Thomas Hitoshi Pruiksma

author, poet, teacher, and performer

How Does Wisdom Pass From One Generation to Another?

A Conversation with Thomas Hitoshi Pruiksma and Kasthuree Thiyakalingam

Thank you again for signing up for HOW DOES WISDOM PASS FROM ONE GENERATION TO ANOTHER? A Conversation with Thomas Hitoshi Pruiksma and Kasthuree Thiyakalingam. I was delighted to spend time with Kasthuree and with all of you.

You’ll find a recording of the webinar below, with a guide to key points and topics. As you’ll see, the Q&A ended up continuing informally even after the webinar officially ended!

A Small Request

I’m delighted for anyone and everyone who is interested in this topic to be able to watch the webinar.

If you’d like to share this video with your friends, please don’t share the link to this page. Instead, invite them to sign up for the recording themselves here: https://thomaspruiksma.com/generations

Thank you, and all good wishes!

Webinar Recording

A few highlights from the webinar and where in the video you can find them:

  • How the idea for the webinar came together 2:31
  • A wider context for the topic 5:14
  • Three insights from Thomas on how wisdom passes from generation to generation 9:33
  • Insight One: Specific contexts matter 9:48
  • Insight Two: The importance of cultivating enthusiasm 11:27
  • Insight Three: Courageous and vulnerable intercultural exploration benefits everyone 14:48
  • How Kasthuree’s journey to creating What You Missed In Tamil Class began? 19:28
  • Kasthuree on the trial and error aspect of the process 38:43
  • Insights from Kasthuree on how wisdom passes from generation to generation 44:52
  • Question about the use of software in exploring Tamil culture 51:22
  • Question from the chat: How to keep a connection to Tamil alive without immediate Tamil-speaking contexts 59:23
  • Question from the chat: How to respond to Tamil students speaking to each other in English 1:01:42
  • Question about following through on exploring topics connected to Tamil 1:04:24
  • Question about aspects of Tamil culture that seem questionable 1:09:39
  • Appreciation for Kasthuree and a story about connecting with an uncle over Avvaiyar 1:13:58
  • Story about speaking Tamil with a granddaughter 1:17:03

How the conversation continued even after the end of the webinar:

  • Comment from a Tamil-speaking English teacher on the lack of engagement with both languages 1:23:03
  • Question about lexical research on Thirukkural 1:26:46
  • Reflection from a Tamil teenager in Canada 1:29:29
  • Question about resources for self-study of Tamil 1:31:47
  • Suggestion for sharing Tamil quotes in non-Tamil contexts 1:33:56
  • A Thirukkural blog project 1:35:13
  • How children’s mindsets about Tamil are affected by their parents’ mindsets about Tamil 1:37:57
  • Reflection from a father and question about siblings speaking to each other in English 1:43:04
  • Reflection on Tamil culture being embodied in many ways beyond language 1:51:26

Additional Resources

Do take a look at What You Missed In Tamil Class: https://www.whatyoumissedintamilclass.io/

I highly recommend Kasthuree’s newsletter: https://www.whatyoumissedintamilclass.io/join-mailing-list

You can contact Kasthuree through What You Missed In Tamil Class:

The website for Voice of Valluvar: https://www.voiceofvalluvar.org/

The Thirukkural blog mentioned in the post-webinar conversation: https://dailyProjectThirukkural.Blogspot.com/