CHENNAI: "My life mission is to learn Tamil and take it forward to other parts of our country", Governor RN Ravi, who recently completed two years in office in Tamil Nadu, told eminent Tamil personalities at the Raj Bhavan on Saturday.
In his 25-minute speech, Ravi turned emotional when he spoke about the glory of Tamil and its literature.
“I am still a toddler as far as Tamil and its rich literature are concerned. I have a long way to go. I have travelled and worked across the country and wondered how for 70 years I was ignorant of it.”
Ravi said he started learning Tamil because he wanted to enjoy the depth of the treasure of knowledge this language has. “I have not yet got an equivalent of the word ‘aram’ in any European language. By very nature, European languages cannot do justice to old Tamil literature. Even in Indian languages, perhaps the only language that comes close in antiquity to Tamil is Sanskrit. Other Indian languages are in the process of evolution,” he said.
This great wisdom and knowledge, he said, have not reached the other parts of the country. “We have a responsibility to take it across the country and the world. It has become my life’s mission to learn Tamil and take it forward to other parts of our country because our people should reap the benefits of this language and literature. They cannot be deprived of such a rich treasure we have here,” Ravi said.