IT is that time of year when we rediscover ourselves through the prism of cultural tradition. For Pahela Baishakh is that particular occasion when we choose to leave the past, with all its lessons taken note of, behind us and look forward to the future, with all the possibilities it throws our way. Baishakh is, in a coruscating way, a time for us to renew ourselves through remembering our history and the roots of the heritage we have always upheld in our long journey through time.

As we step into the Bangla year 1420, let us recall all those men and women and all those moments that have made singular contributions to the culture we so proudly observe today as Bangalees. Our poets, our bauls, our political figures, indeed our ancestors across the landscape, have through sustained struggle and a devotion as rare as it is remarkable, brought us to the stage where we find ourselves today. In the natural ambience of our pastoral realities lie embedded all those hallmarks of tradition that have consistently renewed the appeal and permanence of our distinctive identity as a people before the councils of the world.

That identity speaks of the Bangalee combining within himself all the elements of timeless tradition and the call of modernity to give himself and his social surroundings more of the substantive he has been bringing into play down the years. The message of Pahela Baishakh is simple: the Bangalee cannot turn his back on his culture and indeed utilize this culture as a vehicle that will link him to concepts of modern living and thought. In other words, heritage is the baseline on which the Bangalee nation will deal with the call of modernity. The traditional Bangalee must also be a cosmopolitan Bangalee.

A clear, unequivocal message goes out to Bangladesh and its people on this first day of the Bangla New Year: let us come together, across our differences, across our prejudices, across our parochial politics, to reclaim our hold on history, to reach out to the heavens.

In a pluralistic society like ours we must be tolerant of and accommodative to differing and even dissenting views.

We wish our readers Shubho Nababarsha!