The Paradox We Refuse to Name
Everywhere you look in India, masks speak. The Kathakali dancer, the Ramleela actor, the bride with her turmeric glow, the sadhu with his ash-smeared face. None is accused of fakery. Their appearance is understood as sacred language.
And yet — in boardrooms, on Instagram, in daily life — when someone tends to their image, we sneer: fake, pretentious, show-off.
We forgot something our ancestors never doubted: appearance is not deception. It is devotion.
The Law of Alankaar
In Sanskrit, alankaar means adornment. But it also means revelation.
- In music, alankaar is not garnish — it is the grammar that makes a raga sing.
- In ritual, alankaar is not excess — it is the dressing of a deity to help us feel divinity.
- In life, alankaar is not vanity — it is the art of shaping presence so others can sense our essence.
To be unadorned is not always to be authentic. To be adorned well is not always to be false.
The Modern Indian Dilemma
We, the children of globalization, stand on a tightrope.
- One foot in tradition, carrying puja thalis and ancestral rituals.
- One foot in the digital bazaar, curating LinkedIn bios and Instagram grids.
We are told to be “real.” But what is real? Raw? Unprepared? Unfiltered?
Our ancestors knew better. A temple is never raw stone; it is carved. A raga is never raw noise; it is practiced. Even silence is not raw; it is disciplined.
Why should a human being be any different?
The Two Faces of the Mask
Let us be clear: everyone wears a mask.
- The CEO in his suit.
- The monk in saffron.
- The student in jeans.
The question is not whether you wear one. The question is why.
- To deceive? The mask corrupts.
- To reveal? The mask sanctifies.
Intention makes the mask sacred or profane.
V. Image as Dharma
In a noisy age, presence is not a luxury. It is dharma.
Think of Mahatma Gandhi. His khadi was not the absence of image — it was mastery of image. Every thread carried a message. Think of a temple priest. His clean dhoti is not vanity — it is respect for those who come seeking trust.
To refine your presence is not indulgence. It is a responsibility.
The image is not a surface. Image is a service.
VI. The Economics of Trust
In today’s marketplace, identity is currency.
Corporations spend crores on branding. Why should a human being treat their presence as an afterthought?
When people invest in you — with their money, their time, their attention — they are buying not just skill, but story. And the story is carried first through the image.
To treat the image as deception is to misunderstand wealth itself. Trust is the true capital. Image is how it circulates.
A Daily Ritual
Before sleep tonight, lay out tomorrow’s clothes with care. Not as fabric, but as an offering.
Ask quietly: Do these garments reveal who I truly am? Or do they disguise me?
When dawn comes, step into your attire as a performer steps into costume. Not to hide. To reveal. To carry your essence into the world with dignity.
The Manifesto Line
The sacred mask is not a lie.
It is a bridge.
Between self and society.
Between essence and economy.
Between the invisible and the seen.
To wear it with deception is corruption.
To wear it with devotion is grace.
This is not vanity.
This is dharma.