ethnic groups, 580 local languages and dialects, but only one official language. Take India, a collection of states, but kept together by a common civilization-Hindutva, made possible by Hindi as the foundation.

The conclusion of SA is spot on. This is what would result from having two languages (official). It should be one language, one nation. X languages, X nations. It is time we see the reality for what it is, like Alexander the Great cutting the Gordian Knot.

Dr. SUMEDHA S. AMARASEKERA